Bioptic HMD with Adjustable Camera and Display
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Head-Mounted Displays (HMDs) face a trade-off between Field of View (FOV) and pixel size, limiting peripheral vision and image detail, and require adjustable camera angles for different tasks, affecting usability and comfort.
Innovation Solution
An HMD system with an adjustable camera and display orientation, allowing users to switch between electronic and natural vision easily, incorporating prescription lenses and motion sensing for image stabilization and automatic camera angle adjustment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If the Field of View (FOV) is increased to provide significant peripheral vision, then the HMD size and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The field of view is segmented into two distinct zones: a central electronic display area for high-resolution content and a peripheral natural vision area for environmental awareness. This segmentation allows the electronic display to cover only the necessary central FOV (20-30 degrees) while leaving peripheral vision unobstructed, avoiding the need for an excessively large HMD housing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from attempting to provide full peripheral vision through the electronic display to a hybrid approach where peripheral vision is experienced in a different dimension - through the natural environment around the HMD housing. This dimensional shift resolves the contradiction by allowing significant peripheral awareness without increasing HMD size.
2Area of stationary object
If the Field of View (FOV) is increased with a given pixel resolution, then the pixel size increases resulting in loss of image detail
Solution Approach 1:
Different quality levels are applied to different regions of the visual field: high-resolution electronic display content is provided in the central FOV where detailed information is needed, while peripheral regions rely on the natural environment which provides sufficient contextual detail without requiring high pixel density. This local quality differentiation maintains image detail where critical while expanding overall FOV.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the camera angle is fixed for one task, then the HMD cannot be used for other tasks requiring different viewing angles
Solution Approach 1:
The camera angle is made dynamically adjustable rather than fixed, allowing the system to adapt to different tasks. The camera can be repositioned vertically to provide appropriate viewing angles for various activities such as viewing distant objects, hand-held objects, or immersive content, enabling task compatibility without excessive complexity through straightforward mechanical adjustment.
4Ease of operation
If the display angle is fixed, then the wearer cannot comfortably alternate between electronic display and natural vision for different tasks
Solution Approach 1:
The display angle is made adjustable to dynamically match the wearer's habitual gaze angle for different tasks. This allows comfortable alternation between electronic display and natural vision by positioning the display at the appropriate vertical angle for each activity, improving ease of operation through simple angular adjustment rather than complex mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and apparatus of displaying an electronic video image using a head-worn near-to-eye display in a non-immersive fashion, such that the wearer can choose, through simple adjustments of their neck and eye angles, to either look at the displayed video image or their natural environment. The invention also relates to the incorporation of prescription lenses into the optical chain of the near-to-eye display. The invention also relates to the use of motion and position sensors incorporated into the head-worn device to enable automatic stabilization of the video image. The invention also relates to the use of motion and position sensors incorporated into the head-worn device to automatically adjust the vertical angle of either the camera or the electronic display or both, by sensing the vertical angular position of the user's head.