Microvision, Inc.

Alliedsignal Inc.

Mark P Helsel

David William Wine

Clarence T Tegreene

Jon D Barger

Wyatt Owen Davis

Dean R Brown

Jason B Tauscher

Matthew Ellis

Kelly D Linden

David Roy Bowman

Quinn William Haynie

Joshua Mark Hudman

Randall Brian Sprague

Mark O Freeman

Matthieu Saracco

Roeland Collet

Fred J Petri

Yunfei Ma

Michael E Sherwood

John Wyatt Coy

David Malametz

Gabriel Castro

The embodiments described herein provide microelectromechanical system (MEMS) scanners with increased resistance to distortion in the mirror surface. Such MEMS scanners, when incorporated into laser scanning devices, are used to reflect laser light into a pattern of scan lines. Thus, by reducing distortion in the scanning surface these MEMS scanners can provide improved performance in scanning laser devices, including scanning laser projectors and laser depth scanners. In general, this is accomplished by providing a MEMS scanner where the connection to the scan plate is made at an intermediate support structure, and at a point on that intermediate support structure that is offset from the scanning surface. Providing the connection to the scan plate at points offset from the scanning surface can reduce the distortion that occurs in the scanning surface as a result of rotational forces in the MEMS scanner.

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) scanners for scanning laser devices

Scanning platforms for use in scanning laser devices are described herein. These scanning platforms are particularly applicable to scanning laser devices that use microelectromechanical system (MEMS) structures to facilitate mirror motion. The scanning platforms include a centrally located stationary mount portion and a movable portion that surrounds the stationary portion. The movable portion is configured to be coupled to a mirror and to facilitate motion of that mirror. Such a scanning platform can facilitate reduced size in scanning mirror assembly, and thus can facilitate a more compact scanning laser device.

Scanning platforms for scanning laser devices

Briefly, in accordance with one or more embodiments, a scanned beam display, comprises a light source to generate a beam to be scanned and a scanning platform to scan the beam into an exit cone. The scanning platform receives the beam at a selected feed angle, and the scanning platform has a surface structure to redirect the exit cone at an exit angle that is less than the feed angle.

Scanned beam display having a redirected exit cone using a diffraction grating

Briefly, in accordance with one or more embodiments, a scanner for a scanned beam display may comprise a scanning platform having a mirror disposed thereon to reflect a beam of light impinging on the mirror, a drive coil disposed on the scanning platform to scan the reflected beam of light in response to a drive current applied to the drive coil. The drive coil has coil winding segments having a narrower width in one or more regions of the drive coil, and has coil winding segments having a greater width in one or more other regions of the drive coil to provide a the drive coil with a reduced electrical resistance.

Electromagnetic scanner having variable coil width

A microelectromechanical system (MEMS) includes a conductor with improved reliability. The conductor flexes with a moving member in the MEMS device, and the improved reliability is achieved through material selections that provides increased fatigue resistance, reduced crack propagation, and/or mechanisms for improved live at a given strain level. The conductor may include a single material, or may include layers of different materials.

Fatigue resistant MEMS apparatus and system

A MEMs scanning device has a variable resonant frequency. In one embodiment, the MEMs device includes a torsion arm that supports an oscillatory body. In one embodiment, an array of removable masses are placed on an exposed portion of the oscillatory body and selectively removed to establish the resonant frequency. The material can be removed by laser ablation, etching, or other processing approaches. In another approach, a migratory material is placed on the torsion arm and selectively stimulated to migrate into the torsion arm, thereby changing the mechanical properties of the torsion arm. The changed mechanical properties in turn changes the resonant frequency of the torsion arm. In another approach, symmetrically distributed masses are removed or added in response to a measured resonant frequency to tune the resonant frequency to a desired resonant frequency. A display apparatus includes the scanning device and the scanning device scans about two or more axes, typically in a raster pattern. Various approaches to controlling the frequency responses of the scanning device are described, including active control of MEMs scanners and passive frequency tuning.

