JP2000310747A - Image observation device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make it possible to well observe the outside world information of a wide visual field angle without an odd feel by providing an image pickup system with a first image pickup system of a narrow visual field and high resolution and a second image pickup system of a wide visual field and low resolution and providing the above device with an image compositing means for compositing the outside world images from the first and second image pickup systems and displaying the image on a display means. SOLUTION: The image pickup system 20 has the second image pickup system 20a of the wide visual field of >=30 deg. in the horizontal visual field angle, and low resolution and the first image pickup system 20b of the narrow visual field of <=30 deg. in the horizontal visual field angle and high resolution. The image compositing means 26 composites the outside world images in accordance with the information from an image pickup element 25 in the central part among the images of the outside world and from an image pickup element 23 in the peripheral part and displays the image on the display means 11. An observer observes the outside world image displayed on the display means 11 and at this time, the optical axis 01 of the observation system 10 is approximately aligned to the optical axis 02 of the image pickup system 20. Since the display angle of the image is so set as to be made the same as in the case the outside world is directly observed, the observer is able to observe the outside world image in a natural state free of parallaxes.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an external scene (external image, external information) acquired by an imaging optical system (imaging system).
Or a head-mounted image observation device that allows the user to display and observe images on a display device (image display means), or an image (virtual image) artificially created by a computer or the like on a real scene (external world information), or a video The present invention relates to a head-mounted image observation apparatus for performing various simulated experiences by superimposing images recorded by the above method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an external image (external information) has been
It is converted to an electric signal by a photographing device such as a D camera,
2. Description of the Related Art There is known a head mounted image observation apparatus that displays an image on a display element such as a T or an LCD and observes an external image via an eyepiece optical system.

[0003] In addition, an image generated by computer graphics or the like or an image recorded by a video or the like is synthesized and displayed on an external image captured by a camera so that a real space and a virtual space can be synthesized and observed. 2. Description of the Related Art There has been proposed an image observation apparatus which displays an image of a camera installed in a remote place or a dangerous work area, and allows a user to observe a scene (external world information) as if he / she were at the place.

[0004]

In an image observation apparatus which combines and observes a real space and a virtual space, the resolving power when observing a real scene (external world information) depends on the resolving power of a camera. .

For example, when the horizontal viewing angle during image observation is 15
Considering the case of about degrees, an image photographed by a camera having a horizontal resolution of about 450 TV has a resolution of about 2 minutes as a viewing angle, and there is not much difference in image quality from the case of directly observing the external world. .

On the other hand, when the horizontal viewing angle is about 30 degrees, the resolution is about 4 minutes. However, the difference in image quality from direct observation by performing image processing using a display element having a large number of pixels is given. Can be smaller.

However, when the same external image is observed with an image observation device having a horizontal viewing angle of about 45 degrees, the resolution is about 6 minutes, and even if image processing is performed using a display element having a large number of pixels, the external image information is directly obtained. The image quality is clearly inferior to the case of observing. In other words, in the case of an image observation apparatus having a wide viewing angle, a sufficient image quality cannot be obtained when observing an external image unless a camera with a high resolution, such as a very large high-vision camera, is used.

According to the present invention, when combining and observing external world information in a real space and image information in a virtual space such as computer graphics, the external world with a wide viewing angle can be used without using a high-resolution camera such as a high-vision camera. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image observing device capable of satisfactorily observing information without discomfort.

[0009]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image observation apparatus comprising: an imaging system for forming an external image on an imaging device;
In an image observation apparatus having a display means for displaying an external image acquired by the imaging system on a display element, and an observation system for guiding light from the display means to an eyeball, the imaging system has a narrow-field high-resolution first imaging system. And a second imaging system having a wide field of view and low resolution, and an image synthesizing means for synthesizing external images from the first and second imaging systems and displaying the synthesized image on the display means. And

