VueReal has developed a concept for AR Headsets that replaces a conventional LED illuminator for an LCOS display with a pixelated microLED imager/illuminator. This opens up three to four new modes of operation.

At DisplayWeek 2024, Chris Chinnock of Insight Media detailed a novel AR/VR illumination concept from VueReal. Instead of a standard LED backlight, VueReal is using a pixelated MicroLED illuminator paired with a traditional LCOS (Liquid Crystal on Silicon) display.

Hybrid MicroLED-LCOS Architecture

The MicroLED illuminator is physically matched to the size of the LCOS panel to optimize optical efficiency (etendue). This setup allows the display to operate in three distinct modes:

• HDR Mode (Dual Modulation): The MicroLED acts as a pixelated illuminator, allowing for zone dimming. This creates two levels of light modulation, resulting in much higher contrast, peak brightness, and true HDR performance for AR/VR headsets.
• Low-Power Mode: The MicroLED illuminator becomes the primary display at a lower resolution. The LCOS panel stays static or drops to a 1Hz refresh rate, significantly reducing power consumption for simple information overlays.
• Enhancement Mode: The system displays a “base” low-resolution image via the MicroLEDs and an “enhancement layer” via the LCOS. This dual-field approach provides high-detail imagery using encoding logic similar to modern video compression.

Potential Peripheral Expansion

Chinnock proposed a theoretical fourth mode where the MicroLED illuminator is larger than the LCOS panel. In this scenario, the outer MicroLEDs could provide low-resolution peripheral vision to create a much wider field of view, while the LCOS provides high-detail focus in the center.