JP2002050209A - Lighting apparatus for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve a problem that, conventionally in a lighting apparatus for a vehicle having a front lens with strong retroflexion, if an attempt is made so that light will be emitted from the whole surface of the light, then more depth is required thereby making it difficult to install such an apparatus on a vehicle, while if the depth is reduced, light will not be emitted from the whole surface of the lens and the amount of light will become insufficient. SOLUTION: The problem will be solved by this invention through providing a lighting apparatus 1 for a vehicle, a lighting apparatus which comprises a first reflection surface 4 with ellipse form covering the generally front part of the light source 3, the first reflection surface whose first focus point f1 is set on the light source 3 and the major axis Y is provided at approximately right angles with the lighting axis X of this lighting apparatus, and a second reflection surface 5 with a parabola form whose focus point becomes the second focus point f2 of the first reflection surface 4 and whose axis Z is generally held parallel to the lighting axis X, thus enabling collection of that range of light of the light source 3 which has so far not been utilized, thereby reinforcing the amount of light.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicular lamp, and more particularly, to a vehicle lamp which can be formed in a thin shape so as to be compatible with a recent backwardly bent vehicle body design and to reduce loss of light quantity. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a configuration of a vehicular lamp.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIGS. 2 and 3 show an example of the structure of a conventional vehicular lamp of this kind. First, in a vehicular lamp 80 shown in FIG. A reflecting mirror 82 having, for example, a paraboloid of revolution or the like is provided on the entire back surface of 81. By doing so, the depth dimension D1 of the vehicular lamp 80 is inevitably large, and the possibility of interference with other components disposed in the engine room is increased.

The vehicular lamp 90 shown in FIG. 3 is provided to solve the above-described problem of interference. By providing a reflecting mirror 92 on a part of the back surface of the front lens 91, a vehicular lamp 90 is provided.
This is to reduce the depth dimension D2. The front lens 9 is a portion where the reflecting mirror 92 is not provided.
A decoration plate 93 is provided on the back of the vehicle 1 to prevent the inside of the vehicle lamp 90 from being seen through. The light source indicated by reference numeral 84 in FIGS. 2 and 3 is a light source such as an incandescent lamp.

[0004]

However, in the above-described conventional vehicle lamps 80 and 90, first, in the vehicle lamp 80 shown in FIG. 2, as described above, the depth dimension D1 is increased, and the engine It protrudes greatly into the room, causing significant interference with other parts, thereby causing a problem that the effective space of the engine room is impaired.

[0005] Further, in the vehicle lamp 90 shown in FIG.
Certainly, the depth dimension D2 can be reduced, but on the other hand, when the vehicular lamp 90 is turned on, the decorative plate 93 does not emit light, impairing the appearance of the entire vehicle, and the light amount is reduced by making the reflecting mirror 92 small. There is a problem that the number is reduced and the performance is reduced.

[0006]

According to the present invention, as a specific means for solving the above-mentioned conventional problems, a light source, a light source which covers substantially in front of the light source, has this light source as a first focal point, and has a long axis of the lamp. An elliptical first reflecting surface provided substantially orthogonal to the irradiation axis, and a second parabolic system having a second focal point of the first reflecting surface as a focal point and an axis substantially parallel to the irradiation axis. A reflection surface, which is provided between the light source and the second reflection surface, is formed as a shape having the light source as a focal point and blocking the incidence of direct light from the light source on the second reflection surface, and the axis coincides with the irradiation axis. An object of the present invention is to solve the problem by providing a vehicular lamp characterized in that a half of a reflecting surface is constituted by a parabolic third reflecting surface.

[0007]

Next, the present invention will be described in detail based on an embodiment shown in the drawings. The reference numeral 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a vehicle lamp according to the present invention. The vehicle lamp 1 is, for example, a front turn signal lamp or the like. The point adopted is the same as that of the conventional example.

In the present invention, the vehicular lamp 1 includes a light source 3, a first reflecting surface 4, a second reflecting surface 5, a third reflecting surface 6, a fourth reflecting surface 7, and a fifth reflecting surface. First, the first reflecting surface 4 is connected to the light source 3.
Is a first focal point f1, and is formed as an ellipsoid such as a spheroid that covers the light source 3 from substantially the front. In the description of the present invention, an axis passing through the light source 3 and directed to the irradiation direction of the vehicular lamp 1 will be described as an irradiation axis X.

