Color wheel synchronization in multi-frame-rate display systems

Abstract

A display system (200) in which light from source (202) is focused onto a spinning color wheel (204). The spinning color wheel (204) spins at a constant rate and creates of beam of light that changes from one primary color to the next in rapid sequence. The primary colored beam of light impinges a spatial light modulator (206), which is often a DMD or LCD. A controller (208) receives an input video signal and determines the native frame rate of the image source. The controller (208) sends image data to the spatial light modulator (206) in synchronization with the color wheel (204)—image data representing the red portions of the image is sent during the period in which the red color filter is passing through the beam of light—at the native frame rate of the image source. The modulated light is focused onto an image plane (210) by projection lens (212) to form an image. The eye of the viewer integrates the sequential primary color images giving the perception of a single full-color image. The display system uses a single nominal color wheel speed to display input signals having various native frame rates. The nominal color wheel speed is selected to allow the same color wheel rate to be used for a variety of native frame rates. The color wheel speed is selected to provide a sub-frame rate that is an integer multiple the native frame rate of each potential input format.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.