Transparent Media Display Layout for Natural Video Eye Contact
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional video conferencing often feels unnatural due to difficulties in making pupil-to-pupil eye contact and disjointed surroundings, with shared content updates being cumbersome and lacking depth perception.
Innovation Solution
Implementing optically switchable media displays, such as electrochromic windows, that allow partial transparency for viewing external environments while projecting virtual participants and content, with sensors positioned behind the display to capture user gaze and overlay virtual elements for depth perception.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional video conference display is used, then the media can be displayed, but the eye contact appears unnatural and the image feels flat and detached
Solution Approach 1:
The camera is nested behind the transparent display, positioned at the display's back surface. This allows the camera to capture the user's gaze direction while remaining hidden, creating natural eye contact appearance without requiring complex external camera arrangements
Solution Approach 2:
The transparent display acts as an intermediary between the camera and the external environment. It allows the camera to be positioned behind the display while still capturing the user's line of sight, mediating the relationship between the camera position and the apparent eye contact direction
2Illumination intensity
If a transparent media display is used to view external environment, then visibility through the window is maintained, but the media display requires a tinted backdrop for optimal viewing
Solution Approach 1:
The display system dynamically adjusts its transparency state based on operational requirements. The transparent display can switch between transparent and opaque states, adapting to whether the user needs to view external environment or focus on displayed media, eliminating the need for permanent tinted backdrops
Solution Approach 2:
The optical properties of the display are changed by applying voltage to alter the transparency of the electrochromic material. This parameter change allows the display to transition between transparent and opaque states, providing flexibility in viewing conditions without requiring complex mechanical adjustments
3Measurement precision
If the camera is positioned offset from the display, then the camera can capture the user's face, but pupil-to-pupil eye contact cannot be achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The camera is nested within the display structure at its back surface, positioned precisely at the display's optical center. This nested positioning allows the camera to align with the display's gaze direction, achieving accurate pupil-to-pupil eye contact without requiring complex external positioning mechanisms
4Productivity
If shared content is displayed on a conventional display, then the content can be viewed, but live updating requires cumbersome control passing between participants
Solution Approach 1:
The transparent display serves multiple functions simultaneously: it displays shared content, allows users to view through it when transparent, and provides a backdrop for virtual overlays. This multi-functionality enables seamless content collaboration without requiring control transfer, as multiple users can interact with the same display interface concurrently
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enhances the immersive experience by simulating common presence, allowing natural eye contact and depth perception, and facilitating seamless content sharing and updates between remote participants.
Implementation Method 1
Electrochromism is a phenomenon in which a material exhibits a reversible electrochemically-mediated change in one or more optical properties when stimulated to a different electronic state. The color, shade, hue, tint, transmittance, absorbance, and/or reflectance of electrochromic windows can be changed, e.g., by inducing a change in the electrochromic material. For example, by applying a voltage across the electrochromic material.
Implementation Method 2
The sensor(s) can be positioned behind and at the gaze of the real participant, may allow the participant to view the virtual participant while simultaneously being photographed at the real (e.g., actual) participant's gaze (e.g., focal point).
Data Source
AI summary
An immersive digital experience for video conferencing simulates common presence of a virtual participant in a local environment. Such simulation may include (i) using a transparent media display having a portion of its pixels projecting the virtual participant's body image while keeping at least a portion of the background transparent (e.g., to visible light), (ii) disposing sensor(s) (e.g., camera) behind the transparent media display at the gaze of the participant, and/or (iii) using added virtual overlays (e.g., of plants, memorabilia, and/or furniture) to the virtual image (e.g., that are consistent with the local environment), e.g., to provide a sense of depth ranging from the overlays to the virtual participant projection and to the background showing through the transparent media display.