JP2006074798A - Head-mounted display device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a head-mounted display device capable of surely calling an attention of a user without affecting images or sounds. <P>SOLUTION: A head-mounted display device 1 comprises: a display element for displaying an optical image based on an inputted image signal; an eye-piece optical system for projecting said image on the eyes of a user; a headband 1c, a forehead portion 1d and left and right side head supporting portions 1e for supporting a main body portion 1a with the built-in display element and eye-piece optical system in contact with the head of the user; and vibrating elements 2 provided in the left and right side head supporting portions 1e each for performing vibration to call the attention of the user in response to an input of an attention signal. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a head-mounted display device, and more particularly to a head-mounted display device that uses a display element and an eyepiece optical system supported on a user's head.

  Various head-mounted display devices such as a head-mounted display that are mounted so as to cover the face from the user's head have been proposed in the past. Unlike other portable displays, hands-free display devices have been proposed. It has the advantage that an image can be observed.

  As such a head-mounted display device, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-289615 discloses small first and second displays capable of independent screen display, and the first and second displays. A first and second optical system for enlarging each display image of the display so that both eyes can be viewed separately, the first and second optical systems, and the first and second displays A view mechanism for holding and separately shielding at least between the first display and the first optical system and between the second display and the second optical system from outside light. The first optical system held by the view mechanism is used for the right eye, and the second optical system is used for the left eye so that it is attached to the user's head or the like so that it is within the field of view. Mounted body and control means for controlling display of the first and second indicators It describes a binocular vision display device provided with a.

  Further, as another example of the head-mounted display device, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-133479 is arranged such that the light emitting part of the television is a blind spot of both eyes, and the emitted television image is a concave mirror. Describes a visual device that is arranged so as to gather in both eyes and is detachably attached to the head.

  On the other hand, headphones are generally used as the sound output means applied to the head-mounted display device as described above, and the output sound can be heard more clearly by blocking the noise of the external environment. Type of sealed headphones, an open type of headphones that can hear both the sound of the outside environment and the output sound, and an insertion type of headphones that are lightweight and compact for insertion into the ear. and so on.

  Furthermore, as a voice input means applied to the head-mounted display device, an air-conduction type microphone, that is, a so-called ordinary microphone such as an electret condenser microphone is used. It is known that a microphone is brought close to a user's mouth by extending a bow-shaped flexible cord portion from a support portion of a type display device and attaching the microphone to the tip portion thereof. When the head-mounted display device described above is used as an information processing terminal, a voice input unit is provided and the voice input unit is used as an input unit to the information processing terminal, thereby eliminating the need for an input unit such as a keyboard. Therefore, there is an advantage that portability is improved.

  However, in the conventional head-mounted display device, for example, when an e-mail arrives while the user is wearing and working, if the user is notified of the incoming call by voice or image, Depending on the type, it may cause serious trouble. In addition, the user who performs the operation may not be aware of the notification with a display or a small sound that does not affect the operation.

  In addition, when using sealed headphones as sound output means applied to the head-mounted display device, there is a problem that the device is large and heavy, and when using open headphones, It is necessary to provide an adjustment mechanism to adjust the position of the headphones so that the position and the position of the ear are appropriate, and there is a difficulty that the adjustment work becomes cumbersome as the device becomes heavy, When using the insertion-type headphones, it is difficult for the user to insert the insertion-type headphones into the ear after wearing the head-mounted display device, and the cord connected to the insertion-type headphones is not used by the user. There were difficulties such as sagging in the vicinity of the ears.

  Further, in the conventional voice input means applied to the head-mounted display device as described above, it is necessary to provide an extension part for bringing the microphone closer to the user's mouth, so the weight of the entire device is heavy. It had become.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a head-mounted display device that can promptly perceive a user without affecting images and sounds.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a head-mounted display device including a speaker that does not require position adjustment work by a user and can be reduced in weight as compared with the conventional art.

  Furthermore, an object of the present invention is to provide a head-mounted display device provided with a microphone that can be reduced in weight as compared with the prior art.

  To achieve the above object, a head-mounted display device according to a first aspect of the present invention is a display device that displays an optical image based on an input image signal, and projects the image onto a user's eye. An eyepiece optical system, a support unit that supports the display element and the eyepiece optical system with a contact surface on a head including a user's head and face, and a contact surface provided on the support unit for use. And a vibration element that vibrates in response to an input of a caution signal that is a signal for prompting a person to perceive.

  The head-mounted display device according to the second invention is the head-mounted display device according to the first invention, wherein the forehead pressing portion presses the forehead of the user as a portion where the support portion has the contact surface. And a temporal pressing portion that presses the left and right temporal portions, and the vibration element is disposed at least at one of the forehead pressing portion and the left and right temporal pressing portions.

  Furthermore, the head-mounted display device according to the third invention is the head-mounted display device according to the first invention, wherein the vibration element changes the manner of vibration according to the type of the attention signal. .

  A head-mounted display device according to a fourth invention is the head-mounted display device according to the first invention, wherein the vibration elements are a plurality of vibration elements arranged at a plurality of locations of the support portion. The vibration element changes the way of vibration including stopping the vibration of at least one vibration element according to the type of the attention signal.

  A head-mounted display device according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the head-mounted display device according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, wherein the display element displays a caution display which is a visual display for prompting the user to perceive. The vibration element is arranged on the support portion so as to have a positional relationship corresponding to the visual arrangement of the caution display on the display element.

  A head-mounted display device according to a sixth invention is the head-mounted display device according to the first invention, wherein the vibration element generates a vibration including a component in a direction perpendicular to the contact surface of the support portion. And a pressing force detecting means for detecting a signal output from the vibrating element when a pressing force is applied to the vibrating element and outputting a pressing force signal.

  A head-mounted display device according to a seventh aspect is the head-mounted display device according to the sixth aspect, wherein the head-mounted display device is mounted based on a pressing force signal from the pressing force detecting means. If it is determined that the power is not present, the power supply to the display system including at least the display element is stopped or suppressed.

  The head-mounted display device according to an eighth aspect of the present invention is the head-mounted display device according to the sixth aspect of the present invention, which obtains the optimum vibration corresponding to the pressing force based on the pressing force signal from the pressing force detecting means. As described above, at least one of a current value and a voltage value input to the vibration element is controlled.

  A head-mounted display device according to a ninth invention is the head-mounted display device according to the sixth invention, wherein the vibration element also serves as an operation input means for performing an operation input, and the pressing force Based on the pressing force signal of the detecting means, it is detected whether or not an operation input has been performed.

  A head-mounted display device according to a tenth aspect of the invention is the head-mounted display device according to the sixth aspect of the invention, wherein the eyepiece optical system also serves as an optical system for projecting external light onto the user's eyes. The external light amount variable means for changing the amount of external light projected on the user's eyes is provided, and the external light amount variable means is controlled based on a pressing force signal from the pressing force detection means.

  A head-mounted display device according to an eleventh invention is the head-mounted display device according to the sixth invention, wherein the vibration of the vibration element is stopped based on a pressing force signal from the pressing force detecting means. is there.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twelfth invention includes a display element that displays an optical image based on an input image signal, an eyepiece optical system that projects the image onto a user's eye, and the display element. And a support unit that supports the eyepiece optical system with a contact surface on a head including a user's head and face, and is provided on the contact surface of the support unit to receive an audio signal and vibrate. A bone conduction sound speaker is provided.

  A head-mounted display device according to a thirteenth aspect is the head-mounted display device according to the twelfth aspect, wherein the support portion presses the left and right temporal regions of the user as the portion having the contact surface. It has a head pressing part, and the bone conduction sound speaker is arranged in each of the left and right temporal pressing parts.

  A head-mounted display device according to a fourteenth aspect of the invention is the head-mounted display device according to the twelfth aspect of the invention, which is output from the bone-conducted sound speaker when a pressing force is applied to the bone-conducted speaker. A pressing force detecting means for detecting a signal and outputting a pressing force signal is provided.

  A head-mounted display device according to a fifteenth aspect is the head-mounted display device according to the fourteenth aspect, in which the head-mounted display device is mounted based on a pressing force signal from the pressing force detecting means. If it is determined that the power is not present, the power supply to the display system including at least the display element is stopped or suppressed.

  The head-mounted display device according to a sixteenth aspect of the invention is the head-mounted display device according to the fourteenth aspect of the invention, wherein optimum vibration corresponding to the pressing force is generated based on the pressing force signal from the pressing force detecting means. As a result, at least one of a current value and a voltage value input to the bone-conducted sound speaker is controlled.

