Abstract:
A transparent LCD monitor can be layered with a custom optical element that covers a portion of the display surface to create a hybrid solution that is enabled to show 3D content (including both off-screen “pop” in front of the display and an immersive perception of depth behind the display) without the need for any special eyewear while maintaining a high degree of transparency in the unmodified portions of the display.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    LCD monitors have been used as transparent light valves for certain products. The casino industry uses displays where the backlight has been modified to create slot machines where the tumblers are visible through a hole in the backlight. LCD panels have been used in overhead projection machines prior to the design of good low cost data projectors. LCD panels are used in LCD projectors where the light source is directed through the liquid crystal in order to project the image on a surface. 
         [0002]    A company has demonstrated the application of layered LCD panels to create a three dimensional display. The application is currently limited by the inefficiency of the panels, however, new IGZO panel technology may reignite interest in these constructions. 
         [0003]    Improvements in manufacturing techniques by companies such as Samsung have allowed for the creation of large transparent LCD panels with reasonable color reproduction and off axis viewing. These are intended for installation in the glass doors of refrigerators and in the windows of retail establishments. They can also be used in bus stops, at home, in offices, and so on. There are substantial opportunities for transparent displays alone or with touch screens. 
       SUMMARY OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
       [0004]    However the display can also be used for more theatrical applications. Transparency lends itself to layering. And by overlaying an optical element in strips, sections, or other organic shaped optical element, it is possible to create layers that are enabled to display 3D content that includes both off-screen “pop” in front of the display and an immersive perception of depth behind the display, without the need for any special eyewear. 
         [0005]    This invention discloses the design of a transparent LCD panel (or other panel or even other shaped displays) that integrates an autostereoscopic optical element. The optical element may include (but not be limited to) one or more optical technologies such as lenticular lens, parallax barrier, chromatic light deflector, active or switchable membranes, micro mirrors, electro-mechanical lens, shutter, liquid-crystal, molds, films, or other similar systems that allow for the presentation of multiple perspective views of content for 3D, flip, or other optical effects. The design allows for the retention of the original transparency. And the transparency allows a user to introduce other elements including sub-pixel modulated backlights and additional layers of display, and backlights that specifically target modified and non-modified areas of the optical system. 
         [0006]    In order to take advantage of the autostereoscopic properties of the display, content may be specially produced to accommodate the regions with and without the optical element. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0007]      FIG. 1  shows an optical element structure. 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  shows an LCD panel. 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  shows an embodiment of the application in use. 
           [0010]      FIGS. 4 and 4A  show an alternate optical element arrangement. 
           [0011]      FIGS. 5-7  show different embodiments of a segmented display. 
           [0012]      FIG. 8  shows detail of how the content is arranged in the optic 
           [0013]      FIGS. 9-13  show one embodiment in an application. 
           [0014]      FIGS. 14-15  show another embodiment in a consumer application. 
           [0015]      FIG. 16  shows another embodiment in which lenticular strip lenses are instead replaced by hexagonal (or other shape) optical elements interspersed with areas with no hexagonal lenses. 
           [0016]      FIGS. 17 and 18  show another embodiment in which the lenticular is a printed lenticular lens. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
       [0017]    The construction of the display described in this disclosure differs from the construction of a standard autostereoscopic display. 
         [0018]      FIG. 1  illustrates one embodiment of the optical element. In this illustration the optical element  101  has been cut into a series of linear ribs  102 . In order to maximize transparency the ribs have been constructed with a short section  103  that may be only three pixels high and a tall section  104  that may be eight pixels high. It would be possible to design a rib with multiple heights or a single height. The width of the sections  110  would be a function of the number of vertical slices in the design of the optical element  101 . 
         [0019]      FIG. 2  illustrates a display  201  with a system of ribs  202  (as described in  FIG. 1 ) laminated to the front of the display. This system may work on any 3D display (LCD, OLED, Projection) where an optical element is placed between the viewer and the display  201 . 
