JPH07270619A - Illuminator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide an illuminator capable of illuminating such as a liquid crystal display panel without narrowing the area of the effective light emission surface of an input plight transmission body by reducing the external size of a lamp. CONSTITUTION:The illuminator is equipped with a fluorescent lamp 11 having an outside diameter <=5mm composed of a bent cylindrical bulb, a light transmission body 12 with, the housing groove 12a having almost the same shape as the shape of the lamp 11 and capable of housing the lamp 11 formed on the surface and provided with the thickness langer than the outside diameter of the lamp 11, a fixing means 13 for fixing the lamp 11 by using at least a part of the housing groove 12a, and the irradiated body 13 arranged opposite to the surface of the light transmission body 12. Then, since a part of the housing groove integrated with the light transmission body is used, and the lamp 11 can be stuck by pressing, even if the lamp itself is somewhat twisted or bent a little corresponding to the horizontal and the vertical plane, the lamp 11 can be fixed while correctly positioning the lamp 11 with respect to the light transmission body. Moreover, as the outside diameter of the lamp 11 is made small, the area of the effective light emission surface is prevented from narrowing.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a lighting device suitable for illuminating a liquid crystal display panel or the like from the back by using a fluorescent lamp formed by bending a cylindrical bulb having a small outer diameter.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a light source for illuminating a liquid crystal display panel of this type, a bent fluorescent lamp is used, which is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 183626/1989 (hereinafter
This is called "first conventional example". ) Is disclosed. In this first conventional example, as shown in FIG. 3, electrodes 32 are provided at both ends of a fluorescent lamp 31 which is bent at a substantially right angle, and a rare gas and mercury are sealed inside the fluorescent lamp 31 to make the fluorescent lamp 31. A light guide 33 made of translucent plastic is provided on the same plane along the inner circumference.

An illumination device having a lamp housing groove formed in a light guide is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-280079 (hereinafter referred to as "second conventional example"). In this illuminating device, as shown in FIG. 4, the fluorescent lamp 41 has a flat shape, and the storage groove 42 having a flat cross section in which the lamp 41 enters the side surface of the light guide body 42 facing the lamp 41.
a is formed, and the lamp 41 is inserted into the housing groove 42a with its short axis along the thickness direction of the light guide 42, and the light from the lamp 41 is guided into the light guide 42. There is.

[0004]

However, in the first conventional example, the fluorescent lamp 31 itself is twisted with respect to the horizontal plane or is bent more than necessary, so that the lamp 31 is bent accurately. May not be. When the lamp 31 is arranged on the side surface of the light guide 22, the light guide 3
The lamp 31 is not accurately arranged along the side surface of the lamp 3 and is displaced in position, so that the lamp 3 is incident on the light guide 33.
There is a problem that unevenness of the incident light of No. 1 occurs and uneven brightness occurs on the surface of the light guide 33.

In the second conventional example, the light guide 42 is formed by forming the lamp 41 in a flat shape and forming the storage groove 42a into which the lamp 41 is inserted on the side surface of the light guide 42.
Although the lamp 41 can be regulated to the side surface, since the storage groove 42a is formed in the side surface, it is necessary to form the light guide body 42 to have a relatively large wall thickness.
Since a must be formed deep, there is a problem that the outer shape of the light guide plate 42 becomes large as a whole.

Therefore, the present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and a storage groove is formed on the surface of the light guide so that the fluorescent lamp can be accurately positioned with respect to the light guide. While arranging, reduce the outer diameter of the lamp,
An object of the present invention is to provide an illumination device in which the area of the effective light emitting surface of the light guide body is not reduced.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a lighting device including a fluorescent lamp having an outer diameter of 5 mm or less formed by bending a cylindrical bulb, and a lamp having a shape substantially the same as that of the lamp. Is formed on the surface thereof, and a light guide body having a wall thickness larger than the outer diameter of the lamp, fixing means for fixing the lamp using at least a part of the storage groove, and a light guide surface facing the light guide body surface. And the irradiation target arranged in this manner. Here, the cylindrical valve may be hollow or solid. There are various types of objects to be irradiated, such as a liquid crystal display panel, a dial, and a plate on which a pattern is drawn.

