Texas Instruments, Inc. (TI) (Dallas, TX) (www.dlp.com) has released a new developers kit called "Discovery" that is designed to enable developers to explore the use of a DMD in a number of novel and emerging applications. Such applications can be in holographic data storage, 3-D volumetric display, lithographic patterning, scientific instrumentation and medical imaging, and other diverse fields beyond the traditional projection markets served by mainstream DLP products.

"Because the DMD can create high-speed digital light like no other device, the Discovery product family will result in exciting products we cannot even imagine today," thinks Dana Dudley, business manager, New Applications.

An example of an emerging application for DMD is in volumetric displays. Actuality Systems (Burlington, MA) (www.actuality-systems.com), for instance, uses the Discovery chip set in a modified three-panel projection system to display volume pixels (voxels) and thus create a three-dimensional image that requires no viewing aids.



These images can be viewed by several individuals at any distance and with a wide field of view, each with a different perspective, allowing collaborative work.

Similarly, VISTA3D (Norwalk, CT) (www.vizda3d.com) uses the Discovery chip set in its volumetric display system, which employs a projection system and a series of single-pixel LCD-based scattering shutters to create physical planes upon which images are projected. Each plane is normally clear, but when powered, creates a scattering surface to produce a "surface" for projected images to become visible. The Discovery-based projection system produces 1000 15-bit color frames per second.

"TI will offer the Discovery 1000 Starter Kit through Productivity Systems, Inc. (PSI) (Richardson, TX) (www.prodsys.com), which developed the Discovery product line for TI and is best equipped to provide technical support," states Dudley. "PSI's primary business is engineering services, and it is eager and able to customize specific board solutions for customers using the Discovery chip set. Several Discovery customers have already taken advantage of this.

The DMD Discovery 1000 Deluxe Kit consists of a controller board, CD-ROM, GUI software, user manual, controller board schematics, USB cable, and a 0.7-inch XGA resolution DDR device. Control of the DMD is accomplished through a PC interface the enables the user to download binary computer files through the controller board USB port. The kit costs $10K.

What the starter kit does not include, however, is optical support. Companies like Elcan Optical Technologies (Richardson, TX) (www.elcan.com) and Brilliant Technologies (Denton, TX) (www.lightfarms.com) are now poised to provide this support. "In fact, we are in the process of building up some standard optics to support the Discovery kit for initial evaluation," says Brilliant Technologies president Andy DeLong.

"The goal behind the Discovery program is to create new business based on what we perceive to be an extremely wide range of applications," explains Dudley. "Our plan is to enable as many of these as we can. Not all will turn out to be large, but some will."

Texas Instruments, Dana Dudley, 214-567-2121, d-dudley@ti.com
Productivity Systems, Becky Bell, 972-479-9484, bbell@prodsys.com
Elcan Technologies, Clay Towery, 972-344-8152, c-towery@raytheon.com
Brilliant Technologies, Andy DeLong, 940-243-4985, adelong@lightfarms.com

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Insight Media, Annmarie Gabisch, 203-831-8464, Annmarie@insightmedia.info