Patent Grant
9927080
This application relates generally to an optics arrangement that may be suitable for an LED lighting system for a luminaire, and, more particularly, for an optics arrangement in the form of an optic panel.
A luminaire is generally understood to include one or more light producing subsystems carried by a housing along with power, driving, and/or power distribution devices. In this manner, the luminaire provides a single unit that is easy to install and/or ship. An example of a luminaire is a light fixture, such as a hanging light fixture commonly installed to hang from a ceiling or wall. However, there are many different types of luminaires, and the luminaires discussed herein are to be considered representative of all such devices.
Lighting installations for illuminating driving surfaces, such as road ways and parking lots, often utilize one or more luminaires for providing the desired illumination. Some basic concerns when so used is providing light at an angle that provides the desired illumination of the driving surface while at the same time minimizing or eliminating glare of direct light into the eyes of drivers. In order to accomplish this, it is customary to adjust the luminaires such that light emitted from a luminaire is focused along a particular focus pattern and/or angle to provide the desired illumination without being directed directly into the eyes of a driver driving a typical automobile on the driving surface.
The use of light emitting diode (LED) based lighting systems for luminaires is more and more commonplace due to their energy efficiency and life span. LEDs generate an intense point of light, which is generally anisotropic and has a narrow incident beam. The directionality of the light emitted by the LEDs can cause excessive and/or undesirable glare, which can make LEDs very bright and harsh to look at. As pointed out above, such glare can be of particular concern when used for lighting a driving surface. Thus, although desirable for efficiency, the use of LEDs for illuminating driving surfaces, and in particular streets and highways, could be problematic unless proper glare-reducing measures are taken.
An ideal design of an LED lighting system in a luminaire for driving surfaces provides sufficient illumination levels on the ground while creating the effect of minimal light at the LEDs. To help achieve this objective, many LED manufacturers place a primary optic (e.g., a lens) over the semi-conductor element of each LED to create a lambertian light distribution pattern. While this light distribution pattern reduces glare to some degree, roadway lighting often requires an even greater amount of glare reduction. In these cases, it is customary to place a secondary optic (e.g., a lens) over each of the LEDs (as well as the primary optic) to further focus and/or distribute the light in a desired manner. Additional measures, such as adding tertiary optics in the form of additional lenses and/or diffusers is also common, depending on the specific needs of the lighting installation. Adding the secondary optic, as opposed to simply modifying the primary optic, is preferred because the primary optic is typically installed by the manufacturer of the LED and is closely integrated with the semi-conductor element of the LED. The secondary optic, which is typically manufactured separately from the LED/primary optic element, can then be placed over the LED/primary optic relatively easily at a later time.
Typical secondary optics are manufactured by molding an optics material, such as glass or polycarbonate, into one or more secondary optics carried by a base. Molding is a relatively efficient way to manufacture the secondary optic, in particular when several separate optics are carried by a single base. In this manner, a secondary optic may be in the form of a panel having several individual optics carried by a base, wherein a single panel may be used to fix several individual optics over a corresponding number of individual LEDs (and the corresponding primary optics).
When manufactured by such molding methods, however, it may be difficult to mold the desired size and/or shape of the individual optics as a single, integral mass along with the base due to manufacturing constraints. Thus, it may not be possible to obtain the desired size and/or shape of the optics in such a molding operation, in particular where the optic has a relatively complex shape. However, the desired light focusing properties needed for reducing glare in the LED lighting systems for luminaires used for illuminating driving surfaces often have a relatively complex shape. Thus, it would be beneficial to have an optic panel that is both easy to manufacture by molding and provides the light focusing properties desired for illuminating driving surfaces.
According to some aspects of the disclosure, an optic panel is provided, which addresses one or more of these concerns. In some arrangement, an optic is disposed within a cut out of a base plate, and one or more supports fixedly couples the optic with the base plate. Each support preferably touches the optic at only a single location. In some aspects, the supports provide sufficient support to the optic such that the entire optic panel can be molded as a single, integral mass, and the supports do not (or only minimally) interfere with the desired total internal reflection of the optics because of the minimal engagement with the supports and/or the placement of the engagement with the supports.
According to some aspects of the disclosure, an LED lighting system is provided that incorporates an optic panel of the disclosure. In some arrangements, an optic panel according to the disclosure forms a secondary optic to cover a primary optic coupled to a light-emitting diode. In this way, the LED lighting system can be provided with secondary optics that can provide complex optics designs with the advantage of being able to be easily produced, for example, by relatively simple molding techniques.
