Texas Instruments Announces Dual Pen and 3D Interactive Projectors

ORLANDO, Fla., Feb. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Further advancing collaboration in the classroom, Texas Instruments (TI) (NYSE: TXN) DLPR Products announces dual-pen and 3D interactive projectors at FETC this week. With this technology come richer and broader engagements between teachers and their students as well as between students and their classmates.

The versatility of DLP's micromirror chip design also extends to technological collaboration. DLP technology has the unique ability to work with both passive and active 3D displays as well as a variety of light sources including lamp, laser and LED, offering schools and manufacturers a variety of options for displaying and interacting with projected content.

One example of this is DLP's interactive projector, which allows teachers and students to manipulate projected images on any surface with the touch of a pen or from a distance without the need for calibration. Using a special interactive pen that functions similarly to a wireless mouse, teachers and students can interact with an image on the screen from up to 7 meters away by simply rolling, pointing, clicking, scrolling, navigating and writing.

With new dual-pen capabilities classrooms can have two students interacting with the projected image at the same time. DLP dual-pen interactive projectors also work in conjunction with 3D to create interactive 3D teaching opportunities. Imagine multiple students racing each other to solve math equations projected on the ceiling or students viewing Earth in 3D and taking turns using the pen to break apart the earth into layers, all from wherever they are sitting in the classroom.

In addition, projectors such as the one launching this week from Acer are now available with SXGA+ chipsets. This chip provides increased resolution for readable text and graphics at a distance. The 1400x1050 resolution ensures students sitting in the back of the room see crisp, clear images, which is especially important for viewing letters, numbers and other highly detailed objects. This higher resolution also displays more content on the screen at one time, making it easier to view complex, detailed spreadsheets without having to scroll.

"Technology is a powerful enabler for positive change in classrooms and something Texas Instruments has been dedicated to for decades," says Roger Carver, manager of Front Projection, DLP Products. "In collaboration with our projector manufacturing and education ecosystem partners, we're developing innovative technologies to transform education for the better, and these interactive solutions are great examples of that. Not only do they foster an environment of collaboration, they're reliable and easy to use, so teachers can spend more time teaching."

3D technology for the classroom is providing a rich interactive experience and being aggressively adopted worldwide with over 1 million 3D-enabled projectors on the market today. TI DLP is driving 3D adoption through unique technological capabilities such as these:

-- Serving both passive and active 3D solutions and a variety of light sources

-- Acting as the sole technology able to provide 3D through a single-projector solution

-- Enabling 3D-Ready and interactive projectors to also function as standard systems, essentially future-proofing classrooms by allowing for self-paced technology adoption

-- Offering lamp-free projector solutions to save time, money and energy consumption

TI DLP 3D Worldwide Pilot Programs

Starting in March 2010, TI DLP launched 3D pilot programs in grade schools across the globe, allowing students to experience the unique learning environment brought about by 3D projection technology. Now, nearly one year later, DLP has 3D pilot programs across five EU countries (Finland, France, Netherlands, Turkey and United Kingdom) and India as well as 30 classrooms in the United States and with plans to roll out programs in Germany, Italy and Latin America in the next six months.

Sharyn Gabriel, principal of Ocoee Middle School and recently named the Outstanding Technology Leader in Education in 2010-2011 by the Florida Society for Technology in Education, introduced 3D into the school's classrooms last year, and has seen great results with the technology. "I've believe that low test scores are indicators of students who are disengaged rather than unintelligent, which is why at Ocoee we arm students with the tools they need to be drivers in their education," says Gabriel. "Our teachers enjoy using 3D because it bridges the gap between ability and interest as it brings an interactive experience to the classroom that encourages students to engage with the content, explore their curiosities and ultimately provides them with a deeper level of understanding."

Multiple manufacturers and brands will be at FETC showing interactive products with DLP technology. Among them are 3M, Acer, Dell, Optoma, Promethean, PolyVision, Sanyo, SMART and Vivitek, many of which will be showing some of the first products with SX+ resolution, dual-pen interactivity and/or interactive 3D capabilities. Source: TI DLP