SBIR Phase I: vueDEW : Bi-stable, Electrowetting Display Technology

这项小型企业创新研究第一阶段项目将展示一项技术的可行性，该技术的成功将导致新型、超低功耗、反射式显示器，这将是电视、计算机和移动的设备中平板液晶显示器的环保替代品。该提议的简单而巧妙的概念将现有的电润湿显示器从必须在“开”状态下消耗功率转变为在“开”或“关”状态下不消耗功率。彩色的油和水层夹在两个电润湿表面之间。一个表面被亲水屏障细分为子像素。当光吸收油层覆盖整个像素时，会出现稳定的“OFF”状态。当该表面通过电润湿变得亲水时，油珠向上，接触另一个表面并在那里过渡。在另一个表面上，油被限制在覆盖总像素的25%或更少的单个子像素中，从而形成75%的透射、稳定的“开”状态。这种简单但高度创新的专利申请中的布置应导致反射式显示器，该反射式显示器在“开”或“关”状态下具有10毫秒的切换速度、100%的颜色转换、阳光下的可读性和零功耗。如果成功，这种类型的电润湿反射显示器有可能影响每年1000亿美元的显示器市场的几个重要方面。它们预测的高反射率，环境光可读性，低成本材料的使用和超低功耗使它们可能非常适合电子墨水应用，例如快速增长的电子货架标签市场，预计到2012年将增长到约10亿美元。其他预期的性能优势，如10毫秒的预期开关速度，低开关功率，100%的颜色转换和阳光下的可读性，使它们成为竞争者，以取代液晶显示器在200亿美元的移动的显示市场。该显示器可用于便携式计算机，有助于提供更可负担的、更环保的便携式计算机的可能的更广泛的社会效益。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will demonstrate the feasibility of a technology whose success will result in novel, ultra-low power, reflective displays that will be an environmentally friendly replacement for flat screen LCD displays in TVs, computers and mobile devices. The simple, yet ingenious, concept of this proposal transforms existing electrowetting displays from having to consume power in an 'ON' state, to consuming no power in either the 'ON' or an 'OFF' state. Layers of colored oil and water are sandwiched between two electrowetting surfaces. One surface is subdivided by hydrophilic barriers into sub-pixels. A stable 'OFF' state occurs when the light-absorbing oil layer covers the entire pixel. When that surface is made hydrophilic by electrowetting, the oil beads up, touches the other surface and transitions there. On that other surface the oil is confined to a single sub-pixel covering 25% or less of the total pixel, creating a 75% transmitting, stable 'ON' state. This simple, yet highly innovative, patent pending arrangement should result in reflective displays that 10 msec switching speed, 100% color conversion, sun light readability, and zero power consumption in either the 'on' or 'off' state. If successful this type of electrowetting reflective displays have the potential to impact several important facets of the $100 billion a year display market. Their predicted high reflectivity, ambient light readability, use of low cost materials and ultra-low power consumption make them potentially very well suited to e-ink applications such as the rapidly growing electronic shelf label market that is forecast to grow to about $1 billion by 2012. Other anticipated performance advantages, such as the 10msec anticipated switching speed, low switching power, 100% color conversion and sun light readability, make them contenders to replace LCD displays in the $20 billion mobile display market. The displays may find use in portable computers, helping provide the possible broader social benefits of more affordable, and more environmentally friendly, portable computers.