Siggraph 2004 Brings Sci-Fi Imagery Closer to Reality

Science-fiction movies have always given us a glimpse into the future, such as those holographic displays in Star Trek. At the Siggraph 2004 convention held in Los Angeles this week, we learned that such sci-fi imagery is becoming a reality.

Actuality - Prototype

The best product of the show comes from Actuality Systems , who had one of the smallest booths. The booth was so small in fact that attendees could have easily missed the darkened booth on the way to visit Apple, NVIDIA or ATi. Inside stood a graphical Holy Grail that many companies have tried to make, but have failed... a true 3D volumetric display dome.

Inside an approximately two-foot wide glass dome was a crisp, colorful display of a human heart. That is not such a big deal, but when we walked around the dome we could see all angles of the heart, just as if you were walking around a real object.

The medical field would be the first to benefit from this technology. No longer would doctors have to rely on 2D X-Rays and guesswork; with the Perspecta Dome they can pinpoint exactly where the problems are.

The dome is connected to a PC that feeds data via an Ethernet connection. The images, which can be up to 768 X 768 resolution, are displayed on a rapidly spinning plastic disk. You get a holographic image without using any goggles.

Any image that can be exported in the VRML format can be shown on the dome. In fact while we were at the booth an attendee asked if a 3D scan of his head could be displayed. He had the VRML file on a USB keychain and in less than three minutes, we were looking at a holographic image of the guy's face inside the dome.

The unit shown was a prototype and Actuality expects to go commercial with the technology in 2005. Actuality has a potential mega-blockbuster if it can increase the resolution and produce these units in volume.