Optical: systems and elements – Stereoscopic – Having record with lenticular surface
Reexamination Certificate
1998-02-17
2002-10-08
Spyrou, Cassandra (Department: 2872)
Optical: systems and elements
Stereoscopic
Having record with lenticular surface
C359S462000, C359S623000, C359S624000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06462871
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a stereoscopic image display apparatus and, more particularly, to a stereoscopic image display apparatus suitably used for stereoscopically displaying image information on a display device (display) such as e.g., a television, video, computer monitor, game machine, or the like, and stereoscopically observing the image information from a predetermined observation region. As conventional stereoscopic image observation methods, a method of observing parallax images based on different polarization states using, e.g., polarization spectacles, a method of guiding a predetermined one of a plurality of parallax images (viewing position images) to the eyeballs of the observer using a lenticular lens, and the like have been proposed.
In a stereoscopic image display apparatus that uses the above-mentioned polarization spectacles as the stereoscopic image observation method, parallax images from different viewing positions corresponding to the right and left eyes of the observer are displayed on a display, so that the images for the right and left eyes have different polarization states to attain stereoscopic recognition. The images for the right and left eyes are separated and observed via the polarization spectacles. At this time, as a practical method of obtaining different polarization states, a liquid crystal shutter is arranged on the display side to switch the polarization states in synchronism with the field signal of the image to be displayed on the display, and the observer who wears the polarization spectacles time-divisionally and separately observes the right and left images eye by eye, thus attaining stereoscopic viewing. However, in the stereoscopic image display apparatus using this method, the observer must always wear the polarization spectacles.
In contrast to this, in a stereoscopic image display apparatus using a lenticular lens, that allows observation of a stereoscopic image without using any polarization spectacles, since the lenticular lens is arranged in front of the display to spatially separate images for the right and left eyes of the observer, it is easy for the observer to observe a stereoscopic image.
FIG. 20
is a partial schematic sectional view showing principal part of a conventional stereoscopic image display apparatus for observing a stereoscopic image using a lenticular lens.
FIG. 20
is a sectional view of principal part from the direction over the head of the observer.
In
FIG. 20
, reference numeral
101
denotes a liquid crystal display, which has a glass substrate, color filters, electrodes, polarization plates, backlight, and the like (not shown). Reference numeral
101
a
denotes a display image (display pixel portion) on the liquid crystal display. The display pixel portion
101
a
consists of aperture portions
102
at which color filters that form pixels are disposed, and black matrices
103
which separate adjacent pixels. A lenticular lens
104
is arranged on the surface of the liquid crystal display
101
, and consists of cylindrical lenses each of which has a semi-circular section, as shown in
FIG. 20
, and extends in a direction perpendicular to the plane of drawing. The display pixel portion
101
a
of the liquid crystal display
101
is located at the focal plane of the lenticular lens
104
.
As shown in
FIG. 20
, pairs of stripe-shaped right-hand left-eye images (R) and (L) are alternately arranged on the display pixel portion
101
a
in correspondence with the pitches of the lenticular lens
104
, and are optically separately imaged on a right eye E
R
and left eye E
L
of the observer via the lenticular lens
104
, thus realizing stereoscopic viewing.
FIG. 20
shows spatial regions where the right- and left-eye images can be respectively observed via a lenticular lens portion
104
a
at the central portion of the liquid crystal display
101
, and as for other lenticular lens portions, right and left separated spatial regions overlap each other at the right and left eye positions of the observer, so that right and left parallax images can be evenly separately observed over the entire screen. With this method, the observation positions of the right and left parallax images alternately and repetitively appear a large number of times in the observation region.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In a stereoscopic 3D display apparatus which does not require any eyewears such as polarization eyeglasses as the one for observing a stereoscopic image, the horizontal width of each of viewing zones for the right and left eyes is nearly equal to the interval between the eyes or bigger.
In such arrangement, the right and left parallax images may reach the left and right eyes depending on the face position of the observer, and may cause so-called inverse stereoscopic viewing. For this reason, the observer can only horizontally move his or her head by a maximum of about 65 mm corresponding to the interval between the eyes.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a stereoscopic 3D display apparatus which allows the observer to satisfactorily observe a plurality of stereoscopic images from a plurality of positions by appropriately setting individual elements such as two lenticular lenses running perpendicular to each other, a mask pattern on which aperture portions and light-shielding portions are arranged at predetermined pitches, a display for dividing a plurality of parallax images into a large number of horizontal stripe-shaped parallax images and displaying the plurality of horizontal stripe-shaped parallax images at predetermined pitches in the vertical direction, and the like, upon observing a stereoscopic image using the lenticular lenses.
In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and to achieve the above object, the present invention comprises the following arrangement.
That is, an image display apparatus according to the present invention comprises: a light source device; a mask pattern which has line patterns each obtained by repetitively arranging N−1 or N light-shielding portions with respect to one aperture portion in a horizontal direction, and has sets each of which includes N line patterns shifted from each other in the horizontal direction by a width of the aperture portion, and which are repetitively arranged in the vertical direction; a first lenticular lens formed by arranging a plurality of cylindrical lenses, having refractive power in the horizontal direction, at a predetermined pitch in the horizontal direction; a second lenticular lens formed by arranging a plurality of cylindrical lenses, having refractive power in the vertical direction, at a predetermined pitch in the vertical direction; and a display for displaying image information, the display being illuminated by a light beam which is emitted by the light source device, transmitted through the plurality of aperture portions, and passes through the first and second lenticular lenses, and the image information having a horizontal stripe synthesized image obtained by respectively dividing N images (N≧3) into a plurality of horizontal stripe images, and repetitively arranging the divided horizontal stripe images in a predetermined order in correspondence with the N images at a predetermined pitch in the vertical direction.
The stereoscopic image display apparatus of the present invention allows the observer to satisfactorily observe a plurality of stereoscopic images from a plurality of positions by appropriately setting individual elements such as two lenticular lenses having running perpendicular to each other, a mask pattern on which aperture portions and light-shielding portions are arranged at predetermined pitches, a display for dividing a plurality of parallax images into a large number of horizontal stripe-shaped parallax images and displaying the plurality of horizontal stripe-shaped parallax images at predetermined pitches in the vertical direction, and the like, upon observing a stereoscopic image using the lenticular lenses.
Moreover, an image apparatus for allowing observation
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
Morgan & Finnegan , LLP
Spyrou Cassandra
Winstedt Jennifer
LandOfFree
Stereoscopic image display apparatus using specific mask... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Stereoscopic image display apparatus using specific mask..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Stereoscopic image display apparatus using specific mask... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2937717