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EP-4321915-B1 - VIRTUAL OR AUGMENTED REALITY HEADSETS HAVING ADJUSTABLE INTERPUPILLARY DISTANCE

EP4321915B1EP 4321915 B1EP4321915 B1EP 4321915B1EP-4321915-B1

Inventors

  • KAJI, Masamune
  • SLIPY, MICHAEL, JOHN
  • NATSUME, SHIGERU

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20141016

Claims (15)

  1. A virtual or augmented reality headset (10), comprising: a frame (12) including opposing arm members (14a, 14b), a bridge (16) positioned intermediate the opposing arm members (14a, 14b), and a plurality of linear rails (18a, 18b, 20a, 20b), at least one linear rail provided at each of opposing sides of the frame (12) defined by a central reference plane (26); a pair of virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) each having an optical center, the pair of virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) movably coupled to the plurality of linear rails (18a, 18bm 20a, 20b) to enable adjustment of an interpupillary distance between the optical centers; and an adjustment mechanism (34) coupled to both of the pair of virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) and operable to simultaneously move the pair of virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) in adjustment directions aligned with the plurality of linear rails (18a, 18b, 20a, 20b) to adjust the interpupillary distance; characterized in that each virtual or augmented reality eyepiece (30a, 30b) is arcuate and includes a medial end and a lateral end, the medial end positioned proximate the bridge (16) of the frame (12) and the lateral end positioned proximate a temple region of a respective one of the opposing arm members (14a, 14b); and the plurality of linear rails (18a, 18b, 20a, 20b) include at least two linear rails on each of the opposing sides of the frame to guide a respective one of the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b), and wherein, for each of the opposing sides of the frame (12), a first one (18a, 18b) of the linear rails is located proximate the bridge (16) to guide the medial end of the respective virtual or augmented reality eyepiece (30a, 30b) and a second one (20a, 20b) of the linear rails is located proximate the temple region to guide the lateral end of the respective virtual or augmented reality eyepiece (30a, 30b).
  2. The headset (10) of claim 1 wherein the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) are movable between a narrowest configuration and a widest configuration, and wherein a difference between the interpupillary distance in the widest configuration and the interpupillary distance in the narrowest configuration is between about 20 mm and about 24 mm.
  3. The headset (10) of claim 1 wherein the adjustment mechanism (34) is coupled to the bridge (16) and includes a manipulable actuator coupled to the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) for selectively adjusting a linear position of each of the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces simultaneously.
  4. The headset (10) of one of claims 1 and 2, wherein the frame (12) further includes a lock to selectively fix the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) in a selected linear position along the plurality of linear rails (18a, 18b, 20a, 20b).
  5. The headset (10) of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the adjustment mechanism (34) includes a manipulable actuator manually operable by a user and one or more links physically coupling the manipulable actuator to the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b).
  6. The headset (10) of claim 5, further comprising: a selectively removable cover that is selectively positionable to alternatively prevent access to the manipulable actuator and to provide access to the manipulable actuator by the user.
  7. The headset (10) of claim 6 wherein the manipulable actuator is constrained to translate back and forth in directions perpendicular to the adjustment directions aligned with the plurality of linear rails (18a, 18b, 20a, 20b), and wherein movement of the manipulable actuator in one direction moves the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) toward an expanded configuration and movement of the manipulable actuator in the opposite direction moves the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) toward a collapsed configuration.
  8. The headset (10) of claim 5 wherein the manipulable actuator is accessible to the user while the headset is worn.
  9. The headset (10) of any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the adjustment mechanism includes one or more linear actuators, preferably wherein the one or more linear actuators comprise at least one piezoelectric linear actuator.
  10. The headset (10) of any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the bridge (16) includes a nosepiece (36) to engage a nose of a user and support the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) in front of the user's eyes, preferably wherein the bridge (16) further includes a base portion, and wherein the nosepiece is removably coupleable to the base portion to selectively lock the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) in a selected position.
  11. The headset (10) of any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the frame (12) includes a respective arcuate profile on each of opposing sides of the central reference plane (26) to at least partially nest with a respective one of the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) when the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) are in a narrowest configuration in which the interpupillary distance is at a minimum.
  12. The headset (10) of any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein each of the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b) are coupled to at least two linear rails that are offset fore and aft from each other.
  13. The headset (10) of any one of claims 1 to 112, wherein the plurality of linear rails (18a, 18b, 20a, 20b) include at least two linear rails on each of the opposing sides of the frame vertically offset from each other to guide a respective one of the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces (30a, 30b).
  14. The headset (10) of any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the bridge (16) and the plurality of rails (18a, 18b, 20a, 20b) of the frame (12) are integrally formed as a single-piece, or the bridge (16), the opposing arm members (14a, 14b) and the plurality of rails (18a, 18b, 20a, 20b) of the frame (12) are integrally formed as a single-piece.
  15. The headset (10) of any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein the frame (12) further includes a central frame portion comprising the bridge (16), and wherein the opposing arm members (14a, 14b) are hingedly connected to the central frame portion.

