Microvision, Inc.

Matthieu Saracco

Roeland Collet

Alga Lloyd Nothern, Iii

P Selvan Viswanathan

Dale Eugene Zimmerman

Thomas Byeman

Wyatt Owen Davis

George Thomas Valliath

Mark P Helsel

Dean R Brown

Jari Honkanen

Jonathan A Morarity

James Patrick McGuire, Jr

Nenad Nestorovic

Jason B Tauscher

Jack H Schmidt

Roger F Johnson

Quinn William Haynie

Ian Blanch

James Michael Hansen

Alga Lloyd Northern, Iii

A non-imaging concentrator is employed in an upside down configuration in which light enters a smaller aperture and exits a larger aperture. The input angle of light rays may be as large as 180 degrees, while the maximum exit angle is limited to the acceptance angle of the non-imaging concentrator. A dichroic filter placed at the larger aperture has a maximum angle of incidence equal to the acceptance angle of the non-imaging concentrator.

Method and apparatus for filtering and filtered light detection

An angular velocity correcting optical device receives a sinusoidally swept input light beam and outputs a non-sinusoidally swept output beam. The output beam may have a constant angular velocity. The output beam may have a constant pitch on a target surface for a constant periodicity pulsed light beam. Optical surfaces may be freeform surfaces specified by polynomials.

Angular velocity correction of a scanning light beam by optical methods

Devices and methods are described herein to measure optical power in scanning laser projectors. In general, the devices and methods utilize a polarizing component and photodiode to measure optical power being generated by at least one laser light source. The polarizing component is configured to polarize at least a portion of the laser beam in a way that improves the accuracy and consistency of this optical power measurement. Specifically, the polarizing component filters at least a portion of the laser beam for one polarization state in a way that facilitates improved reliability in the amount of laser light directed into the photodiode.

Optical power sensing devices and methods

A beam combining device combines laser beams and performs speckle reduction of the laser light. Two laser beams are incident on a non-polarizing beam splitter and combined beams are split into two light paths with different optical path lengths. The two light paths may have different geometric path lengths and/or different indices of refraction in the paths to produce the different optical path lengths. One of the light paths is passed through a polarization rotation device and then the two light paths are recombined with a polarizing beam splitter to produce a combined reduced speckle laser beam.

Method and apparatus for laser beam combining and speckle reduction

A bi-acylindrical lens collimates a divergent elliptical laser beam. A first surface of the bi-acylindrical lens is shaped to form a first acylindrical lens, and a second surface of the bi-acylindrical lens is shaped to form a second acylindrical lens. The first acylindrical lens collimates the divergent elliptical laser beam on the fast axis, and the second acylindrical lens collimates the diverging elliptical laser beam on the slow axis.

Method and apparatus for collimating light from a laser diode

Briefly, in accordance with one or more embodiments, an information handling system comprises a scanning system to scan one or more component wavelength beams into a combined multi-component beam in a first field of view, and a redirecting system to redirect one or more of the component wavelength beams into a second field of view. A first subset of the one or more component wavelength beams is projected in the first field of view and a second subset of the one or more component wavelength beams is projected in the second field of view. The first subset may project a visible image in the first field of view, and user is capable of providing an input to control the information handling system via interaction with the second subset in the second field of view.

Optical steering of component wavelengths of a multi-wavelength beam to enable interactivity

Devices and methods are described herein that use a first solid figure element, a polarizing beam splitter, and a second solid figure element or array of mirrors to reduce speckle in projected images. Specifically, laser light is generated and split into two portions having orthogonal polarizations. The first portion of laser light is reflected in the second solid figure element or the array of mirrors and is then spatially recombined with the second portion of laser light in the first solid figure element. The difference in path length followed by the two portions generates a temporal incoherence in the recombined laser light beam, and that temporal incoherence reduces speckle in the projected image.

Devices and methods for speckle reduction in scanning projectors

The embodiments described herein provide scanning laser devices that include an output optic configured to reduce image distortion. Specifically, the output optic is configured to reduce the distortions that could otherwise occur at relatively short projection distances, while also providing good image quality at relatively long projection distances. In general, the output optic includes a prism having a first surface, a second surface, and a third surface. The prism is configured such that the laser light interacts with each of these three surfaces while being transmitted through the prism and outputted to the display surface. The first, second, and third surfaces are each formed to have a freeform rotationally asymmetric shape, and these freeform rotationally asymmetric shapes are configured to work together to correct distortion in projected images.

Scanning laser projectors with improved short projection distance image quality

A scanning projector includes one or more scanning mirrors that reflect a light beam to create an image. The beam is created by multiple laser light sources, at least two of which create light at substantially the same color. The multiple laser light sources are used alternately to illuminate successive pixels, lines, and/or frames. Speckle reduction is achieved because of spatial overlap of the light beams produced by the multiple laser light sources.

Speckle reduction in multi-laser beam scanning display

A scanning projector and method is provided that that uses at least one multi-stripe laser to generate the laser light for the scanned image. Specifically, the multi-stripe laser includes at least a first laser element and a second laser element formed together on a semiconductor die. The first laser element is configured to output a first laser light beam, and the second laser element is configured to output a second laser light beam. At least one scanning mirror is configured to reflect the first laser light beam and the second laser light beam, and a drive circuit is configured to provide an excitation signal to excite motion of the at least one scanning mirror. Specifically, the motion is excited such that the at least one scanning mirror reflects the first laser light beam and the second laser light beam in a raster pattern of scan lines.

Multi-stripes lasers for laser based projector displays

Devices and methods are described herein that use a first solid figure element, a polarizing beam splitter, and a second solid figure element to reduce speckle in projected images. Specifically, laser light is generated and split into two portions having orthogonal polarizations. The first portion of laser light is internally reflected off at least three internal faces of the second solid figure element and is then spatially recombined with the second portion of laser light in the first solid figure element. The difference in path length followed by the two portions generates a temporal incoherence in the recombined laser light beam, and that temporal incoherence reduces speckle in the projected image.

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

Devices and methods are described herein to measure optical power in scanning laser projectors. In general, the devices and methods utilize a filter component and photodiode to measure optical power being generated by at least one laser light source, with the filter component configured to at least partially compensate for the non-uniform electric current response of the photodiode. Such a configuration facilitates accurate optical power measurement using only one photodiode, and thus can facilitate accurate optical power measurement in a relatively compact device and with relatively low cost.

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Redmond, WA, United States of America

Matthieu Saracco