JP2008066462A - Illumination lamp, and illumination lamp unit - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an inexpensive illumination lamp which has an excellent ornamental property for dynamic change in chromaticity. <P>SOLUTION: The illumination lamp consists of a light source, a fluorescent material which is excited by the light emitted from the light source and emits visible light, and a fluid, all of which are encapsulated in a package. The fluorescent material consists of particles and is dispersed in the transparent or translucent fluid. The fluorescent material and the fluid have different specific gravities. When the direction of the package with respect to the gravity is changed, the fluorescent material is sometimes arranged and sometimes not arranged in the optical path until the light emitted from the light source is emitted outside the package or a quantity of the fluorescent material arranged on the optical path changes, which changes the chromaticity of light emitted outside the package. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an illumination lamp that uses a light-emitting diode lamp as a light source and is used as a decoration for a Christmas tree or the like. The illumination lamp of the present invention can be widely used as a decorative lighting fixture for various amusement applications.

  Conventionally, illumination lamps and various decorative lighting fixtures generally have a fixed emission chromaticity of each lamp. The mainstream of illumination lamps is shifting from miniature bulbs to light-emitting diode lamps, but inexpensive light-emitting diode lamps that are widely used have a fixed emission chromaticity.

In recent years, a light emitting diode lamp that emits light with an arbitrary light emitting chromaticity by mounting a plurality of semiconductor light emitting diode elements in one lamp package has been developed, and the decoration has been improved. One example is the technique described in Patent Document 1. Other conventional techniques related to the present invention include Patent Documents 2 to 7 and Non-Patent Documents 1 to 3.
JP 2005-528733 A Japanese Patent No. 2927279 Japanese Patent No. 3668770 Rong-Jun Xie et al., Appl. Phys. Lett., Vol. 84, pp. 5404-5406 Naoto Hirosaki et al., Appl. Phys. Lett., Vol. 86, 211905 International Publication WO2005 / 052087 K. Uheda et al., Abstract 2073, The Electrochemical Society 206th Meeting, Honolulu, HI, Oct. 2004 JP-A-9-319318 Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 7-25816 Utility Model Registration No. 3096691

  However, in the prior art disclosed in Patent Document 1, a plurality of light sources (for example, three semiconductor light emitting elements of blue, green, and red) or some variable optical means (mirror, light guide plate, diffuser plate) are electrically connected. Changes in chromaticity by mechanical and mechanical control, and requires complex drive circuits that supply voltages according to each of a plurality of light sources, and intelligent control circuits including processors, etc. In many cases, it tends to be expensive. In the field of decorative lighting, etc., there has been a demand for providing an illumination lamp that has a high chromaticity and is rich in decorative properties and is inexpensive.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive illumination lamp having a chromaticity that is dynamically changed and rich in decorativeness.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an illumination lamp in which a light source, a fluorescent material that emits visible light when excited by light emitted from the light source, and a fluid are contained in a package. Light emitted from the light source when dispersed in a transparent or translucent fluid that is particulate, the specific gravity of the phosphor is different from the specific gravity of the fluid, and the direction of the package with respect to gravity is changed The chromaticity of the light emitted outside the package by placing or not arranging the fluorescent material on the optical path until the outside of the package is irradiated or by changing the amount of the fluorescent material. The illumination lamp is characterized in that is changed.

  In the illumination lamp of the present invention, it is preferable that transparent or translucent substantially spherical filler particles are dispersed in the fluid.

  In the illumination lamp of the present invention, it is preferable that filler particles that are transparent or translucent and have acute corners are dispersed in the fluid.

  In the illumination lamp of the present invention, the fluorescent material preferably contains coarse particles having a flow diameter of 50 μm or more.

  In the illumination lamp of the present invention, the filler particles preferably include coarse particles having a flow diameter of 200 μm or more.

  In the illumination lamp of the present invention, it is preferable that the light source is covered with a transparent or opaque cured material and protected from the fluid and the fluorescent material dispersed in the fluid.

