JPH04185092A - Stereoscopic image display device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] <Industrial Utilization Public Funds> The present invention creates a three-dimensional image by displaying a two-dimensional image with parallax, which is created by emitting light from a ship and a light emitter based on image information, to the left and right eyes respectively. The present invention relates to a stereoscopic image display device that allows images to be perceived as VR, and has been devised so that it can display high-definition stereoscopic images despite its small size.

<Prior Art> Conventionally, as a goggle-type stereoscopic image display device that is said to be small, there has been one called eye-phone' (trade name) that uses two liquid crystal panels in the display portion.

<Problem to be solved by the invention> However, since the eye-phone uses a liquid crystal panel as a display body, it weighs more than 1 kg.
It was painful to wear it on the head for a long time. In addition, in the case of LCD panels, pixels are separated by black stripes, so if you place a magnifying moon lens between the LCD panel and your eyes, the black stripes will be magnified at the same time as the pixels. Since the parallax does not change, stereoscopic images can be viewed on i! ! When weaving, there was a problem in that it felt like you were looking at a three-dimensional image through a wire mesh that was always at a certain distance. Another problem with liquid crystal panels is that the pixels are too large to be enlarged with a lens.

Therefore, U.S. Pat. No. 4.9
02.083, JP-A-64-78040, JP-A-2-
42476, JP-A-2-63379, etc., a line of light emitted by a one-dimensionally arranged light source is reflected in a direction perpendicular to the line of light using a resonant vibrating mirror, and further There are small display devices that display a two-dimensional image by gradually shifting the reflection position, but these are basically for one eye.

Therefore, if one display device is placed in front of each eye in order to create a vB trace in a stereoscopic image, there is a problem in that it is difficult to synchronize the left and right vibrating mirrors, which are mechanically operated.

Furthermore, when a resonant type vibrating mirror is used to reflect light, the frequency at which the vibrating mirror is vibrated is fixed to the resonant frequency, so it is not possible to adjust the vibrating frequency of the mirror.

For example, when using a video signal as a two-dimensional image information source, it is necessary to absorb frequency fluctuation components such as wow and flutter and jitter on the video signal side, but in the case of a resonant vibrating mirror, the vibration frequency Therefore, when synchronizing with the video signal, the video signal must be manipulated to synchronize with the vibration frequency, making it extremely difficult to display moving images.

In addition, due to the configuration using a vibrating mirror, only one image can be displayed per period of vibration, and in order to reduce flicker and smooth the movement of moving images, two images are displayed per second. If the number of double-dimensional images is increased, the vibrating mirror must be vibrated by an amount proportional to the number of images, so there is a problem that control becomes difficult as the frequency increases.

Furthermore, since a vibrating mirror is used, the mirror itself acts like a speaker and generates sound close to the vibration frequency, making the vibrating sound harsh on the ears. Furthermore, the vibration itself is transmitted to the entire display device, and when the display device is used by holding it in the hand or fixing it to the head, there is a problem that the vibration is transmitted to the user and causes discomfort.

The present invention is intended to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide a stereoscopic image display device that is small and lightweight but can display stereoscopic images with the same resolution as a conventional display device using a CRT. It is in.

Means for Solving the Problems> The stereoscopic image display device of the present invention finely divides image information such as a video signal formed from a two-dimensional image into each column or multiple columns in the vertical or horizontal direction, and An image information processing means for transmitting image information, and a plurality of pixels in the vertical or horizontal direction driven by a light emitting body driving means to display this image information based on the image information transmitted by the image information processing means. Two light emitting means for the right eye and for the left eye configured to be individually arranged, two sets of imaging optical systems for the right eye and the left eye for forming an image of the light emitted by the light emitting body, and each light emitting unit. a polarizing means that has a plurality of reflective surfaces that reflect light emitted by the body and polarizes the reflected light that enters through each imaging optical system by rotating the reflective surfaces; and the image information. A processing means, a synchronization divider means for synchronizing the light emitting body driving means and the deflection means.

