Electro-optic Patents (Class 359/245)
  • Patent number: 11971551
    Abstract: An optical device includes variable optical material that alters at least one of: incident ambient light, spectral content of incident ambient light or direction of incident ambient light through the optical device in response to a stimulus provided by the device. The device can sense intensity and/or spectral characteristics of ambient light and provide appropriate stimulus to various portions of the optical device to activate the variable optical material and alter at least one of: incident ambient light, spectral content of incident ambient light or direction of incident ambient light.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 30, 2024
    Assignee: Magic Leap, Inc.
    Inventors: Eric Baerenrodt, Nastasja U. Robaina, Nicole Elizabeth Samec, Christopher M. Harrises, Mark Baerenrodt
  • Patent number: 11966113
    Abstract: A composite pane having an electrically controllable functional element that can be switched in segments, includes first and second panes joined to one another via an intermediate layer, and a functional element with a plurality of side edges embedded in the intermediate layer. The functional element includes, arranged flat one over another, a first surface electrode and a second surface electrode, between which an active layer is arranged flat. The first surface electrode is divided into multiple segments by a separating line. A group of first busbars electrically conductively contact the first surface electrode, and each segment of the first surface electrode is electrically conductively contacted by one busbar from the group of the first busbars. A second busbar electrically conductively contacts the second surface electrode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2024
    Assignee: SAINT-GOBAIN GLASS FRANCE
    Inventors: Jefferson Do Rosario, Florian Manz, Sebastian Schurse, Johannes Wolf
  • Patent number: 11929590
    Abstract: An optical semiconductor device includes an optical semiconductor chip in which at least one optical element is formed in a semiconductor substrate, and an extended wire pattern that is connected to a first electrode and a second electrode of the optical element and that extends outside the optical semiconductor chip. The first electrode and the second electrode of the optical semiconductor device are formed on the front surface side of the optical semiconductor chip, and the extended wire pattern is disposed on the front surface of the optical semiconductor chip or disposed at a position apart from the front surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2024
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventor: Nobuyuki Ogawa
  • Patent number: 11927644
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for circuit failure detection for a diode array. The apparatus includes a diode array, a diode array test circuit electrically coupled to the diode array and operable to perform circuit failure detection during a test mode when a test input voltage is applied, the diode array test circuit includes an input resistor, an input voltage node, a buffered amplifier circuit, and a plurality of amplifier circuit switches. The apparatus further includes a current detector electrically coupled to the output of the buffered amplifier circuit and operable to determine, during the test mode, a current measurement of the pulse laser diode array.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2024
    Assignee: AMS AG
    Inventor: Rahim Akbari-Dilmaghai
  • Patent number: 11907811
    Abstract: An optical reservoir computing (ORC) system has a near-UV light emitting diode modulator (LED-M), a beam expander (BE), a fluorescer array (FA), an optical integrator (OA), a liquid crystal spatial light modulator (LC-SLM), and a photo-detector array (PDA). The LED-M receives an input electrical signal and outputs an optical signal passing through the BE, being made incident upon the FA, being processed in the OA, and being multiplexed onto the LC-SLM. “Non-Linearity” is introduced by overlapping responses to input signals by the FA. “High Dimensionality” is provided by the random but fixed time-wavelength multiplexing onto an imaging plane by a Fresnel-Kohler Integrator (FKI). “Fading Memory” is provided by different decay time constants of the fluorescers. A method of using the ORC system comprises the steps of minimizing an error function of difference between a measured state of the PDA and a target state of the PDA by a regression model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 25, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2024
    Assignee: SCIENCE CADETS, INC.
    Inventors: Anwesh Patnaik Sahu, Saroj Kumar Sahu
  • Patent number: 11898905
    Abstract: Aspects and embodiments relate to a plasmonic metamaterial structure, applications and devices including that plasmonic metamaterial structure, and a method of forming that plasmonic metamaterial structure. Aspects and embodiments provide a plasmonic metamaterial structure which comprises: a plurality of optical antenna elements. The plurality of optical antenna elements comprise: a first electrode, a second electrode and a plasmonic nanostructure element located between the first and second electrode to form an electron tunnelling junction between the first and second electrodes. The plurality of optical antenna elements are configured such that the electromagnetic field of one optical antenna element spatially overlaps that of adjacent optical antenna elements and adjacent optical antenna elements are electromagnetically coupled to allow the plurality of optical antenna elements to act as a plasmonic metamaterial.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2024
    Assignee: King's College London
    Inventors: Anatoly Zayats, Pan Wang, Mazhar Nasir, Wayne Dickson, Alexey Krasavin
  • Patent number: 11899331
    Abstract: A method of controlling tint of a tintable window to account for occupant comfort in a room of a building. The tintable window is between the interior and exterior of the building. The method predicts a tint level for the tintable window at a future time based on a penetration depth of direct sunlight through the tintable window into the room at the future time and space type in the room. The method also provides instructions over a network to transition tint of the tintable window to the tint level.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 13, 2024
    Assignee: View, Inc.
