Display technology offers augmented reality bright future
Augmented reality (AR) is a cutting-edge optical technology that could bring benefits to numerous sectors. In contrast to the more well-known virtual reality (VR) – which projects a new visual reality onto a black background, and is used for applications such as gaming – AR adds further information onto the existing field of vision. “If you’re on your bike for example, glasses equipped with a micro-display could provide you with information on your speed, heartbeat, or the weather,” explains HiLICo project coordinator Etienne Quesnel from the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission. Another critically important application could be improving airplane safety. AR could provide pilots with a view of the landscape in extremely bad weather. Additionally, surgeons performing intricate keyhole surgery could use AR to help them navigate, say, through complex body tissue that they cannot see with their own eye.
Advances in AR technology
The additional graphical or textual information supplied by AR is shown on a tiny micro-display, usually no larger than a couple of square centimetres in size. A key challenge is that this information not only needs to be displayed in extremely high definition, it also needs to be projected onto a bright background. This is because unlike in VR, the existing field of vision must still be seen. “The problem is that existing display technologies such as LCD, and even OLED, are not bright enough,” says Quesnel. To really advance AR therefore, new display technology is needed. The HiLICo project set about achieving this, by developing new LED-based micro-display technology. Quesnel notes that LED is the same material used in contemporary home lighting. The difference however is that around 2 million micron-sized pixels are needed to build a viable AR micro-display. “This was the starting point,” he remarks. “We began by using this LED material to build a matrix of pixels – about 2 million of them – to image the light.” Next, an integrated circuit was built to control the video or graphics that need to be displayed. This also had to be capable of producing colours. “We had to think not only about building a bright micro-display, but also about this being compact and low in energy consumption,” adds Quesnel. “Think about the needs of a cyclist for example – AR glasses need to be portable.”
Identifying potential sectors
All these elements were brought together during the project to manufacture a prototype LED micro-display. An aviation end user was involved throughout. “This ensured that our end use case – developing a prototype AR system for pilots – was always in the back of our minds,” notes Quesnel. “For example, the system needed to display images both at night and during the day, in full brightness. There had to be practical results.” This technology is still at an early stage. Next steps include demonstrating that the micro-display technology works in real-life AR situations, and that a further reduction in energy consumption is possible. Other potential sectors, including healthcare and sport, will continue to be investigated. Ensuring that there is a market for this technology will be critical. “A key question is when industries will be ready to invest in this technology,” says Quesnel. “We still have time to improve the technology. Demonstrating that this can improve the safety of air flight would certainly make this worth investing in.”
Keywords
HiLICo, AR, VR, aviation, LCD, OLED, LED, pixels, micro-display
