3D Image Displays with No-Touch Controls

Researchers under the lead of Wolfgang Schlaak at the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Heinrich-Hertz-Institute HHI, in Berlin, Germany, have developed a 3-D image display that can be moved and rotated without touching a button or a screen control. There is no keyboard or mouse involved. The simple pointing with the finger is sufficient. The prototype of this invention, which is aimed for use primarily in the sterile environment of operating rooms, will be presented at the Medica 2007, in Duesseldorf Germany.

It sounds much like a holographic image a la Star Trek. A three-dimensional picture floats in front of the users eyes. And like magic, simply by pointing a finger, the image can be rotated around. There is no actual push-button control, keyboard, mouse, or touch-screen involved. The user merely points with the finger and 'touches' buttons on the image display floating in front of him or her. The image rotates as indicated by the movement of the user's fingers.

Yes, it sounds futuristic, yet it has become a reality thanks to the scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications. A display projects the three-dimensional image. Above this display, the scientists installed two cameras. The cameras record the movements of the user's fingers, each from a different angle. The image-projecting display also contains a camera. This camera scans the user's eyes and face. All three cameras record at a speed of one hundred frames per minute. Image processing software identifies the exact position of the user's fingers, head, and eye-focus. Based on this analysis stereoscopic images are developed, one for each eye. The system adapts to any head, eye, of finger movement by the user, and displays the images accordingly. Even if the user moves around, he or she will always be able to see a high-quality 3-D image.

The no-touch user-interface feature of the 3-D display is of significance in a medical setting, particularly an operating room, where a sterile environment is of utmost importance. The physicians can move around and for example perform a surgery, while the image of the organs they are working on floats above them. If a different view is needed, the physician doesn't have to compromise sterility by touching a user-interface. He or she will simply point with a finger to rotate the image.

The three-dimensional display used by the scientists is much cheaper than regular 3-D screens. According to Schlaak, this fact would make the "gesture-controlled 3-D display an affordable option even for smaller medical practices." The scientists believe the system will be ready to be commercialized with about a year.