Nec Display Solutions, Ltd.

Nec Viewtechnology, Ltd.

Sharp Nec Display Solutions, Ltd.

Masateru Matsubara

Hiroyuki Saitou

Motoyasu Utsunomiya

Atsushi Katou

Akihiro Osaka

Kunitaka Furuichi

Eiki Matsuo

Sota Hirahara

A light source device includes a first laser source and a diffusion element that diffuses light, the diffusion element being provided on an optical path of a first laser beam emitted by the first laser source. The diffusion element comprises, on an incident surface, a first lens array in which a plurality of first lens elements are arranged that divide the first laser beam into a plurality of light beams and further comprises, on an exit surface, a second lens array in which a plurality of second lens elements are arranged that each face a respective first lens element of the plurality of first lens elements and that each emit a light beam incident through the facing first lens element toward an imaging surface. Each second lens element forms a light source image in a different region on the imaging surface.

Light source device and projector

A light source device includes: a phosphor unit that is provided with a phosphor; an excitation light source that supplies excitation light that excites the phosphor; a reducing optical system that reduces the luminous flux diameter of the excitation light; and a light condensing optical system that condenses, on the phosphor unit, excitation light for which the luminous flux diameter was reduced by the reducing optical system. The reducing optical system includes: a plurality of lenses including two lenses having positive power; and a lens-moving section that moves the lens back and forth along the direction of the optical axis. The lens is disposed on the excitation light source side, and has a lower power than the lens. The refractive index of the lens is equal to or smaller than the refractive indexes of the other lenses of the reducing optical system.

Light source device and projector with reducing optical system having adjustable position for positive power lens

Provided is an illuminating optical device that can reduce lowering of luminance in a display mode for enhancing color reproducibility. A multiple number of light source units () each emit a different color of light. Color wheel () includes multiple transmissive regions that each transmit a different color of light and that moves the point on which the incident light from each light source unit falls, over the transmissive regions as the wheel rotates. A storage () stores a multiple number of lighting pattern information items each item providing a lighting pattern to turn on each light source unit in a different period of lighting. A controller () receives a select signal for selecting one of the multiple lighting patterns to turn on each light source unit in accordance with the lighting pattern information that provides the lighting pattern selected by the select signal.

Illuminating optical device, projector and method of controlling an illuminating optical device

A projector in an illumination optical system includes a laser light source, a synchronization signal processor that converts synchronization signals that are synchronized with video signals input from outside the projector into video signals to be used inside the projector, an LD driver that controls a lighting state of the laser light source according to the synchronization signals output from the synchronization signal processor, an LED (Light Emitting Diode) light source, an LED driver that controls a lighting state of the LED light source according to the synchronization signals output from the synchronization signal processor, a rotational state detector that detects a rotational state of a phosphor wheel, and a phosphor wheel driver that, based on a detected result of the rotational state detector, controls the rotational state of the phosphor wheel.

Projector in illumination optical system including phosphor wheel driver

A projector includes an illumination optical system, an image formation element that spatially modulates light from the illumination optical system, and a projection lens that projects the spatially modulated light. The illumination optical system includes a light source that emits light of a first wavelength, a fluorophore unit including a reflection region reflecting the light of the first wavelength and a fluorophore region including a fluorophore emitting fluorescent light of a wavelength that differs from the first wavelength by irradiation of the light of the first wavelength, a first optical element reflecting a first linearly polarized light and allowing a second linearly polarized light to pass through the first optical element, and a second optical element provided on a light path between the first optical element and the fluorophore unit which changes a polarized state of irradiated light.

Illumination optical system and projector including fluorophore

A lighting device includes: a phosphor wheel; a color-combining prism including dichroic surfaces, the film surfaces of these dichroic surfaces being disposed to cross a center ray of luminous flux of fluorescence emitted from the phosphor wheel and to be orthogonal to a plane that contains the center ray; a blue laser; a red laser; and excitation light sources. When viewed from the direction perpendicular to the plane, the blue laser, red laser, and excitation light sources are arranged on one side of the center ray of the luminous flux of the fluorescence.

Lighting device and projection-type display device using the same including a color-combining prism

A projector includes an illumination optical system, an image formation element that spatially modulates light from the illumination optical system, and a projection lens that projects the spatially modulated light. The illumination optical system includes a light source that emits light of a first wavelength, a fluorophore unit including a reflection region reflecting the light of the first wavelength and a fluorophore region including a fluorophore emitting fluorescent light of a wavelength that differs from the first wavelength by irradiation of the light of the first wavelength, an optical element reflecting the light of the first wavelength, and a quarter-wave plate provided on a light path between the optical element and the fluorophore unit.

