JP2006158479A - Image display device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image display device capable of detecting the abnormality of the physical condition of a wearer without upsiziing or increasing the weight of the image display device. <P>SOLUTION: The output of a vital sign sensor 16 is taken in a CPU 12 at regular time intervals. The CPU 12 stores the output of the vital sign sensor 16 in a memory 13 when a switch 17 is on. After that, the CPU 12 takes in the output of the vital sign sensor 16 at regular time intervals and compares the taken-in output and the stored output. If either the heart rate or the blood pressure taken in the CPU exceeds a threshold and becomes higher than the stored value, the alarm is given to the wearer. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image display device such as a head-mounted display that is mounted on a head and has a function of displaying an image on a wearer's eyes.

  In recent years, it has been used by being worn on the human body, such as a spectacle type that observes an image displayed on a display device such as a liquid crystal panel (LCD) as an enlarged virtual image through an optical system having an eyepiece, a half mirror, or the like. Various video display apparatuses have been proposed and are called wearable displays. Of these, those mounted on the head and used are particularly called head-mounted displays.

  In many cases, the head-mounted display is configured to be mounted on the head in the form of being wound around the head, and the two-eye type in which a video display system is formed at a position corresponding to both eyes and the position corresponding to one eye of the left and right eyes. There is a one-eye type that forms a video display system. Of these, the two-eye type is mainly used for the purpose of enjoying video. One-eye type devices are expected to be used as display devices such as wearable personal computers and display devices for displaying instructions to workers. As an example thereof, those of the type described in JP-A-8-305298 (Patent Document 1) and JP-A-2004-207847 (Patent Document 2) are known.

JP-A-8-305298 JP 2004-207847 A JP 9-218375 A WO 2004/061519 A1 Publication

  One of the problems in such a video display device such as a head-mounted display is eye fatigue caused by looking into the eyepiece optical system for a long time and adverse effects on the physical condition. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-218375 (Patent Document 3) measures the number of blinks within a certain time of a wearer who is watching an image, and wears it based on this. A method for determining the fatigue state of a person's eyes is disclosed.

  However, since this method requires a device for measuring the number of blinks, there is a problem that the display unit covering the front of the face is large and heavy.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and a video display device capable of detecting an abnormality in the physical condition of the wearer without increasing the size or weight of the video display device, and its detection result It is an object of the present invention to provide a video display device having a function of issuing a warning to a wearer or stopping use of the video display device.

  A first means for solving the above-described problem is an image display device that is attached to the head and displays an image in the eyes of the wearer, and has a contact portion that contacts the head temple portion or the vicinity thereof. The contact part has a vital sign detection part for detecting a vital sign. (Claim 1)

  The temple part of the head or the vicinity thereof is a position close to the video display device worn on the head and is a position where vital signs such as heart rate, blood pressure, sweat, body temperature, etc. can be easily detected. In this means, these vital signs can be detected as appropriate by a vital sign detection unit provided in the contact part, and thereby an abnormality in the physical condition of the wearer can be detected.

  A second means for solving the problem is the first means, wherein the vital sign is at least one of a heart rate and a blood pressure (Claim 2).

  The heart rate and blood pressure are particularly preferably used because they are related to the stress of the wearer and are vital signs that are easy to detect.

  The third means for solving the problem is the first means or the second means, and has a storage unit for storing the vital sign, and is stored as the detected vital sign. It has a function of issuing an alarm to the wearer according to the difference from the vital sign (claim 3).

  In this means, for example, the vital sign when the wearer's physical condition is normal is stored in the storage unit, and when a difference between the vital sign detected and the detected vital sign occurs, the wearer according to the degree of the difference The wearer can be judged to be in poor health and can be alerted to the wearer.

  The 4th means for solving the above-mentioned subject is the 1st means or the 2nd means, has a storage part which memorizes the vital sign, and is memorized with the detected vital sign. In accordance with the difference from the vital sign, the video display function is stopped (claim 4).

  The operation of this means is basically the same as that of the third means, but the display of the video is stopped instead of giving an alarm to the wearer. Therefore, it has the same effect as the third means.

  A fifth means for solving the above-mentioned problems is the first means or the second means, and includes a fixing unit for fixing the video display device to the head, and displaying an image on the eyes of the wearer. A display unit that is movable between the eyes of the wearer and a retracted position away from the front of the eye by power, and a storage unit that stores the vital signs And having a function of moving the display unit from the display position to the retracted position in accordance with the difference between the detected vital sign and the stored vital sign (claim 5). It is.

