Legend | Item |
---|---|
1 | Upper layer |
2 | Transparent electrode layer |
3 | Transparent micro-capsules |
4 | Positively charged white pigments |
5 | Negatively charged black pigments |
6 | Transparent oil |
7 | Electrode pixel layer |
8 | Bottom supporting layer |
9 | Light |
10 | White |
11 | Black |
E Ink (electronic ink) is a brand of electronic paper (e-paper) display technology commercialized by the E Ink Corporation, which was co-founded in 1997 by MIT undergraduates JD Albert and Barrett Comiskey, MIT Media Lab professor Joseph Jacobson, Jerome Rubin and Russ Wilcox. [1]
It is available in grayscale and color [2] and is used in mobile devices such as e-readers, digital signage, smartwatches, mobile phones, electronic shelf labels and architecture panels. [3]
The notion of a low-power paper-like display had existed since the 1970s, originally conceived by researchers at Xerox PARC, but had never been realized. [4] While a post-doctoral student at Stanford University, physicist Joseph Jacobson envisioned a multi-page book with content that could be changed at the push of a button and required little power to use. [5]
Neil Gershenfeld recruited Jacobson for the MIT Media Lab in 1995, after hearing Jacobson's ideas for an electronic book. [4] Jacobson, in turn, recruited MIT undergrads Barrett Comiskey, a math major, and J.D. Albert, a mechanical engineering major, to create the display technology required to realize his vision. [1]
The initial approach was to create tiny spheres which were half white and half black, and which, depending on the electric charge, would rotate such that the white side or the black side would be visible on the display. Albert and Comiskey were told this approach was impossible by most experienced chemists and materials scientists and had trouble creating these perfectly half-white, half-black spheres; during his experiments, Albert accidentally created some all-white spheres. [1]
Comiskey experimented with charging and encapsulating those all-white particles in microcapsules mixed in with a dark dye. The result was a system of microcapsules that could be applied to a surface and could then be charged independently to create black and white images. [1] A first patent was filed by MIT for the microencapsulated electrophoretic display in October 1996. [6]
The scientific paper was featured on the cover of Nature, something extremely unusual for work done by undergraduates. The advantage of the microencapsulated electrophoretic display and its potential for satisfying the practical requirements of electronic paper were summarized in the abstract of the Nature paper:
It has for many years been an ambition of researchers in display media to create a flexible low-cost system that is the electronic analogue of paper ... viewing characteristic[s] result in an "ink on paper" look. But such displays have to date suffered from short lifetimes and difficulty in manufacture. Here we report the synthesis of an electrophoretic ink based on the microencapsulation of an electrophoretic dispersion. The use of a microencapsulated electrophoretic medium solves the lifetime issues and permits the fabrication of a bistable electronic display solely by means of printing. This system may satisfy the practical requirements of electronic paper. [7]
A second patent was filed by MIT for the microencapsulated electrophoretic display in March 1997. [8]
Subsequently, Albert, Comiskey and Jacobson along with Russ Wilcox and Jerome Rubin founded the E Ink Corporation in 1997, two months prior to Albert and Comiskey's graduation from MIT. [1]
E Ink Corporation (or simply "E Ink") is a subsidiary of E Ink Holdings (EIH), a Taiwanese Holding Company (8069.TWO) manufacturer. They are the manufacturer and distributor of electrophoretic displays, a kind of electronic paper, that they market under the name E Ink. E Ink Corporation is headquartered in Billerica, Massachusetts. The company was co-founded in 1997 by two undergraduates J.D. Albert and Barrett Comiskey, along with Joseph Jacobson (professor in the MIT Media Lab), Jerome Rubin (LexisNexis co-founder) and Russ Wilcox. [9] Two years later, E Ink partnered with Philips to develop and market the technology. Jacobson and Comiskey are listed as inventors on the original patent filed in 1996. [6] Albert, Comiskey, and Jacobsen were inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in May 2016. [10] In 2005, Philips sold the electronic paper business as well as its related patents to one of its primary business partners, Prime View International (PVI), a Hsinchu, Taiwan-based manufacturer.
