JP4211736B2 - Vehicle lighting - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicular lamp such as a headlamp, a tail lamp, and a stop lamp, and more particularly to a vehicular lamp that uses an LED (light emitting diode) as a light source.

  12 and 13 show this type of vehicle lamp 100 (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The vehicular lamp 100 includes a linear light source 2 in which a plurality of LEDs 1 are linearly aligned, a prism lens 3 that introduces light from the linear light source 2 and emits the light forward, a housing 4, LEDs The substrate 5 is generally configured. The vehicular lamp 100 is attached to the rear portion of the vehicle to constitute a back lamp. In FIG. 12, the arrow indicated by the symbol X indicates the rear direction of the vehicle.

  The housing 4 is formed in a cylindrical body having openings on the front and back surfaces. The linear light source 2 is configured by mounting four LEDs 1 on the LED substrate 5 so as to be aligned in the same straight line extending in the left-right direction, and the LED substrate 5 is closed so as to close the rear opening of the housing 4. By attaching, it is attached to the rear opening side of the housing 4.

  The prism lens 3 is injection-molded with a transparent acrylic resin, and protrudes integrally with the incident surface 7 and a main body portion 8 made of a thick plate member whose both end surfaces are formed as an emission surface 6 and an incident surface 7 respectively. The four reflector portions 9 are provided, and the light receiving portion 11 is formed in a concave shape at the tip of each reflector portion 9. At this time, each reflector portion 9 is configured to have an outer peripheral surface 9a formed of a paraboloid of revolution on the back side.

  The prism lens 3 is assembled to the housing 4 by positioning the emission surface 6 at the front opening and fitting the light emitting portions 1a of the LEDs 1 of the linear light sources 2 into the light receiving portions 11 of the reflector portions 9. It has been.

  According to the vehicular lamp 100 configured as described above, after the light of each LED 1 is introduced from the light receiving unit 11 into the reflector unit 9, the light is reflected by the outer peripheral surface 9 a or remains as direct light. The inside of the portion 8 is guided and emitted outward from the emission surface 6. In FIG. 12, the light from the LED 1 is indicated by an arrow.

In addition, as a linear light source, there is a linear light source including a surface light emitting element formed in a linear shape (see, for example, Patent Documents 2 and 3). This linear light source is an organic electroluminescence element that utilizes the electroluminescence phenomenon of an organic material called an organic EL element, organic electroluminescence, organic electroluminescence element, organic LED element, etc. It has a self-light emitting element in which a light emitting layer made of a material is formed in a linear shape.
JP 2004-103503 A JP 2002-156633 A JP 2003-31007 A

  However, in the vehicle lamp 100, each reflector portion 9 is provided individually with an outer peripheral surface 9a formed of a paraboloid of revolution. Therefore, in forming the vehicle lamp 100, a mold is formed between the reflector portions 9, 9. Insertion allowance is required, so that the installation interval of the reflectors 9 and 9 is more than the interval between the LEDs 1 and 1 necessary for linear alignment of the plurality of LEDs 1, thereby increasing the number of LEDs 1 for improving the illuminance. This immediately increases the size of the prism lens 3 and the LED substrate 5, which in turn increases the overall size and weight of the lamp.

  Further, the vehicular lamp 100 is formed by dividing the light receiving portion 11 for each LED 1, so that it is possible to apply the linear light source 2 formed by aligning the LEDs 1 in a linear shape, but it is formed in a linear shape. There is also a problem that the degree of freedom in design is narrow, for example, a linear light source composed of a surface light emitting element cannot be applied.

  Therefore, the present invention can improve the illuminance of the linear light source without increasing the overall size of the lamp, and can also make the entire lamp compact and lightweight, and also applies a linear light source composed of a surface light emitting element. An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicular lamp that is capable of increasing the degree of design freedom.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the invention according to claim 1 is a vehicular lamp including a linear light source that is linearly long and a prism lens that introduces light from the linear light source and emits the light forward. And
The prism lens is formed as a columnar fan-shaped column having a parabolic outer periphery, and is formed by cutting away the top side portion from the vicinity of the focal position of the parabola in the length direction perpendicular to the cross section. A main body part set with the one side end face on the side as the incident surface and the other side end face opposite to the incident face as the outgoing face and the length direction as the horizontal axis, and the length direction at the center in the width direction of the incident face A light receiving portion formed into a concave strip having a substantially U-shaped cross section along a straight line, and a direct light incident portion formed as a convex strip having a tip surface having a curved cross section along the length direction of the bottom surface of the light receiving portion; A direct light emitting portion formed as a ridge having a tip surface having a curved cross section along the length direction of the central portion of the emitting surface, and above and below the direct light emitting portion of the emitting surface. A first reflected light emitting portion and a second reflected light emitting formed respectively. Is configured and a section,
The linear light source is assembled by fitting the light emitting portion into the light receiving portion.

