ILLUMINATION DEVICE AND PROJECTOR

Abstract

An illumination device includes a light source that emits light-source light, a light recovery member that is disposed close to the light source in the vicinity of a lateral side of the light source, and has a light receiving surface inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to an optical axis extending from the light source to the front to face the optical axis or the vicinity of the optical axis, and a rod integrator that uniformizes light-source light from the light source and light-source light reflected by the light recovery member.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like numbers reference like elements.

FIG. 1 is a side view conceptually illustrating a projector according to a first embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is an end view showing essential parts of the projector shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged side view illustrating a sectional structure of a light source device.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are graphs showing a cumulative light quantity and a luminosity distribution with respect to an angle of a light flux to be emitted from an illumination optical system.

FIG. 5 is a side view illustrating essential parts of a projector according to a second embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a side view illustrating a projector according to a third embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a side view illustrating a light source of the projector according to the third embodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 8A and 8B are side views illustrating a fourth embodiment of the invention that is modifications of the first and third embodiments.

FIGS. 9A and 9B are side views illustrating a fifth embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 10 is a diagram conceptually illustrating a projector according to a sixth embodiment of the invention.

Claims

1. An illumination device comprising: a light source that emits light-source light;a light recovery member that is disposed close to the light source in the vicinity of a lateral side of the light source, and has a light receiving surface inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to an optical axis extending from the light source to the front to face the optical axis or the vicinity of the optical axis; anda rod integrator that uniformizes light-source light from the light source and light-source light reflected by the light recovery member.

2. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the light receiving surface of the light recovery member is a mirror that reflects light-source light emitted from the light source.

3. The illumination device according to claim 2, wherein the mirror of the light recovery member is inclined at approximately 45° with respect to the optical axis.

4. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the light source and the light recovery member are integrated to form a light source package.

5. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the light recovery member is disposed in the vicinity of a light source package including the light source.

6. The illumination device according to claim 5, wherein the light recovery member is fixed on a pedestal that supports the light source package.

7. The illumination device according to claim 65wherein the pedestal and the light recovery member are integrated to form a pedestal member.

8. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the light recovery member has a fluorescent substance having photosensitivity to light-source light on the light receiving surface or in the vicinity of the light receiving surface.

9. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein a fluorescent substance provided in the light recovery member has a light-emission characteristic of at least one of yellow, green, and red light components relative to incident blue light.

10. The illumination device according to claim l, wherein the light recovery member causes a light flux to be emitted by reflection from the light recovery member to be incident on the rod integrator through a rod incident port, and causes the light flux to be directly emitted from a rod emission port of the rod integrator without being reflected in the rod integrator.

11. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein an aperture, through which a light flux is emitted from the light recovery member, is smaller than a rod incident port of the rod integrator.

12. The illumination device according to claim 11, wherein the aperture of the light recovery member is disposed inwardly from the rod incident port of the rod integrator.

13. The illumination device according to claim 12, further comprising: an engagement unit that fixes the aperture of the light recovery member to the rod incident port of the rod integrator.

14. The illumination device according to claim 1, further comprising: a polarization separating element that is disposed at the back of the rod integrator.

15. The illumination device according to claim 14, wherein the polarization separating element is fixed to a rod emission port of the rod integrator.

16. The illumination device according to claim 14, wherein the polarization separating element is a wire grid polarization element.

17. The illumination device according to claim 13, wherein the rod integrator has a step portion facing the inside.

18. The illumination device according to claim 17, wherein the step portion is a mirror that turns up return light from the polarization separating element to the rod emission port.

19. The illumination device according to claim 17, wherein the step portion has a fluorescent substance having photosensitivity to light-source light.

20. A projector comprising: the illumination device according to claim 1;a light modulation device that modulates illumination light from the illumination device according to image information; anda projection optical system that projects image light formed by the light modulation device.