Linear solid state illuminator

• US 7,766,498 B2
• Filed: 06/21/2006
• Issued: 08/03/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/21/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Snaptrack Incorporated (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm MEMS Technologies Incorporated (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Inventors: Sampsell, Jeffrey B.
• Primary Examiner(s): O'Shea; Sandra L
• Assistant Examiner(s): MCMANMON, MARY ELIZABETH
• Application Number:
  US11/472,879
• Publication Number:
  US 20070297191A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,504 Days
• Field of Search: 349/62, 349/65, 349/68, 349/159, 349/64, 349/112, 362/551, 362/555, 362/612, 362/600, 362/94, 362/97.1, 362/559, 362606-609, 362/611, 362/615, 362/618, 964/62, 964/65, 964/68, 964/159
• US Class Current: 362/97.3
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0018 Redirecting means on the surface of the light guide
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0036 2-D arrangement of prisms, protrusions, indentations or roughened surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0046 Tapered light guide, e.g. wedge-shaped light guide
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0073 Light emitting diode [LED]

Abstract

An illuminator for a display is provided that includes a light guide plate to substantially cover a viewable portion of the display, and a thin film light-emitting source. Light from the thin film light-emitting source is directed into an edge of the light guide plate to provide light for the viewable portion of the display.

Claims

1. An illuminator for a display comprising:

a light guide plate to substantially cover a viewable portion of the display;

a thin-film light-emitting source; and

an optical component comprising a first narrow portion, a second wide portion and a third narrow portion, the second wide portion interposed between the first narrow portion and the third narrow portion, said first narrow portion, said second wide portion, and said third narrow portions being curved, said light-emitting source having one dimension that is substantially the same as the thickness of the light guide plate,

wherein the light-emitting source is disposed with respect to the first narrow portion such that the optical component admits light from the light-emitting source which is directed into the light guide plate via the optical component to provide light for the viewable portion of the display.

2. The illuminator of claim 1, wherein the light-emitting source is bonded directly to the optical component.

3. The illuminator of claim 1, wherein the light-emitting source comprises an organic light-emitting diode (OLED).

4. The illuminator of claim 1, wherein the light-emitting source comprises an electroluminescent (EL) thin film light source.

5. The illuminator of claim 3, wherein the organic light-emitting diode (OLED) consists of a single pixel.

6. The illuminator of claim 5, wherein a first dimension of the pixel is substantially equal to a thickness of the light guide plate and a second dimension of the pixel is substantially equal to a length of the edge of the light guide plate.

7. The illuminator of claim 5, wherein the pixel comprises a white pixel.

8. The illuminator of claim 7, wherein the white pixel is created by a plurality of separate wavelength emissions that are matched to a plurality of specific reflectivities of subpixels that make up each pixel of a color display.

9. The illuminator of claim 5, wherein the pixel comprises a pixel having emissions substantially centered around a specific wavelength matched to a specific reflectivity of a monochrome display.

10. The illuminator of claim 5, the pixel having emissions substantially peaking around two specific wavelengths that are matched to a reflectivity of a bichrome display.

11. The illuminator of claim 3, wherein the optical component collimates light from the organic light-emitting diode (OLED) into the edge of the light guide plate.

12. The illuminator of claim 11, wherein at least a portion of the optical component has a substantially parabolic or elliptical shape for collimating the light from the organic light-emitting diode (OLED) into the edge of the light guide plate.

13. The illuminator of claim 12, wherein the optical component is molded directly into the light guide plate.

14. The illuminator of claim 1, wherein a thickness of the light guide plate is tapered along one edge of the light guide plate.

15. The illuminator of claim 1, wherein the illuminator is implemented within a front lighting system or a back lighting system of a display.

16. A display device comprising the illuminator of claim 1.

17. The display device of claim 16, wherein the display device comprises an interferometric modulator display.

18. The display device of claim 17, further comprising:

a processor that is in electrical communication with the interferometric modulator display, the processor being configured to process image data; and

a memory device in electrical communication with the processor.

19. The display device of claim 18, further comprising:

a first controller configured to send at least one signal to the interferometric modulator display; and

a second controller configured to send at least a portion of the image data to the first controller.

