Display unit and light-emitting unit

• US 7,810,935 B2
• Filed: 06/20/2006
• Issued: 10/12/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Columbia Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Uehara, Taisuke, Hashimoto, Akira
• Primary Examiner(s): Epps; Georgia Y
• Assistant Examiner(s): Owens; Danell L
• Application Number:
  US11/425,302
• Publication Number:
  US 20060285086A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,575 Days
• Field of Search: 349/5, 349/7, 349/9, 349 61- 65, 349 69- 71, 348/744, 348/759, 348/766, 362/277, 362/29, 362/225, 362/255, 362/286, 362/615, 257/88, 353/122
• US Class Current: 353/122
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/3152 for shaping the light beam beam shaping per se G02B27/09
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/3155 for controlling the light source light source control per se H05B35/00 – H05B47/00; control of an illumination source for displays in general G09G3/3406

Abstract

A display unit includes: a light modulation unit that includes an effective area, and modulates an illumination light entering to the effective area; a light-emitting unit that includes a plurality of light-emitting areas that can be made to emit a light or stop emitting a light, and are substantially similar in outline shape to a plurality of effective image modulation areas set in the effective area; and a critical illumination system that guides, as the illumination light, a luminous flux as a result of light emission of the light-emitting unit onto the effective image modulation areas in the effective area of the light modulation unit.

Claims

1. A display unit, comprising:

a light modulation unit that includes an effective area and an illumination area, and modulates an illumination light entering the effective area without modulating an illumination light entering the illumination area, a plurality of effective image modulation areas being set in the effective area, with each effective image modulation area being surrounded by a portion of the illumination area;

a light-emitting unit that includes a plurality of light-emitting areas that can be made to emit a light or stop emitting a light, the plurality of light emitting areas being substantially similar in outline shape to the plurality of effective image modulation areas set in the effective area;

a critical illumination system that guides, as the illumination light, a luminous flux as a result of light emission of the light-emitting unit onto the effective image modulation areas in the effective area of the light modulation unit and their respective illumination areas, wherein;

the plurality of effective image modulation areas include a first effective image modulation area, a second effective image modulation area, and a third effective image modulation area,

the illumination area includes a plurality of illumination areas,

the portion of the illumination area surrounding the first effective image modulation area includes a partial portion of the second effective image modulation area and a partial portion of the third effective image modulation area when modulating only light entering the first effective image modulation area,

the first effective image modulation area has a length-to-width ratio of 9;

16, and the second effective image modulation area and the third effective image modulation area having dimensions, such that their combination with the first effective image modulation area results in a combined effective area having a length-to-width ratio of 3;

4,

the plurality of light emitting areas includes a first light-emitting layer, a second light-emitting layer, and a third light-emitting layer, each shaped so as to be substantially similar to the outline shape of the first effective image modulation area, second effective image modulation area and third effective image modulation areas, respectively.

2. The display unit according to claim 1, further comprising:

a modulation area change section that selects, for a change, any of the effective image modulation areas; and

a light-emitting area change section that selects, for a change, any of the light-emitting areas,

when the modulation area change section selects any of the effective image modulation areas for a change, the light-emitting area change section responsively selects any of the light-emitting areas, for a change, corresponding to the changed effective image modulation area to enable light emission or stop light emission with a substantially similar outline shape.

3. The display unit according to claim 1,

the light-emitting unit including:

a light-emitting layer that emits a color light; and

a fluorescent layer that emits a fluorescent light in response to the light from the light-emitting layer,

the light-emitting areas each corresponding to a light-exiting area of the fluorescent layer.

4. The display unit according to claim 1,

the light-emitting unit including a solid-state light-emitting device, and

the light-emitting areas being a surface emitting layer of the solid-state light-emitting device.

5. The display unit according to claim 1,

the light-emitting unit including a solid-state light-emitting device, and

the light-emitting areas being a fluorescent layer formed on a surface emitting layer of the solid-state light-emitting device.

6. The display unit according to claim 1,

the critical illumination system magnifying the light as a result of light emission of the light-emitting areas in the light-emitting unit with a predetermined magnification factor, and projecting a magnified result onto the effective image modulations areas of the effective area in the light modulation unit.

7. The display unit according to claim 1, further comprising

a projection lens that magnifies the light coming from the light modulation unit for projection.

9. The display unit according to claim 1, wherein:

the illumination area includes a first illumination area, a second illumination area and a third illumination area, and the first illumination area, the second illumination area and the third illumination area surround the first effective image modulation area, the second effective image modulation area and the third effective image modulation area, respectively, when modulating light entering the first effective image modulation area, the second effective image modulation area and the third effective image modulation area.

8. A light-emitting unit for use in a display unit, the display unit including a light modulation unit that includes an effective and an illumination area, and modulates an illumination light entering the effective without modulating an illumination light entering the illumination area, a plurality of effective image modulation areas being set in the effective area with each effective image modulation area being surrounded by a portion of the illumination area, the display unit also including a critical illumination system, the light-emitting unit comprising:

a plurality of light-emitting areas that can be made to emit a light or stop emitting a light, the plurality of light emitting areas being substantially similar in outline shape to the plurality of effective image modulation areas set in the effective area;

the critical illumination system guiding, as the illumination light, a luminous flux as a result of light emission of the light-emitting unit onto the effective image modulation areas in the effective area of the light modulation unit and their respective illumination areas, wherein;

the plurality of effective image modulation areas include a first effective image modulation area, a second effective image modulation area, and a third effective image modulation area,

the illumination area includes a plurality of illumination areas,

the portion of the illumination area surrounding the first effective image modulation area includes a partial portion of the second effective image modulation area and a partial portion of the third effective image modulation area when modulating only light entering the first effective image modulation area,

the first effective image modulation area has a length-to-width ratio of 9;

16, and the second effective image modulation area and the third effective image modulation area having dimensions, such that their combination with the first effective image modulation area results in a combined effective area having a length-to-width ratio of 3;

4,

the plurality of light emitting areas includes a first light-emitting layer, a second light-emitting layer, and a third light-emitting layer, each shaped so as to be substantially similar to the outline shape of the first effective image modulation area, second effective image modulation area and third effective image modulation areas, respectively.

10. The light-emitting unit according to claim 8, wherein:

the illumination area includes a first illumination area, a second illumination area and a third illumination area, and the first illumination area, the second illumination area and the third illumination area surround the first effective image modulation area, the second effective image modulation area and the third effective image modulation area, respectively, when modulating light entering the first effective image modulation area, the second effective image modulation area and the third effective image modulation area.