Varioptic of Lyon, France, won 1st prize in the Europe/Middle East/Africa Section of the DuPont Plunkett Awards 2006 for innovation in fluoropolymers for its innovative “Arctic Liquid Lens”, a miniature lens for mobile camera phones, webcams and barcode readers offering faster auto-focus response than a conventional lens, better image quality, no mechanical moving parts, and low cost. The development was made possible by the company’s patented electrowetting technology, and Teflon® PTFE.
The 1st prize of USD 5’000 and a glass sculpture was presented to Mr Robert Jean-Christophe, Chief Technical Officer, Varioptic, during an industry event at the Palace Hotel in Gstaad, Switzerland, on 21 January, 2007. This was the tenth DuPont Plunkett Awards competition, first held in 1988 to mark the 50th anniversary of the discovery of Teflon® PTFE fluoropolymer resin by DuPont scientist
Dr. Roy J. Plunkett.
Varioptic’s electrowetting technology is a phenomenon where two isodensity liquids contained within the lens change curvature and focal length in response to a varying voltage. A gasket of Teflon® PTFE is key to maintaining the essential air- and liquid-tight seal of the lens unit.
Most mobile phones are equipped with a fixed focus camera. However, to respond to the increasing demand for high image quality, there is now a need for an auto-focus function. This would be a key step for camera phones, allowing mobile phone handset manufacturers to compete with digital photography.
The challenge has been to make such devices very small and simple to manufacture without any mechanical moving parts, therefore offering greater reliability at low cost. Power consumption would need to be very low, and there should be no lag in focus-response time, unlike some mechanical systems.
Varioptic’s new series of liquid filled optical lenses, Arctic 416, meet these needs by offering very rapid and accurate auto-focus without mechanical moving parts, resulting in a more reliable and inexpensive product. Power consumption is extremely low. And thanks to its innovative design, it can also be miniaturized.
According to Varioptic, the liquid lens offers several advantages over competing technologies. Compared with mechanical systems, the product is much simpler and less costly to manufacture, and because of its simplicity, it is reliable and robust, withstanding millions of test cycles without failure. Time to focus is very fast, as little as <500ms, and there is no hysteresis, or time-lag, unlike some mechanical systems. Power consumption is typically less than a few mW, and by definition it is silent.
DuPont™ Teflon® PTFE was chosen for the special gasket which seals the lens because its water-repelling hydrophobicity enhances the electrowetting action and the tightness of the seal. The gasket has also enabled Varioptic to significantly lower the cost of the product. The company is now developing a coating of Teflon AF® as a dielectric layer for the next generation of liquid lenses.
Varioptic reports that its first qualified liquid lens product, Arctic 320, was marketed in early 2006. The company has a license agreement with SemCo (Samsung’s major camera module provider for the mobile phone market) and a manufacturing partnership with Creative Sensor Inc., of Taiwan. The first mass production line for liquid lenses was established in December 2006, in Wuxi, China.
Second prize in the DuPont Plunkett Awards 2006 went to ElringKlinger Kunststofftechnik GmbH of Bietigheim-Bissingen, Germany, for its innovative new spiral-shaped solid propellant with Teflon® PTFE, used to power thrusters designed to maintain communications satellites in precise orbit. The development combines the highest efficiency with lowest propellant consumption, and longer-term satellite manoeuvrability. The judges decided not to award a third prize on this occasion.
The judging panel for the DuPont Plunkett Awards 2006 comprised Werner Goertz, chief editor of the leading German multitechnical industry journal Industrie-Anzeiger; Klaus Kimpel, fluoropolymer industry specialist and consultant based in Switzerland, and Long Lu, Chinese scientist specializing in organic fluorine chemistry and former winner of the Young Chemist Award of the Chinese Chemical Society.
About DuPont Fluoropolymer Solutions
DuPont Fluoropolymer Solutions is a leading producer of fluoropolymer resins, additives, films, finishes and dispersions, PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), PFA (perfluoroalkoxy), FEP (fluorinated ethylene propylene), ETFE (ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene) and PVF (polyvinylfluoride), marketed under the registered trademarks DuPont™ Teflon®, DuPont™ Tefzel®, DuPont™ Tedlar® and DuPont™ Zonyl®.
Major markets for these fluoropolymer products include the automotive, chemical processing, semiconductor, oil exploration, chemical handling, data communication, aerospace, electronics, housewares and building industries.
About DuPont
DuPont is a science company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture, nutrition, electronics, communications, safety and protection, home and construction, transportation and apparel.
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(Picture caption – Varioptic)
The “Arctic Liquid Lens”, a miniature autofocus lens for mobile camera phones, webcams and barcode readers, won 1st prize in the Europe/Middle East/Africa Section of the DuPont Plunkett Awards 2006 for Varioptic of Lyon, France. It uses the company’s patented electrowetting technology to offer auto-focus without mechanical moving parts, and a gasket of Teflon® PTFE to maintain an essential air- and liquid-tight seal.
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Editors Notes:
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Press contact (UK, Benelux, Scandinavia) DuPont press contact
Andrew Wilkins Horst Ulrich Reimer
Tel: +44 (0) 1353 663350 Tel: +49 (0) 6172 871297
Fax: +44 (0) 1353 663350 Fax: +49 (0) 6172 871266
Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]
Readers enquiries for Varioptic should be directed to:
Varioptic
8B, Rue Hermann Frenkel
F-69007 Lyon
France
Tel: +33 043 765 3531
Fax: +33 043 765 3530
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.varioptic.com
FLP-EU-2007-02
January 2007
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