Methods and apparatus for displaying data

US4994794A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• GEC-Marconi Ltd. · GB

Inventors

• Donald R. Price · Lansing, US
• Colin J. Tredwell · Ashford, GB

Key dates

• Filing date: Jun 21, 1988
• Grant date: Feb 19, 1991
• Expiry date: Jun 21, 2008

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G02B2027/014
• WIPO field: Optics
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A data display method and apparatus for use in a vehicle, e.g. for use by the pilot of an aircraft, wherein each eye (EL, ER) of the user (23) is presented with a virtual image at infinity of a respective one of two largely identical displays (31L, 31R). By arranging for corresponding elements (33) of the two displays representative of a controller in the vehicle at a position accessible to the user to have a transverse positional disparity the virtual images of the corresponding elements appear to the user to fuse together to form a single image (I2) in a plane of the controller at a finite distance from the user within the vehicle thereby to facilitate operation of the controller by the user. Other corresponding elements (41, 43, 45, 47, 49) of the two displays (31L, 31R) will normally have no such positional disparity so that their virtual images fuse to present an image (I1) at infinity as in known binocular head-up display (HUD) systems. An aircraft pilot using a binocular HUD system is presented with an image of a control panel (37) in the aircraft to facilitate operation of the panel while using the HUD system.