Stackable head mounted display (HMD) device for convenient storing and portability

Abstract

The invention discloses a head mounted display (HMD) device (100) with a stackable mechanism, and a method of stacking thereof. The HMD device includes a front piece (102) and a face piece (104) on a front part, and a battery compartment (108) and a headrest assembly (110) on a rear end. The HMD device further includes a temple portion (106) on two sides of the front piece, a rear strap (112) to connect the rear end to the front piece, via the temple portion, and a head strap (114) to connect the rear end to the front piece, via a top of the HMD device. The HMD device is stacked by twisting the rear strap towards a direction (302) and placing a convex portion of the battery compartment onto the face piece.

Description

STACKABLE HEAD MOUNTED DISPLAY (HMD) DEVICE FOR CONVENIENT STORING AND PORTABILITY TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention generally relates to a head mounted display (HMD) device. More specifically, the present invention relates to an HMD device with a stacking mechanism for convenient storing and portability and a method of stacking the HMD device thereof.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Immersive technology has paved way for people to use head mounted display (HMD) devices like Augmented Reality (AR) / Virtual Reality (VR) headsets, smart glasses, etc for numerous purposes like entertainment, education, gaming, etc. The HMD devices that are available in the market usually have a battery pack or a power source positioned on a front portion of the HMD device and a rear end would only include straps for positioning the HMD device over the head of users. Packing and storing of these HMD devices would be by folding the straps. There are other types of HMD devices that include the battery pack on the rear end of the HMD device. But the battery pack in these devices would be connected to the front portion using hard straps that are made of hard materials. So, storing and portability of such HMD devices would be inconvenient as the HMD devices would not be collapsible from its original position.

[0003] Users who buy HMD devices would also require packing the HMD device for carrying around when the device is not in use. Because of the bulky nature of the HMD devices available in the market, the users would not be able to carry the devices around conveniently.

[0004] Therefore, there is a dire need for an HMD device, including a rear battery compartment and a headrest assembly, having a stackable mechanism for convenient storing and portability of the HMD device by the users.SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] One or more embodiments of the present invention, provide an HMD device with a stacking mechanism for convenient storing and portability and a method of stacking the HMD device thereof.

[0006] In an aspect of the present invention, a head mounted display (HMD) device with a stackable mechanism for convenient storing and portability is disclosed. The HMD device includes a front piece on a front area of the HMD device, a face piece abutted to the front piece, a battery compartment on a rear end of the HMD device and a headrest assembly abutted to the battery compartment, where the headrest assembly is opposite to the face piece on the front area. The HMD device further includes a temple portion on two sides of the front piece and extending towards the face piece, a rear strap to connect the battery compartment and the headrest assembly to the front piece of the HMD device at the temple portion, and a head strap to connect the battery compartment and the headrest assembly to the front piece at a cushion interface on the rear end and at a strap fixation axis on the front area, over a top of the HMD device. The HMD device is stacked by twisting the rear strap towards a direction away from a head space of the HMD device and by placing a convex portion of the battery compartment onto the face piece.

[0007] In an embodiment, the front piece further comprises a power button, a plurality of buttons, a plurality of cameras, a visor, a front piece inner cover and a front piece outer cover. The face piece further comprises a face cushion, an eye cover and an ocular interface, and where the face piece is fixed to the front piece using an ocular hinge at an axis of ocular part between the ocular interface and the front piece inner cover.

[0008] In an embodiment, the battery compartment further comprises a battery rear cover, a battery front cover, a battery interface with head strap tunnel and a fixation axis for the head strap. The headrest assembly includes a mesh cover, a rear cushion, a piping for the rear cushion and a head rest basis.

[0009] In an embodiment, the temple portion is connected to the front piece using temple hinges on the two sides of the HMD device.

[0010] In an embodiment, the HMD device includes two states that defines the use or not use of the HMD device, and wherein the two states include a wear state anda stacked state.

[0011] In an embodiment, twisting the rear strap towards the outside direction away from the head space of the HMD device would push an outer portion of the battery rear cover towards the head space and closer to the eye cover, where the outer portion of the battery rear cover is stacked onto the eye cover of the HMD device, and where twisting the rear strap bends the head strap to cover a top portion of a stacked HMD device.

[0012] In an embodiment, the ocular interface further comprises a plurality of ocular lenses and a plurality of sensors to view a virtual reality content and to track an eye movement of the user, respectively, to facilitate in immersive experience inside a virtual reality environment.

