JP2007273335A - Fluorescent lamp - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a compact round fluorescent lamp which is easy to handle and offers high safety. <P>SOLUTION: A light-emitting tube 1 has tube ends 101a and 101b that are fixed to both ends of a support member 2 to hold the light-emitting tube 1. The support member 2 has a mouth piece 240 on its center portion, which has holding handles 207a and 207b on its back. The support member 2 is provided with light-emitting tube holding holes 220a and 220b, extending from the vicinity of the central portion to the vicinity of the ends of the support member 2, and light-emitting tube holders 246 are so fitted in the light-emitting tube holding holes 220a and 220b as to be symmetrical, with regard to the central portion. The light-emitting tube holders 246 are slidable along the light-emitting tube holding holes 220a and 220b and are fixed at a proper position for fixing the light-emitting tube 1. The light-emitting tube 1 is fixed to the support member 2 via the light-emitting tube holders 246. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a fluorescent lamp.

In recent years, energy conservation and resource conservation have been strongly conscious in order to preserve the global environment. In the lighting field, various compact fluorescent lamps have been used as light sources to replace low-efficiency incandescent bulbs and relatively large fluorescent lamps. Has been developed.
For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the compact fluorescent lamp includes a fluorescent lamp 7 including an arc tube 701 in which a series of discharge paths are swirled in a double spiral shape on a substantially conical surface (for example, a patent). Reference 1). The fluorescent lamp 7 is a so-called single cap type, and the tube end portions 701a and 701b of the arc tube 701 are held by a support member 702 with a cap 702a. Electrode lead wires (not shown) sealed to the tube end portions 701a and 701b are connected to the power connection terminal of the base 702a.

As another compact fluorescent lamp, as shown in FIG. 8, there is a fluorescent lamp 8 including an arc tube 801 in which a series of discharge paths are swirled in a double spiral shape on a substantially plane (for example, a patent). Reference 2). The fluorescent lamp 8 is a so-called double-cap type, and a pair of power connection terminals 802a and 802b are mounted on the tube ends 801a and 801b of the arc tube 801.
The fluorescent lamp 8 has an outer shape of the arc tube 801 that is substantially disk-shaped and is thinner than the fluorescent lamp 7 whose outer shape is substantially conical, so that the lamp can be made thinner. Further, since the light emitting surface is a so-called surface light source having a substantially circular shape, the light distribution on the irradiated surface is uniform.
European Community Design 25861-0005 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-45283

However, since the fluorescent lamp 8 has two caps 802a and 802b, it is difficult to attach and detach the lamp. For this reason, the arc tube 801 is likely to be damaged or damaged if not handled properly. Although the fluorescent lamp 7 has only one base 702a, it is still difficult to hold, and the arc tube 701 is easily damaged.
Further, if the length of the arc tube is extended in order to improve the lamp brightness, the weight of the arc tube is increased, the load applied to both ends of the arc tube is increased, and both ends of the arc tube are easily damaged.

A bent glass tube, particularly a bent glass tube having a double spiral shape, is originally thin and has a low mechanical strength. Such vulnerability is related to the safety of a lamp provided to general consumers. For this reason, fluorescent lamps having a double spiral arc tube in which a series of discharge paths are formed so as to form a flat light emitting surface like the fluorescent lamps 7 and 8 have not yet been put into practical use. .
The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a fluorescent lamp that is highly safe and easy to handle.

  In order to achieve the above object, a fluorescent lamp according to the present invention has a double spiral arc tube formed such that a series of discharge paths are substantially circular and have a planar light emitting surface, and a base, A support member that supports the arc tube, and an arc tube holding member that is interposed between the arc tube and the support member and fixes the arc tube to the support member, the support member including the arc tube The arc tube is directly supported at an end portion, and the arc tube is supported at a place other than the arc tube end portion via the arc tube holding member.

In this way, since the arc tube is supported by the support member even at portions other than the end portions, the arc tube can be made difficult to break. Therefore, it is possible to provide a fluorescent lamp that is highly safe and easy to handle.
It should be noted that the arc tube can be supported with a better balance by the support member as long as the arc tube end portions face each other with the substantial center of the light emitting surface interposed therebetween.

Further, the plurality of arc tube holding members are disposed at symmetrical positions with respect to the center of the light emitting surface. In this way, the arc tube can be stably held at a position symmetrical with respect to the center of the light emitting surface, so that the arc tube can be effectively prevented from being damaged. This is particularly effective when the arc tube is heavy.
In this case, it is more preferable that the support member is located at a position facing the center of the light emitting surface and has the base on the side opposite to the arc tube.

