JP2006064994A - Eyepiece display device and camera having the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an eyepiece display device in which a finder is made slim and a slim camera using the same. <P>SOLUTION: The eyepiece display device 1 has a polarization separation means 5 mounted in an optical axis of an observation optical system, an image display means 7 and an illumination means 9 mounted opposite to each other in a direction nearly vertically intersecting the optical axis and interposing the polarization separation means, an optical member 13 mounted in the optical axis and having optical power, and a quarter wavelength plate 15 mounted between the polarization separation means and the optical member, wherein a luminous flux from the illumination means polarized in a specified direction passes through the polarization separation means and is made incident on the image display means in which the polarization direction of the luminous flux is modulated and the luminous flux is reflected thereon, emitted therefrom and is made incident on the polarization separation means, is reflected on the polarization separation means, passes through the quarter wavelength plate and reflected on the optical member in the direction of the polarization separation means, passes through the quarter wavelength plate and the polarization separation means and is emitted along the optical axis. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a finder display device for a digital camera.

Conventionally, it has been known to use an electronic viewfinder in order to reduce the size of the finder configuration of a digital camera (for example, see Patent Document 1).
JP-A 61-234668

  In the conventional electronic viewfinder, an image is displayed on a liquid crystal display panel illuminated from behind, and this is magnified and observed with an eyepiece. For this reason, there is a problem that the smaller the liquid crystal display panel is, the coarser the image to be displayed becomes, and the longer the distance in the optical axis direction of the observation optical system becomes, making it difficult to make the viewfinder portion thinner.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an eyepiece type display device capable of making a finder device thinner and higher definition and a thin camera using the eyepiece display device.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a polarization separating means arranged in the optical axis of an observation optical system, and a face facing in a direction substantially orthogonal to the optical axis across the polarization separating means. A light beam polarized in a specific direction from the illuminating means is transmitted through the polarization separating means and incident on the image display means, and the image display means Provided is an eyepiece type display device characterized in that the polarization direction is modulated, reflected and emitted, incident on the polarization separation means, reflected by the polarization separation means and emitted along the optical axis.

  In the eyepiece type display device of the present invention, it is preferable that the polarized light separating means has an optical power.

  The present invention also provides polarization separating means disposed in the optical axis of the observation optical system, and video display means disposed so as to face the direction substantially perpendicular to the optical axis with the polarization separating means interposed therebetween. An illumination unit; an optical member having an optical power disposed in the optical axis; and a quarter-wave plate disposed between the polarization separation unit and the optical member. The light beam polarized in the direction passes through the polarization separation means and enters the image display means. The polarization direction of the light beam is modulated and reflected and emitted by the image display means, and enters the polarization separation means. Reflected by the polarization separation means, transmitted through the ¼ wavelength plate, reflected by the optical member toward the polarization separation means, transmitted through the ¼ wavelength plate and the polarization separation means, and along the optical axis. An eyepiece type display device characterized by Subjected to.

  In addition, the eyepiece type display device of the present invention preferably has a configuration in which a real image of the outside world is incident along the optical axis, and an image from the image display means and the real image can be superimposed and observed.

  In the eyepiece type display device of the present invention, it is preferable that the polarization separation unit is provided in an optical waveguide disposed between the illumination unit and the video display unit.

  In the eyepiece-type display device of the present invention, the optical waveguide is formed by joining two prisms, the polarization separation means is formed on one of the prism surfaces at the joint position, and the polarization separation means is There are a first surface and a second surface of the optical waveguide facing each other, the video display means is disposed in the vicinity of the first surface, and the illumination means is disposed in the vicinity of the second surface. The configuration is preferable.

  In the eyepiece type display device of the present invention, it is preferable that the polarization separation means has a wavelength selection characteristic that transmits or reflects a light beam having a specific wavelength.

  In the eyepiece type display device of the present invention, it is preferable that the optical member has a wavelength selection characteristic that reflects a light beam having a specific wavelength.

  The present invention also provides a camera comprising the eyepiece display device.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an eyepiece-type display device capable of making a finder device thinner and higher definition, and a thin camera using the eyepiece display device.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an eyepiece type display device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows the spectral reflection characteristics of the polarization separating means and the hologram used in the eyepiece type display device of FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of an eyepiece type display device according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of an eyepiece type display device according to a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of an eyepiece type display device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of an eyepiece type display device according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an example of a camera in which the eyepiece display device according to the embodiment of the present invention is used in a finder device.

