JP7036158B2 - Display image creation device and image display device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a display image creating device and an image display device.

An image display device that is mounted on a moving body such as an automobile, an aircraft, or a ship and enables the operator (driver) to visually recognize useful information when maneuvering the moving body with a small amount of line-of-sight movement. It has been known. Such an image display device is generally called a head-up display (hereinafter referred to as "HUD").

The HUD creates an image containing information about a moving object as an intermediate image, and presents this intermediate image as a virtual image so that the driver can recognize the information. The "information about the moving body" includes information related to information existing in the driver's field of view of the moving body, information related to the operation of the moving body, and the like. For example, an alarm for notifying the operating state of a moving body is also included.

In the conventional HUD, as an intermediate image creation method, for example, a panel method using an imaging device such as a liquid crystal, a laser scanning method in which a laser beam emitted from a laser diode is scanned by a two-dimensional scanning device, and the like are known. .. The panel method creates an intermediate image by partially blocking the full-screen emission. The laser scanning method creates an intermediate image by assigning "light emission" and "non-light emission" to each pixel. In general, the laser scanning method is more suitable for producing high-contrast intermediate images.

The HUD is located within the driver's forward field of view. If the mobile is a car, the body of the HUD is located inside the dashboard. In the case of an automobile, structures such as air-conditioning ducts and meters are stored inside the dashboard, so it is necessary to arrange them so that the structures and the HUD do not interfere with each other. Therefore, it is desirable that the HUD is small.

In order to make the HUD smaller, the optical system included in the HUD may be made smaller. It is known that the entire HUD is made smaller by making some of the optical elements included in the optical system smaller (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

When the optical system is made smaller as in the HUD of Patent Document 1, the intermediate image becomes smaller. Then, the virtual image visually recognized by the driver becomes small, and it becomes difficult to visually recognize the information. If the virtual image is large even if the optical system is small, the magnification in the optical system may be increased. However, when the magnification of the optical system is increased, the sensitivity becomes sensitive and it is difficult to make fine adjustments to the optical element.

Further, as another method of reducing the optical system, there is a method of using an eccentric optical system in the observation optical system from the intermediate screen for creating an intermediate image to the viewpoint of the driver. If the amount of eccentricity of this eccentric optical system is increased, the storage space of the observation optical system can be reduced, so that the HUD can be reduced.

However, when an eccentric optical system is used for the observation optical system, increasing the eccentricity of the eccentric optical system causes a new problem. In general, it is advantageous for a scanning optical system that performs two-dimensional deflection scanning to have symmetry in the main scanning direction from the viewpoint of optical design. For that purpose, it is desirable that the light rays incident on the intermediate screen from the scanning optical system are incident on the intermediate screen perpendicularly to the intermediate screen in the main scanning direction.

When the HUD is reduced by increasing the eccentricity of the eccentric optical system, the folded mirror provided in the observation optical system is eccentric when considering from the eye point. When the shape of the region where the folding mirror reflects the intermediate image (light ray passing region) is rectangular, if the folding mirror is eccentric and arranged diagonally, the folding mirror is configured to protrude in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction. Therefore, by using an eccentric optical system for the observation optical system, the HUD may increase.

An object of the present invention is to provide a display image creating device and an image display device that are small in size and capable of creating an image for displaying a virtual image that is easily recognized by an observer.

The present invention includes a light source unit that emits light from a light source element, an image forming element that creates an intermediate image on an intermediate screen by a light beam emitted from the light source unit, and a reflection optical element that guides the intermediate image to a coupled optical element. And, the image forming element is arranged so that the central axis of the image light emitted from the image forming element is inclined in the left-right direction when viewed from the operator with respect to the axis which is the viewing direction of the operator . The intermediate screen transmits the image light, and the reflecting optical element reflects the image light transmitted through the intermediate screen, and is a rectangular shape having the smallest area circumscribing the intermediate image. The outer shape lacks the portion corresponding to the corner, and the main feature is that the intermediate image excluding the portion corresponding to the corner is guided to the optical element.

According to the present invention, it is possible to create an image for displaying a virtual image that is small and easy for the observer to recognize.

It is a block diagram which shows the example of the Embodiment of the image display apparatus which includes the display image creation apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the example of the light source part which the said display image making apparatus has. It is a block diagram which shows the example of the scanning optical system provided in the said display image creation apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the example of the hardware composition of the said image creation apparatus. It is a functional block diagram which shows the example of the functional configuration of the said display image creation apparatus. It is a top view which shows the example of the optical deflector provided in the said display image making apparatus. It is a figure which shows the example of the shape and the arrangement example of the reflection optical element provided in the said display image creating apparatus. It is a figure which shows the example of the relationship of the surface element to be scanned, the reflection optical element, and the coupling optical element provided in the display image creating apparatus. It is an optical layout drawing which shows the example of the said image display device. It is a figure which shows the example of the arrangement of the intermediate screen and the sensor which concerns on another embodiment of the said display image making apparatus. It is a figure which shows the arrangement of the intermediate screen and the sensor of the said display image creation apparatus with a comparative example. It is a figure which shows the example of the arrangement of the intermediate screen and the sensor which concerns on still another Embodiment of the said display image making apparatus. It is an optical layout drawing which shows the example of the conventional image display apparatus.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the display image creating device according to the present invention and an embodiment of the image display device including the display image creating device will be described with reference to the drawings. First, HUD1 which is an embodiment of the image display device according to the present invention will be described.

● Overview of image display device ●
As shown in FIG. 1, the HUD1 is a device mounted on a moving body such as an automobile, an aircraft, or a ship. The HUD1 displays information useful for maneuvering the moving body within the field of view of the operator of the moving body. The "information useful for maneuvering the moving body" includes information related to information existing in the field of view of the operator of the moving body, information related to the operation of the moving body, and the like. For example, an alarm for notifying the operating state of a moving body is also included. In the present specification, "information useful for maneuvering a moving body" may be simply referred to as "information".

The HUD 1 displays the information as a virtual image 2 in a state that can be recognized by the operator. The virtual image 2 is an image that appears based on the intermediate image, and the intermediate image is an image for displaying the virtual image 2. The HUD 1 is provided with an intermediate image creating device (display image creating device). Details of the embodiment of the display image creating device will be described later.

