AR Lens With Internal Reflective Coating for Slim Profile
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing augmented reality eyewear is uncomfortable due to the need for frequent focus shifts between virtual images and surrounding environments, and often has aesthetically unpleasing designs with thick lenses or conspicuous frames, which can deter users from wearing them in public.
Innovation Solution
A lens design featuring two body sections with different indices of refraction, coupled to form an internal interface with a reflective coating, allowing image light to be redirected towards the eye, eliminating the need for external optics and providing a slim, aesthetically pleasing profile similar to traditional eyewear.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Shape
If image generating hardware is housed within the eyewear lenses to minimize frame profile, then the lenses become very thick and heavy, but the frame profile is minimized
Solution Approach 1:
The lens is divided into multiple optical zones with different functions: a first optical zone for projecting virtual images and a second optical zone for viewing the natural environment. This segmentation allows each zone to be optimized independently, enabling the lens to achieve the desired frame profile minimization without requiring excessive thickness to accommodate all optical functions in a single zone.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the lens are assigned different optical properties and functions. The first optical zone contains the reflective coating and virtual image projection optics, while the second optical zone maintains standard optical properties for environmental viewing. This local differentiation allows the lens to provide enhanced AR functionality in specific areas without making the entire lens excessively thick or heavy.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a reflective coating is added to redirect light within the lens, then virtual image projection is enabled, but the lens structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The reflective coating is integrated directly into the lens structure itself, merging the light redirection function with the lens body. This eliminates the need for separate external mirrors or complex optical assemblies, as the lens material itself contains the reflective properties needed to project virtual images while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The lens serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as both a protective transparent cover and an active optical element for virtual image projection. The same lens structure that protects the eye also contains the reflective coating to redirect light and create virtual images, eliminating the need for separate dedicated AR optical components.
3Reliability
If the lens is designed with multiple body sections and internal interfaces, then light redirection efficiency is improved, but manufacturing difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The lens incorporates nested optical elements where the reflective coating is embedded within the lens material structure. The multiple body sections are arranged concentrically or in nested configurations, with internal interfaces positioned to optimize light redirection paths while maintaining a compact overall form factor that simplifies manufacturing alignment.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enhances user interaction by projecting virtual images in the field of vision without distracting from the natural environment, while offering a visually appealing and socially acceptable augmented reality experience.
Implementation Method 1
The reflective coating may include at least one of silver, nickel, aluminum, titanium, chromium, various dielectric stack materials including metal oxides, silicon oxides, glass or other suitable materials to create a surface which reflect a significant amount of light.
Implementation Method 2
The first and second body sections may have the same, substantially similar, or substantially different indices of refraction.
Data Source
AI summary
A lens for projecting a virtual image comprising first and second body sections coupled along first and second surfaces to form an internal interface within the lens, and a reflective coating on at least a portion of either the first surface or the second surface configured to redirect light projected into the second body section toward an eye of a wearer. Another lens comprising first and second body sections having different indices of refraction, and an interface configured to redirect light toward an eye of a wearer for display as a virtual image. A method for manufacturing a lens comprising providing a first body section, casting on a first surface of the first body section a material for forming a second body section, and curing the material to form the second body section and bond it to the first body section to form a unitary lens.