  Further, the support member has an attachment portion for attaching the arc tube holding member between a portion facing the center of the light emitting surface and a portion holding the arc tube, and the attachment portion is provided on the light emitting surface. An arc tube holding hole whose longitudinal direction is the direction from the center of the arc tube toward the end of the arc tube, and the arc tube holding member is slidable in the direction from the center of the light emitting surface toward the end of the arc tube The arc tube is attached to the arc tube holding hole.

  In this way, since the arc tube holding member can be slid to an appropriate position according to the shape of the arc tube, even if the arc tube shape, for example, the number of turns changes, the same support member can be used. be able to. Therefore, the material cost of the compact round fluorescent lamp can be reduced. In addition, since the arc tube holding member can be easily disposed at an appropriate position, the arc tube can be more effectively prevented from being damaged.

Further, the arc tube holding member is detachable from the support member. If it does in this way, since these can be assembled in an appropriate order according to the shape of an arc tube, a supporting member, and an arc tube holding member, for example, the number of windings, assembly work can be made easy. Therefore, the arc tube can be prevented from being damaged.
Further, the arc tube holding member receives the arc tube by elastic deformation and holds the arc tube by the elastic force. In this way, even when vibration is applied to the fluorescent lamp, the arc tube holding member elastically deforms and absorbs vibration energy, so that the arc tube can be prevented from being damaged. Further, the fluorescent lamp can be easily assembled, and the arc tube can be stably held by the arc tube holding member.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the arc tube from being damaged when an external force is applied or the surface is damaged when the fluorescent lamp is attached to or detached from the lamp. Therefore, the safety of the fluorescent lamp can be improved and easy to handle.

Hereinafter, embodiments of a fluorescent lamp according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, taking a compact round fluorescent lamp as an example.
The compact round fluorescent lamp according to the present embodiment is roughly divided into three parts. That is, the arc tube, the support member, and the lamp cover.
(1) Arc tube First, the configuration of the arc tube will be described. The arc tube according to the present embodiment has a light emitting surface in a plan view and a substantially circular planar shape, and is used for a compact round fluorescent lamp with an input of 80 W.

1A and 1B are diagrams showing a configuration of an arc tube according to the present embodiment, in which FIG. 1A is a plan view and FIG. 1B is a side view.
As shown in FIG. 1, the arc tube 1 has a double spiral shape in which a discharge path composed of a series of bent glass tubes 102 is spirally swiveled on a substantially flat surface around a tube central portion 102c. Yes. Tungsten filament coil electrodes 103a and 103b are hermetically sealed to the tube end portions 101a and 101b that substantially face each other across the tube center portion 102c.

The tungsten filament coil electrode 103a is constructed between the electrode lead wires 14a and 14a 'held by the bead glass mount 15a. Further, the tungsten filament coil electrode 103b is constructed between the electrode lead wires 14b and 14b 'held by the bead glass mount 15b.
An exhaust pipe 106 is sealed at the tube end 101a, and after the air in the arc tube is exhausted, the tip is sealed. The arc tube 1 contains 5 mg of mercury and about 350 Pa of argon as a buffer gas.

The arc tube 1 is expanded in diameter at the tube center portion 102c and becomes the coldest spot when the lamp is turned on. The tube center portion 102c is shaped so that the coldest spot temperature Tc is in the range of 50 ° C. to 65 ° C. when the inner diameter of the main portion of the arc tube 1 is in the range of 4 mm to 18 mm.
The glass tube 102 is made of barium strontium pum silicate glass which is a soft glass having a softening point of 675 ° C. Three kinds of rare earth phosphors Y ₂ O ₃ : Eu (red light emission), LaPO ₄ : Ce, Tb (green light emission), and BaMg ₂ Al ₁₆ O ₂₇ : Eu, Mn (blue light emission) are formed on the inner wall surface of the glass tube 102. Is applied.

(2) Assembly of support member to arc tube 1 FIG. 2 is an external perspective view showing a state in which a support member is assembled to the arc tube 1, wherein (a) shows the external appearance of the arc tube 1 side, and (b). Indicates the appearance of the support member.
As shown in FIG. 2, the tube end portions 101 a and 101 b of the arc tube 1 are held by being fixed to both ends of the support member 2. A base 240 (JIS-GU10q type) with four power connection terminals is provided at one of the central portions of the support member 2, and holding handles 207a and 207b are provided upright on the other. The holding handles 207a and 207b are used by an operator when the lamp base 240 is attached to and detached from the lamp socket.

