Modular day mode/night mode helment-mounted display

• US 9,565,885 B2
• Filed: 01/27/2012
• Issued: 02/14/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/15/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Thales Visionix Incorporated (Thales SA)
• Original Assignee: Thales Visionix Incorporated (Thales SA)
• Inventors: Hedges, George Darrell, Bugno, Anthony William, Edel, Mark William, Uchima, Michael Koichi, Atac, Robert B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sugarman, Scott J
• Assistant Examiner(s): Patel, Vipin
• Application Number:
  US13/359,760
• Publication Number:
  US 20120120482A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,845 Days
• Field of Search: 359/630, 359/129, 359/496, 359/618, 359/629, 359/634, 359/636, 359638-640, 359/831, 359833-834, 353/31, 353/34, 353/81, 451/28, 451/41
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A42B 3/04 Parts, details or accessories of helmets
• CPC Class Codes: A42B 3/042 Optical devices night vision goggles G02B23/12
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0187 slaved to motion of at least a part of the body of the user, e.g. head, eye
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0176 characterised by mechanical features
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/00 Light guides; Structural details of arrangements comprising light guides and other optical elements, e.g. couplings

Abstract

A helmet mounted display (HMD) system comprising (i) a display device adapted to be positioned between an eye of a person wearing the helmet and a vision-related device; and (ii) a step-in visor which is positioned between the eye of the user and the display device. The vision-related device is removably attached to an accessory joint so that it can be interchanged between an outer visor for use during the day and night vision goggles for use during the night.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a helmet;

a base plate affixed to a portion of the helmet, the base plate being removable from the helmet;

a mounting bracket connected to the base plate;

an accessory bracket connected to the base plate, the accessory bracket having an accessory joint;

a display device for displaying symbology information that is positioned between an inner visor, which is positioned between an eye of a person wearing the helmet and the display device, and a vision-related device when the vision-related device is in a deployed position;

wherein;

the display device is further pivotally adjustable in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction from between the inner visor and the vision-related device when the vision-related device is in the deployed position,

the display device is mounted to the mounting bracket,

the vision-related device is mounted to the accessory joint, and

the vision-related device is viewable through the display device when the display device is positioned between the inner visor and the vision-related device, the display device is in an operating state or a non-operating state, and the vision-related device is in the deployed position; and

a helmet tracker sensor affixed to the helmet that is adapted to track the orientation of the helmet and adjust the symbology information based on the orientation of the helmet,

wherein the vision-related device is selected from the group consisting of night vision goggles and an outer visor.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the inner visor is mounted to the helmet.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the vision-related device is the night vision goggles.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the vision-related device is removably attached to the accessory joint.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the vision-related device comprises the outer visor for use during the day which is interchangeable with the night vision goggles for use during the night.

6. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the helmet further comprises a brow edge and the accessory bracket is located above the brow edge.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the helmet includes a brow edge and the base plate is positioned above the brow edge.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the display device is transparent.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the display device comprises a light wave-guide optical element.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the display device is part of a helmet-mounted display (HMD) system.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the HMD system further comprises a helmet-vehicle interface that connects the display device to an interface control unit.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the HMD system is adapted to display targeting pod cuing symbology on the display device.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the HMD system includes a calibration function that allows the position and orientation of images displayed on the display device to be adjusted to compensate for the position and orientation of the display device relative to the helmet.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the symbology information comprises at least one selected from a group consisting of targeting-related information and vehicle-related information.

15. A method of mounting a display device to a helmet, the method comprising:

(a) affixing a base plate to a portion of the helmet, the base plate including a mounting bracket to which the display device is mounted and an accessory bracket to which a vision-related device is mounted, the base plate being removable from the helmet;

(b) positioning the display device so that when the helmet is worn by a person symbology information is displayed to the person wearing the helmet, wherein;

the display device is positioned between an inner visor, which is positioned between an eye of a person wearing the helmet and the display device, and the vision-related device,

the display device is pivotally adjustable in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction from between the inner visor and the vision-related device,

the vision-related device is viewable through the display device when the display device is positioned between the inner visor and the vision-related device, the display device is in an operating state or a non-operating state, and the vision-related device is in a deployed position;

(c) positioning the inner visor so that when the helmet is worn by the person, the inner visor is located between the eye of the person wearing the helmet and the display device;

(d) affixing to the helmet a helmet tracker sensor to track the orientation of the helmet and adjust the symbology information based on the orientation of the helmet

wherein the vision-related device is selected from the group consisting of night vision goggles and an outer visor; and

wherein the symbology information comprises at least one selected from a group consisting of targeting-related information and vehicle-related information.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

(e) interchanging the vision-related device between the outer visor for use during the day and the night vision goggles for use during the night.

17. An apparatus comprising:

a helmet;

a base plate affixed to a portion of the helmet, the base plate being removable from the helmet;

a mounting bracket connected to the base plate;

an accessory bracket connected to the base plate, the accessory bracket having an accessory joint;

a display device for displaying symbology information that is adapted to be positioned between an inner visor, which is positioned between an eye of a person wearing the helmet and the display device, and at least one vision-related device, wherein;

the display device is pivotally adjustable in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction from between the inner visor and the at least one vision-related device,

the at least one vision-related device is viewable through the display device when the display device is positioned between the inner visor and the at least one vision-related device, the display device is in an operating state or a non-operating state, and the at least one vision-related device is in a deployed position,

the symbology information comprises at least one selected from a group consisting of targeting-related information and vehicle-related information,

the at least one vision-related device comprises an outer visor or night vision goggles,

the display device is operationally mountable to the mounting bracket, and

the visor and the night vision goggles are interchangeably mountable to the accessory joint; and

a helmet tracker sensor affixed to the helmet that is adapted to track the orientation of the helmet and adjust the symbology information based on the orientation of the helmet.