Alignment films include a copolymer of a specific vertical alignment monomer and at least one of a specific anthracene-based monomer and a specific benzyl-based monomer.

A liquid crystal display includes a pixel electrode including a first subpixel electrode and a second subpixel electrode spaced apart with a gap therebetween, a common electrode facing the pixel electrode, and a liquid crystal layer formed between the pixel electrode and the common electrode and including a plurality of liquid crystal molecules. The first and second subpixel electrodes include a plurality of branches, and each of the first and second subpixel electrodes includes a plurality of subregions. The branches extend in different directions in different subregions.

The purpose of the present invention is to realize a lighting device of thin, low power consumption and small light distribution angle. The present invention takes the following structure to realize the above task:

A lighting device having an emitting surface and a bottom opposing to the emitting surface including: a resin, set between the emitting surface and the bottom, having a hole at a center, a reflection block set in the hole at a side of the emitting surface, an LED, which is a light source, set in the hole at a side of the bottom, a space between the LED and the reflection block, in which the resin is contained in a container whose inner surface is a reflecting surface.

A liquid crystal light control element that controls a light absorption state by voltage application, the liquid crystal light control element including: a liquid crystal layer containing a liquid crystal composition between a pair of substrates each having an electrode; and a liquid crystal alignment film that is provided on at least one of the substrates and aligns a liquid crystal vertically, wherein the liquid crystal composition contains a liquid crystal and a dichroic dye, the liquid crystal alignment film is obtained from a liquid crystal aligning agent containing a polyimide precursor in which a diamine having a specific side chain is used as a part of the raw material or a polyimide obtained by imidizing the polyimide precursor, and the proportion of the diamine used is 50 to 100 mol % based on the entire diamine component.

Liquid crystal (LC) beam control devices using a dispersion shaped (DS) half wave plate (HWP), with specific physical characteristics, allows the broadened beam to maintain significantly better the color cohesion. Beneficial aspects of using a HWP with an appropriate thickness and birefringence index which makes it inefficient in the blue wavelength spectrum, therefore reducing the blue photon depletion in the center of the broadened beam is described herein. Combinations of an homeotropic LC cell and DS HWP structures for reduced color separation, faster relaxation time and reduced ground state scattering is further described herein.

Liquid crystal light beam control devices and their manufacture are described. Beneficial aspects of beam broadening devices employed for controlled illumination and architectural purposes are presented including improving beam divergence control, improving beam broadening dynamic range control, beam divergence preconditioning, improving projected beam intensity uniformity.

A liquid crystal display device includes a first substrate; a second substrate; and a vertical alignment-type liquid crystal layer. The first substrate includes a backplane circuit, a first interlayer insulating layer covering the backplane circuit, a first reflective electrode provided on the first interlayer insulating layer and including a first region located in each of pixels and a second region located between any two adjacent pixels, a second interlayer insulating layer covering the first reflective electrode, and a pixel electrode provided on the second interlayer insulating layer in each pixel. The pixel electrode is electrically connected with the backplane circuit in first and second contact holes formed in the first and second interlayer insulating layers. The first substrate further includes a second reflective electrode provided on the second interlayer insulating layer so as to overlap the first contact hole as seen in a direction normal to a display surface.

A display device for switching a viewing angle, can include a display panel, a polarizing plate disposed on the display panel, a light path control cell disposed on the polarizing plate and including a liquid crystal layer, and a light path conversion film disposed on the light path control cell and including a plurality of molecules including a polarization alignment dye. An absorption axis of the polarizing plate can be substantially perpendicular to an absorption axis of the light path conversion film. The display device can switch to a shared mode or a shielding mode depending on whether or not a voltage is applied to the light path control cell, thereby providing the display device that switches its viewing angle effectively.

Provided are a light control film whereby flickering is hard to recognize when observing external light via the light control film, a light control member comprising same, a vehicle, and an electricity supply method for the light control film. In the vehicle 130, the light control film 1 having a vertically-aligned liquid crystal layer is attached to a sunroof 132. The light control film 1 is attached to the sunroof 132 of the vehicle 130 such that the liquid crystal molecules fall to the rear of the vehicle 130 when an electric field is applied to the liquid crystal layer. As a result, passengers in the vehicle do not sense any flickering inside the car and have no discomfort.

In a liquid crystal device, a first pixel area is provided in a pixel area of a first substrate, and a second pixel area is provided between the first pixel area and a seal material. The first pixel area has a first pixel electrode to which an image signal is applied, the image signal having a potential alternately switching between a positive polarity and a negative polarity with reference to a first central potential. The second pixel area includes a second pixel electrode to which a first driving potential is applied, the first driving potential having a potential alternately switching between a positive polarity and a negative polarity with reference to a second central potential, the first central potential and the second central potential having a potential difference set therebetween. Therefore, ionic impurities can be efficiently swept from the first pixel area to the second pixel area.