Victor Company of Japan, Limited

Tsutou Asakura

Shintaro Nakagaki

Itsuo Takanashi

Masato Furuya

Hirohiko Shinonaga

Tetsuji Suzuki

Yuji Uchiyama

Yoshihisa Koyama

Hiromichi Tai

Takashi Kuriyama

Ryusaku Takahashi

Ichiro Negishi

Hiroshi Ichimura

Hiroyuki Bonde

Hiroki Kitamura

Fujiko Tatsumi

Keiichi Maeno

Tatsuru Kobayashi

Fujiko Koyama

Takashi Yamamura

Makoto Iwahara

Masanobu Shigeta

Terumi Ohara

Toshikatsu Ichitou

Tetsuhiro Yamazaki

Shogo Masuda

Shinichi Hirose

Itsuo Takanshi

A color-separating and -recombining optical system provided between a light source and a projection lens in a projection display, has at least one prism assembly made up of at least two prisms bonded to each other with a bonding layer formed between the prisms. A white light emitted from the light source is divided into red-, green-, and blue-color light components related to primary colors. The light components are modulated by spatial light modulators in accordance with a video signal. The modulated light components are combined and projected onto a screen via the projection lens. The thickness of the bonding layer is varied as thin and thick for optical paths long and short, respectively, from the spatial light modulators to the bonding layer which each modulated light component emitted from the corresponding spatial light modulator reaches.

Color-separating and -recombining optical system

A color-separating and -recombining optical system includes a cubic- or square column-like first to fourth polarization beam splitters having polarization-splitting planes intersecting each other and wavelength-selective polarizing converters for rotating the plane of polarization of a specific-color light component by 90 degrees. One of the converters is placed at a light-incident side of the first splitter and another is placed at a light-emitting side of the fourth splitter. The first and fourth splitters are provided at a light-incident and light-emitting sides, respectively, of the optical system. The first and fourth splitters are arranged diagonally opposing each other. The remaining converters are placed between at least two inner facing planes of the first to fourth splitters. At least the remaining converters and three of the first to fourth splitters are joined to form an optical joint component with a gap between the component and the remaining one splitter.

Color-separating and -recombining optical system and projection display using the same

Removal of unnecessary reflected light in an image display apparatus employing reflective spatial light modulators to enable display of a high-quality image, having good contrast and no occurrence of the ghosting phenomena. Modulated light of each color synthesized by a fourth modulated light beam splitteris injected into a projection lensas circularly polarized light by a &#x3bb;/4 plate, reflected light (R', G&#x2032;, B&#x2032;) reflected from the projection lensdoes not return to the respective spatial light modulating elementsandfor each color.

Image display apparatus

Color-separating and&mdash;recombining optical system and projection display using the same

A color-separating and -recombining optical system includes a cubic- or square column-like first to fourth polarization beam splitters having polarization-splitting planes intersecting each other and wavelength-selective polarizing converters for rotating the plane of polarization of a specific-color light component by 90 degrees. One of the converters is placed at a light-incident side of the first splitter and another is placed at a light-emitting side of the fourth splitter. The first and fourth splitters are provided at light-incident and light-emitting sides, respectively, of the optical system. The first and fourth splitters are arranged diagonally opposing each other. The remaining converters are placed between at least two inner facing planes of the first to fourth splitters. At least the remaining converters and three of the first to fourth splitters are joined to form an optical joint component with a gap between the component and the remaining one splitter.

A projection display apparatus ( ) is formed by a light source ( ) radiating white light w, a collimator lens ( ) that converts condensed light flux from the light source ( ) to collimated light flux, a cold mirror ( ) for eliminating unwanted infrared light included in the white light w, an integrator that makes the intensity distribution of the illumination light on an object to be illuminated uniform, a reflective mirror ( ) that reflects light flux from the integrator ( ) at a prescribed angle, a polarizer ( ) that polarizes separated light of each wavelength band, a spatial light modulation section ( ), a coupling prism ( ), and a projection lens ( ).

Image projection display apparatus

A video signal of the non-interlaced scanning type is converted into a video signal of the interlaced scanning type by alternately selecting odd-number horizontal scanning line signals or even-number horizontal scanning line signals in synchronism with the start timing of each field period. The polarity of the video signal is inverted every vertical scanning period. During a first vertical scanning period, the odd-number video signal is written to respective sets of two neighboring line scanning electrodes (G,, G,), (G,, G,), (G,, G,), - - - . During a second vertical scanning period, the even-number video signal is written to another sets of two neighboring line scanning electrodes (G,, G,), (G,, G,), (G,, G,), - - - . The time axis of each horizontal scanning period is doubled. The drive frequency of a row signal electrode drive circuit is halved.

Active matrix type liquid crystal display apparatus used for a video display system

An input analog video signal is converted into digital video data. The digital video data is inverted to inverted digital video data. The digital video data and the inverted digital video data are selectively output for each one field period of the input analog video signal. The selectively output digital video data and the inverted digital video data are converted into a first and a second analog video signal. The first and second analog video signals are adjusted at different first and second bias voltage levels, respectively. The adjusted first and second analog video signals are selectively output to a liquid crystal display device for each one field period. It is preferable to output the same digital video data twice for each one field period before inversion. In this case, the digital video data and the inverted digital video data are selectively output for each &frac12; field period, and the adjusted first and second analog video signals are selectively output for each &frac12; field period.

