August 26, 2020
Min Read
We know you all are anxious to hear how manufacturing is progressing, and we want to let all of you know that we're still making steady progress. We just completed the first run of mechanical parts for the LE and XE kits, including the group packs, and we're now in production of the precision optics and electronic components for those kits. Once we have all of the parts they will be shipped to our manufacturer who will handle final assembly and testing.
Here's a shot of the newest ARCHIE board for the glasses, which is currently in production:
In our update last month we let everyone know that we have all of the parts for the Early Beta kits in hand, and we've been assembling and preparing them for shipping. We sent out a few of the kits to a very small group, and they have been invaluable assisting us with tracking down some issues that we are currently addressing.
One of the items that we're addressing involves a gluing issue in the precision optics for the micro HD projectors. These micro projectors are custom built for the Tilt Five glasses. Each projector is about the size of two sugar cubes.
For some additional perspective, the tiny lens barrel on these micro projectors contain multiple tiny lenses in them, much like a larger DSLR camera lens would have. Just look at how adorable these little lenses are:
A single micro projector has about 35 mechanical and optical components in them, and there are two of these micro projectors in every pair of Tilt Five glasses.
These optical components are held in place with mechanical features and glue. What we discovered, with the help of our backers and developers that received the very first Early Beta kits, is that the glue was failing on a limited number of micro projectors. Obviously this is something that needed to be addressed right away, as we would prefer that 0% of our micro projectors have issues. No fear though, this is all part of the manufacturing process, and catching these issues early ensures that we will have a great product for all of you once we ship. Plus, our manufacturing partner has been super helpful in immediately addressing and correcting the issue. They're in the process of sending us improved projectors now.
Here's a shot of one of the components that was having glue failure, due to insufficient glue application (component with red dot):
Hint: This is not supposed to be tilted like this! This is a cube beam splitter, which is used to direct light onto the liquid crystal on silicon display (LCOS).
We are so thankful to all of you for your support this year. We know it's been a rough year for everyone, and your continued support means the world to us. We're so grateful and excited that you're all on this journey with us. See you at the next update.
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