According to some aspects of the disclosure, a luminaire is provided that incorporates an optic panel of the disclosure. In some arrangements, an optic panel according to the disclosure forms a secondary optic for an LED lighting system carried by a housing along with a driver to drive the LED lighting system. In this way, a luminaire can be provided with highly specialized optics systems for providing a desired illumination and minimizing unwanted glare with a relatively complex secondary optic that is relatively easy to manufacture, for example, by common simple molding techniques.
Additional aspects, arrangements, features, and/or technical effects will become apparent upon detailed inspection of the figures and the detailed description.
Before describing the specific examples of the drawings, some general aspects, arrangements, and features of the disclosed optic panel, LED lighting system, and/or luminaires are provided.
In some arrangements, an optic panel is disclosed that includes a base plate having a cutout, an optic disposed in the cutout and coupled to the base plate, and a plurality of supports that fixedly support the optic from the base plate. The optic may include a collector and a light pipe extending upwardly from the collector, wherein the light pipe has a distal end spaced from the collector, and light collected by the collector is focused outwardly along an axis by the light pipe. The collector may be disposed on or adjacent to the base plate, and/or the light pipe may extend upwardly above the base plate. Each support may extend upwardly from the base plate to the light pipe to fix the optic to the base plate. In this way, the supports can support and/or stabilize the light pipe in its upwardly extending position above the base plate. Each support preferably engages the light pipe at only a single contact point, and a gap is disposed between the support and all other portions of the optic. In this way, the supports can support the optic, for example by preventing warping of the light pipe while cooling after being molded, without engaging the boundaries of the light pipe in a way that would substantially interfere with the desired total internal reflection properties of the light pipe. The optic panel may include any one or more additional aspects, arrangements, and/or features disclosed herein.
In some arrangements, an LED lighting system is disclosed that includes a light emitting diode, a primary optic coupled to the light emitting diode to receive and transmit light from the light emitting diode, and a secondary optic panel having a secondary optic that covers the primary optic to receive light transmitted from the primary optic and transmit the light. The secondary optic panel includes an optic panel according to any one or more of the aspects, arrangements, and/or features disclosed herein.
In some arrangements, a luminaire is disclosed that includes a housing, an LED lighting system carried by the housing, and a driver to drive the LED lighting system from an electrical power source. The LED lighting system preferably includes a light emitting diode, a primary optic coupled to the light emitting diode to receive and transmit light from the light emitting diode, and a secondary optic panel having a secondary optic that covers the primary optic to receive light transmitted from the primary optic and transmit the light. The secondary optic panel includes an optic panel according to any one or more of the aspects, arrangements, and/or features disclosed herein.
While specific exemplary forms are illustrated and described herein, is to be understood that any of the various aspects, arrangements, and/or features disclosed herein may be combined with any one or more of the other aspects, arrangements, and/or features disclosed herein.
The optic may have a generally “whistle-shaped” shape. For example, the collector may have a generally cylindrical shaped body having an axis that is parallel with the plane of the base plate, and the light pipe may extend upwardly from the collector, for example having a proximal end connected to and tangentially extending from the generally cylindrical shaped body of the collector and a distal end spaced upwardly above the body of the collector. The collector may be disposed on or within the plane of the base plate, and the light pipe may extend upwardly above the base plate. The collector may include a receiver for receiving an LED. The receiver may be in the form of a recess, such as a hemispherical or spherical section, located in a bottom surface of the collector. Left and/or right sides of the light pipe and the collector may be tapered inwardly from the distal end of the light pipe to the bottom surface of the collector so as to focus, direct, and/or collimate light received in the receiver outwardly through the distal end of the light pipe. The left and/or right sides of the light pipe and the collector may be tapered along a curve, such as a portion of a parabolic curve. A front side of the light pipe may extend upwardly from an intersection with the outer surface of the collector. The front side of the light pipe may be flat (i.e., planar), and may optionally extend upwardly perpendicular to the plane of the base plate. A backside of the light pipe may also be tapered inwardly from the distal end of the light pipe to the proximal end of the light pipe, for example, along a curve, such as a portion of a parabolic curve. Preferably, the distal end of the light pipe forms a flat surface perpendicular to an axis of the light pipe. Light from an LED disposed within the receiver may be guided within the collector and the light pipe by total internal reflection to exit the distal end of the light pipe. It may be possible to obtain the desired focusing and/or transmission of light without providing any additional reflective material disposed on the optic. Optionally, the light pipe may be a collimator that culminates the light exiting the distal end of the light pipe.