(First embodiment)
The eyepiece display device according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  In FIG. 1, a pair of planes 3a and 3b that are substantially perpendicular to the optical axis I of the observation optical system, and an optical axis I of the observation optical system (hereinafter referred to as the optical axis I) that is substantially perpendicular to the planes 3a and 3b. An optical waveguide 3 having opposing flat surfaces 3c and 3d is formed by joining two prisms 3e and 3f. A polarization separation mirror 5 (hereinafter referred to as PBS) having a wavelength selection characteristic shown in FIG. 2 is formed at a joint portion between the two prisms 3e and 3f at an angle of about 45 degrees with respect to the optical axis I. In the vicinity of the plane 3c, a reflective liquid crystal display device 7 (hereinafter referred to as LCOS: Liquid Crystal On Silicon) that displays images and various information is disposed, and the plane 3d that faces the optical axis I on the plane 3c. An illumination system 9 for illuminating the LCOS 7 is disposed in the vicinity, and a polarizing plate 11 for polarizing a light beam from the illumination system 9 in a predetermined direction is provided between the plane 3d and the illumination system 9. A hologram 13 having the same effect as the concave mirror and having the wavelength selection characteristic shown in FIG. 2 is arranged in the optical axis I in the vicinity of the plane 3 b, and the quarter-wave plate 15 is disposed between the plane 3 b and the hologram 13. Is provided. In this way, the eyepiece type display device 1 is configured. The polarizing plate 11 may be configured to be joined to the flat surface 3d. Further, the quarter wavelength plate 15 may be bonded to the flat surface 3b.

  Next, the operation of the eyepiece display device 1 according to the first embodiment will be described. The light beam collimated and emitted by the illumination system 9 is polarized in a predetermined direction by the polarizing plate 11 (for example, P-polarized light) and enters the plane 3d of the optical waveguide 3 substantially perpendicularly. The light beam incident from the plane 3d passes through the PBS 5, exits from the plane 3c, is applied to the LCOS 7, and is reflected and emitted after the polarization direction is modulated (S-polarized light) in the image displayed on the LCOS 7, and again from the plane 3c. 3 is incident. The light beam modulated by the LCOS 7 is reflected by the PBS 5 toward the plane 3b side of the optical waveguide 3, travels along the optical axis I, exits from the plane 3b, passes through the quarter wavelength plate 15, and is converted into circularly polarized light. Incident on the hologram 13. The light beam incident on the hologram 13 is reflected by the hologram 13, travels along the optical axis I, passes through the quarter-wave plate 15 again, and is converted from circularly polarized light to linearly polarized light. The light beam that has passed through the quarter-wave plate 15 is rotated 90 degrees with respect to the incident light beam, and S-polarized light is converted to P-polarized light. The image is observed. In FIG. 1, the optical axis I is shown shifted from the centers of the PBS 5 and the hologram 13 for the sake of explanation.

  The light source of the illumination system 9 is composed of red (Red), green (Blue), and blue (hereinafter referred to as RGB) LEDs, and the luminous flux collimated by the optical system (not shown) of the illumination system 9 is LCOS 7. It is emitted toward In the illumination system 9, RGB colors are lit in a time-sharing manner, and in synchronization with this, the LCOS 7 displays an image corresponding to the color of the lit LED, and the three colors are synthesized by the observation eye 17 so that a full-color image can be observed. .

  The wavelength of each color LED corresponds to the wavelength characteristics of the PBS 5 and the hologram 13. FIG. 2 shows an example of the spectral characteristics of the PBS 5 and the hologram 13. The horizontal axis indicates the wavelength, and the vertical axis indicates the reflectance. The PBS 5 and the hologram 13 have discrete and narrow wavelength characteristics that reflect light of each wavelength of red (wavelength λR), green (wavelength λG), and blue (wavelength λB). Only has an optical effect. In this manner, since the PBS 5 and the hologram 13 transmit light having wavelengths other than the selected wavelengths λB, λG, and λR, the light flux incident along the optical axis I from the outside 19 passes through the hologram 13 and the PBS 5. Thus, it reaches the observation eye 17 and functions as a so-called see-through eyepiece display device. As a result, the real image of the outside world 19 and the image displayed on the LCOS 7 can be observed with the observation eye 17 superimposed.