    Inventor: Stephen Clark Brown
  • Patent number: 11888526
    Abstract: An optical transmitter includes an electro-optic modulator, a monitor circuit that monitors output light of the electro-optic modulator, and a processor that controls a bias voltage of the electro-optic modulator using a monitoring result of the monitor circuit, wherein the processor superimposes a first dither signal with a first frequency and a second dither signal with a second frequency different from the first frequency, onto one bias voltage in a time sharing manner, calculates a first control error based on a first component oscillating at the first frequency and a second control error based on a second component oscillating at the second frequency based on the monitoring result, and determines a control value for controlling the bias voltage using the first control error and the second control error.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 24, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2024
    Assignee: FUJITSU LIMITED
    Inventors: Shoichi Murakami, Kosuke Komaki, Hidetoshi Sato, Yuya Osumi, Yusuke Shigeta
  • Patent number: 11874542
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides a light control glass and a method for detecting a tension thereof. The light control glass includes: two opposite glass substrates with a receiving space therebetween; and a tension detection circuit board in the receiving space. The light control glass further includes a first electromagnetic plug coupled to the tension detection circuit hoard, and a joint of the first electromagnetic plug is exposed from an outer edge of the two opposite glass substrates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2024
    Assignees: BEIJING BOE SENSOR TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD., BOE TECHNOLOGY GROUP CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Dahai Hu, Chen Meng, Siheng Xu, Zhong Hu, Jiarong Liu, Wenjie Zhong, Guo Liu, Binbin Liu, Yongbo Wang
  • Patent number: 11874535
    Abstract: An irradiation device for an additively manufacturing apparatus may include a working beam generation device configured to provide a working beam, a modulation beam generation device configured to provide a modulation beam, and a solid-state optical modulator that includes a crystalline material that exhibits a change in refractive index in response to photoexcitation of free electrons within the crystalline material. The irradiation device may include a power source coupled to the solid-state optical modulator and configured to introduce free electrons into the crystalline material. The modulation beam may cause photoexcitation of the free electrons within the crystalline material. The photoexcitation of the free electrons within the crystalline material may cause the crystalline material to exhibit a change in refractive index.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 16, 2024
    Assignee: Concept Laser GmbH
    Inventors: Maik Zimmermann, Florian Bechmann
  • Patent number: 11869898
    Abstract: An array substrate and display device are provided. The array substrate includes a base substrate, and gate lines, data lines, compensation blocks and sub-pixels located on the base substrate. Two gate lines are arranged between two adjacent rows of sub-pixels. The data lines are provided with multiple first extensions and second extensions arranged alternately. The extending direction of the first extensions intersects with the extending direction of the second extensions. The gate lines and data lines define multiple first pixel areas and second pixel areas on the base substrate. Two sub-pixels are arranged in the first pixel area, and one sub-pixel is arranged in the second pixel area. The multiple first pixel areas are arranged in an array, the multiple second pixel areas are arranged in two columns, and multiple columns of the first pixel areas are located between the two columns of the second pixel areas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2024
    Assignees: BEIJING BOE DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD., BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Wenkai Mu, Shijun Wang, Yi Liu, Bo Feng, Yang Wang, Zhan Wei, Li Tian
  • Patent number: 11860366
    Abstract: A system comprising an illumination system to direct light from one or more light sources to a limiting output pupil of a projection optomechanical system, a liquid crystal on silicon display panel (LCOS) to modulate the light from the projection optomechanical system and to direct the modulated light back toward the projection optomechanical system, and an in-coupler to a combiner waveguide to receive the modulated light from the LCOS, after it passes through the projection optomechanical system. The system in one embodiment is designed so that the light that passes through the projection optomechanical system from the illumination system lands on the LCOS within the limiting output pupil of the projection optomechanical system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2021
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2024
    Assignee: Avegant Corp.
