This Guy Built a Pair of AR Glasses From Scratch, and Soon You May Even Be Able to Make Your Own

Everyone successful Silicon Valley seems to beryllium dreaming the aforesaid dream: AR glasses. Meta has its prototype Orion glasses. Apple is reportedly processing its ain variety of astute glasses successful its Cupertino spaceship headquarters. While a fewer smaller companies are trying to thrust the market, DIYers person mostly been kept retired of the loop. However, 1 indie decorator seems to person cracked the code, creating what whitethorn beryllium 1 of the astir unique, and perchance applicable pairs of AR wearables we’ve seen yet. Even better, he’s readying to merchantability dev kits for a second-gen mentation truthful radical tin physique their ain brace astatine home.

“Zero” is an all-in-one brace of AR glasses powered by a Raspberry Pi Zero. It runs web apps natively and doesn’t necessitate immoderate other processing puck oregon outer battery. Miroslav Kotalík, a developer and DIYer, told Gizmodo via nonstop connection that helium archetypal got the thought for his Zero glasses portion helium was moving for a institution processing a commercialized brace of AR spectacles. Put plainly, helium wasn’t satisfied with however astir AR glasses makers support making devices that don’t really consciousness comfy to wear.

“I didn’t similar the value distribution, they didn’t beryllium close connected my look and needed a telephone implicit a wired transportation to function,” helium said. “That’s wherever I got the thought to marque my own.”

Like galore AR glasses, Zero promises to supply a benignant of “minimap” portion walking astir oregon connection contiguous translation portion traveling, though the existent brace is inactive an aboriginal prototype. Kotalík started investigating retired a instrumentality utilizing Arduino hardware, but helium realized helium needed thing almighty capable to render webpages and execute Javascript, starring him to settee connected a Raspberry Pi Zero. The last plan of 1.0 takes a bully woody of inspiration from retro-futurism, with goggle-like frames. The rounded lenses besides let Kotalík to presumption optics adjacent the hinges, alternatively than crowding them adjacent the apical arsenic with emblematic square-shaped AR glasses.

In videos Kotalík posted to Twitter, the AR apps look arsenic subtly shifting, floating icons oregon numbers, evoking the floating numbers seen successful beforehand of scientists’ eyes successful the Netflix rendition of The 3 Body Problem. As for app compatibility, Kotalík explained that the existent operating strategy is built to interface with immoderate benignant of web app. It doesn’t necessitate an net transportation and should enactment with immoderate app designed for offline use.

© Gif: Miroslav Kotalík

“This means you tin make an AR app successful minutes—just marque a elemental webpage and transcript it into the close folder,” helium said. “The OS handles sensors, caput tracking, and ‘glance’ constituent enactment for you.”

Although it’s inactive an aboriginal concept, the astir singular facet of this DIY plan is however Kotalík managed to trade a brace of optics astatine home. Like galore modern waveguide-based designs, these DIY glasses usage a projector strategy to show images connected the lenses, but that hardly conveys the situation of creating specified intricate optics by hand. Kotalík utilized a escaped online instrumentality called Ray Optics Simulation to fine-tune the lens signifier needed for representation projection.

Initially, helium tried 3D-printing a transparent PETG lens, but the effect had aerial bubble lines trapped successful the print, causing diffraction successful the images. After extended proceedings and error, helium switched to transparent resin, which helium poured into 3D-printed molds. He past hand-polished and sanded the lenses into the close shape.

While the 1.0 mentation was conscionable a prototype, it demonstrated you could get a functional brace of glasses for comparatively inexpensive without resorting to monolithic artillery packs oregon bulky processors. Kotalík said his enactment connected the 2.0 mentation is focused connected making it a existent rival to larger companies.

Not lone is helium experimenting with amended optics, the caller mentation could diagnostic a larger tract of view, a artillery for a full 2-hour runtime, a amended projector lens, positive the capabilities from a hand-tracking camera and microphone. Essentially, it could go a benignant of AI wearable successful the same vein arsenic the Ray-Ban Meta glasses. He’s inactive investigating whether 2.0 should usage an Organge Pi Zero 2w oregon a Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4.

Kotalík said that 2.0 volition besides absorption connected moving oft-used web apps, similar Spotify oregon Instagram. The OS should beryllium capable to leverage the camera and 6DoF tracking similar you get connected larger headsets, but that’s each inactive successful the pipeline. There’s a batch of committedness successful these simple, inexpensive glasses, though the decorator said 2.0 improvement volition “need a spot much time.” There’s nary connection connected pricing yet either, though it could outgo betwixt $250 to $450. He told Gizmodo those 2.0 glasses volition beryllium the archetypal ones disposable to the public, and successful the meantime he’s moving connected mounting up a waitlist successful lawsuit you privation to beryllium the archetypal to get your hands connected one. You tin cheque retired his

Kotalík mentioned that mentation 2.0 volition absorption connected often utilized web apps, similar Spotify oregon Instagram. The OS should beryllium capable to leverage the camera and 6DoF tracking, akin to what’s disposable connected larger headsets, though that’s inactive successful development. There’s important committedness successful these simple, affordable glasses, though Kotalík noted that mentation 2.0 volition “need a spot much time.” Pricing hasn’t been confirmed yet, but it whitethorn scope betwixt $250 and $450. He told Gizmodo that these 2.0 glasses volition beryllium the archetypal ones disposable to the public, and he’s presently moving connected mounting up a waitlist for those interested. For much accusation connected the upcoming waitlist, you tin cheque retired his Twitter page.