Patent Abstract:
A problem related to a known eyewear-type electro-oculogram measuring apparatus which detects the eye potential using a pair of electrodes positioned outside both the eyes of a user and a pair of electrodes respectively positioned above and below one eye is that the two pairs of electrodes have had an impact on the skins of users, and discomfort on them. Besides, the electrodes are not excellent in design. The present invention provides eyewear including: a frame; a pair of nose pads; and a first electrode and a second electrode respectively provided on the surface of the pair of nose pads, the first electrode and the second electrode detecting eye potential.

Full Description:
The contents of the following Japanese patent application are incorporated herein by reference: No. 2012-122349 filed on May 29, 2012. 
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     The present invention relates to eyewear. 
     2. Related Art 
     An eyewear-type electro-oculogram measuring apparatus is known which detects the eye potential using two pairs of electrodes positioned around the eye of a user, for example as described in Patent Document No. 1. 
     Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-254876 
     However, the two pairs of electrodes have had an impact on the skins of users, and discomfort on them. Besides, the electrodes are not excellent in design. 
     SUMMARY 
     In order to solve the above problem, according to a first aspect related to the innovations herein, provided is eyewear including: a frame; a pair of nose pads; and a first electrode and a second electrode respectively provided on the surface of the pair of nose pads, the first electrode and the second electrode detecting eye potential. 
     The stated eyewear may further include a first electric wire and a second electric wire buried in the frame, and respectively electrically connected to the first electrode and the second electrode. The stated eyewear may further include a third electrode provided on the surface of a bridge of the frame and detecting eye potential. The stated eyewear may further include a third electric wire electrically connected to the third electrode and buried in the frame. 
     The stated eyewear may further include a transmitting section that transmits, to an external apparatus, an electro-oculogram signal representing the eye potential detected by the first electrode and the second electrode; and a power supply section that supplies power to the transmitting section. The stated eyewear may further include a processing section that processes the electro-oculogram signal, where the transmitting section transmits, to the external apparatus, the electro-oculogram signal having undergone processing by the processing section. 
     The summary clause does not necessarily describe all necessary features of the embodiments of the present invention. The present invention may also be a sub-combination of the features described above. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  schematically shows an example of a pair of glasses  100 . 
         FIG. 2  schematically shows positions at which the electrodes make contact with a user. 
         FIG. 3  schematically shows an exemplary electro-oculogram when the user looked down immediately after when he looked up. 
         FIG. 4  schematically shows an exemplary electro-oculogram when the user looked up immediately after when he looked down. 
         FIG. 5  schematically shows an exemplary electro-oculogram when the user looked in the left immediately after he looked right. 
         FIG. 6  schematically shows an exemplary electro-oculogram when the user looked in the right immediately after he looked left. 
         FIG. 7  schematically shows an exemplary electro-oculogram when he blinks. 
         FIG. 8  schematically shows an example of the pair of glasses  100  viewed from the backside. 
         FIG. 9  schematically shows an example of a partially enlarged view of the pair of glasses  100  viewed from the backside. 
         FIG. 10  shows a flowchart of a visual line detection processing performed by an external apparatus. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS 
     Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present invention will be described. The embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims, and all the combinations of the features described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to means provided by aspects of the invention. The following describes embodiments of the present invention using drawings, and portions that are identical or similar are given the same reference numerals. The drawings are schematic views, and may not accurately reflect the actual relation or ratio between the plane size and the thickness. 
       FIG. 1  schematically shows an example of a pair of glasses  100 . The pair of glasses  100  includes a pair of lenses  110  and a frame  120 . The pair of glasses  100  and the frame  120  may be an example of eyewear. 
     The frame  120  supports the pair of lenses  110 . The frame  120  may include a rim  122 , a bridge  124 , an end piece  126 , a hinge  128 , a temple  130 , an ear pad  132 , a pair of nose pads  140 , a first electrode  152 , a second electrode  154 , a third electrode  156 , a ground electrode  158 , and an electric wire  160 . The pair of nose pads  140  include a right nose pad  142  and a left nose pad  144 . 