  A head-mounted display device according to a seventeenth aspect of the invention is the head-mounted display device according to the fourteenth aspect of the invention, which also serves as an operation input means for the bone conduction sound speaker to input an operation. Whether or not an operation input has been made is detected based on a pressing force signal from the pressing force detecting means.

  A head-mounted display device according to an eighteenth aspect of the invention is the head-mounted display device according to the fourteenth aspect of the invention, wherein the eyepiece optical system also serves as an optical system for projecting external light onto the user's eyes. The external light amount variable means for changing the amount of external light projected on the user's eyes is provided, and the external light amount variable means is controlled based on a pressing force signal from the pressing force detection means.

  A head-mounted display device according to a nineteenth aspect of the invention is a display device that displays an optical image based on an input image signal, an eyepiece optical system that projects the image onto a user's eye, and the display device. And a support part for supporting the eyepiece optical system with a contact surface on a head including a user's head and face, and a bone-conduction microphone for detecting a bone-conduction sound propagating through the user's head. It is a thing.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twentieth invention is the head-mounted display device according to the nineteenth invention, wherein the bone-conduction microphone is disposed on the contact surface of the support portion.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twenty-first aspect is the head-mounted display device according to the twentieth aspect, wherein the forehead pressing portion presses the user's forehead as the portion where the support portion has the contact surface, and left and right The bone conduction microphone is disposed at least at one of the forehead pressing portion and the left and right temporal pressing portions.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twenty-second invention is the head-mounted display device according to the twenty-first invention, wherein the bone-conducting microphone in the forehead pressing portion and the left and right temporal pressing portions is disposed. A bone-conducted speaker that vibrates in response to the input of an audio signal is arranged at least at one location.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twenty-third aspect is the head-mounted display device according to the twentieth aspect, wherein the head-mounted display device is mounted based on an input signal from the bone-conduction microphone. If it is determined that there is no power supply, the power supply to the display system including at least the display element is stopped or suppressed.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twenty-fourth aspect of the invention is the head-mounted display device according to the twentieth aspect of the invention that also serves as an operation input means for the bone conduction microphone to perform an operation input.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twenty-fifth aspect of the invention is the head-mounted display device according to the twentieth aspect of the invention, wherein the eyepiece optical system also serves as an optical system for projecting external light onto the user's eyes. , Provided with an external light amount variable means for changing the amount of external light projected on the user's eye, and controls the external light amount variable means when an input signal from the bone-conduction microphone is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value. To do.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twenty-sixth aspect of the invention is the head-mounted display device according to the nineteenth aspect of the invention, wherein the sound is generated based on a predetermined transfer function and a speaker that receives an audio signal and generates sound. Audio signal conversion means for converting the signal, and cancellation means for canceling the audio component generated from the speaker by subtracting the audio signal converted by the audio signal conversion means from the input signal from the bone-conduction microphone. It is equipped with.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twenty-seventh aspect of the invention is a display device that displays an optical image based on an input image signal, an eyepiece optical system that projects the image onto a user's eye, and the display device. And the above-mentioned eyepiece optical system are supported on the head including the user's head and face with a contact surface, the bone-conducted speaker that vibrates in response to the input of the audio signal, and the user's head A vibration element that also serves as a bone-conduction sound microphone that detects bone-conduction sound.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twenty-eighth aspect of the present invention is the head-mounted display device according to the twenty-seventh aspect of the present invention, wherein the vibration element is disposed on the contact surface of the support portion.

  A head-mounted display device according to a twenty-ninth invention is the head-mounted display device according to the twenty-seventh invention, wherein the function as a bone-conducted sound speaker and function as a bone-conducted microphone is switched by the vibration element. The switch means to perform is provided.

  The head-mounted display device according to a thirtieth aspect is the head-mounted display device according to the twenty-ninth aspect, wherein the switch means is determined to have pressed the vibration element based on the output of the vibration element. In this case, the function is switched.

  A head-mounted display device according to a thirty-first invention is the head-mounted display device according to the twenty-seventh invention, wherein the audio signal conversion means converts the output audio signal to the vibration element based on a predetermined transfer function. And cancellation means for canceling out the sound component generated from the vibration element by subtracting the output sound signal converted by the sound signal conversion means from the input signal from the vibration element.

  As described above, according to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 1, since vibration is used, the user can be surely perceived without disturbing viewing of images and sounds. Encourage, for example, to call attention. Further, since the vibration element is provided on the contact surface of the support portion, the vibration element can be brought into close contact with the head simply by mounting the head-mounted display device, and fine position adjustment or the like is not necessary.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 2, the same effect as that of the invention of claim 1 is achieved, and the head-mounted display device is pressed by pressing the forehead and the left and right temporal regions. Can be stably supported on the head. In addition, by arranging the vibration element at least at one position of the forehead pressing portion and the left and right temporal pressing portions, the vibration is efficiently transmitted to the user in order to contact the portion where the hair is relatively few and the skin is exposed. Can communicate.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the third aspect of the present invention, the same effect as that of the first aspect of the present invention can be achieved, and the user can change the manner of vibration by the vibration element, so that the user can Can promote perception.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to the fourth aspect, the same effect as the first aspect of the invention can be achieved, and a difference is provided in the vibration state of each vibration element to change the difference. , It is possible to encourage the user to perceive multiple types.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the fifth aspect of the present invention, the same effect as that of the fourth aspect of the present invention is achieved, and the perception prompted by the vibration of the vibration element is visually displayed by the caution display of the display element. Furthermore, since the positional relationship between the vibration element and the caution display corresponds, it can be recognized more clearly.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the sixth aspect of the present invention, the same effect as that of the first aspect of the invention can be obtained, and vibration including a component in a direction perpendicular to the contact surface of the support portion can be provided as the vibration element. Since what is generated is used, it is possible to detect the pressing force to the vibration element, and it is possible to detect, for example, whether or not a head-mounted display device is mounted.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 7, the same effect as that of the invention of claim 6 is obtained, and when the head-mounted display device is not mounted, the display element is included. In order to stop or suppress the power supply to the display system, power consumption can be reduced.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to the eighth aspect, since the same effect as the invention according to the sixth aspect can be obtained and the optimum vibration according to the pressing force can be obtained, the user can The vibrations are almost the same regardless of the size of the head.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 9, the same effects as the invention of claim 6 can be obtained, and various operation inputs can be performed without providing separate operation input means. Thus, the head-mounted display device can be reduced in size and weight.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 10, the same effect as that of the invention according to claim 6 is achieved, and the amount of external light projected on the user's eyes is determined from the pressing force detection means. Therefore, it is not necessary to separately provide an input switch or the like to the external light amount variable means, and the head-mounted display device can be reduced in size and weight.

  According to the eleventh aspect of the head-mounted display device of the present invention, the same effect as that of the sixth aspect of the invention can be obtained, and the vibration of the vibration element is stopped based on the pressing force signal from the pressing force detecting means. Therefore, it is not necessary to separately provide a vibration stop switch or the like, and the head-mounted display device can be reduced in size and weight.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 12, since the bone-conducted speaker is provided on the contact surface of the support portion, the bone-conducted speaker can be attached to the head only by mounting the head-mounted display device. Can be brought into close contact with each other, and fine position adjustment or the like becomes unnecessary. In addition, it is possible to enjoy the advantage that sound is hardly leaked to the outside.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 13, the same effect as that of the invention of claim 12 can be obtained, and the head-mounted display device can be connected to the head by pressing the left and right temporal regions. It can be supported stably on the part. In addition, by placing bone-conducted sound speakers in the left and right temporal pressing parts, vibration is efficiently transmitted to the user because the hair is relatively few and the skin is exposed and contacts the part close to the ear. can do.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, the same effect as that of the twelfth aspect of the present invention is achieved, and the bone-conducted sound speaker generates an electric signal when subjected to a pressing force. Therefore, it is possible to detect the pressing force applied to the bone-conducted sound speaker, for example, whether or not the head-mounted display device is mounted.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 15, the same effect as that of the invention according to claim 14 is achieved, and when the head-mounted display device is not mounted, the display element is included. In order to stop or suppress the power supply to the display system, power consumption can be reduced.

  The head-mounted display device according to the sixteenth aspect of the present invention has the same effects as the fourteenth aspect of the invention and can obtain the optimum vibration corresponding to the pressing force. The vibrations are almost the same regardless of the size of the head.

