Optical waveguide element and electronic device

Abstract

The invention discloses an optical waveguide element and electronic equipment. The optical waveguide element comprises a substrate, a conduction grating and a coupling-out grating, the conduction grating is arranged in the substrate, the coupling-out grating and the conduction grating are arranged in an isolated mode, the coupling-out grating is arranged on the surface of the substrate, and the coupling-out grating is used for transmitting light from the conduction grating out of the substrate. According to the optical waveguide element of the scheme, the conduction grating is arranged in the substrate to reduce generation of rainbow lines, the conduction grating is arranged on the surface of the substrate to realize lightening and thinning of the lens, and the user experience is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of electronic equipment, and in particular to an optical waveguide element and an electronic equipment. Background Art

[0002] In display devices that use augmented reality and other extended reality technologies, optical waveguide elements are relatively important components of display devices. Optical waveguide elements may include grating structures that can transmit images to human eyes. In related technologies, optical waveguide elements can achieve light coupling, transmission, and decoupling. However, such waveguides are prone to problems such as rainbow patterns, which affect the user's vision. Therefore, how to reduce the rainbow patterns generated by waveguides has become a technical problem that needs to be solved urgently. Summary of the invention

[0003] The present application provides an optical waveguide element and an electronic device.

[0004] The optical waveguide element of the embodiment of the present application includes a substrate, a transmission grating and a coupling-out grating. The transmission grating is arranged in the substrate, and the coupling-out grating is isolated from the transmission grating. The coupling-out grating is arranged on the surface of the substrate. The coupling-out grating is used to transmit light from the transmission grating to the outside of the substrate.

[0005] Thus, in the optical waveguide element of the embodiment of the present application, the conductive grating is arranged in the substrate to reduce the generation of rainbow patterns, and the outcoupling grating is arranged on the surface of the substrate to achieve the lightness and thinness of the lens, thereby improving the user experience.

[0006] The electronic device according to the embodiment of the present application comprises the optical waveguide element and a light source as described in any one of the above embodiments, wherein the light source is used to couple light into the optical waveguide element.

[0007] Additional aspects and advantages of the present application will be given in part in the description below, and in part will become apparent from the description below, or will be learned through the practice of the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present application will become apparent and easily understood from the description of the embodiments in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:

[0009] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of an optical waveguide element according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0010] Figure 2 is a three-dimensional view of an optical waveguide component according to an embodiment of the present application from one perspective;

[0011] Figure 3 is a three-dimensional view of the optical waveguide element according to an embodiment of the present application from another perspective;

[0012] Figure 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a light guide unit according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0013] Figure 5 is a schematic structural diagram of an outcoupling grating according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0014] Figure 6 is a schematic structural diagram of an in-coupling grating according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0015] Figure 7 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0016] Explanation of the reference numerals: 100, optical waveguide element; 10, substrate; 11, visible area; 12, non-visible area; 20, transmission grating; 21, light guiding unit; 22, light guiding surface; 23, optical film; 30, out-coupling grating; 31, first protrusion; 40, in-coupling grating; 41, second protrusion; 50, light source; 1000, electronic device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] The embodiments of the present application are described in detail below, and examples of the embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals throughout represent the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain the present application, and cannot be understood as limiting the present application.

[0018] In the description of the present application, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "length", "width", "thickness", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", "clockwise", "counterclockwise" and the like indicate positions or positional relationships based on the positions or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present application. In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are only used for descriptive purposes, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of the present application, the meaning of "multiple" is two or more, unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0019] In the description of this application, it should be noted that, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection, an electrical connection, or mutual communication; it can be a direct connection, or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in this application can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0020] In the present application, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, a first feature being "above" or "below" a second feature may include that the first and second features are in direct contact, or may include that the first and second features are not in direct contact but are in contact through another feature between them. Moreover, a first feature being "above", "above" and "above" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly above and obliquely above the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being "below", "below" and "below" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly below and obliquely below the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0021] The disclosure below provides many different embodiments or examples to realize the different structures of the present application. In order to simplify the disclosure of the present application, the parts and settings of specific examples are described below. Of course, they are only examples, and the purpose is not to limit the present application. In addition, the present application can repeat reference numbers and / or reference letters in different examples, and this repetition is for the purpose of simplification and clarity, which itself does not indicate the relationship between the various embodiments and / or settings discussed. In addition, the various specific processes and material examples provided by the present application, but those of ordinary skill in the art can appreciate the application of other processes and / or the use of other materials.

