JP6365156B2 - 3D shape creation device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a three-dimensional shape creation apparatus capable of creating a three-dimensional shape using an electrically deformable actuator, and is particularly suitable for being applied to a variable shape mirror that can three-dimensionally change the mirror surface shape. is there.

  In recent years, a head-up display (hereinafter referred to as HUD (Head Up Display)) capable of displaying various types of information in a driver's field of view is being used in order to increase the driving safety of the vehicle. The HUD generates various virtual information on the windshield of the vehicle, such as vehicle speed information, that is to be recognized by the driver at a predetermined distance, and displays it in the driver's field of view. Various information can be recognized by movement.

  In the conventional HUD, the display position of the virtual image is fixed at a fixed position. However, since the driver is driving while focusing on various distances, if the display position of the virtual image is fixed at a certain position, the driver cannot be focused. If the virtual image position can be varied in accordance with the driver's focus, the driver's line-of-sight movement can be reduced, and thus driving safety can be further improved. As described above, in order to make the display position of the virtual image variable, it is necessary to make the mirror used to create the virtual image by reflecting the display image a variable shape mirror.

  For example, there is a deformable mirror disclosed in Patent Document 1. This deformable mirror is formed by MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical System) technology, corresponding to a deformable plate-shaped mirror, a plurality of rods fixed to the back surface of the mirror, the length of which varies with temperature, and the rod Heating means fixed to the bottom of the rod. Each rod is arranged in a matrix, and when a desired electric power is applied to the heating means to generate heat, the rod is heated to a desired temperature and stretched by a desired amount. This makes it possible to deform the mirror into a desired shape based on the extension of each rod. Since such a deformable mirror can be manufactured by a semiconductor process, it can be easily manufactured, but there is a problem that it cannot cope with a large area.

In the HUD system, a deformable mirror having a relatively large area is required. For example, a deformable mirror having a maximum of 1 m ² may be formed. When creating such a deformable mirror, a film that can be deformed by applying a voltage and electrodes on both the front and back sides of the film can be provided, and an actuator can be used to deform the film between them by generating a potential difference between the two electrodes. Conceivable. As such a configuration, conventionally, a piezoelectric body and electrodes provided on both front and back surfaces thereof are rectangular comb bone portions in which one direction is a longitudinal direction, and a plurality of comb teeth portions extending in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction. There is a structure in which each comb tooth portion functions as an actuator.

JP 2005-292167 A

  However, even when a deformable mirror is configured by a structure having a plurality of actuators in a comb-teeth shape, the shape between the plurality of actuators cannot be controlled at all, and a plane shape sufficient as a deformable mirror can be obtained. Can not.

  An object of this invention is to provide the three-dimensional shape creation apparatus which can be enlarged and can be controlled to a desired shape in view of the said point.

  In order to achieve the above object, in the invention according to claim 1, a thin film-like polymer film (10) having one surface and the other surface opposite to the one surface, and a strip shape on one surface side of the polymer film. A first electrode (20) laid out in a stripe shape by arranging a plurality of electrodes, and a second electrode formed on the other surface side of the polymer film including a portion facing each of the plurality of first electrodes. (30), and a plurality of first electrodes and second electrodes, and a polymer film disposed between the plurality of first electrodes and the second electrodes, and the first electrode and the second electrode An actuator panel (100) provided with a plurality of actuators (100a) that deforms by generating a potential difference therebetween, and two actuator panels are stacked so that the longitudinal directions of the actuators are orthogonal to each other. That features It is.

  Thus, the three-dimensional shape creating apparatus is configured by bonding the two actuator panels 100 so that the longitudinal directions of the first electrodes are orthogonal to each other. The three-dimensional shape creation apparatus configured as described above controls the potential difference generated between the first electrode and the second electrode, thereby making the shape on one surface side concave or convex, and the curvature radius of the shape. Can be controlled. That is, a three-dimensional shape can be created by the three-dimensional shape creation device, and the shape can be controlled by controlling the potential difference generated between the first electrode and the second electrode. Since such a three-dimensional shape creation apparatus can be constituted by two actuator panels, the area can be easily increased. Therefore, it is possible to provide a three-dimensional shape creation apparatus that can be increased in area and can be controlled to a desired shape.

