CN115903261A - Image generation device, display equipment, vehicle and image generation method - Google Patents

Abstract

The embodiment of the application provides an image generation device, display equipment, a vehicle and an image generation method, and the image generation device, the display equipment, the vehicle and the image generation method can be mainly applied to a naked eye 3D display scene. The image generation device includes: the device comprises a light source, an optical module, a first analyzer and an imaging engine. The light source emits first polarized light and second polarized light whose polarization directions are perpendicular to each other. The first polarized light and the second polarized light can be transmitted to different directions after passing through the optical module. A pixelated analyzer is employed such that light of a first polarization is transmitted to a first pixel region of the imaging engine and light of a second polarization is transmitted to a second pixel region of the imaging engine. The first polarized light generates first image light including first image information through the first pixel region, and the second polarized light generates second image light including second image information through the second pixel region. The first and second imaging lights may be transmitted to left and right eyes of the viewer, respectively, and then the left and right eyes will see different images, thereby implementing a 3D display effect.

Description

Image generation device, display equipment, vehicle and image generation method

The present application is a divisional application of a chinese patent application having an application number of 202210886987, entitled "an image generating apparatus, a display device, a vehicle, and an image generating method" filed by the chinese patent office on 26/07/2022.

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of optical displays, and in particular, to an image generation apparatus, a display device, a vehicle, and an image generation method.

Background

Stereoscopic display technology has become an important ring in the display industry. The stereoscopic display technology has been developed rapidly, and various stereoscopic display technologies have become commercial products, and the stereoscopic television channels are also popularized continuously around the world, and the stereoscopic display technology has become the inevitable development direction of the future display field. The autostereoscopic display technology overcomes the dependence on auxiliary devices, and enables a viewer to view a stereoscopic image with naked eyes without wearing any auxiliary device.

At present, there is an autostereoscopic display scheme that adopts a time division scheme, i.e. different pictures are played at different times and transmitted to different eyes. For example, time 1 plays a left-eye picture on the screen and transmits the left-eye picture to the left eye through the light source 1, time 2 plays a right-eye picture on the screen and transmits the right-eye picture to the right eye through the light source 2, and so on alternately. However, this scheme requires that the on-screen picture refresh rate highly coincide with the light source switching frequency, and thus easily causes crosstalk between both eyes.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides an image generation device, display equipment, a vehicle and an image generation method, which can be mainly applied to a naked eye 3D display scene.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an image generation apparatus. The image generation apparatus includes: the device comprises a light source, an optical module, a first analyzer and an imaging engine. The light source is used for emitting first polarized light with a first polarization direction and second polarized light with a second polarization direction, wherein the first polarization direction is perpendicular to the second polarization direction. The optical module is used for adjusting the transmission directions of the first polarized light and the second polarized light respectively, wherein the first polarized light and the second polarized light are transmitted to the first analyzer through the optical module. The first region of the first analyzer is configured to filter the second polarized light to transmit the first polarized light to the first pixel region of the imaging engine. The second region of the first analyzer is configured to filter the first polarized light to transmit the second polarized light to the second pixel region of the imaging engine. The imaging engine is used for modulating the first polarized light on the first pixel area to obtain first imaging light including first image information, and modulating the second polarized light on the second pixel area to obtain second imaging light including second image information.

In the embodiment, the polarized light and the analyzer are introduced to enable different pixel regions on the imaging engine to receive different polarized light, so that different images can be seen by left and right eyes respectively, and crosstalk of the images seen by the left and right eyes is avoided. Compared with the scheme of realizing the 3D display effect in the prior art in a time division mode, the 3D display effect is better.

In some possible embodiments, the first imaged light is transmitted to a first location and the second imaged light is transmitted to a second location. For example, the left eye of the viewer is located at a first position and the right eye of the viewer is located at a second position, so that the viewer can experience naked-eye 3D display effect.

In some possible embodiments, the first polarized light includes a first sub-polarized light and a second sub-polarized light, and the second polarized light includes a third sub-polarized light and a fourth sub-polarized light. That is, the polarization directions of the first and second sub-polarized lights are the same, and the polarization directions of the third and fourth sub-polarized lights are the same. The first sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain first sub-imaging light comprising first image information, and the second sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain second sub-imaging light comprising the first image information. The third sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain third sub-imaging light comprising second image information, and the fourth sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain fourth sub-imaging light comprising the second image information. And transmitting the first sub-imaging light and the third sub-imaging light to a first position, and transmitting the second sub-imaging light and the fourth sub-imaging light to a second position.

In this embodiment, the image generating apparatus can be compatible with a scene to be displayed in 2D, and the applicable scene is wider. In order to realize 2D display, the left and right eyes should see the same image, and thus should be able to see the imaging light from all the pixel areas on the imaging engine. That is, both the first polarized light having the first polarization direction and the second polarized light having the second polarization direction can be seen by both eyes. Accordingly, the first sub-imaging light and the third sub-imaging light are transmitted to the first location, and the second sub-imaging light and the fourth sub-imaging light are transmitted to the second location. In this way, the first imaging light from the first pixel region can be transmitted to the left and right eyes, and the second imaging light from the second pixel region can be transmitted to the left and right eyes, so that the left and right eyes can see the same image, thereby realizing the 2D display effect. In some existing 3D display schemes, such as the lenticular scheme, half of the pixels are lost if switched to a 2D display. And if the image generation device provided by the application is adopted, all pixels can be seen by left and right eyes under a 2D display scene, pixel loss is avoided, and the display effect is better.

