Patents by Inventor Nicholas Daniel

Nicholas Daniel has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10310598
    Abstract: A head-mounted display (HMD) includes an electronic display configured to emit image light, an optical assembly that provides optical correction to the image light, an eye tracking system, and a varifocal module. The optical assembly includes a back optical element configured to receive the image light from the electronic display, and a coupling assembly configured to couple a front optical element to a location within the optical assembly such that the front optical element receives light transmitted by the back optical element. The optical correction is determined in part by an optical characteristic of the front optical element that is replaceable. The eye tracking system determines eye tracking information for a first eye of a user of the HMD. A varifocal module adjusts focus of images displayed on the electronic display, based on the eye tracking information and the optical correction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 4, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Nicholas Daniel Trail, Douglas Robert Lanman
  • Patent number: 10288884
    Abstract: A head mounted display (HMD) includes an electronic display, a microlens array, and an optics block. The electronic display is composed of a plurality of sub-pixels, and each sub-pixel is configured to emit image light according to respective emission distribution. The microlens array is coupled to the electronic display and includes a plurality of microlenses. The microlens array concentrates the emission distributions of the sub-pixels to form concentrated image light and directs the concentrated image light towards a target region. The optics block is positioned in the target region. The optics block is configured to direct the concentrated image light from the microlens array to an exit pupil of the HMD corresponding to a location of an eye of a user of the HMD.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 14, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Jacques Gollier, Ying Geng, Brian Wheelwright, Nicholas Daniel Trail
  • Publication number: 20190126172
    Abstract: A device for medium separation, in particular for separation of gases, such as air, from a fluid, such as oil, by means of a separating device (22), which is accommodated in a housing (1) and which, when the medium is received via an inlet point (24) of the housing (1), sets this medium in rotation for the purpose of realizing the separation, with the housing (1) having at least one outlet point (26) for gas and at least one outlet point (16) for fluid, which outlet points are separated from one another, and with a filter device (40) being arranged in the housing for the separation of particulate contamination, is characterized in that the filter device (40) is arranged after the separating device (22) when viewed in the direction of flow of the fluid.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 2, 2017
    Publication date: May 2, 2019
    Inventors: James Jay CARDILLO, JR., Joseph QUIRK, Nicholas Daniel GREGORY, Ryan Matthews FREDERICK, William Michael SASSANO, Brian A. SCHREIBER
  • Patent number: 10268268
    Abstract: An eye tracker for determining a position of an eye, which may be integrated into a head-mounted display. The eye tracker includes a waveguide, switchable Bragg gratings (SBGs) that selectively out couple light from the waveguide, light sources coupled to the waveguide, a detector coupled to a return path of the waveguide, and a controller. The controller instructs at least one light source to emit at least one light beam propagating through the waveguide, and activates at least one SBG to out-couple the at least one light beam from the waveguide toward the eye. The waveguide in-couples at least one reflected light signal reflected from the eye that originates from the at least one light beam out-coupled from the waveguide. The detector detects the at least one reflected light signal. The controller determines a position of the eye using the detected at least one reflected light signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Nicholas Daniel Trail
  • Patent number: 10268290
    Abstract: Disclosed is a system and method for tracking a user's eye using structured light. The structured light system is calibrated by training a model of surface of the user's eye. A structured light emitter projects a structured light pattern (e.g., infrared structured light) onto a portion of the surface of the eye. From the viewpoint of a camera, the illumination pattern appears distorted. Based on the distortion of the illumination pattern in the captured image, the eye tracking system can determine the shape of the portion of the user's eye that the structured light is incident upon. By comparing the determined shape of the portion of the user's eye to the model, the orientation of the eye may be determined. The eye tracking system or elements thereof may be part of a head-mounted display, e.g., as part of a virtual reality system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 23, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Nicholas Daniel Trail, Robert Dale Cavin
  • Patent number: 10261542
    Abstract: A distributed augmented reality system for producing rendered environment includes a neckband formed from a first arm, second arm, and computation compartment. A power source is embedded in the first and/or second arm, while a processor is embedded in the computation compartment of the neckband. The neckband may be capable of producing an AR, VR or MR environment, or any combination thereof. The neckband device may be used with a coupled eyewear device system encompassing a Near-Eye Display (NED) and/or secondary user device, which may also produce an AR, VR or MR environment, or any combination thereof. The neckband device may provide power and computation to the eyewear device, allowing for a reduced form factor AR/VR/MR eyewear device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Nicholas Daniel Trail
  • Patent number: 10257507
    Abstract: A head-mounted display (HMD) includes an eye tracking system that determines user's eye tracking information based on depth information derived from time-of-flight methods. The eye tracking system includes an illumination source, an imaging device and a controller. The illumination source illuminates the user's eye with a temporally varying irradiance pattern. The imaging device includes a detector that captures temporal phase shifts (temporal distortions) caused by a local geometry and the illumination pattern being reflected from a portion of the eye. The detector comprises multiple pixels, each pixel having multiple units for capturing, over multiple time instants, light signals related to the temporally distorted illumination pattern. The controller determines phase differences between the temporally distorted illumination pattern and the temporally varying irradiance pattern, based on the captured light signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Nicholas Daniel Trail
