Cholesteric liquid-crystal display (LCD) technology developed by Kent Displays, Kent, Ohio, is going into an electronic book with the power efficiency, image quality, and night-vision compatibility required in military applications. A joint effort by Kent Displays, Honeywell, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the mil e-book will extend battery life over existing e-book technology by consuming power only while images are loading to screen, and by retaining images on screen indefinitely without any power.
The mil e-book promises to extend battery-powered operation significantly over that of existing field-operational displays, which are said to offer just a few hours of run time. Assuming 12 hours of use per day, the e-book is expected to run six to eight weeks off of the same battery. In addition to providing high power efficiency, cholesteric display technology also produces a wide viewing angle because it requires no polarizers or backlighting.
According to Kent Displays, the unit under development will weigh under 21 lb. It will feature a 6.3-in. diagonal multicolor VGA display with 16 levels of gray per color. And, it will be capable of displaying PDF files.
When used with night-vision goggles, the mil e-book will provide the same readability in darkness as it does in daylight without any emission of light. Night-vision compatibility is a requirement for stealth applications to avoid detection by the enemy.
The mil e-book project is expected to be completed by July. For more information, contact Kent Displays' president Gene Miceli at (330) 673-8784, or [email protected].