WO2013010025A2 - Methods and apparatus for displaying images to viewers in motion - Google Patents

Abstract

Systems and methods configured to display still images that appear animated to a viewer in motion relative to the still images, with decreased cost or complexity over conventional systems and methods while maintaining image quality and applicability. The velocity of the viewer may be fixed or vary over the length of the apparatus. The apparatus can comprise a backboard having a length along the trajectory. Composite images can be mounted on a surface of the backboard, with each of the still images having an actual image width and having an image center. A frame-to-frame distance can separate image centers of adjacent images. In an exemplary embodiment, the apparatus can comprise conventional display screens showing still images mounted so their surfaces form the backboard. Alternatively, the images can include any combination of digital and analog images. The apparatus can also show a coherent image to a stationary viewer.

Description

METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR

DISPLAYING IMAGES TO VIEWERS IN MOTION

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No.

61/506,860, filed 12 July 2011, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety as if fully set forth below.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Various embodiments of the disclosed technology relate to the display of still images and more particularly to methods and apparatus for displaying still images that appear animated to a viewer in motion relative to the still images.

BACKGROUND

A zoegraph is an apparatus for displaying multiple still images that form an animated display to a viewer moving at a substantially known velocity and trajectory relative to the still images. Conventional zoegraphs include a backboard for mounting or displaying the still images. The still images form a set of composite images, each composite image consisting of a portion of a frame in the animation. An optic such as a slitboard consisting of a series of slits, or a lensboard consisting of a series or spherical or cylindrical lenses, is positioned parallel to the backboard. Each slit or lens corresponds to one of the composite images. The velocity of the viewer may be fixed or vary over the length of the apparatus. The apparatus is mounted at a viewing distance from the trajectory.

Existing methods and apparatus for the display of animated images involving relative motion between the viewer and device include slit-based systems as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,564,486, 6,718,666, 6,731,370, 6,807,760 and 6,886,280; and spherical-lens- and cylindrical- lens-based systems as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,833,176, 3,568,346, and 7,950,805. The lens-based apparatus (hereinafter, lens-based zoegraphs) use lenses placed between the viewer and the series of graduated images to cause an animation effect. The slit-based devices (hereinafter, slit-based zoegraphs) use slits in typically opaque screens between the viewer and the series of graduated images to cause an animation effect.

Slit-based and lens-based zoegraphs have distinct qualities making each technology suitable for different applications. Relative to slit-based zoegraphs, lens-based zoegraphs require placing the images at or near the focal plane of the lensboard to precise tolerances. As a result, the distance between the lensboard and the backboard must be very precisely maintained or the image will appear distorted, degrading the image quality. In practice, the difficulty in maintaining the images precisely in the focal plane results in higher manufacturing and operating costs. The limited field of view provides smaller final images and limits potential apparatus geometries.

Moreover, parts of images that are not directly along the axis of the lens appear distorted relative to parts of the image along the axis, deteriorating the image quality and limiting the maximum size of the apparent image. Also, the lenses tend to be made of less durable and safe materials than a slit optic.

Relative to lens-based zoegraphs, slit-based zoegraphs transmit less light. Adjusting the size of the slits to let more light to pass through results in decreased resolution for a given apparatus size. Thus, slit-based zoegraphs rarely permit the practical use of television screens or monitors, which may require increased brightness or illumination. Slit-based zoegraphs generally require more labor and materials to change images and have optics that can be easily dented.

Another existing method and apparatus is the strobe-based zoegraph. Strobe-based zoegraphs use strobe lights that flash briefly to create an animation effect. Typically, strobe- based systems include sensors and timing mechanisms to synchronize the flashing of the strobe lights with a viewer's position and speed. The synchronization and lighting requirements contribute to manufacturing and operating costs and complexity

There are many applications where conventional zoegraphs perform poorly. In view of the foregoing, it would be desirable to be able to provide apparatus with as many of the advantages and as few of the disadvantages of conventional zoegraph technologies.

SUMMARY

There is a need for improved zoegraph technologies that transmit sufficient light to allow the use of commercially available televisions or computer monitors to act as the backboards displaying images.

There is also a need for improved zoegraph technologies that are more durable and safe, and require less labor and materials to change images.

Relative to conventional slit- and lens-based zoegraphs, the improved zoegraph technologies should enable a wider range of acceptable distances between the backboard and lensboard allowing for more practical and cost-effective manufacture and maintenance, and require less power to operate for similar brightness levels.

