Patent Application
20120262906
This application claims priority to German Patent Application No. 20 2011 000852.5, filed Apr. 12, 2011 and entitled “LED-Leuchte,” which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety as if set forth herein.
The present invention relates to an LED light, in particular a refrigerator light or the like, having at least one LED, having a lens for the light that is emitted by the at least one LED, and having an opaque light housing which encloses the lens.
For installation of the LED refrigerator light 101, the printed circuit board 103, the reflector 104, which has previously been provided with its reflective layer by vapor deposition, and the cooling body 109 are screwed to one another by means of the screw 110.
In contrast, the object of the present invention is to reduce the number of individual parts and simplify installation for an LED light of the above-mentioned type.
This object is achieved according to the invention in that the lens has a transmissive design, and the opaque housing and the transmissive lens are jointly formed by a two-component plastic injection-molded part. The transmissive lens is preferably designed as a collimator lens or as an optical lens, in particular a Fresnel lens.
As a result of the two-component plastic injection-molded part according to the invention, which has a molded-on transmissive lens, it is possible to dispense with the vapor-deposited reflector and the screw heretofore used, and the installation of the reflector, printed circuit board, cooling body, and screw heretofore performed. Due to the higher efficiency of currently available LEDs, a cooling body is also no longer necessary.
For additional beam shaping, the exterior of the transmissive lens is smooth or is provided with structures, for example eroded structures, cushion lenses, cylindrical lens segments, etc.
The two-component plastic injection-molded part is preferably locked to a printed circuit board having at least one LED, for example via locking catches on the housing side, or is hot-caulked, for example using guide domes on the housing side. In addition, the two-component plastic injection-molded part, and thus the collimator lens, can be exactly positioned with respect to the at least one LED via projections which engage precisely with holes in the printed circuit board.
In one aspect of the invention, An LED light comprises: at least one LED; a lens for the light that is emitted by the at least one LED; and an opaque light housing which encloses the lens, characterized in that the lens has a transmissive design, and the opaque light housing and the transmissive lens are jointly formed by a two-component plastic injection-molded part. In some embodiments, the transmissive lens is designed as a collimator lens or an optical lens. In some embodiments, the transmissive lens is designed as a Fresnel lens. In some embodiments, the exterior of the transmissive lens is smooth. In some embodiments, the exterior of the transmissive lens is provided with structures for additional beam shaping. In some embodiments, the two-component plastic injection-molded part is locked to a printed circuit board having the at least one LED. In some embodiments, the two-component plastic injection-molded part is hot-caulked to a printed circuit board having the at least one LED. In some embodiments, the two-component plastic injection-molded part is exactly positioned with respect to the at least one LED via projections which engage precisely with holes in a printed circuit board having the at least one LED. In some embodiments, the projections are hot-caulked for fastening to the printed circuit board.
Advantageous embodiments of the invention are the subject matter of the subclaims. Further advantages of the invention result from the description and the drawings. In addition, the features mentioned above and explained in greater detail below can each be used individually, or collectively in any given combinations. The illustrated and described embodiment is not to be construed as an exhaustive list, but, rather, as an example for the description of the invention.
The following description is presented to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention and is provided in the context of a patent application and its requirements. Various modifications to the described embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and the generic principles herein can be applied to other embodiments. Thus, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiment shown, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features described herein.
The LED refrigerator light 1 shown in
The exterior of the collimator lens 4 can be smooth, or, as shown in
The plastic injection-molded part 6 engages precisely with holes in the printed circuit board 3 via projections (guide domes) 8 provided on the light housing 5, thus exactly positioning the collimator lens 4 and the LED 2 with respect to one another. The printed circuit board 3 rests on shoulders of the projections 8, the projections 8 being hot-caulked for fastening to the printed circuit board 3. As an alternative, analogously to
The present invention has been described in terms of specific embodiments incorporating details to facilitate the understanding of principles of construction and operation of the invention. Such reference herein to specific embodiments and details thereof is not intended to limit the scope of the claims appended hereto. It will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art that other various modifications can be made in the embodiment chosen for illustration without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 2011 000852.5 | Apr 2011 | DE | national |
