Tunable field of view liquid microlens
US6778328B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 28, 2003 |
| Grant date | Aug 17, 2004 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 28, 2023 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG02B3/14
- WIPO fieldOptics
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A tunable microlens is disclosed that having a substrate with a non-zero radius of curvature in a way such that the microlens is able to achieve a new directional view without manual repositioning. The directional view of the microlens is altered by applying a voltage to at least one of a plurality of electrodes and thereby causing a voltage differential between the at least one of a plurality of electrodes and a conducting droplet of liquid disposed on the substrate with a non-zero radius of curvature. As the droplet moves to a different point along the surface of the substrate having a non-zero radius of curvature, the directional view the microlens changes in a way such that light originating from the new directional view is more advantageously focused into an image on a detector. The field of view of the microlens is limited only by the area on the substrate over which the droplet can move. An array of such microlenses may be used to facilitate a wider field of view.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.