JP2007171302A - Light source device, light source unit and projection image display apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a light source device capable of correctly obtaining information about the lifetime of a light source and improving users' convenience, and to provide a light source unit composing the light source device, and a projection image display apparatus having the light source device. <P>SOLUTION: The lamp unit 11 includes a lamp 111 and a storage part 112 for storing the lamp information of the lamp 111. The lamp information includes, for example, the lifetime of the lamp, the time for which the lamp is on, the number of times that the lamp is turned on, the number of times that the lamp is turned off due to its abnormal state, the threshold time, a flag indicating whether the lamp is normally turned on or not, and information about its manufacture. A lamp control part 12 incorporates a timer. Based upon on/off signals output to the lamp drive 13, the lamp control part 12 calculates the time (cumulative time) for which the lamp 111 is turned on, and also performs various processing including counting processing, such as the number of times that the lamp is turned on and the number of times that the lamp is turned off due to its abnormal state, a correction processing for the lifetime of the lamp, and a remaining time determination processing for letting a user know the time to replace the lamp. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a light source device that realizes appropriate control in accordance with the state of a light source based on information related to the light source, a light source unit that constitutes the light source device, and a projection image display device including the light source device.

  The projection-type image display device sequentially sorts light emitted from the lamp into red, green, and blue by rotating a disk-shaped color wheel on which red, green, and blue color filters are arranged. The separated light is incident on the rod integrator, and the red, green, and blue light emitted from the exit surface of the rod integrator is irradiated on a DMD (Digital Mirror Device: registered trademark) in a time-sharing manner. The projection-type image display device modulates the irradiated light based on image data having the same color as the light irradiated to the DMD, and projects the modulated light from the front or the back of the screen to perform color display of the image.

  The projection-type image display device includes a light source device having a lamp and a power supply unit that supplies power to the lamp. Further, not only in the projection type image display device but also in other devices using a lamp, the light source device is detachably mounted with a lamp unit containing the lamp in order to facilitate the replacement of the lamp. The lamp is a consumable item, and when used for a long time, the amount of emitted light decreases, and there is a risk that the projection type image display apparatus or other apparatus using the lamp will not function normally.

  For this reason, for example, there has been proposed a light source device including a lifetime meter that displays the lamp replacement time by measuring the cumulative lighting time of the lamp (see Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2).

On the other hand, in the light source device provided with the above-mentioned lifetime meter, for example, when various lamp units having different lighting currents are detachably mounted and the lamp is lit, the various lamp units can be identified. Since it is not possible, all lighting times are integrated as the same lamp. For this reason, there is a problem that the accurate life of each lamp cannot be confirmed, and some users may reset the life meter due to misuse without replacing the lamp. There was also a problem that the information to be obtained was not always accurate. In order to solve these problems, there has been proposed a light source device capable of displaying accurate lamp information by providing each lamp with lamp information such as lamp lighting time or number of lighting (Patent Document). 3).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-268071 JP 2000-126124 A JP 2003-68478 A

  However, in the light source device disclosed in Patent Document 3, information such as the lamp lighting time and the number of lighting times can be accurately displayed. However, in order for the user to determine the lamp replacement time, information is necessary. Even if the lamp is short and the life of the lamp is approaching or has passed, the device may suddenly be used one day by the user continuing to use the projection display without changing the lamp. There is a risk that it will not be possible, and it has been desired to improve user convenience.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the replaceable light source unit mounted with a light source has information indicating whether the light source is normally turned off or abnormally turned off, and abnormally turning off the light source. By providing a storage means for storing the number of times, even when various light source units are mounted, information related to the lifetime of each light source can be obtained accurately, improving user convenience It is an object of the present invention to provide a light source device capable of performing the above, a light source unit constituting the light source device, and a projection type image display device including the light source device.

  Another object of the present invention is to determine whether or not a light source has abnormally turned off, to count the determined number of abnormal light extinctions, and to correct the life or remaining life of the light source based on the counted number of abnormal light extinctions. It is an object of the present invention to provide a light source device capable of notifying the replacement timing of the light source more accurately according to the use state of the light source, and a projection type image display device including the light source device.

