JPS5964813A - Head up display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the flexibility of an optical system considerably and make the optical system light-weight and small-sized, by transmitting symbol information, which is displayed on a CRT, through an optical fiber and projecting this information onto a combining glass. CONSTITUTION:Optical fibers 6 whose number corresponds to the number of picture elements of a CRT 1 are arranged between the CRT 1 and a collimating lens 4 and are brought into contact with the screen face of the CRT 1. Symbol information of another airplane or the like acquired from a sensor of a radar or the like is transmitted by optical fibers 6 and is projected to the front of the eye of the airplane pilot through a combining glass 5. Since optical fibers 6 are used as an optical transmission means, conditions of the setting position and the angle of a lens 4 are relaxed considerably, and the flexibility of the optical system is improved considerably. The device is made light-weight and small-sized because of light-weight optical fibers.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] The present invention relates to a head-up display device.

Specific information regarding the air, land, sea, etc. obtained by sensor equipment such as radar installed on the aircraft, such as the mutual position of the own aircraft and other aircraft in the air,
Alternatively, information regarding the relative positional relationship between a prespecified target on the ground or sea and the own aircraft is essential information for aircraft operation or other purposes, and the CRT symbol displaying such information is A head-up display that allows the driver to view the scene in front of him, which is projected through an optical system to a predetermined location approximately in front of his line of sight, while maintaining his normal driving posture, overlapping the scene in front of him that would normally be captured by the naked eye. The device is now well known.

FIG. 1 is a side view showing the configuration of a conventional head up display device of this type.

Desired information to be displayed on a rad-up display, such as information acquired from sensors such as radar, or previously known ground topographic information, is usually generated by a symbol signal generation circuit (not shown) under the control of a conbeater.
The signal is converted into a symbol signal through a CRTl, etc., and displayed in monochromatic light by a CRTl.

The CRTI usually has an electromagnetic deflection type deflection circuit, and the electromagnetic deflection coil receives the above-mentioned symbol signal and displays a corresponding symbol.

A symbol displayed on the screen of the CRT is received by a relay lens group 2 and projected onto a mirror 3. The relay lens group 2 is a compound lens system that combines a plurality of convex lenses and concave lenses, and its optical axis almost coincides with the central axis l of C1 (Tx), and the light receiving surface is arranged parallel to the screen surface of the CRT. This relay lens group 2 is a CRT
It functions as a so-called objective lens that receives the symbol displayed at t, and focuses and projects the symbol image onto the mirror 3. Therefore, the relay lens group 2 as a whole can be considered to be equivalent to a convex lens that has the optical property of focusing symbols in this way, and the compound lens system can significantly reduce spherical aberration in focusing the received symbols. It has become something like this. However, since the relay lens system is essentially susceptible to the influence of external light, the entire system is usually enclosed in a sealed container, and a desiccant such as silica gel is further enclosed in consideration of moisture resistance.

In this way, the CR focused by the relay lens system
For example, if we take the symbol displayed at the center point P of the CRTI screen as an example, the TI symbol is as follows.
As shown by the arrow in FIG. 1, it is projected as an inverted symbol at the center point P2 of the mirror 3. Therefore, normally, the screen surface of the CRTI is upside down relative to the mirror 3 so that the symbols projected on the mirror 3 are erect.

Now, the symbol a reflected at the center point P of the mirror 3 is projected onto the collimating lens 4. The collimating lens 4 is a lens that converts the received symbol image into parallel light, and is located at the center point P of the mirror 3.

The symbol image reflected by this becomes parallel light, that is, focused at an infinite point. This makes it possible to set the focal point at infinity irrespective of the operator's position indicated by point P. Therefore, the position of point P can be set arbitrarily. Now, the symbol is the center point P of the collimating lens.

becomes parallel light from the center point P of the compiling glass 5.
4 is projected.

