Patent Application
20220364717
This invention relates to optical systems for linear lighting.
Linear lighting is a particular type of solid-state lighting. In this type of lighting, a long, narrow printed circuit board (PCB) is populated with light-emitting diode (LED) light engines, usually spaced at a regular pitch or spacing. Each LED light engine contains one or more LEDs along with the wires, structures, and connections necessary to mount the LEDs on the PCB. The PCB may be either rigid or flexible, and other circuit components may be included on the PCB, if necessary. Depending on the type of LED light engine or engines that are used, the linear lighting may emit a single color, or may be capable of emitting multiple colors.
In combination with an appropriate power supply or driver, linear lighting is considered to be a luminaire in its own right, and it is also used as a raw material for the production of more complex luminaires, such as light-guide panels.
One of the most popular ways of using linear lighting is to install it in a channel and cover it with a cover. The cover typically acts as a diffuser, spreading the light and improving the overall appearance of the emitted light. Examples of channels used with linear lighting can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 9,279,544, the contents of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety. The typical channel for linear lighting is a single-piece extrusion, made of metal or plastic, that has a pair of sidewalls and a bottom.
In a variation on the usual channel-and-cover arrangement, U.S. Pat. No. 10,788,170 to Bryan, the contents of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety, discloses two-element optical systems for linear lighting. These systems are designed to provide a highly focused or evenly diffused light beam and can be used in a channel even when the channel is only designed for a single cover or element.
In the systems of U.S. Pat. No. 10,788,170, the outer lens of the two-element system also serves as a cover. The cover is a physical barrier to limit ingress of dust into the channel. However, the protection provided by a typical linear lighting channel cover is limited. While greater protection against the ingress of water and other types of foreign material is often desirable, designing channels, covers, and other elements that can provide that protection can be particularly difficult, especially when the luminaire has multiple parts.
One aspect of the invention relates to closed optical assembly. The optical assembly includes a hollow outer optical element, an inner optical element, and a strip of linear lighting. The inner optical element and the strip of linear lighting are installed in a cavity of the outer optical element. Ends of the hollow outer optical element are closed, such as by endcaps, to seal the cavity of the outer optical element, thus protecting the optical assembly from ingress of dust, water, or other foreign material.
In another aspect of the invention, the strip of linear lighting rests on an interior bottom of the cavity. The inner optical element rests on support structure in the cavity of the hollow outer optical element such that the inner optical element receives light emitted from the strip of linear lighting. The outer optical element supports the inner optical element such that the outer optical element is optically aligned with the inner optical element so as to receive light passed through the inner optical element.
A further aspect of the invention relates to a linear luminaire. The luminaire includes a channel and a closed optical assembly having a hollow outer optical element, an inner optical element, and a strip of linear lighting. Ends of the outer optical element are closed, such as by end caps, with the inner optical element and the strip of linear lighting encased in a cavity of the outer optical element. The outer optical element includes channel engaging structure that secures the outer optical element to the channel.
In another aspect, the channel includes mounting structure for the luminaire. The mounting structure may include hanging structure to suspend the luminaire from a surface as a hanging fixture.
Yet another aspect of the invention relates to a method for sealing the ends of an optical assembly, such as the optical assembly described above. In this method, an end of the optical assembly is dipped into a container that contains an uncured resin. The resin covers the end of the optical assembly and then is caused or allowed to cure.
Other aspects, features, and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description that follows.
The invention will be described with respect to the following drawing figures, in which like numerals represent like features throughout the description, and in which:
The light-generating assembly 12 is a self-contained, sealed optical assembly that includes all elements necessary to generate light and to direct, focus, or modify the generated light in a particular way. As will be described below in more detail, the light-generating assembly 12 would typically include at least one light source and at least one optical element. Here, the term “optical element” refers to an element that receives light from the strip of linear lighting and modifies that light in some way, e.g., to focus, direct, or diffuse the light. An optical element may be a lens, but the term broadly encompasses both lens and non-lens elements. A diffuser, a non-lens that diffuses or scatters the light, is one example of a non-lens element. Other examples of non-lens optical elements may include gels or filters that change the color of the light.
