Bistable LCD Display Technology
Bistable LCD Display offers the perfect display in a world of imperfect LCD technology. Think about this; perhaps in a perfect world automobiles would require no gas; air conditioners in Arizona would require no power; and food crops would require no rain or water. We do not live in a perfect world but there is a LCD display technology that can display an image that requires zero power. Is it possible?
Bistable LCD display: the zero power display
Well, yes and no… the Bistable LCD Display, also called cholesteric liquid crystal (ChLCD), e-paper, and even zero power, do offer a great power savings. They do not require any power to display the image, but there is a need for power to change the image. This unique bi-stable property means that an image placed on the display will remain indefinitely without the need for refreshing as is necessary in an active matrix display such as a TFT LCD Displays or a passive matrix display such as a monochrome character LCDs.
At this time all Bistable LCD displays are custom built to the customer’s specification. This requires a one-time tooling fee and an MOQ (minimum order quantity).
Zero power displays are reflective and do not require a backlight. This can be a disadvantage in areas with dark ambient light, but the plus side is they are very readable in direct sunlight. This is a great advantage over many other display technologies that have to compete with sun light, making the other displays difficult to read.
Some of the bistable LCD display is equipped with on-board RAM memory to store the image. They can be manufactured as a Chip on Glass (COG), Chip on Flex (COF) and Chip on Board (COB).
The largest possible glass size at this time is 18 inches. The product designer can build the custom bistable display to a size that meets their design requirements.