Glasses-type image display device

Abstract

To provide a spectacle type video display device capable of emitting scan light ahead of a user's face without the interference with the face while reducing the size.SOLUTION: A spectacle type video display device 55 includes a video generation device 10 and a spectacle main body 60. A video generation device 10 includes a MEMS optical deflector 20 and a VCSEL 17 mounted on the same substrate 15, and a plate mirror 23 and a rotary type mirror 25 disposed over the substrate 15. Light Lp emitted from an emission unit 18 propagates through the plate mirror 23, the rotary type mirror 25, and a rotating mirror 21 and is emitted obliquely upward from one end side in a longitudinal direction of the substrate 15. The video generation device 10 is mounted on a temple 61b of the spectacle main body 60 so that the emission direction of the light Lp becomes a direction obliquely forward with respect to an inner side surface of the temple 61b.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an eyeglass-type image display device that allows a user to view an image. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a glasses-type image display device that allows a user to view an image. In this glasses-type image display device, a MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) optical deflector and a laser light source are attached to the temples of the glasses body. Light emitted from the laser light source travels forward along the temples, is reflected by a rotating mirror of the MEMS optical deflector at the front end of the temple, and scans the inner surface of the lens of the front frame (rim), generating an image on the inner surface. Note that there are glasses-type image devices that use the inner surface of the glasses lens as a screen to allow the user to view an image on the screen, and those that use the inner surface of the glasses lens as a mirror to generate an image directly on the user's retina.

[0003] Patent Document 2 discloses an optical scanning device that displays text information on a camera viewfinder. The optical scanning device includes a VCSEL (Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting LASER) and a micromirror arranged on the same substrate, and two glass bodies with reflective film arranged directly above the VCSEL and the micromirror to change the direction of light emitted upward from the VCSEL to downward and make it incident on the micromirror. In the optical scanning device, the reflective film of the glass body with reflective film above the micromirror is a half mirror, and the scanning light reflected by the micromirror travels straight and is emitted to the outside without being reflected by the reflective film. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2009-244869 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2010-175677 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The eyeglass-type imaging device of Patent Document 1 is built into the temple. Since glasses are a personal preference, it is difficult for a user to use the eyeglass-type imaging device with their favorite glasses. Even if the built-in eyeglass-type imaging device of Patent Document 1 is separated from the temple and changed to an external type, the MEMS optical deflector micromirror at the front end of the temple needs to stand vertically, not parallel to the side of the temple, in order to irradiate the light entering along the temple to the lens inside the front frame of the glasses body, and the external eyeglass-type imaging device becomes thick.

[0006] In the optical scanning device of Patent Document 2, a VCSEL and a micromirror are mounted on the same substrate, but when the optical scanning device is attached to the temple of the glasses body as a device (image generating device) of an eyeglass-type image display device, the distance between the temple and the user's face is narrow. Therefore, it is difficult to attach an external optical element that changes the direction of light emitted from the device perpendicular to the temple to approximately perpendicular toward the lens on the rim of the glasses body.

[0007] An object of the present invention is to provide an eyeglass-type image display device that is compact and capable of emitting scanning light in front of the user's face without being interfered with by the face. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The eyeglass-type image display device of the present invention comprises: A pair of eyeglasses having a front frame, a lens attached to the front frame, and temples extending rearward from an end of the front frame; and an image generating device attached to the temples, The image generating device comprises: A substrate; a surface-emitting laser element attached on the substrate with an emission direction perpendicular to and facing upward with respect to the substrate; a MEMS optical deflector mounted on the substrate with a rotating mirror facing upward; a first mirror that is disposed above the surface-emitting laser element, with the MEMS optical deflector side and the surface-emitting laser element side being one end side and the other end side in an arrangement direction of the surface-emitting laser element and the MEMS optical deflector on the substrate, respectively, and that reflects light from the surface-emitting laser element toward the one end side in the arrangement direction; a second mirror disposed above the rotating mirror of the MEMS optical deflector and on the other end side of the rotating mirror in the arrangement direction, the second mirror irradiating the rotating mirror with the incident light from the first mirror; Equipped with The image generating device is attached to the inner surface of the temple so that the scanning light emitted from the rotating mirror of the MEMS optical deflector is irradiated onto the lens. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the eyeglass-type image display device of the present invention, in the image generating device, the second mirror is disposed not directly above the rotating mirror of the MEMS optical deflector on the substrate, but above and shifted toward the other end in the arrangement direction. This causes the scanning light emitted from the image generating device to be emitted obliquely upward with respect to the substrate, and can be directed toward the lens without hindrance through the narrow gap between the lens and the user's face. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a glasses-type image display device. [Figure 2A] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the image generating device. [Figure 2B] FIG. 2B is a view taken along the arrow 2B in FIG. 2A. [Figure 2C] FIG. 2C is a view taken along the arrow 2C in FIG. 2A. [Figure 2D] FIG. 2B is a 2D arrow view of FIG. 2A. [Diagram 3] FIG. [Figure 4] A correction prism is attached to the inner surface of the transparent portion. [Figure 5A] Light emitted from an image generating device attached to the body of the eyeglasses is reflected by a projection reflecting mirror attached to the inner surface of the lens, showing the scanning area and inscribed rectangular area that the user visually recognizes. [Figure 5B] 5B is a comparison diagram showing a scanning region and an inscribed rectangular region in an image generating device having a different configuration from that of the image generating device in FIG. 5A. [Figure 5C] 5C is a comparison diagram showing a scanning region and an inscribed rectangular region in an image generating device having a configuration different from that of the image generating devices in FIGS. 5A and 5B. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a plan view of an image generating device according to a first implementation example. [Figure 7A] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of an image generating device according to a second implementation example. [Figure 7B] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of an image generating device according to a third implementation example. [Figure 7C] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of an image generating device according to a fourth implementation example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] A number of preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. It goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments. The present invention encompasses various configurations within the scope of the technical concept of the present invention in addition to the following embodiments.