The HUD 1 projects an intermediate image created by the display image creating device into the field of view of the operator as image light, and displays this as a virtual image 2 in the field of view of the operator. The optical system that projects the image light includes an optical element that reflects the image light toward the operator and transmits the reflected light (external light) of the surrounding environment existing in the operator's field of view. This optical element is an element that combines image light and external light so that the operator can see the combined light. The combined light causes the operator to recognize that the virtual image 2 is located at a position farther from the position where the image light is projected.

● Configuration of Image Display Device As shown in FIG. 1, the HUD 1 includes a light source unit 10, a scanning optical system 20, and an observation optical system 30. As described above, the HUD 1 is a device that displays the virtual image 2 in the field of view of the observer 3 who is the operator.

In this embodiment, a case where the HUD1 is mounted on an automobile will be described as an example. The intermediate image that is the source of the virtual image 2 in HUD1 is created by the concave mirror 31 that constitutes the light source unit 10, the scanning optical system 20, and the observation optical system 30. Therefore, the image creation device 100, which is the embodiment of the display image creation device according to the present invention, is composed of a light source unit 10, a scanning optical system 20, and a concave mirror 31.

The intermediate image created by the image creating apparatus 100 is projected onto the optical combiner 32 that constitutes a part of the observation optical system 30. The optical combiner 32 is a coupled optical element that combines the intermediate image and the above-mentioned external light so that the observer 3 can see them.

In this embodiment, a front windshield 50 (so-called windshield) is used as the optical combiner 32. Further, a dedicated coupling optical element may be arranged in the field of view of the observer 3 as an optical combiner 32.

● Outline of the light source unit 10 The light source unit 10 emits a luminous flux used for creating an intermediate image that is the source of the virtual image 2. If the virtual image 2 is to be a color image, a light flux corresponding to the three primary colors of light required for the color image is emitted from the light source unit 10.

● Outline of the scanning optical system 20 The scanning optical system 20 creates an intermediate image for displaying predetermined information in the virtual image 2 based on the luminous flux emitted from the light source unit 10. Generally, the outer shape of the intermediate image is a rectangle such as a rectangle or a square.

● Outline of the observation optical system 30 The intermediate image created in the scanning optical system 20 is magnified and projected by the concave mirror 31 which is a reflection optical element of the observation optical system 30. The magnified and projected intermediate image is reflected toward the observer 3 by the optical combiner 32.

When the intermediate image is reflected by the optical combiner 32, the virtual image 2 appears in the visual sense of the observer 3 at a position different from the physical position of the optical combiner 32 (a position away from the observer 3). As described above, the information that can be recognized in the virtual image 2 is information related to the operation of the automobile, and is, for example, navigation information such as the speed, mileage, and destination display of the automobile.

The viewpoint of the observer 3 simply indicates a reference viewpoint position (reference eye point). The viewpoint range of the observer 3 is equal to or less than the driver's eye range (JIS D0021) of the automobile.

Here, a three-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system commonly used in the description of the embodiment according to the present invention will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the visual field direction (forward direction of the moving body) of the observer 3 is defined as the Z axis. In this case, the direction from the virtual image 2 toward the observer 3 (moving body backward direction) is the + Z direction, and the line-of-sight direction of the observer 3 (moving body forward direction) is the −Z direction. The left-right direction of the field of view of the observer 3 is the X direction. In this case, the right direction of the observer 3 (the direction toward the back of the paper) is the + X direction, and the left direction of the observer 3 is the direction of −X (the direction toward the front of the paper). Further, the vertical direction of the field of view of the observer 3 is the Y direction. The upward direction of the observer 3 is the + Y direction, and the downward direction of the observer 3 is the −Y direction.

In other words, when the moving body used in the description of the embodiment of the present invention is an automobile, the width direction of the automobile is the X direction, the height direction of the automobile is the Y direction, and the length direction of the automobile is Z. Direction. The left-hand direction is the −X direction and the right-hand direction is the + X direction when viewed from the observer 3. The upward direction is the + Y direction when viewed from the observer 3. The backward direction of the automobile is the + Z direction, and the traveling direction is the −Z direction.

● Configuration of the light source unit 10 Next, a detailed configuration of the light source unit 10 will be described with reference to FIG. The light source unit 10 emits an image creating beam 101 used for forming a virtual image 2 which is a color image. The image creation beam 101 has one beam of three colors of red (hereinafter referred to as “R”), green (hereinafter referred to as “G”), and blue (hereinafter referred to as “B”). It is a light beam synthesized in.

The light source unit 10 includes a semiconductor laser element that emits laser light of each color as a light source element. The semiconductor laser element corresponding to each color is referred to as a first laser element 110, a second laser element 120, and a third laser element 130.

Further, the light source unit 10 includes a coupling lens that suppresses the divergence of the laser light emitted from each laser element. The coupling lenses corresponding to the laser beams of each color are referred to as a first coupling lens 111, a second coupling lens 121, and a third coupling lens 131.

Further, the light source unit 10 is provided with an aperture that regulates and shapes the diameter of the light flux of each laser beam from each coupling lens. The apertures corresponding to each laser beam are the first aperture 112, the second aperture 122, and the third aperture 132.

Further, the light source unit 10 includes a beam synthesis prism 140 that synthesizes laser light fluxes of each shaped color and emits an image creation beam 101, and a lens 150.

The first laser element 110 is a laser element that emits a laser beam that forms a red image. The second laser element 120 is a laser element that emits a laser beam that forms a green image. The third laser element 130 is a laser element that emits a laser beam that forms a blue image. A laser diode (LD) called an end face emitting laser can be used for each laser element. Further, a surface emitting laser (VCSEL) can be used instead of the end surface emitting laser.

The wavelength λR of the luminous flux (laser light) emitted from the first laser element 110 is, for example, 640 nm. The wavelength λG of the luminous flux (laser light) emitted from the second laser element 120 is, for example, 530 nm. The wavelength λB of the luminous flux (laser light) emitted from the third laser element 130 is, for example, 445 nm.

The beam synthesis prism 140 has a first dichroic film 141 that transmits red laser light and reflects green laser light, and a second dichroic film 142 that transmits red and green laser light and reflects blue laser light. And have.

The red laser light emitted from the first laser element 110 is incident on the beam synthesis prism 140 via the first coupling lens 111 and the first aperture 112. The red laser light incident on the beam synthesis prism 140 passes through the first dichroic film 141 and travels straight.

The green laser light emitted from the second laser element 120 is incident on the beam synthesis prism 140 via the second coupling lens 121 and the second aperture 122. The green laser light incident on the beam synthesis prism 140 is reflected by the first dichroic film 141 and guided in the same direction as the red laser light (direction of the second dichroic film 142).

