There have been many touchscreen and display technology improvements since the F-35 8 x 20 MFD was first introduced. Optically enhanceded resistive touchscreens (OERTs) have been developed specifically to address the human factor demands within the cockpit. This type touchscreen requires a purposeful touch to activate, thereby eliminating light or non-contact accidental activation. An OERTs is also not based on light beam interruption, and therefore will be compatible with advanced imaging system technologies that detect light beyond the NIR band. OERT will further enable touch input redundancy if necessary. AMLCD technology exists today that far exceeds 128 PPI of the original F-35 MFD. Displays in pixel density over 180 PPI are available in commercial formats. Long battery life forced display providers to maintain very high display efficiencies despite increased pixel density. The new high PPI technology combined with ever increasing high efficacy LED light sources enable much higher luminance without thermal overrun. The need to show fast moving objects in sports and entertainment has delivered the technology that provides faster refresh rates through improved optics, materials and digital processing. TPIs excellent background in high performing touchscreens, along with Esterlines strong background with avionics displays provide AFRL a formidable development team.
Benefit:We strongly believe that our proposal will enable substantial improvements in display and touchscreen performance compared to current generation F-35 8x20 MFD. These improvements will include touch integrity, higher display refresh rate, improved LCD resolution, and brightness, reduced power/thermal demand, and lower weight.
