JP2001021832A - Display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a new device which allows the distinct recording of which positions the parts to be exchanged and disorder sections exist. SOLUTION: An operator records the photographed images of a camera unit 4 captured by an information processing device 7 as animation image files or still image files in the state that the parts to be exchanged and disorder parts of a large-sized machine are arranged to be irradiated with marker light. Also, the images are displayed by a display unit in accordance with the image signals sent from an information processing circuit 7 and display light is emitted to display the image information on a combiner 6. As a result, the objective sections may be saved as the distinct recording information according to this invention and, therefore, for example, another operator is able to instantaneously recognize the parts to be exchanged and disorder sections of the previous time by viewing the recorded images when carrying out work relating to the same device in later days.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, wearable computers (hereinafter abbreviated as wearable PCs), which wear computers and carry various information equipment, have begun to appear. One of the effective uses of this wearable PC is that a local maintenance worker attaches the wearable PC and proceeds with the maintenance work while consulting the technical department at the headquarters. The present invention relates to a wearable computer for such an application.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, maintenance, inspection, and repair of devices such as various large-sized machines and plant equipment are performed by workers familiar with the devices. Therefore, when it is necessary to solve operational problems, abnormal operations, failures, replace consumable parts, check and the like for the device, a worker is dispatched from the device manufacturer or the like. However, since the apparatus cannot be operated while waiting for such a worker to be dispatched, the operation rate decreases. Therefore, there is a demand for a person at the installation site of the device to perform operations such as maintenance, inspection, and repair. In this case, in order to reduce the number of skilled workers due to the complexity and labor saving of the device, a work support device for supplementing the skills of field workers is required.

[0003] Therefore, a video capture board is incorporated in a wearable PC, a CCD camera is connected to the video capture board, and the CCD camera is mounted on a headset for a head mounted display (HMD) and deployed in front of the wearer. The captured image is captured as a camera image via a capture board built into the wearable PC, and the captured image is saved inside the wearable PC or transferred to a central control room, etc. The operation to grasp the situation at the site has been realized.

[0004]

In the case where the content of the camera image is very clear, the problem that the recorded image is difficult to understand does not occur. However, in general, such image recording is performed, as shown in the following examples (1) to (3), although there is a target as a target, the target is not clear just by looking at the image. Although the status of the inside of the device is captured in the image during maintenance, it is necessary to clarify which parts are to be replaced and which parts are malfunctioning. As a result of the inspection, liquid leaks, cracks, corrosion, deformation, etc. were found, but it is difficult to see where these are located on the recorded screen. If you work according to instructions from a remote supervisor,
It is indispensable for the work to be performed by the supervisor to be the same as the work being watched by the worker, in order for the work itself to proceed accurately. It is necessary to transmit an image that clarifies the part where the part is located. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a novel device capable of clearly recording the position of a part to be replaced or a malfunctioning part.

[0005]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a head holder mounted on a head, a display unit mounted on the head holder, and a camera unit mounted on the head holder. , A marker light emitting unit attached to the head holder or the camera unit, and a marker light emitting axis from the marker light emitting unit is fixed so as to be substantially parallel to a lens optical axis of the camera unit. It is characterized by having. That is, according to the present invention, a worker narrowly squeezes light (marker light) to an object that is visible in front of the eyes, forms a spot of the light on the object, and displays the object in an image in a state where the spot appears. By capturing, spots of spot light are recorded together in the image.

Here, the head holder is located at the top of the head or / and
And an arc-shaped arm, helmet,
It can be formed by a structure that also functions as a wearing device to be worn on the head such as a cap, or by these wearing devices themselves and parts attached to the wearing device, but is not limited thereto.
It may be something like glasses. The display unit has at least a display that produces a display image, and an optical member that reflects display light emitted from the display and the like. As the display, for example, a liquid crystal display, a plasma display, a small CRT, or the like can be used. When a liquid crystal display is used, a halogen bulb, a cold cathode tube, or an LED can be used as a backlight. Also, the optical member is
A semi-reflection mirror (combiner) or a total reflection mirror can be used. It is preferable that the display unit is disposed directly below the wearer's forward gaze direction.