[0022] In the related art, both the transmission grating and the coupling-out grating of the optical waveguide use surface relief gratings, and both areas will produce rainbow patterns. When the user is in use, the coupling-out grating is directly in front of the pupil, and the rainbow patterns produced by the coupling-out grating can be directly observed. However, since the FOV of the human eye is relatively large, even if the turning grating is not in the direction of the exit pupil, the human eye can still observe the rainbow patterns produced by the turning grating. It can be seen that both the transmission grating and the coupling-out grating of the optical waveguide use surface relief gratings, and many rainbow patterns appear, which has a great impact on user use.

[0023] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2The optical waveguide element 100 of the embodiment of the present application includes a substrate 10, a transmission grating 20 and a coupling-out grating 30. The transmission grating 20 is arranged in the substrate 10. The coupling-out grating 30 is isolated from the transmission grating 20. The coupling-out grating 30 is arranged on the surface of the substrate 10. The coupling-out grating 30 is used to transmit the light from the transmission grating 20 to the outside of the substrate 10.

[0024] By adopting the optical waveguide element 100 of the present solution, the conductive grating 20 is set in the substrate 10 to reduce the generation of rainbow patterns, prevent the rainbow patterns from blocking the line of sight and prevent eye fatigue caused by long-term use. The out-coupling grating 30 is set on the surface of the substrate 10 to achieve the lightness and thinness of the lens, thereby improving the user experience.

[0025] Specifically, in some embodiments, the substrate 10 can be a flat structure made of an optical material transparent to visible light, such as flat glass or resin, the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate 10 are parallel, the thickness of the substrate 10 can be 0.3 to 2.5 mm, and the refractive index of the waveguide material can be 1.4 to 2.2.

[0026] After the transmission grating 20 performs horizontal pupil expansion on the light, the light is transmitted to the coupling-out grating 30. After the coupling-out grating 30 performs vertical pupil expansion on the light, the light is output and projected into the human eye.

[0027] In some embodiments, the transmission grating 20 may be a geometric grating, and the outcoupling grating 30 may be a surface relief grating.

[0028] See also Figure 2 In some embodiments, the substrate 10 includes a visible area 11 and a non-visible area 12 , the conductive grating 20 is disposed in the non-visible area 12 , and the outcoupling grating 30 is disposed in the visible area 11 .

[0029] In this way, the conductive grating 20 is arranged in the non-visible area 12 to avoid the adverse effect of the “venetian blind effect” generated by the conductive grating 20 on the user.

[0030] Specifically, the visible area 11 is an area exposed outside the electronic device 1000 and visible to the user, and the non-visible area 12 is an area invisible to the user and hidden inside the housing of the electronic device 1000.

[0031] When the transmission grating 20 is a geometric grating, the "venetian blinds effect" of the geometric grating can be prevented from causing adverse effects on user use; when the outcoupling grating 30 is a surface relief grating, the "venetian blinds effect" will not occur.

[0032] The "Venetian blinds effect" is caused by the conductive grating 20 being similar to a venetian blind structure. After the electronic device 1000 is powered off, if the conductive grating 20 is in the visible area 11, because the substrate 10 is a light-transmitting element, the user's eyes can see the structure of the conductive grating 20, which is the "Venetian blinds effect".

[0033] In some embodiments, the conductive grating 20 is located at the edge of the substrate 10. In this way, when the conductive grating 20 is a geometric grating, the geometric grating is far away from the visual area 11, so that the "blind effect" of the geometric grating will not cause adverse effects on the user. Figure 1 , the conductive grating 20 may be at the lower left corner of the substrate 10 . In some embodiments, the conductive grating 20 may also be at the lower right corner, the upper left corner, or the upper right corner of the substrate 10 .