  In the illumination lamp of the present invention, it is preferable that the fluorescent material is also dispersed in a transparent or translucent cured material covering the light source.

  The present invention also provides an illumination lamp unit in which a lamp housed in a package, a fluorescent material that emits visible light when excited by light emitted from the lamp, and a fluid are contained in the package. When the specific gravity of the fluorescent material is different from the specific gravity of the fluid, and the direction of the illumination lamp unit with respect to gravity is changed, the lamp is emitted from the lamp. Light emitted outside the unit case by placing or not arranging the fluorescent material on the optical path until the light is emitted to the outside of the unit case, or by changing the amount of the fluorescent material. The illumination lamp unit is characterized in that the chromaticity of the lamp changes.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, chromaticity can change dynamically, it can be rich in decoration, and an inexpensive illumination lamp can be provided.

  The illumination lamp of the present invention is a light emitting diode lamp using a semiconductor light emitting diode element as a light source emitting blue light and the like, and phosphor particles that absorb light emitted from the semiconductor light emitting diode element and emit visible light. The package mounting structure is such that the particles have fluidity. To date, lamps using blue light-emitting diode elements and phosphor particles are known, but none of them is yet mounted so that the phosphor particles can flow.

In the illumination lamp of the present invention, since the specific gravity differs between the fluid contained in the package and the phosphor particles, the phosphor particles having a large specific gravity sink downward or in the direction of gravity. When the direction of the illumination lamp with respect to gravity is changed, the phosphor particles also move. If there are no phosphor particles between the semiconductor light emitting diode element and the observer, the light emission chromaticity of the illumination lamp appears to be the same as the emission chromaticity of the semiconductor light emitting diode element, and thus the blue light emitting diode element is used. It looks like a blue illumination lamp. In addition, if there is a large amount of phosphor particles between the semiconductor light emitting diode element and the observer, the light emission chromaticity of the illumination lamp appears to the observer to be the same as the emission chromaticity of the phosphor particles. If is a yellow phosphor, it looks like a yellow illumination lamp. The chromaticity changes depending on the number of phosphor particles between the semiconductor light emitting diode element and the observer. Thereby, the emission chromaticity of the illumination lamp changes depending on the direction of the illumination lamp with respect to gravity and the position (viewing direction) where the observer is present, and the illumination lamp is observed as different. In addition, since the speed at which the phosphor particles settle varies depending on the viscosity of the fluid and the particle size of the phosphor particles, the direction of the illumination lamp with respect to gravity can be changed with time by appropriately selecting the viscosity of the fluid. The speed at which the emission chromaticity changes can be set to a desired speed.
Hereinafter, specific examples of the present invention will be described in detail by way of examples. However, the following examples are merely illustrative, and the present invention is not limited to the description of these examples.

[Example 1]
FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of an illumination lamp of Example 1 according to the present invention.
The illumination lamp 1 of this embodiment includes lead wires 2 and 3, a semiconductor light emitting diode (LED) element 4, a gold bonding wire 5, a phosphor particle 6, a fluid 7, a lid 8, electrode patterns 9 and 10, and a support base plate 11. The wall member 12 is used.

As the semiconductor light emitting diode element 4, an InGaN blue light emitting diode element was used.
The support substrate 11 has a quadrangular shape and is made of a material having a high visible light reflectance, such as alumina ceramics. Two electrode patterns 9 and 10 are formed on the surface of the support substrate 11 by sputtering.
The electrode patterns 9 and 10 have a thickness of about several μm, and there is almost no step between them and the support substrate 11. Lead wires 2 and 3 are connected to the electrode patterns 9 and 10 by high melting point solder or the like.
The edge part of the electrode pattern 9 is located in the center part of the support substrate 11, and the semiconductor LED element 4 is mounted and fixed.
The semiconductor LED element 4 is electrically connected to the electrode pattern 9 by a conductive paste (not shown) and the electrode pattern 10 by a bonding wire 5.