[0012] (Eyeglass-type image display device) 1 is a perspective view of a glasses-type image display device 55. The glasses-type image display device 55 includes a glasses body 60 and an image generating device 10 detachably attached to the glasses body 60 by a clip 70.

[0013] The image generating device 10 is detachable from the eyeglasses 60, ensuring freedom in design of the eyeglasses 60, which is also an item of personal preference. Also, the eyeglasses 60 can be replaced.

[0014] The eyeglass body 60 includes left and right temples 61a, 61b and a front frame 63 that is connected to the front ends of the left and right temples 61a, 61b at both left and right ends. The front frame 63 further includes left and right lens frame portions 64a, 64b and a bridge 65 that connects the left and right lens frame portions 64a, 64b.

[0015] 1, 72 denotes a scanning area generated by irradiating the inner surface side of the right lens 67b with light Lp (FIG. 2B) as scanning light emitted from the image generating device 10. The scanning area 72 will be described later (FIG. 4).

[0016] In Fig. 1, the scanning area 72 is formed on the screen (semi-transparent screen) using the inner surface of the lens 67b as the screen. However, as described later in Fig. 5A, it is also possible to form or attach a projection reflection mirror 80, which is sufficiently smaller than the scanning area 72 in Fig. 1, in the upper right corner of the inner surface of the lens 67b, and project the image directly onto the user's eyes.

[0017] (Image Creation Equipment / Configuration) Fig. 2A is a plan view of image production device 10, Fig. 2B is a view seen from arrow 2B in Fig. 2A, Fig. 2C is a view seen from arrow 2C in Fig. 2A, and Fig. 2D is a view seen from arrow 2D in Fig. 2A. Note that Figs. 2A to 2D show image production device 10 with cover 33 (indicated by dashed dotted line in Fig. 2B) removed.

[0018] The image generating device 10 includes a support frame 12. The support frame 12 has an L-shaped cross-sectional profile, and includes a bottom plate portion 13a and an upright plate portion 13b that are vertically coupled. The substrate 15 is rectangular, and is placed on the upper surface of the bottom plate portion 13a and fixed to the bottom plate portion 13a.

[0019] For ease of explanation, a three-axis Cartesian coordinate system is defined. The X-axis and Y-axis are defined as axes parallel to the longitudinal and lateral directions, respectively, of the rectangular substrate 15. The Z-axis is defined as an axis parallel to the direction in which the upright plate portion 13b rises from the substrate 15.

[0020] The VCSEL 17 and MEMS optical deflector 20 are mounted on the upper surface of the substrate 15 with the X-axis direction as the alignment direction (longitudinal direction of the substrate 15). The VCSEL 17 has an emission part 18 on its upper surface, and emits laser light from the emission part 18 upward perpendicular to the substrate 15, i.e., upward parallel to the Z-axis direction. The MEMS optical deflector 20 has the mirror surface of the rotating mirror 21 facing upward in the Z-axis direction.

[0021] In this embodiment, the MEMS optical deflector 20 is a two-dimensional scanning MEMS optical deflector. There are many known configurations of the MEMS optical deflector. For example, they are described in JP 2017-207630 A (two-dimensional scanning MEMS optical deflector).

[0022] Fig. 3 is a side view of the support frame 12. The support frame 12, the plate mirror 23, and the rotary mirror 25 will be described with reference to Figs. 2A to 2D and 3.

[0023] The standing plate portion 13b of the support frame 12 has a rectangular groove 30 and a through hole 31. The rectangular groove 30 opens obliquely upward and backward on the side profile of the standing plate portion 13b, and the bottom surface of the rectangular groove 30 is formed as an inclined surface having an inclination angle of 45° with respect to the substrate 15. The through hole 31 is formed as a cylindrical hole that penetrates the standing plate portion 13b in the Y-axis direction.

