JP2022091342A - Lens structure - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a structure of a lens welded to a lens holder, dispensing with a blindfold material.SOLUTION: A lens joined with a lens holder by laser welding, the lens holder formed of a resin member with translucency and a resin member with non-translucency, comprises an incidence plane (15) and an exit plane (19) facing each other, and a flange part (11) as a welding part to the lens holder (20). The flange part (11) includes, in at least some area, a step part (12) having an amount of projection to the light incidence plane side larger than an amount of lens projection to the light incidence side of the incidence plane (15), and the light exit plane-side surface of the step part is joined with the lens holder by welding as a welding surface (16) with the lens holder (20). This configuration dispenses with a cover member. Alternatively, when the lens is pressed and welded by a pressing mechanism, the lens is welded to the lens holder without being damaged by the pressing mechanism.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

The present invention relates to the structure of a lens.

The lighting equipment for a vehicle includes a light source and a lens that forms the light emitted from the light source into a predetermined light distribution in the lighting chamber. The lens is held by being welded to the lens holder at the flange portion, with the flange portion provided so as not to interfere with the light distribution as the welding portion.

When the lens is welded to the lens holder, it is welded in one region on the light emitting side of the lens holder and a part region on the light incident side of the flange portion. This will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

FIG. 16 is a schematic configuration diagram for explaining welding and configuration of a conventional lens and a lens holder. As shown in FIG. 16A, the lens 1010 made of a transparent member is provided with a flange portion 1011 on the outer edge portion as a holding portion. The lens holder 1020 is made of a translucent member, and an inner flange portion 1022 is provided in the opening to which the lens 1010 is attached.

When welding the lens 1010 and the lens holder 1020, the lens holder 1020 is first arranged with the inner flange portion 1022 as the upper surface, and the flange portion 1011 of the lens 1010 is positioned and mounted on the inner flange portion 1022 of the lens holder 1020. .. A part of the peripheral flange portion 1011 is pressed toward the inner flange portion 1022 by the welding pressing mechanism P, whereby the inner surface 1016 of the flange portion 1011 and the outer surface 1026 of the inner flange portion 1022 are in close contact with each other. Will be.

When the laser beam L is projected from the laser light source (laser oscillator) M, the projected laser beam L first enters the flange portion 1011, is transmitted in the lens thickness direction, and is projected onto the inner flange portion 1022 on the outer surface. The 1026 is melted and welded to the inner surface 1016 is performed.

JP-A-2010-260545

However, when the outer surface of the lens holder and the inner surface of the lens are welded together, the welded portion can be seen from the front through the transparent lens, which makes the appearance unattractive. Therefore, a blindfold material for blindfolding the welded portion is required (see the blindfold material 1090 in FIG. 16B). If a blindfold material is used, the size of the lamp will have to be increased. The number of parts will increase by that amount, leading to increased costs and weight.

The present invention has been made in view of this, and provides a lens structure that does not require a blindfold material and contributes to miniaturization of a lamp.

In order to solve the above problems, the lens of the present disclosure is a lens formed of a translucent resin member and bonded to a lens holder formed of a translucent resin member by laser welding. Further, an incident surface and an exit surface facing each other and a flange portion as a welding portion to the lens holder are provided, and the flange portion has a larger amount of protrusion of the incident surface toward the light incident side in at least a part of the region. It has a stepped portion having a large amount of protrusion to the light incident side, and the surface of the stepped portion on the light emitting surface side is used as a welding surface with the lens holder so as to be welded and joined to the lens holder. did. According to this aspect, the lens is welded with the welded portion blindfolded by the lens holder, and a blindfold material for blindfolding the welded portion becomes unnecessary.

Further, in one embodiment, the flange portion is configured to be provided over the entire circumference of the outer periphery of the incident surface. According to this aspect, at the time of welding, it is easy to press the lens with a uniform force by the welding pressing mechanism, and it is easy to weld without deviation or bias, which is a suitable form for welding.

