Optical element for authenticating a user

Abstract

The present invention relates to an optical element (110), wherein the optical element (110) comprises: (1) at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112), wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112) comprises an active area situated on a bottom surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112); (2) at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118), wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118) comprises an active area situated on a top surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118), wherein the top surface is opposite of a bottom surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118); (3) at least one supporting member (126); wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112) is arranged with the bottom surface on the supporting member (126); and wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118) is arranged with the bottom surface on the supporting member (126).

Description

[0001] Optical element for authenticating a user

[0002] Technical Field

[0003] The invention relates to an optical element. The invention further relates to a- device The devices according to the present invention specifically may be employed for example in various areas of daily life, security technology, gaming, traffic technology, production technology, photography such as digital photography or video photography for arts, documentation or technical purposes, safety technology, information technology, agriculture, crop protection, maintenance, cosmetics, medical technology or in the sciences. However, other applications are also possible.

[0004] Background art

[0005] Optical elements are known to be efficient tools for emitting light, such as illumination light comprising infrared flood light or an infrared light pattern. The illumination light may be generated by a plurality of Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Lasers. Typically, optical elements comprising the plurality of Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Lasers have the same distance to an optical lens.

[0006] US 2023 / 108210 A1 discloses a vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) device including a substrate layer and a first set of epitaxial layers for a bottom-emitting VCSEL disposed on the substrate layer. The first set of epitaxial layers may include a first set of mirrors and at least one first active layer. The VCSEL device may include a second set of epitaxial layers for a top-emitting VCSEL disposed on the first set of epitaxial layers for the bottom-emitting VCSEL. The second set of epitaxial layers may include a second set of mirrors and at least one second active layer. The top-emitting VCSEL and the bottomemitting VCSEL may be configured to emit light in opposite light emission directions.

[0007] CN 114 779 491 A discloses a terminal display module and a mobile terminal. The terminal display module comprises a display panel and a three-dimensional imaging module, the vertical projection of the three-dimensional imaging module on the plane where the display panel is located is located in the auxiliary display area of the display panel. The three-dimensional imaging module comprises a transmitting module and a receiving module, the transmitting module comprises a structured light source and a floodlight source, the structured light source and the floodlight source both utilize HCG- VCSEL as light sources and emit linearly polarized light with the same polarization direction, and the receiving module is used for receiving light beams penetrating through a linearly polarized layer and imaging; the terminal display module further comprises a linear polarization layer located on the light incident path of the receiving module, and the direction of the light transmitting axis of the linear polarization layer is consistent with the polarization direction of linearly polarized light emitted by the HCG-VCSEL. The problem that three-dimensional structured light imaging displayed by an existing terminal is prone to being affected by external environment light and the transmittance of a display panel, and consequently the imaging quality is poor is solved, and the three-dimensional structured light imaging quality can be improved.

[0008] CN 114 428 437 A discloses a structured light and floodlight illumination combined 3D projector comprising a laser light source, and an optical element used for collimation and diffraction arranged on the light emitting side of the laser light source; the laser light source has a structured light projection mode and a floodlight illumination mode; in the structured light projection mode, laser emitted by the laser light source is collimated and diffracted by the optical element to obtain a structured light spot pattern; in the floodlighting mode, laser emitted by the laser light source is collimated and diffracted by the optical element to obtain a uniform infrared light spot pattern. The invention further discloses electronic equipment which is provided with the structured light and floodlight illumination combined 3D projector. According to the invention, one projection light source is used for simultaneously realizing the functions of structured light projection and a floodlight illuminator, one emission light source is reduced, and the equipment cost and space are saved.

[0009] Problem to be solved

[0010] It is therefore desirable to provide devices, which at least partially address the above- mentioned technical challenges and at least substantially avoid the disadvantages of known devices. In particular, it is an object of the present invention to enable a single optical element to have multiple functions, such as to emit infrared flood light and an infrared light pattern, by using the same optics.

[0011] Summary

[0012] This problem is addressed by the optical element and the device described by the features of the independent claims. Advantageous embodiments which might be realized in an isolated fashion or in any arbitrary combinations are listed in the dependent claims as well as throughout the specification.

[0013] In a first aspect, an optical element is disclosed. The term “optical element” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an arbitrary device configured for generating or providing light, specifically illumination light. As will be outlined in further detail below, the optical element generally can be embodied in various ways. Thus, the optical element can be for example part of an device in a housing of the device. Alternatively or additionally, however, the at least one optical element can also be arranged outside a housing, for example as a separate optical element. The optical element can be arranged separately from the object and illuminate the object from a distance.

[0014] The term “light” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to electro-magnetic radiation in one or more of the infrared, the visible and the ultraviolet spectral range. Herein, the term “ultraviolet spectral range”, generally, refers to electromagnetic radiation having a wavelength of 1 nm to 380 nm, preferably of 100 nm to 380 nm. Further, in partial accordance with standard ISO-21348 in a valid version at the date of this document, the term “visible spectral range”, generally, refers to a spectral range of 380 nm to 760 nm. The term “infrared spectral range” (I R) generally refers to electromagnetic radiation of 760 nm to 1000 pm, wherein the range of 760 nm to 1 .5 pm is usually denominated as “near infrared spectral range” (NIR) while the range from 1 .5 p to 15 pm is denoted as “mid infrared spectral range” (MidlR) and the range from 15 pm to 1000 pm as “far infrared spectral range” (FIR). Preferably, light used for the typical purposes of the present invention is light in the infrared (IR) spectral range, more preferred, in the near infrared (NIR) and / or the mid infrared spectral range (MidlR), especially the light having a wavelength of 1 pm to 5 pm, preferably of 1 pm to 3 pm. This is due to the fact that many material properties or properties on the chemical constitution of many objects may be derived from the near infrared spectral range. It shall be noted, however, that spectroscopy in other spectral ranges is also feasible and within the scope of the present invention.

[0015] The optical element comprises:

[0016] (1 ) at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser, wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser comprises an active area situated on a bottom surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser;

[0017] (2) at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser comprises an active area situated on a top surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, wherein the top surface is opposite of a bottom surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser;

[0018] (3) at least one supporting member; wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser is arranged with the bottom surface on the supporting member; and wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser is arranged with the bottom surface on the supporting member. The optical element comprises at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser, wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser comprises an active area situated on a bottom surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser; and at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser comprises an active area situated on a top surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, wherein the top surface is opposite of a bottom surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0019] The term “Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to a semiconductor laser diode emitting light perpendicular to a top surface of the Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser. The Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser may comprise a bottom surface, particularly opposite of the top surface, that is in contact with and / or or secured to the supporting member.

[0020] The term “active area” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to a region in which the illumination light is generated. Typically, the active area may comprise one or more quantum wells and / or one or more quantum dots that are in which the illumination light is generated. For generating the illumination light an electric current may be applied to the active area.

[0021] The term “top surface” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an area that is located at the uppermost layer of an element. The top surface may be the part of the element that is exposed or visible in a top view. The term “bottom surface” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an area that is located at the lowermost layer of an element. The bottom surface may be the part of the element that is exposed or visible in a bottom view.

