JPH08275208A - Image display system - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Structure] Means 4 for outputting a selection signal in response to a signal from means 30 for detecting the motion state of an observer of an image, and means for storing a plurality of image data in accordance with the selection signal. 11a,
Means 1a and 1b for reading image data from 11b and means 3 for displaying an image corresponding to the read image data are provided. [Effect] It is possible to provide a virtual reality system having high image quality at a low price and in a small space.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention provides an artificial reality as if one were actually walking through in a virtual environment, an artificial reality as if one were actually performing various tasks using a simulator, etc. The present invention relates to an image display system used for forming a virtual environment in a virtual reality system for obtaining.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a virtual reality system, since a virtual environment is formed by a computer graphic image (CGI), the size and color of an object forming the virtual environment is changed every time the motion state of an observer of an image changes. Image data is obtained by performing calculations based on the corresponding coordinate data. Therefore, in order to generate a high-definition image in real time corresponding to the motion state of the observer of the image, a computer capable of high-speed calculation is required.

[0003]

However, since such a computer capable of high-speed calculation is expensive and large, it requires a large installation space.

In view of the above-mentioned prior art, it is an object of the present invention to provide an image display system which can be used for constructing a virtual reality system which is low in cost and space-saving.

[0005]

An image display system according to the present invention comprises means for storing a plurality of image data, means for detecting a motion state of an observer of an image, and the detected motion state of the observer. It is characterized by further comprising means for outputting a corresponding selection signal, means for reading out image data from the storage means in response to the selection signal, and means for displaying an image corresponding to the read image data. .

The plurality of image data can be stored in a laser disk, and the image data can be read by a laser disk player (LDP). The image data can be created by computer graphic technology, for example. The image is, for example, a head mounted display device (HMD) mounted on the observer's head.
Can be displayed. As the motion state of the observer, for example, by detecting the motion state of the head of the observer by a head motion sensor (HMS), the motion state corresponding to the line-of-sight direction can be detected.

[0007]

According to the image display system of the present invention, the storage area of each image data is associated with the exercise state of the observer, and the image data is read from the storage area corresponding to the exercise state and displayed. You can Therefore, by creating a plurality of image data corresponding to the exercise state of the observer in advance and storing each image data in the storage area associated with the exercise state, It is possible to visually recognize an image corresponding to. Also,
By creating and storing the image data in advance, compared with the case where the image data is created for each change of the observer's motion state, it can be generated by a large-scale computer capable of high-speed calculation without requiring high-speed calculation. High-resolution images equivalent to can be displayed in real time. As a result, the virtual reality system having high image quality can be provided at a low price and in a small space.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

The image display system shown in FIG. 1 includes two laser disc players 1a and 1b, a head-mounted display device 3 mounted on the head of an observer 2, a control device which can be constituted by a personal computer or the like. 4 and.

Each laser disc player 1a, 1b
Reads image data from the laser disks 11a and 11b in response to a selection signal (described later) sent from the control device 4, and sends the read image data to the head-mounted display device 3 as an image signal.

The head-mounted display device 3 has a pair of left and right display portions 21a and 21b, and a head-mounted holding portion 22 that holds both the display portions 21a and 21b. As shown in FIG. 2, the holding part 22 can be mounted on the head of the observer 2, for example, by making it into a helmet shape, and by mounting the holding part 22, both the display parts 21 a and 21 b can be seen in the visual field of the observer 2. Position it at a fixed position.

Each of the display units 21a and 21b has a CR
Display elements 26a and 26b such as a T and a liquid crystal display panel, and display control devices 27a and 27b for the respective display elements 26a and 26b.
And an optical system. Each display control device 27a, 27b
Sends the image signal sent from each laser disc player 1a, 1b to each display element 26a, 26b, and causes each display element 26a, 26b to display an image corresponding to the image signal. Each optical system includes lens systems 29a and 29b, mirrors 30a and 30b, first combiners 31a and 31b, and
It has 2nd combiners 32a and 32b. The display light of the image displayed by each of the display elements 26a and 26b is reflected by the mirrors 30a and 30b and the first combiners 31a and 31b via the lens systems 29a and 29b, and the second
The light is reflected by the combiners 32a and 32b, focused, transmitted through the first combiners 31a and 31b, and guided to the eyes of the observer 2. As a result, the display image on the one display unit 21a is visually recognized by the left and right eyes of the observer 2, and the display image on the other display unit 21b is visually recognized by the other left and right eyes of the observer 2. By displaying different images on the one display unit 21a and the other display unit 21b, the observer 2 can visually recognize the stereoscopic image. In addition,
In front of the second combiners 32a and 32b, the visor 35 is attached to the holding portion 22 so as to be vertically movable. By displacing the visor 35 downward, the observer 2 can visually recognize only the display images by the display elements 26a and 26b.
By displacing the visor 35 upward, the observer 2 can visually recognize not only the display images by the display elements 26a and 26b but also the objects in the front visual fields of the combiners 31a, 31b, 32a and 32b.

