Integral imaging with multiple image planes using a uniaxial crystal plate

Integral imaging has been attracting considerable attention recently because of its advantages that include full parallax, continuous view-points and real-time full-color operation. However, the thickness of the displayed three-dimensional image is limited to a relatively small value due to the degradation of image resolution. A method is proposed here to provide observers with an enhanced perception of depth without severe degradation of resolution by taking advantage of the birefringence of a uniaxial crystal plate. The proposed integral imaging system can display images integrated around three central depth planes by dynamically altering the polarization and controlling both the elemental images and the dynamic slit array mask accordingly. The principle of the proposed method is described and is then verified experimentally.