Lighting apparatus and motor vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9726341-B2
Application number	US-201514819528-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 6, 2015
Priority date	Aug 29, 2014
Publication date	Aug 8, 2017
Grant date	Aug 8, 2017

Abstract

A lighting apparatus includes: a first light source that emits a first light; a first lens that allows the first light to pass through and exit from a first exit face of the first lens; a second light source that emits a second light; and a second lens that is smaller than the first lens and allows the second light to pass through and exit from a second exit face of the second lens. When viewed from the first exit face side: (i) the first exit face has a recess that is recessed inward from a periphery of the first exit face; and (ii) the second exit face is at least partially disposed in the recess.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A lighting apparatus comprising:
a first light source that emits a first light;
a first lens that allows the first light to pass through and exit from a first exit face of the first lens;
a second light source that emits a second light; and
a second lens that is smaller than the first lens and allows the second light to pass through and exit from a second exit face of the second lens,
wherein, when viewed from a first exit face side:
(i) the first exit face has a recess that is recessed inward from a periphery of the first exit face;
(ii) the second exit face is at least partially disposed in the recess; and
(iii) a portion of the periphery of the first exit face which forms the recess coincides with a portion of a periphery of the second exit face.

2. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 , comprising
N of the second lenses, where N is an integer greater than or equal to 2,
wherein, when viewed from the first exit face side:
(i) the first exit face has N of the recesses; and
(ii) each of the N second lenses is at least partially disposed in a corresponding one of the N recesses.

3. The lighting apparatus according to claim 2 ,
wherein the N second lenses are arranged spaced apart.

4. The lighting apparatus according to claim 2 ,
wherein the N second lenses are arranged consecutively.

5. The lighting apparatus according to claim 4 ,
wherein the N second lenses are integrally formed.

6. The lighting apparatus according to claim 2 ,
wherein, when viewed from the first exit face side, the N second lenses are arranged asymmetrically.

7. The lighting apparatus according to claim 6 ,
wherein, when viewed from the first exit face side:
(i) the first exit face is substantially circular; and
(ii) the N second lenses have a top-biased arrangement relative to a horizontal line passing through a center of the first exit face.

8. The lighting apparatus according to claim 6 ,
wherein, when viewed from the first exit face side:
(i) the first exit face is substantially circular; and
(ii) the N second lenses have a left-biased or right-biased arrangement relative to a vertical line passing through a center of the first exit face.

9. The lighting apparatus according to claim 8 ,
wherein, when the lighting apparatus is attached to a left side or a right side of a front of a vehicle body, the N second lenses have an arrangement biased toward an outside of the vehicle body relative to the vertical line.

10. The lighting apparatus according to claim 2 ,
wherein N is three, and
when viewed from the first exit face side:
(i) the first exit face is substantially circular;
(ii) two of the three second lenses are disposed above a horizontal line passing through a center of the first exit face;
(iii) two of the three second lenses are disposed left or right of a vertical line passing through the center of the first exit face; and
(iv) the three second lenses are arranged spaced apart.

11. The lighting apparatus according to claim 2 ,
wherein N is three, and
when viewed from the first exit face side:
(i) the first exit face is substantially circular;
(ii) the three second lenses are disposed left or right of a vertical line passing through a center of the first exit face;
(iii) two of the three second lenses are disposed above a horizontal line passing through the center of the first exit face; and
(iv) the three second lenses are arranged consecutively.

12. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the first exit face is disposed at a position that is farther from the first light source than the second exit face is.

13. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the first exit face is continuous with the second exit face.

14. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the first lens and the second lens are separately formed.

15. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the first lens and the second lens are integrally formed.

16. The lighting apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the first light source emits the first light for short-distance illumination, and
the second light source emits the second light for long-distance illumination.

17. A motor vehicle comprising:
the lighting apparatus according to claim 1 ; and
a vehicle body in a front of which the lighting apparatus is disposed.

18. A lighting apparatus comprising:
a first light source that emits a first light;
a first lens that allows the first light to pass through and exit from a first exit face of the first lens;
a second light source that emits a second light; and
N second lenses that are smaller than the first lens and allow the second light to pass through and exit from a second exit face of each of the N second lenses, where N is an integer greater than or equal to 2,
wherein, when viewed from a first exit face side:
(i) the first exit face has N recesses that are recessed inward from a periphery of the first exit face; and
(ii) the second exit face of each of the N second lenses is at least partially disposed in a corresponding one of the N recesses.

Assignees

• Panasonic Ip Man Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kanayama Yoshihiko
• Nakano Tomoyuki
• Ogata Tomoyuki
• Ito Masaaki
• Omuro Toshiro

Classifications

• F21V5/007

  Array of lenses or refractors for a cluster of light sources, e.g. for arrangement of multiple light sources in one plane (combination of two or more refractors F21V5/008) · CPC title

• F21S41/265

  Composite lenses; Lenses with a patch-like shape · CPC title

• F21S41/151

  arranged in one or more lines · CPC title

• F21S41/322

  the reflector using total internal reflection · CPC title

• F21S41/663

  by switching light sources (by switching incandescent light sources F21S41/162) · CPC title