[0013] In an embodiment, during the wear state of the HMD device the rear straps of the HMD device is in a relaxed state and a distance between the eye cover and the headrest assembly is formed to define the head space for users to place the HMD device onto a head of the user. During the stacked state of the HMD device the rear straps of the HMD device is twisted and the battery compartment is stacked inside the eye cover wherein the head space is completely collapsed.

[0014] In an embodiment, the HMD device is used for navigating through virtual reality environment.

[0015] In another aspect of the present invention, a method of stacking a head mounted display (HMD) device for convenient storing and portability is disclosed. The method comprises placing, the HMD device in a wear state with a face piece on a front area of the HMD device opposite to a headrest assembly on a rear end of the HMD device at a distance and a rear strap of the HMD device to be in a relaxed state. The method further comprises twisting, the rear strap towards a direction away from a head space of the HMD device, where a convex surface of a battery compartment faces an eye cover of the face piece. The method includes pushing, the convex surface of the battery compartment towards the eye cover of the HMD device. The method further includes stacking, the convex surface of the battery compartment onto the eye cover of the HMD device.

[0016] Other features and aspects of this invention will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings. The features and advantages described in this summary and in the following detailed description are not all inclusive, and particularly, many additional features and advantages will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the relevant art, in view of the drawings, specification, and claims hereof. Moreover, it should be noted that the language used in the specification has been principally selected for readability and instructional purposes and may not have been selected to delineate or circumscribe the inventive subject matter, resort to the claims being necessary to determine such inventive subject matter.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Reference will be made to embodiments of the invention, examples of which may be illustrated in the accompanying figures. These figures are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. The accompanying figures, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, are illustrative of one or more embodiments of the disclosed subject matter and together with the description explain various embodiments of the disclosed subject matter and are intended to be illustrative. Further, the accompanying figures have not necessarily been drawn to scale, and any values or dimensions in the accompanying figures are for illustration purposes only and may or may not represent actual or preferred values or dimensions. Although the invention is generally described in the context of these embodiments, it should be understood that it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to these particular embodiments.

[0018] FIG. 1 is an exemplary illustration of a left-side view of a head mounted display (HMD) device in its open state, according to one or more embodiments of the present invention;

[0019] FIG. 2 is an exemplary illustration of a right-side inner perspective view of the HMD device in its open state, according to one or more embodiments of the present invention;

[0020] FIG. 3 is an exemplary illustration of the left-side view of the HMD device with a rear strap being twisted for stacking of the HMD device, according to one or more embodiments of the present invention;

[0021] FIG. 4 is an exemplary illustration of the left-side view of the stacked HMD device, according to one or more embodiments of the present invention;

[0022] FIG. 5 is an exemplary illustration of a left-side inner perspective view of the stacked HMD device, according to one or more embodiments of the present invention;

[0023] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method of stacking the HMD device, according to one or more embodiments of the present invention.

[0024] The foregoing shall be more apparent from the following detailed description of the invention.DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] Reference will now be made in detail to specific embodiments or features, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, corresponding or similar reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or corresponding parts. References to various elements described herein, are made collectively or individually when there may be more than one element of the same type. However, such references are merely exemplary in nature. It may be noted that any reference to elements in the singular may also be construed to relate to the plural and vice-versa without limiting the scope of the invention to the exact number or type of such elements unless set forth explicitly in the appended claims. Moreover, relational terms such as first and second, and the like, may be used to distinguish one entity from the other, without necessarily implying any actual relationship or between such entities.

[0026] The present invention provides a solution to the above noted challenges faced by users with an HMD device that could not be packed and carried around in ease. The present invention discloses an HMD device with stackable mechanism that helps users with convenient storing and portability, and a method of stackingthe HMD device thereof. The HMD device includes a battery compartment and a headrest assembly that constitute two separate components that form a rear end of the HMD device. The stacking mechanism in the present invention includes twisting of a rear strap of the HMD device towards an outward of a head space and pushing the battery compartment and the headrest assembly to an eye cover on a face piece of the HMD device. By doing so the battery compartment and the headrest assembly on the rear end of the HMD device could be stacked on to the inside of the eye cover, this makes the HMD device appear neatly stacked and collapsed. Thus, the present invention facilitates the users with convenient storing and portability of an HMD device that neatly stacks to form a sleek size and fits comfortably on a carry case.