[0022] Typically, a Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser comprises a plurality of layers. The top surface of the Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser is on a different side of the Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser than the bottom surface of the Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser. The top surface and the bottom surface may be counterparts. The optical element comprises at least one supporting member; wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser is arranged with the bottom surface on the supporting member; and wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser is arranged with the bottom surface on the supporting member. The first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser and the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser may be arranged on the same supporting member.

[0023] The term “supporting member” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to at least one structural element that is designed for bearing loads and / or provide support to at least one further structural element. In particular accordance with the present invention, the supporting element may carry and / or support at least one of: the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser; the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0024] For the bottom surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser to be arranged on the supporting member, the bottom surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser may be secured to the supporting member. For the top surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser to be arranged on the supporting member, the top surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser may be secured to the supporting member.

[0025] The term “securing”, or any grammatical variation thereof, as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to stabilizing and / or fixing a first element to a second element. The stabilized and / or fixated first element may be in a predetermined relative position in relation to the second element in a manner that the first element and the second element hold the relative position and can withstand at least one force and / or at least one stress acting on at least one of the first element and the second element.

[0026] Arranging and / or securing at least one of:

[0027] - the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser; and

[0028] - the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser; to the supporting member may be performed by at least one of:

[0029] - a soldering process;

[0030] - a glueing process; and

[0031] - a diffusion bonding process.

[0032] The supporting member may be at least one of: a heat sink; an electrical connector, specifically a printed circuit board; and a stiffening element.

[0033] The term “heat sink” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an arbitrary heat exchanger configured for dissipating heat generated by at least one component. Typically, the heat sink may be a passive heat exchanger. The heat sink may transfer the heat from the components to a fluid medium, typically air. The heat sink may dissipate the heat from one or more of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser; and the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0034] The term “electrical connector” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an arbitrary electronically device configured for creating at least one electrical connection between a plurality of parts of an electrical circuit or between different electrical circuits.

[0035] The term “stiffening element” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an arbitrary element configured for reinforcing, particularly the supporting member.

[0036] The term “printed circuit board” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an elements configured for connecting a plurality of electronic components to one another. Typically, the printed circuit board comprises a laminated sandwich structure of conductive and insulating layers. The electric components may be secured to conductive pads on an outer layer of the printed circuit board in a manner that they electric components are electrically connected to the conductive pad. Particularly therefore, the printed circuit board may comprise at least one conductive pad, wherein the electrical wire may be electrically connected to the conductive pad.

[0037] The optical element further may comprise at least one optical lens. The first Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and / or the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser may be configured for emitting illumination light through the optical lens. A first distance between the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser, specifically the active area of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser, and the at least one optical lens may differ from a second distance between the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, specifically the active area of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser, and the at least one optical lens.

[0038] The term “optical lens” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an at least partially transparent medium configured for bending and / or focusing light rays.

[0039] The optical lens may have at least one focal length, wherein the first distance or the second distance equals the focal length. Particularly thereby, the respective optical lens is in the focus of the optical lens and generates a sharp image, particularly for generating illumination light comprising an infrared light pattern. Particularly further thereby, the further optical lens may not be in the focus of the optical lens and generates a blurred image, particularly from generating illumination light comprising infrared flood light.

[0040] The term “focal length” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to a degree of how strongly an optical system, specifically an optical lens, converges and / or diverges light rays. The optical system may refer to the inverse of the optical power of the optical system. Typically, the focal length of an optical system may be calculated by considering and / or evaluating the image formation of an object. The focal length f may be evaluated by using the known lens formula wherein v relates the image distance, u relates to the object distance. The optical lens may have one or more different focal lengths.

[0041] The term “light pattern” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to at least one arbitrary pattern comprising a plurality of light spots. The light spot may be at least partially spatially extended. At least one spot or any spot may have an arbitrary shape. In some cases a circular shape of at least one spot or any spot may be preferred. The light pattern may be an infrared light pattern. The term “infrared light pattern” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to a light pattern comprising spots in the infrared spectral range. The infrared light pattern may be a near infrared light pattern.

[0042] The term “flood light” as used herein, is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to substantially continuous spatial illumination, in particular diffuse and / or uniform illumination. The flood light may have a wavelength in the infrared range, in particular in the near infrared range. The flood illumination source may comprise at least one LED or at least one least one VCSEL, preferably a plurality of VCSELs. The term “substantially continuous spatial illumination” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to uniform spatial illumination, wherein areas of non-uniform are possible. The area, e.g. covering a user, a portion of the user and / or a face of the user, illuminated from the flood illumination source, may be contiguous. Power may be spread over a whole field of illumination. In contrast, illumination provided by the light pattern may comprise at least two contiguous areas, in particular a plurality of contiguous areas, and / or power may be concentrated in small (compared to the whole field of illumination) areas of the field of illumination. The infrared flood illumination may be suitable for illuminating a contiguous area, in particular one contiguous area. The infrared pattern illumination may be suitable for illuminating at least two contiguous areas.

[0043] The first distance and the second distance may differ by a thickness of the first Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser or a thickness of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0044] The term “thickness” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to a distance between two opposite surfaces of an element, such as the Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser. The thickness may be the shortest distance between the top surface and the bottom surface of a respective Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser. The distance may be a length.

[0045] The first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting may be parallel. Particularly thus, a geometrical central axis of the first Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and a geometrical central axis of the second Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser may be parallel. The term “geometrical central axis” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an imaginary axis that runs through the center of an object, such as the Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser. The center may be the geometrical center of the object.

[0046] The first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting may be coaxial. Particularly thus, the geometrical central axis of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and the geometrical central axis of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser may be coaxial.

[0047] The first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting may be coaxial. Particularly thus, The geometrical central axis of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and / or the geometrical central axis of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser may be parallel to a geometrical central axis of the at least one optical lens.

[0048] The first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser comprising the active area situated on the bottom surface may be configured for emitting illumination light at least partially in direction of a top surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser. By emitting illumination light at least partially in direction of the top surface on the Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, the illumination light may be emitted in a manner that the illumination light is directed towards the optical lens, particularly in a manner that the illumination light is at least partially propagating through the optical lens. The first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser may emit illumination light in the same direction.

[0049] Various sources and paths of light are to be distinguished. In the context of the present invention, a nomenclature is used which, firstly, denotes light propagating from the optical element, particularly the Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, to the object as “illuminating light” or “illumination light”. Secondly, light propagating from the object to the detector is denoted as “detection light”. In the process of illuminating the object with illumination light, detection light will be generated. The generated detection light may comprise at least one of illumination light reflected by the object, illumination light scattered by the object, illumination light transmitted by the object, luminescence light generated by the object, e.g. phosphorescence or fluorescence light generated by the object after optical, electrical or acoustic excitation of the object by the illumination light or the like. Thus, the detection light may directly or indirectly be generated through the illumination of the object by the illumination light.

[0050] At least one further component of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser may be at least partially transparent for the illumination light emitted by the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser. The at least one further component of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser may be a substrate of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0051] The at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser may emit illumination light from the active area, and the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser may emit illumination light from the active area.

