JP3159538B2 - Head-mounted display device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a head mounted display capable of observing an image while being mounted on the head.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional example of a head mounted display device capable of observing an image while being mounted on the head, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-2 is known.
No. 3,582. It has the following configuration. An image display device that includes a light source and a liquid crystal panel illuminated by the light source inside the device main body, and the device main body is mounted on a human head so that an image of the liquid crystal panel is projected on an eyeball. Attach the means, and when flipping up this attaching means, the image of the liquid crystal panel, or
It is configured to cut off at least one of the sounds.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The above-mentioned Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-2
In Japanese Patent No. 3582, when the head-mounted display device is worn, both eyes are covered, so that the environment around the user cannot be perceived as it is. In particular, since it is not possible to perceive the key input operation at hand and the environment of the foot when moving, it is necessary to jump up and see the display unit by hand.

The head-mounted display device of the present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the invention is to provide a head-mounted display device which is mounted on a desk. A head mounted unit that allows you to easily switch from an electronic image to an external image when performing operations at hand, or when you want to see the environment at hand, or when you want to see your feet while standing upright. It is an object of the present invention to provide a portable display device.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a two-dimensional display device and a two-dimensional display device provided inside a body exterior having a shape that can be mounted and held on a head. An optical system that projects an electronic image onto the retina of an eyeball, and a head-mounted display device having an electronic shutter that switches between the electronic image and the external image, a detector that detects at least a forward inclination of the movement of the head, Control means for switching the electronic shutter between an electronic image and an external image according to the output of the detector is further provided.

[0006]

That is, in the head-mounted display device of the present invention, at least the forward inclination of the movement of the head is detected, and the electronic shutter is switched to either an electronic image or an external image according to the detection result.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First, the head mounted display device of the present embodiment detects an action of the wearer trying to view the external image of his or her hand or feet, and interlocks the movement of the electronic image and the external image with the movement. Control switching. Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is an external view of the head-mounted display device according to the first embodiment.

The exterior of the display device 1 is designed to be mounted on the head, and the display device 1 and a control device (not shown) include a video signal cable 5, an audio signal cable 6, and an electronic shutter control signal. Cable 7
And the sensor signal cable 8.

The sensor signal cable 8 is for outputting a signal from the tilt sensor 4 arranged inside the display device to detect the tilt of the head of the wearer wearing the display device 1.

The tilt sensor 4 uses two piezoelectric acceleration pickups arranged to detect vectors in the Y-axis direction (front-back direction of the wearer) and the Z-axis direction (vertical direction of the wearer's head). It is possible to detect the forward inclination of the wearer's head based on the outputs of these two pickups.

A transparent or translucent cover 3 is provided on the front of the display device, and an electronic shutter (13 in FIG. 3) for switching between an electronic image and an external image is disposed behind the cover. FIG. 3 shows an optical system in the present embodiment. FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram viewed from the top, and FIG. 3B is a diagram viewed from the side. In FIG. 3, the display device 1 is mounted on the head, is in close contact with the face 15, and the optical system is arranged in pairs for the right eye and the left eye.

A liquid crystal lighting device 9 is disposed inside the side surface of the display device 1, and a liquid crystal plate 10 is disposed immediately in front of the liquid crystal lighting device 9. Further, lenses 11a, 11b and 11c for aberration correction are arranged in front of the liquid crystal plate 10. Eyeball 16
A concave half mirror 12 and an electronic shutter 13 of a liquid crystal plate type are arranged at the front position of.

The liquid crystal panel 10 is driven by the video signal, and an image is displayed on the liquid crystal panel 10. Further, the liquid crystal plate 10
Is irradiated with white light from the lighting device 9 and transmitted therethrough. The transmitted light passes through the lenses 11a, 11b, and 11c, is reflected by the concave half mirror 12, and enters the eyeball 16. Light rays 14 that represent part of the optical path are shown in the figure. Further, the lighting device 9 is stopped, the illumination light is turned off, and the electronic shutter 13 is turned off.
Is transmitted, the external image passes through the transparent or translucent cover 3, passes through the electronic shutter 13, and transmits the eyeball 1.
6 is incident. FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram and a conceptual diagram of a control state of a head mounted display device according to a first embodiment. The operation of the head-mounted display device according to the present embodiment will be described below.

