LCD Stuck Pixels

This explanation of stuck pixels mostly applies to Planars AP/LCD rear-screen projection displays. The AP/LCD modules we use for rear-screen projection are clear (white) when turned off or when no power is applied. This means that a dead or stuck pixel will appear bright on dark images and cant be seen on white images. Our direct view products, such as the m40L and the m70L, are just the opposite. They are opaque (black) when the LCD is off, even when the backlight is on. So a dead or stuck pixel cant be seen on black images, but shows up as a dark spot on light images. Because of the small pixel size, a stuck pixel on the m70L doesnt look much different from a speck of dust and will likely go unnoticed. Planars Advanced Performance Liquid Crystal Display (AP/LCD ) technology is a proprietary collection of optical elements that combine to give outstanding contrast ratio and image quality performance in a rear projection display system. Key to this technology is the use of single panel, direct view color LCD as the imaging device. These are the same LCD devices that are used in laptop computers and other instrumentation display panels. Their ubiquity in the marketplace insures a constant supply of devices, in a variety of resolutions, and from a variety of sources. Like most current imaging technologies, each LCD picture element (pixel) is comprised of three subelements; one red, one green and one blue. Today, LCD panels used for Planar products can carry anywhere from about 921,000 (VGA) to over 5,760,000 (UXGA) sub-elements. In light of the enormous number of individual elements, it should not be surprising that the manufacturing process is unable to produce panels with absolutely zero element anomalies. These anomalies present themselves in two ways. Either in a constantly lit state, called stuck on or completely off, in which case you cannot see the image data at that one address. Stuck pixels are not limited to LCD technology. All TM digital imaging technologies, such as DLP or plasma, consist of individually driven pixels. Over time, the pixels or the circuitry driving them can fail causing the pixels to become stuck. Pixels that are stuck on can be noticeable with certain content, particularly against an otherwise black background. Pixels that are off are quite hard to detect. Owing to their very small size and the fact that they are displaying the absence of data, the screen must be scanned quite carefully, even on a white field, to see if they exist. In the context of the statistical rarity of these anomalies in LCD panels, and when compared to other display technologies, LCD stuck pixels are a small price to pay for the superior performance of AP/LCD. AP/LCD is immune to the burn-in that is common with CRT and plasma displays. It has higher quality gray-scale performance over DLP, no color wheel artifacts, and superior contrast ratio and image quality performance compared to any other display technology. Planar does quantify the maximum number of stuck pixels allowed in AP/LCD displays. With most content, and when viewed from normal viewing distances, the small amount of allowable stuck pixels goes generally unnoticed and in no way impairs the use or functionality of the display.
TM

Planar Systems, Inc. 1195 NW Compton Drive Beaverton, OR 97006

Main: 503.748.1100 Fax: 503.748.5532 Service:866.PLANAR1

LCD Stuck Pixels

Summary Of Allowable Stuck Pixels In a direct view color LCD, a sub-pixel is an individual red, green or blue element. A set of three red, green and blue sub pixels together comprises one color pixel.

When our AP/LCD displays are evaluated for stuck on sub-pixels, they are viewed from a distance of 10 feet from the screen at a full field black. Under these conditions, stuck green sub-pixels are most noticeable as green is the key luminance component in any RGB color scheme. Red sub-pixels are significantly more difficult to detect. Blue sub-pixels are even more so, and can only be seen if the room is completely dark and the screen meticulously scanned. According to the LCD manufacturers specifications, the total number of stuck on sub-pixels (the sum of all red, green and blue) can be no greater than 12. Within that maximum number of 12, there are also specifications that further constrain the number and proximity of same-color stuck sub-pixels. This avoids the situation, however unlikely, of all 12 stuck sub-pixels being the same color and clustered together. In addition, Planars own internal specification is more stringent than the LCD manufacturers. Owing to the fact that green is the most visible color, Planar restricts the number of green stuck sub-pixels to just five.

Number Of Sub-Pixels Linked Two Three or more Green Red, green or blue

Specification Five pairs or fewer None Five or fewer Total must be 12 or fewer

Not Linked

When taken in context of the total number of pixels present, 12 stuck sub-pixels represent about 0.0002% of the total sub-pixels in a UXGA image. Considering the higher image quality of AP/LCD, and its immunity from burn-in, the possibility of a small amount of stuck sub-pixels is a good trade off. Most end users find these characteristics to be non-threatening when these issues are explained properly.

Planar Systems, Inc. 1195 NW Compton Drive Beaverton, OR 97006

Main: 503.748.1100 Fax: 503.748.5532 Service:866.PLANAR1