  • Publication number: 20190101984
    Abstract: A heartrate monitor distributed adjusted reality system for producing rendered environments includes an eyewear device and a neckband formed from a first arm, second arm, and computation compartment. Optical, electrical and visual sensors are distributed across the neckband and eyewear device at points of contact with a user's tissue. Machine learning modules combine optical, electrical and visual measurements produced by the optical, electrical and visual sensors to determine a user's heartrate and/or other vitals. The neckband and eyewear device may be capable of adapting an adjusted reality environment in response to a determine user heartrate or other vitals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 29, 2017
    Publication date: April 4, 2019
    Inventors: Sharvil Shailesh Talati, Nicholas Daniel Trail
  • Publication number: 20190101978
    Abstract: An eye tracking system comprises a structured light emitter, a camera assembly, and a controller. The structured light emitter illuminates a portion of an eye of a user with a dense structured light pattern. The dense structured light pattern produces a distorted illumination pattern on the portion of the eye. The camera assembly captures one or more images of the distorted illumination pattern that is associated with the portion of the eye. The controller estimates a position of the eye based on the captured one or more images and a model of the eye. The eye tracking system may be part of a head-mounted display.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 2, 2017
    Publication date: April 4, 2019
    Inventors: Julian Iseringhausen, Robert Dale Cavin, Nicholas Daniel Trail, Douglas Robert Lanman
  • Patent number: 10228240
    Abstract: A depth camera assembly (DCA) determines distances between the DCA and objects in a local area within a field of view of the DCA. The DCA includes an illumination source that projects a known spatial pattern modulated with a temporal carrier signal into the local area. An imaging device capture the modulated pattern projected into the local area. The imaging device includes a detector that comprises different pixel groups that are each activated to captured light at different times. Hence, different pixel groups capture different phases of the temporally modulated pattern from the local area. The DCA determines times for light from the illumination source to be reflected and captured by the imaging device from the phases captured by the different pixel groups and also determines distances between the DCA and objects in the local area based on deformation of the spatial pattern captured by the imaging device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Nicholas Daniel Trail
  • Patent number: 10223805
    Abstract: A coded tracking system includes an imaging device and a target object that includes a plurality of locators emitting light according to a first pattern. An image of the target object captured by the imaging device includes light received by the imaging device from a subset of the plurality of locators. A pattern controller is configured to determine a resolution value for an adjacent pair of light sources in the captured image. The resolution value is indicative of the pattern controller being able to resolve the adjacent pair of light sources as two separate sources. The pattern controller determines a second pattern for the locators based on the resolution value. The second pattern improves a likelihood that the pattern controller can resolve between individual light sources emitting light in the second pattern. The pattern controller instructs the target object for the locators to emit light according to the second pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 7, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Nicholas Daniel Trail
  • Publication number: 20190012540
    Abstract: An eyewear device has an optical element, a source, a dichroic mirror, and a camera. The optical element has a front surface, a back surface, a rim, and an angled portion of the rim. The source emits light in a first band of light and is configured to illuminate a portion of an eye of a user of the eyewear device. The dichroic mirror is arranged proximate to the angled portion of the rim, is reflective in the first band of light, is transmissive in a second band of light, and is configured to direct light in the first band reflected from the portion of the eye toward a first position. The camera is located in the first position that is located in a plane of the optical element, and the camera is configured to capture images of the light in the first band reflected by the dichroic mirror.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 7, 2017
    Publication date: January 10, 2019
    Inventor: Nicholas Daniel Trail
  • Patent number: 10168531
    Abstract: An eye tracker for determining a position of an eye, which may be integrated into a head-mounted display. The eye tracker includes at least one waveguides with an array of grating structures, an array of light sources, a detector, and a controller. The controller activates at least one light source at a time to emit at least one light beam that propagates through the at least one waveguide and couple out via the array of grating structures towards a user's eye. Light signals reflected from the user's eye and skin surfaces are coupled into the at least one waveguide and propagate to the detector that captures the reflected light signals. The controller calculates magnitudes of the reflected light signals to obtain a signature of converted light signals, and determines a position and orientation of the user's eye based on the signature of converted light signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Nicholas Daniel Trail, Douglas Robert Lanman
  • Patent number: 10158845
