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Apple wins a Smartglasses patent for Near-Eye Displays that produce Holographic Optical Elements

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Patently Apple first detected a trend regarding a future VR headset back in 2014. Ten years later, Apple Introduced Vision Pro. It took the iPhone and iPad ten years of patents prior to coming to market. With that in mind, Apple patents regarding future smartglasses began to surface in 2018. This could translate to smartglasses coming to market in and around 2028 if the ten year trend stands. Depending on market conditions, Apple could either expedite the project or delay it due to technological complexities. Patents aren't rumors. While it's always fascinating and fun to see a new project unfold that provides us with an understanding of what Apple's engineers are working in terms of a future device, it's not advisable to make the leap that patents for smartglasses will materialize within a year or two.  

With that in mind, today the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office officially granted Apple another technical smartglasses patent that relates to optical systems for displays.

Optical Systems For Displays

An electronic device such as a head-mounted device may have one or more near-eye displays that produce images for a user. The head-mounted device may be both a pair of virtual reality glasses or an augmented reality headset that allows a viewer to view both computer-generated images and real-world objects in the viewer's surrounding environment.

The near-eye display may include a display unit that directs light and an optical system that redirects the light from the display unit towards a user's eyes. The optical system may include an input coupler and an output coupler formed on a waveguide. The input coupler may redirect light from the display unit so that it propagates in the waveguide towards the output coupler. The output coupler may redirect the light from the input coupler so that it exits the waveguide towards the user's eyes. The input and output couplers may be formed from holographic optical elements such as thin holograms, volume holograms, or surface relief gratings.

A light-redirecting element may be used to redirect or redistribute light that would otherwise be outside of the user's field of view towards the user's eyes. The light-redirecting element may be interposed between the display unit and the input coupler, may be interposed between the input coupler and the output coupler, or may be integrated with the output coupler.

In arrangements where the light-redirecting element is interposed between the display unit and the input coupler, the light-redirecting element may include a secondary input coupler and a secondary output coupler on a second waveguide.

In arrangements where the light-redirecting element is interposed between the input coupler and the output coupler, the light-redirecting element may include a secondary input coupler and a secondary output coupler on the same waveguide as the primary input and output couplers. In other arrangements, the light-redirecting element may be formed from one holographic element (e.g., serving as both an input and output coupler) between the input coupler and the output coupler.

In arrangements where the light-redirecting element is integrated (e.g., multiplexed) with the output coupler, the light-redirecting element may include one or more interference patterns that are non-parallel with the interference patterns of the output coupler.

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For full details, review granted patent 12019238.  

10.52FX - Granted Patent Bar