In a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the imaging system has a horizontal viewing angle of 30 degrees or more when observing an external image.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, the first and second image pickup systems each have an image forming optical system, and the image forming optical systems mutually pick up an external image. An image is formed on the element at different magnifications.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the invention, the first and second imaging systems share an imaging optical system for imaging an external image on an imaging device, and the first imaging system The image pickup surface of the image pickup device of the second embodiment is different from the image pickup surface of the image pickup device of the second image pickup system in size.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, there is provided an image generating means for generating an image, wherein the image synthesizing means includes an image from the image generating means and the image pickup. An image from the system is combined and displayed on the display element.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image observation system wherein a pair of the image observation apparatuses according to any one of the first to fifth aspects are provided for left and right eyes of an observer.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image observation apparatus for imaging an external image on an image sensor, displaying the external image acquired by the image sensor on a display element, and transmitting light from the display element to an eyeball. In an image observation device having an observation system that leads to
The imaging system has a negative distortion at the periphery of the visual field, and has an image distortion correction unit for correcting distortion of an external image obtained by the imaging system and displaying the image on the display unit.

The invention according to claim 8 is the invention according to claim 7, wherein the imaging system has a horizontal viewing angle of 30 when observing an image.
It is characterized in that it is higher than degree.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the seventh or eighth aspect, the image distortion correcting means electrically corrects a distortion of an external image acquired by the image pickup system and displays the image on the display element. It is characterized by:

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the seventh or eighth aspect, the image distortion correcting means generates and corrects a distortion opposite to the distortion of the imaging system in the observation system. I have.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in any one of the seventh to tenth aspects, there is provided an image generating means for generating an image and an image synthesizing means for synthesizing the image. The image from the means and the image from the imaging system are combined and displayed on the display element.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image observation system comprising:
The image observation apparatus according to any one of claims 7 to 11 is provided as a pair for the left and right eyes of an observer.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the image observation apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth and seventh to eleventh aspects, a part of the imaging system and a part of the observation system are used. It is characterized by direct observation of the outside world image.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image observation system comprising:
A pair of the image observation devices according to claim 13 are provided for the left and right eyes of the observer.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image observation system comprising:
Any of claims 1 to 5, 7 to 11 for the left and right eyes of the observer
1 pair of the image observation device of item 1 and 1 for both left and right eyes of the observer
And two optical elements.

An image observation system according to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention
An image observation apparatus according to claim 13 is provided for the right and left eyes of the observer, and one optical element shared by the left and right eyes of the observer.

An image observation apparatus according to a seventeenth aspect is characterized in that, in any one of the first to fifth, seventh to eleventh and thirteenth aspects, the observation system is a head-mounted type.

An image observation apparatus according to an eighteenth aspect is characterized in that, in any one of the first to fifth, seventh to eleventh and thirteenth aspects, both the photographing system and the observation system are head-mounted. And

An image observation system according to a nineteenth aspect is
17. The optical device according to claim 15, wherein the one optical element is a plane mirror, a curved mirror, or a translucent plane mirror, or a curved mirror.

An image observation system according to a twentieth aspect of the present invention
Claims 6, 12, 14, 15 or 19 are characterized by being a head mounted type.

An image observation system according to a twenty-first aspect of the present invention
An image observation apparatus having an imaging optical system that forms an external image on an imaging element, display means for displaying the external image acquired by the imaging optical system on a display element, and an observation system for guiding a light beam from the display means to an eyeball For the left and right eyes and one optical element shared by the observer's left and right eyes.

According to a twenty-second aspect, in the twenty-first aspect, the image observation system is head-mounted.

According to a twenty-third aspect, in the twenty-first or twenty-second aspect, the one optical element is a plane mirror, a curved mirror, a transflective plane mirror, or a curved mirror.

[0032]

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a main part of Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The image observation apparatus according to the present embodiment has an observation system 10 mounted on the head and observing image information displayed on a display element, and an imaging system 20 for imaging external image information on the imaging element. The image information obtained by the system 20 is displayed on the display element of the observation system 10 and observed from the observation position (eye) E.

