Infrared Eye Detection for Head-Mountable Displays
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Solution Overview
Problem
Head-mountable displays (HMDs) face challenges in determining the viewing state of a wearer efficiently, particularly in low-power and resource-constrained environments, as they need to differentiate between various states such as wearer presence, eye openness, and display viewing without visible light or harmful radiation.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating an infrared (IR) radiation source and sensor to emit and receive IR radiation, generating amplitude data to determine viewing states like no-wearer-present, wearer-present, closed-eye, open-eye, non-display-viewing, and display-viewing states, leveraging the differences in IR reflection from the eye to infer these states.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If visible light or other radiation methods are used to detect viewing state, then detection accuracy may be improved, but safety concerns and harmful radiation effects worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the detection parameter from visible light to infrared radiation, operating in a different spectral band that is invisible to the human eye and non-harmful. This allows accurate eye detection and viewing state determination without the harmful effects associated with visible light or other radiation methods
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses infrared radiation as an intermediary medium to detect eye presence and viewing state. The IR radiation source emits infrared light that reflects off the eye, and the IR sensor detects this reflected radiation, providing an indirect but safe measurement method that avoids direct harmful radiation exposure
2Measurement precision
If complex detection systems are used to differentiate multiple viewing states, then measurement precision improves, but device complexity and power consumption worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses amplitude data from infrared radiation reflection as a simple yet effective parameter to differentiate between multiple viewing states. By analyzing the intensity of reflected IR light, the system can distinguish between no-wearer-present, wearer-present, closed-eye, open-eye, non-display-viewing, and display-viewing states without requiring complex multi-sensor arrays or sophisticated algorithms
Solution Approach 2:
The infrared detection system serves multiple functions: detecting wearer presence, determining eye state (open/closed), and identifying viewing state (display-viewing/non-display-viewing). This single detection mechanism handles all these tasks, reducing overall system complexity compared to using separate sensors for each function
3Productivity
If continuous monitoring is implemented to track viewing state changes, then productivity and user experience improve, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements periodic monitoring of viewing state using infrared radiation detection. Rather than continuous monitoring, the system periodically checks for the presence of reflected IR radiation from the eye, allowing real-time responsiveness to viewing state changes while significantly reducing power consumption compared to continuous operation
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the wearer's own eye as the detection target, which passively reflects infrared radiation. The eye itself serves as the sensor by reflecting IR light back to the detector, eliminating the need for active illumination or additional power-intensive components
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This method allows for accurate determination of viewing states with low power consumption, enabling HMDs to respond appropriately, such as controlling user interfaces or recording functions, while ensuring safety and efficiency in resource-limited conditions.
Implementation Method 1
emitting infrared (IR) radiation from an IR radiation source associated with a head-mountable display toward a target location, receiving, at an IR sensor associated with the head-mountable display, reflected IR radiation
Implementation Method 2
reflected IR radiation includes IR radiation emitted by the IR radiation source and reflected from the target location
Data Source
AI summary
Example methods and systems determine viewing states, blinks, and blink intervals of an eye of a wearer of a head-mountable device. The head-mountable display can emit IR radiation from an associated IR radiation source toward a target location. An IR sensor associated with the head-mountable display can receive reflected IR radiation, such as the IR radiation emitted by the IR radiation source and reflected from the target location. The IR sensor can generate amplitude data for the reflected IR radiation. The head-mountable display can be used to determine a viewing state of the target location. The viewing state can be based on the amplitude data. The viewing state can determined from among a no-wearer-present viewing state, a wearer-present viewing state, a closed-eye viewing state, an open-eye viewing state, a non-display-viewing viewing state, and a display-viewing viewing state.