Real Life Holograms: What’s In A Word?
The word “hologram” likely conjures nostalgic memories of the early Star Wars films and their fuzzy, desaturated projection of Princess Leia, but what about real life holograms? Is that just the stuff of science fiction? Or, are real life holograms the stuff of today? If your brain immediately went to those articles and viral video clips of departed music icons rising from their graves to grace the stages of modern music festivals, then you are on the right track. Although, technically speaking, these controversial feats of projected technology are not holograms because–spectacular as they may be–they lack that defining element of holograms: three-dimensionality. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a “hologram” as “a three-dimensional image reproduced from a pattern of interference produced by a split coherent beam of radiation (such as a laser).” In essence, it is the capturing and reproduction of a “whole” 3D object. If you look closely at that now-famed “hologram” from Coachella, you will note that it has a depth perspective similar to that produced by high-definition flat screen televisions. But, the image–for all its realistic detail–remains flat. You cannot, for example, crane your neck to view rendered space behind the resurrected hip-hop legend. Therein is the rub. Without true 3D reproduction, it cannot be accurately termed a hologram. So the question persists: where are real life holograms today?
The Roots of Real Life Holograms
While the concepts and evolution of holographic development span centuries, modern iterations and the coining of the term emerged in the mid-20th Century, beginning with the work of Hungarian-British physicist Dennis Gabor. Starting in 1947, Gabor pioneered a rudimentary system for reproducing microscopic objects with slight surface depth and elevation. He dubbed his results “holograms” (meaning “whole drawing,” derived from the Greek roots holos for “whole” and gramma for “message”). Gabor would later earn a Nobel Prize in 1971 for his work in holography, “for his invention and development of the holographic method,” but not before the emergence of lasers in the 1960s brought about significant advancements in holography.
A 1965 hologram by the American engineering team of Emmett Leith and Juris Upatnieks is popularly regarded as the first “real life hologram” in that it produced a recognizable three-dimensional image, marking a notable evolution of Gabor’s earlier system and application. Leith and Upatnieks’ hologram depicted a train in realistic fashion. The image was fully three-dimensional, allowing viewers to adjust perspective and even peer behind obscuring objects to glimpse areas not visible from other vantage points. The duo’s success was documented at the time–appropriately–in TIME Magazine and later in Popular Mechanics and Scientific American, ushering in a minor craze in holographic popularity. Today, their work–including this historic hologram and a latter reproduction that utilized the so-called rainbow hologram technique, which produced colorful holograms viewable with a white-light source–are on display at the MIT Museum in Cambridge.
Real Life Holograms Today
Just as lasers opened the doors to drastic evolutions in holography in the 1960s, today, computer processing and other technological advancements are again pushing real life holograms into new and exciting realms of reality. Innovative companies like IKIN are capitalizing on the exponential growth rate of computer processing and newly developed information storage media to elevate volumetric holographic technology beyond the accomplishments of its past forms. These advancements are expanding the scope of current uses as well as introducing novel applications.
Two related fields benefiting most publicly from modern advancements in holography are VR and AR, both of which have seen commercial and consumer applications skyrocket over recent years. Products like Oculus and the now-defunct Google Glass promise next-level gaming and digital interactivity. The holographic endgame, however, is to produce convincing volumetric and 3D holographic images without the need for a headset. IKIN’s RYZ hardware and software toolkit are leading the way on this front. The RYZ display is capable of generating realistic holographic images without the need for goggles or masks, and it utilizes the same interactive touch screen and ambient light display capabilities as the RYZ Unity Android SDK application for mobile phones.
Additional applications of holographic technology signal rapid improvements in a variety of fields, including in technical education and training, where participants can get “hands-on” with holographic objects. Similar uses of holograms in engineering and design allow for intimate development and exploration of three-dimensional spaces and designs prior to construction or manufacturing. Teleconferencing, consumer marketing, countless medical/healthcare, and military applications, the possibilities are endless.
Real Life Holograms are here, today, now. They are redefining how we work, communicate, spend our leisure time, and understand ourselves and our environments. Burgeoning advancements in the field, like IKIN’s RYZ SDK, which empowers developers, consumers, and companies to create holographic and volumetric content for business and consumption, are pushing holographic technology to its limits and beyond. What was once science fiction, has become science reality. To quote one of those early hologram recipients, Obi-Wan Kenobi: “many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.” Luckily, with the state of modern volumetric 3D holographic images, we can attain any and all perspectives, expanding our understanding of our world and galaxy, and breaking new grounds at every holographic turn.