    Abstract: A depth camera assembly (DCA) includes a projector, a detector and a controller. The projector emits a tiled structured light (SL) pattern onto a local area. Each illumination source of the projector includes one or more light emitters and an augmented diffractive optical element (ADOE) designed with a pattern mask. The ADOE diffracts at least a portion of light beams emitted from the light emitters to form a first SL pattern projection having a field-of-view corresponding to a first tileable boundary. The pattern mask prevents projection of light that would otherwise be diffracted outside the first tileable boundary. The first SL pattern projection is combined with at least a second SL pattern projection into the tiled SL pattern illuminating objects in the local area. The detector captures images of the objects illuminated by the SL pattern. The controller determines depth information for the objects using the captured images.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 18, 2018
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Zhaoming Zhu, Nicholas Daniel Trail, Renzo De Nardi, Richard Andrew Newcombe
  • Patent number: 10154254
    Abstract: A head-mounted display (HMD) includes an eye tracking system that determines user's eye tracking information based on depth information derived from time-of-flight methods. The eye tracking system includes an illumination source, an imaging device and a controller. The illumination source illuminates the user's eye with a temporally varying irradiance pattern. The imaging device includes a detector that captures temporal phase shifts (temporal distortions) caused by a local geometry and the illumination pattern being reflected from a portion of the eye. The detector comprises multiple pixels, each pixel having multiple units for capturing, over multiple time instants, light signals related to the temporally distorted illumination pattern. The controller determines phase differences between the temporally distorted illumination pattern and the temporally varying irradiance pattern, based on the captured light signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2018
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Nicholas Daniel Trail
  • Patent number: 10152121
    Abstract: A head-mounted display (HMD) presents content for viewing by users. The HMD includes a display element, an optics block, and a camera. The display element includes content pixels for providing light corresponding to the displayed content and one or more tracking pixels for providing tracking light used for tracking the user's eye movements. The optics block directs light from the display element (light corresponding to the displayed content and that of tracking light) to an exit pupil of the HMD. The camera captures one or images of an eye of the user in response to projecting tracking light on the eye, where the one or more captured images include a distortion of the projected tracking light and are used in determining an orientation of the eye at a time of capturing the one or more images of the eye.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 6, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 11, 2018
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventor: Nicholas Daniel Trail
  • Patent number: 10140695
    Abstract: A head-mounted display (HMD) that includes a high resolution (HR) inset display and a peripheral display. The HR inset display is configured to display an inset region that includes a portion of an image at a first resolution that corresponds to a resolution of a fovea region of a human eye. The peripheral display displays a background region, the background region having a second resolution that is less than the first resolution, the second resolution corresponding to a resolution of a non-fovea region of the human eye. The HMD includes an optics block that combines the inset region and the background region to create composite content at retinal resolution, and direct the composite content to an exit pupil of the HMD corresponding to a location of an eye of a user of the HMD.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 4, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 27, 2018
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Austin Wilson, Douglas Robert Lanman, Nicholas Daniel Trail, Scott Charles McEldowney, Stephen James McNally, Yusufu Njoni Bamaxam Sulai
  • Publication number: 20180330423
    Abstract: A computing system comprising a database of users, a database of garments, and a database of mappings, wherein a mapping maps one or more users of the database of users to one or more garments of the database of garments and wherein each mapping includes a weight for its corresponding user-garment pair.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 15, 2018
    Publication date: November 15, 2018
    Inventors: Nicholas Daniel Clayton, Camilla Marie Olson, Kelli Tomie Howard, Jungah Joo Lee
  • Patent number: 10108261
    Abstract: A head mounted display (HMD) comprises an eye tracking system configured to enable eye-tracking using polarization. The eye tracking system includes an illumination source and an eye tracking unit comprising a polarization sensitive optical detector. The one or more illumination sources are configured to illuminate an eye and generate reflections directed towards the optical detector. The eye tracking unit is configured to determine a 3D shape of the eye based on the polarization of the reflections. The determined 3D shape of the eye is used to update a stored model of the eye in response to the one or more model parameter values extracted from the determined depth map of the corneal surface. The eye tracking system determines eye tracking information based on the updated model in order to improve eye tracking performance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 5, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2018
    Inventors: Michael Hall, Robin Sharma, Nicholas Daniel Trail, Robert Dale Cavin
  • Patent number: 10087768
    Abstract: Various embodiments include a rotor key member, along with a related assembly and steam turbine. Particular embodiments include a rotor key member for retaining a circumferential seal in a steam turbine, the rotor key member including: a main body; a first arm extending from the main body; a second arm extending from the main body, wherein the first, arm, the second arm and the main body define a space spanning axially between the first arm and the second arm; and a hook extending from the second arm in a direction axially away from the space, the hook sized to contact a radially inner surface of the circumferential seal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 7, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 2, 2018
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Steven Sebastian Burdgick, Sean Christopher Morrissey, Nicholas Daniel Viscio