  For this reason, in the first aspect of the present invention, the light from the linear light source is introduced into the main body through the direct light incident portions formed as ridges on both side surfaces of the light receiving portion and the bottom surface of the light receiving portion. The light introduced into the main body from both side surfaces of the light receiving portion mainly reaches the parabolic outer peripheral surfaces constituting the upper and lower both side surfaces of the main body, respectively, and is totally reflected by the outer peripheral surfaces to be first reflected respectively. The light is emitted outward from the light emitting part and the second reflected light emitting part. The reflected light emitted at this time is a horizontally elongated strip-shaped light distribution pattern that is long in the length direction of the main body portion by combining the light from the first reflected light emitting portion and the second reflected light emitting portion.

  The light introduced from the direct light incident part to the main body part is mainly guided to the central part of the main body part and reaches the direct light emission part formed in the ridge, and is emitted outward from the tip surface thereof. Is done. The direct light emitted at this time is prevented from spreading on both the upper and lower sides of the direct light output part by the convex shape of the front end surfaces of the direct light input part and the direct light output part, and in the length direction of the direct light output part. It becomes a long horizontally long strip-shaped light distribution pattern.

  Then, the respective light distribution patterns by the emitted reflected light and direct light are polymerized to obtain a desired light distribution pattern.

  Thus, the prism lens can efficiently irradiate the light beam of the linear light source forward by the reflected light control by the total reflection of the outer peripheral surface and the direct light control by the direct light incident part and the direct light output part.

  Further, the light receiving part is formed in a concave line having a substantially U-shaped cross section along the length direction of the main body part, and is continuously formed without being divided for each component of the linear light source. As the light source, a linear light source formed by aligning a plurality of LEDs in a linear manner and a linear light source composed of a surface light emitting element formed in a linear shape can be applied together, and the linear light source can be used as a light receiving unit. It can be installed densely along the length direction. For example, when it consists of a plurality of LEDs, it can be assembled with the distance between the LEDs as small as possible.

Moreover, invention of Claim 2 is a vehicle lamp of Claim 1, Comprising:
Each front end surface of the direct light incident portion and the direct light output portion is formed with a center of curvature below the optical axis of the main body portion, and the front end surface of the direct light incident portion is the direct light It is characterized by being formed with a smaller radius of curvature than the tip surface of the light emitting part.

  For this reason, in the invention according to claim 2, the direct light is controlled downward through the respective front end surfaces of the direct light incident part and the direct light light emission part with the center of curvature set below the optical axis of the main body part, And the spreading | diffusion which spreads on both the upper and lower sides of a direct light emission part is suppressed based on the difference in a curvature radius, and radiate | emits ahead.

The invention according to claim 3 is the vehicular lamp according to claim 1 or 2,
The first reflected light emitting part is formed on a flat surface substantially orthogonal to the optical axis of the main body part, and the second reflected light emitting part is asymptotic to the incident light side of the direct light emitting part side. It is formed on the inclined convex surface.

  For this reason, in the invention according to claim 3, the reflected light emitted from the first reflected light emitting part is emitted substantially parallel to the optical axis of the main body part, and the reflected light emitted from the second reflected light emitting part is: The light is emitted downward with respect to the optical axis of the main body.

Moreover, invention of Claim 4 is a vehicle lamp of any one of Claims 1-3,
The linear light source is assembled by setting the light emission center of the light emitting portion to a position offset toward the emission surface from the focal position of the cross-sectional fan shape of the main body.

  For this reason, in the invention according to claim 4, the light of the linear light source that has reached the upper parabolic outer peripheral surface of the main body portion is reflected downwardly with respect to the optical axis of the main body portion, and the first reflected light. The light is emitted forward from the emission part.

The invention according to claim 5 is the vehicular lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The light receiving portion is formed with an upper prism and a lower prism, each having a plurality of small ridges having a convex end surface formed in a cross-sectional shape along the width direction, on both side surfaces. It is characterized by comprising.