Real Life Holograms: What’s In A Word?
The word “hologram” likely conjures nostalgic memories of the early Star Wars films and their fuzzy, desaturated projection of Princess Leia, but what about real life holograms? Is that just the stuff of science fiction? Or, are real life holograms the stuff of today? If your brain immediately went to those articles and viral video clips of departed music icons rising from their graves to grace the stages of modern music festivals, then you are on the right track. Although, technically speaking, these controversial feats of projected technology are not holograms because–spectacular as they may be–they lack that defining element of holograms: three-dimensionality. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines a “hologram” as “a three-dimensional image reproduced from a pattern of interference produced by a split coherent beam of radiation (such as a laser).” In essence, it is the capturing and reproduction of a “whole” 3D object. If you look closely at that “hologram” of Tupac at Coachella, you will note that his body has depth perspective similar to that produced by high-definition flat screen televisions. But, the image–for all its realistic detail–remains flat. You cannot, for example, crane your neck to view rendered space behind the resurrected hip-hop legend. Therein is the rub. Without true 3D reproduction, it cannot be accurately termed a hologram. So the question persists: where are real life holograms today?
The Roots of Real Life Holograms
While the concepts and evolution of holographic development span centuries, modern iterations and the coining of the term emerged in the mid-20th Century, beginning with the work of Hungarian-British physicist Dennis Gabor. Starting in 1947, Gabor pioneered a rudimentary system for reproducing microscopic objects with slight surface depth and elevation. He dubbed his results “holograms” (meaning “whole drawing,” derived from the Greek roots holos for “whole” and gramma for “message”). Gabor would later earn a Nobel Prize in 1971 for his work in holography, “for his invention and development of the holographic method,” but not before the emergence of lasers in the 1960s brought about significant advancements in holography.
A 1965 hologram by the American engineering team of Emmett Leith and Juris Upatnieks is popularly regarded as the first “real life hologram” in that it produced a recognizable three-dimensional image, marking a notable evolution of Gabor’s earlier system and application. Leith and Upatnieks’ hologram depicted a train in realistic fashion. The image was fully three-dimensional, allowing viewers to adjust perspective and even peer behind obscuring objects to glimpse areas not visible from other vantage points. The duo’s success was documented at the time–appropriately–in TIME Magazine and later in Popular Mechanics and Scientific American, ushering in a minor craze in holographic popularity. Today, their work–including this historic hologram and a latter reproduction that utilized the so-called rainbow hologram technique, which produced colorful holograms viewable with a white-light source–are on display at the MIT Museum in Cambridge.
Real Life Holograms Today
Just as lasers opened the doors to drastic evolutions in holography in the 1960s, today, computer processing and other technological advancements are again pushing real life holograms into new and exciting realms of reality. Innovative companies like IKIN are capitalizing on the exponential growth rate of computer processing and newly developed information storage media to elevate volumetric holographic technology beyond the accomplishments of its past forms. These advancements are expanding the scope of current uses as well as introducing novel applications.
Two related fields benefiting most publicly from modern advancements in holography are VR and AR, both of which have seen commercial and consumer applications skyrocket over recent years. Products like Oculus and the now-defunct Google Glass promise next-level gaming and digital interactivity. The holographic endgame, however, is to produce convincing volumetric and 3D holographic images without the need for a headset. IKIN’s RYZ hardware and software toolkit are leading the way on this front. The RYZ display is capable of generating realistic holographic images without the need for goggles or masks, and it utilizes the same interactive touch screen and ambient light display capabilities as the RYZ Unity Android SDK application for mobile phones.
Additional applications of holographic technology signal rapid improvements in a variety of fields, including in technical education and training, where participants can get “hands-on” with holographic objects. Similar uses of holograms in engineering and design allow for intimate development and exploration of three-dimensional spaces and designs prior to construction or manufacturing. Teleconferencing, consumer marketing, countless medical/healthcare, and military applications, the possibilities are endless.
Real Life Holograms are here, today, now. They are redefining how we work, communicate, spend our leisure time, and understand ourselves and our environments. Burgeoning advancements in the field, like IKIN’s RYZ SDK, which empowers developers, consumers, and companies to create holographic and volumetric content for business and consumption, are pushing holographic technology to its limits and beyond. What was once science fiction, has become science reality. To quote one of those early hologram recipients, Obi-Wan Kenobi: “many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.” Luckily, with the state of modern volumetric 3D holographic images, we can attain any and all perspectives, expanding our understanding of our world and galaxy, and breaking new grounds at every holographic turn.