Resonant beam scanner with raster pinch compensation

A MEMs scanning device has a variable resonant frequency. In one embodiment, the MEMs device includes a flexible arm that extends from an oscillatory body. An electrical field applies a force to the flexible arm, thereby bending the flexible arm to change the moment of inertia of the oscillatory body and a secondary mass carried by the flexible arm. The shifted combined center of mass changes the resonant frequency of the MEMs device. In another embodiment, an absorptive material forms a portion of a torsional arm that supports the oscillatory body. The mechanical properties of the absorptive material can be varied by varying the concentration of a gas surrounding the absorptive material. The varied mechanical properties change the resonant frequency of the scanning device. A display apparatus includes the scanning device and the scanning device scans about two or more axes, typically in a raster pattern. Various approaches to controlling the frequency responses of the scanning device are described, including active control of MEMs scanners and passive frequency tuning.

Frequency tunable resonant scanner with auxiliary arms

Devices are formed on a semiconductor wafer in an interdigitated relationship and are released by deep reactive ion etching. MEMS scanners are formed without a surrounding frame. Mounting pads extend outward from torsion arms. Neighboring MEMS scanners are formed with their mounting pads interdigitated such that a regular polygon cannot be formed around a device without also intersecting a portion of one or more neighboring devices. MEMS scanners may be held in their outlines by a metal layer, by small semiconductor bridges, or a combination.

Method and apparatus for making a MEMS scanner

A MEM s scanning device has a variable resonant frequency. In one embodiment, the MEMs device includes a torsion arm that supports an oscillatory body. In one embodiment, an array of removable masses are placed on an exposed portion of the oscillatory body and selectively removed to establish the resonant frequency. The material can be removed by laser ablation, etching, or other processing approaches. In another approach, a migratory material is placed on the torsion arm and selectively stimulated to migrate into the torsion arm, thereby changing the mechanical properties of the torsion arm. The changed mechanical properties in turn changes the resonant frequency of the torsion arm. In another approach, symmetrically distributed masses are removed or added in response to a measured resonant frequency to tune the resonant frequency to a desired resonant frequency. A display apparatus includes the scanning device and the scanning device scans about two or more axes, typically in a raster pattern. Various approaches to controlling the frequency responses of the scanning device are described, including active control of MEMs scanners and passive frequency tuning.

Display with compensated light source drive

A beam scanner is operable to scan light in two or more axes, typically in a raster pattern that includes a fast scan axis and a slow scan axis. Plural beams of light are scanned, each beam of light producing a scanned region that at least partially overlaps at least one adjoining scanned region. Scanned regions may be aligned to adjoin and overlap along a dimension corresponding to the slow scan axis. The beam scanner may comprise a scanned beam display and/or a scanned beam image capture device. In a display, the power level of overlapping displayed pixels may be scaled to provide smooth transitions between adjoining regions to improve the image quality presented to a viewer. In an image capture device, one or more detectors is operable to collect light scattered from adjoining regions and a controller is operable to produce an image from the scanned regions.

Method and apparatus for scanning regions

A scanned beam display includes compensation for pattern-dependant heating of a light source. According to some embodiments, received image data is transformed to corrected data that compensates for pattern-dependent heating of one or more light sources.

Scanned beam display having compensation for pattern dependant heating of a light source

Method and apparatus for blending regions scanned by a beam scanner

A micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) scanner may be used in a range of systems including a scanned beam display or a scanned beam image capture system. The MEMS scanner may include provision for movement or oscillation in two or more axes. A mass asymmetry is introduced to the scanner. The mass asymmetry induces an oscillation component in an axis orthogonal to a primary axis of movement. The asymmetric mass may be formed by a number of means including selective application and selective removal. In some applications, the mass may be selectively formed or removed in an array of locations. The frequency, phase, and direction of induced oscillation component may be selected.

Resonant scanner with asymmetric mass distribution

A MEM s scanning device has a variable resonant frequency. In one embodiment, the MEMs device includes a flexible arm that extends from a oscillatory body. An electrical field applies a force to the flexible arm, thereby bending the flexible arm to shift the moment of inertia of the oscillatory body and a secondary mass carried by the flexible arm. The shifted moment of inertia changes the resonant frequency of the MEMs device. In another embodiment, an absorptive material forms a portion of a torsional arm that supports the oscillatory body. The mechanical properties of the absorptive material can be varied by varying the concentration of a gas surrounding the absorptive material. The varied mechanical properties change the resonant frequency of the scanning device. A display apparatus includes the scanning device and the scanning device scans about two or more axes, typically in a raster pattern. Various approaches to controlling the frequency responses of the scanning device are described, including active control of MEMs scanners and passive frequency tuning.

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Seattle, WA, United States of America

Mark P Helsel