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A Widescreen Laser Projector In Your Pocket
Edis Krad writes "Redmond based company Microvision is in the last stages of developing and releasing a portable, laser-based projector, code-named 'Show WX.' The projector has a resolution of 848 by 400 pixels (WVGA) and, since it uses laser-scanning rather than LCD to form the images, it does not require a lens to focus, allowing it to display images virtually in any surface. The device comes with its own user-replaceable battery, which means you could take it with you anywhere you want. Although there is no pricing information on their website, according to this local news video, it could cost at least $200."
And project an image of my ass onto a car window as I pass someone?
...
Because you're sitting on a goldmine if it can.
What? It can't? *sigh* Oh well. A man can dream, can't he? A man can dream
My work here is dung.
Are you just happy to see me?
Particles, stuff that matters.
$400 to $500 USD according to the manufacturer site; not $200. Dang, $200 would have been awesome.
Did you ever wake up in the morning, with a Zombie Woof behind your eyes? -- FZ
This could be very useful in the cooperate world. Instead of dragging around charts projectors and things alike; have this nifty device in your pocket and your presentation is ready.
"The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has it's limits" - Albert Einstein
Now I can project even more realistic UFOs on low clouds near the airport!
I have something in common with Stephen Hawking...
Rotating or oscillating mirrors to cause the beam to scan, similar to what laser barcode scanners use.
Think: CRTs use an electron beam ... maybe you can figure the rest out all by yourself.
No sig today...
My guess would be that it projects as three scanning lasers: for red, green, and blue. Because they would be scanning across, the field of view as the beams of light move away from projector gets larger (hence larger projection at a larger distance). However, it also gets dimmer, meaning a 12" projection distance will havea brighter image than a 100" projection distance. Also, if you're projecting closer, it looks like it will have more definition to the image as well. Not that the pixel-count will change, but the amount of space each pixel takes up wil be larger, so if it's 100" away, but the image is viewed from 3' away from the screen, the image should look pixelated, as opposed to viewing it from a farther distance.
Project a movie or an e-book on your ceiling. No more tired arms from holding books up. I'm getting one of these babies!
There's no price, and demo of this thing working, because it doesn't exist yet. But they do have CG mockups in 10 different colors!
Hands in my pocket
... are the two limitations of small projectors. They claim 10 lumens while most conventional mains-powered projectors are typically 1000-2000 lumens. That makes the product usable alone in a darkened room but not much of anywhere else. Their claim of "movie capable" battery life rather than a specific time period leads me to conclude that they watch shorter than average movies.
I predict that, like the pen scanner, this proves to be a geeky cool but practically useless device.
It's called the SHOW WX, not SHOW WV. FTFA: "WX stands for "wide experience", referring to the wide image format, wide color range and wide always in-focus operation."
As a VJ, I could really use one of these instead of hauling around my huge HD projector, since I only project at 320x240 anyway (to keep real-time video mixing fast). Hopefully the battery really lasts as long as a movie though!
Except it's the other way around.
This has been done before, IIRC Samsung released one of the first TV quality raster scanning system for laser shows.
Basically a standard laser show setup uses multiple lasers (to get your RGB) combined into a single beam then passed through a device, such as a PCAOM, which acts as rather like a programmable colour filter. (this isn't the only way it can be done with solid state lasers).
Two sets of mirrors can be steered in the X and Y axis to draw your shapes, beam effects, etc.
In the case of a TV or other raster displays the beam is steered much like you would an electron beam on a regular TV. It scans a horizontal line, moves down scans across, repeat. You can switch the direction of the scan (left to right, then right to left) on alternating lines to speed up the scan rate.
Wikipedia has some info on Laser TV's in general: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_TV and LaserFX has some info on PCAOM's if you're interested in the older tech: http://www.laserfx.com/Backstage.LaserFX.com/Archives/Archives6.html
Early systems actually used multiple projectors overlapping or drawing the first 3rd, 2nd third, etc of the image to make up for slower scan rates.
"They do not preach that their god will rouse them, a little before the Nuts work loose." Kipling, 'The Sons of Martha'
Here's a video from dl.tv: http://dl.tv/2008/01/ces_2008_microvision_show_proj.php
There's no mention of battery life, and it looks like the framerate might be terrible, but it's a real product!
