Compact catadioptric projector
US12007569B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 26, 2023 |
| Grant date | Jun 11, 2024 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 26, 2043 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04N13/239
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A compact projector for eyewear including a refractive lens to achromatize an image and to reduce the size of the projector. The compact projector includes two total internal reflection (TIR) prisms, a polarizing beamsplitter, a quarter-wave plate, and the refractive lens combining refractive and reflective power, referred to as catadioptric. In one example, a light source generates light that is directed through a collector, into a first TIR prism, to the polarizing beamsplitter, and to a display panel. The display panel modulates the light and creates an image. The image is directed through the beamsplitter, into a second TIR prism, through a quarter-wave plate, and then to the refractive lens. The refractive lens reflects the image back into the second TIR prism, and which image then exits to a waveguide. In a second example, the display generates an illuminated image which is then processed as in the first example.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.