[0052] The at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser may emit the illumination light from the active area through the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, preferably wherein said emitted illumination light may traverse through the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser. The at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser may emit the illumination light from the active area directly from the top surface of the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser, preferably wherein said emitted illumination light may not travers through the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0053] The illumination light emitted by the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and the illumination light emitted by the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser may be emitted at differing heights in respect to the at least one optical lens.

[0054] The term “height” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to a distance measurement along an axis defined by an object, wherein said axis goes from the top to the bottom of the object. The axis may be orthogonal to the surface of the substrate on which the Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser are arranged.

[0055] Alternatively or in addition, the bottom surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and the bottom surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser may be arranged on the supporting member at the same height in respect to the at least one optical lens with a maximum deviation of 10 %, preferably of 5 %.

[0056] Alternatively or in addition, the top surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and the top surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser may be arranged at the same height in respect to the at least one optical lens with a maximum deviation of 10 %, preferably 5 %.

[0057] In a further aspect, a device for authenticating a user of a device to perform at least one operation on the device that requires authentication. The device comprises: - at least one optical element as explained elsewhere herein, wherein the optical element is configured for emitting illumination light, wherein the illumination light comprises, specifically infrared, flood light and a, specifically infrared, light pattern comprising a plurality of infrared light spots; at least one image generation unit configured for capturing at least one pattern image while the optical element is emitting the, specifically infrared, light pattern and configured for capturing at least one flood image while the optical element is emitting the, specifically infrared, flood light; optionally at least one display, wherein the, specifically infrared, light pattern traverses the display while being illuminated from the optical element and / or the, specifically infrared, flood light traverses the display while being illuminated from the optical element, wherein the display of the device is at least partially transparent in at least one continuous area covering the optical element and / or the image generation unit, at least one authentication unit configured for performing at least one authentication process of a user using the flood image and the pattern image.

[0058] For this aspect, reference may be made to any further aspect, particularly any definition, Embodiment or claim given in the context of any further aspect.

[0059] The device may be selected from the group consisting of: a point of sales terminal; a computer in a motor vehicle; a television device; a game console; a personal computer; a mobile device, particularly a cell phone, and / or a smart phone, and / or a tablet computer, and / or a laptop, and / or a tablet, and / or a virtual reality device, and / or a wearable, such as a smart watch; or another type of portable computer.

[0060] As disclosed above, the device comprises at least one optical element as explained elsewhere herein, wherein the optical element is configured for emitting illumination light, wherein the illumination light comprises infrared flood light and an infrared light pattern comprising a plurality of infrared light spots.

[0061] As disclosed above, the device comprises at least one image generation unit configured for capturing at least one pattern image while the optical element is emitting the infrared light pattern and configured for capturing at least one flood image while the optical element is emitting infrared flood light.

[0062] The term “pattern image” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an image generated by the image generation unit while illuminating with the infrared light pattern, e.g. on an object and / or a user. The pattern image may comprise an image showing a user, in particular at least parts of the face of the user, while the user is being illuminated with the infrared light pattern, particularly on a respective area of interest comprised by the image. The pattern image may be generated by imaging and / or recording light reflected by an object and / or user, which is illuminated by the infrared light pattern. The pattern image showing the user may comprise at least a portion of the illuminated infrared light pattern on at least a portion the user. For example, the illumination by the pattern illumination source and the imaging by using the optical sensor may be synchronized, e.g. by using at least one control unit of the optoelectronic apparatus.

[0063] The term “flood image” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an image generated by the image generation unit while illumination source is emitting infrared flood light, e.g. on an object and / or a user. The flood image may comprise an image showing a user, in particular the face of the user, while the user is being illuminated with the flood light. The flood image may be generated by imaging and / or recording light reflected by an object and / or user which is illuminated by the flood light. The flood image showing the user may comprise at least a portion of the flood light on at least a portion the user. For example, the illumination by the flood illumination source and the imaging by using the optical sensor may be synchronized, e.g. by using at least one control unit of the optoelectronic apparatus.

[0064] The term “image generation unit” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to at least one unit configured for capturing at least one image, particularly for generating image data. The term “capturing” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to generating and / or determining and / or recording at least one image by using the image generation unit. Capturing may comprise recording a single image and / or a plurality of images such as a sequence of images. For example, capturing may comprise recording continuously a sequence of images such as a video or a movie. The image generation may be initiated by a user action or may automatically be initiated, e.g. once the presence of at least one object or user within a field of view and / or within a predetermined sector of the field of view of the image generation unit is automatically detected.

[0065] As disclosed above, the device may comprise at least one display, wherein the infrared light pattern traverses the display while being illuminated from the optical element and / or the infrared flood light traverses the display while being illuminated from the optical element, wherein the display of the device is at least partially transparent in at least one continuous area covering the optical element and / or the image generation unit. The term “display” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to an arbitrary shaped device configured for displaying an item of information. The item of information may be arbitrary information such as at least one image, at least one diagram, at least one histogram, at least one graphic, text, numbers, at least one sign, an operating menu, and the like. The display may be or may comprise at least one screen. The display may have an arbitrary shape, e.g. a rectangular shape. The display may be a front display. The display may be an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display and / or a light-emitting diode (LED) display, specifically micro LED display. Further types of displays are also feasible.

[0066] The term “at least partially transparent” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to a property of the display to allow light, in particular of a certain wavelength range, e.g. in the infrared spectral region, in particular in the near infrared spectral region, to pass at least partially through. For example, the display may be semitransparent in the near infrared region. For example, the display may have a transparency of 10 % to 50 % in the near infrared region. The display may have a different transparency for other wavelength ranges. The present invention may propose an optoelectronic apparatus comprising the image generation unit and two illumination sources that can be placed behind the display of a device. The transparent area(s) of the display can allow for operation of the optoelectronic apparatus behind the display. The display is an at least partially transparent display, as described above. The display may have a reduced pixel density and / or a reduced pixel size and / or may comprise at least one transparent conducting path. The transparent area(s) of the display may have a pixel density of 360-440 PPI (pixels per inch). Other areas of the display, e.g. non-transparent areas, may have pixels densities higher than 400 PPI, e.g. a pixel density of 460-500 PPI.

[0067] As disclosed above, the device comprises at least one authentication unit configured for performing at least one authentication process of a user using the flood image and the pattern image.

[0068] The term “authenticating” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to verifying an identity of a user. Specifically, the authentication may comprise distinguishing between the user from other humans or objects, in particular between authorized access from non-authorized accesses. The authentication may comprise verifying identity of a respective user and / or assigning identity to a user. The authentication may comprise generating and / or providing identity information, e.g. to other devices or units such as to at least one authorization unit for authorization for providing access to the device. The identify information may be proofed by the authentication. For example, the identity information may be and / or may comprise at least one identity token. In case of successful authentication an image of a face recorded by the image generation unit may be verified to be an image of the user’s face and / or the identity of the user is verified. The authenticating may be performed using at least one authentication process. The authentication process may comprise a plurality of steps such as at least one face detection on the flood image and at least one identifying step in which an identity is assigned to the detected face and / or at least one identity check and / or verifying an identity of the user is performed.

