Patent · US Expired

Polarizing unit, polarizing illumination device using same polarizing unit and projection display device using same polarizing illumination device

US6698891B2 · kind B2 · utility

68Cited by
6References
19Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventor

Key dates

Filing dateNov 1, 2002
Grant dateMar 2, 2004
Priority date
Expiry dateNov 16, 2022

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG03B21/208
  • WIPO fieldOptics
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A small polarizing illumination device is provided which can apply light effectively to a small-sized liquid crystal display device at a reduced diverging angle. The above device has a light source lamp, a reflecting mirror, a reflecting device with an opening, a square-wave plate, a rod integrator, a polarized light separating unit, and a condenser lens, in which the reflecting device with an opening, square-wave plate, rod integrator, and polarized light separating unit can be integrally arranged. The device can be made small. Since linearly polarized light component not transmitting through but being reflected off the polarized light separating unit transmits through the quarter-wave plate twice before again entering the polarized light separating unit after having been reflected off the above reflecting device or having transmitted through its opening portion and having been condensed again by the reflecting device and is converted and can contribute to illumination, thus improving efficiency of using the light source.

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