Head-mounted display device and control method for the head-mounted display device

• US 9,588,345 B2
• Filed: 11/17/2015
• Issued: 03/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Nakada, Yuji, Saito, Hitoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Sasinowski, Andrew
• Assistant Examiner(s): HEYI, HENOK G
• Application Number:
  US14/943,549
• Publication Number:
  US 20160070108A1
• Time in Patent Office: 476 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0118 comprising devices for improving the contrast of the display / brillance control visibility
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0138 comprising image capture systems, e.g. camera
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/014 comprising information/image processing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0178 Eyeglass type eyeglass details G02C
• 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 27/0093 with means for monitoring data relating to the user, e.g. head-tracking, eye-tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/017 Head mounted
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0172 characterised by optical features
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3406 Control of illumination source illumination devices structurally associated with liquid crystal cells G02F1/1336

Abstract

A head-mounted display device includes: an image display unit including an image-light generating unit that generates image light representing an image and emits the image light and a light guide unit that guides the emitted image light to the eye of a user, the image display unit being for causing the user to visually recognize a virtual image; and a control unit that includes an operation surface, is connected to the image display unit, and controls image display by the image display unit. When it is assumed that the user shifts the user'"'"'s attention from the virtual image, the control unit adjusts the luminance of the image-light generating unit or adjusts the image light generated by the image-light generating unit to reduce the visibility of the virtual image.

Claims

1. A head-mounted display device comprising:

an image display unit including an image-light generating unit that generates image light representing an image and emits the image light and a light guide unit that guides the emitted image light to an eye of a user, the image display unit causing the user to visually recognize a virtual image; and

a control unit that is connected to the image display unit and controls image display by the image display unit, the control unit including an operation surface that controls an operation of the head-mounted display device based on finger operation by the user detected on the operation surface; and

a direction determining unit that determines whether the user faces the operation surface of the control unit, wherein

if the direction determination unit determines that the user faces the operation surface, the control unit adjusts luminance of the image-light generating unit or adjusts the image light generated by the image-light generating unit to reduce visibility of the virtual image.

2. The head-mounted display device according to claim 1, the image display unit further including a distance measurement sensor that measures a distance between the control unit and the image display unit.

3. The head-mounted display device according to claim 2, wherein the direction determining unit adjusts the luminance of the image-light generating unit based on the measured distance between the control unit and the image display unit.

4. The head-mounted display device according to claim 2, wherein the direction determining unit adjusts the image light generated by the image-light generating unit based on the measured distance between the control unit and the image display unit.

5. The head-mounted display device according to claim 1, further comprising:

an image pickup unit,

wherein the direction determining unit determines whether the operation surface and the image display unit are opposed to each other based on analysis of a picked-up image obtained from the image pickup unit.

6. The head-mounted display device according to claim 5, wherein

the image pickup unit is provided in the control unit, and

the analysis of the picked-up image includes determining whether a portion of the image display unit is included in the picked-up image.

7. The head-mounted display device according to claim 5, wherein

the image pickup unit is provided in the image display unit, and

the analysis of the picked-up image includes determining whether a portion of the control unit is included in the picked-up image.

15. The head-mounted display device according to claim 1, wherein the image display unit and the control unit communicate with each other wirelessly.

16. The head-mounted display device according to claim 15, wherein

the image display unit further includes a first radio communication unit,

the control unit further includes a second radio communication unit, and

the image display unit and the control unit communicate with each other wirelessly via the first radio communication unit and the second radio communication unit.

8. A control method for a head-mounted display device including an operation surface, the control method comprising:

(a) causing a user to visually recognize a virtual image by using an image-light generating unit that generates image light representing an image and emits the image light and a light guide unit that guides the emitted image light to an eye of the user;

(b) controlling image display in (a) by using the operation surface to control an operation of the head-mounted display device based on finger operation by the user detected on the operation surface;

(c) determining, by a direction determination unit, whether the user faces the operation surface to control the operation of the head-mounted display device; and

(d) if the direction determination unit determines that the user faces the operation surface, adjusting luminance of the image-light generating unit or adjusting the image light generated by the image-light generating unit to reduce visibility of the virtual image.

9. The control method according to claim 8, further comprising:

measuring a distance between the control unit and the image display unit.

10. The control method according to claim 9, further comprising:

adjusting the luminance of the image-light generating unit based on the measured distance between the control unit and the image display unit.

11. The control method according to claim 9, further comprising:

adjusting the image light generated by the image-light generating unit based on the measured distance between the control unit and the image display unit.

12. The control method according to claim 8, further comprising:

determining whether the operation surface and the image display unit are opposed to each other based on analysis of a picked-up image obtained from an image pickup unit.

13. The control method according to claim 12, wherein when the image pickup unit is provided in the control unit, the analysis of the picked-up image includes determining whether a portion of the image display unit is included in the picked-up image.

14. The control method according to claim 12, wherein when the image pickup unit is provided in the image display unit, the analysis of the picked-up image includes determining whether a portion of the control unit is included in the picked-up image.

17. The control method according to claim 8, wherein the image display unit and the control unit communicate with each other wirelessly.

18. The control method according to claim 17, wherein the image display unit and the control unit communicate with each other wirelessly via a first radio communication unit of the image display unit and a second radio communication unit of the control unit.