Helmet for displaying environmental images in critical environments

• US 8,063,934 B2
• Filed: 12/29/2003
• Issued: 11/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Energy Laser S.R.L.
• Original Assignee: Energy Laser S.R.L.
• Inventors: Donato, Giuseppe
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel; Jay Au
• Assistant Examiner(s): TORRENTE, RICHARD T
• Application Number:
  US10/538,773
• Publication Number:
  US 20060048286A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,885 Days
• Field of Search: 348/82, 345/8
• US Class Current: 348/82
• CPC Class Codes: A42B 3/042 Optical devices night vision goggles G02B23/12
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0149 characterised by mechanical features G02B27/0176 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0176 characterised by mechanical features
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19621 Portable camera
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1963 Arrangements allowing camera rotation to change view, e.g. pivoting camera, pan-tilt and zoom [PTZ]
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19632 Camera support structures, e.g. attachment means, poles
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19634 Electrical details of the system, e.g. component blocks for carrying out specific functions
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/1965 the vehicle being an aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19684 Portable terminal, e.g. mobile phone, used for viewing video remotely
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 13/19695 Arrangements wherein non-video detectors start video recording or forwarding but do not generate an alarm themselves
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources

Abstract

A helmet for displaying environmental images in critical environments, comprising at least one video camera and a display for displaying environmental images; the helmet also has a supporting structure that can be anchored to the helmet in order to support the at least one video camera and the display; the supporting structure has a front adapter that can be coupled to a front edge of the helmet, a rear adapter that can be coupled to a rear edge of the helmet, and a connecting element for mutually connecting the front adapter and the rear adapter.

Claims

1. A helmet for displaying environmental images in critical environments, comprising at least one video camera and means for displaying environmental images, further comprising a supporting structure that can be anchored to said helmet in order to support said at least one video camera and said display means, said supporting structure comprising a front adapter that can be coupled to a front edge of said helmet, a rear adapter that can be coupled to a rear edge of said helmet, and a rigid connecting element for mutually connecting said front adapter and said rear adapter, further comprising a frame that is mounted detachably on said front adapter, said frame comprising means for supporting said video camera and means for supporting said display means, wherein said frame comprises a bridge-like structure that mutually connects elements for coupling to said front adapter, said elements for coupling being arranged on opposite ends, of said bridge-like structure, said bridge-like element extending from left to right, transversely with respect to said front adapter, said elements for coupling being arranged at left and right ends of said bridge-like element, said bridge-like element protruding from the front adapter so as to space said display means in front of the eyes of a person that wears said helmet, said display means being rotatable upward to be placed substantially in line with said front adapter, so as to pass from an operative position wherein the display means are arranged in front of the eyes of the person that wears the helmet to an inoperative position wherein the display means are arranged in line with the front adapter and out of the line of sight of the person that wears the helmet.

2. The helmet according to claim 1, wherein said means for supporting said at least one video camera are fixed to said bridge-like structure and comprise at least one mechanical connector for fixing said video camera to said supporting structure and a power supply connector for connecting said video camera to a power supply.

3. The helmet according to claim 2, wherein said power supply comprises a battery that is mounted monolithically with said rear adapter and comprises a cable for the connection to said power supply connector of said supporting means.

4. The helmet according to claim 1, wherein said front adapter protrudes with respect to said helmet substantially at right angles to the front part of said helmet, forming a peak, said peak comprising an edge and said coupling elements comprising hooks for coupling to said edge.

5. The helmet according to claim 4, wherein said hooks form a guide for the sliding insertion of said peak in said frame, said hooks having a substantially straight longitudinal extension.

6. The helmet according to claim 1, wherein said coupling elements comprise a respective pivot on which said display means are fixed so that they can rotate.

7. The helmet according to claim 1, wherein said display means comprise at least one display.

8. The helmet according to claim 7, wherein said display comprises opposite side walls in which there is a respective guide, each pivot of said coupling elements being engaged with the respective guide of said side walls in order to allow a combined rotary and translational motion of said display with respect to said helmet.

9. The helmet according to claim 1, wherein said front adapter and said rear adapter comprise respective undercuts whose profile is complementary to said front edge and to said rear edge respectively.

10. The helmet according to claim 1, comprising means for radio communication of environmental images, said image communication means being connected electronically to said at least one video camera and/or to said means for displaying environmental images, in order to transmit remotely environmental images acquired by said video camera and/or display on said display means environmental images acquired by a remote video camera.

11. The helmet according to claim 10, wherein said means for radio communication are mounted detachably on said rear adapter.

12. The helmet according to claim 1, comprising a PIP circuit for simultaneously displaying images acquired by different video cameras on said display means.

13. The helmet according to claim 12, wherein said PIP circuit is mounted detachably on said rear adapter.

14. The helmet according to claim 10, wherein said means for communicating environmental images comprise at least one transmitter for transmitting by radio at least one video signal of a respective video camera over a respective communication channel and at least one receiver for receiving by radio at least one video signal on a second communication channel.

15. The helmet according to claim 1, comprising means for deflecting the environmental image that are mounted upstream of said at least one video camera, said deflection means comprising motorized means and a mirror that is mounted on said motorized means upstream of said at least one video camera in order to reflect the environmental image onto said at least one video camera according to multiple angles and accordingly widen the viewing field.

16. The helmet according to claim 15, wherein said motorized means comprise a galvanometer in order to make said mirror oscillate between two extreme positions, said environmental image deflection means furthermore comprising a shutter that is mounted between said mirror and said at least one video camera, in order to acquire the environmental image at said extreme positions.

17. The helmet according to claim 15, further comprising stereoscopic vision means, said stereoscopic vision means and said image deflection means being mounted on different planes, said stereoscopic vision means comprising two eyepieces, each eyepiece being coupled to a reflecting means that is orientated so as to reflect the environmental image onto said mirror mounted on said motorized means.

18. The helmet according to claim 1, wherein said display means comprise a display chosen from the group that comprises liquid-crystal displays and displays of the organic light emission (OLED) type.

19. The helmet according to claim 1, comprising a plurality of video cameras arranged along mutually perpendicular planes and selected from the group that comprises video cameras that operate in the spectral domain of visible optical frequencies, video cameras of the thermographic type that operate in the infrared spectral domain, and video cameras with image intensifier, which operate in a spectral domain that comprises near-infrared optical frequencies.

20. The helmet according to claim 19, comprising splitter laminas in order to divide the acquired environmental images into their various spectral components and direct them toward said plurality of video cameras.

21. The helmet according to claim 1, comprising means for digital recording of the acquired environmental images, said recorder being mounted detachably on said rear adapter.