Claims
- 1. A low-pressure discharge lamp comprising:
- an outer first wall which is permeable to light,
- an inner second wall spaced from said outer first wall, said first and second walls defining and enclosing a discharge space therebetween,
- an ionizable material contained in said discharge space,
- spaced electrodes disposed in said discharge space, between which electrodes a discharge takes place during normal operation of the lamp, and
- a thin-walled member disposed between said walls and comprising first portions, second portions, and dividing portions, for dividing said discharge space into a plurality of compartments which are interconnected so as to define an elongated discharge path between said electrodes;
- said first portions being permeable to light and being disposed proximate to respective corresponding portions of said first wall to define respective first barriers, and said second portions being disposed proximate to respective corresponding portions of said second wall to define respective second barriers;
- each said dividing portion extending between a respective one of said first portions and a respective one of said second portions to separate adjoining compartments through which said discharge path extends, an inner adjoining compartment being defined by a respective first portion, two of said dividers and part of said second wall, and an adjoining outer compartment being defined by one of said two of said dividers, the respective second portion, another divider and part of said first wall whereby during normal operation said discharge takes place on both sides of respective dividing portions, on the inner side of said first portions, and the outer side of said second portions;
- the first barriers being arranged so as to prevent short-circuiting between the adjacent outer compartments, and the second barriers being arranged so as to prevent short-circuiting between the adjacent inner compartments.
- 2. A lamp as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said dividing portions are permeable to light; and in that said thin-walled member is arranged such that said respective corresponding portions of said first wall, portions of said first wall bounding the compartments defined in part by respective ones of said second portions of said thin-walled member, and portions of said first major wall adjoining said dividing portions together constitute substantially all of said first major wall, whereby said first major wall has substantially uniform brightness.
- 3. A low-pressure discharge lamp comprising:
- an outer first wall which is permeable to light,
- an inner second wall spaced from said outer first wall, said first and second walls defining and enclosing a discharge space therebetween,
- an ionizable material contained in said discharge space,
- spaced electrodes disposed in said discharge space, between which electrodes a discharge takes place during normal operation of the lamp, and
- a thin-walled member formed entirely of a light permeable material disposed between said walls and comprising first portions, second portions, and dividing portions, for dividing said discharge space into a plurality of compartments which are interconnected so as to define an elongated discharge path between said electrodes;
- said first portions being disposed proximate to corresponding respective portions of said first wall to define respective first barriers, and said second portions being disposed proximate to respective corresponding portions of said second wall to define respective second barriers;
- each said dividing portion extending between a respective one of said first portions and a respective one of said second portions to separate adjoining compartments through which said discharge path extends, an inner adjoining compartment being defined by a respective first portion, two of said dividers and part of said second wall, and an adjoining outer compartment being defined by one of said two of said dividers, the respective second portion, another divider and part of said first wall whereby during normal operation said discharge takes place on both sides of respective dividing portions, on the inner side of said first portions, and the outer side of said second portions;
- the first barriers being arranged so as to prevent short-circuiting between the adjacent outer compartments, and the second barriers being arranged so as to prevent short-circuiting between the adjacent inner compartments.
- 4. A lamp as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that said thin-walled member is formed entirely of glass.
- 5. A low-pressure discharge lamp comprising:
- an outer first wall which is permeable to light,
- an inner second wall spaced from said outer first wall, said first and second walls defining and enclosing a discharge space therebetween,
- an ionizable material contained in said discharge space,
- spaced electrodes disposed in said discharge space, between which electrodes a discharge takes place during normal operation of the lamp, and
- a thin-walled member formed entirely of a light permeable material disposed between said walls, separate from and not directly connected to either of said walls, and comprising first portions, second portions, and dividing portions, for dividing said discharge space into a plurality of compartments which are interconnected so as to define an elongated discharge path between said electrodes;
- said first portions being spaced from and disposed parallel and proximate to respective corresponding portions of said first wall to define respective first barrier gaps and said second portions being spaced from and disposed parallel and proximate to respective corresponding portions of said second wall to define respective second barrier gaps;
- each said dividing portion extending between a respective one of said first portions and a respective one of said second portions to separate adjoining compartments through which said discharge path extends, an inner adjoining compartment being defined by a respective first portion, two of said dividers and part of said second wall, and an adjoining outer compartment being defined by one of said two of said dividers, the respective second portion, another divider and part of said first wall whereby during normal operation said discharge takes place on both sides of respective dividing portions, on the inner side of said first portions, and the outer side of said second portions; and
- each gap having a length, between adjacent compartments bounded by a same wall, in proportion to thickness of the gap sufficient to prevent short-circuiting of the discharge through the gap during normal lamp operation.
