MULTIPLANAR IMAGE DISPLAYS AND MEDIA FORMATTED TO PROVIDE 3D IMAGERY WITHOUT 3D GLASSES

• US 20130300728A1
• Filed: 05/10/2012
• Published: 11/14/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Original Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Inventors: Reichow, Mark A., Joseph, Daniel M., Sohan, Scott J.
• Granted Patent: US 8,711,061 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/419
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/023 Display panel composed of stacked panels
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/003 to produce spatial visual effects
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/36 using liquid crystals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/395 with depth sampling, i.e. the volume being constructed from a stack or sequence of 2D image planes

Abstract

An apparatus for providing a dimensional display such as a 3D effect without special-purpose glasses. The apparatus includes a foreground display assembly including a first planar display element with a front surface and an opposite back surface. Additionally, the apparatus includes a background display assembly including: (a) a second planar display element spaced apart from and parallel to the first planar display element; and (b) a light source backlighting a back surface of the second planar display element. The first and second display elements are emissive display units and concurrently display frames of a foreground image stream and corresponding frames of a background image stream. The first display element may be a transparent LCD panel, and the output light from the front surface of the second display element provides backlighting for the first display element such that foreground images are backlit by output light of the second display element.

Claims

1. An apparatus for providing a dimensional display, comprising:

a foreground display assembly including a first planar display element with a front surface and an opposite back surface; and

a background display assembly including;

a second planar display element spaced apart from and parallel to the first planar display element, the second planar display element including a front surface facing toward the back surface of the first planar display element, and

a light source operating to provide light to a back surface of the second planar display element,

wherein the first and second display element are at least partially transmissive to light and operable, respectively, to display frames of a foreground image stream and frames of a background image stream provided as input media to the foreground and background display assemblies concurrently with the operating of the light source to provide the light.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first planar display element is a transparent light modulator and wherein output light from the front surface of the second planar display element provides backlighting for the first planar display element.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the first planar display element comprises a transparent liquid crystal display (LCD) panel.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the frames of the foreground image stream include foreground images backlit by the output light.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the frames of the background image stream are each paired with particular frames of the frames of the foreground image stream and wherein the frames of the background image stream include foreground lighting portions mapped to the foreground images to provide the output light to display the foreground images via the front surface of the first planar display element.

6. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the frames include background image display portions at least translucent to the output light and the frames of the background image stream include background images viewable via the output light passing through background image display portions of the first planar display element.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second planar display element comprises an LCD panel and the light source is rated to provide at least 600 nits.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the front surfaces of the first and second planar display elements are separated by a distance that creates a predefined parallax.

9. A multiplanar display system, comprising:

a foreground display assembly comprising a transparent LCD panel;

a background display assembly comprising an emissive display element with a lighting source backlighting the emissive display element, wherein planar front surfaces of the transparent LCD panel and the emissive display element are substantially parallel and spaced apart a separation distance; and

a controller concurrently providing a foreground image stream to the transparent LCD panel and a background image stream to the emissive display element, wherein frames in the foreground and background image streams are displayed in a time-synchronized manner and wherein light passing through the emissive display element from the lighting source backlights the transparent LCD panel.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the frames in the foreground image stream include foreground images mapped to first areas of the transparent LCD panel that are illuminated by the light passing through the emissive display element.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the frames in the foreground image stream include display portions mapped to second areas of the transparent LCD panel that are more transmissive to light than the first areas.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the frames in the background image stream include background images in mapped for display via the second areas of the transparent LCD and further includes foreground image lighting portions mapped to the first areas of the transparent LCD to illuminate the foreground images.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the frames of the foreground and background image streams include an image object that is first displayed on the emissive display element and is second displayed on the LCD panel.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the background display assembly comprises a 1500 or higher nit LCD panel.

15. The system of claim 9, further including a frame display element extending adjacent to the transparent LCD panel and being selectively operable to concurrently display content with operation of the transparent LCD panel to display the frames of the foreground image stream.

16. An input media for a multiplanar display system, comprising:

a foreground image file defining a first set of image frames for display on a first display element, each of the image frames of the first set including a foreground image for display in a first area of the first display element and a display portion defining a second area of the first display element that is at least translucent to light; and

a background image file defining a second set of image frames for display on a second display element spaced apart from the first display element and arranged to provide output light onto the first display element, wherein each of the image frames of the second set includes a background image mapped by location to the second area and a foreground lighting portion mapped by location to the first area.

17. The input media of claim 16, wherein the first display element comprises a transparent LCD panel.

18. The input media of claim 16, wherein a subset of the image frames of the first and second set of image frames include an image object defining a first portion displayed on the first display element and a second portion concurrently displayed on the second display element.

19. The input media of claim 16, wherein the foreground lighting portion causes the second display element to provide white light in the output light.

20. The input media of claim 16, wherein at least a number of the frames of the background image stream comprises a 3D object generated by applying a Z-depth map as a matte and compositing and wherein a corresponding set of the frames of the foreground image stream comprises the 3D object with composite of the Z-depth map inverted.