Substrate-guide optical device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016170212-A1
Application number	US-201615051247-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Feb 23, 2016
Priority date	Feb 10, 2005
Publication date	Jun 16, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

An optical device, including a light waves-transmitting substrate has two major surfaces and edges, optical means for coupling light into the substrate by total internal reflection, and a plurality of partially reflecting surfaces ( 22 a, 22 b ) carried by the substrate. The partially reflecting surfaces ( 22 a, 22 b ) are parallel to each other and are not parallel to any of the edges of the substrate, one or more of the partially reflecting surfaces ( 22 a, 22 b ) being an anisotropic surface. The optical device has dual operational modes in see-through configuration. In a first mode, light waves are projected from a display source through the substrate to an eye of a viewer. In a second mode, the display source is shut off and only an external scene is viewable through the substrate.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An optical system, comprising:
a light waves-transmitting substrate having at least two major surfaces and edges; an electronic display source; an optical device for coupling light waves from the electronic display source into the substrate by total internal reflection to form an electronic display, and a plurality of partially reflecting surfaces carried by the substrate, the partially reflecting surfaces being parallel to each other and not parallel to any of the edges of the substrate; wherein the plurality of partially reflecting surfaces defines an active area and an inactive area of the substrate, an image from the display source is projected through the active area of the substrate into at least one eye of a viewer and an external scene is transmitted through an inactive area of the substrate to at least one eye of a viewer.

2 . The optical system according to claim 1 , wherein for the transmitted external scene the device is utilized as a conventional spectacle lens.

3 . The optical system according to claim 1 , wherein an opaque layer is located in front of the active area of the substrate and the inactive area of the substrate is transparent.

4 . The optical system according to claim 1 , wherein a variable filter placed in front of the substrate, enables a viewer to control the level of brightness of the light waves emerging from the external scene.

5 . The optical system according to claim 1 , further comprising a mechanical body, wherein the display, the optical device and the substrate are integrated into the mechanical body.

Assignees

• Lumus Ltd

Inventors

• Amitai Yaakov

Classifications

• G02B6/0031

  Reflecting element, sheet or layer · CPC title

• G02B2027/0132

  comprising binocular systems · CPC title

• G02B27/1066

  for enhancing image performance, like resolution, pixel numbers, dual magnifications or dynamic range, by tiling, slicing or overlapping fields of view · CPC title

• G02B27/14

  operating by reflection only · CPC title

• G02B2027/0136

  with a single image source for both eyes · CPC title