LG is showing a new OLED 3D panel for mobile devices. This is an autostereoscopy (glasses-free) panel with a 360x640 resolution in 2D and 360x320 in 3D.
AU Optronics is showing a 14" 3D (active-shutter) AMOLED TV with a full-HD (1920x1080) resolution in 3D or 2D mode. Back in October 2009, AUO showed 14" AMOLED prototypes, it's not clear whether the same display with 3D support, or is that an altogether new panel.
AUO is also showing OLED lighting panels. AUO's panel offer 50 lumens/watt efficiency and comes with an embedded high-efficiency green power drive. Last month we reported that AUO might be developing OLED Lighting panels, so it's good to see that this is true. Back in 2006, AUO was using Universal Display's PHOLED materials for AMOLED displays, but we do not know whether they are using them now for the lighting panels.
There are reports that LG plans to release the 31" OLED 3D TV in March 2011. The TV will cost around $9000... not cheap. LG's 15" EL9500 costs around $3000 - so the new TV will be about 1.5 times more expensive per inch. Then again, it's thinner, and supports 3D TV (which uses polarized glasses, not active-shutter ones).
Engadget's team loves the TV: "We promised ourselves it would just be a quick look ... three hours later we found ourselves still planted in the same spot, a small trickle of drool dripping all over our camera gear". They also say that the 3D images were "surprisingly sharp".
Last week we reported that LG is set to show a new 31" OLED TV at IFA 2010 (September 3rd). So now LG has released a photo and some information about it. So they will be showing a 31" OLED TV, but it's only a prototype, not a product yet. It will be just 0.29cm thick, support polarized 3D and have a 600Hz refresh rate.
We don't know if/when they plan to release this as a product. But we do know that LG's new 5.5-Gen plant is only scheduled for 2012, and LG estimates that OLEDs will be competitive with LCDs in 2014.
bNetTV has posted a short interview with Brian Berkeley (update: the video was removed from YouTube), Samsung's OLED R&D VP. He's not willing to actually say when OLED TVs should arrive, but he did say they are 'coming soon', and that Samsung "have their eyes set on the possibility of OLED TVs". Brian also says that OLEDs will be especially suited for 3D TVs - we've heard that before, of course, from Samsung and from Sony as well.
Samsung are still keen on OLED TVs, which will be the "dominant technology in next-generation TVs by 2015". They will be the ultimate active-shutter 3D TVs. Samsung has plans to use an Gen 8 (2200mm x 2500mm sheet size) production line for the OLED TVs. There's no date or real commitment yet, but this will hopefully happen within the next few years.
Samsung 14-inch 3D OLED prototype
There are still some technical issues to overcome. For their upcoming 5.5-Gen plant, SMD plans to introduce LTPS TFTs using conventional excimer laser annealing (ELA). TFTs formed with this technology often exhibit variation in characteristics, and this method might prove difficult in larger line. SMD is also working on other technologies: improved ELA technology, sequential lateral solidification (SLS) and super grain silicon (SGS). The company is also developing oxide semiconductor TFTs.
Sony's VP of solutions engineering in the US Pete Ludé says that 3D TV could become an important market for OLED displays. Sony says that while LED LCD 3D TV are effective, but only if the resolution and refresh rate is not too high. Active-Shutter 3D needs double the refresh rate (because it alternates between the two eyes), so 120fps needs a 240Hz TV - or higher. At these rates, OLEDs are easier to use. OLED displays also offer less crossover between the stereo images.
Sony 24.5-inch 3D OLED prototype
Sony are looking into OLEDs, and are still enthusiastic about the technology, but are not yet committed to OLEDs as the technology of choice for long-term 3D displays. In CES 2010, Sony has demoed a 24.5" 3D OLED prototype (shown above).
The Fraunhofer-IPMS has released some new brochures about their various OLED projects. Check out these brochure (attached below this post) for technical details about the various OLED panels, future application ideas and more.
The first project is the HYPOLED project (High-Performance OLED-Microdisplays for Mobile Multimedia HMD and Projection Applications) - working towards VGA color OLED microdisplays for HMD (Head-Mounted-Displays) and pico-projectors. The HYPOLED project also developed a "MediaBox" for HMDs.
Germany's Sterrix Technologies has filed a family of patents for a new OLED based 3D auto stereoscopic (no glasses) display. The resolution of this display will be 100 times higher than HD images, which can be used to create more than 100 perspective at the same time - allowing for smooth 3D images from any viewing angle and any distance. The display has over 1000 cores (inline processors), needed to create those perspectives.
This display uses a new pixel structure which on one hand consists of colored pixels, and on the other hand consists of pixels, which are adapted to the anatomy of the human eye by presenting additional image information. Through those pixels it’s easier for the human brain to internally generate the spatial image, which makes it more relaxing viewing 3D images and videos on the display.
