Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Corporation

Bronje M Musgrave

Grant Bourhill

David James Montgomery

Nathan James Smith

Martin David Tillin

Paul Antony Gass

Allan Evans

Graham Roger Jones

Adrian Marc Simon Jacobs

Marina Vladimirovna Khazova

Adrian M S Jacobs

Jonathan P Bramble

An autostereoscopic display comprises a pixellated transflective spatial light modulator which is arranged to provide a visual indication to an observer of the amount of crosstalk caused by reflection of ambient illumination. The display comprises a rear parallax barrier between a backlight and the modulator. Part of the barrier is formed as a screen blocking transmitted light from a first region of the modulator so that the pixels in this region are visible only by reflection of ambient illumination. In a second region, the pixels are illuminated with both transmitted and reflected light. A controller sets the pixels of the first region to maximum intensity and the pixels of the second region to a fraction of the maximum intensity. The fraction corresponds, for example, to a maximum amount of crosstalk which is permissible for autostereoscopic viewing. When the brightness of the first region is darker than or the same as the brightness of the second region, crosstalk is sufficiently low to permit autostereoscopic viewing.

Autostereoscopic display

A method is provided that allows simultaneous control of macroscopic azimuthal and zenithal liquid crystal alignment (&#x3c6;, &#x3b8;) across a liquid crystal layer by controlling the area ratios between first, second and third different types of alignment region (T, T, T) in a patterned alignment layer, the three different types of alignment region (T, T, T) tending to induce liquid crystal alignment in the liquid crystal layer in three different respective, non-coplanar, principal orientations (z, x, y). In the illustrated example, the first type of alignment region (T) tends to induce substantially homeotropic alignment (in the z direction) and the second and third types of alignment region (T, T) tend to induce substantially planar alignment in different, orthogonal, principal orientations (in the x and y directions). Control of macroscopic zenithal liquid crystal alignment (&#x3b8;) is achieved by controlling the area ratios between the homeotropic (T) and planar region types (T, T), and control of macroscopic azimuthal liquid crystal alignment (&#x3c6;) is achieved by controlling the area ratio between the two planar region types (T, T).

Control of liquid crystal alignment in an optical device

A display is provided having first and second direct view modes of operation. The display comprises a liquid crystal display panel and a backlight which is illuminated during the first mode so that the displayed image is visible throughout an extended viewing region in front of the device. The display also comprises a holographic element and a front light source, which is switched on for the second direct view mode. The holographic element redirects light from the front light source into part of the extended viewing region so that an image displayed by the device is visible in only a restricted portion of the viewing region.

Direct view LC display

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Oxfordshire, United Kingdom

Bronje M Musgrave