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Polymer Vision Produces 5" Rollable Displays

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the interesting-techology dept.

drquizas writes "Polymer Vision (associated with Philips) has produced a rollable display using organic electronic techniques. The display, currently measuring 5" diagonal and capable of displaying QVGA at 320x240, will eventually be targeted towards applications such as military uses (maps anyone?), newspapers and e-books."

22 of 283 comments (clear)

  1. important factoid, by way2trivial · · Score: 1, Insightful
    for the momment, it's monochrome.. still, a million a year-

    I for one look forward to rolling up my new overlords.

    --
    every day http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
    1. Re:important factoid, by kinnell · · Score: 5, Insightful
      for the momment, it's monochrome

      Much like many newspapers. And we know how poor they are at displaying information.

      --
      If I seem short sighted, it is because I stand on the shoulders of midgets
    2. Re:important factoid, by FosterSJC · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Actually, the production line they have built can only produce 5000 units per year. As they say, this is more than research, but less than commercial production. Also, this unit only produces black, white, and 4 types of gray. So don't expect to be able to take your pr0n with you on the road just yet in electric, rollable form.

  2. I'm looking forward to my big-screen windowshades by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

    That would be quite truly excellent.

  3. Military maps? Why? by WIAKywbfatw · · Score: 5, Insightful

    At least if you've got the paper kind you don't have to worry about it crashing, breaking, running out of power, etc. And with the paper kind, you can easily mark way points, targets, etc in seconds - doing that with a software-based system won't be half as fast.

    I can't imagine a field commander taking along one of these without wanting a paper map as a backup. The last thing you want to do in a combat zone is be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

    --

    "Accept that some days you are the pigeon, and some days you are the statue." - David Brent, Wernham Hogg
    1. Re:Military maps? Why? by Docrates · · Score: 3, Insightful

      how about real time placement of military resources, GIS info by clicking on a building, status and other info by clicking on troop, tanks, etc. (asuming they can pair this up with touch screen functionality which I'm guessing they can).

      --

      There are two kinds of people in the world: Those with good memory.
    2. Re:Military maps? Why? by FrostedWheat · · Score: 5, Insightful

      "A computer with a bullet hole is a paper weight, but a map with a bullet hole is still a map."

      I read that on Slashdot ages ago, sorry don't remember who said it!

    3. Re:Military maps? Why? by etn991 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I agree having a paper map is still very important as a backup. However, having a digital map would allow the soldier/field commander to be able to have several map resolutions easily and quickly available. Also update-able with current friendly positions to avoid friendly-fire kills.

      Actually, marking things on paper maps is a perfectly good way to give information to the enemy in the event of capture. So an electronic map with either biometric (fingerprint) scanning for access or an 'erase me I've been captured' button would be an improvement in that area as well.

    4. Re:Military maps? Why? by kfg · · Score: 5, Insightful

      One of the major complaints of the troops in Iraq is battery life. Everything has batteries in it. Even the helmets have battery packs.

      GPS was a necessary tool in the dessert. The land is kinda flat and sand colored. All of it. There are no reference points and navigating on land becomes equivilent to navigating at sea. The "map" is a sand colored chart you can plot your points on, not so much a reference you can use to get from one place to another.

      They loved laptops, but only because they could power them from a vehicle. They were issued PDAs but found them fairly useless because the battery life was too short in the field.

      It's the new, high tech army, sponsored by Duracell and the Energizer Bunny.

      There are some obvious advantages to this display. Of course it's light, it uses little power, in some respects it can be used as a chart. You can mark it. It doesn't physically break anymore than a plastic placemat breaks. It's water proof. So long as it get data the single display can be any map the data source has access to so you don't need to be lugging around huge stacks of charts.

      But the biggest thing that negates some of the advantages this display has is that it is inherently static state. That is to say it only needs to be powered to change the display. Not only does that mean very little power drain in use, it means once an image is displayed it can be completely disconected from the power and any other device and the image remains.

      That's pretty frickin' cool.

      I'm already planning (I've already read about this thing) to use a screen like this for the electronic navigation system of a new boat. Take a GPS reading, or display a bit of chart, turn it off and the reading/chart remains. One brief flash of power than off again.

      On the other hand if you think I'm going bluewater without a chronometer and sextant you're nuts. I always expect electronic gear to fail about the second day out. I'm often right.

      KFG

    5. Re:Military maps? Why? by aliens · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I want my compass and a map

      And lots of air support, laser weapons, and Mech suits.

      You left a bit off your list, just filling it in.

      --
      -- taking over the world, we are.
    6. Re:Military maps? Why? by ranger5 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      "The last thing you want to do in a combat zone is be in the wrong place at the wrong time." True. Which begins the argument for the digital map. The modern battlefield is fluid, unlike the more organized "Cross this straight line here..." battlefields pre-Korea. With the advent of mechanized units moving at 20-40 mph average, Airborne and Air Assault troops that can drop virtually anywhere on the map, reliable maps are ever more vital. Because of the speed at which the lines can change and flow, the military, especially Force 21 (4th ID) and some of the more elite units, are experimenting with technologies that allow real-time data to be sent immediately to troops on the ground. ("We can't go that way now, the Air Force took out that bridge 3 minutes ago.") Right now, map updates (overlays) are handled usually by an RTO (radio operator), and/or by officers, either on the fly via radio or at scheduled command and staff meetings, sometimes nightly. Real-time data allows more freedom of movement, a better chance of avoiding friendly fire, and a better chance to more swiftly destroy the enemy (primary mission). In addition, the more accurate information a battlefield commander has, the better their decisions can be. Don't get me wrong, there are inherent problems with building a network that could support this type of technology, including but not limited to: Cost, training of troops, security, transmitting and receiving data from remote locations, etc. But understand, most of these problems already exist and have been surmounted or dealt with appropriately with current radio (SINCGARS) technology.