The blue laser light emitted from the third laser element 130 is incident on the beam synthesis prism 140 via the third coupling lens 131 and the third aperture 132. The blue laser light incident on the beam synthesis prism 140 is reflected by the second dichroic film 142 in the same direction as the red laser light and the green laser light.

For each aperture, various shapes such as a circle, an ellipse, a rectangle, and a square may be used depending on the divergence angle of the luminous flux and the like.

As described above, the red laser light and the green laser light that have passed through the second dichroic film 142 and the blue laser light reflected by the second dichroic film 142 are emitted from the beam synthesis prism 140. Therefore, the laser light emitted from the beam synthesis prism 140 is a combination of red laser light, green laser light, and blue laser light as one laser light beam.

The laser beam emitted from the beam synthesis prism 140 is converted into a "parallel beam" having a predetermined luminous flux diameter by the lens 150. This "parallel beam" is the image creation beam 101. The lens 150 is a meniscus lens having a concave surface toward the light deflector 21, which will be described later.

The R (red), G (green), and B (blue) color laser light beams constituting the image creation beam 101 correspond to or correspond to the image signal related to the "two-dimensional color image" to be displayed. The intensity is modulated according to the image data indicating the image information. The intensity modulation of the laser light beam may be a method of directly modulating the semiconductor laser of each color (direct modulation method) or a method of modulating the laser light beam emitted from the semiconductor laser of each color (external modulation method). That is, each semiconductor laser element emits laser light of each color whose emission intensity is modulated by the image signals of the R, G, and B color components by the driving means for driving the respective semiconductor laser elements.

An LED element may be used instead of the semiconductor laser element as described above.

● Configuration of Scanning Optical System 20 As shown in FIG. 3, the scanning optical system 20 includes an optical deflector 21 which is a two-dimensional deflection element, a scanning mirror 22, and an intermediate screen 23.

● Outline of the optical deflector 21 The optical deflector 21 is an image forming element that deflects and scans an image-creating beam 101 emitted from a light source unit 10 and two-dimensionally deflects and scans on an intermediate screen 23. The optical deflector 21 is a MEMS (Micro Electro Electro Mechanical Systems) manufactured as a micro swing mirror element by a semiconductor process or the like. For example, the optical deflector 21 is composed of a collection of minute mirrors, and each minute mirror is configured to swing using two axes orthogonal to each other (DMD: Digital Micromirror Device, Texas Instruments).

The image forming element that can be used as the optical deflector 21 is not limited to the above example. In the same minute swing mirror element as described above, two minute mirrors may be arranged on one axis so that the two minute mirrors can swing in directions orthogonal to each other around this one axis. .. Further, as the image forming element used as the light deflector 21, a transmissive liquid crystal element including a transmissive liquid crystal panel, a reflective liquid crystal element which is a liquid crystal device including a reflective liquid crystal panel, or the like may be used.

● Configuration of the Optical Deflection 21 Here, the detailed structure of the optical deflector 21 will be described with reference to FIG. As described above, the optical deflector 21 is a MEMS mirror manufactured by a semiconductor process and includes a micromirror 210. In FIG. 6, the longitudinal axis of the optical deflector 21 is the x-axis, the lateral axis of the optical deflector 21 orthogonal to the x-axis is the y-axis, and the x-axis and the y-axis are orthogonal to the optical deflector 21. The direction in which the light reflected by the above travels is defined as the z-axis. The x-axis, y-axis, and z-axis in FIG. 6 are axes whose directions are different from those already shown in FIG. 1 (X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis).

A pair of meandering beam portions 152 formed by meandering by a plurality of folded portions are arranged on both sides of the micromirror 210. The meandering beam portion 152 is folded back and divides each of the adjacent beams into a first beam portion 152a and a second beam portion 152b, each of which is provided with a piezoelectric member 156. The piezoelectric member 156 used here is, for example, PZT.

The voltage applied to the first beam portion 152a and the second beam portion 152b is independently applied to those adjacent to each other. These independently applied voltages are voltage values different from each other. When different voltages are applied to the first beam portion 152a and the second beam portion 152b, warpage occurs in each of them. Since the direction of warpage is determined by the applied voltage, the adjacent first beam portion 152a and the second beam portion 152b bend in different directions. By accumulating this deflection, the micromirror 210 rotates at a large angle around the x-axis. The meandering beam portion 152 is supported by the frame member 154.

● Effect of optical deflector 21 By using the optical deflector 21 having the above configuration, it is possible to perform optical scanning in the vertical direction centered on the x-axis with a low voltage. On the other hand, in the horizontal direction centered on the y-axis, it is possible to perform optical scanning by resonance using a torsion bar or the like connected to the minute mirror 210.

● Operation of the optical deflector 21 Return to FIG. When the image-creating beam 101 is two-dimensionally deflected by the optical deflector 21, the deflected beam is incident on the scanning mirror 22 as the scanning beam 102. The scanning mirror 22 is, for example, a concave mirror and has an effect of correcting the bending of the scanning line (scanning locus) generated in the intermediate screen 23. The scanning beam 102 reflected by the scanning mirror 22 is incident on the intermediate screen 23 while being translated by the light deflector 21.

When the optical element of the transmissive liquid crystal type element is used for the optical deflector 21, the scanning beam 102 two-dimensionally deflected by the transmissive liquid crystal type element is incident on the intermediate screen 23 without passing through the scanning mirror 22. do.

The scanning beam 102 incident on the intermediate screen 23 is scanned in the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction. That is, the optical deflector 21 biaxially deflects the scanning beam 102, and causes the intermediate screen 23 to be two-dimensionally subjected to sinusoidal vibration in the main scanning direction and sawtooth vibration in the sub-scanning direction. Deflection scan.

● Outline of the intermediate screen 23 An intermediate image is created by two-dimensionally deflecting and scanning the intermediate screen 23 with the scanning beam 102. The intermediate image created here is a color two-dimensional image. In the present embodiment, the description is based on the premise of a color image, but a monochrome intermediate image may be created on the intermediate screen 23.

The intermediate image displayed at each moment on the intermediate screen 23 is created by "only the pixels irradiated by the scanning beam 102 at that moment". Therefore, the above-mentioned "color two-dimensional image" is created as "a set of pixels displayed at each moment" by the two-dimensional scanning of the scanning beam 102.

