About this project
Alpha Glass are on-lens display AR glasses with wide field of view and casual design. Unlike other AR glasses with external elements, Alpha Glass have internal optical system inside the frame.
Augmented Reality (AR) is truly immersive technology that connects real and virtual worlds. However, the current products are too big and awkward. Alpha Glass solves this problem with custom form factor AR smart glasses, that you can wear anytime, anywhere.
With Alpha Glass you can see the display right on the lens surface. Alpha Glass AR vision is based on 'SMOS' (Separated Modular Optical System) technology which provides world's smallest wide vision system without any external parts.
- Wide FOV (>30º)
- Centralized View
- On-Lens Display
- Transparent Background (no gray box)
Alpha Glass tested compatibility with largest AR platforms. More AR platforms will be added later.
A pair of glasses is essentially an accessory we wear on our faces. No more bulky, heavy and awkward AR glasses! Alpha Glass adopt traditional size and design of regular glasses and let you enjoy AR with comfort and style.
- Full Built-In Structure (battery included)
- Minimal Design
- Foldable Frame
You can take photos, shoot videos, read QR codes and implement AR contents with POV Camera located on the front.
- Instant Shot
- Camera On Notification
Built-in high-performance bone conduction speaker allows you to listen to music and receive voice guidance
- Built-in high-performance bone conduction speaker
- Android 5.1 (Lollipop)
- Customized Launcher (Mod UI)
- Compatibility with Android (4.3+), iOS (7+)
- AR Display Demo
This demo shows the screen on the lens of optics test model. Unity & Kudan applications were used.
CAUTION : We are working on improving the quality of optics and will ship the final products without any lens distortions like vertical lines, chromatic aberration or astigmatism.
- Bone Conduction Speaker Test
- POV Camera Demo
- Mod UI Demo
AR Entertainment
HUD Navigation
Social Media
Private AI Assistant
Health Monitoring
Customized UI
How Does It Work?
The Augmented Reality (AR) Vision starts with a small micro OLED display located inside the frames.
- The image of the display enters the collimator lens located in the nose bridge
- The collimator lens adjusts the image and inserts it into a spectacle lens with a wave-guide structure
- Combiner with wave-guide lens projects image to the user's eyes so it is possible to see the AR display
SMOS Technology
Separated modular optical system (SMOS) is a unique optical structure of Alpha Glass. Wide FOV is achieved by reducing the size of the existing integrated structure and separating it into display, control and combiners. This technology is currently patented in Korea and patent applications are filed in the United States and Japan
Alpha glass SDK includes :
- Automatic Setting API to Companion App for 3rd Party App
- Mod UI API
- Text and Mouse input API
Developers can access raw data from sensors with the standard Android API. Alpha glass SDK provide additional function related to handle sensors :
- Gesture Detector API
- Captured Image Sync to Companion App
Alpha Glass uses mode based UI called Mod UI. Mod UI consist of 5 Mods that have default app to help users easily control app. Depending on Mod category, developers can design both regular applications and AR applications. Users will only select the Mod to run application related to mod category
- 4 Direction Swipes
Up - Down, Left - Right - Voice Control
Support Voice Trigger(Always ready voice command) - Gesture Control
Through Bluetooth Connection with Other Smart Devices - Default 5 Mods
Home - Game - Camera - Navigation - Health
The free companion app helps customize default app of each mod and easily control your Alpha Glass. The companion app is connected to Alpha Glass by Bluetooth and saves a photo from Alpha Glass to your phone instantly.
Further support will be provided for backers:
- Hardware Revision
Free replacement of All hardware revision - Lens Replace
One time free replacement of All optic systems - Technical Support
Regardless of hardware or software, we will offer support to those who will challenge the new technologies with Alpha Glass
It was a long exciting journey with both ups and downs, but here is our hardware footprint so far
And this is for someone interested in Optics
We are small but strong, young but passionate startup
Our team consists of four members: three engineers and a marketing director. Together we are sharing the same goal of changing the way people interact with AR glasses in daily life. We are combining our diverse backgrounds in optics, robotics and software to bring the first stylish AR glasses closer to reality.
Alpha Labs team joined Naver D2SF accelerator which is run by Naver (Google's equivalent in South Korea) with first optics prototype in 2015 and started to develop glasses prototype on android system. Next year we joined HAX and learned multiple skills in programming, design and manufacturing. Our team had a chance to present demo by using AR Library including Kudan and Wikitude. This experience helped us expand our skills further and prepare our developer version glasses. Now we need your help to step forward.
Thanks to
Thanks to Naver D2SF managers: Baro Cha, Yangha Kim, Sanghwan Yang for the support and Hannarae Nam & Elaine Ahn for helping us with translations.
Thanks to all of HAX mentors for the product concept and design guidance from Duncan Turner, Benjamin Joffe, Cyril Ebersweiler, Peter Wang and more. Also thanks to HAX friends including Vue, Trainerbot and more.
Thanks for our advisers from CodeZoo, Myunghwan Yoo from XS Inc for embedded system development and product management advice, as well as Roxanne Andrieux for financial advice.
Final thanks to Patrick Chung for making this Kickstarter campaign possible.
CREDITS
- PR Marketing Proper Propaganda
- Facebook Ad NaverD2SF
- Campaign Advice HAX
- Photographer Vitaly Vyazovsky
- Product Design David
- Icon Source Freepik
- 3D Source DA
Risks and challenges
1. Delivery. Per country, at least 3 to 7 days are required for the shipment to be completed. The delivery time may vary depending on weather conditions and customs regulations in your country.
2-1 (Tooling). We have planned many variables in manufacturing eyeglass frame molds and added extra buffer time to our delivery estimate. However, since injection molds, 3D printers, and single parts such as CNC have many differences in overall process, post-processing and material characteristics. Replacement of errors in these areas can lead to longer production times.
2-2 (Circuit). Depending on various circumstances like market changes and factory conditions, the time required to supply the circuit parts (IC) may be increased or the production of parts may be discontinued. Since the new inventory parts should be found for the entirely new circuit system, the production period may be affected.
2-3 (Optics). For optical system, our first priority is the quality. Precise injection molding method will be used to make optical parts. Specific details of manufacturing process can not be publicly disclosed for intellectual property protection. However, optics will be made in separated manufactures to avoid design leakage.
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