Electrochromic (EC) materials belong to a typical interdisciplinary technology, and the preparation process is very complicated. Although it has huge commercial prospects, due to its high technical difficulty and high barriers, there are no more than 10 companies in the world that have mastered mature preparation processes.
The principle of the digitally controlled electrochromic material developed by SZBY Photoelectric Material Technology Corporation is to make the material achieve different light transmittance by changing the voltage applied to the inorganic coating. The light transmittance of the digitally controlled color-changing material developed by SZBY is 80% in the transparent state and 10% in the colored state, and the adjustment range is internationally leading.
Electrochromic principle
At present, several applications of electrochromic materials in China are: building curtain walls and color-changing mobile phone back covers.
Taking the Tencent Building in Beijing as an example, the use of electrochromic glass in the lighting roof can reduce the proportion of sunlight entering the room by changing the light transmittance, thereby reducing the indoor temperature and reducing the power consumption of the air conditioner. In addition, Chinese mobile phone manufacturer OPPO has also applied electrochromic materials to the back cover of a certain type of mobile phone to realize the function of changing color with a tap.
However, Dr. Chen, CTO of SZBY, believes that after the digital control of electrochromic materials, there will be a larger market application space, such as AR glasses.
For a long time, one of the imaging problems faced by AR glasses is that the imaging brightness is low. Many manufacturers use monochrome display or increase the brightness of the optical machine to improve the image brightness. However, in the strong and complex outdoor light environment, the AR glasses imaging is still seriously disturbed, and the display is not clear enough; some manufacturers add dark lenses on the outside of the AR glasses to reduce the overall light transmittance of the AR glasses to reduce the impact of ambient light on the imaging. Interfering, but affecting the user's line of sight to observe real objects.
How to balance the light transmittance of the lens and the display brightness has become a major problem in the optical solution of AR glasses. To solve this problem requires three-pronged approach: 1. Improve the light efficiency of the optical waveguide imaging lens; 2. Increase the upper limit of the brightness of the projector; 3. Intelligently adjust the light transmittance of the lens.
Many foreign AR glasses companies, including Samsung Electronics, Meta (former Facebook), Apple, and Xingji Times, have conducted joint research and development and small-scale trial production with SZBY for the solution of "smartly adjusting the transmittance of lenses", and have already Complete supplier import and prepare for mass production in advance.
In addition, SZBY has completed modular adaptation with several major optical waveguide imaging lens manufacturers in China and internationally, and plans to achieve large-scale mass production of "CNC color-changing imaging modules" in the fourth quarter of this year.
In the first stage of commercialization, while SZBY is deeply cultivating the AR industry, it will simultaneously promote the "digital control photochromic lenses" in the traditional glasses industry. The main purpose is to promote user education of "smart color-changing glasses". After the market matures, the company will turn to provide materials, accessories, technology development and other services for major traditional eyewear brands.
In the second stage of commercialization, SZBY will make the product into a "flexible digital control color-changing material", which will break through the users of automobiles, high-end buildings and transparent terminal displays.
In terms of team, the founder, Dr. Chen, graduated from the University of Rochester, which ranks first in optics in the United States. He specializes in numerical control color changing and optical solution design. The company's electrochromic material formula is based on the team of Professor Wu Junqiao of UCB Lawrence National Laboratory. Co-founder Dr. Zhuang has 20 years of entrepreneurial experience in the display panel industry and smart hardware industry.