Three channel delivery of stereo images

• US 9,513,490 B2
• Filed: 01/10/2011
• Issued: 12/06/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kodak Alaris Inc (KPP (no. 2) Trustees Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Inventors: Border, John Norvold, Singhal, Amit
• Primary Examiner(s): Vaughn, Jr., William C
• Assistant Examiner(s): BELAI, NAOD W
• Application Number:
  US12/987,192
• Publication Number:
  US 20120176483A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,157 Days
• Field of Search: 340 40- 60, 348 40- 60, 359/464
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0127 comprising devices increasing the depth of field
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0134 of stereoscopic type
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/014 comprising information/image processing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0147 comprising a device modifying the resolution of the displayed image
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/017 Head mounted
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 30/34 Stereoscopes providing a stereoscopic pair of separated images corresponding to parallactically displaced views of the same object, e.g. 3D slide viewers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/344 with head-mounted left-right displays
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2213/008 Aspects relating to glasses for viewing stereoscopic images

Abstract

An apparatus for viewing of a three dimensional image of a scene, including a monocular device worn by a viewer for displaying a first two-dimensional image to one eye of the viewer, The monocular device being arranged so it can be worn on either eye of the viewer. A second display for displaying a second two-dimensional image of the scene in a stereo image pair which is viewed by the other eye of the viewer. A way of selecting the first two-dimensional image with either a left or right perspective relative to the second two-dimensional image dependent upon which eye the viewer uses with the monocular device.

Claims

1. A system for viewing images of a scene, comprising:

a monocular device adapted to be wearable by a viewer on either eye of the viewer, the monocular device comprising (a) a first display for displaying first two-dimensional images of the scene with a first perspective to one eye of the viewer, the first display including an optical axis and a mechanism for rotating the first display about the optical axis, and (b) an eye sensor that automatically determines on which eye the viewer is wearing the monocular device by sensing a spatial orientation of the monocular device, and by supplying a corresponding signal directly to a processor used in the system, the signal dependent upon the spatial orientation of the monocular device;

a second display for displaying second two-dimensional images of the scene with a second perspective to the other eye of the viewer, wherein the second perspective is different from the first perspective; and

a left/right video channel selector that selects the first perspective of the first two-dimensional images based on the orientation of the monocular device on either the left eye or the right eye of the viewer,

wherein the first display is configured to rotate in response at least in part to analyzed images displayed on the second display.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the first and second two-dimensional images are synchronized images of the scene.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the first and second two-dimensional images are synchronized sequential images.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the eye sensor is a gravity sensor.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the monocular device further comprises an accelerometer.

6. The system of claim 1 further comprising an image delivery system with three channels for providing the first and second two-dimensional images.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the three channels include a left channel that provides two-dimensional images of the scene with a left perspective, a right channel that provides two-dimensional images of the scene with a right perspective and a center channel that provides two-dimensional images of the scene with a perspective that is between the left and right perspectives.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the image delivery system provides two-dimensional images of the scene from the center channel to the second display and provides two-dimensional images of the scene from either the left or right channels to the first display.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the center channel has a higher bandwidth than the left or right channels.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the center channel provides two-dimensional images with a higher resolution than the images provided by the left or right channels.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein the images provided by the left and right channels have one quarter or less the resolution compared to the resolution of the images provided by the center channel.

12. The system of claim 7, wherein the center channel provides two-dimensional images with a higher bit depth than the images provided by the left or right channels.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the images provided by the left and right channels have one half or less the bit depth compared to the bit depth of the images provided by the center channel.

14. The system of claim 1 further comprising an image delivery system for receiving three dimensional images and converting the three dimensional images into left and right two-dimensional images that are provided to the first and second displays respectively depending on which eye the monocular device is worn on.

15. A system for viewing images of a scene comprising:

a monocular device wearable by a viewer over one eye, an image delivery system, and

a remote display located remotely from the monocular device,

wherein the monocular device comprises a monocular display with an optical axis, a processor, a camera for capturing images of the remote display, a mechanism for rotating the monocular display about the optical axis, and an orientation sensor for determining on which eye the monocular device is being worn by a viewer;

wherein the image delivery system comprises a channel splitter adapted to generate a synchronized stereo triplet, wherein the stereo triplet comprises a first image having a first perspective of the scene, a second image having a second perspective of the scene, and a third image having a third perspective of the scene;

wherein the image delivery system is further adapted to transmit the first image of the stereo triplet to the remote display and adapted to transmit a monocular display image to the monocular display, wherein, depending upon the orientation of the monocular device, the monocular display image is either the second image of the stereo triplet or the third image of the stereo triplet; and

wherein the camera is adapted to repeatedly capture images of the remote display; and

wherein the processor is adapted to;

analyze images of the remote display captured by the camera,

determine lateral, longitudinal, and rotational misalignments of the monocular display image as displayed on the monocular display relative to the first image of the stereo triplet displayed on the remote display,

shift the monocular display image laterally and longitudinally, and cause the mechanism to rotate so as to maintain alignment of the relative position of the monocular display image being displayed on the monocular display and the first image of the stereo triplet being displayed on the remote display.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the processor is further adapted to track movements of a viewer'"'"'s head by analyzing data generated by the orientation sensor in combination with analyzing images of the remote display captured by the camera, whereby rapid movements of the viewer'"'"'s head are tracked by analyzing the data generated by the orientation sensor whereas slow movements are tracked by analyzing the images of the remote display captured by the camera.