Abstract: A projection system that can adjust color balance of incident light is provided. The projection system includes a light source, a spatial filter, an optical separator, a scrolling unit, a light valve, and a projecting lens unit. The spatial filter has a slit to adjust a divergent angle or etendue of light emitted from the light source. The optical separator separates light passing through the spatial filter according to color of incident light. The scrolling unit has one or more spiral lens discs, which are formed by spirally arranging cylindrical lens cells, rotate, and scroll color beams separated by the optical separator. The light valve processes light passing through the scrolling unit according to an image signal and forms an image. The projecting lens unit magnifies the image formed on the light valve and projects the magnified image onto a screen.

Abstract: A high-efficiency, compact color illuminating system and a projection type image display apparatus using the color illuminating system are provided. The color illuminating system includes a light source, a spiral lens disc that periodically scrolls light by rotational movement, and an optical unit that isolates light beams of different wavelengths from white light emitted from the light source and guides the isolated light beams to enter at least two effective regions of the spiral lens disc. The projection type image display apparatus includes the color illuminating system, an image forming unit that generates images using scrolling light from the spiral lens disc, and a projection lens unit that enlarges and projects the images formed by the image forming unit on a screen.

Abstract: Provided is a projection television TV having a digital micro mirror device (DMD) which includes micro-mirrors to reflect light from a light source according to an ‘on’ or ‘off’ state of the micro mirrors. An illuminating block provides light to the DMD in a uniform optical intensity. A projecting block projects the light reflected from the DMD onto a screen. The projection TV features a projection aperture positioned in the projecting block or the illuminating block arranged perpendicularly to an optical axis. The projection aperture forms an optical path and includes projection areas to pass the light and blocking areas to block the light. The projection area and the blocking area are formed on a cross section of the light with a predetermined space.

Abstract: An optical combining device for combining the paths of two light beams having different polarizations is provided. The device includes a scroll direction change prism and a polarized beam splitter. The scroll direction change prism is disposed in the path of a first light beam and changes a scroll direction of the first light beam to as to be the same as that of a second light beam. The polarized beam splitter is disposed in the path of both the first light beam, reflected from the scroll direction change prism, and the second light beam and combines the first and second beams by selectively transmitting or reflecting them according to the polarization direction thereof.

Abstract: A color scrolling projection system is provided, including a light source, a color separator, a color scanner, a light valve, and a control circuit. The light source generates and emits light. The color separator separates incident light according to color. The color scanner includes a scrolling unit and a driving source for rotating the scrolling unit. The scrolling unit includes at least one lens cell and converts the rotation of the scrolling unit into the rectilinear motion of a lens array of the scrolling unit through which light passes. The light valve processes color bars according to an input image signal and forms a color image. The control circuit synchronizes the scrolling of the color with the electrical scanning of the light valve according to an image signal. The color bars are scrolled on the light valve due to a rotation of the scrolling unit.

Abstract: An optical data storage system writes or reads information with respect to an optical storage medium using an optical pickup including a solid immersion optical system or a solid immersion lens for generating a near-field and emitting a light beam. The optical storage medium includes a recording layer which is formed on a surface of an optical transmissive layer opposite to another surface of the optical transmissive layer which opposes the solid immersion optical system or solid immersion lens. The thickness of the optical transmissive layer is larger than one wavelength of the light beam. The interval between the surfaces of the solid immersion lens or solid immersion optical system and the optical transmissive layer is smaller than one wavelength of the light beam. Thus, the light beam reflected from the inside of an air gap and the inside of the optical storage medium between the air gap and the recording layer does not function as noise with respect to the light reflected from the recording layer.

Abstract: A highly efficient projection system is provided, including a light source, a color separator, a scrolling unit, a light valve, a projection lens unit, and a polarization conversion system. The color separator separates an incident beam according to color. The scrolling unit includes at least one lens cell and converts a rotation of the lens cell into a rectilinear motion of an area of the lens cell through which light passes so the incident beam is scrolled. The light valve processes a beam transmitted by the color separator and the scrolling unit, according to an image signal and forms a color picture. The projection lens unit magnifies the color picture formed by the light valve and projects the magnified color picture onto a screen. The polarization conversion system is installed between the color separator and the light valve and converts the incident beam into a beam with a single polarization.