    7. Re:Military maps? Why? by iamhassi · · Score: 3, Insightful
      "But the biggest thing that negates some of the advantages this display has is that it is inherently static state. That is to say it only needs to be powered to change the display. Not only does that mean very little power drain in use, it means once an image is displayed it can be completely disconected from the power and any other device and the image remains."

      Honestly I think that's the major feature. Rolling up a display is nice and all, but the fact that the display will remain without power is incredible.

      Imagine how long a PDA battery would last if you only used it a few seconds a day, but yet those few seconds allowed you to read for several hours? That's revolutionary.

      We complain that batteries aren't keeping up with technology, but finally there's a technology that will significantly increase battery life.

      I wonder if this could bring back electronic book readers? They were rather heavy (1.5 lbs) mostly due to requiring a large number batteries to keep it powered for an extended period of time.

      And I'd love to have all my textbooks on one device, even if it cost $500+ that'd be cheap considering a single book is $100+ and you need one for every class.

      So keep the flexibility, I'd rather have a static display.

      --
      my karma will be here long after I'm gone
    8. Re:Military maps? Why? by thogard · · Score: 3, Insightful

      A computer with a bullet hole is a paper weight, but a map with a bullet hole is still a map.
      No a computer with a bullet in it that has been left behind is a potential assest for the other sides intelligence so its worse than a paperweight.

  4. The only thing that worries me is SPAM by 10101001011 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    That is all I need, being able to check the latest newspaper only to find SPAM and ads. I've seen it happen to the Internet in general, to AVantGo, even to MobiPocket (thankfully not as much). I do truly hope this works out as it seems like it would be pretty cool. I'm thinking those REWARD FOR LOST DOG posters could be VERY interesting ;)

  5. portability by theMerovingian · · Score: 4, Insightful


    This is pretty cool, but the picture that shows up on the display has to be generated from some data source or CPU-carrying device. If you plug in your rollable display to a laptop/PDA, it isn't nearly as cool.

    Alternatively, the screen could just store one image permanently. In which case it would be just expensive, unreliable paper.

    That being said, I am all for the technology. When they can make a transparent sticker that can be turned on as a TV/monitor, I would buy one. Forget flatscreen, your TV would just be a sheet of glass on a stand. That would be cool.

    --
    "If you think you have things under control, you're not going fast enough." --Mario Andretti
  6. Wallpaper by Tarwn · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I could swear I saw an article on a similar product recently, but the company was working on both rollable displays and paint on screens to use as customizeable wall paper (hmm...I'm in a mauve flower mood today...). trying to find the link but it was a few weeks ago and it was one of those middle-of-the-night, can't-sleep, random walks through the internet.

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    Whee signature.
  7. 2cm bend radius != "roll up into pen" by wowbagger · · Score: 3, Insightful

    A 2cm bend radius means that rolled up, this display will form a tube 4cm wide. This is NOT "roll-up into a pen", this is more "roll up into a scrollcase".

    To put in another way: this is a 5 inch diagonal display - say 3x4 inches - that rolls up into a 2 inch wide tube. <sarcasm>Yes, that is a HUGE improvement.</sarcasm>

    WHEN they get this to have a 1mm bending radius I'll get really excited. Until then this isn't all that great, although I suppose a 2 inch diameter by 3 inch long tube diameter tube full of battery and electronics, with a pull-out display might be somewhat useful.

    --
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  8. Earth Final Conflict: Phone by Midnight+Thunder · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I don't why, but I kind of imagine the phone from Earth Final Conflict in my head when I read this. Take a little G3 technology, built in cameras and these roll up screens and I think we have everything we need to build a working version.

    --
    Jumpstart the tartan drive.
  9. Re:Use by timeOday · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Forget rolling it up, the question is whether you can sit on it without cracking it in half like an LCD.

  10. Re:This could end up being a MAJOR problem... by Jerf · · Score: 3, Insightful

    As cheap as paper is, as cheap as this "digital paper" could even hope to be, it's nothing compared to how cheap streaming bytes are.

    Even if buying a newspaper-thick sheaf of this stuff becomes as cheap as newspaper is now, I assure you the economy would rapidly adapt to re-use paper as often as possible.

    Babble about the disposability is more to emphasize how cheap they want to make this, then a true "commitment" to disposing of these things. Economically, we're all going to want to buy as little of this stuff as possible. "Disposing" of this is a pipe dream on the order of flying cars and jetpacks; technically feasible, grossly uneconomical.

    That's not to say that this may not have some impact... but you need not worry about a 1-to-1 replacement of normal paper to digital paper in the landfills. It is quite likely that after a couple of iterations, with "paper" that works for years, that it would cut enough into paper waste to make it an environmental gain.

  11. My map is broke by heyitsme · · Score: 2, Insightful

    The display, currently measuring 5" diagonal and capable of displaying QVGA at 320x240, will eventually be targeted towards applications such as military uses (maps anyone?)

    A paper map with a bullet hole in it is still a map. You cannot say the same about an electronic device

  12. In a pen? by Paisley+Phrog · · Score: 2, Insightful

    ...could be rolled up inside a pen...
    ...a bending radius of 2 cm.

    That's a damn big pen.