At the E Ink Corporation, Comiskey led the development effort for E Ink's first generation of electronic ink, [11] while Albert developed the manufacturing methods used to make electronic ink displays in high volumes. [12] Wilcox played a variety of business roles and served as CEO from 2004 to 2009. [13]
On June 1, 2008, E Ink Corp. announced an initial agreement to be purchased by PVI for $215 million, an amount that eventually reached US$450 million following negotiations. [14] [15] E Ink was officially acquired on December 24, 2009. The purchase by PVI magnified the scale of production for the E Ink e-paper display, since Prime View also owned BOE Hydis Technology Co., Ltd and maintained a strategic partner relationship with Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corp. (now Chimei InnoLux Corporation, part of the Hon Hai-Foxconn Group). Foxconn is the sole ODM partner for Prime View's Netronix Inc., the supplier of E Ink panel e-readers, but the end-use products appear in various guises, e.g., as Bookeen, COOL-ER, PocketBook, etc.
PVI renamed itself E Ink Holdings Inc. after the purchase. In December 2012, E Ink acquired SiPix, a rival electrophoretic display company. [16] [17] [18]
E Ink is made into a film and then integrated into electronic displays, enabling novel applications in phones, watches, magazines, wearables and e-readers, etc. [19] [20] [21] [22]
The Motorola F3 was the first mobile phone to employ E Ink technology in its display to take advantage of the material's ultra-low power consumption. In addition, the Samsung Alias 2 uses this technology in its keypad in order to allow varying reader orientations. [23]
The October 2008 limited edition North American issue of Esquire was the first magazine cover to integrate E Ink. This cover featured flashing text. It was manufactured in Shanghai and was shipped refrigerated to the United States for binding. The E Ink was powered by a 90-day integrated battery supply. [21] [24]
In July 2015, New South Wales Road and Maritime Services installed road traffic signs using E Ink in Sydney, Australia. The installed e-paper traffic signs represent the first use of E Ink in traffic signage. [25] [26] Transport for London made trials of E Ink displays at bus stops to offer timetables, route maps and real-time travel information. [27] A Whole Foods store opened in 2016 with E Ink shelf labels that can update product info remotely. [28] E Ink Prism was announced in January 2015 at International CES and is the internal name for E Ink's bistable ink technology in a film that can dynamically change colors, patterns and designs with architectural products. [29] E Ink displays can also be made flexible. [30]
E Ink has since partnered with various companies, including Sony, Ledger , Motorola and Amazon. E Ink's "Vizplex" technology is used by Sony Reader, MOTOFONE F3, Barnes & Noble Nook, Kindle, txtr Beagle, and Kobo eReader. E Ink's "Pearl" technology is claimed to have a 50% better contrast ratio. It is used by 2011-2012 Kindle models, Barnes & Noble Nook Simple Touch, Kobo Touch, and Sony PRS-T1. E Ink's "Carta" technology is used by reMarkable, Kindle Paperwhite (2nd and 3rd generation), Kindle Voyage, Kobo Glo HD, Kobo Aura H2O, and Kindle Oasis.
2007 | Vizplex |
---|---|
2008 | |
2009 | |
2010 | Pearl |
2011 | |
2012 | |
2013 | Carta |
2014 | Carta HD |
2015 | |
2016 | |
2017 | |
2018 | |
2019 | |
2020 | |
2021 | Carta 1200 |
2022 | |
2023 | Carta 1300 |
E Ink Vizplex is the first generation of the E Ink displays. Vizplex was announced in May 2007. [31]
E Ink Pearl, announced in July 2010, is the second generation of E Ink displays. The updated Amazon Kindle DX was the first device announced to use the screen. [32] Amazon used this display technology in new Kindle models until the Paperwhite 2 refresh in 2013. [33] The basic Kindle with touch continued to use Pearl until 2022 when the Kindle 11 was upgraded past 167 dpi. [34] Sony also included this technology into its 2010 models of the Sony Reader PRS series. [35] This display is also used in the Nook Simple Touch, [36] Kobo eReader Touch, [37] Kobo Glo, Onyx Boox M90, [38] X61S [39] and Pocketbook Touch. [40]
E Ink Mobius is an E Ink display using a flexible plastic backplane, so it can resist small impacts and some flexing. [41] Products using this include Sony Digital Paper DPT-S1, [42] Pocketbook CAD Reader Flex, [43] Dasung Paperlike HD and Onyx Boox MAX 3.
E Ink Triton, announced in November 2010, is a color display that is easy to read in high light. The Triton is able to display 16 shades of gray, and 4,096 colors. [44] E Ink Triton is used in commercially available products such as the Hanvon color e-reader, [45] JetBook Color made by ectaco and PocketBook Color Lux made by PocketBook.