[0027] The invention discloses a stackable HMD device that provides users a convenient way of stacking the HMD device so that the users could pack, store and carry the HMD device in ease. FIG. 1 is an exemplary illustration of a head mounted display device (HMD) device 100 that a user wears for navigating in a virtual reality environment. FIG. 1 illustrates a left side view of the HMD device. The HMD device 100 includes a front piece 102, a face piece 104, a temple stem 106, a battery compartment 108, a headrest assembly 110, a rear strap 112, and a head strap 114. The front piece 102 is a front portion of the HMD device 100 that forms part of a front exterior portion of the HMD device 100. The face piece 104 is positioned adjacent to the front piece 102, so that both the face piece 104 and the front piece 102 forms a front part of the HMD device 100.

[0028] The battery compartment 108 is positioned at a rear portion of the HMD device 100 and the headrest assembly 110 is positioned adjacent, towards the inside, to the battery compartment 108. The battery compartment 108 and the headrest assembly 110 forms a rear end of the HMD device 100. The HMD device 100 comprises two straps to connect the front part to its rear end. The head strap 114 connects the front piece 102 to the battery compartment 108 over a top area of the HMD device 100. The rear strap 112 connects the front piece 102 to the battery compartment 108 from two sides of the HMD device 100. At the temple region of the HMD device 100, the temple stem 106 connects the front piece 102 to the rear strap 112 via a connector 116. In an embodiment of the present invention, a headspace (not disclosed in FIG. 1) is formed between the face piece 104 and the headrest assembly 110, on the front part and the rear end, and between the rear straps 112 at the sides of the HMD device 100. A head of the user is enclosed within the head space while the HMD device 100 is in use.

[0029] In an embodiment of the present invention, the HMD device 100 comprises of two states which define a state of use or not use of the HMD device. The two states include a wear state and a stacked state. In the wear state, the front part and the rear end of the HMD device 100 are at a distance with each other and defines the head space. Furthermore, the rear strap 112 of the HMD device 100 appears to be in a relaxed position during the wear state. Meanwhile, in the stacked state, the front part and the rear end are stacked together which enables the user to pack the HMD device 100 conveniently. At the stacked state, the HMD device 100 appear to be smaller in size and fits in conveniently on to a carry case for storage and portability. Furthermore, in the stacked state, the rear straps 112 appear in a twisted state and the head space is completely collapsed.

[0030] In an embodiment of the present invention, the front piece 102 includes a power button 118, a visor 120, a plurality of cameras 122, a charging slot 124 and a plurality of buttons (not disclosed in FIG.l). The power button 118 is used to turn the HMD device 100 on or off as per user’s requirement. The power button 118, in an exemplary embodiment, is positioned on the top left comer of the HMD device 100 for convenient actuation of the power button 118 by the users. The visor 120 is placed at an outward surface of the front piece 102. The visor 120 is a component onto which a display of the HMD device 100 is projected for user’s view. In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, not disclosed in FIG. 1, the front piece 102 includes a front piece inner cover and a front piece outer cover.

[0031] The plurality of cameras 122 is positioned on the front piece 102 at a bottom surface and on the front piece outer cover of the HMD device 100, not disclosed in FIG. 1. The plurality of cameras 122 on the bottom surface of the front piece 102 is for capturing hand gestures and surrounding environment of the user. The HMD device 100 of FIG. 1, not disclosed, in addition also have cameras on the front pieceouter cover. These cameras are used for obtaining six degree of freedom (6DoF) applications on the HMD device 100.

[0032] The charging slot 124, disclosed in FIG. 1, is used for charging the HMD device 100 when the HMD device 100 losses power. In an exemplary embodiment, but not limited to, the charging slot 124 could be a type C charging slot. The plurality of buttons on the front piece, not disclosed in FIG. 1, include a passthrough button and a volume button. The passthrough button is actuated for converting the HMD device 100 to a passthrough mode that allows the users to step outside an immersive view to see a real-time view of the user’s surroundings The volume button is used for controlling the audio of a content being watched by the users.

[0033] In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, not disclosed in FIG.1, the face piece 104 includes an eye cover, an ocular interface and an axis for ocular part. The eye cover is an outer part of the face piece on the head space where the eye of the user rests while using the HMD device 100. The eye cover is made of soft and breathable material that facilitates air circulation and comfort for users even during prolonged wear. The ocular interface includes a plurality of ocular lenses and a plurality of sensors for viewing an extended reality (XR) content through the HMD device 100. The axis for ocular part provides a connection between the front piece 102 and the face piece 104 and also includes hinges that facilitates swivel of the face piece 104 for adjusting the orientation of the face piece 104 as per various facial shapes of the users.