A lighting device according to a second aspect of the present invention is the lighting device according to the first aspect, wherein the fixing means is an adhesive member provided on the bottom surface of the storage groove. For example, silicone adhesive, double-sided tape, and the like.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the illumination device according to the first aspect, wherein the light guide is formed by cutting off a portion where the bent portion of the lamp is arranged.

An illumination device according to a fourth aspect is the illumination device according to the first aspect, wherein the irradiated body is a liquid crystal display panel.

[0011]

In the lighting device according to the first aspect, the bent fluorescent lamp having an outer diameter of 5 mm or less is housed in the housing groove formed on the surface of the light guide. An adhesive member or the like is arranged in the storage groove to fix the lamp. When the lamp is turned on, the radiated light is introduced into the inside of the light guide from the side wall of the storage groove, and is radiated from the surface of the light guide toward the irradiated body. Then, the irradiated body is illuminated.

In the lighting device of the second aspect, the fixing means adheres and fixes the lamp and the light guide body with an adhesive member provided on the bottom surface of the housing groove.

In the lighting device according to the third aspect, since the light guide formed by cutting off the bent portion of the lamp is used, the amount of light introduced into the light guide can be suppressed. .

In the illumination device according to the fourth aspect, the object to be illuminated is a liquid crystal display panel, and the light emitted from the surface of the light guide illuminates the display panel to make it easy to see characters displayed on the panel. ing.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An illumination device showing a first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. In the figure, a lighting device 10
Is a fluorescent lamp 11, a light guide body 12 in which a housing groove 12a for accommodating the lamp 11 is formed, fixing means 13 for fixing the lamp 11 to the light guide body 12, and a surface 12b of the light guide body 12. The irradiation object 14 is arranged and the light reflecting means 15 is arranged on the back surface 12 c of the light guide 12.

First, the fluorescent lamp 11 will be described.
A phosphor coating is formed on the inner surface of a cylindrical bulb made of glass and having an outer diameter of 3 mm, and electrodes are arranged on both ends of the bulb to seal a rare gas and mercury to hermetically seal them. After that, fix one end of the valve and free the other end to heat the part to be bent while rotating it at a low speed, and after heating for a predetermined time, stop the rotation and bend the other end to the right angle direction. By doing so, it is formed into an L-shape, and the fluorescent lamp is completed.

The light guide body 12 is made of an acrylic resin having an excellent visible light transmittance and has an outer dimension of 150 mm in width and 100 mm in length.
mm, thickness of 5 m, which is larger than the outer diameter of the lamp 12
It is formed in a rectangular flat plate shape of m. Around the front surface 12b of the light guide 12, a width L of 4 mm and a depth of 4 mm is approximately L.
An accommodating groove 12a capable of accommodating the lamp 11 formed in a letter shape is formed. The groove 12a may be scraped off by a milling machine or the like, or may be formed by injection molding.

The adhesive 13, which is a fixing means, is stored in the storage groove 12.
The lamp 11 and the light guide 12 are provided on the bottom surface 12aa of the a.
Adhesively fix and. The lamp 11 is fixed by using at least a part of the storage groove 13.

The liquid crystal display panel 14, which is the object to be irradiated, is arranged on the surface 12b of the light guide 12 except for the portion where the storage groove 12a is formed.

The reflecting plate 15 which is a light reflecting means includes a light guide 1.
It is arranged on the back surface 12c of the second display unit 2 and reflects light toward the liquid crystal display panel 14.

The reason why the outer diameter of the lamp 11 is preferably 5 mm or less is that when it is larger than this, the light guide 1
2 The storage groove 12a formed on the front surface 12b also becomes large,
This is because the surface (effective light emitting surface) on which the irradiation target 14 can be uniformly irradiated is reduced. Further, when the double-sided tape is used as the fixing means 13, the lamp 11 can be immediately fixed to the storage groove 12a, and the working efficiency is improved. Further, although only the straight pipe portion is pressed and fixed with the adhesive, the bent portion of the lamp 11 may be also bonded. In addition, between the light guide 12 and the liquid crystal display panel 14, a diffusion plate capable of diffusing light emitted from the surface 12b of the light guide 12 to make the illuminance uniform may be arranged. A large size is preferable so as to cover the surface of the lamp 11. Furthermore, although the lamp 11 is formed in an L shape, a lamp formed in a U shape, a square shape, or the like is also applicable.

