FR2648542A1 - IMPROVEMENTS ON MOTOR VEHICLE SIGNAL LIGHTS - Google Patents

Abstract

Improvements to signaling lights for motor vehicles and more particularly to direction indicator lights for flashing and of the type comprising a reflector 5, an incandescent lamp, a diffuser 8 masking the reflector 5, means for coloring the light beam emitted of the lamp, a first screen 6 for channeling the light beam towards the outside, a second screen 7 for masking from the outside, when the lamp is not lit, the means for coloring the light beam and arranged in front of the first screen 6, characterized in that the second screen 7 has on its face turned opposite the first screen a surface formed by catadioptric prisms alternated with plane surfaces 14.

Description

i The invention relates to signaling lights for motor vehicles and

especially fires

direction changes.

  In principle, the rear signal lamps of a vehicle include a corresponding red part

  the braking indication and a corresponding amber part

  when changing direction. At the front, the vehicle has only headlights and the amber part. For aesthetic reasons, we tend to group behind a crystal diffuser the direction change light and the headlight, however through the diffuser, we see the

  amber part which is unsightly.

  It has been proposed in French patent 2,517,804, to remedy this drawback by making a fire in

  which in front of the lamp, there is a network of len-

  converging pins and in front of it a per-

  drilled with frustoconical perforations and whose

  face facing the diffuser has a reflective layer.

  In such an arrangement, the lenses conver-

  gentes must be arranged so as to be aligned with the frustoconical holes and so that from outside

  coloration is not visible it is also desired-

  ble that the face coated with a reflective layer is also

  Also made up of divergent lenses.

  Such an arrangement is relatively complex

and dear.

  One of the aims of the present invention is to produce a fire which is much simpler to manufacture and which allows the exterior to give an impression of unity with

a contiguous lighthouse.

  The improvements according to the invention are

  apply more particularly to direction indicator lights flashing of the type comprising

  a reflector, an incandescent lamp, a mas-

  as for the reflector, means for coloring the light beam coming from the lamp, a first screen for channeling the light beam towards the outside, a second screen for

  mask, from the outside when the lamp is not on

  mée, the means for coloring the light beam and disposed in front of the first screen and are characterized in that the second screen has on its side facing the

  first screen a surface formed by catadiop-

  triques alternated with flat surfaces.

  Thanks to such an arrangement when the fire is not lit, the coloring is perfectly invisible,

  while, when lit, it presents good in-

density.

  According to a constructive detail, the catalytic prisms

  diopters affect the shape of pyramids with three lateral faces and whose edges adjacent to the base

  are truncated to determine a hexagonal base.

  Preferably, the flat surfaces have a hexagonal shape.

  According to a detail characteristic, the first

  mier screen present, on its side facing the second

  screen, a network of lenses in the form of spherical caps

  ques. According to yet another characteristic, the first screen has on its face opposite to that turned

  on the side of the second screen, a series of concentric grooves.

  According to another embodiment of the in-

  vention, the first screen has on a turned side

  towards the lamp to the right of the cap of this sil-

  concentric lons, the rest of the surface having a network of lenses in the form of spherical caps, the face of said first screen turned opposite the second screen

  being provided with a cap-shaped lens array-

your spherical.

  According to yet another embodiment

  of the invention, the first screen presents on the side of the

  cond screen a flat face and on the opposite side, a network of

  lenses in the form of spherical caps.

  According to an alternative embodiment, the means for coloring the light beam comprise a cap

colored covering the lamp.

  Finally, the means for coloring the light beam comprise direct coloring carried out on

the lamp balloon.

  The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to embodiments

  individuals given by way of example only and shown

  shown in the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a plan view of a face of a

  first screen placed in front of the lamp.

  Figure 2 is a plan view of the other side

of the first screen.

  Figure 3 is an enlarged plan view of an au-

  be a screen placed in front of the first screen.

  Figure 4 is a sectional view of a signaling light

  reading according to the invention according to a first mode

of achievement.

  Figure 5 is a sectional view of a signaling light

  reading according to an alternative embodiment of the invention.

  Figure 6 is a sectional view along three

  5th embodiment of the invention.

  Figure 7 is a plan view of the side turned

towards the lamp of the first screen.

  Figure 8 is a sectional view of a last mode

for carrying out the invention.

  The light shown in Figure 4 includes a socket 1 intended to be connected to a suitable source of electric current and arranged to receive the base

  2 of an electric lamp whose balloon 3 has a cap

te 4 tinted in amber.

  The socket is mounted in a silver reflector 5

  internally supporting two screens 6 and 7, a diffuse

  sor 8 made of transparent plastic being disposed of-

the whole.

  The screen 6 (see FIG. 2) comprises on the side of the lamp a series of concentric grooves 10, while the other face (see FIG. 1) comprises lenses in the form of spherical caps 11. Thus, the light rays emitted

  by the lamps are channeled to the outside.

