Planar SD1710 Specification sheet

SD1710
Product User's Guide

iii
Usage Notice
ÎWarning To prevent the risk of fire or shock hazards, do not expose this
product to rain or moisture.
ÎWarning Do not open or disassemble the product as this may cause
electric shock.
Follow all warnings, precautions, and maintenance as recommended in this
user’s guide to maximize the life and performance of your unit.
Do
•Turn off the monitors before cleaning.
•Use only a dry soft cloth or cleanroom wipe when cleaning the LCD panel
surface or the half-mirror.
•Use a soft cloth moistened with water and/or mild detergent to clean the
display housing and stand.
•Use only safety-approved AC/DC power adapters of high quality.
•Disconnect the power plug from the AC outlet if the product is not used
for a long period of time.
Don’t
•Do not touch the LCD panel or half-mirror surfaces with sharp or hard
objects.
•Do not use abrasive cleaners, waxes, or solvents for your cleaning.
•Do not operate the product under the following conditions:
—Extremely hot, cold, or humid environment
—Areas susceptible to excessive dust and dirt
—Near any appliance generating a strong magnetic field
—In direct sunlight

iv
Box Contents
The SD1710 shipping box contains the following components.
Base plate, mount
and locking knob
Bottom monitor,
mount assembly,
mirror support
arms and mirror
adjustment
screws
Top monitor
assembly
Half-mirror
assembly
Six-foot DVI
cables (2 ea)
Power cords
(2 ea)
Mirror-flip
PCI card One-foot
DVI cable
Product
user’s guide
Planar CD-ROM
Terminator-style
glasses (2 ea) Captain-style
glasses (2 ea)
Spring clip-style
glasses (1 ea) 3 mm
Hex wrench
Soft cloths
(3 ea)
Moistened
cleaning pads
(6 ea)

v
Contents
Usage Notice ..................................................................................................... iii
Box Contents......................................................................................................iv
Stereoscopic Viewing .......................................................................................1
Getting Started...................................................................................................4
Assemble the unit .................................................................................................... 4
Select a graphics card ............................................................................................. 4
Install the mirror-flip PCI card............................................................................... 5
Connect the cables .................................................................................................. 5
Connect the power cords ...................................................................................... 6
Check the alignment............................................................................................... 6
Product Use .........................................................................................................7
Operating in 2D mode............................................................................................ 7
User controls and OSD menu ............................................................................... 7
Monitor Specifications......................................................................................8
Displays........................................................................................................................8
Video............................................................................................................................. 8
Power management................................................................................................ 9
Plug and Play ............................................................................................................. 9
Environment .............................................................................................................. 9
Size and weight......................................................................................................... 9
System Care.........................................................................................................9
Software Compatibility.................................................................................. 10
Accessories ....................................................................................................... 10
CRT Recycling................................................................................................... 11
Troubleshooting.............................................................................................. 11
Warning Signals............................................................................................... 11
Warranty............................................................................................................ 12
Product Registration ...................................................................................... 12

Stereoscopic Viewing
We live in a three-dimensional world. The human visual system can process
the slightly different views of the world seen by our two eyes and translate
this into the perception of depth. In the last two centuries much effort has
been devoted to the reproduction of depth perception, primarily in
photography and more recently in computer graphic images. Stereoscopic
3D viewing can help a viewer make faster, more accurate, and more enjoyable
interpretations of imagery. The SD1710 StereoMirror™ monitor creates an
unprecedented level of stereo 3D viewing quality and viewer comfort.
(See Figure 1.)
Stereo viewing is useful for the following
applications:
•Photogrammetry and remote sensing
•Geospatial image analysis
•Geophysical modeling
•Molecular modeling
•Computer games
•Oil and gas exploration
•Architecture and mechanical design
•Stereo photography or videography
•Medical imaging (not yet as FDA 510k
approved)
•Surgical planning
•Teaching of anatomy
•Simulation
•Complex data analysis
ÎWarning For some individuals, prolonged use of any stereoscopic
monitor may cause discomfort.
Figure 1. The StereoMirror monitor.

