TOKYO – Japanese electronics maker Toshiba Corp. is developing technology for a 3-D television that won’t require special glasses.

Company spokeswoman Yuko Sugahara confirmed in late August that such technology was in the works. But she declined to comment on a report in the Yomiuri newspaper that the Tokyo company plans to start selling the new TVs this year.

Mainstream 3-D TVs now on sale, such as those from rivals Panasonic Corp. and Sony Corp., require users to wear glasses. There are already screens that don’t require glasses, mainly intended for store displays, but they require the viewer to stand in specific spots for the 3-D effect to emerge, and the image quality is much lower than that of mainstream 3-D screens.

Yomiuri said Mitsubishi’s technology involves transmitting different images at various angles to create an illusion of dimension and depth, a principle used by current glasses-free monitors.

Electronics companies have been investing heavily in 3-D technology for televisions, betting that people will want a 3-D experience at home after the success of blockbuster movies such as “Avatar,” which was screened in 3-D.

Some gadgets such as hand-held game machines from Nintendo Co. can deliver 3-D images without special glasses.