[0024] In the X-axis direction, the center of the length (length when viewed from the side) of the inclined surface of the rectangular groove 30 is located at the same position as the emission part 18 of the VCSEL 17. In the X-axis direction, the center line of the cylindrical hole of the through-hole 31 is located behind the center of the rotating mirror 21. Note that, in the X-axis direction, the emission side of the light Lp from the image generating device 10 will be referred to as the front, and the opposite side to the emission side will be referred to as the rear.

[0025] In the Z-axis direction, the center of the length of the inclined surface of rectangular groove 30 and the center line of the cylindrical hole of through-hole 31 are located at the same position, that is, at the same height.

[0026] The plate mirror 23 is made of a rectangular plate-like member, and although the mirror surface as one plate surface does not face the emission part 18 of the VCSEL 17, one end is cantilevered toward the emission part 18 and adhered to the slope part of the rectangular groove 30 with an adhesive material such as resin. The plate thickness of the plate mirror 23 is set to be approximately equal to the depth of the rectangular groove 30.

[0027] The plate width of the plate mirror 23 (the length in side view in FIG. 2B) is slightly shorter than the width of the rectangular groove 30 (the length in side view in FIG. 2B). Therefore, before one end of the plate mirror 23 is bonded to the rectangular groove 30, i.e., before the one end is fixed, the plate mirror 23 is slightly displaceable in the direction of the slope of the bottom surface within the rectangular groove 30, and is also slightly rotationally displaceable around an axis parallel to the Y-axis. This displacement allows the orientation of the mirror surface of the plate mirror 23 to be adjusted during the manufacture of the image generating device 10.

[0028] The rotating mirror 25 has a flat mirror section 26 and a cylindrical fitting end 27 that is connected to one end of the mirror section 26 and fits into the through hole 31. The cylindrical diameter of the fitting end 27 is slightly smaller than the cylindrical diameter of the through hole 31. Therefore, before the fitting end 27 is bonded to the through hole 31, i.e., before it is fixed, the rotating mirror 25 is not only rotatable around the center line of the through hole 31 while fitting the fitting end 27 into the through hole 31, but also tiltable within a predetermined tilt angle range from a state in which the center line of the rotating mirror 25 is aligned with the center line of the through hole 31. Therefore, the rotating mirror 25 can be rotated and displaced within a larger angle range than the plate mirror 23. Such a rotatable and tiltable configuration allows the orientation of the mirror surface of the mirror section 26 to be adjusted during the manufacture of the image generating device 10. After the adjustment, the fitting end 27 is bonded and fixed with an adhesive such as resin.

[0029] It should be noted that in the X-axis direction, the MEMS optical deflector 20 is not located directly below the rotary mirror 25 but is located in front of it, i.e., on the opposite side to the VCSEL 17. As will be described later, this configuration contributes to emitting the light Lp from the image generating device 10 obliquely forward rather than perpendicular to the substrate 15. This configuration also ensures that when attached to the temples of the eyeglasses as an image scanning device for an eyeglasses-type image display device, the light Lp reaches the inner lens surface of the eyeglasses without being interfered with by the user's face through a slight gap between the image generating device and the user's face.

[0030] The cover 33 (FIG. 2B) extends along the contour of the upright plate portion 13b above the substrate 15, covers the upright plate portion 13b from above, and has the periphery of its lower end fixed to the periphery of the bottom plate portion 13a. The cover 33 has a transparent portion 34 at least in a portion where the light Lp described below becomes scanning light and is emitted from the image generating device 10.

[0031] (Image generation device / effect) 2B, the dashed line along which the light Lp is extracted indicates the optical path of the light Lp. The optical path of the light Lp starts from the emission portion 18 of the VCSEL 17, passes through the plate mirror 23, the rotary mirror 25, and the rotating mirror 21 of the MEMS optical deflector 20, and extends from the transparent portion 34 of the cover 33 to the outside of the image generating device 10.

[0032] The optical path from emission unit 18 to pivot mirror 21 is on a single plane. In detail, the single plane is perpendicular to substrate 15 and includes a straight line connecting emission unit 18 and pivot mirror 21. Light Lp becomes scanning light by reflection on pivot mirror 21, and is emitted from transparent unit 34 to the outside of image generating device 10 in an obliquely upward direction with respect to substrate 15.

[0033] The light Lp emitted from the VCSEL 17 is a laser light that is sufficiently weakened so as not to cause harm to the human eye. Alternatively, a configuration may be adopted in which the laser light is weakened to a level that does not cause harm to the human eye by disposing an optical component that attenuates light, such as an ND filter, in the optical path.

[0034] The light Lp is emitted upward (positive direction along the Z-axis) from the emission portion 18 of the VCSEL 17 perpendicular to the substrate 15. When the light Lp is incident on the plate-shaped mirror 23, it is reflected by the plate-shaped mirror 23 and its direction is changed to be parallel to the X-axis, which is the arrangement direction of the VCSEL 17 and the emission portion 18 on the upper surface of the substrate 15, and to the negative side of the X-axis. Then, after traveling parallel to the X-axis, it is incident on the mirror portion 26 of the rotary mirror 25.