  The action of this means is basically the same as the action of the fourth means, but instead of stopping the display of the image, the display unit is moved to a position away from the front where the user does not feel disturbed. I try to let them. Therefore, the same effect as the fourth means can be achieved.

  The sixth means for solving the problem is any one of the third means to the fifth means, and the vital sign stored in the storage unit is at a time point designated by the wearer. It is the said vital sign (Claim 6).

  In this means, the vital sign at the time pointed by the wearer is stored in the storage unit as a reference. Therefore, the vital sign when the wearer himself / herself determines that the physical condition is normal can be used as the reference value.

  The seventh means for solving the problem is any one of the third means to the fifth means, and the vital sign stored in the storage unit is the video display device, the wearer It is the vital sign at the time when it is worn on the head or when a predetermined time has passed since that time (Claim 7).

  At the time of mounting the video display device and at the initial stage, it is considered that the stress due to viewing the video has not yet occurred. Therefore, the vital sign at this stage can be taken into the storage unit and used as a reference value. The “predetermined time” is set to such an initial stage time and can be appropriately determined according to the state of the user and the display contents.

  The eighth means for solving the problem is any one of the third means to the fifth means, and the vital sign stored in the storage unit is between the present time and a predetermined time in the past. It is the said vital sign measured by (Claim 8).

  In this means, vital signs up to a predetermined time in the past are stored, so that the status of the change can be known, and the presence or absence of an abnormal physical condition can be determined according to the state of change.

  According to the present invention, a video display device capable of detecting an abnormality in the physical condition of the wearer without increasing the size or weight of the video display device, and a warning to the wearer based on the detection result. Or a video display device having a function of stopping the use of the video display device.

  Hereinafter, an example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of a head mounted display as an example of an embodiment of the present invention. The head mounted display 1 includes a storage part 2, a display arm 3, a display part 4, an ear pad part 5, and a connecting part 6 as main parts. In this example, the storage portion 2 is attached to the connecting portion 6 by the attachment portion 7. The storage unit 2 may be attached to the ear pad 5 by the attachment unit 7. In addition, an image signal, an audio signal, and a necessary control signal from a control unit (not shown) are input to the storage unit 2 through the cable 8. A headphone is incorporated in the ear pad 5 and outputs an audio signal to both ears of the wearer.

  The display unit 4 is attached to the tip of the display arm 3, and the rear part of the display arm 3 is stored in a hollow part in the storage unit 2, and can be expanded and contracted according to the shape of the head of the wearer. ing. The ear pad 5 is fixed to the connecting portion 6, and the wearer's ear is pressed by the elastic biasing force of the connecting portion 6.

  When observing an image, as shown in the figure, the display unit 4 is pulled out of the storage unit 2 and positioned in front of the wearer's eyes, and the image is observed. When the image is not observed, the display arm 3 is pushed into the storage unit 2 from the position shown in the figure, and the display unit 4 is moved to the side of the face.

  In such a head mounted display 1, the contact part 9 is provided in the side surface of the accommodating part 2, and contacts a wearer's temple or its vicinity with the urging | biasing force of a spring. In some cases, the advancement / retraction mechanism using an electromagnet may be pressed against the user's temple or the vicinity thereof only when necessary.

  A sensor (vital sign sensor) for measuring the heart rate and blood pressure is provided at a portion of the contact portion 9 that comes into contact with the temple or in the vicinity thereof, and the signal is sent to the control portion via the cable 8.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a part related to the present invention in the electrical configuration of the head mounted display including the control unit. A CPU 12 is provided in the control unit 11, and controls video display and audio output in cooperation with the memory 13. The LCD driver 14 receives the output from the CPU 12 and displays an image on the LCD 15 in the display unit 4. The output of the vital sign sensor 16 provided in the contact portion 9 is input to the CPU 12. Further, a switch 17 for performing control as will be described later is provided in the operation unit (not shown).

  The output of the vital sign sensor 16 is taken into the CPU 12 at regular time intervals. The CPU 12 stores the output of the vital sign sensor 16 at the time when the switch 17 is turned on in the memory 13. Thereafter, the output of the vital sign sensor 16 is captured at regular time intervals and compared with the stored output. If at least one of the captured heart rate and blood pressure becomes higher than the stored value exceeding the threshold, an alarm is issued to the wearer.

