Optical device and projection device using the optical device which reduce registration shift caused by heat

• US 8,814,365 B2
• Filed: 05/17/2011
• Issued: 08/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/25/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Iwane, Tetsuaki, Aikoh, Yoshihisa, Yamamoto, Hideki, Homma, Keisuke
• Primary Examiner(s): Epps, Georgia Y
• Assistant Examiner(s): Owens, Danell L
• Application Number:
  US13/109,075
• Publication Number:
  US 20110292353A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,197 Days
• Field of Search: 353/81, 349 5- 8, 349/57, 349/58, 349/59, 359/201.2, 359237-324
• US Class Current: 353/85
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 21/208 Homogenising, shaping of the illumination light
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 33/12 using beam-splitting or beam-combining systems, e.g. dichroic mirrors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/3144 Cooling systems cooling of liquid crystal cells in general G02F1/133382; cooling of projectors not peculiar to the presence of an electronic spatial light modulator G03B21/16

Abstract

An optical device includes: a light synthesis prism that synthesizes incident light beams which are incident to a plurality of incidence surfaces and outputs the synthesized light beams; a light modulation unit that includes an optical compensation element and a reflective light modulation device; and a fixing member that fixes a reflective polarization element and the light modulation unit to the light synthesis prism so as to correspond to one of the incidence surfaces, wherein the light modulation unit includes a light blocking member that blocks light from reaching the light modulation unit and limits light with which the optical compensation element and the reflective light modulation device are irradiated, to light passing an aperture portion; and a heat insulating member that comes into contact with the light blocking member and the fixing member.

Claims

1. An optical device comprising:

a light synthesis prism that synthesizes incident light beams which are incident to a plurality of incidence surfaces and outputs the synthesized light beams;

a light modulation unit that includes an optical compensation element and a reflective light modulation device; and

a fixing member that fixes a reflective polarization element and the light modulation unit to the light synthesis prism so as to correspond to one of the incidence surfaces,

wherein the light modulation unit includes

a light blocking member that blocks light from reaching the light modulation unit and limits light with which the optical compensation element and the reflective light modulation device are irradiated, to light passing an aperture portion; and

a heat insulating member that comes into contact with the light blocking member and the fixing member,

wherein the light blocking member includes;

a heat insulating member contact portion that comes into contact with the heat insulating member; and

a light blocking portion that has the aperture, and

wherein the light blocking portion and the heat insulating member contact portion have a step difference of a predetermined height.

2. The optical device according to claim 1, wherein the height of the step difference is larger than a thickness of the heat insulating member.

3. The optical device according to claim 1, wherein the light modulation unit includes a second light blocking member that limits light with which the reflective light modulation device is irradiated, to light passing a second aperture portion, in a position adjacent to the optical compensation element,

wherein the second aperture portion forms a predetermined marginal area in a pixel active area of the reflective light modulation device and limits light with which the reflective light modulation device is irradiated, and

the aperture portion has a smaller marginal area than the second light blocking member and limits light with which the reflective light modulation device is irradiated.

4. The optical device according to claim 1, in which the light modulation unit further includes a second light blocking member that limits light with which the reflective light modulation device is irradiated to light passing a second aperture portion, said second light blocking member being arranged between the optical compensation element and the reflective light modulation device.

5. An optical device comprising:

a light synthesis prism that synthesizes incident light beams which are incident to a plurality of incidence surfaces and outputs the synthesized light beams;

a light modulation unit that includes an optical compensation element and a reflective light modulation device; and

a fixing member that fixes a reflective polarization element and the light modulation unit to the light synthesis prism so as to correspond to one of the incidence surfaces,

wherein the light modulation unit includes

a light blocking member that blocks light from reaching the light modulation unit and limits light with which the optical compensation element and the reflective light modulation device are irradiated, to light passing an aperture portion; and

a heat insulating member that comes into contact with the light blocking member and the fixing member,

wherein the light blocking member can change between a first state and a second state which are different from each other in an amount of limiting light which passes the aperture portion.

6. The optical device according to claim 5, wherein the light blocking member changes between the first state and the second state based on the number of pixels used in a display.

7. The optical device according to claim 5, wherein either of the first state and the second state limits passing light to 0.

8. A projection device comprising:

a light source;

an optical device that separates light beams emitted from the light source according to wavelength bands for modulation and synthesizes and emits the modulated light beams; and

a projection means for projecting and outputs the light beams emitted from the optical device,

wherein the optical device includes

a light synthesis prism that synthesizes incident light beams which are incident to a plurality of incidence surfaces and outputs the synthesized light beams;

a light modulation unit that has an optical compensation element and a reflective light modulation device; and

a fixing member that fixes a reflective polarization element and the light modulation unit to the light synthesis prism so as to correspond to one of the incidence surfaces, and

the light modulation unit includes

a light blocking member that blocks light from reaching the light modulation unit and limits light with which the optical compensation element and the reflective light modulation device are irradiated, to light passing an aperture portion; and

a heat insulating member that comes into contact with the light blocking member and the fixing member, and

the light blocking member includes

a heat insulating member contact portion that comes into contact with the heat insulating member; and

a light blocking portion that has the aperture,

in which the light blocking portion and the heat insulating member contact portion have a step difference of a predetermined height.

9. The projection device according to claim 8, in which the light modulation unit further includes a second light blocking member that limits light with which the reflective light modulation device is irradiated to light passing a second aperture portion, said second light blocking member being arranged between the optical compensation element and the reflective light modulation device.