THE FASHION for 3D presentations in cinema may be waning, but in the laboratory sector there remains much excitement about the possibilities presented by the technology. Today sees the announcement of a deal between Toshiba Imaging and ISee3D, a Canadian firm specialising in 3D imaging, to create a new stereoscopic microscope digital video system.
Toshiba 3-CCD camera sits atop the ISee3D single lens system to generate stereoscopic images
While most 3D or stereoscopic systems rely on the slightly different viewpoints presented to two objective lenses, in order to generate the necessary depth perception, the ISee3D system uses just a single lens. Two different vantage points are created through use of a shutter system which occludes one half of the lens at a time, effectively giving the sensor two different viewpoints.
One advantage of this approach, say the companies, is that the single-lens approach results in perfectly matched images which eliminate the eye fatigue and ocular discomfort associated with prolonged viewing of 3D microscope images created by conventional means.
The microscope system to be created by the two companies will employ the ISee3D shutter system – or ‘optical switch’ as it is known – with a Toshiba IK-HD1 high definition video camera. They say that they expect this system to produce images delivering more detail in highly magnified objects, and which can be built into new instruments or retrofitted to many existing microscopes used in clinical, surgical, and industrial applications. The product should be commercially available later in 2012.
“We evaluated various three-chip cameras, and selected Toshiba’s IK-HD1 because of its extremely small form factor, acquisition speed, excellent colour reproduction, and superior contrast and resolution. These are all critical factors in medical and scientific imaging”, said Tom Mitchell, chief technical officer of ISee3D.
“This system will benefit microscopy and other applications where stereoscopic 3D visualisation is important. The end result of the combination of technologies is truly amazing”, added Paul Dempster, Toshiba Imaging’s director of sales.