Cover-Uncover Test in a VR/AR Headset

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2024049963-A1
Application number	US-202318447936-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Aug 10, 2023
Priority date	Aug 11, 2022
Publication date	Feb 15, 2024
Grant date	—

Abstract

Virtual reality, VR, headset-based and augmented reality, AR, headset-based electronic systems that can be used to perform cover/uncover tests. The systems may improve the sensitivity, consistency, and ease of application of the cover/uncover test. Other aspects are also described.

First claim

1 . A virtual reality, VR, headset-based system comprising:
a VR headset comprising
a left visible light display;
a left compartment to fit over a left eye of a user;
a right visible light display;
a right compartment to fit over a right eye of the user, wherein the left compartment and the right compartment are configured so that when the VR headset has been fitted over the user's eyes i) the user cannot see the right visible light display using only their left eye and ii) the user cannot see the left visible light display using only their right eye, and
a non-visible light-based eye tracking subsystem for tracking a position of the left eye and a position of the right eye; and
a processor configured to, when the VR headset has been fitted over the left eye and the right eye of the user,
i) signal the left visible light display and the right visible light display to display an object that the user sees as a single object while the left eye and the right eye are open,
ii) record the tracked position of the left eye while signaling the left visible light display to stop displaying the object while the object remains displayed in the right visible light display, and
iii) record the tracked position of the right eye while signaling the right visible light display to stop displaying the object while the object remains displayed in the left visible light display.

2 . The system of claim 1 wherein the processor signals the left visible light display so the object disappears from the left visible light display but remains displayed as stationary in the right visible light display.

3 . The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is external to the VR headset, and the VR headset comprises a wired or wireless communications network interface through which image data from the eye tracking subsystem is sent to the processor.

4 . The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is external to the VR headset, and the VR headset comprises a wired or wireless communications network interface through which the tracked positions of the left eye and the right eye are sent to the processor.

5 . The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is further configured to signal a further display to display the tracked positions of the left eye and the right eye.

6 . The system of claim 1 wherein the eye tracking subsystem images an entirety of the left eye and an entirety of the right eye, and wherein the processor determines gaze angles of the left eye and the right eye based on:
knowledge of distance between the left eye and the left visible light display;
distance between the right eye and the right visible display, and
location of a left pupil within the left eye and a right pupil within the right eye, or interpupillary distance.

7 . The system of claim 1 wherein the processor signaling the left display or the right display to stop displaying the object comprises
the processor signaling the left display or the right display to darken until the object disappears.

8 . The system of claim 7 wherein the processor signaling the left display or the right display to stop displaying the object comprises
the processor signaling the left display or the right display to darken completely.

9 . The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is further configured to, before ii) and iii) and while the user fixates on the object,
iv) record a combined calibration position of the left eye and a combined calibration position of the right eye while the left and right visible light displays are simultaneously displaying the object that the user would see as a single object, while their left and right eyes are both open simultaneously, if their eyes were centered.

10 . The system of claim 1 wherein the processor is further configured to:
in ii), record the tracked position of the right eye as an individual right eye calibration position; and
in iii), record the tracked position of the left eye as an individual left eye calibration position; and
determine a deviation of the left eye or the right eye based on a difference between the combined calibrations positions in iv) and the individual right and left eye calibration positions.

11 . The system of claim 10 wherein the processor is further configured to prepare data for displaying the deviation of the left eye or the right eye.

12 . The system of claim 1 wherein the eye tracking subsystem for tracking the position of the left eye and the position of the right eye performs imaging of an entirety of the left eye and an entirety of the right eye, and the processor is configured to process said imaging to generate each of the tracked position of the left eye and the tracked position of the right eye as an absolute position with respect to the wearer's head, measure interpupillary distance, register virtual coordinates of the object to gaze coordinates, and define a virtual prism correction.

13 . The system of claim 12 wherein the processor is configured to display the virtual prism correction as a measure of tropia of the user.

14 . The system of claim 1 wherein the eye tracking subsystem performs imaging of i) an entirety of the left eye to produce an imaged left eye, and ii) an entirety of the right eye to produce an imaged right eye, and the processor is configured to:
shift coordinates of the object, resulting in shifted object coordinates, until the imaged right eye and the imaged left eye become aligned or centered; and
convert the shifted object coordinates to an angular position or to a prism diopter measurement, of the left eye or of the right eye.

15 . The system of claim 14 wherein the processor is configured to display the prism diopter measurement as a measure of tropia of the user.

16 . An augmented reality, AR, headset-based system, the system comprising:
an AR headset comprising
a left visible light subsystem positioned over a left eye of a user,
a right visible light subsystem positioned over a right eye of the user, wherein each respective visible light subsystem, of the left visible light subsystem and the right visible light subsystems, has i) a see-through mode of operation in which, with the AR headset fitted to a head of the user, the user can see an object that is in an ambient scene through the respective visible light subsystem, and ii) an occluded mode of operation in which the user cannot see the object that is in the ambient scene through the respective visible light subsystem,
a non-visible light-based eye tracking subsystem that can track a position of the left eye and a position of the right eye; and
a processor configured to, when the AR headset has been fitted to the head of the user,
i) record the tracked position of the left eye while simultaneously i) signaling the left visible light subsystem into the occluded mode of operation, and ii) signaling the right visible light subsystem into the see-through mode of operation, and
iii) record the tracked position of the right eye while simultaneously i) signaling the right visible light subsystem into the occluded mode of operation, and ii) signaling the left visible light subsystem into the see-through mode of operation.

17 . The system of claim 16 wherein the processor is external to the headset, and the headset comprises a wired or wireless communications network interface through which image data from the eye tracking subsystem is sent to the processor.

18 . The system of claim 16 wherein the processor is external to the headset, and the headset comprises a wired or wireless communications network interface

Assignees

• Twenty Twenty Therapeutics Llc

Inventors

• Sinha Supriyo
• Gossage Kirk
• Azar Dimitri

Classifications

• A61B3/113 Primary

  for determining or recording eye movement · CPC title

• G06T7/73

  using feature-based methods · CPC title

• G09G3/001

  using specific devices not provided for in groups G09G3/02 - G09G3/36, e.g. using an intermediate record carrier such as a film slide; Projection systems; Display of non-alphanumerical information, solely or in combination with alphanumerical information, e.g. digital display on projected diapositive as background (slide projectors per se G03B23/00 = 42 HP) · CPC title

• A61B3/0058

  for multiple images · CPC title

• A61B3/005

  Constructional features of the display · CPC title