STEREOSCOPIC 3-D VIEWING SYSTEM WITH PORTABLE ELECTRO-OPTICAL VIEWING GLASSES AND SHUTTER-STATE CONTROL SIGNAL TRANSMITTER HAVING MULTIPLE MODES OF OPERATION FOR STEREOSCOPIC VIEWING OF 3-D IMAGES DISPLAYED IN DIFFERENT STEREOSCOPIC IMAGE FORMATS

• US 6,456,432 B1
• Filed: 09/30/1998
• Issued: 09/24/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/1990
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Reveo, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Reveo, Inc.
• Inventors: Hamlin, Gregory J., Swift, David C., Lazzaro, Gerard M., Faris, Sadeg M.
• Primary Examiner(s): HENRY, JON W
• Application Number:
  US09/164,050
• Time in Patent Office: 1,455 Days
• Field of Search: 359/464, 359/465, 349/15, 348/53, 348/55, 348/56, 348/57, 348/58, 348/43
• US Class Current: 359/464
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0093 with means for monitoring data relating to the user, e.g. head-tracking, eye-tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 30/24 involving temporal multiplexing, e.g. using sequentially activated left and right shutters
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 30/25 using polarisation techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/1334 based on polymer dispersed liquid crystals, e.g. microencapsulated liquid crystals
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133538 with spatial distribution of the polarisation direction
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 21/132 Overhead projectors, i.e. capable of projecting hand-writing or drawing during action epidiascopic projectors G03B21/08
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 21/30 adapted to collapse or fold, e.g. for portability
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/00 Arrangements for producing a permanent visual presentation of the output data , e.g. computer output printersprinting or plotting combined with another operation, e.g. with conveying, G06K17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/22 using plotters
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2215/0082 Architecture adapted for a particular function
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/133 Equalising the characteristics of different image components, e.g. their average brightness or colour balance
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/15 for colour aspects of image signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/156 Mixing image signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/161 Encoding, multiplexing or demultiplexing different image signal components for multi-view video sequence encoding H04N19/597
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/167 Synchronising or controlling image signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/189 Recording image signals; Reproducing recorded image signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/194 Transmission of image signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/204 : using stereoscopic image cameras stereoscopic photography G03B35/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/218 : using spatial multiplexing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/243 : using three or more 2D image sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/246 : Calibration of cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/257 : Colour aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/275 : from 3D object models, e.g. computer-generated stereoscopic image signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/279 : the virtual viewpoint locations being selected by the viewers or determined by tracking
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/286 : having separate monoscopic and stereoscopic modes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/289 : Switching between monoscopic and stereoscopic modes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/296 : Synchronisation thereof; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/324 : Colour aspects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/327 : Calibration thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/334 : using spectral multiplexing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/337 : using polarisation multiplexing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/341 : using temporal multiplexing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/344 : with head-mounted left-right displays
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/359 : Switching between monoscopic and stereoscopic modes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/361 : Reproducing mixed stereoscopic images; Reproducing mixed monoscopic and stereoscopic images, e.g. a stereoscopic image overlay window on a monoscopic image background
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/363 : using image projection screens volumetric display H04N13/388
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/368 : for two or more viewers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/373 : for tracking forward-backward translational head movements, i.e. longitudinal movements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/376 : for tracking left-right translational head movements, i.e. lateral movements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/38 : for tracking vertical translational head movements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/383 : for tracking with gaze detection, i.e. detecting the lines of sight of the viewer's eyes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/398 : Synchronisation thereof; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/597 : specially adapted for multi-view video sequence encoding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2213/008 : Aspects relating to glasses for viewing stereoscopic images
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/7441 : the modulator being an array of liquid crystal cells
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/7491 : of head mounted projectors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/3141 : Constructional details thereof details not peculiar to the presence of an electronic spatial light modulator G03B21/14

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system and method of viewing pairs of perspective images of 3-D objects (i.e. stereoscopic image pairs) displayed from a CRT display surface in a time-multiplexed or field-sequential manner, and more particularly to a universal method of generating control signals for synchronously changing the optical state of liquid crystal (LC) shutter panels through which the time-multiplexed perspective. images can be sequentially viewed in a substantially flicker-free manner by the left and right eyes of a human viewer, independent of whether the images are displayed on NTSC, PAL, VGA or SVGA styled CRT display devices.

Claims

1. A stereoscopic 3-D image viewing system, comprising:

a pair of stereoscopic 3-D shutter-type viewing glasses for support on the head of a human viewer, and viewing stereoscopic image pairs displayed on either a CRT-based computer device or a CRT-based television device using a prespecified time-multiplexing display technique; and

a universal multi-sync signal detector including

means for receiving signals from a first signal source, for driving said CRT-based computer monitor device,

means for processing said signals from said first signal source so as to detect synchronization signals therein and generate control signals for controlling said pair of stereoscopic 3-D shutter-type viewing glasses so that a user wearing said pair of stereoscopic 3-D shutter-type viewing glasses can view stereoscopic image pairs displayed on said CRT-based computer monitor device according said prespecified time-multiplexing display technique, and

means for receiving signals from a second signal source, for driving said CRT-based television device, and

means for processing said from said second signal source so as to detect synchronization signals therein and generate control signals for controlling said pair of stereoscopic 3-D shutter-type viewing glasses so that said user wearing said pair of stereoscopic 3-D shutter-type viewing glasses can view stereoscopic image pairs displayed on said CRT-based television device according said prespecified time-multiplexing display technique.

2. The stereoscopic 3-D image viewing system of claim 1, said pair of stereoscopic 3-D shutter-type viewing glasses comprises a pair of LCD shutter panels mounted within a frame supportable on the head of said human viewer, and a battery power source mounted within said frame.

3. The stereoscopic 3-D image viewing system of claim 1, wherein said pair of 3-D shutter-type viewing glasses have a passive mode of operation for use in decoding micropolarized spatially-multiplexed images displayed from a spatially-multiplexed image display system.

4. The stereoscopic 3-D image viewing system of claim 2, which further comprises means for detecting stereoscopically-encoded video synchronization signals from a computer or other video source and transmitting field information for remotely controlling the optical state of said pair of LCD shutter panels via the transmission of pulse width modulated infrared pulses to said pair of stereoscopic 3-D shutter-type viewing glasses.

5. The stereoscopic 3-D image viewing system of claim 2, wherein as one said LCD shutter panel switches to the transmissive state the other said LCD shutter panel switches to the opaque state synchronized to a specific field of information displayed on the CRT-based computer device or the CRT-based television device.

6. The stereoscopic 3-D image viewing system of claim 1, which has a display mode that allows two human viewers, wearing two separate pairs of stereoscopic 3-D shutter-type viewing glasses to view two separate images simultaneously on the same display screen, thereby allowing the two human viewers to play a head-to-head video game on the same viewing screen without interference.

7. The stereoscopic 3-D image viewing system of claim 2, wherein the polarization axis of said LCD shutter panels can be passively oriented in opposing directions and be used as a pair of electrically-passive polarizing glasses to stereoscopically view spatially multiplexed images (SMI).

8. The stereoscopic 3-D image viewing system of claim 1, which has several different modes of operation which make it possible for a viewer, in a multi-format stereoscopic environment, to view a variety of stereoscopic images with the same viewing glasses.