[0069] The term “authentication unit” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to at least one unit configured for performing at least one authentication process of a user. The authentication unit may be or may comprise at least one processor. The processor may be an arbitrary logic circuitry configured for performing basic operations of a computer or system, and / or, generally, to a device which is configured for performing calculations or logic operations. In particular, the processor may be configured for processing basic instructions that drive the computer or system. As an example, the processor may comprise at least one arithmetic logic unit (ALU), at least one floating-point unit (FPU), such as a math co-processor or a numeric coprocessor, a plurality of registers, specifically registers configured for supplying operands to the ALU and storing results of operations, and a memory, such as an L1 and L2 cache memory. In particular, the processor may be a multi-core processor. Specifically, the processor may be or may comprise a central processing unit (CPU). Additionally or alternatively, the processor may be or may comprise a microprocessor, thus specifically the processor’s elements may be contained in one single integrated circuitry (IC) chip. Additionally or alternatively, the processor may be or may comprise one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and / or one or more field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and / or one or more tensor processing unit (TPU) and / or one or more chip, such as a dedicated machine learning optimized chip, or the like. The processor specifically may be configured, such as by software programming, for performing one or more evaluation operations. At least one or any component of a computer program configured for performing the authentication process may be executed by the processing device. Alternatively or in addition, the authentication unit may be or may comprise a connection interface. The connection interface may be configured to transfer data from the device to a remote device; or vice versa. At least one or any component of a computer program configured for performing the authentication process may be executed by the remote device. For example, the authentication unit may perform at least one face detection using the flood image. The face detection may be performed locally on the device. Face identification, i.e. assigning an identity to the detected face, however, may be performed remotely, e.g. in the cloud, e.g. especially when identification needs to be done and not only verification. User templates can be stored at the remote device, e.g. in the cloud, and would not need to be stored locally. This can be an advantage in view of storage space and security.

[0070] The authentication unit may be configured for identifying the user based on the flood image. Particularly therefore, the authentication unit may forward data to a remote device. Alternatively or in addition, the authentication unit may perform the identification of the user based on the flood image, particularly by running an appropriate computer program having a respective functionality. The term “identifying” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to assigning an identity to a detected face and / or at least one identity check and / or verifying an identity of the user.

[0071] The authentication process may comprise a plurality of steps. For example, the authentication process may comprise performing at least one face detection. The face detection step may comprise analyzing the flood image. In addition, for example, the authentication process may comprise identifying. The identifying may comprise assigning an identity to a detected face and / or at least one identity check and / or verifying an identity of the user. The identifying may comprise performing a face verification of the imaged face to be the user’s face. The identifying the user may comprise matching the flood image, e.g. showing a contour of parts of the user, in particular parts of the user’s face, with a template. The identifying of the user may comprise determining if the imaged face is the face of the user, in particular if the imaged face corresponds to at least one image of the user’s face stored in at least one memory, e.g. of the device.

[0072] The analyzing of the flood image may comprise one or more of the following: a filtering; a selection of at least one region of interest; a formation of a difference image between the flood image and at least one offset; an inversion of flood image; a background correction; a decomposition into color channels; a decomposition into hue; saturation; and brightness channels; a frequency decomposition; a singular value decomposition; applying a Canny edge detector; applying a Laplacian of Gaussian filter; applying a Difference of Gaussian filter; applying a Sobel operator; applying a Laplace operator; applying a Scharr operator; applying a Prewitt operator; applying a Roberts operator; applying a Kirsch operator; applying a high-pass filter; applying a low-pass filter; applying a Fourier transformation; applying a Radon-transformation; applying a Houghtransformation; applying a wavelet-transformation; a thresholding; creating a binary image. The region of interest may be determined manually by a user or may be determined automatically, such as by recognizing the user within the image. In particular, the analyzing of the flood image may comprise using at least one image recognition technique, in particular a face recognition technique. An image recognition technique comprises at least one process of identifying the user in an image. The image recognition may comprise using at least one technique selected from the technique consisting of: color-based image recognition, e.g. using features such as template matching; image segmentation and / or blob analysis e.g. using size, or shape; machine learning and / or deep learning e.g. using at least one convolutional neural network.

[0073] The analyzing of the flood image may comprise determining a plurality of facial features. The analyzing may comprise comparing, in particular matching, the determined facial features with template features. The template features may be features extracted from at least one template. The template may be or may comprise at least one image generated in an enrollment process, e.g. when initializing the device. Template may be an image of an authorized user. The template features and / or the facial feature may comprise a vector. Matching of the features may comprise determining a distance between the vectors. The identifying of the user may comprise comparing the distance of the vectors to a least one predefined limit, wherein the user is successfully identified in case the distance is < the predefined limit at least within tolerances. The user declining and / or rejected otherwise.

[0074] For example, the image recognition may comprise using at least one model, in particular a trained model comprising at least one face recognition model. The analyzing of the flood image may be performed by using a face recognition system, such as FaceNet, e.g. as described in Florian Schroff, Dmitry Kalenichenko, James Philbin, “FaceNet: A Unified Embedding for Face Recognition and Clustering”, arXiv: 1503.03832. The trained model may comprises at least one convolutional neural network. For example, the convolutional neural network may be designed as described in M. D. Zeiler and R. Fergus, “Visualizing and understanding convolutional networks”, CoRR, abs / 1311.2901 ,

[0075] 2013, or C. Szegedy et al., “Going deeper with convolutions”, CoRR, abs / 1409.4842,

[0076] 2014. For more details with respect to convolutional neural network for the face recognition system reference is made to Florian Schroff, Dmitry Kalenichenko, James Philbin, “FaceNet: A Unified Embedding for Face Recognition and Clustering”, arXiv: 1503.03832. As training data labelled image data from an image database may be used. Specifically, labeled faces may be used from one or more of G. B. Huang, M. Ramesh, T. Berg, and E. Learned-Miller, “Labeled faces in the wild: A database for studying face recognition in unconstrained environments”, Technical Report 07-49, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, October 2007, the Youtube® Faces Database as described in L. Wolf, T. Hassner, and I. Maoz, “Face recognition in unconstrained videos with matched background similarity”, in IEEE Conf, on CVPR, 2011 , or Google® Facial Expression Comparison dataset. The training of the convolutional neural network may be performed as described in Florian Schroff, Dmitry Kalenichenko, James Philbin, “FaceNet: A Unified Embedding for Face Recognition and Clustering”, arXiv: 1503.03832.

[0077] The authentication unit may be further configured for determining material data based on the pattern image. Particularly therefore, the authentication unit may forward data to a remote device. Alternatively or in addition, the authentication unit may perform the material determination based on the pattern image, particularly by running an appropriate computer program having a respective functionality. Particularly by considering the material as a parameter for validating the authentication process, the authentication process may be robust against being outwitted by using a recorded image of the user.

[0078] The authentication unit may be configured for extracting the material data from the pattern image by beam profile analysis of the light spots. With respect to beam profile analysis reference is made to WO 2018 / 091649 A1 , WO 2018 / 091638 A1 and WO 2018 / 091640 A1 , the full content of which is included by reference. Beam profile analysis can allow for providing a reliable classification of scenes based on a few light spots. Each of the light spots of the pattern image may comprise a beam profile. As used herein, the term “beam profile” may generally refer to at least one intensity distribution of the light spot on the optical sensor as a function of the pixel. The beam profile may be selected from the group consisting of a trapezoid beam profile; a triangle beam profile; a conical beam profile and a linear combination of Gaussian beam profiles.