The first reflecting surface 4 is formed such that the major axis Y is substantially perpendicular to the irradiation axis X in the vertical direction when the vehicle lamp 1 is mounted on the vehicle, and
The second focal point f2 is assumed to be below the first focal point f1. In actual implementation, it is possible to freely rotate and tilt the major axis Y about the irradiation axis X in accordance with the design of the vehicle.

The second reflecting surface 5 is formed as a parabolic reflecting surface such as a paraboloid of revolution having the second focal point f2 of the first reflecting surface 4 as a focal point. Z is formed substantially parallel to the irradiation axis X. In forming the second reflecting surface 5, basically, the second reflecting surface 5 is provided in a range of a light beam reflected by the first reflecting surface 4.

The third reflecting surface 6 is a parabolic reflecting surface such as a paraboloid of revolution having the light source 3 as a focal point, and its axis is the irradiation axis X. Here, the third reflecting surface 6 includes:
It also has a shielding function of preventing direct light from the light source 3 from entering the second reflecting surface 5, that is, preventing light from entering from directions other than the focal point. It is set to project above the second reflection surface 5 and achieve the purpose.

In the present invention, in addition, a fourth reflecting surface 7 and a fifth reflecting surface 8 are provided as needed. First, the fourth reflecting surface 7 is provided on the outer periphery of the second reflecting surface 5. And a parabolic system such as a paraboloid of revolution having the light source 3 as a focus and the irradiation axis X as an axis.
The fourth reflecting surface 7 is provided as necessary, for example, when the second reflecting surface 5 and the third reflecting surface 6 alone are not enough to fill the back surface of the front lens 2. It is something that can be done.

Considering the above-described embodiment of the vehicular lamp 1 of the present invention, the third reflecting surface 6 and the fourth reflecting surface 7 are provided below the light source 3. The first reflecting surface 4 is an elliptical reflecting surface having a second focal point f2 below, and the second reflecting surface 5 has a second focal point f2 of the first reflecting surface 4 as a focal point. Since it is a parabolic reflecting surface, when the light source 3 is turned on, a half of the vehicle lamp 1 below the irradiation axis X mainly emits light.

Therefore, in the present invention, the fifth reflecting surface group 8 is provided in the upper half portion.
Is a set of parabolic reflecting surfaces having the light source 3 as a focal point. In this embodiment, the reflecting surfaces are 8a, 8b, and 8c in order to make the description concrete and facilitate understanding. A description will be given of a configuration example.

Each of the reflecting surfaces constituting the fifth reflecting surface group 8 has a focal length of reflecting surface 8a <reflecting surface 8b <reflecting surface 8
c, and the diameter of each of the reflection surfaces 8a to 8c is defined as a reflection surface 8a <reflection surface 8b <reflection surface 8c, and the reflection surfaces 8a to 8c are substantially in a state where the vehicle lamp 1 is viewed from the front. They are concentrically connected by the connecting portion 9.

The connecting portion 9 is provided with an opening 9a so that light from the light source 3 reaches the respective reflecting surfaces 8a to 8c. Therefore, the fifth reflecting surface group 8 is configured such that light is incident on a reflecting surface having a shorter focal length as the light beam is closer to the right angle to the irradiation axis X of the light from the light source 3.

Here, the fifth reflecting surface group 8 or
A preferred configuration when the first reflection surface 4 and the fifth reflection surface group 8 are integrally formed will be described. As described above, the fifth reflecting surface groups 8 are connected to each other, that is, the reflecting surfaces 8
An opening must be provided in the connecting portion 9 for connecting a to 8c. In addition, in order to make light incident on the reflecting surface 8a, it is necessary to provide an opening 4a in a part of the first reflecting surface 4.

At this time, the fifth reflecting surface group 8 and the connecting portion 9 or the first reflecting surface 4 and the fifth reflecting surface group 8 and the connecting portion 9 are connected.
Are integrally formed with a transparent member such as a transparent resin, and except for the openings 4a and 9a, a reflection film 10 is formed by aluminum evaporation or the like, and reflection processing is performed. The first reflecting surface 4, the fifth reflecting surface group 8, the connecting portion 9, and the openings 4a, 9a are formed, so that the process can be simplified.

In particular, since the rear surface of the first reflecting surface 4 is on the front lens 2 side, if it is formed of, for example, a metal member, the rear surface of the first reflecting surface 4 can be seen from the outside through the front lens. However, if it is formed of such a transparent member, the reflection film 10, which forms the reflection surface of the first reflection surface 4, can be seen through the back surface, and the above-described process can be performed. No decorative treatment is required.

