E-Packaging Innovations

Electronic packaging, or e-packaging, is a term turning up more and more frequently in the package-printing and converting industries. Although still in its early days, e-packaging represents a trend that promises to deliver a host of innovations in the months and years ahead. So what's it all about, and how will the trend affect companies engaged in developing and deploying packaging and packaging systems?

Printed electronics 
and thin printed batteries

The foundation for e-packaging is printed electronics, which can be defined as the printing of electronic devices on common flexible media such as paper, plastic, or textiles using traditional printing processes. Devices now capable of being produced in this manner are transistors, RFID tags and antennas, sensors, electrochromic displays, and low-voltage, eco-friendly batteries.

The rapid growth of printed electronics is being led by developers and integrators around the globe joining forces to exploit the technology's unique capabilities and generate applications and products that create business value. At the heart of many of these applications are thin, flexible, low-voltage batteries, which function as primary battery cells, providing a power boost to activate the electronic device's functionality.

Among the advantages of low-cost, printed carbon-zinc batteries are their compact size and extremely thin form factors, which typically allow them to share a substrate with other printed electronic devices. The same properties contribute to their ease of integration into a variety of products economically and without the need for time- and labor-intensive assembly processes. In addition, the batteries contain no toxic substances and are environmentally friendly with safe disposal.

Implications for package printers

According to industry analysts, the global market for printed electronics and "green" printed batteries is broad and diverse, spanning consumer goods, financial, healthcare, manufacturing, transportation, and logistics industries. Cambridge, UK-based IDTechEx estimates the market potential for printed electronics will exceed $35 billion worldwide by 2018, and that the electronic packaging market will reach $7.7 billion by 2020.

Leading players in the high-volume package-printing and converting industry will likely be among the first to tap into the value proposition of printed electronics, just as they were at the forefront of adopting automatic identification and data capture technology (AIDC). Especially in mass market consumer goods, AIDC technology has always proven valuable and has been deployed for brand protection and product authentication, closed-loop tracking of materials and finished goods inventories, and in concert with retail and distribution partners for supply chain efficiency and consumer market intelligence.

In consumer markets, AIDC was once limited to UPC bar codes. RFID emerged on the scene about a decade ago. E-packaging is poised to be next because it promises to take AIDC to a whole new level of value creation and ROI.

The following are just a few examples of how e-packaging can be used by packaging enterprises serving the consumer goods, pharmaceutical, health care, and retail industries.

Battery Assisted Passive (BAP) RFID and "Smart" Packaging—Sometimes called semi-passive, BAP RFID represents a breakthrough technology that is attracting attention, especially for packaging applications where passive UHF RFID alone has not been able to deliver the desired accuracy, read ranges, and read rates, and active RFID is too complex and costly to consider. In BAP RFID, the battery boosts RFID tag's read sensitivity, resulting in longer read ranges and faster, more accurate reads.

EPC Gen2-compliant BAP RFID tags, powered by 1.5 V carbon-zinc batteries are now being tested and are showing improved read range, accuracy, and reliability—even in challenging environments, such as those involving densely packed liquids or metals. One example: in independent testing of a BAP RFID tag jointly developed by Blue Spark Technologies (www.bluesparktechnologies.com) and UPM Raflatac (www.upmraflatac.com), free-space read ranges in excess of 130 ft. have been observed using traditional Gen2 readers.

With a relatively simple architecture and an affordable price point, BAP RFID tags, labels, and cards can be manufactured in high volumes using conventional printing processes. This makes the technology attractive for use in high-value "smart packaging" applications, since the RFID tag, battery, and electronics can often be printed simultaneously with the packaging itself.

According to Virginia-based industry analyst, NanoMarkets, applications for battery-powered smart packaging may include pharmaceutical compliance, case-and-pallet freshness monitoring devices, and tamper-proof courier packages. Pharmaceutical manufacturers and distributors can also apply the technology for brand protection and authentication to prevent counterfeiting and theft and ensure patient safety.

RF-linked sensor and data logging systems—RF-based time and temperature monitoring systems are gaining traction in the food industry as a way to reduce waste and ensure consumer safety. Sensor systems can also ensure cold-chain compliance for packagers and shippers of temperature-sensitive pharmaceuticals, biologicals, and chemical products.

Typically these systems embed the RFID tag, sensor, and electronics within a smart card or smart label form factor, with the battery serving to power the autonomous data logging function. Used in cold-chain applications, real-time sensor systems deliver measurable value in tracking frozen or refrigerated goods from point of origin to points of delivery.

Interactive packaging—Another potentially profitable area for e-packaging is the item-level consumer packaged goods market. Any number of products can have packaging that interacts with consumers via touch, sound, or sight—basically transforming a one-way monologue on a printed box or bag into a two-way "conversation" offering useful information, entertainment, or both. Blue Spark Technologies is currently working with Novalia, a UK-based designer of printed electronics media, to drive the creation of innovative new products for packaging, retail, and other markets.

Depending on the interactive functionality desired, printed media components might include conductive inks, programmable chips, sensors, RFID tags, mini-speakers, LEDs, and printed batteries. Examples include: interactive games on cereal boxes; cooking timers on frozen or prepared food packages that flash or beep signal when time is up; and recipes available at a touch in an easy-to-read, scroll-down display screen.

Interactive merchandising displays—Point-of-purchase merchandising displays have long helped consumer goods manufacturers and retailers drive sales and increase profits by attracting consumer attention to in-store product promotions. Truly interactive in-store displays embedding printed electronics can bring new life to merchandisers, attracting more customer attention and increasing selling power.

Clearly, e-packaging is coming and will bring new excitement to the package-printing and converting industry. As the technology continues to advance, industry leaders will be exploring the potential of electronic packaging with an eye to generating new products and systems designed to increase market share and differentiate their products. Stay tuned—this is just the beginning! pP

—Matt Ream is VP of marketing for Blue Spark Technologies, a developer of flexible power source solutions for battery-powered printed electronic systems.