Further, in one embodiment, the surfaces of the stepped portion, which is the welding surface, on the exit surface side are all configured to be provided on the same plane. According to this aspect, the lens is easily pressed by the welding pressing mechanism at the time of welding.

As is clear from the above description, it is possible to provide a lens structure that does not require a blindfold material and contributes to miniaturization of the lamp.

It is a schematic cross-sectional view of the lighting equipment for a vehicle provided with the lens and the lens holder which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a perspective view of the lens and the lens holder which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It shows the state where both are welded. It is an exploded perspective view of the lens and a lens holder. It is a horizontal end view of FIG. The same lens is shown. FIG. 5A is a front perspective view of the lens and mainly shows an exit surface. FIG. 5B is a rear perspective view of the lens, and mainly shows an incident surface. FIG. 5C is a side view of the lens. The vertical cross section is also shown by the dotted line. It is a schematic block diagram for demonstrating the welding of the lens. This is a conventional example for comparison with FIG. This is a modified example. It is a conventional example for comparison with FIG. This is a modified example. It is a conventional example for comparison with FIG. It is a perspective view of the lens and the lens holder which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It shows the state where both are welded. It is an exploded perspective view of the lens and a lens holder. It is an end view of the lens. 14 (A) is a horizontal cross-sectional view of FIG. 14 (B) is a vertical cross-sectional view of FIG. The same lens is shown. FIG. 15A is a front perspective view of the lens, and mainly shows an exit surface. FIG. 15B is a rear perspective view of the lens and mainly shows an incident surface. FIG. 15C is a plan view of the lens. FIG. 15D is a front view of the lens. FIG. 15E is a rear view of the lens. FIG. 15F is a side view of the lens. The vertical cross section is also shown by the dotted line. This is a conventional example.

Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The embodiments are not limited to the invention, but are exemplary, and all the features and combinations thereof described in the embodiments are not necessarily essential to the invention.

(First Embodiment)
The vehicle lamp 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a headlight mounted on the left and right ends of the front end of the vehicle body, and includes the lens 10 according to the first embodiment and the lens holder 20 for holding the lens 10. It is composed.

As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle lamp 1 includes a lamp body 2 and a lamp cover 4. The lamp body 2 has an opening in the front, and a lamp cover 4 made of a translucent resin or glass is attached to the opening of the lamp body 2 to form a lamp chamber S.

In the lamp chamber S, a lamp unit LU attached to the support member 6 is arranged. The support member 6 is attached to the lamp body 2 by the aiming screw E. The optical axis of the vehicle lamp 1 is adjusted in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction by rotating each aiming screw E.

The lamp unit LU is configured to irradiate a predetermined light distribution to the front of the vehicle, and includes a light source 7, a reflector 8, a lens 10, and a lens holder 20 which are light emitting elements.

The light source 7 and the lens holder 20 are attached to a metal bracket 9 fixed to the support member 6. The reflector 8 is configured to guide the light emitted from the light source 7 to the lens 10, and is attached to the support member 6 via a fixing member (not shown).

The lens 10 is a free-curved lens having an incident surface 15 and an exit surface 19 facing each other, both of which have a free curved surface shape. In the present embodiment, both the entrance surface 15 and the exit surface 19 are convex curved surfaces that bulge outward. Hereinafter, with respect to the directions of the description of the lens 10 and the lens holder 20, the light emitting side from which the light of the light source 7 is emitted is arranged in the front, the incident light incident side is arranged in the rear, and the surface arranged in the front is arranged in the front and rear. The surface is referred to as the back surface.

The emitted light of the light source 7 is reflected forward by the reflector 13, passes through the lens 10 and the lamp cover 4, and is emitted forward to form a predetermined light distribution in front of the vehicle.

(Lens and lens holder)
FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of the lens 10 and the lens holder 20. The fixing portion of the lens holder 20 to the bracket 9 is omitted. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. FIG. 4 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of FIG. FIG. 5 shows the lens 10.

