What Does the Future Hold for Flat TVs?

Seiko Epson is on schedule to commercialize OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) screen technology for televisions in 2007 but some significant research issues remain, a company executive says.

OLED screens produce pictures that proponents say are extremely bright and crisp compared to those shown on PDP (plasma display panels) and LCDs, the main technologies that are used for today's large flat-panel TVs. Another advantage is that OLEDs should be cheaper.

However, at present OLED panels don't last long. The company's tests show that its panels last about 2000 hours when switched-on, according to Shoichi Iino, a general administrative manager at the company. Epson's engineers are trying to develop longer lasting versions, he says.

Epson hopes the 200 engineers it has assigned to the project will succeed in lengthening lifetime to make panels that work for 10,000-hours, according to Iino. That should be long enough to make them commercially acceptable, he says. Earlier this year, the company set a goal of launching a TV using a 40-inch OLED panel in 2007.

Double Time

The initial goal is to double the current OLED screen lifetime to 4000 hours by mid-2005 and reach the 10,000 hour mark by 2007, Iino says.

But development doesn't stop there. Later in 2007, the company aims to boost the lifetime to provide about four hours per day of viewing for 360 days a year over 10 years, or about enough for nearly 15,000 hours of viewing. The company plans to double this lifetime again by around 2010.

Epson estimates that OLED TVs will cost a bit less than PDP or LCD TVs of the same screen size in 2007. The reason is that OLED panels will be simpler to make than LCDs or PDPs, according to Iino. Unlike LCDs, OLED panels do not need backlights and filters, he says.

The program is one of the biggest development projects in terms of budget, says president and CEO Saburo Kusama. He spoke on December 1 during the presentation at the company's Nagano prefecture-based headquarters.

The company may supply panels to companies experienced in making TVs, getting them to produce the finished products, he says.