Lucas Klamer | AddOptics: How does AddOptics handle waveguide air gaps and what are the optical trade-offs of using higher refractive index materials?
12:48 - 15:05
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Summary of the clip:
How does AddOptics handle waveguide air gaps and what are the optical trade-offs of using higher refractive index materials?
For applications requiring a physical air gap, AddOptics proposes a two-piece assembly. The rear lens can still embed EC dimming, while the eye-side lens carries eye tracking, and the waveguide is sandwiched in between as a separate layer. This configuration preserves the air gap but results in a non-monolithic stack, adding complexity compared with a fully embedded design.
Where a physical air gap is not mandatory, AddOptics points to workarounds using a lower effective index layer. In that case, the waveguide can be fully embedded into a monolithic piece, eliminating the separate air gap interface. This approach allows the smart lens to remain a single integrated element while still guiding light through the waveguide, although the speaker does not specify exact performance differences between the two methods.
Current production uses a material with refractive index 1.54, limiting prescription support to plus two to minus six diopters. Going beyond that range is possible but makes the stack heavier. Moving to higher refractive indices has proven challenging: the stack may be thinner, but density is higher so weight remains the same, and aberration worsens, potentially degrading display performance in the smart lens.
In this short video, you can learn:
* For a physical air gap, AddOptics uses a two-piece assembly where the rear lens embeds EC dimming, the eye-side lens carries eye tracking, and the waveguide sits between them.
* A lower effective index layer allows the waveguide to be fully embedded into a monolithic piece without a physical air gap.
* AddOptics' sub-contracting model fits equipment into existing ophthalmic labs, and its 1.54-index material supports +2 to -6 diopter corrections.
đź“‹ **Clip Abstract** AddOptics can accommodate waveguide air gaps either through a two-piece sandwich assembly or by using a lower effective index layer to enable monolithic embedding. The company currently supports +2 to -6 corrections with 1.54-index material and operates a sub-contracting model that upgrades ophthalmic labs, while higher refractive indices add weight and aberration.
About the speaker:
* Speaker: Lucas Klamer
* Company: AddOptics
* Event: Eindhoven 2026
* Location: High Tech Campus, Eindhoven
#WaveguideAirGap, #LowerEffectiveIndexLayer, #MonolithicEmbedding, #RefractiveIndexAberration, #AROptics, #SmartEyewear
This is a highlight of the presentation:
Consolidating the AR Stack: A Manufacturing Platform for Smart Prescription Lenses
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02:55 - 04:30
How do traditional lens manufacturing, injection molding, UV curing, and direct finish lens casting compare for smart AR glasses?
How do traditional lens manufacturing, injection molding, UV curing, and direct finish lens casting compare for smart AR glasses?
The traditional eyewear route generates and polishes a lens puck to achieve the correct prescription. This approach is not a very lightweight solution and lacks the potential for embedding electronics directly inside the lens. It does provide personalization at scale and uses durable materials, so it has aspects that should be utilized for full AR glasses adoption.
Injection molding can be very lightweight, but there is no way to personalize injection molding in volume. UV curing technologies—both casting and 3D printing—are lightweight, can potentially hold electronics inside the lens, and can be personalized, but they have proven challenging for durability and scalability.
Direct finish lens casting, the AdOptics platform, provides a thin and lightweight solution that can be completely personalized and is also scalable. By comparison, traditional lens pucks are durable but not lightweight and cannot embed electronics directly, injection molding cannot personalize in volume, and UV curing approaches face durability and scalability challenges.
In this short video, you can learn:
* Traditional lens puck generating and polishing offers personalization at scale and durable materials but is not lightweight and cannot embed electronics directly inside the lens.
* Injection molding can be very lightweight but cannot be personalized in volume, while UV curing methods are lightweight and customizable but struggle with durability and scalability.
* Direct finish lens casting through the AdOptics platform delivers a thin, lightweight, completely personalized, and scalable solution for smart AR prescription lenses.
đź“‹ **Clip Abstract** Lucas Klamer compares four manufacturing routes for AR prescription lenses: traditional eyewear generation and polishing, injection molding, UV curing, and direct finish lens casting. He identifies direct finish lens casting via the AdOptics platform as the only approach that is thin, lightweight, completely personalized, and scalable.
