Miniature Holographic Display System for Planetary Rover Missions

A miniature holographic display system for planetary rover missions and commercial applications will be developed. Present methods for capturing, storing, and displaying visual scenes usually use digital electronics. These techniques are not able to record three dimensional (3-D) objects or visual scenes. On the other hand, those holographic visualization schemes use photographic films which are not directly compatible with digital data. The Advantech, Inc. proposes a new and innovative opto-electronic holographic system capable of capturing and storing the necessary Fourier transform data from one data set (object), with the potential to combine and display multiple data set, and to reconstruct a hologram. The proposal will capitalize on the recent advances in optical and electronic techniques. The optical method is based on the projection of variable gratings onto a 3-D object to get the 3- D information. The hologram is generated by using an opto- electronic hybrid system. By using the system, the Fourier transform or Fresnel diffraction pattern is calculated optically to avoid the slow computer calculations. The synthesis of the hologram can be done by a computer. The hologram is displayed on a spatial light modulator (SLM) for 3-D reconstruction. In the proposal, the principle of the method, the implementation and characteristics of the system, and planned tasks are presented in detail. Potential future applications have been discussed.