Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) have been in use for a number of years but have recently found their way to prominence in the realm of smartphones and televisions. OLEDs are also being used in the areas of lighting and automotive industry because of their pleasant color and variety of design forms, size and color.
However, in the field of medicine OLEDs are finding a role as a source of light therapy because they emit light in specific wavelengths that can help with wound healing or for the treatment of depression.
Now, researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Organic Electronics, Electron Beam and Plasma Technology (Fraunhofer FEP) of Germany, the VTT Technical Researcher Center of Finland and the Holst Center from the Netherlands are introducing a wearable bracelet with a flexible OLED to further enhance the technology’s potential.
The P12 bracelet is a lightweight wristband that can be worn as a decorative element operating on the low power consumption of the OLED. Equipped with a red or yellow OLED, it can serve also as a safety wrist strap for night wearers or in dark environments. Designed for certain OLED wavelength, researchers believe the P12 can be a portable element for wound healing on the extremities or used as a headband to treat depression through light therapy.
The technology could also be used as a headband for depression treatment. Source: Fraunhofer FEPFraunhofer FEP created the anode deposition on barrier films as well as the OLED deposition by means of an evaporation process. The barrier films used were produced by Holst Center and the OLED depositions can be accomplished by roll-to-roll as well as sheet-to-sheet techniques.
VTT integrated the finished OLED in the bracelet form and developed the power supplies for the system. The challenge was then to integrate the OLED into 3D injection molded parts.
"We were able to successfully integrate the supplied flexible OLEDs on plastic film into a wristband,” says Markus Tuomikoski from VTT. "In order to meet the requirements of a portable component, the design and implementation of a compact power supply for the OLED was important. We were able to easily implement the connection with flexible electronics with the OLED within the plastic envelope thanks to the joint conception and cooperation.”
While this is the first project among the consortium of researchers, the team believes the P12 pilot line could be implemented into commercial products in the future.
