Patent Publication Number: US-2023164933-A1

Title: Wearable device

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application claims priority of Taiwan Patent Application No. 110213955, filed 25 Nov. 2021, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     Field of the Disclosure 
     The present invention relates to a wearable device. 
     Description of the Related Art 
     In a situation that the angle of the conventional wearable devices with augmented reality (AR) technology cannot be adjusted, or when a user wearing the conventional wearable device need to work with his head down, the user&#39;s viewing angle is often not the same as the viewing angle of the camera lens of the optical module. Hence, the virtual image and the real image may not be superimposed and a good augmented reality effect may not be achieved. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     Therefore, in the present embodiments, a wearable device is provided, and the user can simply adjust a relative angle between the user&#39;s viewing angle and the optical module, so that the virtual image and the real image are superimposed to achieve the good augmented reality effect. 
     An embodiment of the invention provides a wearable device, worn on a user&#39;s head, includes a front assembly, a rear assembly, and a connecting assembly. The connecting assembly connects the front assembly and the rear assembly, wherein the front assembly is rotatable to an angle relative to the rear assembly via the connecting assembly. 
     According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the front assembly includes a first fan-shaped portion, and the connecting assembly includes an engaging element, wherein the engaging element and the first fan-shaped portion are engaged with each other. The front assembly has a plurality of first teeth, the first teeth are arranged to form the first fan-shaped portion, wherein the engaging element has a plurality of second teeth, the second teeth are arranged to form a second fan-shaped portion, and the first teeth are inserted into gaps between the second teeth to be engaged with each other. The first fan-shaped portion has a first angle, the second fan-shaped portion has a second angle, and the first angle is smaller than the second angle. The second angle is twice the first angle. 
     According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the front assembly further includes a front accommodating portion, the rear assembly includes a rear accommodating portion, and the front accommodating portion and the rear accommodating portion respectively accommodate a part of the engaging element. The connecting assembly further includes at least one elastic element, disposed on the rear accommodating portion, connecting the engaging element and the rear assembly. The connecting assembly further includes a pressing element, and the front assembly further includes a front receiving portion, wherein the front receiving portion and the front accommodating portion are communicated by a through hole, and the pressing element is disposed on the front receiving portion. The connecting assembly further includes a fixing element, wherein the rear assembly further includes a rear receiving portion, and the fixing element sequentially passes through the rear accommodating portion, the elastic element, the engaging element, and the front accommodating portion to be locked into the pressing element. 
     According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the front assembly includes an inner wall and the rear assembly includes a stopper. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Aspects of this disclosure are best understood from the following detailed description when read with the accompanying figures. It should be noted that, in accordance with the standard practice in the industry, various features are not drawn to scale. In fact, the dimensions of the various features may be arbitrarily increased or reduced for clarity of discussion. 
         FIG.  1    is a perspective view of a partial structure of a wearable device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  2    is an exploded view of a partial structure of a wearable device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  3    is an enlarged schematic view of the part framed by the dotted line in  FIG.  2    from another angle. 
         FIG.  4    is a cross-sectional view of a partial structure of the wearable device cut along the line A-A′ in  FIG.  1   . 
         FIG.  5    is a schematic diagram of a wearable device being worn by a user according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  6    is a schematic diagram of operating a wearable device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  7    is a cross-sectional view of a partial structure of the wearable device cut along the line B-B′ in  FIG.  1   . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     In the following detailed description, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details and embodiments are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. The specific elements and configurations described in the following detailed description are set forth in order to clearly describe the present disclosure. It will be apparent, however, that the exemplary embodiments set forth herein are used merely for the purpose of illustration, and the inventive concept can be embodied in various forms without being limited to those exemplary embodiments. In addition, the drawings of different embodiments can use like and/or corresponding numerals to denote like and/or corresponding elements in order to clearly describe the present disclosure. However, the use of like and/or corresponding numerals in the drawings of different embodiments does not suggest any correlation between different embodiments. The directional terms, such as “up”, “down”, “left”, “right”, “front” or “rear”, are reference directions for accompanying drawings. Therefore, using the directional terms is for description instead of limiting the disclosure. 
