August 2020

Taiwan-based display maker Innolux has unveiled a new 55" rollable mini-LED display prototype. This is an emissive mini-LED display, it is not a mini-LED backlit LCD display:

Innolux did not disclose any specifications on this display (not even the resolution), but it did say that the display use a flexible PCB and features "high curvature, high brightness, high contrast, high saturation and high definition dynamic picture".

According to reports from Japan's Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun, Sharp is developing MicroLED microdisplays, with an aim to mass produce such panels in 2023 or 2024 for AR and VR applications.

Sharp apparently already developed two prototypes, including a 0.38" 1053 PPI color one and a 0.13" 3000 PPI blue display. The color display uses blue microLEDs with Sharp's own proprietary color conversion QD technology.

The display industry's top conference, SID DisplayWeek 2020 took place last week - and for the first time ever it was a virtual event. It turned out to be a successful event which is great news. In this post we list our SID MicroLED articles, in addition to the main OLED display coverage from SID this year:

• PlayNitride launches new microLED displays
• RiT Display shows a microLED wearable display prototype
• AUO shows its automotive and flexible microLED displays
• Kyocera and OSRAM suggest hybrid PWM-current driving for microLED displays
• GE shows it is possible to inkjet print its red phosphor on plastic substrates
• BOE details its 12.3 rollable OLED prototype
• BOE shows its 55" 8K inkjet-printed OLED TV prototype
• BOE demonstrates new OLEDs for monitors and laptops
• Visionox demonstrates its latest OLED technologies
• Samsung Display developed a 18.2" 350 nits ink-jet printed OLED panel
• LG Display showcases a 0.42" 1280x720 OLED microdisplay

MicroLED-Info is proud to announce a new market report, focused on MicroLED and OLED Microdisplays. This market report provides a great introduction to both MicroLED and OLED microdisplays, and covers everything you need to know about next-generation microdisplays. This is a great guide if you're considering to adopt microdisplays in your product and if you want to understand this industry better.

This market report covers everything you need to know about next-generation microdisplays. This is a great guide if you're considering to adopt microdisplays in your product and if you want to understand this industry better.

Kyocera and OSRAM have jointly designed a new hybrid current and PWM driving technology for microLED displays. The two companies says that this new driving scheme can be used to avoid using lower pixel currents through microLED chips, which reduces the deviation of the luminance and the color shift at lower grayscale levels.

Kyocera has presented a 3.9" full-color microLED display on an LTPS backplane that showed excellent performances that proves the validity of the new driving technology.

Digitimes reports that Epistar's chairman, Lee Biing-jye says that he estimates that the first volume application for microLED displays is going to be in the smartwatch industry - but that will still take 3-4 years to actually materialize. Volume adoption in the TV market will take at least 4-5 years.

Epistar is developing microLED epitaxy and chip technology (in collaboration with AUO) and still has challenges to overcome, mainly in the mass transfer area. The company expects to achieve reliable production capabilities within 2-3 years. Epistar needs also to improve the yield rates for microLED epitaxy and reduce costs for mass transfer processes.

AU Optronics released this nice video that shows its latest microLED display prototypes. First up is the company's 12.1" automotive display. This one features a 1920x720 (169 PPI) resolution, and is made on an LTPS backplane. This display was shown first in 2018.

The second display in the video is the flexible microLED developed in collaboration with PlayNitride. This is a 9.4" 228 PPI display, again driven by an LTPS backplane.

In December 2019 Taiwan-based PMOLED display maker RiTDisplay announced that it plans to launch its first MicroLED displays in 2020. Last week during SID Displayweek 2020 the company demonstrated its first prototype, as can be seen in the video below.

The company did not reveal any technical specifications or discuss any commercialization plans.

Digitimes reports that Touch screen IC designer Elan Microelectronics has formed a strategic alliance with LED driver IC developer Macroblock, to develop solutions for micro-LED and mini-LED displays.

As part of the alliance, Elan acquired a 7.87% stake in Macroblock. Elan's president says that the new alliance will focus on driver and touch controller ICs for microLED displays in wearable products, and miniLED drivers and TDDI ICs.

PlayNitride introduced several new display technologies at SID DisplayWeek 2020. First up we have the PixeLED Matrix, which is a tiled microLED display module based display, each produced on its own PCB.

Each PixeLED module is made from 16 pixels (4X4), and can reach pitches of 0.3-0.4 mm. PlayNitride says that this technology can compete with mini LED displays, and says that it achieves a superior contrast and can also be fitted on curved surfaces. PixeLED displays can be used for TV displays, for commercial signage displays and also for automotive lighting. The display can currently achieve a maximum brightness of 2,000 nits.