The lens 10 is formed by integrally forming a light transmitting portion 18 formed in a substantially hemispherical shape and a flange portion 11 projecting from the outer peripheral edge of the light transmitting portion 18 toward the light transmitting portion 18 by injection molding. The light transmitting portion 18 is a lens body, and the flange portion 11 is a holding portion for being welded and held to the lens holder 20.

The lens holder 20 is integrally formed with a holding portion 28 formed in a substantially cylindrical shape and an inner flange portion 22 protruding inward from the front end of the holding portion 28. The lens holder 20 contains a light-absorbing material such as carbon, is translucent, and is made of a resin that is heated and melted by laser light or the like.

The lens 10 is made of a transparent resin material that allows light to pass through, such as an acrylic resin (methyl resin polymethacrylic acid) or a polycarbonate resin, and when the lamp body 2 is melted, it is melted by the heat thereof.

The flange portion 11 includes a stepped portion 12 projecting rearward. The stepped portion 12 may be formed in at least a part of the flange portion 11, and is preferably provided at a plurality of locations separated in the circumferential direction. In the present embodiment, the step portion 12 is provided in an annular shape over the entire circumference of the entire region of the flange portion 11.

The amount of protrusion of the step portion 12 to the rear is configured to be larger than the amount of protrusion of the incident surface 15 to the rear. That is, the separation distance H (see FIG. 4), which is the difference from the protrusion amount of the step portion 12 based on the maximum protrusion amount of the incident surface 15, is configured to be 0 or more.

The front surface of the step portion 12 is configured as a flat surface without a step, and this flat surface portion serves as a lens welding surface 16 to be welded to the lens holder 20. The lens holder 20 has a holder welding surface 26 welded to the lens 10 on the back surface side of the inner flange portion 22, and the lens holder 20 and the lens 10 are joined by welding both welding surfaces.

(Welding method)
Welding of the lens 10 and the lens holder 20 will be described. FIG. 6 is a conceptual configuration diagram for explaining the shape and welding of the lens 10 and the lens holder 20.

First, the lens holder 20 is arranged with the inner flange portion 22 as the bottom surface, the lens 10 is arranged so as to cover the opening of the lens holder 20 with the light transmitting portion 18, and the flange portion 11 is placed on the inner flange portion 22. .. The lens 10 and the lens holder 20 are formed with an engaging mechanism such as an uneven portion and an engaging groove (not shown), and the lens welding surface 16 and the holder welding surface 26 are positioned by the engagement mechanism. Arranged so that they face each other and come into contact with each other.

Next, the flange portion 11 is pressed toward the inner flange portion 22 by a welding pressing mechanism P having a pressing surface urged by an elastic member such as a contact probe, and the lens welding surface 16 and the holder welding surface 26 are pressed. Is in close contact.

The laser beam L is projected from the flange portion 11 side toward the holder welding surface 26 from the laser light source (laser oscillator) M. The laser beam L passes through the flange portion 11 and heats the holder welding surface 26 to melt it. The lens welding surface 16 in contact with the holder welding surface 26 also generates heat due to heat conduction and melts to fuse the lens welding surface 16 and the holder welding surface 26. The lens holder 20 is configured to include a material that absorbs the laser beam L, but the lens 10 does not contain this and transmits light, so that the laser beam in the lens 10 before reaching the lens holder 20. The absorption of L is prevented, and a high absorption rate of the laser beam L on the holder welding surface 26 formed as the joint surface can be ensured. If the lens holder 20 contains a light-diffusing material such as titanium oxide, the laser beam L is diffused to prevent the holder welding surface 26 from being partially excessively melted by the laser beam L. Is possible and preferable.

Since the laser light L is emitted to melt both welded surfaces in a state where the lens welded surface 16 and the holder welded surface 26 are in close contact with each other by the welding pressing mechanism P, both are welded without a gap.