The single contact point of the support with the optic may be located at the distal end of the light pipe. The bottom end of the support may be coupled to the base plate, and the top end may be coupled to the distal end of the light pipe. All of the remaining portions of the support are spaced apart from any other portion of the optic. The optic may taper inwardly from the distal end of the light pipe toward the collector as explained above, and a gap may be disposed between each support and the light pipe below the single point of contact. In this way, internally reflected light within the light pipe is not able to pass into the supports at any location except at the single point of contact. Further, the contact point between the support and the light pipe may be disposed at only the distal end surface of the light pipe where light exits the light pipe, which thereby minimizes any deleterious effects of the coupling of the surfaces of the support and the light pipe on the desired light guiding effects of total internal reflection through the light pipe.
One or more of the supports may be in the form of a tower having a bottom end and a top end. The tower may be, for example, in the shape of a column extending between the bottom end and the top end. Optionally, the tower may be in the form of a solid cylindrical section, such as a solid rectangular cylinder, or the column may be not cylindrical, but rather may taper from a narrower cross-section at the top end to a larger cross-section at the bottom end or vice versa. The towers may be vertical, in other words, having a longitudinal axis extending perpendicular to the plane of the optic panel. In some arrangements, one or more of the towers may be and/or have one or more surfaces disposed at an angle to the vertical. For example, the towers may angle inwardly toward the optic from the bottom end to the top end.
The cut out may encompass the downward projection of its respective optic. In other words, the downwardly projected footprint of the optic, which may be along an axis perpendicular to the plane of the base plate, is disposed entirely within the inner peripheral edges of the cutout. In some arrangements, the downward projection of one or more, and preferably all of the supports for a given optic are also encompassed within the cutout. Preferably, none of the surfaces of the optic, the supports, and the base plate are shaped with an undercut that would prevent molding of the surface with a common two-part, two-stroke molding apparatus. In this manner, manufacturer of the optic, the supports, and the base as a single, monolithic mass in a relatively simple two-part mold is simplified.
The base plate, the optic, and the supports may be formed of a unitary piece of material. The material may be any material that, in the form of a solid, is suitable for transmitting and/or focusing light, such as glass and translucent and/or transparent plastics. Preferably, the optic panel may be formed of polycarbonate. However, any one or more of the base plate, the optic, and the supports may be formed as separate parts and then subsequently assembled with the other parts, and still provide at least some of the benefits discussed herein.
The base plate may include a plurality of the said cutouts and a corresponding plurality of the said optics. One of the optics may be disposed in a corresponding one of each of the cutouts, and each of the optics may be fixed to the base by a corresponding plurality of the supports, as is described herein. The optics and the corresponding cutouts may be arranged across the base plate in a regular array, such as a rectangular array, or in an irregular array, for example depending upon the form of array of LEDs that the optic panel is intended to cover. In this manner, a single optic panel may provide individual optics for a plurality of LEDs, for example, disposed in a generally planar array. Thus, an optic panel according to this disclosure may be adapted to provide a desired optic for a single LED up to almost an unlimited number of LEDs with a panel that is formed by relatively simple molding techniques as a unitary monolithic mass. As a result, an optic panel according to this disclosure may in some arrangements provide a more efficient way to provide specialized optics for an array of many individual LEDs.
Turning now to the exemplary arrangements of the drawings,
The base plate 12 in the exemplary arrangement is in the form of a flat, planar plate having a relatively thin thickness dimension relative to a length and width dimension. However, the base plate 12 need not be planar or have the exact shape as shown in the drawings. Rather, the base plate 12 may be any shape appropriate for supporting one or more of the optics 14 over one or more LEDs of an LED lighting system. Solely for purposes of ease of description with respect to the drawings, the terms “up” and “down” and other similar directional terms are used with reference to the base plate 12 being arranged in a substantially horizontal orientation such that a top side 12a of the base plate 12, which is visible in
The optic 14 in this exemplary arrangement includes a first section forming a collector 24 for collecting light from a light source, such as an LED, and a second section forming a light pipe 26 for transmitting the collected light in a more focused and/or specific direction away from the collector 24. The collector 24 has a generally cylindrical body having an axis directed generally horizontally, that is, parallel with the plane of the base plate 12, and includes a receiver 28 (best seen in
Each optic 14 is secured in a fixed position relative to the base plate 12 by the corresponding supports 18. In this exemplary arrangement, each optic 14 is supported by 3 such supports, 18a, 18b, and 18c; however, more or fewer supports could be used. The support 18a is disposed on the rear side of the light pipe 26, the support 18b is disposed on the left side of the light pipe, and the support 18c is disposed on the right side of the light pipe. Each support 18 has the form of a tower, which in this example has the shape of a rectangular column, extending from a bottom end 34 to a top end 36. The bottom end 34 is coupled to the base plate 12, and the top end 36 is coupled to the upper exterior side edge of the light pipe 26 at the distal end 32. Each support 18 is arranged substantially perpendicular to the plane of the base plate 12; however, the supports could be tapered and/or angled, either toward or away from the respective optic 14. As best seen in
The arrangement and shapes of the optics 14 and the supports 18 and the base plate 12 are preferably selected so that the entire optics plate 10 can be manufactured by relatively simple well-known two-part, two-stroke molding techniques. Thus, as best seen in
Each optic 14 may also optionally be connected to the base plate 12 at other locations not along the surfaces of the light pipe 26. In the present example, a front bottom edge 40 of the collector 24 is coupled to the base plate 12 along the edge of the respective cut out 16. However, in other arrangements, different or no additional connections between the collector 24 and the base plate 12 may be used to provide additional stability to the optic relative to the base plate 12.
