Accelerating the commercialisation of flexible OLED lighting
Europe’s technology leaders in the development of flexible organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) for lighting and signage applications have formed a consortium, called ‘PI-SCALE’, that aims to create a Europe-wide pilot line to enable companies of all sizes to quickly and cost effectively test and scale up their flexible OLED lighting concepts and turn them into market ready products. The project is supported by the European Commission through the Photonics Public Private Partnership with a contribution of €14million.
Flexible OLEDs have the potential to be integrated into formed parts or bonded onto curved surfaces, the commercialisation of this technology is claimed to open up a host of design opportunities to create value adding lighting products in application areas such as architecture, automotive, aerospace and consumer electronics.
PI-SCALE will offer capability and services in the pilot production of customised flexible OLEDs and initially focuses on product streams in the areas of automotive, designer luminaires and aeronautics.
The project will allow companies to test and develop their applications at an industrial scale, achieving the product performance, cost, yield, efficiency and safety requirements that facilitate mass market adoption. The consortium will combine and utilise existing capability from each of the partners to create a self-standing, open access European flexible OLED pilot line. It is said the pilot line will be available during and after the lifetime of the project to companies on an open access basis.
Dr Joanne Wilson from the Holst Centre, the coordinators of the project, said: “The creation of this pilot line is a fantastic opportunity for companies to get flexible OLED technology out of the research and development phase and into products.”
PI-SCALE is one of three major pilot lines which have been launched by the European Photonics Public Private Partnership to help companies take photonics technologies from the lab into commercial markets. The two other pilot lines ‘MIRPHAB’ and ‘PIX4Life’ will focus on photonics technologies for health applications and sensors for the detection of chemicals in gas and liquids.
Author
Tom Austin-Morgan
Source: www.newelectronics.co.uk