Hands in my pocket
I think this is where I'm tripping up. I always assume laser light is perfectly collimated so that the projected dot at 1cm is that same size as at 1m, but I guess the projector uses slightly unfocused beam to generate a larger dot with relatively short increases in projection distance to avoid getting just a collection of horizontal or vertical lines appearing instead of an image.
"I bless every day that I continue to live, for every day is pure profit."
CRT's project an electron beam into a fixed-size phosphor pixel on the screen. This is projecting a laser dot onto a wall (or whatever), I was mostly just not sure how you get an image instead of just a series of lines appearing.
"I bless every day that I continue to live, for every day is pure profit."
Well, remember that the pixel is created by turning on the laser while the mirror is passing by the point where the reflected beam would hit the target. If you leave the laser on just a little while longer, your pixels will be larger, in one dimension. In other words, instead of a grid of points: .
. . . .
. . . .
. . .
you have a grid of lines:
_ _ _ _
_ _ _ _
_ _ _ _
The vertical gaps would be an issue at long distances, but there's no reason the horizontal gaps should be particularly large.
Of course the effective range would be limited by the brightness of the lasers. If your screen is far enough away that you can't see the reflection of the laser beams coming back to you, then it doesn't matter how big the pixels are.
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$x=~y+ -xz+\0-Tx+;print$_^chop$me for split'',$x;
Sharks with Freakin' lasers attached to their heads!
In 1080p and capable of 120hz refresh rate?
???
Their version works just as well but er... it turns to snow if you don't point it at a fully licensed wall. (sorry)
Now nerds can communicate with girls in a structured manner.
.....
Just Imagine:
*** Start power point presentation ***
Slide 1:
Objective - To go out on date
Slide 2:
Reasons -
- Have money
- Provide intelligent conversation
- Will Listen
Slide 3:
Places -
- Movies
- Beach
'Hey wait, where are you going?'
*** End power point presentation ***
I see this as the perfect solution. Now all I need is the problem to solve.
Perhaps if I coupled this with an iPod and beer the problems would present themselves.
I think you underestimate just how much I just dont care.
Actually, becuase it's a Class III Laser, even continous exposure would not cause permanent damage. That's why it's only .5 mw.
If they'd pump it up to, say 200mw, then they could have a lot of fun. 25mw is enough to pop a black latex ballon.
Bill
It's my Sig and you can't have it. Mine! All Mine!
I do work at a cinema. Your "friend" is talking fantasy. The standard for years past and years to come is and will continue to be Film. Who would have access to a full color movie-capable scanning laser projection system? I can find no evidence to support the claim that any audience in cinematic history has had their faces BURNED from laser projection, not even to say that this has ever existed in a cinema.
For those curious about what the !@#$ top poster is going on about and how the Microvision scanning laser projection technology relates to cinema...
Maintaining a cinema projector lamp house light source is MUCH LESS expensive for equal hours in operation than the light source for a consumer LCD or DLP projector. It's also much more incredibly bright than anything on the consumer market. Theaters will not be interested in the Microvision technology for showing their movies, because it will not be bright enough and you would inherit all the annoying problems of having a digital print anyways.
Film is preferred over Digital because you can pick up a film in a multiplex and move it between booths and platter systems quite readily. Being able to readily move a print around is how you maximize profits... are there really any kids awake at a 9pm showing to go see the latest Disney movie about talking cats and superhero hamsters? Adding lasers into the picture doesn't offer anything lucrative even at a Theater set up for digital projection.
Theaters using film projectors often use a consumer projector for on-screen advertising, and so the Microvision technology looks pretty good for this if it is bright enough to fill the screen (from a pretty long throw distance). It doesn't have to be high definition or anything, just watchable and cost less than the existing gear to maintain. Digital equipped theaters would still use their cinema projectors to display advertising because it is cheaper to do so.
The Microvision technology will primarily appeal to the home theater market segment, where enthusiasts are paying much higher costs than real cinemas to maintain their projection system light source. After the SHOW WX gains momentum as a first generation product, expect to see this technology compete with consumer projection systems, and to become invasive just as the camera has on cell phones and media devices.
SIGERR: laziness exceeds quota