  According to claim 17 of the head-mounted display device of the present invention, the same effects as in the invention of claim 14 can be obtained, and various operation inputs can be performed without providing separate operation input means. Thus, the head-mounted display device can be reduced in size and weight.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 18, the same effect as that of the invention of claim 14 is achieved, and the amount of external light projected on the user's eye is determined from the pressing force detection means. Therefore, it is not necessary to separately provide an input switch or the like to the external light amount variable means, and the head-mounted display device can be reduced in size and weight.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the nineteenth aspect of the present invention, since the bone-conducted microphone is used as a means for inputting sound, the weight is reduced while maintaining a good weight balance before and after the head-mounted display device. Can be achieved. In addition, it is possible to enjoy the advantage that it is difficult to pick up external noise.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 20, since the same effect as that of the invention according to claim 19 is achieved and the bone-conducting microphone is provided on the contact surface of the support portion, The bone-conduction microphone can be brought into close contact with the head simply by mounting the type display device, and fine position adjustment or the like is not necessary.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 21, the same effect as that of the invention of claim 20 is achieved, and the head-mounted display device is pressed by pressing the forehead and the left and right temporal regions. Can be stably supported on the head. In addition, by placing a bone-conduction microphone in at least one place on the forehead pressing part and the left and right temporal pressing parts, it is sensitive to bone-conducting sound in order to make contact with the part where the hair is relatively few and the skin is exposed. Can receive well.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 22, the same effect as that of the invention of claim 21 is achieved, and the bone-conducted speaker is provided at a position different from the bone-conducted microphone. Howling can be avoided as much as possible. In addition, by using a bone-conducted sound speaker, it is possible to enjoy the advantage that sound is hardly leaked to the outside.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 23, the same effect as that of the invention of claim 20 is achieved, and when the head-mounted display device is not mounted, the display element is included. In order to stop or suppress the power supply to the display system, power consumption can be reduced.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 24, the same effects as those of the invention of claim 20 can be obtained, and various operation inputs can be performed without providing separate operation input means. Thus, the head-mounted display device can be reduced in size and weight.

  According to claim 25 of the head-mounted display device of the present invention, the same effect as in the invention of claim 20 is achieved, and when the input signal from the bone-conduction microphone is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value In order to control the amount of external light projected on the user's eyes, there is no need to separately provide an input switch or the like to the external light amount variable means, and the head-mounted display device can be reduced in size and weight. It becomes possible.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention of claim 26, the same effect as that of the invention of claim 19 is achieved, and the influence of the sound generated from the speaker included in the input signal from the bone-conduction microphone Therefore, the occurrence of howling can be suppressed satisfactorily.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the twenty-seventh aspect of the present invention, since the vibration element serving as both the bone-conducted sound speaker and the bone-conducted microphone is provided, the head-mounted display device is further reduced in size and weight. Can be achieved. In addition, when using a vibration element as a bone-conducted sound speaker, it has the advantage that it is difficult for voice to leak to the outside, while when used as a bone-conducted sound microphone, it has the advantage that it is difficult to pick up external noise. You can also.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 28, the same effect as that of the invention of claim 27 is achieved, and the vibration element is provided on the contact surface of the support portion. The vibration element can be brought into close contact with the head simply by mounting the device, and fine position adjustment or the like is not necessary.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the 29th aspect of the present invention, the same effect as that of the 27th aspect of the present invention can be achieved. Any one of the sound conducting microphones can be used as desired.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention according to claim 30, in order to achieve the same effect as that of the invention according to claim 29 and to switch the function by the switch means based on the output of the vibration element, It is not necessary to separately provide a member for operating the switch means, and the head-mounted display device can be reduced in size and weight.

  According to the head-mounted display device of the present invention of claim 31, the same effect as that of the invention of claim 27 can be obtained, and also when the vibration element is used simultaneously as a bone-conduction speaker and a bone-conduction microphone. Since the influence of the audio component included in the input signal can be removed, howling can be suppressed satisfactorily.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 to FIG. 15 show a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a head-mounted display device mounted on a user's head from the side. .

  The head-mounted display device 1 is provided at a main body portion 1a containing a component for displaying an image, a frame portion 1b connected to the main body portion 1a, and an upper front center of the main body portion 1a. A forehead stopper 1d which is a support and a forehead pressing part, a headband 1c (see FIG. 3 and the like) which is a support part provided on the inner side of the frame part 1b, that is, the side in contact with the head, and the frame part 1b are main body parts. The temporal support part 1e which is a support part which protrudes from the vicinity of the position connected to 1a toward the temporal region on the rear side of the ear and has a leaf spring or the like as an elastic member and is a temporal pressing part And a speaker 1f extending obliquely downward and rearward from the vicinity of the front side of the base end portion of the temporal support portion 1e.

  Further, on both side surfaces of the main body portion 1a, mode switching buttons 1g, which are push buttons for switching three modes related to a liquid crystal shutter 5 (see FIG. 2) to be described later, are arranged, and which mode is selected. It can be confirmed by a mode display LED arranged on the inner surface side of the mode switching button 1g.

  Further, an eye width adjustment knob 1j (see FIG. 5) is disposed on the left and right of the upper portion of the main body portion 1a, and an image display unit (described later) built in the main body portion 1a is moved left and right. The right and left optical axes of the image display unit can be correctly adjusted to the eye width of the user.

Such a head-mounted display device 1 is mounted and used as follows.
The temporal support part 1e which consists of a pair of left and right is spread, and the entire head-mounted display device 1 is covered from the head. Then, the forehead stop 1d touches the forehead at the forehead support point P2, the pad of the headband 1c touches the top of the head at the top support point P1, and the slightly wide portions on the distal ends of the temporal support 1e are ears. The head-mounted display device 1 is attached to the head by contacting the left temporal support point P3L and a right temporal support point (not shown) (collectively referred to as temporal support point P3). It is in a state where it can be observed by being attached.

  The headband adjuster 1i (see FIGS. 3, 4 and 5) provided on the left and right of the frame portion 1b is moved up and down to adjust the relative vertical position of the headband 1c with respect to the frame portion 1b. Thus, the head-mounted display device 1 can be mounted at an appropriate position regardless of the size of the head. In addition, in the wearing state, the speaker 1f is not closely attached to the ear but is configured to be in a slightly separated state, and is a so-called open type headphone.

  FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the image display unit built in the main body portion 1a.

  External light incident from an objective window 4a formed by fitting a transparent cover provided on the front side of the main body portion 1a is passed through a liquid crystal shutter 5 serving as an external light amount variable means and a prism optical system 6 constituting an eyepiece optical system. The eyepiece window 4b provided on the rear side is projected onto the user's eye.

  On the other hand, on the upper part of the prism optical system 6, a display element 7 such as a liquid crystal display element (LCD) for displaying an optical image based on an input image signal and the display element 7 are illuminated from the back side. The image by the display element 7 illuminated by the backlight 8 is incident on the prism optical system 6 and tilted at approximately 45 degrees in the approximate center inside the prism optical system 6. After being transmitted through the half mirror 6a arranged in this manner, it is reflected upward by the concave mirror 6b constituting the magnifying optical system formed inside the bottom surface of the prism optical system 6, and further rearward by the half mirror 6a. And is projected from the eyepiece window 4b onto the user's eyes and observed as a virtual image.

  In such an image display unit configuration, by controlling the liquid crystal shutter 5, the following three modes can be switched and selected.

  These three modes are a light-blocking mode in which only the image by the display element 7 can be observed by closing the liquid crystal shutter 5 to block the incidence of external light, and the image by the display element 7 while the liquid crystal shutter 5 is opened. A see-through mode in which only the external light can be observed with the display turned off, and a super-in in which the image is displayed by the display element 7 and the liquid crystal shutter 5 is opened to superimpose the image and the external light. There are three modes, the pause mode.

  In the head-mounted display device 1 as described above, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, a vibrating element 2 is attached to a forehead support point P2, which is a part that contacts the skin of the user's head. By vibrating the vibration element 2, a signal that prompts the user to perceive a warning signal or the like is given to the user via the sense of touch of the skin. Examples of the attention signal include a signal notifying that an e-mail has arrived, a signal notifying an error in information processing operation, and a signal notifying time.

  Since the vibration element 2 sends a signal to the user through vibration as described above, the portion where the skin is exposed without the hair among the plurality of support points described above as the attachment position It is desirable to select the part that contacts For example, at the parietal support point P1, the vibration is attenuated by the hair and the vibration may not be transmitted sufficiently effectively to the tactile sensation of the skin.

  FIG. 4 shows another example of attachment of the vibration element 2 shown in FIG. 3, in which two vibration elements 2 are attached to the left and right positions in the forehead support point P2.

  Further, FIG. 5 shows the vibration element 2 attached to the left and right temporal support points P3. As shown in the figure, a vibration stop switch 9 for stopping the vibration of the vibration element 2 is disposed outside the temporal support portion 1e to which the vibration element 2 is attached. This is provided at a position outside the portion where the vibration element 2 is arranged so that the user does not need to search for the position of the switch when the user wants to stop the vibration by the vibration element 2.