  Another object of the present invention is to set abnormality in the extinction information when the light source is turned on, and to set normality in the extinction information when the light source is normally extinguished, and the determination means supplies power to the light source. A light source device capable of accurately obtaining abnormal light extinction of the light source related to the lifetime or life expectancy of the light source by determining whether the light source is abnormally extinguished based on the light extinction information, and the light source device. The object is to provide a projection-type image display device.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a light source device capable of more accurately obtaining the life or life of the light source that is shortened depending on the use situation by providing a correcting means for correcting the life or life of the light source every time power supply is started. And providing a projection-type image display device including the light source device.

  The light source device according to the present invention is a light source device including a replaceable light source unit mounted with a light source, wherein the light source unit is turned off information indicating whether the light source is normally turned off or abnormally turned off, and abnormality of the light source. Storage means for storing the number of times of extinction is provided.

  The light source device according to the present invention includes a determination unit that determines whether or not the light source is abnormally turned off, a counting unit that counts the number of abnormal light turns determined by the determination unit, and an abnormal light turn that is counted by the counting unit. And correcting means for correcting the life or remaining life of the light source based on the number of times.

  The light source device according to the present invention comprises: means for setting an abnormality in the turn-off information when the light source is turned on; and means for setting normality in the turn-off information when the light source is turned off normally. The means is configured to determine whether or not the light source is abnormally turned off based on the turn-off information when power is supplied to the light source.

  The light source device according to the present invention is characterized in that the correction means is configured to correct the lifetime or life expectancy of the light source each time power supply is started.

  The light source unit according to the present invention comprises storage means for storing light-off information indicating whether the light source is normally turned off or abnormally turned off and the number of abnormal light-offs of the light source in the light source unit to which the light source is attached. Features.

  A projection-type image display device according to the present invention includes a light source device, an optical unit that emits light with a substantially uniform intensity emitted from the light source device, and light modulation that modulates the light emitted from the optical unit. A projection-type image display device comprising: an element; and a projection lens that projects the modulated light modulated by the light modulation element onto a projection object. The light source device is a light source device according to any one of the aforementioned aspects of the invention. It is characterized by being.

  In the present invention, the replaceable light source unit to which the light source is attached includes storage means for storing turn-off information indicating whether the light source is normally turned off or abnormally turned off, and the number of times the light source is abnormally turned off. Accordingly, the light source unit includes a light source and information related to the life or life expectancy of the light source, such as information on turning off the light source and the number of abnormal light extinctions of the light source.

  In the present invention, it is determined whether or not the light source has abnormally turned off, and the determined number of abnormal light extinctions is counted. The correcting means corrects the life or remaining life of the light source based on the counted number of abnormal light extinctions. For example, by changing the light source life or life expectancy as the number of abnormal light extinctions increases, even if the light source life or life expectancy is shortened due to an increase in the number of abnormal light extinctions, Get exactly.

  In the present invention, when the light source is turned on, an abnormality is set in the turn-off information. When the light source is normally turned off, normality is set in the turn-off information. As a result, if the light source does not turn off normally, an abnormality is still set in the turn-off information. The determination unit determines whether the light source is abnormally turned off based on the turn-off information when the light source is supplied with power. That is, when the light-off information is set to normal, it is determined that the light source is normally turned off. When the light-off information is set to abnormal, the light source is abnormally turned off. It is determined that

  In the present invention, the correction means corrects the lifetime or life expectancy of the light source every time power supply is started. Thereby, whenever the light source is turned on, the lifetime or life expectancy of the light source is updated.

  In the present invention, the replaceable light source unit to which the light source is attached includes storage means for storing the turn-off information indicating whether the light source is normally turned off or abnormally turned off, and the number of times the light source is abnormally turned off. Thus, even when various light source units are mounted, information related to the lifetime of each light source can be obtained accurately, and user convenience can be improved.