Optionally, one or more feet 42 may be disposed on the bottom side of the base plate 12. The feet 42 may be in the form of small knobs or other projections extending downwardly from the bottom surface of the base plate 12. The feet 42 may act as spacers to maintain a preferred space between the bottom surface of the base plate 12 and, for example, a support surface for the LEDs. In other arrangements, the feet 42 may act as guides for locating the optic panel 10 in a specific desired position over the LEDs.
Preferably, the optic panel 10 is formed of polycarbonate and is molded as a single monolithic mass. However, the optic panel 10 may be formed of other materials, such as glass or other types of plastic, suitable for use as optics in the various manners described herein. Further, although the optic panel 10 is particularly useful for being molded as a single monolithic mass by a relatively simple two-mold, two-stroke molding process, the optic panel 10 may be formed by any other method capable of providing the same arrangement of features. Further, the optic panel 10 does not necessarily need to be a single monolithic mass, but rather could be assembled from individual parts that are subsequently coupled together by any suitable coupling mechanisms.
Without the inclusion of the supports 18, it was found by the applicants that satisfactory formation of the complex shape of the optic 14, and in particular formation of the upwardly extending light pipe 26, was difficult to achieve in a simple molding process. In particular, the stability of the light pipe 26 relative to the collector 24 and the base plate 12 was hard to maintain. On the other hand, the outer surfaces of the light pipe 26 are preferably uninterrupted in order to optimize the desired total internal reflection characteristics of the light pipe 26. By adding the supports 18 as described herein, the stability of the light pipe section 26 relative to the base plate 12 is improved without substantially interfering with the desired total internal reflection characteristics of the light pipe 26.
Turning now to
Preferably, the optic panel 10 is coupled to the LEDs 48 and/or to a support surface for the LEDs 48 in order to fix and maintain the optics 14 (i.e., the secondary optics) in any desired fixed position over the LEDs 48 and the primary optics 50. In the exemplary arrangement of the drawings, an aperture 52 through the base plate 12 is adapted to receive a fastener, such as a screw 54, for fastening the optic panel 10 to the LEDs 48 and/or the support surface therefor. However, the optic panel 10 may be secured over the LEDs 48 in other manners, such as with adhesive, clamps, and/or other types of fasteners.
The luminaire 46, in which one or more of the LED lighting systems 44 is incorporated, includes a housing 56 and other various power, driving, and/or distribution devices. The LED lighting system 44 is carried by the housing 56. Preferably, the housing 56 defines an interior space that receives the LED lighting system 44. The luminaire 46 also includes one or more drivers 58 for driving the one or more LED lighting systems 44 from an electrical power source (not illustrated), such as a standard household or industrial AC or DC electrical power source. Preferably, the drivers 58 are also disposed within the interior space of the housing 56. Additional power, driving, control, and/or distribution devices may also be carried by and/or disposed within the interior space of the housing 56. Optionally, tertiary optics 60, such as a light diffuser panel, may be carried by the housing 56 so as to cover the optic panels 10 and/or enclose the LED lighting systems 44 within the housing 56. The luminaire 46 may further include one or more brackets 62 coupled to the housing 56 and adapted for mounting the luminaire to a support surface, such as a wall or a ceiling. The luminaire 46 may include additional features if desired. Preferably, however, the luminaire 46 is assembled and/or arranged as a single unit for ease of transportation and/or installation.
Turning now to
This detailed description is to be construed as examples only and does not describe every possible embodiment, as describing every possible embodiment would be impractical, if not impossible. One could implement numerous alternate embodiments, using either current technology or technology developed after the filing date of this application.
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20140268764 | Stolte et al. | Sep 2014 | A1 |
| 20150159852 | Dahlen et al. | Jun 2015 | A1 |
| 20150163884 | Dahlen | Jun 2015 | A1 |
| Entry |
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| Luxtran, Luminaires for Tunnel Applications, LTSIU Series, (copyright 2014), product specification sheet available at www.kenall.com <http://www.kenall.com>. |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20170075059 A1 | Mar 2017 | US |
