JP7623690B2 - Display device and method for adjusting display position of aerial image by display device - Google Patents

Description

Article 30, Paragraph 2 of the Patent Act applies. Unveiled at the 37th Retail Tech JAPAN 2021, the comprehensive distribution information system exhibition held at Tokyo Big Sight on March 9, 2021.

The present invention relates to a display device, and in particular to a display device that displays an aerial image.

In a display device capable of displaying aerial images, an image displayed on a display screen or the like is focused in the air (space) using an optical device such as a mirror, allowing images or videos to be displayed in the air. For example, in a rectangular parallelepiped-shaped display device, a mirror is placed on the top surface of the housing, and the light of an image displayed on a screen inside the housing is made to enter the mirror. The light of the image is focused on the housing by the mirror, allowing the user to visually recognize the aerial image (see Patent Document 1).

Utility Model Registration No. 3221631

For example, in the case of portable display devices, the size of optical devices such as mirrors is limited, which limits the imaging distance and the size of the aerial image. This limits the visible range of the aerial image, which is affected by the viewing angle, and can easily lead to situations where the aerial image cannot be seen or is difficult to see, depending on the user's viewing position.

Therefore, it is necessary to be able to display the aerial image in a position that is easy for the user to see.

The display device according to one aspect of the present invention comprises a display body provided with an optical device that focuses the light of a display image in the air, and a support capable of supporting the display body. The display device can be used in digital signage, automatic reception machines, and the like, and is intended to provide a variety of DX (digital transformation) opportunities.

The display unit main body of the present invention is movable relative to the support unit in a specified direction. The specified direction corresponds to a direction in which the display position of the aerial image is tilted toward the front and rear of the device. For example, the display unit main body can be configured to move relative to the support unit so that the movement of the aerial image is a rotational movement.

It is possible to provide a guide mechanism on at least one of the display body and the support member. For example, the guide mechanism may be configured to slide the display body relative to the support member so as to tilt the display position of the aerial image toward the front and rear of the device.

The display unit body can be configured to move relative to the support unit so that the vertical display position of the aerial image can be tilted more toward the rear of the device than toward the front of the device. The display unit body can also be supported so that it can move relative to the support unit so that the aerial image rotates by an amount corresponding to the amount of rotational movement of the display unit body. For example, the display unit body can be configured to move relative to the support unit so that the aerial image is rotated around a position outside the imaging plane.

The method for adjusting the display position of an aerial image using a display device, which is one aspect of the present invention, includes providing a plate-shaped mirror that forms an image in the air using the light of an image to be displayed, and mounting a display body formed with an arc-shaped convex surface as its bottom surface on a support part that can support the display body so as to form a concave surface according to the shape of the bottom surface and determine the display position of the aerial image. The display body is then slid relative to the support part by a guide mechanism that determines the movement direction of the display body according to the direction in which the display position of the aerial image is tilted toward the front and rear of the device. This adjusts the display position of the aerial image.

According to the present invention, aerial images can be displayed on a display device at a position that is easy for the user to see.

1 is a perspective view of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. FIG. FIG. 2 is a side view of the display unit main body 20 when it is slid.

The display device of this embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of the display device according to this embodiment, Figure 2 shows a side view of the display device, and Figure 3 shows a bottom view of the display device.

The display device 10 is a display device capable of displaying an aerial image in a space outside the device, and can be applied to automatic reception machines, digital signage, etc. When a user performs a specific operation (such as an aerial input operation), it is possible to display a character image of a person handling reception, or a character image introducing a product, etc., as an aerial image.

Here, the display device 10 is configured to display an image on a terminal 40 such as a smartphone, and to display the image as an aerial image. The display device 10 comprises a display main body 20 equipped with an optical device 25 that forms an aerial image, and a support part 30 that supports the display main body 20. The support part 30 can be mounted on a table T or the like.

The display unit main body 20 has an optical device 25 arranged on an inclined surface 20A that forms the front of the main body, and a housing 20C with a bottom surface 20B formed on the opposite side. The bottom surface 20B here is semicircular (fish-shaped), and a terminal insertion port 20F is formed on the front side of the display unit main body 20. The terminal 40 can be removably attached to the display unit main body 20, and is held and positioned within the main body by a support member (not shown) that supports one end of the terminal 40.