[0007] The marker light emitting unit is not particularly limited as long as it can irradiate light that has been narrowed down, and for example, a semiconductor laser, an LED or the like can be used. The semiconductor laser may be either a blue laser or a red laser, and a known laser can be used as these lasers. In addition, a single semiconductor laser or the like may be used, or a plurality of semiconductor lasers may be used.
It is preferable to change the color. When a laser pointer or the like using this semiconductor laser or the like is used, a very bright point is formed. However, in order not to hinder the work, it is not possible to aim at the target by holding a device or a camera that emits the pointing light in hand. Therefore, these emission units for pointing are fixed together with the camera unit to the headset so that their optical axes are substantially parallel. "Almost parallel to the optical axis of the camera lens"
This means that the parallelism is deviated within a range where the marker light can be automatically taken in the image. The camera unit needs to be small enough to be attached to the head holder, and for example, a CCD camera can be used.

The present invention is applicable to, for example, machine tools, equipment for power generation, steelmaking and petrochemical-related plants, transportation equipment for ships and vehicles, various large-sized equipment such as construction machines, various equipment, and copy machines. It can be used for work support such as maintenance and inspection, repair, and parts replacement of various OA devices.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is an image diagram showing a display device of the present invention worn by a wearer. Reference numeral 3 denotes a display unit that guides display light to the wearer's eyes. The liquid crystal panel 9 emits an image based on an input image signal as display light. The display light from the liquid crystal panel 9 is reflected toward the wearer's eyes and the outside world. It comprises a combiner 6 which is a reflection optical member that transmits light.
The display unit 3 is mounted via an ear pad to the head holder 2 constituted by an arc-shaped arm which goes around the top of the head. The driving means of the liquid crystal panel 9 will be described later with reference to FIG.

A camera unit 4 and a marker light emitting unit 5 are mounted on the head holder 2 on the opposite side of the display unit 3. The camera unit 4 and the marker light emitting unit 5 are fixed to the ear pads of the head holder 2 such that the emitting axis of the marker light from the emitting unit is substantially parallel to the lens optical axis of the camera unit 4. The marker light emitting unit 5 includes a semiconductor laser 16 for emitting marker light, a driving circuit 17 for driving the semiconductor laser 16, and a lens system 18 for narrowing the light, as shown in FIG. Camera unit 4 is CCD
It consists of a camera. The state in which the spot of light from the marker light emitting unit 5 appears is photographed by the camera unit 4, and the image is taken into the information processing circuit 7 via the capture board 8.

[0011] The information processing circuit 7 converts the fetched video into an appropriate image signal and outputs it to the display unit 3. The display unit 3 displays an image based on the image signal sent from the information processing circuit 7, emits display light, reflects the display light toward the wearer's eyes, and transmits the external light through a combiner 6 that transmits the external light. Can be presented with a display. The information processing circuit 7 processes the camera image via the capture board 8 and the data held therein by software on a memory in the information processing circuit 7 and sends an appropriate image to the display unit 3. The information display circuit is provided with a pointing device, and issues a command for transmitting a camera image.

FIG. 2 shows an internal block diagram of the apparatus shown in FIG. Behind the liquid crystal panel 9 of the display unit 3, a halogen lamp 10 serving as a light source, an endothermic filter 11, and a scattering plate 12 for uniforming light unevenness are installed. Have been. In the display unit 3, a display image is controlled by an image output interface 14 for converting an image signal sent from the information processing circuit 7 into an image signal for liquid crystal, and a liquid crystal driver 15 for supplying an image output to the liquid crystal panel 9. Have been. The display light (broken line in the figure) from the liquid crystal panel 9 is reflected by the combiner 6 and guided to the wearer's eyes. The light source is not limited to the halogen lamp 10, but may be a metal halide lamp, a cold cathode tube, or the like.