  The phosphor particles 6 are powdery fluorescent materials having a particle size of several μm to several tens of μm, and are enclosed in a package together with a transparent or translucent fluid 7 to cover the semiconductor LED element 4.

As the fluid 7, glycerin is preferably used. Glycerin is generally used in oil-type kaleidoscopes, has an appropriate viscosity, and is insulating.
The fluid 7 may be any gas or liquid that has a specific gravity difference from the phosphor particles 6 and in which the phosphor particles 6 are precipitated within an appropriate time. An inert gas such as air or nitrogen, Various resins such as water, oil, and silicone can be used.

  In Example 1 shown in FIG. 1, since the fluid 7 is in direct contact with the semiconductor LED element 4, the bonding wire 5, the electrode patterns 9, 10 and the like, it is possible to use an electrically conductive fluid. However, as described later, an electrically conductive fluid can be used by providing an insulating protective layer. In that case, it is also possible to dilute glycerin with water as appropriate and lower the viscosity.

  The support substrate 11, the wall surface member 12, and the lid 8 are fixed using an adhesive or the like (not shown). The wall member 12 may be transparent, translucent, or opaque. However, when an opaque member is used, it is preferable to use a member having good reflectivity such as white because the light extraction efficiency is improved.

The phosphor particles 6 may be any one that is excited by light emitted from the semiconductor LED element 4 and emits visible light, and various phosphors for white LEDs can be used. White LEDs using phosphors are disclosed in Patent Document 2, Patent Document 3, and the like.
For example, when a blue LED element is used for the semiconductor LED element 4 and a YAG: Ce yellow green phosphor such as (Y, Gd) ₃ Al ₅ O ₁₂ : Ce is used for the phosphor particles 6, CIE 1931 chromaticity In the drawing, the emission chromaticity changes on a line connecting the chromaticity coordinates of the blue coloring diode element and the chromaticity coordinates of the YAG: Ce yellow-green phosphor.
Further, a blue LED element to the semiconductor LED element _{4, Ca p (Si, Al} ) phosphor particles _{6 12 (O, N) 16} : using an alpha SiAlON-based yellow phosphor or orange phosphor such as Eu _q In this case, the emission chromaticity changes on a line connecting the chromaticity coordinates of the blue light emitting diode element and the chromaticity coordinates of the yellow or orange alpha sialon phosphor on the CIE1931 chromaticity diagram.
The phosphor particles 6 are not limited to a yellow phosphor that is a complementary color of blue, and a green phosphor that is excited by blue and emits green light, and a red phosphor that is excited by blue and emits red light can be suitably used. It is. As the green phosphor, for example, a beta sialon green phosphor can be used, and as the red phosphor, for example, a kasun red phosphor can be used.

  The alpha sialon yellow phosphor is known in Patent Document 3, Non-Patent Document 1, and the like, the beta sialon green phosphor is known in Non-Patent Document 2, and the cousin red phosphor is disclosed in Patent Document 4 and Non-Patent Document 4. It is known in Patent Document 3 and the like.

  FIG. 2 shows an example in which the illumination lamp 1 of Example 1 is vertically installed. If a blue light emitting diode element is used for the semiconductor LED element 4 and an alpha sialon yellow phosphor is used for the phosphor particles 6, the color of the illumination lamp viewed from the observer A is blue. The color seen from the observer C is yellow. The color viewed from the observer B is, for example, a white color having a low color temperature or white purple.

  The illumination lamp of the present invention is particularly effective in applications where it is possible to change the direction with respect to gravity while it is lit, rather than being fixedly mounted. For example, it is known in Patent Document 5 and others, and when applied to an illumination device arranged in a line suitable for Christmas tree or building decoration, its arrangement, orientation, etc. can be easily changed manually after installation. Yes, it is possible to enjoy by changing the emission chromaticity from time to time. In addition, when such an illumination device is installed outdoors, the chromaticity also changes due to shaking by wind force. Further, it may be installed together with a mechanical movable mechanism that automatically rotates. It is also suitable for use in entertainment equipment having a microphone that dances to music, a control circuit, and a movable mechanism. Besides, it is also suitable for application to decorative lighting that is held in hand or worn and used, such as a light emitting fan disclosed in Patent Document 6 and a light irradiation type decorative article disclosed in Patent Document 7. It is.

