Our Innovation Analysts recently looked into emerging technologies and up-and-coming startups working for solutions for the Automotive sector. As there are a lot of such startups working on various different applications, we want to share our insights with you. Today, we take a look at 3 promising flexible displays startups.
Heat Map: 3 Top Flexible Displays Startups
For our 3 top picks, we used a data-driven startup scouting approach to identify the most relevant solutions globally. The Global Startup Heat Map below highlights 3 interesting examples out of 57 relevant solutions. Depending on your specific needs, your top picks might look entirely different.
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Forciot – Human-Machine Interface
Touch screens are a popular choice for human-machine interfaces. However, their use is limited in cars and trucks. The curved interiors of automobiles restrict the use of touch to the usual flat screen dashboards. Flexible screens that adapt to the shape of interiors open up possibilities to better integrate screens in the design of a vehicle.
Forciot, a Finnish startup, develops stretchable electronics with specialized algorithms that can measure a lot of critical parameters. The sensors in these stretchable screens can accurately measure force, pressure, and balance when integrated into seats or steering wheels. The data gathered by these sensors can be projected on heads-up displays (HUDs) or channeled to other smart car solutions.
FlexEnable – Curved Dashboard
Flat, rectangular dashboards do not fit neatly in the curved contours inside a vehicle. Ultra-lightweight and thin rollable displays do not face this constraint. In recent years, organic polymers have replaced the glass in liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and light-emitting diodes (LEDs) leading to the development of OLCDs and OLEDs. These displays can be rolled like sheets of paper and can be put up as displays anywhere inside a vehicle.
The UK-based startup FlexEnable is a manufacturer of OLCDs and OLEDs for a variety of applications. For the automotive industry, they use conformable OLCDs to develop low cost, large area surface-integrated displays. Being glass-free, these displays are shatterproof and perform better in automotive brightness standards. Moreover, they do not need to develop different solutions for cars from different manufacturers or different models from the same manufacturer.
CurveSYS – Driver Safety
A driver interacts the most with the steering wheel among all the components that make a vehicle. However, where and how to hold the steering wheel is an aspect that most drivers do not fully understand. The correct placement of hands on the wheel varies according to the design, seat height, and body type. Flexible displays on steering wheels improve driver safety by assisting with correct placement of hands on the wheel and minimizing the need to take hands-off.
CurveSYS is a German startup that develops sensor cell arrays for curve three-dimensional surfaces. Their technology, when integrated into the design of a steering wheel, enhances comfort, safety, and convenience. The curved display can monitor driver fatigue or when the hands are off the wheel and place infotainment controls to positions where the driver does not need to take their hands off to access them.
What About The Other 54 Startups?
While we believe data is key to creating insights it can be easy to be overwhelmed by it. Our ambition is to create a comprehensive overview and provide actionable innovation intelligence for your Proof of Concept (PoC), partnership, or investment targets. The 3 flexible displays startups showcased above are promising examples out of 57 we analyzed for this article. To identify the most relevant solutions based on your specific criteria and collaboration strategy, get in touch.
