CN1028385C

CN1028385C - Compact virtual image display

Info

Publication number: CN1028385C
Application number: CN92109020.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 卡伦·E·杰奇莫威克斯
Original assignee: Motorola Inc
Current assignee: Motorola Solutions Inc
Priority date: 1991-09-30
Filing date: 1992-08-06
Publication date: 1995-05-10
Anticipated expiration: 2007-08-06
Also published as: CN1071516A; JPH05210066A; JP2661480B2; EP0535401A1

Abstract

A compact virtual image display (10) including an LED array (25) providing a real image, a bundle of coherent fibre optics (14) tapered to provide magnification and mounted adjacent the real image, and a lens system (18) mounted adjacent the bundle of fibre optics (14) to further magnify the image and produce a virtual image at a viewing aperture.

Description

Compact virtual image display

The present invention relates to virtual image display, more particularly, relate to the compact virtual image display of higher enlargement ratio.

Virtual image display is popular in current portable and very little electronic installation such as electronic notebook, fields such as computing machine wireless and cellular telephone machine, credit cassette counter and hand size.Virtual image display adopts a lens amplifier to produce a big virtual image by a little real image.Littler and when wish producing the bigger virtual image when real image, need the lens of higher enlargement ratio.But the lens of higher enlargement ratio have limited the operating distance of visual field, eye-distance and lens in virtual image display, and this just means that lens combination must be very little and very close to eyes.At present, the enlargement ratio with suitable eye-distance is that 10 times lens manufacture also than being easier to, and will limit assembling mode but enlargement ratio surpasses 10 times.

On the compact virtual image display that has an eyesight, can realize solution and some other advantages to these problems, this display comprises the device that forms real image, a branch ofly determines one first and a second surface and tapered to produce the bonding optical fiber of predetermined enlargement ratio value from first surface to second surface, this restraints bonding optical fiber and is located at the first surface place that real image that position and this device produce adjoins, and the lens combination device is restrainted bonding optical fiber with the picture of reception from its second surface near this, and then produces a virtual image with this picture amplification and at the eyesight place.

Referring to accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is the rough schematic view that embodies the compact virtual image display of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is the simplified block diagram of the electronic circuit relevant with the compact virtual image display of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is the top view that the part of led array of the electronic circuit part of pie graph 2 is cut open.

Specifically referring to Fig. 1, rough schematic view is represented a compact virtual image display.Display 10 comprises in order to produce the device 12 of a real image on surface 13.A branch of bonding optical fiber 14 has the first surface 15 and the second surface 16 that be in fibre bundle 14 other ends of a position near the surface 13 of device 12.Be provided with to such an extent that spacing is arranged by the optical system of lens 18 expression, and produce the virtual image that the human eye 20 that can be left the unthreaded hole that is determined by lens 18 is watched with fibre bundle 14 with the surface 16 of fibre bundle 14.

Device 12 has been done more detailed expression in Fig. 2, and comprises the semiconductor electronic circuit such as light emitting diode (LED) array 25 that is driven by data processing circuit 27.Data processing circuit 27 comprises logic and the on-off circuit array in order to each LED in the control led array 25.Except logic and switch arrays, data processing circuit 27 also comprises in order to the microprocessor of handling input signal or similar circuit in the hope of produce required real image on the device such as led array 25.

Adopting led array 25 in this specific embodiment is owing to can reach minimum size and structure and simple to operate.Certainly, will be appreciated that, also can adopt other pictcure generator spare, include but are not limited to laser instrument, LCD, CRT etc.Specifically, illustrate led array 25, wherein the ranks layout of LED composition rule on a block semiconductor chip 30 referring to Fig. 3.By in the mode known by row and column to specific LED addressing, can drive specific LED and produce real image.Numeral or simulated data convert in the reception of input end 28 places and by data processing circuit 27 can drive selected LED to produce the signal of predetermined real image.