A video signal is transmitted and input to the video input signal processing unit 17 through a video signal cable. When an electronic image is observed, that is, when the electronic image / external image switching unit 19 is on the electronic image side by the output of the head tilt detection circuit 18 (corresponding to 4 in FIG. 2), the video signal control is performed. Circuit 21
The video signal is converted into a liquid crystal drive signal, and the liquid crystal plates 26a and 26b (corresponding to 10 in FIG. 3) are driven via the liquid crystal drive circuits 24a and 24b to display a two-dimensional image on the liquid crystal plates 26a and 26b. .

The images on the liquid crystal plates 26a and 26b are:
A lighting device 25a driven by the lighting power supply 20,
It is irradiated with white light from 25b (corresponding to 9 in FIG. 3) to form a transmitted image. This transmitted image is transmitted through lenses 11a, 11b, 11c.
The light is reflected by the concave half mirror 12 via (FIG. 3A) and projected onto the eyeball retina 16. At this time, the electronic shutter 13 is in the on state, and shields light from the outside, so that the concave half mirror 12 reflects only light from the liquid crystal side. Light rays indicating a part of the optical path of the transmitted light are shown at 14 in FIG. Thus, the image of the liquid crystal plate is projected on the eyeball.

Next, when the display device 1 is mounted with the head turned downward, a head tilt detection circuit 18 incorporated in the device main body detects a forward tilt, and outputs a predetermined tilt or more. , The electronic image / external world image switching unit 1
9 outputs a control signal for the external image.

The control signal causes the video signal control circuit 21
Stops sending video signals to the liquid crystal drive circuits 24a and 24b, and also stops the illumination power supply 20, so that illumination light and images from the liquid crystal plates 26a and 26b do not enter the eyeball.

At the same time, the electronic shutter drive circuit 23 is turned off by a control signal from the electronic image / external world image switching unit 19, and the external image enters the electronic shutter 13. The external image enters the eyeball 16 through the electronic shutter 13 and the concave half mirror 12. Therefore, regardless of the electronic video signal, an external image can be viewed without being disturbed.

FIG. 4 shows a switching operation when the wearer of the head-mounted display device performs an operation at hand using the electronic image of the virtual display device and the keyboard on the desk of the external world image without using hands. This shows how the movement can be performed by the movement of the head (tilt α).

As described above, according to this embodiment, when the wearer of the head-mounted display device performs an operation at hand on a desk, wants to see the environment at hand, or stands up When you want to see your feet,
Switching from an electronic image to the outside world image can be easily performed only by moving the head (tilting) without using hands. Gyro, FOG, etc.
(Fiber type gyro) can also be used. As the electronic shutter 13, a PLZT shutter or the like can be used in addition to the liquid crystal shutter.

This apparatus has an auto / not shown
There is a manual switching button. When you want to immerse yourself in the electronic image or always want to see the external image, you can stop the automatic switching function by the operation and keep the current state (electronic image / external image). is there.

As described above, the head mounted display device of the present embodiment is provided with the tilt sensor for determining whether to switch between the external image and the electronic image, and drives the two-dimensional display device in accordance with the signal of the tilt sensor. A control device for turning on / off the circuit and also turning on / off an electronic shutter for intercepting / transmitting external light in conjunction therewith is added.

That is, when observing an electronic image, by turning on the drive circuit and turning on the electronic shutter,
A good electronic image can be seen without being affected by disturbance light. When the external image is observed, the driving circuit is turned off and the electronic shutter is turned off, so that only the external image can be observed through the electronic shutter without being disturbed by the electronic image. Hereinafter, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5, 6, and 7. FIG.

The basic configuration of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. Although the concave half mirror 12 is used in the first embodiment, FIG.
A concave mirror 27 is used as shown in FIG. Also, the electronic shutter 13 for transmitting the external image is located below the concave mirror 27 and is arranged so that the line of sight is directed downward. The transparent or translucent cover is also located in front of the electronic shutter. A line-of-sight detection sensor is disposed between the concave mirror 27 and the electronic shutter 13. FIG. 6A shows an operation principle diagram of such a visual line detection sensor.

This method utilizes the point that the iris (black eye portion) has a lower reflectance than the sclera (white eye portion) and the boundary between them is relatively easy to detect. 28 illuminates both the horizontal sides of the iris (the boundary between iris and sclera) on a spot or a strip. The reflected light is received by the two light receiving elements 29, and the horizontal eye movement amount (rotation angle) is detected from the difference signal.