The observation system 10 has a display element 11, such as an LCD or an EL panel, a mirror 12, and an eyepiece optical system 13. The imaging system 20 has a second imaging system 20a having a wide viewing angle and a low resolution of 30 degrees or less and a first imaging system 20b having a narrow viewing angle and a high resolution of 30 degrees or less. The wide-field, low-resolution imaging system 20a includes a mirror 12, an imaging optical system 21, a half mirror 22, and an imaging device 23 such as a CCD.
The imaging system 20b having a narrow field of view and high resolution includes a mirror 12, an image forming optical system 21, a half mirror 22, a variable power optical system 24, and a CCD.
And the like. E indicates the observer's eye.

In the present embodiment, the display light emitted from the display element 11 composed of, for example, a polarizing plate, a backlight, a liquid crystal element and the like is reflected by a mirror 12 and guided to an observation eye E by an eyepiece optical system 13. The eyepiece optical system 13 is a display unit 11
The focal length and the position are determined so that the display screen surface 11a is presented to the observation eye as a virtual image enlarged to a position 2 m ahead, for example.

On the other hand, a light beam from the outside is reflected by the mirror 12, and a part of the light beam is transmitted through the half mirror 22 while being focused by the image forming optical system 21, and is imaged on the image sensor 23. On the image sensor 23 of the imaging system 20a having a wide field of view and a low resolution, an image having an angle of view equal to or larger than the display angle of view of the observation system 10 is captured.

On the other hand, the light beam (external image) reflected by the half mirror 22 is scaled by the zooming optical system 24, and
An image having a higher magnification than an image formed on the image sensor 23 is formed thereon.

The image synthesizing means 26 synthesizes an external image based on the information from the image sensor 25 in the central part and the image from the image sensor 23 in the peripheral part, and displays the image on the display means 11.
Thereby, the observer observes the external image displayed on the display unit 11. At this time, the optical axis O1 of the observation system 10 and the imaging system 2
The optical axis O2 of 0 is substantially matched, and the display angle of view is set to be the same as when the observer directly observes the outside world. As a result, an external image can be observed in a natural state without parallax.

Normally, humans receive information only by moving their eyes.
The range in which the identification is established is said to be about 30 degrees in the horizontal direction, and a head movement is induced for a visual field beyond that.
When the imaging system 20 and the observation system 10 are mounted on the head as in the image observation device of the present embodiment, the imaging position and the position of the display screen surface 11a also move following the movement of the head.

That is, when the user tries to gaze at an object located at a horizontal angle of view of 30 degrees or more, the head movement is induced, and the imaging field of view and the display field of view also move. Should be within 30 degrees. For the same reason, the vertical display angle of view may be within 20 degrees.

In this embodiment, a narrow-field high-resolution imaging system 20b
Is set to about 30 degrees. For example, if the horizontal display angle of view is 60 degrees, a wide-field, low-resolution imaging system 2
The shooting horizontal view angle of 0a is set to 60 degrees or more, and the image combining means 26 uses an image obtained by the narrow-view high-resolution imaging system 20b from the horizontal view angle of 0 to 30 degrees, and the horizontal view angle of 30 degrees. From 60 to 60 degrees, an external image is formed using an image acquired by the imaging system 20a having a wide field of view and low resolution.

With this configuration, the horizontal angle of view is 0
From 30 degrees to 30 degrees, high-resolution images are used from 30 degrees to 60 degrees, and low-resolution images are obtained from 30 degrees to 60 degrees. It is possible.

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 2 shows Embodiment 2 of the present invention.
FIG. This embodiment has the same configuration as the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 except that an imaging element 27 is used instead of the variable power optical system 24 and the imaging element 25 of the imaging system 20b having a narrow field of view and high resolution. .

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the field of view and the resolution are changed by using the variable power optical system 24.

In this embodiment, the same effect is obtained by using the high-resolution image sensor 27 having a smaller image receiving area than the image sensor 23 but having the same number of pixels. For example, the image sensor 23 is a 2/3 inch CCD, and the image sensor 27 is a 1/3 inch CCD having the same number of pixels.

(Embodiment 3) FIG. 3 shows Embodiment 3 of the present invention.
FIG. The image observation apparatus according to the present invention has an observation system 30 mounted on the head and observing image information displayed on the display element 31 and an imaging system 40 for imaging external image information on the imaging element. The image information obtained by the system 40 is displayed on the display element 31 of the observation system 30 and observed from the observation position (eye) E.

