Liquid crystal lens array and glasses using the same

Abstract

To further utilize a liquid crystal lens array.SOLUTION: A liquid crystal lens array comprises: a liquid crystal layer which is formed between a first substrate and a second substrate; pattern electrode layers which are disposed between the first substrate and the liquid crystal layer and are formed by arranging a plurality of electrodes in a predetermined pattern; a ground electrode layer which is disposed between the second substrate and the liquid crystal layer; and a controller which controls voltage applied to the pattern electrode layer. Each electrode of the pattern electrode layer forms each liquid crystal lens, and an aggregate of a plurality of liquid crystal lenses forms a liquid crystal lens array. The controller controls the voltage so as to set the lens power of each liquid crystal lens within a range from -5 diopters to +5 diopters.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a liquid crystal lens array and glasses using the same. [Background technology]

[0002] As described in Patent Document 1, a liquid crystal lens array has been developed that utilizes the property of liquid crystals that the refractive index changes with voltage. Specifically, Patent Document 1 describes a lighting control device that does not have a moving part, in which the focal length of the liquid crystal lens is changed by variably adjusting the voltage of the electrodes sandwiching the liquid crystal layer. As an example, Patent Document 1 describes that the liquid crystal lens array can be used as a three-dimensional display device that takes horizontal parallax into consideration in an information processing terminal such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2014-112157 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 only describes the use of the liquid crystal lens array as a 3D display device, and does not describe any other applications, which causes a problem that the liquid crystal lens array cannot be further utilized.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to solve the above-mentioned problem of being unable to further utilize the liquid crystal lens array. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A liquid crystal lens array according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes: a first substrate and a second substrate; a liquid crystal layer formed between the first substrate and the second substrate; a patterned electrode layer disposed between the first substrate and the liquid crystal layer, the patterned electrode layer having a plurality of electrodes arranged in a predetermined pattern; a ground electrode layer disposed between the second substrate and the liquid crystal layer; A control unit that controls a voltage applied to the patterned electrode layer; Equipped with Each of the electrodes of the patterned electrode layer forms a liquid crystal lens, and a liquid crystal lens array is formed by a collection of a plurality of the liquid crystal lenses, The control unit controls a voltage so as to set the lens power of each of the liquid crystal lenses in a range from −5 diopters to +5 diopters. The structure is as follows.

[0007] In addition, in liquid crystal lens arrays, Each of the electrodes of the patterned electrode layer is formed so that the diameter of each of the liquid crystal lenses is 1 mm or less. The structure is as follows.

[0008] In addition, in liquid crystal lens arrays, The electrodes of the pattern electrode layer are configured to include a circular first electrode and a circular second electrode larger than the first electrode and having a hole formed therein into which the first electrode is disposed without contacting the first electrode. The structure is as follows.

[0009] In addition, in liquid crystal lens arrays, The second electrode of the patterned electrode layer has a substantially hexagonal outer shape, and the electrodes of the patterned electrode layer consisting of the first electrode and the second electrode are arranged in a honeycomb shape. The structure is as follows.

[0010] Further, glasses according to an embodiment of the present disclosure include a liquid crystal lens array as a lens. The structure is as follows. Effect of the Invention

[0011] By being configured as described above, the present disclosure can achieve further utilization of the liquid crystal lens array. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a liquid crystal lens array according to the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] 2 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a part of the liquid crystal lens array disclosed in FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] 2 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a part of the liquid crystal lens array disclosed in FIG. 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] <Embodiment 1> The present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 shows a schematic plan view of a liquid crystal lens array, and Fig. 2 shows an enlarged view and a cross-sectional view of a part of the liquid crystal lens array. Fig. 3 shows the dimensions of the liquid crystal lens array.

[0014] The liquid crystal lens array in this embodiment includes patterned electrode layers VC and VO formed by arranging a plurality of electrodes in a predetermined pattern, as shown in Fig. 1. Each electrode of the patterned electrode layers VC and VO forms a liquid crystal lens, and a liquid crystal lens array is formed by an assembly of a plurality of liquid crystal lenses. The liquid crystal lens array in this embodiment can be used as, for example, a lens for glasses. However, the liquid crystal lens array is not limited to being used as a lens for glasses, and may be used for other purposes.

