Diffuser panel and optical apparatus which uses this diffuser panel

• US 7,336,895 B2
• Filed: 02/02/2005
• Issued: 02/26/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: Okazaki, Ayako
• Primary Examiner(s): MAHONEY, CHRISTOPHER E
• Application Number:
  US11/047,658
• Publication Number:
  US 20050169008A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,119 Days
• Field of Search: 396/150, 396/382, 359/599, 348/208.2
• US Class Current: 396/150
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 15/02 Illuminating scene

Abstract

A diffuser panel having a plurality of micro lenses arranged on a surface of a substrate, a half or more of these micro lenses are in a shape which has (2n+1) angles. This diffuser panel provides rays which are uniformly diffused within a diffusion area and a light amount distribution which changes smoothly. This diffuser panel provides a bright image having a naturally blurred impression when the diffuser panel is used as a focusing panel of an optical apparatus.

Claims

1. A diffuser panel comprising:

a base panel portion and;

a micro lens portion which is arranged on a surface of said base panel portion and has a plurality of micro lenses,

wherein each of said plurality of micro lenses have outer circumferential shapes which have angles in a numbers of (2n+1), and

wherein a number of predetermined micro lenses have an outer circumferential shape having angles in the numbers of (2n+1) at any one value of n is not smaller than half a total number of said micro lenses,

where n represents an integer of 2 or larger.

2. A The diffuser panel according to claim 1,

wherein said micro lens portion further has areas consisting of micro lenses in a shape which has angles in a number of m, and

wherein said areas consisting of the micro lenses in a shape which has angles in the number of m are formed in a condition surrounded by said predetermined micro lenses, where m represents an integer of 3 or larger.

3. The diffuser panel according to claim 1 or 2,

wherein a plurality of said predetermined micro lenses comprise at least micro lenses having a first height and micro lenses having a second height, and

wherein said first height is different from said second height.

4. The diffuser panel according to claim 3,

wherein the micro lenses which have said first height are arranged at a first period and the micro lenses which have said second height are arranged at a second period, and

wherein said first period is different from said second period.

5. The diffuser panel according to claim 3, satisfying the following condition:

1.5<

h1/h2<

3

wherein a reference symbol h1 represents said first height and a reference symbol h2 designates said second height.

6. The diffuser panel according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the micro lenses are polygonal micro lenses whose value of said n is 4 or smaller.

7. The diffuser panel according to claim 2, wherein said areas in the shape having m angles are planar portions which are in a sand-blasted condition.

8. The diffuser panel according to claim 2, wherein said areas in the shape having the m angles are formed with micro lenses.

9. The diffuser panel according to claim 2 further comprising lens blocks arranged at a predetermined period, wherein said lens block comprises said area in a shape which has angles in the number of m and at least two of the predetermined micro lenses.

10. The diffuser panel according to claim 1 further comprising lens blocks arranged at a predetermined period,

wherein said lens block comprises at least two of said predetermined micro lenses.

15. The diffuser panel according to claim 1, 2, 11 or 12, wherein a distance between vertices of said micro lenses is not shorter than 3 μ

m and not longer than 30 μ

m.

16. The diffuser panel according to claim 1, 2, 11 or 12, wherein a surface on a side opposite to a surface on which said plurality of micro lenses are arranged is a Fresnel surface.

17. A focusing panel for an image pickup device using the diffuser panel according to claim 1, 2, 11 or 12.

18. An optical apparatus comprising the diffuser panel according to claim 1, 2, 11 or 12.

11. A diffuser panel comprising:

a base panel portion and;

a micro lens portion which is arranged on a surface of said base panel portion and has a plurality of micro lenses,

wherein each of the plurality of micro lenses has an outer circumferential shape which has angles in numbers of n,

wherein a number of predetermined micro lenses which have an outer shape having angles in the numbers of n at any one value of n is not smaller than half a total number of said micro lenses and

wherein one side of the predetermined micro lenses does not intersect orthogonally with a virtual line connecting vertices of optional two of the predetermined micro lenses

where n represents an integer of 5 or larger.

13. The diffuser panel according to claim 11 or 12, further comprising lens blocks arranged at a predetermined period, wherein said lens block consists of at least two of said predetermined micro lenses.

14. The diffuser panel according to claim 11 or 12, wherein a height of said micro lens is not lower than 0.6 μ

m and not higher than 7 μ

m.

12. A diffuser panel comprising:

a base panel portion and;

a micro lens portion which is arranged on a surface of said base panel portion and has a plurality of micro lenses,

wherein each of said plurality of micro lenses have outer circumferential shares which have angles in numbers of n and

wherein a number of predetermined micro lenses have an outer circumferential shape which have angles in the numbers of n at any one value of n is not smaller than half a total number of said plurality of micro lenses and

wherein the predetermined micro lenses includes first micro lenses and second micro lenses,

some micro lenses of the second micro lenses are in contact with one micro lens of the first micro lenses with side respectively, and

wherein virtual lines which connect vertices of the one micro lens of the first micro lenses and the some of micro lens of the second micro lenses respectively are not in parallel with one another,

where n represents an integer of 5 or larger.

19. A diffuser panel comprising:

a base panel portion and;

a micro lens portion which is arranged on a surface of said base panel portion and has a plurality of micro lenses,

wherein each of said plurality of micro lenses has an outer circumferential shape which has angles in numbers of n,

wherein a number of predetermined micro lenses which have an outer circumferential shape having angles in a number of n at any one value of n is not smaller than half a total number of said micro lenses, and

wherein each of said predetermined micro lenses has one side which length is different from other sides,

where n represents an integer of 5 or larger.

20. The diffuser panel according to claim 19,

wherein said predetermined micro lenses have the same outer circumferential shape.

21. The diffuser panel according to claim 19, wherein said micro lens portion consists only of said predetermined micro lenses.