Testing & Production
A groundbreaking product is only as good as the quality of its production.
AlphaMicron’s material scientists and engineers have created the world’s first liquid crystal film fabrication on flexible substrate that does not use any polymer walls or fillers. The result? Better than glass, smarter than plastic: an optically clear, flexible film that can change its tint upon application of a voltage but is fail-safe (clear when in the OFF state). We then work with our partners to fine-tune this technology, testing and producing exceptionally high quality products.
Quality Assurance is Key
A successful product must meet its designed requirements consistently. This is even more crucial for military safety items. To achieve this, it is paramount that our production and testing facilities work in unison. AlphaMicron adheres to ISO: 9001-2015 protocols for quality assurance.
Testing Above and Beyond Compliance Requirements
AlphaMicron’s scientists are fully versed in vision science. They are intimately familiar with commercial and military specifications and optical performance requirements for eyewear products. We have created in-house capability to test systems for a variety of applications ranging from electronic color filters to fast shutters for intense light protection. Our optics lab is equipped to measure absorption, emission and excitation spectrum of any material for full spectroscopic analysis. In addition, it has several lasers which span the visible and near IR region of the spectrum and can be used to study and characterize the optical and electro-optic properties of material and prototypes.
Our testing capabilities include:
Of utmost importance in eye safety products is the durability of a product against impact from projectiles. Our Army-certified lab is capable of certifying products for impact testing in:
- High mass
- Lateral side protection
- High speed impact testing
These tests conform to the requirements established by ANSI as well as APEL and MCEP MIL-Spec-32432-A..
There are a number of parameters which must be considered for military grade optical components. AlphaMicron optical labs are certified to perform the testing for:
- Refractive power
- Astigmatism
- Prism
- Distortion
- Chromiticity
- Neutrality
- Transmission
- Haze
These tests conform to the requirements established by ANSI as well as APEL and MCEP MIL-Spec-32432-A.
Our facility has full capability to perform environmental (UV, thermal, humidity) testing on the devices and components to MIL Spec and several of the automotive industry specs. These include:
- UV resistance
- Temperature cycling
- Temperature-humidity
- Scratch and dig
- Electro-optic lifetime testing
These tests conform to the requirements established by ANSI as well as APEL and MCEP MIL-Spec-32432-A.
The Highest Standards Of Production
AlphaMicron is the leader in guest-host liquid crystal devices for electronic Tint-on-Demand™. As part of this, we have designed and created scalable production capabilities to meet this growing need.
As of January 2019, AlphaMicron’s products have the distinction of being included on the US Army’s Authorized Protective Eyewear List (APEL); this means that the eyewear can be directly purchased from AlphaMicron by any Army unit with the expectations that the system will perform as expected.
To ensure that its products meet the stringent military requirements, AlphaMicron has adopted and is compliant with ISO:9001 2015 standards for quality assurance. Its production and testing facilities are audited and certified by the US Army and meet the US Army’s rigorous standards as set forth in MIL-SPEC-32432A.
AlphaMicron’s military products are completed in its facility and meet the Buy-American-Act as well as Berry Amendments. The QA system and our testing facility ensures the products are manufactured with the highest level of quality and tracked in the system to allow for traceability.
New Roll-to-Roll Production
AlphaMicron’s production team has invented a new large scale method of manufacturing liquid crystal panels on flexible substrates using a continuous, low cost, high-production roll-to-roll manufacturing technique. This patented methodology is fast becoming the industry standard and will soon be the method of choice for manufacturing large-area light-reactive LC panels. Currently, Alphamicron and leading Japanese printing company Dai Nippon Printing (DNP) are working together to implement this technology to manufacture and bring to market innovative large-area panels.