20. The display device of claim 18, further comprising an image source module configured to send the image data to the processor.

21. The display device of claim 20, wherein the image source module comprises at least one of a receiver, transceiver, and transmitter.

22. The display device of claim 18, further comprising an input device configured to receive input data and to communicate the input data to the processor.

23. An illuminator for a display comprising:

a means for guiding light substantially covering a viewable portion of the display;

a means for emitting light comprising a thin-film light-emitting source; and

a means for coupling light comprising a first narrow portion, a second wide portion and a third narrow portion, the second wide portion interposed between the first narrow portion and the third narrow portion, said light-emitting means having one dimension that is substantially the same as the thickness of the light guiding means,

wherein the light emitting means is disposed with respect to the first narrow portion such that the coupling means receives light from the light emitting means, and wherein said light emitting means is optically coupled to said light guiding means via the light coupling means such that light from the light-emitting means is directed into the light guiding means for providing light to the viewable portion of the display, said light coupling means substantially collimating the light directed into the light guiding means.

24. The illuminator of claim 23, wherein the light-emitting means is bonded directly to the light coupling means.

25. The illuminator of claim 23, wherein the light-emitting means comprises an organic light-emitting diode or an electroluminescent (EL) light-emitter.

26. The illuminator of claim 25, wherein the organic light-emitting diode consists of a single pixel.

27. The illuminator of claim 26, wherein a first dimension of the pixel is substantially equal to a thickness of the light guiding means and a second dimension of the pixel is substantially equal to a length of an edge of the light guiding means.

28. The illuminator of claim 26, wherein the pixel comprises a white pixel.

29. The illuminator of claim 25, wherein the light coupling means collimates light from the organic light-emitting diode into the edge of the light guiding means.

30. The illuminator of claim 29, wherein at least a portion of the light coupling means has a substantially parabolic or elliptical shape for collimating the light from the organic light-emitting diode into the edge of the light guiding means.

31. The illuminator of claim 30, wherein the light coupling means is molded directly into the light guiding means.

32. The illuminator of claim 23, wherein a thickness of the light guiding means is tapered along one edge of the light guiding means.

33. The illuminator of claim 23, wherein the light guiding means comprises a light guide or the light coupling means comprises an optical component.

34. The illuminator of claim 33, wherein the optical component comprises an angle-matching component.

35. The illuminator of claim 23, wherein the light guiding means comprises a light guide plate or the light emitting means comprises a light-emitting source or the light coupling means comprises an optical component.

36. A display device comprising the illuminator of claim 23, further comprising a means for modulating light, said light modulating means comprising an array of interferometric modulators that receive light from the light guiding means.

37. A method of manufacturing an illuminator for a display, the method comprising:

providing a light guide plate having first and second surfaces and a plurality of edges, said first and second surfaces substantially covering a viewable portion of the display;

providing an optical component comprising a first narrow portion, a second wide portion and a third narrow portion, the second wide portion interposed between the first narrow portion and the third narrow portion;

coupling the optical component to the light guide plate; and

optically coupling an optical output surface of a thin-film light-emitting source to the first narrow portion of the optical component such that light from the light-emitting source is directed into the light guide plate via the optical component to provide light to the viewable portion of the display, said optical output surface of the light-emitting source being substantially perpendicular to said first surface of the light guide, wherein said thin-film light-emitting source has one dimension that is substantially the same as the thickness of the light guide plate.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the light-emitting source comprises an organic light-emitting diode (OLED).

39. The method of claim 37, wherein coupling a light-emitting source to the optical component comprises bonding the light-emitting source directly to the optical component.

40. A method of manufacturing a display device comprising the method of claim 37, further comprising disposing the light guide plate with respect to a plurality of interferometric modulators to illuminate said interferometric modulators.

41. The method of manufacturing of claim 37, wherein the surface area of each of the first and second surfaces is greater than the surface area of each of the plurality of edges.

42. The method of manufacturing of claim 37, wherein the first surface is closer than said second surface to the display.

43. The method of manufacturing of claims 42, wherein the second surface is closer than said first surface to a viewer disposed to view said viewable portion of said display.