[0034] See also Figure 3 and Figure 4 In some embodiments, the transmission grating 20 includes a plurality of light guide units 21 arranged in sequence, the light guide unit 21 includes a light guide surface 22 and an optical film 23 disposed on the light guide surface 22, and the optical film 23 is used to transmit part of the light to the next light guide unit 21 and reflect part of the light to the outcoupling grating 30.

[0035] In this way, the multiple light guide units 21 enable the electronic device 1000 to output multiple identical images, and the eyes can see the images when moving horizontally, thereby achieving image output and expansion of the eye box. Specifically, each light guide surface 22 is coated with a multilayer film with different reflection and transmittance ratios to achieve uniform light output for each exit pupil.

[0036] In order to achieve uniform light emission from each exit pupil, the reflection and transmittance ratio of the light guide unit 21 gradually increases along the propagation direction of the light, that is, along the propagation direction of the light, the reflectivity of the plurality of light guide units 21 increases successively, and the transmittance decreases successively.

[0037] For example, the number of light guide units 21 is 5. If the initial amount of light transmitted by the grating 20 is 100, the reflection transmittance ratio of the first light guide unit 21 is 20 / 80, the reflection transmittance ratio of the second light guide unit 21 is 20 / 60, the reflection transmittance ratio of the third light guide unit 21 is 20 / 40, the reflection transmittance ratio of the fourth light guide unit 21 is 20 / 20, and the reflection transmittance ratio of the fifth light guide unit 21 is infinite. Therefore, the first light guide unit 21 can reflect 20 of light and transmit 80 of light to the second light guide unit 21, and repeat this process. Then, the coupling grating 30 can couple out 5 light beams, each with a light amount of 20.

[0038] In some embodiments, a plurality of light guide units 21 may be arranged in parallel and spaced apart.

[0039] See also Figure 3 In some embodiments, the light guiding surface 22 is inclined relative to the surface of the substrate 10 in the thickness direction.

[0040] In this way, the optical film 23 can reflect part of the light to the outcoupling grating 30 and transmit the remaining light to the next light guide unit 21 .

[0041] Specifically, the imaging quality is affected by the angle formed by the light guide surface 22 and the surface of the substrate 10 , and therefore, the angle formed by the light guide surface 22 and the surface of the substrate 10 is a specific angle.

[0042] See also Figure 5 In some embodiments, the outcoupling grating 30 includes a plurality of first protrusions 31 , and the plurality of first protrusions 31 are arranged at intervals.

[0043] In this way, a part of the light can be transmitted to the next first protrusion 31, and the other part of the light can be reflected to the human eye.

[0044] Specifically, the outcoupling grating 30 can be a surface relief grating, and the cross-section of the first protrusion 31 can be a trapezoid, a rectangle, etc. By reasonably setting the shape, size and angle of the first protrusion 31 and the surface of the substrate 10, it is ensured that the outgoing light obtains a larger exit angle, thereby obtaining a larger field of view angle.

[0045] In some embodiments, the first protrusion 31 is in the shape of a long strip, so that the transmission area of ​​the outcoupling grating 30 is large, and a larger field of view is obtained.

[0046] Specifically, the first protrusions 31 may be distributed equidistantly on the surface of the substrate 10 , and the first protrusions 31 form peaks and valleys of the outcoupling grating 30 , causing periodic changes in the refractive index of the light.

[0047] See also Figure 2 In some embodiments, the optical waveguide element 100 further includes a coupling-in grating 40 , the transmission grating 20 is located between the coupling-in grating 40 and the coupling-out grating 30 , and the coupling-in grating 40 is used to transmit light to the transmission grating 20 .

[0048] In this way, the light is coupled into the optical waveguide through the coupling grating 40 and then incident on the transmission grating 20 through total reflection.

[0049] In some embodiments, the coupling grating 40 is disposed on the surface of the substrate 10. In this way, the lens can be made thinner and lighter. Specifically, the coupling grating 40 can be a surface relief grating, and the surface relief grating can be made into a grating microstructure on the surface of the wafer by using a nano-imprinting process, thereby realizing the function of an optical waveguide.

[0050] In some embodiments, the in-coupling grating 40 and the out-coupling grating 30 may be disposed on the same surface of the substrate 10 but at different positions.