     The rim  122 , the end piece  126 , the hinge  128 , the temple  130 , and the ear pad  132  are provided on the right side and the left side. The rim  122  supports the lens  110 . The end piece  126  corresponds to the outer region of the rim  122 , and the hinge  128  is used to support the temple  130  to be rotatable. The temples  130  press together the upper parts of the ears of a user. The ear pad  132  is provided at the tip of the temple  130 . The ear pad  132  contacts the upper part of the ear of a user. 
     The first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154  are provided on respective surfaces of the pair of nose pads  140 , to detect the eye potential. The first electrode  152  detects the eye potential of the right eye of a user. The second electrode  154  detects the eye potential of the left eye of a user. By providing an eye-potential-detecting electrode on a surface of the nose pad that inevitably contacts the skin of a user, the burden on the skin of a user can be alleviated, when compared to two pairs of electrodes which are made to contact the surrounding area of the eyes of a user. 
     The third electrode  156  is provided on a surface of the bridge  124 , to detect the eye potential. The ground electrode  158  is provided on a surface of the ear pad  132 . In this particular embodiment, the ground electrode  158  is provided on a surface of the left ear pad  132 . The potential detected by the first electrode  152 , the second electrode  154 , and the third electrode  156  can be obtained relative to the potential detected by the ground electrode  158 . 
     The pair of glasses  100  are connected to the electro-oculogram processing unit  200  via the electric wire  160 . The electro-oculogram processing unit  200  may include a processing unit  210 , a transmitting unit  220 , and a power supply section  230 . The first electrode  152 , the second electrode  154 , the third electrode  156 , and the ground electrode  158  are connected to the processing section  210  via the electric wire  160 . 
     The processing section  210  processes an electro-oculogram signal representing the eye potential detected by the first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154 . In an example, the processing section  210  may process an electro-oculogram signal representing the potential of the first electrode  152  relative to the third electrode  156 . The processing section  210  may also process an electro-oculogram signal representing the potential of the second electrode  154  relative to the third electrode  156 . The processing of the electro-oculogram signal performed by the processing section  210  may include adding and subtracting processing by which the potential detected by the first electrode  152  and the potential detected by the second electrode  154  are adjusted. The processing of the electro-oculogram signal performed by the processing section  210  may include at least one of performing signal amplification or digital processing onto the electro-oculogram signal. The processing of the electro-oculogram signal performed by the processing section  210  may include transmitting the electro-oculogram signal representing the eye potential detected by the first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154  to the transmitting section  220  as it is. 
     The transmitting section  220  transmits the electro-oculogram signal having undergone the processing by the processing section  210 , to an external apparatus  300 . The transmitting section  220  may use wireless communication (e.g., Bluetooth (registered trademark), wireless LAN) or wired communication to transmit the electro-oculogram signal to the external apparatus  300 . The power supply section  230  supplies power to the processing section  210  and the transmitting section  220 . 
     The external apparatus  300  may be a computer terminal having a communication function. An exemplary external apparatus  300  is a mobile communication terminal (e.g., a portable phone, a smart phone) owned by a user. The external apparatus  300  may execute processing based on the electro-oculogram signal received from the transmitting section  220 . For example, when having detected that the number of times of brinks of a user is increasing by referring to the received electro-oculogram signal, the external apparatus  300  may issue warning to prevent the user from falling asleep. 
       FIG. 2  schematically shows positions at which the electrodes make contact with a user. A first contact position  452  represents the contact position of the first electrode  152 . A second contact position  454  represents the contact position of the second electrode  154 . A third contact position  456  represents the contact position of the third electrode  156 . A horizontal center line  460  is defined as a center line in the horizontal direction connecting the center of the right eye  402  and the center of the left eye  404 . A vertical center line  462  is defined as a center line that is orthogonal to the horizontal center line  460  and that passes through the center between the right eye  402  and the left eye  404  and. 
