Augmented Reality (AR) is a transformative technology in military applications, capable of enhancing operational effectiveness, safety, and training. The requirements are exacting, and integrated AR solutions are varied, but the key to AR-driven situational awareness is the head-worn display technology used to deliver it.
Lumus, with its reflective (geometric) waveguide optics, is uniquely positioned to support AR systems that meet demanding military requirements. The company has already partnered successfully with defense integrators on wearable, transparent, near-to-eye displays, and can deliver next-generation AR optics across a range of emerging military applications.
Lumus solutions address some of the toughest challenges, including those facing high-profile AR procurements.
Last December, 80 companies met with U.S. Army officials to learn, among other things, how they could help improve soldiers’ situational awareness through AR. The industry day, held outside Washington D.C., was meant to inform defense contractors and systems integrators about IVAS Next — a possible follow-on contract to the Army’s $22 billion Integrated Visual Augmentation System program.
To their great credit, the Army, Defense Department, and U.S. Congress are taking a deliberate, considered approach to what all agree is something they need to get right for soldiers and taxpayers: acquiring a reliable, tested, wearable augmented-reality display system that soldiers can use effectively and confidently.
The challenge is that IVAS and other defense requirements dovetail with AR technology that continues to evolve. One area of innovation is how best to overlay digital information on a soldier’s field of view.
Originally awarded in 2019, IVAS technology has gone through several iterations to address soldier feedback. The heads-up display is meant to be worn in the field, allowing soldiers to see their physical surroundings and mission-critical data at the same time. It needs to perform reliably both in dim and bright light conditions, over a wide field of view, untethered for extended periods of time, and in a form factor that won’t encumber the warfighter. This is a challenge.
In 2025, the Army expects to conduct company-wide tests of the latest IVAS system, but in the event its needs aren’t fully met, it has laid the groundwork for IVAS Next — another effort to integrate, acquire, and deploy AR headsets at scale.
As integrators prepare their AR solution bids, whether for the Army or other DoD services, and whether in the U.S. or throughout the world, it’s important to consider the display technology that anchors the AR experience. For 15 years, Lumus has provided such technology to the DoD.
Proven Optics, Superior AR Visuals for the Military
In 2009, Lumus began delivering optical engines to Thales Avionics for integration in helmet-mounted displays used by the U.S. Air Force. Its Scorpion Helmet Mounted Cueing System is an excellent example of augmented reality technology enhancing military capabilities, specifically in aviation.
The Scorpio HMCS has been a game-changer for pilots, enhancing situational awareness and target acquisition in all possible light conditions and proving adaptable to a wide variety of flight platforms.
Today, Lumus is at the forefront of developing near-to-eye display technology for defense applications that meet the most demanding requirements. Unlike other solutions, the Lumus platform is based on reflective waveguides, as opposed to widely used but less effective diffractivewaveguides.
Waveguides act as the surface on which AR content is displayed from miniature projectors along one side. Reflective waveguides employ tiny, partially reflective geometric mirrors that transport digital content to the user’s eye. The main strength of reflective waveguides is their ability to better and more efficiently direct bright, projected light — in this case visual information — toward the eye.
And this is where Lumus-powered AR displays offer the greatest advantage to military applications. If soldiers are to benefit from the greater situational awareness offered by AR headsets, they must do so under possibly austere conditions, in both dark and bright light, and for long stretches at a time. By the nature of reflective waveguide technology, Lumus-powered AR displays for the military can:
- Create brighter images that can be seen in sunlight, without requiring extra headset bulk to block out ambient light.
- Deliver bright images directly to soldiers’ eyes without risking “light leak” that could give away positioning at night.
- Display information across a wider field of view (anywhere from 50 to 70 degrees) than other optics.
- The high efficiency of Lumus technology maximizes the battery life of the AR system. More light reaches soldiers’ eyes.
- Due to reflective waveguide’s unique architecture, true color is preserved which correlates to end user acceptance.
Taken together, these capabilities make Lumus optics the most suitable solution for the military’s emerging AR requirements.
Lumus has long-established, global relationships with specialty glass and advanced electronics manufacturers, which can scale the production of AR technology packages for military systems integration.
To learn more and explore Lumus near-to-eye display technology for military and defense applications, please contact us.