MEMS scanning display device

• US 10,317,670 B2
• Filed: 01/12/2018
• Issued: 06/11/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Tardif, John Allen, Miller, Joshua Owen, Margolis, Jeffrey N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cerullo, Liliana
• Application Number:
  US15/870,838
• Publication Number:
  US 20180252913A1
• Time in Patent Office: 515 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0187 slaved to motion of at least a part of the body of the user, e.g. head, eye
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 26/0833 the reflecting element being a micromechanical device, e.g. a MEMS mirror, DMD G02B26/0825 takes precedence; micromechanical devices in general B81B
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 26/101 with both horizontal and vertical deflecting means, e.g. raster or XY scanners colour television using laser beams scanning a display screen H04N9/3129
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0093 with means for monitoring data relating to the user, e.g. head-tracking, eye-tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0172 characterised by optical features
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/4214 the intermediate optical element having redirecting reflective means, e.g. mirrors, prisms for deflecting the radiation from horizontal to down- or upward direction toward a device G02B6/4246 takes precedence

Abstract

Examples are disclosed that related to scanning image display systems. In one example, a scanning head-mounted display system includes a light source, a motion sensor, a scanning mirror system configured to scan light from the light source along at least one dimension to form an image, and a controller configured to control the scanning mirror system to scan the light to form the image, receive head motion data from the motion sensor, and adjust one or more of a scan rate and a phase offset between a first frame and a second frame of the image based upon the head motion data.

Claims

1. A scanning head-mounted display system, comprising:

a light source;

a motion sensor;

a scanning mirror system configured to scan light from the light source along at least one dimension to form an image; and

a controller configured to

control the scanning mirror system to scan the light to form the image,

receive head motion data from the motion sensor, and

adjust one or more of a scan rate and a phase offset between a first frame and a second frame of the image based upon the head motion data.

2. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 1, wherein the scanning mirror system comprises a first mirror configured to scan the light in a first direction, and a second mirror configured to scan the light in a second direction.

3. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 2, wherein the controller is configured to adjust the phase offset between the first frame and the second frame by adjusting a time at which the scanning mirror system initiates the scanning of the light in the second direction relative to the scanning of the light in the first direction.

4. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to adjust the phase offset between the first frame and the second frame based on a desired line spacing at a region in the image.

5. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 4, wherein the region is one of a plurality of regions in the image, and wherein the controller is configured to associate a respective phase offset with each of the plurality of regions.

6. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 1, further comprising an eye tracking sensor configured to detect a gaze direction of a user, and wherein the controller is further configured to map the gaze direction to a region in the image, and to adjust one or more of the scan rate and the phase offset based on the region in the image.

7. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 6, wherein the controller is further configured to adjust the phase offset in a first manner based on mapping the gaze direction to a first region in the image, and to adjust the phase offset in a second manner based on mapping the gaze direction to a second region in the image.

8. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 6, wherein the region is a foveal region of the image, the image comprising a non-foveal region, and wherein the controller is further configured to increase the scan rate in the non-foveal region and to decrease the scan rate in the foveal region.

9. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 6, wherein the phase offset between the first frame and the second frame comprises multiple phase offset adjustments, and wherein the controller is configured to

determine a first phase offset adjustment based upon the region in the image,

determine a second phase offset adjustment based upon the head motion data, and

adjust the phase offset between the first frame and the second frame based upon a sum of the first phase offset adjustment determined and the second phase offset adjustment determined.

10. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 1, wherein the light source is a laser light source comprising two or more offset lasers, and wherein the laser light source is configured to output light of multiple colors.

11. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 1, further comprising an eye tracking sensor configured to detect eye movement, and wherein the controller is further configured to

map the eye movement, and

adjust the phase offset between the first frame and the second frame based upon the eye movement.

12. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 1, wherein the scanning mirror system is configured to scan a horizontal line of the image in a half period of a microelectromechanical actuator that drives the scanning mirror system.

13. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 1, wherein the light source comprises a one dimensional array of light emitters.

14. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 1, wherein the scanning mirror system comprises a same higher frequency scanning mirror and separate left-eye and right-eye lower frequency scanning mirrors for respectively scanning in a higher frequency scan direction and a lower frequency scan direction.

15. A method of displaying an image, comprising:

directing light from a light source toward a scanning mirror system;

scanning the light from the light source in a first direction at a higher frequency and in a second direction at a lower frequency to thereby scan the light in an interlaced pattern and form the image;

receiving head motion data from a motion sensor; and

based at least on the head motion data, adjusting one or more of a scan rate in the second direction and a phase offset between a first frame and a second frame of the interlaced pattern.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising mapping a gaze direction determined via an eye tracking sensor to a region in the image, and adjusting one or more of the scan rate in the second direction and the phase offset based on the region in the image.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising

mapping an eye movement across the image via an eye tracking sensor, and

based upon the eye movement, adjusting one or more of the scan rate in the second direction and the phase offset between the first frame and the second frame of the interlaced pattern.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein scanning the light from the light source comprises scanning the light to form the image at a resolution between 1440p and 2160p.

19. A scanning head-mounted display system, comprising:

a light source;

a motion sensor;

a scanning mirror system configured to scan light from the light source in a first direction at a higher frequency, and in a second direction at a lower frequency to form an image;

an eye tracking sensor; and

a controller configured to

control the scanning mirror system to scan the light in an interlaced pattern to form the image,

receive head motion data from the motion sensor,

receive data from the eye tracking sensor,

adjust one or more of a scan rate in the second direction and a phase offset between a first frame and a second frame of the interlaced pattern based at least on the head motion data and the data received from the eye tracking sensor.

20. The scanning head-mounted display system of claim 19, wherein receiving the data from the eye tracking sensor comprises receiving an indication of one or more of a gaze direction and an eye movement, and wherein the controller is further configured to

determine a first phase offset adjustment based upon the one or more of the gaze direction and the eye movement,

determine a second phase offset adjustment based upon the head motion data, and

adjust the phase offset between the first frame and the second frame of the interlaced pattern based upon a sum of the first phase offset adjustment determined and the second phase offset adjustment determined.