SAN ANTONIO, Tex., July 30 -- Actuality Systems Inc., developer of spatial 3D visualization technology, said its patent application for a "diffraction-based optical crossbar switch" has been approved by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The switch has applications in optical networking, holographic video and optical computation.
The switch enables engineers to steer multiple light beams by combining standard off-the-shelf projector chips with a single custom optical component known as a diffractive optic. The switch was invented by Actuality founder Gregg Favalora and COO Rick Dorval.
The technology was invented during the development of advanced 3D displays. "Since spatial 3D displays can be thought of as complex beam-steering systems, we realized that the diffraction-based beam-steering device could be applied broadly," said Favalora. "For example, optical networking and optical computation require directing beams of light from one place to another at extraordinary rates. This invention is a flexible alternative to get data to its destination."