WO2012064318A1

WO2012064318A1 - Polarizable filter for display screens

Info

Publication number: WO2012064318A1
Application number: PCT/US2010/002952
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jesus Barcons-Palau; Gad Moshe Berger; Joan Llach
Original assignee: Thomson Licensing
Priority date: 2010-11-10
Filing date: 2010-11-10
Publication date: 2012-05-18

Abstract

A polarized filter for upgrading a two-dimensional display screen to a three-dimensional display screen includes a translucent polarized polymer having a first side and a second side, and one or more chemical properties such that different portions of the translucent polarized polymer become polarized in different ways when exposed to light for a threshold amount of time, the second side being made adhesive for adhering to the two-dimensional display screen to obtain the three-dimensional display screen.

Description

POLARIZABLE FILTER FOR DISPLAY SCREENS

BACKGROUND

For decades, two-dimensional (2D) display screens have been used to display video content to viewers. While such screens have managed to evolve over the years, a current direction of interest in display screens is towards three-dimensional (3D) display screens. With such interest, the development of polarizing filters is also of interest.

SUMMARY

According to one aspect, a polarized filter is provided for upgrading a two- dimensional display screen to a three-dimensional display screen. The polarized filter includes a translucent polarized polymer having a first side and a second side, and one or more chemical properties such that different portions of the translucent polarized polymer become polarized in different ways when exposed to light for a threshold amount of time. The second side is made adhesive for adhering to the two-dimensional display screen to obtain the three-dimensional display screen.

According to another aspects, a method is provided for upgrading a two-dimensional display screen to a three-dimensional display screen. The method includes utilizing a translucent polarized polymer having a first side and a second side, and one or more chemical properties such that different portions of the translucent polarized polymer become polarized in different ways when exposed to light for a threshold amount of time. The second side is made adhesive for adhering to the two-dimensional display screen to obtain the three- dimensional display screen. The method further includes adhering the second side of the translucent polarized polymer to the two-dimensional display screen. The method also includes exposing the translucent polarized polymer to the light for the threshold amount of time to obtain different polarizations of the translucent polarized polymer to upgrade the two- dimensional display screen to the three-dimensional display screen.

These and other aspects, features and advantages of the present principles will become apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments, which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present principles may be better understood in accordance with the following exemplary figures, in which: FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an exemplary polarized filter for upgrading a two- dimensional display screen to a three-dimensional display screen, in accordance with an embodiment of the present principles; and

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram showing an exemplary method for using a polarized filter to upgrade a two-dimensional display screen to a three-dimensional display screen, in accordance with an embodiment of the present principles.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present description illustrates the present principles. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devise various arrangements that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the present principles and are included within its scope. All examples and conditional language recited herein are intended for pedagogical purposes to aid the reader in understanding the present principles and the concepts contributed by the inventor(s) to furthering the art, and are to be construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions. Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the present principles, as well as specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass both structural and functional equivalents thereof. Additionally, it is intended that such equivalents include both currently known equivalents as well as equivalents developed in the future, i.e., any elements developed that perform the same function, regardless of structure.

Thus, for example, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the block diagrams presented herein represent conceptual views of illustrative circuitry embodying the present principles. Similarly, it will be appreciated that any flow charts, flow diagrams, state transition diagrams, pseudocode, and the like represent various processes which may be substantially represented in computer readable media and so executed by a computer or processor, whether or not such computer or processor is explicitly shown.

The functions of the various elements shown in the figures may be provided through the use of dedicated hardware as well as hardware capable of executing software in association with appropriate software. When provided by a processor, the functions may be provided by a single dedicated processor, by a single shared processor, or by a plurality of individual processors, some of which may be shared. Moreover, explicit use of the term "processor" or "controller" should not be construed to refer exclusively to hardware capable of executing software, and may implicitly include, without limitation, digital signal processor ("DSP") hardware, read-only memory ("ROM") for storing software, random access memory

("RAM"), and non-volatile storage.

