Within the project “Backplane”, funded by the Saxon State Ministry of Economics, Labor and Transport SMWA (grant number: 100392259), a multicolor OLED microdisplay was realized by scientists of the Fraunhofer Institute for Organic Electronics, Electron Beam and Plasma Technology FEP. With the Saxon project partner digades GmbH, a finished optics module should be brought to market in the future.

Fraunhofer FEP, in collaboration with GLOBALFOUNDRIES Dresden, Module One LLC & Co. KG, and digades GmbH, worked on developing energy-efficient, high-resolution OLED microdisplays in the “Backplane” project. These microdisplays are intended for applications like motorcycle, ski, or bicycle helmets to display navigation data, enhancing safety by keeping the rider’s attention on the road rather than diverting it to the handlebars or speedometer. Helmets with integrated displays can also provide valuable information in poor visibility conditions.

The project achieved a significant milestone by presenting the world’s first multicolor OLED microdisplay with the lowest power consumption among available microdisplays, crucial for distinguishing signal colors like red and green.

The digades GmbH, with expertise in electronics integration, contributed to the development of head-up displays for helmets. Their brand, TILSBERK, already offers monochrome navigation displays for motorcycle helmets, serving as retrofit head-up displays. The aim is to create more energy-efficient, multicolor displays for optimal use in this application.

The technology developed by Fraunhofer FEP offers ultra-low power OLED microdisplays, making displays in helmets power-efficient and ergonomic. Future steps involve adapting optical modules and optimizing driving electronics for the new power-saving microdisplays, ultimately leading to mass production. Collaboratively, digades GmbH and Fraunhofer FEP are working on an evaluation kit for initial technology testing by potential customers.

In addition to monochrome and multicolor low-power displays, Fraunhofer FEP is exploring full-color microdisplays, showcasing their capabilities in a 28 nm CMOS backplane technology on 300 mm wafers. This breakthrough opens up new application possibilities, with a focus on tailoring developments to meet specific application and customer requirements.

The working group for microdisplays has moved to Fraunhofer IPMS.