Patent · US Expired

Color wheel synchronization apparatus and method

US5967636A · kind A · utility

65Cited by
7References
20Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateAug 19, 1998
Grant dateOct 19, 1999
Priority date
Expiry dateAug 19, 2018

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH04N9/3129
  • WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A multimedia projector (30) employing a color wheel (42) in a frame sequential color display system includes a light sensor (68) positioned to receive light scattered from a point in an optical path (34) after the color wheel. The light sensor detects particular colors of light propagating through red, green, and blue filter segments (R, G, and B) on the color wheel and toward a display device (50). The light sensor provides, without any adjustments, an inherently accurate timing mark signal (78) to a display controller (56) to ensure that red, green, and blue image data are properly synchronized with the respective filter segments R, G, and B. In particular, the light sensor receives polychromatic light through a yellow optical filter (74) to illuminate an optoelectric detector (70) that is responsive to visible and near IR light wavelengths. The photodetector drives a timing mark signal generator (80) to detect a sudden increase in yellow (red plus green) light, which indicates to the display controller that filter segment R has just rotated into the optical path.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.