JPH08136884A - 3D image display device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] To display an image at a position that does not differ much from the focus adjustment position of the observer, and to display a three-dimensional image that does not cause eye strain. [Structure] A plurality of light-transmissive displays 1 to 5 arranged at different distances from an observer and capable of controlling light transmittance and light scattering.
And a drive device 1 for driving each of the transmissive displays
1 to 15 and a parallax processing unit 8 that extracts three-dimensional information of a subject from a plurality of input images captured from different viewpoints.
And the position detection unit 7 that detects the position of the observer, and the output of the parallax processing unit 10 and the position detection unit 7 to determine the concealment relationship between the objects in the image displayed on each transmissive display and each transmissive display. The three-dimensional image display device is characterized by including a cut-out processing unit B6 for extracting an image to be displayed, an image conversion unit for improving the contrast of the image, a viewing distance conversion unit, an antireflection unit, and the like.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a three-dimensional image display device, and in particular, when the resolution in the depth direction or the range in the depth direction is expanded, contrast and color change or multiple reflection are prevented, and more The present invention relates to a three-dimensional image display device that displays a natural object.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional three-dimensional image display device, for example, a device as shown in FIG. 13 is known, in which two CRTs whose surfaces are covered with polarization filters orthogonal to each other are prepared. This is combined with a half mirror, and an observer wears glasses composed of a polarization filter corresponding to this and observes an image corresponding to the left and right eyes.

[0003]

However, in such a three-dimensional image display device, the adjustment of the eyes of the observer (focus adjustment of the crystalline lens) is perceived despite being fixed on the CRT surface. The depth of the subject is outside the CRT surface. For this reason, the intersection (convergence information) of the line of sight of both eyes and the adjustment position (focus information) are inconsistent with each other, and the observation is performed in an inconsistent state. This discrepancy between the intersection of the lines of sight of both eyes and the adjustment position is allowed to some extent, but if it is too large, it causes eye fatigue and the like, and there is a problem that long-time viewing is impossible.

Further, in the conventional method, when the resolution in the depth direction is increased, there is a problem that the image quality deteriorates due to the contrast and deterioration of the image in the farthest portion of the depth, color change, multiple reflection and the like. In addition, when the positions of displayed objects are concentrated in the depth direction, there is a problem that the resolution in the depth direction cannot be effectively utilized, and there is a problem that the depth of the display device increases when a wide display range in the depth direction is desired. .

The present invention solves the problems of the above-described conventional three-dimensional image display device, and displays an easy-to-see stereoscopic image in which the discrepancy between the intersection of the lines of sight of both eyes and the adjustment position is suppressed.
It is an object of the present invention to realize a three-dimensional image display device that enables long-term viewing without eye fatigue or the like.

Further, even when the resolution in the depth direction is increased, the deterioration of the image quality due to the contrast reduction, color change, multiple reflection, etc. of the image at the farthest depth is improved, and the natural depth is obtained. An object is to realize an image display device capable of expressing an image.

It is another object of the present invention to have a structure in which the resolution in the depth direction can be effectively utilized and to display a display having a larger depth on a display device having a smaller depth.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to a plurality of light transmissive displays arranged at different distances from an observer and capable of controlling light transmittance and light scattering, or a plurality of displays comprising a scattering control plate and a liquid crystal. And a polarizing plate sandwich type integrated multi-layered display, a drive device for driving each of the transmissive displays, and a plurality of input images captured from different viewpoints.
A parallax processing unit that extracts dimensional information, a position detection unit that detects the position of the observer, and the concealment relationship between objects in the image displayed on each transmissive display is determined from the outputs of the parallax processing unit and the position detection unit. And a cutout processing unit for extracting an image to be displayed on each transmissive display.
It is a three-dimensional image display device.

By constructing a plurality of displays in layers at different distances from the observer, the observer observes the image at each position while focusing on the display surface close to it.

The present invention is also a three-dimensional image display device comprising image conversion means for improving the contrast of an image, viewing distance conversion means, antireflection means and the like.

[0011]

According to the present invention, each layered display displays only an image at a depth position in the vicinity thereof,
By focusing and observing the display at the depth position corresponding to it, the observer can observe the three-dimensional image in a state in which the adjustment information and the convergence information do not contradict each other, and it is possible to realize a three-dimensional image in which fatigue is reduced. .

Further, according to the present invention, even when a sufficient resolution is provided in the depth direction, it is possible to present a stereoscopic image with more natural depth without deterioration of contrast, color change, and multiple reflection. It will be possible. Further, it becomes possible to effectively utilize the resolution in the depth direction. It is possible to display an object having a larger depth on a display device having a smaller depth.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a third embodiment of the present invention.
It is a block diagram of a three-dimensional image display device. In FIG. 1, 1 to 5 are transmissive liquid crystal displays, 7 is a position detection unit, 10 is a cutout processing unit A, 9 is a backlight, and 11
Reference numerals 15 to 15 are transmissive liquid crystal display drive circuits. As shown in FIG. 2, the transmissive liquid crystal display has a two-layer structure including a light transmittance control panel 100 and a light scattering control panel 101 (an electroosmotic display or the like can be used). The light transmittance control panel 100 is composed of a transmissive liquid crystal display plate and controls the light transmittance of the backlight. The light-scattering control panel 101 can realize two states, that is, a transparent state like glass and a state in which light is scattered, in arbitrary regions of the panel.

The operation of the three-dimensional image display device of this embodiment constructed as described above will be described below.

