Patent Application
20070268593
The above and other objects, features, and advantages of certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Throughout the drawings, the same reference numerals will be understood to refer to the same elements, features, and structures.
The matters defined in the description such as a detailed construction and elements are provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of the exemplary embodiments of the invention and are merely exemplary. Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the exemplary embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Also, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions are omitted for clarity and conciseness.
As shown, the display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention comprises a main body casing 10 which forms the overall appearance of the display device, a screen 40 mounted to a front of the main body casing 10, reflective mirror 30 mounted inside the rear portion of the main body casing 10, an optical engine 100 housed in the lower portion of the main body casing 10 to emit image beam toward the reflective mirror 30, and a circuit portion 20 to drive the optical engine 100.
The display device constructed as explained above accordingly forms an image beam at the optical engine 100 by the circuit portion 20, and the image beam is emitted to the reflective mirror 30, passes the reflective mirror 30, and falls onto the screen 40 to form a corresponding image.
An optical engine 100 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention comprises a base 101, an illumination system 110 which generates light, an image generator 120 which forms an image using the light generated by the illumination system 110, and a projecting lens device 130 which projects the image generated by the image generator 120 onto a projection plane such as a screen.
The illumination system 110 comprises a light source such as an illumination lamp which generates light, and a light tunnel which guides the generated light to the image generator 120.
The image generator 120 comprises a display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), a liquid crystal on silicon (LCos) chip, or a digital micromirror device (DMD). The display device receives image information from an external source to generate a certain image.
The image generated by the image generator 120 and the light guided by the illumination system 110 are guided through a prism member or a reflecting system to the projecting lens device 130. The projecting lens device 130 enlarges the guided image and light and projects the enlarged image and light onto a projection plane such as a screen.
The projecting lens device 130 comprises a first projecting lens system 140 which enlarges and projects the incident image and light onto a projection plane, a second projecting lens system 150 which guides the image of the image generator 120 and the light of the illumination system 110 to the first projecting lens system 140, and a main lens barrel 135 and a sub lens barrel 136 in which the first and second projecting lens systems 140 and 150 are installed. The main lens barrel 135 is made of a thermally conductive material, and the sub lens barrel 136 is disposed in the rear of the main lens barrel 135.
A reflecting system 160 is disposed between the first projecting lens system 140 and the second projecting lens system 150, and an iris (not shown) may be disposed at one or both of the first projecting lens system 140 and the second projecting lens system 150.
The first projecting lens system 140 is disposed in the main lens barrel 135 and comprises one or more the first projecting lens 141, 142, and 143.
The heat prevention member 200 is made of a material such as synthetic resin, which has a lower thermal conductivity than the material of the main barrel 135, or a thermal insulating material. Accordingly, the heat prevention member 200 can minimize the transmission of heat from the thermally conductive main barrel 135 to reduce the amount of external forces or stress generated by thermal distortion of the main lens barrel 135 and/or the projecting lens 141 at the connection between the main lens barrel 135 and the projecting lens 141. Thus, cracks or other damage to the projecting lens 141 can be prevented.
If the first projecting lens system 140 includes a plurality of first projecting lenses 141, 142, and 143, the heat prevention member 200 may be disposed between each of the first projecting lenses 141, 142, and 143 and the main lens barrel 135, as shown in
The second projecting lens system 150 is disposed in the sub lens barrel 136, and may be movable with respect to the main lens barrel 135 to adjust the image focus.
The second projecting lens system 150 comprises one or more second projecting lenses 151, 152, and 153, and a heat prevention member (not shown) may be disposed between the sub lens barrel 136 and the second projecting lenses 151, 152, and 153 like the first projecting lens system 140. The projecting lenses of the first and second projecting lens systems 140 and 150 may be made of various materials, such as optical glass, optical plastic, or a mixture of optical glass and optical plastic, and the lenses may be spherical lens or aspherical lens.
The heat prevention member 200 may be configured as a ring-shaped structure disposed between the main lens barrel 135 and the projecting lenses 141, 142, and 143, as shown in
Alternatively, the heat prevention member 200 may be configured as a corrugated ring-shaped structure, as shown in
The heat prevention member 200 can protect the projecting lenses 141, 142, 143, 151, 152, and 153 from receiving heat through the lens barrels 135 and 136. The heat may be generated by the illumination system 110 and the image generator 120 or by the light passing through the projecting lens device 130.
The heat prevention member 200 with a corrugated ring-shaped circumferential surface is particularly effective at reducing the external forces or stresses generated by thermal distortion between the projecting lenses 141, 142, 143, 151, 152, and 153 and the lens barrels 135 and 136.
Additionally, the projecting lenses 141, 142, 143, 151, 152 and 153 may be fit in the inner circumferential surface of the heat prevention member 200, and the heat prevention member 200 may be fit in the inner circumferential surface of the main lens barrel 135 and/or the sub lens barrel 136. Accordingly, the heat prevention member 200 allows the projecting lenses 141, 142, 143, 151, 152, and 153 to be closely fit in the lens barrels 135 and 135 so that the projecting lenses 141, 142, 143, 151, 152, and 153 can be firmly installed.
While the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-44805 | May 2006 | KR | national |
