JP3177340B2 - Image recognition device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image viewing device for viewing an image presented by a display unit.
In particular, the present invention relates to an image viewing device having a function of tracking the movement of an image observer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a device for presenting an image on a display unit located in front of the head of an image observer, a CRT used for a television, a video, etc., a liquid crystal display, a projector vision,. Various devices exist. Most of the images obtained by these devices are two-dimensional.

[0003] Therefore, at present, the purpose is to obtain a sense of reality and realism, and furthermore, an interface with information inside an image.
In order to obtain lacticity and the like, an image presenting apparatus specifically aimed at visually recognizing a stereoscopic image has been developed and studied.

In these devices, the image is not simply sent unilaterally to the display unit, but the image displayed on the display unit is also changed in accordance with the movement of the image observer, as if in reality. There has been proposed an image visual recognition device that makes the user feel as if they are visually recognizing an object. Furthermore, this image viewing device allows an image observer to
It is often intended to perform some kind of operation or work while watching the image displayed on the display unit. Furthermore, it is often configured to be able to perform work using stereoscopic images.

[0005] When performing stereoscopic vision, particularly when performing stereoscopic vision with parallax between the left and right eyes, it is necessary to visually recognize the images for the left and right eyes with each eye. Even if the position is slightly shifted, it is difficult to recognize the displayed image. Therefore, no matter how the image observer moves, the display unit must always be at a predetermined position with respect to the image observer.

In view of the above, a method of changing an image displayed on a display unit or a display unit in response to some movement (a face, a hand, etc.) of an image observer has been proposed as an image visual recognition device satisfying these conditions. Have been. For example, HMD (= Head Mounted D
display) on the image observer's head,
With the movement of the image observer, the display unit is always in front of the image observer's head, so that a handle or the like attached to the display unit is manually moved,
2. Description of the Related Art There has been proposed an image viewing device that changes an image displayed on a display unit in accordance with the movement of an image observer and makes the user feel as if they are viewing a real object.

[0007]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional apparatus, even if the image observer moves his / her head,
There has been a major problem in terms of image tracking and operability in working to ensure an optimal position for the observer to always view the image portion.

For example, VR (= Virtual Real)
HMD, which is currently attracting attention as a display for lightness, has two color liquid crystal displays corresponding to both eyes, enables stereoscopic vision, and can detect the position of the head of the image observer in real time. However, there are major problems with the size of the liquid crystal screen (the size of the field of view), hygiene problems due to being worn on the head, weight, fatigue, and the like.

In the method of manually moving a handle or the like attached to the display unit, at least one hand is used for operating the display, so that the workability of the image observer is greatly impaired, and the moving position of the head can be determined in real time. It was difficult to detect.

Therefore, the present invention is to secure an optimal position for the observer to always view the displayed image (display section in the display section) even when the image observer moves his / her head. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image viewing device that has good tracking performance of an image and operability in working.

[0011]

According to the present invention, there is provided an image viewing apparatus in which an image is presented by a display unit.
A display unit having a plurality of sensors for reading the movement of an image observer inside, an arm unit supporting the display unit, and performing a rotation operation and a one-dimensional direction movement operation of the display unit, and the display unit A driving unit that drives the arm unit; and a control unit that receives a signal from the sensor unit and controls the driving device that performs position control of the display unit in a feedback manner.

[0012]

According to the image viewing apparatus of the present invention, since the sensor section having a plurality of sensors for reading the movement of the image observer is provided inside the display section,
This makes it possible to capture the movement of the image observer, especially the head, in front of the image viewing device.

According to the movement of the head captured by the sensor unit, the display unit is moved vertically, horizontally,
The display unit and the arm unit are driven so that the distance between the display unit and the image observer as well as the arc direction is always kept constant. This drive is performed automatically by a control unit using a computer or the like, and in order to perform tracking by judging an optimal position for an image observer in real time, even a stereoscopic image using parallax between the right and left eyes, By observing the image obliquely, it is possible to always capture an image presented at a certain optimal position without any problem such as a three-dimensional image being shifted and being difficult to see.

Furthermore, the discomfort caused by being worn on the head and the inability to use the hands freely are eliminated at the same time.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings and flowcharts.

