Wearable 3D augmented reality display with variable focus and/or object recognition
A wearable 3D augmented reality display and method, which may include 3D integral imaging optics.
1. A 3D augmented reality display, comprising:
a microdisplay for providing a virtual 3D image for display to a user;
variable focus display optics configured to receive optical radiation from the microdisplay and configured to create a 3D lightfield having a 3D volume of the received radiation at a location that may be varied by the variable focus optics; and
an eyepiece in optical communication with the display optics configured to receive the volume of the 3D lightfield the variable focus display optics and configured to create a magnified virtual image of the 3D lightfield having a magnified 3D volume, at a virtual reference plane and configured to deliver the magnified 3D volume of the virtual image to an exit pupil of the augmented reality display.
2. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 1 , wherein the variable focus display optics includes a liquid lens.
3. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 1 , comprising an imaging device configured to receive information from a scene.
4. A 3D augmented reality display, comprising:
a microdisplay for providing a virtual 3D image for display to a user;
display optics configured to receive optical radiation having a 3D volume of the microdisplay and configured to create a 3D lightfield from the received radiation;
an eyepiece in optical communication with the display optics configured to receive the volume of the 3D lightfield the display optics and configured to create a magnified virtual image of the 3D lightfield having a magnified 3D volume, at a virtual reference plane and configured to deliver the magnified 3D volume of the virtual image to an exit pupil of the augmented reality display; and
an imaging device configured to receive information from a scene.
5. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the imaging device comprises a camera.
6. The 3D imaging augmented reality display claim 3 , wherein the imaging device comprises an integral imaging image capture system.
7. The 3D imaging augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the imaging device comprises a 3D imaging capture system using axially distributed imaging.
8. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the imaging device includes an information capture unit for analyzing the information received by the imaging device to perform object recognition thereon.
9. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the imaging device is disposed in communication with the microdisplay to provide the analysis to the microdisplay.
10. The 3D imaging augmented reality display and object recognition of claim 3 , wherein the image capture device includes a variable focal length optics to provide enhanced performance in terms of depth of field.
11. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the display optics comprises integral imaging optics.
12. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the eyepiece comprises a selected surface configured to receive the 3D lightfield the display optics and reflect the received radiation to the exit pupil, the selected surface also configured to receive optical radiation from a source other than the microdisplay and to transmit the optical radiation to the exit pupil.
13. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the eyepiece comprises a freeform prism shape.
14. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the eyepiece comprises a first surface configured to receive and refract optical radiation the display optics and comprises a second surface configured to receive the refracted optical radiation the first surface, the second surface configured to reflect the optical radiation to a third surface of the eyepiece, the third surface configured to reflect the optical radiation reflected the second surface to the exit pupil.
15. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 14 , comprising a corrector lens disposed adjacent the second surface of the eyepiece.
16. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein one or more of the surfaces of the eyepiece comprise a rotationally asymmetric surface.
17. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the eyepiece comprises a wedge shape.
18. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the eyepiece comprises a surface represented by the equation
z
=
cr
2
1
+
1
-
(
1
+
k
)
c
2
r
2
+
∑
j
=
2
66
C
j
x
m
y
n
j
=
(
m
+
n
)
2
+
m
+
3
n
2
+
1
,
where z is the sag of the free-form surface measured along the z-axis of a local x, y, z coordinate system, c is the vertex curvature (CUY), r is the radial distance, k is the conic constant, and C j is the coefficient for x m y n .
19. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the display optics comprises one or more of a holographic display, multi-layer computational lightfield display, and a volumetric display.
20. The 3D imaging augmented reality display of claim 3 , wherein the 3D lightfield provides full parallax.
21. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 1 , wherein the variable focus display optics includes a liquid crystal lens.
22. The 3D augmented reality display of claim 1 , wherein the variable focus display optics includes one or more of a membrane mirror and a birefringent lens.