  For this reason, in the invention according to the fifth aspect, among the light introduced into the main body, the light introduced from the both side surfaces of the light receiving portion is caused by the upper prism and the lower prism respectively formed on the both side surfaces. It is introduced in a state where the diffusion angle in the length direction is suppressed.

Moreover, invention of Claim 6 is a vehicle lamp of any one of Claims 1-5,
The direct light incident part has a plurality of small ridges in the length direction which are formed on the bottom surface of the light receiving part and have a tip surface with a curved cross section formed along the width direction. It is characterized by forming a middle prism.

  For this reason, in the invention described in claim 6, the direct light incident part is formed by superposing the small ridges (vertical ridges) in the width direction on the ridges (lateral ridges) formed in the length direction of the main body part. Since it was formed, it is formed in a fish-eye shape. Of the light introduced into the main body, the light introduced from the bottom surface of the light receiving portion is introduced in a state in which the diffusion angle in the length direction of the main body portion is suppressed by the middle prism formed on the bottom protrusion. Is done.

Moreover, invention of Claim 7 is a vehicle lamp of any one of Claims 1-6,
The direct light emitting portion is characterized in that a tip surface having a convex cross section is formed by a composite R surface in which the radius of curvature of the lower portion is larger than that of the upper portion.

  Therefore, in the invention described in claim 7, the light emitted from the upper part of the composite R surface among the light emitted outward from the direct light emitting part can exhibit a first light distribution pattern having a wide vertical width. In addition, the emitted light from the lower portion can produce a second light distribution pattern whose vertical width is narrower than the first light distribution pattern, and generally brings the second light distribution pattern to the H axis on the screen. A direct light distribution pattern superimposed on the first light distribution pattern can be obtained.

  The composite R surface at this time can be formed in various shapes by changing the respective radii of curvature of the upper part and the lower part constituting the composite R surface. Positioning of the condensing zone (the overlapping portion of the second light distribution pattern) in the light distribution pattern can be controlled.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the light receiving portion is formed in a concave strip having a substantially U-shaped cross section along the length direction of the main body portion, and is continuously divided without being divided into components of the linear light source. Because it is formed, linear light sources can be densely installed along the length direction of the light receiving part, which can improve illuminance without increasing the size of the prism lens, and thus make the entire lamp compact In addition, it is possible to provide a vehicular lamp that can be reduced in weight.

  In addition, as the linear light source, a linear light source formed by aligning a plurality of LEDs in a linear form and a linear light source composed of a surface light emitting element formed in a linear form can be applied. The degree of freedom can be expanded.

  In addition, the prism lens can efficiently irradiate the light flux of the LED forward by the reflected light control by the total reflection of the outer peripheral surface and the direct light control by the direct light incident part and the direct light output part. However, it can contribute to improvement of the illuminance of the lamp, and as a result, the entire lamp can be made compact and light.

  According to the invention described in claim 2, the direct light is controlled downward with respect to the optical axis of the main body part via the front end surfaces of the direct light incident part and the direct light output part, and the direct light output part. In addition to the effect of the invention of claim 1, the thickness of the central portion along the optical axis of the prism lens can be reduced and the glare light can be reduced. The outgoing light suppressed as much as possible can be produced.

  According to the third aspect of the invention, the reflected light from the first reflected light emitting part is emitted in parallel with the optical axis of the main body part, and the reflected light from the second reflected light emitting part is emitted from the main body part. In addition to the effect of the first or second aspect of the invention, a wide light distribution pattern can be produced vertically.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the light from the linear light source that has reached the upper parabolic outer peripheral surface of the main body is reflected downwardly with respect to the optical axis of the main body, and is reflected first. Since light is emitted forward from the light emitting portion, in addition to the effect of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the horizontal line of the entire light distribution pattern can be controlled to be equal to or lower than the H axis on the screen. it can.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the light introduced from the both side surfaces of the light receiving portion has its diffusion angle in the length direction of the main body portion suppressed by the upper prism and the lower prism respectively formed on the both side surfaces. In addition to the effect of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 4, in addition to the effect of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 4, the light distribution pattern of reflected light that is diffused in the length direction of the main body portion Light distribution can be performed in the direction of narrowing, whereby the illuminance of the entire light distribution pattern is improved, and thus the visibility of the driver can be improved.

  According to the invention of claim 6, the light introduced from the bottom surface of the light receiving portion is in a state in which the diffusion angle in the length direction of the main body portion is suppressed by the middle prism formed on the bottom protrusion. Since it is introduced, in addition to the effect of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 5, in the direction of narrowing the light distribution pattern of direct light that was diffused in the length direction of the main body in the same direction. It is possible to distribute light, thereby improving the illuminance of the entire light distribution pattern, and thus improving the visibility of the driver.