E Ink Triton 2 is the last generation of E Ink Triton color displays. The e-readers featuring it appeared in 2013. They include Ectaco Jetbook Color 2 and Pocketbook Color Lux. [46] [47]
E Ink Carta, announced in January 2013 at International CES , features 768 by 1024 resolution on 6-inch displays, with 212 ppi pixel density. [48] Named Carta, it is used in the Kindle Paperwhite 2 (2013), the Pocketbook Touch Lux 3 (2015), [49] and the Kobo Nia (2020).
E Ink Carta HD features a 1080 by 1440 resolution on a 6" screen with 300 ppi. It is used in many eReaders including all new Kindle model lines since 2014 (Voyage, Oasis, Scribe) as well as the Paperwhite 3 (2015) and newer, Tolino Vision 2 (2014), Kobo Glo HD (2015), [50] Nook Glowlight Plus [51] (2015), Cybook Muse Frontlight, PocketBook Touch HD [52] (2016), PocketBook Touch HD 2 (2017), and the Kobo Clara HD [53] (2018).
The original E Ink Carta display was renamed to Carta 1000, and refinements in Carta 1100 and Carta 1200 improved response times and display contrast. [54] A later refinement in Carta 1250 improved response times and contrast again. [55]
E Ink Carta and Carta HD displays support Regal waveform technology, which reduces the need for page refreshes. [56]
The overall contrast in a product depends on the entire panel stack, including touch sensor and front light (when provided). [57]
E Ink Spectra is a three pigment display. The display uses microcups, each of which contains three pigments. [58] It is available for retail and electronic shelf tag labels. It is currently produced with black, white and red or black, white and yellow pigments. [59]
Advanced Color ePaper (ACeP) was announced at SID Display Week in May 2016. The display contains four pigments in each microcapsule or microcup thereby eliminating the need for a color filter overlay. The pigments used are cyan, magenta, yellow and white, enabling display of a full color gamut and up to 32,000 colors. [58] [59] Initially targeted at the in-store signage market, with 20-inch displays with a resolution of 1600 by 2500 pixels at 150 ppi with a two-second refresh rate, [60] it began shipping for signage purposes in late 2018. [61] It is also being commercially manufactured for e-readers under the name E Ink Gallery 3. The first readers started shipping in 2023, however some planned e-readers were later postponed due to supply issues. [62]
E Ink Kaleido, originally announced in December 2019 [63] as "Print Color", is the first of a new generation of color displays based on one of E Ink's greyscale displays with a color filter layer. E Ink Kaleido uses a plastic color filter layer, unlike the glass filter layer used in the E Ink Triton family of displays. [64] Kaleido Plus and Kaleido 3 were released in 2021 [65] and 2023 [66] respectively, further improving performance and pixel density.
A comparison of a selection of E Ink displays as of June 2017 [67]
Name | ET011TT2 | ET013TT1 | ET014TT1 | ED035OC1 | ED043WC3 | ET047TC1 | ED052TC2 | ED060KC1 | ED068TG1 | ED078KC1 | ES103TC1 | ES133TT3 | ED312TT2 | ED420TT1 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal length or diameter (inch) | 1.1 | 1.3 | 1.43 | 3.5 | 4.3 | 4.7 | 5.2 | 6 | 6.8 | 7.8 | 10.3 | 13.3 | 31.2 | 42 |
Resolution (horizontal × vertical) | 240 × 240 | 256 × 256 | 128 × 296 | 360 × 600 | 480 × 800 | 540 × 960 | 540 × 960 | 1072 × 1448 | 1080 × 1440 | 1404 × 1872 | 1404 × 1872 | 1650 × 2200 | 1440 × 2560 | 2160 × 2880 |
Aspect ratio | Round | 1:1 | 2:1 | 5:3 | 5:3 | 16:9 | 16:9 | 4:3 | 4:3 | 4:3 | 4:3 | 4:3 | 16:9 | 4:3 |
Active area (mm) | 27.96 × 27.96 | 23.30 × 23.30 | 14.46 × 33.45 | 45.54 × 75.90 | 56.16 × 93.60 | 58.32 × 103.68 | 64.53 × 114.24 | 90.60 × 122.40 | 103.68 × 138.24 | 118.64 × 158.18 | 157.25 × 209.66 | 202.95 × 270.60 | 388.80 × 691.20 | 642.6 × 856.8 |
Outline dimensions (mm) | 31.80 × 34.60 | 27.10 × 28.40 | 18.30 × 42.70 | 51.54 × 86.50 | 62.40 × 106.40 | 62.1 × 115.2 | 69.23 × 124.59 | 101.80 × 138.40 | 119.70 × 158.50 | 127.60 × 173.80 | 165.80 × 227.70 | 215.50 × 287.00 | 402.80 × 697.20 | 650.0 × 872.5 |
Pixel density (pixels per inch) | 218 | 279 | 225 | 200 | 216 | 234 | 213 | 300 | 260 | 300 | 226 | 206 | 94 | 85 |
