Head-up display and vehicle

• US 10,222,614 B2
• Filed: 05/05/2017
• Issued: 03/05/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Automotive Systems Company of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kuzuhara, Satoshi, Okayama, Hiroaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Jones, James
• Application Number:
  US15/587,805
• Publication Number:
  US 20170242248A1
• Time in Patent Office: 669 Days
• Field of Search: 359630
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/23 using reflectors
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/334 Projection means
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/347 Optical elements for superposition of display information
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/693 Cover plate features
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/23 Head-up displays [HUD] optical aspects of head-up displays G02B27/01
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/425 Anti-reflection arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/011 comprising device for correcting geometrical aberrations, distortion
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0118 comprising devices for improving the contrast of the display / brillance control visibility
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/013 comprising a combiner of particular shape, e.g. curvature
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/01 Head-up displays
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0101 characterised by optical features G02B27/0172 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/006 Mixed reality object pose determination, tracking or camera calibration for mixed reality G06T7/00

Abstract

A refractive optical system is disposed in an optical path from a display surface to a viewing area and between a projection optical system and the viewing area. A housing receives a display device, the projection optical system, and the refractive optical system, and is provided with an opening. An opening cover has at least partially a curved portion, and is disposed in the opening so that light emitted from the display surface is incident on a convex side of the curved portion. When a light beam that is emitted from a center of the display surface and reaches a center of the viewing area is referred to as a reference light beam, a head-up display satisfies the following condition (1):
L2≤L1  (1)

where

L1 is a distance from an end on the anterior side of the observer of the refractive optical system to the opening cover, and

L2 is a distance from a position at which the reference light beam passes through the refractive optical system to the opening cover.

Claims

1. A head-up display comprising:

a display device having a display surface for displaying an image;

a projection optical system for projecting an image displayed on the display surface onto a viewing area for an observer;

a refractive optical system disposed in an optical path from the display surface to the viewing area and between the projection optical system and the viewing area;

a housing that has an opening and contains the display device, the projection optical system and the refractive optical system; and

an opening cover that has at least partially a curved portion, and is disposed in the opening so that light emitted from the display surface is incident on a convex side of the curved portion,

wherein an exit surface of the refractive optical system has a convex shape,

wherein when a light beam that is emitted from a center of the display surface and reaches a center of the viewing area is referred to as a reference light beam, the head-up display satisfies the following condition (1);

L2≤

L1 

 

(1)

where L1 is a distance from an end on an anterior side of the observer on a smaller curvature surface of the refractive optical system to the opening cover, and L2 is a distance from a position at which the reference light beam passes through the smaller curvature surface of the refractive optical system to the opening cover.

2. The head-up display according to claim 1, wherein

the head-up display is installed in a vehicle having a windshield and satisfies the following condition (2):

L2≤

L3 

 

(2)

where L3 is a distance from an end on a vehicle rearward side on the smaller curvature surface of the refractive optical system to the opening cover.

3. The head-up display according to claim 1, wherein

the refractive optical system has a surface shape with a curvature in a longitudinal direction of a vehicle smaller than a curvature in a transverse direction of the vehicle.

4. The head-up display according to claim 1, wherein

the refractive optical system has a rotationally asymmetric surface shape.

5. The head-up display according to claim 1, wherein

intersection of a cross-section of the refractive optical system with an incident surface is referred to as an incident intersection line,

intersection of the cross-section with an exit surface is referred to as an exit intersection line,

the cross-section is perpendicular to the reference light beam, and

the refractive optical system is disposed such that the reference light beam incident on the refractive optical system is inclined with respect to (i) a normal to the exit surface at a point on the exit intersection line and (ii) a normal to the incident surface at a point on the incident intersection line.

6. A vehicle comprising the head-up display according to claim 1.