JP2000067622A - Lighting system for step of bathroom - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the rupture by the application of the weight of a person at a bath without mounting a water-proof opening and closing part, by mounting a linear luminescent part on a step in a bathroom, and optically connecting the linear luminescent part and a light source mounted outside of the bathroom by a light transmitting tube. SOLUTION: A linear luminescent part 3 is mounted over the full length or almost full length of a step 1, inside of the step near an entrance of a bathroom or inside of a step formed in a bath tub. This linear luminescent part 3 and a light source 4 mounted outside of the bathroom is optically connected by a light transmitting tube 5 which transmits the light to illuminate the step 1 and its neighborhood. A transparent member 2 or a translucent member is mounted on an upper surface of the step 1 at the position and with a length corresponding to the linear luminescent part 3. Further the step 1 is provided with a lamp chamber for accomodating the linear luminescent part 3, and an opening part of this lamp chamber is opened and closed by the transparent member 2 or the translucent member.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a lighting device for a bathroom step, which can illuminate a step formed on an entrance floor of a bathroom or a step formed on a bathtub.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, there has been proposed a system in which a step portion higher than a washing place is provided at an entrance / exit portion in a bathroom.
Is being developed. In addition, a bathtub has been proposed and developed which is provided with a step which is one step higher from the bottom on the entrance side to make it easier to enter the bathtub.

[0003] By the way, in this bathroom, a light bulb housed in a glass or resin waterproof case is provided.
In this way, the bathroom is illuminated. However, there is not enough light in this bathroom,
For example, when a person steps down on a step at an entrance or a step in a bathtub in a dimly lit bathroom, there is a possibility that a bather may not step on the tip (corner) of the step part without properly confirming it.

Therefore, as described in, for example, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 5-57072, there is known an illuminating device having a configuration in which a step corner of an entrance and exit in a bathroom is formed of a transparent member, and an incandescent lamp is installed in the corner. Have been. Further, for example, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 4-240007 also discloses a lighting device in which a lamp house is provided at a portion in contact with a step in a bathtub, and a fluorescent lamp is attached thereto.

[0005]

However, in such a configuration, the wiring cord must be led to the lighting fixture provided inside the step on the bathroom side with the lamp, and there is a risk of electric leakage. In addition, in such a configuration, when the lamp burns out, the lamp must be replaced or inspected.However, if the lamp is to be easily replaced or inspected from the bathroom, water is discharged. It is necessary to provide a waterproof opening and closing part with packing or other parts on the step part or apron part that often suffers,
When such an opening and closing portion is provided, it is difficult to prevent water leakage over a long period of time unless the waterproofness is sufficiently provided.

[0006] Further, since such a step portion is a place where a bather walks with his / her foot, the bather often takes the entire weight, and there is a problem in strength. I had to.

In view of the above circumstances, the present invention eliminates the need for troublesome replacement of a lamp or the like, and eliminates the need to provide a strictly waterproof opening / closing section for the replacement of the lamp. As a result, it is an object of the present invention to provide a step lighting device for a bathroom, which can prevent a trouble such as a bather being put on the opening / closing unit and being damaged by weight.

[0008]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a light source is provided outside a bathroom, and a linear light emitting portion is provided in a step formed on an entrance side of a bathroom or in a step formed on a bathtub. The light source and the linear light emitting portion are optically connected by a light transmission tube, and the step and its vicinity are illuminated by light from the linear light emitting portion. is there.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, a transparent portion or a translucent portion is provided on the upper surface side and / or the side surface side of the step.
Light from the linear light emitting portion in the step transmitting through the transparent or translucent portion illuminates the vicinity of the step.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, a lamp chamber for accommodating the linear light emitting portion is provided in the step portion, and an opening of the lamp chamber is formed of a transparent member. Alternatively, it is closed with a translucent member.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 shows a step lighting device for a bathroom according to the present invention. The step lighting device includes a linear light emitting portion 3 provided in a step 1 near an entrance / exit portion in a bathroom, and a lighting device outside the bathroom. And a light transmission unit 5 for transmitting light between the light source 4 and the linear light-emitting unit 3.

The linear light emitting section 3 of this embodiment is, for example, shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the step 1 is attached inside or substantially over the entire length of the step 1, and is supported by an appropriate attachment member 30 shown in FIG.
A transparent member 2 (or a translucent member) may be attached to the upper surface of the step 1 at a position and a length corresponding to the linear light emitting section 3. In addition to this embodiment,
As an illumination mode of the linear light emitting section 3, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, a large number of transparent members 2 are provided along the leading edge of step 1 in a direction perpendicular to the length direction. The tip may be illuminated.

