Full-Parallax Holographic Light-Field 3-D Displays and Interactive 3-D Touch

Abstract

A light-field 3-D display (LFD) reproduces light rays or wavefront as if there are real objects, and a perfect 3-D display that satisfies all the depth cues in human vision becomes possible. By reproducing both horizontal and vertical parallaxes, i.e., full-parallax, an LFD reconstructs a real or virtual image in 3-D space. A rich 3-D experience can be provided to viewers, and moreover, multiple viewers can share the same reproduced 3-D image. A technology called holographic stereogram (HS) is the integration of ray-based and wavefront-based methods, and has been applied to LFD. Hardcopy HS has already been commercialized. The technology of HS is helpful also for an interactive LFD; a full-parallax LFD using a projector and a holographic screen that modulates the directions of light rays is based on the principle of HS. In this case, accurate registration between the projected image and the holographic screen is necessary, and it is achieved by projecting some test patterns and capturing them with a calibration camera. As a full-parallax LFD can reproduce real images in midair between the screen and viewers, it is possible to realize interactive 3-D touch interface. If a user touches the 3-D real image floating in the air, the reproduced light is scattered by the user’s fingertip. The scattered light is detected by a color image sensor placed behind the holographic screen, and can be employed to detect the user’s touch. In this system, the reproduced 3-D images and the 3-D touch detection are associated with each other, and thus, we do not have to worry about the complicated registration between them. The identification of the user’s interaction is simple, because the color information of the 3-D image can be used for this purpose. Some experimental results of the 3-D touch-sensing display are introduced, and possible applications of this technology are discussed as well.