It's relatively cheap to develop. for under 100K, anyone could start developing new applications today. Very interesting... Nerd From Hell
> -----Original Message----- > From: Robert Seeberger [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] > Sent: Wednesday, July 10, 2002 2:46 PM > To: Brin-L | Smarter People - Not As Silly As Some Lists I Know > Subject: Scouted: One Big WOW!!! 3D Display > > > Saw this on CNN this afternoon! > > xponent > Amazed Maru > rob > > > http://www.actuality-systems.com > > Crystal-ball display renders images in 3D > > > > > SAN FRANCISCO - It looks like the Wicked Witch's crystal > ball. Actuality > Systems Inc.'s unusual globe-like display renders images that > are viewable > from any angle, and the company is now trying to conjure > interest for its > use in medical and molecular modeling applications. It also > thinks it can > reduce the display's $40,000 cost enough for use in gaming > systems. The U.S. > Army has also expressed an interest. > > Actuality's Perspecta visualization platform relies on > software to convert > 3-D geometric data into a polar and cylindrical coordinate > system to light > up 3-D pixels called "voxels" on a projection screen that > spins at 600 rpm. > The data formatter is a Pentium 4 embedded processor that > runs on a Windows > NT host, said Gregg Favalora, Actuality's cofounder, chief technology > officer and platform architect. The globe's projection mechanism is a > variation of Texas Instruments Inc.'s MEMS-based Digital > Light Projector. > Three-dimensional rectilinear coordinates are converted into polar > coordinates for projection on the rounded screen with the > help of some 40 > spatial rending algorithms and a 1,500-Mips digital signal processor, > Favalora said. > > Only four Perspecta version 1.5 machines have been built > since Actuality was > founded in 1997, and each is capable of projecting 100 > million voxels per > second into a 10-inch globe. A user can walk around the globe > to see an > object from different angles with all the shading and > texturing allowed by a > modern graphics engine, but without goggles and with more > depth and realism > than a traditional 2-D display. > > Cameron Lewis, president and chief executive officer of Actuality > (Burlington, Mass.), said pharmaceutical companies could use > the display to > view 3-D molecular models to identify cell structures that need to be > isolated or reinforced to develop drugs. The display could > also render CAT > scans or MRI data, he said. Actuality has announced the U.S. > Army's Research > Labs in Adelphi, Md. as an early customer. While the Army's > application is > unknown, Lewis said the Perspecta is capable of simulating helicopter > flights over rocky terrain and could aid pilot training. > > Actuality Systems has a number of patents pending for its > display mechanism, > and has to date received $3.8 million in venture funding. > > On Actuality's road map for 2003 is a higher refresh rate and > a lower cost > for the display globe. It will be some time before the 3-D > imaging system is > accessible to the 3-D computer game market, Lewis said, but > the technology > is readily accessible and manufacturing costs can be tamed. > For example, the > covering for the current Perspecta display dome is an > explosion-proof glass > initially used for street lighting in Germany, but less > expensive materials > can certainly be harnessed, he said. > > >