[0015] Specifically, as shown in the AA cross-sectional view of Fig. 2, the liquid crystal lens array includes a liquid crystal layer LC formed between a first substrate P1 and a second substrate P2, patterned electrode layers VC, VO arranged between the first substrate P1 and the liquid crystal layer LC and formed by arranging a plurality of electrodes in a predetermined pattern, a ground electrode layer VG arranged between the second substrate P2 and the liquid crystal layer LC, and a control unit 10 that controls the voltage applied to the patterned electrode layers VC, VO. In addition, an insulating layer L and a high resistance layer HR are arranged between the patterned electrode layers VC, LO and the liquid crystal layer LC. Each of the substrates and the electrode layers are all made of a transparent material.

[0016] The pattern electrode layers VC, VO include a first electrode VC formed with a plurality of circular electrodes, and a second electrode VO formed with a plurality of annular electrodes located around each of the first electrodes VC. Specifically, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the first electrode VC is formed with individual circular electrodes connected to a wiring pattern VC' to form a row, and a plurality of such rows of circular electrodes are arranged. For example, one circular electrode is formed with a diameter W1 = 300 μm, and the width of the wiring pattern VC' connecting each electrode is formed with W4 = 40 μm. The interval between each row is formed with W7 = 346 μm.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 2, the second electrode VO is formed in a ring shape with an outer shape of each electrode being approximately hexagonal and a hole formed inside. At this time, the inner hole of the second electrode VO is formed larger than the outer diameter of each circular electrode which is the first electrode VC, and the inner diameter is W2=360 μm. The first electrode VC is arranged in the inner hole of the second electrode VO without contacting it, so that a space of 30 μm is formed between the first electrode VC and the second electrode VO. The size of the smallest part of the outer shape of one second electrode VO is W3=400 μm, and the smallest part of the width of the ring-shaped part of the second electrode VO is W5=20 μm. In addition, the electrode is cut out in a part of the ring-shaped part of one second electrode VO so that the wiring pattern VC' of the first electrode VC can be laid, and the width is W6=60 μm. In this embodiment, the second electrode VO is described as an electrode having an outer shape that is substantially hexagonal, but in actuality, the electrodes are connected at their outer edges, and a plurality of holes are formed in which the corresponding first electrodes VC are disposed.

[0018] By configuring the pattern electrode layers VC and VO as described above, a ground electrode VG and a liquid crystal lens are formed by one circular first electrode VC and one substantially hexagonal second electrode VO. Specifically, the application of a voltage by the control unit 10 changes the orientation of the liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer LC between the one circular first electrode VC and the one substantially hexagonal second electrode VO and the ground electrode VG, thereby forming one liquid crystal lens. At this time, in this embodiment, the diameter of one liquid crystal lens corresponds to the outer shape of the second electrode VO and is approximately 400 μm. In particular, it is preferable that each liquid crystal lens constituting the liquid crystal lens array in the present disclosure has a diameter of 1 mm or less.

[0019] In the liquid crystal lens array of this embodiment, the liquid crystal lenses are arranged in a honeycomb shape as shown in FIG. 2. However, the arrangement of the liquid crystal lenses is not necessarily limited to a honeycomb shape, and may be arranged in a lattice shape or in any other arrangement. The outer shape of the first electrode VC is not limited to a circular shape and may be any shape, and the outer shape of the second electrode VO is not limited to a substantially hexagonal shape and may be any shape. Furthermore, the above-mentioned dimensions of the first electrode VC and the second electrode VO constituting the liquid crystal lens are merely examples, and any dimensions may be used.

[0020] The control unit 10 controls the focal length of each liquid crystal lens by variably adjusting the voltage applied to the pattern electrodes VC and VO. For example, the control unit 10 controls the voltage to set the lens power of each liquid crystal lens in the range of -5 diopters to +5 diopters. For example, when the diameter of each liquid crystal lens is 0.8 mm, the control unit 10 controls the lens power to ±5 diopters.

