DISPLAY SYSTEM AND OPERATION INPUT METHOD

• US 20130139093A1
• Filed: 11/27/2012
• Published: 05/30/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: KOBAYASHI, Shinichi
• Granted Patent: US 9,678,663 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/773
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1639 the display being based on projection
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1673 Arrangements for projecting a virtual keyboard
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus

Abstract

A display system includes a sensor unit that detects the position of a pointing object in contact with a predetermined object, a control apparatus that sets a key layout on the object and recognizes a key operated by the pointing object based on the position of the pointing object relative to the key layout, and a display apparatus that receives operational input from the operated key.

Claims

1. A display system comprising:

a sensor unit that detects the position of a pointing object in contact with a predetermined object;

a control apparatus that sets a key layout on the object and recognizes a key operated by the pointing object based on the position of the pointing object relative to the key layout; and

a display apparatus that is wearable around the head of a user and receives operational input from the operated key.

2. The display system according to claim 1,

wherein the display apparatus includes an image pickup section having an image pickup area, and

the image pickup section presents predetermined image light visible to the user in the image pickup area, and the image pickup area transmits externally incident light.

3. The display system according to claim 2,

wherein the display apparatus superimposes a key image showing the key layout contained in the predetermined image light on an optical image of the object having passed through the image pickup area based on the position of the display apparatus relative to the object and displays the resultant image.

4. The display system according to claim 2,

wherein the display apparatus displays another image in the image pickup area in such a way that the other image does not overlap with the key image showing the key layout.

5. The display system according to claim 3,

wherein the display apparatus displays the key image after adjusting the size thereof.

6. The display system according to claim 1,

wherein the control apparatus sets the key layout based on the position of the pointing object having come into contact with the object.

7. The display system according to claim 1,

wherein the control apparatus sets the key layout based on user'"'"'s selection.

8. The display system according to claim 1,

wherein the sensor unit projects at least one of an infrared light flux and an ultrasonic wave and detects the position of the pointing object based on reflection from the pointing object.

9. The display system according to claim 1,

wherein the sensor unit captures an image of the pointing object and detects the position of the pointing object based on the captured image of the pointing object.

10. The display system according to claim 2,

wherein the display apparatus includes

an image output section that outputs the predetermined image light,

a projection optical system that projects the predetermined image light outputted from the image output section, and

a light guide section that guides the predetermined image light projected through the projection optical system to the image pickup area.

11. An operation input method used with a display system, the method comprising:

setting a key layout on a predetermined object by using a control apparatus;

detecting the position of a pointing object having come into contact with the object by using a sensor unit;

recognizing a key operated by the pointing object based on the position of the pointing object relative to the key layout by using the control apparatus; and

receiving operational input from the operated key by using a display apparatus wearable around the head of a user.