In some possible embodiments, the imaging engine comprises a first polarizer, a liquid crystal, and a second analyzer, the liquid crystal being located between the first polarizer and the second analyzer. The difference between the angular deviation of the polarization direction of the first region of the first analyzer from the polarization direction of the first polarizer and 45 ° is smaller than a threshold value. The difference between the angular deviation of the polarization direction of the second region of the first analyzer from the polarization direction of the first polarizer and 45 ° is smaller than a threshold value.

In this embodiment, the polarized light is input into the first polarizer instead of the natural light, so the application has a special design for the polarization direction of the first polarizer in order to ensure the effect. Ideally, the polarization directions of the first and second regions of the first analyzer are 45 ° to the polarization direction of the first polarizer, respectively. It will be appreciated that such a design, while resulting in 50% loss of light for both the first and second polarizations of light through the first polarizer, also ensures that both the first and second polarizations of light have sufficient light energy to be transmitted through the first polarizer to the liquid crystal. The imaging engine in the embodiment can adopt a traditional liquid crystal display, so that the scheme has better compatibility.

In some possible embodiments, the imaging engine comprises liquid crystal, and the image generation apparatus further comprises a third analyzer, the imaging engine being located between the first analyzer and the third analyzer. In this embodiment, since the polarized light is already input to the imaging engine in the present application, the imaging engine can retain only the liquid crystal without providing a polarizer. It is understood that liquid crystals have unique optical properties, and that by varying the voltage applied to the liquid crystals, the liquid crystal molecules are twisted to different degrees, and polarized light propagates along the crystal direction of the liquid crystals, so that the liquid crystals rotate the polarization direction of the polarized light. Therefore, a third analyzer is also needed on the other side of the imaging engine, and the third analyzer filters the polarized light passing through the imaging engine. Since the polarization directions of the polarized light from different pixel regions on the liquid crystal may be different, the transmission amount of the polarized light from different pixel regions on the liquid crystal after passing through the third analyzer is also different, and finally an image with bright-dark contrast is formed. The imaging engine in this embodiment can effectively avoid 50% of light loss and is simpler in structure.

In some possible embodiments, the first region and the second region are staggered in the first direction and distributed in a transverse stripe shape. Or the first areas and the second areas are staggered in the second direction and distributed in a longitudinal stripe shape. Or the first areas and the second areas are staggered in the first direction and the second direction respectively and distributed in a chessboard shape. Wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction. In the embodiment, various regional division modes of the analyzer are provided, and the expansibility of the scheme is enhanced.

In some possible embodiments, the light source comprises a light-emitting module and a second polarizer for converting light emitted by the light-emitting module into first polarized light and second polarized light, which enhances the realizability of the present solution. In a similar manner, the light source with polarizers may be designed in other ways, for example, two separate polarizers may be used, one for converting the light emitted by the light emitting module into a first polarized light and the other for converting the light emitted by the light emitting module into a second polarized light. For example, two independent light emitting modules may be used, in which light emitted from one light emitting module is converted into first polarized light by a polarizer, and light emitted from the other light emitting module is converted into second polarized light by a polarizer.

In some possible embodiments, the light source includes a first sub light source for emitting light of a first polarization and a second sub light source for emitting light of a second polarization. This embodiment provides another implementation of the light source, which improves the flexibility of the solution.

In some possible embodiments, the first pixel region and the second pixel region do not overlap, which ensures that the images seen by the left and right eyes do not form crosstalk.

In some possible embodiments, in a scene where the light source outputs divergent light, the optical module may employ a fresnel lens, and the fresnel lens is used to converge the first polarized light and the second polarized light, respectively, so that the practical effect is better.

In some possible embodiments, the first analyzer is a polarizing film, which ensures the realizability of the present solution.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a display device. The display device comprises a processor and an image generation apparatus as described in any of the embodiments of the first aspect. The processor is configured to send the image data to an imaging engine of the image generation device. The imaging engine modulates incident light according to image data to obtain imaging light including image information. The application scenarios of the Display device include, but are not limited to, a Head-Up Display (HUD), a projector, an enhanced Display (AR) device, a Virtual Display (VR) device, and the like.

In a third aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a vehicle. The vehicle includes a display device mounted on the vehicle. For example, the display device may be mounted on a vehicle as a HUD, on-board display screen, or a vehicle light.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an image generation method. The image generation method is applied to an image generation device, and the image generation device comprises a light source, an optical module, a first analyzer and an imaging engine. The image generation method comprises the following steps: first polarized light having a first polarization direction and second polarized light having a second polarization direction are emitted by the light source, the first polarization direction being perpendicular to the second polarization direction. The transmission directions of the first polarized light and the second polarized light are respectively adjusted through the optical module, wherein the first polarized light and the second polarized light are transmitted to the first analyzer through the optical module. The second polarized light is filtered by the first region of the first analyzer to transmit the first polarized light to the first pixel region of the imaging engine. The first polarized light is filtered by the second region of the first analyzer to transmit the second polarized light to the second pixel region of the imaging engine. The imaging engine modulates the first polarized light on the first pixel area to obtain first imaging light including first image information, and modulates the second polarized light on the second pixel area to obtain second imaging light including second image information.

In some possible embodiments, the first imaged light is transmitted to a first location and the second imaged light is transmitted to a second location, the first location being a left eye location of the viewer and the second location being a right eye location of the viewer.

