Head mount type image display system

• US 7,719,769 B2
• Filed: 11/16/2006
• Issued: 05/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/17/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: Iba, Yoichi, Sugihara, Ryohei
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrington; Alicia M
• Application Number:
  US11/600,429
• Publication Number:
  US 20070058261A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,279 Days
• Field of Search: 359630-634, 345 7- 9
• US Class Current: 359/630
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0123 comprising devices increasing the field of view
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0178 Eyeglass type eyeglass details G02C
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0172 characterised by optical features
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0011 the light guides being planar or of plate-like form
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/7491 of head mounted projectors

Abstract

It is an object of the invention to provide a head mount type image display system that, albeit having a see-around and a see-through function, is small size and low weight, makes sure a large field of outside view and low power consumption with high-luminance electronic images, and is easy to use.

A head mount type image display system 1 at least comprises a display device, an eyepiece optical system, an eyepiece window, an eyepiece window holder 2, a casing and a supporter 10 for fixing all these components onto a user'"'"'s head. The casing covers the display device, the eyepiece window holder 2 holds the eyepiece window within a user'"'"'s field of view, the eyepiece optical system forms a virtual image of an image displayed on the display device, the eyepiece window allows a light beam for forming the virtual image to be directed to a user'"'"'s eye and leave it, and a member that forms the eyepiece window holder is such that, in a range of 10 mm or greater from the eyepiece window toward a base, a width of projection section in a user'"'"'s visual axis direction is 4 mm or less except some projection, and has a see-around mechanism.

Claims

1. A head mount image display system comprising:

a display device;

an eyepiece optical system which forms a virtual image of an image displayed on the display device, and which includes a reflection member which shifts an optical axis in the eyepiece optical system to direct the light to a user'"'"'s eye, wherein the reflection member comprises one of a total reflection mirror and a total reflection prism;

an eyepiece window through which the light for forming the virtual image is directed to the user'"'"'s eye from the reflection member;

an eyepiece window holder which holds the eyepiece window within a field of view of the user'"'"'s eye; and

a supporter which is adapted to be fitted onto the user'"'"'s head and which supports the eyepiece window holder, the eyepiece optical system, and the display device;

wherein the eyepiece window has a width of not more than 4 mm that is smaller than a pupil'"'"'s diameter projected in a visual axis direction of the user'"'"'s eye, when the supporter is fitted onto the user'"'"'s head and the eyepiece window is positioned within a field of view of the user'"'"'s eye;

wherein an exit pupil is positioned at least one of;

(i) in a vicinity of the eyepiece window, and (ii) between the eyepiece window and a pupil of the user'"'"'s eye; and

wherein the eyepiece window does not completely block substantially parallel light from outside the head mount image display system from entering the pupil of the user'"'"'s eye.

2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the eyepiece window holder is held by the supporter to extend substantially horizontally when the supporter is fitted onto the user'"'"'s head.

3. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a rotation mechanism via which the reflection member and the eyepiece window as a whole are rotatable about an axis which is parallel to a longitudinal direction of the eyepiece window holder.

4. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a rotation mechanism via which the display device is rotatable about an axis which is perpendicular to a display surface of the display device.

5. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least a part of the eyepiece optical system is integral with the eyepiece window.

6. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least a part of the eyepiece optical system is built in the eyepiece window holder.

7. The system as claimed in claim 6, wherein said at least a part of the eyepiece optical system which is built in the eyepiece window holder comprises an optical system which converges parallel light.

8. The system as claimed in claim 7, wherein the eyepiece optical system comprises a convex lens.

9. The system as claimed in claim 6, wherein the eyepiece optical system comprises an optical medium having a refractive index which increases gradually outward radially from a center of the medium.

10. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the eyepiece window has a rectangular shape with long sides that extend in the same direction as a longitudinal direction of the eyepiece window holder.

11. The system as claimed in claim 1, the eyepiece window has an aperture size that is not more than a pupil'"'"'s diameter in a vertical direction, and which is greater than a pupil'"'"'s diameter in a horizontal direction.

12. The system as claimed in claim 1, the eyepiece window has an aperture size that is not more than 4 mm in a vertical direction, and which is greater than 4 mm in a horizontal direction.

13. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising one of a total reflection mirror, a total reflection prism, and an optical fiber image guide, positioned between the display device and the eyepiece window holder to guide light from the display device to the eyepiece optical system.

14. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an illumination portion;

and

one of a total reflection mirror, a total reflection prism, a light guide sheet, and a light guide, positioned between the illumination portion and the display device, to guide light from the illumination portion to the display device.

15. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein D/f<

0.5 is satisfied, where D is a diagonal dimension of an effective display surface of the display device, and f is a focal length of the eyepiece optical system.

16. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein light from the display device does not pass through the eyepiece window holder.

17. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an illuminating light source for illuminating the display device, wherein the illuminating light source comprises a fluorescent resin rod.

18. The system as claimed in claim 17, wherein an end face of the fluorescent resin rod at an opposite end of the fluorescent resin rod from the display device is one of coated with a mirror and formed in a corner cube shape.

19. The system as claimed in claim 17, further comprising a mirror located on a side of said fluorescent resin rod on which no external light is incident.

20. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the eyepiece window is positioned with respect to the user'"'"'s eye such that the visual axis of the user'"'"'s eye does not overlap the eyepiece window, and such that a chief light ray through the eyepiece window is incident within a pupil diameter of the user'"'"'s eye.

21. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the eyepiece window holder has a tapered structure which tapers toward the eyepiece window.

22. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the image viewed via the eyepiece window is a secondary image formed by transmission through an optical fiber image guide of an image displayed by the display device.

23. The system as claimed in claim 22, wherein the optical fiber image guide comprises an encrypted optical fiber image guide having irregularly arranged optical fibers;

and

wherein the image displayed by the display device is an image which is decrypted by the encrypted optical fiber image guide to be displayed as the secondary image.

24. The system as claimed in claim 22, wherein a pixel pitch of the optical fiber image guide on an entrance side thereof is different from a pixel pitch of the optical fiber image guide on an exit side thereof such that the secondary image is smaller in size than the image displayed by the display device.

25. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein a display portion including the display device, the eyepiece window holder, the eyepiece optical system and the eyepiece window are built in a spectacle frame.

26. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein a condition D/f<

d/W is satisfied, where D is a diagonal dimension of an effective display surface of the display device, f is a focal length of the eyepiece optical system, d is the pupil diameter of the user, and W is a working distance.

27. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the eyepiece window has a width size of 4 mm or less and a length size of 4 mm or more orthogonal to the width size.

28. The system as claimed in claim 1, herein, in a range of the eyepiece window holder extending at least 10 mm from the eyepiece window, the eyepiece holder has a width of not more than 4 mm that is smaller than the pupil'"'"'s diameter projected in the visual axis direction of the user'"'"'s eye, when the supporter is fitted onto the user'"'"'s head and the eyepiece window is positioned within the field of view of the user'"'"'s eye.