TactoTek and ams Osram cooperate to optimize RGB LED performance

06 Oct 2022

For novel applications in in-mold structural electronics to enable innovations in car illumination.

Finnish in-mold structural electronics (IMSE) developer TactoTek and ams Osram have announced that they are co-operating “to help revolutionize the car interior market” by delivering thin, seamlessly integrated, three-dimensional illuminated structures.

The companies have developed a demonstrator with the new RGB side-looker “OSIRE E5515” LED from ams Osram , which with TactoTek’s IMSE technology, can be integrated into automotive interior in new types of space-saving design.

Molded into a thin plastic trim, the LED allows lightweight and thin applications designed for car interiors. This combination enables designers “to build seamless designs by merging surface decoration, illumination, and functionality into one smart surface,” say the partners.

The OSIRE E5515 is a three-color, RGB side emitter enabling light coupling into thin materials, such as lightguides. Driven by modern controllers, illuminating the surface from within, the LED offers what ams Osram calls “the broadest color gamut on the market means design freedom without compromising color quality and performance”.

‘Optimized for low-height designs’

“The package design of ams Osram’s OSIRE E5515 enables ultra-compact designs and is optimized for the low-height required for in-mold applications,” commented Gerald Broneske, VP Global Product Marketing Automotive at ams Osram. “This offers customers flexible design options for automotive ambient lighting applications while benefiting from the outstanding brightness performance of the automotive RGB sidelooker.”

The LED offers a brightness performance of 1100 mcd for red, 2600 mcd for green and 500 mcd for the blue color at 20 mA. Also, deep blue colors are available. The package provides 6 pins, so each color’s chip can be contacted to both its individual anode and cathode.

Perttu Korhonen, VP Product Marketing at TactoTek, said, “Light is a key factor in creating compelling, brand-differentiating user experiences. We trust that user interface functions and light will become an integral part of natural and plastic automotive surfaces without sacrificing sustainability.”

He added, “Incorporating this LED into our IMSE technology enables designing low height applications with reduced weight, specifically of interest to the automotive industry. Our collaboration with ams Osram enables us to drive innovation into making light a critical element in the automotive living space.”

The LED has been validated by TactoTek for its IMSE technology and qualified for use in automotive applications (AEC-Q102) by ams Osram.