The compiling glass 5 has a so-called half-mirror structure and is arranged parallel to the mirror 3. This compiling glass 5 corresponds to the size of the field of view formed in combination with the mirror 3 and the collimating lens 4, and another compiling glass may be placed in parallel with it depending on the size of the desired field of view. However, in the case of Ki 1, this is shown as one piece.

The symbol image reflected by the center part P4 of the compiling glass 5 is received by the pilot's eyes at a point Ptl, but this symbol image is shown at a point on the line connecting the center point of the compiling glass 5 and the point P. It is projected into space as a projected image. In this case, points P and P.

The distance between is the optical path to the point P of the symbol, that is, the point P
, , P, , P, , P, and P are clearly equal to the length connecting them. In this way, the CRT
The other symbols displayed on the screen of I are similarly projected and are all projected onto the projection surface S of the space. The pilot sees this projected image through the compiling glasses 5, and superimposes this and the front sight captured by the naked eye through the field of view of the compiling glasses 5. Therefore, the sight seen is preset. Symbols related to the attitude, predicted position, or terrain map of other aircraft based on the projected image can be seen overlappingly as projected images, and this allows symbol information for the flight operation or other purposes of the own aircraft to be displayed while maintaining the control attitude. It can be used in conjunction with the sight seen by the naked eye.

Such a head-up display device allows the pilot in the cockpit to simultaneously view the CRTl symbol spatially projected superimposed on the front sight seen with the naked eye while maintaining the posture and line of sight in the piloting state. In addition to being an extremely easy-to-read display method, the symbols viewed through the half-mirror characteristics of the compiling glasses 5 are easy to see even in broad daylight, and the content displayed by the symbols can also be controlled by the on-board computer in a multi-dimensional display. A head-up display device having the above-mentioned characteristics is suitable for aircraft, especially military aircraft, etc., which generally fly at high speeds and are limited by the size of the space occupied near the cockpit. There is a tendency for the implementation of equipment to increase.

However, the above-mentioned conventional head-up display device also has the following various essential drawbacks.

First, as shown in Fig. 1, in order to project the symbol displayed on the CRTI, a relay lens group 2, a mirror 3,
Since the optical means of projecting onto the compiling glass 5 via the collimating lens 4 is used, optical alignment between these many lenses and mirrors is complex and requires high precision, and once the alignment is set, The alignment of the relay lens group 51 is fixed and lacks optical flexibility, especially for the relay lens group 2.
The mounting position and angle of the head up display and the collimating lens 4 must be maintained in their original alignment, which has the disadvantage that the operability of the entire head up display is greatly restricted.

The second reason is that the relay lens system 2 that focuses the symbols displayed on the CRTt is inherently weak against external light, so the relay lens system 2 is sealed in an airtight container as described above and is made moisture resistant. Therefore, a protective structure for the relay lens system is required, such as enclosing a desiccant such as silica gel, which makes the structure complicated and has the disadvantage that it is difficult to achieve the compact size and light weight that is especially required for aircraft.

The object of the invention is to eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks and to
In a display device, the flexibility of the optical system is greatly improved by providing means for transmitting symbols displayed on a CRT through an optical fiber replaced with a relay lens system and projecting them onto a compiling glass.
In particular, the flexibility of the mounting position and angle of the collimating lens has been significantly improved, and the overall structure has been significantly reduced in weight and size, making alignment extremely easy.
The purpose of the present invention is to provide display devices.

The device of the present invention is a head up display device according to J A11. Symbols such as letters, numbers, and figures displayed on the display are transmitted through optical fibers, and projected onto the compiling glass of the display device through the collimating lens of the display device. The apparatus comprises an optical fiber symbol transmission means.

Next, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing one embodiment of the present invention.

In Fig. 2, CRTI, collimating lens 4,
The compiling glass 5 and the transparent surface S etc. are all the first
These are the same as those with the same symbols in the figure, and detailed explanations regarding these will be omitted.

