[0030] Reference will now be made in more detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention. Examples of these preferred embodiments are shown in the attached Figure 5 to Figure 8 in. Wherever possible, the same reference numerals used in describing related technologies will be used throughout the drawings and the specification to refer to the same or similar parts.
[0031] Figure 5 It is a plan view showing the channel structure provided on the FFL plate of the hot-cold-hot flat fluorescent lamp according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, in the heat-cold-heat type flat fluorescent lamp according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the channel structure is specially designed so that the width of the discharge channel 16 constituting the discharge space 12 of the lamp is along the opposite direction from the lamp. The direction from the end to the middle part of the lamp forming the cold zone gradually decreases, wherein the lamp has an internal electrode 17 in the electrode channel 15 and forms a hot zone, which is different from the traditional channel structure of a hot-cold-hot flat fluorescent lamp.
[0032] Mercury vapor and inert gas for plasma discharge are injected into the discharge space 12 of the lamp. In addition, a cold cathode or a hot cathode may be used as the internal electrode 17 of the lamp.
[0033] In order to manufacture the hot-cold-hot flat fluorescent lamp with the above-mentioned channel structure, the lower FFL plate 11 with the discharge channel 16 and the upper FFL plate are combined into a separate lamp body by using sealant, thereby defining the discharge in the lamp body Space 12. In order to combine the lower FFL board 11 with the upper FFL board into the lamp body, sealant is applied to the mating surfaces of the upper and lower FFL boards through a sealant printing process or by using a sealant dispenser. Thereafter, organic substances that may adversely affect the plasma discharge are removed from the sealant, and the upper and lower FFL boards are connected together to provide a connected FFL board assembly. After that, the connected FFL plate assembly is heated to combine the upper and lower FFL plates into a single lamp body having a discharge space 12.
[0034] In combining the upper and lower FFL plates into a lamp body, the discharge space 12 of the lamp body is vacuumed by drawing air from the space 12 through a gas injection hole formed on the lower FFL plate 11. In the process of vacuuming the space 12, the vacuum device is connected to the gas injection hole. Thereafter, mercury vapor and inert gas used for plasma discharge are injected into the vacuum space 12 through the gas injection hole before sealing the gas injection hole. In the present invention, in order to inject mercury vapor into the space 12, a mercury getter including liquid mercury or amalgam may be used.
[0035] The phosphor layer is formed on the inner surface of each of the upper and lower FFL boards. The fluorescent layer on the inner surface of the upper FFL board is preferably formed by printing fluorescent substances, while the fluorescent layer on the inner surface of the lower FFL board 11 is preferably formed by spraying fluorescent substances or coating a fluorescent substance suspension.
[0036] After the fluorescent layer is formed on the inner surface of the upper and lower FFL plates, the lamp is baked to remove the organic substance from the fluorescent layer to allow the fluorescent layer to adhere closely to the inner surface of the FFL plate, thereby improving the lamp The light efficiency increases the life expectancy of the lamp and prevents unstable plasma discharge caused by discharge gas overflowing from the discharge space. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the decrease in the brightness or light efficiency of the lamp caused by the discharge gas overflowing from the discharge space during the discharge of the plasma, prevent the decrease in the life expectancy of the lamp, and maintain the stable light emission of the lamp .
[0037] In order to induce plasma discharge in the discharge space and allow the lamp to emit light, a high-frequency current is applied to the internal electrode 17 so as to induce an electric field in the discharge space 12. Thereafter, the electrons are accelerated in the electric field and the activated atoms of the noble gas used for plasma discharge and the activated mercury atoms in the space 12 are ionized, so that the noble gas ions and mercury ions emit energy in the form of ultraviolet rays. The ultraviolet rays radiated by the inert gas ions and mercury ions excite the fluorescent substance coated on the inner surface of the discharge space 12, so that the flat fluorescent lamp radiates visible rays and emits light.
[0038] In the hot-cold-heat type flat fluorescent lamp having a channel structure according to the present invention, a plurality of partition walls 13 divide the discharge space 12 into the discharge channel 16 and maintain the shape of the discharge channel 16. In addition, when the discharge space 12 is evacuated, the partition wall 13 serves as a bracket to prevent the upper and lower FFL plates from breaking.
[0039] As described in the related art, the discharge channel used to form the discharge space in the channel structure of the conventional hot-cold-hot flat fluorescent lamp has the same width, which is different from the present invention. In a conventional hot-cold-heat type flat fluorescent lamp with a channel structure with discharge channels of the same width, the inert gas used for plasma discharge is effectively ionized at the end of the lamp body with the hot electrode that forms the hot zone , In order to effectively radiate visible light from the hot zone. Thus, on the opposite end of the lamp body forming the hot zone, strong light with high brightness is emitted. However, the brightness and light intensity of the lamp gradually decrease from the opposite end to the middle part of the lamp body forming the cold zone.
