Apple Inc.

Roei Remez

Refael Della Pergola

Assaf Avraham

Yuval Tsur

Ariel Lipson

Itai Afek

Moshe Kriman

Jonathan Hauser

Zafrir Mor

Niv Gilboa

Chandra Kakani

Keith Lyon

Maoz Ovadia

Paul Stephen Drzaic

Hoon Sik Kim

Scott Thomas Smith

Noah Denis Bedard

Yazan Z Alnahhas

Gershon Rosenblum

Emanuel Mordechai

Arnaud Laflaquière

Milan Maksimovic

Gidi Lasovski

Dror Leshem

Omer Korech

Ronen Akerman

Alex Pekin

Omer Eden

Roey Zuitlin

Michael Young

Brian Mccall

Yaron Gross

Daniel Ott

Maria I Campana

Rafi Ambar

Shay Yosub

An image sensing device includes a detector assembly, which includes a matrix of optical sensing elements having a predefined pitch. Each optical sensing element includes an active area having a width that is less than 90% of the pitch. An array of optical apertures are respectively aligned with the optical sensing elements such that each optical aperture is positioned at a distance from a respective optical sensing element that is no less than twice the width of the active area. Objective optics are configured to focus light from a scene onto the detector assembly.

Imaging array with directional response

A display may use a waveguide to provide image light to an eye box. An emitter may emit infrared light collimated at different angles relative to a collimated axis and divergent along an orthogonal axis. The waveguide may propagate the infrared light and may include overlapping one-dimensional diffractive gratings with parallel periodic structures. Each grating may diffract, towards the eye box, a respective portion of the infrared light from a respective incident angle onto a respective output angle relative to the collimated axis. A camera may capture glints of the infrared light as reflected off a user's eye at the eye box for performing gaze tracking. The emitter and the gratings may effectively form a one-dimensional line of infrared emitters overlapping the eye box while allowing the optical emitter to remain invisible to a user.

Optical systems with one dimensional eye tracking

Various implementations disclosed herein include devices, systems, and methods that determines an eye characteristic (e.g., gaze direction, eye orientation, etc.) based on the determined location of the glint. For example, an example process may include producing a glint by producing light that reflects off a portion of an eye, receiving the reflected light at a sensor wherein the reflected light is received after passing through a multi-zone lens having a first zone and a second zone, the first zone and second zone having different energy-spreading characteristics, determining a location of the glint based on the reflected light received at the sensor, and determining an eye characteristic based on the determined location of the glint.

Glint analysis using multi-zone lens

An optoelectronic apparatus includes an array of emitters configured to emit beams of optical radiation. An optical substrate is mounted over the array. An optical metasurface is disposed on the optical substrate and configured to collimate and split each of the emitted beams into a respective group of collimated sub-beams, and to direct the collimated sub-beams toward a target to form a pattern of spots on the target.

MOE-based illumination projector

Various embodiments disclosed herein include devices, systems, and methods for spatially controlling illumination provided by a flash module. The flash module includes a flash controller that controls light emitters of an emitter array according to an illumination profile. The illumination profile is selected to reduce a relative brightness to a target region of the flash module's field of illumination. The target region is associated with a portion of a target object identified in the field of illumination. In some instances, the target region corresponds to a portion of a user's eye that is positioned within the field of illumination. In other instances, the flash module is incorporated into a device, and the target region corresponds to a reflected image of a portion of the device that is positioned within the field of illumination.

Image capture systems utilizing adjustable illumination

An optoelectronic apparatus includes a semiconductor substrate and an array of emitters disposed on the semiconductor substrate and configured to emit beams of optical radiation having respective chief rays. An optical diffuser is mounted over the semiconductor substrate and configured to diffuse the beams. Microlenses are disposed between the semiconductor substrate and the optical diffuser in respective alignment with the emitters and configured to steer the beams at different, respective angles, which are selected so that at least some of the chief rays cross one another before passing through the diffuser.

Flood projector with microlens array

An optical device includes a first array of emitters disposed on a substrate and configured to emit respective beams of optical radiation in a direction perpendicular to the substrate. A second array of microlenses is positioned on the substrate in alignment with the respective beams of the emitters, having respective sag profiles that vary over an area of the substrate. The second array includes at least first microlenses in a central region of the substrate and second microlenses in a peripheral region of the substrate, such that the first microlenses have respective first focal powers, while the second microlenses have respective second focal powers, which are less than the first focal powers.

Microlens array with tailored sag profile

A method for optical sensing includes providing a mirror comprising a central reflective region surrounded by a peripheral glare-suppressing region. A beam of light from a laser light source is directed to reflect from the central region so as to pass through an output optic along an axis toward a target scene. The light returned from the target scene through the output optic is focused onto an optical sensor, via collection optics having a collection aperture surrounding the mirror.

Patterned mirror edge for stray beam and interference mitigation

A compact folded projection system is described that includes a laser light source, a folded lens system comprising a lens stack including two or more refractive lenses and a light folding element (e.g., a prism), and a diffractive beam splitter that includes at least one diffractive surface. The light folding element provides a 'folded' optical axis for the lens system to reduce the Z-height of the projection system, for example to within a range of 1.7 to 4 millimeters (e.g., 2 millimeters in some implementations). The laser light source emits light that is refracted by the lens stack to the folding element. The folding element redirects the light to the beam splitter which replicates the light into N&#xd7;M duplications or tiles to thus generate a larger field of view (FOV) than the internal FOV of the lens system.

Folded projection system

An opto-electronic device includes a semiconductor substrate having a planar surface. An emitter is formed on the substrate and configured to emit a beam of light away from the planar surface. A reflective layer is formed on the planar surface adjacent to the emitter. A transparent layer is formed over the planar surface and has a curved outer surface including a first segment positioned vertically over the emitter and configured to internally reflect the emitted beam of light toward the reflective layer, and a second segment positioned and configured to collimate and transmit the beam reflected from the reflective layer.

Integrated optical emitters and applications thereof

An electronic device may have a display with an array of pixels for displaying images. The display may have a window region. During operation, a component such as an optical component may operate through the window region. The window region may overlap a movable portion of the display. The window region may be operated in open and closed states. In the closed state, the movable portion of the display overlaps the window region and pixels in the movable display portion emit light through the window region. In the open state, the movable portion of the display is moved away from the window region so that light for the optical component may pass through the window region. The optical component may be a camera or other component that receives light through the window region or may be an optical component that emits light through the window region.

Electronic devices with adjustable display windows

Imaging apparatus includes a housing, with imaging optics mounted in the housing and configured to form an optical image, at a focal plane within the housing, of an object outside the housing. An image sensor, including a matrix of detector elements, is positioned at the focal plane in alignment with the imaging optics and is configured to output an electronic image signal in response to optical radiation that is incident on the detector elements. At least one emitter is fixed within the housing and is configured to emit a test beam toward one or more reflective surfaces within the housing, which reflect the test beam toward the image sensor. A processor is configured to process the electronic image signal output by the image sensor in response to the reflected test beam so as to detect a change in the alignment of the image sensor with the imaging optics.

Detecting loss of alignment of optical imaging modules

Growing community of inventors

Tel Aviv, Israel

Roei Remez