Victor Company of Japan, Ltd. (JVC) said it will begin volume production this month of a new 0.7-inch D-ILA (Direct-Drive Image Light Amplifier) 1,080p high-definition chip, which will be added to its family of LCoS microdisplay devices.
The new 0.7-inch D-ILA chip is said to be smaller and less expensive than JVC’s previous 0.8-inch device. It will produce full 1,920 by 1,080 high-definition resolution (approximately 2.07 million pixels).
JVC plans to release HD projection televisions in Japan and North America that will use the new device in tandem with the company’s next-generation high-resolution imaging technologies, the company said.
The new chip is the same size as JVC’s current 1,280 by 720 microdisplay device, but increases native resolution to a full 1,080p format. Because the size remains consistent, JVC said it will be able to standardize production equipment and manufacturing processes to achieve high quality and reliability, as well as cost savings due to enhanced production efficiency.
The chip also employs a new pixel surface smoothing technology to produce high reflectivity for high brightness levels. When combined with the high resolution of full HD technology and the high aperture ratio of reflective liquid crystal devices, the technology makes possible the development of projection televisions that offer smoother appearing images.
Also used in the device is a next-generation 8.1µm pixel pitch (pixel length) manufacturing process that shrinks the area of each pixel by 50 percent compared with JVC’s existing 720p device.
The chip’s aperture ratio is said to be 89 percent and reflective pixel flattening technology is used to produce the reflectivity equivalent of JVC’s 720p device.
The new device, which will commence volume production in August, is smaller and lower in cost than its predecessor 0.8-inch D-ILA full HD device. JVC plans to release full HD projection televisions in Japan and North America that will make use of the new device to augment its high-end range of projection televisions, which is currently composed of the company’s lineup of 720p projection televisions.