About the speaker:
* Speaker: Lucas Klamer
* Company: AddOptics
* Event: Eindhoven 2026
* Location: High Tech Campus, Eindhoven
#DirectFinishLensCasting, #LensPuckPolishing, #UVCuringScalability, #AdOpticsPlatform, #AROptics, #SmartEyewear
08:04 - 10:02
Why is a monolithic cast lens superior to a traditional multi-layer laminated stack for smart AR glasses?
Why is a monolithic cast lens superior to a traditional multi-layer laminated stack for smart AR glasses?
The conventional AR lens stack has five separate parts: a rolled side lens, a dimming film laminated onto it, the waveguide, an eye-tracking layer, and a prescription corrected lens. Air gaps between them are maintained by adhesives or spacers, adding four gluing sections. This creates significant potential for delamination, light loss, and reflection.
AddOptics proposes housing the electronics directly into the mold and casting monomer around them, yielding a monolithic piece. This piece is durable and has a much easier assembling process overall. Current samples provide dynamic dimming, either EC based or liquid crystal based, eye-tracking solutions directly in the lens, and embedding of the waveguide, or all three combined.
For thickness, the center thickness for the prescription lens towards the waveguide only needs to have a center thickness of 300 micron. The monolithic cast lens can contain dynamic dimming (EC or liquid crystal), eye-tracking solutions, and embedded waveguide, or all three combined. Today AddOptics has three programs, confirming active development of these integrated smart prescription lenses.
In this short video, you can learn:
* The conventional AR lens stack consists of five separate parts with four gluing sections, creating risks of delamination, light loss, and reflection.
* AddOptics’ monolithic approach casts monomer around electronics placed directly in the mold, producing a durable piece with easier assembly.
* The prescription lens towards the waveguide needs only 300 micron center thickness, and AddOptics currently has three development programs.
📋 **Clip Abstract** AddOptics contrasts the conventional five-part, four-glue AR lens stack—prone to delamination, light loss, and reflection—with a monolithic cast lens that houses electronics in the mold and casts monomer around them. This approach yields durable samples with dynamic dimming, eye tracking, and embedded waveguide, achieving a 300-micron center thickness between prescription lens and waveguide, with three active programs.
About the speaker:
* Speaker: Lucas Klamer
* Company: AddOptics
* Event: Eindhoven 2026
* Location: High Tech Campus, Eindhoven
#MonolithicCastLens, #MonomerCasting, #DynamicDimming, #WaveguideEmbedding, #AROptics, #SmartGlasses
04:26 - 06:16
How does AddOptics manufacture personalized smart lenses without grinding or polishing, and which materials do they use?
How does AddOptics manufacture personalized smart lenses without grinding or polishing, and which materials do they use?
AddOptics starts with a lens design generated through the same regular lens design software already used in the eyewear chain to create ophthalmic surfaces. From that design they generate the mechanics and then produce a soft mold. The mold is very easy and quick to manufacture and only needs to last a single shot, meaning every mold is completely personalized to the user's eyes.
In the next step, AddOptics suspends the electronics—whether that is a waveguide, an EC dimming film, eye tracking, or all three—inside the mold, then casts the monomer around them. This is a thermal setting process, which allows them to use materials from the eyewear industry again, such as Mitsui materials and PPG types. The monomer is cast and thermally set around the suspended electronics.
Because the prescription is already set in the mold and the mold has an ophthalmic quality surface, the final lens requires no polishing and no grinding. This allows AddOptics to go both very thin and keep the accuracy. After their part, the lens goes back into the regular eyewear chain for dip coating, hard coat, and AR coating. Overall, there are essentially three big steps.
In this short video, you can learn:
* The mold is a soft, single-shot mold that is completely personalized to the user's eyes.
* Waveguides, EC dimming films, and eye tracking are suspended in the mold before the monomer is cast.
* No polishing or grinding is needed because the prescription and ophthalmic surface are already set in the mold.
đź“‹ **Clip Abstract** AddOptics manufactures personalized smart prescription lenses by casting a monomer around suspended electronics in a single-shot soft mold. The process uses standard eyewear materials, eliminates polishing and grinding, and returns the lens to the regular eyewear chain for dip, hard, and AR coating.
About the speaker:
* Speaker: Lucas Klamer
* Company: AddOptics
* Event: Eindhoven 2026
* Location: High Tech Campus, Eindhoven
#SoftMold, #ECDimmingFilm, #MitsuiMaterials, #NoPolishingNoGrinding, #ARWaveguides, #SmartEyewear