In some possible embodiments, the first polarized light includes a first sub-polarized light and a second sub-polarized light, and the second polarized light includes a third sub-polarized light and a fourth sub-polarized light. The first sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain first sub-imaging light comprising first image information, and the second sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain second sub-imaging light comprising the first image information. The third sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain third sub-imaging light comprising second image information, and the fourth sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain fourth sub-imaging light comprising the second image information. The first sub-imaging light and the third sub-imaging light are transmitted to a first position, the second sub-imaging light and the fourth sub-imaging light are transmitted to a second position, the first position is a left eye position of a viewer, and the second position is a right eye position of the viewer.

In some possible embodiments, the imaging engine comprises a first polarizer, a liquid crystal, and a second analyzer, the liquid crystal being located between the first polarizer and the second analyzer. The difference between the angular deviation of the polarization direction of the first region of the first analyzer from the polarization direction of the first polarizer and 45 ° is smaller than a threshold value. The difference between the angular deviation of the polarization direction of the second region of the first analyzer from the polarization direction of the first polarizer and 45 ° is smaller than a threshold value.

In some possible embodiments, the imaging engine comprises liquid crystal, and the image generation apparatus further comprises a third analyzer, the imaging engine being located between the first analyzer and the third analyzer.

In some possible embodiments, the first region and the second region are staggered in the first direction and distributed in a transverse stripe shape. Or the first areas and the second areas are staggered in the second direction and distributed in a longitudinal stripe shape. Or the first areas and the second areas are respectively arranged in a staggered way in the first direction and the second direction and are distributed in a chessboard shape. Wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

In some possible embodiments, the first pixel region and the second pixel region do not overlap.

In the embodiment of the application, the light source emits the first polarized light and the second polarized light with the polarization directions perpendicular to each other. The first polarized light and the second polarized light are transmitted to different directions after passing through the optical module. Using a pixelated analyzer may cause light of a first polarization to be transmitted to a first pixel region of an imaging engine and light of a second polarization to be transmitted to a second pixel region of the imaging engine. The first polarized light generates first image light including first image information through the first pixel region, and the second polarized light generates second image light including second image information through the second pixel region. In one possible scenario, the first imaging light and the second imaging light may be transmitted to the left eye and the right eye of the viewer, respectively, and then the left eye and the right eye will see different images, thereby realizing the 3D display effect. In conclusion, this application can be so that different polarized light is received to different pixel regions on the imaging engine to make left and right eyes see different images respectively, compare in the scheme that realizes the 3D display effect through the time division mode among the prior art, this application has guaranteed that the image that left and right eyes see can not form crosstalk, and the 3D display effect is better.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a 3D display scene;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of an image generating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 (a) is a schematic view of a first structure of a light source in the embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 (b) is a schematic diagram of a second structure of a light source in the embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of optical transmission between an analyzer and an imaging engine in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of region division on an analyzer in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 (a) is a schematic diagram of a first structure of an LCD according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 (b) is a schematic diagram of a second structure of an LCD in the embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of an image generation apparatus applied to a 2D display scene in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of a display device according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a display device according to an embodiment of the present application installed in a vehicle;

fig. 10 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of an image generation method provided in the present application.

Detailed Description

The embodiment of the application provides an image generation device, display equipment, a vehicle and an image generation method, and the image generation device, the display equipment, the vehicle and the image generation method can be mainly applied to a naked eye 3D display scene. According to the method and the device, different polarized light is received by different pixel areas on the imaging engine through introducing the polarized light and the analyzer, so that different images can be seen by left and right eyes respectively, and crosstalk can not be formed in the images seen by the left and right eyes.

It should be noted that the terms "first," "second," "third," and "fourth," etc. in the description and claims of this application and the above-mentioned drawings are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for limiting a particular order or sequence. It is to be understood that the terms so described are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments described herein are capable of operation in other sequences than described of illustrated herein. Furthermore, the terms "include" and "have," as well as any variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of steps or elements is not necessarily limited to those steps or elements explicitly listed, but may include other steps or elements not explicitly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a 3D display scene. As shown in fig. 1, since the two eyes of a human are usually spaced by 6-7 cm, the image seen by the left eye and the image seen by the right eye have a slight difference, which is called "binocular parallax". Further, the brain interprets the parallax of the two eyes and determines the distance of the object to generate stereoscopic vision. The naked eye 3D image generation device is different from 3D display of conventional glasses, and the naked eye 3D does not need to wear any equipment but directly sends different images to different eyes. The image generating apparatus provided in the present application is described in detail below.

Fig. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of an image generating apparatus in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 2, the image generating apparatus includes: a light source 10, an optical module 20, an analyzer 30, and an imaging engine 40. The light emitted from the light source 10 is transmitted to the human eye through the optical module 20, the analyzer 30 and the imaging engine 40.

The light source 10 is for emitting first polarized light having a first polarization direction and second polarized light having a second polarization direction. For ease of illustration, fig. 2 shows the first polarization light with solid arrows and the second polarization light with dashed arrows. The polarization directions of the first polarized light and the second polarized light are vertical. It should be understood that, in practical applications, the polarization directions of the first polarized light and the second polarized light may not be completely perpendicular, and the polarization directions may be regarded as perpendicular as long as the error is within an allowable range. For example, the polarization directions of the first polarized light and the second polarized light which are different from each other by 80 ° to 100 ° can be regarded as the polarization directions are perpendicular. Several embodiments of the light source 10 are provided below.

Embodiment 1: a light source with a polarizer.