  The screen 7 has, on the side of the diffuser 8, a flat face, while on the other side, comprises a succession of catadioptric prisms 13 affecting the shape of a pyramid having three lateral faces and whose edges adjacent to the base are truncated so that said base determines a hexagonal surface, the vertices being turned towards the screen 6. The catadioptric prisms are arranged so as to delimit between them hexagonal flat surfaces 14 parallel to the face turned towards the diffuser 8. The two screens 6 and 7 are made of

crystal-like plastic.

  Thanks to this arrangement, when the lamp is extinguished from the outside, the whole light gives a crystal appearance, while when the lamp is on, the light rays concentrated by the screen 6 pass through only

  the flat hexagonal surfaces 14 with the corresponding coloring

laying on the cap 4.

  In FIG. 5, a variant has been represented.

  of achievement. In this figure, we used to desi-

  hinder the organs corresponding to those of Figure 4

  same references but assigned the letter "a".

  In this embodiment, we find the same arrangements as those described for Figure 4, however the balloon 3a of the lamp is either colorless or frosted and there is provided a cap 10 fixed on the reflector 5a and which covers said lamp. The cap is colored

  in amber so that the light rays described or reflected

  chis by the reflector 5a and which only cross the

surfaces 14a, are colored.

  In Figures 6 and 7, a varian-

  te of realization of the invention. In this embodiment

  tion, we used to designate the corresponding bodies

  to those of FIGS. 4 and 5 the same references but affected

tees of the letter "b".

  In this embodiment, only the screen 6b differs.

  The surface of the screen 6b turned opposite the screen 7b comprises a network of lenses llb in the form of spherical caps corresponding to the lenses 11 shown in FIG. 1. The face turned towards the lamp 3b is in line with the cap 4b concentric grooves 15, while the rest of the surface is provided with shaped lenses

of spherical caps.

  In Figure 8, there is shown a last embodiment of the invention. In FIG. 8, the same references have been used as those used for FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 to designate the corresponding members, but

affected by the letter "c".

  In this variant, the screen 6c has, on the side of the cap 4c of the lamp 3c, lenses llc of the same type as the lenses 11 (see FIG. 1), while

the other side is flat.

  Of course, the screens 6a, 7a, 6b, 7b and 6c, 7c are made of plastic material with a crystal appearance and the same results are obtained with this combination as with

  the various previous combinations.

  The diffusers 8, 8a, 8b and 8c may include lenses on the internal face or the external face for

  distribute the light according to a desired spatial distribution.

  Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiments which have just been described and

  represented. Many modifications can be made

  details without departing from the scope of the invention

tion.

RE V E N D I C A T IONS S

  1 - Improvements to the signaling lights of motor vehicles and more particularly to the direction indicator lights flashing and of the type comprising a reflector (5), an incandescent lamp, a diffuser (8) masking the reflector (5), means for coloring the light beam coming from the lamp, a first screen (6) for channeling the light beam towards the outside, a second screen (7) for masking, from the outside, when the lamp is not lit , the means for coloring the light beam and disposed in front of the first screen (6), characterized in that the second screen (7) has on its face turned opposite the first screen a surface formed by retro-reflecting prisms (13)

  alternated with flat surfaces (14).

  2 - Improvements to traffic lights

  motor vehicle according to claim 1, charac-

  characterized in that the catadioptric prisms (13) affect the shape of pyramids having three lateral faces and

  whose edges adjacent to the base are truncated

  to determine a hexagonal base.

  3 - Improvements to traffic lights

  motor vehicles according to claims 1 and

  2, characterized in that the flat surfaces (14) have a

hexagonal shape.

  4 - Improvements to traffic lights

  motor vehicle according to claim 1, charac-

  terized in that the first screen (6) has, on its side facing the second screen, a network of lenses

in the form of spherical caps.

   - Improvements to traffic lights

  motor vehicle according to claim 1, charac-

  in that the first screen (6) has, on its face opposite to that turned on the side of the second screen, a

  series of concentric grooves (11).

  6 - Improvements to traffic lights

  motor vehicle according to claim 1, charac-

  characterized in that the first screen (6b) has on a face facing the lamp (3b) in line with the cap of the latter (4b) concentric grooves (15), the rest of the surface having a network of lenses (16) fit

  of spherical caps, the face of said first screen rotates

  born next to the second screen being provided with a network

  lenses (llb) in the form of spherical caps.

  7 - Improvements to traffic lights

  motor vehicle according to claim 1, charac-

  terized in that the first screen (6c) has on the side of the second screen (7c) a flat face and on the opposite side a

  network of lenses (11c) in the form of spherical caps.

  8 - Improvements to traffic lights

  motor vehicle according to claim 1, charac-

  terized in that the means of coloring the beam lu-

  miners include a colored cap covering the lamp.

  9 - Improvements to traffic lights

  motor vehicle according to claim 1, charac-

  terized in that the means of coloring the light beam

  nows include a direct coloring performed on the

lamp balloon.