● Configuration of the intermediate screen 23 The intermediate screen 23 is a microlens array in which fine convex lenses are two-dimensionally arranged, and the scanning beam 102 incident on the fine convex lenses is diffused and emitted from the emission surface. .. The scanning of the intermediate screen 23 is, for example, a raster scan in which the main scanning direction is scanned at a high speed and the sub scanning direction is scanned at a low speed. An intermediate image is created by the diffused light emitted from the scanned intermediate screen 23. That is, the intermediate image appears on the exit surface side (observation optical system 30 side) of the intermediate screen 23.

The optical element used as the intermediate screen 23 is not limited to the above example, and a diffuser plate, a transmissive screen, a reflective screen, or the like may be adopted. Further, one in which a plurality of microlenses are arranged one-dimensionally or one in which a plurality of microlenses are arranged three-dimensionally can also be used.

● Configuration of Observation Optical System 30 The observation optical system 30 includes a concave mirror 31 and an optical combiner 32. The concave mirror 31 magnifies and reflects the intermediate image created by the scanning optical system 20. In this embodiment, the front windshield 50 is used as the optical combiner 32.

● Action of the observation optical system 30 As described above, the intermediate image appears on the exit surface side of the intermediate screen 23, that is, on the concave mirror 31 side. The image light related to this intermediate image is reflected toward the optical combiner 32 by the reflecting surface of the concave mirror 31.

Generally, the front windshield 50 as an optical combiner 32 on which an intermediate image is projected is not a flat surface. Therefore, the image light related to the projected intermediate image is projected on a surface that is not a plane. The virtual image 2 that appears as a result is distorted according to the shape of the front windshield 50. Therefore, in order to correct this distortion, the shape of the single concave mirror 31 is devised. For example, the concave mirror 31 has a reflective surface that corrects an optical distortion element in which the horizontal line of the intermediate image becomes convex upward or downward, and is arranged at a position where the distortion of the virtual image 2 is corrected by this effect. Ru.

● Effect of Observation Optical System 30 The concave mirror 31 and the optical combiner 32 display the intermediate image as a virtual image 2 in a wide area in the field of view of the observer 3. This makes it possible for the observer 3 to reliably see the virtual image 2 even if the observer 3 moves his / her head slightly (even if he / she moves the viewpoint).

● Configuration of the control system of the image display device Here, the configuration of the control system for controlling the operation of the image creation device 100 included in the HUD 1 will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the HUD 1 includes an FPGA 600, a CPU 602, a ROM 604, a RAM 606, an I / F 608, a bus line 610, an LD driver 6111, and a MEMS controller 615.

The FPGA 600 uses the LD driver 6111 and the MEMS controller 615 to operate the light source unit 10 including the LA and the light deflector 21 which is the MEMS. The CPU 602 is a processor that controls the operation of each of the above-mentioned hardware included in the HUD1. The ROM 604 is a semiconductor memory that stores an image processing program executed by the CPU 602 to control each function of the HUD 1. The RAM 606 is a semiconductor memory used as a work area when the CPU 602 executes control processing of each hardware.

The I / F608 is a contact that connects the HUD1 to an external controller or the like. For example, HUD1 is connected to CAN (Control Area Network) or the like via I / F608. As a result, the HUD1 can operate while communicating with another external controller or the like connected via the CAN.

● Functional configuration of the image creating device 100 Next, the functional configuration of the image creating device 100 included in the HUD1 will be described. As shown in FIG. 5, the image creation device 100 includes a vehicle information input unit 800, an external information input unit 802, an image information generation unit 804, and an image creation unit 806.

The vehicle information input unit 800 acquires information (for example, the traveling speed and the mileage of the vehicle) from another external controller or the like connected via the I / F 608.

The external information input unit 802 acquires another external controller or the like (for example, GPS position information, traffic information from the navigation device, etc.) connected via the I / F 608.

The image information generation unit 804 performs a process of generating information for creating an intermediate image that is the source of the virtual image 2 (see FIG. 1) based on the division input from the vehicle information input unit 800 and the external information input unit 802. Execute.

The image creation unit 806 includes a control unit 8060. The control unit 8060 controls the operation of the light source unit 10 and the scanning optical system 20 based on the information generated by the image information generation unit 804. This control function generates an intermediate image projected on the front windshield 50. By the operation of the above functional blocks, it is possible to create a state in which the virtual image 2 is visually recognized from the viewpoint of the observer 3.

● First Embodiment Next, the features of the image creating apparatus 100 will be described in more detail. As described above, the intermediate image created by the image creating apparatus 100 is created by the scanning beam 102 two-dimensionally scanning the intermediate screen 23. In other words, the intermediate image is created by scanning the intermediate screen 23 with the scanning beam 102 in two directions, the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction. Generally, the scanning range for the intermediate screen 23 is defined, and this scanning range is defined as the effective image area. Since the effective image region is a region that is two-dimensionally deflected and scanned in the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction, the shape of the boundary thereof is rectangular. Since the shape of the intermediate image is determined according to the shape of the effective image area, the outer shape of the intermediate image is rectangular.

The image creating device 100 has a configuration in which a part of the intermediate image is blocked by the observation optical system 30. When the intermediate image created by the image creating apparatus 100 is displayed as a virtual image 2, it is difficult to arrange information that the observer 3 wants to recognize at the edge portion of the display range of the virtual image 2. This is because the movement of the line of sight increases when the display range is widened.

Therefore, it is difficult to arrange the information to be displayed in the virtual image 2 in the portion corresponding to the edge of the outer shape of the intermediate image, and it is effective even if a part of the edge portion of the intermediate image created in the intermediate screen 23 is omitted. There is no problem.

● Outline of the concave mirror 31 The virtual image 2 displayed in the HUD 1 is visually recognized in a state of being superimposed on the surrounding landscape existing in the field of view of the observer 3. Therefore, if an intermediate image is created in which the entire effective image area of the intermediate screen 23 is filled with information, the entire display area of the virtual image 2 displayed based on the intermediate image is filled with information. .. When such a large amount of information is expressed as a virtual image 2, the amount of information that the observer 3 should recognize becomes too large, which puts stress on the observer 3.

When the moving body is a car, the information that is convenient for the observer 3 to be recognized by the virtual image 2 is the traveling speed of the car, navigation information for guiding the traveling direction of the car, and the like. With this information, it is sufficient to create the intermediate image using only a part of the effective image area on the intermediate screen 23.

