System and method for interacting with a display through a display window

Abstract

The invention is related to a system for interacting with a display through a display window, comprising a recording unit configured to be placed behind the display window for recording a pointer object in front of said display window, at least one deflection unit configured to direct a beam path from a space in front of the display window to said recording unit, a computer unit configured to be connected to said recording unit for determining a position of the pointer object with respect to the display window, and shield means by means of which beam paths that are not deflected by the deflection unit are suppressed, and to a corresponding method. The invention achieves a good contrast between the pointer object and the background and therefore an improved recognition of the pointer object.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the invention are shown in the drawings

FIG. 1 shows schematically a setup of the inventive system in a view on a display window;

FIG. 2 shows the setup as shown in FIG. 1 in a view parallel to the display window;

FIG. 3A+3B show a deflection unit and shield means in one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 shows a flow chart of different steps of a method of processing acquired image data;

FIG. 5A-C show how spatial information is extracted from an image;

FIG. 6 shows a routine for detecting a pointer object in front of a background.

Claims

1. A system for interacting with a display through a display window, comprising: a recording unit configured to be placed behind the display window for recording a pointer object in front of said display window;at least one deflection unit configured to direct a beam path from a space in front of the display window to said recording unit;a computer unit configured to be connected to said recording unit for determining a position of the pointer object with respect to the display window;shield means by means of which beam paths that are not deflected by the deflection unit are suppressed.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the shield means are configured such that beam paths corresponding to a direct incidence of light on the recording unit are suppressed.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the shield means comprise at least one shading element that is arranged at a distance from a front surface of the display window with a deflection surface of the deflection means located between the front surface and the shading element.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the shield means are configured such that beam paths corresponding to light reflected at a surface of the display window are suppressed.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the display window comprises at least two panes each having a front surface and a rear surface, and wherein the shield means are configured such that beam paths corresponding to light reflected at at least one of said front surfaces or rear surfaces of the panes are suppressed.

6. The system according to claim 4, wherein the shield means comprise at least one protective screen that is arranged at at least one of a front surface, and a rear surface of the display window.

7. The system according to claim 6, wherein the protective screen is generally planar and has an opening that is arranged in the vicinity of a deflection surface of the deflection means.

8. The system according to claim 6, wherein the protective screen comprises a foil having a reduced transparency as compared with the transparency of the display window.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the shield means comprise at least one first protective screen that is arranged at a front surface of the display window, at least one second protective screen that is arranged at a rear surface of the display window, and at least one shading element that is arranged a distance from a front surface of the display window with a deflection surface of the deflection means located between the front surface and the protective screen.

10. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a display arranged at or in the vicinity of a rear surface of the display window.

11. The system according to claim 10, wherein the computer unit interacts with the display in such a way that a predetermined action is triggered based on a position of the pointer object.

12. The system according to claim 10, wherein the recording unit forms an integral part of the display.

13. The system according to claim 1, wherein the recording unit comprises at least one camera having an optical axis and a field of view, said field of view encompassing the display as seen through the display window.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein the optical axis is arranged generally parallel to the surface of the display window.

15. The system according to claim 13, wherein the recording unit comprises two cameras, said cameras each having an optical axis and a field of view, and wherein the fields of view overlap and the optical axes are oriented in different directions.

16. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computer unit is configured to calculate a position of the pointer object with respect to the display window from at least one image recorded by the recording unit.

17. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computer unit is configured to calculate a movement of the pointer object with respect to the display window from a plurality of images recorded by the recording unit.

18. The system according to claim 1, wherein the recording unit is configured to detect light emitted by the display and scattered by the pointer object.

19. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computer unit is configured to calculate an average image from a plurality of images recorded by the recording unit.

20. The system according to claim 1, wherein the computer unit is configured to evaluate a predetermined subset of pixels, said pixels constituting an image recorded by the recording unit, and said subset of pixels corresponding to an image of the display as seen through the display window.

21. Method for interacting with a display through a display window, comprising the following steps: recording a pointer object in front of said display window by means of a recording unit placed behind the display window;directing a beam path from a space in front of the display window to said recording unit by means of at least one deflection unit;determining a position of the pointer object with respect to the display window by means of a computer unit connected to said recording unit;suppressing beam paths that are not deflected by the deflection unit by means of shield means.

22. Method according to claim 1, further comprising acquiring at least one image encompassing the display as seen through the display window by means of the recording unit.

23. Method according to claim 21, further comprising acquiring images encompassing the display as seen through the display window from at least two different perspectives by means of the recording unit.

24. Method according to claim 21, further comprising evaluating only a part of the image, said part corresponding to an image of the display as seen through the display window.

25. Method according to claim 21, further comprising calculating an average image from a plurality of images recorded by the recording unit.

26. Method according to claim 21, further comprising illuminating the pointer object with light emitted by the display.

27. Method according to claim 21, further comprising suppressing beam paths corresponding to a direct incidence of light on the recording unit.

28. Method according to claim 21, further comprising suppressing beam paths corresponding to light reflected at a surface of the display window.

29. Method according to claim 27, further comprising suppressing beam paths corresponding to light reflected at a surface of a double-glazed display window.