Back in May 2021, Acer introduced and teased SpatialLabs, a glasses-free stereo 3D show expertise/product geared toward 3D professionals reminiscent of CGI/CAD designers and engineers. What appeared like a far-off expertise has now been launched by Acer as a product embodied by the ConceptD 7 SpatialLabs Edition laptop computer.

On its web site, Acer presents the idea as follows: “Design, review, and present all your designs in eye-popping, glasses-free stereoscopic 3D… allows visual artists and engineers to get early previews of their work without needing to render.”

I’ve been capable of see it for myself, and it’s been performing higher than I used to be anticipating. First, let’s present some background on how SpatialLabs works.

This picture from Acer is a creative illustration of how the SpatialLabs tech ought to really feel

SpatialLabs is constructed on a lenticular show expertise that may work in 4K in 2D or 2x2K (2K per eye) in stereo 3D. Lenticular shows are constructed to point out every eye a barely totally different view of the scene, thus making a depth notion {that a} common display screen merely can not obtain.

Beyond the bodily show panel, Acer additionally gives software program within the type of drivers, apps and utilities for doing issues like turning 2D content material into stereo-3D content material. The firm can be working carefully with middleware builders reminiscent of Unity or Epic (Unreal Engine) to facilitate adoption.

~6-7 years in the past, Japanese TV producers tried to commercialize glasses-less “holographic” 3D televisions based mostly on lenticular expertise. Back then, the end result was not satisfying, primarily for a few causes:

1. Dividing 1080p decision in half yielded poor picture high quality
2. Lenticular shows work finest when the show is tuned to a selected consumer place, and a number of folks could be watching TV

After seeing SpatialLabs with my very own eyes, I’ve to say that some demos are very compelling. I can sit 20-27 inches from the show and the Acer software program would regulate the 3D rendering for correct left+proper eyes picture separation and rendering. Try to remain nonetheless as a result of there’s a small lag between head movement and stereo compensation.

You can understand objects “coming out of the screen” by as much as half-distance between you and the display screen’s floor (10-13 inches), which is spectacular, and it really works higher for small objects, proper on the middle.

In my opinion, the depth cue could be helpful (from a productiveness standpoint) to pick out professionals who design objects to be manufactured later because it’s not fairly the identical to see them in 2D vs. stereo 3D.

Unfortunately, it’s unattainable for me to take an image that will precisely characterize what I’m seeing, however should you’ve skilled 3D TVs with glasses earlier than, attempt to think about your finest expertise, however with out the glasses, near-perfect stereo separation, and 4x the decision.

That could be a great approximation of what Acer SpatialLabs presents: vastly superior picture high quality and consumer expertise.

For instance, one of many demos was “Showdown”, and you’ll see the 2D model within the video beneath. There are tons of objects flying by the digital camera that “pop out of the screen” if in case you have a stereo 3D setup like SpatialLabs.

Still, the 3D impact has traits of stereoscopic 2D: generally, you see exaggerated parallax, and objects which are too shut may present some ghosting. But when the content material is tailor-made for stereo 3D, it’s straightforward to get keep away from these.

Also, a laptop computer use case means the consumer usually sits on the correct location, proper in entrance of the display screen. Furthermore, Acer has put in optical sensors to trace precisely the place the eyes of the consumer are in area, to make real-time changes.

These sensors observe your eye’s location in 3D to regulate the stereo 3D separation in real-time

Jewelry, toys, spare elements, and far more are nice examples of commercial design actions that would profit from higher depth notion. Architecture might additionally profit from it in addition to a number of fashions are constructed throughout these tasks.

Realistically, lenticular 3D shows like this one gained’t completely substitute the necessity for sculpting, 3d-printing, or prototyping bodily objects. However, they will decrease the frequency (and price) at which designers and engineers must construct costly bodily fashions. That is efficacious.

Reducing the watch for bodily prototypes can velocity up the “iteration loop” and improve the productiveness of high-priced personnel. If true, that’s one other layer of potential added worth. Each firm must gauge the advantages for his or her particular use case because it’s a distinct segment market, for now.

As show expertise will get higher and with 8K shows on the horizon, I anticipate lenticular shows to additional enhance. For now, the outcomes are nice and though it’s not fairly “holographic” but, Acer could be main a nascent high-margin area of interest market.

Filed in Computers. Read extra about Acer, CAD, Design, Stereo 3d and Workstations.