Patent ID: 7828443
Filing Date: 2010-11-09
Classification: G03B

Abstract:
1. A projector, comprising: a light source; an optical modulator that modulates a light beam irradiated by the light source in accordance with image information to form an optical image; a projection optical device that projects the optical image formed by the optical modulator in an enlarged manner; an integrator illumination optical system that uniforms the light beam irradiated by the light source to uniformly illuminate an image formation area of the optical modulator, the integrator illumination optical system having a first lens array, a second lens array and a polarization converter, the first lens array having a plurality of first small lenses in a plane substantially orthogonal to an optical axis of the light beam irradiated by the light source, the first lens array separating the light beam into a plurality of sub light beams by the plurality of first small lenses, the second lens array disposed on a light-irradiation side of the first lens array, the second lens array having a plurality of second small lenses corresponding to the plurality of first lenses of the first lens array, the second small lenses of the second lens array being each arranged with its convex surface oriented to the light-irradiation side, the polarization converter disposed on a light-irradiation side of the second lens array, the polarization converter aligning a polarization direction of the light beam irradiated from the second lens array substantially uniformly, the polarization converter having polarization separating layers, reflection layers and phase layers, the polarization separating layers each having a longitudinal direction in a first direction in a plane substantially orthogonal to the optical axis of the light beam irradiated by the light source, the polarization separating layers each transmitting a polarized light having one polarization direction while reflecting a polarized light having the other polarization direction in the light beam incident on the polarization separating layer, the reflection layers arranged alternately with the polarization separating layers along a second direction substantially orthogonal to the optical axis of the light beam irradiated by the light source and to the first direction, the reflection layers each reflecting the polarized light reflected by each of the polarization separating layers in the same direction as the polarized light transmitted by each of the polarization separating layers, the phase layers disposed at a position corresponding to the polarization separating layers or the reflection layers, the phase layers each converting the polarization direction of the polarized light beam incident thereon to the other polarization direction; and a light shield section provided on a portion on an incident-side surface of the polarization converter, the portion excluding a light-incident surface corresponding to the polarization separating layers, the second lens array having a light-irradiation-side surface and an extending portion formed on the light-irradiation-side surface of the second lens array, the light-irradiation-side surface of the second lens array and the incident-side surface of the polarization converter facing each other, the extending portion of the second lens array extending toward the incident-side surface of the polarization converter, the second lens array and the polarization converter being directly bonded and fixed to each other at a portion where the extending portion of the second lens array is bonded and fixed to the incident-side surface of the polarization converter.