HMD Gaze Validation for Accidental Control

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing methods for controlling devices through head-mounted displays often result in unintended validation of control operations due to sudden movements, such as a bee flying in front of the user, leading to accidental activation of commands.

Innovation Solution

A method that requires a selection instruction for a dedicated area within a virtual control interface, followed by a gaze validation to ensure intentional control operations, using a head-mounted device with sensors to detect both voice commands and gaze position, reducing the likelihood of unintentional validation by requiring overlapping detection of selected and gaze areas.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If a single voice command or gesture is used to control a target device, then the ease of operation is improved, but the reliability deteriorates due to unintended validation from sudden movements

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveease of operationVSAvoidreliability
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary detection of the user's gaze direction before validating the control operation. The eye-tracking sensor detects where the user is looking, and only commands received while the user's gaze is directed at the corresponding interface element are validated. This preliminary gaze verification prevents unintended activation from sudden movements while maintaining ease of use through natural voice and gesture inputs.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If gaze detection is added to validate control operations, then the reliability is improved, but the device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovereliabilityVSAvoiddevice complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The head-mounted device integrates multiple functions into a single platform: voice command recognition, gesture detection, and eye-tracking gaze detection. By making the HMD universal and multi-functional, the system can perform reliability validation through gaze detection without requiring separate dedicated devices, thus minimizing the increase in overall system complexity while achieving improved reliability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentEP2846224B1Display method through a head mounted device
Publication Date: 2020.04.01 INTERDIGITAL CE PATENT HOLDINGS SAS
  • EP2846224B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2846224B1 patent drawingFigure 2a~2c
  • EP2846224B1 patent drawingFigure 3a~3c

AI summary

In one embodiment, it is proposed a method for validating a control operation to be performed by a target device through a virtual control interface, the virtual control interface being displayed by a head mounted device of a user. The method is remarkable in that it comprises: - a step of detecting a selection instruction of a first area, delivering a selected first area ; - a step of detecting a position of gaze of the user, delivering a second area within the virtual control interface ; - a step of detecting if the selected first area and the second area are at least partially overlapping a same dedicated area associated to a control operation to be performed by said target device; and in case of detection of an occurrence of said at least partially overlapping, said method further comprising a step of validating the control operation.