Mechanical scan based 3D image display based on OLED matrixes
No, no, this is not an innovation of any technical company. Only an idea in the air - where and how it lands is not yet known. Modern mass production of OLED matrices can give an impetus to the development of volumetric displays - a technical opportunity has appeared to adjust their mass production.
The first television systems (farsightedness) had a special rotating disk in their design that provided image scanning on the lines. One of such systems was realized by the mysterious inventor of three eras, Lev Sergeyevich Termen (joined the CPSU in 1991, because he personally promised Lenin).
The echo of this technology is preserved in modern DLP projectors - the three-color color wheel rotates to divide the total white light flux of the lamp separately into blue, green, and red.
The invention of the LED led to the creation of a new type of mechanical displays. A diode can “blink” at least a million times a second, its reliability will not change much from this. With gas lamps (plasma panels) it is possible to do the same, but apparently it is easier with LEDs:
The line of LEDs rotates with sufficient speed to cause inertia of view. So the line turns into a plane.
')
All modern systems of three-dimensional image somehow use the mechanical scan.
It is necessary to distinguish between full volume and autostereoscopic images.
Autostereoscopic means that in a special way two different, but flat images fall separately into each eye. At the same time, there can be more than two (hundreds) images, thereby creating the illusion of volume. This is how the mysterious Sony raymodeler works.
Or a completely open light field display project.
The peculiarity is that you can not look at the image above or below. So, in the last example, without the rotation of the manipulator, the guy’s head could not be seen.
Fully volumetric - means that the display initially makes a picture of the individual volume points (voxels). As, for example, shoots a laser straight through the air.
These approaches have required the presence of different mathematical algorithms and different computational powers.
If you start to rotate the plane, then due to the inertia of view, the eye will see the most real - three-dimensional image.
In the role of the plane just can act OLED display. And if you make high-quality blades, the image will "float in the air." The brightness of the OLED matrix will be “smeared” in space, so it would be better to use several of them. Also, external lighting will interfere with viewing, reduce the contrast. But these shortcomings may be insignificant compared with the merits.
For example, resolution of 800x480x2000 voxels is already technically achievable now, using modern mass OLED displays.
The image can be viewed truly from all sides, in contrast to autostereoscopic displays. Here, many manufacturers are cunning - to evaluate the review from different angles on advertising video is not always possible. For example, in the screens of the Cheoptics image, although it is hanging in the air, but it is flat, not volumetric. You can't see this in the video clip , but here you have picked up good music ...
And most importantly! The cost of the volume display will be comparable to the cost of a flat one. There are no special obstacles to get to our desktop in 3-5 years. If the Jedi sword from Star Wars is still somewhere in the distant future, then our generation will use the screen en masse.
Using microlenses, the OLED matrix can be focused at a solid angle of 1 ° in the vertical plane. Well, in fact, it will be 5-10 °, but due to mechanical barriers, the excess will be cut off.
Further, by rotating the matrix around its axis, it is possible to achieve the fact that different images will fall into each eye. You need 360 images for a full review from all sides. I suppose that it is on this principle that the Sony raymodeler works.
As it seems to me, the mathematical processing of the image in this case is much more complicated than the previous version. It is necessary to render 360 variants of images for each frame, which is rather redundant. Therefore, this option is not so interesting.
Let's say 4 OLED displays will rotate at a speed of 12 revolutions per second (720 rpm). Flicker of the screen will be 48 Hz, which corresponds to a regular TV.
OLED matrixes themselves will have to work out ~ 8000 frames per second. Physically, they are capable of such, in contrast to the LCD. But this will require a special controller, presumably based on DSP / FPGA. Regular controller will have to carefully cut.
The above resolution will require about 2 GB for a frame buffer, with 24 frames per second and an 8-bit full-color image - this results in about 50 GB / s bandwidth. No available dynamic memory (DDR2 bandwidth is much lower) and no processor will withstand this. We'll have to sacrifice something .
The active OLED matrix with each LED contains several transistors - for memorizing the intensity of the glow for each pixel. The image is scanned line by line. At 8000 frames per second, it will be about 3.84 million lines per second - a frantic pace.
On the other hand, the OLED control circuit may consist of a set of identical intermediate modules, be scalable. The screen is divided into several bands. Each band has its own separate processor buffer.
The core of the computational module of the entire display must contain a frame buffer designed for 2 frames. While data from the outside is written to one frame buffer, the second buffer distributes the necessary parts of the image to the intermediate modules. Presumably the read and write buses will be separate. The recording bus from the outside will record the entire frame, and the reading bus will give each lane to its intermediate module. In this case, all modules read the buffer in parallel - each its own section.
You will need to come up with special algorithms for compressing / generating three-dimensional images. Although perhaps the doctors have something at the ready. The problem is not new.
I really want to see such a display on my desk in addition to the flat one. I would even be enough if he “gave out” only 7 colors. It is possible without dynamic scenes - to play Quake on this, I still do not dream.
Surely it would be useful to someone else. The same doctors in the ultrasound / NMR. Charts load Internet channels (MRTG) would also become much more informative. Can display seismic data? Data from radar at airports and military? I am not well versed in these topics.
With the price of the device at 15-50 thousand rubles, such a display would have been afforded to all those in need. Now there are practically no such screens on sale.
What are my ideals? I still believe in our technical colleges. A group of 5-7 students can easily overpower a similar project and produce a mockup in a semester or academic year. I also believe in our young teachers who are able to organize such an educational process. Like almost 100 years ago, an imaging device can become a worthy thesis work like that of Lev Sergeevich ...
I believe that this project will become open, but will not repeat the fate of the light bulb (the film about the cartel of Phoebus).
I believe in Habr as a special place for communication and the birth of innovation.
