Planar light source including light adjustment members

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11709312-B2
Application number	US-202217864066-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 13, 2022
Priority date	Jul 19, 2021
Publication date	Jul 25, 2023
Grant date	Jul 25, 2023

Abstract

A planar light source includes: a light guide member, a light source including a light-emitting element and a first light adjustment member and being disposed in a first hole of the light guide member, a first light-transmissive member disposed in the first hole between a lateral surface of the light source and the light guide member and on the light source, and a second light adjustment member disposed on the first light-transmissive member. A transmittance of the first light-transmissive member is higher than a transmittance of the first light adjustment member and a transmittance of the second light adjustment member with respect to light emitted from the light source. The first light-transmissive member includes a first light-transmissive portion 1ocated between the first light adjustment member and the second light adjustment member, and a second light-transmissive portion 1ocated between the lateral surface of the light source and the light guide member.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A planar light source comprising:
a light guide member having a first surface, a second surface opposite the first surface, and a first hole penetrating from the first surface to the second surface;
a light source that is disposed in the first hole of the light guide member and comprises:
a light-emitting element, and
a first light adjustment member disposed on an upper surface of the light-emitting element, wherein the first light adjustment member has light reflectivity and is light-transmissive to light emitted from the light-emitting element;

a first light-transmissive member disposed in the first hole between a lateral surface of the light source and the light guide member and disposed on the light source; and
a second light adjustment member disposed on the first light-transmissive member, and having light reflectivity and being light-transmissive to light emitted from the light source; wherein:
a transmittance of the first light-transmissive member is higher than a transmittance of the first light adjustment member and a transmittance of the second light adjustment member with respect to the light emitted from the light source;
the first light-transmissive member comprises a first light-transmissive portion located between the first light adjustment member and the second light adjustment member, and a second light-transmissive portion 1 ocated between the lateral surface of the light source and the light guide member; and
the second light adjustment member has a portion having a maximum thickness, which is located on the second light-transmissive portion in a cross-sectional view.

2. The planar light source according to claim 1 , wherein:
in the cross-sectional view, a thickness of the second light adjustment member increases from a portion 1 ocated on a boundary between the lateral surface of the light source and the first light-transmissive member toward the portion having the maximum thickness, and decreases from the portion having the maximum thickness toward a portion 1 ocated on a boundary between the first light-transmissive member and the light guide member.

3. The planar light source according to claim 1 , wherein:
a thickness of a portion of the second light adjustment member located on an axis passing through a center of an upper surface of the light source is in a range from 30% to 95% of a thickness of the portion having the maximum thickness.

4. The planar light source according to claim 1 , wherein:
the second light adjustment member covers an upper end of the boundary between the first light-transmissive member and the light guide member.

5. The planar light source according to claim 1 , wherein:
an upper surface of the second light adjustment member is a convex surface.

6. The planar light source according to claim 1 , wherein:
the transmittance of the second light adjustment member is higher than the transmittance of the first light adjustment member with respect to the light emitted from the light source.

7. The planar light source according to claim 1 , wherein:
in a plan view, the second light adjustment member covers an entirety of the light source.

8. The planar light source according to claim 1 , wherein:
an entirety of a lower surface of the second light adjustment member is located above the upper surface of the first light adjustment member.

9. The planar light source according to claim 1 , wherein:
the second light-transmissive portion has a recessed portion at an upper surface thereof.

10. The planar light source according to claim 1 , wherein:
a portion of the second light adjustment member having a thickness greater than a thickness of the portion 1 ocated on an axis passing through a center of an upper surface of the light source surrounds the light source without a gap in the top view.

11. The planar light source according to claim 1 , wherein:
in the cross-sectional view, the light source is sandwiched between regions of the second light-transmissive portion; and
a maximum thickness of a portion of the second light adjustment member located on a first of the regions of the second light-transmissive portion is in a range from 0.9 times to 1.1 times a maximum thickness of a portion of the second light adjustment member located on a second of the regions of the second light-transmissive portion.

Assignees

• Nichia Corp

Inventors

• Yoshinaga Satoshi
• Nakabayashi Takuya
• Shibutani Yuki
• Bando Yoichi
• Okamoto Yasushi

Classifications

• G02B6/0088 Primary

  of the light guide or other optical sheets in the package · CPC title

• G02B6/0021 Primary

  for housing at least a part of the light source, e.g. by forming holes or recesses · CPC title

• G02B6/0035

  provided on the surface of the light guide or in the bulk of it · CPC title

• G02B6/0055

  Reflecting element, sheet or layer · CPC title

• G02B6/0058

  varying in density, size, shape or depth along the light guide · CPC title