  In the present invention, there is provided correction means for determining whether or not the light source has abnormally turned off, counting the determined number of abnormal light extinctions, and correcting the life or remaining life of the light source based on the counted number of abnormal light extinctions. By providing, it is possible to notify the replacement timing of the light source more accurately according to the use state of the light source.

  In the present invention, when the light source is turned on, an abnormality is set in the turn-off information, when the light source is turned off normally, the turn-off information is set as normal, and the determination unit is supplied with power to the light source. By determining whether or not the light source is abnormally turned off based on the light-off information, it is possible to accurately obtain the abnormal light-off of the light source related to the life or remaining life of the light source.

  In the present invention, the life of the light source or the life expectancy shortened depending on the use state can be obtained more accurately by providing the correcting means for correcting the life or life expectancy of the light source every time power supply is started.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings illustrating embodiments. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a main part configuration of a light source device 1 and a projection type image display device 100 including the light source device 1 according to the present invention. The light source device 1 includes a lamp unit 11, a lamp control unit 12 constituted by a microcomputer, a lamp driving unit 13, an operation unit 14, a display unit 15, and the like.

  The projection type image display apparatus 100 includes a light source device 1, a control unit 2 constituted by a CPU, an optical unit 3, a DMD 4, a mirror 5, a projection lens 6, and the like.

  The lamp unit 11 is replaceable and includes a lamp 111 and a storage unit 112 that stores lamp information related to the life of the lamp 111. The lamp 111 is, for example, a halogen lamp having a filament type electrode structure, a metal halide lamp having an electrode structure for generating arc discharge, a xenon short arc lamp, a high-pressure type mercury lamp, or the like, but is not limited thereto. is not. The storage unit 112 is configured by, for example, a nonvolatile memory, but is not limited to this.

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of lamp information. The lamp information includes, for example, a lamp life time (life), a lamp lighting time (cumulative lighting time), a lighting frequency, a lamp abnormal termination frequency, a threshold time compared with a remaining time (life expectancy) for prompting a lamp replacement time, The storage unit 112 has manufacturing information such as a flag indicating whether the lamp is normally turned off, a lot number, and a manufacturing date. Among the lamp information, the lamp lighting time, the number of times of lighting, the number of times of abnormal lamp end, the flag, etc. are updated according to the usage state of the lamp 111 under the control of the lamp control unit 12. The lamp life time, threshold time, manufacturing information, and the like are set when the lamp unit 11 is manufactured or initially set.

  Thereby, the lamp unit 11 can hold the lamp 111 and the lamp information of the lamp 111 in association with each other, and the latest lamp information is updated according to the usage status of the lamp 111. Since the lamp unit 11 itself includes the storage unit 112 that stores the lamp information, the lamp control unit 12 acquires the respective lamp information from the storage unit 112 even when various lamp units are mounted. You can always get the correct information on the lamp.

  The operation unit 14 includes various operation buttons such as a power-on button for turning on the power, a power-off button for turning off the power, a lighting button for turning on the lamp, a turning-off button for turning off the lamp, and a display button for displaying lamp information. When each operation button is operated, a signal indicating the operation is output to the lamp control unit 12.

  The display unit 15 is constituted by, for example, a liquid crystal panel, and displays lamp information, a warning about lamp life, and the like under the control of the lamp control unit 12.

  The lamp control unit 12 outputs an on / off signal to the lamp driving unit 13 and the control unit 2 in accordance with an operation of turning on or off the lamp by the operation unit 14. The lamp driving unit 13 turns on or off the lamp 111 based on the input on / off signal.

  The lamp control unit 12 has a built-in timer, calculates the lighting time (cumulative lighting time) of the lamp 111 based on the on / off signal output to the lamp driving unit 13, the number of times the lamp is turned on, and lamp abnormality. Various processes such as a process for counting the number of end times, a lamp life time correction process (lamp life time correction process), and a remaining time determination process for warning the lamp replacement time are performed. The remaining time is a time obtained by subtracting the cumulative lighting time from the initial lamp life time.

  When correcting (correcting) the lamp life time, the life time L after correction (after correction) is expressed by the equation (1).

