We’ve seen the beginning of flexible screen tech with phones like the G Flex and TV’s which can bend from flat to curved cinema displays. Now LG is showing off the next phase of OLED tech.
LG Display showed off two new 18″ screen panels. One panel improves on the bending by being almost completely roll-able. The 1200×800 resolution screen can be twisted into a 3cm thick tube without affecting the panel’s performance.
The other 18″ panel uses their new transparent pixel technology for a see-through screen. Perfect for all kinds of applications, I saw a similar display at CES being used as an interactive vending machine, but many consumer electronics like microwaves or refrigerators could benefit. Eventually we might even see this kind of tech show up in automobiles providing heads up display capabilities. It’s exciting to see where it could lead.
Full LG Display PR below.
LG Display Unveils 18-inch Flexible and Transparent OLED Panels
Seoul, Korea (July 10, 2014) – LG Display, the world’s leading innovator of display technologies, announced today that it has developed a 18-inch flexible OLED panel that is rollable as well as a 18-inch transparent OLED panel. With these new panels, LG Display shows that it has already acquired fundamental technologies to lead the large-sized flexible and transparent display market.
The flexible OLED panel has a high-definition class resolution of 1200 X 810 with almost 1 million mega-pixels. The panel’s curvature radius is 30R. The panel can be rolled up to a radius of 3cm without affecting the function of the display. This proves that LG Display can bring rollable TVs of more than 50 inches to the market in the future.
LG Display used high molecular substance-based polyimide film as the backplane of the flexible panel instead of conventional plastic to achieve the maximum curvature radius. The polyimide film also helped reduce the thickness of the panel to significantly improve its flexibility.
As for the transparent OLED panel, it boasts 30 percent transmittance, which was achieved by adopting the company’s transparent pixel design technology. LG Display has successfully lowered the haze of the panel which is generated by using circuit devices and film components to a level of 2 percent. With this breakthrough development, the company has been able to improve greatly the technology level of the transparent display. Considering that the transmittance of existing transparent LCD panels is around 10 percent, this new panel offers significantly improved transmittance.
“LG Display pioneered the OLED TV market and is now leading the next-generation applied OLED technology. We are confident that by 2017, we will successfully develop an Ultra HD flexible and transparent OLED panel of more than 60 inches, which will have transmittance of more than 40 percent and a curvature radius of 100R, thereby leading the future display market.” said In-Byung Kang, Senior Vice President and Head of the R&D Center at LG Display.