  According to the invention of claim 7, since the vertical width of the direct light distribution pattern can be widened, and the condensing zone in the direct light distribution pattern can be formed closer to the H axis on the screen. In addition to the effects of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 6, the visibility of the driver can be improved.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that components having the same functions as those disclosed in FIGS. 12 and 13 are described with the same reference numerals.

  FIG. 1 shows a vehicular lamp 10 as a first embodiment of the present invention. The vehicular lamp 10 is applied as a headlamp. A linear light source 2 in which a plurality of LEDs 1, 1,... Are linearly aligned and light from the linear light source 2 is introduced. A prism lens 3 that emits forward is generally configured.

  The LED 1 at this time is configured as an LED package, and the linear light source 2 is configured with five LEDs 1.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the prism lens 3 is provided in the light receiving unit 11 provided on the incident surface 7, the main body 8 having the incident surface 7 and the exit surface 6, and the light receiving unit 11. It has a direct light incident part 12, a direct light output part 13 provided on the output surface 6, and a first reflected light output part 14 and a second reflected light output part 15 provided on the output surface 6. For example, it is integrally injection-molded with a transparent acrylic resin.

  The main body 8 is formed as a cross-sectional fan-shaped column having a parabolic shape (including a broken line portion in FIG. 2) and a top side portion (a broken line portion in FIG. 2) from the focal position F of the parabola. ) In the length direction orthogonal to the cross section (the direction orthogonal to the paper surface of FIG. 2), the one side end surface on the cut side is the incident surface 7, and the other side end surface opposite to the incident surface 7 is the output surface. 6 is set with the length direction as the horizontal axis.

  In addition, the light receiving portion 11 is formed in a concave portion having a substantially U-shaped cross section along the length direction at the center portion in the width direction of the incident surface 7. In the light receiving portion 11, both side surfaces 11a and 11b also constitute a light incident portion.

  Further, the direct light incident part 12 is formed as a ridge having a tip surface having a curved cross section along the length direction of the bottom surface of the light receiving part 11. Accordingly, the light receiving unit 11 is configured to include both side surfaces 11 a and 11 b formed continuously in the length direction of the main body unit 8 and an incident unit including the direct light incident unit 12.

  Further, the direct light emitting part 13 is formed as a ridge having a tip surface with a convex cross section along the length direction of the central part of the emitting surface 6, and the first reflected light emitting part 14 and the second reflecting light are formed. The light emitting portions 15 are respectively formed on the upper side and the lower side of the direct light emitting portion 13 on the emission surface 6.

  Furthermore, the linear light source 2 is configured by assembling five LEDs 1 by fitting the light emitting part 1a into the light receiving part 11. That is, the five LEDs 1 have their base ends fixed to the substrate 5 and the light emitting portion 1a of the main body portion 8 set with the incident surface 7 facing the substrate 5 and the length direction as the horizontal axis. The light receiving unit 11 is fitted and assembled. At this time, each LED 1 is mounted such that the light emission center O of the light emitting portion 1 a is substantially matched with the substantially focal position F of the parabola that is the outer peripheral shape of the main body portion 8.

  In the vehicular lamp 10 thus configured, as shown in FIG. 3, the light of the five LEDs 1 is formed as ridges on both side surfaces 11 a and 11 b of the light receiving unit 11 and the bottom surface of the light receiving unit 11. It is introduced into the main body part 8 through the direct light incident part 12. The light introduced into the main body 8 from the both side surfaces 11a and 11b of the light receiving unit 11 mainly reaches the parabolic outer peripheral surfaces 8a and 8b constituting the upper and lower side surfaces of the main body unit 8, respectively. The light is totally reflected by 8a and 8b and emitted outward from the first reflected light emitting part 14 and the second reflected light emitting part 15, respectively. That is, the reflected light L1 is emitted from the first reflected light emitting part 14, the reflected light L2 is emitted from the second reflected light emitting part 15, and the reflected lights L1 and L2 are combined and long in the length direction of the main body part 8. It becomes a horizontally long strip-shaped light distribution pattern.

