Dimmer and projector

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9703184-B2
Application number	US-201213568818-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 7, 2012
Priority date	Aug 12, 2011
Publication date	Jul 11, 2017
Grant date	Jul 11, 2017

Abstract

A dimmer includes a pair of pivoting sections provided across an optical axis of a light beam and having pivot axes and a pair of light blocking sections held by the pair of pivoting sections and configured to pivot following pivoting of the pivoting sections to block the light beam. In a maximum light blocking state, positions in the optical axis direction of opposed ends on the optical axis side of the pair of light blocking sections are different from each other. In the maximum light blocking state, the opposed ends on the optical axis side of the pair of light blocking sections are arranged to overlap each other in a direction along the optical axis.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A dimmer that blocks an incident light beam and adjusts a passing light amount, the dimmer comprising:
a pair of pivoting sections provided across an optical axis of the light beam and having pivot axes that extend along a direction substantially orthogonal to the optical axis;
a first light blocking section and a second light blocking section held by the pair of pivoting sections, formed to extend in the direction substantially orthogonal to the optical axis, and configured to pivot following pivoting of the pivoting sections to block the light beam, wherein
in a state in which the passing light amount is the smallest, a position of an end of the first light blocking section is different than an end of the second light blocking section in the optical axis direction, and the end of the first light blocking section opposes the end of the second light blocking section, and
first cutout sections are provided on two opposite side ends on the optical axis side of the first light blocking section and second cutout sections are provided on two opposite side ends on the optical axis side of the second light blocking section,
the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section including:
first light blocking members formed to extend in the direction substantially orthogonal to the optical axis in the state in which the passing light amount is the smallest; and
second light blocking members formed on an optical path downstream side of the light beam with respect to the first light blocking members to incline with respect to the first light blocking members such that distal end sides of the second light blocking members separate from the first light blocking members, and first ends of the second light blocking members extend from a non-end portion of the first light blocking members and second ends of the second light blocking members are a same distance from a downstream optical element.

2. The dimmer according to claim 1 , wherein the opposed ends on the optical axis side of the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section are arranged to overlap each other in a direction along the optical axis in the state in which the passing light amount is the smallest.

3. The dimmer according to claim 1 , wherein the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section include:
first light blocking members formed to extend in the direction substantially orthogonal to the optical axis in the state in which the passing light amount is the smallest; and
second light blocking members formed on an optical path downstream side of the light beam with respect to the first light blocking members to incline with respect to the first light blocking members such that distal end sides of the second light blocking members separate from the first light blocking members.

4. The dimmer according to claim 3 , wherein
the first cutout sections are provided in the first light blocking members, and
second cutout sections are provided in a center of opposed distal ends on the optical axis side of the second light blocking members.

5. The dimmer according to claim 1 , wherein
the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section include:
third light blocking members formed to extend in the direction substantially orthogonal to the optical axis; and
fourth light blocking members formed to extend from distal ends on the optical axis side of the third light blocking members and bend to the optical axis side in the state in which the passing light amount is the smallest, and

positions in the direction along the optical axis of opposed ends on the optical axis side of the fourth light blocking members are different from each other.

6. The dimmer according to claim 5 , wherein
one fourth light blocking member is formed to bend from the distal end on the optical axis side of one third light blocking member to an optical path downstream side of the light beam, and
the other fourth light blocking member is formed to bend from the distal end on the optical axis side of the other third light blocking member to an optical path upstream side of the light beam.

7. The dimmer according to claim 1 , wherein third cutout sections are provided in a center of distal ends on the optical axis side of the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section.

8. The dimmer according to claim 7 , wherein, in the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section, at least one of sizes and shapes of the third cutout sections are different from each other.

9. The dimmer according to claim 1 , wherein
the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section are formed to extend in different directions substantially orthogonal to the optical axis, and
in the state in which the passing light amount is the smallest, distal ends of each of the light blocking sections on the optical axis side of the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section are in different positions from each other along the optical axis direction.

10. The dimmer according to claim 1 , wherein
in the state in which the passing light amount is the smallest, a face of one of the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section facing the incident light is in a different position along the optical axis of the incident light than a face of an other one of the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section facing the incident light.

11. A projector comprising:
a light source device that emits a light beam;
a light modulating device that modulates the light beam according to an image signal and forms image light; and
a dimmer including:
a pair of pivoting sections provided across an optical axis of the light beam and having pivot axes that extend along a direction substantially orthogonal to the optical axis;
a first light blocking section and a second light blocking section held by the pair of pivoting sections, formed to extend in the direction substantially orthogonal to the optical axis, and configured to pivot following pivoting of the pivoting sections to block the light beam,

in a state in which a passing light amount is the smallest, a position of an end of the first light blocking section is different than an end of the second light blocking section in the optical axis direction, and the end of the first light blocking section opposes the end of the second light blocking section, and
first cutout sections are provided on two opposite side ends on the optical axis side of the first light blocking section and second cutout sections are provided on two opposite side ends on the optical axis side of the second light blocking section,
the first light blocking section and the second light blocking section including:
first light blocking members formed to extend in the direction substantially orthogonal to the optical axis in the state in which the passing light amount is the smallest; and
second light blocking members formed on an optical path downstream side of the light beam with respect to the first light blocking members to incline with respect to the first light blocking members such that distal end sides of the second light blocking members separate from the first light blocking members, and first ends of the second light blocking members extend from a non-end portion of the first light blocking members and second ends of the second light blocking members are a same distance from a downstream optical element.

12. The projector according to claim 11 , wherein, in the dimmer, the opposed ends on the optical axis side of the first light blocking s

Assignees

• Sakai Kenshi
• Nagumo Toshihiko
• Sakai Toshihiko
• Otsuki Nobuyuki
• Onota Takuro
• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Sakai Kenshi
• Nagumo Toshihiko
• Sakai Toshihiko
• Otsuki Nobuyuki
• Onota Takuro

Classifications

• G03B21/14

  Details · CPC title

• G03B21/208

  Homogenising, shaping of the illumination light · CPC title

• G03B21/2053 Primary

  Intensity control of illuminating light (controlled by video signal processing H04N5/74 or H04N9/31) · CPC title