Patent ID: 7008060
Filing Date: 2006-03-07
Classification: G02B,H04N

Abstract:
1. A projector optical system comprising: a digital micromirror device for modulating illumination light, the digital micromirror device including minute mirror elements with variable light-reflecting directions, the minute mirror elements being arranged regularly within a plane so as to correspond to respective pixels of an image, each minute mirror element switching, according to a video signal fed therein, between two states having respective angles of rotation different from each other so as to selectively reflect the illumination light into one of first and second directions; an illumination optical system for outputting a luminous flux having a uniform polarization direction incident on a polarization separating surface of a polarization separating means; a projection optical system for projecting onto a predetermined projection surface illumination light modulated by the digital micromirror device and emitted in the first direction; and wherein the polarization separating means for making light from the illumination optical system incident on the digital micromirror device and guides to the projection optical system the illumination light modulated by the digital micromirror device and emitted in the first direction; wherein the polarization separating means has a polarization separating surface for separating a luminous flux incident on the digital micromirror device and modulated luminous flux emitted from the digital micromirror device from each other; wherein an angle between the light which is incident on the digital micromirror device from the illumination optical system and the illumination light modulated by the digital micromirror device and emitted in the first direction is set according to an F number of the illumination optical system; and wherein a polarization direction rotating means for rotating a polarization direction is disposed between the polarization separating surface and the digital micromirror device.