Head-mounted display eyeball tracker integrated system

• US 10,520,732 B2
• Filed: 08/17/2017
• Issued: 12/31/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lumus Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Lumus Ltd.
• Inventors: Amitai, Yaakov
• Primary Examiner(s): Chang, Audrey Y
• Application Number:
  US15/680,028
• Publication Number:
  US 20170357095A1
• Time in Patent Office: 866 Days
• Field of Search: 359630, 359634, 359639, 351210, 351221, 345207
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 3/113 for determining or recording eye movement
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0125 Field-of-view increase by wavefront division
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0178 Eyeglass type eyeglass details G02C
• 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 27/0081 with means for altering, e.g. enlarging, the entrance or exit pupil
• 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 27/0179 Display position adjusting means not related to the information to be displayed
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/141 using dichroic mirrors
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/145 having sequential partially reflecting surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/286 for controlling or changing the state of polarisation, e.g. transforming one polarisation state into another G02B5/3083 takes precedence; light guide coupling means utilising polarising elements G02B6/34

Abstract

Head-mounted display with an eye-tracking system and including a light-transmitting substrate (20) having two major surfaces and edges, optical means for coupling light into said substrate (20) by total internal reflection, partially-reflecting surfaces (22a-22c) carried by the substrate (20) that are not parallel with the major surfaces of the substrate (20), a near-infrared light source (78) and a display source (92) projecting within the photopic spectrum, wherein light from the light source (78) and light from the display source (92) are coupled into the substrate (20) by total internal reflection.

Claims

1. An optical system, comprising:

a light-transmitting substrate having at least two major surfaces and edges;

at least one optical means for coupling light waves into the substrate so that the light waves are trapped inside the substrate by total internal reflection;

a detector;

an array of partially reflecting surfaces carried by the substrate, the partially reflecting surfaces not being parallel to the major surfaces of the substrate;

at least one light source projecting light waves within a first optical spectrum;

at least one display source projecting light waves within a second optical spectrum corresponding to an image for display to an eye of a viewer;

the first optical spectrum being different than the second optical spectrum;

the light waves from the light source and light waves from the display source coupled into the substrate so that the light waves are trapped inside the substrate by total internal reflection;

the array of partially reflecting surfaces coupling light waves from the display source, out of the substrate so as to project the image to the eye of the viewer within an image field of view;

wherein a first one of the partially reflecting surfaces proximal to said at least one optical means is reflective for light in said first optical spectrum so that light waves within the first optical spectrum from the light source are coupled out of the substrate towards the eye of the viewer and light waves within the first optical spectrum reflected from the viewer'"'"'s eye are coupled by reflection at the first one of the partially reflecting surfaces back into the substrate, so that the light waves are trapped inside the substrate by total internal reflection, said first one of the partially reflecting surfaces being at or beyond a periphery of the image field of view;

the at least one optical means coupling the reflected light waves from the viewer'"'"'s eye into the detector;

wherein the light waves from the viewer'"'"'s eye reflected into the substrate is reflected only once from each of the major surfaces of the substrate before being coupled-out of the substrate through an output surface into the detector, and the light waves from the viewer'"'"'s eye which are reflected at least twice from one of the major surfaces of the substrate are blocked by a spatial filter, wherein the spatial filter covers only part of the output surface.

2. The optical system according to claim 1 wherein the spatial filter is highly reflective to light waves within the second optical spectrum, while it is substantially transparent to light waves within the first optical spectrum.

3. The optical system according to claim 1 wherein the spatial filter is reflective to light waves within the first optical spectrum, while it is substantially transparent to light waves within the second optical spectrum.

4. The optical system according to claim 1 wherein the light waves are coupled into the substrate through an input surface and a spatial filter covers only a part of the input surface.

5. The optical system according to claim 1 wherein said first one of the partially reflecting surfaces is substantially transparent for light waves within the second optical spectrum.