US-12625344-B2 - Fixing mechanism for an optical element comprising first and second fixing rods and projection device

US12625344B2US 12625344 B2US12625344 B2US 12625344B2US-12625344-B2

Abstract

A fixing mechanism provided for fixing an optical element includes a first fixing rod and a second fixing rod. The first fixing rod has a first sidewall and forms a first groove. The first sidewall is connected to a first extending portion protruding outward from the first sidewall and a first abutting portion. The first groove is located beside the first extending portion. The first extending portion is connected between the first sidewall and the first abutting portion. The second fixing rod has a second sidewall and forms a second groove. The second groove faces the first groove. A first end of the optical element is accommodated in the first groove, and a second end of the optical element is accommodated in the second groove. The first abutting portion abuts against the optical element thereby fixing the optical element in the fixing mechanism. A projection device is also provided.

Inventors

KUN-CHEN HSU

Assignees

CORETRONIC CORPORATION

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20221130
Priority Date: 20211203

Claims (12)

1 . A fixing mechanism configured to fix an optical element, the fixing mechanism comprising a first fixing rod and a second fixing rod, wherein the first fixing rod has a first sidewall and forms a first groove, the first sidewall is connected to a first extending portion protruding outward from the first sidewall and a first abutting portion, the first groove is located beside the first extending portion, and the first extending portion is connected between the first sidewall and the first abutting portion; and the second fixing rod has a second sidewall and forms a second groove, the second groove faces the first groove, wherein a first end of the optical element is accommodated in the first groove, a second end of the optical element is accommodated in the second groove, and the first abutting portion abuts against the optical element thereby fixing the optical element in the fixing mechanism, wherein the first fixing rod further has a first top surface and a first bottom surface, the first sidewall is connected to the first top surface and the first bottom surface, and the first groove extends from the first top surface toward the first bottom surface, wherein the second fixing rod further has a second top surface and a second bottom surface, the second sidewall is connected to the second top surface and the second bottom surface, and the second groove extends from the second top surface toward the second bottom surface.
2 . The fixing mechanism according to claim 1 , wherein the first extending portion comprises an extending block, a first side of the extending block is connected to the first sidewall, and a second side of the extending block is connected to the first abutting portion.
3 . The fixing mechanism according to claim 2 , wherein the extending block is flexible.
4 . The fixing mechanism according to claim 1 , wherein the first abutting portion comprises a bump structure, and the bump structure protrudes from the first extending portion toward the optical element.
5 . The fixing mechanism according to claim 4 , wherein the first groove has a first side surface and a second side surface opposite to each other, the first extending portion is adjacent to the first side surface, and a shortest distance from a top of the bump structure to a plane extending from the second side surface is smaller than a distance from the first side surface to the second side surface.
6 . The fixing mechanism according to claim 1 , wherein the first groove has a first opening, the second groove has a second opening, and the first opening is substantially aligned with the second opening.
7 . The fixing mechanism according to claim 1 , wherein the second fixing rod further has a second extending portion protruding outward from the second sidewall and a second abutting portion, the second groove is located beside the second extending portion, the second extending portion is connected between the second sidewall and the second abutting portion, and the second abutting portion abuts against the optical element.
8 . The fixing mechanism according to claim 1 , wherein the first fixing rod further has a bearing block protruding outward, the bearing block is arranged on a first side of the first groove, the first extending portion is arranged on a second side of the first groove, and the optical element bears against the bearing block when the first abutting portion abuts against the optical element.
9 . The fixing mechanism according to claim 1 , wherein the optical element is in a shape of a flat plate.
10 . The fixing mechanism according to claim 1 , wherein the first sidewall, the first extending portion and the first abutting portion are integrally formed.
11 . A projection device, comprising a light source, an optical engine module and a projection lens, wherein the light source is configured to provide an illumination beam; the optical engine module comprises a housing, an optical element, a fixing mechanism, a light-homogenizing element and a light valve, wherein the fixing mechanism is arranged in the housing and is configured to fix the optical element, and the fixing mechanism comprises a first fixing rod and a second fixing rod, wherein the first fixing rod has a first sidewall and forms a first groove, the first sidewall is connected to a first extending portion protruding outward from the first sidewall and a first abutting portion, the first groove is located beside the first extending portion, and the first extending portion is connected between the first sidewall and the first abutting portion; and the second fixing rod has a second sidewall and forms a second groove, the second groove faces the first groove, wherein a first end of the optical element is accommodated in the first groove, a second end of the optical element is accommodated in the second groove, and the first abutting portion abuts against the optical element thereby fixing the optical element in the fixing mechanism; wherein the first fixing rod further has a first top surface and a first bottom surface, the first sidewall is connected to the first top surface and the first bottom surface, and the first groove extends from the first top surface toward the first bottom surface, wherein the second fixing rod further has a second top surface and a second bottom surface, the second sidewall is connected to the second top surface and the second bottom surface, and the second groove extends from the second top surface toward the second bottom surface; the light-homogenizing element is located on a transmission path of the illumination beam and is configured to transmit the illumination beam to the light valve; and the light valve is arranged in the housing and located on the transmission path of the illumination beam and is configured to convert the illumination beam into an image beam; and the projection lens is arranged in the housing and located on a transmission path of the image beam and is configured to project the image beam out of the projection device, wherein the optical element is arranged on the transmission path of the illumination beam or the transmission path of the image beam.