     The first contact position  452  and the second contact position  454  may desirably be positioned below the horizontal center line  460 . The line connecting the center of the first contact position  452  and the center of the second contact position  454  may desirably be parallel to the horizontal center line  460 . The distance between the first contact position  452  and the right eye  402  may desirably be equal to the distance between the second contact position  454  and the left eye  404 . The first contact position  452  may desirably be distanced from the second contact position  454  by a certain length. 
     It is desirable that the third contact position  456  be positioned somewhere along the vertical center line  462 . The third contact position  456  may desirably be in a position above the horizontal center line  460  and distanced from both of the first contact section  452  and the second contact section  454 . In one example, the distance between the third contact position  456  and the right eye  402  may be set to be larger than the distance between the right eye  402  and the first contact position  452 , and the distance between the third contact position  456  and the left eye  404  may be set to be larger than the distance between the left eye  404  and the second contact position  454 . 
     In an eye ball, the corneal side has a positive charge and the retina side has a negative charge. Therefore, when a person looks up, the potential of the first electrode  152  obtained in relation to the third electrode  156  as well as the potential of the second electrode  154  obtained in relation to the third electrode  156  become negative. On the contrary, when a person looks down, the potential of the first electrode  152  obtained in relation to the third electrode  156  as well as the potential of the second electrode  154  obtained in relation to the third electrode  156  become positive. When a person looks to the right, the potential of the first electrode  152  obtained in relation to the third electrode  156  becomes negative, and the potential of the second electrode  154  obtained in relation to the third electrode  156  becomes positive. When a person looks to the left, the potential of the first electrode  152  obtained relative to the third electrode  156  becomes positive, and the potential of the second electrode  154  obtained in relation to the third electrode  156  becomes negative. 
     By detecting the potential of the first electrode  152  relative to the third electrode  156  as well as the potential of the second electrode  154  relative to the third electrode  156 , the effect of noise can be effectively alleviated. The bridge  124  may be arranged at the upper end the rim  122  or in its vicinity, so as to distance the third contact position  456  from the first contact position  452  and the second contact position  454  as far as possible. The third electrode  156  may be provided above the center of the bridge  124 . In such a case, it is desirable to adopt a bridge  124  that is wide in the vertical direction. 
     In stead of detecting the potential of the first electrode  152  relative to the third electrode  156 , it is possible to subtract the potential of the third electrode  156  relative to the reference electrode, from the potential of the first electrode  152  relative to the reference electrode. Likewise, in stead of detecting the potential of the second electrode  154  relative to the third electrode  156 , it is possible to subtract the potential of the third electrode  156  relative to the reference electrode, from the potential of the second electrode  154  relative to the reference electrode. 
     An example of the reference electrode is the ground electrode  158 . In addition, another reference electrode may be provided in a position distanced from the first electrode  152 , the second electrode  154 , and the third electrode  156  of the pair of glasses  100 . For example, a reference electrode may be provided on the right ear pad  132 . The reference electrode may be provided at a position of the right temple  130  to be in contact with the skin of a user. The processing to subtract the potential of the third electrode  156  from the potential of the first electrode  152  relative to the reference electrode and the processing to subtract the potential of the third electrode  156  from the potential of the second electrode  154  relative to the reference electrode may be performed by the processing section  210  or by the external apparatus  300 . 
       FIG. 3  shows an exemplary electro-oculogram when the user looked down immediately after when he looked up. The upper electro-oculogram represents the electro-oculogram for the right eye showing the chronological change of the potential V 1  of the first electrode  152  relative to the third electrode  156 . The lower electro-oculogram represents the electro-oculogram for the left eye showing the chronological change of the potential V 2  of the second electrode  154  relative to the third electrode  156 . The longitudinal axis represents the voltage value. The lengthwise axis represents the time. The arrow  503  represents the timing at which the user looked up. At the timing shown by the arrow  503 , both of the right-eye electro-oculogram and the left-eye electro-oculogram have a negative potential. 