  Here, L0 is the initial lamp life time (for example, 6000 hours to 10000 hours, etc.), M is the number of times the lamp is turned on, and N is the number of abnormal lamp ends. When correcting the lamp life, the lamp life may be calculated using only the number of times the lamp is lit or only the number of times the lamp is abnormally terminated, without using both the number of times the lamp is lit and the number of times when the lamp is abnormally terminated. Moreover, the formula of Formula 1 is an example, and is not limited to this. By correcting the lamp life time according to the usage status of the lamp, the remaining time can be calculated by subtracting the cumulative lighting time from the corrected lamp life time, and the remaining time can be grasped more accurately. .

  The optical unit 3 includes a color wheel 31, a rod integrator 32, and the like. The color wheel 31 has a disc shape, and is formed of three dichroic mirrors that transmit, for example, red (R), green (G), and blue (B) light radially around the rotation axis. Filters divided into segments are arranged. The rotation axis of the color wheel 31 is arranged in parallel with the central axis of the lamp 111, and the white light emitted from the lamp 111 is synchronized with the rotation of the color wheel 31 by rotating the color wheel 31 at a constant speed. Then, the light is separated into red, green, and blue colors in a time-sharing manner.

  The rod integrator 32 is, for example, formed in a columnar shape with a glass base material, and the center thereof is arranged on the central axis of the lamp 111 so that the optical axis thereof coincides. The light transmitted through the color wheel 31 enters the rod integrator 32 and is emitted with the illuminance of the light substantially uniform.

  Light emitted from the rod integrator 32 (red, green, and blue light) enters the mirror 5 through a condenser lens (not shown), and the light reflected by the mirror 5 enters the DMD 4.

  The DMD 4 has hundreds of thousands of minute mirrors arranged on the irradiation surface corresponding to the resolution (for example, 1024 × 768 pixels in XGA), and the angle of each mirror based on digital data input to the DMD 4 Is changed in two directions of about ± 10 °, and an image is formed with light reflected in one direction (when on).

  As the color wheel 31 rotates, the DMD 4 is sequentially irradiated with red, green, and blue light. For example, when red light is irradiated, image data weighted according to the gradation of red is input to the DMD 4, and the on-time of each mirror is pulse-modulated (PWM) according to the weight of the input image data. ) To adjust a red screen with a desired gradation. Similarly, with respect to green light and blue light, the respective color screens are sequentially constructed by time-division by weighting corresponding to each bit.

  The light reflected (modulated) by the DMD 4 is projected onto a screen (not shown) through the projection lens 6 to form an image. Since humans recognize red, green, and blue lights displayed in a time-sharing manner as afterimage phenomena, flicker due to red, green, and blue time-sharing cannot be recognized, and are recognized as color images.

  The control unit 2 controls the overall processing of the projection type image display apparatus 100 based on the on / off signal input from the lamp control unit 12. For example, the control unit 2 controls the rotation of the color wheel 31 based on the detection result of the rotation position of the color wheel 31 input from the optical unit 3 and the synchronization signal input from the DMD 4. Is output to the optical unit 3 and the rotation of the color wheel 31 is controlled in synchronization with the operation of the DMD 4.

  Next, the operation of the light source device 1 according to the present invention will be described. 3 and 4 are flowcharts showing the processing procedure of the light source device 1. The lamp control unit 12 determines whether or not there is a lamp lighting request (S11). If there is no lamp lighting request (NO in S11), the process of step S11 is continued and waits until there is a lamp lighting request.

  When there is a lamp lighting request (YES in S11), the lamp control unit 12 reads lamp information from the storage unit 112 (S12). The lamp control unit 12 determines whether or not a flag (a flag indicating whether or not the lamp has been normally turned off) is “normal” from the read lamp information (S13), and the flag is not “normal”. In the case (NO in S13), “1” is added to the lamp abnormal end count (initial value is “0”) and stored in the storage unit 112 (S14).