[0021] Here, a case where a liquid crystal lens array, which is an assembly of the above-mentioned liquid crystal lenses, is used as a lens for glasses will be described. For example, if the distance between the eye and the glasses is about 2 cm and the distance to the object to be viewed is about 10 cm, the focus will be set at a distance 5 times larger. Therefore, by controlling the lens power of each liquid crystal lens to achieve the above-mentioned lens power, the liquid crystal lens array can be used as a lens for glasses. In this case, the liquid crystal lens component is located about 2 cm away from the eye, but since the focus is set at a position of about 10 cm, such a component does not bother the viewer.

[0022] As mentioned above, if the lens power of each liquid crystal lens exceeds the range of ±5 diopters, an image will be formed on each liquid crystal lens, resulting in a compound eye lens. For this reason, it is desirable to control the voltage so that the lens power of each liquid crystal lens is within the range of ±5 diopters, where a compound eye image is not formed, as mentioned above.

[0023] When a liquid crystal lens array is constructed as described above, since the liquid crystal lenses have a diameter of 1 mm or less, it is easy to increase the lens power and to manufacture the liquid crystal lenses with uniform characteristics. Since the lens power required for each liquid crystal lens of the liquid crystal lens array can be as small as ±5 diopters, the liquid crystal lens array can be easily made large in diameter, enabling a stable supply of lenses. Furthermore, since the lens system of each liquid crystal lens is small, the thickness of the liquid crystal layer can be made thin. As described above, the liquid crystal lens array of this embodiment can be easily used as a lens for glasses.

[0024] Furthermore, by using the above-mentioned liquid crystal lens array as a lens for glasses, the effect of improving eyesight due to the pinhole effect can be further improved, which also makes it possible to effectively use the liquid crystal lens array as a lens for glasses.

[0025] Although the present disclosure has been described above with reference to the above-mentioned embodiments, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments. Various modifications that can be understood by a person skilled in the art can be made to the configuration and details of the present disclosure within the scope of the present disclosure. Furthermore, each of the above-mentioned embodiments can be appropriately combined with other embodiments. [Explanation of symbols]

[0026] 10 Control section P1 First board P2 Second board LC liquid crystal layer VC first electrode (pattern electrode layer) VO Second electrode (pattern electrode layer) VG Ground electrode

Claims

1. The first substrate and the second substrate, A liquid crystal layer formed between the first substrate and the second substrate, A pattern electrode layer is disposed between the first substrate and the liquid crystal layer, and is formed by arranging a plurality of electrodes in a predetermined pattern, A ground electrode layer disposed between the second substrate and the liquid crystal layer, A control unit that controls the voltage applied to the pattern electrode layer, Equipped with, Each electrode in the pattern electrode layer forms a liquid crystal lens, and a collection of multiple liquid crystal lenses forms a liquid crystal lens array. The control unit controls the voltage to set the lens power of each liquid crystal lens forming the liquid crystal lens array to a range of -5 diopters to +5 diopters when the liquid crystal lens array is used as a lens for eyeglasses. Liquid crystal lens array.

2. A liquid crystal lens array according to Claim 1, The control unit controls the voltage to set the lens power of each liquid crystal lens in the range of -5 diopters to +5 diopters, so that an image is formed on each of the liquid crystal lenses forming the liquid crystal lens array and the liquid crystal lens array does not become a compound lens. Liquid crystal lens array.

3. A liquid crystal lens array according to Claim 1, Multiple pattern electrode layers, each containing a plurality of electrodes, are arranged in a plurality. The control unit controls the voltage applied to the plurality of pattern electrode layers to change the focal length of each liquid crystal lens. Liquid crystal lens array.

4. A liquid crystal lens array according to claim 3, Each of the pattern electrode layers is configured such that a plurality of electrodes in the pattern electrode layer have a circular first electrode connected by a wiring pattern, and a second electrode that is larger in shape than the first electrode and has a hole formed inside it that does not come into contact with the first electrode. Liquid crystal lens array.

5. A liquid crystal lens array according to claim 4, The outer shape of the second electrode in the pattern electrode layer is approximately hexagonal, and each electrode in the pattern electrode layer, formed by the first electrode and the second electrode, is arranged in a honeycomb pattern. Liquid crystal lens array.

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