[0079] The authentication unit may be configured for outsourcing at least one step of the authentication process, such as the identifying of the user, and / or at least one step of the validation of the authentication process, such as the consideration of the material data, to a remote device, specifically a server and / or a cloud server. The device and the remote device may be part of a computer network, particularly the internet. Thereby, the device may be used as a field device that is used by the user for generating data required in the authentication process and / or its validation. The device may transmit the generated data and / or data associated to an intermediate step of the authentication process and / or its validation to the remote device. In such a scenario, the authentication unit may be and / or may comprise a connection interface configured for transmitting information to the remote device. Data generated by the remote device used in the authentication process and / or its validation may further be transmitted to the device. This data may be received by the connection interface comprised by the device. The connection interface may specifically be configured for transmitting or exchanging information. In particular, the connection interface may provide a data transfer connection. As an example, the connection interface may be or may comprise at least one port comprising one or more of a network or internet port, a USB-port, and a disk drive. It is emphasized that data from the device may be transmitted to a specific remote device depending on at least one circumstance, such as a date, a day, a load of the specific remote device, and so on. The specific remote device may not be selected by the field device. Rather a further device may select to which specific remote device the data may be transmitted. The authentication process and and / or the generation of validation data may involve a use of several different entities of the remote device. At least one entity may generate intermediate data and transmit the intermediate data to at least one further entity.

[0080] The authentication unit may be configured for using a facial recognition authentication process operating on the flood image, the pattern image and / or extracted material data. The authentication unit may be configured for extracting material data from the pattern image.

[0081] Extracting material data from the pattern image may comprise generating the material type and / or data derived from the material type. Preferably, extracting material data may be based on the pattern image. Material data may be extracted by using at least one model. Extracting material data may include providing the pattern image to a model and / or receiving material data from the model. Providing the image to a model may comprise and may be followed by receiving the pattern image at an input layer of the model or via a model loss function. The model may be a data-driven model. Data-driven model may comprise a convolutional neural network and / or an encoder decoder structure such as an autoencoder. Other examples for generating a representation may be FFT, wavelets, deep learning, like CNNs, energy models, normalizing flows, GANs, vision transformers, or transformers used for natural language processing, Autoregressive Image Modeling, Normalizing Flows, Deep Autoencoders, Deep Energy- Based Models. Supervised or unsupervised schemes may be applicable to generate a representation, also embedding in e.g. cosine or Euclidian metric in ML language. The data-driven model may be parametrized according to a training data set including at least one image and material data, preferably at least one pattern image and material data. In another embodiment, extracting material data may include providing the image to a model and / or receiving material data from the model. In another embodiment, the data- driven model may be trained according to a training data set including at least one image and material data. In another embodiment, the data-driven model may be parametrized according to a training data set including at least one image and material data. The data- driven model may be parametrized according to a training data set to receive the image and provide material data based on the received image. The data-driven model may be trained according to a training data set to receive the image and provide material data as output based on the received image. The training data set may comprise at least one image and material data, preferably material data associated with the at least one image. The image may comprise a representation of the image. The representation may be a lower dimensional representation of the image. The representation may comprise at least a part of the data or the information associated with the image. The representation of an image may comprise a feature vector. In an embodiment, determining a representation, in particular a lower-dimensional representation may be based on principal component analysis (PCA) mapping or radial basis function (RBF) mapping. Determining a representation may also be referred to as generating a representation. Generating a representation based on PCA mapping may include clustering based on features in the pattern image and / or partial image. Additionally or alternatively, generating a representation may be based on neural network structures suitable for reducing dimensionality. Neural network structures suitable for reducing dimensionality may comprise encoder and / or decoder. In an example, neural network structure may be an autoencoder. In an example, neural network structure may comprise a convolutional neural network (CNN). The CNN may comprise at least one convolutional layer and / or at least one pooling layer. CNNs may reduce the dimensionality of a partial image and / or an image by applying a convolution, e.g. based on a convolutional layer, and / or by pooling. Applying a convolution may be suitable for selecting feature related to material information of the pattern image.

[0082] A model may be suitable for determining an output based on an input. In particular, model may be suitable for determining material data based on an image as input. A model may be a deterministic model, a data-driven model or a hybrid model. The deterministic model, preferably, reflects physical phenomena in mathematical form, e.g., including first-principles models. A deterministic model may comprise a set of equations that describe an interaction between the material and the patterned electromagnetic radiation thereby resulting in a condition measure, a vital sign measure or the like. A data-driven model may be a classification model. A hybrid model may be a classification model comprising at least one machine-learning architecture with deterministic or statistical adaptations and model parameters. Statistical or deterministic adaptations may be introduced to improve the quality of the results since those provide a systematic relation between empiricism and theory. In an embodiment, the data-driven model may be a classification model. The classification model may comprise at least one machinelearning architecture and model parameters. For example, the machine-learning architecture may be or may comprise one or more of: linear regression, logistic regression, random forest, piecewise linear, nonlinear classifiers, support vector machines, naive Bayes classifications, nearest neighbors, neural networks, convolutional neural networks, generative adversarial networks, support vector machines, or gradient boosting algorithms or the like. In the case of a neural network, the model can be a multiscale neural network or a recurrent neural network (RNN) such as, but not limited to, a gated recurrent unit (GRU) recurrent neural network or a long short-term memory (LSTM) recurrent neural network. The data-driven model may be parametrized according to a training data set. The data-driven model may be trained based on the training data set. Training the model may include parametrizing the model. The term training may also be denoted as learning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to a process of building the classification model, in particular determining and / or updating parameters of the classification model. Updating parameters of the classification model may also be referred to as retraining. Retraining may be included when referring to training herein. The training data set may include at least one image and material information.

[0083] Extracting material data from the image with a data-driven model may comprise providing the image to a data-driven model. Additionally or alternatively, extracting material data from the image with a data-driven model may comprise may comprise generating an embedding associated with the image based on the data-driven model. An embedding may refer to a lower dimensional representation associated with the image such as a feature vector. Feature vector may be suitable for suppressing the background while maintaining the material signature indicating the material data. In this context, background may refer to information independent of the material signature and / or the material data. Further, background may refer to information related to biometric features such as facial features. Material data may be determined with the data-driven model based on the embedding associated with the image. Additionally or alternatively, extracting material data from the image by providing the image to a data-driven model may comprise transforming the image into material data, in particular a material feature vector indicating the material data. Hence, material data may comprise further the material feature vector and / or material feature vector may be used for determining material data.

[0084] The authentication process may be validated based on the extracted material data. The validating based on the extracted material data may comprise determining if the extracted material data corresponds a desired material data. Determining if extracted material data matches the desired material data may be referred to as validating. Allowing or declining the user and / or object to perform at least one operation on the device that requires authentication based on the material data may comprise validating the authentication or authentication process. Validating may be based on material data and / or image. Determining if the extracted material data corresponds a desired material data may comprise determining a similarity of the extracted material data and the desired material data. Determining a similarity of the extracted material data and the desired material data may comprise comparing the extracted material data with the desired material data. Desired material data may refer to predetermined material data. In an example, desired material data may be skin. It may be determined if material data may correspond to the desired material data. In the example, material data may be non-skin material or silicon. Determining if material data corresponds to a desired material data may comprise comparing material data with desired material data. A comparison of material data with desired material data may result in a allowing and / or declining the user and / or object to perform at least one operation that requires authentication. In the example, skin as desired material data may be compared with non-skin material or silicon as material data and the result may be declination since silicon or non-skin material may be different from skin.

