Active Sensor Hub Alignment for HMD Video Passthrough

Solution Overview

Problem

Modular sensors in head-mounted displays (HMDs) can experience relative movement due to non-rigid coupling, causing discomfort and disorientation, especially during user movements like walking or vehicle rides.

Innovation Solution

A sensor hub with light sources and fiducials generates a constellation of illuminated points or fiducials within the camera's field of view, allowing a processor to determine position information and align images from different perspectives, modifying captured images to match the camera's perspective.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of manufacture

If sensors and display are not rigidly coupled, then modularity and ease of manufacture are improved, but alignment stability and image consistency deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:

ImprovemodularityVSAvoidalignment stability

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces rigid mechanical coupling with a software-based alignment system. The processor captures images from both sensors and display, determines their relative positions, and applies geometric transformations to align the images. This substitution allows modular components to move independently while maintaining image consistency through computational methods rather than mechanical constraints.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically changes transformation parameters (rotation angles, translation vectors, scaling factors) based on the detected relative position between sensors and display. By continuously adjusting these parameters, the system compensates for movements and maintains alignment stability despite the non-rigid coupling that enables modularity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Stability of the object's composition

If sensors and display are rigidly coupled, then alignment stability is improved, but device complexity and customization flexibility worsen

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvealignment stabilityVSAvoidcustomization flexibility

Core Design Contradiction:

Stability of the object's compositionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces rigid mechanical coupling with a software-based alignment system. The processor captures images from both sensors and display, determines their relative positions, and applies geometric transformations to align the images. This substitution allows modular components to move independently while maintaining image consistency through computational methods rather than mechanical constraints.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Adaptability or versatility

If sensors move relative to display, then modularity is improved, but image alignment and user comfort deteriorate

Engineering Contradiction:

ImprovemodularityVSAvoidimage alignment

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent replaces rigid mechanical coupling with a software-based alignment system. The processor captures images from both sensors and display, determines their relative positions, and applies geometric transformations to align the images. This substitution allows modular components to move independently while maintaining image consistency through computational methods rather than mechanical constraints.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Solution Approach 2:

The system continuously captures images from both the sensors and the display, determines their relative positions, and uses this feedback information to adjust transformation parameters. This closed-loop feedback mechanism ensures that image alignment is maintained dynamically even as the modular components move relative to each other, thereby preserving reliability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentUS20260080509A1Systems, apparatuses, and methods for active alignment for video passthrough of modular sensors and head-mounted displays

Publication Date: 2026.03.19 RIVET IND INC

AI summary

An apparatus can include a sensor hub couplable to a head-mounted display (HMD), the sensor hub including sensors and light sources. The apparatus can further include a processor configured to generate, by activating the plurality of light sources, a constellation including a set of illuminated points, receive a first set of images captured by a camera of the HMD, the first set of images including a portion of the constellation and an environment near the HMD from a first perspective, receive a second set of images capturing the environment from a second perspective, identify a subset of illuminated points, determine position information of the sensor hub, and modify the second set of images based at least in part on the position information of the sensor hub to produce a modified second set of images showing the second portion of the environment modified to be from the first perspective.