The light-generating assembly 12 is similar in capabilities to the two-element optical systems disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 10,788,170 (“the '170 patent”). However, as will be explained below in more detail, in contrast to the systems of the '170 patent, the light-generating assembly 12 is intended to have a higher ingress protection rating. The light-generating assembly 12 may have an ingress protection rating of at least IP64, and it may have an ingress protection rating as high as IP67 or IP68. In other words, the light-generating assembly 12 will typically prevent ingress of dust, and will usually at least protect against splashes of water, although it may protect against water jets, and in some cases, may allow full immersion, or even continuous operation underwater.
To that end, in the embodiment of
The channel 14 of
The channel 14 itself may, e.g., be made of a metal, such as aluminum, and may be extruded or machined. The basic form of the channel may be painted, powder-coated, anodized, or otherwise surface-treated as desired. Yet as those of skill in the art may realize, the particular features of the channel 14 are not critical to the invention. Rather, the light-generating assembly 12 may be adapted for placement in any type of channel. Moreover, while it is convenient if the channel 14 and the light-generating assembly 12 have complementary interengaging features and can “snap” together without the need for fasteners or adhesives, that may not always be the case. So long as the light-generating assembly 12 fits at least partially within a channel, adhesives or fasteners can be used to secure it.
The body 30 of the light-generating assembly 12 has the general form of a hollow tube with an internal cavity. The outer optical element 32 lies at the top of the body 30 and, in this embodiment, is a biconvex lens of the type described in the '170 patent. In other embodiments, the outer optical element 32 could be a biconvex lens with a different curvature or curvatures, a different type of lens (e.g., convex, concave, biconcave, etc.), or a non-lens optical element, like a diffuser. In addition to a traditional lens, the outer optical element 32 may comprise a plurality of different facets, as in a Fresnel lens. The outer optical element 32 may also have features of the asymmetrical optical system of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/230,081, filed Apr. 14, 2021, the contents of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety.
From the outer optical element 32 down, the profile of the body 30 bifurcates, as can be seen at the end in
The depending connecting legs 38 are spaced laterally outward from the sidewalls 40, giving the connecting legs 38 enough room to deflect inwardly in order to make a snug connection with the upper compartment 24 of the channel 14. The sidewalls 40 themselves are canted inward as they extend from top to bottom, leaving sufficient room for the connecting legs 38 to flex. The sidewalls 40 are at their narrowest at positions corresponding to the bottoms of the connecting legs 38. The profile of the body 30 then flares back out rectilinearly into the bottom 42, extending outward, down, and around.
As can be seen in both the exploded view of
In this embodiment, the light source 36 is a strip of linear lighting, an elongate, narrow printed circuit board (PCB) 43 on which a number of LED light engines 44 are mounted, spaced apart at a regular spacing or pitch. Typically, a PCB 43 for linear lighting is of two-layer construction, with components surface-mounted on an upper layer and a lower layer that includes conductors. The LED light engines 44 may be of any type and produce any color or colors of light. In addition to the LED light engines 44, other components may be mounted on the PCB 43. These elements, such as resistors, may be used to control the current in the circuit or circuits and to control the LED light engines 44 themselves. The power cable 20 of the illustrated embodiment has two wires, usually a positive wire 48 and a negative-return wire 50, that are soldered to defined solder pads 52, 54 on the PCB 43. The PCB 43 itself may be either rigid or flexible, made, e.g., of a flexible material like polyimide film, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film, or aramid film, or of a rigid material, like aluminum, FR4, or ceramic. With flexible material in particular, the PCB 44 may be made to arbitrary lengths, as lengths of flexible PCB material can be joined together at overlapping solder joints to form a PCB 43 of essentially any desired length.