[0051] In some embodiments, the incoupling grating 40 is disposed in the non-visible area 12 .

[0052] See also Figure 6 In some embodiments, the coupling-in grating 40 includes a plurality of second protrusions 41 , and the plurality of second protrusions 41 are arranged at intervals.

[0053] In this way, a portion of the light can be transmitted to the next second protrusion 41 , and another portion of the light can be reflected to the transmission grating 20 .

[0054] Specifically, the cross section of the second protrusion 41 may be a trapezoid, a rectangle, etc. By properly setting the shape, size and angle between the second protrusion 41 and the surface of the substrate 10 , the incident light can obtain a larger deflection angle.

[0055] In some embodiments, the second protrusion 41 is in the shape of an elongated strip.

[0056] In this way, the transmission area of ​​the outcoupling grating 30 is large, and more light is transmitted to the transmitting grating 20 .

[0057] Specifically, the second protrusions 41 are evenly distributed on the surface of the substrate 10 to form peaks and valleys that are coupled into the grating 40 , causing periodic changes in the refractive index of the light.

[0058] See also Figure 2 , Figure 3 and Figure 7 The electronic device 1000 according to the embodiment of the present application includes an optical waveguide element 100 and a light source 50 , and the light source 50 is used to couple light into the optical waveguide element 100 .

[0059] In this way, the impact of rainbow patterns on the user's vision can be reduced, preventing the rainbow patterns from blocking the vision and eye fatigue caused by long-term use, which significantly improves the user experience. The "blind effect" of the geometric grating will not have adverse effects on user use.

[0060] Specifically, the light source 50 includes but is not limited to a display screen, and the electronic device 1000 includes but is not limited to a head-mounted display device.

[0061] In the description of this specification, the description with reference to the terms "one embodiment", "certain embodiments", "illustrative embodiments", "examples", "specific examples", or "some examples" means that the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiments or examples are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present application. In this specification, the schematic representation of the above terms does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner.

[0062] Although the embodiments of the present application have been shown and described, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various changes, modifications, substitutions and variations may be made to the embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the present application, and that the scope of the present application is defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. An optical waveguide component, characterized in that: include: substrate; a conductive grating, wherein the conductive grating is disposed in the substrate; An outcoupling grating is provided in isolation from the transmitting grating, the outcoupling grating is provided on the surface of the substrate, and the outcoupling grating is used to transmit the light from the transmitting grating to the outside of the substrate.

2. The optical waveguide element according to claim 1, wherein The substrate comprises a visible area and a non-visible area, the transmission grating is arranged in the non-visible area, and the outcoupling grating is arranged in the visible area.

3. The optical waveguide element according to claim 2, wherein: The conductive grating is located at an edge of the substrate.

4. The optical waveguide element according to claim 1, wherein The transmission grating includes a plurality of light guide units arranged in sequence, wherein the light guide unit includes a light guide surface and an optical film arranged on the light guide surface, wherein the optical film is used to transmit part of the light to the next light guide unit and reflect part of the light to the outcoupling grating.

5. The optical waveguide element according to claim 4, characterized in that The light guiding surface is inclined relative to the surface of the substrate in the thickness direction.

6. The optical waveguide element according to claim 1, wherein The outcoupling grating includes a plurality of first protrusions, and the plurality of first protrusions are arranged at intervals.

7. The optical waveguide element according to claim 6, wherein: The first protrusion is in the shape of an elongated strip.

8. The optical waveguide element according to claim 1, wherein The optical waveguide element further comprises an incoupling grating, wherein the transmitting grating is located between the incoupling grating and the outcoupling grating, and the incoupling grating is used to transmit light to the transmitting grating.

9. The optical waveguide element according to claim 8, wherein: The coupling-in grating is arranged on the surface of the substrate.

10. The optical waveguide element according to claim 9, wherein: The outcoupling grating includes a plurality of second protrusions, and the plurality of second protrusions are arranged at intervals.

11. The optical waveguide element according to claim 10, wherein: The second protrusion is in the shape of an elongated strip.

12. An electronic device, characterized in that: include: The optical waveguide element according to any one of claims 1 to 11; and A light source is used to couple light into the optical waveguide element.

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