[0034] The temple stem 106 is connected to the front piece 102 of the HMD device 100 by a temple hinge (not disclosed in FIG. 1) on both sides of the HMD device 100. The temple hinge allows users to have a horizontal motion of the temple stem 106 for comfortable wear and for sideways movement of the temple stem for fitting various head sizes of the users. In an exemplary embodiment, the temple stem 106 comprises a temple inner cover and a temple outer cover. A cavity is formed between the temple inner cover and the temple outer cover where a speaker and an audio module could be placed. Furthermore, the temple stem 106 includes a plurality of slots on a surface of the temple stem 106 wherein the slots are speakersthat provides an audio out for the users. The positioning of the speakers is such that the speakers surround user periphery, providing spatial sound to the user.

[0035] In an embodiment of the present invention, the head strap 114 is mechanically connected to the front piece at a strap fixation axis and to the battery compartment at a fixation axis for head strap. The rear strap 112 is connected to the temple stem 106, on both sides of the HMD device 100, through a connector 116 that acts as a branding space for engraving the branding of the HMD device, in an exemplary embodiment. The rear strap 112 and the head strap 114 are made of flexible and / or soft materials at least like, but not limited to, flexible woven textile material, flexible and / or soft plastic or soft fibre material that is convenient to flex, bend and twist. The flexible and / or soft material of the rear strap 112 and the head strap 114 helps flexing the straps as and when required and reduces wear and tear on continued use as compared to hard materials like plastic or the like. The flexible and / or soft material also facilitates air circulation reducing sweating of the user’s head.

[0036] In an embodiment of the present invention, not disclosed in FIG. 1, the battery compartment 108 includes a battery rear cover, a battery front cover and a battery interface with strap tunnel. The battery rear cover and the battery front cover would form a compartment between them for positioning the battery required for powering the HMD device 100. In an exemplary embodiment, a single battery could be placed inside the compartment or even split batteries could be placed for enhancing the battery capacity of the HMD device 100 for increased use time. The battery interface with strap tunnel is the component through which the rear strap 112 would traverse from one side of the HMD device 100 to another side of the HMD device 100.

[0037] Furthermore, the headrest assembly 110 of the present invention, not disclosed in FIG. 1, includes a head rest basis, a piping for padding, a padding / rear cushion and a mesh cover. The head rest basis comprises a plurality of hinges that are fixed to a top and a bottom surface of the head rest basis that helps in adjustment of the head rest assembly 110, over an axis, as per user requirement. The head rest assembly 110 is connected to the battery compartment 108 at the head rest basis andthe battery interface with strap tunnel component, respectively. The padding / rear cushion includes the piping for padding which keeps the shape of the padding / rear cushion intact. In an exemplary embodiment, the mesh cushion is made up of breathable soft woven fabric that facilitates air circulation and comfort to user on prolonged use of the HMD device 100. At the rear end, a back of the user’s head is relaxed onto the mesh cushion and at the front part, a face of the user’s head is placed on the eye cover.

[0038] In another embodiment of the present invention, the front piece 102 includes the main board that comprises electronic modules necessary for establishing connectivity on the HMD device 100. The electronic modules include, but not limited to, a communication module, a storage module, a data processing module and a plurality of sensors. The plurality of sensors includes, but not limited to, an inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor for measuring and reporting acceleration, orientation, angular rates, and other gravitational forces of the user wearing the HMD device 100 and a proximity sensor for detecting the presence of nearby objects without any physical contact whereby detecting the wearing state of the HMD device 100. The electronic modules are communicatively connected with the main board for providing immersive experience for the users. The front piece 102 also includes a plurality of microphones that capture an audio input from users for performing specific activities as per the audio input. In an exemplary embodiment, the plurality of microphones includes one microphone placed on the top surface of the front piece 102 and two microphones are placed on the bottom surface of the front piece 102 for capturing audio input from various directions The positioning of the plurality of microphones facilitates directionality or beam forming of input audio to detect audio from only the user wearing the HMD device 100. The placement of the plurality of microphones makes it more sensitive to sound coming from one or more specific directions than sound coming from other directions, thus providing beam forming of input audio.

