Patents by Inventor Stephen James McNally

Stephen James McNally 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: 10402950
    Abstract: Methods for quantifying pupil swim are disclosed in order to compensate for the same. A target image, in one embodiment, is displayed on a display of a head mounted display (HMD). Images of the target image are captured from a plurality of positions relative to an optical axis of an optics block of the HMD at an exit pupil of the HMD. The target image includes features and differences between observed locations of the features and their expected locations absent the optics block are determined. From these differences, a wavefront of the optics block is reconstructed and distortion corrections for the optics block are generated using the wavefront. The distortion corrections, when applied to a virtual scene, add pre-distortion that is canceled by the optical imperfections of the optics block as light of the virtual scene with the pre-distortion passes through the optics block.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 15, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Ying Geng, Stephen James McNally, Brett Joseph Bryars, Scott Charles McEldowney, Alexander Jobe Fix, Douglas Robert Lanman
  • Patent number: 10373294
    Abstract: A head-mounted display (HMD) divides an image into a high resolution (HR) inset portion at a first resolution, a peripheral portion, and a transitional portion. The peripheral portion is downsampled to a second resolution that is less than the first resolution. The transitional portion is blended such that there is a smooth change in resolution that corresponds to a change in resolution between a fovea region and a non-fovea region of a retina. An inset region is generated using the HR inset portion and the blended transitional portion, and a background region is generated using the downsampled peripheral portion. The inset region is provided to a HR inset display, and the background region is provided to a peripheral display. An optics block combines the displayed inset region with the displayed background region to generate composite content.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Austin Wilson, Douglas Robert Lanman, Nicholas Daniel Trail, Scott Charles McEldowney, Stephen James McNally, Yusufu Njoni Bamaxam Sulai
  • Patent number: 10349038
    Abstract: A depth camera assembly (DCA) determines depth information for a scene in a field of view of the DCA. The DCA includes a structured light (SL) illuminator, a camera, and a controller. The SL illuminator includes a source assembly, a SL element, a liquid crystal (LC) array, and a polarizer. The source assembly generates light, and the SL element generates a SL pattern using the generated light source. The LC array includes a plurality of addressable cells configured to polarize the SL pattern in accordance with adjustment instructions. The polarizer attenuates portions of the SL pattern based on the polarization of the portions of the SL pattern. The camera captures an image of the SL pattern, and the controller identifies portions of the image that are saturated and generates adjustment instructions based in part on the identified portions of the image, and provides the adjustment instructions to the LC array.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 9, 2019
    Assignee: Facebook Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Nicholas Daniel Trail, Stephen James McNally
  • 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
  • Patent number: 9972071
    Abstract: A head-mounted display (HMD) divides an image into a high resolution (HR) inset portion at a first resolution, a peripheral portion, and a transitional portion. The peripheral portion is downsampled to a second resolution that is less than the first resolution. The transitional portion is blended such that there is a smooth change in resolution that corresponds to a change in resolution between a fovea region and a non-fovea region of a retina. An inset region is generated using the HR inset portion and the blended transitional portion, and a background region is generated using the downsampled peripheral portion. The inset region is provided to a HR inset display, and the background region is provided to a peripheral display. An optics block combines the displayed inset region with the displayed background region to generate composite content.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2018
    Assignee: Oculus VR, LLC
    Inventors: Austin Wilson, Douglas Robert Lanman, Nicholas Daniel Trail, Scott Charles McEldowney, Stephen James McNally, Yusufu Njoni Bamaxam Sulai
  • Publication number: 20180096471
    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: Application
    Filed: October 4, 2016
    Publication date: April 5, 2018
    Inventors: Austin Wilson, Douglas Robert Lanman, Nicholas Daniel Trail, Scott Charles McEldowney, Stephen James McNally, Yusufu Njoni Bamaxam Sulai
  • Publication number: 20180096458