[Example 2]
FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of an illumination lamp according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
The illumination lamp 101 of this embodiment is characterized in that transparent filler particles 113 are dispersed in the fluid 7 in addition to the configuration of the illumination lamp 1 of the embodiment 1 shown in FIG.
As the filler particles 113, glass spheres or resin spheres having a particle size of about several tens of μm to several hundreds of μm can be used.

The illumination lamp 101 of this embodiment can reduce uneven distribution due to precipitation of the phosphor particles 6 by adding the transparent filler particles 113 together with the phosphor particles 6 to the fluid 7.
Further, since the light emitted from the semiconductor LED element 4 is reflected or refracted by the filler particles, the phosphor particles 6 that are YAG: Ce-based yellow-green phosphors cause blue-white light, white light, and yellow-green light to be emitted. Alternatively, while white violet light, light bulb color light, and orange light are being observed by the phosphor particles 6 that are alpha sialon-based orange phosphors, the blue light that is the emission color of the semiconductor LED element 4 is scattered and added to the color. Very beautiful.
Further, as the filler particles 113, particles having sharp corners such as crush glass commercially available as a craft material can be used instead of a sphere. In this case, the glittering feeling of the scattered blue light is further increased.

[Example 3]
Examples of the illumination lamp of Example 3 include those using coarse particles as a phosphor (not shown).
As the phosphor, a powder having a particle size of several μm is usually used. The white LED phosphor is usually a granular powder of several μm to several tens of μm. On the other hand, the illumination lamp of Example 3 uses a phosphor in which coarse particles having a particle diameter of 50 μm or more, particularly coarse particles having a particle diameter of several hundred μm or more are used. By greatly varying the particle size distribution of the phosphor particles, the change in chromaticity depending on the observation direction can be further varied. Fluorescent materials for white LEDs are usually used as powders, but oxide phosphors such as YAG: Ce and oxynitrides or nitride phosphors such as alpha sialon, beta sialon, and casoon are bulky as materials themselves. Coarse particles can be easily obtained by devising the synthesis procedure or by making the degree of pulverization appropriate when pulverizing into powder.
Not only the phosphor particles but also the transparent filler particles, for example, coarser particles having a particle size of 200 μm or more can be used, or variation in particle size distribution can be increased.
When coarse particles are used for the phosphor particles and the transparent filler particles, the entire package is preferably made sufficiently large, for example, 1 cm square or more so that the coarse particles can obtain sufficient fluidity.

[Example 4]
FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view of an illumination lamp according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
The illumination lamp 201 of the present embodiment covers and protects the semiconductor LED element 4 and the bonding wire 5 with a resin 214 in addition to the configuration of the illumination lamp 1 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. The resin 214 is transparent or translucent and is cured.

  The filler particles 113 may be dispersed together with the phosphor particles 6 in the fluid 7 as in the second embodiment, and the phosphor particles 6 and / or the filler particles 113 include coarse particles as in the third embodiment. May be.

The phosphor particles 6 and the filler particles 113 are often hard materials. For example, sialon ceramics has a Mohs hardness of 9 and silica glass has a Mohs hardness of 7 in 10 stages of Mohs hardness. Therefore, the semiconductor LED element 4 and the bonding wire 5 can be deteriorated by flow of sialon-based phosphor particles, silica glass sphere filler particles, and the like.
In Example 4, reliability can be improved by protecting these with a curable resin.
Further, by protecting all of the lead wires 2 and 3 and the electrode patterns 9 and 10 with the resin 214, it is possible to prevent a short circuit even if an electrically conductive fluid is used as the fluid 7.
In addition, although the case where the shape of the resin 214 was convex in FIG. 4 was illustrated, it may be concave or flat. The shape can be controlled by the viscosity, surface tension, wettability with the wall surface member 12 and the like of the resin 214 before curing.