12 . A fixing mechanism configured to fix an optical element, the fixing mechanism comprising a first fixing rod and a second fixing rod, wherein the first fixing rod has a first sidewall and forms a first groove, the first sidewall is connected to a first extending portion protruding outward from the first sidewall and a first abutting portion, the first groove is located beside the first extending portion, and the first extending portion is connected between the first sidewall and the first abutting portion; and the second fixing rod has a second sidewall and forms a second groove, the second groove faces the first groove, wherein a first end of the optical element is accommodated in the first groove, a second end of the optical element is accommodated in the second groove, and the first abutting portion abuts against the optical element thereby fixing the optical element in the fixing mechanism; wherein the first abutting portion comprises a bump structure, and the bump structure protrudes from the first extending portion toward the optical element; wherein the first groove has a first side surface and a second side surface opposite to each other, the first extending portion is adjacent to the first side surface, and a shortest distance from a top of the bump structure to a plane extending from the second side surface is smaller than a distance from the first side surface to the second side surface.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application claims the priority benefit of China application (202123033358.9), filed on Dec. 3, 2021. The entirety of the above-mentioned patent application is hereby incorporated by reference herein and made a part of this specification. FIELD OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to a fixing mechanism, and more particularly to a fixing mechanism for an optical element and a projection device using the fixing mechanism. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The types of light sources used in projection devices have evolved from UHP lamps, light emitting diodes (LEDs) to laser diodes (LDs) as the market demands brightness, color saturation, longevity, and non-toxic environmental protection for projection devices. In order to effectively utilize the light emitted by the light source, various optical elements are arranged in the projection device to perform functions such as light splitting or light transmitting. When setting the optical element, a suitable slot will be designed according to the shape and size of the optical element to insert and fix the optical element, so the thickness of the optical element is proportional to the width of the slot. However, in the conventional fixing mechanism, the thickness of the optical element may cannot be completely matched with the width of the slot due to the tolerance of the slot (e.g. produced by the manufacturing process), which may cause the optical element to vibrate after being inserted into the slot. As a result, the light transmitted through the optical element will be shift, which will cause uneven brightness distribution in the projected image. The information disclosed in this “BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION” section is only for enhancement understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known to a person of ordinary skill in the art. Furthermore, the information disclosed in this “BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION” section does not mean that one or more problems to be solved by one or more embodiments of the invention were acknowledged by a person of ordinary skill in the art. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a fixing mechanism for fixing an optical element, so as to reduce the shift of light transmitted by the optical element. The present invention provides a projection device that can fix optical elements and improve the brightness uniformity of the projection image. Other advantages and objects of the invention may be further illustrated by the technical features broadly embodied and described as follows. In order to achieve one or part or all of the above-mentioned purposes or other purposes, the fixing mechanism provided by the invention is for fixing an optical element. The fixing mechanism includes a first fixing rod and a second fixing rod. The first fixing rod has a first sidewall and forms a first groove. The first sidewall is connected to a first extending portion protruding outward from the first sidewall and a first abutting portion. The first groove is located beside the first extending portion. The first extending portion is connected between the first sidewall and the first abutting portion. The second fixing rod has a second sidewall and forms a second groove. The second groove faces the first groove. A first end of the optical element is accommodated in the first groove, and a second end of the optical element is accommodated in the second groove. The first abutting portion abuts against the optical element thereby fixing the optical element in the fixing mechanism. In one embodiment, the first extending portion includes an extending block. A first side of the extending block is connected to the first sidewall, and a second side of the extending block is connected to the first abutting portion. In one embodiment, the extending block is flexible. In one embodiment, the first abutting portion includes a bump structure. The bump structure protrudes from the first extending portion toward the optical element. In one embodiment, the first groove has a first side surface and a second side surface opposite to each other. The first extending portion is adjacent to the first side surface. A shortest distance from a top of the bump structure to a plane extending from the second side surface is smaller than a distance from the first side surface to the second side surface. In one embodiment, the first fixing rod further has a first top surface and a first bottom surface. The first sidewall is connected to the first top surface and the first bottom surface. The first groove extends from the first top surface toward the first bottom surface. The second fixing rod further has a second top surface and a second bottom surface. The second sidewall is connected to the second top surface and the second bottom surface. The second groove extends from the second top surface toward the second bottom surface. In one embod