Image display device

• US 20090096714A1
• Filed: 09/29/2008
• Published: 04/16/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Brother Industries Limited)
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Brother Industries Limited)
• Inventors: Yamada, Shoji
• Application Number:
  US12/285,099
• Publication Number:
  US 20090096714A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/8
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0112 comprising device for genereting colour display
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/014 comprising information/image processing systems
• 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 27/017 Head mounted
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/012 Head tracking input arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/013 Eye tracking input arrangements G06F3/015 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/64 Constructional details of receivers, e.g. cabinets or dust covers furniture aspects of television cabinets A47B81/06

Abstract

A see-through type image display device is provided to easily designate a displayed virtual image or to easily, quickly and precisely select the same. The image display device projects light of an image to the retina of a viewer while external light is transmitted through the image display device in order for the viewer to recognize a real image due to the external light and a virtual image caused by the light of the image. The image display device includes an indicator rod that is variable in position and direction, an indicator detecting part for detecting the position and direction of the indicator rod, and an image display part for generating image information disposing an auxiliary virtual image in response to the position and the direction of the indicator rod along with a display subject of a main virtual image disposed on display coordinates, so that an image light based on the image information is provided to the retina of the viewer.

Claims

1. An image display device allowing a viewer to simultaneously observe a real image formed by an external light and a virtual image formed by an image light by projecting the image light to a retina of the viewer based on image information while allowing the external light to pass through the image display device, the image display device comprising:

an indicator which is capable of changing a position and a direction thereof;

an indicator detection part which detects the position and the direction of the indicator; and

an image display part which forms image information in which an auxiliary virtual image corresponding to the position and the direction of the indicator is arranged in a display coordinate system along with a main virtual image of an object to be displayed and which projects an image light based on the image information on the retina of the viewer.

2. An image display device according to claim 1, wherein the indicator detection part is configured to detect the position and the direction of the indicator in the display coordinate system, and

the image display part includes:

an image information forming apparatus which forms the image information in which the auxiliary virtual image is arranged on the extension of the direction of the indicator from the position of the indicator in the display coordinate system along with the main virtual image of the object to be displayed in the display coordinate system,

an optical flux generator which generates an optical flux corresponding to the image information formed by the image information forming apparatus, and

an optical system which projects the optical flux on the retina of the viewer.

3. An image display device according to claim 2, wherein the image display device includes a head wearable part to be worn on the head of the viewer, and at least the optical system out of the image display part is arranged in the head wearable part.

4. An image display device according to claim 3, wherein the image display device includes a head position detection part which detects a position and a direction of the head wearable part, and

the image information forming apparatus is configured to form the image information which arranges the main virtual image at a predetermined position on a reference coordinate system with a predetermined reference point set as the center, changes the position and the direction of the main virtual image on the display coordinate system corresponding to the change of the position and the direction of the head wearable part in the reference coordinate system, and changes the position and the direction of the auxiliary virtual image on the display coordinate system corresponding to the change of positions and the directions of the head wearable part and the indicator in the reference coordinate system.

5. An image display device according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined reference point is a predetermined point on a real space.

6. An image display device according to claim 4, wherein the image display device includes a reference unit wearable on a portion other than the head which constitutes a human body of the viewer, and

the reference unit is the predetermined reference point.

7. An image display device according to claim 2, wherein the image information forming apparatus forms the image information in which the auxiliary virtual image is arranged in a continuously extending manner from a position of the indicator in the display coordinate system to a predetermined position in the extending direction of the indicator.

8. An image display device according to claim 2, wherein the image information forming apparatus forms the image information in which the auxiliary virtual image is arranged in an intermittently extending manner from a position of the indicator in the display coordinate system to a predetermined position in the extending direction of the indicator.

9. An image display device according to claim 7, wherein the image display device includes an auxiliary virtual image length setting part which sets a length of the auxiliary virtual image, and

the image information forming apparatus forms, when the length of the auxiliary virtual image is set by the auxiliary virtual image length setting part, the image information in which the auxiliary virtual image which extends to the predetermined position corresponding to the set length is arranged.

10. An image display device according to claim 7, wherein the image display device includes an auxiliary virtual image width setting part which sets a width of the auxiliary virtual image, and

the image information forming apparatus forms, when the width of the auxiliary virtual image is set by the auxiliary virtual image width setting part, image information in which the auxiliary virtual image having a width corresponding to the set width is arranged.

11. An image display device according to claim 7, wherein the image display device includes a main virtual image designation operation part which designates the main virtual image, and

the image information forming apparatus correlates the main virtual image designated by the main virtual image designation operation part and the auxiliary virtual image, and changes a position and a direction of the main virtual image corresponding to the changes of the position and the direction of the auxiliary virtual image in the display coordinate system.

12. An image display device according to claim 7, wherein the image display device includes a main virtual image selection range specifying part which specifies the main virtual image existing within a trajectory of the auxiliary virtual image which moves on the display coordinate system corresponding to the changes of the position and the direction of the indicator, and

the image information forming apparatus changes color of the main virtual image specified by the main virtual image selection range specifying part.

13. An image display device according to claim 12, wherein the image information forming apparatus forms the image information which makes the trajectory of the auxiliary virtual image which moves on the display coordinate system corresponding to changes of the position and the direction of the indicator as a retention image for a predetermined time.

14. An image display device according to claim 7, wherein the image information forming apparatus forms, when it is determined that a portion of the auxiliary virtual image contacts a portion of the main virtual image on the display coordinate system, the image information which changes color of the auxiliary virtual image or the main virtual image.

15. An image display device according to claim 7, wherein the image display device includes a sound source part which, when it is determined that a portion of the auxiliary virtual image contacts a portion of the main virtual image on the display coordinate system, informs the determination using sounds.

16. An image display device according to claim 2, wherein the image information forming apparatus forms the image information in which the auxiliary virtual image is arranged at a position which becomes an intersecting point between an extension direction of the direction of the indicator from a position of the indicator in the display coordinate system and the main virtual image.

17. An image display device according to claim 2, wherein the image information forming apparatus forms the image information in which, when it is determined that there is no position which becomes an intersecting point between an extension direction of the direction of the indicator from a position of the indicator in the display coordinate system and the main virtual image, the auxiliary virtual image is not displayed.

18. An image display device according to claim 2, wherein the image information forming apparatus forms the image information in which, when it is determined that there is no position which becomes an intersecting point between an extension direction of the direction of the indicator from a position of the indicator in the display coordinate system and the main virtual image, a virtual image which informs the determination is arranged on the display coordinate system along with the main virtual image.

19. An image display device according to claim 1, wherein the optical system includes a wavefront modulation part which modulates a wavefront curvature of the optical flux and is configured to perform the wavefront modulation corresponding to a depth in an extending direction of the indicator.

20. An image display device according to claim 2, wherein the image display device includes an auxiliary virtual image color setting part which sets a color of the auxiliary virtual image, and

the image information forming apparatus forms, when it is determined that color of the auxiliary virtual image is set by the auxiliary virtual image color setting part, the image information in which the auxiliary virtual image of the set color is arranged along with the main virtual image.

21. An image display device according to claim 1, wherein the indicator detection part includes at least three orthogonally crossed coils for detecting an AC magnetic field generated by an AC magnetic field generator provided to the indicator, and detects the position and the direction of the indicator based on intensity of the AC magnetic field detected by the three orthogonally crossed coils generated by the AC magnetic field generator.

22. An image display device according to claim 1, wherein the image display device is a retinal scanning display in which the optical system includes a scanning part which scans the optical flux two-dimensionally and projects the optical flux scanned by the scanning part on the retina of the viewer.