Barco extends availability of its DURALIGHT® long lifetime backlight technology
Barco’s DURALIGHT® long lifetime backlight technology is now available in ClearBase on CORONIS® 3MP display systems
VIENNA, AUSTRIA, 05 March 2004 – On the occasion of this year’s European Congress of Radiology, Barco has announced the extended availability of its revolutionary DURALIGHT® long lifetime backlight technology. In addition to the BlueBase version, launched last year for CORONIS® 3MP display systems, Barco now also offers a ClearBase version for CORONIS® 3MP display systems. By broadening the availability of DURALIGHT®, Barco further tackles cost of ownership concerns associated with the use of LCD technology in medical imaging. DURALIGHT® backlights last 3 to 5 times longer than conventional Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamps and come with a 5-year warranty.
During their lifetime, conventional Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamps (CCFL) gradually lose consistency and performance, because the phosphors used in these lamps get less efficient when they age. Today’s CCFL backlights, delivered with commercial and medical LCDs, provide a life span that is shorter than the LCD itself. Because of this, lifetime of the entire flat panel unit is determined by the life span of the backlights. Barco’s unique DURALIGHT® technology drastically extends the lifetime of these backlights. Compared to conventional CCFL technology, lifetime of DURALIGHT® backlights is prolonged by a factor 3 to 5. This means that there is no need to replace the backlight during the life span of the medical display, which substantially reduces the cost of ownership.
Barco’s DURALIGHT® offers prolonged lifetime without compromising brightness or visual characteristics of the LCD panel. DURALIGHT® offers optimal image quality at all viewing angles and there is no reduction of image uniformity. Moreover, DURALIGHT® has a multi-lamp structure, which inherently offers redundancy. This means that, in case of a lamp failure, the display remains operational. In this respect, DURALIGHT® meets the strong requirements attached to life-critical medical applications.
In addition, DURALIGHT®’s extended lifetime is combined with optimal efficiency. Unlike other technologies, DURALIGHT®’s long lifetime does not come at the expense of increased power consumption. The savings in lamp replacement costs are not offset by an increase in cost of use.
DURALIGHT® is available as an option on both the ClearBase and BlueBase CORONIS® 3MP medical display systems and comes with a 5-year warranty.
About Barco
Barco, an international company headquartered in Kortrijk, Belgium, is active in three key areas of imaging technology. Barco designs and develops solutions for large screen visualization, display solutions for life-critical applications, and systems for visual inspection. Barco has a network of subsidiaries, distributors and agents in almost 100 countries. Barco is quoted on Brussels/Euronext and is a BEL 20 and a Next 150 company.