The lens 10 is exposed from the rear of the lens holder 20 by inserting the light transmitting portion 18 through the opening of the lens holder 20 and exposing the lens 10 to the front, and is welded to the inner flange portion 22 by the flange portion 11. The holder welding surface 26 on the back surface of the lens holder 20 and the lens welding surface 16 on the front side of the lens 10 are welded together, and the welded portions of both are blindfolded by the inner flange portion 22 itself, so that the appearance is good. Is good. There is no need for a blindfold member that blindfolds the welded portion, resulting in cost savings and weight reduction. Further, since it is not necessary to arrange a blindfold member, it contributes to the miniaturization of the lamp. It saves space and improves the degree of freedom in design and design.

(Action effect)
The action and effect of the lens 10 having the above configuration will be described in comparison with the conventional example. FIG. 7 is a conventional example for comparison.

First, conventionally, as shown in FIG. 16, the lens 1010 is arranged in front of the lens holder 1020 and welded to the inner flange portion 1022 by the flange portion 1011. In this case, since the welded portion becomes visible through the transparent lens 10, a blindfold material 1090 that hides the welded portion is required.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, when the lens 1010 is arranged from the rear of the lens holder 1020 and welded to the back surface of the lens holder 1020 while keeping this configuration, the welding pressing mechanism P is used to weld the lens 1010. There is a problem that the lens cannot be pressed.

That is, in order to weld the lens 1010 and the lens holder 1020 without a gap, it is necessary to bring the flange portion 1011 and the inner flange portion 1022, which are the joint portions, into close contact with each other. However, the welding pressing mechanism P and the lens 1010 interfere with each other (see part A in FIG. 7), or the welding pressing mechanism P, the lens holder 1020, and the lens holder 1020 interfere with each other (see part B in FIG. 7).

The diameter W of the welding pressing mechanism P (see FIG. 6) is set to a certain extent in order to secure the strength of the elastic member (for example, the wire thickness and the spring diameter when the elastic member is a spring) required from the required pressing force. Size is required. Further, in order to avoid damage to the light transmitting portion 1018 due to the arrangement of the welding pressing mechanism P, it is necessary to arrange the welding pressing mechanism P with a predetermined margin from the light transmitting portion 1018. Generally, the minimum required diameter W is larger than the minimum welding width required to completely join the lens and the lens holder.

As shown in FIG. 16, when the lens 1010 is arranged in front of the lens holder 1020, a part of the welding pressing mechanism P may be arranged so as to protrude outward from the edge portion of the flange portion 1011. (Refer to the C portion of FIG. 16) As shown in FIG. 7, when the lens 1010 is arranged behind the lens holder 1020, the holding portion 1028 serves as a vertical wall, and the welding pressing mechanism P is provided at the edge portion of the flange portion 1011. It cannot be placed so that it protrudes outward from the lens. If the width of the flange portion 1011 is increased in order to avoid interference, the lens holder 1020 must be increased in size, which causes problems such as an increase in size and weight of the entire lamp.

In the present embodiment, the flange portion 11 of the lens 10 is provided with a step portion 12 protruding from the incident surface 15, the front surface of the step portion 12 is the lens welding surface 16, and the back surface of the step portion 12 is welded and pressed. By pressing the inner flange portion 22 with the mechanism P, it was possible to prevent the welding pressing mechanism P from interfering with other parts. According to this aspect, the welding pressing mechanism P can be arranged so as to protrude inward from the inner end portion of the step portion 12 (see D portion in FIG. 6), and the lens 10 can be arranged without increasing the width of the flange portion 11. Can be welded to the lens holder 20.