The marker light emitting unit 5 comprises a semiconductor laser 16 for emitting marker light, a drive circuit 17 for driving the semiconductor laser 16, and a lens system 18 for narrowing the light. The drive circuit 17 is connected to an ON-OFF switch (not shown), and is externally operated by the wearer.

The information processing circuit 7 includes a CPU 20 for controlling an image displayed on the display unit 3, a memory 19 for storing software for operating the CPU 20, an image memory 21 for storing image information, and Image controller 22 for reading and writing, hard disk 2 for storing programs and data and transferring them to memory as needed
3, an input / output interface 24 for converting a video input from the camera unit 4 input to the capture board 8 into an electric signal, a pointing device 27 for controlling software, the information processing circuit 7, and the display unit 3.
And a power supply unit 26 for supplying power to the power supply. The power supply to the camera unit 4 and the marker light emitting unit 5 may be supplied directly from the battery unit 25 or from the display unit 3 or the information processing circuit 7.

FIG. 3 shows an example in which the apparatus of the present invention is applied to inspection and adjustment work on site. 1 are given the same numbers. FIG. 3A is a diagram showing a state in which a worker wearing the apparatus checks and adjusts the large machine M. First, the worker turns on the marker light emitting unit 5 to replace the large machine M. The image captured by the camera unit 4 and captured by the information processing device 7 is recorded in the image memory 21 as a moving image file or a still image file in a state where the marker light S shines on the target component or the abnormal part. The display unit 3 displays an image based on the image signal sent from the information processing circuit 7, emits display light, and displays image information on the combiner 6. The image displayed on the combiner 6 is the one shown in FIG.
Are superimposed on inspection and adjustment locations of the large machine M.

According to the present invention, the target part can be stored as clear record information, so that, for example, when another worker works on the same device at a later date, this record image can be viewed, It is possible to recognize the previous replacement target component or the malfunctioning part.

In the above description, the display unit 3 is fixed by the head holder 2, but the display unit 3 is also used as a wearing device for wearing on a head such as a helmet or a cap of a wearer, or a structure of these devices. It may be a structure formed by the mounting tool itself and components attached to the mounting tool. Further, the display device may be configured to be mounted on spectacles instead of the display unit 3 and the head holder 2. Further, instead of the combiner 6, a mirror that reflects the display light of the display unit 3 toward the wearer's eyes may be used.

Further, the marking by light may be not only a simple point shape but also an arrow, a cross, a circle or the like. Alternatively, a method may be used in which divided line segments are arranged and a target is placed therebetween. In addition, a structure that can change the angle of a portion from which the spot light is emitted may be added so that the light can be emitted at a point other than the center of the image.
Further, a plurality of markings may be used, each of which may be a light spot having a different color.

Further, in order to wirelessly transfer an image photographed by the camera unit 4 to a remote place in real time, an output signal from the camera unit 4 may be directly transmitted by a wireless image transceiver. In addition, a wireless card, a modem board, and a mobile phone may be incorporated in the information processing circuit 7 in order to wirelessly transfer a recorded image stored in a file by the information processing device 7 to a computer at a remote position.

[0020]

According to the present invention, a work object can be marked with light without stopping the work, and the state can be captured on a screen. Further, in the captured image, the state where the light spot hits the target is stored, so that the target portion can be recorded information or transmitted information that is clear.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an image diagram of a display device of the present invention worn by a wearer.

FIG. 2 is an internal block diagram of the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows an example in which the device of the present invention is applied to inspection and adjustment work on site.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2: Head holder 3: Display unit 4: Camera unit 5: Marker light emitting unit 6: Combiner 7: Information processing circuit 8: Capture board

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A head holder mounted on a head, a display unit mounted on the head holder, a camera unit mounted on the head holder, and a marker light emission mounted on the head holder or the camera unit. A display device comprising: a unit; and an emission axis of the marker light from the marker light emission unit is fixed to be substantially parallel to a lens optical axis of the camera unit. 2. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the marker light is light generated by a semiconductor laser.