Head mounted projection display with a wide field of view

• US 7,119,965 B1
• Filed: 02/20/2004
• Issued: 10/10/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 02/24/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: University of Central Florida Research Foundation Inc. (State University System of Florida)
• Original Assignee: University of Central Florida Research Foundation Inc. (State University System of Florida)
• Inventors: Ha, Yonggang, Davis, Jr., Larry D., Rolland, Jannick
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrington, Alicia M
• Application Number:
  US10/783,178
• Time in Patent Office: 963 Days
• Field of Search: 359/13, 359/14, 359/19, 359/23, 359/458, 359630-634, 359636-638, 348/115, 353/7, 353/10, 353/13, 353/99, 349/11, 345/7, 345/8
• US Class Current: 359/630
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0123 comprising devices increasing the field of view
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0132 comprising binocular systems
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0161 characterised by the relative positioning of the constitutive elements
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0172 characterised by optical features

Abstract

A ultra-wide field of view head mounted display has been realized by integrating an ARC display component having a greater than about 70 degrees field of retro-reflection with an optical tiling display which provides a greater than about 80 degrees horizontal field of view by about 50 degrees vertical field of view whereby an overall binocular horizontal field of view greater than about 120 degrees is realized with a greater resolution than about 2 arc minutes. There is also taught a method of providing a wide field of view head mounted display by the steps of: combining an ARC display component and an optical tiling display; and, integrating said component and said tiling display whereby an overall field of view greater than about 120 degrees is realized.

Claims

1. A method of providing a wide field of view (FOV) to a head mounted display comprising the steps of:

(a) combining an Artificial Reality Center (ARC) display component and an optical tiling component; and

,

(b) integrating said display component and said optical tiling component produce a left projected image and a right projected image said integrating step comprising;

providing optical tiling component for a left eye of the user; and

providing optical tiling component for a right eye of the user, wherein said optical tiling for the left eye and said optical tiling for said right eye provides an overall binocular field of view (FOV) greater than about 80 degrees is realized from the left projected image tiled with the right projected image.

2. The method of claim 1 whereby an overall binocular FOV greater than about 120 degrees is realized.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the combining step also includes a compact lens when the distance between the ARC display component and said optical tiling component is less than approximately 150 mm.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein said compact lens is a Fresnel lens.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said integrating step further includes:

projecting a left and a right top image; and

projecting a left and a right side image, wherein said left and said right top image is tiled with a corresponding one of said left and said right side image to produce a left and a right tiled optical image.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein said left and said right tiled optical image overlap.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said optical tiling for the left eye and said optical tiling for said right eye provides said overall binocular horizontal FOV greater than approximately 120 degrees.

8. An optical projection system comprising:

an optical tiling system for producing a tiled projected image, wherein said optical tiling component comprises;

a side projection system for projecting a side image;

a top projection system for projecting a top image; and

an optical tiling component having an optical cube and an optical wedge connected with said optical cube for receiving said side image and said top image, wherein said optical cube and said optical wedge reflect said side image and said top image.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein said optical wedge deflects said side image to achieve optical tiling in a horizontal direction.

10. The system of claim 8 wherein said optical tiling system includes:

a left and a right optical tiling system for producing a left and a right tiled projected image, wherein said left and said right tiled projected image covers a greater than approximately 80 degrees field of view per side.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein said left and said right tiled projected image overlap to provide said tiled projected image covering a horizontal field of view greater than approximately 70 degrees.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein the overlapped left and right tiled projected optical image provide greater than approximately 50 degree vertical field of view.

13. The system of claim 10 wherein each of said left and said right optical tiling system comprise:

a side projector for projecting a side image;

a top projector for projecting a top image; and

an optical tiling component for receiving and reflecting said side image and said top image to produce said tiled projected image at said reflective surface for viewing.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein said tiled projected optical image covers greater than approximately 120 degree horizontal field of view.

15. The system of claim 8, wherein said retroreflective surface is an Artificial Reality Center (ARC) display component having a greater than approximately 70 degrees field of retroreflection.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein said ARC display component is located at a distance greater than approximately one-half meter from said optical tiling system.

17. The system of claim 15 wherein the optical projection system is used with a helmet to provide a head mounted projection display.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein said ARC display component is located at a distance approximately 100 mm from the head mounted projection display, said system including:

a compact lens located between said optical projection system and said retroreflective surface.

19. A head mounted projection display (HMPD) comprising:

an optical tiling system for producing and tiling a left and a right projected image to produce a tiled projected image, wherein the optical tiling system includes a left and a right optical tiling system comprising;

a top projection system for projecting a top image;

a side projection system for projecting a side image; and

an optical tiling component for receiving and reflecting said top and said side image to produce said tiled projected image; and

an artificial reality center display having a greater than approximately 70 degrees field of retroreflection for receiving and retro-reflecting said tiled projected image to a user.