That is, as shown in FIG. 6B, the left-right direction (horizontal direction) of the line of sight is determined from the area difference between the white eyes on both sides of the black eye. Also, as shown in FIG. 6C, two light receiving elements 29
The vertical eye movement amount is detected by the sum signal of. In this case, it means that the vertical direction is determined from the area of the white eye between the black eye and the lower eyelid. In addition, an infrared light emitting diode is used as the light emitting element 28 and an infrared photodiode is used as the light receiving element 29, so that uncomfortable feeling to human eyes is eliminated.

FIG. 9 shows a circuit block diagram and a conceptual diagram of a control state of the head mounted display device in the second embodiment. The configuration and operation are almost the same as in the first embodiment,
The operation of the different parts is described below.

When an electronic image is being observed, that is, when the output of the eye-gaze detecting circuit 31 is on the electronic image side, a two-dimensional image is displayed on the liquid crystal plates 26a and 26b. At this time, regardless of whether the electronic shutter 13 is on or off, the electronic image is reflected by the concave mirror 27 (FIG. 5) and projected on the eyeball retina. However, at this time, since the electronic shutter 13 is on, the image is not difficult to see due to external light.

Next, when the wearer turns his / her gaze downward, a gaze detection circuit 31 incorporated in the main body of the apparatus detects a downward gaze of the eyeball. The image switching unit 19 outputs a control signal for the external image. Since the video signal control circuit 21 is stopped by this control signal, the video does not enter the eyeball.

At the same time, the electronic shutter 13 arranged in the line of sight is turned off, and an external image can be observed through the electronic shutter 13. However, in this embodiment, when an external image can be observed, the video signal control circuit 2
1 need not be stopped. FIGS. 7 and 8 show examples of using the method of detecting the eye gaze detection method using electro-oculography.

FIG. 8 shows a principle diagram of the electro-oculography method (EOG method). This measurement method uses electrodes 30
a to 30d are arranged to detect the movement of the eyeball from the change in the electrode potential due to the movement of the eyeball.

When the head-mounted display device is worn as shown in FIG. 7, four electrodes 30a and 30b are arranged at the upper and lower positions of both eyes of the face, and a difference signal between the upper and lower electrode signals is obtained. Thus, the vertical position of the line of sight is determined.
As the line-of-sight detection method, there are a method using a Purkinje image and a method of performing image processing on iris, and a configuration using these methods is also possible.

As in the first embodiment, this apparatus has an auto / manual switch button (not shown). When the user wants to be immersed in an electronic image or always wants to see an external image, the automatic switch is performed. The function can be stopped and the current state (electronic image / external world image) can be held.

The effect of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. However, as for the operation, moving the line of sight is quicker than moving the head, and because the external image can be observed without stopping the electronic image, the switching operation can be performed even faster than in the first embodiment. The quality is further improved. Hereinafter, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described.

In this embodiment, the configuration of the head mounted display device 1 is almost the same as that of the first embodiment. FIG.
0 indicates a control circuit in this embodiment. The main differences are described below.

When the person wearing the head mounted display device 1 turns his head downward, a head tilt detection circuit 18 incorporated in the device main body detects the amount of forward tilt.
The video start signal generating circuit 32 outputs a video start signal so as to change the time width of the vertical synchronizing signal output from the video input signal processing circuit 17 according to the amount of tilt. The video start signal generation circuit 32 has a function of delaying the output timing of the video start signal as the head tilt detection circuit 18 tilts forward. The image start signal is output at a timing synchronized with the horizontal synchronization signal.

The video signal line control circuit 33 converts the video signal into a liquid crystal drive circuit 24a based on the video start signal.
Send to 24b. That is, in order to send the video signal at the time when the video start signal is generated to the liquid crystal drive circuits 24a and 24b, the generation of the image starts from the middle of the video signal, and the input image is displayed from the middle. In addition, there is no video signal in the portion of the insufficient line after the scanning end line, and thus there is no video signal on the lower side of the screen.