    Inventors: Aaron Matthew Eash, Andrew John Gross, Christopher David Westra, Edward Chia Ning Tang, Warren Cornelius Welch, III, Michael Alexander Young
  • Patent number: 11852560
    Abstract: In a first aspect, a testing assembly for conducting reliability tests on liquid lenses includes a liquid lens, and a test frame arranged to receive the liquid lens. The liquid lens includes a lens body defining a cavity, a first liquid disposed within the cavity, and a second liquid disposed within the cavity that is substantially immiscible with the first liquid such that an interface between the first liquid and the second liquid forms a lens. The test frame includes a front wall, and a back wall oriented substantially parallel to the front wall. The liquid lens mounts to at least one of the front wall or the back wall and the test frame simulates a smart device incorporating a liquid lens.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2023
    Assignee: CORNING INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Petr Gorelchenko, Raymond Miller Karam, Jonathan David Pesansky, Michael David Shorkey, Ming Ying
  • Patent number: 11835837
    Abstract: An example system includes a high-side electrode layer including a number of discrete electrodes and a low-side electrode layer. The system further includes an electro-optic (EO) layer including an EO active material positioned between the high-side electrode layer and the low-side electrode layer, thereby forming a number of active cells of the EO layer. Each of the number of active cells of the EO layer includes a portion of the EO layer that is positioned between one of the discrete electrodes and the low-side electrode layer. The example system further includes an insulator operationally coupled to the active cells of the EO layer, and at least partially positioned between a first one of the active cells and a second one of the active cells.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2023
    Assignee: Exciting Technology LLC
    Inventors: Paul F. McManamon, Abtin Ataei
  • Patent number: 11816905
    Abstract: A vehicular vision system includes an electronic control unit (ECU) disposed at an interior rearview mirror assembly of a vehicle equipped with the vehicular vision system that includes electronic circuitry and associated software, a driver monitoring camera disposed at the interior rearview mirror assembly and having a field of view of a driver region in a cabin of the vehicle, and an occupant monitoring camera disposed at the interior rearview mirror assembly and having a field of view of an occupant region in the cabin of the vehicle. The electronic circuitry of the ECU includes an image processor operable to process image data captured by the driver monitoring camera and the occupant monitoring camera. The ECU, via processing at the ECU of image data captured by the driver monitoring camera, determines attentiveness of a driver of the vehicle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 14, 2023
    Assignee: Magna Electronics Inc.
    Inventors: Nagender Reddy Kasarla, Sujith Gurram, Suresh Boddi
  • Patent number: 11762257
    Abstract: An electro-optic device comprises in order, an electrically-conductive light-transmissive layer, an electro-optic material layer, an adhesive layer, and a backplane substrate comprising a plurality of pixel electrodes configured to apply an electrical potential between the electrically-conductive light-transmissive layer and the pixel electrodes. An activation region, comprising an identification marker, is located in a layer of the electro-optic device and it emits radiation of a characteristic wavelength upon activation by a stimulus, enabling the identification of the manufacturing source and the manufacturing lot of the electro-optic device and its components. The technology is also relevant for a front plane laminate and a double release sheet, which are useful components for the manufacture of electro-optic devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: E Ink Corporation
    Inventors: Stephen J. Telfer, Brian D. Bean, Lynne C. Garone, Simon Pang, Jay William Anseth
  • Patent number: 11700060
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention comprise a signal processing method and apparatus for use in a satellite payload in which an input RF signal received at a receiver antenna is modulated by using a single optical carrier at the input of an optical modulator. The optical domain signal is processed and is subsequently combined with a single unmodulated optical LO tone to provide an output RF signal for radiation by a transmitter antenna or for further digital processing by an on-board processor. This results in a clean generation of the frequency-converted RF signal at the output of the opto-electrical conversion stage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2023
    Assignee: Airbus Defence and Space Limited
    Inventors: Katarzyna Balakier, Laguna Victor Manuel Fernandez, Niall Andrew Macmanus, Stephen Phillip Brown
  • Patent number: 11694644
    Abstract: Methods for driving an electrophoretic medium including two pairs of oppositely charged particles. The first pair including a first type of positive particles and a first type of negative particles and the second pair consists of a second type of positive particles and a second type of negative particles, wherein the first pair of particles and the second pair of particles have different charge magnitudes (identifiable as zeta potentials). In particular, the driving methods produce cleaner optical stakes of the lesser-charged particles with less contamination from the other particles and more consistent electro-optical performance when the intermediate driving voltages are modified.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 29, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2023
    Assignee: E Ink California, LLC
    Inventors: Craig Lin, Feng-Shou Lin
  • Patent number: 11652445
    Abstract: An optoelectronic oscillator (OEO) including a drift compensation circuit is provided. The OEO includes a set of optical domain components communicatively coupled with a set of RF domain components. The RF domain components include a mode selection filter, a phase locked loop (PLL) and a drift compensation circuit communicatively coupled between the mode selection filter and the PLL. The mode selection filter provides a mode selection result to the drift compensation circuit. The drift compensation circuit phase modulates the mode selection result in a vector based coordinate system to maintain a drift compensated mode selection result within a locking bandwidth of the PLL, and to minimize phase shifting from accumulating phase drift. The PLL detects a phase difference between the drift compensated mode selection result and a reference signal, for use in maintaining the PLL in a phase lock with the reference signal, in particular over wide operational temperature ranges.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Assignee: Nanowave Technologies Inc.
