Some Nvidia researchers have found a way to create very high fidelity images by stacking two LCDs with offset pixel layers in order to create a higher resolution image than what the displays themselves are capable of. Because of their methodology, they are able to multiply the pixels in the panels to achieve the higher image quality rather than adding the pixels together. This is accomplished through Simultaneous Multiplicative Superposition, which can and will be explained through their whitepaper or the video below. Nvidia’s research team proceeded to combine these two cascaded displays together into a single display using their own custom built 3D printed enclosure and lenses so that it could be used theoretically as head mounted display (HMD). But they also built a projector with this as well, so the applications are not just for HMDs.

The main purpose of this research presented at SIGGRAPH 2014, going down next month in Vancouver, Canada, is the fact that Nvidia’s researchers are trying to find ways to better improve the resolution and pixel density of images on head mounted displays (HMDs) like the Oculus Rift without trying to create new display panels. Currently, the Oculus Rift is capable of 1080P resolution, but the problem is that at that distance the pixels are still visible, especially because of the lenses inside of the Rift. As such, higher resolution is needed to truly create a fully immersive experience.

These cascaded displays, as indicated by the video above and in the white paper, are off-the-shelf hardware that anyone could buy and theoretically create themselves. This does not require new hardware, but rather new techniques and software in utilizing that hardware and how it may work in order achieve a better result. The overlay methods that they’ve created and employed in this headset/display are what really set this apart from everything else because nobody else really employs two LCDs atop one another. It really is an interesting and novel design and it will be interesting to see how it works in person at SIGGRAPH.

The cascaded displays could also theoretically be used outside of head mounted displays as well in order to help deliver better image quality for certain applications, but fundamentally will require more GPU horsepower which may make mobile applications fairly difficult. Even so, cascaded displays are another way that we could bring high fidelity images to places where 4K and beyond resolution is currently impossible. We’ve also got some samples below so you can see the differences for yourself.

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Usually, the YouTube channel TheFineBros asks people of differing ages (usually much older or much younger) to react to a certain type of video, but sometimes they ask someone to respond to a physical technology item that they might not understand. In the past, they did a video about how kids reacted to a Sony Walkman cassette player with admittedly hilarious results.

In this video, however, they’ve flipped the technology and the audience and tried to see what it was like for older people to react to Google Glass, and unsurprisingly enough they were far more aware of what it was and were far more able to operate it than the younger kids were with the cassette player. Having used Google Glass myself, I will admit it definitely has some incredibly novel applications, but the fact is that it alone does not solve many day to day problems that people have in their lives today. Even so, this video is a great thing to watch over the course of this weekend to see how older people react to Google Glass, unfortunately I haven’t had a chance to do so myself so this video is without a doubt entertaining to me.

They also help educate consumers by explaining the technology little by little by explaining to them (and the audience) how to use Google Glass. And they all have a lot of very legitimate concerns and observations much like the rest of the general public. There was also a poll of the elders that asked them whether or not they would use it and the responses to Google Glass were mostly 50/50. This clearly helps illustrate the slow development of wearables and Google Glass is helping move along these ideas with the whole society together as one and doesn’t seem to be leaving one generation behind. It would be interesting to see how they will react to smartwatches or some sort of combination of smartwatches and Google Glass.

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