fantastic plastic

E Ink and Toppan Printing (supplier of LCD colour filters) have announced a full colour electronic ink display, that

achieves 12-bit color in a 400×300 pixel format with resolution of 83 pixels per inch, using a custom color filter from strategic partner Toppan. The color filter design has a high-brightness layout (RGBW) that preserves the paper-like whiteness of the background page while enabling deep blacks for text and a range of colors and tones for images. A smart algorithm uses color sub-pixels to smooth black and white text, for enhanced legibility equivalent to a printer. The display diagonal is 6 inches, similar to a paperback book in size. […]
Mass production of color electronic paper displays is expected to start at the end of 2006, with future plans for flexible versions.

According to a press release

Plastic Logic […] has entered into a Joint Development Agreement with NTT DoCoMo, the leading mobile communications operator in Japan, to develop flexible active-matrix displays for future mobile device applications.

The New Scientist is reporting on flexible electrochromic displays developed by Siemens:

The display consists of a layer of electrochromic material sandwiched between two electrode layers. The material changes from one colour to another when stimulated by an electric current. The top electrode layer is made from transparent plastic, so the display can be seen clearly through it.
The electrochromic mixture used by Siemens, which enables the screen to work so rapidly, has not been disclosed, but commonly used electrochromic substances include conductive polymers such as polyaniline. […]
The display is controlled by a printed circuit and can be powered by a very thin printable battery or a photovoltaic cell. The goal is to be able to create the entire device – the display and its power source - using the same printing method, so that manufacturing costs would be as low as possible. Siemens expects to achieve this by 2007.

Orgatronics in Eindhoven (NL) is a joint venture of TNO, OTB Group, and the Dutch Polymer Institute (DPI). A key part of their facilities is the Orgatron,

an advanced research and development line based on OTB’s inline production system allowing easy transfer from R&D to full production of Organic electronics and OLED’s. The Orgaton uses advanced inkjet printing, vacuum deposition and thin film encapsulation processes. The Orgatron is able to handle substrates up to 14” square […].

See the pdf brochure or opening day speech for more infos.

AU Optronics Eyeing the Growing Handset Market:

Its no secret that the Shadow Masking Process, widely used today, for OLED production has its resolution limitations. The highest resolution achieved by the process is around 170ppi. AUO has overcome this industry hurdle and revolutionized a pixel design that progresses the resolution of OLED to reach VGA grade standards (640 RGB x 480). AUO will debut this latest technology in its 3″ VGA AMOLED prototype with resolution as high as 270 ppi (pixel per inch), bringing OLED resolutions to new level highs. […] Dr. JJ Lih, Director of OLED Division at AUO noted, ” Our revolutionary design has been a breakthrough in dramatically improving resolution levels, without having to increase costs. [We]’ve also managed at the same time to maintain contrast ratio to >10,000:1 and fast response time <1ms.