Fig. 3 (a) is a schematic view of a first structure of a light source in the embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 3 (a), the light source 10 includes a light-emitting module 101 and a polarizer 102. The polarizer 102 may convert the light emitted from the light emitting module 101 into polarized light. Taking fig. 3 (a) as an example, the light-colored region on the polarizer 102 is used to convert the input light into the first polarized light, and the dark-colored region on the polarizer 102 is used to convert the input light into the second polarized light. That is, different regions on the polarizer 102 are used to convert the input light into polarized light having different polarization directions. By using similar principles, the light source with the polarizer may have other design modes, which are not limited herein. For example, two separate polarizers may be used, one polarizer for converting light emitted by the light emitting module into light of a first polarization and the other polarizer for converting light emitted by the light emitting module into light of a second polarization. For example, two independent light-emitting modules may be used, in which light emitted from one light-emitting module is converted into first polarized light by a polarizer, and light emitted from the other light-emitting module is converted into second polarized light by a polarizer. The polarizer 102 may be specifically realized by a polarizing film, a polarizing plate, or the like, and functions to convert natural light into polarized light. The light emitting module 101 may adopt a light source array or a surface light source with independently controlled areas, so that the light emitting direction can be selected according to actual needs.

Embodiment 2: a light source with a polarization direction.

Fig. 3 (b) is a schematic diagram of a second structure of the light source in the embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 3 (b), the light source 10 includes a first sub-light source 103 and a second sub-light source 104. Wherein both the first sub light source 103 and the second sub light source 104 may directly emit polarized light having a polarization direction. Taking fig. 3 (b) as an example, the first sub-light source 103 is used for emitting light with a first polarization, and the second sub-light source 104 is used for emitting light with a second polarization. Specifically, a semiconductor light source or the like may be used to emit polarized light having a polarization direction.

The optical module 20 is used for adjusting the transmission directions of the first polarized light and the second polarized light respectively. For example, the first polarized light may be transmitted toward the left eye and the second polarized light may be transmitted toward the right eye. It should be understood that the present application is not limited to the particular manner of adjusting the direction of light transmission of the optical module 20. Taking the first polarized light and the second polarized light emitted by the light source 10 as divergent light as an example, the optical module 20 converges the first polarized light toward the left eye and converges the second polarized light toward the right eye. In one possible embodiment, the optical module 20 is a lens module, such as a fresnel lens. In another possible embodiment, the optical module 20 is an optical film module, and the fresnel lens-like effect is achieved by arranging a plurality of optical films. It should be noted that the optical paths in all the drawings of fig. 2 are included for illustrative purposes only, and in fact, the first polarized light and the second polarized light passing through the optical module 20 cover all the areas of the analyzer 30.

The imaging engine 40 has a plurality of pixel regions distributed thereon, and crystal droplets in the liquid crystal layer of the imaging engine 40 are all contained in a fine cell structure, and one or more cells may constitute one pixel region. In order to realize a 3D display effect, light from different pixel regions should be seen by left and right eyes, respectively. Thus, what is provided is a pixelated analyzer 30, i.e., the analyzer 30 is also partitioned into regions, with different regions having different polarization directions. The regions divided on the analyzer 30 correspond to the pixel regions divided on the imaging engine 40 in position, that is, light passing through a certain region on the analyzer 30 is transmitted to the corresponding pixel region on the imaging engine 40. Specifically, the analyzer 30 may be implemented by a polarizing film, a polarizing plate, or the like, and functions to filter or absorb polarized light in a predetermined polarization direction, thereby screening the polarized light that can pass through.

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of light transmission between an analyzer and an imaging engine in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 4, a light region on the analyzer 30 is denoted as a first region, a dark region on the analyzer 30 is denoted as a second region, a light region on the imaging engine 40 is denoted as a first pixel region, and a dark region on the imaging engine 40 is denoted as a second pixel region. It should be understood that in practice, the analyzer 30 and the imaging engine 40 may be attached together. For the sake of illustration, fig. 4 shows the first polarized light by solid arrows and the second polarized light by dotted arrows.

Specifically, the first region of the analyzer 30 is configured to filter the second polarized light to transmit the first polarized light to the first pixel region of the imaging engine 40. A second region of the analyzer 30 is used to filter the first polarized light to transmit the second polarized light to a second pixel region of the imaging engine 40. Thus, transmission of light of different polarizations to different pixel areas on the imaging engine 40 is achieved. Further, the imaging engine 40 modulates the first polarized light according to the loaded image data to obtain first imaged light including first image information, and modulates the second polarized light according to the loaded image data to obtain second imaged light including second image information. Since the first polarized light is transmitted toward the left eye and the second polarized light is transmitted toward the right eye, the left eye sees the first imaged light from the first pixel region and the right eye sees the second imaged light from the second pixel region. The images seen by the two eyes are different, and a 3D display effect can be achieved. It should be understood that in practical applications, the requirement for the viewer to be in a position where naked-eye 3D display is located is more strict, i.e., the left eye and the right eye respectively see different imaging lights. Of course, the application also supports the viewer to wear eyes for viewing, the requirement on the position where the viewer is located is not strict, the viewer can support multiple persons for viewing, and the viewer can receive the first imaging light and the second imaging light, and filters light through the worn eyes to ensure that the images seen by the two eyes are different, so that the 3D display effect is realized.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of region division on an analyzer in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 5, the analyzer may have several typical area division modes as follows according to the division mode of the pixel area on the imaging engine 40. For example, in the example a, the first region and the second region are staggered in the first direction and distributed in a horizontal stripe shape. For another example, in the example B, the first regions and the second regions are staggered in the second direction and distributed in a longitudinal stripe shape. For another example, in the example C, the first regions and the second regions are staggered in the first direction and the second direction, respectively, and distributed in a checkerboard shape. Wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction. It should be understood that in practical applications, the area division on the analyzer 30 and the pixel area division on the imaging engine 40 may not be perfectly corresponding in position. For example, the first region may have a certain positional deviation from the first pixel region, and the second region may have a certain positional deviation from the second pixel region as long as the positional deviation is within the error receiving range. If the deviation is too large, crosstalk between two eyes is easily caused, and the display effect is influenced.

