Jds Uniphase Corporation

Advanced Digital Optics, Inc.

Packard Instrument Company, Inc.

Optics 1, Inc.

Spaario Inc.

Michael P Newell

Clark Pentico

Robert E Fischer

David W Kappel

John Ferri

UnSig Min

Jerome E Oleksy

Scott Moritz

David Dickson Booker

An optical magnifier has two light transmissive substrates with lenses on either side of each substrate and wherein the arrays of lenses are aligned such that an array of afocal optical magnifiers is produced. One of the arrays forming the array of afocal magnifiers has positive lenses and one of the arrays forming the array of afocal magnifiers has negative lenses. Two arrays of afocal magnifiers are combined to form a pair of magnifying glasses.

Optical system providing magnification

An apparatus and method is discloses for providing a substantially uniform, homogenous, polarized light. A beam of substantially un-polarized light is provided by a conventional light source. The un-polarized light is converted to at least four real images by using a light pipe and appropriate lensing. Each of the real images have a light region and one more dark regions at a first image plane. A portion of light from a light region in each real image is directed to one or more dark regions in each of the real images in a polarization dependent manner and the altered image is into a single image of substantially polarized light.

Illumination system using polarization conversion

A color management system for use with projection displays includes, for example, two or more analyzers positioned to receive light beams as they are emitted from the panels of a color management system. The analyzers are positioned to receive the light beams directly from the image assimilators before the light has passed through another optical element such as a light combiner. The analyzers are configured for producing filtered light outputs with improved contrast relative to the incoming light beams. By positioning the analyzers to receive the light beams directly from the image assimilators, i.e., prior to passage through other optical elements, the analyzers are able to remove substantially all of the noise before it has become indistinguishable, on the basis of polarization, from the light that comprises the desirable image. Accordingly, this embodiment produces images having dramatically improved levels of contrast relative to prior art systems.

Image display device

The present invention relates to a folded front end unit used in a light engine of a projection display device. The front end unit comprises a light source for generating a beam of light, and a lightpipe for providing spatial uniformity to the beam of light. Polarization-dependent front end units include polarization beam splitters for separating the light into orthogonally polarized sub-beams, and a polarization rotating element, e.g. a waveplate, for rotating the polarization of one of the sub-beams. In accordance with the present invention, a prism is positioned between the light source and the lightpipe for reflecting the light into the lightpipe. The difference in refractive index between the air and the prism decreases the cone angle of the beam of light enough to effectively increase the distance between the light source and the lightpipe to compensate for the added distance required to fold the light.

Folding converging light into a lightpipe

A color management system for use with projection displays includes an image assimilator and an analyzer. The image assimilator comprises a panel that produces a light beam comprising spatial information. The image assimilator also comprises a field lens positioned to receive the light beam and configured to emit a converging light beam whose cross-sectional area decreases with distance from the field lens. In an exemplary embodiment, a plurality of image assimilators and associated analyzers are included, each having a field lens for emitting a converging light beam. The analyzers are configured for producing filtered light outputs with improved contrast relative to the converging light beams. In addition, the converging nature of the field lens emitted light beams enables the size of the analyzers and other downstream components to be minimized. Accordingly, this embodiment produces images having dramatically improved levels of contrast with reduced size relative to prior art systems.

Image display device having a field lens

A color management system for use with projection displays includes, for example, two or more analyzers positioned to receive light beams emitted from corresponding image assimilators, which each comprise a transmissive panel and a polarizing beamsplitter. Each analyzer is positioned to receive a light beam directly from an associated image assimilator before the light has passed through another optical element such as a light combiner. The analyzers are configured for producing filtered light outputs with improved contrast relative to the incoming light beams. These closely-coupled analyzers are able to remove substantially all of the noise before it has become indistinguishable, on the basis of polarization, from the light that comprises the desirable image. In an exemplary embodiment, an optical isolator is positioned to receive both a light output from a color management system and a reflection of the light output. The optical isolator is configured for isolating the light output from the reflection.

Image display device having a transmissive panel and an optical isolator

A color management system for use with projection displays includes, for example, a separating polarizing beamsplitter, a compensating prism group, an image assimilator, and a combining polarizing beam splitter. In accordance with an exemplary embodiment, the separating polarizing beamsplitter receives a bi-oriented light input and separates it into two output beams, one comprising a first component and the other comprising a second component. The image assimilator receives an output light beam from the separating polarizing beamsplitter, transmits the light output to one or more corresponding microdisplays, receives one or more modified outputs from the microdisplays, and emits an output comprising those modified outputs to a combining polarizing beamsplitter. The compensating prism group receives from the separating polarizing beamsplitter the other output light beam, transmits it to another corresponding microdisplay, receives from the microdisplay a modified light output, and transmits it to the combining polarizing beamsplitter be combined with the light output from the image assimilator. The compensating prism group may be configured to compensate for an optical aberration induced by the light separator.

Image display device having a compensating prism group

A color management system for use with projection displays includes a beamsplitter positioned to receive a light beam, a microdisplay positioned to receive the light beam from the beamsplitter and emit a modified light beam to the beamsplitter, and a plurality of prisms positioned to receive the modified light beam from the beamsplitter and emit a light output that compensates for an optical aberration induced by the beamsplitter.

Color management system having a prism to compensate for optical aberrations and to enhance contrast

Color management system having a transmissive panel and optical isolator

Color management system having a field lens

Color management system

A universal microplate analyzer capable of carrying out measurements on samples contained in the wells of microplates by fluorescence, absorbance, luminescence employs at least two light sources and optical fiber channels for directing excitation light to the sample wells. Flexibility of operation is provided by arrays of mirrors, apertures, and polarizers which can be positioned as required for the analysis to be carried out.

Universal microplate analyzer

A lens design form is used for a viewing optical system or magnifier that includes a cemented doublet and a weak aspheric element, for example, made of acrylic, and having a diffractive kinoform surface superimposed on the surface profile of the aspheric element. The design significantly reduces both chromatic aberrations and minimizes most of the monochromatic aberrations of the optical system or magnifier. By allowing the lens design form to produce an image on a curved surface, optical performance is improved further over the prior art systems because this allows the elements in the system to control the image blurring aberrations rather than having to also control field curvature. The human eye can accommodate for the curved field, and thus the curved field does not reduce image quality, but instead allows image quality to be enhanced. The viewing optical system also can be used for image projection.

Growing community of inventors

Santa Rosa, CA, United States of America

Michael P Newell