While others are calling for a dubious revolution, I am in favor of creating new, beautiful things.
Prehistory
The first television systems (farsightedness) had a special rotating disk in their design that provided image scanning on the lines. One of such systems was realized by the mysterious inventor of three eras, Lev Sergeyevich Termen (joined the CPSU in 1991, because he personally promised Lenin).
The echo of this technology is preserved in modern DLP projectors - the three-color color wheel rotates to divide the total white light flux of the lamp separately into blue, green, and red.
The invention of the LED led to the creation of a new type of mechanical displays. A diode can “blink” at least a million times a second, its reliability will not change much from this. With gas lamps (plasma panels) it is possible to do the same, but apparently it is easier with LEDs:
The line of LEDs rotates with sufficient speed to cause inertia of view. So the line turns into a plane.
')
Let's go to Volume
All modern systems of three-dimensional image somehow use the mechanical scan.
It is necessary to distinguish between full volume and autostereoscopic images.
Autostereoscopic means that in a special way two different, but flat images fall separately into each eye. At the same time, there can be more than two (hundreds) images, thereby creating the illusion of volume. This is how the mysterious Sony raymodeler works.
Or a completely open light field display project.
The peculiarity is that you can not look at the image above or below. So, in the last example, without the rotation of the manipulator, the guy’s head could not be seen.
Fully volumetric - means that the display initially makes a picture of the individual volume points (voxels). As, for example, shoots a laser straight through the air.
These approaches have required the presence of different mathematical algorithms and different computational powers.
And here OLED!?
If you start to rotate the plane, then due to the inertia of view, the eye will see the most real - three-dimensional image.
In the role of the plane just can act OLED display. And if you make high-quality blades, the image will "float in the air." The brightness of the OLED matrix will be “smeared” in space, so it would be better to use several of them. Also, external lighting will interfere with viewing, reduce the contrast. But these shortcomings may be insignificant compared with the merits.
For example, resolution of 800x480x2000 voxels is already technically achievable now, using modern mass OLED displays.
The image can be viewed truly from all sides, in contrast to autostereoscopic displays. Here, many manufacturers are cunning - to evaluate the review from different angles on advertising video is not always possible. For example, in the screens of the Cheoptics image, although it is hanging in the air, but it is flat, not volumetric. You can't see this in the video clip , but here you have picked up good music ...
And most importantly! The cost of the volume display will be comparable to the cost of a flat one. There are no special obstacles to get to our desktop in 3-5 years. If the Jedi sword from Star Wars is still somewhere in the distant future, then our generation will use the screen en masse.
Autostereoscopic option
Using microlenses, the OLED matrix can be focused at a solid angle of 1 ° in the vertical plane. Well, in fact, it will be 5-10 °, but due to mechanical barriers, the excess will be cut off.
Further, by rotating the matrix around its axis, it is possible to achieve the fact that different images will fall into each eye. You need 360 images for a full review from all sides. I suppose that it is on this principle that the Sony raymodeler works.
As it seems to me, the mathematical processing of the image in this case is much more complicated than the previous version. It is necessary to render 360 variants of images for each frame, which is rather redundant. Therefore, this option is not so interesting.
Guts out
Let's say 4 OLED displays will rotate at a speed of 12 revolutions per second (720 rpm). Flicker of the screen will be 48 Hz, which corresponds to a regular TV.
OLED matrixes themselves will have to work out ~ 8000 frames per second. Physically, they are capable of such, in contrast to the LCD. But this will require a special controller, presumably based on DSP / FPGA. Regular controller will have to carefully cut.
The above resolution will require about 2 GB for a frame buffer, with 24 frames per second and an 8-bit full-color image - this results in about 50 GB / s bandwidth. No available dynamic memory (DDR2 bandwidth is much lower) and no processor will withstand this. We'll have to sacrifice something .
The active OLED matrix with each LED contains several transistors - for memorizing the intensity of the glow for each pixel. The image is scanned line by line. At 8000 frames per second, it will be about 3.84 million lines per second - a frantic pace.
On the other hand, the OLED control circuit may consist of a set of identical intermediate modules, be scalable. The screen is divided into several bands. Each band has its own separate processor buffer.
The core of the computational module of the entire display must contain a frame buffer designed for 2 frames. While data from the outside is written to one frame buffer, the second buffer distributes the necessary parts of the image to the intermediate modules. Presumably the read and write buses will be separate. The recording bus from the outside will record the entire frame, and the reading bus will give each lane to its intermediate module. In this case, all modules read the buffer in parallel - each its own section.
You will need to come up with special algorithms for compressing / generating three-dimensional images. Although perhaps the doctors have something at the ready. The problem is not new.
Who needs it?
I really want to see such a display on my desk in addition to the flat one. I would even be enough if he “gave out” only 7 colors. It is possible without dynamic scenes - to play Quake on this, I still do not dream.
Surely it would be useful to someone else. The same doctors in the ultrasound / NMR. Charts load Internet channels (MRTG) would also become much more informative. Can display seismic data? Data from radar at airports and military? I am not well versed in these topics.
With the price of the device at 15-50 thousand rubles, such a display would have been afforded to all those in need. Now there are practically no such screens on sale.
A bit of politics
What are my ideals? I still believe in our technical colleges. A group of 5-7 students can easily overpower a similar project and produce a mockup in a semester or academic year. I also believe in our young teachers who are able to organize such an educational process. Like almost 100 years ago, an imaging device can become a worthy thesis work like that of Lev Sergeevich ...
I believe that this project will become open, but will not repeat the fate of the light bulb (the film about the cartel of Phoebus).
I believe in Habr as a special place for communication and the birth of innovation.
While others are calling for a dubious revolution, I am in favor of creating new, beautiful things.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/135158/
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