SWITCHING MODE OF OPERATION IN A HEAD MOUNTED DISPLAY

• US 20140361976A1
• Filed: 03/12/2014
• Published: 12/11/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Computer Entertainment Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Mao, Xiadong, Osman, Steven, Stafford, Jeffrey Roger
• Granted Patent: US 10,019,057 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/156
• 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 27/0093 with means for monitoring data relating to the user, e.g. head-tracking, eye-tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/017 Head mounted
• 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: G06F 2203/04804 Transparency, e.g. transparent or translucent windows
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/013 Eye tracking input arrangements G06F3/015 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/006 Mixed reality object pose determination, tracking or camera calibration for mixed reality G06T7/00

Abstract

Methods, systems, and computer programs are presented for managing the display of images on a head mounted device (HMD). One method includes an operation for tracking the gaze of a user wearing the HMD, where the HMD is displaying a scene of a virtual world. In addition, the method includes an operation for detecting that the gaze of the user is fixed on a predetermined area for a predetermined amount of time. In response to the detecting, the method fades out a region of the display in the HMD, while maintaining the scene of the virtual world in an area of the display outside the region. Additionally, the method includes an operation for fading in a view of the real world in the region as if the HMD were transparent to the user while the user is looking through the region. The fading in of the view of the real world includes maintaining the scene of the virtual world outside the region.

Claims

1. A method for managing display of images on a head mounted device (HMD), the method comprising:

tracking a gaze of a user wearing the HMD that is displaying a scene of a virtual world;

detecting that the gaze of the user is fixed on a predetermined area for a predetermined amount of time;

fading out, in response to the detecting, a region of a display of the HMD while maintaining the scene of the virtual world in an area of the display outside the region; and

fading in a view of a real world in the region as if the HMD were transparent to the user while looking through the region, the fading in including maintaining the scene of the virtual world outside the region.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the predetermined area is one of an area defined below the display, an area defined to a side of the display, an area defined above the display, or an area defined on a corner of the display.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the predetermined area is defined below the display, and wherein the region is a bottom half of the display.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the region is a rectangle centered on the display.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, further including:

asking the user for confirmation before the fading out.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, further including:

receiving a command from the user to terminate the view of the real world;

fading out the view of the real world in the region; and

fading in a view of the virtual world in the region.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein tracking the gaze further includes:

capturing images of eyes of the user with a camera inside the HMD; and

analyzing the captured images to determine the gaze of the user.

8. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the view of the real world is captured by a camera on a front of the HMD.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the predetermined amount of time is two seconds.

10. A method for managing display of images on a head mounted device (HMD), the method comprising:

detecting an operation to acclimate a user to the HMD;

presenting a view of a real world on the display as if the HMD were transparent;

adding a virtual element to the view of the real world in augmented reality mode;

fading out the real world from the display while maintaining the virtual element on the display; and

fading in a virtual world around the virtual element.

11. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein the augmented reality mode includes presenting virtual objects as if the virtual objects where located on the real world, wherein a motion of the HMD with respect to the real world contains a same location of the virtual object in the real world.

12. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein the real world and the virtual world are not blended on the display except for the virtual element.

13. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein the real world and the virtual world are blended during the fade out of the real world.

14. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein adding the virtual element further includes:

fading in the virtual element into the view of the real world.

15. The method as recited in claim 10, wherein operations of the method are performed by a computer program when executed by one or more processors, the computer program being embedded in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium.

16. A computer program embedded in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, when executed by one or more processors, for managing display of images on a head mounted device (HMD), the computer program comprising:

program instructions for tracking a gaze of a user wearing the HMD that is displaying a scene of a virtual world;

program instructions for tracking a gaze of a user wearing the HMD that is displaying a scene of a virtual world;

program instructions for detecting that the gaze of the user is fixed on a predetermined area for a predetermined amount of time;

program instructions for fading out, in response to the detecting, a region of a display of the HMD while maintaining the scene of the virtual world in an area of the display outside the region; and

program instructions for fading in a view of a real world in the region as if the HMD were transparent to the user while looking through the region, the fading in including maintaining the scene of the virtual world outside the region.

17. The computer program as recited in claim 16, wherein the predetermined area is one of an area defined below the display, an area defined to a side of the display, an area defined above the display, or an area defined on a corner of the display.

18. The computer program as recited in claim 16, wherein the predetermined area is defined below the display, and wherein the region is a bottom half of the display.

19. The computer program as recited in claim 16, further including:

receiving a command from the user to terminate the view of the real world;

fading out the view of the real world in the region; and

fading in a view of the virtual world in the region.

20. The computer program as recited in claim 16, wherein tracking the gaze further includes:

capturing images of eyes of the user with a camera inside the HMD; and

analyzing the captured images to determine the gaze of the user.

21. A method for managing display of images on a head mounted device (HMD), the method comprising:

tracking a gaze of the user as the gaze is projected on a display of the HMD;

identifying a trajectory of the gaze as the gaze is tracked;

comparing the identified trajectory to a signature for the user, the signature including a signature trajectory for gaze;

enabling access to a resource on the HMD when the identified trajectory corresponds to the signature trajectory.