Display systems and methods for determining vertical alignment between left and right displays and a user's eyes

Inventors

Vlaskamp, Bjorn Nicolaas Servatius

Assignees

Magic Leap Inc

Abstract

A wearable device may include a head-mounted display (HMD) for rendering a three-dimensional (3D) virtual object which appears to be located in an ambient environment of a user of the display. The relative positions of the HMD and one or more eyes of the user may not be in desired positions to receive image information outputted by the HMD. For example, the HMD-to-eye vertical alignment may be different between the left and right eyes. The wearable device may determine if the HMD is level on the user's head and may then provide the user with a left-eye alignment marker and a right-eye alignment marker. Based on user feedback, the wearable device may determine if there is any left-right vertical misalignment and may take actions to reduce or minimize the effects of any misalignment.

Core Innovation

The disclosure describes an augmented reality system with a head-mounted display configured to present virtual content by outputting light to a user. The head-mounted display includes a left-eye display configured to present virtual content to the user's left eye and a right-eye display configured to present virtual content to the user's right eye. The system provides, with the left-eye display, a left-eye alignment marker, and provides, with the right-eye display, a right-eye alignment marker.

The system receives user input to adjust at least one of the left-eye and the right-eye alignment markers. Based on the received user input, the system vertically adjusts image content in the at least one of the left-eye and the right-eye displays. The vertical adjustment is performed by adjusting one or more extrinsic parameters of at least one of a first render camera associated with the left-eye display and a second render camera associated with the right-eye display.

The disclosure further describes optional feedback using a level marker whose orientation changes with head-mounted display orientation. It also explains estimating interocular axis and eye pose using eye tracking, including use of corneal center, pupil center, centers of rotation or perspective, and optical versus visual axes. In addition, it describes a waveguide-stack architecture where vertical alignment can be calibrated per waveguide and optionally per depth plane or color.

Claims Coverage

The partial content includes two independent claims. Together, they cover an augmented reality system with separate left-eye and right-eye alignment markers, user-adjustment of the markers, and vertical correction of left/right image content using render-camera extrinsic parameter adjustment; one claim additionally covers pseudo- or quasi-random selection of marker vertical positions.

The core inventive coverage is the presentation of separate left-eye and right-eye alignment markers that a user can adjust, followed by vertical adjustment of left/right image content using extrinsic parameters of associated left/right render cameras. The second independent claim adds pseudo- or quasi-random selection of left and right marker vertical positions before receiving user input and performing the vertical adjustment.

Stated Advantages

Documented Applications