The physical world around us is three-dimensional (3D), yet most existing display systems with flat screens can handle only two-dimensional (2D) flat images that lack the third dimension (depth) information. This fundamental restriction greatly limits the capability of human being in perceiving and understanding the complexity of real world objects. In contrast to conventional medical image visualization that are primarily based on 2D flat screen, the """"""""true 3D display"""""""" we proposed herein possesses a physical 3D display volume, and places each 3D """"""""voxel"""""""" in the displayed 3D images at the true 3D (x, y, z) spatial position. Each voxel, analogous to a pixel in a 2D image, emits light from that position to form a real 3D image in the eyes of viewers. The true 3D display technology provides both physiological and psychological depth cues to human visual system to perceive 3D objects and is considered as the Holy Grail solution to true 3D visualization of medical image, and many other display problems. Xigen LLC has recently made a technology breakthrough and developed a revolutionary concept of the """"""""hybrid multiview/volumetric (HyMV)"""""""" 3D display that is able to provide true 3D displaying capability in both the volumetric display mode and the multiview 3D display mode, simultaneously overlaying on each other, or displayed in separate modes as controlled by uses. The volumetric 3D images provide true 3D measurement of and spatial relationship among the displayed 3D objects, while the multiview 3D images provide photo-quality textured surface properties of the displayed 3D objects. By seamlessly integrating these two 3D display modes into a single 3D display system, the proposed HyMV technology offers an unprecedented true 3D display capability never available before: a volumetric 3D display capable of showing both true 3D positions of voxels, as well as various surface properties (occlusion, shining, reflection, shadow, etc) that are essential to many high image quality medical visualization applications. We propose this SBIR effort to perform thorough investigation of the proposed novel concept, carry out design and tradeoffs, build a functional prototype, and assess its technical efficacy for image-guided radiaotion intervention for cancer treatment. Proprietary Information of XIGEN LLC. 0 NIH SBIR PA 07-042
The primary objective of this Phase I SBIR effort is to demonstrate the feasibility of a novel volumetric 3D display concept with the unprecedented hybrid volumetric/Multiplan 3D display capability. We plan to build and test a functional prototype, focusing our effort in demonstrating several key capabilities of this breakthrough innovation. We now summarize unique advantages of the proposed HyMV 3D display system: - For the first time, achieve coherent volumetric and multiview 3D display in single system;- Preserve 3D spatial voxels and 3D measurement capability while producing photo-quality 3D images with realistic surface properties (shining, shadow, occlusion, etc);- Offer volumetric mode, multiview mode and simultaneous multiview/volumetric mode in 3D display, suited for various visualization and 3D measurement applications;- High spatial resolution, full color display is easy to implement using the latest DMD devices. - No special viewing glasses or any special eyewear is needed to view the 3D images;- Simple and elegant system structure design. The major innovations of this SBIR effort include: - Novel concept to seamlessly integrate multiview and volumetric displays in single system;- Novel design of hybrid rotating screen, accommodating both display modes;- Compact and portable overall system design;- Novel true 3D user interface device design allowing for interaction with displayed true 3D images;- Integrated true 3D volumetric/multiview display hardware/software tailored for IGRI applications. The follow-on Phase 2 program will afford us to perform clinical study on the interventional efficacy and clinical outcomes of the technology applications. The Phase 3 program will carry out productization and commercialization of the unique true 3D display product. Beyond the image-guided radiotherapy intervention, applications of true 3D display technology are enormous, including various areas of medical imaging (e.g., image guided therapy, clinical diagnosis, procedure training, simulation, pre-treatment planning, and clinical hypothesis validation), military (e.g. air traffic control, pilot training, battlefield visualization, telemedicine) and commercial (e.g., 3D TV, virtual reality, advertizing, computer aided design, scientific computing, video games, stadium displays, etc.) The 3D display will provide a new level of realism and literally add a new dimension to information display tool set we now have. Proprietary Information of XIGEN LLC. 1 NIH SBIR PA 07-042
