Head-mounted display systems with power saving functionality
Head-mounted display systems with power saving functionality are disclosed. The systems can include a frame configured to be supported on the head of the user. The systems can also include a head-mounted display disposed on the frame, one or more sensors, and processing electronics in communication with the display and the one or more sensors. In some implementations, the processing electronics can be configured to cause the system to reduce power of one or more components in response to at least in part on a determination that the frame is in a certain position (e.g., upside-down or on top of the head of the user). In some implementations, the processing electronics can be configured to cause the system to reduce power of one or more components in response to at least in part on a determination that the frame has been stationary for at least a threshold period of time.
1 . A head-mounted display system configured to project light to an eye of a user to display augmented reality image content in a vision field of said user, said head-mounted display system comprising:
a frame configured to be supported on a head of the user in an upright position;
a head-mounted display disposed on the frame, said display configured to project light into said user's eye to display augmented reality image content to the user's vision field, at least a portion of said display being transparent and disposed at a location in front of the user's eye when the user wears the frame in the upright position such that said transparent portion transmits light from a portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display to the user's eye to provide a view of said portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display;
one or more sensors that comprise one or more inertial measurement units (IMUs) configured to measure change in the orientation of the frame; and
processing electronics in communication with the display and the one or more sensors, the processing electronics configured to:
receive a signal from the one or more sensors;
determine whether the frame is in an upside-down position based at least in part on the signal received from the one or more sensors by:
receiving measurements from the one or more IMUs; and
analyzing the received measurements to determine whether the frame has been flipped over with respect to the upright position based at least in part on the measurements from the one or more IMUs, wherein the frame is in the upside-down position if the frame has been flipped over with respect to the upright position, and wherein the frame has been flipped over when the frame has been rotated from 160 degrees to 200 degrees with respect to the upright position; and
cause the head-mounted display system to reduce power of one or more components of the head-mounted display system in response to at least in part on a determination that the frame is in the upside-down position.
2 . A head-mounted display system configured to project light to an eye of a user to display augmented reality image content in a vision field of said user, said head-mounted display system comprising:
a frame configured to be supported on a head of the user in an upright position;
a head-mounted display disposed on the frame, said display configured to project light into said user's eye to display augmented reality image content to the user's vision field, at least a portion of said display being transparent and disposed at a location in front of the user's eye when the user wears the frame in the upright position such that said transparent portion transmits light from a portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display to the user's eye to provide a view of said portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display;
one or more sensors that comprise an inward-facing imaging system and/or an outward-facing imaging system; and
processing electronics in communication with the display and the one or more sensors, the processing electronics configured to:
receive a signal from the one or more sensors;
determine whether the frame is in the upside-down position by:
receiving images from the inward-facing imaging system and/or the outward-facing imaging system; and
analyzing the images to determine whether the frame has been flipped over with respect to the upright position, wherein the frame is in the upside-down position if the images comprise image content oriented as if the frame has been flipped over with respect to the upright position; and
cause the head-mounted display system to reduce power of one or more components of the head-mounted display system in response to at least in part on a determination that the frame is in the upside-down position.
3 . The display system of claim 2 , wherein the frame has been flipped over when the frame has been rotated from 160 degrees to 200 degrees with respect to the upright position.
4 . A head-mounted display system configured to project light to an eye of a user to display augmented reality image content in a vision field of said user, said head-mounted display system comprising:
a frame configured to be supported on a head of the user in an upright position;
a head-mounted display disposed on the frame, said display configured to project light into said user's eye to display augmented reality image content to the user's vision field, at least a portion of said display being transparent and disposed at a location in front of the user's eye when the user wears the frame in the upright position such that said transparent portion transmits light from a portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display to the user's eye to provide a view of said portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display;
one or more sensors that comprise one or more pressure sensors configured to sense pressure exerted on at least a portion of a top edge of the frame by a support surface as the frame is positioned in an upside-down position on the support surface; and
processing electronics in communication with the display and the one or more sensors, the processing electronics configured to:
receive a signal from the one or more pressure sensors;
determine whether the frame is in the upside-down position on the support surface based at least in part on the signal received from the one or more pressure sensors by sensing the pressure exerted by the support surface on the at least a portion of the top edge of the frame; and
cause the head-mounted display system to reduce power of one or more components of the head-mounted display system in response to at least in part on a determination that the frame is in the upside-down position.
5 . The display system of claim 1 , wherein processing electronics is configured to cause the display system to reduce the power of the one or more components by dimming or turning off a light source of the display.