As shown in FIG. 4, the linear light emitting section 3 of this embodiment comprises a transparent annular cladding 31, a transparent core 32 having a higher refractive index than the cladding 31,
An optical transmission tube (linear illuminant) composed of a light reflection layer 33 provided between an inner surface on the other side 1 and the core 32 is used. Further, a reflective protective layer 34 is formed on the outer surface of the other side of the clad 31 so as to cover the light reflecting layer 33, thereby further improving the reflection efficiency. Although the core diameter of the linear light emitting section 3 is not particularly limited, for example, when one LED is used as the light source 4, 2 to 30
mm, but especially 4 to 15 mm, and the length is 0.1
About 5 m, particularly preferably 0.2 to 2 m. In addition, the light reflection layer may be formed in a strip shape in the length direction of the clad in a state where the light reflection layer slightly enters the inside from the core surface.

Here, as a material (cladding material) for forming the tubular cladding 31, a material having flexibility, such as plastic or elastomer, which can be formed into a tube shape and has a low refractive index is used. Is preferred. Specific examples thereof include polyethylene, polypropylene, polyamide, polystyrene, ABS resin, polymethyl methacrylate, polycarbonate, polyvinyl chloride, polyvinylidene chloride, polyvinyl acetate, polyethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, polyvinyl alcohol, and polyethylene-polyvinyl alcohol. Polymer, fluororesin, silicone resin, natural rubber, polyisoprene rubber, polybutadiene rubber, styrene-butadiene copolymer, butyl rubber, halogenated butyl rubber, chloroprene rubber, acrylic rubber,
EPDM, acrylonitrile-butadiene copolymer, fluororubber, silicone rubber and the like can be mentioned.

Of these, silicone polymers and fluorine polymers having a low refractive index are particularly preferred. Specifically, silicone polymers such as polydimethylsiloxane polymer, polymethylphenylsiloxane polymer and fluorosilicone polymer, and polytetrafluoroethylene (P
TFE), ethylene tetrafluoride-propylene hexafluoride copolymer (FEP), ethylene tetrafluoride-perfluoroalkoxyethylene copolymer (PFE), polychlorotrifluoroethylene (PCTFE), ethylene tetrafluoride-ethylene Copolymer (ETFE), polyvinylidene fluoride, polyvinyl fluoride, vinylidene fluoride-ethylene trifluoride ethylene chloride copolymer, vinylidene fluoride-propylene hexafluoride copolymer, vinylidene fluoride-propylene hexafluoride- Examples thereof include a tetrafluoroethylene terpolymer, a tetrafluoroethylene propylene rubber, and a fluorine-based thermoplastic elastomer, and a fluorine-based polymer is particularly preferable. These materials can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

On the other hand, as a material (core material) for forming the transparent core 32, a solid material is preferable, and a (meth) acrylic polymer, polycarbonate, polystyrene, silicone rubber, ethylidene norbornene polymer, SB
Examples thereof include S, SIS, and SEBS (styrene-ethylene-butadiene-styrene block polymer). Among them, (meth) acrylic polymers are preferable.

As the (meth) acrylic polymer, a homopolymer obtained by polymerizing one kind of monomer selected from acrylic acid and methacrylic acid and an ester thereof with a monohydric alcohol, or a copolymer of two or more kinds of monomers is used. And a copolymer made of In this case, examples of the monohydric alcohol include those having 1 to 22 carbon atoms. Among them, acrylic acid and methacrylic acid, and these and lower alcohols (1 to 5 carbon atoms, preferably 1 to 5 carbon atoms)
3, and most preferably, a copolymer of a monomer selected from an ester with 1) and a monomer represented by the following general formula (1) is excellent in flexibility or flexibility and excellent in light transmittance. Is also preferable because it is excellent.

[0018]

Embedded image

In the formula, R ¹ is a hydrogen atom or a methyl group, R ² is an alkyl group having 8 to 20, preferably 10 to 16, and more preferably 12 to 14 carbon atoms. Although it may be a group or a mixed alkyl group, it is most preferably a mixed alkyl group having 12 or 13 carbon atoms. In this case, the ratio between the alkyl group having 12 carbon atoms and the alkyl group having 13 carbon atoms is usually 20:80 to 80:20, particularly 40: 6 as a weight ratio.
The ratio is preferably 0 to 60:40. The copolymerization ratio of the monomer selected from the above-mentioned acrylic acid, methacrylic acid and lower alcohol esters thereof with the monomer of the above-mentioned chemical formula is appropriately selected.
It is preferably 79:21, particularly preferably 30:70 to 65:35.

