LG Display, a South Korean multinational corporation, has produced the first transparent OLEDs that are large enough to be used as windows in subway trains.
The 55-inch translucent displays will first be applied to trains in the Chinese cities of Shenzhen and Beijing before it eventually expands to other railroad companies and subway stations. The move will make LG the first company to introduce transparent OLEDs for subway windows.
The company doesn’t provide information about luminance, resolution, expected lifespan, or power consumption of the displays. However, based on the image provided, it appears to be a reasonably high-resolution display with an acceptable brightness and good viewing angles.
The transparent OLEDs, which will be installed in the Shenzhen (Line 10) and Beijing (Line 6), will be used to display real-time data about subway locations, schedules, flights, and transfers. It will also show weather forecasts and news updates. As for the exiting LCD screens, the trains will continue to use them to display things like ads.
Transparent OLEDs are increasingly catching the interest of manufacturers, including Xiaomi, who has recently developed the world’s first mass-produced transparent TV. The use of transparent OLEDs allows the TV to displays images that appear to be “floating in the air.”
Since the number of applications that use transparent OLEDs is only expected to rise with things like smart buildings or self-driving cars, OLED makers are getting ready to produce such devices in significant volume. One of the challenges manufacturers will face is how to make them big enough while still ensuring their longevity.
Prescient & Strategic Intelligence claims that the translucent display market is expected to grow at an average rate of 46% per year and reach up to $4.93 billion by 2024.