Description

BACKGROUND Technical Field This disclosure generally relates to virtual or augmented reality headsets, and more particularly to virtual or augmented reality headsets wherein the interpupillary distance of the eyepieces is adjustable. Description of the Related Art Virtual or augmented reality headsets have long been proven invaluable for many applications, spanning the fields of scientific visualization, medicine and military training, engineering design and prototyping, tele-manipulation and tele-presence, and personal entertainment systems. In virtual reality systems, computer-generated virtual scenes are generally provided on an opaque display. In mixed and augmented reality systems, computer-generated virtual scenes or objects are combined with the views of a real-world scene on a see-through display. In many virtual or augmented reality headsets, virtual or augmented scenes are displayed on separate eyepieces. The interpupillary distance between the optical centers of such eyepieces are often fixed, and corrections that may be needed to adjust for variations in users having different interpupillary distances is made via software to provide corrective display adjustments. In some instances, the interpupillary distance between the optical centers of eyepieces may be mechanically adjustable; however, in such instances, adjustment devices can suffer from various drawbacks. For example, the adjustment mechanisms may be overly complex, bulky, lack precision and/or include a limited range of motion. US 5,844,530 describes a head mounted display comprising a transmission-type display device for displaying prescribed images while transmitting outside light, a head mounted device for supporting the display device in front of the face, and a visor for reducing the quantity of outside light incident on the display device. The visor is installed in such a way that it can move between a position in which the outside front surface of the display device is covered and a position in which this surface is open. A living space or other external environment can be perceived without any impediment to viewing even when the images projected on the image display mechanism are being viewed. BRIEF SUMMARY The invention provides a virtual or augmented reality headset, comprising a frame including opposing arm members, a bridge positioned intermediate the opposing arm members, and a plurality of linear rails, at least one linear rail provided at each of opposing sides of the frame defined by a central reference plane, a pair of virtual or augmented reality eyepieces each having an optical center, the pair of virtual or augmented reality eyepieces movably coupled to the plurality of linear rails to enable adjustment of an interpupillary distance between the optical centers, and an adjustment mechanism coupled to both of the pair of virtual or augmented reality eyepieces and operable to simultaneously move the pair of virtual or augmented reality eyepieces in adjustment directions aligned with the plurality of linear rails to adjust the interpupillary distance, characterized in that each virtual or augmented reality eyepiece is arcuate and includes a medial end and a lateral end, the medial end positioned proximate the bridge of the frame and the lateral end positioned proximate a temple region of a respective one of the opposing arm members, and the plurality of linear rails include at least two linear rails on each of the opposing sides of the frame to guide a respective one of the virtual or augmented reality eyepieces, and wherein, for each of the opposing sides of the frame, a first one of the linear rails is located proximate the bridge to guide the medial end of the respective virtual or augmented reality eyepiece and a second one of the linear rails is located proximate the temple region to guide the lateral end of the respective virtual or augmented reality eyepiece. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a perspective view of a headset according to one embodiment.Figure 2 is a top plan view of a portion of the headset of Figure 1 shown in a collapsed configuration.Figure 3 is a top plan view of a portion of the headset of Figure 1 shown in an expanded configuration.Figure 4 is a top plan view of the headset of Figure 1 shown in the collapsed configuration.Figure 5 is a front elevational view of the headset of Figure 1 shown in the collapsed configuration.Figure 6 is a side elevational view of the headset of Figure 1 shown in the collapsed configuration.Figures 7-28 are different views of headsets not according to the claimed invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION In the following description, certain specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of various disclosed embodiments. However, one skilled in the relevant art will recognize that embodiments of the claimed invention may be practiced without one or more of these specific details unless explicitly required in the i