An Update to 3D TV

From Physics.org:

Researchers at the University of Tokyo and Hitachi recently demonstrated TransCAIP, a three-dimensional (3D) TV system that captures a live scene in real time and reproduces it on an autostereoscopic display. In addition to providing 3D images, TransCAIP offers interactive control, enabling users to adjust viewing parameters such as cropping a scene and reproducing an appropriate amount of depth.

The system captures a live scene using 64 video cameras connected via Ethernet cables to a single PC, which converts input from all the video cameras into images for the display. Each camera has a built-in HTTP server, which sends motion JPEG sequences to the PC. "The greatest advantage of our system is to provide interactive control of the viewing parameters," says University of Tokyo Ph.D. student Yuichi Taguchi. "The interactive control is essential for reproducing a dynamic 3D scene with desirable conditions, which depend on the contents of the scene, the viewer's preference, and the display specifications."

The PC converts the 64 images into an integral photography image made from 60 views, which correspond to the viewing directions of the display. The process, called field conversion, is implemented in real time and requires only a few hundred milliseconds per frame. Like other autostereoscopic displays, TransCAIP does not require viewers to wear special glasses. Instead, the display reproduces various viewpoint images, which allows viewers to see a different image in each eye.