Mobility, Healthcare Among Key Topics for LOPEC 2019

By David Savastano, Editor | 03.13.19

Airbus, IBM and Continental are among the end users who will offer their insights into future opportunities for the technology.

The world of flexible, printed and hybrid electronics continues to expand, with sensors, wearables, smart packaging and more becoming part of our everyday lives. Now in its 11th year, LOPEC 2019, organized by the OE-A, will be held from March 19-21 at Messe Munich and will focus on new technologies in automotive, healthcare and more.
 
Dr. Klaus Hecker, the OE-A’s managing director, said that LOPEC continues to grow, and he is looking forward to a great LOPEC.
 
“We have record bookings in terms of exhibitor numbers and space, “ he added. We also have a new record for conference presentations as well as submissions to the call for papers. We are expecting excellent attendee numbers.”
 
Much as the conference has grown over the years, so too has the technology. Today, flexible, printed and hybrid electronics are appearing in more and more applications, with more coming virtually every day.
 
“We will see a lot of products for automotive, smart packaging, sport, and medical applications at the exhibition and at the OE-A booth,” Dr. Hecker said. “The OE-A will show latest products, prototypes and demos for cars, wearables, smart homes and more.”
 
Automotive and healthcare are areas of particular interest in flexible and printed electronics, and Dr. Hecker said that LOPEC 2019 will cover these areas in depth.
 
“Focus topics are Mobility, including automotive, and Wellbeing, including Medical and Sport, but other consumer electronics, smart home, IoT and smart packaging will be highlights of presentations, exhibitions and also in the Innovation Showcase,” Dr. Hecker added.
 
LOPEC 2019 will feature an impressive lineup of speakers, including end users, key flexible electronics manufacturers, material and equipment suppliers and researchers.
 
“There will be high-level speakers from end users such as IBM, Airbus, Continental, Polar and DuPont presenting on requirements in avionics, IoT, automotive, wearables and more,” Dr. Hecker noted. “There will be more than 200 presentations in the Business, Technical and Scientific Conferences and Short Courses.”
 
The Plenary sessions feature the following talks: 

The March 20 Plenary Session will include:
  • LOPEC general chair Wolfgang Mildner, founder and CEO of MSW;
  • Dr. Erhard Barho, head of functional surface solutions, Benecke-Hornschuch Surface Group –  “Smart Surfaces Beyond Rubber: The Fusion of Printed Electronics and Mature Technologies Create New Value Propositions to Customers in Various Product Segments;”
  • Sebastien Chaumiole, electronics leader, IBM – “Printed Electronics and AI - Foundation for an Enhanced Connected Life Experience;”
  • Dr. Kerry Adams, market segment manager, DuPont Photovoltaic and Advanced Materials – “Stretching the Boundaries of Printed Electronics.”
 
The March 21 Plenary Session will include:
  • LOPEC general chair Wolfgang Mildner, founder and CEO of MSW;
  • Prof. Korina Molla, international project manager, AITEX – “Worth Partnership Project: An Opportunity to Bring Your Ideas to the Market;”
  • Dennis Hahn, project leader, Airbus –  “Applications for Printed Electronics in the Aviation Industry;”
  • Dr. Jyrki Schroderus, director, Polar Electro – “Evolution and Latest Developments of Biosensing Wearables in Sports;”
  • Prof. Steve Beeby, University of Southampton – “Printed and Flexible Electronics for Electronic Textile Applications.”
The LOPEC 2019 Conference consists of three sessions: Business, Technical and Scientific. The Business session will be held Tuesday, March 19, which the Technical and Scientific Sessions, which will each include two concurrent tracks, will be held Wednesday, March 20, and Thursday, March 21. In particular, Dr. Hecker noted that 3D Structural Electronics is a new area of interest this year.
 
The topics for the Technical Conference include segments on Biomedical Applications; Lighting; 3D Structural Electronics; Energy; Smart and Hybrid Systems; Upscaling Production and Manufacturing Processes;  Smart and Hybrid Systems; Flexible Displays; Human Machine Interfaces (HMI); Substrate and Encapsulation; Publicly Funded Projects; Functional Materials; Wearables Electronics; and Smart Textiles. 

The Scientific Conference will include five sessions on Devices; two sessions on Materials; two sessions on  Processes; Circuit Design, Simulations and Systems; Flexible and Printed Electronics; and Doping Computations, and Characterization.
   
For more information on LOPEC 2019, visit www.lopec.com.