  Note that when the vibration stop switch 9 is pressed, the vibration of the vibration element 2 may be stopped and the image may be switched so as to display an image indicating the content of the caution information based on the caution signal.

  FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a specific configuration of the vibration element 2.

  In this vibration element 2 a, a magnet 12 is placed on the head press pad 11. The magnet 12 has an N-pole portion 12a erected at the center of a bottomed cylindrical portion whose peripheral surface end is an S-pole portion 12b.

  In the donut-shaped space between the N-pole part 12a and the S-pole part 12b, the coil 13 is disposed with a gap so as to avoid direct contact. Are integrally attached. Further, both ends of the coil 13 are connected to a current application terminal 13a.

  In such a configuration, when an alternating current is applied via the terminal 13a, the amount of current flowing in the coil 13 is changed to generate a magnetic field, interacting with the magnetic field of the magnet 12, and the direction of the arrow in FIG. That is, vertical vibrations that change the strength of the pressing force on the user's skin are generated. Thereby, the user can perceive the transmission of the signal through the tactile sense of the skin.

  The vibration element 2a is a conversion element between electrical energy and mechanical energy that converts alternating current into mechanical vibration via a magnetic circuit, and changes the frequency of vibration by changing the frequency of alternating current applied to the coil 13. Can be made.

  FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of the specific configuration of the vibration element 2.

  The vibration element 2b includes a vibration blocking member 15 and an electrode 16 that block transmission of vibration to other parts on the head presser pad 11, a piezoelectric element 17 that has a property of expanding and contracting in the applied electric field direction, an electrode 18, An elastic member 19 that amplifies the amplitude of vibration is sequentially laminated. Further, both ends of the electrodes 16 and 18 are connected to terminals 16a and 18a for current application.

  When a potential is applied between the electrodes 16 and 18, an electric field is generated between these electrodes and applied to the piezoelectric element 17. Then, the piezoelectric element 17 expands or contracts in the direction of the electric field. Therefore, by applying an alternating current between the electrodes 16 and 18, the expansion and contraction of the piezoelectric element 17 are alternately repeated to generate vibration, and the amplitude is amplified via the elastic member 19, and the direction of the arrow in FIG. That is, it is transmitted as a vertical vibration that changes the strength of the pressing force on the user's skin. Thereby, the user can perceive the transmission of the signal through the tactile sense of the skin.

  The vibration element 2b is also a conversion element between electric energy and mechanical energy, and the frequency of vibration can be changed by changing the frequency of the alternating current applied to the electrodes 16 and 18.

  In the above description, the simplest configuration of the vibration element 2b using a piezoelectric element is taken as an example. However, the configuration is not limited to this example. For example, a plurality of piezoelectric elements polarized in different directions are bonded to generate bending vibration. It is also possible to configure using a type.

  When the vibration element 2b is used, a magnetic field is not generated because no coil is used unlike the vibration element 2a. Therefore, even if a head motion sensor that uses magnetism, that is, a sensor that detects the direction and position of the head-mounted display device 1 using magnetism is incorporated in the head-mounted display device 1, There is an advantage that the accuracy is not deteriorated.

  The head-mounted display device 1 using the vibration element 2 as described above may control the amplitude of vibration according to the importance of information. For example, a simple mistake or a notice to notify that an e-mail has arrived should be a vibration with a small amplitude, and a vibration with a large amplitude may be used to give a serious warning such as data loss.

  Alternatively, the vibration waveform may be controlled. For example, since the way of perception by the user is different between the case where the vibration is given by the sine wave and the case where the vibration is given by the rectangular wave, the vibration waveform may be controlled according to the type of attention to be given.

  It goes without saying that more complex vibration according to the type of attention may be applied by controlling the frequency, amplitude, duty ratio, etc. of the vibration as described above.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the head-mounted display device 1 configured as described above has an image signal and a caution signal transmitted from the portable small computer 21 erected from the top of the frame portion 1b. The image is received by the antenna 1h, and an image is displayed or attention is given by vibration.

  The portable small computer 21 includes an antenna 21c for transmitting various signals as described above, a keyboard 21a for inputting characters and the like, and a mouse 21b for moving a position indicated by a pointer. ing.

  When receiving an e-mail or the like, as shown in FIG. 9, an e-mail is transmitted from the mail server 22 to the portable small computer 21, which is received by the portable small computer 21. When the attention signal is transmitted to the head-mounted display device 1 and the operator notices the attention signal and gives an instruction to read the e-mail, the content of the e-mail is transmitted from the portable small computer 21 to be mounted on the head. By displaying on the display element 7 of the mold display device 1, the operator can read the e-mail.

  In addition, since the said vibration element 2 is comprised as what generate | occur | produces the vibration of the direction which presses a user's skin, it can also serve as a mounting sensor. That is, when the user wears the head-mounted display device 1 on the head, a pressing force is applied to the vibration element 2 due to contact with the head. You may make it detect whether the type | mold display apparatus 1 is mounted | worn with the head.

  That is, when the head-mounted display device 1 is mounted on the head, in the example shown in FIG. 6, the tactile transmission unit 14 is slightly moved by applying a force to the magnet 12 side. A current flows through the coil 13 that traverses the magnetic flux of the magnet 12, and by detecting this through the terminal 13a, it can be detected that the coil 13 is mounted. On the other hand, since the pressing force is removed when the head-mounted display device 1 is removed from the head, the coil 13 slightly moves in the direction opposite to that described above, so that an electric current flows, and this is connected to the terminal 13a. It is possible to detect that it has been removed.

  In the example shown in FIG. 7, an electric field is generated because the piezoelectric element 17 slightly contracts due to the pressing force applied to the elastic pad 19 by the contact with the head, and the piezoelectric element 17 slightly contracts. Since a potential difference is generated between the electrode 18 and the electrode 16 and a current flows, it is possible to detect the attachment by detecting this through the terminals 18a and 16a. On the other hand, since the pressing force is removed when the head-mounted display device 1 is removed from the head, the contracted state of the piezoelectric element 17 is eliminated, and the generated electric field disappears, and this electric field is canceled out. Therefore, the charge accumulated in the electrodes 16 and 18 flows as a current, and this can be detected by detecting them through the terminals 16a and 18a.

  Further, the vibration element 2 detects the wearing state as described above, and when it is determined that the vibration element 2 is not worn, the power supply to the display system including the display element 7 and the image supply signal are turned off. Alternatively, power consumption may be reduced by turning off the power supply to other circuits. A configuration example at this time is as shown in FIG.

  For example, when an attention signal is sent from the attention signal generator 23 provided in the portable small computer 21 to the vibration element driving circuit 24 of the head-mounted display device 1, the vibration element driving circuit 24 drives the vibration element 2. Generate vibration to give attention. Thereby, attention can be given to a user via tactile sense. On the other hand, when a pressing force is applied to the vibration element 2, a current is generated as described above. This is monitored by the pressing force sensing circuit 25 serving as a pressing force detection unit, and the head-mounted display device 1 is removed. If it is determined, for example, after elapse of a predetermined time, the power supply from the power supply unit 26 to the display system including the display element 7 is cut off by turning off the switch 26a. .

  Further, when the wearing state is detected by the pressing force sensing circuit 25 based on the output of the vibration element 2 and it is determined that the head-mounted display device 1 is not worn, a caution signal is sent from the vibration element 2. The mode may be automatically switched so as to be notified by sound through the speaker 1f instead of vibration.

  And, by sensing the pressing force at the time of wearing, if the pressing force is small, the vibration amplitude is increased, and conversely, if the pressure is large, the vibration amplitude is decreased, and appropriate vibration is given regardless of the mounting state. be able to. A configuration example at this time is as shown in FIG.

  The portion for driving the vibration element 2 via the vibration element drive circuit 24 by the attention signal of the attention signal generation unit 23 is the same as that in FIG. A multiplier 24 a for adjusting the output of the element driving circuit 24 is provided. On the other hand, the pressing force applied to the vibration element 2 when the head-mounted display device 1 is mounted is monitored by the pressing force sensing circuit 25, and the amplitude of the vibration element 2 and the like are determined according to the strength of the pressing force. The multiplier 24a is controlled so as to be appropriate to call attention to the above.

  Furthermore, the vibration element 2 can also be used as an operation input means for performing various operation inputs on the information terminal, specifically, for example, a click. When the user applies a pressing force for a short time, for example, by pressing and releasing the vibration element 2 attached to the temporal support point P3 with a finger, a current flows as described above according to the operation. This current is detected by the pressing force sensing circuit 25, and various operations are performed.

  For example, the vibration element 2 may be used as a switch for switching the above-described mode of the liquid crystal shutter 5 of the head-mounted display device 1. A configuration example at this time is as shown in FIG.

