HP Brings Us One Step Closer to Taking Flexible Displays For Granted

Flexible displays might be on the way and widely used sooner than we think. 

Recently, HP unveiled a new idea in a demo of its flexible display technology. CTO Phil McKinney rolled up one of HP’s flexible displays…and it was immediately destroyed.

“You’re probably good for about half a dozen times before the material will just fail,” explained McKinney. Uh, Phil? That doesn’t sound like progress.

But that’s not the point. The displays aren’t meant to be rolled up – at least, not after the manufacturing process. What HP’s real goal is, is to produce a new, cost-effective method of manufacturing these displays, so that you and I can enjoy digital drapery and LCD coloring books that much faster.

The process, called Self-Aligned Imprint Lithography (SAIL), allows the screen to be printed on sheets of Mylar and rolled up during production, giving an enormous increase in production volume and much lower cost compared to current flexible displays, which are stamped from large sheets.

Sometimes I like to imagine what Gutenberg would think of the stuff we’re doing today with imaging technology. Guy would crap his pants.

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[Via PhysOrg]