[0039] FIG. 2 discloses a right-side inner perspective view of the HMD device 200. For the purpose of description, the HMD device 200 is described with the embodiments as illustrated in FIG. 1. Further, in order to avoid repetition and for the sake of brevity, the description for the FIG. 1 should be referred and should nowhere be construed as limiting the scope of the present disclosure. As disclosed in FIG. 2, the face piece 104 includes an ocular interface 202 and an eye cover 204.The ocular interface 202 includes a plurality of ocular lenses 210 that facilitates in projecting screens out to a distance where immersive content can be viewed comfortably by users. The ocular interface 202 also include, not disclosed in FIG.2, an eye tracking camera. The eye tracking camera, in an exemplary embodiment, includes an Infra-Red (IR) sensor and / or an IR camera, for detecting eye movement of the user wearing the HMD device. In such scenarios, the user navigates through the XR / VR / Mixed Reality (MR) environments using at least one of, but not limited to, eye gaze mechanism that is operated by the user’s eye movements, and / or navigating using head tracking. The eye tracking camera uses infrared technology to detect objects or changes in the environment. Furthermore, the eye tracking camera could be used for detecting Interpupillary distance (IPD) of the user, checking the correct wearing state of the HMD device by the user and estimating where and at what depth the user is looking at. FIG. 2 discloses a head space 212 which is formed between the eye cover 204 on the front part of the HMD device 200 and the headrest assembly 110 on the rear end of the HMD device 200.Furthermore, FIG. 2 discloses the plurality of buttons that are present on the side of the front piece 102. The plurality of button includes, but not limited to, a passthrough button 206 and a volume button 208.

[0040] In an embodiment of the present invention, power transmission from the battery compartment 108 on the rear end of the HMD device 200 to the front piece 102 is through a cable 214 that traverses, on one side, through the rear strap 112 of the HMD device 200. In an exemplary embodiment, the cable 214 could be, but not limited to, a round cable or a ribbon cable. The cable 214 is fixed to the rear strap by a cable management system, not disclosed in FIG. 2, that hold the cable 214 in place when the rear strap 112 is twisted for stacking of the HMD device 200. The cable 214, in an exemplary embodiment, could be placed between two rear straps that would run parallel to each of the rear straps. Such an arrangement of the cable 214 would not expose the cable 214 when the rear strap is twisted for stacking the HMD device 200.

[0041] FIG. 3 discloses a left side view of an HMD device 300 with a rear strap 312 twisted in a direction 302, that is towards an outward side of the HMD device 300 away from a head space 304. While twisting the rear strap 112 in the direction 302, a head strap 314 also gets bend and stretches over the rear end of the HMD device 300. After twisting the HMD device 300 in the direction 302, the battery compartment 108 and the headrest assembly 110 is pushed to an inside area of the head space 304 in order for a convex region of the battery compartment 108 to face the inside of the head space 304.

[0042] FIG. 4 discloses a left side view of an HMD device 400, with the battery compartment 108 and the headrest assembly 110 neatly stacked inside the eye cover 204 of the HMD device 400. At the stacked state, a rear strap 412 is completely twisted and reduced in size and a head strap 414 would bind the battery compartment 108 and the headrest assembly 110 together closer to the eye cover 204. In an embodiment of the present invention, the stacked state would collapse the head space that was previously visible during the wear state and would hold up together the HMD device 400 thereby reducing the size of the HMD device 400.The HMD device 400 in a stacked state is convenient for users to pack and carry around because of its reduced size.

[0043] FIG.5 discloses a left-side inner perspective view of a stacked HMD device 500. FIG. 5 provides a different perspective angle on how the stacked HMD device 500 would appear for users. As disclosed in FIG. 4, a rear strap 512 and a head strap 514 of the stacked HMD device 500 would neatly conceal the battery compartment 108 and the headrest assembly 110 onto the eye cover 204 of the stacked HMD device 500. In an exemplary embodiment, the battery rear cover includes a cushion padding that provides a cushioning and protection to the ocular lenses at the stacked state. The cushioning to the ocular lenses makes the HMD device a travel friendly equipment as the users need not worry about damaging the ocular lenses while carrying the stacked HMD device around.