Effects> According to the present invention having the above configuration, the image information subdivided by the image information processing means is sequentially supplied to the light emitters for the right eye and the left eye via the light emitter driving means. As a result, each light emitter causes light corresponding to image information to enter the polarizing means via each imaging optical system.

The polarizing means gradually changes the direction of reflection of the incident light.

As a result, an image corresponding to the subdivided image information is secondarily reproduced and visually recognized by the eyes of a person placed on the optical path of the reflected light due to an afterimage phenomenon.

Practical example An embodiment of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention.

The image information 10 is information that is the source of a stereoscopic image, and this information includes signals output from a computer to an output device such as a CRT, video signals of still images output from an electronic still camera, a video camera, etc. It includes information such as video signals of moving images outputted by the system and video signals processed by receiving television broadcast signals. A stereoscopic image can be recognized by preparing secondary 4m images for the left eye and right eye with parallax and showing them to each eye.

The light emitting means 14 and 14' for the left eye and the right eye, respectively, are composed of a plurality of light emitters 60 as shown in the embodiment of FIG.
One pixel 20 is configured by combining the two. Figure 6 (a
In the example 1, one pixel is composed of three light emitters 60. Furthermore, a plurality of pixels 20 are arranged in one direction vertically or horizontally to form a column of pixels zO as shown in FIG. 6 (bl).Then, as shown in FIG. are arranged in a plurality of rows to constitute the light emitting means 14 and 14'.
An example is shown in which two columns 1 and 02 constitute one light emitting means 14 and 14'. Details of the light emitting means 14 and 14' will be described later with reference to FIG.

The image information processing means 11 finely divides the image information 10 into horizontal and vertical directions as shown in FIG. 7(b).

Figure 7 (al) is an example of the image information 10 that is the source of the display, and the case where a two-dimensional image containing the letter E of the alphabet is displayed is shown as an example. This figure shows how a two-dimensional image on which characters are displayed is finely divided in the horizontal and vertical directions.The details of the image information processing means 11 will be described later with reference to FIG.

The light emitter driving means 12 causes the light emitter to emit light by associating the image information for one column of t divided by the image information processing means 11 with the 1 m elements for one column constituting the light emitting means 14 and 14'.

In the embodiment of FIG. 7 +01, the columns of pixels 20 are 01 and 02.
The light-emitting element driving means 12 in the second column of t shows an example in which the light-emitting element 6o corresponding to the information of two columns of the image information 10 is caused to emit light. Column G1 of pixels 20 in FIG. 7 1cI
corresponds to the third column in Figure 7(b), and corresponds to the third column in Figure 7(C).
) is emitting light corresponding to the fourth column of pixel 2o in FIG. Since the ii element 2o is composed of a plurality of light emitters 60, it can perform Nl11 display and color display. Details of embodiments of gradation display and color display will be described later with reference to FIG.

The deflection means 16 synchronizes the image information processing means 11 and the light emitter drive means 12 with the synchronization control means 13, and reflects the light emitted by the light emitting means 14 and 14' while changing the deflection angle little by little. I will do it. Details of the synchronization system will be described later using FIGS. 8 and 9.

The light beams emitted from the light emitting means 14 and 14' are deflected by the deflection means 16 toward the left and right eyes 17 and 17' of the observer. As the deflection angle changes, the line of light is imaged with respect to the observer's eyes 17 and 17' while gradually changing its position, for example, from top to bottom. Also, left and right eyes 1
If a dedicated deflection means 16 is provided for each of the left and right deflection means 16, it is necessary to synchronize the left and right deflection means 16, but it is difficult to synchronize the two mechanically operated deflection means 16. Therefore, by using one deflection means 16 to deflect the images for forming images on the left and right eyes, there is no need for synchronization, and control becomes easier.

Details of the deflection means 16 will be described later using FIGS. 8 and 9.

