Display system

• US 6,292,158 B1
• Filed: 05/01/1998
• Issued: 09/18/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Shimadzu Corporation
• Original Assignee: Shimadzu Corporation
• Inventors: Nakahara, Yasuhiro, Handa, Yasuhiko, Nasu, Ryutaro, Amafuji, Hisashi, Kumai, Keizou
• Primary Examiner(s): Hjerpe, Richard
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Kevin M.
• Application Number:
  US09/070,810
• Time in Patent Office: 1,236 Days
• Field of Search: 345/7, 345/8, 345/9, 345/30, 345/112, 345/121, 345/126, 345/1, 345/2, 345/3
• US Class Current: 345/7
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/017 Head mounted
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/04 Display device controller operating with a plurality of display units
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/003 to produce spatial visual effects
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/00 Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators image data processing or generation, in general G06T

Abstract

A display system detects the orientation of the image display screen of a movable display device, the image display screen of which can be arbitrarily oriented, and outputs image data stored and related with the detected orientation of the image display screen to the movable display device, to display image corresponding to the image data. The display system changes the orientation of the image display screen stored and related with the image data according to change in the orientation of the image display screen of the movable display device, when the image data is output to the movable display device and a change signal is output.

Claims

1. A display system comprising:

a movable display device able to orient its image display screen in an arbitrary direction;

means for storing image data with an orientation of the image display screen so that the image data is related with the orientation;

means for detecting the orientation of the image display screen of the movable display device;

means for outputting the image data to the movable display device so that an image corresponding to the image data is displayed, when the detected orientation of the image display screen corresponds to the orientation of the image display screen stored and related with the image data;

means for outputting a change signal; and

means for changing the orientation of the image display screen stored and related with the image data according to the change in orientation of the image display screen of the movable display device, wherein when the image data and the change signal are output, the movable display device continuously displays the image regardless of the orientation of the image and when the change signal is not output, the movable display device displays mutually different images when the image display screen is oriented in one direction and the movable display device is oriented in another direction such that different images having different orientations relative to each other can be displayed so that a viewer can view multiple images with mutually distinct images and orientations simultaneously.

2. The display system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a standard display device; and

means for determining whether the angle, which is formed by the orientation of the image display screen of the movable display device relative to a predetermined standard direction, is within a given angle;

wherein

when the angle formed by the orientation of the image display screen of the movable display device relative to the standard direction is within a given angle, the image data stored and related with the orientation of the image display screen is output to the standard display device while the output of the change signal is canceled, and is output to the movable display device while the change signal is output.

3. The display system according to claim 2, wherein:

a combiner is provided on the movable display device; and

the combiner allows transmission of the image display beam from the standard display device so as to guide the beam to a viewer'"'"'s eyes, and changes the optical path of the image display beam from the movable display device so as to guide the beam to the viewer'"'"'s eyes.

4. The display system according to claim 1, further comprising:

means for mounting the movable display device on a viewer'"'"'s head.

5. The display system according to claim 2, further comprising:

means for mounting the movable display device on a viewer'"'"'s head.

6. The display system according to claim 3, further comprising:

means for mounting the movable display device on the viewer'"'"'s head.

7. The display system according to any one of claims 1 through 6, further comprising:

a voice input portion; and

means for processing voice signals to recognize the voice input from the voice input portion;

wherein

the image data can be output according to the results of the voice recognition.