Get Ready for 3-D

(photo credit: The Boeing Co.)

We are on the cusp of the 3-D revolution.

3-D televisions are here. Panasonic and Samsung have launched their first 3-D TV sets, which allows consumers -- with included 3-D glasses -- to watch 3-D movies at home.

LG Electronics and Sony also will release their 3-D models by summer.

Sharp Corp. annouced plans to start making advanced 3-D displays for cell phones and other mobile devices that don't require special glasses.

Nintendo will launch the 3DS handheld game console that allows users to play 3-D games without using special glasses.

As for the security market, 3-D imaging for defense applications is gaining momentum.

The Boeing Co. offers a new, compact, energy-efficient camera that provides 3-D images for military and commercial applications.

The cube-shaped camera employs advanced sensors developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Lincoln Laboratory and is 1/3 the size and uses 1/10 the power of most comparable 3-D imaging cameras.

The camera can map terrain, track targets and see through foliage.

To create 3-D images, the camera fires a short pulse of laser light, then measures the pulse's flight time to determine how far away each part of the camera's field of view is.

The company plans to incorporate 3-D video capability to the camera.

Fuji and Sony also have begun marketing 3-D cameras and imaging systems.