Since E Ink’s partnership with BMW to create the color-changing BMW i Vision Dee, the opportunities for smart surface technology to enhance our daily lives have become increasingly clear. Combining both design and functionality, smart surfaces provide personalization and immersive experiences through display materials and technology. From cars and home appliances to smart cities and healthcare, smart surfaces have grown in applications; but the industry is only getting started.
In 2024, the technology will become more widely adopted across sectors.
If You Paid Attention, You Probably Noticed Smart Surfaces at CES 2024 Everywhere
Ever since our CES debut with the color-changing BMW car, we have seen significant buzz around people experimenting with smart surfaces and integrating design elements into surfaces. At this year’s CES, brands like Lenovo and Infinix built on the technology and applied a color-changing, personalization concept to their designs.
Lenovo showcasing its new concept laptop, the ThinkBook 13x Gen 4 SPE, leveraging E Ink Prism technology
Credit: Good eReader
Smart surfaces need to be friendly and functional. As more designers play with E Ink materials, ePaper is going to be incorporated into even more elements. A few creative applications that we enjoyed seeing at CES 2024 were the Cream Guitars and Kohler smart toilet.
Numi 2.0, Kohler’s color-changing concept toilet showcased at CES 2024 featured E Ink’s Prism technology.
Credit: The Verge
Smart Surfaces Will Also Be an Important Element for the Future of Smart Cities
As cities become more connected, smart surfaces will become more prevalent – cities will leverage the technology to engage with the community and provide services more efficiently.
Take transportation as an example: signage at bus stops, train stations, and airports helps cities deliver real-time information to citizens and travelers.
Greater Lynchburg Transit Company in Virginia selected EQUANS to deliver ePaper solutions modernizing its transportation services.
Credit: EQUANS
One key area of opportunity for cities includes consideration of the energy used in transportation (along with increased population density).
As sustainability continues to top city planning officials’ agenda, the question is: how are we moving all the people around and how do we do it sustainably? The answer will likely include electrified transit, personal EVs, ride sharing, electric bikes, etc., but smart surfaces are also an important element.
PPDS launched a 32-inch color display featuring E Ink Spectra 6 in November 2023.
Credit: E Ink
Given ePaper’s low-power attribute, it offers an opportunity for cities to transform their public transit infrastructure while not compromising on their sustainability goals.
Looking ahead in 2024 and beyond, ePaper technology has the potential to transform many sectors. Stay tuned for part two of the series where we’ll dive into how ePaper brings benefits and positive impact to healthcare and sustainability.
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