Preferably, such improved zoegraph technologies should provide lower costs and greater operational flexibility in changing images remotely and digitally, including through a network, such as the Internet.

It is to such systems and related methods that various embodiments of the invention are directed.

Briefly described, various embodiments of the invention are apparatus for displaying animation to a viewer who is in motion relative to the apparatus and methods of providing same. According to an exemplary embodiment, an apparatus for displaying images to viewers can comprise a backboard and a slit-lens-board. The backboard can have a front backboard side and a rear backboard side. The slit-lens-board can be situated an object distance away from the front backboard side of the backboard and include at least one lensboard and at least one slitboard. The at least one slitboard can have at least one slit. The at least one lensboard can have at least one lens and collectively have a focal plane located a focal distance from an appropriate principal plane contained within the slit-lens-board. The apparatus can also comprise at least one image located on the front backboard side.

In various further embodiments, portions of the front backboard side can be curved. The at least one slit-board can effectively abut the at least one lensboard. The width of each of the at least one slit can be substantially the slit-to-slit distance. The at least one lensboard can be two lensboards with the slitboard interposed between. The distance between the at least one image and a closest lensboard of the at least one lensboard can be approximately zero. The plurality of lenses can be cylindrical lenses, or can be elliptical lenses. The elliptical lenses can be shaped to reduce or eliminate visual distortion.

In some embodiments a relation between the object distance, the image distance, and the focal distance can be given by the equation + ^ = j, where the object distance can be o, the focal distance can be , and a distance from the at least on lensboard to an apparent image of the backboard can be an image distance, i. In an embodiment, o can be greater than f. In another embodiment, o can be substantially within an order of magnitude of/.

The backboard can comprise one or more digital displays for displaying the at least one image. The digital displays can be in communication with a computer network. As least one image can be updated through the Internet. The apparatus can be configured to operate without additional lighting.

According to another exemplary embodiment, a method of displaying images such that the images appear animated to a viewer who is in motion relative to the still images, can comprise displaying at least two images on a backboard and placing a slit-lens-board in front of the images. The slit-lens-board can comprise at least one slitboard and at least one lensboard. The slit-lens-board can have a focal plane and the backboard can be proximal to the slit-lens- board relative to said focal plane. The lensboard can comprise a plurality of lenses.

The method can further comprise displaying the images on said backboard such that the images are curved and an effective distance between a lens and an image remains substantially constant, or remotely updating the images.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Fig. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a plurality of adjacent images on the backboard and their corresponding cylindrical lenses and slits, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosed technology.

Fig. 2 is a schematic cross-section view indicating several components, dimensions, and optical properties, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosed technology.

Fig. 3 is a schematic cross-section view indicating the view of the apparatus by a moving viewer, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosed technology.

Fig. 4 is a schematic cross-section view of the backboard and lensboard of an embodiment of the prior art, indicating different distances from the lens center to points along the backboard away from the optical center in the direction of the viewer's motion.

Fig. 5 is a schematic cross-section view showing two lensboards and one slitboard, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosed technology.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

To facilitate an understanding of the principles and features of the invention, various illustrative embodiments are explained below. In particular, the invention is described in the context of being an apparatus that displays animation to a viewer who is in motion relative to it. Embodiments of the invention, however, are not limited to this context. Rather, embodiments of the invention can also display static or animated images to stationary viewers.

The materials and components described hereinafter as making up various elements of the invention are intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Many suitable materials and components that can perform the same or similar functions as the materials and components described herein are intended to be embraced within the scope of the invention. Such other materials and components not described herein can include, but are not limited to, similar or analogous components developed after development of the invention.

The disclosed technology can display animation to a viewer who is in motion using the principles of geometric optics. The disclosed technology can animate the images to a viewer who is moving in a substantially predictable path at a substantially predictable speed. The disclosed technology can also show images to viewers moving in unpredictable patterns. There are many common instances that meet this criterion, including, but not limited to, riders on subway trains, pedestrians on walkways or sidewalks, passengers on surface trains, passengers in motor vehicles, passengers in elevators, and so on.

Benefits of the disclosed technology can include:

• Significantly greater light transmission than slit-based zoegraphs. In particular, an exemplary apparatus can transmit enough light to allow the use of commercially available television screens and monitors, a feat infeasible with slit-based zoegraphs.

· Less precise placement required of a slit-lens-board relative to the backboard than the lensboard of a lens-based zoegraph, reducing costs of manufacture, installation, and maintenance relative to lens-based zoegraphs.

