Sharp and I-cubed Research Center have revealed a prototype next-generation LCD TV, with four times the definition of Full Hi-Vision.

This TV uses ICC (Integrated Cognitive Creation) technology, which was developed by I-cubed. The aim of this technology is to give viewers an experience like the “cognition” that occurs when people look at scenery and objects directly.

“I’d like you to look at the sense of depth in this picture of a bridge. You can see how ordinarily, you would go onto the bridge from here and walk all the way up. You instantly understand that the distance is about 100 m. We understand that because our eyes scan the picture. In other words, when your eyes scan this bridge, as if you’re walking on it, you get the right resolution for each position. With a camera, that doesn’t happen. There’s a region that’s in focus, and everything else is out of focus, so you lose the sense of distance. That’s no good, so what we want to do is provide technology that replaces the incoming electrical signal with a picture formed using a real-world optical signal.”

The footage is shot in HD and then up-converted to 4K. But the technology isn’t just conventional super-high-definition technology involving up-conversion and noise reduction. The idea is that it gives the viewer a sense of perspective, three-dimensionality, and texture that’s much more similar to the natural world.

“For example, nowadays, we have HD broadcasting and 4K monitors. What super-high resolution technology does is up-convert from HD signals to 4K signals, with the goal of reproducing electrical signals captured using a 4K camera if there isn’t any 4K content. Even if that is achieved 100%, the electrical signal is only 4K. We’d like you to see that we’re creating pictures with an optical signal instead of an electrical signal.”

An exhibition version of this prototype will be presented at CEATEC JAPAN 2011, from October 4 at Makuhari Messe. Sharp and I-cubed will continue to co-develop this technology, with the aim of achieving a practical version next year.

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