         [0020]      FIG. 3  illustrates a typical embodiment of the display where the assembled product is placed in front of an object  302 . In this case the autostereoscopic portion of the display  301  could be used to create a layer of fire dancing over the surface of the tree object  302 . The non-3D sections of the display may not be used at all. 
         [0021]      FIGS. 4 and 4A  illustrate an alternate embodiment of the display  400  where the optical elements  401  feather into the 2D portion of the display, and present a 3D image around a transparent window  405 .  FIG. 4A  shows a variant of this idea where the auto stereoscopic optical element  401  a extends around the outside of a panel, and feathers into the background  410 , which may feather into the transparent LCD non-3D content  420 . 
         [0022]    With the advent of 4 k and 8 k resolution displays, a manufacturer could opt to include autostereoscopic lines in the display in the way that in-cell touch displays include sensors in the display matrix. This way menu items and specially encoded information could be made to pop forward off the screen. 
         [0023]    In another embodiment shown in  FIG. 5 , the display  500  may include several layers. The first layer may be a 3D lenticular segment layer  510  with 3D pixel groups that include different points of view. This 3D lenticular segment layer  510  may be comprised of strips as shown or otherwise segmented. The second layer may be a LCD panel  520  (not shown in  FIG. 5  but shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7 ). The third layer may be a backlight unit (BLU) segment layer  530 , also in strips. 
         [0024]    Fourth and fifth layers may also be present. A fourth layer could be the space layer  540  behind the first-third layers and leave an area for an object to occupy. A fifth layer or background layer  550  may be present and provide a common background for the other layers. 
         [0025]    The BLU segment layer  530  may be a segmented OLED layer that is only active when there is content in the 3D segment layer  510 . The result is that non-3D segmented layer areas  515 , that is, the gaps  515 , may be dark and interfere less with a viewer&#39;s ability to see through the layers. The relationship between lighting the layers should be managed by the video processor in such a way as to control the emphasis to the user of any one or more layers. 
         [0026]    A screen comprising the first through third layers may have multiple backlights with different levels of granularity, and each 3D pixel may have a corresponding backlight segment that may feature a modulated lighting feed. 
         [0027]    Active dimming in the backlight minimizes foreground lighting where possible because a bright area in the foreground may impair a viewer&#39;s ability to see objects in the background. For example an LED mesh display could be 50% transparent since it is composed of strips with gaps in between each strip but when the LEDs are on and video is playing a viewer will not easily see through the display unless the objects in the background are substantially brighter than the LEDs. The difference between objects and other light sources may affect a viewing experience: An emissive direct source behind the display would likely be visible in a 1:1 relationship with the screen. 
         [0028]    Changing the levels in the BLU layer  530  may enhance the 3D appearance by lightening or shading images depending on the information displayed in the 3D layer  510 . 
         [0029]      FIG. 6  shows the arrangement of  FIG. 5  but with the LCD panel  520  therein.  FIG. 7  shows the display of  FIG. 5  without the BLU segment layer  530 , thus showing that any of the layers may be removed to show a desired effect. 
         [0030]    A cover layer (not shown) may be bonded to the 3D layer  510  to reduce visual artifacts that distract a user from the  3   d  and general viewing experience (including that this cover layer may reduce reflections). Such a cover layer may also help fool the viewer into focusing on the cover layer instead of the optical element strips  510 . 
         [0031]      FIG. 8  provides detail on how content may be laid out in one embodiment. In a conventional lenticular design for an auto-stereoscopic display, the removal of a section of the lenticular can create optical artifacts in content that extends to the edge of the remaining lenticular. Content displayed on such a screen  710  may need to be designed to mitigate this effect. The areas that have been removed  720  would function as a typical transparent display. The remaining lenticular ribs  730  would provide auto-stereoscopic content as a layer on top of the transparent content and any objects arranged and illuminated behind the display. Content on the auto-stereoscopic ribs  730  may be divided into two areas. An area with content  740  in the center of the auto-stereoscopic rib  730  and an area that contains no content  750  that would create a content safe area in locations where part of the lenticular had been removed. 
