Lighting installation and corresponding method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11337382-B2
Application number	US-201816008134-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 14, 2018
Priority date	Jun 16, 2017
Publication date	May 24, 2022
Grant date	May 24, 2022

Abstract

An installation such as, for example, a box or cabinet for horticultural applications includes a lighting space between a lighted plane and a lighting plane parallel to the lighted plane, with side walls that are at least partly light-reflective. The illuminated plane may be defined by the upper surface of a plant culture medium. A set of light radiation sources, e.g. LEDs, arranged centrally relative to the lighting plane projects light radiation towards the lighted plane in the direction of a radiation emission axis. The set of light radiation sources emits light radiation with a distribution of illuminance projected towards the lighted plane, wherein the lighted plane is non-uniform and gradually decreases as a function of the angle relative to the aforesaid radiation emission axis, wherein the reflection of the radiation on the side walls facilitates uniform illuminance at the lighted plane.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An installation comprising:
a lighting space between a lighted plane and a lighting plane parallel to the lighted plane with side walls, wherein the side walls are at least partly light-reflective,
a set of light radiation sources arranged centrally relative to the lighting plane and projecting light radiation towards the lighted plane in the direction of a radiation emission axis,
a lens arranged over one or more light radiation sources of the set of light radiation sources; wherein the lens is configured to have light radiation emitted from the lens that has a distribution of illuminance projected towards the lighted plane that is non-uniform and gradually decreases as a function of the angle relative to the radiation emission axis, wherein the reflection of the radiation on the side walls facilitates uniform illuminance at the lighted plane; wherein the lens further comprises an optical axis, a light radiation input surface facing the light radiation generator and a light radiation output surface facing the lighted plane, wherein radiation leaving the output surface of the lens forms, with respect to the optical axis, an output angle greater than the input angle formed, with respect to the optical axis, by light radiation entering the input surface of the lens.

2. The installation of claim 1 , wherein the lens is further configured to have light radiation emitted therefrom having an intensity distribution, wherein the intensity distribution is non-uniform and gradually increases as a function of the angle relative to the radiation emission axis.

3. The installation of claim 1 , wherein the light radiation sources in the set comprise a light radiation generator.

4. The installation of claim 1 , wherein the lens further comprises a dome-shaped light radiation input surface and a light radiation output surface comprising a pair of convex portions with a concavity therebetween, the concavity being aligned with the dome-shaped input surface.

5. The installation of claim 4 , wherein the concavity between the convex portions comprises a median plane with the convex portions specularly symmetrical with respect to the median plane.

6. The installation of claim 3 , wherein the lens is mechanically coupled to the light radiation generator, preferably with a seal therebetween and/or electrical components associated therewith.

7. The installation of claim 1 , wherein the set of light radiation sources further comprises at least one linear array of light radiation sources.

8. The installation of claim 4 , wherein the set of light radiation sources further comprises at least one linear array of light radiation sources, and wherein the convex portions of the output surface of the lens are transversally aligned relative to the direction of extension of the at least one linear array of light radiation sources.

9. The installation of claim 1 , further comprising a parallelepiped lighting space with a first and a second pair of mutually opposite side walls.

10. The installation of claim 9 , wherein the set of light radiation sources further comprises at least one linear array of light radiation sources, and wherein the at least one linear array extends parallelly to one of the pairs of side walls.

11. The installation of claim 8 , further comprising a parallelepiped lighting space with a first and a second pair of mutually opposite side walls, wherein the at least one linear array extends parallelly to one of the pairs of side walls.

12. The installation of claim 1 , wherein the set of light radiation sources further comprises sources equally spaced therebetween.

13. The installation of claim 1 , wherein the set of light radiation sources includes sources that differ from each other by at least one of the following:
the emission spectrum,
the value of the emitted light flux,
the light emission pattern,
the spacing relative to neighboring light radiations sources in the set.

14. The installation of claim 1 , wherein:
at least one of the side walls has a light reflectivity lower than the other side walls, and
a non-uniform projected illuminance distribution decreases non-symmetrically with a smaller decrease at the at least one wall with lower light reflectivity.

15. The installation of claim 1 , further comprising a filling of a growth medium for vegetables, the surface of the growth medium defining the lighted plane.

16. A method comprising:
providing a lighting space between a lighted plane and a lighting plane parallel to the lighted plane with side walls that are at least partly light-reflective,
arranging a set of light radiation sources centrally relative to the lighting plane, which project light radiation towards the lighted plane in the direction of a radiation emission axis,
arranging a lens over one or more light radiation sources of the set of light radiation sources; wherein the lens is configured to have light radiation emitted from the lens that has a distribution of illuminance projected towards the lighted plane, which is non-uniform and gradually decreasing as a function of the angle relative to the radiation emission axis, wherein the reflection of radiation on the side walls facilitates uniform illuminance at the lighted plane; wherein the lens further comprises an optical axis, a light radiation input surface facing the light radiation generator and a light radiation output surface facing the lighted plane, wherein radiation leaving the output surface of the lens forms, with respect to the optical axis, an output angle greater than the input angle formed, with respect to the optical axis, by light radiation entering the input surface of the lens.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the lens is further configured to have light radiation emitted therefrom having an intensity distribution, wherein the intensity distribution is non-uniform and gradually increasing as a function of the angle relative to the radiation emission axis.

18. An installation comprising:
a lighting space between a lighted plane and a lighting plane parallel to the lighted plane with side walls, wherein the side walls are at least partly light-reflective;
a set of light radiation sources arranged centrally relative to the lighting plane and projecting light radiation towards the lighted plane in the direction of a radiation emission axis,
wherein the set of light radiation sources includes sources that differ from each other by at least one of the following:
the emission spectrum,
the value of the emitted light flux,
the light emission pattern, and
the spacing relative to neighboring light radiations sources in the set;

a lens arranged over one or more light radiation sources of the set of light radiation sources; wherein the lens is configured to have the light radiation emitted from the lens that has a distribution of illuminance projected towards the lighted plane that is non-uniform and gradually decreases as a function of the angle relative to the radiation emission axis, wherein the reflection of the radiation on the side walls facilitates uniform illuminance at the lighted plane.

19. The installation of claim 18 , wherein the lens is asymmetric.

Assignees

• Osram Gmbh

Inventors

• Frison Renato

Classifications

• F21Y2113/13

  comprising an assembly of point-like light sources · CPC title

• A01G7/045

  with electric lighting · CPC title

• F21S8/00 Primary

  Lighting devices intended for fixed installation (F21S9/00, F21S10/00 take precedence; using a string or strip of light sources F21S4/00) · CPC title

• F21V5/08

  producing an asymmetric light distribution · CPC title

• A01G9/249 Primary

  Lighting means (with special arrangements for promoting growth A01G7/045) · CPC title