  The lamp controller 12 turns on the lamp (S15). When the flag is “normal” (YES in S13), the lamp control unit 12 continues the processing from step S15. The lamp controller 12 writes “abnormal” in the flag (S16). Thus, when the lamp is not turned off normally, the flag is recorded as “abnormal”.

  The lamp control unit 12 adds “1” to the number of times the lamp is turned on (initial value is “0”) and stores it in the storage unit 112 (S17). The lamp controller 12 corrects the lamp life time based on the lamp information (S18), and performs a remaining time determination process (S19). The remaining time determination process will be described later.

  The lamp controller 12 determines whether or not there is a lamp information display request (S20). If there is a lamp information display request (YES in S20), the lamp information is displayed (S21) and whether or not there is a lamp turn-off request. It is determined whether or not (S22). When there is no lamp information display request (NO in S20), the lamp control unit 12 continues the process from step S22.

  When there is no lamp turn-off request (NO in S22), the lamp control unit 12 continues the process of step S22 and waits for a lamp turn-off request. When there is a lamp turn-off request (YES in S22), the lamp control unit 12 turns off the lamp (S23). The lamp controller 12 calculates and stores the lamp lighting time (cumulative lighting time) (S24), writes “normal” in the flag (S25), and ends the process. As a result, the storage unit 112 stores a “normal” flag indicating that the lamp is normally turned off.

  FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of displayed lamp information. As shown in the figure, the displayed information includes the lamp lighting time (cumulative lighting time to date), the number of times the lamp has been turned on, the predetermined lamp life time, the number of abnormal lamp ends, the lamp warranty period (up to the lamp life). The remaining time), the date of manufacture of the lamp, the serial number, etc. The lamp information may be displayed on the display unit 15 or may be projected on the screen. Thereby, the user can grasp | ascertain the lifetime of a lamp | ramp correctly, can prepare the lamp | ramp for replacement | exchange before lamp replacement | exchange, and a user's convenience improves. Further, the lamp guarantee period may be stored in the storage unit 112.

  Regarding the date of manufacture of the lamp, if it is too old, there is a possibility that the life of the lamp may be adversely affected. Therefore, based on this date of manufacture, it can be used as a guide for the replacement time of the lamp. In addition, regarding the serial number, for example, if a lot is defective, displaying the serial number saves the trouble of disassembling the device and checking the lamp. Can be confirmed.

  6 and 7 are flowcharts showing the remaining time determination process. The lamp control unit 12 calculates the remaining time by subtracting the cumulative lighting time from the corrected lamp life time (S191). The lamp control unit 12 determines whether or not the remaining time is 150 hours or more and shorter than 200 hours (S192). If the remaining time is 150 hours or longer and shorter than 200 hours (YES in S192), the lamp control unit 12 determines that “200 hours until the lamp life is reached”. “Please replace the lamp.” Is displayed (S193), and the process is terminated. Although the warning is displayed by projecting it on the screen, the warning may be displayed on the display unit 15.

  If the remaining time is not shorter than 150 hours and shorter than 200 hours (NO in S192), the lamp controller 12 determines whether or not the remaining time is shorter than 100 hours and shorter than 150 hours (S194), and the remaining time is longer than 100 hours. If it is shorter than 150 hours (YES in S194), a warning “150 lamps have reached the end of their lamp life. Replace the lamp.” Is displayed (S195), and the process ends.

  When the remaining time is not shorter than 100 hours and shorter than 150 hours (NO in S194), the lamp controller 12 determines whether the remaining time is shorter than 50 hours and shorter than 100 hours (S196), and the remaining time is longer than 50 hours. If it is shorter than 100 hours (YES in S196), a warning “100 hours has passed until the lamp life has expired. Replace the lamp” is displayed (S197), and the process is terminated.

  If the remaining time is not shorter than 50 hours and shorter than 100 hours (NO in S196), the lamp controller 12 determines whether or not the remaining time is shorter than 0 hours and shorter than 50 hours (S198), and the remaining time is 0 hours or longer. If the time is shorter than 50 hours (YES in S198), a warning message “The lamp has reached its end of life. Replace the lamp.” Is displayed (S199), and the process is terminated.