It should be noted that the imaging engine 40 mainly functions to modulate input light to generate imaging light containing image information. The image may be displayed on the imaging engine 40, or the image may be projected to another location for display, which is not limited herein. Several embodiments are described below by way of example where the imaging engine 40 is a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD).

Embodiment 1: a liquid crystal display having a polarizer and an analyzer itself.

Fig. 6 (a) is a schematic view of a first structure of an lcd in an embodiment of the present application. For convenience of illustration, in fig. 6 (a), the first polarized light is indicated by a solid arrow, and the second polarized light is indicated by a dotted arrow. As shown in fig. 6 (a), the liquid crystal display 40 is of a conventional design. Specifically, the liquid crystal display 40 includes a polarizer 401, a liquid crystal 402, and an analyzer 403, the liquid crystal 402 being located between the polarizer 401 and the analyzer 403. It will be appreciated that the liquid crystal 402 has unique optical properties, and that by varying the voltage applied across the liquid crystal 402, which causes the liquid crystal molecules to twist to different degrees, the polarized light will propagate along the crystal direction of the liquid crystal, and so the liquid crystal will rotate the polarization direction of the polarized light. As an example, the polarizer 401 and the analyzer 403 are non-pixilated polarizing films or polarizing plates, for example, as shown in fig. 6 (a), the polarization directions of all regions on the polarizer 401 are uniform, and similarly, the polarization directions of all regions on the analyzer 403 are also uniform. As another example, different regions on polarizer 401 may have different polarization directions, and similarly, different regions on analyzer 403 may have different polarization directions.

It should be noted that in a conventional application scenario of a liquid crystal display, the polarizer 401 converts input natural light into polarized light, and the polarization direction of the polarized light may rotate after passing through the liquid crystal 402. Wherein the polarization direction of the polarized light after passing through each pixel region on the liquid crystal 402 is independently adjustable. Further, the analyzer 403 filters the polarized light passing through the liquid crystal 402. Since the polarization directions of the polarized light from different pixel regions on the liquid crystal 402 may be different, the transmission amounts of the polarized light from different pixel regions on the liquid crystal 402 after passing through the analyzer 403 may also be different, and finally, an image with bright-dark contrast is formed. Different from the traditional application scenario, the input polarizer 401 in the present application is polarized light instead of natural light, so in order to ensure the realization effect, the present application has a special design for the polarization direction of the polarizer 401. Specifically, the difference between the angular deviation of the polarization direction of the first region of the analyzer 30 from the polarization direction of the polarizer 401 and 45 ° is smaller than the threshold value, and the difference between the angular deviation of the polarization direction of the second region of the analyzer 30 from the polarization direction of the polarizer 401 and 45 ° is smaller than the threshold value. As an example, the threshold value ranges from 5 ° to 30 °, and the threshold value may specifically be 5 °, 10 °, 15 °, and so on. Ideally, the polarization directions of the first and second regions of the analyzer 30 are respectively 45 ° to the polarization direction of the polarizer 401. It will be appreciated that such a design, while resulting in 50% loss of light for both the first and second polarizations of light through polarizer 401, also ensures that both the first and second polarizations of light have sufficient light energy to transmit through polarizer 401 to liquid crystal 402. It should also be understood that the present application does not limit the polarization direction of the analyzer 403, and in practical applications, the polarization directions of the polarizer 401 and the analyzer 403 are usually designed to be perpendicular or parallel to each other, and the present embodiment takes the example that the polarization directions of the polarizer 401 and the analyzer 403 are perpendicular to each other as an example.

Embodiment 2: a liquid crystal display without its own polarizer and analyzer.

Fig. 6 (b) is a schematic diagram of a second structure of the lcd in the embodiment of the present application. For convenience of illustration, in fig. 6 (b), the first polarized light is indicated by a solid arrow, and the second polarized light is indicated by a dotted arrow. Unlike the liquid crystal display shown in fig. 6 (a), the liquid crystal display 40, as shown in fig. 6 (b), only needs to be provided with liquid crystal without the polarizer 401 and the analyzer 403. It will be appreciated that since the light input to the liquid crystal display 40 is already polarized in the present application, it is naturally not necessary to provide the polarizer 401. However, this embodiment also requires the analyzer 50 to be disposed on the other side of the liquid crystal display 40, i.e., the liquid crystal display 40 is located between the analyzer 30 and the analyzer 50. The analyzer 50 functions similarly to the analyzer 403 in the embodiment shown in fig. 6 (a) and the analyzer 50 filters the polarized light passing through the liquid crystal display 40. It should be understood that, since the liquid crystal rotates the polarization direction of the polarized light and the polarization direction of the polarized light after passing through each pixel region on the liquid crystal is independently adjustable, the polarization directions of the polarized light from different pixel regions on the liquid crystal may be different, and then the transmission amount of the polarized light from different pixel regions on the liquid crystal after passing through the analyzer 50 may also be different, and finally, an image with bright and dark contrast is formed. In practical applications, the analyzer 30, the analyzer 50 and the liquid crystal display 40 may be bonded together. It should be noted that the polarization direction of the analyzer 50 is not limited in the present application, and the polarization direction of all regions on the analyzer 50 may be uniform, or the analyzer 50 may be divided into regions by pixelation similar to the analyzer 30. The present embodiment is described by taking a pixilated analyzer 50 as an example, and the present application does not limit the polarization direction of each region on the analyzer 50.