[0035] The inclination angle of mirror portion 26 with respect to substrate 15 is smaller than 45°. Therefore, light Lp reflected by mirror portion 26 does not hang down parallel to the Z-axis direction, i.e., does not hang down to substrate 15 in a direction perpendicular to substrate 15, but heads obliquely toward one end side of substrate 15 in the longitudinal direction toward the center of rotating mirror 21 of MEMS optical deflector 20.

[0036] The rotating mirror 21 rotates two-dimensionally. Therefore, the light Lp incident on the rotating mirror 21 becomes scanning light for two-dimensional scanning, and rises obliquely from the rotating mirror 21 toward one end side in the longitudinal direction.

[0037] Image generating device 10 is attached to the inner side surface of temple 61b at a position where the emission direction of light Lp emitted from mirror portion 26 obliquely upward with respect to substrate 15 is obliquely forward with respect to the inner side surface of temple 61b.

[0038] (correction prism) 4 shows a configuration in which the correction prism 54 is attached to the inner surface side of the transparent portion 34. Reference numeral 56 denotes a scanning area generated at the irradiation destination by the light Lp emitted as scanning light from the transparent portion 34 of the image generating device 10 when the correction prism 54 is not used. The pre-correction scanning area 56 is trapezoidal.

[0039] The scanning area 72 is a scanning area that is generated on the inner surface of the right lens 67b as the target of light Lp emitted as scanning light from the transparent part 34 of the image generation device 10 when the correction prism 54 is attached to the inner surface of the transparent part 34. The correction prism 54 creates a rectangular scanning area 72 on the lens as well.

[0040] Note that, unlike the case where the projection reflection mirror 80 in FIG. 5A described below is equipped on the eyeglass body 60, the pre-correction scanning area 56 and scanning area 72 are described here as being generated on the inner surface of the right lens 67b, as shown in scanning area 72 in FIG. 1.

[0041] In detail, the scanning area 72 is generated in the upper right corner on the inner surface of the right lens 67b as seen from the eye of a user wearing the eyeglass body 60 of the eyeglass-type image display device 55 on his face, as shown in Fig. 1. Note that Fig. 5A described later shows an example in which the scanning area 72 is not generated on the inner surface of the lens 67b and the user does not view the image of the scanning area 72, but a projection reflecting mirror 80 is placed within the range of the scanning area 72 and attached to the inner surface of the lens 67b. Either method can be adopted in the image generating device 10.

[0042] The rotating mirror 21 of the MEMS optical deflector 20 rotates around the X-axis and the Y-axis in a resonant and non-resonant manner, respectively. As a result, the light Lp emitted from the rotating mirror 21 becomes a scanning light for two-dimensional scanning. The resonant frequency and the non-resonant frequency are, for example, 14 kHz or more and 60 Hz, respectively. The reciprocating rotation angle of the rotating mirror 21 around the X-axis is larger than the reciprocating rotation angle of the rotating mirror 21 around the Y-axis.

[0043] In this way, the pre-correction scanning area 56 or the scanning area 72 is generated in the upper right corner of the inner surface of the right lens 67b of the eyeglasses body 60. In Fig. 4, a three-axis coordinate system of Sx, Sy, and Sz axes, separate from the X, Y, and Z axes of the image generating device 10, is defined for the pre-correction scanning area 56 and the scanning area 72. The Sx and Sy axes correspond to the horizontal and vertical directions of the scanning area 72, and correspond to the left-right and up-down directions, respectively, from the eyes of the user wearing the eyeglass-type image display device 55 on his face.

[0044] 4A shows the shape of the scan area as seen by eye 78 (FIG. 5A). In particular, the positive and negative sides of the Sx axis correspond to the right and left sides, respectively, as seen by eye 78. The positive and negative sides of the Sy axis correspond to the upper and lower sides, respectively, as seen by eye 78.

[0045] Due to the reciprocating rotation of the rotating mirror 21 about the X-axis in the image generating device 10, the light Lp scans back and forth in the Sx-axis direction in the pre-correction scanning area 56 or the scanning area 72. Due to the reciprocating rotation of the rotating mirror 21 about the Y-axis in the image generating device 10, the light Lp scans back and forth in the Sy-axis direction in the pre-correction scanning area 56 or the scanning area 72.

[0046] When the correction prism 54 is not provided, the light Lp generates a pre-correction scanning area 56 on the inner surface of the lens frame 64b. The pre-correction scanning area 56 has a distorted shape with the vertical scanning width increasing toward the left side as viewed from the user wearing the eyeglass-type image display device 55. In contrast, when the pre-correction scanning area 56 is provided, the light Lp generates a scanning area 72 with the distortion corrected on the inner surface of the lens on the right side. The scanning area 72 corresponds to an inscribed rectangle of the pre-correction scanning area 56.