The imaging optical systems 15 and 15' adjust the imaging position so that the image is formed at the optimum position for the observer, and are composed of one or more lenses.

FIG. 2 (al is a schematic diagram showing the configuration for the left eye of a stereoscopic image display device in an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
1 is a schematic diagram showing a structure for a right eye of a stereoscopic image display device in an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 2(a), it is assumed that the light emitting means 14 has pixels 20 arranged in two rows in a direction perpendicular to the drawing. The imaging optical system 15 is arranged so that an image is correctly formed at the position of the left eye 17 of the observer. Second
In the example shown in FIG. 1, the imaging optical system 15 is composed of two lenses, but the number of lenses is not limited to two. Further, in this embodiment, the deflecting means 16 includes a reflecting mirror 21 and a reflecting mirror 21.
It is composed of a motor 22 that rotates. Reflection I! 21
assumes that the four sides of a regular square prism are mirror surfaces and rotates in the direction of arrow R about an axis O that passes through the centers of the upper and lower surfaces, but the number of mirror surfaces that make up the reflecting mirror 21 is four. Not limited to. Further, the motor 22 can be a DC motor, a stepping motor, or the like. Light emitting means 14
As the deflection angle changes due to the rotation of the deflection means 16, the line of light emitted from Reproduce a two-dimensional image. This second
In the case of the configuration shown in Figure (a), the two-dimensional image is directly viewed by the observer's eye 1.
Since the image is formed on the retina of 7, the observer sees a virtual image. In the case of a virtual image system, by adjusting the position of the imaging optical system 15, the viewer can easily recognize a greatly enlarged two-dimensional image. In other words, although the actual size of the light emitting means 14 is small, the two-dimensional image that can be recognized by the viewer has a size equivalent to that of a general large display device. FIG. 2 (bl shows the configuration for the right eye, but it is basically the same as the configuration for the left eye. By sharing the deflection means 16 with the left eye, the deflection means 16 are provided on both the left and right sides. It is easier to control because it does not require the mechanical synchronization that would otherwise be required.
It also reduces the number of parts, making it lighter in weight.

FIG. 3 is a diagram specifically showing a configuration in which the deflection means is shared in one embodiment of the present invention. The two-dimensional images 200 and 201 that enter the left and right eyes are one deflection means 1.
6. Actually, in order to avoid the influence of the light emitted from the adjacent light emitting means, one light emitting means 1
A partition plate is provided between components such as 4 and 14' and imaging optical systems 15 and 15' to prevent adjacent light from entering.

FIG. 4 is a side view of a cross section of a stereoscopic image display device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The figure shows a vertical cross-section of a component for the left eye, and the light emitted from the light emitting means 14 is transmitted through the imaging optical system 15.
is deflected by the deflection means 16 and reaches the position of the observer's left eye 17. A filter 41 located between the deflection means 16 and the left eye 17 is attached to the opening of the case 40 and is made of a transparent material. By selectively transmitting the wavelength of the light emitted by the light emitting means 14, the light incident from the outside is reflected inside the stereoscopic image display device, and together with the light representing the two-dimensional image, the viewer's eyes 17
Cut before reaching the 2D image to make it easier to see. Further, the eye force t<-42 is provided at a position surrounding the filter 41 to prevent intrusion of external light, thereby increasing the contrast and making the two-dimensional image easier to see.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing how to use a stereoscopic image display device in an embodiment of the present invention. The belt 50 is for fixing the display device to the head, and its length can be easily adjusted. The signal $51 is used when transferring the image information 10 from an external device, and is connected to the external device. The signal l1li51 is guided behind the observer's ear by the belt 50, so it does not become a hindrance.

