Photocopying – Projection printing and copying cameras – Stereoscopic
Reexamination Certificate
1999-03-22
2001-05-15
Mathews, Alan A. (Department: 2851)
Photocopying
Projection printing and copying cameras
Stereoscopic
C396S330000, C348S054000, C348S059000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06233035
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus and an image reproducing apparatus for recording and reproducing a three-dimensional image and, more particularly, to those that permit an observer to observe a three-dimensional image, recorded in an image recording means, in a natural and good state tirelessly.
2. Related Background Art
A variety of methods have been attempted heretofore for recording image information of a stereoscopic object (three-dimensional object) in the image recording means and stereoscopically reproducing the image information recorded in the image recording means.
Among these methods, the IP (integral photo) method is often used as a method for recording and reproducing the three-dimensional image without use of special glasses or the like. FIG.
9
A and
FIG. 9B
are explanatory diagrams to show a three-dimensional image recording apparatus and a three-dimensional image reproducing apparatus according to this method.
In
FIG. 9A
reference numeral
101
designates a microlens array called a fly's eye lens which is a two dimensional array of microscopic lenses
101
a
, as shown in
FIG. 10
, like a compound eye of an insect.
A photographic plate
102
is placed behind the microlens array
101
. Microscopic inverted images
104
of subject
103
are formed on the photographic plate
102
by the respective lenses
101
a
to expose the dry plate to be recorded therein. A positive (positive image) is made in the same size from the photographic plate
102
in which the image information was recorded. The microlens array
101
as illustrated in
FIG. 9B
is placed correctly at the original position on the front surface of the substrate
102
a
thus made and the substrate
102
a
is illuminated from its back.
Beams from the respective images in the positive recorded in the substrate
102
a
travel backward in the same paths as during the photographing operation to reproduce a three-dimensional real image
105
at the original position of the subject. An observer
106
observes this real image
105
thus reproduced.
The three-dimensional image recording and reproducing apparatus illustrated in
FIGS. 9A and 9B
had the following problems. First, they were able to record and reproduce only stereoscopic image information of actually existing subjects. Therefore, a virtual three-dimensional object formed arbitrarily had to be recorded and reproduced by other methods.
Second, the depth of focus of the microlens array
101
is not so deep, so that a blur appears in the recorded images. In the IP method, because the subject
103
has depths during recording of the three-dimensional image, distances from the photographic plate
102
differ depending upon portions of the subject.
Since the microlenses of the microlens array have a constant focal length, each of images off the focal depth among the inverted images formed on the photographic plate includes a defocus. Therefore, deterioration of quality of image occurs due to the defocus in the three-dimensional image recorded and reproduced in this state.
Third, the three-dimensional image reproduced becomes a pseudo-stereoscopic image in certain cases. FIG.
11
and
FIG. 12
are explanatory diagrams to explain such a case.
FIG. 11
shows a state during the recording operation of a three-dimensional image. In the same figure image information of side B of the subject
103
is recorded on the photographic plate
102
.
FIG. 12
shows a state in which this IP recorded in the photographic plate
102
is reproduced. As illustrated in
FIG. 12
, the observer observes the image from side A of the three-dimensional image
103
, but the information of the image recorded in the photographic plate
102
includes only the image information of side B.
Therefore, the three-dimensional image
103
is seen as if the back side of the object is seen through and in addition, projections and depressions of the image information are observed in an inverse state.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is, therefore, to provide an image recording apparatus and an image reproducing apparatus permitting observation of a good stereoscopic image by making use of the recording and reproducing principles of the three-dimensional image in the conventional IP (integral photo) method. (1-1) An image recording apparatus of the present invention comprises an image display device for displaying image information, a lens array comprising a plurality of element lenses for focusing the image information displayed in the image display device, the element lenses being arrayed at a predetermined pitch, image recording means placed at a focus plane of the lens array, and beam control means for controlling a beam passing through an aperture for each element lens out of the plurality of element lenses, wherein the image information displayed in the image display device for every element lens is successively recorded in the image recording means by the beam control means.
Particularly, the image recording apparatus of the present invention is characterized:
(1-1-1) in that said beam control means comprises an aperture plate having an aperture a size of which is substantially equal to an aperture diameter of said element lenses and shutter means for controlling a beam passing through the aperture of the aperture plate, and wherein the aperture plate and shutter means are moved along a surface of said lens array;
(1-1-2) in that said beam control means comprises a spatial light modulator capable of electronically controlling a transmittance distribution;
(1-1-3) in that said image display device displays image information pieces different from each other in time series and said beam control means is controlled in synchronism with the display to record the image information pieces in mutually different areas of said image recording means, each image information piece by one said element lens;
(1-1-4) in that said lens array is comprised of a microlens array having a plurality of microscopic lenses arrayed two-dimensionally;
(1-1-5) in that said lens array is comprised of a lenticular lens having a plurality of cylindrical lenses having a refractive power in a one-dimensional direction and arrayed in a predetermined direction;
(1-1-6) in that an effective diameter of said microscopic lenses is not less than 0.5 mm nor more than 2 mm;
(1-1-7) in that an effective diameter of said cylindrical lenses in the direction in which the cylindrical lenses have the refractive power is not less than 0.5 mm nor more than 2 mm; and so on.
An image reproducing apparatus of the present invention is characterized:
(2-1) by structure comprising image recording means in which image information is recorded by the image recording apparatus of the structure (1-1), and a lens array opposed to the image recording means, wherein the image information recorded in the image recording means is reproduced through the lens array with illumination light supplied from the side of the image recording means; or
(2-2) by structure comprising a lens array having a plurality of element lenses arrayed at a predetermined pitch, and an image display device for electronically displaying image information corresponding to the plurality of element lenses in respective areas for every element lens, wherein the image information is reproduced so that light diverging from microscopic image information among the image information recorded in the respective areas of the image display device is superimposed at a position in the space a fixed distance apart from the lens array.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4600297 (1986-07-01), Winnek
patent: 5113213 (1992-05-01), Sandor et al.
patent: 5543874 (1996-08-01), Winnek
patent: 5680171 (1997-10-01), Lo et al.
Toshiyuki Sudo
Tsutomu Osaka
Fitzpatrick ,Cella, Harper & Scinto
Mathews Alan A.
Mixed Reality Systems Laboratory Inc.
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