  The light introduced from the direct light incident part 12 into the main body part 8 is mainly guided through the central part of the main body part 8 and reaches the direct light emission part 13 formed into a convex line, and from its front end surface. The light is emitted outward. The direct light L3 emitted at this time is prevented from spreading on both the upper and lower sides of the direct light output part 13 by the convex shape of the front end surfaces of the direct light input part 12 and the direct light output part 13, and the direct light output part 13. This is a horizontally long strip-shaped light distribution pattern that is long in the length direction.

  Then, the respective light distribution patterns of the emitted reflected lights L1 and L2 and the direct light L3 are polymerized to obtain a desired light distribution pattern LP as shown in FIG.

  As described above, the prism lens 3 efficiently irradiates the light flux of the LED 1 forward by the reflected light control by the total reflection of the outer peripheral surfaces 8a and 8b and the direct light control by the direct light incident unit 12 and the direct light output unit 13. be able to. According to the simulation, the utilization efficiency of the luminous flux of the LED 1 of this embodiment is 70 to 80%.

  Moreover, since the light-receiving part 11 is formed in the concave strip of a substantially U-shaped cross section along the length direction of the main-body part 8, and is continuously formed without being divided for every LED1, there is a light-emitting part there. The five LEDs 1 constituting the linear light source 2 by inserting 1a can be assembled with the mutual interval as small as possible. In the present embodiment, the packages of the LEDs 1 are assembled in a line array in a state of being in contact with each other.

  Therefore, the vehicular lamp 10 can improve the illuminance by increasing the number of the LEDs 1 constituting the linear light source 2 without increasing the size of the prism lens 3, and thus the entire lamp can be made compact and lightweight. It is.

  In addition, since the prism lens 3 has a structure that improves the utilization efficiency of the luminous flux of the LED 1, the illuminance necessary for the lamp can be achieved with a small number of LEDs 1, and also in this respect, the entire lamp is made compact and lightweight. Can be realized.

  Preferably, as in the present embodiment, the front end surfaces of the direct light incident part 12 and the direct light output part 13 are formed with a center of curvature below the optical axis Z of the main body part 8. The tip surface of the direct light incident portion 12 is formed with a smaller radius of curvature than the tip surface of the direct light output portion 13.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the front end surface of the direct light incident portion 12 is formed to have a center of curvature C1 and a radius of curvature r1, and the front end surface of the direct light output portion 13 is formed from the center of curvature C2, the curvature. It is formed with a radius r2. The curvature radii r1 and r2 are set to r1 = 5 mm and r2 = 10 mm, for example.

  In this configuration, the direct light L <b> 3 is controlled downward via the respective front end surfaces of the direct light incident part 12 and the direct light output part 13, and the diffusion spreading on the upper and lower sides of the direct light output part 13 is directly reflected by the direct light incident part 12. And the direct light emitting part 13 are suppressed based on the difference in the radius of curvature of the light and are emitted forward, so that the thickness T of the central portion along the optical axis Z of the prism lens 3 can be reduced and the glare light is suppressed as much as possible. The emitted light can be produced. The thickness T of the prism lens 3 is set to T = 22 mm, for example.

  More preferably, as in the present embodiment, the first reflected light emitting portion 14 is formed on a flat surface substantially orthogonal to the optical axis Z of the main body portion 8 and the second reflected light emitting portion 15 is directly irradiated. It is formed on an inclined convex surface in which the light emitting part 13 side is asymptotic to the incident surface 7 side.

  In other words, the first reflected light emitting portion 14 has a flat surface with an inclination angle of 0 to 5 ° with respect to the flat surface orthogonal to the optical axis Z (the direct light emitting portion 13 side asymptotically approaches the incident surface 7 side). Is formed. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the second reflected light emitting portion 15 is formed having an inclination angle θ and a radius of curvature r3 with respect to a flat surface perpendicular to the optical axis Z. The inclination angle θ is an angle at which the reflected light L2 can be directed downward, and is set to θ = 13 °, for example, and the curvature radius r3 is set to r3 = 300 mm, for example.

  In this configuration, the reflected light L1 emitted from the first reflected light emitting portion 14 is emitted substantially parallel to the optical axis Z of the main body portion 8, and the reflected light L2 emitted from the second reflected light emitting portion 15 is the main body. Since the light is emitted downward with respect to the optical axis Z of the portion 8, as shown in FIG. 4, a wide light distribution pattern LP1 (in FIG. 4, the vertical width is indicated by a symbol d) can be provided.