As an example, the polarization directions of two regions corresponding to the same pixel region on the analyzer 30 and the analyzer 50 are perpendicular to each other or parallel to each other. As shown in fig. 6 (b), the dark region on the analyzer 50 is denoted as a third region, and the light region on the analyzer 50 is denoted as a fourth region. A third region on the analyzer 50 corresponds to the position of the first region on the analyzer 30, and a fourth region on the analyzer 50 corresponds to the position of the second region on the analyzer 30. That is, the first polarized light from the first region is transmitted to the third region after passing through the first pixel region, and the second polarized light from the second region is transmitted to the fourth region after passing through the second pixel region. In one possible embodiment, the polarization direction of the third region is perpendicular to the polarization direction of the first region, and the polarization direction of the fourth region is perpendicular to the polarization direction of the second region. In another possible embodiment, the polarization direction of the third region is parallel to the polarization direction of the first region, and the polarization direction of the fourth region is parallel to the polarization direction of the second region.

As can be seen from comparing the two embodiments of the liquid crystal display, the conventional liquid crystal display in embodiment 1 can be adopted in the present scheme, so that the present scheme has better compatibility, but 50% of light loss occurs. In addition, the scheme can adopt the self-defined liquid crystal display in the embodiment 2, so that 50% of light loss can be effectively avoided, and the self-defined liquid crystal display is simpler in structure.

As can be seen from the above description of the image generating apparatus in the present application, the light source emits the first polarized light and the second polarized light whose polarization directions are perpendicular to each other. The first polarized light and the second polarized light are transmitted to different directions after passing through the optical module. Using a pixelated analyzer may cause light of a first polarization to be transmitted to a first pixel region of an imaging engine and light of a second polarization to be transmitted to a second pixel region of the imaging engine. The first polarized light generates first image light including first image information through the first pixel region, and the second polarized light generates second image light including second image information through the second pixel region. In one possible scenario, the first imaging light and the second imaging light may be transmitted to the left eye and the right eye of the viewer, respectively, and then the left eye and the right eye will see different images, thereby realizing a 3D display effect. In conclusion, this application can make different pixel regions receive different polarized light on the imaging engine to make left and right eyes see different images respectively, compare in prior art through the scheme that time division mode realized the 3D display effect, this application has guaranteed that the image that left and right eyes seen can not form and has crosstalked, and the 3D display effect is better.

It should be noted that the above embodiments mainly describe scenes in which the image generation apparatus is used to realize a 3D display effect. In practical applications, the image generation apparatus may also be compatible with 2D display scenes. It is to be understood that, in order to realize 2D display, the left and right eyes should see the same image, and thus should be able to see the imaging light from all the pixel areas on the imaging engine. The following description is made in conjunction with a specific embodiment.

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating an application of the image generating apparatus to a 2D display scene in an embodiment of the present application. Unlike the scenario described above in fig. 2, both the first polarized light and the second polarized light can be seen by both eyes as shown in fig. 7. For convenience of illustration, the first polarized light is indicated by solid arrows and the second polarized light is indicated by dashed arrows in fig. 7. Specifically, a portion of the first polarized light is transmitted toward the left eye through the optical module 20, and another portion of the first polarized light is transmitted toward the right eye through the optical module 20. Similarly, a part of the second polarized light is transmitted toward the right eye through the optical module 20, and another part of the second polarized light is transmitted toward the left eye through the optical module 20. In this way, as much as the first imaged light from the first pixel region can be transmitted to the left and right eyes, and the second imaged light from the second pixel region can also be transmitted to the left and right eyes, the left and right eyes can see the same image, thereby realizing a 2D display effect without pixel loss.

In one possible embodiment, the light source is in the form of an array of light sources. In a 3D display scene, light source 1 and light source 2 in the array of light sources are enabled. The first polarized light emitted by the light source 1 is transmitted towards the left eye through the optical module 20, and the second polarized light emitted by the light source 2 is transmitted towards the right eye through the optical module 20. In a 2D display scenario, on the basis of enabling light source 1 and light source 2, light source 3 and light source 4 will also be enabled. The first polarized light emitted by the light source 3 is transmitted towards the right eye through the optical module 20, and the second polarized light emitted by the light source 4 is transmitted towards the left eye through the optical module 20.

In conclusion, the image generation device provided by the application can be compatible with a 3D display scene and a 2D display scene, and is applicable to wider scenes. In some existing 3D display schemes, such as the lenticular scheme, half of the pixels are lost if switched to a 2D display. And if the image generation device provided by the application is adopted, all pixels can be seen by left and right eyes under a 2D display scene, pixel loss is avoided, and the display effect is better.