First, it is assumed that the three-dimensional image to be displayed is given as computer graphics (CG) data. This data is commonly used CG data, and describes the three-dimensional coordinates of the apex of the subject, the surface color / reflectance, and the like. Based on this data, the cut-out processing unit A10, for the image data of the portion that is hidden when the observer sees, only the image corresponding to each depth position so that it cannot be seen by the observer. Display on the display. That is, the display on the back side is viewed through a portion (transparent portion) where the image on the display on the front side is not displayed. As shown in FIG. 3, the transmissive liquid crystal displays 1 to 5 display images by combining the states of the light transmittance control panel 100 and the light scattering control panel. For example, the portion where the light transmittance control panel 100 (transmissive liquid crystal display plate) is in the light transmitting state and the light scattering control panel is in the transparent state becomes transparent like glass (transparent mode), and the backlight light is left as it is. Let it pass. In a portion where the light transmittance control panel 100 (transmissive liquid crystal display plate) is in the light transmitting state and the light scattering control panel 101 is in the light scattering state, the backlight light is modulated according to the light transmittance, and the light of the light transmittance control panel is modulated. Brightness depending on the transmittance,
Color images are controlled and displayed (white mode). When the light transmittance of the light transmittance control panel is 0 and it is in the cutoff state, the black mode is set. The image is displayed by controlling the light scattering control panel in the scattering mode and controlling the light transmittance control panel to a value between the black mode and the white mode. In this state and the image displayed using the transparent mode. You can control the position of the transmissive LCD that allows you to see.

The transmissive liquid crystal display on the observer side is in a transparent mode than the transmissive liquid crystal display on which a certain image is displayed, and an image corresponding to a different depth position for the observer is located at that depth position. As it is displayed on the nearest display, the observer's adjustment (eye focus)
The contradiction between the position and the distance perceived by the observer is small, and a three-dimensional image that does not cause fatigue easily is displayed.

Here, since the transmitted light is linearly polarized in the liquid crystal display, it is necessary to arrange the liquid crystal display so that the polarization directions of the respective layers are orthogonal to each other. In addition, the image of the transmissive liquid crystal display placed far from the observer,
Since it is viewed through the transmissive display in the foreground, the brightness and contrast of the image are reduced. In order to compensate for this, the more distant the display from the observer, the larger the contrast and brightness of the image are set, so that an image that is easier to see can be generated.

Next, the cut-out processing section A10 will be described with reference to FIG.
The operation of will be described in more detail. For simplicity, the number of transmissive liquid crystal displays will be limited to three in the description.
If a large number of transmissive LCDs are used, finer images can be reproduced in the depth direction.

Now, consider displaying a rounded object. FIG. 4D is a plan view (view from above) of the transmissive liquid crystal display and the object. The small circles on the display object represent the positions of the vertex data, and the solid lines are the interpolated contour image data between the vertices. The interpolation method can be realized by known techniques such as linear interpolation and spline interpolation. The solid line segments indicated by 1, 2, and 3 indicate the position of the transmissive liquid crystal display, and each point of the display object is
Displayed on the nearest display. Objects in the areas indicated by the broken lines are displayed on the transmissive display in the respective areas. That is, the objects in the range a are projected on the display 1, the objects in the range b are displayed on the display 2, and the objects in the range c are projected on the display 3 by the orthographic projection or the observer's viewpoint, which are displayed on the respective displays. . For example, in FIG. 4D, the thick line portion is projected on the display 1. Images projected on the displays 1, 2, and 3 are shown in FIGS. 4 (C), (B), and (A). Next, FIG. 5 shows a view (plan view) of an image projected on each display as seen from above. It has a structure similar to that of the images displayed on the displays 1, 2, and 3 sliced on a horizontal plane. Here, the display 2 and 3 which cannot be hidden by the image (thick line) displayed on the display 1 which is the closest distance from the observer's viewpoint to the observer, and the display which is hidden by the image displayed on the display 2 If the light transmittance of the image of No. 3 displayed by the illumination of the backlight 9 is high, the image of No. 3 appears to overlap the images of the displays 1 and 2 on the entire surface. In order to prevent this, the images existing in the part α hidden by the image on the display 1 and the part β hidden by the image displayed on the display 2 are deleted and switched to the transparent display. The method of measuring the three-dimensional position of the observer's viewpoint is
As shown in FIG. 7, for example, an observer wears the infrared LED 16
The position can be measured by imaging this with the infrared camera 17. In this case, it is necessary to measure the distance L between the observer and the transmissive liquid crystal displays 1 to 5 in advance. For the calculation, as shown in FIG. 8, the coordinates of the point of the LED imaged by the camera are read, and the position of the LED mounted on the observer is calculated from this and the distance L. Although FIG. 8 shows the component in the horizontal direction (x), the same applies to the component in the vertical direction (y), and it is sufficient to replace Dx with Dy and dx with dy. The calculation formula is

[0021]

[Equation 1]

In the case of (that is, when the subject is far away from the focal length f of the camera),

[0023]

[Equation 2]

[0024]

(Equation 3)

[0025] After that, the viewpoint position of the observer is calculated by utilizing the fact that the positional relationship between the position of the LED and the viewpoint is constant.

In FIG. 5, a two-dimensional description was given using a plan view, but in reality, three-dimensional processing is performed as shown in FIG. In FIG. 6, the hatched portion is a portion that is shaded by the image located on the viewer side, and this portion is deleted so that the display is transparent.

By processing as described above and displaying each image on the transmissive liquid crystal display by the drive circuit, it is possible to prevent the object hidden by the object in front from being seen when observing the image. It is possible to display a three-dimensional image that is not largely inconsistent with the focus adjustment, and it is possible to view a three-dimensional image with no discomfort.

Further, in FIG. 4, the image displayed on the display 2 has a structure in which the inside of the subject is hollow, but the light transmittance of the image displayed portion of the equivalent type liquid crystal display is low and the image is displayed twice. If the viewer does not see the image when light passes through the portion where the image is displayed, it is interpreted that the inside of the subject is clogged, and the image displayed on the display 2 is not a ring-shaped image. As shown in FIG. 4 (E), the image may be displayed as a full image.
Further, in this case, in the operation of the cutout processing unit A10, it is not necessary to perform the processing of deleting the image hidden by the display closer to the observer to make the display transparent.

