Flat Panel Displays

Keep the cost of inspection down and increase production with WP imaging photometers and colorimeters together with the advanced Photometrica Software and specialized software packages. Take precise, reproducible measurements in under one second, and improve accuracy to stay ahead in this competitive manufacturing landscape.

Flat panel displays are becoming commonplace and the various types of display technologies are rapidly increasing. In order to keep ahead of the fierce competition for LCD, LED, OLED, microLED, and E-paper for example, display manufacturers are constantly striving to make their products more functional, more attractive, more vivid and blemish free.

To meet high customer expectations, optical testing requirements for front-of-screen are becoming incredibly demanding, and as a result test instrumentation to support flat panel display production lines must be more accurate than ever before. For example: consumers have an expectation for unparalleled realism when it comes to their entertainment, and want to be immersed in their viewing experience free from displays that are too dull or too bright; head-up displays (HUDs) have the critical need for luminance and symbology that are optimized for varying conditions so that vital data is easy to see and consume; and surgical field displays must be precisely designed with a focus on safety and detailed visualization to support the best outcome possible.

Having the ability to test contrast and color, viewing angles, reflection performance and pixel faults are all critical to staying on top of the competitive market. Additionally, there is the pressure to keep the cost of inspection down, so manufacturers are looking for faster instruments with shorter measurement times.

Historical methods used to test flat panel displays presented many shortcomings. Manufacturers had technicians visually inspect displays, but those methods were difficult to standardize or ensure consistent results. Human vision is the most important judge of what makes a panel perfect, but human vision is subjective and inconsistent for testing. Another approach has been to take spot measurements across the panels, but this method provides only partial coverage, is time consuming, and can miss many blemishes.

Westboro has overcome these performance shortcomings by offering a complete solution for flat panel display testing.

Complete Solution

WP’s imaging colorimeters leverage the latest technology to reliably measure luminance and chromaticity at high spatial resolution. Regardless of the industry, be it consumer electronics, entertainment, mobile devices, healthcare equipment, or heads up displays, the ability to accurately measure flat panel displays for defects and mura are critical to the manufacturers success.

The accompanying Photometrica Software finds and reports any critical defects and provides key performance metrics such as uniformity in LCD, OLED and other displays.

Imaging Colorimeters with integrated spot spectroradiometer

Unique to WP is the integration of a spot spectroradiometer and an imaging colorimeter in the same instrument. The imaging colorimeter’s accuracy is improved to the level of the spectroradiometer by automatic correction. The spectral data also provides radiometric information and other measurement insights.

Specialized Software Packages

Productivity in production is supported with our specialized software packages, while the powerful Photometrica Software and its SDK allow these solutions to be integrated in fully automated test lines.

Electronic Lens Control

Many of WP’s imaging systems integrate electronically controlled lens functions with iris and focus control. These motorized lenses offer improved accuracy, precision and convenience for all applications. The system is calibrated for accurate luminance and color measurements at any lens focus, from the Minimium Object Distance of the lens to infinity.

Viewing Angle Measurements

In many flat panel displays picture quality starts to degrade as the viewing angle increases. An LCD display for example, will normally have the best possible picture quality when viewed directly opposite of the screen. The farther you move to the side, the more the colors will fade. Understanding a display’s viewing angle performance can be done using the CONOMETER® viewing angle lens, as well as the CONOMETER® 80 Viewing Angle Imaging Photometer.