    Inventors: Trevor James Hall, Charles William Tremlett Nicholls, Boris Spokoinyi, Mehedi Hasan
  • Patent number: 11650296
    Abstract: Designs and implementations of light detection and ranging (LiDAR) systems that project light at a set of different wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) wavelengths based on WDM optical designs to reduce the number of components, complexity of LiDAR optical systems, the weight and cost of LiDAR systems for a wide range of applications.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Inventor: Xiaotian Steve Yao
  • Patent number: 11650436
    Abstract: An optical communication device may include a driver component, arranged to achieve a driving voltage, and a modulator component, including a laser or arranged to receive light from a laser. The modulator component may be arranged to achieve a modulated light signal modulated based on the driving voltage. The device may include a transmission line arranged to transfer the driving voltage between the driver component and the modulator component. The transmission line may not impedance matched to the driver component, the transmission line may have an impedance which is at least 20% lower than an output impedance of the driver component, and the transmission line may be impedance matched with respect to signal reflections to the modulator component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Assignee: II-VI DELAWARE, INC.
    Inventors: Andrei Kaikkonen, Simon Chen, Robert Lewén, Osamu Mizuhara
  • Patent number: 11619854
    Abstract: A transmittance-variable film, a use thereof, and a smart window including the same are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, a transmittance-variable film includes a first electrode substrate, a first electrode insulating layer disposed on the first electrode substrate, an electrophoretic layer, a second electrode insulating layer, and a second electrode insulating layer disposed on the second electrode substrate, wherein the first electrode substrate, the electrophoretic layer, and the second electrode substrate are sequentially arranged, and wherein the first and second electrode insulating layers contain a fluorine-based resin. Upon repeated driving of the film between a transparent mode and a black mode, the transmittance-variable film can maintain a transmittance constant in the transparent mode and exhibit an excellent light shielding ratio in the black mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2023
    Inventors: Young Sik Yoon, Tae Gyun Kwon, Moon Soo Park
  • Patent number: 11619855
    Abstract: An optical transceiver including a submount, a Mach-Zehnder Modulator (MZM), bonding wires, and a low pass filter type matching network is provided. The MZM includes an input port and an output port and disposed on the submount. The bonding wires are coupled to the submount and the MZM. The low pass filter type matching network is coupled to the bonding wires and is configured to absorb inductance of the bonding wires at a high frequency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2023
    Assignees: OE SOLUTIONS AMERICA, INC., OE SOLUTIONS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Moon Soo Park, Tae Young Jeon
  • Patent number: 11600754
    Abstract: A light-emitting device (100A) includes: a lead frame (110) including a die paddle (111) and a lead (112) spaced apart from each other; a light-emitting die (120) attached on the die paddle (111); a wire (130) bonding the light-emitting die (120) to the lead (112), wherein a first end (131) of the wire (130) and a region of the light-emitting die (120) to which the first end (131) of the wire (130) is bonded form a first necking area (141); a first resin cover (150a) covering the first necking area (141); and a second resin cover (160) covering the first resin cover (150a), the light-emitting die (120), and the wire (130). The first resin cover (150a) has a hardness lower than a hardness of the second resin cover (160).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2023
    Assignee: Lumileds LLC
    Inventors: Hua Sin Yew, Hui Ling Pan, Xinping Yan
  • Patent number: 11579510
    Abstract: A variable light transmission device has at least one layer of electrophoretic medium comprising charged particles. Application of a an electric field having a waveform formed by a superposition of a carrier and a modulator waveform enables the switching of the device from a closed state to an open state, wherein the open state has higher light transmission than the closed state. As a result, the device enables the selection of the desired optical state by the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2023
    Assignee: E Ink Corporation
    Inventors: Kosta Ladavac, Richard J. Paolini, Jr., Stephen J. Telfer, Lee Yezek, Sunil Krishna Sainis, Peter Carsten Bailey Widger
  • Patent number: 11561447
    Abstract: A decoration element including a color developing layer including a light reflective layer, a light absorbing layer provided on the light reflective layer, and a convex portion or concave portion having an asymmetric-structured cross-section; an electrochromic device provided on any one surface of the color developing layer; and an in-mold label layer provided on the other surface of the color developing layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2023
    Assignee: LG CHEM, LTD.