[0085] The authentication process or its validation may include capturing at least one feature vector from the material data and matching the material feature vector with associate reference template vector for material.

[0086] The authentication unit may be configured for authenticating the user in case the user can be identified and / or if the material data matches the desired material data. The device may comprise at least one authorization unit configured for allowing the user to perform at least one operation on the device, e.g. unlocking the device, in case of successful authentication of the user or declining the user to perform at least one operation on the device in case of non-successful authentication. Thereby, the user may become aware of the result of the authentication.

[0087] As used herein, the terms “have”, “comprise” or “include” or any arbitrary grammatical variations thereof are used in a non-exclusive way. Thus, these terms may both refer to a situation in which, besides the feature introduced by these terms, no further features are present in the entity described in this context and to a situation in which one or more further features are present. As an example, the expressions “A has B”, “A comprises B” and “A includes B” may both refer to a situation in which, besides B, no other element is present in A (i.e. a situation in which A solely and exclusively consists of B) and to a situation in which, besides B, one or more further elements are present in entity A, such as element C, elements C and D or even further elements.

[0088] Further, it shall be noted that the terms “at least one”, “one or more” or similar expressions indicating that a feature or element may be present once or more than once typically are used only once when introducing the respective feature or element. In most cases, when referring to the respective feature or element, the expressions “at least one” or “one or more” are not repeated, notwithstanding the fact that the respective feature or element may be present once or more than once.

[0089] Further, as used herein, the terms "preferably", "more preferably", "particularly", "more particularly", "specifically", "more specifically" or similar terms are used in conjunction with optional features, without restricting alternative possibilities. Thus, features introduced by these terms are optional features and are not intended to restrict the scope of the claims in any way. The invention may, as the skilled person will recognize, be performed by using alternative features. Similarly, features introduced by "in an embodiment of the invention" or similar expressions are intended to be optional features, without any restriction regarding alternative embodiments of the invention, without any restrictions regarding the scope of the invention and without any restriction regarding the possibility of combining the features introduced in such way with other optional or non- optional features of the invention.

[0090] The optical element and the device according to the present invention, in one or more of the above-mentioned embodiments and / or in one or more of the embodiments described in further detail below, provide a large number of advantages over known devices and methods of similar kind.

[0091] At least two Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Lasers may be used for illuminating an optical lens. A first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser of the two Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Lasers may be a top surface emitting Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, e.g. in a ‘standard’ design, and a second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser of the two Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Lasers may be a bottom surface emitting Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, e.g. in a ‘flip-chip’ design. The distances of the two Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Lasers to an optical lens may be of a different, particularly with a length difference of the thickness of the Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser chips. The length difference may be caused by the different positions of the emitting surface.

[0092] There may be several expected further advantages. The two separate Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Lasers may be allowing a power and size optimized design for each Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser. Further a close positioning and an optimized size of the Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Lasers may allow for small illumination apertures on the optical lens. Further, the size of the optical lens may be kept minimized.

[0093] Further, the ‘flip-chip’ technology may be expected to result in better thermal performance, particularly of the bottom surface emitting Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, due to a closer proximity of the emitting bottom surface to the supporting member. Therefore, the Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser with the ‘flip-chip’ design may be selected for a channel benefitting most from a higher efficiency.

[0094] Summarizing and without excluding further possible embodiments, the following embodiments may be envisaged:

[0095] Embodiment 1 : An optical element, wherein the optical element comprises:

[0096] (1 ) at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser, wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser comprises an active area situated on a bottom surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser; (2) at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser comprises an active area situated on a top surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, wherein the top surface is opposite of a bottom surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser;

[0097] (3) at least one supporting member; wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser is arranged with the bottom surface on the supporting member; and wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser is arranged with the bottom surface on the supporting member.

[0098] Embodiment 2: The optical element according to the preceding Embodiment, wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser and the second Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser are arranged on the same supporting member.

[0099] Embodiment 3: The optical element according to any one of the preceding

[0100] Embodiments, wherein the supporting member is at least one of:

[0101] - a heat sink;

[0102] - an electrical connector, specifically a printed circuit board;

[0103] - a stiffening element.

[0104] Embodiment 4: The optical element according to any one of the preceding

[0105] Embodiments, wherein the optical element further comprises at least one optical lens, wherein a first distance between the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser, specifically the active area of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser, and the at least one optical lens differs from a second distance between the second Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, specifically the active area of the second Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, and the at least one optical lens.

[0106] Embodiment 5: The optical element according to the preceding Embodiment, wherein the optical lens has at least one focal length, wherein the first distance or the second distance equals the focal length.

[0107] Embodiment 6: The optical element according to the preceding Embodiment, wherein the first distance and the second distance differ by a thickness of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser or a thickness of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0108] Embodiment 7: The optical element according to the preceding Embodiment, wherein the thickness of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser and the thickness of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser are the same. Embodiment 8: The optical element according to any one of the preceding

[0109] Embodiments, wherein a geometrical central axis of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser and a geometrical central axis of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser are parallel.

[0110] Embodiment 9: The optical element according to the preceding Embodiment, wherein the geometrical central axis of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser and the geometrical central axis of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser are coaxial.

[0111] Embodiment 10: The optical element according to any one of the preceding Embodiments, wherein the geometrical central axis of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and / or the geometrical central axis of the second Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser are parallel to a geometrical central axis of the at least one optical lens.

[0112] Embodiment 11 : The optical element according to any one of the preceding Embodiments, wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser comprising the active area situated on the bottom surface is configured for emitting illumination light at least partially in direction of a top surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0113] Embodiment 12: The optical element according to any one of the preceding Embodiments, wherein at least one further component of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser is at least partially transparent for the illumination light emitted by the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0114] Embodiment 13: The optical element according to the preceding Embodiment, wherein the at least one further component of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser is

[0115] - a substrate of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0116] Embodiment 14: The optical element according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser emits illumination light from the active area, and wherein the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser emits illumination light from the active area.

[0117] Embodiment 15: The optical element according to the preceding claim,

[0118] - wherein the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser emits the illumination light from the active area through the at least one first Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, preferably wherein said emitted illumination light traverses through the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser; and

[0119] - wherein the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser emits the illumination light from the active area directly from the top surface of the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser, preferably wherein said emitted illumination light does not travers through the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser.

[0120] Embodiment 16: The optical element according to any one of the two preceding claims, wherein the illumination light emitted by the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser and the illumination light emitted by the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser are emitted at differing heights in respect to the at least one optical lens, wherein the bottom surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser and the bottom surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser are arranged on the supporting member at the same height in respect to the at least one optical lens with a maximum deviation of 10 %, preferably of 5 %.

