Depth-enhanced three-dimensional integral imaging by use of multilayered display devices

Integral imaging is one of the promising three-dimensional display techniques and has many advantages. However, one disadvantage of integral imaging is the limited image depth. The image can be displayed only around the central depth plane. We propose a depth-enhanced integral imaging using multilayered display devices. We locate transparent display devices that use liquid crystal in parallel to each other and incorporate them into an integral imaging system. As a result, the proposed method has multiple central depth planes and permits the limitation of expressible depth to be overcome. The principle of the proposed method is explained, and some experimental results are presented. (c) 2006 Optical Society of America.