Abstract: A two-dimensional/three-dimensional (2D/3D) switchable display backlight and a 2D/3D switchable electronic display employ a switchable diffuser to support 2D/3D switching. The 2D/3D switchable display backlight includes a plate light guide, a multibeam diffraction grating to couple light out of the plate light guide and the switchable diffuser to intercept and selectably either pass or scatter light beams of the coupled-out light. The 2D/3D switchable electronic display includes the backlight and further includes a light valve array to modulate the coupled-out light. The switchable diffuser facilitates selectability between a three-dimensional pixel and a two-dimensional pixel of the 2D/3D switchable electronic display.

Abstract: A multiview backlight and a multiview display employ multibeam elements configured to provide a plurality of light beams having different principal angular directions corresponding to different view directions of the multiview display. The display includes multiview pixels that include sub-pixels. A size of the multibeam element is comparable to a size of a sub-pixel in a multiview pixel of the multiview display.

Abstract: Multibeam diffraction grating-based backlighting includes a light guide and a multibeam diffraction grating at a surface of the light guide. The light guide is configured to guide light from a light source. The multibeam diffraction grating is configured to couple out a portion of the guided light using diffractive coupling and to direct the diffractively coupled out portion away from the light guide as a plurality of light beams with different principal angular directions having directions corresponding to view directions of a multiview display.

Abstract: A dual layer backlight employs a first planar backlight to emit light and a second planar backlight to provide a plurality of coupled-out light beams. The second planar backlight includes a plate light guide and a multibeam diffraction grating configured to diffractively couple out a portion of a guided light beam within the plate light guide as the plurality of coupled-out light beams. A light beam of the coupled-out light beam has a different principal angular direction from other light beams of the coupled-out light beam plurality. A two-dimensional/three-dimensional (2D/3D) mode-switchable electronic display includes the dual layer backlight and a light valve array configured to selectively modulate emitted light as 2D pixels in a first mode and the coupled-out light beams as 3D pixels corresponding to the different 3D views in a second mode of the electronic display.

Abstract: Multiview displays include a backlight and a screen used to form a plurality of multiview pixels. Each multiview pixel includes a plurality of sets of light valves. The backlight includes a light source optically coupled to a plate light guide configured with a plurality of multibeam diffraction gratings. Each multibeam diffraction grating corresponds to a set of light valves and is spatially offset with respect to a center of the set of light valves toward a center of the multiview pixel. The plurality of multibeam diffraction gratings is also configured to diffractively couple out light beams from the plate light guide with different diffraction angles and angular offsets such that at least a portion of the coupled-out light beams interleave and propagate in different view directions of the multiview display.

Abstract: Multiview displays include a backlight and a screen used to form a plurality of multiview pixels. Each multiview pixel includes a plurality of sets of light valves. The backlight includes a light source optically coupled to a plate light guide configured with a plurality of multibeam elements. Each multibeam element corresponds to a set of light valves and is spatially offset with respect to a center of the set of light valves toward a center of the multiview pixel. The plurality of multibeam elements are also configured to couple out light from the plate light guide with different angles and angular offsets such that at least a portion of the coupled-out light beams interleave and propagate in different view directions of the multiview display.

Abstract: A head-tracking multiview display and a head-tracking multiview display system selectively provide a primary set of views and a secondary view representing a perspective view of a scene that is angularly adjacent to the primary view set. The head-tracking multiview display includes a multibeam backlight configured to provide a plurality of light beams corresponding to different view directions of a multiview image and a light valve array configured to modulate the light beams to provide a plurality of views including the primary view set and the secondary view. The head-tracking multiview display system further includes a head tracker configured to determine a position of a user. At a first determined position the head-tracking multiview display is configured to provide the primary view set and at a second determined position the head-tracking multiview display being configured to provide the augmented view set.

Abstract: Dual light guide, grating-based backlighting redirects light guided in a first light guide in a first direction into a second light guide in a second direction of a grating-based backlight. A dual light guide, grating-based backlight includes the first light guide, the second light guide and a redirection coupler configured to redirect the guided light beam from the first light guide into the second light guide in the second direction. The dual light guide, grating-based backlight further includes a diffraction grating configured to diffractively couple out a portion of the redirected light beam from the second light guide as a coupled-out light beam directed away from a surface of the second light guide at a predetermined principal angular direction.

Abstract: A polarization-mixing light guide includes a plate light guide and a polarization retarder within the plate light guide. The light guide is to guide a beam of light at a non-zero propagation angle. The light beam includes a first polarization component and a second polarization component. The polarization retarder is to redistribute the first and second polarization components of the guided light beam into predetermined combinations of the polarization components. The light guide is to preferentially scatter out a portion of the guided light beam having the first polarization component. A three-dimensional (3-D) electronic display includes an array of multibeam diffraction gratings at a surface of the plate light guide to preferentially couple out the first polarization component of the guided light beam as a plurality of light beams having different principal angular directions.

