JPH0118538B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to a fluorescent lamp device in which a curved fluorescent lamp is housed in a bulb-shaped envelope and can be used in place of an incandescent light bulb. .

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

Fluorescent lamps can be used with lower power consumption than ordinary incandescent lamps and are highly efficient, so the applicant has recently put into practical use a fluorescent lamp device that can be screwed into an existing incandescent lamp socket. It is becoming widely used as a power-saving light source. This fluorescent lamp device has a structure in which a curved tube-shaped fluorescent lamp and a circuit element for starting and lighting the lamp are housed in a bulb-shaped envelope equipped with a base. And this curved tube-shaped fluorescent lamp is
In order to ensure the effective light emitting length within the limited space inside the envelope, the straight tube bulb is bent into a substantially U-shape at the center between its two ends, and the curved part and both ends are By bending the space between the two ends into a substantially U-shape in a direction substantially orthogonal to a plane including the U-shape, the curved part and both ends are bent into a shape in which the curved part and both ends are located adjacent to each other in the same direction. It is called a saddle-shaped fluorescent lamp because its overall shape resembles a horseback saddle.

By the way, this type of fluorescent lamp device, which is intended to be used as an alternative to incandescent light bulbs, requires brightness equivalent to a 40W class or higher incandescent light bulb. It is generally known that increasing the length of the bulb is effective in increasing the brightness of a fluorescent lamp. In other words, the longer the bulb length, the longer the column of sunlight, which increases the total luminous flux, which is advantageous in terms of the amount of light emitted. However, when the valve pipe length is increased, the longer the valve pipe length, the higher the starting voltage tends to be, if the pipe diameter is the same. In the past, fluorescent lamps were lit using chiyoke coil type ballasts, so in order to achieve starting guarantee against a drop in power supply voltage up to 94V specified by JIS, it was necessary to start the fluorescent lamps using It is necessary to convert the voltage into a power supply voltage and keep it below 94V. In this case, the maximum value of the valve pipe length is automatically determined by the size of the envelope, so if the valve pipe length is constant, the pipe diameter should be set to the optimum value within the range that allows the valve to be bent. If set to , the increase in starting voltage can be suppressed.

However, it is generally known that fluorescent lamps are filled with argon as a rare gas in order to make starting easier, but the pressure of this argon filling has a large effect on lamp efficiency and startability. give. Therefore, in order to suppress the rise in starting voltage, it is necessary to simply specify the pipe diameter and pipe length of the valve, and also to specify the argon gas pressure.

By the way, in this type of fluorescent lamp device, the heat generated from the fluorescent lamp and the chiyoke coil type ballast, which is a lighting circuit component, is trapped inside the envelope, reducing the luminous efficiency of the fluorescent lamp.
In addition, the overall efficiency including the circuitry also decreases, making it impossible to achieve the original purpose of using it as an alternative to incandescent light bulbs. For this reason, conventional methods have been taken in which vent holes are provided in the envelope to generate air convection inside and outside the envelope, thereby discharging the heat trapped inside the envelope to the outside of the envelope. However, providing a vent hole in the envelope in this way not only looks unsightly, but also allows foreign matter to enter the envelope through the vent hole, resulting in a decrease in the amount of light transmitted due to dirt on the envelope. In addition, there is a risk that various other problems such as poor insulation may occur. Therefore, instead of providing ventilation holes in the envelope, a ballast, which is one of the heat sources, was installed separately outside the envelope, and a fluorescent lamp and a starter device were installed inside the envelope. A lamp device has been developed.

However, even in this case, compared to a device in which the above-mentioned ballast is integrated and a vent is provided in the envelope, the temperature inside the envelope rises by approximately 30°C due to the lack of a vent. There is a tendency. Therefore, the tube length of the fluorescent lamp installed in the envelope,
Even if the pipe diameter and filled argon gas pressure are the same,
A problem arises in that the overall efficiency of the fluorescent lamp device is reduced.

