Lighting device for a motor vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10989384-B2
Application number	US-201916438642-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 12, 2019
Priority date	Mar 9, 2017
Publication date	Apr 27, 2021
Grant date	Apr 27, 2021

Abstract

A lighting device for a motor vehicle is provided that includes a laser light source including a plurality of laser diodes, a vector scanner on which falls at least one light bundle from the laser light source, and a control device. The vector scanner changes the position of the light bundle which moves a light spot produced from the light bundle to generate a predetermined light distribution. The vector scanner includes at least one MEMS component containing a housing, a semiconductor chip, a mirror on which at least one light bundle falls, and a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the MEMS component. The control device controls the electrical power of the laser light source and/or a cooling element arranged on the MEMS component according to the detected temperature of the MEMS component, such that the detected temperature does not exceed a predetermined temperature threshold value.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A lighting device for a motor vehicle, comprising:
a source of laser light including a plurality of laser diodes;
a vector scanner, on which a light bundle emanating from a light of the source of laser light impinges;
wherein the vector scanner varies a position of the light bundle and moves a spot of light, which is generated from the light bundle, at a distance from the lighting device in order to generate a predetermined distribution of light, wherein at least one of a scan speed, at which the spot of light is moved, and a scan path, along which the spot of light is moved, is variable by the vector scanner;
wherein the vector scanner includes one or more MEMS components which each contain a semiconductor chip which is surrounded by a housing and within which a single mirror is integrated, on which the light bundle impinges, wherein the MEMS component is configured such that the single mirror is tilted continuously for moving the spot of light;
wherein a temperature sensor for detecting a temperature of a respective MEMS component is provided in the respective MEMS component; and
a control device configured to control at least one of electrical power of the source of laser light, and a cooling element arranged on the respective MEMS component, as a function of the detected temperature of the respective MEMS component in such a manner that the detected temperature does not exceed a predetermined temperature threshold value.

2. The lighting device according to claim 1 , wherein the temperature sensor for the respective MEMS component is integrated within the housing.

3. The lighting device according to claim 1 , wherein the temperature sensor for the respective MEMS component is integrated within the semiconductor chip.

4. The lighting device according to claim 1 , wherein the temperature sensor for the respective MEMS component is attached to the housing.

5. The lighting device according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined temperature threshold value lies within a temperature range that corresponds to a temperature of the housing of the respective MEMS component between 60° C. and 100° C.

6. The lighting device according to claim 1 , wherein the control device is configured such that, within a predetermined temperature-range of the detected temperature, the control device decreases the electrical power of the source of laser light as the detected temperature increases.

7. The lighting device according to claim 1 , wherein the control device is configured to switch off the source of laser light when the detected temperature reaches the predetermined temperature threshold value or the predetermined temperature threshold value minus a tolerance value.

8. The lighting device according to claim 1 , wherein the vector scanner includes a single MEMS component, and the light bundle is a single light bundle that impinges on the single mirror.

9. The lighting device according to claim 2 , wherein the temperature sensor for the respective MEMS component is integrated within the semiconductor chip.

10. The lighting device according to claim 2 , wherein the temperature sensor for the respective MEMS component is attached to the housing.

11. The lighting device according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined temperature threshold value lies within a temperature range that corresponds to a temperature of the housing of the respective MEMS component between 60° C. and 80° C.

12. The lighting device according to claim 2 , wherein the control device is configured such that, within a predetermined temperature-range of the detected temperature, the control device decreases the electrical power of the source of laser light as the detected temperature increases.

13. The lighting device according to claim 2 , wherein the control device is configured to switch off the source of laser light when the detected temperature reaches the predetermined temperature threshold value or the predetermined temperature threshold value minus a tolerance value.

Assignees

• Bayerische Motoren Werke Ag

Inventors

• Erdl Helmut
• Hanafi Abdelmalek

Classifications

• F21S41/675

  by moving reflectors · CPC title

• F21S41/16 Primary

  Laser light sources · CPC title

• H04N9/3144

  Cooling systems (cooling of liquid crystal cells in general G02F1/133382; cooling of projectors not peculiar to the presence of an electronic spatial light modulator G03B21/16) · CPC title

• F21S45/10 Primary

  Protection of lighting devices (cooling of lighting devices F21S45/40; waterproofing of lighting devices F21S45/50) · CPC title

• G02B26/10

  Scanning systems · CPC title