[0121] Embodiment 17: The optical element according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the top surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser and the top surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser are arranged at the same height in respect to the at least one optical lens with a maximum deviation of 10 %, preferably 5 %.

[0122] Embodiment 18: A device for authenticating a user of a device to perform at least one operation on the device that requires authentication, the device comprising:

[0123] - at least one optical element as explained elsewhere herein, wherein the optical element is configured for emitting illumination light, wherein the illumination light comprises, specifically infrared, flood light and a, specifically infrared, light pattern comprising a plurality of infrared light spots; at least one image generation unit configured for capturing at least one pattern image while the optical element is emitting the, specifically infrared, light pattern and configured for capturing at least one flood image while the optical element is emitting, specifically infrared, flood light; optionally at least one display, wherein the, specifically infrared, light pattern traverses the display while being illuminated from the optical element and / or the, specifically infrared, flood light traverses the display while being illuminated from the optical element, wherein the display of the device is at least partially transparent in at least one continuous area covering the optical element and / or the image generation unit, at least one authentication unit configured for performing at least one authentication process of a user using the flood image and the pattern image. Embodiment 19: The device according to the preceding Embodiment, wherein the display is or comprises at least one organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display.

[0124] Embodiment 20: The device according to any one of the preceding Embodiments referring to a device, wherein the display comprises a display area.

[0125] Embodiment 21 : The device according to any one of the preceding Embodiments referring to a device, wherein the display is made of and / or is covered by glass.

[0126] Embodiment 22: The device according to any one of the preceding Embodiments referring to a device, wherein the display of the device is at least partially transparent in at least two continuous areas.

[0127] Embodiment 23: The device according to any one of the preceding Embodiments referring to a device, wherein the display has a first area associated with a first pixel density value and a second area associated with a second pixel density value, wherein the first pixel density value is lower than the second pixel density value, preferably the first pixel density value is equal or below 450 PPI.

[0128] Embodiment 24: The device according to the preceding Embodiment, wherein the first pixel density value is associated with the at least one continuous area being at least partially transparent.

[0129] Embodiment 25: The device according to any one of the preceding Embodiments referring to a device, wherein the device is selected from the group consisting of: a point of sales terminal; a computer in a motor vehicle; a television device; a game console; a personal computer; a mobile device, particularly a cell phone, and / or a smart phone, and / or a tablet computer, and / or a laptop, and / or a tablet, and / or a virtual reality device, and / or a wearable, such as a smart watch; or another type of portable computer.

[0130] Embodiment 26: The device according to any one of the preceding Embodiments referring to a device, wherein the authentication unit is configured for using a facial recognition authentication process operating on the pattern image, the flood image and / or extracted material data.

[0131] Brief description of the figures

[0132] Further optional details and features of the invention are evident from the description of preferred exemplary embodiments which follows in conjunction with the dependent claims. In this context, the particular features may be implemented in an isolated fashion or in combination with other features. The invention is not restricted to the exemplary embodiments. The exemplary embodiments are shown schematically in the figures. Identical reference numerals in the individual figures refer to identical elements or elements with identical function, or elements which correspond to one another with regard to their functions.

[0133] In the Figures:

[0134] Figure 1 shows a schematic of an exemplary optical element in a side view; and

[0135] Figure 2 shows a schematic of an exemplary device.

[0136] Detailed description of the embodiments

[0137] Figure 1 shows an exemplary optical element 110. The optical element 110 comprises:

[0138] (1) at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112, wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser comprises an active area 114 situated on a bottom surface 116 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112;

[0139] (2) at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118, wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118 comprises an active area 120 situated on a top surface 122 of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118, wherein the top surface 122 is opposite of a bottom surface 124 of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118;

[0140] (3) at least one supporting member 126; wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 122 is arranged with the bottom surface 116 on the supporting member 126; and wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118 is arranged with the bottom surface 124 on the supporting member 126. The first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 122 and the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118 may be arranged on the same supporting member 126.

[0141] The supporting member 126 may be at least one of:

[0142] - a heat sink 127;

[0143] - an electrical connector 129, specifically a printed circuit board,

[0144] - a stiffening element.

[0145] The optical element 110 further may comprise at least one optical lens 128. The first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112 and / or the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118 may be configured for emitting illumination light 144, 146 through the optical lens. A first distance 130 between the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112, specifically the active area 114 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112, and the at least one optical lens 128 differs from a second distance 132 between the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118, specifically the active area 120 of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118, and the at least one optical lens 128.

[0146] The optical lens 128 may have at least one focal length, wherein the first distance 130 or the second distance 132 equals the focal length. The first distance 130 and the second distance 132 may differ by a thickness 132 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112 or a thickness of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118. The thickness of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112 and the thickness of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118 may be the same.

[0147] A geometrical central axis 138 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112 and a geometrical central axis 140 of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118 may be parallel. A normal vector to an emitting surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112 and a normal vector to an emitting surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118 may be parallel. The normal vector to the emitting surface of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112 and / or the normal vector to the emitting surface of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118 may be parallel to a central ray light of a light emitting cone of the respective Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112, 118. The emitting surface may comprise the active area. A geometrical central axis 138 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112 and a geometrical central axis 140 of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118 may be coaxial. The geometrical central axis 138 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112 and / or the geometrical central axis 140 of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118 may be parallel to a geometrical central axis 142 of the at least one optical lens 128.

[0148] The first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112 comprising the active area 114 situated on the bottom surface 116 may be configured for emitting illumination light 144 at least partially in direction of a top surface 147 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112. At least one further component 148 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112 may be at least partially transparent for the illumination light 144 emitted by the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112. The at least one further component 148 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112 may be a substrate 150 of the Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112.

[0149] The at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112 may emit illumination light 144 from the active area 114. The at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118 may emit illumination light 146 from the active area 120.

[0150] The at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112 may emit the illumination light 144 from the active area 114 through the at least one first Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112, preferably wherein said emitted illumination light 144 may traverse through the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112.

[0151] The at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118 may emit the illumination light 146 from the active area 120 directly from the top surface 122 of the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118, preferably wherein said emitted illumination light 146 may not travers through the at least one second Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118.

[0152] The illumination light 144 emitted by the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112 and the illumination light 146 emitted by the at least one second Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118 may be emitted at differing heights in respect to the at least one optical lens 128.

[0153] The term “height” as used herein is a broad term and is to be given its ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art and is not to be limited to a special or customized meaning. The term specifically may refer, without limitation, to a distance measurement along an axis defined the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112 and / or the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 118, wherein said axis goes from the top to the bottom of the respective Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser 112, 118. The axis may be orthogonal to the surface of the substrate 150 on which the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112 and / or the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118 are arranged. In Figure 1 , said axis may be parallel to the first distance 130 and / or the second distance 132.

[0154] Alternatively or in addition, the bottom surface 116 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112 and the bottom surface 128 of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118 may be arranged on the supporting member 126 at the same height in respect to the at least one optical lens 128 with a maximum deviation of 10 %, preferably of 5 %.

[0155] Alternatively or in addition, the top surface 147 of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 112 and the top surface 122 of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser 118 may be arranged at the same height in respect to the at least one optical lens 128 with a maximum deviation of 10 %, preferably 5 %.

