http://www.widescreenreview.com/news_detail.php?id=12789 :) :) :)

SpatiaLight And Foreal Spectrum To Develop First Ever Light Emitting Diode Powered LCoS Light Engine For High Definition Televisions

Engine to Target Rear Projection TVs and Front Projectors

SpatiaLight, Inc. (Nasdaq: HDTV), a leading developer and manufacturer of ultra high-resolution Liquid Crystal on Silicon (LCoS) microdisplays, announced today that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with San Jose based Foreal Spectrum, Inc. (Foreal) for the development and marketing of the first ever 1920 x 1080p Light Emitting Diode (LED) based LCoS light engine. The light engine will primarily be marketed to OEM's of rear projection televisions (RPTVs) and front projectors.

Foreal and SpatiaLight displayed this proprietary, state-of-the-art light engine in January at SpatiaLight's suite in the MGM Grand Hotel during the Consumer Electronics Show where it was very well received by prospective customers. The light engine employs SpatiaLight's T-3, 1920 x 1080p imagers and is powered by a long life, solid-state LED light source rather than the standard high-pressure mercury arc lamp. This solid-state light source dramatically improves light engine lifetime. Future generations of light engines can incorporate smaller, lower cost imagers as product categories are expanded and markets for these products grow.

SpatiaLight and Foreal believe that this LED light source is a major breakthrough for LCoS technology because it removes the "lamp lifetime" issue for television manufacturers and most dramatically, the new LED engine will allow for thin form factor LCoS RPTVs. A typical 60-inch television based on this new light engine will be fewer than 10 inches deep in the near future.

This lower cost LED/LCoS technology solution is currently available for incorporation into RPTV models, as opposed to other new light engine technology formats including laser diode powered light engines, which are not currently economically feasible for mass produced, high brightness applications such as projection television.

Foreal's new, fully customizable LED light modules and engines provide maximum brightness for the small emitting areas required for RPTV and pocket projectors, in addition to semiconductor and biomedical instrumentation. The benefits are numerous when compared to traditional light engines using standard arc lamps including: enhanced color gamut and uniformity, reduced production and maintenance costs, compact size, and reduced weight. LEDs also feature instant on/off capability for minimal heat, longer lifetime, and improved safety.

Dr. Mike Jin, SpatiaLight's Chief Technology Officer commented, "We are excited about the high level of performance that can be achieved through the combination of SpatiaLight's proprietary LCoS imagers and Foreal's light engine with LED based illumination. Wider color gamut and long lamp lifetime along with lower heat will provide both excellent image quality and a high level of reliability."

Dr. Anmin Zheng, Co-Founder and CEO of Foreal Spectrum, said, "Our patent- pending designs have removed many design constraints by leveraging our thin film coating capabilities. Foreal also successfully addresses fundamental LED problems such as extraction efficiency, collection efficiency, electronic control, and heat management. We provide everything under one roof, from the overall design to all of the individual elements and integrate them transparently for the end user's application. Individual elements include coating, optics, electronics, thermal, mechanics, and packaging."

Dr. David Hakala, SpatiaLight Chairman and Chief Executive Officer added, "LCoS optical engines using solid state illumination sources such as Foreal Spectrum's LED based design provide significant improvements in important consumer characteristics such as lifetime and reliability, size and weight, and power consumption. We believe these improvements will facilitate an increasing market share trend for projection TV in large screen sizes, reversing some of the gains made by flat panels."

About SpatiaLight

SpatiaLight, Inc., founded in 1989, manufactures high-resolution LCoS imagers for use in high-definition display applications such as rear projection televisions, monitors, front projection systems, near-to-eye applications, micro-projectors and other display applications. The company's primary manufacturing facility is located in South Korea. SpatiaLight is committed to developing microdisplay technologies that will be the standard for the next generation of high definition televisions and to providing OEMs with the most cost effective, high-resolution microdisplays in the industry.

For more information about SpatiaLight, please visit the Company's website at: http://www.spatialight.com .

About Foreal Spectrum

Foreal Spectrum was founded in 2003 and has 40,000 square feet of world- class manufacturing in the US and its two subsidiaries in China. Telecom coating and optical technologies have been adapted and improved for HD-TV projection displays, biomedical, LED, and laser applications. Foreal's high performance optical platforms enable a diverse range of cost effective, reliable, next generation devices. The company uses proprietary processes and patent-pending technologies.

For more information about Foreal Spectrum, please visit the Company's website at http://www.forealspectrum.com/index.html .

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Looks interesting but one thing I do not see is whether their new light engine has one chip or three. I'm assuming one, which would explain why they talk about a less expensive TV overall.

My guess is 3 chips for light efficiency. LEDs are not more expensive than standard lamps and they make the light path simpler and cheaper to build.

IB

My guess is 3 chips for light efficiency. LEDs are not more expensive than standard lamps and they make the light path simpler and cheaper to build.

I don't dispute any of this, but wouldn't one chip eliminate the alignment challenge inherent in manufacturing three-chip light engines?

Yes, but most people like 3 chip devices better and are willing to pay the extra cost for a brighter picture and a more stable image. LCOS and LCD chips are so cheap now, I cannot imagine a manufacturer trying to sell a single chip LCOS projector in this market, where they have to compete with plasma TVs, which are very bright.

IB

Are Sony and JVC using this company's tech in their next gen models?

Both Sony and JVC continue to use parts developed by other companies. This is traditional among OEM's. The same goes with Sony's laptops. They don't make their own laptops.

For example, most of the glass for flat panel displays comes from Corning, NY. It's laughable to think that these companies actually develop any of these components (several they do, but most they just acquire elsewhere).

I didn't see anything about the reduced contrast ratio. :rolleyes:

The illumination system is novel, but at a contrast ratio of "more than 2000:1", the native LCOS panels are hardly up to what JVC and Sony can do.