FIG. 6 shows light emitting means 14 and 14 in one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. Note that the light emitting means 14 for the left eye and the light emitting means 14' for the right eye have exactly the same configuration. FIG. 6 (al shows an example in which each image $20 is made up of three light emitters 60). Also, Fig. 6(b)
Figure 6 (C) is a row of pixels shown in Figure 6 (al) aligned in one direction. Using the light emitting means 14 and 14
This is an example in which . In FIG. 6(a), for ease of explanation, Kl is applied to each of the 3II light emitters 60 constituting one pixel.

K2. I numbered it 3. These three luminous bodies 60
When performing gradation display with , even if 100 lights are not lit, 1t! Make the ke shine, make the 1 and 2 shine on ■,
By performing four types of control from ■ to ■, which requires all three lights to light up, it is possible to digitally express four gradations. Also, Kl, 2. A color image can be displayed by configuring a pixel using the three light emitters 60 that emit red, green, and blue light, respectively. Light emitting means 14
In order to obtain sufficient resolution, the spacing between the pixels constituting 14' and 14' is approximately 16 pixels in a length of about 1 [mlO] if a density of 400 [DPI] is to be achieved. . As the light emitting body 60, a small and high-luminance device such as an LED, LCD, or EL can be used. for example,
In the case of LEDs, ultra-small LEDs are arranged in high density.
An LED array or the like can be used.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the correspondence between image information and light emitting means in an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7(a) shows image information 10 to be displayed. Now the alphabet E
Let's take as an example a case where a two-dimensional image containing the characters .

The image information processing means 11 divides the image information 10 in FIG. 7 (al) finely into the horizontal and vertical directions as shown in FIG. The pixels of the light emitting means 14 and 14' are arranged horizontally, and the pixels of the light emitting means 14 and 14' are numbered from 1 to 12 in the horizontal direction. The horizontal division number of 10 is the light emitting means 14 and 14.
' corresponds to the number of pixels 20 in one column. When the pixels of the light emitting means 14 and 14' are arranged vertically,
The number of vertical divisions of the image information 10 is the light emitting means 14 and 1.
4' corresponds to the number of pixels in one column. For example, when the pixels are arranged horizontally, when the pixels 20 in one column of the light emitting means 14 and 14' are illuminated based on the information in the second column of bl in FIG. pixel 2
It is only necessary to make the light emitter 60 of 0 shine. In this way, scanning is performed in order from the first column to the 12th column. Figure 7 (c
1 has the light emitting means 14 and 14' constructed in the same manner as the embodiment shown in FIG. 6 (cl), and FIG. 7(b)
This is an example in which light is emitted in response to divided image information 10. Since there are two columns of pixels, G1 and G2, information for two columns of divided image information 10 can be emitted at once. In this case, since there are two columns of pixels, the number of times the deflection angle is changed is half as compared to when there is only one column, making control easier.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the deflection means of the present invention.

The deflecting means 16 includes a reflecting mirror 21 and a motor 22 that rotates the reflecting mirror 21. A rotary encoder is incorporated inside the motor 22 and generates pulses as the motor 22 rotates. Using this pulse,
The deflection angle of the deflection means 16 is controlled. Arrow H indicates the direction in which the pixels 20 of the light emitting means 14 and 14' are lined up, that is, the direction of the row of light. Pixel 20 is arranged parallel to the rotation axis of motor 22. The arrow mark indicates the optical path where the light train is reflected by the reflection 1121 and forms an image at the position P.

A mirror like the reflecting mirror 21, which has a mirror surface on the side surface of a regular polygonal prism and whose rotation axis is an axis passing through the centers of the upper and lower surfaces, is generally called a polygon mirror. Currently, laser beam printers (product name) use polygon mirrors to reflect the laser beam for scanning, but since the laser beam is a point light source, the mirror surface can be small in the direction of the rotation axis. However, in the case of the present invention, the mirror surface is configured to be longer in the direction of the rotation axis to match the light emitting means 14 and 14' in order to reflect a row of light at once.

Figure 8 (Ml is an example of a reflecting mirror 21 with four mirror surfaces;
FIG. 8(b) is an example of a reflecting mirror 21 having six mirror surfaces.