The embodiment of the application further provides a display device. Fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of a display device in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 8, the display device includes: a processor 801 and an image generation apparatus 802. The image generation device 802 may be the image generation device described in any of the above embodiments. The processor 801 is configured to send image data to an imaging engine of the image generation apparatus 802. The imaging engine of the image generation apparatus 802 modulates incident light according to image data to obtain imaging light including image information.

It should be noted that the application scenarios of the Display device include, but are not limited to, a Head-Up Display (HUD), a projector, an Augmented Reality (AR) device, a Virtual Reality (VR) device, and the like. As an example, the display device in the present application is integrated in a HUD, and the HUD can project navigation information, meter information, and the like in the front view range of the driver, so that the driver is prevented from looking at the information with his head down, thereby affecting driving safety. The image projected by the HUD forms a virtual image outside the vehicle after being reflected off the windshield. As another example, the display device in the present application is integrated into a projector that can project an image onto a wall surface or a projection screen. As yet another example, the display device in the present application is integrated with an AR device, which may include, but is not limited to, AR glasses or an AR helmet, or a VR device, which may include, but is not limited to, VR glasses or a VR helmet, and which a user may wear to play a game, watch a video, participate in a virtual meeting, or video shopping, etc. As another example, the display device in the present application is integrated into a vehicle-mounted display screen, and the vehicle-mounted display screen may be mounted on a seat back of a vehicle or a passenger seat, and the position where the vehicle-mounted display screen is mounted is not limited in the present application. As another example, the display device in the present application is integrated in a vehicle lamp, and in addition to implementing an illumination function, the vehicle lamp may also implement an Adaptive Driving Beam (ADB), may project more complex graphics such as text and traffic signs, and may also project pictures such as videos, thereby adding a function of Driving assistance or entertainment.

The embodiment of the application also provides a vehicle, and the vehicle is provided with the display device. For example, the display device may be mounted on a vehicle as a HUD, on-board display screen, or a vehicle light. A specific embodiment in which the display device is mounted in a vehicle will be described below by taking the HUD as an example.

Fig. 9 is a schematic view of the display device mounted in a vehicle according to the embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 9, a windshield of a vehicle may reflect light output by a display device to human eyes. Specifically, the display device is configured to output two paths of imaging light, where the two paths of imaging light carry different image information. Wherein the driver or passenger is located on one side of the windscreen. The windshield is used for reflecting the two imaging lights to form a virtual image on the other side of the windshield. The reflected two paths of imaging light are respectively transmitted to the eyes of a driver or a passenger. For example, the first path of imaging light is transmitted to the left eye. And the second path of imaging light is transmitted to the right eye.

The vehicle may be, for example, a car, a truck, a motorcycle, a bus, a boat, an airplane, a helicopter, a lawn mower, an amusement car, a playground vehicle, construction equipment, a trolley, a golf cart, a train, a trolley, etc., and the embodiments of the present application are not particularly limited.

The embodiment of the application further provides an image generation method. The image generating method is applied to the image generating apparatus described in the above embodiment. Fig. 10 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of an image generation method provided in the present application. In this embodiment, the image generation method includes the following steps.

1001. The first polarized light and the second polarized light are emitted by a light source.

It is to be understood that the polarization directions of the first polarized light and the second polarized light are perpendicular to each other. For the specific implementation of the light source, reference may be made to the description related to the embodiment shown in fig. 2, and details are not repeated here.

1002. The transmission directions of the first polarized light and the second polarized light are respectively adjusted through the optical module.

The optical module may transmit the first polarized light and the second polarized light in different directions, for example, the first polarized light is transmitted toward the left eye, and the second polarized light is transmitted toward the right eye. For a specific implementation of the optical module, reference may be made to the description related to the embodiment shown in fig. 2, and details are not repeated here.

1003. And filtering the first polarized light and the second polarized light respectively through an analyzer.

The application provides a pixilated analyzer, namely, the analyzer performs region division according to the division mode of pixel regions on an imaging engine. Specifically, the first region of the analyzer is configured to filter the second polarized light to transmit the first polarized light to the first pixel region of the imaging engine. The second region of the analyzer is configured to filter the first polarized light to transmit the second polarized light to the second pixel region of the imaging engine. For a specific implementation of the analyzer, reference may be made to the description related to the embodiment shown in fig. 2, and details are not described here.

1004. The first and second polarized lights are modulated by the imaging engine, respectively.

The imaging engine modulates the first polarized light according to the loaded image data to obtain first imaging light including first image information, and modulates the second polarized light according to the loaded image data to obtain second imaging light including second image information. For the specific implementation of the imaging engine, reference may be made to the above description of the embodiment shown in fig. 2, and details are not repeated here.

It should be noted that the image generation method provided by the present application may be applied to the 3D display scene shown in fig. 2, or may be applied to the 2D display scene shown in fig. 7. For a specific implementation, reference may be made to the description related to the embodiments shown in fig. 2 and fig. 7, which is not described herein again.

The above description is only for the specific embodiments of the present application, but the scope of the present application is not limited thereto, and any person skilled in the art can easily think of the changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present application, and shall be covered by the scope of the present application.

Claims (20)

1. An image generation apparatus, comprising: the system comprises a light source, an optical module, a first analyzer and an imaging engine;

the light source is used for emitting first polarized light and second polarized light, and the polarization direction of the first polarized light is vertical to that of the second polarized light;

the optical module is used for adjusting the transmission directions of the first polarized light and the second polarized light respectively, wherein the first polarized light and the second polarized light are transmitted to the first analyzer through the optical module;

the first region of the first analyzer is configured to filter the second polarized light such that the first polarized light is transmitted through the first region to a first pixel region of the imaging engine;

the second region of the first analyzer is used for filtering the first polarized light, so that the second polarized light is transmitted to the second pixel region of the imaging engine through the second region;

the imaging engine is configured to modulate the first polarized light on the first pixel region according to the loaded image data to obtain first imaging light including first image information, and modulate the second polarized light on the second pixel region according to the image data to obtain second imaging light including second image information.

