Three-dimensional display technologies of recent interest: principles, status, and issues [Invited]

Abstract

Recent trends in three-dimensional (3D) display technologies are very interesting in that both old-fashioned and up-to-date technologies are being actively investigated together. The release of the first commercially successful 3D display product raised new research topics in stereoscopic display. Autostereoscopic display renders a ray field of a 3D image, whereas holography replicates a wave field of it. Many investigations have been conducted on the next candidates for commercial products to resolve existing limitations. Up-to-date see-through 3D display is a concept close to the ultimate goal of presenting seamless virtual images. Although it is still far from practical use, many efforts have been made to resolve issues such as occlusion problems.

Three-dimensional displays, past and present

“…4 Autostereoscopic displays come in three types: ones made from parallax barriers, from so-called lenticular lenses, and from a more general lens system known as integral imaging. What distinguishes them is the way in which the pixels are spatially grouped to provide images at different observation points.…”

A Three-dimensional Transparent Display with Enhanced Transmittance and Resolution Using an Active Parallax Barrier with See-through Areas on an LCD Panel

“…1(b). For that purpose, several three-dimensional (3D) technologies such as super multi-view (SMV), holographic optical elements (HOE), and integral imaging can be good solutions to realize a 3D transparent display [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]. However, those methods still have a technological gap to be bridged before being implemented in a commercial product.…”

Spatiotemporal multiplexing method for visual field of view extension in holographic displays with naked eye observation

“…Nowadays, the biggest commercial implementation of 3D imaging and display is mainly real− ized by stereoscopic, pseudostereoscopic and integral imag− ing techniques which are based on 2D images and their transformation by our brain [1,2] In order to provide a "true− −3D" display, it is necessary to deliver a high quality optical replica of an object or scene that can be viewed by an observer freely from different directions. This can be achi− eved with holography that stands out from the other 3D imaging techniques [3] due to the ability to capture and cor− rectly reconstruct 3D object wavefront [4,5].…”