Can we trust that Image? Photometric Attributes of Current Projection Systems

With early computer graphics, one was pleased with just displaying virtual scenes on a monitor, or even on a stereo display. But the quest for realism always demanded for better quality of the rendered images. Nowadays, the radiosity lighting simulation method can be used to compute and verify physically accurate simulations of virtual scenes, concerning their quantitative photometrical and colorimetrical properties. In combination with large-scale projection devices, the realism of such a radiosity-simulated scene can be almost convincing. But what good is a "nice" image, if the correct, computed luminances and colors cannot be represented by the projection device used? This paper provides a state-of-the-art report of the relevant optical and physical properties of current immersive projection setups and their individual components, to evaluate their usability for photometrically and colorimetrically consistent presentation.