Abstract: A near-eye display and a binocular near-eye display system provide a plurality of different views of an image to different locations within an eye box to impart focus depth cues to a user. The near-eye display includes a multibeam diffraction grating-based display configured to provide the different views and an optical system configured to relay the different views to the different locations within the eye box. The binocular near-eye display system includes a pair of the multibeam diffraction grating-based displays and a binocular optical system configured to provide and relay a stereoscopic image pair representing a three-dimensional (3D) scene to a corresponding pair of laterally displaced eye boxes.

Abstract: Dual-direction collimation and a dual-direction optical collimator provide dual-direction collimated light at a non-zero propagation angle. The dual-direction collimator includes a vertical collimator configured to collimate light in a vertical direction and a horizontal collimator configured to collimate the vertically collimated light in a horizontal direction. The horizontal collimator is located at an output of the vertical collimator. A three-dimensional (3D) display includes the dual-direction collimator, a plate light guide and an array of multibeam diffraction gratings at a surface of the plate light guide to couple out the dual-direction collimated light guided in the plate light guide as a plurality of light beams corresponding to different 3D view of the 3D electronic display.

Abstract: Grating-based backlighting includes a light guide and a plurality of reflective grating islands spaced apart from one another and optically coupled to the light guide. The light guide is to guide a light beam at a non-zero propagation angle and a reflective grating island includes a reflection mode diffraction grating that is configured to diffractively couple out a portion of the guided light beam as a coupled-out light beam at a predetermined principal angular direction.

Abstract: A mode-selectable backlight and display employ a plurality of directional scattering features to provide emitted light. The mode-selectable backlight includes a light guide, a first directional scattering feature to provide first emitted light from guided light having a first propagation direction within the light guide in a first operational mode, and a second directional scattering feature to provide second light from guided light having a second propagation direction within the light guide in a second operational mode. The second emitted light comprises a plurality of directional light beams having different principal angular directions from one another and the first propagation direction differing from the second propagation direction. The mode-selectable display further includes a plurality of light sources to provide the guided light and an array of light valves configured to modulate the emitted light as a displayed image.

Abstract: Vehicle monitoring employs three-dimensional (3D) information in a region adjacent to a vehicle to visually highlight objects that are closer to the vehicle than a threshold distance. A vehicle monitoring system includes a 3D scanner to scan the region adjacent to the vehicle and provide a 3D model including a spatial configuration of objects located within the scanned region. The vehicle monitoring system further includes an electronic display to display a portion of the scanned region using the 3D model and to visually highlight an object within the displayed portion that is located less than the threshold distance from the vehicle.

Abstract: A diffractive backlight system includes a light source and a plate light guide. A surface of the plate light guide is configured with a diffraction grating that couples light out of the plate light guide and concentrates the light into a localized region of space. The diffractive backlight system may be used with at least one light valve array to form a display that generates images for viewing in the localized region of space. The display may be incorporated in head-mounted displays in order to generate focused augmented or virtual reality images for wearers.

Abstract: Diffraction grating-based backlighting having controlled diffractive coupling efficiency includes a light guide and a plurality of diffraction gratings at a surface of the light guide. The light guide is to guide light and the diffraction gratings are to couple out a portion of the guided light using diffractive coupling and to direct the coupled-out portion away from the light guide surface as a plurality of light beams at a principal angular direction. Diffraction gratings of the plurality include diffractive features having a diffractive feature modulation configured to selectively control a diffractive coupling efficiency of the diffraction gratings as a function of distance along the light guide surface.

Abstract: A polarized backlight employs a light source configured to provide polarized light and a light guide to guide the polarized light. A polarization-preserving scattering feature optically coupled to the light guide is configured to scatter a portion of the guided polarized light out of the light guide as emitted polarized light. A polarization of the emitted polarized light is determined by a polarization of the guided polarized light.

Abstract: Unidirectional grating-based backlighting includes a light guide and a diffraction grating at a surface of the light guide. The light guide is to guide a light beam and the diffraction grating is configured to couple out a portion of the guided light beam using diffractive coupling and to direct the coupled-out portion away from the light guide as a primary light beam at a principal angular direction. The diffraction grating is to further produce a secondary light beam directed into the light guide at an opposite one of the principal angular direction. The unidirectional grating-based backlighting further includes an angularly selective reflective layer within the light guide adjacent to the light guide surface that is configured to reflectively redirect the diffractively produced, secondary light beam out of the light guide in the direction of the primary light beam.

Abstract: A multiview backlight and a multiview display employ multibeam elements configured to provide a plurality of light beams having different principal angular directions corresponding to different view directions of the multiview display. The display includes multiview pixels that include sub-pixels. A size of the multibeam element is comparable to a size of a sub-pixel in a multiview pixel of the multiview display.

Abstract: Color-scanning grating-based backlighting includes a color scanning protocol to provide different colors of light in different regions of a plate light guide with an intervening dark region. A color-scanning grating-based backlight includes the plate light guide and a diffraction grating configured to diffractively couple out a portion of a guided light beam as a coupled-out light beam directed away from a plate light guide surface at a predetermined principal angular direction. The backlight further includes a multicolor light source configured to provide the different colors of light to the plate light guide as the guided light beam according to the color scanning protocol. Provided light of a first color in a first region is separated from provided light of a second color in a second region one or both by the intervening dark region and by a light-confining wall of the plate light guide.