    Inventors: Yong Chan Kim, Ki Hwan Kim, Nansra Heo, Jeong Woo Shon, Pilsung Jo
  • Patent number: 11513414
    Abstract: An electro-optic display having a viewing surface through which a user views the display, a bistable, electrophoretic medium, and at least one electrode arranged to apply an electric field to the electrophoretic medium, the display further comprising at least 10 micromoles per square meter of the viewing surface of at least one compound having an oxidation potential more negative that about 150 mV with respect to a standard hydrogen electrode, as measured at pH 8, where the compound is a sulfite salt or a salt of titanium (III), vanadium (II), iron (II), cobalt (II) or copper (I), a hydroquinone, a catechol, a dihydropyridine or a metallocene.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: E Ink Corporation
    Inventors: Stephen J. Telfer, Peter Carsten Bailey Widger, Ana L. Lattes, Dan John Lauber
  • Patent number: 11435449
    Abstract: An electro-optical device includes a radiation source, which is configured to emit multiple beams of light. A scanner includes an array of cells. Each cell is positioned to receive one or more of the beams of light and includes transparent entrance and exit faces, at least one of the faces comprising a flexible membrane. A volume of a transparent fluid is contained between the entrance and exit faces, so that the one or more of the beams enter the volume through the entrance face and exit the volume through the exit face. At least one actuator is coupled to the flexible membrane, and configured, responsively to an applied electrical signal, to apply an asymmetrical deformation to the flexible membrane, thereby deflecting the beams by refraction in the transparent fluid. A controller is configured to vary the electrical signal so as to scan the beams of light over respective angular ranges.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2022
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventor: Arnaud Laflaquière
  • Patent number: 11425847
    Abstract: An electro-optic modulator includes a base plate, an optical waveguide, at least one set of modulation electrodes, and an electromagnetic shielding structure. The electromagnetic shielding structure includes a top shielding member covering the set of modulation electrodes from above, and a side shielding member disposed on two sides of the set of modulation electrodes. At least a portion of the side shielding member extends into the base plate to isolate the set of modulation electrodes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2022
    Assignee: Innolight Technology (Suzhou) Ltd.
    Inventors: Dongdong Yan, Xianyao Li
  • Patent number: 11415857
    Abstract: An electrochromic film, which is a reflective electrochromic film, which includes an electrode layer, a light absorbing layer and an electrochromic layer. The film can improve an electrochromism rate and realize various colors or esthetic senses.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 23, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 16, 2022
    Assignee: LG CHEM, LTD.