  The portion for driving the vibration element 2 via the vibration element drive circuit 24 by the attention signal of the attention signal generation unit 23 is the same as that in FIG. On the other hand, when the pressing force to the vibration element 2 is monitored by the pressing force sensing circuit 25 and it is determined that the vibration element 2 has been clicked with a finger or the like, the liquid crystal shutter 5 is moved via the liquid crystal shutter drive circuit 27. For example, every time one click is sequentially switched to the shading mode, the see-through mode, and the superimpose mode.

  The click of the vibration element 2 can also be used as the vibration stop switch 9 for stopping the vibration of the vibration element 2 itself. A configuration example at this time is as shown in FIG.

  The portion for driving the vibration element 2 via the vibration element drive circuit 24 by the attention signal of the attention signal generation unit 23 is the same as that in FIG.

  On the other hand, when the pressing force sensing circuit 25 monitors the pressing force to the vibrating element 2 and determines that the vibrating element 2 is clicked with a finger or the like, the pressing force sensing circuit 25 causes the vibrating element driving circuit 24 to operate. In addition, the vibration of the vibration element 2 is stopped and the output of the pressing force sensing circuit 25 is input to the CPU 28 to stop the generation of the caution signal from the caution signal generator 23. If this caution signal is, for example, a notification that an e-mail has been received, the CPU 28 stops the image display on the display element 7 via the display element driving circuit 29 and displays the e-mail message. You may make it display.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an operation in the case of generating a caution signal notifying that an e-mail has arrived during image display.

  When an image is being displayed (step S1) and an incoming e-mail signal is input (step S2), the vibration element 2 is vibrated to notify the user that the e-mail has arrived (step S1). S3). When a user who notices the vibration gives an instruction to read an e-mail via an input switch or the like (step S4), a signal for transmitting the contents of the e-mail from the portable small computer 21 to the mail server 22 is sent (step S4). S5) Thereby, the portable small computer 21 receives the content of the electronic mail sent from the mail server 22 (step S6), and generates an image signal in the portable small computer 21 (step S7). It is transmitted to the wearable display device 1. Receiving this image signal, the head-mounted display device 1 switches the display and displays an image showing the contents of the e-mail (step S8).

  FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an operation for warning that an operation error is made during an operation for displaying an image.

  An operation input is performed by the portable small computer 21 or the like (step S11), and it is determined whether or not there is an error in the input (step S12). If there is a mistake, the vibration element 2 is vibrated to warn the user (step S13). At this time, as described above, the amplitude, frequency, waveform, etc. of the vibration may be changed according to the importance.

  If there is no mistake, information processing according to the operation input is performed (step S14), an image is generated (step S15), and display by the display element 7 is performed (step S16).

  According to such a first embodiment, by giving vibration to the skin, the user is alerted by a tactile sensation that is a sense other than auditory perception of recognizing an image or sound. You can definitely give attention. At this time, vibration can be efficiently applied by selecting a skin portion having no hair as a portion in contact with the vibration element. In addition, by changing the amplitude, frequency, waveform, etc. of the vibration, a plurality of types of attention can be given according to the importance.

  Since the vibration applied by the vibration element is the vibration in the direction of pressing the skin, the vibration element can also be used as a mounting sensor. When used as a wearing sensor, it can be used to automatically reduce power consumption, automatically switch attention signals between vibration and sound, or automatically set the optimal vibration amplitude. Further, it can be used as a click for switching modes or turning off the vibration of the vibration element.

  In addition, when a piezoelectric element or the like is used as the vibration element, a magnetic field is not generated as compared with the case using a coil, so that the accuracy of the head motion sensor using magnetism is not deteriorated. Have.

  FIG. 16 shows a second embodiment of the present invention and is a diagram showing an example of in-field display by a head-mounted display device. In the second embodiment, the description of the same parts as those in the first embodiment will be omitted, and only different points will be mainly described.

  In the head-mounted display device of the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. 5, the vibration element 2 has a plurality of locations, for example, left and right temporal support points P3 in the example shown in FIG. These are arranged so that different types of caution signals can be notified by making the vibration states of the left and right vibrating elements 2 different.

  For example, when only the left vibration element 2 vibrates, an e-mail is sent, when only the right vibration element 2 vibrates, an operation error occurs, and when both the left and right vibration elements 2 vibrate, an emergency signal etc. The vibration element 2 is switched depending on the type of the.

  Alternatively, when the vibration element 2 is provided at three positions of the forehead support point P2 and the left and right temporal support points P3, and the vibration element 2 of the left temporal support point P3 vibrates, e-mail, right temporal support point When the vibration element 2 of P3 vibrates, an operation error is caused, and when the vibration element 2 of the forehead support point P2 vibrates, the type of signal and the arrangement of the vibration element 2 are made to correspond one-to-one. Also good.

  At this time, for example, the display by the head-mounted display device may be as shown in FIG.

  That is, an information display bar 31 b is provided on the upper part of the image display unit 31 a of the in-field display 31. The information display bar 31b includes, in order from the left, an e-mail display 32 that notifies the arrival of an e-mail, an emergency display 33 that notifies the input of an emergency signal, and an operation error display 34 that notifies that there is an error in the operation input. A display is provided.

  More specifically, each display in the information display bar 31b is positioned in the same direction as the vibration display by the vibration element 2, that is, the left vibration element 2 vibrates to notify the arrival of an e-mail. Correspondingly, an e-mail display 32 is arranged on the left side in the information display bar 31b, and an emergency signal is placed in the center in the information display bar 31b in response to the vibration of the left and right vibration elements 2 to notify the input of an emergency signal. A display 33 is arranged, and an operation error display 34 is arranged on the right side in the information display bar 31b corresponding to the vibration of the right vibration element 2 in order to notify that there is an error in the operation input.

  According to such a second embodiment, there is provided a vibration element that has substantially the same effects as those of the first embodiment described above, and is attached to a plurality of positions to vibrate according to the type of attention to be given. By changing it, multiple attentions can be given. Furthermore, the type of attention can be more clearly confirmed by associating the positional relationship between the caution display by the display element and the vibration element.

  17 to 20 show a third embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a state in which a head-mounted display device provided with a bone-conduction speaker is used in combination with a game machine. . In the third embodiment, description of parts that are the same as those in the first and second embodiments described above will be omitted, and only differences will be mainly described.

  The head-mounted display device 41 is not provided with a speaker 1f, and instead, a bone-conducted sound speaker 42 is disposed at a temporal support point P3 of the temporal support 1e.

  The position where the bone conduction sound speaker 42 is disposed may be the forehead support point P2 or the like, but the temporal support point P3 is closer to the ear, so that it is more preferable because there is less noise.

  The bone-conducted sound speaker 42 is a speaker that presents sound by bringing a vibration element driven by an acoustic signal into direct contact with the skin and propagating the vibration through a skull or the like and transmitting it to the inner ear. Since bone conduction sound is absorbed by living tissues during its transmission process, formants (the shape of the voice spectrum distribution) are different from air conduction sounds, and in particular, the treble is extremely attenuated. is doing. Therefore, the head-mounted display device 41 is provided with a converter that converts an audio signal into a drive signal for a bone-conducted sound speaker.

  More specifically, the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 is composed of, for example, a vibration element substantially the same as that shown in FIG. 6 or FIG. 7, but in the first embodiment described above, it is sensed by touch. Compared to driving at a relatively low frequency as much as possible, the third embodiment is different in that it is driven at a frequency capable of transmitting an audio signal.

  The head-mounted display device 41 configured in this manner is suitable for sound, for example, when listening to a mail voice, listening to an explanation while viewing a document, or playing back a video tape or DVD (digital video disc). It can be used widely when information is needed, but especially when playing shooting games, battle games, etc. for PC games, if there is a possibility of inconvenience to the surroundings if sound leaks in the train, etc. If the sound is guided, it is suitable for use in hearing-impaired people.

  FIG. 17 shows a case where the head-mounted display device 41 is used in combination with a game machine.

  This game machine is adapted to be used with a game cassette mounted on the game main body 43, and the game main body 43 is provided with a CPU and a memory for executing a program stored in the game cassette. .

  Further, the game main body 43 is provided with various operation buttons 43a and an antenna 43b for transmitting image signals and audio signals.

  When the game cassette is mounted on the game main body 43 and the game is started, an image signal and an audio signal are generated according to a program in the game cassette and transmitted via the antenna 43b. This is received by the antenna 1h of the head-mounted display device 41, an image is displayed by the display element 7, and after correcting the audio signal by the converter, the bone-conducted speaker 42 is vibrated to generate the bone-conducted sound. As transmitted to the user's inner ear.