In FIG. 2, a plurality of optical fibers 6 exist as optical transmission paths for symbol information between the display surface of the CRTI displaying symbols and the collimating lens 4, and both ends of these optical fibers 6 are connected to each other. The adapter 7 is connected to the screen surface of the CRTI and the surface of the collimating lens 4 via the adapter 7.
are mounted adjacent to each other by a mounting structure (not shown).

Symbols displayed on the screen of a CRTI are usually composed of so-called pixels, which are units obtained by dividing the screen in the horizontal and vertical directions by a predetermined number of bits.

FIG. 3 is a symbol display diagram showing an example of symbol display on a CRT. For CRTs having a rectangular or square screen surface, the screen surface Q; for CRTs having a circular screen surface, the horizontal length A of a square figure Q circumscribing the circular screen surface. , the vertical length B is divided into α bits and β bits corresponding to a predetermined resolution, and the content is represented by αXβ pixels divided into the original α pits and β bits of the symbol. Displayed. For a CRT having a square or circular screen surface, α=β is normally set. This screen surface Q
As shown in Fig. 3, -10 = In addition to preset arrows, line segments, specifying symbols, etc., alphanumeric characters and other characters are also used as symbols as desired, and the predetermined result obtained by the combination of these symbols is Display contents are projected by a head-up display device through its compiling glasses.

The contents displayed by the symbols in Fig. 3 are the positions of the own aircraft P' and other aircraft P'' in space at the current time, and the predicted flight directions indicated by the arrows, which correspond to the motion coordinate system for the own aircraft. This is an example of displaying
More display elements are often displayed in the actual display along with predetermined characters, symbols, and map information.

Now, the symbol divided into αXβ-bit pixels is conventionally received by a group of relay lenses, focused, and then applied to a mirror.The reflected light is turned into parallel light by a collimating lens, and then a half mirror is used. It is projected onto the front of the aircraft operator's line of sight through compinning glasses, and is used for flight operations and other purposes by superimposing the view captured by the naked eye. There are drawbacks as explained with reference to FIG.

In this embodiment, a number of optical fibers corresponding to the number of αXβ bits are connected to
They are placed in contact with the screen surface of the RTI, and together they form an east line to optically transmit the light of the display symbol of the CRTl to the collimating lens 4 and display it via the compiling glass 5.

The plurality of optical fibers 6 in FIG. 2 are arranged in a horizontal direction α and a vertical direction β corresponding to the number and position of pixels formed by dividing the eRTl screen into horizontal direction α and vertical direction β bits.
The optical fiber is held in place by an adapter 7 and its ends are attached adjacent to the screen surface of the CRTl and the lens surface of the collimating lens 4.

Figure 4 shows the optical fiber installation adapter 7 shown in Figure 2.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the adapter showing the basic structure of the adapter.

The cubic adapter 7 is made of acrylic resin and has a horizontal dimension A', a vertical dimension B', and a thickness determined by the area of the screen surface of the CRTI and the contents of the mounting structure.
That is, among the horizontal length A', α through holes H corresponding to the number of α bits described above are provided at equal intervals in the range of the horizontal length A of the CRTI screen, and the vertical dimension, that is, the vertical dimension is Of the length B' in the direction, β through holes H equal to the number of β bits described above are provided at equal intervals in the range of the length B in the vertical direction of the CRTt. The optical fiber passes through the through hole H in the horizontal direction α and vertical direction β through the sleeve, and its end is set at a position approximately equal to the zero surface of the adapter 7, that is, the joining surface with the screen of the CRTl. are adhered to the through holes H together with the sleeves. The adapter 7 has a mounting member (not shown) for joining and attaching it to the CRT1 and the collimating lens 4, and a rod is attached to the CRT1 and the collimating lens 4, respectively.