  According to the eyepiece type display device 1 of the first embodiment, since the LCOS 7 formed by microfabrication is used as the video display device, the pixel size can be made finer than that of the conventional transmissive display device. And high-resolution video can be displayed. Further, the PBS 5 and the hologram 13 have wavelength selection characteristics, and a bright image can be displayed by using an LED illumination light source corresponding to the selected wavelength, and a real image from the outside can be superposed on the display image and observed. A see-through eyepiece display device can be realized. Further, since the image displayed on the LCOS 7 is formed on the observation eye 17 by the optical power of the hologram 13, the thickness of the eyepiece type display element in the direction of the optical axis I is set to a display device using a conventional eyepiece. The thickness can be reduced as compared with that. Therefore, by using the eyepiece type display device 1 according to the first embodiment for a finder device of a camera to be described later, the finder device can be thinned, so that the entire camera can be thinned. The eyepiece type display device 1 according to the first embodiment can be applied not only to a camera but also to a see-through type wearable display.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, the eyepiece type display device according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The second embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the prism surfaces in the vicinity of the LCOS 7 and the illumination system 9 are inclined with respect to the optical axis I and formed in parallel to each other. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, and the same reference numerals are given and the description thereof is omitted.

  3, it has a pair of planes 23a, 23b substantially perpendicular to the optical axis I of the observation optical system, and planes 23c, 23d that are inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the planes 23a, 23b and sandwich the optical axis I of the observation optical system. The optical waveguide 23 is constituted by joining two prisms 23e and 23f. A polarization separation mirror 5 (hereinafter referred to as PBS) having a wavelength selection characteristic shown in FIG. 2 is formed at a joint portion between the two prisms 23e and 23f at an angle of about 45 degrees with respect to the optical axis I. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted. In this way, the eyepiece type display device 100 is configured.

  In the second embodiment, the plane 23c and the plane 23d are formed at a predetermined angle with respect to the optical axis I and parallel to each other, the LCOS 7 is near the plane 23c, and the polarizing plate 11 is near the plane 23d. An illumination system 9 is arranged.

  The collimated illumination light beam from the illumination system 9 is incident at an angle that is substantially perpendicular to the plane 23d and totally reflected with respect to the plane 23a and the plane 23b, is totally reflected by the plane 23a and the plane 23b, and exits from the plane 23c. Illuminate. The reflected light beam from the LCOS 7 is incident at an angle that is substantially perpendicular to the plane 23c and totally reflected on the plane 23b. As a result, the thickness of the optical waveguide 23 in the direction of the optical axis I is a thickness obtained by multiplying the illumination light beam or the reflected light beam by the cosine of the angle between the flat surfaces 23a and 23b. The thickness can be further reduced as compared with the waveguide 3. In FIG. 3, the number of times the illumination light beam is folded is set to one, but the number of times of folding may be a plurality of times, and may be determined appropriately by design. By increasing the number of turns, the thickness of the optical waveguide 23 in the direction of the optical axis I can be further reduced. Other configurations, operations, and effects are the same as those in the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

(Third embodiment)
Next, an ocular display device according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The third embodiment is a configuration in the case where there is no need for see-through, and the same configuration as that in the first embodiment is denoted by the same reference numerals and described.

  In FIG. 4, a light having a pair of planes 3a and 3b substantially perpendicular to the optical axis I of the observation optical system and planes 3c and 3d that are substantially perpendicular to the planes 3a and 3b and face each other with the optical axis I of the observation optical system interposed therebetween. The waveguide 3 is configured by joining two prisms 3e and 3f. A polarization separation mirror 5 (hereinafter referred to as PBS) is formed at a joint portion between the two prisms 3e and 3f at an angle of about 45 degrees with respect to the optical axis I. An LCOS 7 is disposed in the vicinity of the plane 3c, an illumination system 9 for illuminating the LCOS 7 in the vicinity of the plane 3d facing the optical axis I is disposed on the plane 3c, and an illumination system is provided between the plane 3d and the illumination system 9. A polarizing plate 11 is provided for polarizing the light beam from 9 in a predetermined direction. A concave mirror 113 is disposed in the optical axis I in the vicinity of the plane 3b, and a quarter-wave plate 15 is provided between the plane 3b and the concave mirror 113. In this way, the eyepiece display device 200 is configured. The polarizing plate 11 may be configured to be joined to the flat surface 3d. Further, the quarter wavelength plate 15 may be bonded to the flat surface 3b.