  In the case where the vibration element 2b as shown in FIG. 7 is used, a magnetic field is not generated. Therefore, even if a head motion sensor using magnetism is incorporated in the head-mounted display device 41, As described above, the accuracy of the head motion sensor is not deteriorated.

  The bone-conducted sound speaker 42 is composed of a vibrating element as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, and can also serve as a mounting sensor in order to generate a current when being attached and detached as described above. Therefore, when the wearing state is detected by the bone conduction sound speaker 42 and it is determined that the wearing state is not worn, the power supply to the display system including the display element 7 and the image supply signal are turned off. Alternatively, power consumption may be reduced by turning off power supply to other circuits. A configuration example at this time is as shown in FIG.

  When the audio signal is sent to the bone-conducted sound speaker drive circuit 44, the bone-conducted sound speaker drive circuit 44 drives the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 to generate vibration for transmitting the bone-conducted sound. Thereby, a voice can be transmitted to the user. On the other hand, when a pressing force is applied to the bone-conducted sound speaker 42, an electric current is generated. When this is monitored by the pressing force sensing circuit 25, it is determined that the head-mounted display device 41 is removed. For example, after waiting for elapse of a predetermined time, the power supply from the power supply unit 26 to the display system including the display element 7 is cut off by turning off the switch 26a.

  Also, by sensing the pressure of the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 at the time of wearing and increasing the amplitude of vibration when the pressure is low, and conversely reducing the amplitude of vibration when the pressure is high, it is appropriate regardless of the wearing state. You can listen at a reasonable volume. A configuration example at this time is as shown in FIG.

  The part that receives the audio signal and drives the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 by the bone-conducted sound speaker drive circuit 44 is the same as in FIG. 18, but between the bone-conducted sound speaker drive circuit 44 and the bone-conducted sound speaker 42, A multiplier 24a for adjusting the output of the bone conduction speaker driving circuit 44 is provided. On the other hand, the pressing force applied to the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 when the head-mounted display device 41 is worn is monitored by the pressing force sensing circuit 25, and the amplitude of the bone-conducting sound speaker 42 is determined according to the strength of the pressing force. The multiplier 24a is controlled so as to be appropriate for transmitting the bone conduction sound to the user.

  Furthermore, the bone conduction sound speaker 42 can also be used as an operation input means for performing various operation inputs on the information terminal, specifically, for example, as a click. When the user applies a pressing force for a short time, for example, by pressing and releasing the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 attached to the temporal support point P3 with a finger, a current flows as described above according to the operation. This current is detected by the pressing force sensing circuit 25, and various operations are performed.

  For example, the bone conduction sound speaker 42 may be used as a switch for switching the mode of the liquid crystal shutter 5 of the head-mounted display device 41. A configuration example at this time is as shown in FIG.

  The part that receives the audio signal and drives the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 by the bone-conducted sound speaker drive circuit 44 is the same as that in FIG. On the other hand, when the pressing force sensing circuit 25 monitors the pressing force applied to the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 and determines that the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 has been clicked with a finger or the like, the liquid crystal shutter driving circuit 27 is used. The liquid crystal shutter 5 is sequentially switched to the light shielding mode, the see-through mode, and the superimpose mode, for example, for each click.

  According to the third embodiment, substantially the same effects as those of the first and second embodiments described above can be obtained, and the head mounted as compared with the case where a normal air-conducting speaker is used. The type display device can be reduced in weight. In addition, since the bone-conducted sound speaker is used, it is not necessary to accurately adjust the attachment to the ear position, which is necessary for a conventional air-conducting speaker. Furthermore, since no sound leaks to the outside, it is suitable for a hearing-impaired person who can hear the bone conduction sound without causing trouble to others in the train or the like.

  In the above description, a normal air-conducting speaker is not provided. However, it is possible to provide both a bone-conducting speaker and an air-conducting speaker so that they can be used as needed. Not too long.

  21 to 25 show a fourth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 21 is a perspective view showing a head-mounted display device in which a bone-conducting microphone is provided on the right temporal support part. 22 is a perspective view showing a state in which a head-mounted display device having a bone-conduction microphone provided on the right temporal support portion is mounted on the user's head from the side. In the fourth embodiment, the description of the same parts as those in the first to third embodiments will be omitted, and only different points will be mainly described.

  In the head-mounted display device 51, a bone-conducting microphone 52 is disposed, for example, at a temporal support point P3 on the right side of the temporal support portion 1e, and a memory 53, a battery 54, and a frame portion 1b are provided. CPU55 is built in.

  The position where the bone-conduction microphone 52 is disposed may be the left and right temporal support points P3, or the forehead support point P2 of the forehead stop 1d as shown in FIG. Alternatively, it may be inserted into the ear hole. At this time, since the temporal support point P3 is closer to the vocal cords that generate the voice than the other support points, there is an advantage that relatively good voice can be picked up.

  The bone-conduction microphone 52 is a microphone that picks up acoustic vibration propagated through the skull or the like by directly bringing a vibrating element driven by an acoustic signal into contact with the skin. As described above, since the formant is different from the air-conducted sound in the bone-conducted sound, the head-mounted display device 51 is provided with a converter that converts the signal picked up from the bone-conducted microphone into an audio signal. It has been.

  More specifically, the bone-conducting microphone 52 is composed of, for example, a vibration element substantially the same as that shown in FIG. 6 or FIG. 7, but in the first embodiment described above, it is sensed by tactile sensation. Compared to driving at a relatively low frequency as much as possible, in the third embodiment, the vibration element is vibrated by the frequency of the sound signal, and the current generated from the vibration element is reduced. The difference is that it is detected and extracted as an audio signal.

  The bone-conduction microphone 52 is composed of a vibrating element as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, and can also serve as a mounting sensor in order to generate a current when being attached or detached as described above. Therefore, when the wearing state is detected by the bone-conducting sound microphone 52 and, as a result, it is determined that it is not worn, the power supply to the display system including the display element 7 and the image supply signal are turned off, Alternatively, power consumption may be reduced by turning off power supply to other circuits. A configuration example at this time is as shown in FIG.

  The output of the bone-conduction microphone 52 is input to the level detection unit 55a of the CPU 55 and is compared with a predetermined threshold value to detect whether or not the head-mounted display device 51 is mounted on the head. When it is determined that the head is attached to the head, when the voice vibration is input to the bone-conduction microphone 52, it is converted into an electrical signal and output, and this is output via the level detection unit 55a. 55b is converted into a character code signal corresponding to the voice signal. The character code signal is sent to the image signal generation unit 55d via the system operation unit 55c, and the image signal generation unit 55d generates an image signal corresponding to the character code while referring to the memory 53, and outputs it to the display element 7. It is displayed so as to be visible as character information.

  The CPU 55 and other circuits are supplied with power from the battery 54 via the switch 54a.

  On the other hand, when the level detection unit 55a determines that the head-mounted display device 51 is not mounted on the head (indicated by “0” in the drawing), for example, waiting for elapse of a predetermined time, etc. Then, the switch 54a is turned off based on the output of the level detection unit 55a, and the power supply to each circuit including the CPU 55 (not shown but including a display system such as the display element 7) is cut off. , Power consumption can be reduced.

  Further, the bone conduction microphone 52 can also be used as an operation input means for performing various operation inputs in the information terminal, specifically, for example, as a click. When the user applies a pressing force for a short time, for example, by pressing and releasing the bone-conducted microphone 52 attached to the temporal support point P3 with a finger or the like, an electric current flows as described above according to the operation. This current is detected by the level detector 55a, and various operations are performed.

  For example, the bone-conduction microphone 52 may be used as a switch for switching the mode of the liquid crystal shutter 5 of the head-mounted display device 51.

  At this time, when the bone-conduction microphone 52 is pressed with a finger or the like, the level detection unit 55a detects it (indicated by “high” in the drawing) based on the output of the bone-conduction microphone 52, and the liquid crystal shutter drive circuit 27, the liquid crystal shutter 5 is sequentially switched to the light shielding mode, the see-through mode, and the superimpose mode, for example, for each click.

  Since the head-mounted display device 51 includes the speaker 1f and the bone-conduction microphone 52 as described above, howling occurs when the sound of the speaker 1f is input to the bone-conduction microphone 52. There is a possibility that. Therefore, in order to suppress this howling, a configuration as shown in FIG. 25 is provided.

  In other words, the audio signal output to the speaker 1f is input to the converter 56, which is an audio signal converting means having a predetermined transfer function. The external sound input from the bone-conduction microphone 52 is processed as an input sound signal after the output of the converter 56 is subtracted by a subtractor 57 as canceling means to remove a howling component. ing.