Therefore, the image creating apparatus 100 has a configuration for creating an intermediate image in which only the necessary portion is used for the virtual image 2 instead of using all the intermediate images based on the effective image area of the intermediate screen 23. Specifically, the intermediate image is created so that a part such as the central portion of the intermediate image, the central portion of the lower end and the upper end, and the like is used for the virtual image 2. As a result, it is possible to prevent lack of information that is convenient to be recognized, and to make the image creating device 100 smaller.

Based on the above, the shape of the concave mirror 31 included in the image creating apparatus 100 is a shape in which a part of the reflecting surface is omitted so as to block the light flux related to a part of the effective image area in the intermediate screen 23. And.

● Configuration of the concave mirror 31 Next, an example of the concave mirror 31 will be described in detail. As shown in FIG. 7, the concave mirror 31 has a structure that guides the light flux of the intermediate image, excluding the light flux corresponding to the four corners of the concave mirror 31, to the optical combiner 32. In other words, the concave mirror 31 kicks a part of the luminous flux related to the intermediate image.

Among the luminous fluxes related to the intermediate image, the luminous flux corresponding to the four corners of the concave mirror 31 is not guided to the optical combiner 32.

In other words, the shape of the concave mirror 31 is a shape lacking a corner portion forming a part of the contour of the reflective surface. Generally, the shape of the folded mirror that reflects the intermediate image to the optical combiner 32 is rectangular. In this respect, the concave mirror 31 has a reflective surface having a rectangular shape lacking corners.

The solid line shown in FIG. 7 shows the outer shape (contour) of the concave mirror 31. Further, the dotted line indicates the range in which the luminous flux related to the intermediate image reaches the concave mirror 31 (the range in which the luminous flux corresponding to the entire effective image region reaches).

In other words, the concave mirror 31 has a structure that does not reflect a luminous flux (luminous flux related to a part of the intermediate image) at a position corresponding to the corner of the rectangle, assuming a rectangle having the smallest area circumscribed by the intermediate image. is doing.

In other words, the concave mirror 31 acts so that a part of the above intermediate image (the corner portion of the rectangle having the smallest area circumscribing the intermediate image) does not represent the virtual image 2 in the optical combiner 32. .. That is, the luminous flux corresponding to the corner portion of the rectangle having the smallest area circumscribing the intermediate image is transmitted and acts so as not to be reflected toward the optical combiner 32.

Further, the concave mirror 31 is arranged inside the housing of the HUD1 in a state of being inclined with respect to the XZ plane. In other words, the concave mirror 31 is arranged in a state of being rotated by a predetermined amount with the virtual axis parallel to the Z axis as the rotation axis. Further, in other words, the concave mirror 31 is arranged to be inclined in a state of being rotated about the axis in the traveling direction of the light flux (approaching light flux) guided from the intermediate screen 23 to the reflective surface of the concave mirror 31. There is.

The shape of the concave mirror 31 may be a shape lacking all four corners as shown in FIG. 7A, or a shape lacking only the facing corners as shown in FIG. 7B. .. The concave mirror 31 has a structure that blocks the light flux corresponding to a part of the corner of the rectangle having the smallest area among the rectangles formed by the entire area scanned two-dimensionally as an intermediate image so that the observer 3 does not see them. have.

Next, the relationship between the concave mirror 31, the intermediate screen 23, and the optical combiner 32 will be described. FIG. 8A is the same as the example of the concave mirror 31 shown in FIG. 7A. As shown in FIG. 8B, the outer shape of the intermediate screen 23 is rectangular, and the shape of the region 231 of the effective image shown by the solid line has the same shape as the outer shape of the intermediate screen 23. The luminous flux from the intermediate screen 23 toward the concave mirror 31 is a luminous flux emitted from the entire region of the region 231. This is because the intermediate screen 23 performs the main scan and the sub scan on the entire area 231.

On the other hand, the display area 321 in the optical combiner 32 has the same shape as the image creation area 232 as shown in FIG. 8C. Of the area 231 of the intermediate screen 23, the area where the virtual image 2 is displayed via the optical combiner 32 is shown by a dotted line. The display area 321 has a shape lacking corners, following the shape of the concave mirror 31.

● Effect of concave mirror 31 Return to FIG. By making the shape of the concave mirror 31 different from the shape of the effective image region on the intermediate screen 23, that is, the shape of the created intermediate image, the image creation device 100 can be made smaller. Further, the HUD 1 provided with the image creating device 100 can be made smaller. The reason will be explained below.

As shown in FIG. 7, the concave mirror 31 is arranged in an inclined state inside the housing of the HUD1. As described above, the inclination of the concave mirror 31 is such that, for example, the longitudinal side of the concave mirror 31 is inclined with respect to the XY plane. The reason why the concave mirror 31 is tilted in this way is to reduce the size in the Z direction of the HUD 1 provided with the image creating device 100.

Further, the concave mirror 31 is arranged in a state of being rotated in the traveling direction of the light flux related to the intermediate image with respect to the reflecting surface. Since the concave mirror 31 lacks a part of the outer shape, it does not interfere with the housing of the HUD1 in the Y direction even if it is rotated as described above. That is, by using the concave mirror 31, the dimension of the HUD1 in the Y direction can be reduced.

Next, the effect obtained by tilting the concave mirror 31 with respect to the XY plane will be described in detail. FIG. 9 is an optical layout diagram in which a part of the optical elements constituting HUD1 is omitted, and is a view of what is shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from the + Y direction. In order to shorten the dimension in the traveling direction (Z direction) of the vehicle of HUD1 and reduce the dimension in the depth direction, the concave mirror 31 is arranged with a large inclination in the left-right direction (X direction) of the vehicle body.

As shown in FIG. 12 , in HUD1, the light flux incident on the intermediate screen 23 is incident on only one side in the sub-scanning direction with respect to the perpendicular line of the intermediate screen 23. In this way, the deflection angle in the sub-scanning direction can be narrowed by making the light beam incident on the intermediate screen 23 by making it asymmetrical (tilting) in the sub-scanning direction. As a result, the image scanning period rate can be increased in the sub-scanning direction, and the brightness can be improved.

Here, as shown in FIG. 9, the inclination of the concave mirror 31 in the X direction is θ2, the inclination of the intermediate screen 23 in the X direction is θ3, and the inclination of the optical combiner 32 in the X direction is θ1. In HUD1, the inclination θ2 of the concave mirror 31 is larger than the inclination θ1 of the optical combiner 32. That is, in HUD1, the optical elements are arranged so that θ2> θ1.

The inclination θ2 of the concave mirror 31 is larger than the inclination θ3 of the intermediate screen 23. That is, in HUD1, the optical elements are arranged so that θ2> θ3.