The observation system 30 has a display element 31, such as an LCD or an EL panel, a mirror 32, and an eyepiece optical system 33. The imaging system 40 includes a mirror 32, an imaging optical system 41, and a CCD.
And the like. E indicates the observer's eye.

In this embodiment, the display light emitted from the display element 31 constituted by, for example, a polarizing plate, a backlight, a liquid crystal element, etc. is reflected by a mirror 32 and guided to an observation eye E by an eyepiece optical system 33.

The focal length and position of the eyepiece optical system 33 are determined so that the display screen surface 31a of the display means 31 is presented to the observation eye as a virtual image enlarged to a position 2 m ahead, for example.

The light flux from the outside is reflected by the mirror 32,
The light is converged by the imaging optical system 41 and is imaged on the image sensor 42. On the image sensor 42, an image having an angle of view equal to or larger than the display angle of view of the observation system 30 is captured. This image forming optical system 41 has a large negative distortion, and the image is formed such that the central portion is elongated and the peripheral portion is compressed, and FIG.
An image height distribution (distortion aberration) as shown in FIG.

With this configuration, the imaging magnification can be set high for the angle of view near the center and low for the peripheral portion. This makes it possible to set a higher resolution near the center than in the case where an imaging optical system having a large image height distribution and having no large distortion as shown in FIG. 4B is used.

In particular, as described in the first embodiment, a peripheral portion having a horizontal angle of view of 30 degrees or more does not require much resolution of a display image. Thereby, the resolution near the center can be relatively increased.

In the present embodiment, the distorted external image acquired by the image pickup system 40 is sent to the image distortion correcting means 43, and the distortion is applied so that the central part is compressed and the peripheral part is expanded by known electric means. The correction is made and displayed on the display means 31.

Thus, the observer can observe the outside world. At this time, the optical axis O3 of the display optical system and the optical axis O4 of the imaging optical system are substantially aligned, and the display angle of view is set to be the same as when the observer directly observes the outside world.
As a result, an external image can be observed in a natural state without parallax.

With this configuration, the horizontal angle of view is 0
From 30 degrees to 30 degrees, a high-resolution image is obtained at a peripheral angle of view of 30 degrees or more, and a low-priced, small-sized image of an external image that does not cause a sense of incongruity in image quality due to the reason described in the first embodiment. It is possible to provide in the system.

(Embodiment 4) FIG. 5 shows Embodiment 4 of the present invention.
FIG. This embodiment shows a state in which one image observation device is mounted in front of the right eye E of the observer. An observer E passes through an eyepiece optical system 33 having three optical surfaces (33a, 33b, 33c) including a surface having a decentered curvature of an image displayed on a display element 31 illuminated with a light beam from a surface light source. (Note that the light beam from the display element 31 enters the entrance surface 33a of the eyepiece optical system 33, is totally reflected by the surface 33b, is reflected by the surface 33c, and then passes through the surface 33b. It is incident on the observation eye E.).

On the other hand, image information from the outside world has three optical surfaces (41a, 41b, 41b) including surfaces having eccentric curvatures.
(c), the image is formed on the image sensor 42 by the imaging optical system 41 (light from the outside enters from the incident surface 41a of the imaging optical system 41, and is reflected by the surface 41b before the surface 4).
The light is totally reflected at 1a, exits from the surface 41c, and enters the image sensor 42. ).

Here, the optical axis O3 of the display optical system substantially coincides with the optical axis O4 of the imaging optical system.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the aberration is favorably corrected by using an eccentric rotationally asymmetric aspherical prism for both the display optical system and the image pickup optical system. In FIG. 5, the same reference numerals are given to components having the same functions as those shown in FIG.

In this embodiment, it is possible to generate a higher-order asymmetric aberration by using a non-rotationally symmetric aspherical surface and to set an arbitrary image distortion.

