E-Vision Smart Optics, Inc.

Harry Milton

Anthony Y Van Heugten

Anthony Van Heugten

Anita Trajkovska-Broach

Bright ambient light can wash out a virtual image in a conventional augmented reality device. Fortunately, this problem can be prevented with a variable electro-active beam splitter whose reflect/transmit ratio can be varied or switched on and off rapidly at a duty cycle based on the ambient level. As the ambient light gets brighter, the beam splitter's transmit/reflect ratio can be shifted so that the beam splitter reflects more light from the display and transmits less ambient light to the user's eye. The beam splitter can also be switched between a highly reflective state and a highly transmissive state at a duty cycle selected so that the eye spends more time integrating reflected display light than integrating transmitted ambient light. The splitting ratio and/or duty cycle can be adjusted as the ambient light level changes to provide the optimum experience for the user.

Augmented reality device with adjustable electroactive beam splitter

Resistive bridges can connect many ring electrodes in an electro-active lens with a relatively small number of buss lines. These resistors are usually large to prevent excessive current consumption. Conventionally, they are disposed in the same plane as the ring electrodes, which means that the ring electrodes are spaced farther apart or made discontinuous to accommodate the resistors. But spacing the ring electrodes farther apart or making them discontinuous degrades the lens's optical quality. Placing the ring electrodes and resistors on layers separated by an insulator makes it possible for the ring electrodes to be closer together and continuous with resistance high enough to limit current consumption. It also relaxes constraints on feature sizes and placement during the process used to make the lens. And because the resistors and electrodes are on different planes, they can be formed of materials with different resistivities.

Electro-active lenses with raised resistive bridges

An electro-active lens is presented which utilizes a surface relief structures and an electro-active material, with a change in refractive index facilitating the change in optical properties. A molded structure and a liquid crystal are used to form a diffractive lens. In addition to the classical approach of utilizing diffractive optics and multiple Fresnel zones to form a lens, an additional structure is placed between Fresnel zones in order to improve the diffraction efficiency across the visible spectrum and reduce chromatic aberration.

Prism-enhanced lenses and methods of using prism-enhanced lenses

Certain exemplary embodiments can provide a system, machine, device, manufacture, circuit, composition of matter, and/or user interface comprising and/or related to a tunable electro-optic lens device comprising a first substrate comprising a first electrode layer that comprises a first plurality of ring electrodes that form a first resistive divider network, and a second substrate comprising a second electrode layer.

Electro-active lens with resistive arcs

An electro-active lens is presented which utilizes a surface relief structures and an electro-active material, with a change in refractive index facilitating the change in optical properties. A molded structure and a liquid crystal are used to form a diffractive lens. In addition to the classical approach of utilizing diffractive optics and multiple Fresnel zones to form a lens, an additional structure is placed between Fresnel zones in order to improve the diffraction efficiency across the visible spectrum, and reduce chromatic aberration.

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Sarasota, FL, United States of America

Harry Milton