E-ink Display

Prepared for
Mr. Ranjeet Puyed
BCE teacher
Prepared by
1. Omkar Shirsat
2. Rishab Singh
3. Kapil Singaria
4. Durvesh Sonar
5. Meshwa Shah
6. Bushra Shaikh

Certificate
This is to certify that the project entitled Eink display embodies the original work done
by
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

Omkar Shirsat
Rishab Singh
Kapil Singaria
Durvesh Sonar
Meshwa Shah
Bushra Shaikh

under my supervision of
Date :
Place :

Signature :
Name
:

Acknowledgements
We express our sincere gratitude to Prof.
Charles Xavier, Head of the School for
gifted youngsters, 1407 Graymalkin Lane,
Salem Center, New York for his generous
guidance, help and useful suggestion
throughout the course of the report.

Abstract
Electronic Ink display (E-ink display) is a
portable, reusable storage and display medium that
looks like paper but can be repeatedly written on
(refreshed) by electronic means, thousands or
millions of times. E-ink displays will be used for
applications
such
as
e-books,
electronic
newspapers, portable signs & flexible displays.
Information to be displayed is downloaded through a
connection to a computer or a cell phone, or created
with mechanical tools such as an electronic pencil.
The electronic ink display is reflective & can be
easily read in bright sunlight or dimly lit
environments while being able to be seen at virtually
any angle just like paper. Its black & white ink-onpaper look gives an appearance similar to that of the
most widely read material on the planet newspaper. This unique technology results in a
compact & lightweight from factor allowing it to be
ideal for highly portable applications while being
extremely energy efficient.
This report aims to throw light on the different
technological approaches towards the complete
realization of E-ink concept.

Table of Contents
Introduction
History
Technology
o Gyricon
o Electrophoretic
Development
Appearance of pixel
o Electrowetting
Advantages
Disadvantages
Commercial applications
Conclusion

Table of Illustrations

Introduction
Electronic ink display, e-paper or electronic paper
is a display technology designed to mimic the
appearance of ordinary ink on paper. Unlike a
conventional flat panel display system such as
LCDs, TFTs etc., which uses a backlight to illuminate
its pixels, E-ink display reflects light like ordinary
paper due to electro-sensitive pigments. It is capable
of holding text and images indefinitely without
drawing electricity, while allowing the image to be
changed later. This makes E-ink ideal for still
displays which requires refresh less frequently such
as bill-boards, menu items at restaurants, etc. It
uses much less resources compared to others in
terms of electricity, cost, processing, etc.
To build e-paper, several different technologies
exist, some using plastic substrate and electronics
so that the display is flexible. E-paper has the
potential to be more comfortable to read than
conventional display. This is due to the stable image,
which does not need to be refreshed constantly, the
wider viewing angle, and the fact that it reflects
ambient light rather than emitting its own light. An epaper display can be read in direct sunlight without
the image appearing to fade. The contrast ratio in

available displays as of 2008 might be described as

similar to that of newspaper, though newlydeveloped implementations are slightly better. There
is ongoing competition among manufacturers to
provide full-color capability.
Applications include electronic pricing labels in
retail shops, and general signage, time tables at bus
stations, electronic billboards, the mobile phone
MOTOROLA FONE F3, and e-Readers capable of
displaying digital versions of books and e-paper
magazines. Electronic ink display should not be
confused with digital paper, which is a pad to create
handwritten digital documents with a digital pen.

History
Electronic paper was first developed in the 1970s by
Nick Sheridon at xeroxs at Palo Alto Research
Center. The first electronic paper, called GYRICON,
consisted of polyethylene spheres between 75 and
106 micro meters across. Each sphere is a JENUS
PARTICLE composed of negatively charged black
plastic on one side and positively charged white
plastic on the other. The spheres are embedded in a
transparent silicone sheet, with each sphere
suspended in a bubble of oil so that they can rotate
freely. The polarity of the voltage applied to each
pair of electrodes then determines whether the white
or black side is face-up, thus giving the pixel a white
or black appearance. At the FPD 2008 exhibition,
Japanese company Soken has demonstrated a wall
with electronic wall-paper using this technology.