[0047] (Comparison by emission direction) Fig. 5A shows the scanning area As and the inscribed rectangular area Ar that the user views with the eye 78 after the light Lp emitted from the image generating device 10 attached to the eyeglass body 60 is reflected by the projection reflecting mirror 80 attached to the inner surface of the lens 67b. Fig. 5B and Fig. 5C are comparative diagrams with Fig. 5A, and show the scanning area As and the inscribed rectangular area Ar that the user views with the eye 78 after the light Lp emitted from the image generating devices 74 and 75 having a configuration different from that of the image generating device 10 is reflected by the projection reflecting mirrors 81 and 82 attached to the inner surface of the lens 67b.

[0048] In the description of Fig. 4 above, the inner surface of the lens 67b is used as a screen, and the scanning area 72 is generated on the screen. In Figs. 5A-5C, the inner surface of the lens 67b is not used as a screen, and projection reflection mirrors 80, 81, and 82 are disposed on the inner surface side of the lens 67b corresponding to the scanning area 72. As a result, the image of the light Lp from the image generation device 10 is directly recognized on the retina of the eye 78 of the user.

[0049] The light Lp is a laser beam, but the reflectance of the projection reflecting mirrors 80, 81, and 82 is set below a threshold value, and the intensity of the light Lp is set extremely low. Therefore, the eye 78 can safely view the image formed by the light Lp reflected from the projection reflecting mirrors 80, 81, and 82. Even if the projection reflecting mirrors 80, 81, and 82 are broken, the fail-safe function prevents the reflected light from entering the eye 78. Since the power supply current to the VCSEL 17 is weak, the intensity of the light Lp does not exceed a predetermined intensity, so the eye 78 is completely protected.

[0050] The projection reflection mirrors 80, 81, 82 are attached to the inner surface of the lens 67b by adhesive, or the lens 67b itself is molded during manufacture so that the range of the projection reflection mirrors 80, 81, 82 functions as a mirror.

[0051] 5A (embodiment of the present invention), the arrangement direction of the VCSEL 17 and the MEMS optical deflector 20 on the substrate 15 (=the longitudinal direction of the substrate 15) is parallel to the extension direction of the temple 61b. The light Lp is emitted from one end side of the longitudinal direction of the substrate 15 at an angle with respect to the substrate 15. The angle is a direction toward the inside of the lens 67b, that is, a direction in which the light gradually moves away from the temple 61b in the left-right direction after emission.

[0052] 5A, the vertical deflection angle of the light Lp is equiangular with respect to the horizontal line (a straight line parallel to the extension direction of the temple 61b). That is, the center line of the vertical deflection angle of the light Lp emitted from the image generating device 10 is set to be horizontal (the extension direction of the temple 61b). As a result, the scanning area As is recognized by the eye 78 as being present at the upper end of the lens 67b.

[0053] 5A to 5C, the scanning area As is the scanning area recognized by the eye 78 by scanning the projection reflecting mirror 80 with the light Lp emitted from the image generating device 10 in the absence of the correction prism 54. The inscribed rectangular area Ar indicates the inscribed rectangle of the scanning area As.

[0054] 5A, the scanning area As is a trapezoid with opposite sides parallel to each other in the left-right direction. This left-right direction is the left-right direction recognized by the eye 78. The left side of the scanning area As receives the light Lp from the image generating device 10 at a larger incident angle (angle of the incident direction with respect to the normal) than the right side, so the left side of the scanning area As is longer than the right side.

[0055] The image area provided to the user is set to a rectangle, so in FIG. 5A, the inscribed rectangular area Ar is the maximum image area that can be provided.

[0056] In the image generating device 74 in FIG. 5B, the VCSEL 17 and the MEMS optical deflector 20 are arranged with the front side facing downward with respect to the extension direction of the temple 61b. As a result, the scanning area As recognized by the eye 78 by scanning the projection reflection mirror 81 with the light Lp emitted from the image generating device 74 is lower than the scanning area As in FIG. 5A. When comparing the corresponding scanning points of the scanning area As in FIG. 5A and the scanning area As in FIG. 5B, the incident angle of the light Lp to the scanning area As is larger in FIG. 5B than in FIG. 5A. As a result, the scanning area As in FIG. 5B has more distortion than the scanning area As in FIG. 5A. Therefore, the inscribed rectangular area Ar in FIG. 5B is smaller than the inscribed rectangular area Ar in FIG. 5A.

[0057] 5C, the arrangement direction of the VCSEL 17 and the MEMS optical deflector 20 is tilted so that the front end faces upward more than the rear end. As a result, the length of the temple 61b in the short direction of the substrate 15 in a side view increases, and the image generating device 75 becomes larger.