The diameter of the core 32 is not particularly limited, but is usually 2 to 30 mm, particularly 5 to 15 mm.

The light reflecting layer 33 is preferably formed of scattering particles that scatter light. In this case, as the scattering particles, for example, organic polymer particles such as silicone resin particles and polystyrene resin particles, Al ₂ O ₃ , TiO ₂ ,
Examples thereof include metal oxide particles such as SiO ₂ , sulfate particles such as BaSO ₄ , and carbonate particles such as CaCO ₃ , and one of these can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

The average particle size of the above particles is 0.1 to 30 μm.
m, particularly preferably 1 to 15 μm, and when it is larger than 30 μm, according to the method for manufacturing an optical transmission tube described below, the core liquid is likely to precipitate during injection into the cladding tube,
There may be disadvantages.

The thickness of the light reflecting layer 33 is not particularly limited, but is preferably 10 to 200 μm, particularly preferably 50 to 100 μm. If it is too thin, less light will be reflected, resulting in lower brightness.If it is too thick, more light will be reflected, resulting in higher brightness. May have a disadvantage of lowering the brightness.

The reflective protective layer 34 may be any material that does not transmit the light to the outside when the light leaks from the light reflecting layer 33. In this case, the light does not absorb the leaked light, Is preferable, specifically, silver,
A metal foil such as aluminum, a metal sheet, a reflective tape, a vapor deposition tape, or a coating film in which the above-described scattering particles that scatter light are dispersed can be used.

In this case, the reflective protective layer 34 is formed as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6, the outer surface of the clad 31 may cover only the light reflecting layer 33, or may extend beyond the light reflecting layer 33 to one side to leave the light emitting portion 35 as shown in FIG. May be formed.

In the light transmission tube, the scattering particles are dispersed in a core forming solution containing the monomer, and the dispersed particles are put in a clad tube where a clad 31 is to be formed.
The clad tube is sealed for approximately 30 minutes with both ends sealed.
The particles dispersed in the solution for forming the core 32 are settled for 48 hours. In some cases, centrifugation or the like may be performed. Thereafter, the monomer was polymerized and cured while the particles were settled, so that the light reflecting layer 33 composed of the particles slightly penetrated into the core between the clad 31 and the core 32 and in some cases from the core surface. An optical transmission tube formed in a state is obtained.

In this case, the polymerization method of the monomer is not particularly limited, but generally, t-butyl hydroperoxide, di-t-butyl peroxide, lauroyl peroxide, benzoyl peroxide, dimyristyl peroxydicarbonate, Organic peroxides such as t-butylperoxyacetate, t-butylperoxy (2-ethylhexanoate) and cumylperoxyoctoate; azo compounds such as azobisisobutyronitrile and azobiscyclohexanenitrile; A method of adding a polymerization initiator and polymerizing at 50 to 120 ° C. for 1 to 20 hours can be employed. At this time, it is recommended to polymerize the core-forming solution from one end or both ends of the clad tube while pressurizing the core-forming solution because bubbles and the like are not generated in the core.

The light source 4 of this embodiment is installed at an appropriate place outside the bathroom (for example, at a dressing room, ceiling, under a wash basin, or other places). It is disposed at least at one end in the direction (only the left end in this embodiment), and an LED (light emitting diode) is used. The emission colors of this light emitting diode are red, blue, green,
It is yellow, orange, white, etc., but can be appropriately selected and used according to the purpose. The number of LEDs may be one, or a plurality of LEDs may be provided to increase the amount of light. In this case, the light may be incident from one end or from both ends. If the light is incident from both ends, light can be more uniformly emitted with high luminance. Also, this LE
The same applies to the emission color of D, which may be a single color or a plurality of colors. The light emitting method of the LED may be always on or blinking.

The light transmission section 5 basically has the same configuration as the light transmission tube, and the base end is fixed to an appropriate connector by bonding or caulking. The light source 4 using an LED is also fixed integrally with the light transmission unit 5 via a connector.

That is, the light transmitting section 5 is configured to transmit the light emitted from the light source 4 to the linear light emitting section 3, that is, to not emit the light from the light source 4 to the outside at this portion. It is arranged on the inner part of the apron E which holds and holds the bathtub B. The light transmitting section 5 has a structure in which a light reflecting layer or a reflective protective layer for emitting light is provided on the entire circumference in the linear light emitting section 3 composed of, for example, a light transmitting tube. For the purpose of protecting the tube, it can be inserted into a transparent resin pipe or the like, or can be covered with a transparent heat-shrinkable tube for protecting the light transmission tube and sealing the entire linear light emitting portion.

