|
|
Kodak demos underwater flexible OLEDs
Author: Gareth HalfacreePublished: 3rd September 2009
Kodak's flexible, waterproof, glowing fish-impersonating OLED display has clearly wowed Town Playmobil.
That's exactly what the boffins at Kodak have been working on, opening the door for rain-resistant gadgets and an e-book reader you'll feel comfortable using in the bath. As shown over on Maximum PC, the demonstration shows the curvable display submerged in a jar of water - and held in place by clips with what appear to be hippopotamuses on them, because Kodak engineers are just that awesome - with giant, glowing fish entertaining a small crowd of Playmobil figures - again, because Kodak engineers are awesome.
While the technology is currently limited to a single colour - although in a variety of brightnesses, giving the impression of differing shades for more detailed images - the company believes that its robust technology could solve many of the issues that plague OLED use outdoors, such as its apparent sensitivity to moisture. Whether this will actually lead to more rugged portable devices or just annoying animated advertising remains to be seen, although Kodak believes that the glowing screen could "have broad applications in the lighting industry."
While the world might not be quite ready for a giant, eerily glowing representation of a fish in their nearest body of water, it's certainly interesting to see continued innovation in the field of OLED displays. With Sony having already started work on flexible screens - and, we are assured, not purely to make a joke about squeezing Beyonce - Kodak's ruggedisation process could well be the next step into making a truly portable device that can be used and stored pretty much anywhere.
Can you think of uses for a flexible OLED display that operates underwater, or do you just want a gadget that you don't have to hide every time it rains? Share your thoughts over in the forums.
Related
Comments (8)- Site Links:
- About
- Email Editor
- Newsletter
- Privacy
- RSS
- Score Guide
- Our Other Websites:
- Auto Express
- Channel Pro
- Computer Buyer
- Computer Shopper
- Den of Geek
All content © bit-tech.net 2000-2010
© Copyright Dennis Publishing Limited licensed by Felden
Hell yes. Digital temp display sitting inside a res.
Pretty cool tech, still whenever I see something that is kind of useless other than for the sake of making it. I always feel that effort could have been put in elsewhere.
I didn't knew there were still playmobils arround....
OOooo, and nice display too :D
free tattoo removal cream before and after lazer prices this is the blog for tattoo removal cream prices and cost. the best cream to pruchase free tattoo removal cream before and after lazer prices
We are really excited to be working on flexible OLED tecnhology. We can envision a future with so many unique applications. One of the key challenges to bringing flexible OLEDs to the market is encapsulation, to prevent moisture damage. Kodak's OLED R&D team is developing new encapsulation technology to work with flexible OLED's. While we are not specifically investigating or targeting any underwater applications at this time, the team thought it would be interesting (and fun) to conduct our "Fish Tank" test.
Oh, and before I forget - these displays are capable of many colors and even full-color video. This was just an early effort and green is relatively simple to make :) Stay tuned for more developments at www.kodak.com/go/display and http://michelericks.pluggedin.kodak.com/rss.asp?id=DC7F07BA-A91E-408A-B9C3-CF63CC4D865C.