Seminar Archive - 2014

Wednesday, December 3rd, 2014
Speaker: Dr. Amit Jain, Founder and CEO, Prysm Inc
Title: Endless Engaging: Laser Phosphor Display (LPD) Enabled Video Walls

Abstract: Combining groundbreaking hardware,software and services, Prysmis revolutionizing the world of large-scale displays. Prysm’s Laser Phosphor Display (LPD) platform is a key foundational technology that makes possible breathtakingly beautiful, scalable and versatile video walls. In this talk, Dr Amit Jain will talk the technology behind LPD which enables to create a totally immersive experience with a very wide viewing angle (178°), high resolution and unrivaled image and brightness uniformity. We will also learn about the how Prysm has been able to make these video walls sustainably smart with consuming upto 75% less energy required than competing technologies with no special power or cooling infrastructure is required and with long life; 60,000 hours (7 years operating 24/7.

This talk will be hosted at the Prysm Headquaters in San Jose and present a unique opportunity to see the demo walls live at this presentation.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Amit brings over 20 years of executive management, technological and entrepreneurial experience to the Prysm team. With a proven track record of growing successful technology-related businesses, and a career that spans the data-storage, high-end optical telecommunication, and low-cost datacom devices industries, Amit is well versed in the integration of technologies and manufacturing processes.

Before founding Prysm, Amit was CEO of Bigbear Network and the co-founder and CEO of Versatile Optical Networks, which was acquired by Vitesse Semiconductor Corp. At Vitesse, Amit led the Optical Systems Division as Vice President and General Manager until the division was acquired by Avanex Corporation. Prior to Versatile, Amit held several management positions in startups and established large companies including Terastor, Optex Communications, and Digital Equipment Corporation. Amit holds a BS in Physics, a BSEE, MSEE & MBA degrees..

Wednesday, November 12th, 2014
Speaker: Dr. Micah Yairi is the co-founder and CTO of Tactus Technology, Inc
Title: Adapting Touch Screens to Human Touch

Abstract: Touch screens have been designed to accept data via human touch. Today, the technology exists to turn this relationship around – where touch screens are also used to provide sensory touch information back to the human user. This presentation focuses on (1) the types of sensory input hands and fingers accept, (2) how different technologies use a variety of techniques to provide such sensory input, and (3) how the technologies help create a more complete and fulfilling interaction between a person and a touch screen in both providing and receiving touch input.

Tactus Technology was winner of PC Magazine Technical Excellence Award 2012 and also winner Wired and Engadget Best of CES 2013

Speaker Biography: Dr. Micah Yairi is the co-founder and CTO of Tactus Technology, Inc. Tactus is bringing a new user interface to consumer devices and displays – dynamic touch surfaces that enable buttons to rise up on demand out of the screen. When not needed, the buttons recede back into the screen, invisible, returning the display to its original clear, flat surface. Prior to founding Tactus, Yairi led development efforts for microfluidic transdermal drug delivery systems and advanced optical sensors for Los Gatos Research. Dr. Yairi also founded Fortnight Solutions, a business-to-business "match-making" service that helped engineering companies locate solutions to technical problems.

Click here to access Dr. Micah Yairi's slides. 

Friday, October 10th, 2014 Networking Reception: 6:30 PM (Hors D'oeuvres &Beer/Wine) Dinner: 7:30 PM (Menu listed below) Keynote Talk: 8:30PM
Speaker: Dr. Candice H. Brown Elliott
Title: Bay-Area SID Annual Dinner

If you are a technology enthusiast, you and your guest are invited to the BA-SID 2014 Annual Dinner. Join your local display-industry peers for a summer evening of good food, good company, and fascinating information. This year's keynote speaker at the event is someone you won't want to miss -- Dr. Candice Brown Elliot, Display Industry veteran, inventor of PenTile™ display technology, entrepreneur, technologist and a true inspiration.

Abstract: In the display industry, we often assume that what we display on the screen is what the viewer will see. This is often not case. The Human Vision System, its optics, retina, and the visual cortex in the brain, have quirks that produce surprising and even amusing effects. Using images during her talk, Ms. Elliott will demonstrate and explain the how and why behind optical illusions. 

Speaker Biography: Dr. Candice H. Brown Elliott has been an entrepreneur, manager, and technologist in the Display and Semiconductor industries for four decades. She started her first Silicon Valley firm at the age of 15, selling microscopic polymer spheres (beads). Starting as a teenaged secretary at CMX Video Systems in 1976, Candice fell in love with video and display technology, earning her way through college as technician at Conrac Video Monitors and MCA DiscoVision (mastering video laser discs on R&D equipment) later working in manufacturing engineering / R&D at Planar Systems and The MicroDisplay Corp. Her career in video and displays took a temporary detour in the '80s when she was an engineer supervisor at Fairchild and AMD. She founded Clairvoyante in 2000 to develop and license PenTile™ subpixel rendering (SPR) technology. Clairvoyante was sold to Samsung in 2008. She then founded Nouvoyance, which as an independent partner to Samsung, designed PenTile™ chipcores, earning design wins in hundreds of smartphones, tablets, notebooks, and HD / UD Televisions, shipping hundreds of millions of displays annually.  Candice was awarded the Otto Schade Prize for her work on PenTile™ technology by SID in June 2014. Candice is currently consulting for a number of display firms and exploring new entrepreneurial opportunities.

Wednesday, April 30, 2014 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Speakers: Dr. Bernard Kress, Principal Researcher, Google [X] labs
Title: Presentation: Google Glass: Optical architectures for see through wearable displays.