  The support member 2 is provided with arc tube holding holes 220a and 220b from the vicinity of the central portion to the vicinity of the end portion, and a plurality of arc tube holding members 246 are mounted in the arc tube holding holes 220a and 220b. Yes. The arc tube holding member 246 can slide in the longitudinal direction along the arc tube holding holes 220a and 220b. The arc tube holding member 246 holds the arc tube 1 in a detachable manner.

At both ends of the support member 2, cover mounting protrusions 247 and 248 and a lock pin 248 a for mounting the lamp cover are provided on the side where the base 240 is provided.
(3) Lamp Cover FIG. 3 is a view in which the lamp cover 3 is attached to the support member 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the lamp cover 3 includes a bottomed cylindrical cover main body 301 and a front cover 302, in which the arc tube 1 and the support member 2 are stored. The cover main body 301 is provided with a plurality of fixing hooks 301c, and the front lid 302 is provided with the same number of claws 302a. The front lid 302 is fixed to the cover main body 301 by fitting the claw 302a to the fixing hook 301c.

  A base hole 301 a is provided in the center of the bottom surface of the cover body 301 to expose the base 240. The cover body 301 is provided with a pair of punched portions 301b that are opposed to each other with the cap hole 301a interposed therebetween. When the support member 2 is rotated around the base 240 with the cover attachment protrusion 247 inserted into the punched portion 301b, the bent portion at the tip of the cover attachment protrusion 247 comes into contact with the outside of the bottom surface of the cover body 301, and the cover attachment protrusion 248 is formed. Contacts the inside of the bottom surface.

As a result, the movement of the support member 2 in the direction of the rotation axis is restricted. Further, a lock hole 301d is provided inside the bottom surface of the cover main body 301, and the rotation of the support member 2 is restricted by fitting with the lock pin 248a. In this way, the support member 2 is fixed to the cover main body 301.
Further, when the front cover 302 is attached to the cover body 301 with the support member 2 fixed, the holding handles 207a and 207b come into contact with the inside of the front cover 302, and the front cover 302 is supported.

(4) Details of Support Member 2 Next, a detailed configuration of the support member 2 will be described. The support member 2 includes a main body that holds the tube end portions 101 a and 101 b of the arc tube 1 and a power supply member that supplies electrodes to the arc tube 1. The main body and the power supply member are respectively integrally molded resin members, and are assembled to the support member 2 by fitting.

  FIG. 4 is an exploded view showing a detailed configuration of the support member 2, where (a) shows the main body of the support member 2, and (b) shows the power supply member of the support member 2. As shown in FIG. 4A, the main body 41 includes a holding substrate 203 and tube end holding members 204a and 204b. The holding substrate 203 includes a circular portion and long rectangular members that are in contact with the circular portion and face each other across the circular portion. The tube end holding members 204a and 204b are in contact with the holding substrate 203 and face each other with the holding substrate 203 interposed therebetween.

The tube end holding members 204a and 204b have a shape in which a bottomed semi-cylinder is tapered in accordance with the outer shape of the arc tube end portions 101a and 101b, and welcome the arc tube end portions 101a and 101b.
Holding handles 207a and 207b are erected on a circular portion at the center of the main surface 203b of the holding substrate 203. In addition, wiring grooves 208 a, 208 a ′, 208 b and 208 b ′ are formed on the other main surface 203 a of the holding substrate 203. The wiring grooves 208a and 208a ′ guide the electrode lead wires 104a and 104a ′ from the arc tube end portion 101a to the base 240. The wiring grooves 208b and 208b ′ guide the electrode lead wires 104b and 104b ′ from the arc tube end portion 101a to the base 240.

Next, as shown in FIG. 4B, the power supply member 42 includes a power supply board 209 attached to the holding board 203 and tube end covering portions 230a and 230b that face each other across the power supply board 209. It consists of. A base 240 is attached to the center of the power supply board 209.
The base 240 includes an outer frame member 401 whose outer shape is substantially cylindrical, and a substantially square-shaped recess 402 is formed at the center thereof in plan view. In the recess 402, power connection terminal pins 403a, 403a ′, 403b, and 403b ′ are arranged on the opposite side to the arc tube side. Electrode lead wires 104a, 104a ', 104b, and 104b' are caulked and joined to the power supply terminal pins 403a, 403a ', 403b, and 403b', respectively.

