A new category of devices – the stretchables – may soon be upon us, as after writing about Murata stretchable PCBs for medical applications a few days ago, I’ve now come across LG’s latest stretchable display that can be extended from its original 12-inch size up to 18 inches.
It’s the second stretchable display showcased by the Korean company, as the first prototype was unveiled in 2022 with an elongation rate of just 20%. The new display extends that to 50% and delivers a high resolution of 100ppi (pixels per inch) and full red, green, and blue (RGB) color (probably at its original size).
LG Display further explains that their engineers have applied a number of new technologies “such as improving the properties of a special silicon material substrate used in contact lenses and developing a new wiring design structure to improve the panel’s stretchability and flexibility”. Durability was also enhanced by using a micro-LED light source of up to 40μm enabling the display to be repeatedly twisted and stretched over 10,000 times.
Such stretchable displays could be found on irregularly curved surfaces like clothing and skin, and the company expects it to be integrated into various products in the fashion, wearables, and mobility/automotive sectors. The company showcased several concepts for the stretchable display including an automotive touchscreen panel that stretches out into a convex shape and a wearable display attached to firefighters’ uniforms that provides real-time information.
The company did not share many other technical details and it’s unclear when the new stretchable display will become available. All we have is a press release. I tried finding a few demos of the new 12-inch display, but all I could find was a 2-month-old video showing the first display prototype (that stretches by up to 20%) on clothing and bags at Seoul Fashion Week.
Via Liliputing
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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If they make it stupidly cheap, it would be easy to treat it harshly. If it weighs less than other display technologies, then maybe it would be nice to have a really large one. Like putting a map on a table.
Silicon and skin. That hasn’t always worked out well.
But I’m sure that there will be some more practical applications that this will be useful for.