Abstract: A multicolor display apparatus displays a design pattern by reflecting light beams which are incident into a light guide body by arrays of fine shapes and emitting the reflected light beams from the light emission surface, in which, when it is assumed that the gradation values of red, green, blue, and white at a point where a specific color (to be displayed) of the design pattern of the light guide body is displayed using red, green, blue, and white light are set as I(r), I(g), I(b), and I(w), respectively, and when it is assumed that the gradation values of red, green, and blue in the case of displaying a color close to the specific color using only red, green, and blue light without white light are set as Ir, Ig, and Ib, respectively, the fine shapes for each of red, green, blue, and white colors have a height or a pitch which corresponds to the gradation values I(r), I(g), I(b), and I(w) as follows: I(w)=min(Ir, Ig, Ib)×A/100; I(r)=Ir?I(w); I(g)=Ig?I(w); I(b)=Ib?I(w). Here, A/100 is less than 1.

Abstract: A display device includes a light guide plate, and light sources allowing light to be incident on a first side surface and a second side surface of the light guide plate. First incidental side surface light from the first light source is reflected to an upper surface side by first reflection parts formed on a bottom surface to display a first pattern, and second incidental side surface light from the second light source is reflected to the upper surface side by second reflection parts formed on the bottom surface to display a second pattern. Slopes are provided at parts of the first side surface and the second side surface of the light guide plate, and light reflected on a facing reflection surface and propagating in the light guide plate again is reduced by the slopes.

Abstract: A display apparatus includes: a light guide plate; a light source that causes light to be incident on an end surface of the light guide plate; a hiding plate that is provided on a side of an emission surface of the light guide plate, and that includes a light transmission part which transmits light emitted from the emission surface and a light shielding part which has lower light transmittance than the light transmission part; and a colored board that has light reflectance closer to light reflectance of the light shielding part than light reflectance of the light transmission part in each wavelength, and that is provided on a side of a reflection surface of the light guide plate so as to overlap the light transmission part of the hiding plate when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the emission surface of the light guide plate.

Abstract: A display apparatus includes: a light guide plate; a light source that causes light to be incident on an end surface of the light guide plate; a hiding plate that is provided on a side of an emission surface of the light guide plate, and that includes a light transmission part which transmits light emitted from the emission surface and a light shielding part which has lower light transmittance than the light transmission part; and a colored board that has light reflectance closer to light reflectance of the light shielding part than light reflectance of the light transmission part in each wavelength, and that is provided on a side of a reflection surface of the light guide plate so as to overlap the light transmission part of the hiding plate when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the emission surface of the light guide plate.

Abstract: A display device capable of displaying a desired pattern using a light guide plate in which plural patterns are recorded. In a light guide plate, light sources allowing light to be incident on a first side surface and a second side surface, first incidental side surface light is reflected to an upper surface side by first reflection parts formed on a bottom surface to display a first pattern, and second incidental side surface light from the second light sources is reflected to the upper surface side by second reflection parts formed on the bottom surface to display a second pattern, in which slopes are provided at parts of the first side surface and the second side surface of the light guide plate, and light reflected on a facing reflection surface and propagating in the light guide plate again is reduced by the slopes.

Abstract: A multicolor display apparatus displays a design pattern by reflecting light beams which are incident into a light guide body by arrays of fine shapes and emitting the reflected light beams from the light emission surface, in which, when it is assumed that the gradation values of red, green, blue, and white at a point where a specific color (to be displayed) of the design pattern of the light guide body is displayed using red, green, blue, and white light are set as I(r). I(g). I(b), and I(w), respectively, and when it is assumed that the gradation values of red, green, and blue in the case of displaying a color close to the specific color using only red, green, and blue light without white light are set as Ir, Ig, and Ib, respectively, the fine shapes for each of red, green, blue, and white colors have a height or a pitch which corresponds to the gradation values I(r), I(g), I(b), and I(w) as follows: I(w)=min(Ir, Ig, Ib), ×A/100; I(r)=Ir?I(w); I(g)=Ig?I(w); I(b)=Ib?I(w). Here, A/100 is less than 1.

Abstract: A reflective liquid crystal lighting device includes a light source, a tabular transparent light guide for receiving light emitted from the light source at a side surface and for emitting illuminating light from the back surface thereof, and a transparent material filled between the light guide and the reflective liquid crystal provided at the back side thereof. The reflective liquid crystal is viewed from the side of the front surface of the light guide through the transparent material.

Abstract: An electron beam which can transmit through part of a specimen and can reach a portion not exposing to the electron beam is irradiated and a scanning image is obtained on the basis of a signal secondarily generated from a portion irradiated with the electron beam. Dimension-measuring start and end points are set on the scanning image and a dimension therebetween is measured. A cubic model is assumed, the cubic model is modified so as to match the scanning image, and dimension measurement is carried out on the basis of a modified cubic model.

Abstract: A highly efficient, luminous and energy-saving panel-form illuminating system suitable for mass-production, comprising at least a photoconductor, a linear light source at one side of the photoconductor, and a reflector; wherein grooves or protrusions are formed on the bottom surface of the photoconductor.

Abstract: A position detecting element that enables a position to be detected at high speed and high precision, and a range sensor using the same. The position detecting element is provided with a PIN photodiode array 1 having n segments and a parallel arithmetic processing portion 2 that calculates the segment having maximum intensity by comparing n outputs from the segments of the PIN photodiode array 1. The range sensor includes a light source by which the object to be measured is irradiated by optical beam, a lens that gathers rays of the reflected light from the surface of the object to be measured and the position detecting element mentioned above that detects the position of the light gathered by the lens.