A light source apparatus includes excitation light sources, a phosphor unit, a dichroic mirror that reflects excitation light supplied from the excitation light sources toward the phosphor unit and that transmits fluorescent light emitted from the phosphor unit, and a collimator lens that is provided between the dichroic mirror and the phosphor unit and whose focal distance varies according to the wavelength. The phosphor unit is arranged at a position determined by the focal distance of the collimator lens for the fluorescent wavelength. The collimator lens includes low-dispersion lenses and a high-dispersion lens.

Projector light source apparatus having collimator disposed between excitation light source and phosphor element

This invention realizes an illumination optical system with a small etendue that has a longer lifetime and a high degree of brightness. The invention includes: a laser light source that generates excitation light; a phosphor that generates a fluorescent light by means of the excitation light; a light tunnel that projects the excitation light that is incident at one end towards the phosphor from another end, and projects a fluorescent light generated with the phosphor from the one end; and a dichroic mirror that is provided between the laser light source and the light tunnel, and that allows the fluorescent light or the excitation light to pass through, and reflects the remaining excitation or fluorescent light.

Illumination optical system and projector using the same

An illumination optical system includes: a light source emitting light of a first wavelength; a fluorophore unit; an optical element and a quarter-wave plate between the optical element and the fluorophore unit. The fluorophore unit has a reflection region and a fluorophore region that gives off fluorescent light of a different wavelength than the first wavelength when irradiated by light of the first wavelength. The fluorophore unit is able to move such that the light from the light source sequentially irradiates the fluorophore region and the reflection region. The optical element separates the light of the first wavelength into a first linearly polarized light component and a second linearly polarized light component that is orthogonal to the first linearly polarized light component. The optical element guides the first linearly polarized light component of the light emitted from the light source to the fluorophore unit, and emits the light of the first wavelength that was reflected by the reflection region and fluorescent light that was emitted by the fluorophore region in the same direction.

A lighting device includes excitation light sources, phosphor wheel that emits green fluorescent light, a collimator lens that converts the emitted fluorescent light into parallel luminous flux, a red laser, a blue laser, a dichroic mirror that combines the excitation light supplied from the excitation light sources and the light supplied from the red laser, and a cross dichroic prism that combines the fluorescent light emitted from phosphor wheel, the light supplied from the red laser and the light supplied from the blue laser. The cross dichroic prism supplies the excitation light supplied from the excitation light sources to the collimator lens and the collimator lens condenses the incident excitation light on the phosphor wheel.

Lighting device and projection-type display device using same

This invention realizes an illumination optical system with a small etendue that has a longer lifetime and a high degree of brightness. The invention includes: a laser light source that generates excitation light having a first wavelength; a phosphor wheel including a blue fluorescent light generation region that generates fluorescent light having a second wavelength by means of the excitation light, and a green fluorescent light generation region that generates fluorescent light having a third wavelength by means of the excitation light; an LED light source that generates light having a fourth wavelength; and a dichroic mirror that reflects fluorescent light having the second wavelength and fluorescent light having the third wavelength and allows light having the fourth wavelength to pass therethrough, to thereby emit each of the lights in the same direction.

An illumination apparatus includes a fluorescence unit, laser light irradiation means, and a beam integration unit. The fluorescence unit has a plurality of phosphors, in which the colors of fluorescence generated due to excitation differ, arranged in different regions. The laser light irradiation means irradiates laser light onto the regions of each color of the fluorescence unit while changing the position at which the laser light strikes the fluorescence unit. The beam integration unit integrates fluorescence from each region of the fluorescence unit on a display panel.

Projector and illumination apparatus for same

A projection display apparatus has a light source, an image forming device for modulating light emitted from the light source with an image signal supplied thereto, and a reflective optical system for magnifying and projecting an image generated by the image forming device. The reflective optical system has a first reflecting mirror for reflecting light emitted from the image forming device and initially applied thereto, and a plurality of reflecting mirrors for successively reflecting the light reflected by the first reflecting mirror. The first reflecting mirror has a spherical reflecting surface, and a normal line passing through the crest of the spherical reflecting surface and a normal line passing through the image forming device extend nonparallel to each other.

Projection display apparatus

A projection display apparatus includes an image forming element, and an imaging optical system made up of a plurality of reflectors for projecting an image formed by the image forming element to provide an enlarged version of the image, wherein at least one of the reflectors which make up the imaging optical system is movable for adjusting the focus, and the movable reflector is movable along a straight line non-parallel with the normal line of the image forming element.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Masateru Matsubara