Device for presenting information near the eyes

• US 9,746,670 B2
• Filed: 02/03/2011
• Issued: 08/29/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hans-Peter Haar, Jean-Michel Asfour
• Original Assignee: Hans-Peter Haar, Jean-Michel Asfour
• Inventors: Asfour, Jean-Michel, Haar, Hans-Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): Chang, Kent
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shah, Sujit
• Application Number:
  US13/577,050
• Publication Number:
  US 20120326949A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,399 Days
• Field of Search: 345 8
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0118 comprising devices for improving the contrast of the display / brillance control visibility
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0132 comprising binocular systems
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/017 Head mounted
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0172 characterised by optical features
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 3/08 with discontinuous faces, e.g. Fresnel lens diffractive Fresnel lenses G02B5/1876
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0006 Coupling light into the fibre in general G02B6/4298
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0008 the light being emitted at the end of the fibre

Abstract

The invention relates to a device for presenting information near the eyes, comprising a support (12) that can be carried on the head (10) of a user and comprising a monocular display unit (16) which is disposed on the support (12) and is positioned in a peripheral region of the field of vision of a first eye (14) of the user during use. According to a first aspect of the invention, a light-collecting unit (18, 20) on which ambient light can impinge is disposed on the support (12), and the light-collecting unit (18, 20) is coupled to the display unit (16) in order to illuminate same.

Claims

1. A device for presenting information near the eyes, comprising:

a holder that can be worn on the head of a user, wherein, when in use, the holder is positioned above the eyes of the user, and wherein the holder defines an upwardly facing surface and a downwardly facing surface;

a casing defining an interior, wherein the casing is stationarily fixed to the holder and is positioned such that the interior of the casing is located below the downwardly facing surface of the holder and the downwardly facing surface of the holder overlies the interior of the casing;

a display unit disposed in the interior of the casing, wherein, when in use, the display unit is positioned in a peripheral visual field of at least one eye of the user and wherein the display unit includes a rear surface that faces rearwardly within the casing interior and a forwardly facing display surface that faces forwardly within the easing interior; and

a light collecting unit located upstream of the display unit, wherein the light collecting unit comprises a solid light conductor member separate from the casing and having an upwardly facing light entry portion located outside the interior of the casing and above the holder, and a light conductor portion extending downwardly from the upwardly facing light entry portion and through the holder and into and through the casing interior to a location rearwardly of the display unit, wherein the light conductor portion terminates in an exit end, wherein the holder is positioned between the rear surface of the display unit and the upwardly facing light entry portion of the light conductor member, and wherein the exit end of the light conductor portion is located adjacent the rear surface of the display unit, wherein the upwardly facing light entry portion of the light conductor member is loaded by ambient light that is transmitted through the holder by the light conductor portion and to the exit end of the light conductor portion, wherein the light from the exit end of the light conductor portion is emitted to the rear surface of the display unit and illuminates the forwardly facing display surface of the display unit;

wherein the light conductor member contains a fluorescent or phosphorescent coloring separate from the display unit, wherein the fluorescent or phosphorescent coloring is excitable by the collected ambient light in the green to yellow wavelength range as the light is transmitted through the light conductor portion and emitted to the rear surface of the display unit for illumination of the forwardly facing display surface of the display unit.

2. The device according to claim 1, further comprising a solar cell configured to operate the display unit.

3. The device according to claim 1, wherein the display unit comprises an auxiliary lighting source, powered by a battery, a storage capacitor and/or a solar cell.

4. The device according to claim 1, wherein the exit end of the light conductor portion penetrates with transmitted light, or irradiates with incident light, the display surface of the display unit that displays information.

5. The device according to claim 1, wherein the display unit comprises a LCD module.

6. The device according to claim 1, wherein the display unit faces a first eye of a user and comprises an optical lens in the form of a Fresnel lens.

7. The device according to claim 1, wherein the display unit is disposed as a structural unit with an optical lens in the casing, and wherein the casing can be attached to the holder in a fixed manner.

8. The device according to claim 1, wherein the display unit is disposed at an angle of more than 15°

with respect to a central axis of a monocular visual field of a first eye of a user and is preferably displaced upwards.

9. The device according to claim 1, wherein the holder comprises a visor and wherein the display unit is located on a lower surface of the visor such that the display surface is positioned above the eyes of the user.

10. The device according to claim 1, wherein information can be transmitted onto the display unit via a control unit and can be presented there visually via alphanumeric or graphic symbols, and that the control unit is preferably connected with an external information source via a wireless data transmission path.

11. The device according to claim 10, wherein the control unit is disposed on or in a part of the holder, in particular on a visor of a head covering.

12. The device according to claim 1, wherein a switch unit is disposed on the holder for activating and/or toggling to the display unit.

13. The device according to claim 1, wherein the display unit is self-lighting in accordance with the ambient light intensity.