  FIG. 5 shows the light distribution patterns P1, P2, and P3 constituting the light distribution pattern LP1. That is, FIG. 5A shows a light distribution pattern P1 by the reflected light L1, and the light distribution pattern P1 has a narrow vertical pattern having a sharp cut line. FIG. 5B shows a light distribution pattern P2 based on the direct light L3. The light distribution pattern P2 is a pattern having a wide vertical width (about 10 degrees) that does not particularly have a cut line. FIG. 5C shows a light distribution pattern P3 by the reflected light L2. The light distribution pattern P3 has a gentler cut line than the light distribution pattern P1, and is intermediate between the light distribution pattern P1 and the light distribution pattern P2. The pattern has a vertical width of.

  FIG. 6 shows a vehicular lamp 20 as a second embodiment of the present invention. The vehicular lamp 20 has the same configuration as that of the vehicular lamp 10 described above except that the setting position of the LED 1 is different.

  That is, in the vehicular lamp 20, the five LEDs 1 set the light emission centers O of all the light emitting portions 1 a at positions offset to the emission surface 6 side from the focal position F of the cross-sectional fan shape of the main body portion 8. Are assembled.

  Specifically, the main body 8 is formed as a cross-sectional fan-shaped column having a parabolic outer periphery, and the top side portion including the focal position F of the parabola is cut in a length direction perpendicular to the cross-section. Thus, the one side end face of the excision side is formed as the incident face 7 and the other end face opposite to the incident face 7 is formed as the outgoing face 6.

  That is, in the second embodiment, the focal position F of the cross-sectional fan shape of the main body 8 is located outside the incident surface 7 so as to face the opening of the light receiving unit 11, and It is not located inside. For this reason, the LED 1 has the light emitting part 1a fitted in the light receiving part 11 in the same manner as the vehicle lamp 10 described above, so that the light emission center O of the light emitting part 1a has a fan-shaped cross section of the main body part 8. It can be set and assembled at a position offset from the focal position F toward the exit surface 6 side.

  In the vehicular lamp 20 configured as described above, the light of the LED 1 that has reached the upper parabolic outer peripheral surface 8 a of the main body 8 becomes reflected light L 1 that is downward with respect to the optical axis Z of the main body 8. The light is emitted forward from the first reflected light emitting portion 14. In FIG. 6, symbol Z1 indicates a parallel line of the optical axis Z.

  For this reason, the vehicular lamp 20 can control the horizontal line of the entire light distribution pattern LP1 (see FIG. 4) below the H axis on the screen.

  FIG. 7 shows a prism lens 30 applied to a vehicular lamp as a third embodiment of the present invention. The vehicular lamp according to the third embodiment is applied as a headlamp similarly to the vehicular lamp 10 described above, and is a linear light source formed by aligning a plurality of LEDs 1, 1,. 2 (see FIG. 1) and a prism lens 30 that introduces the light from the linear light source 2 and emits the light forward.

  The prism lens 30 is similar to the prism lens 3 of the vehicle lamp 10 described above, and includes a main body 8 having an incident surface 7 and an exit surface 6, a light receiving unit 11 provided on the incident surface 7, and a light receiving unit. 11, a direct light incident part 12 provided on the output surface 6, a direct light output part 13 provided on the output surface 6, and a first reflected light output part 14 and a second reflected light output part 15 provided on the output surface 6. For example, it is integrally injection-molded with a transparent acrylic resin.

  In the prism lens 30, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the light receiving portion 11 has small convex strips 31 a having tip surfaces with a curved cross section formed along the width direction on both side surfaces 11 a and 11 b. , 31 a,... And 32 a, 32 a,... Are arranged in the length direction to form an upper prism 31 and a lower prism 32, respectively. In the present embodiment, the upper prism 31 is configured with five small ridges 31a, and the lower prism 32 is configured with five small ridges 32a. The strips 31a and 32a are formed, for example, with a radius of curvature r4 of r4 = 15 mm.

  In the third embodiment to which the prism lens 30 is applied, the light introduced from the both side surfaces 11a and 11b of the light receiving unit 11 among the light introduced to the main body unit 8 is formed on both side surfaces 11a and 11b, respectively. The upper prism 31 and the lower prism 32 are introduced in a state where the diffusion angle in the length direction of the main body 8 is suppressed. For this reason, the light distribution pattern of reflected light (light distribution pattern P1 in FIG. 5 (a) and light distribution in FIG. 5 (c)) which is diffused in the length direction of the main body 8 (the H-axis direction on the screen). Can be distributed in the direction narrowing in the same direction, thereby improving the illuminance of the entire light distribution pattern and thus improving the visibility of the driver.