For example, when the display field of view is shifted in the horizontal direction with respect to the front of the observer's head, the area requiring high imaging resolution is shifted laterally from the imaging center.
Distortion having an image height distribution as shown in FIG. 4C may be generated.

(Embodiment 5) FIG. 6 shows Embodiment 5 of the present invention.
FIG. This embodiment does not include the image distortion correcting unit 43 and the ocular optical system 33 as compared with the third embodiment of FIG.
Has the same configuration except that is replaced by an eyepiece optical system 33 '.

In the third embodiment shown in FIG.
Although the image distortion generated in the imaging optical system 42 has been corrected by the electrical means of the eyepiece optical system 3, the eyepiece optical system 3 in the present embodiment.
By generating a large positive distortion opposite to the distortion of the imaging optical system 42 as shown in FIG.
Similar effects are obtained by performing distortion correction.

(Embodiment 6) FIG. 8 shows Embodiment 6 of the present invention.
FIG. In this embodiment, as compared with the first embodiment of FIG. 1, an imaging device 50 including imaging systems 20a and 20b (excluding the mirror 12) and a six-axis stage 51 is installed separately from the head, and the display shown in FIG. The difference is that the system 10 (excluding the mirror 12), the head position sensor 61, the angle sensor 62, and the like are configured to be mounted on the head by the head mounting member 63.

Head position sensor 61, angle sensor 62
Detects the movement of the observer's head, and based on the information,
The axis stage 51 is driven so that the imaging system 50 moves in conjunction with the movement of the head.

Image information from the wide-field, low-resolution imaging system 20a and the narrow-field, high-resolution imaging system 20b are combined by the image combining means 26 and displayed on the display means 11 of the observation system 10. The observer observes the image information displayed on the display means 11.

(Embodiment 7) FIG. 9 shows Embodiment 7 of the present invention.
FIG. In the present embodiment, the imaging system 40 (excluding the mirror 32) is separated from the head as compared with the third embodiment in FIG. , Except that the other parts are the same. The head position sensor 61, the angle sensor 62, the six-axis stage 51, and the like are the same as those in the sixth embodiment shown in FIG.

In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the imaging system and the observation system may be constituted by using the imaging system and the display system shown in FIGS.

(Eighth Embodiment) FIG. 10 is a schematic view of a main part of an eighth embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is different from the first and second embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 in that the observation system 10 and the imaging system 20 use eccentric rotationally asymmetric prisms PZ1 and PZ2, respectively.

The optical functions of the prisms PZ1 and PZ2 are the same as those of the eyepiece optical system 33 and the imaging optical system 41 of FIG.

In the observation system 10, the luminous flux from the image information displayed on the display element 11 is sequentially transmitted to the PZ1a of the prism PZ1, the total reflection surface PZ1b, the reflection surface PZ1c, and the total reflection surface PZ.
The light is guided to the observer E via 1b.

In the image pickup system 20, the light flux from the image information from the outside world is sequentially transmitted to the entrance surface PZ2a and the reflection surface PZ2 of the prism PZ2.
The light is guided to the imaging optical system 21 via the Z2b, the plane PZ2a, and the exit plane PZ2c. And half mirror 22
Thus, image information of the outside world is formed on the imaging elements 23 and 25.

(Embodiment 9) FIG. 11 is a schematic view of a main part of Embodiment 9 of the present invention. This embodiment corresponds to Embodiment 3 in FIG.
The difference is that the prisms PZ3 and PZ4 each having an eccentric rotationally asymmetric aspheric surface are used for the observation system 30 and the imaging system 40.

The optical functions of the prisms PZ3 and PZ4 are the same as those of the eyepiece optical system 33 and the imaging optical system 41 of FIG.

In the observation system 30, the luminous flux from the image information displayed on the display element 31 is sequentially transmitted to the PZ3a of the prism PZ3, the total reflection surface PZ3b, the reflection surface PZ3c, and the total reflection surface PZ.
The light is guided to the observer E via 3b.

In the imaging system 40, the light flux from the image information from the outside world is sequentially transmitted to the entrance surface PZ4a and the reflection surface PZ4 of the prism PZ4.
The light is guided to the imaging optical system 41 via the Z4b, the surface PZ4a, and the exit surface PZ4c. The image information of the outside world is formed on the surface of the image sensor 42.