- 6. A lamp as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that said length of each gap is at least approximately ten times the respective gap thickness.
- 7. A lamp as claimed in any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that said first and second walls are each substantially cylindrical and have first and second ends; and the lamp further comprises respective wall portions closing the first ends of the cylinders formed by said major walls, and means for interconnecting said second ends to one another in a gas-tight manner.
- 8. A lamp as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that at least said inner second wall has a tranverse section, perpendicular to the cylinder axis, which is substantially rectangular.
- 9. A lamp as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that said second wall is coated with a light-reflecting material.
- 10. A lamp as claimed in any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that said inner and outer walls each consist essentially of a substantially cylindrical part and a domed end part, defining respective cylinders each closed at a first end; and said thin-walled member has a domed end disposed between the domed ends of said first and second walls, arranged such that a plurality of said compartments extend through said domed end of the thin-walled member, whereby the first major wall has substantial uniform brightness over its cylindrical and domed end parts.
- 11. A lamp as claimed in any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that said first and second walls are parallel plates.
- 12. A lamp as claimed in claim 11, characterized in that said second wall is coated with a light-reflecting material.
- 13. A lamp as claimed in any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that the discharge path is configured such that at least one of said compartments includes a region having a relatively low temperature during normal operation of the lamp.
- 14. A lamp as claimed in any one of claims 1-6, comprising a filamentary body having a thinly distributed discharge-permeable structure disposed in said discharge space.
- 15. A lamp as claimed in any one of claims 1-6, comprising a luminescent layer coating the inner surface of said outer first wall and the outer surface of said inner second wall, facing said discharge space.
- 16. A lamp as claimed in any one of claims 1-6, comprising a luminescent layer coated on only those surfaces of said first and second walls and said thin-walled element which bound said compartments.
- 17. A low-pressure discharge lamp comprising:
- an outer first wall which is permeable to light,
- an inner second wall spaced from said outer first wall, said first and second walls defining and enclosing a discharge space therebetween,
- an ionizable material contained in said discharge space,
- spaced electrodes disposed in said discharge space, between which electrodes a discharge takes place during normal operation of the lamp, and
- a thin-walled member disposed between said walls and comprising first portions, second portions, and dividing portions, for dividing said discharge space into a plurality of compartments which are interconnected so as to define an elongated discharge path between said electrodes;
- said first portions being permeable to radiation emitted by said discharge during normal operation and being disposed proximate to respective corresponding portions to said first wall to define respective first barriers, and said second portions being disposed proximate to respective corresponding portions of said second wall to define respective second barriers;
- each said dividing portion extending between a respective one of said first portions and a respective one of said second portions to separate adjoining compartments through which said discharge path extends, an inner adjoining compartment being defined by a respective first portion, two of said dividers and part of said second wall, and an adjoining outer compartment being defined by one of said two of said dividers, the respective second portion, another divider and part of said first wall whereby during normal operation said discharge takes place on both sides of respective dividing portions, on the inner side of said first portions, and the outer side of said second portions;
- the first barriers being arranged so as to prevent short-circuiting between the adjacent outer compartments, and the second barriers being arranged so as to prevent short-circuiting between the adjacent inner compartments.
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
8001280 |
Mar 1980 |
NLX |
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Parent Case Info
This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 732,798, filed May 9, 1985, which was a continuation of Ser. No. 512,316, filed July 8, 1983, now abandoned, which was a continuation of Ser. No. 237,301, filed Feb. 23, 1981, now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (5)
Continuations (3)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
732798 |
May 1985 |
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Parent |
512316 |
Jul 1983 |
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Parent |
237301 |
Feb 1981 |
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