Projector

• US 7,959,304 B2
• Filed: 07/23/2008
• Issued: 06/14/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/24/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Okamoto, Tomoyuki, Hoshino, Hidetaka, Hosoi, Yoshito
• Primary Examiner(s): PYO, KEVIN K
• Application Number:
  US12/178,284
• Publication Number:
  US 20090027628A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,056 Days
• Field of Search: 353/37, 353/50, 353/98, 353/99, 359/449
• US Class Current: 353/98
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 21/28 Reflectors in projection beam in illumination beam G03B21/2066

Abstract

A projector which is configured to project an image by means of a projection light onto a surface approximately parallel, or a surface approximately perpendicular, to an installation surface. According to aspects of the disclosure, the projector may include a first reflecting surface which reflects the projection light toward the approximately parallel surface; a second reflecting surface which reflects the projection light toward the approximately perpendicular surface; and a reflecting surface switching section which can switchably place the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface in an optical path of the projection light.

Claims

1. A projector which projects an image by means of a projection light onto a surface approximately parallel, or a surface approximately perpendicular, to an installation surface, comprising:

a first reflecting surface which reflects the projection light toward the approximately parallel surface;

a second reflecting surface which reflects the projection light toward the approximately perpendicular surface; and

a reflecting surface switching section which can switchably place the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface in an optical path of the projection light,

wherein shapes of the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface differ from each other in curvature.

2. The projector according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface is an aspherical surface or a free-form surface.

3. The projector according to claim 1, wherein

one of the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface is a planar surface.

4. The projector according to claim 1, further comprising:

an image inversion section which inverts the image by switching between a case of placing the first reflecting surface in the optical path of the projection light and a case of placing the second reflecting surface in the optical path of the projection light.

5. The projector according to claim 1, wherein

the reflecting surface switching section has a reflecting mirror, having the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface, removable attached thereto.

6. The projector according to claim 1, further comprising:

a protective section which protects a reflection surface, among the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface, which is not placed in the optical path of the projection light.

7. The projector according to claim 1, wherein

the second reflecting surface is formed on the other side of the first reflecting surface, and the reflecting surface switching section is attached to rotatably switch between the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface.

8. The projector according to claim 1, wherein the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface are opposite sides of a reflecting mirror.

9. The projector according to claim 5, wherein the thickness of the reflecting mirror increases as the reflecting mirror extends in the longitudinal direction of the reflecting mirror, wherein a curvature in the longitudinal direction of the second reflecting surface increases as the thickness of the reflecting mirror in the longitudinal direction increases.

10. The projector according to claim 1, wherein one or more piezoelectric elements in positioned on a back side of at least one of the first reflecting surface and second reflecting surface, wherein the one or more piezoelectric elements is configured to be driven to adjust the shape of the respective reflecting surface to which the one or more piezoelectric elements is attached.