Head-up display device

• US 9,477,080 B2
• Filed: 05/29/2013
• Issued: 10/25/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Original Assignee: DENSO Corporation
• Inventors: Ando, Hiroshi, Fujikawa, Takayuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Phan, James
• Application Number:
  US14/405,363
• Publication Number:
  US 20150198802A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,245 Days
• Field of Search: 359/199.1, 359/199.4, 359/200.8, 3592011-2021, 3592041-2051, 359/208.1, 3592111-2112, 359/211.5, 359/618, 359629-630, 359/741, 359/743, 345 7- 8, 353/38
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/334 Projection means
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/23 Head-up displays [HUD] optical aspects of head-up displays G02B27/01
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0114 comprising dichroic elements
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0154 with movable elements
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0159 with mechanical means other than scaning means for positioning the whole image
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 26/0883 the refracting element being a prism
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 26/101 with both horizontal and vertical deflecting means, e.g. raster or XY scanners colour television using laser beams scanning a display screen H04N9/3129
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0101 characterised by optical features G02B27/0172 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0149 characterised by mechanical features G02B27/0176 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0905 Dividing and/or superposing multiple light beams
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/48 Laser speckle optics

Abstract

A head-up display device including a screen member, a first generation portion, and a second generation portion is provided. The screen member is provided with multiple optical elements each of which has a curved surface portion and forms a scan surface by an array of the curved surface portions. The first generation portion generates a first laser beam that is irradiated to the scan surface to draw a display image. The second generation portion generates a second laser beam to draw a display image that is irradiated to the scan surface from a direction different from the first laser beam.

Claims

1. A head-up display device that makes a virtual image of a display image visible from a predetermined visual region by projecting the display image, which is drawn on a scan surface by scanning a laser beam, the head-up display device comprising:

a screen member provided with a plurality of optical elements each of which has a curved surface portion curved to spread the laser beam to the predetermined visual region, wherein the scan surface is defined by an array of the curved surface portions of the plurality of optical elements;

a first generation portion that generates a first laser beam irradiated to the scan surface as the laser beam to draw the display image; and

a second generation portion that generates a second laser beam irradiated to the scan surface from a direction different than the first laser beam as the laser beam to draw the display image;

wherein

an intersection angle between a first optical axis line of the first laser beam and a second optical axis line of the second laser beam is settled to be equal to (m+Δ

) multiplied by an interference angle of the laser beams diffracted by the curved surface portions between orders of the laser beams, where m is an integer and Δ

is a value ranging from ⅓

to ⅔

.

2. The head-up display device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a third generation portion that generates a third laser beam irradiated to the scan surface in an irradiation direction different than the first laser beam and the second laser beam as the laser beam to draw the display image, wherein the third laser beam is positioned to deviate from a plane containing the first optical axis line of the first laser beam and the second optical axis line of the second laser beam.

3. The head-up display device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a laser beam irradiation portion that irradiates the laser beam; and

a split portion that splits the laser beam irradiated from the laser beam irradiation portion to emit the split laser beams to the respective generation portions,

wherein the laser beam irradiated from the split portion is reflected to the screen member by each generation portion.

4. A head-up display device that makes a virtual image of a display image visible from a predetermined visual region by projecting the display image, which is drawn on a scan surface by scanning a laser beam, the head-up display device comprising:

a screen member provided with a plurality of optical elements each of which has a curved surface portion curved to spread the laser beam to the visual region, wherein the scan surface is defined by an array of the curved surface portions of the plurality of optical elements;

a first generation portion that generates a first laser beam irradiated to the scan surface as the laser beam to draw the display image;

a second generation portion that generates a second laser beam irradiated to the scan surface from a direction different than the first laser beam as the laser beam to draw the display image;

a laser beam irradiation portion that irradiates the laser beam;

a deflection portion that is positioned between the laser beam irradiation portion and the screen member and deflects the laser beam irradiated by the laser beam irradiation portion; and

a variation portion that temporally varies a deflection angle direction of the laser beam that is incident on and exits from the deflection portion,

wherein the deflection portion and the variation portion in cooperation are used as the first generation portion and the second generation portion.

5. The head-up display device according to claim 4,

wherein a deflection angle between an incident light axis line of the laser beam incident on the deflection portion and an exit light axis line of the laser beam exiting from the deflection portion is settled to be equal to {(m+Δ

)/2} multiplied by an interference angle of the laser beams diffracted by the curved surface portions between orders of the laser beams, where m is an integer and Δ

is a value ranging from ⅓

to ⅔

.

6. The head-up display device according to claim 4,

wherein the deflection portion includes a refracting surface that tilts against an orthogonal plane orthogonal to a light axis line of the laser beam irradiated from the laser beam irradiation portion and that refracts the laser beam;

and

wherein the variation portion includes a rotation mechanism that rotates the deflection portion to vary an orientation of the refracting surface.

7. The head-up display device according to claim 6,

wherein the rotation mechanism rotates the refracting surface at least at a rotation speed of 30 revolutions per second.

8. A head-up display device that makes a virtual image of a display image visible from a predetermined visual region by projecting the display image, which is drawn on a scan surface by scanning a laser beam, the head-up display device comprising:

a screen member provided with a plurality of optical elements each of which has a curved surface portion curved to spread the laser beam to the visual region, wherein the scan surface is defined by an array of the curved surface portions of the plurality of optical elements;

a first generation portion that generates a first laser beam irradiated to the scan surface as the laser beam to draw the display image;

a second generation portion that generates a second laser beam irradiated to the scan surface from a direction different than the first laser beam as the laser beam to draw the display image;

a laser beam irradiation portion that irradiates the laser beam to the scan surface; and

a variation portion that temporally varies an incident angle between the scan surface and an incident light axis line of the laser beam irradiated from the laser beam irradiation portion,

wherein the laser beam irradiation portion and the variation portion in cooperation are used as the first generation portion and the second generation portion.

9. The head-up display device according to claim 8,

wherein an amplitude angle varied by the variation portion in accordance with the incident angle is settled to be equal to (m+Δ

) multiplied by an interference angle of the laser beams diffracted by the curved surface portions between orders of the laser beams, where m is an integer and Δ

is a value ranging from ⅓

to ⅔

.

10. The head-up display device according to claim 8,

wherein the variation portion includes a rocking mechanism that rocks the scan surface to vary the incident angle.

11. The head-up display device according to claim 10,

wherein the rocking mechanism rocks the scan surface at least at a rocking speed of 30 times per second.