Apparatus and method of displaying image by liquid crystal display device

A liquid crystal displaying apparatus has a reflection-type liquid crystal display with vertical orientation-mode liquid crystals, to modulate linearly polarized light. Also provided is a polarization and diffracting section to convert read light beams obliquely incident thereto to the linearly polarized light, to allow the linearly polarized light to be incident to the liquid crystal display, allow first polarized light components of the linearly polarized light modulated by the liquid crystal display to pass therethrough, the first polarized light components vibrating in a first direction perpendicular to a second direction in which the linearly polarized light vibrates, and diffract second polarized light components of the linearly polarized light to a third direction from which the read light beams be incident to the liquid crystal display, the second polarized light components vibrating in the second direction. Further provided are a quarter wavelength plate to allow elliptically polarized light which includes the first polarized light components and a small quantity of the second polarized light components to pass therethrough when the liquid crystal display is active for modulation, and a polarizer to allow polarized light components of the elliptically polarized light to pass therethrough, the polarized light components matching a transmission axis of the polarizer.

Reflection-type liquid crystal displaying apparatus

A liquid crystal displaying apparatus has an active matrix liquid crystal display provided with a plurality of liquid crystal displaying devices arranged in a horizontal and a vertical direction to form a matrix. The apparatus further includes a horizontal driver provided along rows of the devices, a first vertical driver provided along the leftmost column of the devices and a second vertical driver provided along the rightmost column of the devices. The horizontal driver supplies video signals to the devices by scanning the devices left to right or right to left in a direction of the rows. The first vertical driver supplies control signals to the liquid crystal display to turn on the devices from the leftmost to the rightmost column of the devices when the horizontal driver scans the devices left to right in the direction of the rows. On the other hand, the second vertical driver supplies control signals to the liquid crystal display to turn on the devices from the rightmost to the leftmost column of the devices when the horizontal driver scans the devices right to left in the direction of the rows. The horizontal driver may include a first horizontal driving section provided along the uppermost row of the devices and a second horizontal driving section provided along the lowermost row of the devices. The first horizontal driving section scans the devices left to right in the direction of the rows or the second horizontal driving section scans the devices right to left in the direction of the rows in response to a selection signal.

Apparatus and method of driving active matrix liquid crystal display

A spatial light modulator and a lighting system used in, for example, projection displays are provided. The lighting system has a polarizing plate optically disposed in parallel to a light modulating layer of the spatial light modulator, thereby orienting the polarization of readout light beams incident on the spatial light modulator in the same direction to increase the contrast of images projected on a screen. The spatial light modulator is provided with a coupling prism having a side surface opposed to an entrance surface on which the readout light beams are incident. The side surface is so inclined inward as to allow stray light in the coupling prism to go out of the coupling prism without being reflected, thereby eliminating a decrease in contrast of images with a screen caused by the stray light.

Structure of spatial light modulator and lighting system therefor

A liquid-crystal display apparatus includes a layer of liquid crystal. A matrix array is composed of scanning electrodes and signal electrodes. The scanning electrodes extend along a matrix row direction. The signal electrodes extend along a matrix column direction. Switching circuit elements are located at respective places where the scanning electrodes intersect with the signal electrodes. Pixel electrodes connected to the switching circuit elements are operative for controlling portions of the liquid-crystal layer respectively. A first device is operative for driving the scanning electrodes. A second device is operative for delaying a first video signal into a second video signal. A third device is operative for alternately selecting one out of the first video signal and the second video signal to generate a third video signal in response to the first video signal and the second video signal. A fourth device is operative for periodically inverting a polarity of the third video signal at a timing synchronous with alternately selecting by the third device to convert the third video signal into a fourth video signal. A fifth device is operative for feeding the fourth video signal to the signal electrodes.

Liquid-crystal display apparatus

In an information recording apparatus, light containing information to be recorded is generated, and a photo-to-electric converting device serves to convert the light into a charge latent image. The photo-to-electric converting device includes a photoconductive member exposed to the light. Information corresponding to the charge latent image is recorded on a recording medium. A first recording device serves to record main information on a first region of the recording medium. A second recording device separate from the first recording device serves to record sub information on a second region of the recording medium. The second region is different from the first region.

Method and apparatus for recording and reproducing main and sub

An image formation apparatus using a recording medium including a scattering-mode light-modulation member which takes an opaque state in response to a heat and takes a transparent state in response to an electric field. The apparatus comprises an electrode device disposed in opposed relation to the recording medium and a charge removal device facing or in contact with the recording medium. The electrode device applies an electric field to the recording medium thereby completely erasing an image previously recorded in the recording medium and the charge removal device removes charge left in the recording medium due to application of the electric field by the electrode device. After the erasure, the recording medium is heated by a thermal head in accordance with an information signal from an external device so as to form a new image in the recording medium.

Image formation and erasure on and from scattering-mode light-modulation

A system has a first electrode, a second electrode, a photosensitive member located between the first and second electrodes, a recording member located between the first and second electrodes, and an optical shutter. In this system, light having information to be recorded is applied to the photosensitive member. The light information is recorded on the recording member. An exposure amount of the light with respect to the photosensitive member is set by setting a time during which the optical shutter remains open. A drive voltage of a predetermined variation is applied between the first and second electrodes during the recording of the light information on the recording member. The predetermined voltage between the first and second electrodes is controlled in response to a sensed intensity of reference light which passes through the photo-modulation member.

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Yokohama, Japan

Tsutou Asakura