Lens for an optical module of a motor vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9328888-B2
Application number	US-201314369890-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 14, 2013
Priority date	Jan 12, 2012
Publication date	May 3, 2016
Grant date	May 3, 2016

Abstract

A lens for a motor vehicle optical module, wherein it comprises a series of patterns on an optical surface, said patterns extending in a preferred direction.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A lens for a motor vehicle optical module, wherein said lens comprises a series of patterns on an input or output optical surface of said lens, said patterns extending in a preferred direction;
said lens having a central area having microstructures such that rays transmitted by said microstructures are transmitted in directions that provide at least one vertical cutoff line and at least one horizontal cutoff line, wherein at least one input optical surface or output optical surface of said lens comprises said series of patterns arranged in such a way as to reduce a sharpness of said at least one horizontal cutoff line in relation to a sharpness of said at least one vertical cutoff line.

2. The lens as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said patterns are situated only in a central zone of said input or output optical surface.

3. The lens as claimed in claim 2 , wherein said central zone extends over a width representing between 10 and 40% of the width of said input or output optical surface.

4. The lens as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said patterns are obtained by modulating a thickness at said input or output optical surface of said lens following a regular profile.

5. The lens as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a thickness modulation at a surface of said lens is a corrugation, notably a trigonometric modeling.

6. The lens as claimed in claim 5 , wherein an amplitude of said thickness modulation and a pitch of said thickness modulation are constant.

7. The lens as claimed in claim 5 , wherein an amplitude decreases as a function of a position on said lens.

8. The lens as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said input optical surface and said output optical surface of said lens are provided with said series of patterns.

9. The lens as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said patterns are striations.

10. The lens as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said patterns extend over a central zone of said input or output optical surface of said lens.

11. The lens as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said patterns extending in a preferred direction are situated only in a central zone of said input or output optical surface, the peripheral zones outside of said central zone having an output surface provided with microstructures formed by unevennesses generated on its output surface, said microstructures being designed to scatter the rays in all directions.

12. An optical module for a motor vehicle comprising:
an output beam that has at least one vertical cutoff line and at least one horizontal cutoff line;
a light source for generating a beam of light intended to illuminate a road;
a lens for receiving said beam of light;
wherein said lens comprises a series of patterns that comprise a grid of cells on an output surface of the lens;
wherein each grid of cells is formed by an unevenness in said output surface, said unevenness having a profile that varies as a function of a position of each of said grid of cells on said output surface, said series of patterns arranged in such a way as to reduce the sharpness of a horizontal cutoff line in relation to the sharpness of a vertical cutoff line.

13. The optical module as claimed in claim 12 , wherein said lens comprises:
a series of patterns on an input or output optical surface of said lens, said patterns extending in a preferred direction.

14. The optical module as claimed in claim 12 , wherein said patterns run horizontally over said input or output optical surface of said lens.

15. The optical module as claimed in claim 12 , wherein said patterns are striations and in that the striations run horizontally over an entire central zone of said input or output optical surface of said lens.

16. The lens as claimed in claim 2 , wherein said patterns are obtained by modulating a thickness at said input or output optical surface of said lens following a regular profile.

17. The lens as claimed in claim 3 , wherein said patterns are obtained by modulating a thickness at said input or output optical surface of said lens following a regular profile.

18. The lens as claimed in claim 2 , wherein a thickness modulation at a surface of said lens is a corrugation, notably a trigonometric modeling.

19. The lens as claimed in claim 3 , wherein a thickness modulation at a surface of said lens is a corrugation, notably a trigonometric modeling.

20. The lens as claimed in claim 4 , wherein a thickness modulation at a surface of said lens is a corrugation, notably a trigonometric modeling.

21. The lens as claimed in claim 2 , wherein said patterns are striations.

22. The lens as claimed in claim 3 , wherein said patterns are striations.

23. The optical module as claimed in claim 13 , wherein said patterns run horizontally over said input or output optical surface of said lens.

24. The optical module as claimed in claim 13 , wherein said patterns are striations and in that the striations run horizontally over an entire central zone of said input or output optical surface of said lens.

25. The optical module as claimed in claim 12 , wherein said output beam is a high beam.

Assignees

• Valeo Vision

Inventors

• De Lamberterie Antoine
• Racine Paul

Classifications

• F21S41/255

  Lenses with a front view of circular or truncated circular outline · CPC title

• F21S41/275 Primary

  Lens surfaces, e.g. coatings or surface structures · CPC title

• F21S48/1283 Primary

  Mechanical Engineering · mapped topic

• F21S48/1258

  Mechanical Engineering · mapped topic

• F21S48/14

  Mechanical Engineering · mapped topic