2
Introduction to StereoMirror Technology
A StereoMirror™ monitor consists of two AMLCDs (Active Matrix Liquid Crystal
Display) oriented at a 110º angle using a specially designed mounting stand.
A passive beamsplitter mirror bisects the angle formed between the two
monitors mounted on the stand. One side of the glass mirror has a reflective
coating, and the other side has an anti-reflective coating to minimize
secondary reflections. The mirror has a hard top coating to accommodate
cleaning. There is a fine mechanical adjustment for the mirror angle between
the two displays.
In general, the objective of a stereoscopic display is to efficiently present a left
eye image solely to the left eye while the right eye image is directed to the
right eye. This allows the human visual system to merge the two images and
results in the perception of depth, or stereopsis. In the StereoMirror design,
this stereo
separation is
achieved using the
principle of
conservation of
polarization. Liquid
crystal displays
operate based on
the ability of liquid
crystal material to
modulate plane-
polarized light.
The planes of
polarization for light
emitted from the
two AMLCDs in the
SD1710 unit have
the same 45° orientation to start. The image from the lower monitor is seen
through the mirror. (See Figure 2.) The plane of polarization for the light
from this display is unchanged in passing through the mirror. However, the
polarization plane in the light path of the upper monitor is effectively rotated
90° upon reflection. When stereo pair images from the two monitors are
viewed through crossed-polarizing glasses (glasses with polarizing films
mounted on the eyepieces with their planes of polarization at a right angle to
one another), the user only sees the left eye image with the eyepiece having
the 45°-oriented polarizer and the right eye image with the eyepiece having
the 135° polarizer. Light with a perpendicular polarization is not transmitted.
The result is a single, fused stereoscopic image.
Bottom
Monitor
with Left
Eye Image
Top Monitor with
Right EyeImage
Beamsplitter
Mirror
Left Eye
Right Eye
Bottom
Monitor
with Left
Eye Image
Top Monitor with
Right EyeImage
Beamsplitter
Mirror
Left Eye
Right Eye
Figure 2. Operating principle of the StereoMirror monitor.

3
A block diagram describing the process of driving a StereoMirror monitor
with a computer is shown in Figure 3. The left eye and right eye images are
sent to their respective AMLCDs independently and without any special
treatment. (The exception accommodates for the fact that the upper monitor
is seen in a mirror. See discussion below.) Presenting the stereo pair of
images is accomplished using a setup or software application that
accommodates dual-monitor stereo viewing. It requires no additional
modification for use with the StereoMirror monitor design. Any software
application that uses the OpenGL quad-buffered stereo features is compatible
with the StereoMirror monitor. Quad-buffered stereo is a feature of the
OpenGL 3D graphics library that allows an application to define two separate
right/left eye
viewpoints instead of
the normal single
monoscopic viewpoint.
The two viewpoints are
defined to give the
correct parallax
separation for the
proper stereo effect.
Once the two
viewpoints have been
defined, the 3D scene is
rendered identically for
each of the two
viewpoints. Many
commercial 3D
applications already
have stereo viewing
modes using the
OpenGL stereo
features.
Since the upper display
in the monitor is seen in reflection, there is a need to perform a mirror-flip
operation on that data path. In the current product, this is accomplished
using an auxiliary signal processing board in the data path to the upper
monitor. Driving a StereoMirror monitor is identical to driving a pair of
projection displays used to show stereoscopic images with crossed polarizers
in the two separate light paths. An off-the-shelf, dual-output graphics card
is employed to drive the two monitors, with no special preparation.
For more information, visit the Planar web site at www.planar.com and refer
to the paper on the StereoMirror monitor.
Left Eye
Image
Dual output
graphics card
Computer &
Software
Application
Mirror-flip
PCI Card
StereoMirror™
Right Eye
Image Top
Monitor
Bottom
Monitor
Left Eye
Image
Dual output
graphics card
Computer &
Software
Application
Mirror-flip
PCI Card
StereoMirror™
Right Eye
Image Top
Monitor
Bottom
Monitor
Figure 3. Driving the StereoMirror monitor.

