Communications of the ACM
Glasses-Free 3D Projector
A new three-dimensional video display system removes special glasses from the viewing experience.
Credit: Christine Daniloff/MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) researchers have developed a glasses-free, multi-perspective, three-dimensional video screen they say could provide a less expensive, more practical alternative to holographic video technologies.
The system includes a new type of projector that improves the resolution and contrast of conventional video. The projector system features two liquid-crystal modulators positioned between the light source and the lens. Patterns of light and dark on the first modulator turn it into a bank of angled light emitters. The combinations of the patterns displayed by the two modulators ensure the viewer will see slightly different images from different angles.
The researchers also are developing a prototype screen, which combines two lenticular lenses that widens the angle from which the projector's images can be viewed. The system works by displaying six patterns for every frame of video, which together produce eight viewing angles.
The researchers say the key to the system is an algorithm that calculates how much information can be preserved between viewing angles and how much needs to be varied. Preserving as much information as possible enables the system to produce a brighter image.
The researchers also have developed algorithms that account for contrast and other forms of light interference.
From MIT News
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