Non-invasive vision enhancement

• US 9,931,248 B2
• Filed: 06/16/2014
• Issued: 04/03/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Bank, Judith H., Harpur, Liam, O'Sullivan, Patrick J., Sun, Lin
• Primary Examiner(s): Perungavoor, Sath V
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dang, Philip
• Application Number:
  US14/305,481
• Publication Number:
  US 20150359681A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,387 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0085 Identification means; Administration of patients
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/08 Devices or methods enabling eye-patients to replace direct visual perception by another kind of perception
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/01 Head-up displays
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/08 Speech classification or search
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/45 for generating image signals from two or more image sensors being of different type or operating in different modes, e.g. with a CMOS sensor for moving images in combination with a charge-coupled device [CCD] for still images
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources

Abstract

A method and system are provided for enhancing vision. The method includes capturing a first image by a first camera. The method further includes capturing a second image by a second camera. The method also includes combining the first image and the second image to form a combined image. The method additionally includes projecting the combined image on at least one eye of a user by a wearable image projection device. The combined image represents a wide screen image having a field of view greater than any of the first image and the second image taken individually.

Claims

1. A method for enhancing vision, comprising:

capturing a first image by a first camera;

capturing a second image by a second camera;

combining the first image and the second image to form a combined image, the combined image being adjusted according to a user controllable adjustment, the user controllable adjustment being performed responsive to a voice command, and comprising at least one of;

for the at least one eye, at least one of, enlarging, reducing, correcting, simplifying, outlining, deconvoluting, contrasting, customizing, compensating, backward S filtering, reducing glare, darkening, and lightening; and

for only a good eye of the user having a relative vision better than an affected eye of the user, hiding a visual artifact from only the good eye of the user;

tracking a movement of the at least one eye to control a positioning and a focus of the first camera and the second camera;

correcting the combined image by a system initiated correction to form a corrected combined image; and

projecting, using a projector, the corrected combined image directly onto at least one eye of a user, the projector being a wearable image projection device positioned to face the at least one eye of a user,

wherein the corrected combined image represents a wide screen image having a field of view greater than any of the first image and the second image taken individually.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first image and the second image are captured based on respective intended focus points of both eyes of the user.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one eye, on which the combined image is projected, comprises only a good eye of the user, the good eye having a relative vision better than an affected eye of the user.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one eye, on which the combined image is projected, comprises only an affected eye of the user, the affected eye having a relative vision worse than a good eye of the user.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the user controllable adjustment is performed responsive to a user touch.

6. A system for enhancing vision, comprising:

a first camera for capturing a first image;

a second camera for capturing a second image;

an image combiner for combining the first image and the second image to form a combined image, the combined image being adjusted according to a user controllable adjustment, the user controllable adjustment being performed responsive to a voice command, and comprising at least one of;

for the at least one eye, at least one of, enlarging, reducing, correcting, simplifying, outlining, deconvoluting, contrasting, customizing, compensating, backward S filtering, reducing glare, darkening, and lightening; and

for only a good eye of the user having a relative vision better than an affected eye of the user, hiding a visual artifact from only the good eye of the user;

tracking a movement of the at least one eye to control a positioning and a focus of the first camera and the second camera;

an image corrector for correcting the combined image by a system initiated correction to form a corrected combined image; and

a projector for projecting the corrected combined image directly onto at least one eye of a user, the projector being a wearable image projection device positioned to face the at least one eye of a user,

wherein the corrected combined image represents a wide screen image having a field of view greater than any of the first image and the second image taken individually.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the first image and the second image are captured based on respective intended focus points of both eyes of the user.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one eye, on which the combined image is projected, comprises at least a good eye of the user, the good eye having a relative vision better than an affected eye of the user.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one eye, on which the combined image is projected, comprises at least an affected eye of the user, the affected eye having a relative vision worse than a good eye of the user.

10. The system of claim 6, wherein the wearable image projection device is comprised in a pair of eyeglasses.

11. The system of claim 6, wherein the voice command is processed by at least one of a speaker recognition system and a speech recognition system.

12. The system of claim 6, wherein the user controllable adjustment is performed responsive to a user touch.

13. The system of claim 6, further comprising an eye tracking device for tracking a movement of the at least one eye to control a positioning and a focus of the first camera and the second camera.

14. The system of claim 6, further comprising:

a speaker recognition system for recognizing the user;

a speech recognition system for receiving speech commands from the user; and

a speech synthesis system for synthesizing at least one of responses to the speech commands and user-selectable image correction options,

wherein only speech identified by the speaker recognition system as being provided by the user is acted upon by the speech recognition system.