Technology

SeeFront 3D Technology enables users to see natural, brilliant three-dimensional images without any additional eyewear. This is what makes SeeFront 3D Technology unique:

  • SeeFront 3D displays allow users to move naturally in front of the display (in all directions)
  • SeeFront 3D Technology works with any display panel regardless of dot pitch
  • SeeFront 3D Technology is compatible with almost any flat panel display, including tablets, mobile phones and other handheld devices
  • SeeFront 3D Technology allows for unlimited image resolution
  • Existing LCD displays can be retrofitted to 3D displays, e.g. with laptop or tablet computers

HoloScreen – better than reality

HoloScreen is a new sophisticated feature for displaying computer generated imagery (CGI) on SeeFront 3D displays. Objects are rendered for the viewer’s actual point of view, so they appear as if they are really there. Imagine animated holograms in brilliant life-like colors that look even better than reality. 

HoloScreen gets even more amazing when combined with gesture interaction or haptic feedback. Move and rotate objects with your fingers, or zoom in and out of the scene with your hands like in a Sci-Fi movie. 

Showcase your product to your customers at its best in a virtual display cabinet. Give your clients a truly immersive glimpse into virtual adventures. Let HoloScreen tell your story… better than reality.

SeeFront 3D Technology

SeeFront 3D Technology seamlessly integrates three essential components to deliver high-quality 3D without glasses:

Eyetracker

An eyetracking system detects the viewer’s position in front of the display and passes the coordinates in real time to the SeeFront 3D software algorithm. While SeeFront developed a proprietary eyetracker best suited to this task, this component can also be sourced from third parties.

SeeFront 3D algorithm

The algorithm acts as an encoder. It takes the image data from two different images (one for the left and one for the right eye) and merges them in real time into a single image which is displayed on the TFT panel.

Optical overlay

Called “3D panel”, “optical filter” or “lenticular barrier” by some, the optical overlay acts as a decoder that extracts two different images (one for the left and one for the right eye) from the image shown on the display. To separate these two images the overlay uses a lenticular system. For most applications the overlay used is a passive device. However, SeeFront 3D Technology will also be able to use switchable lense arrays for the optical overlay when needed for special applications.

Based on SeeFront 3D Technology tailor-made solutions can be designed for a variety of applications.

SeeFront 3D displays allow users to move naturally in front of the display (in all directions)

Click and drag (or touch) the image to change the view

    Fields of Use

    SeeFront 3D Technology can be integrated into a wide scope of applications. The benefits apply for professional fields of use as well as entertainment and consumer electronics. Some exemplary fields of use for SeeFront 3D Technology:

    • Content Creation

      Digital animation (e.g. movies, videos, advertising), game design

    • Games Industry

      Gaming, gambling and lottery machines, (PC, console, arcade…) game design 

    • CAD/CAE Mechanical

      Applications, product design and virtual prototyping in various industries

    • CAD/CAE Industrial Plant Design

    • Medical Science

      Micro-surgery, augmented reality, neuro-navigation 

    • Research and Development

      Molecule design, simulation of fluids and visualization of data too complex to understand in 2D

    • Geographical Information Systems (GIS)

      Digital elevation models, evaluation of earth surface data
      (Bild: W. Weinrebe, GEOMAR)

    • Training and Simulation

      Computer-based simulations for multiple training purposes

    • Education and Edutainment

      Interactive 3D objects for museums, science centers and showrooms

    • Consumer Electronics

      Mobile phones, tablets, consoles and notebook computers

    Single User 3D Systems

    The fundamental difference between existing technologies to display 3D content is whether the 3D effect is achieved with special 3D glasses or visible with the naked eye (“autostereoscopic”). While 3D glasses are suitable for groups (e.g. 3D cinema) as well as single viewers (e.g. 3D PC game), glasses-free 3D technologies can be categorized by their application or target audience:

    • “Multi-view” 3D displays for a group of viewers need to compromise on image resolution and depth representation in favor of multiple viewing zones for several users.
    • “Single-view” 3D displays are geared to professional applications and personal devices like laptops or mobile phones as well as displays usually used by a single person at a time (arcade game, in-vehicle display).

    SeeFront 3D displays are designed to combine the highest possible image quality with the utmost freedom of movement for a single user.

    Stereoscopy

    The third dimension, the spatial depth of a real scene, is lost when it is reproduced on a two-dimensional medium such as paper, a cinema screen or a computer monitor. Seeing a real scene (as opposed to a 2D image of this scene) with both eyes provides extra information for the brain, as each eye has a slightly different point of view on the world. 

    In everyday life the small differences in these two images allow the brain to calculate the approximate distance of an object in space, thus generating a spatial image. This principle has been known as "stereoscopy" since the 19th century. It makes a world of a difference for most people.

    Displaying two different images to the respective eyes can be achieved with special eyewear (“3D glasses” like red/green glasses, polarizer glasses or active shutter glasses) or by using different approaches without glasses. Glasses-free 3D is also called “autostereoscopy”.