2. The image generation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first imaged light is transmitted to a first position and the second imaged light is transmitted to a second position, the first position being a left eye position of the viewer and the second position being a right eye position of the viewer.

3. The image generation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first polarized light includes first sub-polarized light and second sub-polarized light, and the second polarized light includes third sub-polarized light and fourth sub-polarized light;

the first sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain first sub-imaging light comprising the first image information, and the second sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain second sub-imaging light comprising the first image information; the third sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain third sub-imaging light comprising the second image information, and the fourth sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain fourth sub-imaging light comprising the second image information;

the first sub-imaging light and the third sub-imaging light are transmitted to a first position, the second sub-imaging light and the fourth sub-imaging light are transmitted to a second position, the first position is a left eye position of a viewer, and the second position is a right eye position of the viewer.

4. An image generation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the imaging engine comprises a first polarizer, a liquid crystal and a second analyzer, the liquid crystal being located between the first polarizer and the second analyzer, a difference between an angular deviation of a polarization direction of a first region of the first analyzer from a polarization direction of the first polarizer and 45 ° being smaller than a threshold value, and a difference between an angular deviation of a polarization direction of a second region of the first analyzer from a polarization direction of the first polarizer and 45 ° being smaller than the threshold value.

5. An image generation device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the imaging engine comprises liquid crystal, the image generation device further comprising a third analyzer, the imaging engine being located between the first analyzer and the third analyzer.

6. The image generation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the first region and the second region are staggered in a first direction;

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

the first and second regions are staggered in the first and second directions, respectively, wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

7. The image generation apparatus of any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the light source comprises a light emitting module and a second polarizer for converting light emitted by the light emitting module into first and second polarized light.

8. The image generation apparatus of any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the light source comprises a first sub-light source for emitting the first polarized light and a second sub-light source for emitting the second polarized light.

9. The image generation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the first pixel region and the second pixel region do not overlap.

10. An image generation apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 9, wherein the optical module is a fresnel lens.

11. The image generation apparatus of any of claims 1 to 10, wherein the first analyzer is a polarizing film.

12. A display device, comprising: the image generation device of any one of claims 1 to 11, and a processor configured to send image data to an imaging engine of the image generation device, the imaging engine configured to modulate incident light according to the image data to obtain imaging light.

13. A vehicle, comprising: the display device of claim 12, mounted on the vehicle.

14. An image generation method is applied to an image generation device, and the image generation device comprises a light source, an optical module, a first analyzer and an imaging engine; the method comprises the following steps:

emitting first polarized light and second polarized light by the light source, wherein the polarization direction of the first polarized light is vertical to the polarization direction of the second polarized light;

the transmission directions of the first polarized light and the second polarized light are respectively adjusted through the optical module, wherein the first polarized light and the second polarized light are transmitted to the first analyzer through the optical module;

filtering the second polarized light through a first region of the first analyzer such that the first polarized light is transmitted through the first region to a first pixel region of the imaging engine;

filtering the first polarized light through a second region of the first analyzer such that the second polarized light is transmitted through the second region to a second pixel region of the imaging engine;

and modulating the first polarized light on the first pixel region by the imaging engine according to the loaded image data to obtain first imaged light comprising first image information, and modulating the second polarized light on the second pixel region according to the image data to obtain second imaged light comprising second image information.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the first imaged light is transmitted to a first location and the second imaged light is transmitted to a second location, the first location being a left eye location of the viewer and the second location being a right eye location of the viewer.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the first polarized light comprises first and second sub-polarized light, and the second polarized light comprises third and fourth sub-polarized light;

the first sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain first sub-imaging light comprising the first image information, and the second sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain second sub-imaging light comprising the first image information; the third sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain third sub-imaging light comprising the second image information, and the fourth sub-polarized light is modulated by the imaging engine to obtain fourth sub-imaging light comprising the second image information;

the first sub-imaging light and the third sub-imaging light are transmitted to a first position, the second sub-imaging light and the fourth sub-imaging light are transmitted to a second position, the first position is a left eye position of a viewer, and the second position is a right eye position of the viewer.

17. The method of any one of claims 14 to 16, wherein the imaging engine comprises a first polarizer, a liquid crystal and a second analyzer, the liquid crystal being located between the first polarizer and the second analyzer, a difference between an angular deviation of a polarization direction of a first region of the first analyzer from a polarization direction of the first polarizer and 45 ° being less than a threshold, and a difference between an angular deviation of a polarization direction of a second region of the first analyzer from a polarization direction of the first polarizer and 45 ° being less than the threshold.

18. The method of any of claims 14 to 16, wherein the imaging engine comprises liquid crystals, and wherein the image generation device further comprises a third analyzer, the imaging engine being located between the first analyzer and the third analyzer.

19. The method of any one of claims 14 to 18, wherein the first and second regions are staggered in a first direction;

alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

the first and second regions are staggered in the first and second directions, respectively, wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

20. The method of any of claims 14 to 19, wherein the first pixel region and the second pixel region do not overlap.

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