Other hardware, conventional and/or custom, may also be included. Similarly, any switches shown in the figures are conceptual only. Their function may be carried out through the operation of program logic, through dedicated logic, through the interaction of program control and dedicated logic, or even manually, the particular technique being selectable by the implementer as more specifically understood from the context.

In the claims hereof, any element expressed as a means for performing a specified function is intended to encompass any way of performing that function including, for example, a) a combination of circuit elements that performs that function or b) software in any form, including, therefore, firmware, microcode or the like, combined with appropriate circuitry for executing that software to perform the function. The present principles as defined by such claims reside in the fact that the functionalities provided by the various recited means are combined and brought together in the manner which the claims call for. It is thus regarded that any means that can provide those functionalities are equivalent to those shown herein.

Reference in the specification to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" of the present principles, as well as other variations thereof, means that a particular feature, structure, characteristic, and so forth described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present principles. Thus, the appearances of the phrase "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment", as well any other variations, appearing in various places throughout the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment.

It is to be appreciated that the use of any of the following "/", "and/or", and "at least one of, for example, in the cases of "A/B", "A and/or B" and "at least one of A and B", is intended to encompass the selection of the first listed option (A) only, or the selection of the second listed option (B) only, or the selection of both options (A and B). As a further example, in the cases of "A, B, and/or C" and "at least one of A, B, and C", such phrasing is intended to encompass the selection of the first listed option (A) only, or the selection of the second listed option (B) only, or the selection of the third listed option (C) only, or the selection of the first and the second listed options (A and B) only, or the selection of the first and third listed options (A and C) only, or the selection of the second and third listed options (B and C) only, or the selection of all three options (A and B and C). This may be extended, as readily apparent by one of ordinary skill in this and related arts, for as many items listed. The present principles are directed to a polarized filter for a display screen. In particular, the present principles enable the capabilities of conventional two-dimensional (2D) pixel-based displays to be upgraded to those of three-dimensional (3D) displays.

Some 3D displays (i.e., MIRACUBE) are line-polarized. Left and right frames of stereo 3D content are line interleaved and displayed through the screen. A filter on the screen gives a different polarization to the odd and even lines. Then, the lenses of proper polarized glasses filter the light, letting pass the odd lines to one eye and the even lines to the other eye. The process of creating and properly aligning the filter to the screen is expensive and complicated. For example, the precision is an important factor, because the pixels and the corresponding filter have to match regarding positioning. Different screens have different pixel sizes (even two exact displays can have some slightly different pixel sizes), which makes it hard to create a generic filter (or generic filters) to fit all the screens. Even if such a generic filter(s) is made, properly aligning the filter would be a tedious and complicated task.

Thus, advantageously in accordance with the present principles, the approach herein solves the aforementioned problems in providing a translucent polarized polymer with chemical properties such as getting polarized in another way when the light comes through it. This thin layer of translucent polarized polymer with the described chemical properties can also be sticky on one side and covered on both sides by two opaque sheets (one layer can protect the translucent polarized polymer from the light and the other layer can protect the sticky layer).

When needed, the sheet that protects the sticky side of the translucent polarized polymer is removed, and the translucent polarized polymer is placed on the target display that desires to be upgraded to a 3D display. After doing this, using software and/or hardware, the display sets the pixels of the odd lines to black and the even lines to white (or vice-versa). After a few moments, the zones of the translucent polarized polymer illuminated by the white light of the screen become polarized differently than the other zones. When this process finishes, the plastic polymer remembers the polarization (as the translucent polarized polymer has an inherent polarization memory), and the opaque protective sheet on the front can be removed. The display screen is now ready to display 3D line-interleaved content. It is to be appreciated that other colors than black and white can be used for the polarization process. The sheet of translucent polarized polymer can be cut to fit the size of the screen to be updated.

Turning to FIG. 1, an exemplary polarized filter for upgrading a two-dimensional display screen 130 to a three-dimensional display screen is indicated generally by the reference numeral 100. The filter 100 is comprised of a translucent polarized polymer 110 having chemical properties such that the translucent polarized polymer 110 is polarized in a different manner when light passes through the translucent polarized polymer 110. That is, different portions of the translucent polarized polymer 110 become polarized in different ways due to the aforementioned chemical properties.