Abstract: A scrolling unit for forming a color image through scrolling, and a color illuminating system and a projection system using the scrolling unit. The scrolling unit includes a first spiral lens disk, a second spiral lens disk, and a glass rod. The first spiral lens disk includes a plurality of cylindrical lens cells arranged in a spiral pattern and can be rotated. The second spiral lens disk is installed facing the first spiral lens disk and can be rotated at the same speed as the first spiral lens disk. The projection system includes a light source, an optical splitter for splitting light into light beams having different colors, and a scrolling unit that scrolls the light beams by periodically changing paths on which the light beams proceed. Also included is a light valve for forming an image, and a projection lens unit for enlarging and projecting the image.

Abstract: A reflection type compound prism and an optical pickup apparatus employing the same. As a light beam is passed through the compound prism, a size of the light beam in a direction perpendicular to a reference plane is reduced by a first reflection surface, propagated toward an objective lens by second and third reflection surfaces and the size restored by reflecting the light beam from a fourth reflection surface forming an angle less than 45° with respect to the reference plane so that a height of an optical system is reducible to obtain a small thin optical pickup with a desired NA. The second and third reflection surfaces are spaced apart in a direction perpendicular to the reference plane by an amount close to a diameter of the light beam at a point of incidence of the light beam with the compound prism.

Abstract: A direct viewing type stereoscopic image display apparatus which can remove a moiré pattern is provided. The direct viewing type stereoscopic image display apparatus includes: a first memory which has a first field image signal divided from an image signal of one frame; a second memory which has a second field image signal divided from the image signal of one frame; a display device which forms a first field image and a second field image according to the first field image signal and the second field image signal; an image shift unit which sequentially shifts the first field image and the second field image; and a viewing zone dividing unit which divides the viewing zones of the first field image and the second field image. Thereby, the second field image is shifted from the first field image by a predetermined distance and thus a moiré pattern is removed and image quality is improved.

Abstract: A projection-type 3-D image display includes a light source, a single display element, an image shift member, a projection lens unit, and a screen unit. The display element produces an image using light emitted from the light source. The image shift member time-sequentially shifts the image. The projection lens unit enlarges and projects the time sequentially shifted image. The screen unit includes an image separation unit. The image separation unit separates the time sequentially shifted image into images for a left eye and images for a right eye. The projection-type 3-D image display can realize a 3-D image using a single projector by having the image shift member to sequentially shift the images produced by the display element.

Abstract: An illuminating optical system including a lamp light source and a reflecting mirror device. The lamp light source emits light. The reflecting mirror device having double reflecting mirror arrays formed in at least a portion thereof which at least partly adjust a divergent direction of light emitted from the lamp light source.

Abstract: An optical pickup device includes a light unit for irradiating a light beam having a wavelength longer than 650 nm onto a recording medium and receiving and detecting a light beam reflected by the recording medium, and an objective tens formed of a single lens having an NA of 0.7 or more to form a light spot on the recording medium by condensing an incident light beam emitted from the light unit. A recording medium has a recording density of a DVD family or more and is formed of a material suitable for a long wavelength of 700 nm or more so that a reproduction signal by a reflectance of a recording surface is optimized. Thus, a compact high density optical recording/reproducing apparatus which is inexpensive and has high performance can be realized.

Abstract: An optical pickup apparatus having laser light sources emit a first light beam having a relatively shorter wavelength for a DVD and a second light beam having a longer wavelength for a CD-R, an objective lens having a focal length of an information recording surface in the DVD, an optical path control unit controls the light beams so that the light beam emitted from one of the laser light sources is directed to the objective lens and the light output from the objective lens is directed to the optical detection unit, and a phase shift unit between the optical path control unit and the objective lens and which shifts a phase of the second light to reduce the size of a beam spot which is formed the information recording surface in the CD-R.

