Hybrid 3D 2D TV Display Shows Images Clearly

If you’ve just bought yourself a nice big 3D television but discovered you can’t stand to wear the stereo glasses for long, this technology may be the answer. University of California, Santa Cruz researchers have just developed a hybrid 3D 2D TV display.

The prototype is pretty impressive, as it allows viewers who wear stereo glasses to see images in crystal clear 3D, while those without glasses will see a normal image in 2D.

Okay, you might say that this defeats the purpose of having a 3D display in the first place, but scientists insist that the hybrid display is aimed at eliminating the need of wearing stereo glasses. This is because they can be quite expensive and you might want to avoid buying extra pairs for all your family members, relatives and friends, but also because they can interfere with other activities.

So how does the 3D+2D TV display work? According to UCSC researchers, the television display shows separate right and left images when viewed through the stereo glasses, while people who don’t wear the glasses can only see the left image.

Moreover, a third image that cannot be seen through either of the glasses lenses is also displayed. This image is actually a negative of the right side image and thus cancels it, which allows those without glasses to see only the left side feed and not just blurry images as it happens with regular 3D systems.

The method used by USCS however creates a very low-contract image for those who do not wear stereo glasses. The solution researchers came up with was to have unequal brightness of the left and right images: the right side feed was dimmed and the left remained brighter, thus reducing overall loss of contrast.

The prototype 3D+2D TV does not yet offer the same quality of image, color and contrast as regular 3D or 2D sets individually, but the researchers are working to solve these issues and are already considering the possibility of launching a startup to commercialize the displays.

What do you think of de 3D+2D television display? Would you like to give it a try?

[Image via 2012books.lardbucket]