[0058] 5A to 5C, the following knowledge is obtained about an advantageous configuration for maximizing the inscribed rectangular area Ar while minimizing the substrate 15, that is, for miniaturizing the image generating device 10. That is, as shown in Fig. 5A, the VCSEL 17 and the MEMS optical deflector 20 are arranged at a height such that the arrangement direction is parallel to the extension direction of the temples 61b and the vertical deflection angle of the light Lp from the image generating device 10 is equiangular above and below the horizontal line (a straight line parallel to the extension direction of the temples 61b).

[0059] In Fig. 5A, the corner of the lower front end of substrate 15 is chamfered to form R surface 77. People tend to become mentally unstable when an angular shape is present in the peripheral field of vision near eye 78. In the case of Fig. 5A, when the user visually recognizes the upper side of inscribed rectangular area Ar, the corner of the lower front end of substrate 15 comes into view, so the chamfering of R surface 77 is a measure to avoid this.

[0060] (Layout of elements on the board) 6 is a plan view of image generating device 10u. This plan view shows an example of the arrangement of multiple elements mounted on substrate 15. Image generating device 10u is attached to the inner side surface of temple 61b with the longer and shorter sides of rectangular substrate 15 aligned with the extending direction and up-down direction of temple 61b, respectively.

[0061] In detail, one end (left end in FIG. 6) and the other end (right end in FIG. 6) of the image generating device 10u in the longitudinal direction are aligned with the front end and rear end of the temple 61b, respectively. That is, the end from which the light Lp is emitted from the image generating device 10u becomes one end of the longitudinal direction of the substrate 15. Furthermore, one side (upper side in FIG. 6) and the other side (lower side in FIG. 6) of the image generating device 10u in the lateral direction are aligned with the upper side and lower side of the temple 61b, respectively.

[0062] The configuration of each optical scanning device will be described below with reference to the up-down direction and the front-rear direction of the optical scanning device when the optical scanning device is attached to temple 61b, as shown in FIG. 6 and subsequent figures.

[0063] In the image generating device 10u, the lower end of the front end of the substrate 15 is chamfered to form a rounded surface 77. As described above, the rounded surface 77 is a measure to prevent the user wearing the eyeglass-type image display device 55 from feeling uneasy due to the presence of sharp edges in the field of view near the eyes 78.

[0064] The MEMS optical deflector 20, the VCSEL 17, and an LDD 84 (laser driver) are arranged as relatively large elements from the front end to the rear end in that order and mounted on the substrate 15. The LDD 84 serves as a laser driver that supplies a drive current for driving the VCSEL 17.

[0065] The MEMS sensor buffer amplifier 83 (the area surrounded by double lines in FIG. 6) is composed of a number of relatively small components (e.g. resistors, capacitors). For this reason, within the range occupied by the MEMS optical deflector 20 and the VCSEL 17 in the longitudinal direction of the substrate 15, the MEMS sensor buffer amplifier 83 is disposed close to the upper side, which is one side in the lateral direction, of the MEMS optical deflector 20 and the VCSEL 17, and is mounted in the lower area, which is the other side in the lateral direction, resulting from the close positioning.

[0066] The MEMS sensor buffer amplifier 83 is a region that is elongated in the longitudinal direction. The MEMS sensor buffer amplifier 83 serves as a MEMS driving unit that supplies a driving voltage to the actuator of the MEMS optical deflector 20. The LDD 84 occupies the entire width of the substrate 15 in the lateral direction.

[0067] In this way, in image generation device 10u, the packaging density of elements can be increased, and image generation device 10u can be made smaller.

[0068] 7A is a configuration diagram of the image generating device 10a. The image generating device 10a is connected to a main body 92 via a cable 94. On a substrate 15 of the image generating device 10a, a MEMS optical deflector 20, a VCSEL 17, and an LDD 84 are mounted in a line from one end to the other end in that order in the longitudinal direction.

[0069] The main body 92 is placed in a pocket of the user's clothes, a bag, or the like. The main body 92 includes an image processing unit 85, a MEMS driver 89, a communication unit 88, and a battery 90. The communication unit 88 is connected to WIFI or the like and receives image data from a server on the Internet or the like. Based on the image data received by the communication unit 88, the image processing unit 85 generates a control signal for the LDD 84 so that the light Lp generates an image corresponding to the image data by increasing or decreasing the luminance, and outputs the control signal to the LDD 84 via a cable 94. The cable 94 includes a power supply line, and power from the battery 90 is sent to the image generating device 10a via the cable 94.

[0070] 7B is a schematic diagram of image production device 10b. In image production device 10b, MEMS optical deflector 20, VCSEL 17, LDD 84, image processing unit 85, MEMS driver 89, communication unit 88, and battery 90 are mounted in a row from the front end to the rear end on substrate 15. VCSEL 17, LDD 84, and image processing unit 85 constitute high-speed signal processing unit 86 in image production device 10b, and are therefore arranged close to each other in order to shorten the length of the wiring on substrate 15.

