Displays with viewer tracking

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12348704-B2
Application number	US-202318355774-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 20, 2023
Priority date	May 12, 2020
Publication date	Jul 1, 2025
Grant date	Jul 1, 2025

Abstract

An electronic device may include a lenticular display. The lenticular display may have a lenticular lens film formed over an array of pixels. The lenticular lenses may be configured to enable stereoscopic viewing of the display such that a viewer perceives three-dimensional images. The display may have a number of independently controllable viewing zones. A eye and/or head tracking system may use a camera to capture images of a viewer of the display. Control circuitry in the electronic device may use the captured images from the eye and/or head tracking system to determine which viewing zones are occupied by the viewer's eyes. The control circuitry may disable or dim viewing zones that are not occupied by the viewer's eyes in order to conserve power. An unoccupied viewing zone and an adjacent, occupied viewing zone may display the same image to increase sharpness in the display.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An electronic device comprising a display with a plurality of independently controllable viewing zones, wherein the electronic device is configured to display three-dimensional content, and wherein the display comprises:
an array of pixels;
a lenticular lens film formed over the array of pixels; and
control circuitry configured to display a same image in at least two adjacent independently controllable viewing zones of the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones, wherein the same image is based on the three-dimensional content.

2. The electronic device defined in claim 1 , wherein the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones is distributed across a primary viewing cone.

3. The electronic device defined in claim 2 , wherein the primary viewing cone has first and second opposing edges, wherein a first independently controllable viewing zone of the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones is adjacent to the first edge, wherein a second independently controllable viewing zone of the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones is adjacent to the second edge, wherein the control circuitry is configured to display a first additional image in the first independently controllable viewing zone and wherein the control circuitry is configured to display a second additional image in the second independently controllable viewing zone.

4. The electronic device defined in claim 3 , wherein the at least two adjacent independently controllable viewing zones are interposed between the first and second independently controllable viewing zones.

5. The electronic device defined in claim 1 , wherein each one of the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones has an associated viewing angle.

6. The electronic device defined in claim 5 , wherein the viewing angle is between 0 degrees and 4 degrees.

7. The electronic device defined in claim 1 , wherein the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones comprises more than 10 independently controllable viewing zones.

8. The electronic device defined in claim 1 , wherein the control circuitry is configured to display the same image in three adjacent independently controllable viewing zones of the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones.

9. The electronic device defined in claim 1 , further comprising:
a camera configured to capture images, wherein control circuitry is configured to determine eye position the information from the captured images.

10. The electronic device defined in claim 9 , wherein the control circuitry is configured to determine that one of the at least two adjacent independently controllable viewing zones is occupied based on the eye position information.

11. An electronic device comprising a display with a plurality of independently controllable viewing zones, wherein the display is configured to display a three-dimensional image and wherein the display comprises:
an array of pixels;
a lenticular lens film formed over the array of pixels; and
control circuitry configured to, based on the three-dimensional image, display a same image in two non-adjacent independently controllable viewing zones of the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones.

12. The electronic device defined in claim 11 , wherein there are multiple independently controllable viewing zones of the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones interposed between the two non-adjacent independently controllable viewing zones.

13. The electronic device defined in claim 11 , wherein each one of the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones has an associated viewing angle.

14. The electronic device defined in claim 13 , wherein the viewing angle is less than 5 degrees.

15. The electronic device defined in claim 11 , wherein the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones comprises more than 10 independently controllable viewing zones.

16. The electronic device defined in claim 11 , further comprising:
a camera configured to capture images, wherein the control circuitry is configured to determine eye position information from the captured images.

17. The electronic device defined in claim 16 , wherein the control circuitry is configured to determine that one of the two non-adjacent independently controllable viewing zones is occupied based on the eye position information.

18. An electronic device comprising:
a display with an array of pixels and a lenticular lens film formed over the array of pixels, wherein the display has a plurality of independently controllable viewing zones, wherein the plurality of independently controllable viewing zones is distributed across a primary viewing cone, wherein there is a secondary viewing cone associated with the primary viewing cone that is a dimmer version of the primary viewing cone, wherein the primary viewing cone has first and second opposing sides, and wherein the secondary viewing cone at least partially overlaps the primary viewing cone along an edge of the primary viewing cone on the first side; and
control circuitry configured to:
display an image in a first independently controllable viewing zone that is on the first side of the primary viewing cone; and
display the image in a second independently controllable viewing zone that is on the second side of the primary viewing cone, wherein the secondary viewing cone includes a duplicate version of the first independently controllable viewing zone and wherein the duplicate version of the first independently controllable viewing zone overlaps the second independently controllable viewing zone.

19. The electronic device defined in claim 18 , further comprising:
a camera configured to capture images, wherein the control circuitry is configured to determine eye position information from the captured images.

20. The electronic device defined in claim 19 , wherein the control circuitry is configured to display the image in the first independently controllable viewing zone based on the eye position information.

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Huang Yi-Pai
• Bacim De Araujo E Silva Felipe
• Chou Ping-Yen
• Kim Byoungsuk
• Wang Chaohao
• Huang Yi
• Rockwell Michael J
• Kim Seung Wook
• Mascarenhas Pretesh A

Classifications

• H04N13/133

  Equalising the characteristics of different image components, e.g. their average brightness or colour balance · CPC title

• H04N13/368

  for two or more viewers · CPC title

• H04N13/305

  using lenticular lenses, e.g. arrangements of cylindrical lenses · CPC title

• H04N13/383 Primary

  for tracking with gaze detection, i.e. detecting the lines of sight of the viewer's eyes · CPC title

• H04N13/398

  Synchronisation thereof; Control thereof · CPC title