Power saving does not hurt the eyes The application of electronic paper is broadened

Low energy consumption, not eye-hurting electronic paper has long been not exclusive to e-books, and now smart watches, electronic luggage tags can see the application of electronic paper. It can even be applied to the car body, allowing you to have a different car at any time.

Outstanding power saving performance

Solve the power consumption problem of smart watches

Electronic paper, also known as ink screen, it is actually a general term for a class of technology, the English name E-paper, mostly using electrophoretic display technology as a display panel, its display effect is close to the natural paper effect, can let people avoid reading fatigue. But its drawbacks are also obvious - because electrophoresis technology relies on the motion of particles, the switching time for display is very long, up to hundreds of milliseconds, and this speed is not enough for video applications. Faster materials are being developed. Therefore, at present, electronic paper is mainly used in electronic reading equipment. Because when people read books and turn pages, the response speed requirements for electronic paper can be appropriately reduced.

However, combined with its advantages and disadvantages, manufacturers are exploring more application scenarios for electronic paper. For example, a low-power smart watch, replaced by an ink screen, can solve the problem of fast power consumption of smart watches with OLED screens. Moreover, its thin and light features can make wearing the watch lighter and more burden-free.

Compared with the general sports smart watches on the market, the sports smart watches of electronic paper displays have the unique advantage of visibility under the sun because of the reflective technology, whether it is in the direct sunlight or at various angles in the swimming pool, the data on the wrist is clearly visible. In these cases, the brightness of the traditional sports smart watch and mobile phone screen is adjusted to the maximum, and it is futile to block the sunlight with your hands.

Sports watches are always in a state of motion, which is bound to affect the power and endurance problems, electronic ink sports smart watches because of the unique bistable technology of electronic paper, has extraordinary power saving performance. A 1.1-inch electronic ink sports smart watch can be used for up to 20 hours in the GPS fully turned on state, and the GPS is turned off for other functions under normal use for up to 7 days.

Epson has a number of watches with electronic paper technology, and the contents of the dial display are clearly visible even on sunny days. Due to the advantages of low power consumption, the power of the watch can be up to 3 years. A sony subsidiary has developed a watch based on electronic paper technology that can quickly change the appearance of the dial. Due to its ultra-low power consumption, its endurance can reach 60 days.

Electronic baggage tags allow you to check your baggage by yourself

The application of electronic paper in electronic baggage tags is becoming more and more mature. Compared with the traditional 2-hour advance arrival airport queue check-in, electronic baggage tags can be processed online as long as the passenger uses the mobile app at home. Moreover, under the baggage tracking system, passengers can scan or enter their baggage tag number through their smartphones, so that they can see the status and location of their luggage like "checking the courier".

In recent years, the electronic luggage tag that has only been applied in China has long been practiced in the foreign aviation industry, and Air France-KLM launched its electronic luggage tag product e-Tag in 2014. Lufthansa and EVA Air also provide electronic luggage tags to passengers through the electronic tag luggage of the luggage brand RIMOWA.

In China, in July 2019, China Southern Airlines took the lead in launching an electronic luggage tag service on domestic flights departing from Guangzhou, becoming the first airline in China to launch an electronic baggage tag service. Passengers taking domestic flights departing from Guangzhou by China Southern Airlines will find the "Electronic Baggage Tag" check-in option on the itinerary page after applying for an electronic boarding pass through the official App of China Southern Airlines. As long as they have a "Bagtag" electronic baggage tag, passengers can click to generate a baggage tag number at home and transmit the data to the electronic baggage tag via mobile phone Bluetooth. In just ten seconds, the electronic ink screen of the luggage tag will display information such as bar codes and flight numbers. The weight of the baggage and other information will be synchronized to the China Southern Airlines App, passengers can track the checked status of the baggage throughout the process through the baggage inquiry function of the China Southern Airlines App, and can also check and retrieve it with the baggage tag number on the App after arrival.

In July 2021, on the Beijing-Shanghai route between Shanghai Hongqiao and Beijing capital, China Eastern Airlines officially issued passive permanent electronic luggage tags. After completing the self-service check-in in advance on the China Eastern Airlines App, passengers select baggage check-in, and the electronic baggage tag is close to the mobile phone NFC (near-field communication, most mobile phones are already available) sensing area for data induction, "Didi" sound, flight number, baggage destination and other information will be displayed on the permanent electronic baggage tag through electronic ink, which takes only a few seconds. Passengers can then go to the counter to activate and easily complete the entire baggage drop-off process.

At present, the international aviation field mainly uses "active" electronic luggage tags, which need to be equipped with power supply batteries, while China Eastern Airlines electronic luggage tags for the first time adopt "passive" design, which can be used repeatedly, are not easy to damage, and permanently follow passengers.

Electronic paper body

The concept car can change its appearance at any time

Still hesitant to buy a car in what color? The concept car that applies e-paper technology to the body allows you to have a new look every day.

At the beginning of this year, BMW launched the BMW iX Flow, a concept car with electronic paper technology, which covers the appearance of the car body with electronic paper for the concept car. E-paper display technology uses tiny color ink microcapsules that change their visibility by rising or falling and producing specific colors as well as complex patterns and designs.

In addition to individualizing the colours of the vehicle's exterior, the changeable exterior colours also help to improve the vehicle's performance. From a physical point of view, when the exterior color of the car is white, it can reflect the sun in hot weather, and when the exterior color of the car is black, it can absorb sunlight in cold weather, which can reduce the power consumption required for heating and cooling in the vehicle.

The process of changing the color of the body appearance applies energy in an efficient mode. The bistable nature of electronic paper means that it consumes only power when changing the display color, and zero when the picture is continuously displayed. The uniqueness of this technology makes the concept model in line with the sustainable development mission of pure electric vehicle models while changing the exterior color of the body with only micro-power.

In addition, more brands are now experimenting with applying e-paper technology to health wearable devices, which are further monitored by continuously tracking data and uploading it to an app that healthcare providers can consult on a regular basis. This access to data can provide diagnostic data before life-threatening medical events, and the low power consumption of e-paper is a great advantage.

In addition, electronic paper technology is very suitable for cold chain scenarios due to its low power consumption. Because the electronic paper can display the temperature and humidity in real time, and there is no additional power consumption, it is convenient to remotely track the various conditions of the cold chain box.

Text/Reporter Chen Si