[0044] FIG. 6 is a flow chart of a method 600 of stacking a head mounted display (HMD) device 100 for convenient storing and portability, according to one or more embodiments of the present invention. For the purpose of description, the method600 is described with the embodiments as illustrated in FIGs 1 to 5. Further, in order to avoid repetition and for the sake of brevity, the description for the FIGs 1 to 5 should be referred and should no where be construed as limiting the scope of the present disclosure. Furthermore, FIG. 1, FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 discloses the HMD device 100, 300 and 400 portraying steps involved in stacking the HMD device 100, 300 and 400.

[0045] At step 602, the method includes the step of placing, the HMD device 100 in a wear state with a face piece 104, on a front area of the HMD device 100, opposite to a headrest assembly 110, on a rear end of the HMD device 100, at a distance and a rear strap 112 of the HMD device 100 in a relaxed state. The placing 602 of the HMD device 100 in the wear state would comprise a head space 212 between an eye cover 204 and a mesh cushion of the headrest assembly 110.

[0046] At step 604, the method 600 includes the step of twisting, the rear strap 312 towards a direction 302 away from the head space 212 of the HMD device 300, wherein a convex surface of the battery compartment 108 faces the eye cover 204 of the face piece 104. At the step 604, the head strap 314 of the HMD device is also bend and stretched to place the battery compartment 108 inside the head space 214.

[0047] At step 606, the method 600 includes the step of pushing, the convex surface of the battery compartment 108 towards the eye cover 204 of the HMD device 300.At the step 606, the rear strap 312 is twisted such that a tension of the rear strap 312 increases. Furthermore, the head strap 314 is bend and stretched to such an extent that the head strap 314 would cover the rear end of the HMD device 300 and the tension of the head strap 314 also would increase. The pushing 606 of the battery compartment 108 towards the eye cover 204 of the HMD device would decrease the head space 304.

[0048] At step 608, the method 600 includes the step of stacking, the convex surface of the battery compartment 108 onto the eye cover 204 of the HMD device 400.The stacking 608 of the HMD device 400 would twist the rear strap 412 completely and would bend and stretch the head strap 414 in such a manner that the head strap 414 would bind the battery compartment 108 and the headrest assembly 110 together with the front piece 102 and the face piece 104 of the HMD device 400.The step 608 would completely collapse the head space 212. Such an arrangement facilitates neat stacking of the HMD device 400 that helps users with convenient storing and portability of the HMD device 400. The HMD device 400 and 500 helps users to accommodate batteries and headrest assemblies of various sizes as the eye cover is wider in shape and that the convex part of the battery compartment 108 gets neatly stacked onto the eye cover 204 of the HMD device 400.

[0049] The method 600 is performed to convert the HMD device 100 from a wear state to a stacked state. In order to convert the HMD device 400 from the stacked state to the wear state, the steps would include pulling the convex portion of the battery compartment 108 away from the eye cover 204 and repositioning the battery compartment 108 and the headrest assembly 110 on to the rear end of the HMD device 400 at a second direction opposite to the direction 302. The repositioning would remove the tension between the rear strap 412 and the head strap 414 and restores an original state of the rear strap 112 and the head strap 114. The head space 212 also becomes visible when the HMD device 100 goes to the use state. In the use state, the convex surface of the battery compartment 108 forms outermost portion on the rear end of the HMD device 100.

[0050] The present disclosure incorporates technical advancement that facilitates convenient and neat stacking of an HMD device, by a user, when the HMD device is not in use, for the purposes of storing, packing and portability of the HMD device. As the HMD devices available in the market were either non-stackable due to having hard straps or was cumbersome for users to stack the HMD device due to presents of many components on the HMD device. There appear to be HMD devices in the market that include a battery or load on the front area of the HMD device. But such arrangement would make the HMD device heavier on the front part as compared to the rear end of the HMD device, causing inconvenience to users during wear. A better design of the HMD device to eliminate this inconvenience is to have a battery or load at the rear end of the HMD device and to have a head rest that could form a cushion to the back of user’s head for stopping heat dissipating from the battery to the head of the user. While having the battery and the headrest at the rear end makes the HMD device appear bulkier, hence stacking the HMD device isimportant for facilitating convenience of use to the users while packing and carrying it around.

