Creo and DuPont collaborate on systems for LCD color-filter production
Creo (Vancouver, BC, Canada) has signed an agreement with DuPont Imaging Technologies (Wilmington, DE) to develop equipment for a new DuPont thermal color-filter system to be used for manufacturing color-filter components used in liquid-crystal displays (LCDs). Under the multimillion dollar agreement, Creo will develop prototype thermal imaging equipment for DuPont. Commercialization is anticipated following the development phase wherein Creo will manufacture and supply thermal imaging equipment to DuPont. DuPont will sell complete systems, which will include thermal imaging equipment and color imaging media, to LCD panel and color filter manufacturers. Creo will receive recurring revenues from sales and service of DuPont thermal color-filter systems. Both companies have agreed to cooperate on an exclusive and renewable basis in this application of thermal imaging.
L-3 Communications to integrate Philips FPDs in avionics applications
Working in close collaboration with L-3 Communications Display Systems Division (Alpharetta, GA), a leading integrator of avionic displays, Royal Philips Electronics (Eindhoven, The Netherlands) is reaching into the military avionics sector to provide customized liquid-crystal-display (LCD) solutions for integration into instrumentation platforms utilized in aircraft manufactured by Boeing (Seattle, WA) and Lockheed Martin (Bethesda, MD). Peter Hopper, CEO of Philips Components Mobile Display Systems (Sunnyvale, CA), noted, "It is extremely important to extend our leadership in the avionics market. Our partnership with L-3 Communications will enable us to broaden our offerings in a sector that is placing greater emphasis than ever before on leading-edge technologies such as advanced displays and imaging systems."
OPTREX licenses Kodak OLED technology
Eastman Kodak (Rochester, NY) has licensed its organic light-emitting-diode (OLED) technology to Optrex of Japan for use in flat-panel passive-matrix OLED displays. The royalty-bearing license to Optrex covers use of passive-matrix OLED technology in a variety of flat panel display applications. The agreement also gives Optrex the opportunity to purchase Kodak's patented OLED materials for use in manufacturing passive OLED modules. Pioneered by Kodak in the late 1980s, the technology and its practical applications have resulted in more than 400 Kodak patents worldwide. Besides Optrex, Kodak OLED licensees include Denso, eMagin; Lite Array; Nippon Seiki ; Opsys; Pioneer; Ritek; TDK; Teco Electric & Machinery; Rohm; and Sanyo Electric, a Kodak joint development partner.
Litrex wins display contract
The U.S. Display Consortium (USDC; San Jose, CA) has awarded a contract to Litrex (Pleasanton, CA), a manufacturer of industrial ink-jet systems, to complete a two-phase development project for ink-jet manufacturing of light-emitting polymer (LEP) displays. Litrex is a wholly owned subsidiary of Cambridge Display Technology (CDT; Cambridge, U.K.). The $5.78 million project will be cost-shared between Litrex and the USDC. According to the USDC, ink-jet manufacturing provides a crucial alternative for developing the next generation of flexible flat-panel displays because current display manufacturing equipment incorporating lithography or other forms of masking cannot apply liquid polymers in a way that works effectively for full-color organic light-emitting diodes.
Hassaun A. Jones-Bey
Also in the news . . .
Indigo Systems (Santa Barbara, CA), a provider of high-performance infrared (IR) cameras and technology for commercial, industrial and military applications, has secured $17.6 million in financing from a global private equity firm. The investment will take Indigo through the next stage of its strategy to deliver high-performance infrared products at commercially viable prices to markets around the world. The first stage of Indigo's strategy, completion of a state-of-the-art infrared detector manufacturing plant, was fueled by a strategic investment from Northrop Grumman (Los Angeles, CA) in September 2000. . . . Nikon Instruments (Melville, NY) has formed the Nikon Semiconductor Inspection Technologies Group (SITECH: Phoenix, AZ). The newly formed group is intended to boost service and support to the Nikon customer base, including a fourfold increase in sales and technical support and broadening the U.S. distribution of advanced semiconductor inspection products. "SITECH is a critical step to expand Nikon Instruments and to create a division that is more focused, flexible and responsive to our customers and the semiconductor industry," according to president and CEO of Nikon Instruments, Hiro Kusaka.