       FIG. 4  shows an exemplary electro-oculogram when the user looked up immediately after when he looked down. The arrow  504  represents the timing at which the user looked down. At the timing shown by the arrow  504 , both of the right-eye electro-oculogram and the left-eye electro-oculogram have a positive potential. 
       FIG. 5  shows an exemplary electro-oculogram when the user looked in the left direction immediately after he looked to the right. The arrow  505  represents the timing at which the user looked to the right. At the timing shown by the arrow  505 , the right-eye electro-oculogram has a negative potential, and the left-eye electro-oculogram has a positive potential. 
       FIG. 6  shows an exemplary electro-oculogram when the user looked in the right immediately after he looked left. The arrow  506  represents the timing at which the user looked left. At the timing shown by the arrow  506 , the right-eye electro-oculogram has a positive potential, and the left-eye electro-oculogram has a negative potential. 
     In this way, when the negative potential has been indicated in the right-eye electro-oculogram and the left-eye electro-oculogram, the user is identified to look up. When the positive potential has been indicated in the right-eye electro-oculogram and the left-eye electro-oculogram, the user is identified to look down. When the negative potential is indicated in the right-eye electro-oculogram and that the positive potential is indicated in the left-eye electro-oculogram, the user is identified to look right. When the positive potential is indicated in the right-eye electro-oculogram and that the negative potential is indicated in the left-eye electro-oculogram, the user is identified to look left. 
     It is further possible to enhance the detection accuracy of the visual line, by adding and subtracting the potential V 1  of the right-eye electro-oculogram and the potential V 2  of the left-eye electro-oculogram. For example when V 1 +V 2  indicates a negative value and V 1 −V 2  equals substantially zero, the user is identified to look up. When V 1 +V 2  indicates a positive value and V 1 −V 2  equals substantially zero, the user is identified to look down. When V 1 +V 2  equals substantially zero and V 1 −V 2  indicates a negative value, the user is identified to look to the right. When V 1 +V 2  equals substantially zero and V 1 −V 2  indicates a positive value, the user is identified to look to the left. By adding and subtracting the V 1  and V 2 , the positive value and the negative value resulting after calculation will respectively become large. This means that the threshold value can be set large, and so misdetection to detect noise as visual line movement can be reduced. 
       FIG. 7  schematically shows an exemplary electro-oculogram when he blinks. The arrow  507  represents the timing at which the user has blinked. The processing section  210  and the external apparatus  300  may detect that the user has blinked, when having detected a sequence of pulses of approximately the same level of amplitude within a certain period of time in both of the right-eye electro-oculogram and the left-eye electro-oculogram. For example in  FIG. 7 , the user can be detected to have blinked when there occurred four consecutive pulses of −100 μV in 5 seconds. 
       FIG. 8  schematically shows an example of the pair of glasses  100  viewed from the backside. The electric wire  160  may include a first electric wire  162 , a second electric wire  164 , a third electric wire  166 , and a fourth electric wire  168 . The first electric wire  162  may be electrically connected to the first electrode  152 , and buried in the frame  120 . The second electric wire  164  may be electrically connected to the second electrode  154 , and buried in the frame  120 . The third electric wire  166  may be electrically connected to the third electrode  156 , and buried in the frame  120 . The fourth electric wire  168  may be electrically connected to the ground electrode  158 . 
     The first electric wire  162 , the second electric wire  164 , the third electric wire  166 , and the fourth electric wire  168  may be an insulation electric wire. The shape of the insulation electric wire may be round or flat, and may even be a film wire. It is also possible to make the frame  120  from an insulator material, and the first electric wire  162 , the second electric wire  164 , and the third electric wire  166  from an uncoated conductive wire. 
