Stream TV Networks is the developer of the Ultra-D glasses-free 3D technology. A look back through the Display Monitor archives shows that we have been covering the company since it first revealed Ultra-D at CES 2012 (Display Monitor Vol 19 No 1).
Mathu Rajan, CEO, repeated his mantra that 3D must be glasses-free to be successful. 2016, he believes, will be a ‘breakout year’ for the technology, with Ultra-D products (finally) in production and shipping.
Major breakthroughs have been made in the manufacture of Ultra-D displays, largely thanks to Stream’s partnership with Pegatron. “Remarkable” yield rates have been achieved, said Rajan.
Due to high demand, Pegatron has devoted two entire production facilities to Ultra-D products. These will be used to manufacture 50″ and 65″ TVs; 27″ and 32″ monitors; video walls; mobile products; and high-resolution units that are “way beyond 4k”.
Tracy Rees is CEO of Intrinsyc Technologies, which develops the electronics inside the Ultra-D displays. He announced new features in the ‘Phase 2’ products, which include low power modes and power conservation; over-the-air streaming for the format; and the ability to handle up to 120fps UltraHD content. Product lines, as Rajan mentioned, are also being extended into new areas such as mobiles.
The president of Inception Visual, Eric Sherman, said that his company would be unveiling a new Ultra-D product for digital signage at DSE 2016. There are also products available for immediate deployment, which would be shown on Stream’s CES stand; these include Inception-branded video walls.
Inception Visual has signed a development deal with Impact Wrestling to test live streaming of events in Ultra-D this year, Sherman added.
The final speaker was Zach Lehman, who is Stream TV’s games director. Gaming is a space where Stream sees multiple applications for its technology. We heard at CES last year (Stream TV Looks To Gaming and Signage) that the SDK is very lightweight, and relatively easy to add to a game. The company had some reservations about a game that will be showcased on the stand this year called République, which is viewed through security cameras; the extreme angles were a cause for concern. However, Lehman said, the SDK was as simple to integrate as it was for any other game.
Despite the interest in gaming, PC monitors are a new area for Stream TV, with the first to be shown at CES. This unit will feature all of the benefits of the larger screens, including UltraHD resolution, a 60Hz refresh rate and 3D depth control. Use cases include gaming, digital signage and streaming entertainment. It will be rolled out soon.
Ultra-D now includes support for the Unity 5 content tool for game creators, and support for more platforms (OpenGL, OpenGL|ES, Vulkan and DirectX 12 ) is planned this year. The company is also working on native support for all three major consoles (Wii U, PS4, Xbox One), operating systems (Windows, Mac, Linux, Android) and middleware and tools (Unity, Unreal Engine).
When the conference ended, we asked Lehman about data rates for Ultra-D, which would be a concern if they limited gaming content to frame rates below 60fps. He said that 4k60 Ultra-D content will be able to transported via a single DisplayPort cable, and possibly HDMI, as well.