The optical device 25 guides the light of the image displayed on the screen 40S of the terminal 40 to the outside of the display main body 20 and forms an image on the imaging plane FP. This causes the image displayed on the terminal screen to be spatially displayed as an aerial image I. For example, a user can display a desired image as an aerial image I by inserting the terminal 40 into the display main body 20 with a display image already displayed on the screen. The display image may also be displayed on the screen by remotely operating the terminal 40.

A known plate-shaped mirror can be used as the optical device 25. In this case, optical elements such as a mirror with a two-sided corner reflector array structure and a two-orthogonal surface reflector can be arranged. The aspect ratio and size of the optical device 25 are determined according to the screen size of the terminal 40.

The support section 30 has a concave surface 30B that is curved according to the arc-shaped bottom surface 20B of the display body 20, and the display body 20 is mounted on and supported by the concave surface 30B. When the display body 20 is mounted on the support section 30 in the position (posture) shown in Figures 1 and 2, the aerial image I is displayed along the vertical direction.

A pair of grooves 32A, 32B are formed in the concave surface 30B of the support portion 30 near the widthwise end of the support portion 30 (see FIG. 3). The grooves 32A, 32B are parallel to each other and are formed to extend along the front-rear direction of the device.

On the other hand, a pair of arc-shaped guide rails 22A, 22B are formed on the bottom surface 20B of the display unit main body 20, following the curved shape of the bottom surface 20B. The guide rails 22A, 22B are formed to match the formation positions of the pair of grooves 32A, 32B of the support unit 30, and are sized to fit into the grooves 32A, 32B of the support unit 30.

The guide rails 22A, 22B fit into a pair of grooves 32A, 32B, so that the display body 20 is held and positioned by the support part 30. On the other hand, when a user applies force to the display body 20, the display body 20 can slide (slide) in the front-to-rear direction of the device relative to the support part 30. Here, the terminal insertion port side of the support part 30 is the front side of the device, and the opposite is the rear side of the device.

Figure 4 is a side view of the display body 20 when it is slid. When the user presses the housing 20C of the display body 20 from the upper rear side, the display body 20 slides toward the front side of the device (support part 30) relative to the support part 30. As a result, the position of the optical device 25 moves closer to the horizontal direction, and the display position of the aerial image I changes.

Specifically, the aerial image I moves from a display position along the vertical direction to a display position that is tilted toward the rear of the device. The greater the amount of movement of the display unit main body 20, the further the display position of the aerial image I is tilted toward the rear. Meanwhile, since the display unit main body 20 can slide not only toward the front of the device but also toward the rear relative to the support part 30, the aerial image I can be tilted toward the rear of the device.

As described above, the bottom surface 20B of the display main body 20 is formed of a curved surface with an arc-shaped cross section. Therefore, when the display main body 20 slides relative to the support part 30, the display position of the aerial image I rotates in accordance with the rotational movement of the display main body 20, and the amount of rotational movement of the aerial image corresponds to the amount of rotational movement of the display main body 20. The center of rotational movement of the display main body 20 is determined according to the center of curvature of the bottom surface 20B, and is located off the imaging plane FP.

When the display unit main body 20 is rotated so as to move (tilt) the display position of the aerial image I forward, the aerial image is tilted so as to protrude further forward relative to the display position of the aerial image I along the vertical direction (see dashed line in Figure 4). Conversely, when the display unit main body 20 is rotated so as to move the display position of the aerial image I backward, the aerial image is tilted so as to protrude further backward.

Generally, the visible range of the aerial image I depends on the viewing angle (approximately 40°), and even a slight deviation in the direction in which the user views the aerial image I makes it difficult to view the aerial image I. In particular, when the display device 10 is installed on a table T, the viewing angle of the display device 10 differs depending on the individual elongation differences of the users.

By applying force to the display body 20, the user can slide the display body 20 forward or backward to a position where the aerial image I is easily visible to the user. Then, when the user stops applying force, the support unit 30 can hold the display body 20 in that position and support (position) it to determine the display position of the aerial image.

The movement direction of the display main body 20 is regulated by the above-mentioned guide mechanism, and the display position of the aerial image I is adjusted while maintaining the up-down relationship of the images, based on the display position of the aerial image I along the vertical direction. By regulating the movement direction of the display main body 20 rather than allowing it to move freely, it becomes possible to appropriately and easily guide the aerial image I to a display position that is easy to view.

