Epson Develops Industry's First* OLED Controller Chip for Car Audio

- TOKYO, Japan, November 18, 2003 -

Seiko Epson Corporation ("Epson") has developed the industry's first controller chip for organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays geared toward the developing market for car electronics and amusements with OLED displays*. The S1D13701, as the chip is known, is based on Epson's existing display control chip series platform, but the display control unit has been optimized for OLED displays. It is equipped with 5V full-swing signal output that connects directly to an OLED panel. The controller chip is targeted at 256 dot x 64 line (4 bpp / 16 gray levels) displays - the best size for car audio systems. Epson plans to begin shipping samples shortly.

The S1D13701 will bear the heavy load placed on OLED displays and will therefore greatly reduce the load on the system CPU. It has been designed specifically with product designers in mind, allowing for the realization of low-cost OLED display systems by reducing development times.

Display controllers are being positioned as core device products along with Epson's Mobile Graphics Engines, which has been well-received by manufacturers of mobile camera-phones. Epson is committed to responding to customer needs by further enhancing its line of products.

* Based on Epson investigation, November 2003.

S1D13701 Sample System Configuration

General Specifications

  Specification
Internal memory 24 KB
MPU interface Indirect MPU I/F (Intel 80x and Motorola 68x series)
8/16-bit MPU support
OLED interface Max. 256 (x RGB) x 64 x 4 bpp
4-bit parallel output
Pulse width modulation at each gray level
Adjustable blanking time
Gray scales / Colors Color and monochrome supported
Monochrome: 2/4/8/16 gray levels
Colors: 4,096 colors max. (16 gray level per RGB)
Operating voltage 5.0V for I/O and 1.8V for core (two power supplies)
Operating temperature -40 to +85
Operating frequency 20 MHz
Package QFP 64-pin (10 x 10 x 1.4 mm)

About Epson
The Epson Group increases its corporate value through its innovative and creative culture. Dedicated to providing its customers with digital image innovation, its main product lines comprise information-related equipment such as printers and projectors, electronic devices including displays, semiconductors and quartz devices, and precision products such as watches. Epson products are known throughout the world for their superior quality, functionality, compactness and energy efficiency.
The Epson Group is a network of 73,797 employees in 114 companies around the world, and is proud of its ongoing contributions to the global environment and to the communities in which it is located. Led by the Japan-based Seiko Epson Corp., which is listed on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the Group had consolidated sales of 1,322 billion yen in fiscal 2002.
http://global.epson.com/