As part of our Hot New Companies series we’re taking a closer look at IRYSTEC, a startup founded in Canada in 2015 with the goal of revolutionizing the viewing experience for portable displays.

IRYSTEC is addressing three high level complaints that are common among users of mobile displays: eye fatigue caused by using devices for a long time; high battery consumption; and low display quality. IRYSTEC has categorized these complaints into three abstract level problems develops a single integrated solution to solve them in real-time, which the company describes as a ‘Perceptual Display Engine’. The company’s technology roadmap will address each area in turn.

Eye Fatigue (2016) – Eye fatigue is caused primarily by using a device that is optimized fautor a normal brightness environment, either in a dark or sunny environment (most people have experienced eye fatigue using their mobile before going to sleep). IRYSTEC provides an ‘Ambient Intelligent’ solution for displays by preserving the perceived quality of the image in both dark and bright environments using physiological solutions based on the human visual system response to various lighting conditions.

Battery Consumption (2017) – IRYSTEC decreases the battery consumption of displays (and therefore the smart device) using its proprietary methods which take into account specific device characteristics such as the provided peak luminance, colour gamut and contrast. Current solutions standardize the image quality for a specific common display but these break down as soon as you play the standard content on an OLED or quantum dot display.

Image Quality (2018): IRYSTEC’s disruptive product optimizes the image quality using the personalized visual characteristics as opposed to standardizing the content for everyone. It is proven that our visual perception varies with age, our origin and cultural background, gender and colour deficiency. These factors have a huge impact on how we perceive information.

The company is already receiving interest from the automotive industry for its ‘Ambient Intelligent’ product. In today’s world cars are increasingly relying on displays (navigation, infotainment and head up displays) and safety is a key value proposition. IRYSTEC makes sure that driver’s perceived image quality stays the same during night time and sunny environments. In addition, there is  interest from content developers — such as Virtual Reality content providers — who require post processing tools to optimize their content for dark environments and to help them with reducing eye-fatigue and dizziness. The company is also working with display manufacturers to optimize their displays. For wearables, mobiles and laptops, IRYSTEC’s power saving software is of key importance.

IRYSTEC has a multi-disciplinary team including PhDs in computer vision, image processing, color perception, physics and physiology as well as two engineers with over 20 years of industrial experience. It has also assembled a Technical Advisory Board of seven professors from institutions including: Cambridge University, Warwick University, Rochester Institute of Technology, Vienna University of Technology, McGill University and UBC.

You can find out more about IRYSTEC from the video below or the company’s website.