[Example 5]
FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of an illumination lamp of Example 5 according to the present invention.
In the illumination lamp 301 of the present embodiment, a small amount of phosphor particles 315 are dispersed in the resin 314 covering the semiconductor LED element 4 in addition to the configuration of the illumination lamp 201 of the embodiment 4 shown in FIG. It has a configuration.

  In each of the above-described embodiments, for example, when a blue coloring diode element is used as the semiconductor LED element 4 and an orange alpha sialon phosphor is used as the phosphor particle, colors from blue to white purple, light bulb color, orange color, etc. Luminescence at degrees is observed. However, depending on the application, blue light emission is not preferable, and it may be desired to change the chromaticity range of white purple, light bulb color, and orange. The illumination lamp 301 of the present embodiment can solve this problem by adopting a configuration in which a small amount of phosphor particles 315 are dispersed in the resin 314 covering the semiconductor LED element 4.

  Similarly to the second embodiment, filler particles 113 may be dispersed together with the phosphor 6 in the fluid 7, and the phosphor particles 6 and / or the filler particles 113 include coarse particles as in the third embodiment. May be.

[Example 6]
FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional view of an illumination lamp unit according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.
In each of the embodiments described above, the light source, the fluid, and the phosphor are contained in the lamp itself. However, in the illumination lamp unit 401 of this embodiment, a bullet-type or SMD-type LED lamp is used as the light source, and this is used as a substrate. 411, the wall surface member 412 and the lid 408 are fixed on the substrate 411, and the substrate 411, the wall surface member 412 and the lid 418 are used to form a unit case, and the phosphor particles 406 and the fluid 407 are attached to the unit case. It has a sealed configuration.

  Specifically, a polystyrene resin that is a transparent resin is used as the wall surface member 412, and five bullet-type blue LED lamps are soldered and fixed on the substrate 411 that is a glass epoxy electric substrate as the light source component 415, and the fluid 407 is used. About 10 cc of glycerin was added, about 1 g of orange alpha sialon phosphor was added as phosphor particles 406, and the lid 408 was fixed with an adhesive, taking care not to enter bubbles.

[Example 7]
Further, as Example 7, in addition to Example 6, a sample in which about 1 g of crush glass was added as a filler particle was also manufactured. As the crash glass, a glass having a length of almost several hundred μm to 1 mm and rarely 2 mm was used. It has sharp corners and is suitable for producing a sparkling feeling with reflected light.

  In all of the embodiments described above, the light source component may be any component that emits light having a wavelength capable of exciting the phosphor used, and may be a semiconductor blue laser diode element. Further, a semiconductor ultraviolet light emitting diode element that emits ultraviolet light may be used.

In order to confirm the effect of the present invention, a sensory test was performed in which the illumination lamp unit of Example 7 was compared with a conventional LED unit for decoration.
As a comparative example, four bullet-type LEDs with different light emission chromaticities and a control circuit that changes the amount of light emitted asynchronously over time are installed on a pedestal, which is widely used as a souvenir for tourist destinations. A glass ornament was placed on the surface and the light from the LED was irradiated.
The glass ornaments on top are made of three-dimensionally shaped animals and plants and buildings by placing fine holes in a rectangular parallelepiped colorless and transparent glass by focusing and irradiating a YAG laser device. It was.

The number of test subjects was eight. In dynamically changing the chromaticity of the seventh embodiment, evaluation was performed by changing the angle of the unit of the seventh embodiment with a hand.
As for the evaluation result entry form, as Question 1, it was decided that one of the choices would be excellent as a lighting fixture for amusement use, or by looking at comparative examples and examples. The options are as follows:
1. I think that the example outperforms the comparative example in the decorativeness.
2. The example has an excellent part different from the comparative example in the decorativeness, and it is considered that it is present or absent depending on the application.
3. It cannot be determined that either the example or the comparative example is superior, and there is no significant difference.
4). There is no portion in which the example is more decorative than the comparative example. I think the comparative example is better for many applications.
5. The examples are notable for decorativeness and have no application.

