Lighting apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9686839-B1
Application number	US-201615075857-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Mar 21, 2016
Priority date	Nov 27, 2015
Publication date	Jun 20, 2017
Grant date	Jun 20, 2017

Abstract

A lighting apparatus includes a structured light generation unit and a controlling unit. The structured light generation unit includes plural light sources and an optical element group. After plural light beams from the plural light sources pass through the optical element group, a first structured light pattern corresponding to a first light source is projected on a first position of the projection surface and a second structured light pattern corresponding to a second light source is projected on a second position of the projection surface. The first position and the second position are different. The controlling unit controls the first light source and the second light source to emit the light beams according to a time sequence. Consequently, the first structured light pattern and the second structured light pattern are projected on the projection surface according to the time sequence.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A lighting apparatus, comprising:
a structured light generation unit comprising plural light sources, plural collimating lenses and an optical element group, wherein the collimating lenses are arranged between the light sources and the optical element group, after plural light beams from the corresponding light sources are collimated by the corresponding collimating lens and then passing through the optical element group, a first structured light pattern corresponding to a first light source of the plural light sources is projected on a first position of a projection surface and a second structured light pattern corresponding to a second light source of the plural light sources is projected on a second position of the projection surface, wherein the first position and the second position are different; and
a controlling unit in communication with the structured light generation unit, wherein the controlling unit controls the first light source and the second light source to emit the light beams according to a time sequence, so that the first structured light pattern and the second structured light pattern are projected on the projection surface according to the time sequence.

2. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the controlling unit is programmable to turn on and turn off each of the plural light sources.

3. The lighting apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the plural light sources are arranged in a linear permutation, and the plural light sources are alternatively and periodically turned on and turned off along a sequence of the linear permutation under control of the controlling unit; or the plural light sources are arranged in a linear permutation, and the plural light sources are periodically turned on and turned off not along a sequence of the linear permutation under control of the controlling unit.

4. The lighting apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the plural light sources are arranged in a circular permutation, and the plural light sources are alternatively and periodically turned on and turned off along a sequence of the circular permutation under control of the controlling unit; or the plural light sources are arranged in a circular permutation, and the plural light sources are periodically turned on and turned off not along a sequence of the circular permutation under control of the controlling unit.

5. The lighting apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the plural light sources are regularly arranged on a two-dimensional plane, or the plural light sources are regularly arranged on a three-dimensional curvy surface or in a three-dimensional space.

6. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the light source includes a laser diode, a light emitting diode, an organic light emitting diode and/or a thermal source.

7. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the optical element group comprises plural optical elements corresponding to the first structured light pattern and the second structured light pattern, wherein each of the plural optical elements comprises a diffractive optical element, a refractive optical element or a reflective optical element.

8. The lighting apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the refractive optical element is a multi-aperture lens, a lenticular lens or a lens array.

9. The lighting apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein a number of the plural optical elements is equal to a number of the plural light sources, and the plural optical elements are aligned with the plural light sources, respectively.

10. The lighting apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein a number of the plural non-optical elements or optically-absorbed elements are inserted correspondingly with a number of the plural light sources and the plural optical elements to block the stray light respectively.

11. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the lighting apparatus further comprises a casing, and the optical element group and the casing are integrally formed by inserted molding, two color molding, UV light curving, or a thermal curving.

12. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein a linear distance between a light-outputting side of the optical element group and the plural light sources is smaller than 7 mm, or an overall height of the lighting apparatus is smaller than 7 mm.

13. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the lighting apparatus further comprises a casing, and the optical element group is supported by a casing, wherein there is a fixed relative configuration or a fixed distance between the optical element group and the plural light sources, or the relative configuration or the relative distance between the optical element group and the plural light sources is adjusted in a programmable manner.

14. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the lighting apparatus further comprises a sensing unit, wherein after the first structured light pattern and the second structured light pattern on different positions of the projection surface are sensed by the sensing unit, a sensing signal is generated by the sensing unit.

15. The lighting apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein the controlling unit is programmable to turn on and turn off each of the plural light sources according to the sensing signal.

16. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the plural light sources are disposed on a circuit protection layer, and the plural light sources are electrically connected with the circuit protection layer, wherein the plural light sources are thermally stabilized by the circuit protection layer, or the plural light sources are not thermally stabilized by the circuit protection layer.

17. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the plural light sources and the controlling unit are disposed on a circuit protection layer, and the plural light sources and the controlling unit are electrically connected with the circuit protection layer, wherein the plural light sources and the controlling unit are thermally stabilized by the circuit protection layer, or the plural light sources and the controlling unit are not thermally stabilized by the circuit protection layer.

18. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the plural light sources and the controlling unit are disposed on a circuit protection layer, the plural light sources and the controlling unit are electrically connected with the circuit protection layer, and at least one sensor is disposed on the circuit protection layer for generating a sensing signal to the controlling unit, wherein the plural light sources, the controlling unit and the at least one sensor are thermally stabilized by the circuit protection layer, or the plural light sources, the controlling unit and the at least one sensor are not thermally stabilized by the circuit protection layer.

19. The lighting apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the body of casing with mechanical structure is used for stray light reduction.

20. The lighting apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the optical element group and the casing are integrally formed by inserted molding, two color molding, UV light curving, or a thermal curving and thermally resistant to a high temperature in a reflow process.

21. The lighting apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the optical element group is a film or thin optical element which is comprised of a surface of collimating lens array or microlens array while on the other side is a surface of diffra

Assignees

• Everready Prec Ind Corp

Inventors

• Chern Jyh-Long
• Yen Chih-Ming

Classifications

• F21V5/04

  of lens shape · CPC title

• F21Y2115/15

  Organic light-emitting diodes [OLED] · CPC title

• F21V23/06

  the elements being coupling devices {, e.g. connectors} · CPC title

• H05B47/10

  Controlling the light source · CPC title

• G02B27/425

  in illumination systems (mask illumination systems in photolithographic systems G03F7/70158) · CPC title