Microsoft may be hard at work making HoloLens and other AR/VR headsets a reality for Windows, but none of these devices actually handle holograms as we know them. Fortunately, Microsoft finally appears to be making headway in that department: Its team of researchers has finally developed a true near-eye holographic image, and it fits in a regular pair of glasses.
A true hologram requires a laser-generated 3D image floating in front of your vision to work; HoloLens uses two 2D images projected onto flat glass to create the illusion of a 3D object. However, in Microsoft’s latest advancement, the image is generated in the lens itself to create a true holographic image in an eye.
The frames and lenses hold the mirrors and liquid crystal on silicon needed to create the holographic effect, while the larger electronic components to project an image sit as extras around the glasses. If you’re worried that the screen is too small to generate useful images, don’t be: Microsoft has circumvented this with elegant software that can fix the holographic projector, making it easier to view images down to the pixel.
Microsoft’s research team also uses GPU-powered algorithms to create highly detailed holograms in real time, even using eye-tracking rendering to ensure the most visual detail is delivered in the areas of the image you look at the most. Microsoft’s rendering and tracking method also means that people with stigmas or vision problems don’t need to wear anything special to use the platform, and it can even be worn with corrective lenses.
Unfortunately, as cool as it is, this doesn’t represent what Microsoft is actually doing in terms of R&D: it’s just a curiosity in the company, for now. The technology is certainly impressive, but there is still a long way to go before it is truly viable. Currently, the glasses are only capable of generating a monoscopic image, and stereoscopic images present another challenge for the team.
Still, the proof-of-concept project shows that a future of non-bulky AR headsets is at hand. HoloLens can free you from a workstation or specific rooms, but the technology is a bit too bulky to be useful on a day-to-day basis. However, Microsoft’s new holographic glasses could change everything.
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