The number of mirror surfaces is configured to correspond to the number of columns of pixels 20 of the light emitting means, but any number of mirror surfaces may be used. As the number of mirror surfaces increases, the number of images that can be displayed during one rotation of the motor 22 increases, so the number of rotations can be reduced, making it easier to control than the configuration using the vibrating mirror mentioned in the conventional example. Become.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing how a column of light emitted from the light emitting means is deflected by the deflection means in an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 shows a configuration using the polygon mirror shown in the embodiment of FIG. 8. Figure 9 (al is a view of how the row of light is deflected as seen diagonally from above, and Figure 9 (bl is a view of how the line of light is deflected diagonally from above). , it is assumed that the lines of light are lined up in the direction of arrow H (Fig. 9 (in BL, they are lined up in the direction perpendicular to the drawing).If one mirror surface of the reflecting mirror 21 is 21', then the mirror surface The line of light reflected by 21' forms an image at the position Pl when 21' is in the state Ml.Next, as the reflecting mirror 21 rotates in the direction of arrow R, the angle of the mirror surface 21' changes. The state becomes M2, and the line of light reflected in this state forms an image at the position P2.In this way, the light emission timing of the light emitting means 14 and 14' is changed in synchronization with changing the angle of the reflecting mirror 21. As the image moves, the imaging position moves in the direction of the arrow, and a two-dimensional image is displayed due to the afterimage phenomenon.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a synchronous control system in one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 11 is a timing chart for explaining signals of the synchronous control system in FIG. 1st
0 and 11 are examples in which the polygon mirror shown in FIG. 8 is used as the deflection means 16. The synchronous control system will be explained below using both FIG. 10 and FIG. 11.

The image information processing means 11 sends the divided image signal 102 to the light emitter driving means 12, and also sends the vertical synchronization signal 104.
and a horizontal synchronization signal 105 to the synchronization control means 13. The vertical synchronization signal 104 is a timing signal for displaying the first point of image information, and the horizontal synchronization signal 105 is a timing signal for displaying the first point of each divided column.

The rotary encoder 100 generates an origin signal 106 and an angle detection signal 107 in accordance with the rotation of the motor 22, and sends them to the synchronization control means 13. The origin signal 106 is the motor 22
The angle detection signal 107 is a signal that is generated once for each rotation of the motor 22. Therefore, this angle detection signal 10
Assuming that 7 occurs once per rotation angle, for example, this is a signal that occurs 360 times per rotation.

The synchronization control means 13 generates synchronized signals based on each input signal. First, origin signal 1
06 as a reference, count the angle detection signal 107,
Mirror surface switching signal 1 indicating the start of each mirror surface of the reflecting mirror 21
13 and synchronizes with the vertical synchronization signal 104.

Next, using the mirror surface switching signal 113 as a reference, the angle detection signal 107 is counted to generate a column display signal 114 that indicates the timing to start displaying each divided column of one image corresponding to one mirror surface. generate horizontal synchronization signal 10
Synchronize with 5. Furthermore, a load signal 108 is generated based on the column display signal 114, and divided image information 102 corresponding to the number of columns of pixels is read into the shift register in synchronization with the load signal 108. Next, a latch signal 109 is generated in synchronization with the load signal 108, and in synchronization with the latch signal 109, the image information read into the shift register is sent to each drive circuit of the light emitting body 60 at once. Then, a light emission timing signal 110 is generated in synchronization with the latch signal 109, and each light emitting body 60 is caused to emit light in synchronization with the light emission timing signal 110. Also,
A rotation control signal 111 is generated in synchronization with a vertical synchronization signal 104 and a horizontal synchronization signal 105. The motor drive means 101 generates a motor drive signal 112 in synchronization with the rotation control signal 111, and controls the rotation of the motor using this motor drive signal 112.