FIG. 9 shows a third embodiment of the present invention.
It is a block diagram of a three-dimensional image display device. In FIG. 9, 1 to 5 are transmissive liquid crystal displays, 6 is a clipping processing unit B, 7 is a position detection unit, 9 is a backlight, 11 to 11.
Reference numeral 15 denotes a transmissive liquid crystal display drive circuit, which are similar to those of the first embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the first embodiment of the present invention is that the output of the parallax processing unit 8 is used as the input signal of the cutout processing unit B6.

The operation of the three-dimensional image display device of this embodiment having the above structure will be described below.

First, R and L images picked up from two viewpoints are input to the parallax processing unit 8. This image is an image from the left and right viewpoints by a conventional twin-lens stereo camera, computer graphics, or the like. A parallax map (three-dimensional map) is calculated from the images of the left and right eyes. Many calculation methods have been proposed, such as a correlation matching method for calculating the correlation between the brightness patterns of the left and right images and a method for matching the edge information of the left and right images, but here, the correlation between the brightness patterns is calculated as an example. A method using the correlation matching method will be described. Detailed operations will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 10, consider left and right images of size N × M pixels. Consider a block window of n × n pixels (3 × 3 pixels in the figure) in the left image. An image having the same luminance pattern as this block window is searched for in the right image using a window of the same size, and the horizontal shift component Δx of the shift (Δx, Δy) between the left and right block positions at this time is the center coordinate of the block window. Is the binocular parallax between the left and right images. If the position of the block window of the reference left image is translated over the entire screen and the position of the corresponding block (binocular parallax) of the right image is obtained in all cases, the parallax map of the entire screen (each screen What shows the depth distance at the place) is required. Where the image coordinates (x,
y) shift between left and right images, that is, binocular parallax (Δx, Δ
y) is

[0032]

[Equation 4]

Is given by here,

[0034]

(Equation 5)

It is However, Σ in Equation 5 indicates that the coordinates xk and yk are changed within the n × n block window to obtain the sum within the absolute value. Of the binocular parallaxes Δx and Δy, Δx directly indicates the depth position. When the left image is used as a reference, when the value of the binocular parallax is positive, the right image is located on the right side and the left image is located on the left side with respect to the reference image, indicating the depth side from the depth position of binocular parallax 0, When the value of the binocular parallax is negative, it indicates that the subject is present in front of the depth position where the binocular parallax is 0. Using the value of this Δx, the three-dimensional coordinates of each point of the subject are calculated. As shown in FIG. 11, when the image of the point A is captured by two cameras, the point AR on the right image corresponding to the point AL on the image of the left camera is obtained from Δx, and this and the center point of the lens are calculated. The three-dimensional coordinates of point A are obtained by finding the intersection of the straight lines LL and LR connecting CL and CR. Similarly, the three-dimensional coordinates of all points on the image are calculated. Based on the brightness, color, and three-dimensional position coordinates of each pixel obtained as described above, the cut-out processing unit B6 determines the image data of the portion hidden when the observer sees it from the observer. Only the image corresponding to each depth position is assigned to each liquid crystal display so that it cannot be seen. Subsequent processing, that is, the method of allocating an image to each liquid crystal display, the configuration of the transmissive liquid crystal display, and the like are the same as those in the first embodiment of the present invention.
That is, the image data is separated according to the distance from the observer and displayed on the transmissive liquid crystal display of the layer closest to it.
At this time, the observer's viewpoint position is measured, and this is deleted from the image of the hidden portion when viewed from the observer's viewpoint.
Instead, set the display to let light through as is.

In the cut-out processing section B6, the image data is separated according to the distance from the observer, and the three-dimensional coordinates of the object are calculated when the image data is displayed on the transmissive liquid crystal display of the closest layer. The value of Δx may be used as it is, or may be subjected to a simple conversion such as an exponential function or a trigonometric function, and the value may be divided into a plurality of areas, image data may be separated, and distributed to each transmissive liquid crystal display.

As a result, even if the raw image itself taken by a camera or the like is used, an image corresponding to different depth positions is displayed to the observer on the display closest to the depth position. It is possible to realize a three-dimensional display.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a three-dimensional image display device according to the third embodiment of the present invention. 12
In FIG. 1, 1 to 5 are transmissive liquid crystal displays, 31 is a clipping processing unit C, 7 is a position detection unit, 9 is a backlight,
25 to 28 are transmissive liquid crystal display drive circuits,
These are the same as those in the first embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the first embodiment of the present invention is that the display uses a so-called time-division multiplex stereoscopic image display system, and a stereoscopic image is displayed on each of the displays having different display positions. Glasses 29 and a liquid crystal shutter control unit 30 are newly introduced, and accordingly, a cutout processing unit C31 and a transmission type liquid crystal display drive circuit 25.
-28 has been modified to process images for the left and right eyes.

The operation of the third three-dimensional image display device of the present embodiment constructed as described above will be described below with reference to FIG.

Similar to the first embodiment of the present invention, the three-dimensional computer graphics data (luminance of each pixel,
Based on the color and the three-dimensional position coordinate), the cutout processing unit C31
Processes the image data of the portion hidden when the observer sees it so that it cannot be seen by the observer, and allocates only the image corresponding to each depth position to each liquid crystal display. However, the image generated in the first embodiment of the present invention is an image from one viewpoint, but here, an image from two viewpoints, that is, two types of images for the left and right eyes are generated. At this time, since the displayed depth position differs depending on the display, the binocular parallax of the images for the left and right eyes created by the cutout processing unit 31 is smaller than that when displayed on one display.

The processing method for generating an image from each one viewpoint is the same as that of the first embodiment of the present invention. That is, in FIG. 12, the output of the cut-out processing unit C31 is two types of image data R and L for the left and right eyes, which the drive circuits 25 to 28 convert into time-division stereoscopic image signals and the transmissive liquid crystal display 1
Send to ~ 5.