When the first reflecting surface 4, the fifth reflecting surface group 8, the connecting portion 9 and the like are formed of a transparent member, the shape of the surface on which the reflecting film 10 is formed is required. Therefore, even when the reflective film 10 is configured to directly reflect light, or when the reflective film 10 is configured to reflect light via a transparent member, the characteristics of the vehicle lamp 1 can be improved. Does not make much difference.

Next, the function and effect of the vehicular lamp 1 of the present invention having the above configuration will be described. According to the present invention, the light radiated forward from the light source 3 that has not been used in the configuration of the conventional vehicle lighting device is collected by the first reflecting surface 4 and directed to the irradiation direction by the second reflecting surface 5. Thus, in the vehicle lamp 1 of the present invention, the luminous flux utilization rate for the light source 3 is improved.

Accordingly, the reflecting surface 3, the reflecting surface 4, and the depth dimension which do not cover the entire rear surface of the front lens 2 are provided.
Even when the depth dimension of the vehicular lamp 1 is reduced in combination with the fifth reflecting surface group 8 having an irregular configuration, the light quantity does not decrease even at the same time, and at the same time, the light emission over the entire area of the front lens 2 Is made possible.

[0023]

As described above, according to the present invention, a light source and an elliptical system which covers substantially the front of the light source, has this light source as a first focal point, and has a long axis provided substantially perpendicular to the irradiation axis of the lamp. The first reflecting surface, the second reflecting surface of a parabolic system whose axis is substantially parallel to the irradiation axis with the second focal point of the first reflecting surface as the focal point, the light source and the second reflecting surface A third paraboloidal reflecting surface which is formed between the light source as a focal point and has a shape that blocks incident direct light from the light source on the second reflecting surface and has an axis coinciding with the irradiation axis. By using a vehicular lamp in which half of the reflecting surface is configured, a first reflecting surface that collects light in a range that has not been used conventionally and a second reflecting surface that uses the collected light as irradiation light The surface reduces the light intensity of the vehicular lamp, and reduces the efficiency. Or, when combined with the fifth reflective surface group, etc., which has an irregular configuration to increase the light emission area, it is possible to realize a vehicle lamp that emits light from the entire front lens, as it does not cause insufficient light quantity. This makes it possible to achieve an extremely excellent effect in improving the aesthetic appearance of this type of vehicle lamp.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of a vehicular lamp according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a conventional example.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing another conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vehicle lamp 2 ... Front lens 3 ... Light source 4 ... 1st reflective surface 4a ... Opening 5 ... 2nd reflective surface 6 ... 3rd reflective surface 7 ... 4th reflective surface 8 ... ... Fifth reflection surface group 8a to 8c... Reflection surface 9... Connection part 9a... Opening 10... Reflection film

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A light source, a first reflecting surface which covers substantially in front of the light source, has the light source as a first focal point, and has a major axis provided substantially orthogonal to an irradiation axis of the lamp, and has an elliptical system. A second reflecting surface which is a parabolic system having a second focal point of one reflecting surface as a focal point and an axis substantially parallel to the irradiation axis, and the light source provided between the light source and the second reflecting surface as a focal point. A half of the reflecting surface is constituted by the third reflecting surface which is formed in a shape for blocking the incidence of the direct light from the light source on the second reflecting surface and has a parabolic system whose axis coincides with the irradiation axis. Vehicle lighting device characterized by the above-mentioned. 2. A parabolic system having the light source as a focal point and a fourth reflecting surface whose axis coincides with the irradiation axis is provided on a circumferentially outer side of the second reflecting surface. The vehicle lighting device according to claim 1. 3. A half of the first reflecting surface of the first reflecting surface opposite to the half provided with the second focal point has a different focal length axis from the irradiation axis so as not to cause interference. A plurality of parabolic fifth reflection surface groups are provided, and the fifth reflection surface group is arranged such that a light beam closer to a right angle to the irradiation axis of light from the light source is reflected on a reflection surface having a shorter focal length. The vehicular lamp according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the vehicle lamp is arranged so as to be incident. 4. A method according to claim 1, wherein at least the first reflection surface and the fifth reflection surface group in the first reflection surface to the fifth reflection surface group are formed of a transparent member, and a necessary portion is subjected to reflection processing. The vehicular lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 3.