Strip lighting device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9250374-B2
Application number	US-201414184326-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 19, 2014
Priority date	Feb 26, 2013
Publication date	Feb 2, 2016
Grant date	Feb 2, 2016

Abstract

A strip lighting device includes a main body having front and rear sides extending along a length of the main body. The front side is disposed towards a viewer of the device and the rear side includes a light scattering layer for scattering light from a source of illumination towards the viewer when the device is illuminated. The main body has a front and rear cladding layer each of which is made of a first light transmissive material. The strip lighting device includes a light pipe made of a second light transmissive material sandwiched between the front and rear cladding layers at interfaces extending along the length of the main body. A rear interface of the light pipe has a plurality of angled portions which allow some light to escape into the rear cladding layer to impinge on the light scattering layer and scatter light towards the viewer.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A strip lighting device for receiving visible light from a source of illumination for illuminating the device with visible light comprising:
a main body having opposite front and rear sides extending along the length of the main body, the front side, in use, being disposed towards a viewer of the device, and the rear side including a light scattering layer for scattering light from said source of illumination towards the viewer when the device is illuminated;
said main body including a front cladding layer and a rear cladding layer extending along the length of said main body, the front cladding layer being relatively forwards of the rear cladding layer relative to said viewer and said layers each being made of a first light transmissive material for conveying said light; and
a light pipe arranged to receive light from said source of illumination and being made of a second light transmissive material for conveying said light, the light pipe being sandwiched between and in contact with the front and rear cladding layers at, respectively, a front interface and a rear interface, said interfaces extending along the length of the main body, the front interface being smooth to facilitate total internal reflection as light is conveyed along the light pipe and the rear interface including a plurality of angled portions spaced along the length of the light pipe to allow some of said conveyed light to escape from the light pipe into the rear cladding layer to impinge on the light scattering layer whereby the light scattering layer scatters said light though said light transmissive layers of the rear cladding layer, the light pipe and the front cladding layer towards the viewer of the device.

2. A strip lighting device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said interfaces extend along substantially the full length of the main body.

3. A strip lighting device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the main body is straight and the front interface is flat.

4. A strip lighting device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the main body is curved, for example in the shape of an arc or a loop, having along the length of the main body either a constant or a variable bend radius, the bend radius of the main body being sufficiently gentle that at least some of the light from the source of illumination is able to be transmitted along the length of the main body by total internal reflection.

5. A strip lighting device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a difference between the refractive indices of the first light transmissive material and the second light transmissive material is such that the critical angle of incidence for total internal reflection at the front interface is greater than or equal to 70°.

6. A strip lighting device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the first light transmissive material is polymethyl methacrylate and the second light transmissive material is polycarbonate.

7. A strip lighting device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said angled portions comprise triangular notches.

8. A strip lighting device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a depth of the angled portions increases from a first end of the light pipe to a second end of the light pipe, the first end of the pipe being optically closest to the source of illumination.

9. A strip lighting device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a spacing between neighboring angled portions decreases from a first end of the light pipe to a second end of the light pipe, the first end of the pipe being optically closest to the source of illumination.

10. A strip lighting device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the light pipe extends across a full width of the main body.

11. A strip lighting device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the front cladding layer has a greater thickness than the rear cladding layer such that the light pipe is located closer to the rear side of the main body than to the front side of the main body.

Assignees

• Gullick Daniel
• Murzyn Pawel
• Visteon Global Tech Inc

Inventors

• Gullick Daniel
• Murzyn Pawel

Classifications

• G01D11/28

  Structurally-combined illuminating devices · CPC title

• G02B6/001 Primary

  the light being emitted along at least a portion of the lateral surface of the fibre · CPC title

• G01D13/265 Primary

  Pointers which conduct light · CPC title

• G02B6/0005 Primary

  the light guides being of the fibre type (G02B6/0003 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G02B6/0018

  Redirecting means on the surface of the light guide · CPC title