Patent ID: 9244278
Filing Date: 2016-01-26
CPC Classification: G02B

Claim Text:
1. A display device, comprising: a light source that outputs laser light; an illumination optical system that emits the laser light as illumination light; a processor that generates a diffraction pattern from an original image, the diffraction pattern being different from the original image and being calculated to appear to a user as a fictive image at a distance from the user; a spatial modulation element that is illuminated by the illumination light, diffracts the illumination light by displaying the diffraction pattern to generate diffracted light directed to a location of eyes of the user to create the fictive image calculated to appear at the distance from the user; and a shield that is disposed on an optical path of the diffracted light, and has a first partial area and a second partial area adjacent to the first partial area, wherein the shield is configured so as to selectively enter one of a plurality of states including a first state where the first partial area is a transmitting area that transmits the diffracted light and where the second partial area is a shielding area that shields the diffracted light, and a second state where the first partial area is the shielding area and where the second partial area is the transmitting area, the spatial modulation element displays the diffraction pattern being generated by the processor on a first display area corresponding to the first partial area when the shielding unit is in the first state, and displays the diffraction pattern being generated by the processor in a second display area corresponding to the second partial area when the shield is in the second state, and the processor generates, as the diffraction pattern, a first portion diffraction pattern from an image in an area corresponding to the first display area of the original image when the shield is in the first state, and generates, as the diffraction pattern, a second portion diffraction pattern from an image in an area corresponding to the second display area of the original image when the shield is in the second state.