<Effects of the Invention> As explained above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

■ Although it is small, it is capable of high-definition display, so it can display a large number of characters at once.

■ For example, even when displaying an image with 256,000 pixels in an array of 640 pixels horizontally and 400 pixels vertically, which is commonly used on CRTs for personal computers, the number of pixels required is For example, if there are two rows of pixels and the operation is performed in the vertical direction, the number of pixels required for the light emitting means is only 1280, so it is not possible to use the huge number of pixels required for a two-dimensional display. No need to prepare. Therefore, the drive circuit and control circuit for the light emitters constituting the pixel can be greatly simplified, and this is the optimal configuration for reducing size and weight.

(2) Since there is no need for a huge number of light emitters as required by a two-dimensional display, the yield in manufacturing the light emitting means is improved.

(2) By arranging a plurality of rows of pixels constituting the light emitting means, the number of rotations of the deflection means can be reduced, making control easier.

(2) By configuring the deflection means with a plurality of mirror surfaces, the number of two-dimensional images that can be displayed during one rotation of the deflection means can be increased, making control easier.

■ By sharing the deflection means between the left and right eyes, there is no need for mechanical synchronization and the number of components can be reduced, making it possible to further reduce weight.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration for the right eye of a three-dimensional image display device in an embodiment of the invention; FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a stereoscopic image display device showing an embodiment of the present invention;
The figures are explanatory diagrams showing how to use a stereoscopic image display device in an embodiment of the present invention, Figures 6 fa) to fc) are schematic configuration diagrams showing light emitting means in an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 7 (a)
l~(cl is an explanatory diagram showing the correspondence between image information and light emitting means in one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 8 (al is a perspective view showing one embodiment of the deflection means of the present invention, FIG. (a)
(b) is an explanatory diagram showing how the row of light emitted from the light emitting means is deflected by the deflection means in one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 10 shows a synchronization control system in one embodiment of the present invention. The block diagram, FIG. 11, is a timing chart for explaining the signals of the synchronous control system shown in FIG. In the figure, 10 is image information, 11 is image information processing means, 12 is light emitting body driving means, 13 is synchronization control means, 14 is left eye light emitting means, 14' is right eye light emitting means, 15 is left eye imaging. Optical system, . 15' is an imaging optical system for the right eye, 16 is a deflection means, 17 is a left eye, 17' is a right eye, 18 is external light, 19 is a light shielding means, 20 is a pixel, 21 is a reflecting mirror, 22 is a motor, and 40 is a case , 41 is a filter, 42 is an eye cover, 50 is a belt, 51 is a signal line, 60 is a light emitter, 100 is a rotary encoder, 101 is a motor drive means, 102 is divided image information, 103 is a light emitter drive signal, 104 is a vertical synchronization signal, 105 is a horizontal synchronization signal, 106 is an origin signal, 107 is an angle detection signal, 108 is a load signal, 109 is a latch signal, 110 is a light emission timing signal, 111 is a rotation control signal, 112 is a motor drive 113 is a mirror switching signal, and 114 is a column display signal. Patent applicant Seiko Epson Co., Ltd. Agent

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] Image information processing means that finely divides image information such as a video signal formed from a two-dimensional image into each column or multiple columns in the vertical or horizontal direction, and sends out the divided image information; A right-eye and a left-eye display configured by arranging a plurality of pixels made of a light-emitting body in a vertical or horizontal direction so as to be driven by a light-emitting body driving means based on image information sent by an information processing means and to display this image information. two light emitting means, two sets of imaging optical systems for the right eye and for the left eye for forming images of the light emitted by the light emitting bodies, and a plurality of reflective sheets for reflecting the light emitted by each of the light emitters. has a surface,
A polarizing means for polarizing the reflected light incident through each imaging optical system by rotating the reflecting surface, and synchronizing the image information processing means, the light emitting body driving means, and the deflecting means. A three-dimensional image display device comprising: a synchronization control means; and a three-dimensional image display device.