13- The adapter 7 attached to the collimating lens 4 is CR
It has the same structure as the adapter 7 attached to the Tl, and when attached with the 0 side adjacent to the collimating lens 4, the vertical and horizontal mutual positions of the symbols on the CRTI screen will be faithfully aligned with the collimating lens. The optical fiber connection is connected to the CRTl so that it can be reflected on the screen.
This is done as shown in FIG. 2 between the adapter 7 for the collinormating lens 4 and the adapter 7 for the collinormating lens 4.

The optical fiber connecting these two adapters 7 is CR
A TI optical transmission path is formed, and the symbol on the CR'l't screen is transmitted to the lens surface of the collimating lens 4 with almost the same position and shape.

In this embodiment, the plurality of optical fibers 6 have an east line structure as a whole and are secured to a specific position inside the machine using a clamper or the like.

In this way, the CRTI symbol can be faithfully displayed without disturbing its position or content! - can be transmitted to the ting lens 4. Therefore, as shown in the conventional example of 14-FIG. 1, the relay lens group 2
There is no inversion of symbols due to the convergence of the symbols, and the position of the CRT screen surface may remain normal.

As is well known, the optical fiber 6 has various characteristics such as being lightweight, highly flexible, resistant to electromagnetic induction, and hardly affected by external light. Therefore, by using such a symbol light transmission means using the optical fiber 6, the conditions for setting the mounting position and angle of the collimating lens 4 are greatly relaxed, and together with the condition that the relay lens group can be removed, it is possible to use the head up display device. Operational flexibility can be significantly improved.

The operation of projecting parallel light from the collimating lens 4 through the compiling glass 5 is the same as in the case of FIG. 1, and detailed explanation thereof will be omitted.

The present invention provides a head up display device in which CI' is connected by an optical fiber instead of the relay lens group 2.
The basic feature is that the symbol displayed at tT1 is optically transmitted to the collimating lens 4, and various modifications of the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 are possible.

For example, in FIG. 2, optical transmission is performed using a plurality of optical fibers 6, but this may be replaced by an optical fiber cable composed of a plurality of optical fibers as core wires. In addition, the adapter 7 may be replaced with other synthetic resin materials that have approximately the same physical properties as the acrylic synthetic resin.
Also, in terms of structure, this embodiment is intended for the case where the screen surface of the CRTl is flat, but even if it is curved, the 0 surface of the adapter 7 shown in FIG. However, there are several other methods of fixing the end of the optical fiber 6. For example, in place of the adapter 7 in FIG. It may be carried out by a method such as making plates each having a through hole H facing each other and joining them with a sleeve placed at a position corresponding to the through hole H, and furthermore, it may be constructed by such a method. It is obvious that the optical fibers connected between the two adapters 7 can be easily connected via an optical connector, and all of the above may be done without departing from the spirit of the present invention. It is also easy to implement.

As explained above, according to the present invention, a head-up display device is provided with an optical fiber symbol transmission means for optically transmitting symbols displayed on a CRT to a collimating lens via an optical fiber instead of a relay lens group. As a result, the flexibility of optical alignment is fundamentally improved, and the influence of external light is also significantly improved, making it possible to realize a head-up display device whose overall structure is significantly smaller and lighter.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a side view showing the configuration of a conventional head up display device, Fig. 2 is a side view showing an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 3 is a symbol display diagram showing an example of symbol 1 fool display on a CRT. 4 is a perspective view of the adapter 7 showing the basic structure of the adapter 7 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1...CRT, 2...Relay lens group, 3...Mirror, 4...Collimating lens, 5...Compining glass, 6
...Optical fiber, 7...Adapter. 18-

Claims (1)

[Claims] Head up display (HEAD-UP-DI)
In the head-up display device, symbols such as letters, numbers, and figures are transmitted via optical fibers to the head-up display device through a collimating lens of the head-up display device.
CLAIMS 1. A do-up display device, comprising a fiber optic symbol transmission means for projecting onto a compiling glass of the display device.