4
Getting Started
Assemble the unit
1. Remove the large black base plate with attached mounting bracket from
the shipping box and place it on a table or workbench. Unscrew the
large knob from the base plate mount. (See Figure 4.)
2. Remove the bottom LCD panel with attached mounting post from the
shipping case and install the post in the base plate mounting bracket.
Make sure that the post is fully seated against the base plate. Tighten
the large knob to secure the post to the base plate.
3. Remove the top LCD panel from the shipping case and install the curved
slotted post on the support bar between the two posts on the back of the
bottom LCD panel. Make sure the slot is fully seated in the bottom post.
Tighten the plastic handle (about ½ turn clockwise). (See Figure 5.)
4. Carefully remove the glass mirror from the shipping case. With the
StereoMirror™ logo oriented to the lower right, insert the pins located on
either side of the mirror frame into the corresponding slots on the mirror
support arms. The pins should rest in the fully forward position of the
mounting arm slots. The monitor is now ready to attach to the computer.
(See Figure 6.)
Figure 4. Knob
connecting the base
plate and the mounting
bracket.
Figure 5. The Upper
monitor mounting arm
slides into the lower
mount assembly.
Figure 6. Glass mirror pins
on each side fit into the
mirror support arms.
Select a graphics card
The SD1710 unit requires an appropriate graphics card to drive the two
monitors with a DVI signal. For professional applications that use OpenGL
stereo support, the graphics card should support OpenGL stereo as well.
Currently, Planar can recommend two graphics card families for professional
applications. The Matrox® Parhelia™ line and the nVidia® Quadro™ FX line

5
have been tested and are compatible. For some less-demanding applications,
it may be acceptable to use a less expensive, dual-DVI output graphics card.
Install the mirror-flip PCI card
Because the viewer will see a reflection of the top monitor, it is required that
this image be flipped on the horizontal axis. A mirror-flip PCI card is included
with the SD1710 unit. Plug this card
into a free PCI slot in your computer.
There are no drivers to load with the
mirror-flip PCI card.
ÎWarning Proper ESD (electro
static discharge)
handling precautions
should be exercised
when installing the
mirror-flip PCI card.
Consult your
computer’s manual
regarding the correct
installation procedure
for graphics cards.
1. Remove the blank bracket from an available PCI slot.
2. Insert the mirror-flip PCI card into the slot, align the connector pins, and
press the board down until it is firmly seated. (See Figure 7.)
3. Secure the mounting bracket.
Connect the cables
The SD1710 unit comes with two 6-
foot DVI cables and one 14-inch DVI
cable.
1. Take one of the 6-foot DVI cables
and plug one end into the
primary port of your dual-channel
DVI graphics card (GC). Plug the
other end into the bottom
monitor of your SD1710 unit.
2. Plug one end of the 14-inch DVI
cable into the secondary output
of the dual-channel graphics
card. (See Figure 8.) Plug the
other end into the input port
(labeled “IN”) of the mirror-flip PCI card.
Figure 7. Mirror-flip PCI card installed.
Figure 8. Short DVI cable installed.

6
3. Take the other 6-foot DVI cable and plug one end into the output port of
the mirror-flip PCI card (labeled “OUT”). Plug the other end into the top
monitor of your SD1710 unit.
ÎWarning The two monitors must be connected with an off-the-shelf
video cable in order to comply with FCC regulations. Ferrite-
core interface cables are provided. This device will not be in
compliance with FCC regulations when
a non-ferrite-core video cable is used.
Connect the power cords
Two power cords are shipped with the unit. First, plug one into the AC power
jack of the top monitor. Next, plug the other into the bottom monitor. Then,
plug the power connectors into an electrical outlet.
Turn on the hard power switch located on the back of the two LCD monitors.
Turn on the soft power switch located on the front bezel of the two LCD
monitors.
You can now power up the computer.
Check the alignment
Although the SD1710 unit is aligned during manufacturing, it may require
realignment due to shipping and/or routine handling. There are two fine
adjustment screws located on the mirror support arms. Rotating these screws
raises and lowers the half-mirror. Adjust the screws so that the corners of the
reflected image of the upper monitor are aligned with the corners of the
transmitted image from the lower monitor. You may want to use a test image
during the alignment process. A sample is available on the Planar web site at
www.planar.com.
Perfect alignment between the two images is not required for stereo viewing.
The human visual system is typically adept at “fusing” two images that shifted
relative to each other. This is especially true for horizontal misalignment. In a
careful manner, try to achieve vertical alignment as closely as possible. Slight
misalignment to the left or right is tolerable.