  Here, the transfer function is determined in advance in consideration that the formant is deformed by being absorbed by the skull or the living tissue in the process in which the sound output from the speaker 1 f is input to the bone-conduction microphone 52. It is a function and depends on the attachment position of the speaker 1f and the bone-conduction microphone 52, that is, the contact position with the head, and these are also taken into consideration.

  According to the fourth embodiment as described above, it is possible to perform voice input without increasing the weight while exhibiting substantially the same effects as those of the first to third embodiments described above. Moreover, since the output audio signal processed with a predetermined transfer function is subtracted from the input signal, occurrence of howling can be suppressed.

  FIG. 26 shows a fifth embodiment of the present invention and is a perspective view showing a head-mounted display device provided with a bone-conducted sound speaker and a bone-conducted microphone. In the fifth embodiment, the description of the same parts as those in the first to fourth embodiments will be omitted, and only different points will be mainly described.

  In the head-mounted display device 61 of this embodiment, the bone conduction sound speaker 42 is disposed at one of the temporal support portions 1e, for example, the right temporal support point P3, and the other, for example, the left temporal support. A bone conducting microphone 52 is disposed at the point P3. Correspondingly, the speaker 1f is unnecessary and is not provided.

  The configurations of the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 and the bone-conducted microphone 52 are the same as those in the third and fourth embodiments described above.

  Further, the head-mounted display device 61 is also provided with a configuration for suppressing howling as shown in FIG.

  In other words, the audio signal output to the bone-conducted sound speaker 42 is input to the converter 56 configured with a predetermined transfer function. The external sound input from the bone-conduction microphone 52 is processed as an input sound signal after the output of the converter 56 is subtracted by the subtractor 57 to remove the howling component.

  According to the fifth embodiment, it is possible to provide the speaker and the microphone without increasing the weight while achieving substantially the same effect as the first to fourth embodiments described above.

  FIG. 27 shows a sixth embodiment of the present invention, and the main part of the electrical configuration of the head-mounted display device provided with a vibration element that doubles as a bone-conducted speaker and a bone-conducted microphone by switching. FIG. In the sixth embodiment, the description of the same parts as those in the first to fifth embodiments will be omitted, and only different points will be mainly described.

  In the head-mounted display device of this embodiment, for example, by switching the switch 63 to the position shown in FIGS. A vibration element 62 that can be switched between functions is provided.

  That is, in this head-mounted display device, the output of the vibration element 62 is input to the pressing force sensing circuit 25, and the user presses the vibration element 62 with a finger or the like to generate a click. Thus, the pressing force sensing circuit 25 that detects this controls the switch 63 to switch the input / output of the sound.

  When the switch 63 serving as the switch means is switched to the sound output side, that is, the side where the vibration element 62 is used as the bone conduction sound speaker, the sound output signal is amplified by the amplifier 64 and then passed through the switch 63. The vibration element 62 is driven to generate vibration.

  On the other hand, when the switch 63 is switched to the sound input side, that is, the side where the vibration element 62 is used as a bone-conduction microphone, the input signal picked up by the vibration element 62 passes through the switch 63 and is amplified by the amplifier 65. After being amplified, it is input as an audio signal.

  In the above description, the vibration element 62 also serves as a means for performing an operation input for switching the switch 63, but it is of course possible to provide an operation member for controlling the switch 63 separately.

  According to the sixth embodiment as described above, it is possible to perform input / output of sound only by having a single vibration element while exhibiting substantially the same effects as those of the first to fifth embodiments described above. . Also, switching of voice input / output can be performed using the vibration element.

  FIG. 28 shows a seventh embodiment of the present invention, and is a block diagram showing the main part of the electrical configuration of a head-mounted display device provided with a vibration element that also serves as a bone-conducted speaker and a bone-conducted microphone. FIG. In the seventh embodiment, the description of the same parts as those in the first to sixth embodiments is omitted, and only different points will be mainly described.

  The head-mounted display device of this embodiment includes a vibration element 62 that serves as both a bone-conducted speaker and a bone-conducted microphone at the positions shown in FIGS. 3, 4, and 5, for example.

  That is, in this head-mounted display device, when outputting sound, the vibration element 62 is driven by the sound output signal via the vibration element drive circuit 66 to generate vibration.

  On the other hand, the audio output signal is input to a converter 68 which is an audio signal converting means having a predetermined transfer function.

  In addition, when inputting sound, the input signal picked up by the vibration element 62 is detected by the vibration amount detection circuit 67 and then input to the subtracter 69 as cancellation means, and the output of the converter 68 is subtracted. After the audio output component and the howling component are removed, the audio signal is input as an audio signal.

  That is, the vibration element 62 includes vibration as an output sound driven by the vibration element driving circuit 66 and vibration due to a howling component that vibrates the vibration element 62 itself after the output sound is transmitted to the skull or living tissue. And vibration as input sound generated by external sound are superimposed. Therefore, by subtracting and removing the audio output component and the howling component, it is possible to pick up substantially good input audio.

  When one vibration element 62 is provided, monaural sound can be input / output. When a plurality of vibration elements 62 are provided, stereo sound can be input / output.

  According to the seventh embodiment, the same effects as those of the first to sixth embodiments described above can be obtained, and the same vibration element can simultaneously serve as voice input / output. Low cost configuration.

The perspective view which shows the state with which the head mounted display apparatus of the 1st Embodiment of this invention is mounted | worn on the user's head from a side. Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the image display unit incorporated in the main-body part of the head mounted display apparatus of the said 1st Embodiment. In the said 1st Embodiment, the bottom view which shows the head mounted display apparatus which attached the vibration element to the forehead part. In the said 1st Embodiment, the bottom view which shows the head mounting | wearing type display apparatus which attached the some vibration element to the forehead part. In the said 1st Embodiment, the perspective view which shows the head mounting type display apparatus which attached the vibration element to the left and right temporal support parts. In the said 1st Embodiment, the longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the vibration element comprised using the magnet and the coil. The longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the vibration element comprised using the piezoelectric element in the said 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows a mode that the head mounted display apparatus of the said 1st Embodiment is used in combination with a portable small computer. The figure which shows a mode that an electronic mail is received from a mail server combining the head mounted display apparatus of the said 1st Embodiment with a portable small computer. The block diagram which shows the example of a structure which detects a mounting state with a vibration element in the head mounted display apparatus of the said 1st Embodiment, and turns off the electric power supply to a display element etc. when it is not mounting | wearing. . The block diagram which shows the example of a structure which senses the pressing force at the time of mounting | wearing with a vibration element, and provides an appropriate vibration according to a pressing force in the head mounted display apparatus of the said 1st Embodiment. The block diagram which shows the example of a structure which uses a vibration element as a switch for mode switching of a liquid-crystal shutter in the head mounted display apparatus of the said 1st Embodiment. The block diagram which shows the example of a structure which uses a vibration element as a vibration stop switch for stopping the vibration of this vibration element itself in the head mounted display apparatus of the said 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which shows operation | movement in the case of generating the attention signal which notifies that an email arrived during the image display in the head mounted display apparatus of the said 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which shows the operation | movement which warns to that effect in the head-mounted display apparatus of the said 1st Embodiment, when operation mistake is performed during operation for image display. The figure which shows the example of the display in a visual field by the head mounted display apparatus of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows a mode that the head mounted type display apparatus provided with the bone-conduction sound speaker of the 3rd Embodiment of this invention is used in combination with a game machine. In the head-mounted display device according to the third embodiment, an example of a configuration in which a wearing state is detected by a bone-conducted speaker and power supply to a display element or the like is turned off when the head is not worn is shown. Block Diagram. The block diagram which shows the example of a structure which senses the pressing force at the time of mounting | wearing with a bone-conduction sound speaker, and gives the vibration of a suitable volume according to a pressing force in the head mounted display apparatus of the said 3rd Embodiment. The block diagram which shows the example of a structure which uses a bone-conduction sound speaker as a switch for mode switching of a liquid-crystal shutter in the head mounted display apparatus of the said 3rd Embodiment. The perspective view which shows the head mounting type display apparatus which provided the bone-conduction microphone in the right temporal support part in the 4th Embodiment of this invention. In the said 4th Embodiment, the perspective view which shows from the side the state with which the head mounted display apparatus which provided the bone-conduction sound microphone in the right temporal support part is mounted | worn with the user's head. In the said 4th Embodiment, the bottom view which shows the head mounted display apparatus which provided the bone-conduction sound microphone in the forehead stop part. The block which shows the example of a structure which detects a mounting state by the bone-conduction microphone in the head mounted display apparatus of the said 4th Embodiment, and turns off the power supply to CPU etc. when not mounted | worn Figure. The block diagram which shows the structure for suppressing generation | occurrence | production of the howling by the speaker and bone-conduction sound microphone of the said 4th Embodiment. The perspective view which shows the head mounted display apparatus provided with the bone-conduction sound speaker and bone-conduction sound microphone of the 5th Embodiment of this invention. The block diagram which shows the principal part of the electrical constitution of the head mounted display apparatus provided with the vibration element which serves as a bone-conduction sound speaker and a bone-conduction sound microphone by switching in the 6th Embodiment of this invention. The block diagram which shows the principal part of the electrical constitution of the head mounted display apparatus provided with the vibration element which serves as a bone-conduction sound speaker and a bone-conduction sound microphone in the 7th Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Head-mounted display apparatus 1c ... Headband (support part)
1d ... Forehead stop (supporting part, forehead pressing part)
1e: Left and right temporal support parts (support part, temporal pressing part)
1f ... speaker 2, 2a, 2b, 62 ... vibrating element 5 ... liquid crystal shutter (external light quantity variable means)
6 ... Prism optical system (eyepiece optical system)
7 ... Display element 23 ... Caution signal generator 25 ... Pressing force sensing circuit (pressing force detecting means)
32 ... E-mail display (attention display)
33… Emergency display (attention display)
34 ... Operation error display (caution display)
42 ... bone conduction sound speaker 52 ... bone conduction sound microphone 55a ... level detection unit 56, 68 ... converter (audio signal conversion means)
57, 69 ... subtractor (cancellation means)
63 ... Switch (switch means)

