OUTPUT

For those living in major metropolitan areas, the days of no-frills digital signage being cause to stop and stare are gone. To halt a hardened urbanite in its tracks, companies are having to develop ever-more ingenious ways to intrigue and impress with their DOOH offerings. As some manufacturers turn to 3D technologies, whilst others focus on interactivity, another significant portion of the market has been honing its expertise in the creation of unusually shaped and flexible digital signage. These diverse and eye-catching displays often push the frontiers of the uses of digital signage, occupying spaces at concerts and exhibitions and as one-off installations for events. However, they also feature frequently in conventional settings such as retail environments, reimagining the ordinary to make it something altogether more noteworthy.

Companies seeking these types of displays usually require one of two things: shapes that are impossible to realise with conventional screens or large-format panels unattainable with a single electronic wall. In response to the first problem, US manufacturer NanoLumens has developed 'a lightweight, flexible digital LED display that can be curved in all four directions, up to a 48° bend radius'. Products such as NanoLumens's flexible displays arguably occupy the space between rigid digital panels and projections, allowing for the delivery of content on a wide range of surfaces not catered to by traditional products.

As Stuart Holmes, managing director of PSCo, NanoLumens's exclusive distributor in the UK and Ireland, notes: "There is increasing pressure in the digital signage sector to create high-impact, unique displays that capture the attention." With this in mind, NanoLumens has delivered a product capable of wrapping around curved surfaces, be they convex or concave. The screen is available as a 112" (2.8m) display at present but will, Holmes explains, 'be able to be manufactured to any size or shape' in the longer term, furthering the company's influence in this part of the sector. Holmes adds that the light weight of the 41kg device 'opens up a range of new options in digital signage [as] it can be installed without the need for complex supporting infrastructure'. It is these types of characteristics that render it suitable for 'locations where large, heavy and fragile flat-panelled displays are impractical'.

Inhabiting a different area of this market is Pufferfish, which has carved itself something of a niche with its proprietary Puffersphere product. The spherical offering, which is available in M, XL and XXL sizes, is an internally projected volumetric display, compatible variously with projectors from Sanyo, Christie and Barco. With a maximum diameter of 3.5m in its inflatable XXL variant, the Puffersphere offers those working particularly in the events sector an arresting and quirky display option. Its significant reach has been evidenced by its diverse range of clients amongst which are Wired magazine, Disney's Epcot Center and Coldplay's tour organisers.

For those hoping to deliver a large-format display without employing mainstream video wall technology, MicroTiles is often a first port of call. The modular digital panels, which can be arranged in a multitude of configurations and ostensibly in infinite numbers, have recently featured in the Rome boutique of Italian watchmaker Haussmann, which stated that using MicroTiles was the only way 'to create a continuous display in a size that no flat screen displays can offer'. Other high-profile projects have included an over-escalator MicroTiles panel in the Dublin branch of fashion retailer New Look, a 7.3 x 4.3m display in the Nascar Hall of Fame, and a number of columns at the Armani Hotel, Dubai.

As the number of companies altering the definition of how digital signage should look and function grows, and as electronic displays increasingly work their way into vertical markets, such as architecture, it seems that we have seen only the beginning of the applications attainable through this technology. With several sporting milestones, such as the 2012 Olympics, fast approaching, and as organisers of both public and corporate events chase that ever-elusive focal point, it seems probable that a number of companies will concentrate a portion of R&D budgets in developing increasingly striking hardware configurations. One thing is for certain: in this market, nobody wants to be seen as a square.