Regarding the difference in depth position, the next divided stereoscopic image signal at the distance from the observer is switched alternately between the left and right images in the time direction and alternately transmitted, and a signal synchronized with this is generated by the liquid crystal shutter control unit 30. This is a known technique in which the liquid crystal shutter glasses 29 worn by the observer are driven to alternately project left and right images on the left and right eyes of the observer. Although a liquid crystal display is used in this embodiment, since the response speed of the liquid crystal is slow, the image display speed is reduced, a liquid crystal having a high response speed is used, or the screen is divided in the vertical direction and divided driving is performed. For example, it is necessary to use a display unit that is designed so that a moving image can be displayed.

By doing so, an image in a slight depth range centered on the position of the transmissive liquid crystal display of each layer is displayed, and this is displayed in the depth direction by using a plurality of transmissive liquid crystal displays. By synthesizing the images, the binocular parallax at each display position is reduced, an image that is not significantly different from the focus information (adjustment) of the eyes of the observer can be displayed, and a stereoscopic image that does not cause fatigue can be realized.

Further, in the present embodiment, the time-division stereoscopic image display system is used, but another system capable of realizing a twin-lens stereoscopic image, for example, a polarization stereoscopic image display system as shown in FIG. 13 is used. The same effect can be obtained (in this case, another pair of transmissive liquid crystal displays 1 to 5 is required, which is replaced with CRT1 and CRT2 in FIG. 13).

In the first, second and third embodiments of the present invention as described above, a transmissive liquid crystal display was used to illuminate with a backlight, and the light passing through the display was observed. In the case of a reflection type liquid crystal display that illuminates with a light from the position side and uses the reflection from the liquid crystal to see the image, the image displayed on the back side display does not reach the light of the light, It is not necessary to judge that the image in the back is hidden by the image in the front among the processes in the clipping processing unit A10 and the clipping processing unit B6, delete the corresponding image, and control the display of that portion transparently. The hidden image may be displayed as it is. Further, in this case, it is not necessary to detect the position of the observer by the position detecting unit.

Further, in the first to third embodiments of the present invention, the position of the observer is measured by using the position detector 7.
Always use a constant value assuming the position of the observer in advance,
The observer may operate so that the position of the observer can be input.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing a three-dimensional image display device according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. 14
, 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 1-4 are polarizing plates,
2-1, 2-2, 2-3 are liquid crystals, A-1, A-2, A-3 are electroosmotic display materials for controlling light scattering, 3-1, 3-2
Is a three-dimensional composition circuit (the three-dimensional composition circuit is composed of the transparent region creation circuits 4-1 and 4-2, the composition circuits 5-1 and 5-2), and 6-1 6-2 and 6-3 are An image signal to be displayed on the liquid crystal at each depth position, and 9 is a backlight. In the first to third embodiments of the present invention, a display example of 5 layers is shown, but for simplicity, description will be made using a display example of 3 layers.

In the present embodiment, when there are three kinds of outputs of the clipping processing unit A10 of the first embodiment of the present invention, these may be used as the image signals 6-1, 6-2, 6-3, or in advance. The prepared three types of two-dimensional images are displayed as 6-1, 6-2, 6-3.
You may use as.

The operation of the fourth three-dimensional image display device of this embodiment constructed as described above will be described below with reference to FIG. The display part is illuminated by the backlight 9 and the image displayed by each liquid crystal layer is overlapped and viewed by the observer, as in the first embodiment of the present invention. The difference is that the electroosmotic display material, the liquid crystal display panel and the liquid crystal are alternately stacked and the polarizing plate is omitted. Normally, a liquid crystal is sandwiched between two polarizing plates to form a liquid crystal display plate. Therefore, if the liquid crystal display plate is used as it is, six polarizing plates are required in the case of a three-layer display device. It can be realized with one sheet. Further, there is an advantage that the multi-layer liquid crystal display portion can be easily integrated. The arrows of the polarizing plates 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, and 1-4 in FIG. 14 indicate the polarization directions. With this multilayer structure, it is possible to display a plurality of images having different depth positions. FIG. 15 is a detailed view per pixel of the liquid crystal display portion having this multilayer structure. In this figure, two layers are displayed. The backlight is irradiated with light from the bottom in the figure, and the light passing through the gap 216 is controlled by the electroosmotic display material α including the transparent electrode α1 to be scattered or transmitted at this pixel portion, and the TFT circuit 21
4 and the pixel electrode 212 using the transparent conductive film, the crystal arrangement of the liquid crystal 217 at each pixel position is controlled, and the combination of this and the RGB color filter and the polarizing plate 13 controls the passage of light of each color, thereby obtaining a color image. Can be expressed (white mode to black mode) or this pixel portion can be made transparent (transparent mode). In the same figure, the portion B across the gap 216 has exactly the same structure as the portion A, and this is the display layer at a position one step farther than the display position of A.
The image of this layer is viewed through the transparent portion of display layer A.

Next, it is necessary to change the image signals displayed on the respective layers so that when the image on the back side overlaps with the image on the front side, the light is transmitted therethrough when the image on the back side overlaps with the image on the front side. This is realized by the circuit on the right side of FIG. 14 (the stereoscopic synthesis circuit and the image signals 6-1, 6-2, 6-3 to be displayed on the liquid crystal at each depth position). The operation of this portion will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. Image signals 6-1, 6-2, 6 to be displayed on the liquid crystal at each depth position
-3 is a near view (person), a distant view (train), and a background (mountain), respectively. At this time, the person in the close view is displayed as it is on the liquid crystal 17 closest to the observer. In the near-view image, the area other than the person is transparently displayed on the liquid crystal. Images farther than this are viewed through this transparent area. Next, the transparent area creating circuit 4-1 extracts the area of the person portion of this image, and the combining circuit 5-1 makes the area of this person portion transparent in the distant view image 6-2.
Furthermore, the area that combines the part of the person and the part of the train in the distant view,
It is created by the transparent area creating circuit 4-2, and this portion is made transparent from the background 6-3. By doing this, it is possible to prevent an image displayed at a close position from overlapping with an image displayed at a position farther from this, and to prevent a double image or a dark image at a close position. You can FIG. 17 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the three-dimensional synthesis circuits 3-1 and 3-2 in more detail. The observer observes the transmitted light from the backlight 7 from above. For simplicity, the display of two layers will be described. At this time, the foreground image 220 (black portion) is displayed dark unless the backlight hits it. Therefore,
If the portion 221 of the distant view image is made transparent, the near view image is displayed brightly. The state of being hidden by the near-view image 220 is shown by a broken line when viewed from the observer's viewpoint.
Here, the part that is slightly narrower than the part that is simply hidden is made transparent. By doing so, even if the observer's viewpoint is slightly moved, the transparent portion 2 of the display layer displaying the distant view is displayed.
You can hide 1 Further, when the observer moves the viewpoint, the shaded area in FIG. 17 is seen correspondingly, and the stereoscopic effect due to the change of the concealed area can be increased. Here, how much the narrower part than the concealed part is made transparent can be designed as follows using FIG. 15B. FIG. 18 is a diagram of the two images in FIG. 17 viewed from the side. If the observer's viewpoint is A (center of the screen), the image inside the position A'cannot be seen, but when the observer's viewpoint moves from A to B, the image can be seen up to the position B '. Predetermine the range of movement of the observer's viewpoint,
If this is defined as M, the pixel range Δ to be prepared inside the concealed portion at that time can be calculated by the following formula 6.