     It should be understood that when an element is referred to as being “connected to” or “coupled to” another element, the element may be directly connected or coupled to another element, or there are one or more elements between the two elements. In addition, the use of ordinal numbers such as first, second, and third does not necessarily imply a sense of order, but can be multiple instances to distinguish actions or structures. 
     Reference to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” throughout the specification means that particular features, structures, or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment are included in at least one embodiment. Therefore, the sentences “in one embodiment” or “in an embodiment” appearing in various places throughout the specification do not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment. In addition, in one or more embodiments, specific features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner. 
     First, refer to  FIGS.  1  to  4   .  FIG.  1    is a perspective view of a partial structure a wearable device  1  according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein some assemblies are shown as transparent by dashed lines for clearly illustrating main elements of the wearable device  1 .  FIG.  2    is an exploded view of a partial structure of the wearable device  1  according to an embodiment of the disclosure.  FIG.  3    is an enlarged schematic view of the part framed by the dotted line in  FIG.  2    from another angle.  FIG.  4    is a cross-sectional view of the wearable device  1  cut along the line A-A′ in  FIG.  1   . It should be noted that, in  FIGS.  1  to  4   , for clear description, only a partial structure of the wearable device  1  corresponding to a user&#39;s left eye is shown, and the unshown right eye part may be symmetrical or similar structure. The wearable device  1  may be worn on the user&#39;s head, so that the user may use it to perform an application of augmented reality technology. The wearable device  1  includes a front assembly  100 , a rear assembly  200 , and a connecting assembly  300 . The connecting assembly  300  connects the front assembly  100  and the rear assembly  200 . When viewed along a first direction D 1 , the rear assembly  200  is closer to the user&#39;s head than the front assembly  100 . 
     The front assembly  100  may include an outer cover  110 , an image capturing portion  120 , and an optical machine  130 . The image capturing portion  120  and the optical machine  130  are disposed on the outer cover  110 . A first fan-shaped portion Fl and a front accommodating portion  111  are disposed on a side wall W 1  (refer to  FIG.  3   ) of the outer cover  110  for engaging and accommodating a part of the connecting assembly  300 , and the side wall W 1  is not parallel to the first direction D 1  and is close to the rear assembly  200 . A front receiving portion  112  is disposed on a side wall W 2  (refer to  FIG.  2   ) opposite to the side wall W 1  to receive a part of the connecting assembly  300 . 
     The first fan-shaped portion F 1  includes a plurality of first teeth T 1 . In more detail, there is gap G between each of the plurality of first teeth T 1  and the adjacent one, and the plurality of first teeth T 1  are arranged to form a first fan-shaped portion F 1 . The front accommodating portion  111  is disposed adjacent to the first fan-shaped portion F 1 , and the front accommodating portion  111  has a circular groove shape and a through hole H 1 . The front accommodating portion  111  and the front receiving portion  112  are communicated by the through hole H 1 . 
     The image capturing portion  120  may capture external images. In addition, the image capturing portion  120  may also include a camera, GPS, wireless positioning, etc., configured to detect the spatial position. The optical machine  130  may include, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a light-emitting diode (LED) display (such as an OLED display or a Micro LED display), or other similar devices, to project images on the user&#39;s eyes. 
     The rear assembly  200  includes a frame  210  and a wearing fixing portion (not shown). Two sides of the frame  210  may extend backward along the user&#39;s head to be connected with the wearing fixing portion. In  FIGS.  1  to  4   , although the wearing fixing portion is not shown, the wearing fixing portion may be fixed to the user&#39;s head in a form like a glasses frame or a headband (refer to  FIGS.  5  and  6   ), and does not limit to this. 
