See-through 3D Glasses with Segmented Optical Enclosure
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional VR/AR display devices are bulky, heavy, and restrictive, limiting user mobility and comfort, as they are designed as head-mounted goggles that obstruct outside vision and are not suitable for tasks beyond immersive experiences.
Innovation Solution
A wearable display device designed as a pair of glasses with a minimal number of parts, using optical fibers to transport content from a separate enclosure to the glasses, where it is projected onto lenses, allowing see-through functionality and incorporating prisms or waveguides for 3D imaging, along with wireless connectivity for interaction, to reduce weight and enhance usability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional VR/AR display devices are designed as head-mounted goggles, then immersive virtual reality experience is achieved, but the device becomes bulky, heavy, and obstructs outside vision
Solution Approach 1:
The system is divided into two separate components: a lightweight glasses frame that provides the display interface and a separate enclosure containing the heavy electronic components (processor, battery, storage). This segmentation allows the glasses to remain lightweight while the enclosure houses the immersive VR/AR processing capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The heavy electronic components (processor unit, battery, storage device) are extracted from the glasses frame and placed in a separate portable enclosure. This extraction removes the weight burden from the user's head while maintaining the functional capabilities for immersive VR/AR experiences.
2Reliability
If head-mounted goggles are used for VR/AR display, then virtual reality content is delivered, but user mobility and comfort are limited
Solution Approach 1:
By separating the glasses frame from the enclosure containing electronic components, the system enables user mobility. The lightweight glasses can be worn comfortably while the user moves freely, and the enclosure can be carried separately or attached to clothing via straps or clips.
Solution Approach 2:
An optical cable with optical fibers acts as an intermediary to transmit visual content wirelessly from the enclosure to the glasses frame, enabling mobility while maintaining content delivery. The optical connection allows the user to move within a reasonable distance without restricting movement.
3Reliability
If traditional goggle design is used, then VR/AR display functionality is provided, but the device is bulky and heavy compared to normal glasses
Solution Approach 1:
The device is segmented into a simple glasses frame structure and a separate enclosure. The glasses frame itself remains structurally simple and lightweight, while the enclosure contains all the complex electronic components, thereby reducing the structural complexity of the wearable portion.
Solution Approach 2:
Complex electronic components (processor, battery, storage) are extracted from the glasses frame and placed in the enclosure. This extraction simplifies the glasses frame to primarily optical and structural elements, making it more similar to normal glasses in terms of structure.
4Ease of operation
If see-through functionality is added to allow outside vision, then user comfort and mobility improve, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The lenses are designed with local optical properties that allow them to function as both display screens and transparent windows. The optical fibers and projection system are localized to specific regions, enabling see-through functionality without requiring complex optical components throughout the entire glasses structure.
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 provides a lightweight, compact, and cost-effective VR/AR display that allows users to engage with both virtual and augmented reality while maintaining the ability to perform other tasks, offering enhanced mobility and comfort with clear, distortion-free 3D visuals.
Implementation Method 1
transported by optical fibers in the optical cable to the glasses
Implementation Method 2
The optical image is picked up by a focal lens from a micro display device
Implementation Method 3
each of the lenses includes a prism in a form that propagates an optical image being projected onto one edge of the prism to an optical path that a user can see the optical image
Data Source
AI summary
Architecture and designs of wearable devices for viewing multimedia in 3D are described. According to one aspect of the present invention, a display device is made in form of a pair of glasses. A separate enclosure is provided to generate content for display on the glasses. The content is optically picked up by an optical cable and transported by one or more optical fibers in the optical cable to the glasses, where an image polarizer receives the content and produces an alternating polarized content sequence. An optical cube is provided to decouple the alternating polarized content sequence into two orthogonally polarized image sequences are respectively projected onto two lenses.