作为苹果革命性的终端产品，大批新技术方案会与其名为“RealityPro”的首款MR智能头显一起走红。
苹果已经官宣，将于北京时间6月6日至10日举办2023年度全球开发者大会（WWDC）。综合各路消息，RealityPro将撕下最后的神秘面纱，同期发布的可能性非常大。
潮电智库从一份疑似MR头显的供应链名单了解，RealityPro采用了pancake光学方案，占比整机总成本5%左右。这与之前天风国际证券分析师郭明錤的预测基本一致。
在消费电子领域，苹果是寥寥可数具备定义产品实力的公司。如果上述名单信息属实，pancake光学应用前景将被完全打开。目前，整个pancake行业已经开启躁动模式，迎来企业投融资、技术方案融合、项目订单招标、开模生产等各种热潮。
非常夸张的是，在智能手机和TWS等市场整体疲软的大环境下，传闻深圳华强北白牌力量已做好进入XR的充分准备，只待苹果官宣后上新。
行业一直对苹果首款头显保持高度兴趣的原因，是因为它可以快速推动各种标准的建立。根据传出的更具体消息，各路高仿产品也是普遍采用pancake光学方案，平均单价预测在600元人民币左右。
专注XR领域近十年的爱幕创新公司董事长熊旭表示，苹果首款MR正式发布之后，势必会引起一波跟风潮。“目前来看，观影体验有可能成为率先成为产品最大卖点。”
爱幕创新聚焦VR轻薄化产品体验，主攻Pancake光学系统，是目前业内为数不多并最早拥有Pancake光学技术和相关产品解决方案的公司，配备完善的上下游资源。
从技术路径分析，当前XR光学方案主要分为两种。
一是垂直光学，即最早期的时候非球面透镜，起着放大镜的功能，比如cordborst、VR盒子，包括早期的VR一体机等产品，以及HTC VIVE、PICO NEO3、QUEST2采用的菲涅尔镜片；二是折叠光学，也就是简称的Pancake，包括单片、双片、多片等，主要是光路通过多个模片以及多个镜片进行多次折返。
根据潮电智库了解，在采用菲涅尔透镜作为光学方案的VR头显中，Meta Quest2的主机重量是503g，HTC Vive Focus3则趋近于800g，过于厚重的设备导致用户的佩戴舒适度与体验并不友好。
据行业机构统计，2022年VR新品配备Pancake 方案占比接近60%，华为、创维、松下等公司已经纷纷公布了新一代Pancake产品。
“以Meta和苹果等头部厂商为引领驱动，Pancake光学将成为VR的标配。”熊旭认为，相比菲涅尔透镜而言，Pancake的光路进行了多次折返，能够把VR体积做得更为轻薄，理论上来说只有原来的一半大，相应重量也会更轻，便于延长用户对VR的使用时间，从而提升产品体验。
据熊旭介绍，爱幕创新拥有完整的Pancake光学模组的自动化加工产线，并在该领域突破了多项生产工艺难题，大大提升了量产能力和效率，率先实现了高性价比的量产多款Pancake模组。包括用于巨幕2D/3D观影眼镜、便携轻薄VR眼镜、VR睡眠、VR眼保仪、VR教育等产品解决方案。
潮电智库从VR产业链了解，除了观影体验，业界对RealityPro的交互方式也充满好奇。
Apple’s first MR is nearing release, Pancake Solution providers are beginning to restless
As a revolutionary terminal product of Apple, a large number of new technology solutions will become popular along with its first MR intelligent head display called “RealityPro”.
Apple has announced that it will hold the 2023 World Developers Conference (WWDC) from June 6th to 10th Beijing time. Based on various sources of information, RealityPro will tear off its final mysterious veil and there is a high possibility of its release at the same time.
Chaodian Network learned from a supply chain list of suspected MR headsets that RealityPro adopts pancake optical solutions, accounting for about 5% of the total cost of the entire machine. This is basically consistent with the previous prediction of Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at TF International.
In the field of consumer electronics, Apple is one of the few companies with defined product capabilities. If the above list information is true, the prospects for pancake optical applications will be fully opened. At present, the entire pancake industry has started a restless mode, ushering in various trends such as enterprise investment and financing, technology solution integration, project order bidding, and mold production.
It is very exaggerated that in the overall weak market environment of smartphones and TWS, it is rumored that Shenzhen Huaqiang North with box is fully prepared to enter XR and will only be launched after Apple’s official announcement.
The reason why the industry has always maintained a high interest in Apple’s first head display is because it can quickly promote the establishment of various standards. According to more specific news, pancake optical solutions are also commonly used in various high-end imitation products, with an average unit price predicted to be around 600 yuan.
Xiong Xu, the chairman of Ai Mu Innovation Company, which has been focusing on the XR field for nearly a decade, said that after the official release of Apple’s first MR, it is bound to cause a wave of following trends. At present, the viewing experience may become the first to become the biggest selling point of the product.
Aimu Innovation focuses on VR lightweight product experience, focusing on Pancake optical systems. It is currently one of the few companies in the industry that has Pancake optical technology and related product solutions, equipped with comprehensive upstream and downstream resources.
From the perspective of technical path analysis, the current XR optical solutions are mainly divided into two types.
One is vertical optics, which was originally an aspherical lens that served as a magnifying glass, such as a cordborst and VR box, including early VR all-in-one machines and other products, as well as Fresnel lenses used in HTC VIVE, PICO NEO3, and QUEST2; The second is folding optics, also known as pancake for short, which includes single, dual, and multiple lenses. The optical path is mainly folded back multiple times through multiple modules and lenses.
According to industry statistics, the proportion of new VR products equipped with Pancake solutions in 2022 is close to 60%, and companies such as Huawei, Skyworth, and Panasonic have already announced new generation Pancake products.
Driven by leading manufacturers such as Meta and Apple, Pancake optics will become the standard feature of VR. “Xiong Xu believes that compared to Fresnel lenses, Pancake’s optical path has undergone multiple twists and turns, which can make VR volume lighter and thinner. In theory, it is only half the size of the original, and the corresponding weight will also be lighter, which is convenient for extending users’ use of VR and improving product experience.
According to Xiong Xu, Aimu Innovation has a complete automated processing line for Pancake optical modules, and has broken through multiple production process difficulties in this field, greatly improving mass production capacity and efficiency, and taking the lead in achieving cost-effective mass production of multiple Pancake modules. This includes product solutions for giant screen 2D/3D viewing glasses, portable lightweight VR glasses, VR sleep, VR eye protectors, VR education, and more.
Chao Dian Think Tank learning from the VR industry chain that in addition to the viewing experience, the industry is also curious about the interactive methods of RealityPro.