         [0032]      FIG. 9  shows a system where an object is placed behind a transparent LCD monitor. In this case a model of a horse  810  sits directly behind the transparent LCD  820 .  FIG. 10  shows the effect had by adding an auto-stereoscopic element to the screen. The horse  810  sits behind the transparent LCD monitor  820  with a section of content extending forward from the display  830 . 
         [0033]      FIG. 11  shows the horse  810  with content on both the transparent  820  and the auto-stereoscopic display  830 .  FIG. 12  is a front elevation of the display showing the relationship between the content in the transparent  820  and auto-stereoscopic  830  zones of the screen.  FIG. 13  shows a detail of the auto-stereoscopic ribs  830 . 
         [0034]      FIG. 14  shows a different embodiment of the disclosure. A standard television set may be outfitted with a fine auto-stereoscopic rib structure without reducing the active screen area by using a 16:10 ratio screen. This leaves a 16:9 area for standard television  915  and a menu and special content area  925  at the bottom of the screen that could provide auto stereoscopic contextual information for advertising and shopping without having the special content frame the primary video feed in the same plane. This may allow for the inclusion of advertising or secondary content without direct visual interaction between the two feeds. Although the ratios discussed are typical for screens, a quarter, half, or any size area could be dedicated to 3D while the other area remaining could be transparent. 
         [0035]    In another embodiment, the screen may be formed starting with a 16:9 3D lens (for example and eliminating portions by carefully milling down the screen to create a pattern of lenticular 3D areas and polished transparent areas. In such an embodiment, the creation of the transparent areas is a subtractive process. This could also be done as an additive process where lenticular sections are bonded to a cover glass or directly to the LCD panel. 
         [0036]      FIG. 15  shows an alternate view of the embodiment in  FIG. 14 . The special content  925  could float in front of the screen without impacting an incoming feed from a cable or Internet source. 
         [0037]      FIG. 16  shows another embodiment in which lenticular strip lenses are instead replaced by hexagonal (or other shape) optical elements  1610  interspersed with areas with no hexagonal lenses  1620 . If the hexagonal shapes are light field optics, they have more perceived transparency than lenticular optics and therefore may create a more seamless experience when blending backgrounds with 3D content. Thus, the hexagons are less intrusive and often less noticeable to viewers, often because their shape prevents visual linear artifacts that the viewer can see. 
         [0038]      FIGS. 17 and 18  show another embodiment in which the lenticular is a printed lenticular lens  1710 . Printed optics can be formed in a technique of 3D printing to form functional optical components such as lenses. This technology is currently used mostly in the LED lighting industry. 
         [0039]    3D printing may be done economically using 3D printers but optical quality printing requires higher design and equipment capabilities to when compared to other 3D printed applications, the challenge being to produce transparent, smooth, and optically functional products. 
         [0040]    Such a printing method when used with a lenticular lens  1710  may create a printed edge that prevents leakage from the edge  1715  of the lenticular lens. This printed edge  1715  may be opaque or reflect light away from a viewer in another way so as not to create ghosting or other image distortion at the edges. In current lenticular lens systems, the more lines of lenticular lenses, the more edge effects the viewer sees. In use, designers tend not to display images to the edge and so compounding matters, the more lenticular lenses that are being used, the greater the area of unused lens and less viewable area for the user. 
         [0041]    In another embodiment, the lens may be formed using an electrowetting material, thus creating areas of visibility and transparency using electrowetting properties. A lens used herein may apply electrowetting technologies and a combination of transparent and optically defect-free liquids to create a lens and change its characteristics in real time. An electrowetting lens uses hydrophilic and hydrophobic properties of the lens material to shape the lens. This means that an electrowetting material can be shaped dynamically, creating shifting shapes of transparency through such a lens. 
         [0042]    While the invention has been described with reference to the embodiments above, a person of ordinary skill in the art would understand that various changes or modifications may be made thereto without departing from the scope of the claims.