LASER PROJECTORS

&
PICO-PROJECTORS

THULASI RAM P
EC 94014
M. TECH – E. I.
 contents
Introduction
LCD projector
Need for pico-projectors
Pico projector
Comparison between lcd and pico
projectors
DEFINITION
A projector is a device that uses light and
lenses to take an image and project a
magnified image onto a larger screen or wall.

Effects
The projector sends the lighted image through
at least two lenses (concave and convex) to
focus the image and then magnify it out to the
screen.
LCD PROJECTOR
DLP
 Background - DMD
 Digital Mircomirror Device (DMD)
 Invented by Larry Hornbeck
of Texas Instrument
 light switch
 Rectangular array of up to 1.3 million of hinge-mounted movable microscopic
mirrors
 Size of a fifth of human hair
 Each mirror correspond to one pixel of image
 Mounted over a CMOS SRAM
 DMD
 Not operating – parked at 0 degree
 On – Tilt +10 degrees
 Off – Tilt –10 degrees
 On/Off Switching – 1000 times/sec
 848 x 600 DMD
 Consists of 508,800 tiny,

tiltable mirrors
 Background - DLP
 DLP – Digital Light Processing
 Proprietary Display Technology developed by
Texas Instrument
 Imaging system employ the use of one or two
or three DMDs
 Consisted of a light source, color filter system,
cooling system, illumination and projection
optics, memory and signal processing support.
 How DLP works ?
1. DMD chip

2. DLP I – Gray Scale Image

3. DLP II – Digital Color Creation

4. Applications and Configurations

 Gray Scale Image
 “On” – light Pixel vs. “Off” – Dark Pixel
 Mirror switched on more frequently than off
– Reflects Light Gray Pixel
 Mirror switched off more than on – Reflects
Dark Gray Pixel
 Rapid Switching allows up to 1024 shades
of gray reflections
 Digitalized video signal entering DMD get
converted into highly detailed grayscale
image
 Color Creation
 Color is added as white light from the lamp
passes through a color wheel filter
 Color Wheel – RED, GREEN & BLUE
 As wheel spin, mirrors on DMD are tilted on
for the exact amount of time required for
each basic color
 Only 1 color is shined onto DMD at a time
 When spinning fast enough, human eyes
blend alternating flashes to view “more”
colors in the projected image.
 Advantages
Smaller package size
Light in weight
Higher Contrast Ratio
( by increasing the tilt of mirror to12
degrees, and featuring a black substrate
under mirrors)
Reduced Pixelation
(less visible pixel grid compared to LCD)
 Projection Technologies
LCD DLP

Liquid Crystal Display Digital Light Processing

3 panels of liquid crystal Single or 3-chip DMD’s

sandwiched between glass (Digital Micro-mirror
Device)
Transmission technology
Reflective technology
Light level is
analogue controlled
Light level is
digitally controlled using
pulse width modulation
 Technology Comparison
LCD Single Chip DLP
Domestic Quality
Upper domestic quality

Lower purchase cost Middle purchase cost

Higher long term cost
Liquid crystal panels age
causing discolouration and
uneven illumination
Lower long term cost
True digital projection
technology using pulse width
modulation

Colour matching difficult Minimal pixel structure due to

very small inter pixel gaps
Liquid Crystal has slow
response time causing motion Suffers from “rainbow” effect
blur
RGB sequential, 1/3 of light in
Lower contrast ratio than DLP
use
Pixel structure more apparent
than DLP, low fill factor
 Ageing Comparison
The following slides are from a test conducted by Munsel Colour Science
Laboratory at Rochester Institute of Technology for Texas Instruments
showing the image quality of 5 LCD and 2 DLP projectors
after over 3000 hours of use.
LCD Experiment Results 3312 Hours
Photo at 24 hours

LCD 1 LCD 2

LCD 3 LCD 4 LCD 5

DLP Experiment Results 3312 Hours

Photo at 24 hours
DLP 1 DLP 2
 Progressive Degradation

LCD 5
THANK YOU