Electro-optical display system

Claim 2

A display system comprising a multiple interferometric light modulator assembly having a body of electrostrictive material optically polished to predetermined curvature and electrically conducting and optically coated on one surface and electrically insulating on an opposite parallel surface, a multiplicity of separate small discrete volumes of said electrostrictive material attached to and forming part of said body and each forming a Fabry-Perot interferometric light modulator, said volumes being partially separated from each other by narrow air slots extending from said polished conducting face of said electrostrictive material through the material to the opposite parallel insulating face, and a transparent optical element with two polished surfaces one adjacent to and accurately optically mated with said conductive surface on said electrostrictive material, coated with a semitransparent optical coating, and separatEd from said conductive surface on said electrostrictive material by a vacuum deposited spacer of thickness three wavelengths or less.

Claim 3

A display system according to claim 1, wherein the assembly is located within a cathode-ray tube with the insulating surface positioned to receive electrical charge deposited by a moving electron beam controlled in spatial position to charge successively each of said multiplicity of separate small discrete volumes of electrostrictive material.

Claim 4

A display system according to claim 1, wherein the assembly is connected electrically to an electronic control circuit by separate wires connected to the insulting faces of all said separate small discrete volumes of electrostrictive material.

Claim 5

A display system according to claim 1, wherein the body is a circular disc, and the spacer is centrally located and close to but not intersecting said narrow air slots.

Claim 6

A display system according to claim 4, wherein the assembly is located within a cathode-ray tube with the insulating surface positioned to receive electrical charge deposited by a moving electron beam controlled in spatial position to charge successively each of said multiplicity of separate small discrete volumes of electrostrictive material in circular disposition.

Claim 7

A display system according system according to claim 4, wherein the assembly is connected electrically to an electronic control circuit by separate wires connected to the insulating faces of all said separate small discrete volumes of electrostrictive material in circular disposition.

Claim 8

A display system according to claim 1 for use with a source of color television video signals to create an optical image by enlarged projection onto a viewing screen, including: a light source of small size and high brightness; a condensing system forming a small concentrated image of the light source; a first fiber optics assembly having the fibers closely packed and parallel to each other at one end where light is received from the light source image and having the fibers separated from each other at the other end, forming a multiplicity of small points of light; a first optical system receiving light from the multiplicity of small points of light formed by the first fiber optics assembly and forming a multiplicity of small light point images each on a separate Fabry-Perot interferometric light modulator within the multiple Fabry-Perot interferometric light modulator assembly; a second optical system receiving light from the multiplicity of small points of light after modulation by the array of Fabry-Perot interferometric light modulators and forming a multiplicity of small light point images; a second fiber optics assembly having the fibers separated from each other at one end to receive light from modulated light point images formed by said second optical system and having the fibers adjacent to each other at the other end of the assembly forming a multiplicity of modulated points of light in a straight line; the above-described system duplicated twice to provide three duplicate light modulating systems forming three multiplicities of modulated points of light in identical straight lines and with red, green and blue filters respectively in the several systems; a dichroic set of mirrors combining optically said three identical straight lines of modulated points of light into one straight line of points of light each including separately modulated red, green and blue components; an electromechanical scanning and optical projection system to scan and enlarge optically said straight line of combined red, green and blue points of light across a viewing screen forming a large frame of 525 lines of colored points of light corresponding to the 525 lines in a television picture; and electrical and electronic means to receive and process a color television signal to provide appropriate control voltages to each separate Fabry-Perot interferometric liGht modulator of the assembly and to provide appropriate synchronous control voltages to said electromechanical optical scanning and projection system.

Claim 9

A display system according to claim 7, wherein the assembly is located within a cathode-ray tube with the insulating surface positioned to receive electrical charge deposited by a moving electron beam controlled in spatial position to charge successively each of said multiplicity of separate small discrete volumes of electrostrictive material.

Claim 10

A display system according to claim 7, wherein the assembly is connected electrically to an electronic control circuit by separate wires connected to the insulating faces of all said separate small discrete volumes of electrostrictive material.

Claim 11

A display system according to claim 7, wherein the body is a circular disc, and the spacer is centrally located and close to but not intersecting said narrow air slots.

Claim 12

A display system according to claim 10, wherein the assembly is located within a cathode-ray tube with the insulating surface positioned to receive electrical charge deposited by a moving electron beam controlled in spatial position to charge successively each of said multiplicity of separate small discrete volumes of electrostrictive material in circular disposition.

Claim 13

A display system according to claim 10, wherein the assembly is connected electrically to an electronic control circuit by separate wires connected to the insulating faces of all said separate small discrete volumes of electrostrictive material in circular disposition.