When the concave mirror 31 is greatly tilted in the X direction, the inclination of the marginal light beam 103 from the intermediate screen 23 toward the concave mirror 31 with respect to the vehicle body traveling direction (Z direction) is the image luminous flux 103 at both ends of the intermediate screen 23 in the X direction. Is very different.

In other words, when the concave mirror 31 is tilted significantly with respect to the XY plane, the tilt of the marginal light beam of the light beam relating to the intermediate image emitted from the intermediate screen 23 with respect to the Z direction is the image light flux 103 at both ends of the intermediate screen 23 in the X direction. Is very different.

Here, with reference to FIG. 13, a comparative example in the case where the concave mirror 31 is tilted with respect to the XY plane by using a conventional optical element will be described. When the optical elements are arranged as shown in FIG. 13, the angles of incidence on the intermediate screen 23 in the main scanning cross section become symmetrical. However, in this case, the scanning optical system 20 including the intermediate screen 23 must be tilted more with respect to the XY plane. The "main scanning cross section" means a cross section parallel to the XZ plane in the three-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system shown in FIG.

Then, the relationship between the inclination θ1 of the optical combiner 32, the inclination θ2 of the concave mirror 31, and the inclination θ3 of the intermediate screen 23 in the X direction is θ3> θ2> θ1. The reason why it is necessary to arrange the arrangement so as to satisfy such a relationship is due to the influence on the brightness of the virtual image 2.

To increase the brightness of the virtual image 2, the direction of the light rays toward the outermost periphery of the light rays incident on the intermediate screen 23 (scanning beam 102) and the marginal light rays of the light rays emitted from the intermediate screen 23 (image luminous flux 103). It is desirable that the orientations match as much as possible.

However, in order to widen the display area 321 (virtual image observable area) of the virtual image 2, it is necessary to give the intermediate screen 23 a diffusion characteristic. When the diffusion characteristic is given to the intermediate screen 23, the deviation between the direction of the light rays incident on the outermost periphery of the intermediate screen 23 and the direction of the light rays emitted from the intermediate screen 23 toward the concave mirror 31 becomes large.

That is, when the display area 321 of the virtual image 2 is expanded, the brightness of the virtual image 2 is reduced as a result. In order to prevent this, conventionally, as shown in FIG. 13, it is necessary to greatly project the scanning optical system 20 in the left-right direction (X direction) of the HUD1. As a result, the dimension of the HUD1 in the left-right direction becomes large.

Therefore, in the scanning optical system 20 according to the present embodiment, in order to reduce the horizontal dimension of the HUD 1, first, the arrangement relationship between the intermediate screen 23 and the concave mirror 31 is tilted as described above. As a result, the dimension of HUD1 in the X direction becomes smaller.

Further, the concave mirror 31 lacks a part of the four corners and is rotated about the direction in which the light flux to be reflected is incident. As a result, the dimension in the Y direction can also be reduced.

Further, in the image creating apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment, the dimension in the Z direction (depth direction) can be reduced by arranging the concave mirror 31 in a state of being greatly inclined with respect to the XY plane.

The HUD 1 has a configuration in which the effective range of the optical element arranged after the intermediate screen 23 is not a rectangle having four corners, but at least a part of the corners of the rectangle is limited to the shape. The shape of the concave mirror 31 is determined according to this effective range.

In other words, the HUD1 is configured such that among the luminous fluxes related to the intermediate image, the luminous flux corresponding to the four corners of the rectangle having the smallest area of the intermediate image is kicked by the optical element in the subsequent stage than the optical element for creating the intermediate image. Has been done. According to the HUD 1 having the above configuration, the vertical direction (Y direction) of the effective range can be narrowed as compared with the case where the effective range of the virtual image 2 is rectangular as in the conventional case. Thereby, the HUD1 can be made smaller in the vertical direction (Y direction).

Further, the scanning optical system 20 scans in the X direction and the Y direction. That is, the scanning in the scanning optical system 20 is two-dimensional. Therefore, the virtual image 2 approaches a circle unless the four corners of the intermediate image are used as effective ranges as in the present embodiment. Thereby, the image height of the scanning optical system 20 can be reduced. If the image height can be reduced, the optical characteristics (distortion, curvature of field, etc.) will be further improved.

Further, since the intermediate screen 23 is inclined in the sub-scanning direction (Y direction) with respect to the light flux from the light deflector 21, the apparent angle in the sub-scanning corresponding direction as seen from the light deflector 21 can be narrowed. As a result, the image height of the scanning optical system 20 in the sub-scanning direction can be reduced, so that the optical characteristics in the sub-scanning direction are further improved.

As described above, even if the HUD 1 according to the present embodiment has an optical element rotated in at least one traveling direction (Z direction) in the observation optical system 30, it is particularly in the vertical direction (Y direction). A small HUD1 can be obtained.

As described above, the image creating apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment can be made smaller as a whole by devising the scanning optical system 20 and the concave mirror 31. Further, the HUD 1 including the image creating device 100 has an optical element rotated in at least one traveling direction (Z direction) in the observation optical system 30, and particularly reduces the dimension in the vertical direction (Y direction). be able to. Further, even if the HUD 1 is small, it can display necessary information as a virtual image 2 without lacking information that the observer 3 should visually recognize.

Further, the HUD1 according to the present embodiment uses an eccentric optical system for the purpose of reducing the overall size. Further, among the rectangles having the smallest area circumscribing the intermediate image in the eccentric optical system, the light beam corresponding to the portion (corner of the rectangle circumscribing the intermediate image) that contributes to the determination of the size of the HUD1 is detected in the observation optical system 30. It is configured to be kicked by an optical element. As a result, the scanning range (image circle) can be reduced, which is advantageous in terms of optical performance, and improvement in optical performance can be expected.

Second Embodiment Next, another embodiment of the image creating apparatus 100 will be described. The same components as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. In the image creating apparatus 100 according to the second embodiment, the outer shape of the intermediate screen 23a is different from that of the first embodiment. Further, the synchronization detection sensor 24 is arranged according to the outer shape of the intermediate screen 23a.

As described above, the luminous fluxes related to the four corners of the intermediate image created by the image creating apparatus 100 are not used when the HUD 1 displays the virtual image 2. Therefore, the image creating apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment includes an intermediate screen 23a having a shape that does not form an intermediate image at a position related to the light flux that is not used for displaying the virtual image 2. As shown in FIG. 10, the outer shape of the intermediate screen 23a has a shape lacking a portion corresponding to the intermediate image corresponding to the light flux not used for the virtual image 2.

