CREAL

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CREAL logo
CREAL augmented reality headset prototype 3D render

CREAL, previously known as CREAL3D, is a Swiss company that makes sequential light-field display modules for head-mounted displays. CREAL was founded by Tomas Sluka.[1] CREAL has marketed displays as suitable for augmented reality glasses.

CREAL's technology follows the work of Andrew Maimone in sequential light field displays.

One of CREAL's patents details the use of a 2D point light array as the light source that is lit up sequentially.[2] Each point light is a source of light such as an LED that has a pinhole mask.

CREAL's team has included engineers from Intel's smart glasses project (Intel Vaunt), Magic Leap, and Meta’s Orion project.[3][4]

Its website is creal.com. Its original website was https://www.creal3d.com/.[1]

CREAL had planned to make a fixed foveated display.[5]

History[edit]

EPFL, the general site of CREAL's office in Switzerland

CREAL was founded by Tomas Sluka in about 2016.

CREAL originally used DLP, then switched to LCOS. The switch was in part because LCOS can have its driving method controlled more directly.[6] DLP's drive algorithm is closed off by Texas Instruments.[6]

As of September 2020, CREAL was using off-the-shelf optical components from Thorlabs/Edmund Optics for their prototype.[7]

The company is based at EPFL in Switzerland, in Ecublens, just outside of Lausanne.[8]

Developments[edit]

CREAL's custom FLCOS modulator

CREAL has developed an optical engine for light field display. It has 36 degree diagonal field of view.[9] The display surface has 91 percent transparency.[9]

AR headset prototype[edit]

CREAL made an augmented reality headset prototype that has transparent light field displays. One of CREAL's prototypes had a resolution of 1,000 × 1,000 across about a 60 degree field of view.[10] It used an Intel RealSense sensor for 3D tracking of the environment, and a hand tracking sensor from Ultraleap as an input device.[10]

Specifications[edit]

  • Angular resolution: about 40 pixels per degree[11]
  • Diagonal field of view: About 36 degrees[11]

Projector design[edit]

CREAL's prototype uses collimated light.[12]

See CREAL's near-eye sequential light-field projector with correct monocular depth cues

CREAL's CBAST uses laser illumination.[13]

See also[edit]

Patents[edit]

  • US20240255762A1 - Near-eye sequential light-field projector with correct monocular depth cues[14]
  • US11960083B2 - Near-eye sequential light-field projector with correct monocular depth cues[15]
  • CA3172473A1 - Near-eye image projection system having foveated projection and expanded eye-box region[16]
  • US20210382307A1 - Light-field mixed reality system with correct monocular depth cues to a viewer[17]
  • WO2022175716A1 - Near-eye light-field display system having high efficiency and method of projecting a projection virtual pixel using the near-eye light-field display system[18]
  • EP4348335A1 - Light-field projector having a small form factor[19]
  • US20220404689A1 - Light-field virtual and mixed reality system having foveated projection [20]
  • US20230280586A1 - Near-eye image projection system and wearable device comprising said near-eye image projection system[21]
  • WO2022112818A1 - High-resolution light-field projector[22]
  • EP4252060A1 - High-resolution light-field projector

References[edit]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lang, Ben (2019-01-16). "Founded by CERN Engineers, CREAL3D's Light-field Display is the Real Deal". https://www.roadtovr.com/creal3d-light-field-display-ar-vr-ces-2019/.
  2. ↑ https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/aa/cb/2b/78d7ba039783dc/EP3542206B1.pdf "The point-light array 28 is an array of point-light sources distributed on a two-dimensional plane."
  3. ↑ "Innovation bringing augmented reality to the highest level I CREAL's mission". 2024-09-10. https://creal.com/about/.
  4. ↑ "CREAL FLCoS - Time Sequential Pixel Replication White Paper - November 2025". https://creal.com/app/uploads/2025/11/CREAL_C%C2%B7Bast_FLCoS_Whitepaper.pdf.
  5. ↑ Lang, Ben (2020-01-09). "Hands-on: CREAL is Shrinking Its Light-field Display for AR & VR Headsets". https://www.roadtovr.com/ces-2020-creal-light-field-shrinking-for-ar-vr-headsets/.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Guttag, Karl (2024-04-20). "Mixed Reality at CES & AR/VR/MR 2024 (Part 3 Display Devices)". https://kguttag.com/2024/04/20/mixed-reality-at-ces-ar-vr-mr-2024-part-3-display-devices/.
  7. ↑ "Prove your humanity". https://www.reddit.com/r/AR_MR_XR/comments/j3bts8/creal_is_building_lightfield_hmds_for_vr_and_ar/.
  8. ↑ "CREAL SA". https://www.venturelab.swiss/creal.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "The natural display of augmented reality I CREAL light-field display". 2024-03-05. https://creal.com/ar/.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Lang, Ben (2021-01-11). "CREAL Reveals Its First Light-field AR & VR Headset Prototypes". https://www.roadtovr.com/creal-light-field-ar-vr-headset-prototype/.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Lang, Ben (2023-06-03). "Hands-on: CREAL's Light-field Display Brings a New Layer of Immersion to AR". https://www.roadtovr.com/creal-light-field-display-new-immersion-ar/2/.
  12. ↑ "Near-eye sequential light-field projector with correct monocular depth cues". 2024-03-29. https://patents.google.com/patent/US20240255762A1/en.
  13. ↑ Guttag, Karl (2025-12-18). "AR Conferences 2026 and Laser Display". https://kguttag.com/2025/12/18/ar-conferences-2026-and-laser-display/.
  14. ↑ "Near-eye sequential light-field projector with correct monocular depth cues". 2024-03-29. https://patents.google.com/patent/US20240255762A1/en.
  15. ↑ "Near-eye sequential light-field projector with correct monocular depth cues". 2017-09-19. https://patents.google.com/patent/US11960083B2/en.
  16. ↑ "Near-eye image projection system having foveated projection and expanded eye-box region". 2020-04-14. https://patents.google.com/patent/CA3172473A1/en.
  17. ↑ "Light-field mixed reality system with correct monocular depth cues to a viewer". 2019-12-20. https://patents.google.com/patent/US20210382307A1/.
  18. ↑ "Near-eye light-field display system having high efficiency and method of projecting a projection virtual pixel using the near-eye light-field display system". 2021-02-18. https://patents.google.com/patent/WO2022175716A1/.
  19. ↑ "Light-field projector having a small form factor". 2021-06-03. https://patents.google.com/patent/EP4348335A1/en.
  20. ↑ "Light-field virtual and mixed reality system having foveated projection". 2020-10-26. https://patents.google.com/patent/US20220404689A1/en.
  21. ↑ "Near-eye image projection system and wearable device comprising said near-eye image projection system". 2020-08-20. https://patents.google.com/patent/US20230280586A1/en.
  22. ↑ "High-resolution light-field projector". 2020-11-24. https://patents.google.com/patent/WO2022112818A1/en.
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