Panoramic Displays? You don’t realize how often you use them!

In home appliances, transportation, commerce, digital signage and industry – in each of these areas we use devices equipped with screens. These are often widescreen displays, but do not always come in the aspect ratio commonly associated with them, namely 16:9. In the article, we present a number of applications where such solutions are used.

Such an approach to the subject obliges us to define the term “panoramic shape,” which will repeatedly appear in the article. Let’s assume that in this case the common denominator for products with “widescreen shapes” is any elongated rectangular solution – not only 16:9 format, but also, for example, 5:2, 15:4, 12:1 or 24:1. Most will be LCD displays of varying diagonals – from 3.9- or 4.2- to 65.0-inches. They are complemented by copies representing other technologies, such as the increasingly popular and desirable EPD (Electronic Paper Display, or e-paper). However, no longer among them will be LED displays, which are now not yet completely out of use, but are used in a small number of projects, usually at the customer’s request.

Some of the applications described may require touch operation, which involves combining the display with a touch sensor and protective glass. Such a module can be improved by applying various coatings, such as anti-fingerprint (AF), which promotes keeping the screen surface clean – dirt doesn’t stick to it, reducing the visibility of fingerprints, for example (learn more about coatings – here). Activities related to the connection of individual elements of the device can be performed in Unisystem – the guarantee of the highest quality of the service is its implementation in a cleanroom put into operation a few months ago that meets the requirements of ISO class 5 ( contact us for a quote).

Displays for home appliances

This is a group of displays that we use every day – already almost all home appliances are equipped with small screens. These include consumer electronics (e.g., audio and video players, amplifiers or equalizers) and household appliances (e.g., microwaves, coffee makers, weather stations), and sometimes computer accessories (e.g., printers or scanners).

Increasingly, LCD displays with standard parameters are being installed in them – optimal readability in different lighting conditions will be provided by solutions with a brightness of approx. 500 ^cd/m2. In addition, these types of screens are usually looked at from below or above – you just need to choose the direction of observation accordingly, i.e. at 6:00 a.m. or 12:00 p.m. Full observation angles are not a requirement here. Unisystem offers more than a dozen models that can be used in this type of equipment – these include. Winstar’s 3.9-, 4.6- and 5.2-inch products ( WF39CTIASDNN0# , WF39BTLASDNN0# , WF46ATIATDNNA# or WF52ATLASDNN0# ).

Displays for transportation

In the transportation industry, such as on the railroads, we may come across many variants of panoramic displays – both at stations or stations and in the vehicles themselves. They are used to inform passengers about, for example, train departures and arrivals or current weather conditions. They can also act as advertising carriers.

Note that equipment installed on trains usually has to meet a number of additional requirements (e.g., operate over a wide temperature range, exhibit vibration resistance, or do not generate interference that may affect the operation of the apparatus). They are regulated by the PN-EN 50155:2018-01 standard.

When using LCD solutions in this type of application, it is important to provide passengers with unrestricted access to information – therefore, full viewing angles (89°/89°/89°/89°/89°), as well as adequate brightness (at least 700 ^cd/m2) become a requirement. The table below shows selected models of widescreen LCDs from AUO, BOE and Litemax (all quoted products from Litemax in the “H” version, i.e. sold with AD Board; other variants are also available – “F” (without AD Board), “O” (in open frame housing) and “D” (in solid housing):

*Products in this series meet the requirements of PN-EN 50155:2018-01.

An alternative to LCD displays in this type of application can be EPD solutions, which – thanks to their properties (e.g. full viewing angles) – provide excellent readability of the content presented on them (provided there is access to an external light source). In addition, they are energy-efficient – they do not require backlighting, and power consumption occurs only when changing the exposed image. An interesting move is the undertaking of work on a 28-inch color e-paper, among others. for transportation, which are led by two companies, are E Ink (a pioneer in the field of EPDs) and Innolux (one of the leading suppliers of LCDs). However, the release of this solution will have to wait – the date of its market launch is still unknown (find out more – here ). In the meantime, you can take advantage of other available widescreen e-paper displays, such as the 31.2-inch ED312TT2 (E Ink; 2560×1440, 16:9, 0~50 ˚C).

It is also worth mentioning another group of devices that are related to transportation, namely cash dispensers. This type of application uses a variety of display technologies, and their choice is usually keyed by screen size. For devices requiring several-inch solutions, economical 7-inch displays from Winstar are worthy of recommendation, such as. WF70A8SYAHLNN0# . On the other hand, for small formats, you can use, for example, 16- or 20-character and 2- or 4-verse LCM displays with a 12:00 a.m. viewing direction, such as. WH1602B1-SLL-JWV# (16×2), WH1604A-SLL-CWV# (16×4), WH2002G-SLL-CTV# (20×2) or WH2004A-SLL-CTV# (20×4), also from this manufacturer.

Displays for commerce

Various large-format advertisements are associated with this area, among which LCD solutions with aspect ratios oscillating around 16:9 are common. The most important parameter in their case – besides full viewing angles, i.e. 89°/89°/89°/89° – is brightness, which should be at least 700 ^cd/m2 to guarantee readability of the presented content in conditions of intense lighting (e.g. in shopping malls).

