Optical apparatus with flipped compound prism structures

• US 7,545,569 B2
• Filed: 11/08/2006
• Issued: 06/09/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/13/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avery Dennison Corporation
• Original Assignee: Avery Dennison Corporation
• Inventors: Cassarly, William J.
• Primary Examiner(s): MARTINEZ, JOSEPH P
• Application Number:
  US11/594,434
• Publication Number:
  US 20070035843A1
• Time in Patent Office: 944 Days
• Field of Search: 359/628, 359/624, 349/62, 349/64, 362/620
• US Class Current: 359/628
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 5/045 Prism arrays
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0025 Diffusing sheet or layer; Prismatic sheet or layer
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0028 Light guide, e.g. taper
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0046 Tapered light guide, e.g. wedge-shaped light guide
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0053 Prismatic sheet or layer; Brightness enhancement element, sheet or layer

Abstract

An optical apparatus comprises a light source, an optical member and a spatial light modulator. The optical member comprises optically transmissive material and has a textured major surface receiving light from the light source. The textured surface comprises first and second pluralities of non-intersecting elongate features. The pluralities are angled with respect to each other by less than about 90° and intersect each other so as to form total internal reflection structures. The spatial light modulator has rows or columns of pixels for receiving light from the optical member at a major surface. The light source may be (i) a light guide, or (ii) a source of light providing, to the optical member, light having a peak luminance that is shifted from a normal direction to the textured major surface by more than about 30°.

Claims

1. An optical apparatus comprising:

a) a light guide;

b) an optical member comprising a body of optically transmissive material and having a textured major surface with an everted configuration or an inverted configuration;

the optical member being oriented such that the textured major surface receives light from said light guide and then said light passes through said body;

the textured surface comprising a first plurality of non-intersecting elongate features with a predetermined pitch and a second plurality of non-intersecting elongate features with a predetermined pitch;

the pluralities being angled with respect to each other by less than about 90° and

intersecting each other so as to form total internal reflection structures;

c) a spatial light modulator with rows or columns of pixels for receiving light from the optical member at a major surface;

d) adjacent first and second elongate features of the first plurality and adjacent first and second elongate features of the second plurality forming a projection extending away from said body and reaching an apex line for an everted configuration of the body or forming a projection extending towards said body and reaching an apex line for an inverted configuration of the body; and

e) the apex line being shorter than either the pitch of the first plurality and the pitch of the second plurality.

2. The optical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the pluralities are angled with respect to each other by about 60°

or less.

3. The optical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the pluralities are angled with respect to each other by about 30°

or less.

4. The optical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first and second pluralities of non-intersecting elongate features have pitches that are sufficiently different from each other that the textured surface has an appearance that is rotated more than 15°

from rows or columns of pixels of the spatial light modulator.

5. The optical apparatus of claim 4, wherein:

a) the first and second pluralities of non-intersecting elongate features are angled at plus and minus about 5°

from the direction of the rows or columns of pixels of the spatial light modulator; and

b) the pitches of said first and second pluralities are respectively about 31 and about 41 μ

m, respectively.

6. The optical apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

a) more than one elongate feature of the first plurality of features each has a cross-sectional shape that varies from an adjacent cross-sectional shape of an adjacent one of another elongate feature of the first plurality of features; and

b) the cross-sectional shapes being taken along largest dimension of the associated elongate feature.

7. The optical apparatus of claim 6, wherein said more than one elongate feature comprises at least 40 percent of the elongate features of the first plurality of features.

8. The optical apparatus of claim 6, wherein said first-mentioned cross-sectional shape varies from the second-mentioned cross-sectional shape in pitch or height.

9. The optical apparatus of claim 6, wherein:

a) more than one elongate feature of the second plurality of features each has a cross-sectional shape that varies from an adjacent cross-sectional shape of an adjacent one of another elongate feature of the second plurality of features; and

b) the cross-sectional shapes being taken along largest dimension of the associated elongate feature.

10. The optical apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a diffuser situated between the optical member and the spatial light modulator;

the diffuser being combined with the optical member.

11. The optical apparatus of claim 10, wherein the diffuser asymmetrically scatters light passing therethrough.

12. The optical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the non-intersecting elongate features comprise non-linear features.

13. The optical apparatus of claim 12, wherein the non-linear features undulate across said textured major surface of the optical member.

14. The optical apparatus of claim 12, wherein the non-linear features undulate in a direction normal to said textured major surface of the optical member.

15. The optical apparatus of claim 1, wherein said pluralities intersect each other only once.

16. The optical apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

a) the first and second pluralities of features have peak sections facing the light guide; and

b) the peak sections being flattened and wetted to the light guide.

17. The optical apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

a) the light guide has an array of extractors to extract light from the light guide;

said array comprising a plurality of rows or columns of extractors; and

b) said first and second pluralities of features being angled with respect to the rows or columns of extractors.

18. The optical apparatus of claim 1, wherein the textured surface comprises more than two pluralities of non-intersecting elongate features;

said pluralities being angled with respect to each other and intersecting each other so as to form total internal reflection structures.

19. The optical apparatus of claim 1, wherein he pitch of said first plurality is smaller than the pitch of said second plurality, and the ratio of the pitch of said first plurality to the pitch of said second plurality is greater than about 0.76.

20. An optical apparatus comprising:

a) a source of light;

b) an optical member comprising a body of optically transmissive material and having a textured major surface with an everted configuration or an inverted configuration;

the optical member being oriented such that the textured major surface receives light from said source of light and then said light passes through said body;

the textured surface comprising a first plurality of non-intersecting elongate features with a predetermined pitch and a second plurality of non-intersecting elongate features with a predetermined pitch;

the pluralities being angled with respect to each other by less than about 90° and

intersecting each other so as to form total internal reflection structures;

c) a spatial light modulator with rows or columns of pixels for receiving light from the optical member at a major surface;

d) said source of light providing, to said optical member, light having a peak luminance that is shifted from a normal direction to said textured major surface by more than about 30°

;

e) adjacent first and second elongate features of the first plurality and adjacent first and second elongate features of the second plurality forming a projection extending away from said body and reaching an apex line for an everted configuration of the body or forming a projection extending towards said body and reaching an apex line for an inverted configuration of the body; and

f) the apex line being shorter than either the pitch of the first plurality and the pitch of the second plurality.

21. The optical apparatus of claim 20, wherein said source of light comprises:

a) a light emitter; and

a) a light guide with rows or columns of extractors of light, for receiving light from the light emitter.

22. The optical apparatus of claim 20, wherein the pluralities are angled with respect to each other by about 60°

or less.

23. The optical apparatus of claim 20, wherein the pluralities are angled with respect to each by about 30°

or less.

24. The optical apparatus of claim 20, wherein he pitch of said first plurality is smaller than the pitch of said second plurality, and the ratio of the pitch of said first plurality to the pitch of said second plurality is greater than about 0.76.