Projection System Eye Protection via Visible Light Subject Masking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing projection systems fail to effectively protect presenters' eyes from both visible and non-visible projected light, requiring high-resolution cameras and exposing them to infrared radiation.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that capture and process images to detect a subject's presence and location, masking image data to set pixels corresponding to the subject's eyes to black, using low-resolution cameras and avoiding exposure to any form of projected light.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If infrared sources and infrared sensitive cameras are used to detect subject presence, then the system can identify subject areas, but the presenter's eyes are exposed to infrared radiation and the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the visible light detection function from the projection system, using standard visible light cameras to capture images of the subject. This removes the harmful infrared radiation component while maintaining subject detection capability through visible light imaging, thereby protecting the presenter from infrared exposure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs standard, inexpensive visible light cameras instead of expensive infrared sensitive cameras. These readily available cameras can be easily replaced or upgraded without requiring specialized infrared detection hardware, reducing system cost and complexity while achieving the same subject detection function.
2Measurement precision
If high-resolution cameras are used to detect subject presence and location, then the system can accurately mask subject areas, but the manufacturing cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses standard, low-cost visible light cameras that are readily available and inexpensive to manufacture. These cameras can be easily replaced or upgraded without requiring specialized high-resolution infrared detection hardware, significantly reducing the manufacturing cost while maintaining adequate subject detection capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the detection parameter from infrared radiation to visible light. By using standard visible light cameras and processing techniques, the system achieves sufficient subject location accuracy without requiring expensive high-resolution cameras, thereby reducing manufacturing cost while maintaining functional performance.
3Illumination intensity
If the projector continuously projects light onto the background, then the image is always visible, but the presenter's eyes are exposed to projected light when the subject is in front of the background
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection of the subject's presence and location using visible light cameras before projecting the image. When a subject is detected, the system pre-calculates the masked regions and adjusts the projection accordingly, ensuring that light is not projected onto the subject's eyes while maintaining image visibility on the background.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic adjustment of the projected image based on real-time subject detection. The system continuously monitors the background for subject presence and dynamically masks the corresponding regions in the projected image, allowing the projection to adapt between continuous visibility and subject-protection modes as needed.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of inhibiting a subject's eyes from being exposed to projected light when the subject is positioned in front of a background on which an image is displayed comprises capturing at least one image of the background including the displayed image, processing the captured image to detect the existence of the subject and to locate generally the subject and masking image data used by the projector to project the image corresponding to a region that encompasses at least the subject's eyes.