As a result of aggregation, 2 answers were selected for 1 and 6 were selected for 2.
In addition, as Question 2, I received a comment about the impression of the example. All seven respondents who responded without one answer are listed below. “The blue light is sparkling and beautiful.” “The color of the light has changed, and it is sparkling and beautiful.” “The example has a dazzling impression and looks like a sight of the swamp bottom. I think that the particles are flowing and healed. The changes in color vary from place to place and are interesting. "" Light and color change dynamically and locally. ""I think it would be more interesting to combine the example and the comparative example.""I think the degree of color change by moving is good. I think that processing is a problem because it is conspicuous.In addition to lighting, there is also the use of intelligent toys for children that cause convection by pressing buttons etc. "

  From the above results, it was confirmed that Example 7 having a novel structure in which phosphor particles flow has sufficient inventive step in decorativeness.

It is sectional drawing of the illumination lamp produced in Example 1 which concerns on this invention. It is the schematic for demonstrating the relationship between the angle of the observer and the color of a lamp in the illumination lamp of Example 1. FIG. It is sectional drawing of the illumination lamp produced in Example 2 which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing of the illumination lamp produced in Example 4 which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing of the illumination lamp produced in Example 5 which concerns on this invention. It is sectional drawing of the illumination lamp produced in Example 6 which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1,101,201,301 ... Illumination lamp, 2,3 ... Lead wire, 4 ... Semiconductor light emitting diode (LED) element, 5 ... Gold bonding wire, 6 ... Phosphor particle, 7 fluid, 8 ... Lid, 9, 10 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS ... Electrode pattern, 11 ... Support substrate, 12 ... Wall surface member, 113 ... Filler particle, 214 ... Resin, 306, 315 ... Phosphor particle, 314 ... Resin, 401 ... Illumination lamp unit, 406 ... Phosphor, 407 ... Fluid, 408 ... Lid, 411 ... Support substrate, 412 ... Wall member, 415 ... Light source component.

Claims (8)

  An illumination lamp in which a light source, a fluorescent material that emits visible light when excited by light emitted from the light source, and a fluid are contained in a package, and the fluorescent material is in the form of particles and is a transparent or translucent fluid When the specific gravity of the fluorescent material and the specific gravity of the fluid are different, and the direction of the package with respect to gravity is changed, the light emitted from the light source is irradiated on the outside of the package. The illumination lamp is characterized in that the chromaticity of light emitted outside the package changes depending on whether or not the fluorescent material is arranged or not, or when the amount of the fluorescent substance is changed.   2. The illumination lamp according to claim 1, wherein transparent or semi-transparent substantially spherical filler particles are dispersed in a fluid.   The illumination lamp according to claim 1, wherein filler particles that are transparent or translucent and have acute corners are dispersed in a fluid.   The illumination lamp according to claim 1, wherein the fluorescent material contains coarse particles having a flow diameter of 50 μm or more.   The illumination lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the filler particles include coarse particles having a flow diameter of 200 µm or more.   6. The illumination lamp according to claim 1, wherein the light source is coated with a transparent or opaque cured material and protected from a fluid and a fluorescent material dispersed in the fluid.   7. The illumination lamp according to claim 6, wherein a fluorescent material is dispersed in a transparent or translucent cured material covering the light source.   An illumination lamp unit in which a lamp housed in a package, a fluorescent material that emits visible light when excited by light emitted from the lamp, and a fluid are contained in the package, and the fluorescent material is in the form of particles, When dispersed in a transparent or translucent fluid, the specific gravity of the fluorescent material and the specific gravity of the fluid are different, and the direction of the illumination lamp unit with respect to gravity is changed, the lamp and the light emitted from the lamp are external to the unit case. The chromaticity of the light emitted outside the unit case changes depending on whether or not the fluorescent substance is arranged or not arranged on the optical path until the light is irradiated on the unit case, or the amount of the fluorescent substance is changed. Illumination lamp unit characterized by

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