Sensors, Haptics & Displays

Modern automotive interiors are evolving at a tremendously fast pace, moving past the mechanical dials and becoming fully electronic. The key attributes of these electronics are noticed by consumers, such as the design of the display, its curvature, brightness, and type of technology, i.e., OLED or LCD, when, in reality, there is a lot more that goes into building the display and assembling the entire unit.

From blankets to towels to clothing to upholstery, humans are in contact with textiles for almost all their lives. Textiles, used for warmth, comfort, and aesthetics, can be combined with electronics to gain exciting new functionalities.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are gaining significant traction as a conductive additive at the cathode of lithium-ion batteries (LiB), a market driven in turn by the electrification of vehicles. This success has seen an explosion in the global production capacity of CNTs, with players racing to establish themselves as a leading supplier to the energy sector. However, the potential application areas for CNTs extend far beyond batteries. In this article, IDTechEx assesses the effects of increasing capacity and how this surge in supply will open opportunities for CNTs beyond the LiB market.

Friday 1 December 2023 - Following the Money - Enabling Materials (conductive inks, CNTs and graphene); Comparisons of applicable 2D and 3D manufacturing processes; Outlook for key components including sensors, batteries and displays; Market drivers and needs

Thursday 30 November 2023; MicroLED technologies and manufacturing processes; Values and challenges; MicroLED applications and analysis; Application roadmap; Current development status

Spatial computing promises to transform the way we interact with our devices as computing goes truly 3D, with early signs of change already underway. While Apple's upcoming Vision Pro is bringing new excitement to this space, gaming-focused VR (Virtual Reality) headsets from companies including Meta, Sony, and Pico have sold millions of units, and AR (Augmented Reality) glasses from Vuzix, Microsoft, and more have found a valuable place in industry.

Radar has been one of the most significant additions to vehicles in the past two decades. It provides luxury advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) features like adaptive cruise control (ACC), as well as critical safety features like automatic emergency braking and blind spot detection.

Quantum technologies are evolving at a rapid pace. Spurred by the promise of exponentially faster computation and classically unachievable sensitivity, billions of dollars are being poured into the development of quantum computers and quantum sensors.

Wednesday 29 November 2023 - Outlines how the vergence-accommodation conflict is holding back XR from its full potential; Lays out the landscape of potential solutions in augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) headsets, from light field displays to geometric phase lenses; Compares these approaches by benchmarking on the promotion of social acceptability, manufacturing feasibility, and other factors to lay out the most likely path to integration of these technologies into immersive devices with mass appeal

Tuesday 28 November - What is the state of the quantum technology market in 2023? Quantum Computing: Benchmarking friends and foes; Quantum Sensing: Sensitivity vs. SWAP-C; Quantum Communications: Trading on trust