A head motion sensor 30 for detecting the movement of the head of the observer 2 is provided. The head motion sensor 30 is a known one, for example, the holding unit 2.
A coil having a coil attached to 2 and a means for generating a magnetic field around the coil, outputting a signal corresponding to a change in current caused by the movement of the coil in the magnetic field, and an ultrasonic transmitter. And the receiver, the transmitter is attached to the fixed side, the receiver is attached to the holder 22, and a signal is output according to the change in the arrival time of the ultrasonic wave from the transmitter to the receiver due to the movement of the receiver. The thing etc. can be used. A signal corresponding to the movement of the head of the observer 2 detected by the head motion sensor 30 is transmitted to the control device 4.

The control device 4 uses the signal from the head motion sensor 30 to output a selection signal corresponding to the movement of the head of the observer 2 to each of the laser disc players 1a and 1a.
Output to 1b. The selection signal is the laser disc 11
This is a control signal for designating the storage area of the image data in a and 11b. Each of the specified storage areas,
An observer 2 who stores the image data forming the screen of one frame and is detected by the head motion sensor 30.
Is associated in advance with the motion state of the head. This allows
According to the selection signal, each laser disc player 1
a and 1b are from the laser discs 11a and 11b to the observer 2
The image data corresponding to the movement of the head of the head is read out and transmitted as an image signal to the head-mounted display device 3. The image data can be created by computer graphic technology according to the application, and for example, the entire virtual world can be created by a computer and stored in the laser disk 11. When the viewer 2 recognizes the image as a stereoscopic image, the image data for the right eye is stored in the laser disk 11a whose data is read by one laser disk player 1a, and the other laser disk player 1b.
The image data for the left eye is stored in the laser disk 11b for reading the data.

According to the above construction, the storage area of each image data can be associated with the movement state of the head of the observer 2, and the image data can be read out from the storage area corresponding to the movement state and displayed. Therefore, a plurality of image data corresponding to the motion state of the head of the observer 2 is created in advance, and each image data is stored in advance in the storage area associated with the motion state of the head, The observer 2 can visually recognize an image according to the motion state of his / her head. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, a screen A when the observer 2 faces forward
Image data for the right eye and image data for the left eye for generating, image data for the right eye and image data for the left eye for generating screen B when facing the right side, and image C for when facing the left side. Right-eye image data and left-eye image data to be generated are created in advance, and each of the right-eye image data is displayed on each of the screens A and B on the laser disk 11a whose data is read by one laser disk player 1a.
The image data for the left eye is stored in the storage areas corresponding to the respective Cs, and is stored in the storage areas corresponding to the respective screens A, B, and C in the laser disk 11a whose data is read by the other laser disk player 1b. . Thereby, when the head motion sensor 30 detects the motion state of the head corresponding to the observer 2 facing forward, the laser disk players 1a, 1
When a selection signal for instructing the reading of the image data from the storage area corresponding to the screen A is sent to b, the screen A is displayed on the head-mounted display device 3, and the observer 2 faces the right side. When the motion state of the corresponding head is detected by the head motion sensor 30, each laser disk player 1
A selection signal for instructing the reading of the image data from the storage area corresponding to the screen B is sent to a and 1b, the screen B is displayed on the head-mounted display device 3, and the observer 2 turns to the left side. When the head motion sensor 30 detects the motion state of the corresponding head while the head is in motion, a selection signal instructing to read the image data from the storage area corresponding to the screen C is sent to each of the laser disk players 1a and 1b, The screen C is displayed on the component-mounted display device 3. That is, the observer 2 can see the stereoscopic image in the desired direction.

According to the above-mentioned image display system, since the image data is created and stored in advance, high-speed calculation is required as compared with the case where the image data is created each time the movement state of the head of the observer 2 changes. Without doing so, a high-definition image equivalent to that generated by a large-scale computer capable of high-speed calculation can be displayed in real time. As a result, the virtual reality system having high image quality can be provided at a low price and in a small space.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the head motion sensor 30 that detects the motion state of the head of the observer 2 is used to display the image according to the line-of-sight direction of the observer 2. However, the image display according to the line-of-sight direction is displayed. Alternatively, or by using a data glove that detects the position of the hand and the movement of the fingers of the observer 2 together with the image display according to the direction of the line of sight,
An image according to the walking distance and walking speed of the observer 2 is displayed by using the belt conveyor-like sensor that rotates according to the movement state of the hand of the observer or rotates according to the movement of the leg of the observer 2. It is also possible to display or display an image that changes according to the operation of the joystick or the like. Further, the storage means of the image data is not limited to the laser disc, and the reading of the image data is not limited to the laser disc player,
For example, the image data stored in the magneto-optical disk may be read by the magneto-optical disk player.

[0018]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION In the image display system of the present invention, an image is displayed by a head-mounted display device mounted on the observer's head, and a motion state corresponding to the observer's line-of-sight direction is detected, and the head thereof is detected. The mount display device has a pair of display parts corresponding to the left and right eyes,
It is preferable that different images can be displayed on one display unit and the other display unit. This allows the observer to visually recognize the stereoscopic image in the line-of-sight direction.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a configuration of an image display system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a usage example of the head-mounted display device of the image display system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a display screen of the image display system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1a, 1b Laser disk player 2 Observer 3 Head-mounted display device 4 Control device 11a, 11b Laser disk 30 Head motion sensor

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A means for storing a plurality of image data, a means for detecting a motion state of an observer of an image, a means for outputting a selection signal according to the detected motion state of an observer, and selection thereof. An image display system comprising: a unit for reading image data from the storage unit in response to a signal; and a unit for displaying an image corresponding to the read image data.