ManyMedia

Holographic computers take a step forward in Japan:

Researchers from Chiba University and the Institute of Physical and Chemical Research (RIKEN) in Japan have built a hologram generator on a single circuit board.

The device could eventually be used for three-dimensional television, three-dimensional visualization of statistics, and three-dimensional medical imaging.

The researchers’ system consists of a special-purpose computer chip and a high-resolution liquid-crystal display panel. The system generates holograms on the screen with a half second delay for an object that consists of 1,000 points, according to the researchers.

Helpful explanation at http://radio.weblogs.com/0105910/2004/06/16.html

Devices 3D, chip, display, hologram, imaging, LCD, mini, visualization

Nearer in time than we realize, micro-displays will allow us to access the networked world from our glasses.

Small liquid crystal displays are already ever-present on our cell phones, digital cameras, MP3 players and PDAs. But scientists and startups alike have figured out how to make tiny wearable screens–with diagonals of less than half an inch–project what looks like a lifesize screen floating in space just a couple of feet from your eyes. These devices permit the wearer to remain totally engaged with their environment, able to see everything around them. The trick is in the magnifying optics on top of the display, which creates the illusion of a large, legible monitor that moves with you when you move your head.

Devices display, glasses, LCD, micro-display, optics

Carrying around 500 books is getting a lot lighter.

The display has a resolution of 170 pixels per inch, which E-Ink says is comparable to the print quality of newspaper.

Unlike more familiar LCD displays, the screen can be read at almost any angle and in bright sunlight as it uses tiny charged beads to form letters and images. …

The Librie will weigh just over 300g including batteries and front cover and will run off four AAA batteries.

E-Ink says the display only draws on battery power when text is refreshed which means it will be able to display about 10,000 pages before the batteries need changing.

The device is 13mm thick and its screen measures 15cm diagonally.

It also includes a qwerty keyboard, USB 2.0 connector and a slot for Sony Memory Sticks.

Devices digital paper, display, mobileTech

Five-pen computing? Certainly mobile. Still in the works.

The design concept uses five different pens to make a computer. One pen is a CPU, another a camera, one creates a virtual keyboard, another projects the visual output and thus the display and another a communicator (a phone). All five pens can rest in a holding block which recharges the batteries and holds the mass storage. Each pen communicates wireless…

Devices computer, cool, display, mobileTech, output, phone, virtual keyboard, wireless

Glowing or reflecting may be the difference between e-paper and flexible e-paper. Certainly the need is there (at least for the Military).

…the race is on. The U.S. Army announced Tuesday it will spend $43.7 million over the next five years on a center at Arizona State University that will develop flexible electronic displays. The idea is to give soldiers a tiny, rugged readout of current data about enemy troops, weather and geography that could take a bullet and still flash marching orders.

A few weeks earlier, Royal Philips Electronics NV announced that next year it will start making a test line of bendable electronic displays, with release of a consumer product slated for 2006.

The ultimate goal of the electronic paper chase remains a display that can be twisted, folded and taken anywhere that paper can. Scientists say the key lies in plastics — putting circuits controlling the images onto backings made of pliable plastic instead of glass and metal. Recent advances in organic electronics and plastic transistors may finally get the technology around that corner. …

Analysts say e-paper looks more promising than ever but faces hurdles. “They are still black and white, and one real challenge will be finding a way to make the balls color,” said Kimberly Allen, director of technology and strategic research for iSuppli/Stanford Resources. …

He envisions it going mainstream with a six-inch tube that fits into anyone’s pocket. Electric paper will roll in and out of the tube like a window shade, he said, with the tube’s innards serving as a writing mechanism, rearranging pixels on ultrathin plastic screens. Overhead, a satellite will beam signals to the tube, letting people read their e-mail, check out books and download newspapers from a gigantic library in the sky.

Devices bend, black and white, display, e-paper, flexible display, fold, glass, military, paper, plastic, twist