DLP RPTVs (Digital Light Processing, Rear Projection Televisions)

DLP Tech

How does DLP TV really work?

Any illuminated image is made up of the three primary colors; red, blue, & green. All the other colors are made from these three. When an image is projected on a DLP television, if the source material is analog (LaserDisk, VHS, conventional TV) it first digitally separates the image into these three primary colors. If the image is digital (DVD and HDTV) and connected via component input (one input for each color) the source signal is passed right to the DLP chip. It then "paints" the image on the screen by running the light through a color wheel. A color wheel is just a circular wheel that spins and that has a "frame" for each color. (Think of the old GAF View Master Picture Wheel, but with just 5 frames, one for each primary colors, one for black and one for white.) When the red "frame" is in front of the light, only red light will go through and make it's way to the DLP mirror. So at that point the DLP micro-mirrors align with the light to "paint" red in the places on the screen that are supposed to be red. Then the color wheel turns to the blue "frame." At this point the DLP micro-mirrors realign so that only those places with blue in them are "painted" on the screen. Same thing for the green, black, & white "frames" of the color wheel. To achieve the desired results, the color wheel spins at a very high rate and a pure white light source is used. DLP projection create a seamless digital picture that's sharp at any size-without the pixellation or "screen door" effect (what you see if you look at a TV screen very close) apparent in other technologies (especially true in LCD and Plasma display!). In other words, there are no pixels to be seen on an DLP television because the light from each color is blended naturally with the other primary colors to form the image. It's really just like we see naturally. The colors are truer because no phosphorus is used to create the image, just pure white light and a color wheel. DLP is also FAST! Very fast! An entire image can be "painted" in about 100ms (micro seconds). To understand what that means, compare: most televisions update the screen at 30fps. (Frames Per Second.) HDTV has an effective rate of 60fps. DLP would be about 10,000fps (theoretically) if there was such source available. So obviously, DLP is the technology that can handle any source for a very long time to come.

9 micro-mirrors of the millions on a DLP chip. When the micro-mirror "tilts," colored light is "painted" on the screen. If Vincent Van Gogh were alive today, he'd have a DLP HD TV! :-)

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