  The alarm may be displayed on the display screen of the LCD 15 or may be output as an audio signal from the headphones of the ear pad 5. Further, instead of displaying an alarm, the video display displayed on the LCD 15 may be stopped. Further, the display arm 3 is sent out from the storage unit 2 by power and the display unit 4 is positioned in front of the wearer's eyes, or the display arm 3 is pulled into the storage unit 2 to store the display unit 4 from the front of the wearer's eyes. In a head-mounted display having a function of positioning at a location, instead of issuing an alarm, the display arm 3 is pulled into the storage portion 2 so that the display portion 4 is positioned at the storage location from the eyes of the wearer. Also good. A head-mounted display that feeds and retracts the display arm 3 from the storage unit 2 by power is described in, for example, WO 2004/061519 A1 (Patent Document 4), and thus description thereof is omitted.

  In the above embodiment, the output of the vital sign sensor 16 when the switch 17 is turned on is stored in the memory 13, but this switch is not provided to the operation unit and operated by a human, 9 may be input to the CPU 12 for on / off. That is, for example, if the contact portion 9 is pressed against the temple portion or the vicinity thereof by the urging force of the spring, it is in a state where it is retracted into the storage portion 2 when mounted compared to when not mounted. Therefore, it is detected that the head mounted display 1 is mounted by a proximity switch or a limit switch that works when the storage unit 2 is in the retracted position. Further, when the contact portion 9 is pressed against the temple 9 or in the vicinity thereof by an electromagnet, the mounting may be detected by turning on and off the electromagnet.

  Then, the output of the vital sign sensor 16 at the time when the head mounted display 1 is mounted or when a predetermined time has elapsed from that time may be stored in the memory 13. By storing the output of the vital sign sensor 16 at the time when a predetermined time has elapsed in the memory 13, the heart rate and blood pressure at the time when the wearing is stabilized can be stored.

  In the above example, the output of the vital sign sensor 16 at a certain point in time is stored in the memory 13 and is used as a reference value to compare with the currently measured output of the vital sign sensor 16 to detect an abnormality in the human body. However, the past measurement values may be stored in the memory 13 for a predetermined number of times, and the output of the vital sign sensor 16 from the present time to a predetermined time before may always be stored.

  In this way, for example, a change in the heart rate data stored in this manner is detected, and a warning is given to the wearer when a significant change in the heart rate occurs, as shown in FIG. Can be performed.

  As vital signs to be measured, heart rate and blood pressure are preferable because data is most easily collected and changes in physical condition are preferable. In addition to this, the state of sweating, body temperature, and the like can be used.

It is a figure which shows the outline | summary of the head mounted display which is an example of embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the part relevant to this invention among the electrical structures of the head mounted display including a control part. It is a figure which shows the example of the change of a heart rate.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Head mounted display, 2 ... Storage part, 3 ... Display arm, 4 ... Display part, 5 ... Ear pad part, 6 ... Connection part, 7 ... Mounting part, 8 ... Cable, 9 ... Contact part, 11 ... Control part , 12 ... CPU, 13 ... memory, 14 ... LCD driver, 15 ... LCD, 16 ... Vital sign sensor, 17 ... switch

Claims (8)

A video display device that is mounted on the head and displays an image to the wearer's eyes, having a contact portion that contacts the head temple portion or the vicinity thereof, and the contact portion detects a vital sign that detects a vital sign A video display device comprising a detection unit. The video display apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the vital sign is at least one of a heart rate and a blood pressure. The video display device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a storage unit that stores the vital sign, and a wearer according to a difference between the detected vital sign and the stored vital sign. A video display device characterized by having a function of issuing an alarm. The video display device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a storage unit that stores the vital sign, and in accordance with a difference between the detected vital sign and the stored vital sign. A video display device having a function of stopping display. The video display device according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising: a fixing unit that fixes the video display device to a head; and a display unit that displays an image on a wearer's eyes. It is possible to move between the front of the wearer's eye and a position away from the front by power, and has a storage unit for storing the vital sign, which is stored as the detected vital sign. An image display device having a function of moving the display unit from the display position to the retracted position in accordance with a difference from a vital sign. The video display device according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the vital sign stored in the storage unit is the vital sign at a time point instructed by a wearer. A video display device characterized by the above. 6. The video display device according to claim 3, wherein the vital sign stored in the storage unit is mounted on a head of a wearer. The video display device characterized by being the vital sign at a time point or when a predetermined time has elapsed from the time point. 6. The video display device according to claim 3, wherein the vital sign stored in the storage unit is the vital sign measured between a current time and a predetermined time in the past. A video display device characterized by the above.

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