LED-based lighting is one category of solid-state lighting and a fast growing market, with hundreds of lighting companies recognizing the need to have LED-based development programs. Though LEDs have many benefits, one drawback is that they typically require new or custom optical solutions to realize their full potential. Phostech can provide solutions for:

• Specific illuminance profile and color uniformity (direct the light only where it should go)
• Luminance and color uniformity of the light emitting area (no hot spots)
• Optimized optical film or lens choices and product integration
• Optimized optical polymer for environmental concerns
• Reduced glare output
• High optical efficiency lenses, reflective components, housing, etc.
• Single or multi-LED collimating lens solutions
• Direct-lit or edge-lit solutions
• Testing system solutions

Phostech has more than 15 years of experience in LED illumination systems and can direct companies to off-the-shelf or custom solutions that integrate the unique optical properties of LEDs into their light fixture or LED signage designs.

Picoprojectors in Cellphones

Display technologies are continuously improving and new fundamental display technologies are continuously invented. Phostech has a broad range of experience in working with many different display technologies and can offer clients solutions including technology comparisons, patent evaluation, optical design, component sourcing, and component and display testing. In addition to optical modeling, optical prototyping, and optical testing of displays, Phostech can assist or provide technologies and solutions in the areas of:

• LCD displays (miniature to large) and LCD backlights
  • LED illumination,thinner, increased efficiency and uniformity, edge-lit,
• 3D displays including stereoscopic, autostereoscopic, holographic, volumetric displays, 3D projection
  • Technology evaluation, cross-talk, and image quality evalution
• Projection displays, personal projectors (microprojectors and picoprojectors)
  • Optical components, light sources such as LEDs and lasers
  • Various screen technologies, front/rear screens, contrast enhancing, lenticular, spectrally selective transmission or reflection, polarization based screens
• LED displays
  • Optical components, LED de-pixelizing, contrast enhancing
• OLED displays
  • Display measurement, optical films, substrates and material selections, contrast enhancement

3D Displays

New display technologies often use variants on existing technologies in order to leverage existing supply chains. Phostech can provide extensive technology evaluations and options for solutions for display systems or components. In addition, Phostech can apply industry leading measurement standards, testing systems, analysis, and reporting to any display technology or product incorporating a display.

Phostech can design, model, evaluate, and create specifications based on tolerance analysis for a variety of optical systems. Optical models generated by Phostech can save time and effort as well as provide optimized solutions for specific products. Analysis of the optical modeling results can provide important insight into design tradeoffs and clearly illustrate representative results of actual systems such as:

• LED lighting systems (edge-lit or direct-lit)
• Edge-illuminated backlights
• Direct-illuminated backlights
• Projections systems (including personal projectors and laser projection) and screens
• Optical films (prismatic, lenticular, etc.)
• OLED lighting films
• New display technologies such as MEMS-based displays

Phostech can provide a range of solutions for a given design concept and can report on the design tradeoffs to enable well-informed design decisions for effective solutions.

With decades of experience in hands-on optical prototyping, Phostech has the ability to provide a range of optical prototypes, from proof-of-concept or technology demonstrator prototypes to first generation products. A large range of first-hand knowledge of optical effects of off-the-shelf optical components and films enables rapid prototyping with fewer design cycles. In addition, the extensive knowledge of industrial sources for components and manufacturing services in the United States and abroad provides fast and reliable component sourcing for quick turnaround of prototypes. Phostech can provide a range of services for optical prototyping, including:

• Project management
• Optical design and modeling
• Component sourcing
• Assembly
• Testing Services
• Specification

The ability to test the performance of an optical system is critical for product acceptance and the ability to meet industry standards. Phostech can design, construct, test, and offer improved optical systems for testing a range of parameters that are critical to a client's product or process. Rarely do off-the-shelf systems provide the exact measurement capabilities needed and, typically, some level of customization is required. Phostech can provide various levels of support and services for testing solutions in the areas of:

• Photometric testing (illuminance, color output, etc.) using imaging photometers, goniometric spectroradiometers, and other devices
• Luminous flux and energy efficiency testing (large or small-scale integrating spheres)
• Vision systems (unique illumination designs, camera specifications)
• Display & backlight metrology (luminance uniformity, color uniformity, angular output testing)
• Light fixture testing (luminance uniformity, photometric output measurement, glare measurements, system/component efficiency)

Phostech has extensive experience designing and installing custom testing solutions that provide the client with multiple options based on cost and other tradeoffs that meet industry standards or unique customer specifications.

Phostech can provide expert witness testimony in the areas of optics and optical related systems. The benefits gained in legal cases from the ability of the expert witness to understand law and the patent system should never be underestimated. Phostech's expertise is supported by a strong history of patent prosecution, innovation, technical articles, and presentations, along with years spent in optical component and system related research, development, and manufacturing. Phostech provides credible technology expertise in areas of:

• Optical systems
• Optical films (prismatic, refractive, TIR, fresnel, lenticular, brightness enhancement films, diffusers, reflector films, microlens films)
• Backlights (CCFL, edge-lit, direct-lit, thin)
• Displays (LCD, 3D, personal projectors, head-up displays, cell-phone, large displays, LED displays)
• LED lighting (solid-state lighting)
• OLED displays and lighting
• Optical components (lenses, filters, reflective & refractive components)
• Polarization based components
• Optics of biometric & biomedical devices
• Optical materials
• Optical teardown analysis of products

Phostech also offers expert consulting in areas such as technology roadmapping and tear-down analysis for patent infringment. Phostech has experience evaluating and reporting on systems related to potential patent infringement and can provide a detailed custom report on a optical system or component.