How do I reduce ghosting and uneven aging on LED and LCD displays?

Prerequisites

Review the instructions for your display before changing brightness settings or using features designed to reduce image retention.

Steps

1. Avoid leaving the same content on the screen for extended periods.

Regularly change images, logos, backgrounds, and layouts, especially bright content that stays in the same location.

Examples include:

• • Ticketing-counter information on a white background.
  • A bright logo that always appears in the same position.
  • A solid-color background that stays on continuously.
  • Messages that change while the background and other graphics stay the same.

2. Change the whole design, not just the message.

Include different backgrounds, graphics, and layouts in your content schedule.

Changing only the text leaves much of the screen unchanged. Rotate between designs that change other parts of the screen as well.

3. Include movement and change the position of graphics.

Use motion or transitions, and move text, logos, and graphics to different locations when practical.

Combine slight movement with changes to backgrounds and layouts. Moving one small item while leaving the rest of the screen unchanged should not be your only approach.

Note: There is no single movement distance or frequency recommended for every display. Slight movement does not guarantee protection against ghosting or uneven aging.

4. Avoid continuously displaying large white backgrounds on LED displays.

Use different background designs instead of leaving a large white background on the screen continuously. Bright white backgrounds can also be uncomfortable to view in low-light conditions.

White is not the only color to consider. Regularly change other solid-color backgrounds and bright graphics that stay in one location.

5. Follow the recommendations for your display.

Use the brightness settings recommended for your display and installation. A setting recommended for another display may not be appropriate for yours.

For LCD displays, follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Depending on the model, recommendations may include:

• • Changing colors regularly.
  • Using a moving-image screen saver when the display is not needed.
  • Using supported power-saving modes.

Expected Results

Your content changes regularly, with backgrounds, layouts, and graphics rotating rather than staying fixed.

These practices help maintain image quality but do not guarantee that ghosting, image retention, or uneven aging will not occur.

Additional Information

• LED Displays

Using one color more than others can cause that color to fade faster. Leaving the same content on the screen for extended periods can also cause some LEDs to lose brightness faster than others.

This is called uneven aging, or differential aging. It can create differences in brightness or color, or leave a visible outline of previous content. Customers may describe these effects as ghosting, image retention, or burn-in.

Fading and reduced brightness can affect picture quality and shorten the time the display meets your image-quality expectations.

• LCD Displays

Leaving a fixed image on an LCD screen for an extended period can leave a faint image visible after the content changes. This is often called an afterimage or image retention.

LED and LCD displays can develop these visible effects for different reasons. Both require appropriate content and operating practices.

• Resources

  • Aviation Examples: https://www.daktronics.com/en-us/markets/transportation/denver-international-airport
  • LED Guide to Creating Content (Message Centers): https://daktronics.widen.net/s/dmzrdqzpm2/guide-to-creating-content-for-led
  • LCD Guide to Creating Content: https://daktronics.widen.net/s/kfkdtnjrvn/guide_content-best-practices_lcd
  • LCD Menu Boards Guide to Creating Content: https://daktronics.widen.net/s/8fsf8mmjsv/guide_creating-content-for-lcd-menu-boards_spreads