  Next, the operation of the eyepiece display device 200 according to the third embodiment will be described. The light beam collimated and emitted by the illumination system 9 is polarized in a predetermined direction by the polarizing plate 11 (for example, P-polarized light) and enters the plane 3d of the optical waveguide 3 substantially perpendicularly. The light beam incident from the plane 3d passes through the PBS 5, exits from the plane 3c, is applied to the LCOS 7, and is reflected and emitted after the polarization direction is modulated (S-polarized light) in the image displayed on the LCOS 7, and again from the plane 3c. 3 is incident. The light beam modulated by the LCOS 7 is reflected by the PBS 5 toward the plane 3b side of the optical waveguide 3, travels along the optical axis I, exits from the plane 3b, passes through the quarter wavelength plate 15, and is converted into circularly polarized light. The light enters the concave mirror 113. The light beam incident on the concave mirror 113 is reflected by the concave mirror 113, travels along the optical axis I, passes through the quarter wavelength plate 15 again, and is converted from circularly polarized light to linearly polarized light. The light beam that has passed through the quarter-wave plate 15 is rotated 90 degrees with respect to the incident light beam, and S-polarized light is converted to P-polarized light. The image is observed. In FIG. 1, the optical axis I is described by being shifted from the centers of the PBS 5 and the concave mirror 113 for explanation.

  The light source of the illumination system 9 is composed of red (Red), green (Blue), and blue (hereinafter referred to as RGB) LEDs, and a collimated light beam emitted from the illumination system 9 is emitted toward the LCOS 7. . In the illumination system 9, each color of RGB is lit in a time-sharing manner, and in synchronization with this, the LCOS 7 displays an image corresponding to the color of the lit LED, and the three colors are synthesized by the observation eye 17 so that a full color image can be observed. .

  According to the eyepiece type display device 200 of the third embodiment, since the LCOS 7 formed by microfabrication is used as the video display device, the pixel size can be made finer than that of the conventional transmission type display device. And high-resolution video can be displayed. Further, since the image displayed on the LCOS 7 is formed on the observation eye 17 by the concave mirror 113, the thickness of the eyepiece type display device 200 in the direction of the optical axis I is compared with a display device using a conventional eyepiece. Thinning can be achieved. Accordingly, by using the eyepiece type display device 200 according to the third embodiment in a camera finder device to be described later, the finder device can be thinned, so that the entire camera can be thinned.

(Fourth embodiment)
Next, an ocular display device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the fourth embodiment, the optical waveguide 3 of the third embodiment is changed to a configuration similar to that of the optical waveguide 23 of the second embodiment, and the second embodiment and the third embodiment are different from those of the second embodiment. Similar components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

  In FIG. 5, a pair of planes 23a and 23b that are substantially perpendicular to the optical axis I of the observation optical system and planes 23c and 23d that are inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to the planes 23a and 23b and sandwich the optical axis I of the observation optical system. The optical waveguide 23 is constituted by joining two prisms 23e and 23f. A polarization separation mirror 5 (hereinafter referred to as PBS) is formed at a joint portion between the two prisms 23e and 23f at an angle of about 45 degrees with respect to the optical axis I. The LCOS 7 is disposed in the vicinity of the plane 23c, and the polarizing plate 11 illumination system 9 is disposed in the vicinity of the plane 23d. Other configurations are the same as those of the third embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted. In this way, the eyepiece type display device 300 is configured. The operation and effect are the same as those in the second and third embodiments, and a description thereof will be omitted.

(Fifth embodiment)
Next, an ocular display device according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The fifth embodiment is the same as the first embodiment except that the optical power is given to the polarization separating means and the quarter-wave plate and the hologram arranged in the optical axis are removed. The same components as those in the embodiment will be described with the same reference numerals.

  In FIG. 6, a light having a pair of planes 33a and 33b substantially perpendicular to the optical axis I of the observation optical system, and planes 33c and 33d that are substantially perpendicular to the planes 33a and 33b and face the optical axis I of the observation optical system. The waveguide 3 is configured by joining two prisms 33e and 33f. A polarization separation mirror 55 having a wavelength selection characteristic shown in FIG. 2 tilted to the optical axis I at the joint between the two prisms 33e and 33f and having the same optical power as the concave mirror (hereinafter referred to as powered PBS) Is formed. The LCOS 7 is disposed in the vicinity of the plane 3c, the illumination system 9 for illuminating the LCOS 7 in the vicinity of the plane 33d facing the optical axis I is disposed on the plane 33c, and the illumination system is disposed between the plane 33d and the illumination system 9. A polarizing plate 11 is provided for polarizing the light beam from 9 in a predetermined direction. In this way, the eyepiece type display device 400 is configured. The polarizing plate 11 may be configured to be joined to the flat surface 33d.