Further, a metal material such as stainless steel, gold, silver or the like is vapor-deposited on the entire outer peripheral surface of the optical transmission unit 5,
Sputtering, plating reflective tape, applying reflective paint, providing metal foil, coating reflective particles such as titanium oxide, providing a light reflective layer using a pigmented vinyl tape Is also good.
In addition, a fixing channel may be attached to the light transmission tube, and the channel may have a reflection function (function as a reflective protective layer). This channel includes
A plastic or elastomer formed of a metal material such as aluminum or stainless steel, or filled and kneaded with highly reflective fine particles (powder) may be used.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, since the linear light emitting portion 3 is provided as an auxiliary lighting device for illuminating brightly over the entire length or substantially the entire length of the upper end portion of the step 1 in the bathroom, it is brightly illuminated. Step 1 can be hooked or stepped on while directly checking the tip portion of the step 1 with the eyes, and a highly safe and easy-to-use one can be provided.

Next, another embodiment according to the present invention will be described. FIGS. 7 and 8 show a step lighting device according to the present invention. The step lighting device includes a linear light-emitting portion 3 provided at a step 6 near an entrance in a bathtub B, and an exterior of a bathroom. Optical connection between the light source 4 installed in an appropriate place, for example, a dressing room (otherwise, for example, under the ceiling or under a wash basin), and the light source 4 and the linear light emitting unit 3. For this purpose, the optical transmission unit 5 is provided exclusively under the bathtub B. The configurations of the linear light emitting section 3, the light source 4, and the optical transmission section 5 are the same as those in the previous embodiment.

Therefore, in this embodiment, since the linear light-emitting portion 3 is provided inside the step 6 in the bathtub B, when stepping on the step 6 in the bathtub B to take a bath,
Even if the parable water enters above step 6, the step 6 and its tip can be easily confirmed by eyes, so that it is possible to prevent the step 6 from hanging off and falling down into the bathtub.

[0035]

As described above, according to the present invention, the light source is provided outside the bathroom, and the linear light emitting portion is provided in the step formed on the entrance side of the bathroom or in the step formed in the bathtub. The light source and the linear light emitting portion are optically connected to each other by a light transmission tube, and the step and its vicinity are illuminated by light from the linear light emitting portion. It is not necessary to replace such lamps, and as a result, there is no need to provide a strictly waterproof opening / closing part for lamp replacement etc. Troubles such as breakage can also be prevented.

Further, according to the present invention, there is no need for a lighting means such as a fluorescent lamp or an incandescent lamp for drawing in and lighting the electric wiring, so that there is no danger of burns or electric shock even if the hand or the body touches. A highly safe lighting device can be provided.

Further, according to the present invention, the illumination can be performed without using a relatively large light source such as a fluorescent lamp or an incandescent lamp as a light source for illumination. There is no need to secure it, so that a brightly illuminated lower step can be formed even in a small bathroom or bathtub.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a step lighting device for a bathroom according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an installation state of a linear light emitting unit in a step.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing another lighting installation state by a linear light emitting unit.

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view showing a configuration of a linear light emitting unit.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view showing another configuration of the linear light emitting section.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view showing still another configuration of the linear light emitting section.

FIG. 7 is a schematic view showing another bathroom step lighting device according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a step lighting device for a bathtub.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1,6 Step 2 Transparent member 3 Linear light emitting part 4 Light source 5 Light transmission part 6 Transparent member (semi-transparent member) B Bathtub

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A light source is provided outside a bathroom, and a linear light-emitting portion is provided in a step formed on an entrance / exit side of a bathroom or in a step formed in a bathtub. A step lighting device for a bathroom, wherein the step and the vicinity thereof are illuminated by light from the linear light emitting portion, wherein the step and the vicinity thereof are illuminated optically by an optical transmission tube. 2. A transparent portion or a translucent portion is provided on the upper surface side and / or the side surface side of the step, and the vicinity of the step is illuminated by light from the linear light emitting portion in the step that passes through the transparent portion or the translucent portion. The step lighting device for a bathroom according to claim 1, wherein the lighting device is configured to perform the lighting. 3. The bathroom according to claim 1, wherein a lamp chamber for accommodating the linear light emitting section is provided in the step portion, and an opening of the lamp chamber is closed by a transparent member or a translucent member. Lighting device for step.