Multiview Display Light Guide and Diffraction Grating Design
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Passive displays lack the ability to emit light, limiting their practical applications and requiring coupling with external light sources, such as backlights, to overcome this limitation.
Innovation Solution
A multiple view-zone multiview display that uses a light guide and diffraction gratings to emit directional light beams representing multiview images or 3D images, where the light source is offset longitudinally to create collimated guided light beams, and diffraction gratings scatter these beams into different view zones with non-overlapping angular ranges, allowing for concurrent display of different images to multiple viewers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If passive displays are coupled to an external light source such as a backlight, then the display ability is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The display device uses its own structure (light guide and diffraction gratings) to generate and direct light without requiring an external backlight source. The light guide captures light from the light source and redirects it through the diffraction gratings to create multiview images, making the system self-sufficient and eliminating the need for separate backlight components.
Solution Approach 2:
The light guide serves multiple functions: it transmits light from the light source, directs it to the diffraction gratings, and enables the display of multiple views simultaneously. The diffraction gratings also serve dual purposes by both directing light to specific viewing angles and creating the multiview image structure, reducing the need for separate components.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple pixel arrays with different viewing angles are used, then the multiview capability is improved, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The display is divided into multiple pixel arrays, with each array dedicated to a specific viewing angle. The diffraction gratings are correspondingly segmented into multiple sets, with each set serving a specific angular range. This segmentation allows for independent optimization of each viewing angle and simplifies the manufacturing process by reducing the complexity of creating precise angular variations across the entire display.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the display have specialized properties optimized for their specific viewing angles. Each pixel array and corresponding diffraction grating set are designed with local characteristics tailored to their angular range, allowing for optimized performance in each region without requiring the entire display to meet the highest precision requirements simultaneously.
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
Enables the creation of multiview images or 3D images without the need for external light sources, providing a 'glasses-free' autostereoscopic representation of information in various devices, including mobile and non-mobile applications, by steering directional light beams into specific view zones based on grating characteristics.
Implementation Method 1
a light guide configured to guide the collimated guided light beams
Implementation Method 2
a plurality of sets of diffraction gratings on the light guide, with each set of diffraction gratings configured to scatter or diffract out a respective portion of the collimated guided light beams as a respective plurality of directional light beams representing the multiview images
Data Source
Figure 1A~2
Figure 3A~3B
Figure 3C
AI summary
A multiple view-zone static multiview display employs diffraction gratings configured to provide directional light beams having principal angular directions for views of multiview images of the static multiview display. The multiple view-zone static multiview display includes a light guide that guides light from a light source. The light source may include an optical emitter, which may be offset in a longitudinal direction. The optical emitter of the light source provides within the light guide a collimated guided light beam having a propagation angle determined by the longitudinal offset of the optical emitter. Moreover, different sets of diffraction gratings scatter or diffract out different portions of the collimated guided light beam as different pluralities of directional light beams representing the multiview images into different view zones. These view zones may have different, non-overlapping angular ranges, which may be separated by a blank zone.