However, in a device with a separate ballast, the temperature rise inside the envelope is much smaller than when the ballast is integrated and no ventilation holes are provided. The inventors have discovered through investigation that it is possible to increase the overall efficiency to a conventional level depending on the settings of the diameter and the enclosed argon gas pressure.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention was made based on these circumstances, and its purpose is to be able to suppress the starting voltage to 94V or less in terms of power supply voltage,
Moreover, it is an object of the present invention to provide a fluorescent lamp device that can maintain the overall efficiency of the lamp at a high level.

[Summary of the invention]

That is, the present invention focuses on the fact that the pressure of the sealed argon gas has a great effect on lamp efficiency and startability, and sets the pressure of the sealed argon gas to an optimal value in relation to the bulb pipe diameter and pipe length. The valve pipe length should be 420 mm or less, the valve pipe diameter should be 14.5 mm or more and 21.0 mm or less, and the argon gas pressure sealed inside the valve should be 3.5 mm or less.
By stipulating that it is more than 5.5 torr and less than 5.5 torr,
This aims to achieve the above objectives.

[Embodiments of the invention]

The present invention will be described below based on an embodiment shown in the drawings.

In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a cover made of synthetic resin, which is formed into a substantially bowl shape with a circumferential surface shaped like a paraboloid of revolution. A screw-in cap 2, such as an E26 type incandescent light bulb, is attached to the top of one end of the cover 1, and a substantially spherical globe 3 is attached to the opening at the other end. The glove 3 is made of a transparent, milky-white or colorless synthetic resin material, and a spherical envelope 4 is formed by the crown of the glove 3. The envelope 4 of this embodiment is
The outer diameter is 110φ or less, in other words, the inner volume is 700cm ³
It is formed as follows, and its shape and dimensions approximate a 110φ class ball-shaped light bulb. Note that the inside of this envelope 4 forms a closed space that is partitioned and independent from the outside. However, here, the term "closed space" means that there is no heat dissipation effect based on air convection inside and outside the envelope 4 through the ventilation holes, and even if there are small holes for pressure relief, the present invention will not work. It shall constitute a closed space as described in .

A curved tube-shaped fluorescent lamp 5 is housed in the envelope 4. As shown in FIG. This curved tube-shaped fluorescent lamp 5 has filament coils 7, 8 sealed to both ends 6, 6 of a straight tube-shaped bulb constituting a discharge path, and a filament coil 7, 8 sealed in the center between both ends 6, 6 of this bulb. A central curved portion 9 bent into a substantially U-shape is formed, and between the central curved portion 9 and both end portions 6, 6, the U
A pair of bent ends 10, 10 are formed which are bent into a substantially U-shape in a direction substantially perpendicular to a plane including the shape. Therefore, the above-mentioned valve has four straight parts 20a, 20b, 20c, which connect both end parts 6, 6 and both end bent parts 10, 10, and these both end bent parts 10, 10 and the central bent part 9. 20d is the first
As shown in the figure, the four adjacent straight pipe portions 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d are arranged side by side at diagonal positions of a substantially rectangular shape, and the ends of the four adjacent straight pipe portions 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d are bent at both ends 10, 10 and is bent into a generally saddle shape connected by a central curved portion 9, and both ends 6, 6 and the central curved portion 9 are positioned adjacent to each other in the same direction. A predetermined amount of mercury and argon as a starting rare gas are sealed in the bulb, and such a curved tube-shaped fluorescent lamp 5 has both ends 6, 6 and a central curved portion 9.
is fixed in a position facing the cover 1 side. Further, a starting circuit 11 is housed within the cover 1. The starting circuit 11 is composed of a lighting tube 12 and a capacitor 13 connected in parallel to the lighting tube 12. It is connected. In addition, the filament coil 7
The other lead wire 14b connected to the filament coil 8 is connected to the eyelet terminal 16 of the base 2, and the other lead wire 15b connected to the other filament coil 8 is connected to the eyelet terminal 16 of the base 2.
b is connected to the opening edge of the base 2.

On the other hand, such a fluorescent lamp device is lit by screwing its base 2 into a socket 17 for an incandescent light bulb, and a ballast 18 is installed on the socket 17 side. The ballast 18 is connected in series to the power source 19, so when the cap 2 is screwed into the socket 17, the curved fluorescent lamp 5, the ballast 18 and the power source 19 are connected in series and the power source 19 is connected in series. A chiyoke coil type lighting circuit as shown in FIG. 4 is constructed, and the curved tube type fluorescent lamp 5 can be lit.

