Ghostly Guests.(Virtual Characters' work on 3D display technology)(Company Business and Marketing)

With a new 3D display technology, digital characters are freed from the confines of computer monitors

In order for people to understand our technology, holographic projection would be a good way to describe it, except that it's not holography," says Elliott Nathan, executive vice president of a New York-based digital media company that has created a novel display medium for bringing digital characters to life.

A joint venture between the digital-content companies Gribouille and Dimensional Media, Virtual Characters uses its proprietary technology to project computer-generated actors into free space without the use of virtual-reality headsets or special glasses. The actual technology used to project the computer-generated characters into space, he says, consists of high-end software and a "complicated array" of optical filters, beam splitters, mirrors, and lenses in various configurations.

Although the technology produces an image that appears holographic, the new display media differs from holography in that the light that reaches the viewer's eye is not reflected off of a flat surface, as it is with laser-generated holograms. In contrast, the unique optical/mirror-based system projects images into a viewing space from behind a wall. "With our technology, there are no lasers, thus none of the inevitable distortion that limits their applicability," says Nathan. "We project high-resolution computer-generated characters that users can see floating in space in front of them, without the use of special screens, head-mounted displays, or stereo glasses."

To project these "free-floating" images, the array of optical hardware is configured to collect light rays from a video source and then reassembles this data to project the aggregate rays to a point in free space.

A Character-Building Effort

The uniqueness of the medium impacts not only the ultimate display, but also the character-creation process, says Nathan. "We are always conscious that the character will be projected into free space, and therefore we're mindful to make use of the 3D aspects by having the virtual character act in ways that utilize the flail dimensional scope." For instance, he says, the character can be on "idle loop" looking around the room and, when a person approaches, the virtual character can "look" directly at the newcomer, thanks to a motion-sensing system that makes the visitor's presence known.