Microsoft Invents Projector Eyewear for Xbox & Beyond
[Philip Lelyveld comment: this is an in-depth commentary on the Microsoft patent filing.]
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Microsoft's Virtual Image Displays for Glasses
In Microsoft's patent FIG. 1 shown below we see an example head-mounted display device (10) which is an example of video-display eyewear. Although the eyewear may closely resemble an ordinary pair of eyeglasses or sunglasses, the fact is that the device includes a pair of projectors (12A and 12B) which project virtual display images for view by a wearer. More particularly, the virtual display images are projected directly in front of the wearer's eyes. To this end, the device includes a wearable mount configured to position the projectors a short distance in front of the wearer's eyes.
In the illustrated embodiment, the wearable mount takes the form of conventional eyeglass frames (14). In one embodiment, each projector may project a 16:9 aspect ratio image that will appear to the wearer as if it were 21 inches in diagonal and viewed at arm's length. The device also includes controller 16, which controls the internal componentry of the projectors in order to form the virtual display images.
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