[0051]

(Equation 6)

Here, the distance between the observer and the screen is L,
The gap between the display layers is d, and the distance from the center of the screen to the edge of the display object is X. Also, the range Δ ′ of pixels to be prepared on the inner side on the right side can be calculated in the same manner.

As described above, according to this embodiment, the structure of the display portion having a multi-layer structure is simplified, and it is possible to prevent the images at respective distances from overlapping and to prevent the foreground image from becoming dark. You can

In the fourth embodiment of the present invention, the polarizing plates are all arranged in the same direction, but they may be alternately arranged. Although the structure of the TFT has been described as the liquid crystal display method, a three-dimensional display device having higher brightness can be realized by using STN liquid crystal having high light transmittance and polymer scattering liquid crystal.

FIG. 19 is a block diagram showing a three-dimensional image display device according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. FIG.
3-1 and 3-2 are three-dimensional composition circuits (three-dimensional composition circuits are 4-1 and 4-2 transparent area creating circuits, 5-1 and 5-).
2), 6-1, 6-2, 6-3.
Is the image signal to be displayed on the liquid crystal at each depth position,
These are the same as the fourth embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. The difference from the fourth embodiment is that the EL panels 223-1, 223-2, and 223-3 are used in the multi-layer image display portion. The EL panel is a transparent element in which Cu, I, Al, and Mn are added to ZnS, and R, G, and B pixels emit light.

In this embodiment, when there are three kinds of outputs of the clipping processing unit A10 of the first embodiment of the present invention, these may be used as the image signals 6-1, 6-2, 6-3, or in advance. The prepared three types of two-dimensional images are displayed as 6-1, 6-2, 6-3.
You may use as.

The operation of the fifth embodiment of the present invention constructed as above will be described below. Similar to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, foreground, distant and background images 6-1 and 6-
From 2, 6-3, the image displayed on each display layer is calculated using the stereoscopic synthesis circuits 3-1 and 3-2. The operation up to this point is exactly the same as that shown in FIG. These images are displayed on the EL panels 223-1, 223-2, 2 of each layer.
Displayed at 23-3. Here, in the EL panel, since the display pixel itself emits light, it is not necessary to use a backlight. Therefore, the structure of the display portion can be simplified as compared with the structure using liquid crystal as in the fourth embodiment of the present invention. . FIG. 20 shows 223.
1 shows a detailed structure of an image display portion using the EL panels of No. 1, 223-2 and 223-3. Using this figure
The image display method using the EL panel will be described in more detail. EL pixels 228-1, 228-2, 228 that emit light in RGB colors depending on the voltage applied to the electrode 210
-3 to control the brightness. Here, 229 is an oxide insulating film. This is the operation of image display in one layer (part A). In the figure, B across the gap 211
The part of has the same structure as the part of A, and this is the display layer at the position one step farther than the display position of A. The image of this layer is the transparent part of display layer A (the part that does not emit light)
Observed through. Also, in this embodiment having an EL panel, a transparent area is created and used due to the concealment relationship of the display image of each layer as shown in FIG. Since it has a light emitting part, it can be expected to reduce power consumption.

As described above, according to this embodiment, by using the EL panel for the display portion, the structure of the display portion can be simplified, and since the display is self-luminous, a bright three-dimensional image can be obtained without a backlight. Can be watched.

FIG. 21 is a block diagram showing a three-dimensional image display device according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention. Figure 21
, M1, M2, and M3 are transmissive liquid crystal display panels,
M4 and M5 are image conversion means. Transmissive liquid crystal panel M
1, M2 and M3 are the liquid crystals 2-1, 2-2 and 2-3 and the polarizing plates 1-1 and 1-2 of the fourth embodiment (FIG. 14) of the present invention.
It is the same as the multi-layered display portion composed of 1-3 and 1-4, and the same thing as the image signal inputted to each liquid crystal in the fourth embodiment of the present invention (see FIG. 16) is inputted. To be done. For example, a near view (person) is input to (near), a distant view (train) is input to (far), and a background (mountain) image is input to (back).

Here, assuming that the transmittance of the transparent portion of the liquid crystal transmission panel is 90%, when the image presented in M2 is viewed from the front side (front side of M1), the contrast is 90%.
Fall to. Also, when the image presented to M3 is viewed from the front, its contrast drops to 81%. As the number of depth display panels increases, the contrast of the image displayed in the back decreases. That is, FIG.
In the case of this image, the foreground image can be clearly observed, but the background image is dark and only the image with a low contrast can be observed.

