Patents by Inventor Robert B. Collender

Robert B. Collender has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 4676613
    Abstract: My invention is a threee-dimensional motion picture capture and reproduction method and apparatus that allows multiple viewers to simultaneously watch the reproduction of recorded or real time 3-D pictures without the need for any special optical aids at their eyes. The playback system is compatible with all current forms of film format, television cameras, video recorders and computer graphic signls and synthesizes three-dimensional images from several lateral vantage points in the scene. Scene capture is achieved by computer graphic synthesis, a single translating camera, a few cameras or multiple stationary cameras. The playback equipment consists or multiple stationary projectors with active (light emitting) image planes, astigmatic low f-number projection lenses and a semi-specular screen. The screen vertically scatters the light and either horizontally retro-reflects or plane-mirror reflects the projected light.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 1986
    Date of Patent: June 30, 1987
    Inventor: Robert B. Collender
  • Patent number: 4547050
    Abstract: My invention is a three-dimensional motion picture capture and reproduction method and apparatus that allows multiple viewers to simultaneously watch the reproduction of recorded or real time 3-D pictures without the need for any special optical aids at their eyes. The playback system is compatible with all current forms of film format, television cameras and video recorders and synthesizes three-dimensional images from several lateral vantage points in the scene. The playback equipment uses a single lamp and a circular and slowly rotating platform upon which several identical projectors are affixed. The angular velocity of each projection lens node and its corresponding image surface is identical to achieve image motion compensation. Multiple images are simultaneously projected in the direction of a concaved screen through the rotation axis or another point closer to the screen. The screen is semi-specular with horizontal reflecting and vertical scatter properties.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 1983
    Date of Patent: October 15, 1985
    Inventor: Robert B. Collender
  • Patent number: 4349252
    Abstract: My invention relates to photographing scenes with a standard motion picture camera in which there is a relative motion between the scene and camera with the purpose of stereoscopic viewing of the motion picture without the need for viewing aids at the eye. The system is compatible with scenes photographed without this relative motion but the reproduction is flat. The film (or other appropriate media) is arrayed in a vertical plane and constrained to move horizontally around a segment of a circle of radius 2R. At the center of the film circle is a film motion compensator which can be a multi-faceted mirror drum of radius R. The film is rapidly scanned about the center of this circle by a scan projector. Projection optics on the projector, project the sequential film frames onto a relatively large circular cylindrical semi-specular screen.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 1981
    Date of Patent: September 14, 1982
    Inventor: Robert B. Collender
  • Patent number: 4323920
    Abstract: 3-D television without glasses having horizontal parallax and operating over standard single channel bandwidth is implemented by using two television cameras aligned in the same plane, a 2:1 bandwidth compression and a receiver that processes the two views one scan line at a time using successive element correlation within common scan lines to synthesize N views in-between the two received views. The television receiver/projector contains an optical scanner with a central projection lamp, N+2 small full frame Charge Couple Device Liquid Crystal Light Valve (CCDLCLV) television modulation array surfaces and is driven by N+2 views of the scene. N+2 views are sequentially projected by the optical scanner to a semi-specular screen that returns all projected light to a horizontally moving vertical aerial exit slit (having no physical properties) resulting in the accurate reconstruction of continuous scene horizontal parallax for simultaneous view by several observers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 1980
    Date of Patent: April 6, 1982
    Inventor: Robert B. Collender
  • Patent number: 4290083
    Abstract: My invention relates to stereoscopic television using relative camera to scene translating motion and does not require optical aids at observer's eyes, presents a horizontal parallax (Hologram like) 3-D full motion scene to a wide audience, has no dead zones or pseudo 3-D zones over the entire horizontal viewing field and operates on standard broadcast television signals requiring no changes to the television studio equipment or the home television antenna. The only change required at the receiving end is a special television projector. The system is compatible with prerecorded standard color television signals. The cathode ray tube is eliminated by substituting an array of solid state charge couple device liquid crystal light valves which have the property to receive television fields in parallel from memory and which are arrayed in an arc for scanning purposes. The array contains a scrolled sequence of successive television frames which serve as the basis for 3-D horizontal viewing parallax.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 1979
    Date of Patent: September 15, 1981
    Inventor: Robert B. Collender
  • Patent number: 4231642
    Abstract: My invention relates to photographing scenes with a standard motion picture camera in which there is a relative motion between the scene and camera with the purpose of stereoscopic viewing of the motion picture without the need for viewing aids at the eye. The system is compatible with scenes photographed without this relative motion but the reproduction is flat. The film (or other appropriate media) is arrayed in a vertical plane and constrained to move horizontally around a segment of a circle of radius 2R. At the center of the film circle is a film motion compensator which can be a multi-faceted mirror drum of radius R. The film is rapidly scanned about the center of this circle by a scan projector. Projection optics on the projector, project the sequential film frames onto a relatively large circular cylindrical screen having its vertical axis coincident with the projector axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 1979
    Date of Patent: November 4, 1980
    Inventor: Robert B. Collender
  • Patent number: 4176923
    Abstract: The invention involves theatre size stereoscopic motion pictures without glasses and without restricted viewing zones and which can be photographed with a standard motion picture camera. Relative lateral motion is required between the camera and the scene. The film is run horizontally through a scan projector in which a given scene on the screen is constructed from several adjacent scenes on the film. The scanned stereoscopic picture can be viewed from different perspectives. A central 3-facet scanning projector of small mass and radius projects over a 120.degree. sector onto triangular elemental mirror scanners causing the node of the image of the projection lens to sweep a large radius about the projector center. From the scanner the sweeping optical axis of the projector passes through the rotation axis where the picture is imaged onto a concentric semi-specular screen. Three vertical concentrically moving aerial viewing slits are generated 120.degree.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 10, 1978
    Date of Patent: December 4, 1979
    Inventor: Robert B. Collender
  • Patent number: 4158487
    Abstract: My invention relates to photographing scenes with standard motion picture photographic equipment where multiple views of a subject are photographed while the subject rests on a moving turntable and the stationary camera has its optical axis pointed at the turntable rotation axis or where the subject is stationary and the camera effectively moves in an arc about an axis located between the camera and scene.The surface of the processed film (or other appropriate media) is arrayed in a vertical plane and constrained to move horizontally around a portion of a circle. Film images are scanned by a light source and radially projected in a direction away from a vertical rotation axis. Concentric with the vertical axis are the semi-specular screen of radius R and the scanning projector circle of radius close to R/3. The screen reflects projected light in a horizontal plane and scatters projected light in a vertical plane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 1978
    Date of Patent: June 19, 1979
    Inventor: Robert B. Collender