At the same time, the liquid crystal shutter control circuit 35
Move in synchronization with the video signal line control circuit 33, and after the generation of the video start signal, the liquid crystal shutters 34a, 34b in the horizontal line direction at the timing when the video signal is generated.
Is turned on, and conversely, the liquid crystal shutters 34a and 34b of the horizontal line signal at the timing when there is no video signal are turned off.

Therefore, there is no video signal and the liquid crystal shutter 34
At the timing when the liquid crystal shutters 34a and 34b are turned off, an external image enters the liquid crystal shutters 34a and 34b from below.
The liquid crystal shutters 34a and 34b at this time are liquid crystal plates having a shutter function such that strip-shaped transparent electrodes extending at least in the horizontal direction are arranged by the number of scanning lines, and the screen can be vertically divided at any place.

Therefore, the external image is formed by the liquid crystal shutters 34a and 34a.
The light enters the eyeball 16 through a lower part of the concave half mirror 12 and a lower part of the concave half mirror 4b. The portion that transmits the external world image changes according to the signal level of the head tilt detection circuit 18,
As the amount of tilt increases, it spreads upward from the bottom of the screen.

FIG. 11 shows how an electronic image looks with respect to such a tilt of the head. FIG. 12 shows the relationship between the liquid crystal screen and the liquid crystal shutter 34 at each inclination shown in FIG. FIGS. 11A and 12A show a virtual screen image when the head is in the vertical position, the liquid crystal screen at that time, and the liquid crystal shutter 3.
4 is shown. 11 (b) and 12 (b) to FIG.
1 (c) and FIG. 12 (c) show the state when the inclination of the head is increased.

The scanning start line number of the electronic video signal and the head inclination detecting circuit 18 are in a proportional relationship, and the start line number increases as the head inclination amount increases. Therefore, the electronic image is set to have a relationship as if the electronic image is fixed at a certain height above the floor surface, regardless of the inclination of the head.

On the other hand, the range in which the electronic image itself looks reversely becomes narrower. Gyro, FO as tilt detector
G (fiber gyro) and the like can also be used. The apparatus also has an auto / manual switch button (not shown). When the user wants to be immersed in the electronic image by operating the button or always wants to see an external image, the automatic switch function is stopped and the current state ( (An electronic image / external world image).

The effect of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment. However, since the electronic image is fixed in a certain space when the head is moved, and because a part is always displayed, it is possible to easily recognize the screen position space, The switching between the observation of the external image and the external image can be made more natural. Further, a faster switching operation than in the first and second embodiments is not required, and a more natural operation can be performed.

[0045]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, when a person wearing a head-mounted display device wants to operate while viewing the external image at hand, the switching operation between the electronic image and the external image is performed one by one. And the operability with the device mounted is further improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram and a conceptual diagram of a control state of a head mounted display device according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an external view of a head-mounted display device according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic top view and a schematic side view of a display device including an optical system according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a wearer can perform a switching operation between an electronic image and an external image by moving his / her head without using a hand.

FIG. 5 is a schematic top view and a schematic side view of a display device including an optical system according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the line-of-sight detection sensor.

FIGS. 7A and 7B are a schematic top view and a schematic side view of a display device when a gaze detection method is detected by electro-oculography.

FIG. 8 is a principle diagram of an electro-oculography (EOG method).

FIG. 9 is a circuit block diagram and a conceptual diagram of a control state of a head mounted display device according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a circuit block diagram and a conceptual diagram of a control state of a head mounted display device according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining how an electronic image is viewed with respect to the tilt of the head.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between a liquid crystal screen and a liquid crystal shutter when each head is tilted.

[Explanation of symbols]

13: Electronic shutter, 18: Head tilt detection circuit, 19
... Electronic image / external image switching unit, 26a, 26b ... Liquid crystal plate.

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Seiichiro Tabata 2-43-2 Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo Inside the Olympus Optical Co., Ltd. (72) Osamu Onuma 2-43-2 Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo Olympus Optical Co., Ltd. (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H04N 5/64-5/655

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A two-dimensional display device, an optical system for projecting an electronic image of the two-dimensional display device onto a retina of an eyeball, inside a body exterior having a shape capable of being worn and held on a human head, A head-mounted display device having an electronic shutter for switching between an image and an external image, a detector for detecting at least a forward inclination of the movement of the head, and an electronic image for the electronic shutter according to an output of the detector. A head-mounted display device, further comprising control means for switching to one of an external image.