Claims (31)

A display element for displaying an optical image based on the input image signal;
An eyepiece optical system that projects the image onto the user's eye;
A support unit that supports the display element and the eyepiece optical system with a contact surface on a head including a user's head and face;
A vibration element that is provided on the contact surface of the support portion and that vibrates in response to an input of a caution signal that is a signal for prompting the user to perceive;
A head-mounted display device comprising: The support portion includes a forehead pressing portion that presses the user's forehead and a temporal pressing portion that presses the left and right temporal regions as the portion having the contact surface,
The head-mounted display device according to claim 1, wherein the vibration element is arranged in at least one of the forehead pressing portion and the left and right temporal pressing portions.   The head-mounted display device according to claim 1, wherein the vibration element changes a vibration manner according to a type of the attention signal.   The vibration element includes a plurality of vibration elements disposed at a plurality of locations of the support portion, and the plurality of vibration elements may stop vibration of at least one vibration element according to the type of the attention signal. The head-mounted display device according to claim 1, wherein a vibration method is changed. The display element has a caution display, which is a visual display for prompting the user to perceive, according to the type of the caution signal,
5. The head mounted display according to claim 4, wherein the vibration element is arranged on the support portion so as to have a positional relationship corresponding to a visual arrangement of a caution display on the display element. apparatus. The vibration element generates vibration including a component in a direction perpendicular to the contact surface of the support portion.
2. The pressing force detecting means for detecting a signal output from the vibrating element when a pressing force is applied to the vibrating element and outputting a pressing force signal. Head-mounted display device.   When it is determined that the head-mounted display device is not mounted based on the pressing force signal from the pressing force detection means, the power supply to the display system including at least the display element is stopped or suppressed. The head-mounted display device according to claim 6, wherein:   Based on a pressing force signal from the pressing force detecting means, at least one of a current value and a voltage value to be input to the vibrating element is controlled so as to obtain an optimum vibration corresponding to the pressing force. The head-mounted display device according to claim 6.   The vibration element also serves as an operation input means for performing an operation input, and detects whether or not an operation input has been performed based on a pressing force signal of the pressing force detection means. Item 7. The head-mounted display device according to Item 6. The above eyepiece optical system also serves as an optical system that projects external light onto the user's eyes.
An external light amount variable means for changing the amount of external light projected on the user's eyes,
7. The head-mounted display device according to claim 6, wherein the external light amount variable means is controlled based on a pressure signal from the pressure detection means.   7. The head-mounted display device according to claim 6, wherein the vibration of the vibration element is stopped based on a pressing force signal from the pressing force detecting means. A display element for displaying an optical image based on the input image signal;
An eyepiece optical system that projects the image onto the user's eye;
A support unit that supports the display element and the eyepiece optical system with a contact surface on a head including a user's head and face;
A bone-conducted sound speaker that is provided on the contact surface of the support part and that vibrates in response to input of an audio signal;
A head-mounted display device comprising: The support part has a temporal pressing part that presses the left and right temporal parts of the user as a part having the contact surface,
The head-mounted display device according to claim 12, wherein the bone-conducted sound speaker is disposed on each of the left and right temporal pressing portions.   13. A pressing force detecting means for detecting a signal output from the bone-conducting sound speaker when a pressing force is applied to the bone-conducting sound speaker and outputting a pressing force signal. The head-mounted display device described.   When it is determined that the head-mounted display device is not mounted based on the pressing force signal from the pressing force detection means, the power supply to the display system including at least the display element is stopped or suppressed. The head-mounted display device according to claim 14, wherein the head-mounted display device is a display device.   Based on a pressing force signal from the pressing force detection means, control at least one of a current value and a voltage value input to the bone-conducted sound speaker so as to obtain an optimum vibration corresponding to the pressing force. The head-mounted display device according to claim 14.   The bone-conducted sound speaker also serves as an operation input means for performing an operation input, and detects whether or not an operation input has been performed based on a pressing force signal of the pressing force detection means. The head-mounted display device according to claim 14. The above eyepiece optical system also serves as an optical system that projects external light onto the user's eyes.
An external light amount variable means for changing the amount of external light projected on the user's eyes,
15. The head-mounted display device according to claim 14, wherein the external light quantity varying means is controlled based on a pressing force signal from the pressing force detecting means. A display element for displaying an optical image based on the input image signal;
An eyepiece optical system that projects the image onto the user's eye;
A support unit that supports the display element and the eyepiece optical system with a contact surface on a head including a user's head and face;
A bone-conduction microphone for detecting bone-conduction sound propagating through the user's head;
A head-mounted display device comprising:   The head-mounted display device according to claim 19, wherein the bone-conduction microphone is disposed on a contact surface of the support portion. The support portion includes a forehead pressing portion that presses the user's forehead and a temporal pressing portion that presses the left and right temporal regions as the portion having the contact surface,
21. The head-mounted display device according to claim 20, wherein the bone-conducting sound microphone is disposed at at least one of the forehead pressing portion and the left and right temporal pressing portions.   A bone-conducted speaker that receives an audio signal and vibrates is disposed in at least one of the forehead pressing portion and the left and right temporal pressing portions where the bone-conducting microphone is not disposed. The head-mounted display device according to claim 21.   When it is determined that the head-mounted display device is not worn based on an input signal from the bone-conduction microphone, power supply to a display system including at least the display element is stopped or suppressed The head-mounted display device according to claim 20, wherein the head-mounted display device is a device.   21. The head-mounted display device according to claim 20, wherein the bone-conduction sound microphone also serves as an operation input means for performing an operation input. The above eyepiece optical system also serves as an optical system that projects external light onto the user's eyes.
An external light amount variable means for changing the amount of external light projected on the user's eyes,
21. The head-mounted display device according to claim 20, wherein when the input signal from the bone-conduction microphone is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value, the external light amount varying means is controlled. A speaker that receives sound signals and generates sound;
Audio signal conversion means for converting the audio signal based on a predetermined transfer function;
Canceling means for canceling the sound component generated from the speaker by subtracting the sound signal converted by the sound signal converting means from the input signal from the bone-conducting microphone;
The head-mounted display device according to claim 19, comprising: A display element for displaying an optical image based on the input image signal;
An eyepiece optical system that projects the image onto the user's eye;
A support unit that supports the display element and the eyepiece optical system with a contact surface on a head including a user's head and face;
A vibration element that doubles as a bone-conducted sound speaker that vibrates in response to an input of an audio signal and a bone-conducted microphone that detects a bone-conducted sound that propagates through the user's head;
A head-mounted display device comprising:   28. The head-mounted display device according to claim 27, wherein the vibration element is disposed on a contact surface of the support portion.   28. The head-mounted display device according to claim 27, further comprising switch means for switching between a function as a bone-conducted sound speaker and a function as a bone-conducted sound microphone by the vibration element.   30. The head mounted display according to claim 29, wherein the switch means switches the function when it is determined that the vibration element is pressed based on an output of the vibration element. apparatus. Audio signal conversion means for converting the output audio signal to the vibration element based on a predetermined transfer function;
Canceling means for canceling the sound component generated from the vibration element by subtracting the output sound signal converted by the sound signal conversion means from the input signal from the vibration element;
The head-mounted display device according to claim 27, comprising:

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