  In addition, the code | symbol in the bracket | parenthesis of each said means shows an example of a corresponding relationship with the specific means as described in embodiment mentioned later.

It is a schematic diagram of HUD concerning 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the HUD deformable mirror 3 shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a state when the deformable mirror 3 shown in FIG. 2 is deformed. (A)-(c) is the figure which showed the mode of the deformation | transformation of the actuator 100a. It is the figure which showed the relationship between the electric potential difference between the 1st electrode 20 and the 2nd electrode 30, and the displacement amount used as the maximum of the actuator 100a. It is a model figure when investigating the deformation | transformation of the actuator panel 100. FIG. It is a figure which shows the result of having investigated the deformation | transformation of the actuator panel 100 using the model shown in FIG. It is the perspective view which showed the deformable mirror 3 applied to HUD concerning 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing in the IX-IX line in FIG. It is the perspective view which showed the deformable mirror 3 applied to HUD concerning 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is the isometric view schematic diagram which showed the mode at the time of a deformation | transformation of the deformable mirror 3 shown in FIG. It is the perspective view which showed the deformable mirror 3 demonstrated by other embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiments, parts that are the same or equivalent to each other will be described with the same reference numerals.

(First embodiment)
A HUD to which a deformable mirror corresponding to the three-dimensional shape creating apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention is applied will be described with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the HUD includes a light source 1, a mirror 2, and a deformable mirror 3, and outputs an image representing display contents from the light source, and reflects the image with the mirror 2 and the deformable mirror 3. By projecting on the windshield 4, a virtual image 5 is generated. In the case of this embodiment, the mirror 2 is constituted by a flat mirror, and the deformable mirror 3 is a concave mirror whose surface shape can be varied. With such a configuration, the display position of the virtual image 5 can be made variable as indicated by an arrow in FIG. 1, and the viewing distance from the driver can be changed according to the focus of the driver. The deformable mirror 3 in this HUD is an example of a three-dimensional shape creation apparatus. Details of the configuration of the deformable mirror 3 will be described below.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the deformable mirror 3 is configured by preparing two actuator panels 100 including a plurality of actuators 100 a and superimposing the actuator panels 100 into a single plate shape. .

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the actuator panel 100 according to the present embodiment has a quadrangular shape, more specifically, a square shape or a rectangular plate shape having two parallel parallel sides on the top surface. Each actuator panel 100 has a function of curving the other set while keeping one set of two parallel sides facing each other in a straight line. By preparing two such actuator panels 100 and overlapping them so that their curved sides are orthogonal to each other, as shown in FIG. Is configured.

  Specifically, the actuator panel 100 includes one thin film-like polymer film 10 having one surface and the other surface that is the opposite surface, the first electrode 20 formed on one surface of the polymer film 10, and the other. The plurality of actuators 100a are configured by the portion where the first electrode 20 is disposed, which includes the second electrode 30 formed on the surface. The curvature radius (degree of curvature) of the concave mirror is adjusted by independently deforming the plurality of actuators 100a.

  The polymer film 10 is composed of an electrolyte thin film, for example, a polymer material thin film having ion conductivity. As shown in FIG. 4 (a), a thin film of a polymer material having ion conductivity has a positive ion when an electric field is not formed between the first and second electrodes 20 and 30 disposed on both surfaces thereof. In this state, the polar molecules and the ion exchange resin are uniformly present. Then, as shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C, the thin film of the polymer material having ion conductivity is formed when the electric field is formed between the first and second electrodes 20 and 30. Cations that can move in the thin film are attracted to the negative electrode side by the electric field. As a result, the negative electrode side of the thin film of the polymer material is expanded, that is, the cation is collected, and the actuator 100a is bent by repelling and expanding. When a voltage is uniformly applied across the surface direction between the first and second electrodes 20 and 30, the curvature radius R of the actuator 100a after bending is substantially constant over the entire surface direction. Further, the applied voltage and the radius of curvature R are generally inversely proportional, and the higher the applied voltage, the smaller the radius of curvature R of the actuator 100a.