E Ink film | Carta 1.2 | Thin Pearl | Pearl | Pearl | Pearl | Carta 1.2 | Carta 1.2 | Carta 1.2 | Carta 1.2 | Carta 1.2 | Carta 1.2 | Carta 1.2 | Pearl | Pearl |
Refresh time (ms) | 800 | 3200 | 800 | 450 | 450 | 480 | 480 | 450 | 450 | 450 | 450 | 450 | 980 | - |
Backplane | Flexible | Flexible | Flexible | Glass | Glass | Flexible | Glass | Glass | Glass | Glass | Flexible | Flexible | Glass | Glass |
Total thickness (mm) | 0.53 | 0.4 | 0.607 | 1.18 | 0.912 | 0.682 | 0.68 | 1.01 | 1.84 | 0.78 | 0.65 | 0.65 | 0.805 | - |
Total weight (g) | 0.72 | 0.4 | 0.87 | 10 | 12.8 | 6.6 | 12.3 | 30 | 54 | 37 | 32 | 68 | 494 | 1100 |
Number of levels of grey | 4 | 2 | 4 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 |
Front light | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
Surface treatment | Hard coat | Hard coat | Hard coat | Hard coat | Hard coat | Hard coat | Hard coat | Anti-glare treatment | Anti-glare treatment | Hard coat | Anti-glare treatment | Anti-glare treatment | Hard coat | Hard coat |
Electronic paper or intelligent paper, is a display device that reflects ambient light, mimicking the appearance of ordinary ink on paper - unlike conventional flat panel displays which need additional energy to emit their own light. This may make them more comfortable to read, and provide a wider viewing angle than most light-emitting displays. The contrast ratio in electronic displays available as of 2008 approaches newspaper, and newly developed displays are slightly better. An ideal e-paper display can be read in direct sunlight without the image appearing to fade.
An e-reader, also known as an e-book reader, is a portable electronic device that is designed primarily for the purpose of reading e-books and periodicals. E-readers have a similar form factor to a tablet; usually use electronic paper resulting in better screen readability, especially in bright sunlight; and have longer battery life when compared to a tablet. An e-reader's battery will typically last for multiple weeks. In contrast to an e-reader, a tablet has a screen capable of higher refresh rates which make them more suitable for interaction such as playing a video game or watching a video clip.
The Sony Reader (ソニー・リーダー) was a line of e-book readers manufactured by Sony. The first model was the PRS-500 released in September 2006 and was related to the earlier Sony Librie, the first commercial E Ink e-reader in 2004 using an electronic paper display developed by E Ink Corporation. The last model was the PRS-T3, after which Sony announced it would no longer release a new consumer e-reader.
Joseph Jacobson, is a tenured professor and head of the Molecular Machines group at the Center for Bits and Atoms at the MIT Media Lab, and is one of the inventors of microencapsulated electrophoretic display commonly used in electronic devices such as e-readers. He is the founder of several companies including E Ink Corporation, Gen9, Inc., and Kovio, is on the scientific board of several more companies.
The iLiad was an electronic handheld device, or e-Reader, which could be used for document reading and editing. Like the Barnes and Noble nook, Sony Reader or Amazon Kindle, the iLiad made use of an electronic paper display. In 2010, sales of the iLiad ended when its parent company, iRex Technologies, filed for bankruptcy.
An e-reader, also called an e-book reader or e-book device, is a mobile electronic device that is designed primarily for the purpose of reading digital e-books and periodicals.
Amazon Kindle is a series of e-readers designed and marketed by Amazon. Amazon Kindle devices enable users to browse, buy, download, and read e-books, newspapers, magazines, Audible audiobooks, and other digital media via wireless networking to the Kindle Store. The hardware platform, which Amazon subsidiary Lab126 developed, began as a single device in 2007. Currently, it comprises a range of devices, including e-readers with E Ink electronic paper displays and Kindle applications on all major computing platforms. All Kindle devices integrate with Windows and macOS file systems and Kindle Store content and, as of March 2018, the store had over six million e-books available in the United States.