     A rear accommodating portion  211  is disposed on the a side wall W 3  (refer to  FIG.  2   ) of frame  210  to correspond to the front accommodating portion  111  and receiving a part of the connecting assembly  300 , and the side wall W 3  is not parallel to the first direction D 1  and is close to the front assembly  100 . A rear receiving portion  212  (refer to  FIG.  4   ) is disposed on a side wall W 4  opposite to the side wall W 3  to accommodate a part of the connecting assembly  300 . The rear receiving portion  212  and the rear accommodating portion  211  are communicated by a through hole H 2 . 
     Refer to  FIGS.  2  and  3   . The connecting assembly  300  includes an engaging element  310 , at least one elastic element  320 , a pressing element  330 , and a fixing element  340 . The engaging element  310  includes a second fan-shaped portion F 2 , a mating portion  311 , and a through hole H 3 . The second fan-shaped portion F 2  includes a plurality of second teeth T 2 . In more detail, there is a gap G between each of the plurality of second teeth T 2  and the adjacent one, and the plurality of second teeth T 2  are arranged to form a second fan-shaped portion F 2 . When viewed along the first direction D 1 , the mating portion  311  has a circular shape and may be partially accommodated in the front accommodating portion  111 , and the through hole H 3  penetrates the mating portion  311  in the first direction D 1 . On the other hand, the plurality of first teeth T 1  may be inserted into the gaps G between the plurality of second teeth T 2  to be engaged with each other. 
     The first fan-shaped portion Fl has a first angle θ 1 , the second fan-shaped portion F 2  has a second angle θ 2 , and the second angle θ 2  is greater than the first angle θ 1 . In some embodiments, the second angle θ 2  is twice the first angle θ 1 . For example, the second angle θ 2  is 40 degrees, and the first angle θ 1  is 20 degrees. With such an angular configuration, the front assembly  100  may be rotated 20 degrees relative to the rear assembly  200  (operation of the rotation will be described in detail below). However, the first angle θ 1  and the second angle θ 2  are not limited to this, and may be adjusted according to the requirements of the rotation range. 
     Refer to  FIGS.  2  and  4   . The elastic element  320  may be a compression spring. In this embodiment, there are two elastic elements  320 , disposed on the rear accommodating portion  211  and extended parallel to the first direction D 1 , and connected the engaging element  310  and the rear assembly  200 . 
     In more detail, one of the elastic elements  320  is connected to the second fan-shaped portion F 2  (opposite to the second tooth T 2 ) of the engaging element  310  and the rear assembly  200 , and the other elastic element  320  is connected to the mating portion  311  of the engaging element  310  and the rear assembly  200 . A force of the elastic element  320  presses the engaging element  310 , so that the second fan-shaped portion F 2  of the engaging element  310  may be tightly engaged with the first fan-shaped portion F 1  of the front assembly  100 . In this embodiment, although two elastic elements  320  of different sizes and lengths are disposed to evenly and surely press the engaging element  310 , the number, size, and length of the elastic element  320  is not limited to this, and may be changed according to requirements. 
     The pressing element  330  may be a round button, which is disposed on the front receiving portion  112 , and contacts the engaging element  310  through the through hole H 1 . The pressing element  330  has a bottom surface S 1 , and there is a distance d 1  between the bottom surface S 1  and a bottom surface S 2  of the front receiving portion  112 . The distance d 1  is a depth that the pressing element  330  may be pressed to. 
     The fixing element  340  may be a screw, and a corresponding thread is disposed on the pressing element  330 . Thus, the fixing element  340  may sequentially pass through the through hole H 2 , the rear receiving portion  211 , and the elastic element  320 , the through hole H 3  of the engaging element  310 , and the front accommodating portion  111  from the rear receiving portion  212  to be locked into the pressing element  330 . 