  Then, as shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C, when the polarity of the applied voltage is reversed, the reverse operation of bending the actuator 100a in the reverse direction can be performed.

  As such a polymer membrane 10, for example, a fluororesin-based cation exchange membrane Nafion (Nafion (registered trademark), manufactured by DuPont) can be used, and a thin film (film) having a predetermined thickness is used. It can be composed of members.

  The first electrode 20 is a strip having a plurality (symbols 20a to 20d) formed on one surface side of the polymer film 10, and the plurality of the first electrodes 20 are laid out in a stripe shape by being provided at a predetermined interval. ing. For example, the first electrode 20 is made of a conductive material such as gold (Au). In the case of the present embodiment, a plurality of first electrodes 20a to 20d are arranged in parallel at a predetermined interval, and the widths of the first electrodes 20a to 20d are also equal.

  The second electrode 30 is formed over the entire other surface side of the polymer film 10. For example, the second electrode 30 is also made of a conductive material such as gold (Au). Since the second electrode 30 is formed on the entire surface, patterning is not necessary, so that the manufacturing process can be simplified. Further, when the second electrode 30 is patterned, misalignment with the first electrode 20 may occur, but the misalignment is prevented by forming the second electrode 30 on the entire other surface side of the polymer film 10. It is also possible to do.

  In the case of this embodiment, the second electrode 30 side is used as a mirror surface, and at least one of the two stacked actuator panels 100 is configured by forming the second electrode 30 with a metal film having a high reflectance. Yes. As a result, as described later, when the actuator 100a is deformed and the second electrode 30 side that is a metal film having a high reflectance is recessed, the second electrode 30 can form a concave mirror.

  In the actuator panel 100 configured as described above, when a potential difference is generated between the first electrode 20 and the second electrode 30 such that the first electrode 20 becomes a negative electrode, the first electrode 20 side expands, and the second It is bent so as to shrink toward the electrode 30 side. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3, the two actuator panels 100 are overlapped and integrated so that the longitudinal directions of the first electrodes 20 are orthogonal to each other and the second electrodes 30 side are positioned upward. It has become. A concave mirror is formed by the side that contracts when a potential difference is generated between the first electrode 20 and the second electrode 30, that is, the surface on the second electrode 30 side, thereby forming the deformable mirror 3.

  With this configuration, the two actuator panels 100 are overlapped so that their curved sides are orthogonal to each other, so that the deformable mirror 3 has its center at a fixed point O as shown in FIG. Are curved so that the four corners are lifted up to form a concave mirror. In FIG. 3, the lateral width of the actuator 100 a is constant, but the width of the central portion where the greatest force is applied may be wide and the end portion may be narrowed to operate with a small force.

  Specifically, the fixed point O shown in FIG. 3, that is, the coordinates of the center of the deformable mirror 3 is (0, 0, 0). The longitudinal direction of the first electrode 20 of the actuator panel 100 on the concave mirror side is taken as the x axis, the longitudinal direction of the first electrode 20 of the actuator panel 100 on the opposite side of the concave mirror is taken as the y axis, and the perpendicular direction thereto is taken as the z axis. In such a definition, the deformable mirror 3 of the present embodiment has coordinates (x, y) so that the z coordinate at the position of the (x, y) coordinate is determined based on the displacement amount of each actuator 100a. x, y, z) is represented by (x, y, z (x, y)). The z coordinate increases as the distance from the fixed point O increases, and z (x, y) <z (x + 1, y + 1) holds. In a range where z (x, y) <z (x + 1, y + 1) is established, the concave mirror can be controlled to an arbitrary shape, and the radius of curvature can be controlled.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the organic actuator bends so that the curvature is constant in the no-load state. In FIG. 3, since the polymer film 10 and the electrode 30 are integrated in the actuator panel 100, for example, the actuator 100aa is also affected by the operation of the adjacent actuator 100ab, and is displaced more than the actuator operation as a single unit. The amount is smaller. Further, since the actuator 100a itself operates so as to have a constant curvature, it has been found that the shape can be determined independently according to the application of voltage from the outside only when the actuator 100a has a concave shape or a convex shape. This specific operation will be described later.