     The first electric wire  162  passes the first electrode  152 , the lower part of the right rim  122 , the end piece  126 , the hinge  128 , the temple  130 , and the ear pad  132 , and then is exposed to outside. The second electric wire  164  passes the second electrode  154 , the lower part of the left rim  122 , the end piece  126 , the hinge  128 , the temple  130 , and the ear pad  132  and then is exposed to outside. The third electric wire  166  passes the third electrode  156 , the upper part of the right rim  122  and the left rim  122 , the end piece  126 , the hinge  128 , the temple  130 , and the ear pad  132 , and then is exposed to outside. By burying the electric wires within the frame and not exposing them outside, the electric wires are prevented from being damaged. Moreover, the design of the pair of glasses  100  improves when compared to glasses having their electric wires exposed outside. 
     By burying the third electric wire  166  in both sides (left and right) of the frame  120 , the pair of glasses  100  will have a well balanced weight on the right and left. Moreover, since the frame  120  has the same structure at the right and the left, the production process can be simpler than burying the third electric wire in the left or the right. 
     Alternatively, the third electric wire  166  can be buried in either the left or the right of the frame  120 . In such a case, the amount of electric wire used can be reduced, to reduce the cost of the pair of glasses  100 . When burying the third electric wire  166  in one side (i.e. the left or the right) of the frame  120 , it should be desirable to burry the third electric wire  166  in the side which is opposite to the side in which the ground electrode  158  has been provided. By doing so, the number of electric wires that come out from the right ear pad  132  and the left ear pad  132  can be equaled. 
     As shown in  FIG. 8 , the first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154  can be provided below the center of the nose pad  140 . By doing so, the first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154  can be prevented from being positioned right beside the user&#39;s eyes. If the first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154  are provided right beside the user&#39;s eyes, the visual line detection accuracy may be degraded because the potential detected will be similar between a case in which the user has looked up and a case in which the user has looked down. By providing the first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154  below the nose pad  140 , the potential can be clearly differentiated between in a case in which the user has looked up and in a case in which the user has looked down, to prevent worsening of visual line detection accuracy. 
       FIG. 9  schematically shows an example of a partially enlarged view of the glasses  100  viewed from the backside. The hinge  128  may include a first hinge  902  and a second hinge  904 . The first hinge  902  and the second hinge  904  may be made of an electrically conductive material. The first hinge  902  makes contact with the portion of the third electric wire  166  which is buried in the rim  122 , and the portion of the third electric wire  166  which is buried in the temple  130 . By doing so, the portion of the third electric wire  166  which is buried in the rim  122  can be in electrical conduction with the portion of the third electric wire  166  which is buried in the temple  130 . 
     The second hinge  904  makes contact with the portion of the first electric wire  162  which is buried in the rim  122 , and the portion of the first electric wire  162  which is buried in the temple  130 . By doing so, the portion of the first electric wire  162  which is buried in the rim  122  can be in electrical conduction with the portion of the first electric wire  162  which is buried in the temple  130 . The hinge  128  on the left side can also have the similar structure. By having two hinges distanced from each other, the first electric wire  162  can be electrically isolated from the third electric wire  166 , as well as electrically isolating the second electric wire  164  from the third electric wire  166 . 
       FIG. 10  shows a flowchart of a visual line detection processing performed by an external apparatus  300 . The operation in the flow chart starts by bringing the first electrode  152 , the second electrode  154 , the third electrode  156 , and the ground electrode  158  into contact with the skin of a user wearing the pair of glasses  100 , and by moving into the operation mode in which the external apparatus  300  executes visual line detection processing. 
     In Step S 1002 , the external apparatus  300  receives an electro-oculogram signal from the transmitting section  220 . The following explains the operation, by taking an example in which the potential detected by each electrode is received as it is. 
     In Step S 1004 , the external apparatus  300  determines whether there is abnormality in the received electro-oculogram signal. The external apparatus  300  will determine abnormality, when at least one of the first electrode  152 , the second electrode  154 , and the third electrode  156  has detected the potential of zero for a certain period of time or longer. For example, the external apparatus  300  determines that there is abnormality when at least one of the first electrode  152 , the second electrode  154 , and the third electrode  156  has detected the potential that exceeds a predetermined threshold value. When there is no abnormality found in Step S 1004 , the control proceeds to Step S 1006 . 
