March 28 , 2012 – E Ink, the leading developer and marketer of electronic paper display technology, announced today that their segmented display product used by the prominent contract furniture maker Casala has won the internationally acclaimed Red Dot Award for 2012. E Ink’s technology in the Zifra numbering system for chairs has helped Casala to continue to establish itself as a leader within the contract design furniture industry.

Zifra is an innovative, easily updateable numbering system for rows of chairs. The E Ink segmented display is located on the backrest of each chair, and is programmed and updated by a contactless scanner. This is the first commercial display device of this type to operate without batteries or a power cord, and it is made possible through E Ink’s image stable display technology. E Ink displays require no power to maintain an image, in contrast to LCD displays, which require a continuous power charge. In the Zifra product, the display consumes power only when it refreshes to relink with a different chair, using a radio-frequency (RF) system. The marriage of this E Ink technology and (RF) system enables the display system to be incorporated with a Casala chair without the worry of the battery replacements required by almost all other display devices, in turn lowering maintenance requirements. In addition to its low-power advantage and display conformability, E Ink displays features a 180-degree viewing angle with a sharp contrast, qualities that are highly desirable for a hall chair display. The display is impact-resistant, waterproof, maintenance-free and guarantees a long operating life.

Casala won its first Red Dot Award in 2008 for the Lynx chair. These chairs can be structurally linked to each other quickly, offering ease of assembly for event organizers to manage seating assignments efficiently. Now Casala’s Zifra numbering system has been recognized with the Red Dot Award in 2012 for its application of a numbering display that will further elevate the product with an even more convenient seating system. The versatility of the numeration linking will facilitate guest accommodation of any number, making Casala chairs an appropriate choice for any business environment, especially conferences.

“We are very excited that this great product has been internationally recognized,” said TH Peng, General Manager of E Ink’s SURF Business Unit. “The Zifra numbering system is not only truly ground-breaking; it also demonstrates the extent to which E Ink continues to empower new design concepts that were impossible in the past.”