The idea of a truly “smart city” requires the symbiotic interaction of buildings, people, and vehicles. Never before, until this week’s CES, has one technology platform crossed across all of these areas to enhance the efficiency, comfort and functionality of how people live, work, and move. Research Frontiers Inc. (Nasdaq: REFR) and Gauzy Ltd., a world-leading vendor of material science and light-control technologies, announced today that Gauzy will be exhibiting SPD-Smart light-control technology as part of the Smart Cities exhibition at CES (North Hall Booth #9233), featuring core collaborations with key partner and Research Frontier licensee Vision Systems, and additional industry leading brands in mobility and built environments.
Gauzy’s demonstration at CES 2022 supported by valued partners provides a full smart city experience, with a focus on mobility solutions and transparent displays utilizing smart glass technology. Imagine a light-control film embedded in glass that allows users to change the glass’ tint from clear to dark or anything in between at the touch of a button, in response to commonly-used sensors, or integrated as part of a building or vehicle’s control system. This is possible with suspended particle device (SPD-Smart) film, which uses specially-engineered nanoparticles suspended and distributed throughout a flexible film which is laminated directly into glass or other transparent substrates.
Enabling cities and its occupants to travel safer, and stay better connected for more efficient operations, SPD-Smart Light Control technology by Gauzy and its partners is changing the way we interact with, and within, our surroundings. Cutting edge smart glass technologies including SPD and PDLC (polymer dispersed liquid crystal) are being integrated into various personal and mass transit vehicles, and building applications to save energy, reduce CO2 emissions, and transform glass into information, entertainment, privacy, and shading systems to enhance people’s lives.
While it might sound futuristic, SPD technology has been used reliably to replace aircraft window shades since 2001, in tens of thousands of vehicles by Mercedes and McLaren beginning in 2011, and is scheduled for introduction on upcoming car models from Cadillac and other auto makers. It also is being used in yachts, cruise ships, museums to protect priceless artwork and collectibles such as the world’s most valuable baseball cards from visible light damage, and architectural applications such as a ten-thousand square foot roof at the World’s Fair in Milan in 2015.
Now, this cutting-edge technology is being integrated into various personal and mass-transit vehicles, and building applications to save energy, reduce CO2 emissions, and transform glass into information, entertainment, privacy and shading systems to enhance people’s lives.
The CEOs of Research Frontiers and its licensees Gauzy and Vision Systems will be in attendance at CES, as well as senior executives from their technical, engineering, business, and product development groups. The exhibition led by Gauzy will be showing in the Smart City pavilion at CES various commercial applications for SPD-Smart film produced by Gauzy including electronically dimmable aircraft windows, dual-zone panoramic sunroofs, smart projection systems, and information displays that combine transparent OLED and SPD technology to turn your window into a high definition information or entertainment display that can operate in bright environments and instantly and automatically adjust to changing light conditions to produce a vibrant high-contrast display.
The products being demonstrated are based upon commercially-introduced high volume uses of SPD technology that highlight its fast switching speed, infinite control of intermediate tint, and superior range of light transmission.
The markets for SPD-Smart film are already well-established. Research Frontiers has licensed over 40 chemical, film, and glass companies which are selling products for the automotive, aircraft, marine, train, museum and consumer electronics industries. Gauzy’s established and growing network of over 55 glass fabricators worldwide brings additional synergies, infrastructure, and growth opportunities to the smart glass industry.
Research Frontiers patented SPD-SmartGlass technology is the same best-selling smart window technology that can be found on tens of thousands of various existing cars from Mercedes and McLaren, and on upcoming car models from Cadillac and other auto makers.
In addition to cars, products using Research Frontiers’ smart glass technology are being used in aircraft, yachts, trains, homes, offices, museums and other buildings. It can be used to replace mechanical shading elements in buildings and vehicles, and can create privacy on demand.
With the touch of a button, building or vehicle occupants can instantly change the tint of their windows or sunroofs to help keep out harsh sunlight and heat, and create an open-air feeling even when the window or sunroof is closed. Glass or plastic using Research Frontiers’ patented SPD-SmartGlass technology effectively blocks UV and infrared rays in both clear and darkly tinted modes, helping keep interiors cooler, and protecting occupants and interiors while also enhancing security, comfort and privacy. In vehicles such as cars and trains, some of the other benefits of SPD-SmartGlass include significant heat reduction inside the vehicle (by up to 18ºF/10ºC), UV protection, glare control, reduced noise and reduced fuel consumption. Independent calculations also show that use of SPD-SmartGlass can reduce CO2 emissions by four grams per kilometer, and increase the driving range of electric vehicles by approximately 5.5 percent.