On the side wall of the outer frame member 401, grooves 404a and 404b extending from the upper bottom surface to the lower bottom surface along the axial direction are formed. As a result, the base 240 is securely fitted into the lamp socket.
Cover mounting protrusions 247 and 248 are formed on the power supply substrate 209 so as to be symmetrical with the base 240 sandwiched between both ends of the power supply member. In addition, a lock pin 247a is formed at the upper end of the cover mounting protrusion 247. The punched portion 301b of the cover main body 301 is sandwiched between the protrusions 247 and 248 and fixed.

(5) Arc tube holding member 246
Next, the arc tube holding member 246 will be described.
FIG. 5 is an external perspective view showing the arc tube holding member 246. As shown in FIG. 5, the arc tube holding member 246 is an elastic member including a holding portion 501 and engaging portions 502 and 503.
The holding portion 501 has a substantially C shape, and receives the arc tube 1 and holds it with an elastic force. Note that both ends of the holding portion 501 are turned back. When the holding portion 501 is pressed against the arc tube 1, the holding portion 501 can be opened by elastic deformation, so that the arc tube 1 can be easily attached. .

The length in the longitudinal direction of the hook portion 503 is larger than the length in the short direction of the arc tube holding holes 220a and 220b, and the length in the short direction of the hook portion 503 is in the short direction of the arc tube holding holes 220a and 220b. It is smaller than the length. Further, the length of the hooking portion 502 in the longitudinal direction is larger than the length of the arc tube holding holes 220a and 220b in the short direction.
For this reason, when the hook portion 503 is inserted into the arc tube holding holes 220a and 220b and rotated 90 degrees, the support member 2 is sandwiched between the hook portions 502 and 503 and the arc tube holding member 246 is fixed to the support member 2. Can do.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the arc tube 1 is fixed to the support member 2 by the arc tube holding member 246. As shown in FIG. 6, the arc tube holding member 246 is fitted into the arc tube holding holes 220 a and 220 b and fixed to the support member 2, and the arc tube 1 is held by the holding portion 501. As a result, the support member 2 can hold the arc tube 1 at other end portions.
Therefore, since the arc tube 1 can be stably held, the arc tube 1 can be made difficult to break. Therefore, the safety of the compact round fluorescent lamp can be improved. This effect is remarkable in a larger compact round fluorescent lamp.

The arc tube holding member 246 can be easily moved along the arc tube holding holes 220a and 220b. Also, a plurality of arc tube holding members 246 can be attached to the arc tube holding holes 220a and 220b.
Therefore, since the arc tube 1 can be held using the same arc tube holding member 246 even if the number of turns and the winding pitch of the arc tube 1 are changed, the cost of the compact round fluorescent lamp can be shared. Can be reduced.

(6) Assembling method of compact round fluorescent lamp Next, an assembling method of the compact round fluorescent lamp according to the present embodiment will be described.
In assembling the compact round fluorescent lamp, first, the tube end portions 101a and 101b of the arc tube 1 are inserted into the tube end holding members 204a and 204b of the main body 41 of the support member 2 and fixed with silicone resin. At the same time, the tube central portion 102c of the arc tube 1 is fixed to the main surface 203b of the main body 41 between the holding handles 207a and 207b with silicone resin.

Next, the electrode lead wires 104a, 104a ', 104b and 104b' of the arc tube 1 are caulked and joined to the power connection terminal pins 403a, 403a ', 403b and 403b' of the base 240 of the power supply member 42 of the support member 2. Connecting.
Then, the main body 41 and the power supply member 42 are fitted to form the support member 2.
The arc tube 1 or the like is mounted on the lamp cover 3 by, for example, an operator holding the holding handles 207a and 207b with a thumb and an index finger.

In this way, when the compact round fluorescent lamp is attached to or detached from the lamp, an unnecessary force is applied to the arc tube, the surface of the arc tube is damaged, or the arc tube itself is heavy. Can be reliably prevented.
(7) Modifications Although the present invention has been described based on the embodiments, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the following modifications can be implemented. .

(A) Although not particularly mentioned in the above embodiment, the mercury 17 enclosed in the arc tube 1 is not only mercury but also zinc mercury and tin mercury, and further bismuth / indium mercury, etc. It may be enclosed in the form of amalgam. Moreover, mixed gas, such as argon, neon, and krypton, may be enclosed as buffer gas.
(B) In the above embodiment, the case where the supporting member and the arc tube holding member are separate from each other has been described. However, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to this, and the supporting member and the light emitting device are used instead. The tube holding member may be integrated.