In order to prevent this contrast reduction, the image conversion means aM4 and the image conversion means bM5 convert the input signal to be displayed so that the contrast becomes high. If the display panel has a margin of D range and the signal gain can be increased to increase the contrast, increase the gain. When the D range of the display panel is full, the following signal processing is performed to perform processing for increasing the apparent (subjective) contrast. The contents of the processing will be described with reference to FIGS. 24 and 25. In FIG. 24, M11 is a level conversion means, M
12 is a low frequency attenuation means, M13 is a characteristic conversion means, M14
Is an addition means. The operation of the image conversion means configured as described above will be described. The level conversion means M11 is for converting the signal level so that the display capability of the display panel becomes uniform at all levels. 0% to 10% and 90
When the display capability from 100% to 100% is small, the gain of that part is increased and the gain of the other part is reduced so that the display capability is uniform at all signal levels input to the display panel. This portion may be bypassed if there is a display capability that is approximately equal at all signal levels. Further, the level conversion means M11 is also a method which performs so-called histogram equalization and corrects the deviation of the level distribution of the signal to improve the effectiveness of the display in which the signal is displayed as an image. Next, the low frequency attenuation means M12 attenuates the low frequency components contained in the signal.
The characteristic converting means M13 attenuates a portion having a large amplitude and compresses a signal having a larger level than the set level. Then, the output of the level conversion means M11 and the addition means M14 are combined. FIG. 25 shows the case where the input signal is a step signal. In FIG. 25, (1) is a dominant signal and (2) is its low frequency component. (3) is an output waveform of the low frequency attenuation means M12, and (4) is an output waveform of the characteristic conversion means M13. (5) is the output waveform of the adding means M14. Such a waveform is converted by the image conversion means M4 or M5,
It is output to the display panels M2 and M3.

The signal waveform shown in (5) of FIG. 25 causes an optical illusion when a human observes it as an image, and the level difference of a is observed as a level difference of approximately a + c. In this way, it is possible to add a level difference (contrast) by 2 to 30% in a portion where there is a signal difference, and to add 2 to 3 in the entire image.
It is possible to give an impression that the contrast is improved. By doing so, even when the image is displayed on the display panel behind the display panel whose transmittance is not 100%, it is possible to display without lowering the apparent contrast. The image conversion means bM5 converts the image so that the contrast becomes higher than that of the image conversion means aM4, and displays the image on the display panel M3. With such a configuration, no matter where the display panels M1 to M3 are displayed,
It is possible to realize a stereoscopic display device that can be observed as the same contrast and can present a more natural stereoscopic image, and its practical value is high. When the display panels M1 to M3 have the same physical brightness, the level converting means may be inserted also in the signal of the display panel M1 to perform conversion to reduce the brightness of the display panels M1 and M2.

Next, a seventh embodiment of the present invention will be described. The configuration of the seventh embodiment is shown in FIG. In the figure, the same parts as those in the sixth embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted. In the figure, M6 and M7 are liquids having the same refractive index as that of the display panel. With such a structure, multiple reflection between the display panels M1, M2 and M3 is eliminated. The reduction of the multiple reflection between the display panels becomes more effective as the number of display panels increases. As a result, unnecessary reflection between images existing in the space between the display panels M1 to M3 is eliminated, and an easy-to-see image presentation can be realized, and its practical value is high.

In order to reduce the multiple reflection between images, it is possible to coat the surface of the display panel with an antireflection film. However, the reflection is not completely zero, and some reflection is present, but this method is also an effective method.

Next, an eighth embodiment of the present invention will be described. The configuration of the eighth embodiment is shown in FIG. In the figure, the same parts as those in the sixth embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted. In the figure, M8 and M9 are visual distance conversion optical means, M10 is distance conversion driving means, and M1.
Reference numeral 1 is a data display signal converting means. In this embodiment, a viewing distance converting optical means is added between the display panels M1, M2 and M3, which is a difference from the previous embodiments. FIG. 26 shows an example of the viewing distance converting optical means. In the figure, M20 is a convex lens, M21 is a concave lens, M22 is a moving base, M23 is a motor, and M24 is a screw. When the object (a) is viewed from the front surface (illustrated) by using this viewing distance converting optical means, the virtual image of the lens system is observed at the position b, and the virtual image looks far from the actual position a. Further motor M23
The lens M20 attached to the movable table 22 by rotating the
26 by moving the lens away from the lens M21.
As shown in (b), the virtual image can be moved from the position of (b) to the position of (c), and the image can be moved farther than the position shown in FIG. Naturally, the lens M2
By moving 0 in the opposite direction, the virtual image can be moved closer.
In this way, the visual distance conversion optical means M8, M9 can be used to display the image presented on the display panels M2, M3 behind (back) from the actual position. The position to be displayed is determined by converting the data of the position of the object into the data of the position of the display image by using the data display signal converting means M11. The determined display position is moved to M of the distance conversion means by using the distance conversion drive means M10.
The motor M23 of M8 and M9 is driven to control the position of the lens system of the visual distance conversion optical means M8 and M9. At the same time, the data display signal converting means M11 synthesizes the image signal to be displayed on each display panel from the data of the object position.

With the above structure, even an object having a depth larger than the depth of the stereoscopic display device itself can represent the correct depth. Further, when the depth to be displayed is limited, the depth of the display device can be reduced. Further, when the object is present in one portion in the depth direction, the resolution in the depth direction can be concentrated on the portion in which the object is present, and the depth resolution of that portion can be improved. In other words, the space where there is no object is
The optical system of the viewing distance conversion means gains depth, and the image display of the display panel is concentrated on the portion where the object is concentrated. In such a case, adding a viewing distance converting optical unit to the front surface of the display panel M1 enables more efficient display. Thus, even with the same number of display panels, the depth resolution determined by the number of panels can be effectively utilized, and its practical value is high.

In the sixth to eighth embodiments of the present invention,
Although the number of display panels is three, it is not necessary to limit the number of display panels to three. Also, the viewing distance conversion means M8,
The optical system of M9 may of course be other than the optical system shown here as long as it has an equivalent function, and an optical system that changes the viewing distance but does not change the size of the image. Alternatively, an optical system that intentionally changes the size of the image depending on the viewing distance may be used.

