Eyepiece with uniformly illuminated reflective display

• US 9,128,281 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2011
• Issued: 09/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Osterhout, Ralph F., Haddick, John D., Lohse, Robert Michael, Border, John N., Miller, Gregory D., Stovall, Ross W.
• Primary Examiner(s): CHANG, CHARLES S
• Application Number:
  US13/232,930
• Publication Number:
  US 20120075168A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,455 Days
• Field of Search: 349 13- 14
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0178 Eyeglass type eyeglass details G02C
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/017 Head mounted
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/005 Input arrangements through a video camera
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/013 Eye tracking input arrangements G06F3/015 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

An eyepiece includes a mechanical frame adapted to secure a lens and an image source facility above the lens. The image source facility includes an LED, a planar illumination facility and a reflective display. The planar illumination facility converts a light beam from the LED received on a side of the planar illumination facility into a top emitting planar light source, uniformly illuminates the reflective display, and is substantially transmissive to allow reflected light to pass through towards a beam splitter. The beam splitter is positioned to receive the image light and to reflect a portion onto a mirrored surface. The mirrored surface is positioned and shaped to reflect the image light into an eye of a user of the eyepiece thereby providing an image within a field of view, the mirrored surface further adapted to be partially transmissive within an area of image reflectance.

Claims

1. A head-mounted display device, comprising:

a mechanical frame adapted to secure an image source facility;

the image source facility comprising an LED, a planar illumination facility and a reflective display;

the planar illumination facility configured to receive light from the LED at a first side of the planar illumination facility and redirect the light through a second side of the planar illumination facility adjacent to the first side via a plurality of light redirecting elements of the planar illumination facility to uniformly illuminate the reflective display, the planar illumination facility further adapted to be substantially transmissive to allow image light reflected from the reflective display to pass through the planar illumination facility towards a beam splitter; and

the beam splitter positioned to receive the image light from the reflective display and to reflect a portion of the image light onto a mirrored surface,

wherein the mirrored surface is positioned and shaped to reflect the image light, the mirrored surface further adapted to be partially transmissive within an area of image reflectance.

2. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the reflective display is a liquid crystal display.

3. The head-mounted display device of claim 2, wherein the liquid crystal display is a liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) display, cholesteric liquid crystal display, guest-host liquid crystal display, polymer dispersed liquid crystal display, and phase retardation liquid crystal display.

4. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the reflective display is a bistable display.

5. The head-mounted display device of claim 4, wherein the bistable display is at least one of electrophoretic, electrofluidic, electrowetting, electrokinetic, and cholesteric liquid crystal.

6. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the reflective display is a combination of a liquid crystal display and a bistable display.

7. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility is less than 0.5 mm in thickness.

8. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility is less than 1.0 mm in thickness.

9. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility is less than 1.5 mm in thickness.

10. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility is less than 2.0 mm in thickness.

11. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility is less than 2.5 mm in thickness.

12. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility is less than 3.0 mm in thickness.

13. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility is less than 5.0 mm in thickness.

14. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility is a cover glass over the reflective display.

15. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility comprises a wedge shaped optic adapted to receive the light from the LED and reflect, off of an upper decline surface, the light from the LED in an upward direction towards the reflective display and wherein the image light reflected from the reflective display is reflected back towards the wedge shaped optic and passes through the wedge shaped optic in a direction towards the beam splitter.

16. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility further comprises a display image direction correction optic to further redirect the image towards the beam splitter.

17. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the mirrored surface is concave.

18. The head-mounted display device of claim 17, wherein the planar illumination facility further comprises a correction optic that is adapted to correct for image dispersion caused by the imperfections.

19. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility comprises a multi-layered optic, wherein each layer is on an angle adapted to reflect a portion of the light beam from the LED in an upward direction to illuminate the reflective display and wherein the image from the reflective display is projected back towards the multi-layered optic and passes through the multi-layered optic in a direction towards the beam splitter.

20. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the planar illumination facility includes a diffuser to expand the cone angle of the image light as it passes through the planar illumination facility to the beam splitter.

24. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, further comprising a lens, wherein the mechanical frame is further adapted to secure the lens.

25. The head-mounted display device of claim 1, wherein the mirrored surface is positioned to reflect the image light through the beam splitter into an eye of a wearer of the head-mounted display device thereby providing an image within a field of view.

21. A head-mounted display device, comprising:

a mechanical frame adapted to secure a lens and an image source facility in proximity with an upper portion of the lens;

the image source facility comprising an LED, a planar illumination facility and a reflective display;

the planar illumination facility adapted to convert a light beam from the LED received on a side of the planar illumination facility into a top emitting planar light source;

the planar illumination facility positioned to uniformly illuminate the reflective display, the planar illumination facility further adapted to be substantially transmissive to allow image light reflected from the reflective display to pass through the planar illumination facility towards a beam splitter; and

the beam splitter positioned to receive the image light from the reflective display and to reflect a portion of the image light onto a mirrored surface,

wherein the mirrored surface is positioned and shaped to reflect the image light into an eye of a wearer of the head-mounted display device thereby providing an image within a field of view, the mirrored surface further adapted to be partially transmissive within an area of image reflectance, and

wherein the planar illumination facility comprises an optic with a lower surface, wherein the lower surface includes imperfections adapted to redirect the light from the LED in an upward direction to illuminate the reflective display and wherein the image light reflected from the reflective display is projected back towards the optic with a lower surface and passes through the optic with the lower surface in a direction towards the beam splitter.

22. The head-mounted display device of claim 21, wherein the planar illumination facility further comprises a correction optic that is adapted to correct for image dispersion caused by the imperfections.

23. A head-mounted display device, comprising:

a mechanical frame adapted to secure a lens and an image source facility in proximity with an upper portion of the lens;

the image source facility comprising a light source, a planar illumination facility and a reflective display;

the planar illumination facility adapted to convert a light beam from the light source received on a side of the planar illumination facility into a planar light source;

the planar illumination facility positioned to uniformly illuminate the reflective display, the planar illumination facility further adapted to be substantially transmissive to allow image light reflected from the reflective display to pass through the planar illumination facility towards transfer optics; and

the transfer optics being configured to direct the image light into an eye of a wearer of the head-mounted display device thereby providing an image within a field of view, and

wherein the planar illumination facility comprises an optic with a lower surface, wherein the lower surface includes imperfections adapted to redirect the light from the LED in a upward direction to illuminate the reflective display and wherein the image light reflected from the reflective display is projected back towards the optic with a lower surface and passes through the optic with the lower surface in a direction towards the beam splitter.