Optical Systems for Displays
    3.
    发明公开

    公开(公告)号:US20240302664A1

    公开(公告)日:2024-09-12

    申请号:US18670007

    申请日:2024-05-21

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may include a display system for presenting images close to a user's eyes. The display system may include a display unit that directs light and an optical system that redirects the light from the display unit towards a user's eyes. The optical system may include an input coupler and an output coupler formed on a waveguide. The input coupler may redirect light from the display unit so that it propagates in the waveguide towards the output coupler. The output coupler may redirect the light from the input coupler so that it exits the waveguide towards the user's eyes. A light-redirecting element may be used to redirect edge light that would otherwise be outside of the user's field of view towards the user's eyes.

    Waveguided display systems
    4.
    发明授权

    公开(公告)号:US11803056B2

    公开(公告)日:2023-10-31

    申请号:US16546157

    申请日:2019-08-20

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    CPC classification number: G02B27/0172 G02B27/12 G02B27/14 G02B2027/0174

    Abstract: An electronic device may have a display that emits image light, a waveguide, and an input coupler that couples the image light into the waveguide. Beam splitter structures may be embedded within the waveguide. The beam splitter structures may partially reflect the image light multiple times and may serve to generate replicated beams of light that are coupled out of the waveguide by an output coupler. The beam splitter structures may replicate the beams across two dimensions to provide an eye box with uniform-intensity light from the display across its area. The beam splitter structures may include stacked partially reflective beam splitter layers, sandwiched transparent substrate layers having different indices of refraction, a thick volume hologram interposed between substrate layers, or combinations of these or other structures. The reflectivity of the beam splitter structures may vary discretely or continuously across the lateral area of the waveguide.

    Prism beam expander
    5.
    发明授权

    公开(公告)号:US11719947B1

    公开(公告)日:2023-08-08

    申请号:US16871063

    申请日:2020-05-11

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    CPC classification number: G02B27/0983 B23K26/0732 G02B27/0927

    Abstract: An optical component includes a block of a transparent material, having a trapezoidal cross-section defined by first and second parallel, rectangular faces on mutually-opposing sides of the block and third and fourth faces oriented diagonally at opposing ends of the first and second faces. One or more planar, partially-reflecting layers extend within the block between the third and fourth faces in an orientation parallel to the first and second faces.

    Waveguided Display Systems
    6.
    发明申请

    公开(公告)号:US20200089014A1

    公开(公告)日:2020-03-19

    申请号:US16546157

    申请日:2019-08-20

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may have a display that emits image light, a waveguide, and an input coupler that couples the image light into the waveguide. Beam splitter structures may be embedded within the waveguide. The beam splitter structures may partially reflect the image light multiple times and may serve to generate replicated beams of light that are coupled out of the waveguide by an output coupler. The beam splitter structures may replicate the beams across two dimensions to provide an eye box with uniform-intensity light from the display across its area. The beam splitter structures may include stacked partially reflective beam splitter layers, sandwiched transparent substrate layers having different indices of refraction, a thick volume hologram interposed between substrate layers, or combinations of these or other structures. The reflectivity of the beam splitter structures may vary discretely or continuously across the lateral area of the waveguide.

    Scanning Mirror Display Devices
    7.
    发明申请

    公开(公告)号:US20190265486A1

    公开(公告)日:2019-08-29

    申请号:US16277875

    申请日:2019-02-15

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may have a light source such as a laser light source. The light source may emit light into a waveguide. A phase grating may diffract the light that is emitted into the waveguide to produce diffracted light. The diffracted light may be oriented parallel to a surface normal of an angled edge of the waveguide and parallel to a surface normal of a microelectromechanical systems mirror element in a two-dimensional scanning microelectromechanical systems mirror that is coupled to the edge of the waveguide. A wave plate may be interposed between the mirror and the edge of the waveguide to change the polarization state of light reflected from the mirror element relative to incoming diffracted light from the phase grating. The phase grating may be configured so that the reflected light is not diffracted by the phase grating.

    Head-mounted display system
    9.
    发明授权

    公开(公告)号:US11822078B2

    公开(公告)日:2023-11-21

    申请号:US16488806

    申请日:2018-02-28

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device such as a head-mounted display may have a display system that produces images. The display system may have one or more pixel arrays (26-1, 26-2) such as liquid-crystal-on-silicon pixel arrays. Images from the display system may be coupled into a waveguide (116) by an input coupler system (114X, 114Y) and may be coupled out of the waveguide in multiple image planes using an output coupler system (120X, 120Y). The input and output coupler systems may include single couplers, stacks of couplers, and tiled arrays of couplers. Multiplexing techniques such as wavelength multiplexing, polarization multiplexing, time-division multiplexing, multiplexing with image light having different ranges of angular orientations, and/or tunable lens techniques may be used to present images to a user in multiple image planes.

Patent Agency Ranking