The nature of the light source 36 is not critical. In addition to conventional linear lighting, organic LEDs (OLEDs), LED filaments, and other types of solid-state lighting may be used. As shown in
If the light source 36 is not in the form of a rigid strip (e.g., having a rigid PCB 43), it may be difficult to slide it into the body 30, at least in some circumstances, for example, if the body 30 is particularly long. There are many potential ways of dealing with this issue. For example, it may be helpful to join the PCB 43 to a carrier. A carrier, as the term is used here, means anything that can increase the stiffness of the PCB 44 enough to allow it to be inserted into the body 30 without difficulty, preferably without entirely compromising the flexibility of the PCB 43. Suitable carriers may include metal strips, like steel or aluminum strips, or plastic strips, typically thin and the same width or just wider than the PCB 43. If a carrier is used, the PCB 43 may be joined to the carrier with, e.g., pressure-sensitive adhesive on its underside. The carrier may or may not be adhered in place within the body 30. Typically, carrier-strips of this type are bendable in the same plane as the PCB 43. Other techniques may be used to get the light source 36 into the body. For example, a string may be tied or otherwise temporarily adhered to the PCB 43. In some cases, if the joint between the wires 48, 50 and the PCB 43 is strong enough, the power cable 20 may be used to pull the PCB 43 into the body 30.
The second, inner optical element 34 is an optional component. In some applications, the first, outer optical element 32 of the body 30 may be sufficient to perform the desired light manipulation. In that case, the second, inner optical element 34 may simply be omitted.
In this embodiment, the second, inner optical element 34 includes an optically-active portion 56, a leg 58 to each side of the optically-active portion 56, and an outwardly-extending support or lip 60 at the top of each leg 58. The arrangement is best seen in the cross-sectional view of
As may be apparent from
While extrusion is one convenient way of making elements of constant cross-section, other methods of manufacture may also be used. For example, particularly in shorter sections, both the body 30 and the second, inner optical element 34 may be molded or co-molded, machined from a larger block of material, or made using additive manufacturing. It should also be understood that co-extrusion and co-molding are not the only possible techniques that could be used to create a piece with non-uniform properties. For example, an outer optical element could be extruded or molded of a single material and subjected to additional manufacturing operations to render non-optically active portions opaque, e.g., by coating. Additionally, dissimilar materials could be joined by processes like heat fusing, ultrasonic welding, or adhesives after initial manufacture.
The endcaps 16, 18 may be made of a compliant material, like a rubber, or of a hard plastic. If the endcaps 16, 18 are made of a hard plastic, they may have a co-molded or adhered layer of softer, compliant material in order to make a seal, or they may use an appropriately-shaped gasket between the inner face of the endcap 16, 18 and the outer face of the body 30, in order to make a better seal.
Manufactured endcaps 16, 18 are not the only way to seal the body 30 of the linear luminaire 10.
The resin would typically be a synthetic polymeric resin, e.g., a polyurethane resin, a silicone resin, a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) resin, or a resin of some other type of chemistry. The resin may be a one-component system that cures upon exposure, e.g., to air or to moisture in the air, or it may be a two-component system that cures after two components are mixed, e.g., a platinum- or tin-cured silicone resin system. Once the end of the body 30 is dipped, it may be clamped or held in place while curing occurs.
The resin 104 may be caused or allowed to cure. That is, a mixed two-component resin system may cure by itself at room temperature (or at other ambient conditions), and any curing steps may simply involve allowing that to happen. Alternatively, a resin system may be caused to cure by, e.g., baking at elevated temperature (35° C., 65° C., etc.). In some cases, a resin system may also be cured by application of a form of radiation other than heat (e.g., UV light, or light of particular wavelengths).
The endcaps 104, 106 may or may not be removable, depending on the nature of the resin, the material of the channel 14, and other factors. For example, if the resin is a silicone and the channel 14 is made of metal, the endcaps 104, 106 may be removable, because the silicone would not typically adhere to the channel 14.
While the invention has been described with respect to certain embodiments, the description is intended to be exemplary, rather than limiting. Modifications and changes may be made within the scope of the invention, which is defined by the appended claims.
This application claims priority to, and the benefit of, U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/187,659, filed May 12, 2021, the contents of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63187659 | May 2021 | US |