Digital newspaper technology is the technology used to create or distribute a digital newspaper.
An ebook, also spelled as e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in electronic form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. Although sometimes defined as "an electronic version of a printed book", some e-books exist without a printed equivalent. E-books can be read on dedicated e-reader devices, also on any computer device that features a controllable viewing screen, including desktop computers, laptops, tablets and smartphones.
PocketBook is a multinational company which produces e-book readers based on E Ink technology under the PocketBook brand. The company was founded in 2007 in Kyiv, Ukraine, and its headquarters were shifted to Lugano, Switzerland in 2012. These devices enable users to browse, buy, download, and read e-books, newspapers, magazines and other digital media via wireless networking to the PocketBook Store.
The Kobo eReader is an e-reader produced by Toronto-based Kobo Inc. The company's name is an anagram of "book". The original version was released in May 2010 and was marketed as a minimalist alternative to the more expensive e-book readers available at the time. Like most e-readers, the Kobo uses an electronic ink screen. The Arc tablet series, released between 2011 and 2013, was based on LCD technology instead.
Rakuten Kobo Inc., or simply Kobo, is a Canadian company that sells ebooks, audiobooks, e-readers and formerly tablet computers. It is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and is a subsidiary of the Japanese e-commerce conglomerate Rakuten. The name Kobo is an anagram of book.
Onyx Boox is a brand of e-book reader produced by Onyx International Inc, based in China. Like most e-book readers, the Boox uses electronic paper technology.
The Kobo Touch is the third generation of the Kobo e-reader device designed by Kobo Inc. It was revealed on 23 May 2011 and was released in the U.S. on 10 June 2011 at a price of $129.99.
The Barnes & Noble Nook is a brand of e-readers developed by American book retailer Barnes & Noble, based on the Android platform. The original device was announced in the U.S. in October 2009, and was released the next month. The original Nook had a six-inch E-paper display and a separate, smaller color touchscreen that serves as the primary input device and was capable of Wi-Fi and AT&T 3G wireless connectivity. The original Nook was followed in November 2010 by a color LCD device called the Nook Color, in June 2011 by the Nook Simple Touch, and in November 2011 and February 2012 by the Nook Tablet. On April 30, 2012, Barnes & Noble entered into a partnership with Microsoft that spun off the Nook and college businesses into a subsidiary. On August 28, 2012, Barnes and Noble announced partnerships with retailers in the UK, which began offering the Nook digital products in October 2012. In December 2014, B&N purchased Microsoft's Nook shares, ending the partnership.
The Kobo Glo is the fourth generation of Kobo eReader devices designed and marketed by Kobo Inc. It was revealed on 6 September 2012 and arrived at retail 14 October 2012 with a price of $129.99 USD/CAD. It is the successor to the popular Kobo Touch was introduced alongside the Kobo Mini and Kobo Arc. The Glo was succeeded in 2015 by the higher-resolution Glo HD, with 4GB built-in storage but no microSD removable storage.
The Kobo Aura HD is a limited-edition Kobo eReader device designed and marketed by Kobo Inc. It was revealed 15 April 2013 and allowed for preorders the next day at a price of 169.99 USD/CAD. It arrived in stores in Canada and the United Kingdom on 25 April 2013. The marketing slogan of the Kobo Aura HD was "The eReader, reimagined." In October 2014 the Kobo Aura H2O was launched, it has a similar screen resolution to the Kobo Aura HD but has a waterproof coating. Kobo's CEO announced in March 2015 that the Kobo Aura HD was officially discontinued.
The Kobo Aura is the fifth generation of E-book readers designed and marketed by Kobo Inc. It was revealed 27 August 2013 at Kobo's Beyond the Book Event in New York City, along with three new Kobo Arc devices. Available for pre-order the same day, it cost $149.99 USD/CAD.
Barrett Comiskey is an American innovator. He is recognized by the World Economic Forum as a Technology Pioneer and was the youngest inductee into the National Inventors Hall of Fame, for inventing and co-founding E Ink while an undergraduate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is currently the Founder of Migo.
JD Albert is an American engineer, inventor, and educator. Albert is one of the inventors of microencapsulated electrophoretic display commonly used in electronic devices such as e-readers.
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