By the way, in the case of the fluorescent lamp device having the above-mentioned configuration, the bulb length of the fluorescent lamp 5 is set to 420 mm.
mm or less, and the pipe diameter is 14.5 mm or more and 21.0 mm.
In addition, the argon filler gas pressure is specified to be 3.5 Torr or more and 5.5 Torr or less. The reason for this will be explained below with reference to FIGS. 5 to 9.

Generally, in a fluorescent lamp, the longer the length of the bulb, the wider the light emitting area, which increases the total luminous flux and is advantageous in terms of the amount of light emitted. However, the above-mentioned curved tube fluorescent lamp 5 is housed in an envelope 4, and there is a demand for the envelope 4 to be limited in size to within the maximum diameter of 110 mm of current ball-shaped light bulbs. This is intended to allow the fluorescent lamp device to be compatible with existing light bulb lighting fixtures when the fluorescent lamp device is used as a replacement for ball-shaped light bulbs. Therefore, the maximum diameter of the envelope 4 is set to 110 mm.
It was confirmed that when set to , the maximum bulb length of the curved fluorescent lamp 5 is 420 mm. When the curved fluorescent lamp 5 is housed in a limited space as described above, it is necessary to reduce the tube diameter as the bulb tube length increases due to space constraints. However, it is known that when the bulb tube length and lamp current are constant, the starting voltage increases as the bulb tube diameter becomes smaller, so starting is guaranteed even when the power supply voltage drops to 94V specified by JIS. In order to do this, it is necessary to suppress at least the starting voltage of the lamp 5 to 94V or less in terms of power supply voltage. Therefore, when the upper limit of the maximum pipe length of the valve was specified as 420 mm, the relationship between the valve pipe length and the pipe diameter with respect to the starting voltage was experimentally determined, and the results shown in FIG. 5 were obtained. As you can see from this figure 5, the pipe diameter is 14.5
mm or more, all valves with pipe lengths of 420 mm or less can suppress the starting voltage to 94 V or less.
Therefore, the lower limit of the valve pipe diameter is 14.5 mm.

On the other hand, when the upper limit of the bulb length was set to 420 mm and the total luminous flux ratio was investigated while changing the bulb diameter, the results shown in FIG. 6 were obtained. This result shows that when the tube diameter exceeds 21.0 mm, the total luminous flux ratio tends to decrease rapidly, and this is due to the tube length becoming shorter as the tube diameter increases. Furthermore, if the tube diameter exceeds 21.0 mm, it becomes difficult to bend the bulb, so when the above-mentioned decrease in the total luminous flux ratio is taken into consideration, the tube diameter needs to be kept not to exceed 21.0 mm. Therefore, the upper limit of the valve pipe diameter is 21.0 mm. In this way, the valve pipe length should be within 420mm, and the pipe diameter should be between 14.5mm and 21.0mm.
If it is defined as mm, the lamp input will be about 8 to 15 W, which corresponds to the brightness of about 30 to 60 W for a general incandescent light bulb, which is sufficient brightness for general lighting.

By the way, as mentioned above, argon is sealed in the bulb, and the pressure of this filling affects the overall efficiency of the lamp and the startability of the lamp. Let's consider the sealing pressure from this perspective.

First, we will consider the effect of the filled gas pressure on the starting voltage. In other words, for a valve with a pipe diameter of 14.5 mm, where the starting voltage is the highest, when the valve pipe length was set to 300 mm, 350 mm, and 420 mm, we experimentally determined the relationship between the starting voltage and the filled gas pressure, and the results are shown in Figure 7. results. As is clear from Fig. 7, if the voltage is set to 5.5 torr or less, all valves with a pipe length of 420 mm or less can keep the starting voltage to 94V or less. Therefore, the upper limit of the filled gas pressure is 5.5 Torr.