Abstract: A back light illuminator for liquid crystal display apparatus comprises a fluorescent lamp, a light guide member, and a reflection plate enclosing the fluorescent lamp and an incident portion of the light guide member so as to reflect light rays toward the incident portion of the light guide member. The reflection plate has at least a curved portion having a parabolic cross-section or a elliptical cross-section so as not to reflect the light rays in a direction to the fluorescent lamp. Thus, absorption of reflected light by the fluorophor of the fluorescent lamp is minimized, and the luminance of the back light illuminator is increased.

Abstract: The present invention provides an optical encoder capable of using the recesses and convexes of a movable plate and a fixed plate to accurately generate a Z phase signal in synchronism with an A/B phase signal. Phase type diffraction gratings on the moving and fixed plates including a plurality of tracks with different grating pitches cause parallel coherent beams to interfere with one another, and a light receiving part detects the intensity of light to obtain a plurality of synchronous signals with different periods. On the other hand, the light receiving part detects light spots formed by condensing elements on the movable plate to generates a single pulse per rotation as a reference position. One of the plurality of synchronous signals that has the shortest period is selected as an A/B phase signal that depends on the movement of the movable plate.

Abstract: An efficient, luminous and energy-saving panel-form illuminating system suitable for mass-production, comprising at least a photoconductor, a linear light source at one side of the photoconductor, and a reflector; wherein grooves or protrusions are formed on the bottom surface of the photoconductor.

Abstract: An electron beam which can transmit through part of a specimen and can reach a portion not exposing to the electron beam is irradiated and a scanning image is obtained on the basis of a signal secondarily generated from a portion irradiated with the electron beam. Dimension-measuring start and end points are set on the scanning image and a dimension therebetween is measured. A cubic model is assumed, the cubic model is modified so as to match the scanning image, and dimension measurement is carried out on the basis of a modified cubic model.

Abstract: An array light source 1 with semiconductor laser sources disposed one-dimensionally and a projective lens 2 are used to illuminate an inspected object so that light beams projected from the array light source form a dotted line on the object. A line sensor is used to receive through an objective lens 3 light emitted from an imaging area 11 away from an illuminated area 12. An image signal, fed to an image processing unit 8 through a pre-processing unit 7 producing an image from signals from the line sensor 4 and a stage 5 is processed, while the stage 5 bearing the object 6 is being gradually moved, to inspect the object 6 for crack defects 9 and 10 by detecting an optically nonhomogeneous portion of the object. The method allows a crack defect of an object, such as a ceramic substrate or a sintered metal product, to be detected fast with high accuracy.

Abstract: An electron beam which can transmit through part of a specimen and can reach a portion not exposing to the electron beam is irradiated and a scanning image is obtained on the basis of a signal secondarily generated from a portion irradiated with the electron beam. Dimension-measuring start and end points are set on the scanning image and a dimension therebetween is measured. A cubic model is assumed, the cubic model is modified so as to match the scanning image, and dimension measurement is carried out on the basis of a modified cubic model.

Abstract: A phase grating has a concave part of rectangular shape type substantially, of which grating depth is deeper in a specific range than depth d' calculated in a formula.vertline.n-n.sub.0 .vertline..times.(p-d'/e)/p.times.d'=(.lambda./2).times.(1+2m) (where m=0, .+-.1, .+-.2, . . . )in terms of center wavelength .lambda. of light having partial interference to be diffracted by the phase grating, pitch length p of the phase grating, refractive index n of base material of the phase grating, refractive index n.sub.0 of medium surrounding the phase grating, and shape ratio e as the ratio of grating depth to width of slope of the concave part.

Abstract: A method for foreign particles inspection includes illuminating an inspection surface of an inspection object with a beam which is, one of s-polarized and p-polarized relative to the inspection surface of the inspection object. The illumination utilizes an optical axis which is generally parallel to the inspection surface or which intersects the inspection surface at an angle that is greater than or equal to 1.degree. and less than 5.degree.. Reflected and scattered light is detected utilizing an optical axis which makes an acute angle with the inspection surface and which makes a differential angle of 30.degree. or less with the optical axis of the illumination beam. The detection of foreign particles is accomplished by detecting the component of the reflected and scattered light which is the other of s-polarized and p-polarized relative to the inspection surface.

Abstract: A liquid crystal layer is interposed between two polarizers arranged in a parallel Nicol or crossed Nicol manner, and a phase plate is set between two polarizers so that the transmission direction of the first polarizer coincides with the optical axis. Then, a rotation angle at which optical intensity transmitted through the second polarizer has an extreme value to be determined, and the thickness of the birefringence layer is calculated according to the rotation angle of the phase plate. In a different method, a half-wave plate is used. First, the liquid crystal layer is set at a position where an optical intensity of the transmission light has an extreme value, and the half-wave plate provided between the two polarizers is set so that a transmission direction of the first polarizer coincides with the optical axis. Then, a rotation angle of the phase plate is determined at which an optical intensity of light transmitted through the second polarizer has an extreme value.

Abstract: A foreign substance inspection apparatus having a good signal to noise ratio with optical detection accuracy capable of detecting infinitesimal foreign substances, comprising a lighting portion to irradiate with an S polarized laser light beam and having the optical axis parallel to the substrate to be inspected, a detecting portion having an optical axis located in a position set by rotating the optical axis of the lighting portion by 120.degree. to 160.degree. with the point of intersection of the optical axis of the lighting portion and the surface to be inspected as the center of rotation so as to have an angle made with the surface to be inspected of 45.degree.