[0071] 7C is a schematic diagram of an image generating device 10c. In the image generating device 10c, a MEMS optical deflector 20, a VCSEL 17, an LDD 84, a MEMS driver 89, a communication unit 88, and a battery 90 are mounted in a row from the front end to the rear end on a substrate 15. The VCSEL 17 and the LDD 84 constitute a high-speed signal processing unit 86 in the image generating device 10c, and are therefore arranged close to each other in order to shorten the length of the wiring on the substrate 15.

[0072] 7C, video processing unit 85 is provided outside image production device 10c, and is connected to communication unit 88 of image production device 10c via wireless 96. Video processing unit 85 is implemented, for example, in a server connected to the Internet, and supplies video data to communication unit 88 by streaming.

[0073] (Modification) The image generating device 10 is sometimes referred to as "smart glasses." The image generating device 10 includes a VCSEL 17 as a surface-emitting laser element. Instead of the VCSEL 17, other surface-emitting laser elements, i.e., surface-emitting lasers other than the vertical cavity type, may be used.

[0074] The image generating device 10 includes a plate-shaped mirror 23 and a rotating mirror 25 as the first and second mirrors, respectively. The first and second mirrors are not limited to being plate-shaped or rotating, and non-plate-shaped or non-rotating mirrors may be used. The reason why the rotating mirror 25 is a rotating mirror is that, in order to adjust the orientation (rotation angle) of the rotating mirror 25 during the manufacture of the image generating device 10, an operator operates a predetermined tool while watching the position of the test spot by the light Lp on the test screen, so that the position becomes a set position, thereby rotating the mirror part 26 of the rotating mirror 25 that is fitted in the through hole 31 in the through hole 31 of the rotating body shape (e.g., a cylinder or a truncated cone) of the standing plate part 13b.

[0075] The MEMS driver 89 serves as a MEMS driver and drives the MEMS optical deflector 20. The LDD 84 serves as a laser driver and drives the VCSEL 17. The MEMS driver and the laser driver may have any circuit configuration as long as they have a driving function.

[0076] In the eyeglass-type image display device 55, the image generating device 10 is attached to the temple 61b of the eyeglass body 60 via a clip 70. The image generating device 10 can be attached directly to the side of the temple 61b by adhesion or the like, without using the clip 70. Furthermore, a clip can be fixed to the back surface of the bottom plate portion 13a of the image generating device 10, or the clip can be integrally molded, and the image generating device 10 can be detachably attached to the temple 61b of any eyeglass body 60 by the clip. The detachable image generating device 10 can be attached not only to a special eyeglass body 60, but also to ordinary eyeglasses that are commercially available.

[0077] 1, the image production device 10 is attached to the inner side surface of the right temple 61b. The image production device 10 may be attached to the inner side surface of the left temple 61a. Also, the image production device 10 may be attached via clips 70 to the inner sides of both the left and right temples 61a, 61b.

[0078] (Effects of the embodiment) The rotating mirror 25 (second mirror) is disposed on one end side of the plate mirror 23 (first mirror) in the longitudinal direction of the substrate 15, on the other end side of the rotating mirror 21 of the MEMS optical deflector 20, and at the same height as the plate mirror 23, and reflects the reflected light from the plate mirror 23 toward the rotating mirror 21 of the MEMS optical deflector 20. The image generating device 10 is mounted on the inner side surface of the temple 61b at a position where the emission direction of the light Lp (scanning light) emitted from the rotating mirror 21 obliquely upward with respect to the substrate 15 is obliquely forward with respect to the inner side surface of the temple 61b. This allows the light Lp emitted from the image generating device 10 to perform unhindered scanning of the scanning destination in front of the user's eye 78 without interfering with the side surface of the user's face.

[0079] The image generating device 10 is attached to the temple 61b so that the longitudinal direction of the image generating device 10 is the same as the extension direction of the temple 61b. This allows a scan area with little distortion to be generated in front of the user's eye 78.

[0080] The image generating device 10 is attached to the temple 61b at a position where the scanning area generated by the light Lp at the scanning destination is parallel to the opposite sides facing each other in the left-right direction of the eyeglasses body 60. This makes it possible to maximize the inscribed rectangular area Ar that can be formed in the scanning area and is usable as an image area.

[0081] The image generating device 10 includes a correction prism 54 at the emission section of the light Lp, which corrects the emission direction of the light Lp incident from the MEMS optical deflector 20 so that the scanning area has a rectangular shape. This makes it possible to suppress unnecessary scanning by the light Lp and improve power efficiency. [Explanation of symbols]

[0082] Reference Signs List 10 image generating device, 15 substrate, 17 VCSEL (vertical cavity surface emitting laser element), 18 emission section, 20 MEMS optical deflector, 21 rotating mirror, 23 plate mirror (first mirror), 25 rotating mirror (second mirror), 54 correction prism, 55 eyeglass-type image display device, 56 pre-correction scanning area, 58 post-correction scanning area Scanning area, 60...glasses body, 61...temples, 67...lens, 72...scanning area, 77...R surface, 80...projection reflective mirror, 83...MEMS sensor buffer amplifier (MEMS drive unit), 84...LDD (laser drive unit), 85...image processing unit, 86...high-speed signal processing unit, 88...communication unit, 94...cable, 96...wireless.