10 and 11, FIGS. 1 and 3
The same reference numerals are given to those which fulfill the same function as the embodiment shown in FIG.

As described above, each optical system may be constituted by either a refraction element or a reflection element.

Further, by configuring the image observation apparatus S of each of the above embodiments so as to provide a pair for the left and right eyes as shown in FIG. 12, stereoscopic viewing can be performed using binocular parallax.
The outside world can be observed more naturally.

For example, when a pair of the image observation apparatuses of the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 are provided for the left and right eyes of the observer, the result is as shown in FIG. FIG. 15 shows the positional relationship between the mirror 32 and the observation eye E. FIG. 15 is a view of FIG. 14 as viewed from above. here,
If the angle of view of the imaging system is set to be large, the position of the mirror 32 becomes very close to the observation eye E as shown in FIG. Sometimes the use of eyeglasses becomes impossible and the viewer is tired because the device is close to the eyes.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 17, a mirror 80 is used as an optical element instead of the mirror 32, and the optical element 80 is shared between a pair of left and right eye imaging systems, so that the apparatus is separated from the eyes. It is possible to arrange.

The optical element 80 may be a plane mirror, a curved mirror, a semi-transmissive plane mirror, or a curved mirror.

The optical elements 80 may be provided separately and independently as an image observation device, or may be provided in a form shared with each other.

Although a liquid crystal element is used as a display element in the above embodiments, a self-luminous element such as an EL element may be used.

Further, an image generating means and an image synthesizing means may be provided so that an image taken by a computer graphics or a video camera or the like is synthesized with an external image and displayed so that a fusion space of a real space and a virtual space can be observed. .

For example, as shown in FIG. 13, the image generating means 70 is provided in the first embodiment shown in FIG.
It is possible to combine the image with an external image by an image combining means 26 such as computer graphics generated in step S0 and display the image on the display element 11 for observation.

The image observation apparatus of each of the above embodiments may be configured to have an optical see-through function for directly observing the outside world. For example, in Embodiment 8 shown in FIG. 10, the surface 12 is a half mirror, and the surface P of each of the prisms PZ1 and PZ2 is
Optimize the surface shape of Z1b and PZ2a to be non-power,
Furthermore, an optical see-through function can be provided by providing a polarizing plate or the like so that the display light flux emitted from the display element 11 does not enter the imaging elements 23 and 25.

[0087]

According to the present invention, when external world information in the real space and image information in the virtual space such as computer graphics are synthesized and observed, a wide area can be obtained without using a high resolution camera such as a high vision camera. It is possible to achieve an image observation device capable of favorably observing external information on a viewing angle without a sense of incongruity.

In particular, according to the present invention, in the case of an image observation device having a wide viewing angle, the image quality can be reduced by using a small camera without using a camera having a very high resolution such as a very large high vision camera. It is possible to observe an external image without a sense of incongruity. Further, the size of the apparatus can be reduced, so that the burden on the observer can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a main part of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a main part of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a main part of a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of distortion of the imaging system of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a main part of a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a main part of a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of distortion of the observation system of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of a main part of a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a main part of a seventh embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of a main part according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a schematic view of a main part of a ninth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of a main part of an image observation system according to the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a schematic view of a main part when a part of the first embodiment of FIG. 1 is changed.

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram of a main part for explaining the image observation system of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram of a main part for explaining the image observation system of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram of a main part for explaining the image observation system of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of a main part of the image observation system of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10, 30 Observation system 20, 40, 50 Imaging system 20a Second imaging system 20b First imaging system 11, 31 Display element 12 Mirror 13, 33 Eyepiece optical system 21, 41 Imaging optical system 22 Half mirror 23, 25, 42 31 image pickup device 24 variable power optical system 26 image synthesizing means 43 image distortion correcting means PZ1, PZ2, PZ3, PZ4 prism 80 optical element

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[Procedure amendment]

[Submission Date] March 14, 2000 (200.3.1)
4)

[Procedure amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Drawing

[Correction target item name] FIG.