[0156] Figure 2 shows an exemplary device for authenticating a user 154 of a device to perform at least one operation on the device that requires authentication. The device comprises:

[0157] - at least one optical element 110 as explained elsewhere herein, wherein the optical element 110 is configured for emitting illumination light 144, 146, wherein the illumination light 144, 146 comprises, specifically infrared, flood light and a, specifically infrared, light pattern comprising a plurality of, specifically infrared, light spots; at least one image generation unit 158 configured for capturing at least one pattern image while the optical element 110 is emitting the, specifically infrared, light pattern and configured for capturing at least one flood image while the optical element 110 is emitting the, specifically infrared, flood light; optionally at least one display 156, wherein the, specifically infrared, light pattern traverses the display 156 while being illuminated from the optical element 110 and / or the, specifically infrared, flood light traverses the display 156 while being illuminated from the optical element 110, wherein the display 156 of the device 152 is at least partially transparent in at least one continuous area covering the optical element 110 and / or the image generation unit 158, at least one authentication unit 160 configured for performing at least one authentication process of a user 154 using the flood image and the pattern image.

[0158] The display 156 may be or may comprise at least one organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display. The display 156 may comprise a display area. The display may be made of and / or may be covered by glass. The display 156 of the device may be at least partially transparent in at least two continuous areas. The display 156 may have a first area associated with a first pixel density value and a second area associated with a second pixel density value, wherein the first pixel density value may be lower than the second pixel density value, preferably the first pixel density value may be equal or below 450 PPI. The first pixel density value may be associated with the at least one continuous area being at least partially transparent.

[0159] The device 152 is selected from the group consisting of: a point of sales terminal; a computer in a motor vehicle; a television device; a game console; a personal computer; a mobile device, particularly a cell phone, and / or a smart phone, and / or a tablet computer, and / or a laptop, and / or a tablet, and / or a virtual reality device, and / or a wearable, such as a smart watch; or another type of portable computer.

[0160] The authentication unit 160 may be configured for using a facial recognition authentication process operating on the pattern image, the flood image and / or extracted material data.

[0161] List of reference numbers

[0162] 110 optical element

[0163] 112 first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser

[0164] 114 active area

[0165] 116 bottom surface

[0166] 118 second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser

[0167] 120 active area top surface bottom surface supporting member heat sink optical lens electrical connector first distance second distance thickness thickness central axis central axis central axis illumination light illumination light top surface component substrate device user display detector evaluation unit

Claims

Claims1. An optical element (110), wherein the optical element (110) comprises:(1) at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112), wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112) comprises an active area (114) situated on a bottom surface (116) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112);(2) at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118), wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (118) comprises an active area (120) situated on a top surface (122) of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (118), wherein the top surface (122) is opposite of a bottom surface (124) of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (118);(3) at least one supporting member (126); wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112) is arranged with the bottom surface (116) on the supporting member (126); and wherein the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (118) is arranged with the bottom surface (124) on the supporting member (126).

2. The optical element (110) according to the preceding claim, wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112) and the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (118) are arranged on the same supporting member (126).

3. The optical element (110) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the supporting member (126) is at least one of:- a heat sink (127);- an electrical connector (129), specifically a printed circuit board,- a stiffening element.

4. The optical element (110) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the optical element (110) further comprises at least one optical lens (128), wherein a first distance (130) between the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112), specifically the active area (114) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112), and the at least one optical lens (128) differs from a second distance (132) between the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (118), specifically the active area (120) of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118), and the at least one optical lens (128).

5. The optical element (110) according to the preceding claim, wherein the optical lens (128) has at least one focal length, wherein the first distance (130) or the second distance (132) equals the focal length.

6. The optical element (110) according to the preceding claim, wherein the first distance (130) and the second distance (132) differ by a thickness of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112) or a thickness of the second Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118).

7. The optical element (110) according to the preceding claim, wherein the thickness (134) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112) and the thickness (136) of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118) are the same.

8. The optical element (110) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a geometrical central axis (138) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-EmittingLaser (112) and a geometrical central axis (140) of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118) are parallel.

9. The optical element (110) according to the preceding claim, wherein the geometrical central axis (138) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112) and the geometrical central axis (140) of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118) are coaxial.

10. The optical element (110) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the geometrical central axis (138) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112) and / or the geometrical central axis (140) of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118) are parallel to a geometrical central axis (142) of the at least one optical lens (128).11 . The optical element (110) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112) comprising the active area (114) situated on the bottom surface (116) is configured for emitting illumination light (144) at least partially in direction of a top surface (147) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112).

12. The optical element (110) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least one further component (148) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112) is at least partially transparent for the illumination light (144) emitted by the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112).

13. The optical element (110) according to the preceding claim, wherein the at least one further component (148) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112) is:- a substrate (150) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112).

14. The optical element (110) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112) emits illumination light (144) from the active area (114), and wherein the at least one second Vertical- Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118) emits illumination light (146) from the active area (120).

15. The optical element (110) according to the preceding claim,- wherein the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112) emits the illumination light (144) from the active area (114) through the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112), preferably wherein said emitted illumination light (144) traverses through the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112); and- wherein the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118) emits the illumination light (146) from the active area (120) directly from the top surface (122) of the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118), preferably wherein said emitted illumination light (146) does not travers through the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (118).

16. The optical element (110) according to any one of the two preceding claims, wherein the illumination light (144) emitted by the at least one first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112) and the illumination light (146) emitted by the at least one second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (118) are emitted at differing heights in respect to the at least one optical lens (128), wherein the bottom surface (116) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (112) and the bottom surface (128) of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (118) are arranged on the supporting member (126) at the same height in respect to the at least one optical lens (128) with a maximum deviation of 10 %, preferably of 5 %.

17. The optical element (110) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the top surface (147) of the first Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (112) and the top surface (122) of the second Vertical-Cavity Surface- Emitting Laser (118) are arranged at the same height in respect to the at least one optical lens (128) with a maximum deviation of 10 %, preferably 5 %.

18. A device (152) for authenticating a user (154) of a device (152) to perform at least one operation on the device (152) that requires authentication, the device comprising:- at least one optical element (110) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the optical element (110) is configured for emitting illumination light (144, 146), wherein the illumination light (144, 146) comprises flood light and an light pattern comprising a plurality of infrared light spots;at least one image generation unit (158) configured for capturing at least one pattern image while the optical element (110) is emitting the light pattern and configured for capturing at least one flood image while the optical element (110) is emitting the flood light; optionally at least one display (156), wherein the light pattern traverses the display (156) while being illuminated from the optical element (110) and / or the flood light traverses the display (156) while being illuminated from the optical element (110), wherein the display (156) of the device (152) is at least partially transparent in at least one continuous area covering the optical element (110) and / or the image generation unit (158), at least one authentication unit (160) configured for performing at least one authentication process of a user (154) using the flood image and the pattern image.

19. The device (152) according to the preceding claim, wherein the device (152) is selected from the group consisting of: a point of sales terminal; a computer in a motor vehicle; a television device; a game console; a personal computer; a mobile device, particularly a cell phone, and / or a smart phone, and / or a tablet computer, and / or a laptop, and / or a tablet, and / or a virtual reality device, and / or a wearable, such as a smart watch; or another type of portable computer.

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