[WIP][maybe DIY] Wired shutterglass control for any setup
Posted: Tue Jul 05, 2011 3:39 am
Hi everybody,
I've joined this forum recently to find out about possibilities for S3D on my Samsung 2233RZ, without using an Nvidia graphics card. I soon stumbled across this thread:link.
RAGEdemon had a great idea that I thought might also work for my setup with some modifications: namely using some sort of frame marking (f.e. blue line code) to drive a light sensor and generate a sync signal from that. He listed a few advantages of this approach. They include:
- Compatibility with any screen (except maybe slow LCD's), DLP projector (even non-3D certified), signal type, graphics card (as long as there is a possibility of showing marked frames - IZ3D can do this)
- Price (electronics altoghether are about $15, then you just need the IZ3D driver for $40 and some wired shutterglasses (there are lots of 4 wired shutterglasses for $50 total, and there are still lots of old ones available second hand - such as my Asus VR100 model). You could even fashion your own IR transmitter with a bit of effort. No need to switch GPU's or buy a different screen/projector.
- No eyeswitch - ever. Even in the case where the input lag of the projector varies all the time, the frames would still go to the correct eye because the frames are marked.
I am pleased to say that after some work, I've managed to get flawless 3D working on my Samsung 2233RZ with this method, using not the exact components that RAGEdemon suggested but with a phototransistor in the corner of the screen.
The circuitry for implementing this system on a DLP projector would be very simple, since there would probably be no need to decrease ghosting through electronics. I could make a schematic if anyone wants it, though I haven't tested it on my projector yet. The following should work though: use the Schmitt-triggered detector that RAGEdemon mentioned in his thread, use a hex inverter to buffer the signal and invert it for the other eye, amplify this to 12V amplitude and you've got your shutterglass signal. A simple switch can be used to switch the eyes around. Again, if anyone requests this I would be happy to make a schematic drawing.
Getting it to work on my LCD was a bit more complicated though. The detector used by RAGEdemon was not sensitive enough. I used a phototransistor and comparator to achieve the square wave I was looking for, but even then its duty cycle kept varying slowly. I eventually ended up hooking up an AVR microcontroller to the input signal, which triggered on one edge of the signal and then opened the shutterglasses at adjustable delays for each eye. I must say, the results are impressive! For anyone who has a 120Hz LCD and doesn't feel like buying 3D vision, the advantages are:
- Good chance this solution will remain compatible with whatever the future brings (only dependency is on the marked shutter output of IZ3D)
- Much cheaper than 3D Vision (think $70 for driver+glasses+electronics, then $15 for each additional set of glasses)
- More freedom to adjust the 3D effect (the microcontroller in my case gives the opportunity to adjust the exact timing, opening time of shutters etc, per eye individually, eye switch). I noticed that this way I can even sacrifice some brightness to enable games like Mirror's Edge to work without ghosting (3D Vision has a lot of trouble with that game from what I read)
- General coolness of using something you made yourself in a weekend's work!
I already posted some early results in the aforementioned thread, but the interest in this subject seems to have died down since RAGEdemon came up with it. That is why I started this thread. I will show my own progress, but if anyone wants to create this system for themselves I would be happy to go into detail, share source code, and even make a tutorial. It's just that I only want to do that if someone is actually going to use it. Also, it would require basic knowledge and experience with electronics.
One last thing: the marked shutter mode was removed from the IZ3D driver after version 1.10, so for now I am stuck with that version. However, I got a heads up on IZ3D forums that it is likely to return in version 1.14. This means that for now, there is no media player compatible with the marked shutter mode, and that the framerate in-game has to be high enough or the IZ3D driver will slow the shutters down to 60Hz. Both of these problems are solved in the latest driver though, so as soon as the marked shutter mode returns it'll be A-OK.
So, is there any interest?
I've joined this forum recently to find out about possibilities for S3D on my Samsung 2233RZ, without using an Nvidia graphics card. I soon stumbled across this thread:link.
RAGEdemon had a great idea that I thought might also work for my setup with some modifications: namely using some sort of frame marking (f.e. blue line code) to drive a light sensor and generate a sync signal from that. He listed a few advantages of this approach. They include:
- Compatibility with any screen (except maybe slow LCD's), DLP projector (even non-3D certified), signal type, graphics card (as long as there is a possibility of showing marked frames - IZ3D can do this)
- Price (electronics altoghether are about $15, then you just need the IZ3D driver for $40 and some wired shutterglasses (there are lots of 4 wired shutterglasses for $50 total, and there are still lots of old ones available second hand - such as my Asus VR100 model). You could even fashion your own IR transmitter with a bit of effort. No need to switch GPU's or buy a different screen/projector.
- No eyeswitch - ever. Even in the case where the input lag of the projector varies all the time, the frames would still go to the correct eye because the frames are marked.
I am pleased to say that after some work, I've managed to get flawless 3D working on my Samsung 2233RZ with this method, using not the exact components that RAGEdemon suggested but with a phototransistor in the corner of the screen.
The circuitry for implementing this system on a DLP projector would be very simple, since there would probably be no need to decrease ghosting through electronics. I could make a schematic if anyone wants it, though I haven't tested it on my projector yet. The following should work though: use the Schmitt-triggered detector that RAGEdemon mentioned in his thread, use a hex inverter to buffer the signal and invert it for the other eye, amplify this to 12V amplitude and you've got your shutterglass signal. A simple switch can be used to switch the eyes around. Again, if anyone requests this I would be happy to make a schematic drawing.
Getting it to work on my LCD was a bit more complicated though. The detector used by RAGEdemon was not sensitive enough. I used a phototransistor and comparator to achieve the square wave I was looking for, but even then its duty cycle kept varying slowly. I eventually ended up hooking up an AVR microcontroller to the input signal, which triggered on one edge of the signal and then opened the shutterglasses at adjustable delays for each eye. I must say, the results are impressive! For anyone who has a 120Hz LCD and doesn't feel like buying 3D vision, the advantages are:
- Good chance this solution will remain compatible with whatever the future brings (only dependency is on the marked shutter output of IZ3D)
- Much cheaper than 3D Vision (think $70 for driver+glasses+electronics, then $15 for each additional set of glasses)
- More freedom to adjust the 3D effect (the microcontroller in my case gives the opportunity to adjust the exact timing, opening time of shutters etc, per eye individually, eye switch). I noticed that this way I can even sacrifice some brightness to enable games like Mirror's Edge to work without ghosting (3D Vision has a lot of trouble with that game from what I read)
- General coolness of using something you made yourself in a weekend's work!
I already posted some early results in the aforementioned thread, but the interest in this subject seems to have died down since RAGEdemon came up with it. That is why I started this thread. I will show my own progress, but if anyone wants to create this system for themselves I would be happy to go into detail, share source code, and even make a tutorial. It's just that I only want to do that if someone is actually going to use it. Also, it would require basic knowledge and experience with electronics.
One last thing: the marked shutter mode was removed from the IZ3D driver after version 1.10, so for now I am stuck with that version. However, I got a heads up on IZ3D forums that it is likely to return in version 1.14. This means that for now, there is no media player compatible with the marked shutter mode, and that the framerate in-game has to be high enough or the IZ3D driver will slow the shutters down to 60Hz. Both of these problems are solved in the latest driver though, so as soon as the marked shutter mode returns it'll be A-OK.
So, is there any interest?