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

FIG. 10

Claims (23)

[Claims] 1. An imaging system for forming an external image on an image sensor, a display unit for displaying an external image acquired by the image system on a display device, and an observation system for guiding light from the display unit to an eyeball. In the image observation apparatus, the imaging system has a first imaging system having a narrow-field high-resolution and a second imaging system having a wide-field low-resolution, and external images from the first and second imaging systems are provided. Synthesize and
An image observation apparatus, comprising: an image synthesizing unit for displaying on the display unit. 2. The imaging system according to claim 1, wherein a horizontal viewing angle when observing an external image is 30 degrees or more.
Image observation device. 3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first and second imaging systems each have an imaging optical system, and the respective imaging optical systems form an external image on each imaging device at different magnifications. The image observation device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein 4. The imaging system according to claim 1, wherein the first and second imaging systems share an imaging optical system that forms an external image on the imaging device, and an imaging surface of the imaging device of the first imaging system and imaging of the second imaging system. 3. The image observation device according to claim 1, wherein the image pickup surfaces of the elements have different sizes. 5. An image generating means for generating an image, wherein the image synthesizing means synthesizes an image from the image generating means and an image from the imaging system and displays the image on the display element. The image observation device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: 6. An image observation system comprising a pair of the image observation devices according to claim 1 provided for left and right eyes of an observer. 7. An image observation apparatus having an imaging system for forming an external image on an imaging device, and an observation system for displaying the external image acquired by the imaging system on a display device and guiding light from the display device to an eyeball. Wherein the imaging system has negative distortion at the periphery of the visual field, and has image distortion correction means for correcting distortion of an external image obtained by the imaging system and displaying the distortion on the display means. Image observation device. 8. An image observation apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said imaging system has a horizontal viewing angle of 30 degrees or more when observing an image. 9. The image distortion correction unit according to claim 7, wherein the distortion of the external image acquired by the image pickup system is electrically corrected and displayed on the display element.
Image observation device. 10. The image observation apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the image distortion correction unit corrects the distortion by generating a distortion opposite to the distortion of the imaging system in the observation system. 11. An image generating means for generating an image, and an image synthesizing means for synthesizing the image, the image synthesizing means synthesizing the image from the image generating means and the image from the image pickup system to form the display element The image observation apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the image is displayed on a display. 12. An image observation system comprising a pair of the image observation devices according to claim 7 provided for left and right eyes of an observer. 13. The image observation according to claim 1, wherein an external image is directly observed using a part of the imaging system and a part of the observation system. apparatus. 14. An image observation system, wherein a pair of the image observation devices according to claim 13 are provided for left and right eyes of an observer. 15. The method according to claim 1, wherein the right and left eyes of the observer are used.
12. An image observation system, comprising: a pair of the image observation devices according to any one of Items 1 to 11, and one optical element shared by the left and right eyes of the observer. 16. An image observation system comprising: a pair of the image observation devices according to claim 13 for left and right eyes of an observer; and one optical element shared by the left and right eyes of the observer. 17. The observation system according to claim 1, wherein the observation system is a head-mounted type.
Item image observation device. 18. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of the photographing system and the observation system is a head mounted type.
14. The image observation device according to any one of items 1 and 13. 19. The optical device according to claim 15, wherein the one optical element is a flat mirror, a curved mirror, or a translucent flat mirror, or a curved mirror.
Image observation system. 20. The image observation system according to claim 6, wherein the image observation system is a head mounted type. 21. An image pickup optical system for forming an external image on an image pickup device, display means for displaying the external image acquired by the image pickup optical system on a display element, and an observation system for guiding a light beam from the display means to an eyeball. An image observation system, comprising: a pair of image observation apparatuses for the left and right eyes, and one optical element shared by the observer's left and right eyes. 22. The image observation system according to claim 21, wherein said image observation system is a head mounted type. 23. The one optical element according to claim 21, wherein the one optical element is a plane mirror, a curved mirror, or a translucent plane mirror, or a curved mirror.
Image observation system.