    Inventors: Yong Chan Kim, Song Ho Jang, Ki Hwan Kim, Pil Sung Jo
  • Patent number: 11379050
    Abstract: The invention relates to a peripheral (1) including at least one transparent key (2), actuable under the effect of pressure and engaged in an opening (11) arranged on a first face (10a) of a case (10), the peripheral (1) including a system (13) for controlling and detecting a pressure exerted on the key (2), and at least one screen (4) allowing symbols (3) to be displayed through each key (2) via respectively a display path (5), the control and detection system (13) including a flexible membrane (14) ensuring an actuating force and a pressure feedback effect and including at least one orifice (17), each orifice delimiting a display path (5) for a key (2), and each orifice (17) being delimited by a border (17a) cooperating with a key (2).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2022
    Assignee: GROUPE LDLC
    Inventors: Laurent Faivre, Yuria Puggioni
  • Patent number: 11364709
    Abstract: A functional element having electrically controllable optical properties, includes a stack sequence of at least a first carrier film, an active layer, and a second carrier film, wherein at least one exit surface of the active layer on at least one lateral face of the stack sequence of the functional element is sealed at least in sections with a barrier material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2022
    Assignee: SAINT-GOBAIN GLASS FRANCE
    Inventors: Marcel Klein, Alicia Dröge
  • Patent number: 11345218
    Abstract: A right side windshield is capable of changing a visible light transmittance of an upper part including an upper end, and a left side windshield is also capable of changing a visible light transmittance of an upper part. A light control switch is disposed on an instrument panel around a driver seat of a vehicle. The light control switch is operated to reduce the visible light transmittance of the upper part. The reduction in the transmittance can be performed simultaneously with the reduction in the visible light transmittance of an upper part of a front windshield.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 31, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Ryusuke Tanaka
  • Patent number: 11320699
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to the field of display technology, and discloses a display panel and a manufacturing method. The display panel includes a first substrate, a second substrate, a liquid crystal, and a backlight module, wherein the first substrate includes a display area and a bonding area adjacent to the display area, and the display area of the first substrate on one side close to the second substrate is provided with thin film transistors arranged in an array mode; the second substrate is disposed opposite to the display area of the first substrate; the liquid crystal is encapsulated between the first substrate and the second substrate; the area of the second substrate is smaller than that of the first substrate, and the second substrate is between the first substrate and the backlight module.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 17, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2022
    Assignees: Beijing BOE Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd., BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yizhe Li, Shenkang Wu, Qi Jing, Xingpan Sun
  • Patent number: 11314123
    Abstract: A composite pane having electrically controllable optical properties, includes an outer pane, a first intermediate layer, a second intermediate layer, and an inner pane, a functional element having electrically controllable optical properties, which is arranged between the first intermediate layer and the second intermediate layer, and a thermoplastic frame layer, which surrounds the functional element in the manner of a frame, wherein the outer pane and the inner pane are joined to one another via the first intermediate layer, the second intermediate layer, and the thermoplastic frame layer, and an optical waveguide is arranged at least partially between the outer pane and the inner pane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 26, 2022
    Assignee: SAINT-GOBAIN GLASS FRANCE
    Inventors: Valentin Schulz, Marcel Klein, Sebastian Schurse
  • Patent number: 11307351
    Abstract: Provided are an optical waveform shaping apparatus and an optical waveform shaping method. According to an embodiment, the optical waveform shaping apparatus includes a multiplexer/demultiplexer (D/MUX) unit demultiplexing an optical signal in which optical signals of a plurality of wavelengths are multiplexed, a micro lens system refracting the demultiplexed optical signal into a collimated beam of light, and a wavelength level controller unit shaping a waveform of the optical signal. The wavelength level controller unit includes a 2D LCoS for adjusting and reflecting an amplitude or a phase value of the demultiplexed optical signal to have a distribution that is desired for each cell, and a controller for controlling the distribution.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2022
    Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
    Inventors: Sang-Pil Han, Minhyup Song, Sungil Kim
  • Patent number: 11300845
    Abstract: Electrochromic devices with reflective structure and related manufacturing methods are provided. One of the electrochromic devices includes a bottom electrode layer, an electrochromic layer on the bottom electrode layer, an electrolyte layer on the electrochromic layer, a charge storage layer on the electrolyte layer, and a top electrode on the charge storage layer. The transmittance of the electrochromic device changes in response to a voltage applied between the bottom electrode layer and the top electrode layer. One of the bottom and the top electrode layers is a reflective conductive layer, while the other being a transparent conductive layer. This electrochromic device has a simplified structure due to the removal of a separated reflective film, which also results in simplified manufacturing process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 12, 2022
    Assignee: Furcifer Inc.