  Next, the operation of the eyepiece display device 400 according to the fifth embodiment will be described. The light beam collimated and emitted by the illumination system 9 is polarized in a predetermined direction by the polarizing plate 11 (for example, P-polarized light), and enters the plane 33 d of the optical waveguide 33 substantially perpendicularly. The light beam incident from the plane 33d passes through the powered PBS 55, exits from the plane 33c, is irradiated on the LCOS 7, and is reflected and emitted after the polarization direction is modulated (S-polarized light) in the image displayed on the LCOS 7, and again from the plane 33c. The light enters the optical waveguide 33. The light beam modulated by the LCOS 7 is reflected in the direction of the observation eye 17 by the powered PBS 55 and is imaged on the observation eye 17 by the optical power of the powered PBS 55 to observe an image.

  The light source of the illumination system 9 is composed of red (Red), green (Blue), and blue (hereinafter referred to as RGB) LEDs, and a collimated light beam emitted from the illumination system 9 is emitted toward the LCOS 7. . In the illumination system 9, each color of RGB is lit in a time-sharing manner, and in synchronization with this, the LCOS 7 displays an image corresponding to the color of the lit LED, and the three colors are synthesized by the observation eye 17 so that a full color image can be observed. .

  The wavelength of each color LED corresponds to the PBS 55 wavelength characteristic with power. FIG. 2 shows an example of the PBS55 spectral characteristics with power. The horizontal axis indicates the wavelength, and the vertical axis indicates the reflectance. The powered PBS 55 has discrete and narrow band wavelength characteristics that reflect light of each wavelength of red (wavelength λR), green (wavelength λG), and blue (wavelength λB). Only has an optical effect. In this way, the powered PBS 55 transmits light of wavelengths other than the selected wavelengths λB, λG, and λR, so that the light beam incident from the outside 19 along the optical axis I passes through the powered PBS 55 and is used for the observation eye. 17 and functions as a so-called see-through eyepiece display device. As a result, the real image of the outside world 19 and the image displayed on the LCOS 7 can be observed with the observation eye 17 superimposed.

  According to the eyepiece type display device 400 of the fifth embodiment, since the image displayed on the LCOS 7 is formed on the observation eye 17 by the optical power of the PBS 55 with power, the optical axis I of the eyepiece type display element is used. The thickness in the direction can be reduced as compared with a display device using a conventional eyepiece. Other effects are the same as those of the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  It should be noted that the same effect can be obtained even if the power-provided PBS 55 is disposed by replacing the optical waveguide 33 of the fifth embodiment with an optical waveguide having the same shape as that of the second embodiment.

  In all the above embodiments, the same effect can be obtained by using a DMD element instead of the video display element LCOS.

(Embodiment to camera)
An embodiment in which the eyepiece display device described in each of the above-described embodiments is used in a finder device of a digital camera will be described with reference to FIG.

  In FIG. 7, the digital camera 50 includes a camera body 51, an LCD display device 52 that is provided on the back of the camera body 51 and displays captured images, and a setting key 53 that is used when setting various conditions of the digital camera 50. The zoom button 54 used when changing the focal length of the photographic lens and the finder device 60 for observing the subject are provided. On the front side of the digital camera 50, a photographic lens, a flash (not shown), and the like are arranged.

  The viewfinder device 60 is provided with any of the eyepiece type display devices according to the first to fifth embodiments.

  An object image picked up by an image pickup device (for example, a CCD device) (not shown) in the camera body 51 via a shooting lens (not shown) is processed by an image processing means (not shown) and disposed in the viewfinder device 60. Is displayed on the video display device LCOS of the eyepiece type display device 61 according to the form and is observed by the photographer. Various information about the camera is also displayed on the video display device and confirmed by the photographer.

  When the see-through eyepiece display device according to the first, second, and fifth embodiments of the present application is arranged in the viewfinder device 60, various information of the camera is recognized while visually confirming the subject image in the outside world. Is possible. Further, when a subject is photographed, the photographed image can be confirmed by displaying the photographed image on the video display device LCOS. At this time, if the real image of the outside world is bright and obstructive, a light shielding member can be inserted on the subject side of the finder device 60 to block the light from the outside world so that the display image can be viewed easily. In addition, the eyepiece display devices according to the third and fourth embodiments of the present application are non-see-through types and cannot observe the subject image in the outside world, but the same can be obtained by observing the subject image captured by the image sensor. There is an effect.

