Apple has been granted a patent that shows it’s working on “Apple Glasses” — a VR/AR device more akin in design to regular eyeglasses than the Vision Pro.
About the patent
Apple is purportedly conducing an in-house survey on the feasibility of “Apple Glasses.” We’re not likely to see such a device for a few more years, but Apple has been granted multiple patents for such a device
The latest patent — dubbed “Tunable and Foveated Lens Systems” relates generally to optical systems, and, more particularly, to devices with tunable lenses. In the patent Apple notes that eyewear may include optical systems such as lenses. For example, eyewear such as a pair of glasses may include lenses that allow users to view the surrounding environment.
However, Apple says it can be challenging to design devices such as these. If care isn’t taken, the optical systems in these devices may not be able to accommodate different eye prescriptions and may not perform satisfactorily. Apple wants to overcome such limitations if/when it releases “Apple Glasses.”
Summary of the patent
Here’s Apple’s abstract of the patent: “A pair of eyeglasses may include one or more adjustable lenses that are each configured to align with a respective one of a user’s eyes. The adjustable lenses may each include electrically modulated optical material such as one or more liquid crystal cells. The liquid crystal cells may include arrays of electrodes that extend along one, two, three, four, or more than four directions.
“Control circuitry may apply control signals to the array of electrodes in each liquid crystal cell to produce a desired phase profile. Each lens may be foveated such that portions of the lens within the user’s gaze exhibit a different phase profile than portions of the lens outside of the user’s gaze. The control circuitry may adjust the location of the optically distinct area so that it remains aligned with the user’s gaze.”
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