Most people recognize an LED when they see one, they’re all over the place. They are those little red or green lights that let you know when one of your devices is turned on and ready to go. OLEDs are pretty much the same thing, except they’re made from organic materials, hence the “O” in front of their name. One of the really cool features of some OLEDs is that they can be made from transparent organic materials, resulting in a product that lights up when subjected to electricity, but goes transparent when turned off. Now, BASF (the company that used to be famous for making floppy disks) and Philips (of light bulb fame) have teamed together to create an OLED that can be used as both a light and a sunroof in an automobile. This is great news, according to The Verge, because it will allow for a totally new sensation for people when in their cars.
Imagine riding in a car with a sunroof that goes from clear, to what looks like pure light as you turn a knob. Or if you so choose, you could leave it somewhere in-between, creating a soft glow effect while still being able to see the sun, or stars.
But that’s not all, Plastic Electronics says that the two companies are also experimenting with the idea of having the material used be made of a clear solar panel, whsich would mean by day, as the sun streams down on the car, allowing light in, it would also be collecting and storing energy that could be used to power the OLED at night, which could be left on all night perhaps, without draining the car battery.
So far the plan is not to have one large panel or pane of glass to cover the whole top of the car, but to have several small panels connected together, or in some cases to have a lot of small individual panels spread around on the roof in unique, perhaps customizable patterns.
The BASF site says that the glass panes used in sun roofs would be thinner than those now in use, which would allow for a more customized lighting experience. Also, it would allow for the sun roof to travel down the sides or rear of the vehicle if the car manufacture so desired, creating a feeling of virtual driving where the driver almost feels as if he or she is moving down the road without feeling restrained by being inside of an enclose vehicle.