(Modification example)
This embodiment is not limited to the above embodiment. FIG. 8 shows a modified example of the lens 10. The lens 10A shown in FIG. 8 has the same configuration as the lens 10 except that the incident surface 15A is composed of a flat surface. Elements having the same configuration are designated by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

Even if the incident surface 15A is a flat surface, by providing the stepped portion 12 with the separation distance H> 0, the welding pressing mechanism P is arranged on the stepped portion 12 in the lens 10A as well as the lens 10, and the lens is lensed. The welding surface 16 can be brought into close contact with the holder welding surface 26.

FIG. 9 is a conventional example for explaining the action and effect of the lens 10A shown in FIG. The lens 1010A shown in FIG. 9 has the same configuration and arrangement as the conventional lens 1010 shown in FIG. 7, except that the incident surface 1015A is composed of a flat surface. The incident surface 1015A is flush with the back surface of the flange portion 1011 and both are configured as the same plane.

When the lens 1010A is arranged behind the lens holder 1020 and the welding pressing mechanism P is arranged on the flange portion 1011, the welding pressing mechanism P protrudes inward from the flange portion 1011 and hangs on the incident surface 1015A (FIG. FIG. See part E of 9). Therefore, there arises a problem that the incident surface 1015A is damaged by the pressing operation of the welding pressing mechanism P, which adversely affects the light distribution.

As described above, even when the incident surface of the lens is a flat surface, this problem can be avoided by applying the configuration of the present disclosure and providing the step portion 12.

FIG. 10 shows another modification of the lens 10. The lens 10B shown in FIG. 10 has the same configuration as the lens 10 except that the incident surface 15B is configured as a concave curved surface protruding forward. Elements having the same configuration are designated by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

The lens 10B includes a flange portion 14 that connects the incident surface 15B, which is a concave curved surface, and the flange portion 11. The flange portion 14 continuously and integrally configures the incident surface 15B and the flange portion 11 without forming a local thin portion at the end due to the concave curved surface. The flange portion 14 that can be visually recognized from the front is an optical surface and a design surface on which light is incident, and is configured as a part of the incident surface 15B.

Even when the incident surface 15B is a concave curved surface, by providing the stepped portion 12 with the separation distance H> 0, the welding pressing mechanism P is arranged on the stepped portion 12 and the lens welding surface 16 is placed on the holder welding surface, similarly to the lens 10. It can be brought into close contact with 26. The welding pressing mechanism P does not come into contact with the flange portion 14, and the welding pressing mechanism P does not press and damage the flange portion 14. The adverse optical and design effects of the welding pressing mechanism P are avoided.

FIG. 11 is a conventional example for explaining the action and effect of the lens 10B shown in FIG. The lens 1010B shown in FIG. 11 has the same configuration as the conventional lens 1010 except that the incident surface 1015B is configured as a concave curved surface.

Like the lens 10B, the lens 1010B also has a flange portion 1014 connecting the flange portion 1011 and the incident surface 1015. The back surface of the flange portion 1014 is flush with the back surface of the flange portion 1011 and both are configured as the same plane.

It is necessary to arrange the lens 1010B behind the lens holder 1020 and arrange the welding pressing mechanism P on the flange portion 1011. However, the welding pressing mechanism P protrudes inward from the flange portion 1011 and hangs on the flange portion 1014. (See part F in FIG. 11). There arises a problem that the incident surface and the flange portion 1014, which is the design surface, are damaged, which adversely affects the light distribution.

Even when the incident surface of the lens is a concave curved surface, this problem can be avoided by applying the configuration of the present disclosure and providing the stepped portion 12.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 12 is a schematic configuration diagram of the lens 110 and the lens holder 120 according to the second embodiment. The fixing portion to the bracket 9 is omitted. FIG. 13 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. FIG. 14 is an end view of FIG. 14 (A) is a horizontal end view, and FIG. 14 (B) is a vertical end view. FIG. 15 shows the lens 10.

The lens 110 is a polygonal lens, and has a flat octagonal shape having a width longer than the vertical width when viewed from the front.

