Apple's new vehicle lighting patents enable better AR windshield systems
The US Patent and Trademark Office officially announced 57 Apple patents, one of which is related to the lighting system of future vehicles, specifically related to AR windshield. Apple pointed out that their invention involves lighting that can be integrated into the surrounding structure, and provides information such as speed and road conditions to the driver through the AR windshield. In fact, this is the third Apple AR windshield invention recently announced. The other two patents were announced in August 2018 and October 2018.
Apple states in patents that systems such as vehicles typically have a lighting system. Lighting systems in vehicles include data illumination for providing aesthetic lighting and visual output of information, as well as exterior lighting such as headlights and taillights.
Existing lighting systems are typically visible to the user even when the lighting system is not lit. The visible presence of the illumination system in the vehicle can be aesthetically appealing or can prevent other objects from being visible through the illumination system.
Related patents: Apple Patent | Lighting Systems
Apple states in the Summary of the Invention that the illumination system can include one or more light sources and one or more light guides. The lighting system can be integrated into windows, skylights, headlights (such as headlights and taillights), as well as inboard dashboards or other locations in the vehicle system. The light guide can be embedded in a polymer layer in the vehicle structure. The light guide can be indexed to the refractive index of the polymer layer such that the unirradiated portion of the light guide is transparent and identical to the vehicle structure.
The light guide can be formed from one or more optical fibers. The optical fibers can include light scattering fibers that scatter light from the vehicle structure into or out of the vehicle. The light scattering fiber can be fused to a non-scattering fiber that directs light from the source to the light scattering fiber.