A novel structure of illumination system based on laser sources and gradient-index (GRIN) lens arrays for single-plate digital light processing (DLP) projector is proposed. Under the evaluation of light collection efficiency and illumination uniformity, we designed two different architectures of GRIN lens arrays: the unit lens cross section being either square or circular. Also, we designed the one-to-one coupling mechanism between GRIN lens array and Gaussian beam array. By means of threedimensional modeling and ray tracing, we simulated the optical characteristics of illumination system, and the optical parameters are evaluated. Results show that the total light collection efficiency is 37.9%, the illumination uniformity is 89.7% and the volume is only 12.4 cm 3 . Thus we improved optical characteristics and reduced the physical dimension of DLP optical engine.