Wearable hypermedium system

• US 6,457,024 B1
• Filed: 07/14/1998
• Issued: 09/24/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/1991
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Lee Felsentein, Liz Rich, William Mason
• Original Assignee: Lee Felsentein, Liz Rich, William Mason
• Inventors: Mason, William, Rich, Liz, Felsentein, Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): Pan, Daniel H.
• Application Number:
  US09/114,871
• Time in Patent Office: 1,533 Days
• Field of Search: 707/501, 707/206, 707/104, 707/101, 707/512, 707/1, 707/2, 707/533, 707/5, 707/103, 707/526, 709/250, 345/169, 345/8, 345/978, 345/302, 345/121, 345/431, 345/443, 345/156, 345/335, 345/356, 345/125, 345/205, 345/328, 345/419, 345/333, 345/357, 345/334, 348/115, 348/838, 349/15, 349/5, 349/86, 349/58, 706/11, 706/45, 701/208, 701/213, 714/32, 434/305, 434/308
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99957 Garbage collection

Abstract

A wearable hypermedium information retrieval system for displaying predetermined digitized data, having a computer having an I/O port; a large capacity information storage and retrieval device interfaced with the I/O port adapted to receive a memory medium containing the predetermined digitized data, the storage and retrieval device being adapted to access the data on the memory medium and to provide the data to the I/O port means, the predetermined digitized data being further organized in a hypermedium format for hypermedium access and retrieval; a virtually hands-free command control device presenting no interference to ordinary use of the hands of the user to provide input commands from the user to the computer via the I/O port means; and a headset adapted to be worn by the user and a head mounted image display supported by the headset having a virtual image display having an eye-piece adapted to be positioned in front of one eve of the user and to display video display information from the computer. Also added are an audio output having an earphone, and a real-time text to speech conversion module adapted to receive speech data from the computer and to provide audio input to a sound transducer in the earphone. Also, the storage and retrieval portion provides read/write capability for the data; and the virtual hands-free command controller has a voice recognition and decoding module for receiving decoding and providing for storage for voice-provided data. The system can be part of a network, can have at least one PCMCIA card slot, interfaces with other devices (like bar code readers, measuring tools, and IEEE cables), provides global positioning information, and includes retinal input control. Importantly, the hypermedium format involves hypertext, hyperpix, and combinations of the two to provide information in a logical, intuitive, computer-accessible format for access by users who understand information more graphically than verbally.

Claims

1. A wearable hypermedium information retrieval system for displaying predetermined digitized data, comprising:

(a) a computer having I/O port means;

(b) a large capacity information storage and retrieval device interfaced with said I/O port means adapted to receive a memory medium containing the predetermined digitized data, said storage and retrieval device being adapted to access the data on said memory medium and to provide said data to said I/O port means, said predetermined digitized data being further organized in a hypermedium format for hypermedium access and retrieval;

(c) a virtually hands-free command control device presenting no interference to ordinary use of the hands of the user to provide input commands from the user to said computer via said I/O port means;

(d) a headset adapted to be worn by said user and a head mounted image display supported by said headset comprising virtual image display means comprising an eye-piece adapted to be positioned in front of one eye of the user and to display video display information from said computer; and

(e) a module that provides global positioning information.