     In Step S 1006 , the external apparatus  300  determines whether the potential detected by the first electrode  152  relative to the third electrode  156  and the potential detected by the second electrode  154  relative to the third electrode  156  match a pre-registered pattern. An example of the pre-registered pattern may be as shown in  FIG. 3  through  FIG. 7 . When there is determined a match with any of the pre-registered patterns in Step S 1006 , the control proceeds to Step S 1008 , and when there is not determined any match, the control returns to Step S 1002 . 
     In Step S 1008 , the external apparatus  300  determines the visual line of the user. The external apparatus  300  determines that the user is looking up, when the pre-registered pattern that has matched in Step S 1006  has matched to the pattern shown in  FIG. 3 . The external apparatus  300  may execute the processing corresponding to the determined visual line. After having determined the visual line in Step S 1008 , the control returns to Step S 1002 . 
     When abnormality is found in Step S 1004 , the control proceeds to Step S 1010 . In Step S 1010 , the external apparatus  300  determines whether the abnormality indicates distancing away of all the electrodes. In other words, it is determined whether all the first electrodes  152 , the second electrode  154 , the third electrode  156  are distanced away from the skin of a user. The external apparatus  300  may determine that all the electrodes are distanced away when all the potential detected by the first electrode  152 , the second electrode  154 , and the third electrode  156  are zero for a certain period of time or longer. 
     In Step S 1010 , when it is determined that not all the electrodes are distanced, the control proceeds to Step S 1012 . In Step S 1012 , the external apparatus  300  warns the user. For example, when any one of the first electrode  152 , the second electrode  154 , and the third electrode  156  is distanced, the external apparatus  300  issues warning to notify the user of the existence of the distanced electrode(s). By warning the user, the user can be urged to adjust the position of the pair of glasses  100  to keep the electrodes in contact with him. 
     In Step S 1010 , when it is determined that all the electrodes are distanced away, the control proceeds to Step S 1014 . When all the electrodes are distanced away, it means that the pair of glasses  100  is removed from the user. Therefore in Step S 1014 , the external apparatus  300  moves onto the wait mode in which the external apparatus  300  waits before executing the next visual line detection processing. This ends the current visual line detection processing of the external apparatus  300 . When the external apparatus  300  executes the visual line detection processing as described above, the visual line of the user can be detected. For example, when a part of the electrodes is distanced due to displacement of the pair of glasses  100  from the face of the user, the user can be notified and urged to adjust the position of the pair of glasses  100 . 
     In the present embodiment, the pair of glasses is used as an example of eyewear. However, the eyewear is not limited to a pair of glasses. The eyewear can be anything that a user can wear, and may include glasses, sunglasses, goggles, a head mount display, and anything that can wear on the face or on the head. 
     In the present embodiment, the pair of glasses  100  includes the third electrode  156  and the third electric wire  166 . However, the pair of glasses  100  is not necessarily limited to this configuration. A configuration is also possible in which the pair of glasses  100  does not include any of the third electrode  156  and the third electric wire  166 . In such a configuration, the electro-oculogram showing the potential of the first electrode  152  relative to the reference electrode and the electro-oculogram showing the second electrode  154  relative to the reference electrode may be transmitted to the eternal apparatus  300 . Here, the ground electrode  158  may be provided in the position of the third electrode  156  to use it as the reference electrode. Also, the ground electrode  158  provided on the left ear pad may be used as the reference electrode, or an additional electrode provided in a position distanced from the first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154  may be used as the reference electrode. 
