Liquavista Releases New Machine to Enable High Volume Manufacture


New machine will enable high volume filling and coupling of Liquavista's electrowetting displays

Liquavista BV has released a new machine that enables high volume filling and coupling of its electrowetting displays. This has been made and designed with VDL ETG Projects in Eindhoven and marks a significant step in bringing screens with Liquavista technology to volume production.

"The successful deployment of this new machine in our prototyping facility, is the final step in demonstrating how easy it is to take Liquavista's technology and slot it directly into an existing LCD manufacturing line" said Guy Demuynck, Liquavista's CEO. "From the beginning Liquavista has striven to align its manufacturing process with existing LCD processes so manufacturers can quickly embrace the benefits of its electrowetting technology, and convert large scale manufacturing capacities with very little investment and inconvenience ."

"We are very pleased to have achieved this important milestone in our cooperation with Liquavista" stated Arie van Kraay, Managing Director at VDL. "Working together with Liquavista on this high tech, customized machine has clearly demonstrated VDL's unique abilities in the field of manufacturing equipment".

"Almost the entire production line for electrowetting displays uses existing machines used in LCD production. This machine is the only piece of equipment that is unique to the manufacture of electrowetting displays and has been designed to be fully compatible with any generation substrate," added Johan Feenstra, Liquavista's Founder and CTO. "While the new machine will first be used in our existing prototyping facility to manufacture small quantities of displays, we expect to transfer copies of the machine to our volume manufacturing partners soon."

Liquavista's technology is the only display technology other than LCD, which operates in all three modes (reflective, transmissive and transflective) but with strongly increased optical performance. Liquavista has developed electrowetting display technology to be almost entirely compatible with existing LCD manufacturing techniques and processes, thereby greatly reducing its manufacturing and production costs. The new machine manages the only deviation from a standard LCD process, namely the process of filling, coupling and sealing each display. This process occurs at the end of the manufacturing cycle and therefore does not impact the general manufacturing flow in the rest of the LCD manufacturing facility. Described as LCD 2.0, Liquavista's technology is a straightforward upgrade for existing manufacturing facilities. This enables Liquavista's partners to re-use their manufacturing assets quickly and easily to manufacture displays and bring exciting, highly differentiated products to life with both enhanced usability and performance, yet with a rapid time-to-market.

Offering bright and colorful images that ensure excellent indoor and outdoor readability and use dramatically less battery power, Liquavista's displays offer a truly multimedia experience for the consumer.

About Liquavista - www.liquavista.com

Liquavista offers a new type of electronic display technology that will change the way we interact with all consumer electronics devices, including mobile phones, media players, and electronic readers. Liquavista's displays create bright and colourful images that ensure excellent indoor and outdoor readability and use dramatically less battery power. Users can engage with their favourite applications for much longer before a recharge is necessary and battery sizes can be reduced allowing devices to be thinner and lighter.

The company's ultimate vision is to build on the extraordinary optical performance and unique power efficiency of its technology to lead a green revolution in displays for notebook PCs, desktop monitors and televisions that use less than one-tenth of the power of current devices.

Liquavista's electrowetting display technology has been developed to be directly compatible with existing display manufacturing techniques and processes. Called LCD 2.0, partners can quickly re-use their manufacturing assets to manufacture displays based upon Liquavista's technology and bring exciting, highly differentiated products to consumers with both enhanced usability and performance.

Liquavista has developed three technology platforms (LiquavistaBright(TM), LiquavistaColor(TM) and LiquavistaVivid(TM)) based on electrowetting display technology initially for use in eReaders, mobile phones, media players, and other mobile devices. In the future Liquavista will develop and market further technology platforms, which will support future generations of all consumer electronic products, including mobile through to advanced TV and computing devices.

Liquavista was founded in 2006 as a spin-off from the world famous Philips Research Labs in Eindhoven. The company is backed by Amadeus Capital Partners, Gimv, Applied Materials and Prime Technology Ventures. It is headquartered in Eindhoven, the Netherlands.

About VDL ETG Projects - www.vdletg.com

VDL ETG Projects, a company that is part of the VDL Groep, operates as a turn-key supplier for the development and manufacturing of parts, high precision mechatronic modules and equipment. Focused on building strategic partnerships with its customers, based on long-term close working relationships, VDL ETG Projects turns creative ideas into operational solutions.

MEDIA: For further information please contact:

Joanne Eames, Liquavista UK

+ 44 (0) 7840 937841, joanne.eames@liquavista.com or press@liquavista.com

VDL ETG Projects

Managing Director:

Arie van Kraay, arie.van.kraay@vdletg.com, tel +31 622559856

Program Manager:

Richard Zoetewey, richard.zoeteweij@vdletg.com, tel +31 651534217

VDL Group Communications Department - tel: +31 (0)40 292 50 00

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