Such chemical properties can be readily implemented in a translucent polarized polymer given the teachings of the present principles provided herein, coupled with the knowledge possessed by one of ordinary skill in this and related arts. For example, the translucent polarized polymer 1 10 can be manufactured to include different compounds at different portions (e.g., regions) of the translucent polarized polymer 110, where the different compounds exhibit different polarizations when exposed to different light wavelengths. Such different compounds can be integrated with the translucent polarized polymer 110 using any known means, while maintaining the scope of the present principles. Thus, for example, in some embodiments, the different compounds can be combined, on a region-basis, with the actual elements that are used to form the translucent polarized polymer 110 in order to arrive at final compounds from which the translucent polarized polymer 110 is obtained. In other embodiments, the different compounds can be simply suspended at different regions in the translucent polarized polymer 110 in order to obtain the different polarizations at those regions. These and other ways in which to obtain the translucent polarized polymer 110 having chemical properties such that the translucent polarized polymer 110 is polarized in different ways when light passes through the translucent polarized polymer 110 are readily contemplated by one of ordinary skill in this and related arts, given the teachings of the present principles provided herein, while maintaining the scope of the present principles.

The translucent polarized polymer 1 10 is formulated as a sheet having a first side 11 1 and a second side 112. The first side 111 and the second side 1 12 can also be

interchangeably referred to herein as a first layer and a second layer, respectively. The second side 1 12 is made sticky (tacky or capable of being adhered), and the first side 1 1 1 and the second side 112 are respectively covered with a first opaque sheet 121 and a second opaque sheet 122. The first opaque sheet 121 protects the translucent polarized polymer 110 from the light. The second opaque sheet 122 protects the second (sticky) side 1 12. The second opaque sheet 122 is configured to be removed at the time of installation of the polarized filter 100.

Turning to FIG. 2, an exemplary method for using a polarized filter to upgrade a two- dimensional display screen to a three-dimensional display screen is indicated generally by the reference numeral 200. At step 210, a translucent polarized polymer 110 having a first side 111 and a second side 112 is manufactured or provided, where such translucent polarized polymer 110 has chemical properties such that different portions of the translucent polarized polymer 110 become polarized in different ways when exposed to certain light wavelengths for at least a threshold amount of time. At step 220, the translucent polarized polymer 110 is made to have the second side 112 thereof be sticky (e.g., adhesive, cohesive, static cling, etc.) for adhering to the target display screen.

At step 230, a first opaque sheet 121 is provided to cover the first side 11 1 of the translucent polarized polymer 1 10. The first opaque sheet 121 covers the first side 1 i 1 of the translucent polarized polymer 110 to protect the polymer 110 from light. At step 240, a second opaque sheet 122 is provided to cover the second side 112 of the translucent polarized polymer 110. The second opaque sheet 122 covers the second side 112 of the translucent polarized polymer 110 to protect the second (tacky) side 112.

At step 250, corresponding to a time of installation of the filter 100, the second opaque sheet 122 is removed from the second side 112 of the translucent polarized polymer 110, thus exposing the second (tacky) side 1 12. At step 260, the filter 100 is then placed on the target display screen with the second (tacky) side 112 being adhered to the external side of the target display screen. It is to be appreciated that step 260 can involve cutting the translucent polarized polymer 1 10 to fit the size of the target display screen. At step 270, pixels in the target display screen are configured such that the pixels in the odd lines of the target display screen are set (exposed) to a first light wavelength (e.g., color), and the pixels in the even lines of the target display screen are set (exposed) to a second light wavelength (e.g., color) and/or no wavelength. For example, the first light wavelength can be the equivalent of the color white while the second light wavelength can be the equivalent of black which is obtained by turning pixels off (no light wavelength emitted). At step 280, light is passed through the filter 100 in order to obtain different polarizations at different portions of the display screen due to the aforementioned chemical properties of the translucent polarized polymer. At step 290, the remaining first opaque protective sheet 121 is removed from the target display screen, as the polarization is "remembered" by the filter.

