The biggest epaper of the world

A brief review of some epaper landmarks:

Via The Financial Express

Though electronic paper was first developed in the 1970s (called Gyricon) it was only in 2004 when Sony announced the LIBRIe that the first commercially available electronic paper device was made available. Here users can download and store 500 books of about 250 pages each to the Librie e-book reader, which is similar in size and design to a paperback. The cost of the device, sold only in Japan, is approximately $370.

In March 2005 at EXPO 2005 Aichi (Tokyo) Toppan Printing Co exhibited a large-scale wall-sized newspaper utilising E Ink Electronic Paper. This large wall-size newspaper is built from 272 individual electronic paper tiles, which is a combination of an E Ink Imaging Film laminated onto a printed circuit board with pixel electrodes. The result is an electronic paper newspaper approximately 2.2 meters high and 2.6 meters wide, the worlds largest of its kind. In May 2005, Fujitsu showcased its jointly developed electronic paper at the Tokyo International Forum. Its the world’s first film substrate-based bendable colour electronic paper with an image memory function. The new e-paper features vivid colour images that are unaffected even when the screen is bent, and features an image memory function that enables continuous display of the same image without the need for electricity.

The thin and flexible e-paper uses very low power to change screen images, thereby making it ideal for displaying information or advertisements in public areas. Fujitsu’s new technology significantly conserves energy by consuming only one one-hundredth to one ten-thousandth the energy of conventional display technologies. In October 2005, LG Philips LCD using E Ink produced a 10.1” flexible electronic paper display. Less than 300 microns thick, the paper- white display is as thin and flexible as construction paper. With a 10.1” diagonal, the prototype achieves SVGA (600x800) resolution at 100 pixels per inch and has a 10:1 contrast ratio with 4 levels of grayscale.

This year during CES (January 6, 2006), Sony announced the Sony Reader, an ebook reader, a successor to the LIBRIé for the U market. The e-book incorporates the e-ink technology used in e-paper into a traditional display. E Ink is working with Philips’ research department to create thin, flexible, rollable e-paper.