Polymer Optical Waveguide Layers for Thin, Accurate Color Displays
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional optical waveguides for head-up displays are limited by the use of thick, rigid glass substrates that require complex surface treatments, leading to high costs and thickness, and suffer from angular errors and color superposition issues, especially in automotive applications.
Innovation Solution
A method for producing optical waveguides using translucent materials like lacquer or optically clear adhesive, which are cured and structured to form substrates and cover layers, eliminating the need for glass and achieving precise surface properties without complex post-processing, allowing for reduced thickness and improved angular accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If thick glass substrates are used in conventional optical waveguides, then structural strength and rigidity are improved, but the overall thickness and cost increase, and surface treatment complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter from thick glass substrates to thin transparent polymer layers, achieving the required structural strength with dramatically reduced thickness. The polymer material allows for thin-film construction while maintaining mechanical integrity through proper material selection and layer design.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs composite material structure by combining transparent polymer layers with metallic or dielectric reflective layers to create the waveguide. This composite approach provides both structural strength and optical functionality without requiring thick glass substrates, eliminating the need for complex surface treatments.
2Manufacturing precision
If complex surface treatment is applied to glass substrates, then surface properties and flatness are improved, but manufacturing cost and process complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive, durable glass substrates requiring complex surface treatment with cheaper transparent polymer layers that inherently provide the required surface properties. The polymer material can be deposited directly in thin layers with adequate flatness without requiring subsequent complex surface treatment processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent substitutes the mechanical surface treatment process with a material selection approach, where the transparent polymer material itself provides the required surface properties through its inherent characteristics rather than requiring post-deposition mechanical or chemical treatment.
3Ease of manufacture
If three stacked monochrome optical waveguides are used for full-color display, then color separation is achieved, but angular errors and color superposition issues occur at steep viewing angles
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by separating the full-color display into three monochrome waveguide layers, each handling a specific color wavelength range. This layered segmentation allows independent optimization of each color channel while maintaining overall angular accuracy through precise alignment and integrated design.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite material structure by stacking three transparent polymer layers with different optical properties for different colors. This composite waveguide structure eliminates angular errors and color superposition issues by designing each layer's optical characteristics to work together harmoniously at various viewing angles.
4Stability of the object's composition
If glass substrates with thickness greater than 1 mm are used, then structural stability is improved, but the waveguide thickness and overall product thickness increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the thickness parameter from millimeter-scale glass substrates to micrometer-scale transparent polymer layers. This parameter change maintains structural stability through proper material selection and layer design while reducing the thickness by several orders of magnitude, enabling thin-form-factor optical waveguides.
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 method results in cost-effective, flexible optical waveguides with enhanced surface properties, reducing thickness and angular errors, and enabling full-color displays with expanded eyebox size.
Implementation Method 1
A method for producing optical waveguides using translucent materials like lacquer or optically clear adhesive, which are cured and structured to form substrates and cover layers
Implementation Method 2
an optical waveguide that causes light coming from an imaging unit, which is incident through a first light incidence surface, to undergo repeated internal reflection to move in a first direction away from the first light incidence surface
Implementation Method 3
a first light-incident-side diffraction grating that diffracts incident light to cause the diffracted light to enter the optical waveguide
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to an optical waveguide (5) for a display apparatus and to a method for producing such an optical waveguide. The optical waveguide (5) comprises a substrate (54) on which a hologram layer (56) is arranged. A cover layer (55) is arranged on the hologram layer (56) and consists of a light-permeable material which has undergone a curing process. The substrate (54) may be made of glass. Alternatively, the substrate (54) also consists of a light-permeable material which has undergone a curing process.