The people that are familiar with this area will appreciate that led array 25 and semi-conductor chip 30 have been amplified greatly among the figure.The actual size of semi-conductor chip 30 is in the magnitude of several mils of every length of side, and each LED is in the little magnitude to microinch of the length of side.Because semiconductor technology has reduced the size of chip, just need bigger enlargement ratio and littler lens combination.Reduce lens sizes and increase enlargement ratio will cause limiting widely the visual field, reduce eye-distance and reduced the operating distance of lens combination significantly.

The surface 15 of fibre bundle 14 is provided with near led array 25, thereby can obtain the real image by its generation, and this picture is sent to surface 16 by optical fiber.Fibre bundle 14 is tapered along its length direction, makes that the real image as specific surface 15 places at surperficial 16 places is big.Tapering among this embodiment can obtain surperficial 15 places as the big picture of twice at surperficial 16 places, promptly is equivalent to the enlargement ratio of twice.The people who is familiar with this area will appreciate that, can adopt higher enlargement ratio (tapering) if desired.

By the lens combination that lens 18 schematically show, be provided with to such an extent that spacing is arranged, thereby can obtain picture, it is amplified to predetermined additional multiple and forms the unthreaded hole that can watch the virtual image therein by surface 16 with the surface 16 of fibre bundle 14.In this embodiment, lens 18 will be as amplifying 10 times (10X) again, and feasible real image from led array 25 is exaggerated 20 times altogether.Certainly, will be appreciated that if desired, lens combination can be that focal length and additional enlargement ratio are adjustable, perhaps is fixed on for simplicity in the shell.Because lens 18 are big more than led array 25 from the picture that fibre bundle 14 obtains, lens combination does not provide whole enlargement ratios, thereby can make greatlyyer and have less enlargement ratio.Because size is bigger, this lens combination has bigger visual field and bigger operating distance.

Eye-distance is that human eye 20 is with respect to lens combination 18(eyesight) the residing and distance that still can watch picture aptly, this distance is represented with " d " in Fig. 1.Because the size of lens 18, eye-distance be enough to realize comfortable watching apart from d in other words, and must be enough to allow the beholder to wear common glasses when needed greatly in this embodiment.

So just introduced the compact virtual image display that obtains significant improvement, it can be used in combination with minimum led array, semi-conductor chip display device or any image source that other is suitable for.This compact virtual image display can be realized the enlargement ratio be scheduled to, and can not reduce the eye-distance or the operating distance of lens combination.And, allow to produce various very little real image as the electronic circuit of this compact virtual image display part, can the person of being operated convenient and cosily watch.

Claims

1, have the compact virtual image display (10) of an eyesight, this display is characterised in that:

In order to the device (12) that real image is provided;

A branch ofly determine one first (15) and one second (16) surface and tapered realizing the bonding optical fiber (14) of predetermined enlargement ratio from first surface (15) to second surface (16), this bundle optical fiber (14) setting surface (15) of winning is adjoined with the real image that installs (12) and provided; And

Be provided with to such an extent that contiguous this restrainted optical fiber (14) to obtain image and then enlarged image from its second surface (16) and to produce the lens combination (18) of a virtual image at eyesight.

2, the described compact virtual image display of claim 1, its feature also is: this bundle optical fiber (14) is tapered to be enough to provide the enlargement ratio of twice at least.

3, the described compact virtual image display of claim 2, its feature also is: lens combination (18) is provided with to such an extent that can further image be amplified at least ten times.

4, the described compact virtual image display of claim 1 is characterized in that: provide the device (12) of real image to be produced on the semiconductor chip (30).

5, the described compact virtual image display of claim 4, its feature also is: provide the device (12) of real image to comprise a light emitting diode matrix (25).

6, the described compact virtual image display of claim 4, its feature also is: the image generation electronic circuit (27) that links to each other with the device that real image is provided (12), device (12) produces real image according to the signal that obtains from electronic circuit (27).