Abstract
The disclosure relates to a head-mounted-display and a sensor included in a fixation component of the head-mounted-display, wherein the sensor is configured for the detection of ambient light, wherein the display element has a coupling feature configured for a direction of ambient light impinging on the coupling feature onto the sensor.
Claims
1. A head-mounted display comprising: a fixation component configured to at least temporarily fix the head-mounted display to a head of a user; a generally transparent display element configured to overlay a visual data output with an environment in a field of view of the user; a sensor comprised in the fixation component and configured to detect ambient light; and, said generally transparent display element including a coupling feature configured to direct ambient light impinging on the coupling feature onto the sensor.
2. The head-mounted display of claim 1, wherein the ambient light directed onto said sensor is guided in the display element.
3. The head-mounted display of claim 1, wherein said coupling feature is configured to direct ambient light impinging on said coupling feature onto said sensor by at least one of diffusion, reflection, specular reflection, refraction, and diffraction.
4. The head-mounted display of claim 1, wherein said display element is an areal display element having a lateral surface.
5. The head-mounted display of claim 1, wherein said display element includes a marking, wherein the coupling feature is comprised in the marking.
6. The head-mounted display of claim 5, wherein said marking includes a logo.
7. The head-mounted display of claim 5, wherein said display element is an areal display element having a lateral surface; and, said marking is comprised on at least one areal surface of said areal display element.
8. The head-mounted display of claim 4, wherein said coupling feature is comprised in said lateral surface.
9. The head-mounted display of claim 8, wherein said lateral surface features a matt surface.
10. The head-mounted display of claim 4, wherein said fixation component defines a detection opening at a contact surface of said fixation component with said lateral surface of said display element configured to enable an optical connection between said coupling feature and said sensor.
11. The head-mounted display of claim 1, wherein said fixation component has a bright surface.
12. The head-mounted display of claim 10, wherein said detection opening includes a light guiding structure configured for guiding light from said lateral surface to said sensor.
13. The head-mounted display of claim 1, wherein said coupling feature includes a microstructure configured to direct ambient light impinging on said microstructure onto said sensor.
14. The head-mounted display of claim 13, wherein said microstructure includes at least one micromirror.
15. The head-mounted display of claim 1, wherein the head-mounted-display is at least one of data glasses, augmented reality glasses, and smart glasses.
16. The head-mounted display of claim 15, wherein said fixation component includes a spectacle frame.
17. The head-mounted display of claim 15, wherein said display element is an areal display element having a lateral surface; and, said display element includes at least one lens, wherein said lateral surface includes a lens edge.
18. The head-mounted display of claim 11, wherein said bright surface is a white surface.
19. The head-mounted display of claim 11, wherein said fixation component has a bright surface at a region of said contact surface with said lateral surface of said display element.
20. The head-mounted display of claim 1, wherein the ambient light directed onto said sensor is guided in the display element due to internal reflection.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0067] The invention will now be described with reference to the drawings wherein:
[0068] FIG. 1 shows a head-mounted-display in the form of data glasses, augmented reality glasses and/or smart glasses with possible locations of the at least one sensor.
[0069] FIG. 2 shows an example of an ambient light beam (or ray), impinging on the lens edge of the data glasses.
[0070] FIG. 3 shows how guided light from different lens edge locations comprising a coupling feature is directed onto the sensor.
[0071] FIG. 4 shows that different possible directions of ambient light hitting the lens edge.
[0072] FIG. 5 shows an embodiment, where the coupling feature is comprised a marking.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0073] FIG. 1 shows a head-mounted-display 1 in the form of data glasses, augmented reality glasses and/or smart glasses. These glasses have the appearance of regular glasses. The fixation component 5 is a spectacle frame in this embodiment. The spectacle frame 5 comprises at least one sensor configured for the detection of ambient light 3. Exemplary locations of the sensor 3 within the spectacle frame 5 are shown in this figure. Of course, if there is more than one sensor 3, it can be at least at two of the three proposed locations or also at other locations. The display element 7 shown in FIG. 1 is an areal display element comprising a lateral surface represented by two lenses. The lateral surface comprises thus a lens edge. In the shown embodiment, the sensor 3 locations are at a region where the spectacle frame 5 is in contact with the lens 7 at its edges.