• Greater field of view for viewing off-axis parts of images, permitting larger apparent images relative to lens-based zoegraphs.

· Greater depth of field for viewing away from the optimal viewing distance relative to lens-based zoegraphs.

• Choice of digital or printed images on the backboard, permitting high-resolution printed images or remote changing of digital images, without requiring new printed material. The use of digital images also permits changing images through a network, such as the Internet. • Increased durability and safety relative to slit-based or lens-based zoegraphs.

• Electrical power savings relative to slit-based zoegraphs through greater light transmission, resulting in lower operational costs.

In short, the disclosed technology provides many of the benefits of lens-based and slit- based zoegraphs without incurring the greatest shortcomings and costs. In particular, embodiments of the disclosed technology can provide two benefits simultaneously. A first benefit is that apparatus according to the disclosed technology can transmit more light, enabling the use of commercially available, consumer-based digital televisions and monitors. A second benefit is that such apparatus can simultaneously provide a larger field of view and depth of field, suitable for many commercial applications. Prior to the disclosed technology, lens-based zoegraphs provided the first benefit but not the second, while slit-based zoegraphs provided the second but not the first.

A preferred embodiment of the disclosed technology can include a series of graduated pictures ("images" or "frames") spaced at preferably regular intervals and, preferably between the pictures and the viewer, an optical arrangement comprising at least two components that focus the viewer's view on a thin strip of each picture. This optical arrangement preferably can be composed of a lens-based component and a slit-based component. The lens-based component can be composed of a series of thin, converging lenses, oriented with the long dimension of the lenses perpendicular to the direction of the viewer' s motion. The slit-based component can be composed of a series of slits in an otherwise preferably opaque screen, oriented with the long dimension of the slits perpendicular to the direction of the viewer's motion. The series of pictures will be hereinafter referred to as a "backboard" and the preferred optical arrangement will hereinafter referred to as a "slit-lens-board."

Referring now to the figures, in which like reference numerals represent like parts throughout the views, various embodiments of the disclosed technology will be described in detail.

The basic elements of a preferred embodiment of a display apparatus according to the disclosed technology are shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 2. Fig. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a plurality of adjacent images on the backboard and their corresponding cylindrical lenses and slits, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosed technology. In this embodiment, the apparatus can comprise essentially two components, a backboard 110 and a slit-lens-board comprising a lensboard 120 and a slitboard 150. Preferably, but not required or pictured, are a source of illumination and housing elements to hold the backboard 110, lensboard 120, and slitboard 150 in place and to keep foreign matter out. The lensboard 120 preferably can include multiple cylindrical lenses 130 as described in more detail below. The backboard 110 can have a rear backboard side and a front backboard side, preferably comprising multiple still images 140. The slitboard 150 preferably can include multiple slits.

Fig. 2 is a schematic cross-section view indicating several components, dimensions, and optical properties, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosed technology. The following variables can be defined from Fig. 2:

D - distance from viewer 210 to lensboard 220;

0 - distance from lensboard 220 to backboard 240;

/ = focal length of single lens 260;

1 = distance from lensboard 220 to apparent image of backboard 280;

D{ = actual width of a single image 270; and

v = speed of viewer 210 relative to apparatus.

Another parameter, which is not labeled, will be described below: D , the apparent or perceived width of a single image. Another parameter, which is not labeled in this configuration, is a distance between the slitboard and the backboard. In the configuration of Fig. 2, the slitboard 230 can effectively abut the lensboard 220, making the distance from the slitboard substantially the same as the distance from the lensboard.

An improvement of this configuration over conventional lens-based zoegraphs is that the images can be placed at a range of positions relative to the focal plane of the lenses owing to the collimation of the light by the slits, like a smaller aperture in a camera extends the field of view of a photography camera. This contrasts with known systems for lens-based apparatus that teach and claim that images are in the focal plane of the lenses or specifically inside it. U.S. Pat. No. 2,833, 176, for example, teaches that "it is a fundamental requirement that, optically, the second component of each one of the cells of the screen [that is, the images] be placed in the focal plane of the first [that is, the lens], or in its immediate vicinity." U.S. Pat. No. 2,833,176 further claims "a supporting frame [that is, the backboard] mounted behind said lenses with its surface in the focal plane thereof." U.S. Pat. No. 3,568,346 teaches that "each of the optical objects [that is, the images] being in the focal plane of the lens with which it is in registry . . . images appear to be at infinity." US Pat. App. No. 12/728,773 teaches that the lens must be inside the focal length.