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a basic configuration according to the present invention. This system captures information from a display unit 1, an arm unit 2 supporting the display unit 1, a sensor, and drives the display unit 1 and the arm unit 2 based on the information, and controls the drive unit 3 And a sensor unit 5 incorporated in the display unit 1. The driving unit 3 is a display unit 1
And the arm 2.

Here, the sensor used is suitable for capturing the movement of the image observer and responding quickly. For example, an ultrasonic sensor or an optical sensor can be used.

FIG. 2 is an external view of an embodiment of the image viewing device according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the display unit 1 includes a sensor unit (described in detail in FIGS. 3 and 4), a display unit 21 including image display means such as a liquid crystal panel and a CRT,
A main unit for swinging the control unit 4 and the like, the main unit and the arm unit 2
And a connecting portion 22 that supports the display unit 1 at the connecting position.

In this image viewing apparatus, the arm 2 can perform an operation A for extending and contracting the arm in one axial direction by driving from the drive 3 (see FIG. 1).
The rotation unit 360 can rotate 360 degrees in the horizontal direction with the connection position of the connection unit 22 and the connection position as the rotation center axis, and further, the display unit 21 displays the image centering on the connection position of the display unit 1 body and the connection unit 22. At the front of the observer's head,
A rotation operation C of 80 degrees is possible.

<Embodiment 1> A first embodiment of a sensor unit incorporated in a display unit 1 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the display unit 1 and the sensor unit 5 arranged in the display unit for capturing the contour of the head. FIG. 4 shows a flowchart for operating the device according to the present embodiment when the sensor is used.

As shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of sensors, preferably a first sensor
Fourth to fourth sensors 31, 32, 3
3 and 34 are arranged, and the reading order of the sensors is determined in advance, for example, such that the reading operation is performed in the order from the sensor 31 to the sensor 34. The sensors are incorporated in the display unit 1 so as to be movable to some extent. When the image observer starts using the apparatus, the position setting of the four sensors is set in accordance with the outline of the head of the image observer himself. I do. This means that the head of the image observer completely enters the portion surrounded by the sensors. In other words, all of the four sensors are used to position the head of the image observer, that is, any part of the face. Is set so that no is detected. With this setting, the sensor is set so as to capture the outline of the face, and the operation shifts to the operation shown in the flowchart of FIG.

First, it is determined whether or not the first sensor 31 is in a step where the sensor does not detect an image observer (referred to as an ON state) (step 41). Next, if the first sensor 31 is in the ON state (step 42), the operation shifts to the reading operation of the second sensor 32.

However, if the first sensor 31 is in the step of detecting the head of the image observer (referred to as the OFF state) (step 43), the head is not at the optimal position surrounded by the four sensors. Meaning that the sensor 31
Until is turned on, drive the motor of the drive unit 3 incorporated in the display unit 1 and the arm unit 2,
The display unit 2 is moved (step 44).

After the display unit 1 is moved, it is determined again whether the sensor 31 is on or off (step 45).
The operation shifts to the reading operation of the second sensor 32 (step 46). If it is in the off state, the same motor driving operation as described above is performed until the head is set at the optimum position.
This is repeated (step 47).

When the reading operation of the first sensor 31 is completed, the processing order is further determined, such as the second sensor 32 and the third sensor 33, and the same processing as the above operation is successively performed. (Step 48) If the optimum positions are set for all the sensors, it is considered that the operation has been completed, and the processing of the present system ends at that time (Step 49).

<Embodiment 2> A second embodiment of the sensor unit incorporated in the display unit 1 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the display unit 1 and the sensor unit 5 disposed in the display unit and for keeping the sensor unit 5 parallel to the front surface of the face at a constant distance. FIG. 6 shows a flowchart for operating the device according to the present embodiment when the sensor is used.