Abstract: An image display device to display both a 2-D image and a 3-D image. The image display device includes a display element, an image separation unit, a polarization conversion switch, and a birefringence element. The display element emits light according to image information for a left eye and image information for a right eye. The image separation unit separates the emitted light into an image for the left eye and an image for the right eye. The polarization conversion switch sequentially switches the polarization direction of the incident light. The birefringence element transmits or refracts the light, depending on the polarization direction of the light that has passed through the polarization conversion switch. An image, whose polarization direction has been switched by the polarization conversion switch, is shifted when passing through the birefringence element, whereby the left eye image and the right eye image resolution is improved.

Abstract: A highly-efficient projection system is provided, including a light source, a color separator, a scrolling unit, a light valve, and a projection lens unit. The color separator separates an incident beam according to color. The scrolling unit includes at least one lens cell and converts the rotation of the lens cell into a rectilinear motion of an area of the lens cell through which light passes so that an incident beam is scrolled. The light valve includes a plurality of micromirrors independently driven according to image signals to change a reflection angle of incident light. The light valve processes a beam transmitted by the color separator and the scrolling unit according to an image signal and forms a color picture. The projection lens unit magnifies the color picture formed by the light valve and projects the magnified color picture onto a screen.

Abstract: A light pipe for separating incident light according to color, a color illumination system adopting the light pipe, and a projection system adopting the color illumination system are provided. Since the projection system is a single-panel projection system adopting a scrolling unit, its optical configuration is simplified. Also, the light pipe of the projection system is comprised of different-sized color separation units, thus improving the color gamut and the color temperature. Further, the light pipe includes color selection polarizers, each of which changes the polarization direction of a color beam with a specific wavelength, thereby improving light efficiency.

Abstract: An optical data storage system writes or reads information with respect to an optical storage medium using an optical pickup including a solid immersion optical system or a solid immersion lens for generating a near-field and emitting a light beam. The optical storage medium includes a recording layer which is formed on a surface of an optical transmissive layer opposite to another surface of the optical transmissive layer which opposes the solid immersion optical system or solid immersion lens. The thickness of the optical transmissive layer is larger than one wavelength of the light beam. The interval between the surfaces of the solid immersion lens or solid immersion optical system and the optical transmissive layer is smaller than one wavelength of the light beam. Thus, the light beam reflected from the inside of an air gap and the inside of the optical storage medium between the air gap and the recording layer does not function as noise with respect to the light reflected from the recording layer.

Abstract: A cylindrical lens array for achieving color scrolling, a projection system using the cylindrical lens array, and a scrolling method. The cylindrical lens array is formed by arranging lens cells in an endless track. When the cylindrical lens array rotates, light rays passing through the lens cells advance along different paths. The projection system includes a light source, the cylindrical lens array, a light splitter, a light valve, and a projection unit. The light source emits a light. The cylindrical lens array has a plurality of lens cells arranged in an endless track and scrolls color bar images upon rotation. The light splitter splits incident light emitted from the light source into color beams according to a wavelength. The light valve receives the color beams split by the light splitter and scrolled by the cylindrical lens array and forms a color image by turning pixels on or off according to an input image signal.

Abstract: A highly efficient lighting system, a scrolling unit, and a projection system adopting the highly efficient lighting system and the scrolling unit are provided. The scrolling unit has at least one lens cell. From the viewpoint of light incident upon the at least one lens cell, the rotation of the at least one lens cell is converted into a rectilinear motion of a lens array, such that incident light is scrolled. The projection system includes a light source, an optical splitter, at least one scrolling unit, and a light valve. The optical splitter splits light emitted from the light source according to wavelenght. The at least one scrolling unit has at least one lens cell. The lens cell has an incident side and an emitting side and divides incident light into light beams. The rotation of the lens cell causes a rectilinear motion of the light beams, thereby scrolling incident light.