Apple is looking for ways to reduce display distortion in the Vision Pro. The tech giant has been granted a patent (number US 11927757 B1) for an “Electronic Device Display Having Distortion Compensation.”
About the patent
In the patent, Apple says that light from a display panel focused by a lens assembly towards a viewer may cause geometric distortion for a viewer viewing images on the display through the lens assembly. To mitigate geometric distortion, geometric distortion compensation may be performed in the electronic device.
Geometric distortion compensation reduces eye fatigue, improves visual comfort, mitigates chromatic aberration, mitigates geometric distortion, and improves content registration in a pass-through mode. Geometric distortion compensation may include distorting images on the display panel such that the images viewed by the viewer through the lens assembly are not distorted.
Dynamic geometric distortion compensation that accounts for the position and/or gaze direction of a viewer’s eyes may be performed during the operation of the device. A Vision Pro may include both a fixed lens element and a removable lens element in the lens assembly. The removable lens element may, for example, compensate for a user’s eyeglasses prescription. The removable lens element may be changed, allowing the distortion function associated with the lens assembly to change over time.
Apple’s plan is for the spatial computer to effectively compensate for geometric distortion caused by the lens assembly, both the distortion from the fixed lens element and the removable lens element must be accounted for. To dynamically compensate for geometric distortion caused by a lens assembly with a removable lens, ray tracing may be used to determine the geometric distortion caused by the lens assembly depending upon the particular removable lens that is present in the lens assembly.
Summary of the patent
Here’s Apple’s abstract of the patent: “An electronic device may have a display panel with an array of display pixels. Light from the display panel may be focused by a lens assembly towards a viewer. The presence of the lens assembly may cause geometric distortion for a viewer viewing images on the display through the lens assembly. To mitigate geometric distortion, geometric distortion compensation may be performed in the electronic device.
“The electronic device may include both a fixed lens element and a removable lens element in the lens assembly. The removable lens element may be changed, allowing the distortion function associated with the lens assembly to change over time. To dynamically compensate for geometric distortion caused by a lens assembly with a removable lens, ray tracing may be used to determine the geometric distortion caused by the lens assembly depending upon the particular removable lens that is present in the lens assembly.”
About the Vision Pro
Demos of the Apple Vision Pro at Apple Stores in the U.S. can be reserved on Apple.com. To reserve a free Vision Pro demo online, go here, then follow the steps to book an appointment at your local Apple Store.
Pricing for the Vision Pro starts at US$3,499 with 256GB of storage. ZEISS Optical Inserts are available: $99 for reading lens and $149 for prescription lens.