As shown in FIG. 5, a plurality of sensors, preferably four in this embodiment, are provided on the front of one of the display units.
Four first to fourth sensors 51,
52, 53, and 54 are arranged, and the reading order of the sensors is determined in advance, for example, such that the reading operation is performed in the order from the sensor 51 to the sensor. Then, when the image observer starts using the apparatus, the position of the display unit 1 is set. This measures the distance between the sensor and the image observer so that the display unit 1 is set at the most convenient position for the image observer to visually recognize the image, and sets the condition of the distance to each sensor. Initial settings for storing are performed. With this setting, the display unit 1 is set so as to be kept parallel to the front surface of the face at a fixed distance interval. That is, when the image observer moves the head in the vertical direction, the sensors 51 and 52,
Alternatively, it is recognized that the distance relationship between the sensor 53 and the sensor 54 is different from the initial setting, and when the head is moved in the left-right direction, the sensor 51 and the sensor 5
3 or that the distance relationship between the sensor 52 and the sensor 54 differs from the initial setting.

Next, the operation shifts to the operation shown in the flowchart of FIG. First, the distance from the image observer is measured by the first sensor 51. If the distance to the target is within a certain range (referred to as an ON state), the second sensor 52 shifts to a read operation.

However, if the reading of the first sensor 51 does not recognize that the head of the image observer is located at a distance within a certain range (referred to as an off state), the display unit 1 The drive unit 3 is driven to set the optimum distance of the arm unit 2. For example, if it is recognized that it is located at a closer distance than a distance within a certain range, the information is fed back to the control unit,
The arm unit 2 is extended by driving the motor of the driving device until the distance between the image observer and the display unit 1 reaches a predetermined fixed distance interval. Conversely, the arm unit 2 is positioned farther than a distance within a certain range. When it is recognized that the image is being read, the arm 2 is contracted to reduce the distance between the image observer and the display 1.

After the movement of the display unit 1 due to the expansion and contraction of the arm unit 2, it is further determined whether the sensor 51 is in the ON state or the OFF state. If the sensor 51 is in the ON state, the reading operation of the second sensor 52 is performed. If it is in the off state, the operation of driving the driving unit 3 is repeated in the same manner as described above until the display unit 1 and the image observer are set at the optimum distance.

When the reading operation of the first sensor 51 is completed, the processing order is further determined, such as the second sensor 52 and the third sensor 53, and the same processing as the above operation is successively performed. If the optimum distance is set for all the sensors, it is considered that the operation has been completed, and the processing of the present system ends at that time.

In the first and second embodiments, the case where the number of sensors included in the sensor unit is four has been described. However, this is the most preferable example, and the number of sensors may be plural. For example, even when only two sensors are provided, the present invention can be sufficiently implemented by disposing the sensors on a diagonal line or in the middle of the display unit.

[0035]

According to the present invention, since the display unit presenting an image is automatically and in real time determined and tracked in an optimal position for an image observer, the parallax between the left and right eyes can be reduced. Even if the used stereoscopic image is viewed obliquely, it is possible to always visually recognize the image presented at a certain optimal position without any problem such as the stereoscopic image being shifted and difficult to see.

Furthermore, in this apparatus, since the display can be set to the optimum position without using the hand of the image observer, both hands can be used freely, and there is an effect that operability and workability are not impaired.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a basic configuration of an image viewing device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external view of an embodiment of the image viewing device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is incorporated in the display unit according to the first embodiment,
FIG. 4 is a layout diagram of a sensor unit that captures an outline of a head.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is incorporated in the display unit according to the second embodiment,
FIG. 4 is a layout diagram of sensors that keep parallel to the front of the face at a fixed distance interval.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the apparatus according to the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Display part 2 Arm part 3 Drive part 4 Control part 5 Sensor part 21 Display part 22 Connecting part 31, 51 1st sensor 32, 52 2nd sensor 33, 53 3rd sensor 34, 54 4th Th sensor

Continued on the front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G06F 1/16 G06F 3/14-3/153 G09F 9/00 H04N 5/64-5/655 H05K 5/00-5 / 06

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. An image viewing apparatus in which an image is presented by a display unit, a display unit including a plurality of sensors for reading the movement of an image observer inside, a display unit supporting the display unit, and a display unit An arm unit that performs a rotating operation and a one-dimensional direction moving operation, a driving unit that drives the display unit and the arm unit, and a driving device that receives a signal from the sensor unit and controls the position of the display unit. An image viewing device comprising: a control unit that performs feedback control.