  Although not shown, the HUD includes a control unit, and the control unit outputs a potential signal that controls a potential difference between the first electrode 20 and the second electrode 30 of each actuator panel 100. The curvature of the concave mirror is adjusted.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the deformable mirror 3 is configured by bonding the two actuator panels 100 so that the longitudinal directions of the first electrodes 20 are orthogonal to each other. The deformable mirror 3 configured as described above controls the potential difference generated between the first electrode 20 and the second electrode 30 to change the curvature radius of the shape while making the shape on one surface side into a concave mirror shape. Can be controlled. In other words, a three-dimensional shape can be created by the deformable mirror 3, and the shape can be controlled by controlling the potential difference generated between the first electrode 20 and the second electrode 30. . And since the deformable mirror 3 of this embodiment can be comprised by the two actuator panels 100, it can enlarge easily.

  Therefore, the deformable mirror 3 that can be increased in area and can be controlled to have a desired shape can be obtained.

  In addition, since the center of the deformable mirror 3 is set to the fixed point O, it is possible to configure a concave mirror symmetrically with respect to the center. Further, since the center of the deformable mirror 3 coincides with the center of gravity, the concave mirror can be configured with the position of the center of gravity as the fixed point O. Therefore, the curvature radius of the concave mirror can be controlled by deforming the actuator 100a in a balanced manner. Become.

  For reference, when the total thickness of the deformable mirror 3, that is, the total thickness of the polymer film 10 and the first and second electrodes 20, 30 is 250 μm, it is between the first electrode 20 and the second electrode 30. The relationship between the potential difference between the two and the maximum displacement of the actuator 100a was examined. FIG. 5 shows the result. The displacement was measured by fixing the voltage application unit in FIG. 4 and measuring the displacement at a point 10 mm therefrom with a laser displacement meter.

  As shown in this figure, the displacement amount of the actuator 100a can be increased as the potential difference between the first electrode 20 and the second electrode 30 is increased. Therefore, the radius of curvature of the concave mirror formed by the deformable mirror 3 can be controlled based on the relationship between the potential difference between the first electrode 20 and the second electrode 30 and the displacement amount of the actuator 100a. Specifically, the radius of curvature of the concave mirror of the deformable mirror 3 can be controlled by the following method.

  For example, assuming that a portion where the first electrodes 20 of the two actuator panels 100 intersect each other is one pixel, a potential difference of 3 V is generated between the first electrode 20 and the second electrode 30 to move the actuator 100a. The relationship between the direction and the amount of displacement was investigated. Here, as shown in FIG. 6, three actuators 100a that are orthogonal to each other are formed by forming three first electrodes on each actuator panel 100, thereby creating a deformable mirror 3 of 3 × 3 pixels. (Hereinafter, the actuator 100a in each direction is expressed as A1 to A3 and B1 to B3 as shown in FIG. 6). Then, one of the corners of the four corners of the deformable mirror 3 having a quadrangular shape is fixed as a fixed point, and the corner at a diagonal line with the fixed point is used as a free end, and the displacement at the free end is performed. The amount was examined. The actuator widths of A1 to A3 and B1 to B3 were 4 mm. The following fixed points were measured while supporting the intersection of two actuators. The measured value at the free end was the amount of displacement at the center of the intersection of the two actuators.

  As a result, as shown in FIG. 7A, when the actuators A1 and B1 passing through the fixed points were deformed, the amount of displacement at the free end was 0.02 mm. As shown in FIG. 7B, when the actuators A2 and B2 adjacent to the fixed point were deformed, the amount of displacement at the free end was 0.04 mm. As shown in FIG. 7C, when the actuators A3 and B3 passing through the free ends farthest from the fixed point were deformed, the displacement amount of the free ends was 0.08 mm. Further, as shown in FIG. 7D, the actuators A1, A3, B1, and B3 passing through the fixed points and free ends are deformed, and the reverse operation is performed to deform the remaining actuators A2 and B2 in the opposite direction. In this case, the amount of displacement at the free end was 0.06 mm. Further, in each experiment, the displacement amount of each part other than the fixed point was also examined, and the displacement amount was as shown in FIGS. 7 (a) to 7 (d).

