Better Pixels in Professional Projectors
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Better Pixels in Professional Projectors White Paper Better Pixels in Professional Projectors January, 2016 By Chris Chinnock Insight Media 3 Morgan Ave., Norwalk, CT 06851 USA 203-831-8464 www.insightmedia.info In collaboration with Insight Media www.insightmedia.info 3 Morgan Ave. 1 Copyright 2016 Norwalk, CT 06851 USA All rights reserved Better Pixels in Professional Projectors Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................4 What are Better Pixels? ..............................................................................................4 Consumer TV vs. Professional Projection .................................................................................. 4 Higher Brightness ....................................................................................................................... 5 Benefits & Trade-offs .......................................................................................................................................... 5 Uniformity .................................................................................................................................. 6 Benefits & Trade-offs .......................................................................................................................................... 6 Enhanced Resolution .................................................................................................................. 6 Benefits & Trade-offs .......................................................................................................................................... 9 High Dynamic Range and Contrast ............................................................................................ 9 Benefits & Trade-offs ........................................................................................................................................ 11 Wide Color Gamut (WCG) ....................................................................................................... 12 Benefits & Trade-offs ........................................................................................................................................ 13 High Frame Rate (HFR) ........................................................................................................... 14 Benefits & Trade-off .......................................................................................................................................... 15 Bit Depth ................................................................................................................................... 15 Benefits & Trade-offs ........................................................................................................................................ 16 3D .............................................................................................................................................. 17 Benefits & Trade-offs ........................................................................................................................................ 18 Summary ................................................................................................................................... 18 Implications for the Capture, Processing and Distribution of Better Pixel Content18 Better Pixel Capture .................................................................................................................. 18 Better Pixel Processing ............................................................................................................. 19 Better Pixel Distribution ........................................................................................................... 20 Implementing a Better Pixel Projector .....................................................................20 Applications for Better Pixels ..................................................................................21 Cinema ...................................................................................................................................... 22 Design ....................................................................................................................................... 26 Training & Simulation .............................................................................................................. 26 Rental & Staging ....................................................................................................................... 26 Corporate .................................................................................................................................. 27 Conclusion ...............................................................................................................27 Insight Media www.insightmedia.info 3 Morgan Ave. 2 Copyright 2016 Norwalk, CT 06851 USA All rights reserved Better Pixels in Professional Projectors Table of Figures Figure 1: Various TV/Cinema Resolution Standards ..................................................................... 7 Figure 2: Snellen, Simple and Hyper Acuity (Source: Arris) ......................................................... 8 Figure 3: Range of natural and human luminance values (Source: Dolby) .................................. 10 Figure 4: Reduction in dynamic range through the capture-to-display pipeline (Source: Dolby) 10 Figure 5: HDR vs. SDR Images (Source: 20th Century Fox)....................................................... 11 Figure 6: Various Color Standards on the 1931 CIE Chromaticity Diagram and u’v’ color spaces ....................................................................................................................................................... 12 Figure 7: 24 vs. 48 frames per second .......................................................................................... 14 Figure 8: Various EOTFs being Considered for HDR Content and Display ................................ 16 Figure 9: System Contrast Formula (Source: RealD, Technology Summit on Cinema) .............. 23 Figure 10: System Contrast Ratio (Source: RealD, Display Summit 2015) ................................. 24 Figure 11: Theater Contrast for Various APLs and Scattering/Reflectivity Parameters (Source: Barco) ............................................................................................................................................ 25 Table of Tables Table 1: Acuity vs. Resolution and Viewing Angle (Source: Arris) .............................................. 8 Table 2: The Need for Better Pixels in Professional Projection Applications .............................. 21 Insight Media www.insightmedia.info 3 Morgan Ave. 3 Copyright 2016 Norwalk, CT 06851 USA All rights reserved Better Pixels in Professional Projectors Introduction This white paper will provide an overview of a range of video enhancements that are emerging now in the consumer TV and professional AV industries. These are collectively called “better pixels” as they will improve the viewing experience – in some cases, quite dramatically. The objective of the paper is to define what these “better pixel” features are, how they will benefit professional users and the implications for the entire content-to-display pipeline. The key professional application for video content today is cinema, so we will mostly focus on this. However, the technology is starting to spread to other advanced professional markets like simulation, medical, military, etc. – which is why this paper is important While the focus of the paper is on professional projection, no discussion of better pixels can take place without an understanding of the consumer television market and how better pixels are expected to be adopted there. In reality, the consumer TV and professional AV markets are pushing each other in the development, standardization and deployment of better pixel hardware and software. What are Better Pixels? Consumer TV vs. Professional Projection The term “Better Pixels” has arisen to describe a basket of advanced imaging and display technologies. In consumer TV’s, these have centered on the development of what is being termed Ultra high Definition (UHD) Phase 2. UHD Phase 1 has focused on increasing the resolution of consumer TVs from 1920 x1080 to 3840 x 2160 – sometimes referred to as Ultra High Definition, UHD or 4K. Content is mastered using the 709 color gamut (like HDTV content), usually with 8-bits per color and 30 frames per second. It is basically HD content with standard dynamic range and color volume but with more pixels. UHD Phase 2 maintains the same UHD resolution, but seeks to add additional better pixel parameters that include: • High Dynamic Range (HDR) • Wide Color Gamut (WCG) • High Frame Rate (HFR) UHD Phase 2 is being driven by Hollywood for the creation of new content. The first UHD TVs with some of these advanced features are in the market today, with many more coming. The first cinemas to support these attributes are also established already, including the Dolby Vision cinemas and new IMAX cinemas. The development of these solutions will increase image quality and in turn, will drive adoption of higher image quality video in other professional projection markets like simulation, rental and staging, corporate, theme parks, museums, medical, government and intelligence, military and more. Insight Media www.insightmedia.info 3 Morgan Ave. 4 Copyright 2016 Norwalk, CT 06851