Near-Eye AR Camera Optics for Perspective-Aligned Imaging
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Solution Overview
Problem
Augmented reality devices cause motion sickness due to the camera capturing the real-world environment from a different perspective than the user's eye, leading to magnification and unnatural movement of virtual imagery during head movements.
Innovation Solution
A camera with optical elements that alter the optical path of light to match the distance between the user's eye and the camera aperture, mimicking the user's perspective, using light-redirection surfaces to lengthen the optical path and align it with the user's eye position.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If the camera is positioned at a distance from the user's eye to capture the real-world environment, then the camera can capture a wider field of view, but the captured images have a different perspective than the user's eye, causing magnification and unnatural movement of virtual imagery
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces optical elements (lenses, mirrors, or other optical components) as intermediaries between the camera and the image sensor. These optical elements modify the optical path to simulate the perspective of the user's eye, effectively mediating between the camera's physical position and the required perspective alignment. This allows the camera to be positioned away from the eye while still capturing images with the correct perspective.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the optical parameters (such as focal length, optical path length, or magnification) through the use of optical elements to transform the captured image perspective. By adjusting these optical parameters, the system can compensate for the distance between the camera and the user's eye, ensuring that the captured images match the expected perspective despite the physical separation.
2Measurement precision
If the camera is positioned close to the user's eye to match the perspective, then the perspective alignment is improved, but the device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the optical elements within the compact housing of the augmented reality device, nesting the optical path modification components inside the existing device structure. This allows the optical elements to be incorporated without significantly increasing the overall device size or complexity, as they are arranged within the available internal space.
Solution Approach 2:
The optical elements serve multiple functions: they modify the optical path for perspective alignment, correct magnification, and potentially reduce aberrations. By making the optical elements multi-functional, the patent reduces the need for additional separate components, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity while achieving multiple objectives.
3Ease of manufacture
If the camera is positioned away from the user's eye, then the device design is simplified, but the captured images exhibit magnification and jittering during head movements
Solution Approach 1:
The optical elements act as intermediaries that correct the magnification and jittering effects by modifying the optical path. These intermediaries transform the captured images to compensate for the perspective differences caused by the camera's distance from the user's eye, thereby eliminating the harmful effects of magnification and jittering during head movements.
Solution Approach 2:
The optical elements are designed to pre-correct for the magnification and jittering that would otherwise occur during head movements. By implementing the optical path modification in advance (before the images are processed or displayed), the system proactively counteracts the harmful effects, preventing magnification and jittering rather than correcting them after they occur.
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
Mitigates or alleviates motion sickness by ensuring the captured images align with the user's expected perspective, reducing symptoms such as magnification and jittering of virtual imagery.
Implementation Method 1
two or more light-redirection surfaces configured to repeatedly reflect light between the two or more light-redirection surfaces
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A~3B
AI summary
An augmented reality display device includes a near-eye display configured to present imagery to a user eye. A camera is configured to capture light from a real-world environment and produce output useable to contribute to the imagery presented to the user eye via the near-eye display. The camera includes an aperture configured to receive the light from the real-world environment and an image sensor configured to respond to the light received from the real-world environment by generating sensor output signals useable to produce images on the near-eye display depicting the real-world environment. One or more optical elements provide an optical path for light from the aperture to the image sensor, the optical path having a length that is within a threshold of a distance between the user eye and the aperture of the camera.