Light-emitting device, and liquid crystal display device and image display device that use the same

• US 9,201,187 B2
• Filed: 11/16/2011
• Issued: 12/01/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Shikii, Shinichi, Hayashi, Katsuhiko, Yoshikawa, Motonobu
• Primary Examiner(s): DINH, DUC Q
• Application Number:
  US13/522,415
• Publication Number:
  US 20120287037A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,476 Days
• Field of Search: 345/87, 345 98-100, 345/102
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 30/33 involving directional light or back-light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0038 Linear indentations or grooves, e.g. arc-shaped grooves or meandering grooves, extending over the full length or width of the light guide
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0056 for producing polarisation effects, e.g. by a surface with polarizing properties or by an additional polarizing elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/32 using arrays of controllable light sources; using moving apertures or moving light sources
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/376 for tracking left-right translational head movements, i.e. lateral movements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2213/001 Constructional or mechanical details

Abstract

A light-emitting device used in a liquid crystal display device is provided with a planar illuminator that focuses emitted light on a predetermined light focus point, and an optical deflector that two dimensionally deflects the light from the planar illuminator. The planar illuminator switches an emission direction of the light to enable alternate switching between a first light focus state in which the predetermined light focus point is the position of a right eye of a viewer and a second light focus state in which the predetermined light focus point is the position of a left eye of the viewer. The optical deflector can modulate each of the predetermined light focus point in the first light focus state and the predetermined light focus point in the second light focus state according to movement of the viewer.

Claims

1. A light-emitting device for use in a liquid crystal display device that alternately focuses light on positions of a right eye and a left eye of a viewer, said device comprising:

a planar illuminator that focuses emitted light on a predetermined light focus point; and

an optical deflector including a liquid crystal, the optical deflector two-dimensionally deflecting the light from the planar illuminator by modulating a refractive index of the liquid crystal,

wherein the planar illuminator includes;

a light source that emits single polarized light and switches a polarization property of the single polarized light;

a light guide plate having one side surface that receives the light from the light source and a principle surface that is orthogonal to the one side surface and emits light;

a polarizing modulation plate provided on a light-emitting side of the light guide plate;

a polarizing filter that is provided on a light-emitting side of the polarizing modulation plate and reflects polarized light polarizing in a predetermined direction, out of light from the polarizing modulation plate; and

a prism sheet provided on a light-emitting side of the polarizing filter,

the polarizing modulation plate includes;

a polarizing modulation cell functioning as a wavelength plate that modulates the polarization property of the light; and

a non-polarizing modulation cell that does not modulate the polarization property of the light,

the prism sheet is configured to deflect transmitted light at a first position corresponding to the polarizing modulation cell and at a second position corresponding to the non-polarizing modulation cell in respective different directions,

the planar illuminator switches an emission direction of the light from the planar illuminator by switching an operation of the light source to enable alternate switching between a first light focus state in which the predetermined light focus point is the position of the right eye of the viewer and a second light focus state in which the predetermined light focus point is the position of the left eye of the viewer,

in switching the emission direction of the light from the planar illuminator, by switching the polarization property of the single polarized light by the light source, the planar illuminator switches between a first state and a second state, the first state being a state in which light from the non-polarizing modulation cell is reflected on the polarizing filter and light from the polarizing modulation cell passes through the polarizing filter and is incident on the first position of the prism sheet, and the second state being a state in which the light from the polarizing modulation cell is reflected on the polarizing filter and the light from the non-polarizing modulation cell passes through the polarizing filter and is incident on the second position of the prism sheet, and

the optical deflector modulates each of the predetermined light focus point in the first light focus state and the predetermined light focus point in the second light focus state by modulating the refractive index of the liquid crystal according to a movement of the viewer.

2. The light-emitting device according to claim 1,

wherein the optical deflector is configured of a liquid crystal deflection element capable of switching a light deflecting direction, and

a voltage is applied to the liquid crystal deflection element to modulate a refractive index of the liquid crystal deflection element, thereby switching the deflecting direction of light incident on the liquid crystal deflection element.

3. A liquid crystal display device comprising:

the light-emitting device according to claim 1; and

a liquid crystal panel provided on a light-emitting side of the light-emitting device,

wherein the liquid crystal panel is irradiated with light emitted from the light-emitting device.

4. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 3,

wherein the liquid crystal panel has a plurality of pixel rows to which a pixel value is sequentially inputted on a predetermined scan cycle, and

the optical deflector of the light-emitting device deflects light while scanning the light in sync with the predetermined scan cycle.

5. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 3, further comprising

a detector that detects positions of the right eye and the left eye of the viewer who visually recognizes the liquid crystal display device,

wherein the predetermined light focus point on which light is focused by the light-emitting device is the position of the right eye of the viewer and the position of the left eye of the viewer, which is detected by the detector.

6. A liquid crystal display device according to claim 3, further comprising:

a detector that detects a position of an eye of a viewer who visually recognizes the liquid crystal display device; and

an informing unit configured to inform the viewer that the position of the eye, which is detected by the detector, falls outside a predetermined area, when it occurs.