     Refer to  FIGS.  4  to  7   , and how to operate the wearable device  1  to make it consistent with the user&#39;s viewing angle will be explained.  FIG.  5    is a schematic diagram of the wearable device  1  being worn by a user according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.  FIG.  6    is a schematic diagram of operating the wearable device  1  according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.  FIG.  7    is a cross-sectional view of the wearable device  1  cut along the line B-B′ in  FIG.  1   . As shown in  FIG.  5   , when the user wears the wearable device  1  on his head and looks at the front horizontally, the image capturing portion  120  and the optical machine  130  disposed on the front assembly  100  are consistent with the user&#39;s viewing angle. Therefore, the real image obtained by the user&#39;s eyes and the virtual image generated by the wearable device  1  are superimposed, and the good augmented reality effect may be achieved. 
     However, if the user&#39;s head does not move or slightly moves while the user&#39;s viewing angle is downward, or the user&#39;s head moves downward while the user&#39;s viewing angle remains at the front horizontally, etc., which may not cause the good augmented reality effect because the real image and the virtual image are not superimposed. 
     Therefore, for example, as shown in  FIGS.  4  and  6   , the user may press the pressing element  330  along the first direction D 1  with the left hand, so that the fixing element  340  locked to the pressing element  330  moves by the distance d 1 , and further the engaging element  310  fixed to the fixing element  340  is pressed toward the elastic element  320  along with the fixing element  340 . When the first fan-shaped portion F 1  of the front assembly  100  and the second fan-shaped portion F 2  of the engaging element  310  are not engaged and are in a separated state, the user&#39;s right hand may rotate the front assembly  100  downward by an angle θ with the fixing element  340  as the central axis, so that after the real image and the virtual image are superimposed, the left hand releases the pressing element  330 , and the force of the elastic element  320  pushes the engaging element  310  back, so that the second fan-shaped portion F 2  is engaged with the first fan-shaped portion F 1 . Then, an adjustment is completed. 
     As mentioned above, in some embodiments, the second angle θ 2  of the second fan-shaped portion F 2  may be formed to 40 degrees, and the first angle θ 1  of the first fan-shaped portion F 1  may be formed to 20 degrees. Under normal circumstances, the first fan-shaped portion F 1  is engaged with the second fan-shaped portion F 2  in a range of 20 to 40 degrees. When the adjustment is required, the user may rotate the front assembly  100  at most 20 degrees, so that the first fan-shaped portion F 1  is engaged with the second fan-shaped portion F 2  in a range of 0 to 20 degrees. 
     Therefore, it can be seen from the above that if the front assembly  100  is rotated beyond the second fan-shaped portion F 2  of the engaging element  310 , the front assembly  100  and the rear assembly  200  may not be engaged and fixed. That is, the second fan-shaped portion F 2  may be used to control a rotation range of the front assembly  100  relative to the rear assembly  200 . 
     In addition, in some embodiments, as shown in  FIG.  7   , the front assembly  100  may include an inner wall Wi, the rear assembly  200  may include a stopper  213 . When the front assembly  100  is rotated with the fixing element  340  extending alone the first direction D 1  as the central axis, the front assembly  100  may stop rotating while the inner wall Wi contacts the stopper  213 , which may further limit the rotation range of the front assembly  100  relative to the rear assembly  200  to avoid excessive rotation. 
     In summary, the present disclosure provides a wearable device that is worn on a user&#39;s head and includes a front assembly, a rear assembly, and a connecting assembly. The connecting assembly connects the front assembly and the rear assembly, wherein the front assembly is rotatable to an angle relative to the rear assembly via the connecting assembly. With the wearable device of the present disclosure, the user can simply adjust the relative angle between the user&#39;s viewing angle and the optical module, so that the virtual image and the real image are superimposed to achieve a good augmented reality effect. 
     Although the embodiments and their advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions, and alterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the embodiments as defined by the appended claims. Moreover, the scope of the present application is not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments of the process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, means, methods, and steps described in the specification. As one of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate from the disclosure, processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps, presently existing or later to be developed, that perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodiments described herein can be utilized according to the disclosure. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to include within their scope such processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps. In addition, each claim constitutes a separate embodiment, and the combination of various claims and embodiments are within the scope of the disclosure.