    Inventors: Jian Wang, Zhao Chen, Yan Zhou
  • Patent number: 11287701
    Abstract: A switchable panel is described that includes exterior layers, lamination layers extending between the exterior layers to outer edges of the switchable panel, a switchable component extending between the lamination layers and having a switchable component height, and a tension control component that prohibits a change of greater than ten percent to the switchable component height when tension is applied to the switchable panel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Peter F. Masschelein, Yuan Chen, Derek C. Scott
  • Patent number: 11281032
    Abstract: A composite substrate for an electro-optic element includes: an electro-optic crystal substrate having an electro-optic effect; a support substrate bonded to the electro-optic crystal substrate at least via an amorphous layer; and a low-refractive-index layer located between the electro-optic crystal substrate and the amorphous layer and having a lower refractive index than the electro-optical crystal substrate. The amorphous layer is constituted of one or more elements that constitute a layer or a substrate contacting the amorphous layer from one side and one or more elements that constitute a layer or a substrate contacting the amorphous layer from another side.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2022
    Assignee: NGK INSULATORS, LTD.
    Inventors: Tomoyoshi Tai, Jungo Kondo
  • Patent number: 11280954
    Abstract: A display device includes a viewing angle control panel and a backlight module. The backlight module is arranged below the viewing angle control panel, and includes a light source and an optical adjustment layer. The optical adjustment layer includes a first surface, a second surface and a plurality of openings. The second surface is arranged in opposite to the first surface and in proximity to the light source. The plurality of openings pass through the optical adjustment layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2022
    Assignee: InnoLux Corporation
    Inventors: I-Kai Pan, Wei-Tsung Hsu, Chun-Fang Chen, Su-Chen Yen
  • Patent number: 11248171
    Abstract: The invention relates to a polymerisable LC medium with flat optical dispersion, a polymer film with flat optical dispersion obtainable from such a medium, and the use of the polymerisable LC medium and polymer film in optical, electro optical, electronic, semiconducting or luminescent components or devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: February 15, 2022
    Assignee: Merck Patent GmbH
    Inventors: Eduardo Beltran Gracia, Iain Gardiner, Rebecca Proctor, Stephen Mulcahy
  • Patent number: 11226538
    Abstract: An optical parametric oscillator (OPO) including a thin film waveguide including a material having a second order nonlinear susceptibility generating an electromagnetic wave in response to pump electromagnetic wave inputted into the thin film waveguide. The electromagnetic wave has a first wavelength or first set of wavelengths longer than a second wavelength or second set of wavelengths of the pump electromagnetic wave. The thin film waveguide has a thickness on the order of the first wavelength or the first set of wavelengths in the thin film waveguide so as to guide the output electromagnetic wave along the thin film waveguide.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 18, 2022
    Assignee: California Institute of Technology
    Inventors: Alireza Marandi, Luis Ledezma, Yinglun Xu, Ryan M. Briggs
  • Patent number: 11205691
    Abstract: A display panel and a display device are provided, and the display panel includes a substrate and a pixel layer disposed on the substrate. The pixel layer includes a plurality of pixel units arranged in an array. The display panel includes a main light-transmitting region surrounded by the plurality of pixel units, and an orthographic projection of the main light-transmitting region on the substrate is not overlapped with orthographic projections of the plurality of pixel units on the substrate, so that external light is allowed to pass through the main light-transmitting region of the display panel, and then is received by an image acquisition device disposed on a side of the display panel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 21, 2021
    Assignee: BOE TECHNOLOGY GROUP CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yanliu Sun, Ming Zhu, Ge Shi, Haijun Niu, Yuyao Wang, Shiyu Zhang, Song Yang, Zheng Fang, Jiahui Han, Yujie Liu, Hao Zhang
  • Patent number: 11201675
    Abstract: Methods and systems for a bi-directional receiver for standard single-mode fiber based on grating couplers may include, in an integrated circuit, a multi-wavelength grating coupler, and first and second optical sources coupled to the integrated circuit: receiving first and second source optical signals at in the integrated circuit using the first and second optical sources, where the second wavelength is different from the first wavelength, receiving a first optical data signal at the first wavelength from an optical fiber coupled to the multi-wavelength grating coupler, and receiving a second optical data signal at the second wavelength from the optical fiber. Third and fourth optical data signals at the first and second wavelengths may be communicated out of the optoelectronic transceiver via the multi-wavelength grating coupler.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 14, 2021
    Assignee: Luxtera LLC
    Inventors: Peter DeDobbelaere, Christopher Bergey, Attila Mekis
  • Patent number: 11175186
    Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides an optical imaging apparatus using a metamaterial including a metamaterial array sensor which includes a plurality of unit cells made of a metamaterial and is positioned adjacent to an observation object, an imaging beam providing unit which provides an imaging beam toward the metamaterial array sensor, a control beam providing unit which controls a control beam provided to the unit cell to block the imaging beam incident on the unit cell, and an imaging beam measuring unit which measures a unit cell imaging beam transmission amount passing through the unit cell by measuring an imaging beam transmission amount of the metamaterial array sensor when the imaging beam passes through the unit cell and an imaging beam transmission amount of the metamaterial array sensor when the control beam is focused on the unit cell to block the imaging beam incident on the unit cell.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 16, 2021
    Assignees: Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Center for Advanced Meta-Materials
    Inventors: Minah Seo, Sang-Hun Lee, Chulki Kim, Jae Hun Kim, Taikjin Lee, Deok Ha Woo
  • Patent number: 11159710
    Abstract: A lowpass filter control apparatus of the present disclosure includes a lowpass filter controller that causes lowpass characteristics of a variable lowpass filter disposed in an optical path of incoming light into an imaging element including phase-difference pixels and normal pixels to be different for an exposure period of the normal pixels and an exposure period of the phase-difference pixels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 19, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 26, 2021
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventor: Norihiko Akamatsu
  • Patent number: 11150487
    Abstract: A stereoscopic display device has a barrier panel. The barrier panel of the stereoscopic display device may include sequentially stacked first channel electrodes, second channel electrodes, and third channel electrodes. Each of the third channel electrodes may be disposed between the second channel electrodes. A distance between the third channel electrodes may be the same as a horizontal width of each third channel electrode. Each of the first channel electrodes may include a first region overlapping with an end portion of the second channel electrode, and a second region overlapping with an end portion of the third channel electrode facing the end portion of the second channel electrodes overlapping with the first region of adjacent first channel electrode. Thus, in the stereoscopic display device, the number of stacked layers of the channel electrodes may be minimized, a proper viewing range for a stereoscopic image may be smoothly moved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Assignee: LG Display Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: You-Yong Jin, Wook Jeon, Ju-Hoon Jang, Dong-Yeon Kim, Woon-Chan Moon
  • Patent number: 11146337
    Abstract: A feedback proportional control repeats the following processing of starting control of an optical modulator by a control signal that corresponds to a reference value set in the preliminary search or in the previous cycle, calculating a new reference value based on an error signal obtained from the optical modulator, and controlling the optical modulator by the control signal that corresponds to the new reference value, thereby acquiring the control signal in which the error signal is minimized as an optimal control signal, setting the acquired control signal as a signal for controlling the optical modulator, and storing the optimal control signal as the reference value to be used at a time of starting the feedback proportional control in the next cycle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2021
    Assignee: NEC CORPORATION
    Inventor: Shingo Kuboki
  • Patent number: 11139351
    Abstract: An organic light emitting diode display comprises a substrate comprising a major surface; first, second, third and fourth electrodes positioned over the substrate; a pixel defining layer positioned over the plurality of electrodes and comprising first, second, third and fourth openings; and a spacer positioned over the pixel defining layer. The first, second, third and fourth openings overlap the first, second, third and fourth electrodes, respectively, when viewed in a viewing direction perpendicular to the major surface. The first, second, third and fourth openings comprise first, second, third and fourth corners, respectively, wherein the first, second, third and fourth corners neighbor one another when viewed in the viewing direction. When viewed in the viewing direction, the spacer comprises at least a portion placed within an imaginary polygon defined by the first, second, third and fourth corners.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 5, 2021
    Assignee: Samsung Display Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Do-Hoon Kim
  • Patent number: 11126006
    Abstract: An optical component for transforming an input light beam having a Gaussian irradiance distribution into an output light sheet is provided. The optical component includes a first reflective surface extending around the central optical axis of the optical component and across an input light path of the input light beam, and reflects input light rays into transitional light rays defining a transitional light cone. A second reflective surface extends around the central optical axis and across a light path of the transitional light cone, reflecting the transitional light rays outwardly into output light rays defining the output light sheet. The first and second reflective surfaces are configured to distribute optical power within the output light sheet according to a Gaussian irradiance distribution transversally to the output light sheet. The output light sheet may be planar or conical.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2021
    Assignee: Institut National D'Optique
    Inventor: Michel Doucet