Ultra compact illumination system for display systems
First Claim
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1. An illumination system comprising:
- a light guide having an entrance face, an exit face and an aperture in which a light source can be arranged, wherein the entrance face and exit of the light guide are opposite to and in parallel with each other;
a light reflective structure arranged in proximity to the light guide entrance face, the light reflective structure being arranged with an aperture in which the light source can be fitted; and
a first light refractive structure arranged in proximity to the light guide exit face, in which first light refractive structure;
all light beams incident upon the first light refractive structure from a side of the light refractive structure closest to the entrance face and at a first angular interval with respect to the optical axis of the system are refracted to illuminate the light guide exit face, andall light beams incident upon the first light refractive structure from a side of the light refractive structure closest to the entrance face and at a second angular interval with respect to said optical axis are reflected to be recycled in the light guide.
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Abstract
An illumination system includes a light guide having an entrance face, an exit face and an aperture in which a light source can be arranged Various elements are arranged in the light guide to increase the angle of light beams incident in the light guide with respect to the optical axis of the system and to create a homogeneous illumination at the exit face of the light guide. With this arrangement, the length of a given light guide is reduced, making the illumination system smaller, lighter and more compact with even illumination and a high optical efficiency. The illumination system can be included in a display system.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An illumination system comprising:
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a light guide having an entrance face, an exit face and an aperture in which a light source can be arranged, wherein the entrance face and exit of the light guide are opposite to and in parallel with each other; a light reflective structure arranged in proximity to the light guide entrance face, the light reflective structure being arranged with an aperture in which the light source can be fitted; and a first light refractive structure arranged in proximity to the light guide exit face, in which first light refractive structure; all light beams incident upon the first light refractive structure from a side of the light refractive structure closest to the entrance face and at a first angular interval with respect to the optical axis of the system are refracted to illuminate the light guide exit face, and all light beams incident upon the first light refractive structure from a side of the light refractive structure closest to the entrance face and at a second angular interval with respect to said optical axis are reflected to be recycled in the light guide. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. An illumination system, comprising:
a rod-type light guide, including; an entrance face at a first end of the rod-type light guide, the entrance face having an aperture formed therein wherein a light source can be provided, a mirror disposed on the entrance face, the mirror having an aperture therein wherein the light source can be provided, an exit face at a first end of the rod-type light guide opposite and in parallel to the first face, an optical axis extending between the entrance face and the exit face in a direction perpendicular to the entrance face and the exist face, and a light refractive structure disposed between the entrance face and the exit face in proximity to the exit face, the light refractive structure being adapted to reflect all light beams incident thereon from a side of the light refractive structure closest to the entrance face at an acute angle with respect to the optical axis that is less than a first angle, and being adapted to refract all light beams incident thereon from the side of the light refractive structure closest to the entrance face at an acute angle with respect to the optical axis that is greater than a second angle, wherein the second angle is greater than or equal to the first angle. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
Specification