Newspapers and Technology March 2000
SuperConference looks at
the future of consumables
E-Ink, Electronic Paper looking
to change the way newspapers deliver
By Kevin Juhasz
Editor
Miami Beach, Fla. -- The cost of ink and newsprint always has a big affect on a newspaper's bottom line.
Being two of the biggest consumables, newspapers are always looking for ways to cut back on these costs. Web-width reductions are currently the most popular move.
In the near future, however, many newspapers may find themselves having to deal with these items significantly less, thanks to the development of electronic ink and paper.
At SuperConference in January, Xerox and E-Ink highlighted two products that are making that goal a reality.
Do not expect to see any of these items this or next year. They are currently hampered by the need for a reliable delivery system and a convenient, easy-to-carry package.
It will not be unrealistic sometime around 2003 to see people carrying newspapers that only need to be purchased once and allow the user to update the news when they see fit.
E-Ink
Set to make its debut in the retail market in the next few months, E-Ink is a set of tiny microcapsules that contain blue dye and negatively-charged white pigment chips. The ink, while in a bottle, appears to be like any other ink available.
E-Ink is placed between two layers of electrodes, the top layer being transparent.
The layers are charged in different areas of each surface. The white pigment chips will drift toward the positively charged areas, causing the top layer to appear blue where there is a negative charge and white where there is a postive charge.
Each microcapsule is 100 microns wide. Each square inch of paper contains 100,000 microcapsules, and there are about 30 microcapsules in the period at the end of a sentence.
E-Ink says the process of making a microcapsule is fairly easy. According to the company, once the capsules are formed, they are a type of material called a colloid -- solid particles so small that they take on the form of a liquid. The capsules are then suspended in a liquid carrier medium that adheres to any surface.
The ink also has a very low power usage. On top of that, a user could receive news, display it on the page and switch off the power source. The ink will retain the image for weeks without the need of additional power.
E-Ink will make its debut on several retail signs this spring. The power required for those displays, which are about the size of a mousepad, is 0.1 watts.
"It's going to change the way you and I interact with content," said Jim Iuliano, president and chief executive officer of E-Ink.
E-Ink envisions big plans for the uses of electronic ink, including cell phones, watches, personal digital assistants, clothing and more.
Most important, since the ink can be attached to a sheet of paper, printed materials should not weigh more than newspapers today. And unlike many electronic devices, the sunlight would not be an enemy. The E-Ink display would be just as easy or easier to read in sunlight.
Iuliano said the company has no plans to develop a delivery method to a printed sheet itself, but hopes to partner soon with a company that can develop one.
Electronic Paper
Also making an appearance at the conference is Electronic Paper, originally conceived by Xerox's Nicholas Sherdian many years ago, but only recently developed by the company.
Electronic Paper uses the company's gyricon technology. Gyricon is two thin, transparent layers that house millions of small beads.
The beads, contained in an oil-filled cavity, are charged and free to rotate, exposing either a black or white hemisphere. Applying voltage to the surface of the paper controls rotation. The beads rotate to expose a completely black or white area, or can be partially rotated to produce varying levels of gray.
Different patterns of voltage can be applied to the surface to create text and pictures. Like E-Ink, Electronic Paper will hold its image until a new voltage pattern is applied.
Xerox is currently working on a way to apply that pattern.
One idea Sheridan showed at SuperConference was a scroll-like device that contained one sheet of paper. The sheet of electronic paper could be returned to its chamber and set to display a new sheet of paper each time it was pulled out.
Sheridan also said the company is considering a wand device that could be dragged over the sheet. The company is also looking at producing the material with an electrode structure on the surface, preferable for rapid and direct updates.
E-Ink
617.868.8088
www.eink.com
Xerox
650.812.4000
www.parc.xerox.com