Head-mounted display device with selective gamma band for high contrast ratio

1. A method, comprising:

at a virtual-reality device having a data generator, one or more processors, two or more gamma bands, and a display comprising a plurality of pixels;

for each pixel of the plurality of pixels:

generating an initial color value;

determining a respective gray-level value according to the generated color value;

generating one or more contextual markers based on luminance levels of one or more pixels surrounding the respective pixel;

selecting a respective gamma band corresponding to the determined respective gray-level value and the one or more contextual markers, wherein each gamma band has a distinct luminance target;

adjusting a respective luminance level of the respective pixel according to the respective selected gamma band; and

displaying the plurality of pixels according to the adjusted luminance levels.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the respective gray-level value for each of the plurality of pixels is performed in parallel.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the respective gray-level value for each of the plurality of pixels is performed serially.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more contextual markers for a first pixel, of the plurality of pixels, include the color values for pixels adjacent to the first pixel.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein a first pixel of the plurality of pixels has an adjusted luminance level that is greater than a luminance of the initial color values for the first pixel.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein a first pixel of the plurality of pixels has an adjusted luminance level that is less than a luminance of the initial color values for the first pixel.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the generating, determining, generating, selecting, adjusting, and displaying are repeated at a designated time frequency.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the designated time frequency is 30 times per second.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the display has a plurality of distinct backlight split zones, and the generating an initial color value, determining, generating one or more contextual markers, selecting, adjusting, and displaying are applied separately for each backlight split zone.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein selecting the respective gamma band for a first pixel of the plurality of pixels includes determining a location of the first pixel within the display.

11. A virtual-reality device comprising:

a display comprising a plurality of pixels;

one or more processors;

non-transitory memory; and

one or more programs stored in the non-transitory memory and configured to be executed by the one or more processors, the one or more programs including instructions for:

for each pixel of the plurality of pixels:

generating an initial color value;

determining a respective gray-level value according to the generated color value;

generating one or more contextual markers based on luminance levels of one or more pixels surrounding the respective pixel;

selecting a respective gamma band corresponding to the determined respective gray-level value and the one or more contextual markers, wherein each gamma band has a distinct luminance target;

adjusting a respective luminance level of the respective pixel according to the respective selected gamma band; and

displaying the plurality of pixels according to the adjusted luminance levels.

12. The device of claim 11 , wherein the one or more contextual markers for a first pixel of the plurality of pixels include the color values for pixels adjacent to the first pixel.

13. The device of claim 11 , wherein a first pixel of the plurality of pixels has an adjusted luminance level that is greater than a luminance of the initial color values for the first pixel.

14. The device of claim 11 , wherein a first pixel of the plurality of pixels has an adjusted luminance level that is less than a luminance of the initial color values for the first pixel.

15. The device of claim 11 , wherein the generating, determining, generating, selecting, adjusting, and displaying are repeated at a designated time frequency.

16. The device of claim 11 , wherein the display has a plurality of distinct backlight split zones, and the generating an initial color value, determining, generating one or more contextual markers, selecting, adjusting, and displaying are applied separately for each backlight split zone.

17. The device of claim 11 , wherein selecting the respective gamma band for a first pixel of the plurality of pixels includes determining a location of the first pixel within the display.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, storing one or more programs configured for execution by one or more processors of a virtual-reality device having a display with a plurality of pixels, the one or more programs including instructions for:

for each pixel of the plurality of pixels:

generating an initial color value;

determining a respective gray-level value according to the generated color value generating one or more contextual markers based on luminance levels of one or more pixels surrounding the respective pixel;

selecting a respective gamma band corresponding to the determined respective gray-level value and the one or more contextual markers, wherein each gamma band has a distinct luminance target;

adjusting a respective luminance level of the respective pixel according to the respective selected gamma band; and

displaying the plurality of pixels according to the adjusted luminance levels.