As indicated in Fig. 2, the backboard can be placed at distance o from the lensboard, where o is approximately the focal length, /, of the lens. Because the slits can filter light geometrically, the disclosed technology has more flexibility in the difference between o and / than lens-based zoegraphs.

The disclosed technology can exhibit similar behavior to lens-based zoegraphs and slit- based zoegraphs, albeit with some differences. One skilled in the art will be familiar with stretching effects and magnification effects, which can occur similarly in the disclosed technology as in prior art. One skilled in the art will also be familiar with limitations on field of view and depth of field about the optimal viewing distance. However, the disclosed technology provides less limitation on the field of view or proximity to the optimal viewing distance than in prior art, owing to the geometrical filtering of the light by the slitboard combined with the focusing of the light by the lensboard

1 1 1

The well-known thin lens equation, - + - = - , gives the relation between the object distance, o, and image distance, i, for a lens of focal length, /. Some prior art places images in the lenses' focal plane, equivalent to setting o equal to implying that the image appears at "optical infinity," i.e., with i equal to infinity.

Other prior art teaches that o is less than /, and i is finite, typically within an order of magnitude off. That is, the image appears at a finite distance, not at optical infinity.

In embodiments of the disclosed technology, o can, but need not be, less than or within an order of magnitude of/. O can even be greater than /while still showing an acceptable image to the viewer. This property means the planarity of any lensboard, slitboard or backboard need not be as accurate as in prior art, reducing costs and increasing durability.

When an object is placed at a distance less than the focal length of a lens, the lens produces a virtual image at an apparent distance from the lens, which can be found by solving the thin lens equation. The image can appear magnified by a factor of m, where m =— Thus, the image can appear to a viewer to have an apparent width, D , given by Ό{ = mO^. In an embodiment of the disclosed technology with a cylindrical lens, the magnification can be only in the direction of motion of the viewer.

An apparatus according to the disclosed technology can utilize persistence of vision, whereby a viewer perceives a continuous moving image when shown a series of discrete images. The operation of the apparatus can use two distinct, but simultaneous, manifestations of persistence of vision. The first can occur in the eye reconstructing a full coherent image, apparently entirely visible at once, when shown a series of small slivers of the images that sweep over the whole image. The second can be the usual effect of the flipbook, whereby a series of graduated images is perceived to be a continuous animation.

Fig. 3 is a schematic cross-section view indicating the view of the apparatus by a moving viewer, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosed technology, and illustrates the first persistence of vision effect. Fig. 3 shows three consecutive points in time (t = 0, 1, 2). Considering moment t = 1 for simplicity, viewer 331 can views sliver 311 of image 321 through single lens 341 and single slit 351. Just before, at t = 0, viewer 330 saw sliver 330 of image 320 through single lens 340 and single slit 341. In other words, in time, the visible sliver of an image can sweep over the whole image. Fig. 3 shows that viewer 331, over a short period of time, can eventually see each part of the image 321. However, at any given instant only a thin sliver 311 of the image 321 can be visible, as in a traditional zoegraph. When not moving, viewer 331 can see adjacent slivers 311 of images magnified through adjacent lenses and slits, for example, adjacent lens 340 and slit 350; and adjacent lens 342 and slit 352, which collectively look like a single, coherent image. In motion, viewer 331 can see an animation.

Unlike with conventional slit-based zoegraphs, where only light passing in a straight line can pass through the slit to the viewer's eye, in embodiments of the disclosed technology, additional light passing through the slit can be focused by a lens before reaching the viewer's eye. Because additional light can be focused that would be obscured in a conventional slit-based zoegraph, the slits in the slitboards of embodiments the disclosed technology can be significantly wider than in the prior art while still providing comparably high resolution to a conventional slit- based zoegraph. A typical slit width in the prior art is one-tenth of the slit-to-slit distance, obscuring 90% of the light, thus requiring images to be ten times brighter than the desired brightness for the viewer. A required extra factor of ten in brightness makes using commonly available digital monitors and television screens impractical. While monitors and television screens are commercially made two to five times brighter (often called "high-bright" monitors), each increase adds additional cost and complexity in the device and its manufacturing process, typically requiring costly and more complex after-market alterations.

Some embodiments of the disclosed technology can operate without additional lighting, though, use additional lighting may be optionally used.