  As described above, if the relationship between how to move the actuators A1 to A3 and B1 to B3 and the displacement amount of each part is examined for the 3 × 3 pixel variable shape mirror 3, based on the result, the variable shape mirror 3 is obtained. It is possible to appropriately control the radius of curvature of the concave mirror formed by the lens. Here, the 3 × 3 pixel deformable mirror 3 has been described as an example, but the same applies to the case of N × N pixels (N is a natural number), and the method of moving the actuator 100a and the amount of displacement of each part in advance. You should investigate the relationship with.

(Second Embodiment)
A second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, the configuration of the deformable mirror 3 is shown more specifically than in the first embodiment, and the other parts are the same as those in the first embodiment. Only explained.

  As shown in FIG. 8, each actuator 100a constituting the deformable mirror 3 is further extended in the longitudinal direction to form a lead-out portion 100b. A quadrangular overlapping portion in which the actuators 100a are orthogonal to each other is used as a mirror portion 100c, and an outer edge portion of the mirror portion 100c is attached to the fixed frame 6, and the mirror portion 100c is used as a concave mirror. And the curvature radius of the concave mirror which the mirror part 100c comprises is controlled by adjusting the displacement amount of the actuator 100a.

  In such a configuration, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, in the lead portion 100b extending to the outside of the mirror portion 100c, the polymer film 10 and the second electrode 30 are integrated with the other actuators 100a. Not done. That is, each actuator 100a is divided by forming a separation groove 100d between each actuator 100a.

  Thus, by dividing each actuator 100a in the extraction part 100b that is a part other than the mirror part 100c constituting the three-dimensional shape, it is possible to prevent movement interference and restrictions from being applied between the adjacent actuators 100a.

(Third embodiment)
A third embodiment of the present invention will be described. The present embodiment is provided with a structure that can support the control of the three-dimensional shape of the concave mirror of the deformable mirror 3 with respect to the first embodiment, and the other aspects are the same as those of the first embodiment. Only portions different from the embodiment will be described.

  As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, in the present embodiment, an actuator 200 for supporting control of a three-dimensional shape is provided on the back surface side of the deformable mirror 3 opposite to the concave mirror. The actuator 200 extends in the longitudinal direction of the first electrode 20 of the actuator panel 100 on the concave mirror side and the actuator 200 extends in the longitudinal direction of the first electrode 20 of the actuator panel 100 on the opposite side to the concave mirror. Yes. The center position of the actuator 200, which is a cross-shaped intersection, is matched with the center position of the deformable mirror 3.

  In this manner, in addition to the two actuator panels 100 constituting the deformable mirror 3, a support actuator 200 can be further provided. By providing such an actuator 200, it becomes possible to supplement the control of the radius of curvature of the concave mirror formed by the deformable mirror 3, and it is possible to realize finer control or a larger radius of curvature.

  Here, a structure in which a new actuator 200 is added to the center of the actuator panel 100 is shown. However, the thickness of the electrode 10 and the electrode 30 is increased near the center, and the current part is left at the end. You can also

  In FIGS. 10 and 11, the actuator panel 100 and the actuator 200 are shown thick to make the drawings easy to see, but in actuality, these thicknesses are very thin. For this reason, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, each actuator 200 is arranged so as to be in contact with the actuator panel 100.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, and can be appropriately changed within the scope described in the claims.

  For example, in each of the above embodiments, the concave mirror is configured by configuring the second electrode 30 provided in the actuator panel 100 with a metal film having a high reflectance. However, this is merely an example, and as shown in FIG. 12, a reflective sheet 110 having a high reflectivity may be attached so as to cover the second electrode 30, and a concave mirror may be configured by the reflective sheet 110. .

