Designing the Spatial Reality Display ELF-SR1

[_J.G.M_]

With the Spatial Reality Display ELF-SR1, you can experience 3D spatial images as if the content exists right in front of you – with only the naked eye. This is nothing like other 3D displays, and it is set to transform a multitude of creative fields, from gaming and computer graphics to architecture and industrial design.

Bringing together the best of Sony’s technologies to create a whole new 3D visual experience

By harnessing Sony’s advanced technologies, such as a proprietary high-speed vision sensor and eye-sensing technology, the project team succeeded in creating stereoscopic spatial images that smoothly follow changes in the viewing angle by constantly sensing the position of the viewer's eyes and generating optimal images for each eye in real time. All without the use of 3D glasses or other apparatus.

As soon as the designers saw the first images come to life on a prototype, the potential of the technology was clear – not only would the Spatial Reality Display ELF-SR1 take video production to the next level, but it could be applied by architects and product designers who use scale models, in-store promotions, signage at exhibitions…let your imagination run.

The designers needed to get this technology into creators’ hands, in a freely usable form that would inspire creativity. The engineers formed a display tilt angle fixed at 45 degrees, as well as effective placement of a vision sensor, and then the ‘Triangle Frame’ design concept was born.

This concept comprises of three features:

1. Precision – an extruded aluminium material was machined to create an isosceles right triangle frame structure that provides high dimensional precision.
2. Durability - by housing all device components inside the triangle frame and making the frame itself a solid structure, the product ensures durability to withstand usage in a wide range of production settings.
3. Iconic - the product’s form, which sublimates all requirements into functions, represents an unprecedented, truly realistic 3D visual experience.

For refined usability, the openings provided on both sides of the frame, as well as in the back and bottom, allow cables to go out in any direction. This means the Spatial Reality Display ELF-SR1 can be mounted on a wall or built into fixtures at exhibitions and stores to meet various applications.

A 3D experience needs to be fully immersive. Equipped with 2.1 channel speakers that deliver sound on all sides, the Spatial Reality Display ELF-SR1 creates a sound-from-picture experience that envelops the user. To minimise visual distractions, the control buttons are concealed along the top of the display, the black glass frame that covers the screen blends naturally with the background of the content, and the aluminium frame itself was blasted for a matte finish to reduce reflections. This meticulous attention to detail on the designers’ part leaves users to focus only on the 3D images.

Eyes set on the future

This display not only enables a new visual expression – it has the power to change the way people work altogether.

Think of the Spatial Reality Display ELF-SR1 as a ‘stage for content’. Watchmakers, for example, could use the display to check the smallest details in their product designs, boosting efficiency and productivity in development. Filmmakers could depict futuristic 3D CG scenes with unprecedented reality. In fact, with this type of display able to reveal new details every time you watch, depending on which angle you look at it from, whole new types of storytelling and viewing experiences could emerge.

We’re excited to see where this technology will take us. Are you?

This article has been adapted from a piece on Sony.net. The original can be found here: https://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/design/stories/ELF-SR1/