IP Library Granted Patent US 9,619,939
Granted Patent B2
US 9,619,939 · App. 13/956,231 · Granted Apr 11, 2017

Mixed reality graduated information delivery

Inventors: Thomas George Salter (Seattle, WA); Ben Sugden (Woodinville, WA); Daniel Deptford (Redmond, WA); Robert Crocco, Jr. (Seattle, WA); Brian Keane (Bellevue, WA); Laura Massey (Redmond, WA); Alex Kipman (Redmond, WA); Peter Tobias Kinnebrew (Seattle, WA); Nicholas Kamuda (Seattle, WA)
Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
G06T19/006G02B27/017G06F3/011G02B27/0093G02B2027/0178G06F3/0346G06F3/04815
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 9,619,939
App. No.
13/956,231
Granted
Apr 11, 2017
Kind
B2
Abstract

Embodiments that relate to presenting a plurality of visual information density levels for a plurality of geo-located data items in a mixed reality environment are disclosed. For example, in one disclosed embodiment a graduated information delivery program receives information for a selected geo-located data item and provides a minimum visual information density level for the item to a head-mounted display device. The program receives via the head-mounted display device a user input corresponding to the selected geo-located data item. Based on the input, the program provides an increasing visual information density level for the selected item to the head-mounted display device for display within the mixed reality environment.

Claims (55)

1. A mixed reality system for presenting a plurality of visual information density levels for a plurality of geo-located data items in a mixed reality environment, the visual information density levels comprising a minimum visual information density level and a plurality of increasing visual information density levels that each have greater visual information density levels than the minimum visual information density level, the mixed reality system comprising:

a head-mounted display device operatively connected to a computing device, the head-mounted display device including a display system for presenting the plurality of visual information density levels within the mixed reality environment;

a memory device; and

a graduated information delivery program stored in the memory device and executed by a processor of the computing device, the graduated information delivery program configured to:

receive information for a selected geo-located data item;

provide the minimum visual information density level for the selected geo-located data item to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device within the mixed reality environment;

receive via the head-mounted display device a user input corresponding to the selected geo-located data item;

based on the user input, provide one of the increasing visual information density levels for the selected geo-located data item to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device within the mixed reality environment; and

when a spatial information density of geo-located data item information in the mixed reality environment is below a predetermined threshold, provide one of the increasing visual information density levels for the selected geo-located data item, wherein the spatial information density comprises a percentage of a unit area of a display of the head-mounted display device that is occupied by displayed geo-located data item information.

2. The mixed reality system of claim 1 , wherein the graduated information delivery program is further configured to:

receive location data of the head-mounted display device; and

based on the head-mounted display device moving closer to a location of the selected geo-located data item, provide one or more of the increasing visual information density levels for the selected geo-located data item to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device.

3. The mixed reality system of claim 1 , wherein the increasing visual information density levels occupy increasing amounts of visual space within the mixed reality environment.

4. The mixed reality system of claim 1 , wherein the graduated information delivery program is further configured to:

receive information for two or more geo-located data items;

determine that, as displayed via the head-mounted display device, the geo-located data items would be separated by a predetermined distance or less;

based on the separation of the geo-located data items, collapse the geo-located data items into an aggregated geo-located data item; and

provide the minimum visual information density level for the aggregated geo-located data item to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device within the mixed reality environment.

5. The mixed reality system of claim 4 , wherein the graduated information delivery program is further configured to:

receive via the head-mounted display device a user input corresponding to the aggregated geo-located data item; and

based on the user input, expand the aggregated geo-located data item to provide an increasing visual information density level for each of the two or more geo-located data items to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device within the mixed reality environment.

6. The mixed reality system of claim 1 , wherein the user input is selected from the group consisting of eye tracking data, gesture data, head pose data, voice data, and hand-held indicator data.

7. The mixed reality system of claim 1 , wherein the graduated information delivery program is further configured to segregate the information into the plurality of information detail levels.

8. The mixed reality system of claim 1 , wherein the geo-located data items are selected from the group consisting of social networking data, image data, recommendation/review data, and entity description data.