An interesting advertising solution used commercially is videowalls, or interconnected bezel-less displays. In this type of construction, each screen displays a section of the image that makes up a large-format product presentation.

Another group of applications are various types of kiosks, such as information desks, vending machines, ticket machines, parking meters, POS (point of sale), etc., which commonly use LCD displays. Their parameters largely depend on the purpose of the device, for example, full viewing angles will not always be required – in self-service checkouts, the 12:00 direction is completely sufficient, as they are usually below the line of sight. Solutions for this type of application can be found in the offer of many Unisystem suppliers – the table below collects selected models with 16:9 or 16:10 aspect ratios from AUO, Winstar and Litemax (all quoted products from Litemax in the “H” version, i.e. sold in a set with AD Board; other variants are also available – “F” (without AD Board), “O” (in open frame housing) and “D” (in solid housing):

The category of retail solutions is rounded out by displays designed to be mounted on shelves. These include. e-paper price tags gaining popularity, replacing paper labels. Among them, for example, products from E Inka – black and white ET014TT6 (1.43″) i ED029TC1 (2.9″) and with additional color, such as. EL029TR1 (2.9″; with red color). Also worth mentioning are the black and white 2.9-inch EL029TC1 , which, due to its operating temperature range set at -25~10°C, can be successfully used in store refrigerators or freezers. “Shelf” solutions also include smart shelves, which are ultra widescreen LCD displays with an aspect ratio of 12:1 (G229HAF01.0 (22.9″) and G229HAF02.0 (22.9″) from AUO) and 24:1 (DV471FBM-N10 (47.1″) from BOE) , which will primarily serve to present advertisements in the immediate vicinity of products.

Other uses for widescreen displays

The mentioned applications for transportation or commerce can be included in another category, digital signage. It’s a fairly comprehensive group of centrally managed solutions for distributing content tailored to current audience needs. They are becoming widespread in various industries, including. HoReCa sector (serving to present offers, place orders in cafes or restaurants or coordinate conferences in hotels).

Panoramic displays are also used in industry – especially in control panels (HMI – Human Machine Interface), which now make up not only counters, buttons and dials, but also screens (usually with touch panels). In industrial applications, an important parameter is the operating temperature, which should be adapted to the conditions in which the device will be operated. If the module is exposed to, for example, dust or water, it becomes necessary to protect it by using an enclosure with adequate waterproofing. The various degrees of protection are defined by the PN-EN 60529 standard (equivalent to the international IEC 60 529 standard;learn more about the degrees of protection of enclosures – here here ). Finally, it remains to choose the right brightness (at least 1000 ^cd/m2) and viewing angles (optimally 89°/89°/89°/89°).

It is clear that the above list does not include all possible application areas for widescreen displays. It could still be supplemented with, among other things. o gaming applications, or slot machines.

These are devices that are usually located in spaces with subdued lighting (e.g., in casinos), which makes the brightness criteria not so restrictive – in such cases you can consider installing solutions that reach approx. 250 ^cd/m2. Often there is also no need for full viewing angles, with this parameter depending on the location of the screen in relation to the line of sight (above – 6:00 a.m., and below – 12:00 p.m.). This type of application is popular with customers, among others. from T215HVN01.1 (21.5″) and M238HVN01.0 (23.8″) models from AUO .

The parameters indicated so far apply to devices operating indoors. In the case of outdoor applications, it also becomes necessary to take into account other properties that depend on the prevailing weather conditions, such as the operating temperature range, which must be wide enough to guarantee correct operation of the module in both hot summers and cold winters.

In addition, some of the devices described, such as in digital signage systems, are designed for continuous operation (24/7), so it is worth paying attention to the life of the product to avoid frequent maintenance. LCD solutions with a life expectancy of at least 100,000 hours. are available from Litemax, such as the 4300-L (43.0″, 16:9, 2500 cd/m²), 5500-L (55.0″, 16:9, 2500 cd/m²) or the 6500-A (65.0″, 16:9, 2000 ^cd/m2) from the Durapixel series and the 3665-I (36.6″, 16:2.4, 1000 ^cd/m2), 4485-I (44.8″, 16:4.5, 1000 ^cd/m2) or 5745-I (57.4″, 16:3.4, 1000 ^cd/m2) from the Spanpixel series.

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We defined each of the described applications with potential requirements that determine not only the correct operation of the module, but also the readability of the presented content. They usually concern brightness or viewing angles, but these are not the only parameters we should pay attention to when selecting a display for a device. There is no doubt that each project requires a customized approach – we always analyze all known environmental factors in order to finally choose the technology that will work best for the application (and be cost-effective). We should not be afraid of unusual shapes, which are given, for example, smart shelves used in the trade. These are still not commonly used displays, which gives you an opportunity to stand out from the competition – by locating your product surrounded by such solutions, you increase the chances of focusing the attention of the consumer passing between the shelves. What’s more, there is usually nothing to prevent these displays from being mounted in both horizontal and vertical orientations. The only limitation is your imagination.

Looking for a widescreen display for a projected device? We will be happy to help you choose the optimal solution – contact us.