Projector

摘要

Aspects of the invention can provide a projector having a illumination system that can include a light source device emitting a luminous flux toward a region to be illuminated, a first lens array having a plurality of small lenses for separating the luminous flux emitted from the light source device into a plurality of partial light fluxes, a second lens array having a plurality of small lenses corresponding to the plurality of small lenses of the first lens array, a polarization conversion element that converts non-polarized light contained in the light fluxes emitted from the second lens array into polarized light, and a superposing lens for superposing the individual partial light fluxes emitted from the polarization conversion element in a region to be illuminated, an electro-optical modulator that modulates the luminous flux emitted from the illumination system in accordance with image information, and a projection optical system that projects the luminous flux modulated by the electro-optical modulator. The small lenses each in the first lens array have, so as to make the luminous flux emitted from the illumination system an luminous flux having a sectional shape that illuminates an entirety of an image formation region in one direction of vertical and horizontal directions in the image formation region of the electro-optical modulator and partially illuminates the image formation region thereof in the other direction, a planar shape compressed in the other direction. A scanning system can be further disposed between the illumination system and the electro-optical modulator so as to scan the luminous flux along the other direction on the image formation region in synchronization with a frame rate of the electro-optical modulator, wherein the light source device emits a luminous flux diverging with travel toward a region to be illuminated. The plurality of small lenses in the first lens array can be arranged along the one direction and the other direction. The polarization conversion element can include a polarized light separating element that separates the luminous flux into a luminous flux involving a first polarized light component and a luminous flux involving a second polarized light component, and a phase plate that converts one of the luminous flux involving a first polarized light component and the luminous flux involving a second polarized light component into the other. The polarized light separating element can include a plurality of polarized light separating prisms each of which has a polarized light separating surface that allows the luminous flux involving the first polarized light component of two polarized light components contained in the luminous flux going through as it is and reflects the luminous flux involving the second polarized light component in a direction perpendicular to an illumination optical axis, and a reflection surface that reflects the second polarized light component in a direction in parallel with the illumination optical axis. The plurality of polarized light separating prisms can be arranged along the one direction, and polarized light separating surfaces in the polarized light separating prisms at both ends in one direction of the polarized light separating elements of the plurality of polarized light separating prisms are constituted so as to reflect the luminous flux involving the second polarized light component in a direction approaching the illumination optical axis.