Patent ID: 8416501

Claim:
An image display apparatus comprising: a generation unit which generates a first light beam and a second light beam corresponding to image signals to eyes of an observer; a reflection unit which has a reflection surface to reflect the first light beam and the second light beam and causes the reflection surface to make a reciprocating rotation about a first axis, thereby converting the first light beam and the second light beam into a first scanning light beam and a second scanning light beam to scan in a lateral direction; a forming unit which forms images observable by the eyes of the observer based on the first scanning light beam and the second scanning light beam; and a control unit which controls said generation unit, while the reflection surface executes the reciprocating rotation, to generate the first light beam during a first period in which the reflection surface rotates in a first rotation direction of the reciprocating rotation and generate the second light beam during a second period in which the reflection surface rotates in a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction, wherein, a scanning direction of the first scanning light beam in the lateral direction coincides with a scanning direction of the image signal, and a scanning direction of the second scanning light beam is opposite to the scanning direction of the image signal, the apparatus further comprises a holding unit which holds an image signal of at least one scanning line of the image signal corresponding to the second scanning light beam, and said generation unit generates the second light beam by reading out the image signal of one scanning line held by said holding unit from an opposite direction.