Without limitation, a typical slit width in some embodiments of the disclosed technology can be half the slit-to-slit distance while still providing nearly equal resolution to conventional slit-based zoegraphs. Slit widths in the disclosed technology can also vary from approximately that of a usual slit-based zoegraph to nearly the entire slit-to-slit distance. By only blocking half the light, embodiments of the disclosed technology can allow the use of commonly available consumer-based monitors and television screens, greatly reducing costs and complexity relative to slit-based zoegraphs. In fact, many consumer models of monitors and television screens have extra-bright operational modes built in that can achieve the necessary extra brightness for used with the disclosed technology without after- market alterations, improving reliability and decreasing costs and complexity.

Unlike with lens-based zoegraphs, where the quality of the lens is a limiting factor in the quality of the image— that is, once the lens is manufactured, the image quality cannot be improved beyond its inherent limitations— in some embodiments of the disclosed technology, decreasing the size of the slits can improve the image quality without changing the lens.

Also unlike lens-based zoegraphs, where the lens's depth of field and required precision of placement near / or o is fixed, the disclosed technology can permit greater depth of field and relaxed precision of placement near/ or o by choosing a smaller slit width.

The disclosed technology can also provide advantages over strobe-based or LED-based art. The persistence of vision effects can produce animation to a viewer at arbitrarily high speeds of the viewer. At higher speeds the period of time over which the sliver is visible shortens, and therefore the motion of the image viewed through the lens in that time grows smaller. Thus, the viewer can perceive less or no blur. There is no theoretical upper limit on the speed at which an exemplary apparatus can work. In other words, an effect that would cause blur— the viewer' s increased speed— can be canceled by an effect that reduces blur— the period of viewability of a given sliver.

In Fig. 3, the representation of movement of the viewer's 331 line of sight is illustrative. In some embodiments, the viewer' s gaze can be fixed at what appears to be a stationary screen and the entirety of the frame can be seen through peripheral vision, as with a conventional display apparatus, such as a billboard.

The two persistence of vision effects can operate simultaneously in practice. Above a minimum threshold speed, the viewer 331 can perceive neither discrete images nor discrete slivers. Note that while the term sliver has been employed in this description, it is not required that a portion of the image be extremely narrow to fall within the scope of the disclosed technology.

As with lens-based and slit-based zoegraphs, some embodiments of the disclosed technology can also make actual images appear larger in the direction of the viewer' s motion, an effect described herein as a stretching effect, which is distinct from the lens magnification. The magnitude of the stretching effect, s, can be given by s = j.

A property of some embodiments the disclosed technology is that both the magnification and stretching effect can occur simultaneously and both produce a similar effect: the elongation of the actual images along the axis of the viewer' s motion. The two effects can scale differently with distance, with the result that being there is an optimal viewing distance, OVD, at which the magnitudes of the magnification and stretching effects coincide. This can occur when OVD = mf. In practice, in order that apparent images appear with correct proportions, one can pre- shrink the actual images in the direction of motion so that the stretching and magnification effects make the stretched and magnified images have correct proportions. Relative to prior lens-based art, embodiments of the disclosed technology can provide a broader field of view about the optimal viewing distance.

Fig. 4 is a schematic cross-section view of the backboard and lensboard of an embodiment of the prior art, indicating different distances from the lens center to points along the backboard away from the optical center in the direction of the viewer' s motion. Fig. 4 illustrates a shortcoming of the prior art, which may be reduced by some embodiments of the disclosed technology. As shown in Fig. 4, at different viewing angles 410 to the left and right in the illustration, the effective distance between an individual cylindrical lens 420 and slice 430 of the image 440 being viewed through that cylindrical lens 420 changes. In particular, if at normal incidence the distance between the lensboard 450 and slice 430 of the image 440 viewed at that angle 410 is o, then when angle 410 equals β the distance between the lensboard 450 and slice 430 of the image 440 viewed at that angle 410 is o I cos β, which is greater than o for any nonzero β. This change in distance with viewing angle 410 results in degradation of image quality. A given image that appears in focus or with a given magnification in front of the viewer may appear out of focus or to have a different magnification to the left and right of center in this embodiment. By collimating the light, the slits of embodiments of the disclosed technology can reduce this degradation of image quality. The reduction in degradation provided by these embodiments can occurs in the vertical direction as well.

Fig. 5 is a schematic cross-section view showing two lensboards and one slitboard, according to an exemplary embodiment of the disclosed technology. As shown in Fig. 5, the first lenticular component 500 and second lenticular component 520 can sandwich the slit component 510.