[0074] The symbolized locations of the sensor 3 shown in FIG. 1 are for illustration purposes only. The sensor 3 is preferably not localized at the external surface of the spectacle frame 5 and is thus not really visible in the shown manner. Rather, the sensor lies inside the spectacle frame 5 and is optically accessible only via the display element 7 and/or openings at the contact surface of the spectacle frame 5 with the display element 7 in a region where the sensor 3 is located.
[0075] FIG. 2 shows an example of an ambient light beam 9 (or ray), impinging on the lens edge 13 of the data glasses. Light hitting the lens edge 13 is reflected from it in various directions. Some of the reflected light is guided in the display element 7 by internal reflection. These internally guided light beams are marked by reference sign 11 in FIG. 2. The shown reflected and guided beams 11 are actually reflected in a diffused manner, as opposed to a specular reflection. This can be seen by the various directions the ambient light beam 9 coming from a particular direction is reflected and guided 11. A specular reflection would be in a particular direction, where the absolute value of the angle at which the light is reflected at a surface equals the absolute value of the angle at which light beam 9 is incident on the surface. The shown diffusion has the advantage that all light incident on the lens edge 13 and guided 11 in the display element 7 are more evenly distributed within the display element and can thus reach the sensor 3 from different locations of the lens edge 13. For light which is reflected in a specular manner to reach the sensor 3, it has to be reflected in a particular angle with respect to a particular position on the lens edge. A lens edge 13 configured for a diffusion of the light incident on the lens edge 13 can, for example, be realized with a matt lens edge 13.
[0076] FIG. 3 shows how guided light 11 from different lens edge locations 13 is directed onto the sensor 3. The lens edge 13 shown in FIG. 3 is a coupling feature. There can be several realizations for the lens edge 13 to function as a coupling feature. It could be, for example, that the lens edge 13 comprises a matt surface. As explained above in the context of FIG. 2, such a matt surface diffuses ambient light impinging on it in different directions. The guided light beams 11 shown in FIG. 3 are those, which are diffused such that they are directed onto the sensor 3. In an alternative embodiment of the lens edge 13 which comprises the coupling feature, the lens edge could comprise microstructures in form of micro-mirrors at different locations of the lens edge. The micro-mirrors are preferably configured for the direction of ambient light impinging on them into the sensor 3. In particular, they can be optimized for light coming from a certain direction, preferably a directions straight in the field of view of the user and/or more or less perpendicular to the lenses (the lenses are preferably not perfectly plane, therefore the expression more or less is used). The micro-mirrors can, for example, comprise a combination of a parabolic mirror optimized for a preferred direction of light and a mirror in the focal point of the parabolic mirror for directing the light onto the sensor 3. Alternatively, the mirror can be arranged in an oblique plane with respect to the direction of the light in a manner that light impinging from that direction onto the mirror is reflected onto the sensor 3.
[0077] FIG. 4 shows that ambient light 9 can basically come from many different directions and that it can be preferred that a coupling feature, for example, in the lens edge 13, is optimized for light coming from different directions, for example, by comprising a diffusive structure, which diffuses and couples the light over a broad range of directions into the lens and, for matching directions, onto the sensor 3.
[0078] FIG. 5 shows an embodiment, where the coupling feature is comprised in a marking 15, in particular a logo, which itself is comprised in the display element 7. In the embodiment shown, the coupling feature is a marking 15 with a diffusive structure which diffuses ambient light, represented here by a beam 9, which impinges onto the marking 15, in different directions, thereby, diffusing a sufficient share of the ambient light (which in reality comes also from many other directions), onto the sensor 3. Preferably, the marking 15 is small enough and/or transparent in a diffusive manner such that the field of view of the user is not significantly impaired.
[0079] It is understood that the foregoing description is that of the preferred embodiments of the invention and that various changes and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.
REFERENCE SIGNS
[0080] 1 Head mounted display (data glasses) [0081] 3 Sensor (ALS) [0082] 5 Fixation component (Spectacle frame) [0083] 7 Transparent display element [0084] 9 Ambient light beam [0085] 11 Light beams guided inside the display element [0086] 13 Lens edge [0087] 15 Marking/logo