[0068]

As is apparent from the above description,
According to the present invention, each display layered displays only the image at the depth position in the vicinity thereof, and the observer focuses and observes the display at the depth position corresponding to the adjustment and congestion information. It is possible to observe a three-dimensional image in a state where there is not much contradiction, and it is possible to realize a three-dimensional image in which fatigue is reduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a three-dimensional image display device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the transmissive display according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an operation diagram of the transmissive display according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an operation explanatory diagram of a cutout processing unit according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view (two-dimensional diagram) of concealment processing of the cutout processing unit in the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram (three-dimensional diagram) of concealment processing of the cutout processing unit according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram (configuration diagram) of observer position measurement processing according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of an observer position measurement process (an explanatory diagram of calculation) according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram of a three-dimensional image display device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a calculation method of the parallax processing unit according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of conversion of binocular disparity data into distance data according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a configuration diagram of a three-dimensional image display device according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of a conventional three-dimensional image display device.

FIG. 14 is a configuration diagram of a three-dimensional image display device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a configuration diagram of a liquid crystal having a three-dimensional structure (detailed configuration diagram of a display unit of a three-dimensional image display device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention).

FIG. 16: Operation diagram of stereoscopic synthesis

FIG. 17 is a configuration diagram of a transparent region of a three-dimensional image display device.

FIG. 18 is a detailed explanatory diagram of processing of a hidden portion.

FIG. 19 is a configuration diagram of a three-dimensional image display device according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a block diagram of an EL having a three-dimensional structure.

FIG. 21 is a configuration diagram of a three-dimensional image display device according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a configuration diagram of a three-dimensional image display device according to a seventh embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a configuration diagram of a three-dimensional image display device according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 24 is a configuration diagram for improving image contrast.

FIG. 25 is an explanatory diagram of an image contrast improving operation.

FIG. 26 is a block diagram of a viewing distance converting optical unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 transmissive liquid crystal display 1 2 transmissive liquid crystal display 2 3 transmissive liquid crystal display 3 4 transmissive liquid crystal display 4 5 transmissive liquid crystal display 5 6 cutout processing section B 7 position detection section 8 parallax processing section 9 backlight 10 cutout processing section A 11 Drive circuit 1 12 Drive circuit 2 13 Drive circuit 3 14 Drive circuit 4 15 Drive circuit 5 16 Light emitting diode (LED) 17 Camera 18 Position calculation unit 19 Lens 20 Image plane 21 Left camera lens 22 Left image plane 23 Right Camera lens 24 Image pickup surface for right image 25 Drive circuit 6 26 Drive circuit 7 27 Drive circuit 8 28 Drive circuit 9 29 Liquid crystal shutter glasses 30 Liquid crystal shutter control section 31 Cutout processing section C 100 Light transmittance control panel 101 Light scattering control panel 1 -1 Polarizing plate 1-2 Polarizing plate 1-3 Polarizing plate 1-4 Polarizing plate 2-1 Liquid crystal 2-2 Liquid crystal 2-3 Liquid crystal 3-1 Three-dimensional composition circuit 3-2 Three-dimensional composition circuit 4-1 Transparent area creation circuit 4-2 Transparent area creation circuit 5-1 Composition circuit 5-2 Composition circuit 6-1 Image signal (for 2-1 liquid crystal display) 6-2 Image signal (for 2-2 liquid crystal display) 6-3 Image signal (for 2-3 liquid crystal display) 210 Pixel electrode 212 Pixel electrode (from transparent conductive film) 213 Polarizing plate 214 TFT circuit (transistor image control element) 215 Color filter (RGB filter) 216 Gap 217 Liquid crystal 220 Near view image 221 Part of far view image hidden by near view image 223-1 EL Panel 223-2 EL Panel 223-3 EL Panel 228-1 EL Light-Emitting Element (R) 228-2 EL Light-Emitting Element (G) 228-3 EL Light-Emitting Element (B) 229 Oxide Insulation Film A-1 Electro-osmosis Display material A-2 Electro-osmotic display material A-3 Electro-osmotic display material α Electro-osmotic display material α1 Transparent electrode

