A direct time of flight depth system includes an addressable illumination source, an active depth sensor, and a controller. The addressable illumination source includes an array of emitters and an optical assembly that is used to generate an array of dots emitted into a local area. Each emitter is independently addressable, allowing selective illumination of different portions of the local area. The addressable illumination source is aligned with the active depth sensor so each dot maps to a corresponding macropixel (e.g., 4×4 array of SPADs) on the active depth sensor. Data from the active depth sensor is readout and used to determine depth information.

The head-up display includes an imaging position changer configured to change a position of a virtual image between a far visual position far from an observer and a near visual position close to the observer. The imaging position changer inclines the virtual image at the far visual position by a second inclination angle with respect to a perpendicular plane to a reference light beam reaching a center of a viewpoint region in which a viewpoint of the observer is located, to move an upper end thereof in a forward direction of the moving object, and inclines the virtual image at the near visual position by a first inclination angle smaller than the second inclination angle with respect to the perpendicular plane to the reference light beam, to move the upper end in the forward direction of the moving object.

A multi-focal picture generation apparatus, a head-up display apparatus, a related method, and a device are provided. The multi-focal picture generation apparatus includes a picture generation unit, an optical splitter, and a focal length adjuster. The picture generation unit is configured to generate a first focal plane of the multi-focal picture generation apparatus. The optical splitter is configured to: perform optical splitting on the picture generation unit, and irradiate a light beam obtained through optical splitting onto a surface of the focal length adjuster. The focal length adjuster is configured to perform focal length adjustment on the light beam irradiated onto the surface of the focal length adjuster, to generate a second focal plane of the multi-focal picture generation apparatus.

One example display apparatus includes a multi-focus image generation device with a plurality of different focal lengths, configured to generate a first plurality of images, where focal planes of the first plurality of images are located in different positions. The example display apparatus includes a light diffuser screen, disposed on an image plane of the multi-focus image generation device, and configured to receive the first plurality of images, and diffuse light beams of the first plurality of images to generate a second plurality of images. The example display apparatus includes an optical image device, configured to image light beams of the second plurality of images to form a third plurality of images with different imaging distances.

Several unique hardware configurations and methods for freeform optical display systems are disclosed. A freeform display system includes primary freeform optical element(s) and secondary freeform optical element(s) in tiled arrangements to expand the horizontal field of view (FOV) or the vertical field of view. The system may include a variable focusing system that produces intermediate pupil and changes the focal distance of a single focal plane or switches among multiple focal planes for rendering objects in focus while resolving accommodation-convergence conflict. The system may map light samples to appropriate light rays in physical space and use a cluster of projectors to project the mapped light rays to produce the light field of the virtual display content. Methods for making tiled freeform optical display systems and methods for producing virtual content with variable focus freeform optics and rendering light fields are also disclosed.

A display system (300) comprising an optical system and a processing system. The optical system comprising a spatial light modulator (380), a light source, a Fourier transform lens, a viewing system (320, 330) and a processing system. The spatial light modulator is arranged to display holographic data in the Fourier domain, illuminated by the light source. The Fourier transform lens is arranged to produce a 2D holographic reconstruction in the spatial domain (310) corresponding to the holographic data. The viewing system is arranged to produce a virtual image (350) of the 2D holographic reconstruction. The processing system is arranged to combine the Fourier domain data representative of a 2D image with Fourier domain data representative of a phase only lens to produce first holographic data, and provide the first holographic data to the optical system to produce a virtual image.

An apparatus and a method for image display include a projection screen, a projection device, a control unit, and an imaging element. The projection screen is movable back and forth along an axis perpendicular to the projection face under control from the control unit. The control unit is configured to divide an image to be projected into a set of sub-images depending on distances, of one or more objects in the image, to be perceived by a user along the axis, and to control the projection screen and the projection device such that the projection device projects the set of sub-images onto the projection face when the projection face is moving to different positions respectively. The imaging optical element is configured to form a virtual image of the respective sub-image when the projection face is moving to the corresponding position.

Included are a first display element configured to display a first virtual image; a second display element configured to display a second virtual image; a combining optical member configured to combine first imaging light and second imaging light; a light-guiding optical system configured to guide light that passed through the combining optical member; and a correction optical system provided between the first display element and the combining optical member and configured to correct an aberration in accordance with a positional difference between the first display element and the second display element.

A method of operating an AR system to display an image viewable by a user's eyes includes tracking, by an eye-tracking subsystem, a position of the user's eyes and determining, based on the position, a focus depth of the user's eyes. The method also includes selecting, from a plurality of light-guiding optical elements, a subset of light-guiding optical elements configured to focus light at a depth plane corresponding to the focus depth of the user's eyes, producing a plurality of light beams using a subset of sub-light sources of a plurality of sub-light sources, the subset of sub-light sources being configured to illuminate the subset of light-guiding optical elements, and imaging the plurality of light beams through an imaging system and onto the subset of light-guiding optical elements such that the image is generated at the depth plane corresponding to the focus depth of the user's eyes.

An image display apparatus includes a display device configured to modulate light to form an image; a driver configured to drive the display device such that a position of the display device varies; a light transmitter configured to transmit the image formed by the display device to an observers eye and comprising a focusing member; and a processor configured to generate a light modulation signal and a driving signal according to image information and control the display device and the driver according to the light modulation signal and the driving signal, respectively.