Claims

1. A pair of eyeglasses having a front frame, a lens attached to the front frame, and temples extending rearward from an end of the front frame; and an image generating device attached to the temples, The image generating device comprises: A substrate; a surface-emitting laser element attached on the substrate with an emission direction perpendicular to and facing upward with respect to the substrate; a MEMS optical deflector mounted on the substrate with a rotating mirror facing upward; a first mirror that is disposed above the surface-emitting laser element, with the MEMS optical deflector side and the surface-emitting laser element side being one end side and the other end side in an arrangement direction of the surface-emitting laser element and the MEMS optical deflector on the substrate, respectively, and that reflects light from the surface-emitting laser element toward the one end side in the arrangement direction; a second mirror disposed above the rotating mirror of the MEMS optical deflector and on the other end side of the rotating mirror in the arrangement direction, the second mirror having an inclination angle at which the incident light from the first mirror is irradiated onto the rotating mirror that is smaller than 45° with respect to the substrate; Equipped with The eyeglass-type image display device is characterized in that the image generating device is attached to an inner surface of the temple so that the scanning light emitted from the rotating mirror of the MEMS optical deflector is irradiated onto the lens.

2. 2. The eyeglass-type image display device according to claim 1, The eyeglass-type image display device is characterized in that the image generating device is attached to the temple so that the arrangement direction is the same as the extension direction of the temple.

3. 3. The eyeglass-type image display device according to claim 2, The image generating device is attached to the temples at a position where opposite sides of the eyeglass body facing left and right in the scanning area generated at the destination of the scanning light are parallel to each other.

4. 4. The eyeglass-type image display device according to claim 3, The image generating device is characterized in that the eyeglass-type image display device is provided with a correction prism at the emission section of the scanning light that corrects the emission direction of the scanning light incident from the MEMS optical deflector so that the scanning area has a rectangular shape.

5. The eyeglass-type image display device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, the image generating device further includes a laser driving unit and a MEMS driving unit which drive the surface emitting laser element and the MEMS optical deflector, respectively; The substrate has a rectangular shape with the arrangement direction as a longitudinal direction, the MEMS optical deflector, the surface-emitting laser element, and the laser driver are mounted on the substrate in this order from the one end to the other end in the longitudinal direction; The glasses-type image display device, wherein the substrate has the MEMS optical deflector and the MEMS drive unit mounted on one side and the other side in the short direction of one end of the longitudinal direction.

6. 6. The eyeglass-type image display device according to claim 5, The eyeglass-type image display device, wherein the substrate has a chamfered corner on the other side in the short side direction at the one end in the long side direction.

7. The eyeglass-type image display device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, The substrate has a rectangular shape with the arrangement direction as a longitudinal direction, the image generating device further includes a laser driving unit that drives the surface emitting laser element, the MEMS optical deflector, the surface-emitting laser element, and the laser driver are mounted on the substrate in this order from the one end side to the other end side in the longitudinal direction, The image generating device is an eyeglass-type image display device, characterized in that a drive voltage for driving the MEMS optical deflector and power for the laser drive unit are supplied from the outside via cables.

8. The eyeglass-type image display device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, The substrate has a rectangular shape with the arrangement direction as a longitudinal direction, the image generating device further includes a laser driving unit and a MEMS driving unit which drive the surface-emitting laser element and the MEMS optical deflector, respectively, and an image processing unit which controls a relationship between a luminance of the surface-emitting laser element and an emission direction of the scanning light emitted from the MEMS optical deflector based on an image signal; The glasses-type image display device is characterized in that the MEMS optical deflector, the surface-emitting laser element, the laser driving unit, the image processing unit, and the MEMS driving unit are mounted on the substrate in the longitudinal direction in that order from the one end to the other end.

9. The eyeglass-type image display device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, The substrate has a rectangular shape with the arrangement direction as a longitudinal direction, the image generating device further includes a laser driving unit and a MEMS driving unit which drive the surface-emitting laser element and the MEMS optical deflector, respectively; an image processing unit which controls a relationship between a luminance of the surface-emitting laser element and an emission direction of the scanning light emitted from the MEMS optical deflector based on an image signal; and a communication unit which wirelessly receives a control signal which controls the relationship between the luminance of the surface-emitting laser element and the emission direction of the scanning light emitted from the MEMS optical deflector, An eyeglass-type image display device characterized in that the MEMS optical deflector, the surface-emitting laser element, the laser driving unit, the MEMS driving unit, and the communication unit are mounted on the substrate in the longitudinal direction in that order from the one end to the other end.

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