Ambient light management for virtual reality glasses

• US 9,733,478 B2
• Filed: 04/02/2015
• Issued: 08/15/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/03/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: InterDigital Patent Holdings, Inc. (InterDigital, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Thomson Licensing (Vantiva SA)
• Inventors: Walsh, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Landis, Lisa
• Application Number:
  US14/677,889
• Publication Number:
  US 20150286057A1
• Time in Patent Office: 866 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0118 comprising devices for improving the contrast of the display / brillance control visibility
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0178 Eyeglass type eyeglass details G02C
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0172 characterised by optical features
• 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

Abstract

A virtual reality glasses assembly is provided. The assembly includes virtual reality glasses having lenses. The assembly further includes light attenuating filters at least one of applied to and incorporated into the lenses that automatically maintain or increase a contrast of a projected virtual reality image and prevent ultraviolet light overexposure by adjusting an amount of light passing through the lenses. Each of the light attenuating filters has one or more respective photochromic filters and one or more respective ultraviolet filters. The assembly also includes light attenuating shutters at least one of applied to and incorporated into the lenses that automatically or manually further maintain or increase the contrast of the projected virtual reality image by further adjusting the amount of light passing through the lenses.

Claims

1. A virtual reality glasses assembly, comprising:

virtual reality glasses having lenses;

light attenuating filters at least one of applied to and incorporated into the lenses that maintain or increase a contrast of a projected virtual reality image on the lenses with ambient light and prevent ultraviolet light overexposure by adjusting an amount of light passing through the lenses, each of the light attenuating filters having one or more respective photochromic filters that darken as a function of ultraviolet light exposure and one or more respective ultraviolet filters; and

light attenuating shutters at least one of applied to and incorporated into the lenses that further maintain or increase the contrast of the projected virtual reality image on the lenses with ambient light by further adjusting the amount of light passing through the lenses when ultraviolet light level is not high enough for the light attenuating filters to provide a desired level of light attenuation.

2. The virtual reality glasses assembly of claim 1, further comprising a limiting function preventing the lenses from becoming completely opaque over a lens surface when the amount of light passing through the lenses is adjusted.

3. The virtual reality glasses assembly of claim 1, further comprising:

a processing subsystem for providing an output signal to the light attenuating shutters responsive to a control signal, the output signal for controlling the amount of light passing through the light attenuating shutters, and

wherein the light attenuating shutters selectively adjust the amount of light passing through the light attenuating shutters responsive to the output signal.

4. The virtual reality glasses assembly of claim 3, further comprising a user input device for receiving a user input and providing the control signal responsive to the user input, the user input specifying a light input adjustment.

5. The virtual reality glasses assembly of claim 3, further comprising:

an inbuilt camera for capturing ambient images of one or more user gestures; and

a memory for storing a plurality of sample user gestures,

wherein the processing subsystem compares the ambient images captured by the inbuilt camera to the plurality of sample user gestures to recognize the control signal from the one or more user gestures.

6. The virtual reality glasses assembly of claim 3, further comprising an inbuilt camera for capturing ambient images, and wherein the processing subsystem evaluates the ambient images to determine locations of light sources within a respective field of view of each of the lenses, and generates the output signal responsive to the determined locations.

7. The virtual reality glasses assembly of claim 6, wherein different levels of light transmission are provided to different areas of the lenses responsive to the output signal.

8. The virtual reality glasses assembly of claim 7, wherein the processing subsystem generates the output signal to provide uniform field of view lighting to maintain or increase the contrast of the projected virtual reality image on the lenses.

9. The virtual reality glasses assembly of claim 3, further comprising one or more light detectors for providing one or more respective light detector output signals responsive to detecting ambient light, and wherein the processing subsystem evaluates the one or more light detector output signals to determine locations of light sources within a respective field of view of each of the lenses, and generates the output signal responsive to the determined locations.

10. The virtual reality glasses assembly of claim 9, wherein the light attenuating shutters provide one or more blocking gradients radiating out from one more respective light blocked areas, a size and an opacity of the one or more gradients determined by a brightness and a shape of at least one of the light sources.

11. A method for managing an amount of light passing through lenses of virtual reality glasses, the method comprising:

maintaining or increasing a contrast of a projected virtual reality image on the lenses with ambient light and preventing ultraviolet light overexposure by adjusting the amount of light passing through the lenses using light attenuating filters at least one of applied to and incorporated into the lenses, each of the light attenuating filters having one or more respective photochromic filters that darken as a function of ultraviolet light exposure and one or more respective ultraviolet filters; and

further maintaining or increasing the contrast of the projected virtual reality image on the lenses with ambient light by further adjusting the amount of light passing through the lenses using light attenuating shutters at least one of applied to and incorporated into the lenses when ultraviolet light level is not high enough for the light attenuating filters to provide a desired level of light attenuation.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising providing an output signal to the light attenuating shutters responsive to a control signal, the output signal for controlling the amount of light passing through the light attenuating shutters, and wherein the amount of light passing through the light attenuating shutters is selectively adjusted responsive to the output signal.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

receiving a user input specifying a light input adjustment; and

providing the control signal responsive to the user input.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

capturing ambient images of one or more user gestures;

storing a plurality of sample user gestures;

comparing the ambient images to the plurality of sample user gestures to recognize the control signal from the one or more user gestures.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

capturing ambient images;

evaluating the ambient images to determine locations of light sources within a respective field of view of each of the lenses; and

generating the output signal responsive to the determined locations.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein different levels of light transmission are provided to different areas of the lenses responsive to the output signal, and the output signal is generated to provide uniform field of view lighting to maintain or increase the contrast of the projected virtual reality image on the lenses.

18. The method of claim 11, further comprising preventing the lenses from becoming completely opaque over a lens surface when the amount of light passing through the lenses is adjusted.

17. A non-transitory article of manufacture tangibly embodying a computer readable program which when executed causes a computer to perform;

maintaining or increasing a contrast of a projected virtual reality image on the lenses with ambient light and preventing ultraviolet light overexposure by adjusting the amount of light passing through the lenses using light attenuating filters at least one of applied to and incorporated into the lenses, each of the light attenuating filters having one or more respective photochromic filters that darken as a function of ultraviolet light exposure and one or more respective ultraviolet filters; and

further maintaining or increasing the contrast of the projected virtual reality image with ambient light by further adjusting the amount of light passing through the lenses using light attenuating shutters at least one of applied to and incorporated into the lenses when ultraviolet light level is not high enough for the light attenuating filters to provide a desired level of light attenuation.