Innovate UK Grant Funding Used to Industrialize HoloFlekt^® Thin Film Display Technology Manufacturing Process and Equipment for Next-Generation Transparent Display Applications

Ceres Holographics, a pioneer in the design and manufacture of holographic thin films for advanced transparent displays in automotive and other applications, today announced a new, state-of-the-art test facility and customer application lab to validate and refine its digital mastering and high-volume replication processes. This new testing capability was made possible by grant funding from Innovate UK, the country’s national innovation agency and marks a significant milestone in the evolution and commercialization of the Ceres HoloFlekt^® technology and manufacturing processes. It follows on from the Horizon 2020 Grant to Ceres from the Europe H2020 Research and Innovation Programme.

Ceres Holographics’ HoloFlekt^® technology overcomes the traditional barriers to developing repeatable, reliable hologram recording, and high-volume production of Holographic Optical Elements (HOEs). The digital master printing capability, holographic replication technology and roll-to-roll machine is globally unique and enables the production of configurable and scalable high performance transparent displays for mass-market applications in automotive, transportation, aerospace and wearable technology.

“Innovate UK funding has been transformational for our company,” said Andy Travers, CEO of Ceres Holographics. “With this support, we’ve developed two cutting-edge test instruments to measure and improve the quality of our transparent display HUD solutions, which are being evaluated by large, global, industry leading OEMs and Tier One suppliers in the automotive industry. The fact that we can now test all customer products has helped us accelerate our efforts and further distinguishes our offering.”

Ceres’ precision engineered HOEs seamlessly integrated into windscreens alongside LED-based projector systems, offer a discreet and cost-effective transparent display solution for vehicle cabins. This innovation paves the way for mass adoption, transforming any windscreen or glass structure into a vibrant, non-distractive Heads-Up Display, delivering safety, operational, navigation, and infotainment content regardless of external lighting conditions.

About Innovate UK

Innovate UK is the UK’s national innovation agency. It supports business-led innovation in all sectors, technologies and UK regions. Innovate UK helps businesses grow through the development and commercialization of new products, processes, and services, supported by an outstanding innovation ecosystem that is agile, inclusive, and easy to navigate.

Key Takeaways

• Innovate UK grant funding enabled Ceres Holographics to develop a robust test capability for digital master printing and replication of Holographic thin films for transparent display applications
• Ceres Holographics’ robust test capability enables mass production of transformative display technology to meet growing demand in automotive industry
• Test capacity validates the digital master printing and replication process and equipment, enabling widely configurable and scalable transparent HUD solutions

Media gallery

With holographic technology, Ceres produces a produce a full color, wide field-of-view transparent Heads Up Display (HUD), improving safety, comfort and UX.

Ceres seamlessly embeds Holographic Optical Element (HOE)-enabled films into windscreens, making the practical implementation of Transparent Heads Up Display (HUD) in vehicles a reality today.

Ceres’ HoloFlekt® roll-to-roll manufacturing machinery is globally unique and overcomes all the traditional barriers to repeatable, reliable hologram recording and high-volume production, making configurable, scalable transparent HUD solutions available to meet growing demand in automotive and other industries.