    Abstract: A head-mounted display (HMD) divides an image into a high resolution (HR) inset portion at a first resolution, a peripheral portion, and a transitional portion. The peripheral portion is downsampled to a second resolution that is less than the first resolution. The transitional portion is blended such that there is a smooth change in resolution that corresponds to a change in resolution between a fovea region and a non-fovea region of a retina. An inset region is generated using the HR inset portion and the blended transitional portion, and a background region is generated using the downsampled peripheral portion. The inset region is provided to a HR inset display, and the background region is provided to a peripheral display. An optics block combines the displayed inset region with the displayed background region to generate composite content.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 23, 2017
    Publication date: April 5, 2018
    Inventors: Austin Wilson, Douglas Robert Lanman, Nicholas Daniel Trail, Scott Charles McEldowney, Stephen James McNally, Yusufu Njoni Bamaxam Sulai
  • Publication number: 20170358136
    Abstract: A virtual scene presented on a display of a virtual reality headset can be adjusted using a varifocal element by changing the shape of one or more optical elements of a pancake lens block, by varying the distance between the two optical elements, or both, based on where in a virtual scene a user is looking. The headset tracks a user's eyes to determine a vergence depth from gaze lines in order to accommodate the user's eye for the determined vergence depth. Accordingly, the shape of one or more optical elements is adjusted, the distance between the two optical elements, or both, is changed to focus light from the display of the virtual reality headset at the vergence depth to keep the user's eye in a zone of comfort as vergence and accommodation change.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 10, 2016
    Publication date: December 14, 2017
    Inventors: Jacques Gollier, Stephen James McNally, Ying Geng, Brian Wheelwright, Douglas Robert Lanman
  • Patent number: 9779478
    Abstract: A head-mounted display (HMD) divides an image into a high resolution (HR) inset portion at a first resolution, a peripheral portion, and a transitional portion. The peripheral portion is downsampled to a second resolution that is less than the first resolution. The transitional portion is blended such that there is a smooth change in resolution that corresponds to a change in resolution between a fovea region and a non-fovea region of a retina. An inset region is generated using the HR inset portion and the blended transitional portion, and a background region is generated using the downsampled peripheral portion. The inset region is provided to a HR inset display, and the background region is provided to a peripheral display. An optics block combines the displayed inset region with the displayed background region to generate composite content.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 4, 2016
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: Oculus VR, LLC
    Inventors: Austin Wilson, Douglas Robert Lanman, Nicholas Daniel Trail, Scott Charles McEldowney, Stephen James McNally, Yusufu Njoni Bamaxam Sulai
  • Publication number: 20170255015
    Abstract: A head mounted display (HMD) includes a field curvature corrected (FC) display to mitigate field curvature in an image that is output to a user's eyes. The FC display includes elements that generate the image light and elements to mitigate field curvature from the image light. The FC display may include a display panel with lenses, a display panel with a reflective polarizer and reflective surface, or other optical elements. The FC display may include a pancake lens configuration including a polarized display with a quarter wave plate, a reflective mirror, and a polarization reflective mirror.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 24, 2017
    Publication date: September 7, 2017
    Inventors: Ying Geng, Jacques Gollier, Stephen James McNally, Brett Joseph Bryars, Scott Charles McEldowney
  • Publication number: 20170195653
    Abstract: A depth camera assembly (DCA) determines depth information for a scene in a field of view of the DCA. The DCA includes a structured light (SL) illuminator, a camera, and a controller. The SL illuminator includes a source assembly, a SL element, a liquid crystal (LC) array, and a polarizer. The source assembly generates light, and the SL element generates a SL pattern using the generated light source. The LC array includes a plurality of addressable cells configured to polarize the SL pattern in accordance with adjustment instructions. The polarizer attenuates portions of the SL pattern based on the polarization of the portions of the SL pattern. The camera captures an image of the SL pattern, and the controller identifies portions of the image that are saturated and generates adjustment instructions based in part on the identified portions of the image, and provides the adjustment instructions to the LC array.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 27, 2016
    Publication date: July 6, 2017
    Inventors: Nicholas Daniel Trail, Stephen James McNally