General Competition (October 1998)

Improved Materials Performance for Market Penetration of Crossed Beam Volumetric Displays

Sponsor: 3D Technology Laboratories, Inc.

• Project Performance Period: 11/1/1998 - 10/31/2001
• Total project (est.): $2,222,230.00
• Requested ATP funds: $1,922,230.00

There is a growing need for realistic three-dimensional visualization of volumetric data sets in a spectrum of industries ranging from science and medicine, to manufacturing, and even entertainment. The development of display hardware that is capable of accurately presenting three-dimensional data to viewers has languished behind similar developments in microprocessors and visualization software. Commercially available display technologies fall far short of meeting the cost and performance needs of demanding applications. 3D Technology Labs (3DTL), a Silicon Valley start-up company, is developing a "crossed-beam" volumetric display (CBD) technology that provides accurate and realistic three-dimensional visualization, of many types of electronic data sets, without the need for glasses or cumbersome headgear. 3DTL's simple, yet elegant, concept is based on an optical phenomenon in which two infrared laser beams of different wavelength intersect inside a volume of transparent optical material called an "image chamber," to address a tiny point of visible light--a voxel--in three-dimensional space. The sequential absorption by the image chamber material of the two different lasers, only at the point where they cross, is the essential feature of this display. Once activated, a voxel momentarily emits light in all directions and can be seen through all surfaces of the image chamber. Scanning the lasers under computer control moves the voxel and generates real three-dimensional, animated images, inside the display. This display, therefore, can draw three-dimensional images that can be seen by multiple viewers simultaneously, through different sides of the image chamber (front, back, sides, top) with no limited or obstructed viewing regions. Current materials used for the image chamber not only are expensive but have limited performance and brightness. This ATP program will support the development of a fundamentally new class of optical materials for the image chamber, enabling system scale up to 12 inches to 18 inches on a side, at a substantially lower cost. In addition, this program also will support the creation of a programming development environment, along with specific application software.

For project information:

Dr. Elizabeth Downing, (650) 964-4410
3dlabs@pipeline.com

ATP Project Manager

Michael Schen, (301) 975-6741
michael.schen@nist.gov