Abstract: HUDs (Heads Up Displays) and HMDs (Helmet Mounted Displays) have been around for a few decades, providing exceptional optical performances for specialized defense applications. On the other hand, consumer electronics HMDs (Head Mounted Displays) have been lingering as personal gadgets for a mere decade. But recently, major companies have launched consumer compelling head mounted display solutions integrating hardware, operating system as well as content, unlocking the consumer HMD status-quo.

As a result, we are witnessing today a fragmentation of the HMD market into various categories which have their very own specificity in terms of functionality, hardware and content.

Such fragmentation is responsible for defining new distinct market segments such as consumer near to eye displays, social smart glasses, gaming headsets, as well as professional (engineering and technical) HMDs, specialized (medical, law enforcement, firefighting) HMDs and of course the previously existing defense market.

We will be reviewing the different type of optical hardware used in such devices.

Speaker Biography: For over 20 years, Bernard has made significant scientific contributions as researcher, professor, consultant, advisor, instructor, and author, making major contributions to digital micro-optical systems for consumer electronics, generating IP, and teaching and transferring technological solutions to industry.

Many of the world's largest producers of optics and photonics products have consulted with him on a wide range of optics and photonics technologies including; laser materials processing, optical security, optical telecom/datacom, optical data storage, optical computing, optical motion sensors, pico- projectors, light emitting diode displays, optical gesture sensing, three dimensional remote sensing, digital imaging processing, and biotechnology sensors.

Bernard has generated more than 30 international granted patents. He has published four books, a book chapter, 102 refereed publications and proceedings, and numerous technical publications. He has also been Involved in European Research Projects in Micro-Optics including the Eureka Flat Optical Technology and Applications (FOTA) Project and the Network for Excellence in Micro-Optics (NEMO) Project.

Bernard is currently the optics lead at the advanced technology group in Google Glass Project.

Click here to access Bernard Kress's slides.

Wednesday, March 19, 2014 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Speakers: Dr. Paul Mansky, Manager, Cambrios Technologies, Dr. Florian Pschenitzka, Manager, Cambrios Technologies, and Sri Peruvemba, Chief Marketing Officer, Cambrios Technologies
Title: Transparent Conductors with Silver Nanowires: Closing the gap with Transparent Conductive Oxides

Abstract: Demand for transparent conductors have been on a rise with increased adoption of touch screens and emerging applications such as OLED lighting, solar and flexible displays. These applications are looking for better performing materials than the incumbent transparent conductive oxides which have several technological drawbacks as well as supply chain risks.The consumer market segment is looking for the best possible materials at very competitive prices. We have three outstanding speakers from Cambrios who will provide a detailed background on the technology behind silver nanowires that is replacing incumbent materials and the progress that is being made in various markets and applications.

Speaker Biographies: 

Dr. Paul Mansky, has a BS in Physics from MIT, a PhD in physics from Princeton, and did post-doctoral work in polymer physics at IBM's Almaden Research Laboratory and the Polymer Science Department at UMass Amherst. He has more than 50 publications and patents in diverse technical fields, including block copolymer thin self-assembly and nanostructure fabrication; superconductivity; high throughput technologies for accelerated materials discovery; polymeric drugs; and pharmaceutical formulations. His current role at Cambrios is to help grow and strengthen the ecosystem for ClearOhm®-based touch sensors. He also manages the Applications Support and Technical Marketing at Cambrios. He has previously held roles in successful materials-focused companies in Silicon Valley, including Symyx, Alza, and Ilypsa/Relypsa.

Dr. Florian Pschenitzka holds a Dipl.-Ing. from the Technical University in Munich, Germany and a Ph.D. from Princeton University, both in Electrical Engineering. Currently at Cambrios Technologies he is focused on the application of Cambrios' ClearOhm (R) Transparent Conductor Film for applications in OLED and OPV. Before joining Cambrios, he worked as a device scientist at OSRAM Semiconductors on OLED devices.

Sri Peruvemba leads the marketing function at Cambrios. His experience in the electronics industry include marketing LCD, CRT, TFEL, OLED, LED, Plasma and ePaper displays into the mobile, industrial, medical, signage and TV markets. He earned a BSEE, a MBA and a Post Graduate Diploma in Management. Previously, Peruvemba held senior level positions at E Ink, Sharp Corp, TFS Inc, Planar Systems and Suntronic Technology.

Wednesday, January 15, 2014 6:00-7:00 p.m.
Speaker: Dr. Philip Bos, Ph.D., Professor & Associate Director of the Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State University
Title: 3-D displays using Liquid Crystal Lenses: Can we solve the accommodation/convergence problem?

Abstract: For desktop 3D displays: the cues of relative motion, stereopsis , and focus are all significant. While the first two have ready solutions for single viewer systems, the focus cue is generally lacking. Electronic lenses, based on liquid crystals, can be considered to solve this problem. This talk with briefly review the accommodation / convergence problem, and provide an overview of liquid crystal lens technology for solving it. Detailed results on liquid crystal lens performance will also be discussed.

Speaker Biography: Dr. Philip Bos is a Professor of Chemical Physics & Associate Director of the Liquid Crystal Institute at Kent State University. Before joining Kent State in 1994, he was a principle scientist in the Display Research Laboratory of Tektronix Inc. He received his Ph.D in Physics from Kent State in 1978. He has authored over 100 papers in the field of liquid crystals and liquid crystal displays, and has over 25 issued patents. His field of interest include applications of liquid crystals, with contributions to fast liquid crystal electro-optical effects including the invention of the pi-cell. He is active in the field of displays and was twice the general chair of the International Display Research Conference. He is a Fellow of the SID, and has received the Distinguished Scholar Award from Kent State University. At Tektronix, his focus was optical components for 3D field sequential stereoscopic displays. His current research focus is liquid crystal optical devices.