In particular, the aerial image I is rotated toward the front and rear of the device around a position that is off the imaging plane of the aerial image I, so the display position of the aerial image I can be finely adjusted. In addition, a slide mechanism is used in which the guide rails 22A, 22B slide along the grooves 32A, 32B, so the display unit main body 20 can be positioned by its own weight at the position where the application of force is stopped.

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the display main body 20 is mounted on the support part 30 so that the optical device 25 is positioned at a relatively large tilt angle when the aerial image I is displayed along the vertical direction. Therefore, under conditions in which the support part 30 can hold the display main body 20, the amount of movement of the display main body 20 toward the rear of the device is greater than the amount of movement toward the front of the device. In other words, the display position of the aerial image I along the vertical direction can be moved farther toward the rear of the device than toward the front of the device.

For example, when the display device 10 is installed on a table T as shown in FIG. 1, if the user looks at the display device 10 in a standing position, it becomes necessary to slide the display unit main body 20 significantly toward the rear of the device (in the direction of standing), but even in such a situation, the aerial image I can be adjusted to a display position that is easy for the user to view. On the other hand, when the display device 10 is installed in a relatively high position, the aerial image I can be displayed in an easy-to-view position by sliding the display unit main body 20 toward the front of the device (in the direction of laying it down).

The mechanism is not limited to the sliding mechanism described above, and any guide mechanism that guides the aerial image I in a direction that tilts it toward the front or rear of the device may be used. The movable range of the display unit main body 20 may also be changed as appropriate, and the relative positional relationship between the display unit main body and the support unit and the slidable range may be determined according to the optical characteristics (image position) of the optical device 25.

The display device 10 of this embodiment is configured to display a display image on the terminal 40, but may also be configured to have a display in the display unit main body 20 in advance. For example, it is possible to transmit display image data to the display using a communication network and display an aerial image. Also, a storage medium such as a USB memory may be attached to the display unit main body 20 to display the aerial image I. Furthermore, it is also possible to apply an optical system that displays a three-dimensional image as an aerial image rather than a two-dimensional image.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 Display device 20 Display body 22A, 22B Guide rail 25 Optical device 30 Support 32A, 32B Groove 40 Terminal

Claims (9)

A display unit body having an optical device for forming an image in the air with light of a display image;
a support portion capable of supporting the display main body,
A display device characterized in that the display body is movable relative to the support part along a specified direction that tilts the display position of the aerial image toward the front and rear of the device. The display device according to claim 1, characterized in that the display body is supported by the support so that the display position along the vertical direction of the aerial image can be tilted more toward the rear of the device than toward the front of the device. The display device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the display body is supported so as to be movable relative to the support part so that the aerial image rotates by an amount of movement corresponding to the amount of rotational movement of the display body. The display device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the display body is slidable along a direction defined by a guide mechanism provided on at least one of the display body and the support. the support portion includes a support surface having a groove extending along the front-rear direction of the device,
5. The display device according to claim 4, wherein the display body has a bottom surface provided with a guide rail that fits into the groove. The display unit body removably supports a terminal capable of displaying a display image within the body,
6. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the optical device includes a mirror that focuses light of a display image displayed on a screen of the terminal into an image in the air outside the main body. a display unit body provided with a plate-shaped mirror for forming an image in the air using light for display, the display unit body having an arc-shaped convex surface as a bottom surface;
a support portion that forms a concave surface corresponding to the shape of the bottom surface and is capable of supporting the display body so as to determine a display position of the aerial image,
a guide mechanism is provided on at least one of the display unit body and the support unit to guide a display position of the aerial image in a direction in which the display position is tilted toward a front side and a rear side of the device;
The display device, wherein the display body is slidable in a direction defined by the guide mechanism. The display device according to claim 7, characterized in that the display unit body removably supports within the body a terminal capable of displaying a display image. a plate-shaped mirror is provided to form an image in the air using light from an image to be displayed; a display unit body is formed with an arc-shaped convex surface as a bottom surface; a concave surface is formed according to the shape of the bottom surface; and the display unit body is mounted on a support member capable of supporting the display unit body so as to determine a display position of the aerial image;
A method for adjusting the display position of an aerial image on a display device, characterized in that the display unit main body is slid relative to the support part using a guide mechanism that specifies the movement direction of the display unit main body according to the direction in which the display position of the aerial image is tilted forward and backward from the device, thereby adjusting the display position of the aerial image.

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