Claims (19)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of light transmissive displays arranged at different distances from an observer and capable of controlling light transmittance and light scattering, and three-dimensional information of a subject from a plurality of input images taken from different viewpoints. A parallax processing unit to extract, a position detection unit to detect the position of the observer, and the output of the parallax processing unit and the position detection unit to determine the concealment relationship between objects in the image displayed on each transmissive display. A cutout processing unit that extracts an image to be displayed on each transmissive display and drives each transmissive display so that the other parts are transparent, and a backlight arranged on the back surface of the plurality of transmissive displays. And characterized in that
Dimensional image display device. 2. A plurality of light transmissive displays, which are arranged at different distances from an observer, can control light transmittance and light scattering, and can independently display images to the left and right eyes, and images taken from different viewpoints. 3 of the subject from multiple input images
A parallax processing unit that extracts dimensional information, a position detection unit that detects the position of an observer, and a concealment relationship between objects in an image displayed on each transmissive display from the outputs of the parallax processing unit and the position detection unit. The cut-out processing unit that drives each transmissive display so that the other parts are transparent, and the image is displayed on each transmissive display. A three-dimensional image display device including a backlight. 3. Three-dimensional information of a subject from a plurality of light-transmissive displays arranged at different distances from an observer and capable of controlling light transmittance and light scattering, and a plurality of input images taken from different viewpoints. A parallax processing unit to extract, a position detection unit to detect the position of the observer, and the output of the parallax processing unit and the position detection unit to determine the concealment relationship between objects in the image displayed on each transmissive display. A cutout processing unit that extracts an image to be displayed on each transmissive display and drives each transmissive display so that the other parts are transparent, and a backlight arranged on the back surface of the plurality of transmissive displays. A three-dimensional image display device, comprising: an image conversion unit that converts the contrast or brightness of a signal to be displayed on a transmissive display. 4. A plurality of light-transmissive displays, which are arranged at different distances from an observer, can control light transmittance and light scattering, and can independently display images to the left and right eyes, and images taken from different viewpoints. 3 of the subject from multiple input images
A parallax processing unit that extracts dimensional information, a position detection unit that detects the position of an observer, and a concealment relationship between objects in an image displayed on each transmissive display from the outputs of the parallax processing unit and the position detection unit. The cut-out processing unit that drives each transmissive display so that the other parts are transparent, and the image is displayed on each transmissive display. A three-dimensional image display device comprising: a backlight and image conversion means for converting the contrast or brightness of a signal to be displayed on a transmissive display. 5. The three-dimensional image display device according to claim 3, wherein the image conversion means performs signal processing for increasing the contrast of the display panel in a portion apart from the front surface. 6. The three-dimensional image display device according to claim 3, wherein the image conversion means performs signal processing for lowering the brightness of the display panel in the portion away from the rear surface. 7. Three-dimensional information of a subject is obtained from a plurality of light-transmitting displays arranged at different distances from an observer and capable of controlling light transmittance and light scattering, and a plurality of input images taken from different viewpoints. A parallax processing unit to extract, a position detection unit to detect the position of the observer, and the output of the parallax processing unit and the position detection unit to determine the concealment relationship between objects in the image displayed on each transmissive display. A cutout processing unit that extracts an image to be displayed on each transmissive display and drives each transmissive display so that the other parts are transparent, and a backlight disposed on the back surface of the plurality of transmissive displays. And a liquid or solid substance is inserted between the transmissive displays to bring the refractive index of the liquid or solid close to that of the display panel to reduce reflection between the display panels. 3-dimensional image display apparatus according to claim. 8. A plurality of light-transmissive displays, which are arranged at different distances from an observer, can control light transmittance and light scattering, and can independently display images to the left and right eyes, and images taken from different viewpoints. 3 of the subject from multiple input images
A parallax processing unit that extracts dimensional information, a position detection unit that detects the position of an observer, and a concealment relationship between objects in an image displayed on each transmissive display from the outputs of the parallax processing unit and the position detection unit. The cut-out processing unit that drives each transmissive display so that the other parts are transparent, and the image is displayed on each transmissive display. A liquid or solid substance is inserted between the backlight and the transmissive display, and the refractive index of the liquid or solid is brought close to that of the display panel to reduce reflection between the display panels. Three-dimensional image display device. 9. Three-dimensional information of a subject is obtained from a plurality of light-transmitting displays arranged at different distances from an observer and capable of controlling light transmittance and light scattering, and a plurality of input images taken from different viewpoints. A parallax processing unit to extract, a position detection unit to detect the position of the observer, and the output of the parallax processing unit and the position detection unit to determine the concealment relationship between objects in the image displayed on each transmissive display. A cutout processing unit that extracts an image to be displayed on each transmissive display and drives each transmissive display so that the other parts are transparent, and a backlight arranged on the back surface of the plurality of transmissive displays. And a data display signal converting means for calculating a signal to be displayed and a display position from the data of the object, and a visual distance placed between the displays or between the front of the display and the display. Conversion means, three-dimensional image display apparatus characterized by comprising a distance transform drive means for controlling the viewing distance conversion means between the display panel from the calculated display position. 10. A plurality of light-transmissive displays, which are arranged at different distances from an observer, can control light transmittance and light scattering, and can independently display images to the left and right eyes, and images taken from different viewpoints. The parallax processing unit that extracts the three-dimensional information of the subject from the plurality of input images, the position detection unit that detects the position of the observer, and the outputs of the parallax processing unit and the position detection unit are displayed on each of the transmissive displays. Extraction of the image to be displayed on each transmissive display by determining the concealment relationship between the objects in the image, and a clipping processing unit that drives each transmissive display so that the other parts become transparent,
A backlight arranged on the back surface of the plurality of transmissive displays, a data display signal conversion means for calculating a signal to be displayed and a display position from the data of the object, and a display arranged between the displays or between the front surface of the display and the display. A three-dimensional image display device comprising: distance conversion means and distance conversion drive means for controlling the viewing distance conversion means between display panels from a calculated display position. 11. The data display signal conversion means and the distance conversion drive means set a large visual distance of the visual distance conversion means for a portion without an object and a small visual distance of the visual distance conversion means for a portion with an object. The three-dimensional image display device according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the three-dimensional image display device is set. 12. The transmissive display is characterized in that the surface thereof is subjected to a treatment for lowering the reflectance.
3, 4, 7, 8, 9, or 10 stereoscopic image display device. 13. The display according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, wherein the plurality of displays arranged at different distances from an observer are self-luminous displays and the backlight is omitted. The three-dimensional image display device according to 7, 8, 9 or 10. 14. The display according to claim 13, wherein the plurality of light emitting displays arranged at different distances from an observer are integrally formed by repeatedly forming an EL panel and a gap layer. Three-dimensional image display device. 15. The display according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of displays arranged at different distances from an observer are reflective displays, and the backlight is omitted.
The three-dimensional image display device according to the item 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, or 10. 16. A plurality of light transmissive displays arranged at different distances from an observer and capable of controlling light transmittance and light scattering are integrated by repeatedly forming a polarizing plate, a liquid crystal, and a gap layer. Claim 1 characterized in that
The three-dimensional image display device according to the item 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, or 10. 17. A concealment relationship between objects in an image displayed on each display based on a three-dimensional image created by three-dimensional computer graphics instead of the parallax processing unit and from the output of the position detecting unit. A cutout processing unit that determines whether or not to extract an image to be displayed on each display.
9. The three-dimensional image display device according to 9 or 10. 18. The position detecting section is capable of outputting a certain position instead of detecting the position of the observer or manually setting the output.
The three-dimensional image display device according to the item 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, or 10. 19. The cutout processing unit is a parallax detection unit or 3.
When determining the concealment relationship between the objects in the image displayed on each display using the output of the position detection unit and the three-dimensional image generated by the three-dimensional computer graphics,
The three-dimensional image according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, or 10, wherein the area hidden by the subject displayed on the near view display is set to be slightly smaller than the area. Display device.