6 . The display system of claim 1 , wherein processing electronics is configured to cause the display system to reduce the power of the one or more components by reducing a refresh rate associated with the display.
7 . The display system of claim 1 , wherein processing electronics is configured to cause the display system to reduce the power of the one or more components by reducing the power of the one or more sensors.
8 . The display system of claim 1 , wherein processing electronics is configured to cause the display system to reduce the power of the one or more components by causing the display system to enter a sleep mode.
9 . The display system of claim 1 , wherein the display system is configured to provide an alert to the user indicating that the display system is reducing the power of the one or more components of the display system.
10 . The display system of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to cause the display system to increase the power of the one or more components in response to at least in part on a determination that the frame is no longer in the upside-down position.
11 . A head-mounted display system configured to project light to an eye of a user to display augmented reality image content in a vision field of said user, said head-mounted display system comprising:
a frame configured to be supported on a head of the user in an upright position;
a head-mounted display disposed on the frame, said display configured to project light into said user's eye to display augmented reality image content to the user's vision field, at least a portion of said display being transparent and disposed at a location in front of the user's eye when the user wears the frame in the upright position such that said transparent portion transmits light from a portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display to the user's eye to provide a view of said portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display;
one or more sensors; and
processing electronics in communication with the display and the one or more sensors, the processing electronics configured to:
receive a signal from the one or more sensors;
determine whether the frame is in an upside-down position based at least in part on the signal received from the one or more sensors;
cause the head-mounted display system to reduce power of one or more components of the head-mounted display system in response to at least in part on a determination that the frame is in the upside-down position; and
cause the display system to increase the power of the one or more components in response to at least in part on a determination that the frame is no longer in the upside-down position by determining that the frame is supported on the head of the user such that said display is configured to project light into said user's eye to display augmented reality image content to the user's vision field.
12 . The display system of claim 1 , comprising one or more inward-facing cameras and/or one or more outward-facing cameras, said one or more inward-facing cameras and/or one or more outward-facing cameras being configured to sense the user and/or the surroundings of the user even when the power of the one or more components has been reduced.
13 . The display system of claim 1 , wherein the display is configured to project light into said user's eye to display augmented reality image content to the user's vision field at different amounts of divergences as if projected from different distances from the user's eye.
14 . A head-mounted display system configured to project light to an eye of a user to display augmented reality image content in a vision field of said user, said head-mounted display system comprising:
a frame configured to be supported on a head of the user in an upright position;
a head-mounted display disposed on the frame, said display configured to project light into said user's eye to display augmented reality image content to the user's vision field, at least a portion of said display being transparent and disposed at a location in front of the user's eye when the user wears the frame in the upright position such that said transparent portion transmits light from a portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display to the user's eye to provide a view of said portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display;
one or more sensors that comprise one or more proximity sensors configured to sense the frame approach or contact a support surface as the frame is positioned in an upside-down position on the support surface; and
processing electronics in communication with the display and the one or more sensors, the processing electronics configured to:
receive a signal from the one or more proximity sensors;
determine whether the frame is in the upside-down position based at least in part on the signal received from the one or more proximity sensors by sensing the frame approach or contact the support surface using the one or more proximity sensors; and
cause the head-mounted display system to reduce power of one or more components of the head-mounted display system in response to at least in part on a determination that the frame is in the upside-down position.
15 . A head-mounted display system configured to project light to an eye of a user to display augmented reality image content in a vision field of said user, said head-mounted display system comprising:
a frame configured to be supported on a head of the user in an upright position;
a head-mounted display disposed on the frame, said display configured to project light into said user's eye to display augmented reality image content to the user's vision field, at least a portion of said display being transparent and disposed at a location in front of the user's eye when the user wears the frame in the upright position such that said transparent portion transmits light from a portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display to the user's eye to provide a view of said portion of the environment in front of the user and said head-mounted display;
one or more sensors comprise one or more light sensors configured to sense the frame approach or contact a support surface as the frame is positioned in an upside-down position on the support surface; and
processing electronics in communication with the display and the one or more sensors, the processing electronics configured to:
receive a signal from the one or more light sensors;
determine whether the frame is in the upside-down position based at least in part on the signal received from the one or more light sensors by sensing the frame approach or contact the support surface using the one or more light sensors; and
cause the head-mounted display system to reduce power of one or more components of the head-mounted display system in response to at least in part on a determination that the frame is in the upside-down position.
16 . The display system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more sensors comprise multiple sensors on different portions of the frame.