Super-resolution scanning display for near-eye displays

• US 10,690,922 B2
• Filed: 04/13/2018
• Issued: 06/23/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/13/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: META Platforms Technologies LLC (Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.))
• Original Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC (Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.))
• Inventors: Taylor, Byron, Trail, Nicholas Daniel
• Primary Examiner(s): Cherry, Euncha P
• Application Number:
  US15/953,317
• Publication Number:
  US 20190317329A1
• Time in Patent Office: 802 Days
• Field of Search: 3592044
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0147 comprising a device modifying the resolution of the displayed image
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0178 Eyeglass type eyeglass details G02C
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 26/105 with one or more pivoting mirrors or galvano-mirrors G02B26/101 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0172 characterised by optical features
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/42 Diffraction optics , i.e. systems including a diffractive element being designed for providing a diffractive effectG02B27/60 takes precedence

Abstract

A super-resolution scanning display. The scanning display includes a light source, a conditioning assembly, and a scanning mirror assembly. The light source is configured to emit source light from a plurality of columns of emitters formed along a first dimension, including at least a first column of emitters emitting in a first band of light and a second column of emitters emitting in a second band of light which are offset along the first dimension by a fraction of an emitter width and offset along a second dimension—that is orthogonal to the first dimension—by greater than the emitter width. The conditioning assembly receives and conditions the source light. The scanning mirror assembly scans the conditioned light along the second dimension to generate a portion of an image at a first location with a resolution that is more than a first threshold number of emitters in a unit angle in the first dimension.

Claims

1. A scanning display comprising:

a light source configured to emit source light from a plurality of columns of emitters that are formed along a first dimension, the plurality of columns of emitters including a first column of emitters that emit in a first band of light, and a second column of emitters that emit in a second band of light, and the first column of emitters is offset in the first dimension from the second column of emitters by a fraction of an emitter width, and offset in a second dimension that is orthogonal to the first dimension by a distance that is greater than the emitter width;

a conditioning assembly configured to condition the source light; and

a scanning mirror assembly configured to scan the conditioned source light along the second dimension to generate a portion of an image at a first location, wherein the portion of the image has a resolution that is more than a threshold number of emitters in a unit angle in at least the first dimension.

2. The scanning display of claim 1, wherein emitters of the light source are selected from a group consisting of:

light emitting diodes (LEDs), organic LEDs (OLEDs), microLEDs, lasers, vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers, or some combination thereof.

3. The scanning display of claim 1, wherein the first band of light is different from the second band of light.

4. The scanning display of claim 1, wherein the first band of light is the same as the second band of light.

5. The scanning display of claim 1, wherein the emitter width is a length of an emission surface of the emitter along the first dimension.

6. The scanning display of claim 5, wherein the emission surface is circular.

7. The scanning display of claim 1, wherein a resolution in the second dimension of the portion of the image is more than a second threshold number of emitters in a unit angle.

8. The scanning display of claim 1, wherein conditioning the source light comprises at least one of collimating the source light, focusing the source light, and transforming the source light.

9. The scanning display of claim 1, wherein the first location is an entrance to a waveguide of a near-eye display (NED).

10. The scanning display of claim 1, wherein the offset in the second dimension is further greater than a length of a column of emitters.

11. A scanning display comprising:

a first light source configured to emit source light in a first band of light, the first light source including a first plurality of columns of emitters that are formed along a first dimension, the first plurality of columns of emitters including a first column of emitters and a second column of emitters, and the first column of emitters is offset in the first dimension from the second column of emitters by a fraction of an emitter width, and offset in a second dimension that is orthogonal to the first dimension by a distance that is greater than the emitter width;

a second light source configured to emit source light in a second band of light, the second light source including a second plurality of columns of emitters that are formed along the first dimension, the second plurality of columns of emitters including a third column of emitters and a fourth column of emitters, and the third column of emitters is offset in the first dimension from the fourth column of emitters by a fraction of the emitter width, and offset in the second dimension by a distance that is greater than the emitter width;

a conditioning assembly configured to condition the source light from the first light source and the source light from the second light source; and

a scanning mirror assembly configured to scan the conditioned source light along the second dimension such that source light from the first light source overlaps with source light from the second light source to generate a portion of an image at a first location, wherein the portion of the image has a resolution that is more than a first threshold number of emitters in a unit angle in at least the first dimension.

12. The scanning display of claim 11, wherein emitters of the first light source and the second light source are selected from a group consisting of:

light emitting diodes (LEDs), organic LEDs (OLEDs), microLEDs, lasers, vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers, or some combination thereof.

13. The scanning display of claim 11, wherein the first band of light is different from the second band of light, wherein the portion of the image is formed from light in the first band and light in the second band.

14. The scanning display of claim 11, wherein the emitter width is a length of an emission surface of the emitter along the first dimension.

15. The scanning display of claim 11, wherein a resolution in the second dimension of the portion of the image is more than a second threshold number of emitters in a unit angle.

16. The scanning display of claim 15, wherein the first threshold number is 1 active emitter per 2 arcminutes of solid angle, and the second threshold number is 1 active emitter per 2 arcminutes of solid angle.

17. The scanning display of claim 11, wherein conditioning the source light comprises at least one of collimating the source light, focusing the source light, and transforming the source light.

18. The scanning display of claim 11, wherein the first location is an entrance to a waveguide of a near-eye display (NED).

19. The scanning display of claim 11, wherein the offset in the second dimension between the first column of emitters and the second column of emitters is further greater than a length of a column of emitters.

20. The scanning display of claim 11, wherein the resolution in the first dimension of the portion of the image is based in part on a combination of:

a timing of scanning of the conditioned source light along the second dimension by the scanning mirror assembly,

the offset between the first column of emitters and the second column of emitters formed along the first dimension in the first light source, and

the offset between the third column of emitters and the fourth column of emitters formed along the first dimension in the second light source.