9. In a head-mounted display device, a method for presenting a plurality of visual information density levels for a plurality of geo-located data items in a mixed reality environment, the visual information density levels comprising a minimum visual information density level and a plurality of increasing visual information density levels that each have greater visual information density levels than the minimum visual information density level, the method comprising:

receiving information for a selected geo-located data item;

providing the minimum visual information density level for the selected geo-located data item to a display system for display by the head-mounted display device within the mixed reality environment;

receiving a user input corresponding to the selected geo-located data item;

based on the user input, providing one of the increasing visual information density levels for the selected geo-located data item to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device within the mixed reality environment; and

when a spatial information density of geo-located data item information in the mixed reality environment is below a predetermined threshold, provide one of the increasing visual information density levels for the selected geo-located data item, wherein the spatial information density comprises a percentage of a unit area of a display of the head-mounted display device that is occupied by displayed geo-located data item information.

10. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:

receiving location data of the head-mounted display device; and

based on the head-mounted display device moving closer to a location of the selected geo-located data item, providing one or more of the increasing visual information density levels for the selected geo-located data item to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein the increasing visual information density levels occupy increasing amounts of visual space within the mixed reality environment.

12. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:

receiving information for two or more geo-located data items;

determining that, as displayed via the head-mounted display device, the geo-located data items would be separated by a predetermined distance or less;

based on the separation of the geo-located data items, collapsing the geo-located data items into an aggregated geo-located data item; and

providing the minimum visual information density level for the aggregated geo-located data item to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device within the mixed reality environment.

13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:

receiving via the head-mounted display device a user input corresponding to the aggregated geo-located data item; and

based on the user input, expanding the aggregated geo-located data item to provide an increasing visual information density level for each of the two or more geo-located data items to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device within the mixed reality environment.

14. The method of claim 9 , wherein the user input is selected from the group consisting of eye tracking data, gesture data, head pose data, voice data, and hand-held indicator data.

15. The method of claim 9 , further comprising segregating the information into the plurality of information detail levels.

16. The method of claim 9 , wherein the geo-located data items are selected from the group consisting of social networking data, image data, recommendation/review data, and entity description data.

17. In a head-mounted display device, a method for presenting a plurality of visual information density levels for a plurality of geo-located data items in a mixed reality environment, the visual information density levels comprising a minimum visual information density level and a plurality of increasing visual information density levels that each have greater visual information density levels than the minimum visual information density level, the method comprising:

receiving information for a selected geo-located data item;

segregating the information into the plurality of information detail levels;

providing the minimum visual information density level for the selected geo-located data item to a display system for display by the head-mounted display device within the mixed reality environment;

receiving a user input corresponding to the selected geo-located data item;

based on the user input, providing one of the increasing visual information density levels for the selected geo-located data item to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device within the mixed reality environment;

receiving location data of a user of the head-mounted display device;

based on the user moving closer to a location of the selected geo-located data item, providing another of the increasing visual information density levels for the selected geo-located data item to the display system for display by the head-mounted display device as the user; and

when a spatial information density of geo-located data item information in the mixed reality environment is below a predetermined threshold, provide one of the increasing visual information density levels for the selected geo-located data item, wherein the spatial information density comprises a percentage of a unit area of a display of the head-mounted display device that is occupied by displayed geo-located data item information.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the increasing visual information density levels occupy increasing amounts of visual space within the mixed reality environment.

Assignments (2)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jan 13, 2016
From: SALTER, THOMAS GEORGE; SUGDEN, BEN; DEPTFORD, DANIEL; CROCCO, ROBERT, JR; KEANE, BRIAN; MASSEY, LAURA; KIPMAN, ALEX; KINNEBREW, PETER TOBIAS; KAMUDA, NICHOLAS
To: MICROSOFT CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 037482/0280 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jan 9, 2015
From: MICROSOFT CORPORATION
To: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
Reel/Frame 039025/0454 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20150035861A1 · Feb 5, 2015