The lens 110 is formed by integrating a light transmitting portion 118, which is a lens body, and a flange portion 111 projecting outward from the outer peripheral edge of the light transmitting portion 18, and the outer shape of both is a flat octagon. It has become.

The lens holder 120 that holds the lens 110 is an octagonal cylinder, and includes an inner flange portion 122 that projects inward to the opening. The inner flange portion 122 is a welded portion of the lens 110, the width thereof is constant, and the outer shape and the inner shape when viewed from the front are the same flat octagon.

The configuration of the present disclosure can be applied not only to a circular lens but also to a polygonal lens such as the lens 110, an elliptical lens, and a lens having a free outer shape.

The flange portion 111 includes a stepped portion 112 projecting rearward. The step portion 112 is formed only in a part of the region, not the entire circumference in the circumferential direction. That is, the step portion 112 is provided on the octagonal edge portion of the outer shape of the lens 110, but is not provided on the lower hypotenuse, and the same portion is a notched portion 113. ..

The step portion 112 is composed of the step portions 112a to 112f. As shown in FIG. 15B, the step portions 112a to 112f are provided so as to project from the outer edge of the octagon of the incident surface 119, and the step portions 112a, 112b, 112c, 112d, 112e are provided on the upper five sides, respectively. However, a step portion 112f is provided on the lower side (hereinafter, when not specified, the step portions 112a to 112f are collectively referred to as a step portion 112). The front surface of the step portion 112 is a lens welding surface 116, all of which are formed of the same vertical plane, but the amount of protrusion to the rear, the width, and the inclination angle are not constant in the entire region, and differ between the step portions 112a to 112f. ..

As shown in FIG. 15 (F), the step portion 112c provided above has a larger amount of protrusion to the rear than the step portion 112f provided below. Further, as shown in FIG. 15C, the back surfaces of the stepped portions 112d and 112b pressed by the welding pressing mechanism P are not vertically faced but inclined at a predetermined angle. Further, as shown in FIG. 15 (E), the widths of the step portions 112d and 112b provided on the upper hypotenuse are configured to become narrower toward the side.

Since the pressing surface of the welding pressing mechanism P stably presses the surface and the pressing force is made uniform, the stepped portion is provided over the entire circumference of the outer periphery of the incident surface like the lens 10. Moreover, it is preferable that all the back surfaces, which are the pressed surfaces, are provided on the same plane. Further, it is preferable that the plane is the same plane perpendicular to the crimping direction and the width is constant. The configuration of the present disclosure is not limited to this, and if the minimum protrusion amount of the step portion is larger than the maximum protrusion amount of the incident surface and the separation distance H is 0 or more, as in the lens 110, the shape of the vehicle lamp. The protrusion amount, width, and inclination angle may be changed depending on the region according to the space arrangement.

Although the preferred embodiments and modifications of the present invention have been described above, the above-described embodiments are examples of the present invention, and these can be combined based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art, and such embodiments are also present. Included in the scope of the invention.

10: Lens 11: Flange portion 12: Step portion 15: Incident surface 16: Lens welding surface 19: Exit surface 20: Lens holder 22: Inner flange portion 26: Holder welding surface H: Separation distance

Claims (3)

A lens formed by a translucent resin member and bonded to a lens holder formed by a translucent resin member by laser welding.
A flange portion is provided as an incident surface and an exit surface facing each other and a welding portion to the lens holder.
The flange portion has, in at least a part of the region, a stepped portion in which the amount of protrusion toward the light incident side is larger than the amount of protrusion of the incident surface toward the light incident side.
The surface of the step portion on the light emitting surface side is used as a welding surface with the lens holder, and is welded and joined to the lens holder.
The lens structure is characterized by that. The flange portion is provided over the entire circumference of the outer periphery of the incident surface.
The lens structure according to claim 1. The surfaces of the stepped portion on the exit surface side, which are the welding surfaces, are all provided on the same plane.
The lens structure according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the lens structure is characterized in that.

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