  Further, in the prism lens 30, the direct light incident part 12 is preferably formed along the width direction on the ridge formed on the bottom surface of the light receiving part 11 as in the present embodiment (see FIGS. 7 and 8). It is configured by forming a middle prism 33 in which a plurality of small ridges 33a having a tip end surface having a curved cross section are provided in the length direction. In the present embodiment, the middle prism 33 is configured with five small ridges 33a formed at the same interval as the small ridges 31a and 32a described above, and the small ridges 33a have, for example, a curvature. The radius r5 is formed with r5 = 50 mm.

  In this configuration, the direct light incident part 12 is formed by overlapping the small protrusions 33a (vertical protrusions) in the width direction on the protrusions (lateral protrusions) formed in the length direction of the main body part 8, It is formed in a fisheye shape. Of the light introduced into the main body 8, the light introduced from the bottom surface of the light receiving portion 11 has its diffusion angle in the length direction of the main body portion 8 suppressed by the middle prism 33 formed on the bottom protrusion. It is introduced in the state. For this reason, the light distribution pattern of direct light (see the light distribution pattern P2 in FIG. 5B) that is diffused in the length direction of the main body 8 (the H-axis direction on the screen) is arranged in the direction narrowing in the same direction. Thus, the illuminance is improved, and thus the visibility of the driver can be improved.

  FIG. 9 shows a light distribution pattern LP2 obtained by applying a prism lens 30 having an upper prism 31, a lower prism 32, and a middle prism 33. The light distribution pattern LP2 is an H axis on the screen. It has a width D2 in the direction and is sufficiently narrower than the width D1 in the same direction of the light distribution pattern LP1 (see FIG. 4) to which the prism lens 3 described above is applied (D1> D2). The illuminance of the entire pattern LP2 is improved, and as a result, the visibility of the driver can be improved.

  Furthermore, in the prism lens 30, preferably, as in the present embodiment (see FIGS. 7 and 10), the direct-light emitting portion 13 has a tip surface with a convex cross-section and a lower portion 34b than the upper portion 34a. It is formed by the composite R surface 34 in which the radius of curvature of becomes large.

  That is, the composite R surface 34 is formed to have an upper portion 34a having a center of curvature C3 and a radius of curvature r6, and a lower portion 34b of the center of curvature C4 and the radius of curvature r7. The curvature radii r6 and r7 have a relationship of r6 <r7, and are set to r6 = 9 mm and r7 = 11 mm, for example. At this time, like the prism lens 3, the front end surface of the direct light incident part 12 is formed to have a center of curvature C1 and a radius of curvature r1 (= 5 mm), and the centers of curvature C1, C3, and C4 It is set lower than the axis Z. By setting the curvature centers C1, C3, C4 below the optical axis Z, the upper end of the light distribution pattern LP2 can be made lower than the H axis on the screen (see FIG. 9).

  In this configuration, as shown in FIG. 11, the light emitted from the upper part 34 a of the composite R surface 34 out of the light emitted outward from the direct light emitting unit 13 has a vertical width (width in the V-axis direction) d. The first light distribution pattern P4a having a large width can be produced, and the light emitted from the lower portion 34b can produce the second light distribution pattern P4b having a narrower vertical width than the first light distribution pattern P4a. A direct light distribution pattern P4 in which the second light distribution pattern P4b is brought close to the H axis on the screen and superimposed on the first light distribution pattern P4a can be provided. The overlapping portion of the second light distribution pattern P4b (shown by hatching in FIG. 11) constitutes a condensing zone in the direct light distribution pattern P4.

  The composite R surface 34 at this time can be formed into various shapes by changing the respective curvature radii r6 and r7 of the upper portion 34a and the lower portion 34b constituting the composite R surface 34. Accordingly, direct light distribution is thereby achieved. The vertical width d of the pattern P4 and the position of the condensing zone in the direct light distribution pattern 4 can be controlled. In addition to increasing the vertical width d of the direct light distribution pattern P4 and forming the condensing zone in the direct light distribution pattern P4 closer to the H axis on the screen, it is possible to improve driver visibility. it can.

  As the linear light source, in the above-described embodiment, the linear light source 2 formed by aligning a plurality of LEDs 1 in a linear shape is used. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and is linear. Needless to say, a linear light source (not shown) made of the formed surface light emitting elements can also be used as the light source, and in that case, the same effects as the linear light source 2 can be obtained.