  If the remaining time is not shorter than 0 hour and shorter than 50 hours (NO in S198), the lamp controller 12 determines whether or not the remaining time is shorter than −100 hours and shorter than 0 hours (S200), and the remaining time is −100. When the time is shorter than 0 hour (YES in S200), a warning “Lamp life has been exceeded. Please replace the lamp as soon as possible” is displayed (S201), and the process is terminated.

  When the remaining time is not shorter than −100 hours and shorter than 0 hours (NO in S200), the lamp controller 12 determines whether or not the remaining time is shorter than −100 hours (S202), and the remaining time is shorter than −100 hours. If it is short (YES in S202), a warning message "Lamp life has been exceeded. Replace the lamp as soon as possible. Power is turned off after 5 minutes for safety." Is displayed (S203). (S204), the process ends. If the remaining time is not shorter than −100 hours (NO in S202), the lamp control unit 12 ends the process assuming that the remaining time is 200 hours or longer. As a result, the user is prompted to replace the lamp according to the usage situation, so that a replacement lamp can be prepared in advance of the lamp replacement, and the convenience for the user is improved.

  In the above-described embodiment, the configuration in which the light source device 1 is used for the projection type image display device 100 has been described. However, the light source device 1 is not limited to the projection type image display device 100 as long as it uses a lamp. It is possible to apply to other devices.

  In the above-described embodiment, the lamp life time is calculated every time lighting is started. However, the calculation of the life time is not limited to this, and is periodically performed during the operation of the light source device 1. It can also be configured to calculate. Further, the calculated lifetime may be stored in the storage unit 112, and a table indicating the relationship between the lighting time or the number of abnormal lamp ends and the lamp lifetime is stored in advance, and based on the table, The structure to convert may be sufficient.

  In the above-described embodiment, the lamp life time (life time) is corrected based on the formula (1). However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the current cumulative lighting time is taken into consideration. The life expectancy of the lamp may be corrected.

  The projection type image display apparatus 100 of the present invention may be either a front projection system or a rear projection system.

It is the schematic which shows the principal part structure of the light source device which concerns on this invention, and a projection type image display apparatus provided with this light source device. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of lamp information. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of a light source device. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of a light source device. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the lamp information displayed. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of remaining time determination. It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence of remaining time determination.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Light source device 2 Control part 3 Optical unit 4 DMD
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 5 Mirror 6 Projection lens 11 Lamp unit 12 Lamp control part 13 Lamp drive part 14 Operation part 15 Display part

Claims (6)

In a light source device including a replaceable light source unit to which a light source is attached,
The light source unit is
A light source device comprising storage means for storing extinction information indicating whether the light source is normally extinguished or abnormally extinguished, and the number of abnormal extinctions of the light source. Determining means for determining whether or not the light source is abnormally turned off;
Counting means for counting the number of abnormal light extinctions determined by the determining means;
The light source device according to claim 1, further comprising: a correcting unit that corrects the lifetime or life expectancy of the light source based on the number of abnormal extinctions counted by the counting unit. Means for setting an abnormality in the extinction information when the light source is turned on;
Means for setting normality in the extinguishing information when the light source is normally extinguished,
The determination means includes
The light source device according to claim 2, wherein when the power is supplied to the light source, the light source is determined to be abnormally turned off based on the turn-off information.   4. The light source device according to claim 2, wherein the correction unit is configured to correct a life or a life expectancy of the light source every time power supply is started. In the light source unit to which the light source is attached,
A light source unit comprising storage means for storing extinction information indicating whether the light source is normally extinguished or abnormally extinguished, and the number of abnormal extinctions of the light source. A light source device; an optical unit that emits light with a substantially uniform intensity emitted from the light source device; a light modulation element that modulates light emitted from the optical unit; and a light modulation element modulated by the light modulation element In a projection type image display apparatus comprising a projection lens that projects modulated light onto a projection object,
The light source device is
5. A projection type image display device, characterized in that it is the light source device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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