Integral imaging-based tabletop light field 3D display with large viewing angle

Abstract

Light field 3D display technology is considered a revolutionary technology to address the critical visual fatigue issues in the existing 3D displays. Tabletop light field 3D display provides a brand-new display form that satisfies multi-user shared viewing and collaborative works, and it is poised to become a potential alternative to the traditional wall and portable display forms. However, a large radial viewing angle and correct radial perspective and parallax are still out of reach for most current tabletop light field 3D displays due to the limited amount of spatial information. To address the viewing angle and perspective issues, a novel integral imaging-based tabletop light field 3D display with a simple flat-panel structure is proposed and developed by applying a compound lens array, two spliced 8K liquid crystal display panels, and a light shaping diffuser screen. The compound lens array is designed to be composed of multiple three-piece compound lens units by employing a reverse design scheme, which greatly extends the radial viewing angle in the case of a limited amount of spatial information and balances other important 3D display parameters. The proposed display has a radial viewing angle of 68.7° in a large display size of 43.5 inches, which is larger than the conventional tabletop light field 3D displays. The radial perspective and parallax are correct, and high-resolution 3D images can be reproduced in large radial viewing positions. We envision that this proposed display opens up possibility for redefining the display forms of consumer electronics.