Figure 8 also shows that for a valve with a pipe length of 420 mm,
The relationship between the tube diameter and the luminous flux reduction rate after 100 hours of lighting is shown when the filled gas pressure is 3.5 Torr, 4.5 Torr, and 5.5 Torr. As can be seen from FIG. 8, the smaller the bulb pipe diameter, the greater the luminous flux reduction rate. In this case, 100% of the ordinary fluorescent lamp
It is known that the rate of decrease in luminous flux over time is approximately 7% or less, so in order to suppress this rate of decrease to 7% or less, the lower limit of the bulb pipe diameter must be set at 14.5 mm. Taking this into consideration, it can be seen that the sealed gas pressure must be regulated to at least 3.5 Torr. Therefore, the lower limit of the filled gas pressure is
It will be 3.5 tolls.

Next, we examined the overall efficiency including the ballast 18. The overall efficiency is evaluated as the ratio of the total luminous flux of the fluorescent lamp 5 to the input to the lamp arrangement of the entire circuit including the ballast 18. Therefore, with the lamp current constant and the bulb pipe diameter constant 16.5 mm,
When the overall efficiency was investigated by varying the valve pipe length and the sealed gas pressure, the results shown in FIG. 9 were obtained. From FIG. 9, it is clear that the maximum value of the overall efficiency exists within the range of the sealed gas pressure from 3.5 Torr to 5.5 Torr. Note that similar results were obtained even when the tube diameter of the fluorescent lamp was changed.

Furthermore, since the present invention is intended to be used as an alternative to incandescent light bulbs, when comparing the overall efficiency of the fluorescent lamp device according to the present invention with the efficiency of an incandescent light bulb of approximately 12 m/W, it is found that if the tube length of the fluorescent lamp is 280 mm or more, When the argon gas pressure is in the range of 3.5 Torr to 5.5 Torr, the overall efficiency is about twice that of an incandescent light bulb. Figure 9 shows experimental values when the tube diameter is 16.5 mm, but even when the tube diameter is 14.5 mm or more and 21.0 mm or less, the efficiency is about twice as high as that of an incandescent light bulb.

Therefore, as can be seen from the above explanation, the valve pipe length should be 280 mm or more and 420 mm or less, the valve pipe diameter should be 14.5 mm or more and 21.0 mm or less, and the argon filling pressure should be within the range of 3.5 Torr or more and 5.5 Torr or less. If regulated, it is possible to keep the starting voltage below 94V and maintain a high overall efficiency. Therefore, it is extremely convenient for use as a substitute for incandescent light bulbs.

〔Effect of the invention〕

The present invention described in detail above has the advantage that when a curved fluorescent lamp is housed in an envelope equipped with a separate ballast and a cap, the pressure of the argon gas enclosed in the fluorescent lamp is adjusted according to the diameter of the bulb tube. Since it is set to the optimum value in relation to the tube length, it is possible to reliably suppress the starting voltage to 94V or less while maintaining the overall efficiency of the lamp at a high level. Therefore, sufficient brightness can be obtained for general lighting, and excellent effects can be achieved, such as being extremely convenient for use as a substitute for incandescent light bulbs.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a perspective view, FIGS. 2 and 3 are side views seen from different directions, FIG. 4 is a lighting circuit diagram, and FIGS. 5 to 9. are characteristic diagrams, respectively. 2... Base, 4... Envelope, 5... Fluorescent lamp, 6, 10... Curved part (center bent part, both end bent parts), 18... Ballast, 20a, 20b, 20c ，
20d...straight line section.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A bulb constituting a discharge path is placed in a sealed envelope equipped with a cap, and has four straight sections arranged adjacent to each other and a line between the ends of these straight sections. A ballast that accommodates a fluorescent lamp bent into a shape having three connecting U-shaped bent portions and is connected to the fluorescent lamp is separately installed outside the envelope. In the Naru fluorescent lamp device, the fluorescent lamp has a bulb length of 420 mm or less, a bulb tube diameter of 14.5 mm to 21.0 mm, and the pressure of the argon gas sealed inside the bulb is
A fluorescent lamp device characterized in that the voltage is 3.5 Torr or more and 5.5 Torr or less.