A team of British scientists has created 3D holograms that can be seen, felt and even heard. They claim to be able to make even more realistic 3D versions – of a butterfly, a globe, an emoji – that can be seen with the naked eye, heard, and even felt without the need for any virtual reality system.
Scientists at the University of Sussex, in the south of England, stated that the technology currently in use can create three-dimensional images, but they are slow, of short duration and “most importantly, they are based on operating principles that cannot produce touch and auditory content too “.
While it can’t yet broadcast a Princess Leia 3D distress call, the Multimodal Acoustic Trap Display (MATD) – a levitating volumetric display – is capable of displaying a colored butterfly gently fluttering in the air, emojis, and other images. they are visible without the need for AR VR or headphones, simultaneously generating visual, auditory and tactile content, using only acústoforesis or acoustic levitation.
“Our new technology is inspired by older televisions that use a single color beam across the screen, so fast that your brain registers it as a single image. Our prototype does the same using a colored particle that can move as quickly as possible. any place in three-dimensional space that is seen as a volumetric image in the air, “explains Ryuji Hirayama, leader of the work that publishes the journal Nature.
Thus, MATD uses ultrasound to catch a particle and illuminate it with red, green and blue light to control its color as it rapidly scans through an open space to reveal the illusion of volumetric content. The prototype scans the content in less than 0.1 seconds , which takes the eye to integrate different light stimuli in a single form.
How to make the object look real
“Even if it is not audible to us, ultrasound is still a mechanical wave and carries energy through the air. Our system directs and focuses this energy, which can subsequently stimulate the skin when ‘touched'”, clarifies Hirayama ( generates a tactile feedback when ‘touched’).
The system obviously draws attention due to the similarity to the Star Wars reference, but the team commented that it could have a wide range of applications, from computing, architecture, or biomedical procedures.
Thus, in addition to being useful for display or entertainment purposes, it could also help scientists manipulate matter without touching it, allowing researchers to mix chemicals without contaminating them or perform ultrasound levitation to precisely deliver drugs to tissues.
Hirayama says that “operating at frequencies above 40 kHz will allow the use of smaller particles, which will increase the resolution and accuracy of the visual content, while frequencies above 80 kHz will result in optimal audio quality.”
“More powerful ultrasound loudspeakers, more advanced control techniques, or even the use of various particles, could allow for more complex and louder tactile feedback and louder audio. So while we have yet to match the Rebel Alliance’s communication capabilities, our prototype has come even closer and has opened up a number of interesting opportunities in the process, “Hirayama concludes with a new reference to the George Lucas saga.
Referencia: Ryuji Hirayama et al. A volumetric display for visual, tactile and audio presentation using acoustic trapping, Nature (2019). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1739-5