1 is a schematic perspective view of a vehicular lamp as a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a cross-sectional view of the prism lens applied to the vehicle lamp of FIG. It is optical path explanatory drawing of the vehicle lamp of FIG. It is a graph which shows the light distribution pattern which the vehicle lamp of FIG. 1 plays. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of each light distribution pattern constituting the light distribution pattern of FIG. 4, (a) is a light distribution pattern by reflected light from a first reflected light emitting unit, and (b) is a distribution by direct light from a direct light emitting unit. An optical pattern (c) shows a light distribution pattern by reflected light from the first reflected light emitting part. It is optical path explanatory drawing of the vehicle lamp as 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view from the back side of the prism lens applied to the vehicle lamp as 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which follows the VIII-VIII line of FIG. It is a graph which shows the light distribution pattern which the vehicle lamp as 3rd Embodiment of this invention show | plays. It is sectional drawing which follows the XX line of FIG. It is a graph which shows the light distribution pattern of the emitted light from the composite R surface of the direct light emission part of the prism lens of FIG. It is optical path explanatory drawing of the conventional vehicle lamp. FIG. 13A is a top perspective view of the prism lens applied to the vehicular lamp of FIG. 12, and FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 LED
1a Light emitting part (LED)
2 linear light source 3, 30 prism lens 6 exit surface 7 entrance surface 8 main body 10, 20 vehicle lamp 11 light receiving unit 11a, 11b side surface (of light receiving unit)
12 direct light incident part 13 direct light output part 14 first reflected light output part 15 second reflected light output part 31 upper prism 31a small protrusion (of upper prism)
32 Lower prism 32a Small ridge (of lower prism)
33 Central prism 33a Small convex stripe (of the central prism)
34 Compound R surface 34a Upper part (of compound R surface)
34b Lower part (of compound R surface)
C1, C2, C3, C4 Center of curvature F Focus position O Light emission center r1, r2, r3, r6, r7 Curvature radius Z Optical axis (of main body)

Claims (7)

A vehicular lamp comprising a linear light source that is linearly long and a prism lens that introduces light from the linear light source and emits the light forward.
The prism lens is formed as a columnar fan-shaped column having a parabolic outer periphery, and is formed by cutting away the top side portion from the vicinity of the focal position of the parabola in the length direction perpendicular to the cross section. A main body part set with the one side end face on the side as the incident surface and the other side end face opposite to the incident face as the outgoing face and the length direction as the horizontal axis, and the length direction at the center in the width direction of the incident face A light receiving portion formed into a concave strip having a substantially U-shaped cross section along a straight line, and a direct light incident portion formed as a convex strip having a tip surface having a curved cross section along the length direction of the bottom surface of the light receiving portion; A direct light emitting portion formed as a ridge having a tip surface having a curved cross section along the length direction of the central portion of the emitting surface, and above and below the direct light emitting portion of the emitting surface. A first reflected light emitting portion and a second reflected light emitting formed respectively. Is configured and a section,
A vehicular lamp characterized in that the linear light source is assembled by fitting a light emitting portion thereof into the light receiving portion. The vehicular lamp according to claim 1,
Each front end surface of the direct light incident portion and the direct light output portion is formed with a center of curvature below the optical axis of the main body portion, and the front end surface of the direct light incident portion is the direct light A vehicular lamp characterized by being formed to have a smaller radius of curvature than the tip surface of the light emitting portion. The vehicular lamp according to claim 1 or 2,
The first reflected light emitting part is formed on a flat surface substantially orthogonal to the optical axis of the main body part, and the second reflected light emitting part is asymptotic to the incident light side of the direct light emitting part side. A vehicular lamp characterized by being formed on an inclined convex surface. The vehicular lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The linear light source is assembled by setting the light emission center of the light emitting portion at a position offset from the focal position of the cross-sectional fan shape of the main body portion toward the emission surface. Light fixture. The vehicle lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The light receiving portion is formed with an upper prism and a lower prism, each having a plurality of small ridges having a convex end surface formed in a cross-sectional shape along the width direction, on both side surfaces. A vehicular lamp characterized by comprising: The vehicular lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The direct light incident part has a plurality of small ridges in the length direction which are formed on the bottom surface of the light receiving part and have a tip surface with a curved cross section formed along the width direction. A vehicular lamp characterized by comprising a middle prism. The vehicular lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
A vehicular lamp characterized in that the direct-light emitting portion has a convex curved front end surface formed by a composite R surface in which the radius of curvature of the lower portion is larger than that of the upper portion.

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