  When the focal length of the photographic lens is changed, the subject image incident on the image sensor is displayed on the video display device LCOS, so that the subject image corresponding to the focal length can be observed. In the conventional optical viewfinder, since the optical member is moved in accordance with the focal length, a large viewfinder space in consideration of the movement space of the optical member is necessary. When the zoom ratio of the photographing lens is increased, the viewfinder device 60 portion is a camera. In some cases, the thickness of the main body 51 is larger than the thickness of the main body 51. However, in the eyepiece type display device according to the present embodiment, there is no change in the thickness direction, and the camera 50 can be easily reduced in thickness. In addition, a higher-definition image can be displayed as compared with an electronic viewfinder using a liquid crystal element.

  Whether the see-through type or the non-see-through type is used may be determined by design as appropriate.

  Further, the above-described embodiment is merely an example, and is not limited to the above-described configuration or shape, and can be appropriately modified and changed within the scope of the present invention.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an eyepiece type display device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows the spectral reflection characteristics of the polarization separating means and hologram used in the eyepiece type display device of FIG. It is a schematic block diagram of the eyepiece type display apparatus concerning 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram of the eyepiece type display apparatus concerning 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram of the eyepiece type display apparatus concerning 4th Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram of the eyepiece type display apparatus concerning 5th Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram which shows an example of the camera which used the eyepiece type display apparatus concerning embodiment of this invention for the finder apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

1, 100, 200, 300, 400 Eyepiece type display device 3, 23, 33 Optical waveguide 5 Polarization separation mirror (PBS)
7 Video display device (LCOS)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 9 Illumination system 11 Polarizing plate 13 Hologram 15 1/4 wavelength plate 17 Observation eye 19 External image 113 Concave mirror 50 Digital camera 51 Camera body 52 LCD display device 53 Setting key 54 Zoom button 55 Powered polarization separation mirror (PBS with power)
60 Finder device 61 Eyepiece type display device

Claims (9)

Polarization separation means disposed in the optical axis of the observation optical system;
An image display means and an illumination means arranged to face each other in a direction substantially perpendicular to the optical axis with the polarization separation means interposed therebetween,
The light beam polarized in a specific direction from the illumination unit passes through the polarization separation unit and enters the image display unit. The polarization direction of the light beam is modulated and reflected and emitted by the image display unit, and the polarization separation is performed. The eyepiece type display device, wherein the eyepiece type display device is incident on the means, reflected by the polarization separation means, and emitted along the optical axis.   The eyepiece type display device according to claim 1, wherein the polarization separation means has optical power. Polarization separation means disposed in the optical axis of the observation optical system;
Video display means and illumination means arranged opposite to each other in a direction substantially perpendicular to the optical axis across the polarization separation means,
An optical member having optical power disposed in the optical axis;
A quarter wave plate disposed between the polarization separating means and the optical member;
The light beam polarized in a specific direction from the illumination unit passes through the polarization separation unit and enters the image display unit. The polarization direction of the light beam is modulated and reflected and emitted by the image display unit, and the polarization separation is performed. Is incident on the means, reflected by the polarization separation means, transmitted through the quarter wavelength plate, reflected by the optical member toward the polarization separation means, and transmitted through the quarter wavelength plate and the polarization separation means. The eyepiece display device emits light along the optical axis.   The eyepiece according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a real image of the outside world is incident along the optical axis, and an image from the image display means and the real image can be superimposed and observed. Type display device.   The eyepiece type display according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the polarization separation means is provided in an optical waveguide disposed between the illumination means and the video display means. apparatus. The optical waveguide is configured by joining two prisms,
The polarized light separating means is formed on any one of the prism surfaces at the joining position,
There are a first surface and a second surface of the optical waveguide facing each other with the polarization separation means interposed therebetween, the image display means is disposed in the vicinity of the first surface, and the illumination is in the vicinity of the second surface. 6. The eyepiece type display device according to claim 5, wherein each means is arranged.   The eyepiece type display device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the polarization separation means has a wavelength selection characteristic of transmitting or reflecting a light beam having a specific wavelength.   The eyepiece display device according to claim 3, wherein the optical member has a wavelength selection characteristic of reflecting a light beam having a specific wavelength.   A camera comprising the eyepiece display device according to claim 1.

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