Even if it does in this way, compared with the case where a supporting member hold | maintains only the both ends of an arc tube, the failure | damage of an arc tube can be reduced.
(C) In the above embodiment, the case where the arc tube is held by the arc tube holding member having the shape shown in FIG. 5 has been described, but it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited thereto. Alternatively, arc tube holding members having other shapes may be used.

For example, a C-shaped portion that holds the arc tube may be screwed and screwed to the support member, or the arc tube may be gripped by a part other than the C-shape. For example, the arc tube may be hooked with a hook-shaped member.
Depending on the shape of the arc tube holding member, the arc tube holding member may be attached to the support member after being attached to the arc tube, or the arc tube holding member may be attached to the arc tube after being attached to the support member. The present invention can provide an effect regardless of the shape, fixing method, and assembling method of the arc tube holding member.

  The fluorescent lamp according to the present invention is useful as a fluorescent lamp with high safety and easy handling.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the arc tube which concerns on embodiment of this invention, Comprising: (a) is a top view, (b) is a side view. It is an external appearance perspective view which shows the state which assembled | attached the supporting member to the arc tube which concerns on embodiment of this invention, Comprising: (a) shows the external appearance by the side of an arc tube, (b) shows the external appearance by the side of a support member. It is the figure which attached the lamp cover to the supporting member which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is an exploded view which shows the detailed structure of the supporting member which concerns on embodiment of this invention, Comprising: (a) shows the main body of a supporting member, (b) shows the electric power supply member of a supporting member. It is an external appearance perspective view which shows the arc tube holding member which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the state which fixed the arc tube to the support member in the arc tube holding member which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the fluorescent lamp which concerns on a prior art. It is a figure which shows the structure of the fluorescent lamp which concerns on a prior art.

Explanation of symbols

1,701,801 Arc tube 2,702 Support member 3 Lamp cover 7, 8 Fluorescent lamp 41 Main body 101a, 101b Tube end 102 Glass tube 102c Tube center 103a, 103b Filament coil electrodes 104a, 104a ', 104b, 104b' Electrode lead wires 105a and 105b Bead glass mount 106 Exhaust pipe 203 Holding substrates 203a and 203b Main surfaces 204a and 204b Tube end holding materials 207a and 207b Holding handles 208a, 208a ′, 208b and 208b ′ Wiring grooves 209 Power supply boards 220a and 220b Arc tube holding holes 230a, 230b Tube end covering portions 240, 702a, 802a, 802b Base 246 Arc tube holding members 247, 248 Cover mounting projection 248a Lock pin 301 Cover body 301a Base hole 301b Punched portion 01c Fixing hook 301d Lock hole 302 Front cover 302a Claw 401 Outer frame material 402 Recesses 403a, 403a ', 403b, 403b' Power connection terminal pins 404a, 404b Groove part 501 Holding part 502, 503 Engagement part 701a, 701b, 801a, 801b edge

Claims (6)

A double spiral arc tube formed such that a series of discharge paths are substantially circular and form a planar light emitting surface;
A support member having a base and supporting the arc tube;
An arc tube holding member that is interposed between the arc tube and the support member and fixes the arc tube to the support member;
The support member directly supports the arc tube at an end portion of the arc tube, and supports the arc tube via the arc tube holding member at a place other than the end portion of the arc tube. lamp. The fluorescent lamp according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of arc tube holding members are disposed at symmetrical positions with respect to the center of the light emitting surface. The fluorescent lamp according to claim 2, wherein the support member has the base at a position facing the center of the light emitting surface and opposite to the arc tube. The support member has an attachment portion for attaching the arc tube holding member between a portion facing the center of the light emitting surface and a portion holding the arc tube,
The attachment portion is an arc tube holding hole whose longitudinal direction is the direction from the center of the light emitting surface toward the arc tube end,
The fluorescent lamp according to claim 1, wherein the arc tube holding member is mounted in the arc tube holding hole so as to be slidable in a direction from the center of the light emitting surface toward the end of the arc tube. The fluorescent lamp according to claim 1, wherein the arc tube holding member is detachable from the support member. The arc tube holding member welcomes the arc tube by elastic deformation,
The fluorescent lamp according to claim 1, wherein the arc tube is held by the elastic force.

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