The outer shape of the intermediate screen 23a is not rectangular in overall shape, and one corner in the sub-scanning direction is diagonally missing, and the other corner in the sub-scanning direction is missing in a rectangular shape. In other words, in the intermediate screen 23a, the effective image area at one corner in the sub-scanning direction is narrowed diagonally, and the effective image area at the other corner in the sub-scanning direction is narrowed in a rectangular shape.

The intermediate screen 23a is scanned in the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction. Therefore, in order to perform stable deflection scanning, a synchronization detection sensor 24 that detects the scanning timing is arranged at a predetermined position. The synchronization detection sensor 24 is a sensor for detecting a range in which two-dimensional scanning is performed using the scanning beam 102 from the optical deflector 21 (see FIG. 3), and is composed of, for example, a PD (photodiode).

The synchronization detection sensor 24 is arranged inside a rectangle having a minimum area in which at least a part thereof circumscribes the intermediate image. The synchronization detection sensor 24 is arranged at substantially the same position as the intermediate screen 23a with respect to the light ray traveling direction. The synchronization detection sensor 24 is arranged at a portion of the corner of the intermediate screen 23a that is missing in a rectangular shape. Since the shape of the intermediate screen 23a follows the shape of the intermediate image, it is possible to avoid interference between the synchronization detection sensor 24 and the intermediate screen 23a even if the intermediate screen 23a is arranged as described above.

Here, the relationship between the arrangement of the synchronization detection sensor 24 and the intermediate screen 23a will be described. When the time from when the luminous flux deflected by the optical deflector 21 is detected by one of the synchronization detection sensors 24 to when it is not detected by the other synchronization detection sensor 24 is measured, the scanning period 241 and image scanning shown in FIG. 11 are measured. Period 242 is identified.

FIG. 11B is used as a comparative example of this embodiment. First, a comparative example will be described. In the comparative example shown in FIG. 11B, the synchronization detection sensor 24 is arranged outside the main scanning direction end portion of the intermediate screen 23.

Next, this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 11 (a). The arrangement of the synchronization detection sensor 24 with respect to the intermediate screen 23a is inside the rectangle having the smallest area circumscribing the intermediate screen 23a. The reason why the intermediate screen 23a can be arranged in this way is that the outer shape of the intermediate screen 23a is cut off in a rectangular shape at the end portion where the synchronization detection sensor 24 is arranged.

As is clear from comparing FIGS. 11 (a) and 11 (b), the present embodiment can narrow the scanning period 241 as compared with the comparative example. If the scanning period 241 can be narrowed, the ratio of the image scanning period 242 to the scanning period 241 in the main scanning direction becomes high, and the brightness of the intermediate image created by the scanning optical system 20 can be made higher.

In other words, since the intermediate screen 23a can have a narrower scanning range in the main scanning direction than in the comparative example, the ratio of the image scanning period 242 to the amplitude of the optical deflector 21 increases in the main scanning direction. As a result, the brightness of the intermediate image created by the scanning optical system 20 can be further increased.

In particular, since the main scanning direction is sinusoidal vibration, the scanning speed becomes slower toward the end of the amplitude. Therefore, the brightness of the portion corresponding to the end of the amplitude becomes high. Therefore, it is required to increase the image scanning period rate. According to the embodiment described above, the amplitude of the intermediate screen 23a in the main scanning direction can be narrowed, and the brightness of the HUD1 is improved.

In other words, by arranging the synchronization detection sensor 24 so as to scrape a part of the edge portion of the intermediate image that does not reach the visible area (eye box) by the observer 3, the maximum in the main scanning direction of the optical deflector 21 is obtained. The amplitude can be reduced. As a result, the image scanning period rate can be increased in the main scanning direction, so that the brightness of the HUD can be improved.

Third Embodiment Next, another embodiment of the image creating apparatus 100 will be described. The same components as those of the first and second embodiments are designated by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. In the image creating apparatus 100 according to the third embodiment, the arrangement of the synchronization detection sensor 24 included in the scanning optical system 20 is different from that in the second embodiment.

As described above in the first embodiment, the image creating apparatus 100 and the HUD 1 are configured so that the image regions at the four corners of the intermediate image created by the scanning optical system 20 are not used for displaying the virtual image 2.

In order to perform stable deflection scanning, it is necessary to detect the position corresponding to the square of the intermediate image and control the scanning timing. Therefore, the synchronization detection sensor 24 is arranged at a predetermined position. The position of the synchronization detection sensor 24 may be inside a rectangle having a minimum area in which at least a part thereof circumscribes the intermediate image.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 12 (c) and 12 (d), the image creating apparatus 100 shifts the arrangement of the synchronization detection sensor 24 in the direction in which the light flux is incident on the scanning surface of the intermediate screen 23. .. In other words, the synchronization detection sensor 24 is arranged closer to the optical deflector 21 than the intermediate screen 23.

Similar to the shape of the intermediate image according to the second embodiment, the shape of the intermediate image in the third embodiment also has one two corners in the sub-scanning direction cut diagonally, and the other two in the sub-scanning direction. The corners are cut into rectangles. The synchronization detection sensor 24 is arranged on the side cut into a rectangle.

The shape of the intermediate screen 23 is rectangular, unlike the intermediate screen 23a according to the second embodiment. Even if the shape of the intermediate screen 23 remains rectangular, it does not interfere with the intermediate image because the synchronization detection sensor 24 is on the light deflector 21 side of the intermediate screen 23 with respect to the light ray traveling direction.

By making the shape of the intermediate screen 23 rectangular, the image creating apparatus 100 according to the third embodiment has a simple structure of the scanning optical system 20 as compared with the second embodiment, and can be manufactured at a lower cost.

By arranging the synchronization detection sensor 24 inside a rectangle having a minimum area in which at least a part thereof circumscribes the intermediate image, the scanning range can be narrowed when the same synchronization detection sensor 24 is used (FIG. 1). reference). As a result, the ratio of the image scanning period to the amplitude of the deflector becomes high, and the brightness of the scanning optical system can be further increased.

In particular, since the main scanning direction vibrates in a sinusoidal wave, the scanning speed becomes slower and the brightness becomes higher toward the end of the amplitude. Therefore, it is required to increase the image scanning period rate. The embodiment described above is desirable because the amplitude of the intermediate screen 23 in the main scanning direction can be narrowed and the brightness of the HUD can be improved.

