Claims
- 1. A method, for illuminating objects at a prescribed site in an instrument closure using one or more fluorescent tube means which is outsized for said closure; this method comprising: bending each said tube means at least once to fit it better within said closure; said tube means having a radius R, and taking care that none of the resulting bend radii exceed radius R so as not to adversely affect the fluorescent discharge.
- 2. The invention of claim 1, where two said tube means are used, with each similarly bent to form two pairs of medial illuminating lamp segments, each pair to illuminate a respective front and rear side of said site.
- 3. The invention of claim 2, where each fluorescent tube means is adapted to be operated in RMS, constant-current mode.
- 4. The invention of claim 3, where there are two such sites, a Front site and a Rear site, each arranged to be lit with such a fluorescent tube means within a respective Front and Rear housing; to illuminate respective front and rear sides of a common object.
- 5. The invention of claim 4, where each housing is mounted on a common base means.
- 6. The invention of claim 5, where each housing includes illumination and imaging optics including adjustable-focus lens means and associated image-sensing camera means.
- 7. A method for illuminating objects at a prescribed machine site using one or more fluorescent tubular source means, each having a tube-radius R, this method comprising: bending each said tubular source means at least once, and taking care that none of the resulting bend radii exceed radius R so as not to thereby adversely affect the fluorescent discharge.
- 8. The invention of claim 7, where two said tubular source means are used, with each similarly bent to form two pairs of medial illuminating lamp segments, each pair to illuminate a respective front and rear side of said site.
- 9. The invention of claim 7, where there are two such sites, a Front site and a Rear site, each arranged to be lit with such a fluorescent tubular source means within a respective Front and Rear machine housing; to illuminate respective front and rear sides of a common object at said site.
- 10. A method for illuminating objects at one or more prescribed sites in instrument closure means, using one or more fluorescent tube means for each said site; this method comprising: bending each said tube means at least once to concentrate illumination, each said tube means having a radius R; and taking care that none of the resulting bend radii exceed radius R so as not to adversely affect the fluorescent discharge.
- 11. The method of claim 10, wherein said tube means is made to project one or more pairs like illumination-beams to said site at a respective imaging-site thereat, so that the so-illuminated object projects an image along a respective imaging-path, said method also comprising:
- forming said illumination means of one or more like fluorescent tube means, having tube-radius R; bending each said tube means into bends having a radius not exceeding tube-radius R so as to thereby form illumination segments comprising one or more pairs of like elongate medial lamp-segments, each lamp segment being arranged to develop an illumination beam from medial portions thereof, there being "dark" lamp portions flanking said medial segments; arranging to send said images back between said lamp segments along said imaging-path; and disposing each said "dark portion" up behind an adjacent medial segment so as to be essentially "hidden " from the image site.
- 12. The method of claim 10, for illuminating objects at an illumination station, within closure means, using fluorescent tube means including darker end-segments and having a uniform tube radius R, this method also comprising: so bending said tube means to have a bend-radius not exceeding R and to form at least one pair of like medial illuminating lamp-segments projecting illumination beams; disposing the resulting medial segment pairs symmetrically about an imaging path to form said illumination beams; and further bending at least some of said darker end-segments to be hidden, behind adjacent medial lamp-segments, from an illumination-station.
Parent Case Info
This is a Division of U.S. Ser. No. 08/304,328, filed Sept. 12, 1994, issuing as U.S. Pat. No. 5,471,048, which is a Division of application Ser. No. 08/089,818, filed Jul. 12, 1993, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,371,356, which is a Division of Ser. No. 07/872,956, filed Apr. 27, 1992, and now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 5,272,331.
US Referenced Citations (3)
Number |
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5272331 |
Bakker et al. |
Dec 1993 |
|
5371356 |
Bakker et al. |
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Divisions (3)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
304328 |
Sep 1994 |
|
Parent |
89818 |
Jul 1993 |
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Parent |
872956 |
Apr 1992 |
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