Hi! I’m Bernard Kress, Partner Optical Architect at Microsoft/Hololens.
I’m working on developing next generation AR experiences through the
introduction of novel optical technologies and architectures. Ask me
anything!
Abstract
Immersive modes, such as Augmented Reality and Mixed Reality headsets,
have the power to revolutionize how we work, play, teach, learn and
shop. Enterprise already offers solutions for specific AR tasks in
engineering, manufacturing, design, health care, architecture, retail
and gaming; return on investment is mainly cost avoidance (shorter
learning cycles, less errors, better communication, productivity and
yields, etc.). However, most actors involved in developing the AR
ecosystem (from hardware to app development platform to apps and
content) agree that it will take a long time for hardware to hit the
consumer level comfort required for mass adoption (5 to 10 years). Some
of the hardware issues to solve, specifically from an optical
engineering point of view, are: • Higher FOV and higher resolution
through active foveation • Vergence Accommodation Conflict (VAC)
mitigation through varifocal, multifocal, light field or true
holographic display • Pixel occlusion for HDR for more “realistic”
holograms • Higher brightness over a decent eye box for external usage
(lower power, higher brightness / contrast displays and high efficient
optics) • More accurate, less power, more compact IR and visible sensors
(sensor hardware fusion: Head tracking, eye tracking, gesture tracking,
3D scanning, multispectral) There are many other challenges for the
ultimate consumer AR experience (such as overall CG, size and weight,
battery life, head dissipation, 5G connectivity for cloud rendering,
etc…) which we will not discuss today. If you would like more
information outside of this AMA, I will be at SPIE Photonics Europe in
Strasbourg, France next month for the Digital Optics for Immersive
Displays conference. You can also take my free course “An Introduction
to VR, AR, MR and Smart Eyewear: Market Expectations, Hardware
Requirements and Investment Patterns” on the SPIE Digital Library. It
was recorded live at SPIE Photonics West in January. Enjoy!