[0051] The HMD devices available in the market include stacking mechanism that is time consuming and tedious. There are HMD device that include buckles and clips that are placed on the straps which need to be removed and buckled in again in order to stack the HMD device. Continuous buckling and clipping of the HMD device for stacking also would cause wear and tear to the straps leading to replacement of components of the HMD device. So, the other advantages of a simple stacking mechanism as disclosed in the present invention is that the stacking process employed in the present invention is effortless and efficient as less time is involved to perform the simple steps. Since the stacking process only involves the twisting and stacking of the straps without involvement of any buckles and clips, there is minimal wear and tear to the components as disclosed in the present invention. Due to the lack of buckles and clips the HMD device disclosed in the present invention is low-priced as compared to the devices available in market. Hence, the present invention discloses an HMD device with various advantages over the HMD devices available at present. The primary advantage of the present invention is the convenience it offers to the users to pack, store and carry the HMD device around when not in use.

[0052] Various embodiments disclosed herein are to be taken in the illustrative and explanatory sense and should in no way be construed as limiting of the present invention. While aspects of the present invention have been particularly shown and described with reference to the embodiments above, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various additional embodiments may be contemplated by the modification of the disclosed machines, systems and methods without departing from the scope of what is disclosed. Such embodiments should be understood to fall within the scope of the present invention as determined based upon the claims and any equivalents thereof.

Claims

CLAIMSWe Claim:

1. A head mounted display (HMD) device (100) with a stackable mechanism for convenient storing and portability, the HMD device (100) comprising:a front piece (102) on a front area of the HMD device;a face piece (104) abutted to the front piece;a battery compartment (108) on a rear end of the HMD device;a headrest assembly (110) abutted to the battery compartment, wherein the headrest assembly is opposite to the face piece on the front area;a temple portion (106) on two sides of the front piece and extending towards the face piece;a rear strap (112) to connect the battery compartment and the headrest assembly to the front piece of the HMD device at the temple portion; anda head strap (114) to connect the battery compartment and the headrest assembly to the front piece over a top of the HMD device,wherein the HMD device is stacked by twisting the rear strap towards a direction (302) away from a head space (212) of the HMD device and by placing a convex portion of the battery compartment onto the face piece.

2. The HMD device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the front piece further comprises a power button, a plurality of buttons, a plurality of cameras, a visor, a front piece inner cover and a front piece outer cover,wherein the face piece further comprises a face cushion, an eye cover and an ocular interface, andwherein the face piece is fixed to the front piece using an ocular hinge at an axis of ocular part between the ocular interface and the front piece inner cover.

3. The HMD device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the battery compartment further comprises a battery rear cover, a battery front cover, a battery interface with head strap tunnel and a fixation axis for the head strap, andwherein the headrest assembly includes a mesh cover, a rear cushion, a piping for the rear cushion and a head rest basis.

4. The HMD device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the temple portion is connected to the front piece using temple hinges on the two sides of the HMD device.

5. The HMD device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the HMD device includes two states that defines the use or not use of the HMD device, and wherein the two states include a wear state and a stacked state.

6. The HMD device as claimed in claim 1, wherein twisting the rear strap towards the direction away from the head space of the HMD device would push an outer portion of the battery rear cover towards the head space and closer to the eye cover, wherein the outer portion of the battery rear cover is stacked onto the eye cover of the HMD device, andwherein twisting the rear strap bends the head strap to cover a top portion of a stacked HMD device.

7. The HMD device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the ocular interface further comprises a plurality of ocular lenses and a plurality of sensors to view a virtual reality content and to track an eye movement of the user, respectively, to facilitate in immersive experience inside a virtual reality environment.

8. The HMD device as claimed in claim 5, wherein during the wear state of the HMD device the rear straps of the HMD device is in a relaxed state and a distance between the eye cover and the headrest assembly is formed to define the head space for users to place the HMD device onto a head of the user, andwherein during the stacked state of the HMD device the rear straps of the HMD device is twisted and the battery compartment is stacked inside the eye cover wherein the head space is completely collapsed.

9. The HMD device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the HMD device is used for navigating through virtual reality environment.

10. A method (600) of stacking a head mounted display (HMD) device (100) for convenient storing and portability, the method comprising:placing (602), the HMD device in a wear state with a face piece (104), on a front area of the HMD device, opposite to a headrest assembly (110), on a rear end of the HMD device, at a distance and a rear strap (112) of the HMD device to be in a relaxed state;twisting (604), the rear strap towards a direction (302) away from a head space (212) of the HMD device, wherein a convex surface of a battery compartment (108) faces an eye cover (204) of the face piece;pushing (606), the convex surface of the battery compartment towards the eye cover of the HMD device; andstacking (608), the convex surface of the battery compartment onto the eye cover of the HMD device.

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