Illumination device and image display apparatus

• US 9,581,805 B2
• Filed: 03/18/2016
• Issued: 02/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kita, Koji
• Primary Examiner(s): Dowling, William C
• Assistant Examiner(s): HOWARD, RYAN D
• Application Number:
  US15/073,886
• Publication Number:
  US 20160202467A1
• Time in Patent Office: 347 Days
• Field of Search: 353/84, 353/85, 353/94, 353/122, 353/30, 353/31, 313/483, 313/501, 359885-892, 348/74, 362/84, 362/231, 250/484.2, 250/484.4
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 13/08 the elements being filters or photoluminescent elements and reflectors
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 13/14 the elements being filters or photoluminescent elements, reflectors and refractors
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 14/04 by movement of reflectors in vehicle head lamps F21S41/675
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 14/08 by movement of the screens or filters
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 5/04 of lens shape
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 7/05 plane
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 9/08 for producing coloured light, e.g. monochromatic; for reducing intensity of light with provision for controlling the colour F21V9/40
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 9/14 for producing polarised light
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 9/32 characterised by the arrangement of the photoluminescent material
• CPC Class Codes: F21Y 2115/10 Light-emitting diodes [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: F21Y 2115/30 Semiconductor lasers
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 26/008 in the form of devices for effecting sequential colour changes, e.g. colour wheels
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/283 used for beam splitting or combining
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 21/006 using LCD's
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 21/142 Adjusting of projection optics
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 21/204 using secondary light emission, e.g. luminescence or fluorescence using different colours G03B33/00; if related to video signals H04N9/3197
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 21/2073 Polarisers in the lamp house peculiar to electronic spatial light modulators H04N9/3197

Abstract

An illumination device includes: an excitation light source that emits excitation light having a first wavelength; and a fluorescent member that includes a fluorescent substance that, when it is irradiated with the excitation light, emits light having a second wavelength longer than the first wavelength, transmits a part of the excitation light and reflects another part of the excitation light, and a first reflective film provided at a side of the fluorescent substance, which is opposite to an excitation light incidence side, the fluorescent member emitting multiplexed light including an excitation light component reflected from the fluorescent substance and the first reflective film and a light component emitted from the fluorescent substance.

Claims

1. An illumination device comprising:

an excitation light source configured to emit excitation light having a first wavelength range; and

a single rotating fluorescent portion configured to include

a fluorescent substance that, responsive to being irradiated with the excitation light, emits emission light having a second wavelength range which is different from the first wavelength range, and

a reflective portion that is provided at a side of the fluorescent substance, which is opposite to an excitation light incidence side, and reflects the emission light emitted from the fluorescent substance,

wherein the fluorescent substance is provided continuously along an entirety of a circumference of the reflective portion.

2. The illumination device of claim 1, wherein the first wavelength range is in at least a blue spectrum and the second wavelength range is in at least a red spectrum and a green spectrum.

3. The illumination device according to claim 1, further comprising a driving unit configured to change an irradiation position of the excitation light in the single rotating fluorescent portion with passage of time.

4. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the reflective portion comprises a reflective film which reflects the excitation light and guides the excitation light to the fluorescent substance.

5. The illumination device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a spectral optical system that is provided at the excitation light incidence side of the fluorescent substance, configured to receive the excitation light emitted from the excitation light source and the emission light emitted from the fluorescent substance, and separate the incident excitation light and the emission light emitted from the fluorescent substance.

6. The illumination device according to claim 5, wherein the excitation light is linearly polarized light, and the spectral optical system includes a polarization beam splitter.

7. The illumination device according to claim 6, further comprising:

a quarter wavelength plate provided between the polarization beam splitter and the single rotating fluorescent portion.

8. The illumination device according to claim 1, further comprising:

an optical system configured to convert the emission light from the fluorescent substance into parallel light.

9. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the excitation light includes a blue light having at least a wavelength of 445 nm and the second wavelength range includes at least a wavelength band of 480 to 680 nm.

10. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the fluorescent substance is formed only from Yttrium Aluminum Garnet-based fluorescent material.

11. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the fluorescent substance is formed continuously along a circumferential direction.

12. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein a shape of the fluorescent substance is a doughnut shape.

13. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the fluorescent substance is formed from a single fluorescent material.

14. An image display apparatus comprising:

a light source device section; and

an image projection section configured to generate a predetermined image light by using light emitted from the light source device section and project the generated image light to the outside,

wherein the light source device section includes;

an excitation light source configured to emit excitation light having a first wavelength range, and

a single rotating fluorescent portion configured to include

a fluorescent substance that, responsive to being irradiated with the excitation light, emits emission light having a second wavelength range which is different from the first wavelength range, and

a reflective portion that is provided at a side of the fluorescent substance, which is opposite to an excitation light incidence side, and reflects the emission light emitted from the fluorescent substance,

wherein the fluorescent substance is provided continuously along an entirety of a circumference of the reflective portion.