     The electro-oculogram shown by the potential of the first electrode  152  relative to the reference electrode and the electro-oculogram shown by the potential of the second electrode  154  relative to the reference electrode have the characteristics similar to the characteristics of the electro-oculogram shown in  FIG. 3 - FIG. 6 . The electro-oculogram shown by the potential of the first electrode  152  relative to the reference electrode and the electro-oculogram shown by the potential of the second electrode  154  relative to the reference electrode enable the external apparatus  300  to determine the visual line of a user. In this way, a configuration of not providing any of the third electrode  156  and the third electric wire  166  realizes an advantageous effect of reducing the number of electrodes and electric wires, which leads to reducing the weight and the cost of the pair of glasses  100 . 
     The present embodiment has dealt with a pair of glasses  100  which has its nose pad  140  integrated with the rim  122 . However, the pair of glasses  100  is not limited to this configuration. The pair of glasses  100  may include clings provided for the rim  122  and the nose pad  140  attached to the clings. In this case, the electrode provided on the surface of the nose pad  140  is electrically connected through the clings to the electric wire buried in the frame. 
     In the present embodiment, the pair of glasses  100  includes the first electric wire  162 , the second electric wire  164 , and the third electric wire  166  buried in the frame  120 . However, the pair of glasses  100  is not limited to this configuration. The pair of glasses  100  includes the first electric wire  162 , the second electric wire  164 , and the third electric wire  166  provided along the surface of the frame  120 . 
     The present embodiment has dealt with a case in which the first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154  are provided below the center of the nose pad  140 . However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration. For example, the nose pad  140  can have an elongated section that elongates downward and that is provided with the first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154 . By adopting this configuration, the first electrode  152  and the second electrode  154  can be brought in contact to the skin below the eyes of a user, even if the user has such a face configuration that the nose pad inevitably comes right beside his eyes. 
     The present embodiment has the third electrode  156  provided on the surface of the bridge  124 . However, the present embodiment is not limited to this configuration. It is also possible to provide the bridge  124  with an elongated section that elongates upward, and to provide this elongated section with the third electrode  156 . It is further possible to provide a movable section between the elongated section and the bridge  124 , and move the elongated section up and down using this movable section for adjusting the position of the third electrode  156 . By adopting this configuration, the contact position of the third electrode  156  can be adjusted to be away from the eyes, even if the user has such a face configuration that the third electrode  156  inevitably comes close to his eyes when wearing the pair of glasses. 
     The present embodiment has dealt with a case in which the first electric wire  162 , the second electric wire  164 , and the third electric wire  166  are exposed outside the ear pad  132 . However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration. The first electric wire  162 , the second electric wire  164 , and the third electric wire  166  may extend from other portions. For example, the first electric wire  162 , the second electric wire  164 , and the third electric wire  166  can extend from the temple  130  or the end piece  126 . 
     The present embodiment has taken an example that the external apparatus  300  is a mobile communication terminal such as a portable phone, a smart phone, or the like that is a separate body from the electro-oculogram processing unit  200 . However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration. The external apparatus  300  may be provided as one piece with the electro-oculogram processing unit  200 . In addition, although the electro-oculogram processing unit  200  was explained to be connected by the electric wire  160  to the pair of glasses  100  distanced apart from the electro-oculogram processing unit  200  in the present embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this configuration. In fact, the electro-oculogram processing unit  200  may be attached to the frame  120 . 
     While the embodiments of the present invention have been described, the technical scope of the invention is not limited to the above described embodiments. It is apparent to persons skilled in the art that various alterations and improvements can be added to the above-described embodiments. It is also apparent from the scope of the claims that the embodiments added with such alterations or improvements can be included in the technical scope of the invention. 
     The operations, procedures, steps, and stages of each process performed by an apparatus, system, program, and method shown in the claims, embodiments, or diagrams can be performed in any order as long as the order is not indicated by “prior to,” “before,” or the like and as long as the output from a previous process is not used in a later process. Even if the process flow is described using phrases such as “first” or “next” in the claims, embodiments, or diagrams, it does not necessarily mean that the process must be performed in this order.

Technology Classification (CPC): 0