Pixelated color wobulation

• US 7,267,442 B2
• Filed: 03/10/2005
• Issued: 09/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Childers, Winthrop D., Allen, William J., Collins, David C
• Primary Examiner(s): Sever; Andrew T
• Application Number:
  US11/078,212
• Publication Number:
  US 20060082562A1
• Time in Patent Office: 915 Days
• Field of Search: 353/34, 353/28, 353/29, 353/50, 353/97, 353/122, 353/31, 349/8, 349/62, 348745-747, 348/756, 348/757, 348/771, 348/792
• US Class Current: 353/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/3111 for displaying the colours sequentially, e.g. by using sequentially activated light sources sequential projection in colour photography G03B33/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/3117 by using a sequential colour filter producing two or more colours simultaneously, e.g. by creating scrolling colour bands

Abstract

A display system includes a mechanism to provide for simultaneous pixelated color with a spatial light modulator. Also included is a mechanism to project the simultaneous pixelated color to create a color field display on a viewing surface. A further mechanism moves the color field display relative to viewing surface to provide at least one of color and resolution increasing wobulation.

Claims

1. A pixelated color management device, comprising:

a light source;

a spatial light modulator having a first plurality of individually defined pixel elements each configured to spectrally modulate one primary color of light from the light source to form a first plurality of perceived pixels on a viewing surface, and a second plurality of individually defined pixels elements each configured to spectrally modulate at least two primary colors of light from the light source to form a second plurality of perceived pixels on the viewing surface; and

a wobulation control circuit, wherein the wobulation control circuit is configured to move the first and second plurality of perceived pixels on the viewing surface from a first array of pixel locations to a second array of pixel locations on the viewing surface.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the pixel elements of the spatial light modulator correspond to a spatially defined color scheme.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein the spatially defined color scheme is a red, green-blue color scheme arranged in an adjacent neighbor distributed manner.

4. The device of claim 1 wherein the spatial light modulator is a Fabry-Perot interference based modulator.

5. The device of claim 1, further comprising:

projection optics wherein the wobulation control circuit modifies the optical path within the projection optics in a least one direction.

6. The device of claim 5 wherein the wobulation control circuit controls at least one of a first and a second direction.

7. The device of claim 1, further comprising:

projection optics optically coupled to the spatial light modulator to project the plurality of individually defined pixels of the spatial light modulator in a first and a second direction to a display surface, and wherein the wobulation control circuit controls at least one of the first and second direction of the projection optics.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein the wobulation control circuit is configured to move the first plurality of perceived pixels on the viewing surface relative to the second plurality of perceived pixels of the viewing surface such that substantially each of the first and second plurality of perceived pixels of the viewing surface can over time generate a perceived white pixel.

9. A display system, comprising:

a light source;

a spatial light modulator in optical communication with the light source, the spatial light modulator having a plurality of individually defined pixels configured to filter the light source to form discrete colors in a spatially defined color scheme arranged in an adjacent neighbor distributed manner wherein a first set of neighboring pixels is each configured to generate one primary color and a second set of neighboring pixels is each configured to generate at least two primary colors and wherein the first set of neighboring pixels is equal to the second set of neighboring pixels;

projection optics disposed between the spatial light modulator and a viewing surface to create a projected image; and

a controller coupled to the projection optics, the controller being configured to shift a position of the projected image relative to the viewing surface to allow the first set of neighboring pixels to occupy the prior position of the second set of neighboring pixels.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the controller shifts the position of the spatial light modulator.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the viewing surface has a plurality of pixels, and each the pixels of the viewing surface is associated with at least two of the plurality of the individually defined pixels on the spatial light modulator over a sequential time frame.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the controller is configured to shift a position of the projected image one pixel in at least one direction relative to the viewing surface.

13. A method for generating color display images, comprising:

passing substantially white light onto a spatial light modulator having a plurality of pixel elements, wherein a first set of pixel elements is each configured to define one primary color and an adjacent neighbor second set of pixel elements is each configured to define at least two primary colors and wherein the number of first set of pixel elements is equal to the number of second set of pixel elements;

modulating the light with the spatial light modulator that is filtered by each of the pixels elements;

imaging the modulated light onto a viewing surface wherein the first set of pixel elements creates a first set of perceived pixels and the second set of pixel elements creates a second set of perceived pixels; and

adjusting the position of the imaged modulated light relative to the viewing surface so as to cause light filtered by the first and second set of pixel elements on the spatial light modulator to sequentially impinge at least one location of the viewing surface surface to allow the first set of perceived pixels to occupy the prior location of the second set of perceived pixels.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein adjusting the position of the imaged modulated light includes shifting the position of the spatial light modulator.

15. A projection device, comprising:

a pixel generator configured to generate an array of color pixels on a viewing surface including a first plurality of single pixels each having a first primary color and a second plurality of single pixels each having a second and a third primary colors wherein the first plurality of single pixels and the second plurality of single pixels are displayed simultaneously at different but interleaved pixel locations, wherein the number of first plurality of single pixels is equal to the number of second plurality of single pixels; and

wobbling optics configured to vary the positions of the array of color pixels to assure area coverage for each of the first, second, and third primary colors.

16. The device of claim 15, further comprising:

a light source, wherein the pixel generator includes an array of pixel elements wherein each single pixel element is configured to receive light from the light source and to generate a single pixel having a spectral distribution that is modified relative to the light source.

17. The device of claim 15, further comprising:

a light source, wherein the pixel generator includes an array of pixel elements wherein each single pixel element is configured to interferometrically modulate light received from the light source.

18. The device of claim 15, further comprising:

a light source, wherein the pixel generator includes an array of pixel elements wherein each single pixel element is configured to filter light received from the light source to narrow the spectral distribution of light received from the light source.