It will be understood that changes can be made in the above construction without departing from the scope of the invention. It is accordingly intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings be interpreted as illustrative rather than limiting.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention as described herein, and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall in between.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all overall backboard geometries and corresponding optic-board geometries of slit-based, pinhole-based, and lens-based zoegraphs, with slit-lens-boards or pinhole-lens-boards substituted for slitboard, pinholeboard, or lensboard, if possible, including without limitation, curved backboards and non- planar backboards. It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover any type of image display or projection system to show static images on the backboard, including, without limitation, printed images on paper, digital images on commercially available television screens or monitors, e-paper, and projectors; and also to cover display or projection systems that can be operated locally or over a network, which network may be private, or public, like the Internet.

While the invention has been disclosed in its preferred forms, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many modifications, additions, and deletions can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and its equivalents as set forth in the following claims.

Claims

CLAIMS What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for displaying images to viewers comprising:

a backboard comprising a front backboard side and a rear backboard side;

a slit-lens-board situated an object distance away from the front backboard side of the backboard;

the slit-lens-board comprising at least one lensboard and at least one slitboard;

the at least one slitboard comprising at least one slit;

the at least one lensboard comprising at least one lens and collectively having a focal plane located a focal distance from an appropriate principal plane contained within the slit-lens- board; and

at least one image in communication with the front backboard side.

2. The apparatus of Claim 1, wherein portions of the front backboard side are curved.

3. The apparatus according to Claim 1, wherein the at least one slit-board effectively abuts the at least one lensboard.

4. The apparatus of Claim 1, the at least one lensboard being two lensboards with the slitboard interposed between.

5. The apparatus of Claim 1, wherein a width of each of the at least one slit is substantially the slit-to-slit distance.

6. The apparatus of Claim 1, wherein each of the at least one lens are cylindrical lenses.

7. The apparatus of Claim 1, wherein each of the at least one lens is an elliptical lens.

8. The apparatus of Claim 7, wherein the elliptical lens is shaped to reduce or eliminate visual distortion.

9. The apparatus according to Claim 1, wherein the distance between the at least one image and a closest lensboard of the at least one lensboard is approximately zero.

10. The apparatus according to Claim 1 wherein:

the object distance is o

the focal distance is /;

a distance from the at least on lensboard to an apparent image of the backboard is an image distance, i;

a relation between the object distance, the image distance, and the focal distance is given

1 1 1

by the equation - + - = -; and

wherein o is greater than/.

11. The apparatus according to Claim 1 wherein:

the object distance is o;

the focal distance is /;

a distance from the at least on lensboard to an apparent image of the backboard is an image distance, z;

a relation between the object distance, the image distance, and the focal distance is given

1 1 1

by the equation - + - = -; and

wherein o is within an order of magnitude of/.

12. The apparatus of Claim 1, wherein the backboard comprises one or more digital displays for displaying the at least one image.

13. The apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the one or more digital displays can be in communication with a computer network.

14. The apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the at least one image can be updated through the Internet.

15. The apparatus of Claim 1, configured to operate without additional lighting.

16. A method of displaying images such that the images appear animated to a viewer who is in motion relative to the still images, said method comprising of:

displaying at least two images on a backboard; and

placing a slit-lens-board in front of the images comprising at least one slitboard and at least one lensboard;

wherein the slit-lens-board has a focal plane and the backboard is proximal to the slit- lens-board relative to said focal plane.

17. The method of Claim 16 wherein the at least one lensboard comprises a plurality of lenses.

18. The method of Claim 16 further comprising displaying the images on said backboard such that the images are curved and an effective distance between a lens and an image remains substantially constant.

19. The method of Claim 16 further comprising remotely updating the images.

20. An apparatus for displaying still images to viewers to create apparent animation comprising:

a backboard comprising a front backboard side and a rear backboard side;

a slit-lens-board situated an object distance away from the front backboard side of the backboard;

the slit-lens-board comprising two lensboards and at least one slitboard interposed between the two lensboards;

the at least one slitboard comprising a plurality of slits, wherein the width of each slit is at least one-tenth of the slit-to-slit distance;

the two lensboards each comprising a plurality of lenses and having a focal plane located a focal distance from an appropriate principal plane contained within the slit- lens-board; a plurality of digital displays for displaying the still images and in communication with a computer, wherein the still images can be remotely set.