iSphere

Abstract

We present iSphere, a flying spherical display that can display high resolution and bright images in all directions from anywhere in 3D space. Our goal is to build a new platform which can physically and directly emerge arbitrary bodies in the real world. iSphere flies by itself using a built-in drone and creates a spherical display by rotating arcuate multi light-emitting diode (LED) tapes around the drone. As a result of the persistence of human vision, we see it as a spherical display flying in the sky. The proposed method yields large display surfaces, high resolution, drone mobility, high visibility and 360° field of view. Previous approaches fail to match these characteristics, because of problems with aerodynamics and payload. We construct a prototype and validate the proposed method. The unique characteristics and benefits of flying spherical display surfaces are discussed and we describe application scenarios based on iSphere such as guidance, signage and telepresence.