1 HUD
2 Virtual image 3 User 10 Light source unit 20 Scanning optical system 21 Optical deflector 22 Scanning mirror 23 Intermediate screen 30 Observation optical system 31 Concave mirror 32 Combiner 50 Front glass 101 Image display beam 102 Scanning beam

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-101829

Claims (13)

A light source unit that emits light from a light source element,
An image forming element that creates an intermediate image on the intermediate screen by the luminous flux emitted from the light source unit, and
A reflecting optical element that guides the intermediate image to an optical element for making the observer visually recognize it as a virtual image.
Equipped with
The image forming element is arranged so that the central axis of the image light emitted from the image forming element is inclined in the left-right direction when viewed from the observer with respect to the axis in the visual field direction of the observer.
The intermediate screen transmits the image light and is capable of transmitting the image light.
The reflective optical element reflects the image light transmitted through the intermediate screen, and has an outer shape lacking a portion corresponding to a corner of a rectangular having a minimum area circumscribing the intermediate image. Guide the intermediate image excluding the portion corresponding to the optical element to the optical element.
A display image creation device characterized by this. A light source unit that emits light from the light source element to the image forming element,
The image forming element that creates an intermediate image on the intermediate screen by the luminous flux emitted from the light source unit, and the image forming element.
A reflecting optical element that guides the intermediate image to an optical element for making the observer visually recognize it as a virtual image.
Equipped with
The image forming element is arranged so that the central axis of the image light emitted from the image forming element is inclined in the left-right direction when viewed from the observer with respect to the axis in the visual field direction of the observer.
The intermediate screen transmits the image light and is capable of transmitting the image light.
The reflective optical element reflects the image light transmitted through the intermediate screen, and the light beam corresponding to the corner of the rectangular having the smallest area circumscribing the intermediate image is not visually recognized by the observer. The shape of the reflective optical element is such that the reflective surface is missing.
A display image creation device characterized by this. A light source unit that emits light from a light source element,
An image forming element that creates an intermediate image on the intermediate screen by the luminous flux emitted from the light source unit, and
A reflecting optical element that guides the intermediate image to an optical element for making the observer visually recognize it as a virtual image.
Equipped with
The image forming element is arranged so that the central axis of the image light emitted from the image forming element is inclined in the left-right direction when viewed from the observer with respect to the axis in the visual field direction of the observer.
The intermediate screen transmits the image light and is capable of transmitting the image light.
The reflective optical element reflects the image light transmitted through the intermediate screen, and transmits the light beam corresponding to the corner of the rectangle having the smallest area inscribed with the intermediate image and does not reflect the optical element. ,
A display image creation device characterized by this. The reflective optical element is arranged so that the normal of the reflective surface of the reflective optical element is inclined in the left-right direction with respect to the axis in the viewing direction of the observer.
The direction in which the normal of the reflective surface of the reflective optical element is inclined in the left-right direction is the same as the direction in which the central axis of the image light emitted from the image-forming element is inclined in the left-right direction.
The display image creating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The intermediate screen is arranged so that the normal of the surface of the intermediate screen is inclined in the left-right direction with respect to the axis in the visual field direction of the observer.
The direction in which the normal of the surface of the intermediate screen is inclined in the left-right direction is the same side as the direction in which the central axis of the image light emitted from the image forming element is inclined in the left-right direction.
The display image creating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The reflected optical element has a rectangular outer shape, and at least one of the four corners is cut out.
The display image creating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5. The reflecting optical element is rotating in the traveling direction of the luminous flux from the intermediate screen.
The display image creating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6. The image forming element is a reflective liquid crystal element.
The display image creating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7. The image forming element is a transmissive liquid crystal element.
The display image creating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7. The image forming element is a micro swing mirror element composed of an aggregate of a plurality of micro mirrors.
The display image creating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7. An image display device mounted on a moving body and forming information about the moving body as a virtual image recognizable by the operator of the moving body.
A light source unit that emits light from a light source element,
An image forming element that creates an intermediate image on the intermediate screen by the luminous flux emitted from the light source unit, and
An optical element for making the operator visually recognize the intermediate image as the virtual image, and
A reflective optical element that guides the intermediate image to the optical element,
Equipped with
The image forming element is arranged so that the central axis of the image light emitted from the image forming element is inclined in the left-right direction when viewed from the operator with respect to the axis in the visual field direction of the operator.
The intermediate screen transmits the image light and is capable of transmitting the image light.
The reflective optical element reflects the image light transmitted through the intermediate screen, and has an outer shape lacking a portion corresponding to a corner of a rectangular having a minimum area circumscribing the intermediate image. Guide the intermediate image excluding the portion corresponding to the optical element to the optical element.
An image display device characterized by this. An image display device mounted on a moving body and forming information about the moving body as a virtual image recognizable by the operator of the moving body.
A light source unit that emits light from a light source element,
An image forming element that creates an intermediate image on the intermediate screen by the luminous flux emitted from the light source unit, and
An optical element for making the operator visually recognize the intermediate image as the virtual image, and
A reflective optical element that guides the intermediate image to the optical element,
Equipped with
The image forming element is arranged so that the central axis of the image light emitted from the image forming element is inclined in the left-right direction when viewed from the operator with respect to the axis in the visual field direction of the operator.
The intermediate screen transmits the image light and is capable of transmitting the image light.
The reflective optical element reflects the image light transmitted through the intermediate screen so that the light beam corresponding to the corner of the rectangular having the smallest area circumscribing the intermediate image is not visible to the operator. The shape of the reflective optical element is such that the reflective surface is missing.
An image display device characterized by this. An image display device mounted on a moving body and forming information about the moving body as a virtual image recognizable by the operator of the moving body.
A light source unit that emits light from a light source element,
An image forming element that creates an intermediate image on the intermediate screen by the luminous flux emitted from the light source unit, and
An optical element for making the operator visually recognize the intermediate image as the virtual image, and
A reflective optical element that guides the intermediate image to the optical element,
Equipped with
The image forming element is arranged so that the central axis of the image light emitted from the image forming element is inclined in the left-right direction when viewed from the operator with respect to the axis in the visual field direction of the operator.
The intermediate screen transmits the image light and is capable of transmitting the image light.
The reflective optical element reflects the image light transmitted through the intermediate screen, and transmits the light beam corresponding to the corner of the rectangle having the smallest area inscribed with the intermediate image and does not reflect the optical element. ,
An image display device characterized by this.

Images