Systems and methods for providing a virtual heads up display in a vehicle simulator
AssigneeThe Boeing Company
InventorsCharles F Bell, David M Racek, Nicholas R Frederick, Stephen M Raabe
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Systems and methods for providing a virtual heads up display in a vehicle simulator include a vehicle simulator. The vehicle simulator includes a visual projector including visual system optics, a virtual heads up display (VHUD) projector mounted within the visual system optics of the visual projector and a projection screen configured to project images generated by the visual projector and the VHUD projector. The vehicle simulator also includes a VHUD eye reference frame mounted within the vehicle simulator, the VHUD eye reference frame configured to allow viewing therethrough of the projected images.
Claims20
A vehicle simulator system comprising:
- a visual projector including a visual system optics;
- a virtual heads up display (VHUD) projector mounted within the visual system optics of the visual projector;
- a projection screen configured to project images generated by the visual projector and the VHUD projector;
- and
- a VHUD eye reference frame mounted at eye level to a cabin shell of the vehicle simulator system, the VHUD eye reference frame comprising a wire frame with an empty space therein to allow viewing of the projected images, wherein the wire frame is attached via a mounting structure to the cabin shell such that the wire frame is movable.
A vehicle simulator system comprising:
- a cabin configured to receive therein a person, the cabin including at least one window;
- and
- a visual system optics configured to project a visual image and a virtual heads up display (VHUD) image generated by a simulator that is viewable by the person through at least one VHUD eye reference frame mounted at eye level via a mounting structure to a cabin shell such that the at least one VHUD eye reference frame is movable, the at least one VHUD eye reference frame comprising a wire frame with an empty space therein to allow viewing of the projected visual image and the projected VHUD image.
A method for generating simulation images for a simulator, the method comprising:
- generating images using a virtual heads up display (VHUD) projector and a visual projector, wherein the VHUD projector is mounted in a visual system optics of the visual projector;
- conforming a VHUD image to a visual image, by a pre-distortion correction sub-system, allowing for accurate geometric alignment of VHUD images to a visual system reference test pattern and allowing for parallax error correlation;
- and
- displaying the images for viewing through at least one VHUD eye reference frame mounted at eye level to a cabin shell in a simulator, the at least one VHUD eye reference frame comprising a wire frame with an empty space therein to allow viewing of the displayed images.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.