Next, the operation and effect of this embodiment will be described. In the lighting device 10, a bent outer diameter of 5 mm
The following fluorescent lamp 11 is housed in a housing groove 12a formed in the surface 12b of the light guide 12. This storage groove 12a
An adhesive 13 or the like is provided on the bottom surface 12aa of the lamp 11 to fix the lamp 11. The light emitted by turning on the lamp 11 is introduced into the inside of the light guide 12 from the side wall 12ab of the storage groove 12a and is emitted from the surface 12b of the light guide 12 toward the liquid crystal display panel 14. Then, the liquid crystal display panel 14 is illuminated, and the characters on the panel are easy to see.

When fixing the lamp 11, a part of the storage groove 12a formed integrally with the light guide 12 is used, so that the lamp 11 itself is slightly twisted in manufacturing. Since the lamp 11 can be pressed and bonded even when it is slightly bent on the horizontal and vertical surfaces, the lamp 11 can be accurately positioned and fixed to the light guide 12. Further, since the outer diameter of the lamp 11 is made small, it is possible to prevent the area of the effective light emitting surface of the light guide 12 from being narrowed. In addition, the lamp 11 is the light guide 1.
The device can be made compact and thin without protruding from 2 in the horizontal and vertical directions. Furthermore, since most of the lamp 11 is embedded in the light guide 12, the lamp 1
The light emitted from 1 is guided to the inside of the light guide body 12 as it is, so that the light can be guided efficiently.

Next, an illuminating device showing a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the figure, the light guide 1
2 is formed by cutting off one of the corners 12d, and the bent portion 11a of the lamp 11 is arranged in this cutout 12d. Here, it is preferable to apply a paint for reflection or to dispose a member having a reflection function on the cut surface of the light guide 12, and to prevent light from being guided to the light guide 12 from this portion. Thus, the illuminance of the light emitted from the surface 12b of the light guide 12 can be made uniform.

In other words, at the bent portion 11a of the lamp 11, the light emitted from the lamp 11 is incident on the light guide 12 from both side surfaces, so that the illuminance becomes high. Therefore, if a coating material for reflection is applied to the cutout portion 12d of the light guide body 12 or a member having a reflection function is arranged, the light guide body 12 is formed.
The light incident on is a linear light, and the illuminance distribution of the light emitted from the light guide 12 becomes more uniform. The rest of the configuration and operation are the same as in the first embodiment, so a description thereof will be omitted.

[0026]

According to the present invention, when the fluorescent lamp is fixed, a part of the storage groove formed integrally with the light guide is used, so that the lamp itself is slightly twisted in manufacturing. Even if the lamp is bent or slightly bent on the horizontal and vertical surfaces, the lamp can be pressed and adhered, so that the lamp can be accurately positioned and fixed to the light guide. further,
Since the outer diameter of the lamp is small, it is possible to prevent the area of the effective light emitting surface of the light guide body from being narrowed. In addition, the lamp does not project horizontally or vertically from the light guide, and the device can be made compact and thin. Furthermore, since most of the lamp is embedded in the light guide, the light emitted from the lamp is guided to the inside of the light guide as it is, so that the light can be efficiently guided.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a lighting device showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an illumination device showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a liquid crystal backlight device according to a first conventional example.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing a surface emitting device according to a second conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Illumination device 11 ... Fluorescent lamp 12 ... Light guide 12a ... Storage groove 13 ... Fixing means (adhesive) 14 ... Irradiation object (liquid crystal display panel)

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A fluorescent lamp having an outer diameter of 5 mm or less, which is formed by bending a cylindrical bulb; and a storage groove which has substantially the same shape as this lamp and which can store the lamp is formed on the surface of the lamp. A light guide having a wall thickness larger than the outer diameter; fixing means for fixing the lamp by utilizing at least a part of the housing groove; and an irradiation target arranged facing the light guide surface. A lighting device characterized by being. 2. The illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the fixing means is an adhesive member provided on the bottom surface of the storage groove. 3. The light guide body is formed by cutting out a portion where the bent portion of the lamp is arranged.
Illumination device described. 4. The illuminating device according to claim 1, wherein the irradiated body arranged facing the surface of the light guide body is a liquid crystal display panel.