  In each of the above embodiments, the variable shape mirror 3 constituting the concave mirror has been described as an example of the three-dimensional shape forming apparatus. However, the present invention is applied to the variable shape mirror constituting the convex mirror instead of the concave mirror. You can also. For example, in the configuration of each of the above embodiments, a convex mirror can be configured by using the back side as a mirror. Furthermore, the present invention can be applied not only to the deformable mirror 3 but also to other three-dimensional shape forming apparatuses that form other concave shapes or convex shapes.

  Moreover, in the said 2nd Embodiment, although the outer edge part of the mirror part 100c was attached to the fixed frame, you may make it support-fix using the center and gravity center of the mirror part 100c as a fixed point.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 Deformable mirror 5 Virtual image 6 Fixed frame 10 Polymer film 20, 30 1st, 2nd electrode 100 Actuator panel 100a, 200 Actuator 100b Extraction part 100c Mirror part 100d Separation groove 110 Reflective sheet

Claims (6)

A thin film polymer film (10) having one surface and the other surface opposite to the one surface, and a plurality of strips arranged on one surface side of the polymer film are arranged in stripes. 1 electrode (20) and a second electrode (30) formed on the other surface side of the polymer film including a portion facing each of the plurality of first electrodes,
The plurality of first electrodes, the second electrode, and the polymer film disposed between the plurality of first electrodes and the second electrode, and between the first electrode and the second electrode An actuator panel (100) provided with a plurality of actuators (100a) that deform by causing a potential difference to
Two actuator panels are stacked so that the longitudinal directions of the actuators are orthogonal to each other ,
The second electrode provided on one of the two actuator panels is disposed on the entire other surface of the polymer film, and the second electrode side is recessed by deformation of the actuator to form a concave mirror. And
Of the two actuator panels, the overlapping portion where the actuators are orthogonal to each other is used as a mirror portion (100c), and the actuator provided in the actuator panel extends to the outside of the mirror portion (100b). The three-dimensional shape creating apparatus is characterized in that the actuators adjacent to each other in the lead-out portion are divided by dividing grooves (100d) . A thin film polymer film (10) having one surface and the other surface opposite to the one surface, and a plurality of strips arranged on one surface side of the polymer film are arranged in stripes. 1 electrode (20) and a second electrode (30) formed on the other surface side of the polymer film including a portion facing each of the plurality of first electrodes,
The plurality of first electrodes, the second electrode, and the polymer film disposed between the plurality of first electrodes and the second electrode, and between the first electrode and the second electrode An actuator panel (100) provided with a plurality of actuators (100a) that deform by causing a potential difference to
Two actuator panels are stacked so that the longitudinal directions of the actuators are orthogonal to each other ,
About one of the actuator panels, a reflection sheet (110) covering the second electrode is provided, and the reflection sheet side is recessed by deformation of the actuator to constitute a concave mirror,
Of the two actuator panels, the overlapping portion where the actuators are orthogonal to each other is used as a mirror portion (100c), and the actuator provided in the actuator panel extends to the outside of the mirror portion (100b). The three-dimensional shape creating apparatus is characterized in that the actuators adjacent to each other in the lead-out portion are divided by dividing grooves (100d) . The longitudinal direction of the first electrode of one actuator panel of the two actuator panels overlaid is the x axis, and the longitudinal direction of the first electrode of the other actuator panel is the y axis, the x axis, and the y axis. The vertical direction is the z axis, and the (x, y, z) coordinates of the center of the two actuator panels that are overlaid are (0, 0, 0),
The z-coordinate when the plurality of actuators are deformed is determined based on the position of the (x, y) coordinate, and the z-coordinate increases as the distance from the center increases. Or the three-dimensional shape creation apparatus of 2. The three-dimensional shape creation according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the actuator is deformed by inputting an electric signal to the actuator from the outside of the mirror unit through the extraction unit. apparatus. 3-dimensional shape creating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it is supported and fixed to the center of the mirror portion as a fixed point. 3-dimensional shape creating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it is supported and fixed to the center of gravity of the mirror portion as a fixed point.

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