These and other features and advantages of the present principles can be readily ascertained by one of ordinary skill in the pertinent art based on the teachings herein. It is to be understood that the teachings of the present principles can be implemented in various forms of hardware, software, firmware, special purpose processors, or combinations thereof. Most preferably, the teachings of the present principles are implemented as a combination of hardware and software. Moreover, the software can be implemented as an application program tangibly embodied on a program storage unit. The application program can be uploaded to, and executed by, a machine comprising any suitable architecture.

Preferably, the machine is implemented on a computer platform having hardware such as one or more central processing units ("CPU"), a random access memory ("RAM"), and input output ("I O") interfaces. The computer platform can also include an operating system and microinstruction code. The various processes and functions described herein can be either part of the microinstruction code or part of the application program, or any

combination thereof, which can be executed by a CPU. In addition, various other peripheral units can be connected to the computer platform such as an additional data storage unit and a printing unit.

It is to be further understood that, because some of the constituent system components and methods depicted in the accompanying drawings are preferably implemented in software, the actual connections between the system components or the process function blocks can differ depending upon the manner in which the present principles are programmed. Given the teachings herein, one of ordinary skill in the pertinent art will be able to contemplate these and similar implementations or configurations of the present principles.

Although the illustrative embodiments have been described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the present principles is not limited to those precise embodiments, and that various changes and modifications can be effected therein by one of ordinary skill in the pertinent art without departing from the scope of the present principles. All such changes and modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present principles as set forth in the appended claims.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A polarized filter for upgrading a two-dimensional display screen to a three- dimensional display screen, comprising:

a translucent polarized polymer having a first side and a second side, the polymer becoming polarized in different ways when exposed to light for a threshold amount of time, the second side adhering to the two-dimensional display screen to form the three-dimensional display screen.

2. The polarized filter of claim 1, further comprising a first opaque sheet for protecting the first side of the translucent polarized polymer from exposure to the light.

3. The polarized filter of claim 1, further comprising a second opaque sheet for protecting an adhesive ability of the second side of the translucent polarized polymer, the second opaque sheet being configured to be removable at a time of installation of the polarized filter onto the two-dimensional display screen.

4. The polarized filter of claim 1, wherein the translucent polarized polymer is configured to have an inherent memory of the polarization obtained when the translucent polarized polymer is exposed to light for the threshold amount of time.

5. The polarized filter of claim 1, wherein different portions of the translucent polarized polymer respectively correspond to even lines and odd lines of the two-dimensional display screen.

6. The polarized filter of claim 1, wherein different portions of the translucent polarized polymer are polarized differently using light having at least two different wavelengths.

7. The polarized filter of claim 6, wherein the at least two different wavelengths respectively correspond to the color white and the color black.

8. The polarized filter of claim 1, wherein the translucent polarized polymer is capable of being cut to fit a size of the two-dimensional display screen to provide the three- dimensional display screen there from.

9. A method for upgrading a two-dimensional display screen to a three- dimensional display screen, comprising:

affixing a translucent polarized polymer having a first side and a second side, the polymer becoming polarized differently when exposed to light for a threshold amount of time, the second side adhering to the two-dimensional display screen to form the three- dimensional display screen; and

exposing the translucent polarized polymer to light for the threshold amount of time to obtain different polarizations of the translucent polarized polymer to form the three- dimensional display screen.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

protecting the first side of the translucent polarized polymer from premature exposure to the light with a first opaque sheet.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

protecting an adhesive ability of the second side of the translucent polarized polymer with a second opaque sheet, the second opaque sheet being configured to be removable at a time of installation of the polarized filter onto the two-dimensional display screen.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the different portions of the translucent polarized polymer respectively correspond to even lines and odd lines of the two-dimensional display screen.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

using light having at least two different wavelengths to polarize different portions of the translucent polarized polymer.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the at least two different wavelengths respectively correspond to the color white and the color black.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising the step of:

cutting the translucent polarized polymer to fit a size of the two-dimensional display screen to provide the three-dimensional display screen there from.