US 12,487,458 B2
Near-eye image projection system having foveated projection and expanded eye-box region
Tomas Sluka, Lausanne (CH)
Assigned to Creal SA, Ecublens VD (CH)
Appl. No. 17/915,041
Filed by CREAL SA, Ecublens VD (CH)
PCT Filed Apr. 14, 2020, PCT No. PCT/IB2020/053484
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Sep. 27, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/209785, PCT Pub. Date Oct. 21, 2021.
Prior Publication US 2023/0168511 A1, Jun. 1, 2023
Int. Cl. G02B 27/01 (2006.01); G02B 27/00 (2006.01); G02B 27/09 (2006.01)
CPC G02B 27/0172 (2013.01) [G02B 27/0081 (2013.01); G02B 27/0093 (2013.01); G02B 27/0179 (2013.01); G02B 27/0944 (2013.01); G02B 2027/0123 (2013.01); G02B 2027/0138 (2013.01); G02B 2027/0147 (2013.01); G02B 2027/0187 (2013.01)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A near-eye image projection system, comprising:
a pin-light array generating a plurality of incident light beams illuminating an optical light modulator configured for modulating the incident light beams and projecting a plurality of modulated light-beams;
an optical element configured to project the plurality of modulated light beams such as to form pin-light images at a first pin-light plane and project a plurality of projected image light beams defining an eye-box region along a projection axis;
wherein said plurality of modulated light beams comprises a plurality of foveal modulated light beams forming foveal pupil images and projecting a plurality of foveal projected image light beams defining a foveal eye-box region;
wherein said plurality of modulated light beams further comprises a plurality of peripheral modulated light fields forming peripheral pupil images;
the system further comprising an exit pupil expansion device configured to project a plurality of pupil expanded light beams for each of the peripheral pin-light images, said plurality of pupil expanded light beams forming peripheral projected image light beams defining a peripheral eye-box region wider than the foveal eye-box region;
wherein the expansion device is configured to transmit the foveal modulated light beams unaffected by the expansion device, such that the foveal modulated light beams form foveal modulator images at a modulator image plane;
wherein the optical element comprises a first pin-light image optical element configured to project the plurality of foveal modulated light beams such as to form foveal modulator images at the modulator image plane; and
wherein the image projection system further comprises, at the first pin-light plane, a deflecting element configured to deflect said peripheral modulated light beams with respect to the projection axis and form shifted modulator images spatially shifted along the modulator image plane.