[0040] The brightness of the hot-cold-hot type fluorescent lamp varies according to the size of the lamp and the intensity and characteristics of the electricity applied to the electrodes. In a hot-cold-hot flat fluorescent lamp having a channel structure with discharge channels of the same width, the brightness of the lamp gradually decreases in inverse proportion to the distance from the hot electrode. However, in a hot-cold-heat type flat fluorescent lamp having a channel structure with discharge channels of different widths, the brightness is increased in the wide channel according to the decrease rate of the distance from the hot electrode compared with the narrow channel. In other words, in a hot-cold-hot flat fluorescent lamp with discharge channels of different widths, the rate of decrease in brightness increases in proportion to the width of the discharge channels.
[0041] Therefore, in the heat-cold-heat type flat fluorescent lamp with the traditional channel structure, the brightness of the lamp changes so that the brightness on the middle part of the lamp body forming the cold zone is lower than that of the hot zone forming the hot electrode. The brightness on the end of the lamp body. Therefore, the brightness change in the traditional hot-cold-hot flat fluorescent lamp is shown in Figure 7 The V-shaped curve in the chart.
[0042] In an effort to overcome the problem of brightness variation experienced in the channel structure of the traditional heat-cold-heat type flat fluorescent lamp, the channel structure of the heat-cold-heat type flat fluorescent lamp according to the present invention is configured so as to be arranged at the opposite ends of the lamp body The discharge channel 16 around the hot zone is wider, but the width of the discharge channel 16 far from the hot zone decreases inversely proportional to the distance from the hot zone. Thus, the hot-cold-hot type flat fluorescent lamp according to the present invention provides uniform brightness over its entire light emitting area.
[0043] Refer to below Figure 5 Hereinafter, an example of the channel structure of the hot-cold-hot flat fluorescent lamp according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be explained. Shown in Figure 5 The channel structure of the heat-cold-heat type flat fluorescent lamp is constructed so that after the width of the first channel ① is set to 10.0 mm, the second channel ②, the third channel ③, the fourth channel ④ and the fifth channel The width of ⑤ is set to 9.5mm, 9.0mm, 8.5mm and 8.0mm respectively. In addition, the widths of the sixth channel ⑥, the seventh channel ⑦, the eighth channel ⑧, the ninth channel ⑨, and the tenth channel ⑩ are set to 8.0 mm, 8.5 mm, 9.0 mm, 9.5 mm, and 10.0 mm, respectively. In the above channel structure, when two adjacent channels are combined into a channel group, the width of the discharge channel 16 can be designed to be variable. However, the width of all the discharge channels 16 can be designed to be variable without combining these channels into a channel group.
[0044] Figure 6 It is a plan view showing the channel structure of the FFL plate 21 of the hot-cold flat fluorescent lamp according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the lamp body of the hot-cold flat fluorescent lamp according to the present invention, the electrified electrode 27 as the hot electrode is installed in the electrode channel 25 provided at the first end of the discharge space 22, and the grounded electrode is the other cold electrode. One electrode 27 is installed in the other electrode channel 25 provided on the second end of the discharge space 22. Thus, the first end of the discharge space 22 forms a hot zone, and the second end of the discharge space 22 forms a cold zone. In the same manner as the description of the heat-cold-heat type flat fluorescent lamp, the lower FFL plate 21 with the discharge channel 26 and the upper FFL plate are combined into one lamp body, and thus a discharge space 22 is defined in the lamp body. In addition, the discharge space 22 is partitioned into discharge channels 26 by using a plurality of partition walls 23. Inert gas and mercury vapor for plasma discharge are injected into the vacuum discharge space 22. In the hot-cold type flat fluorescent lamp according to the second embodiment, the channel structure is configured such that the channel surrounding the hot zone is the widest, while the width of the remaining channels gradually decreases in the direction from the hot zone to the cold zone.
[0045] In a hot-cold flat fluorescent lamp having a conventional channel structure with discharge channels of the same width, the brightness of the lamp gradually decreases in inverse proportion to the distance from the hot electrode. Therefore, the brightness change in the hot-cold flat fluorescent lamp with the traditional channel structure forms such Figure 7 The graph in the graph shows a straight line that slopes downward in the right direction. However, since the channel structure of the hot-cold type flat fluorescent lamp according to the present invention is designed so that the discharge channels 22 have different widths, the hot-cold type flat fluorescent lamp according to the present invention provides over its entire light emitting area Uniform brightness.
[0046] Refer to below Figure 6 An example of the channel structure of the hot-cold flat fluorescent lamp according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. Shown in Figure 6 The channel structure of the hot-cold flat fluorescent lamp is constructed so that after the width of the first channel ① is set to 10.0 mm, the second channel ②, the third channel ③, the fourth channel ④, and the fifth channel ⑤, The widths of the sixth channel ⑥, the seventh channel ⑦, the eighth channel ⑧, the ninth channel ⑨ and the tenth channel ⑩ are respectively set to 9.5mm, 9.0mm, 8.5mm, 8.0mm, 7.5mm, 7.0mm, 6.5 mm, 6.0mm and 5.5mm. In the above-mentioned channel structure of the hot-cold flat fluorescent lamp, when two adjacent channels are combined into a channel group, the width of the discharge channel 26 is designed to vary. However, the width of all discharge channels 26 can be designed to be variable without combining these channels into channel groups.
[0047] Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been schematically described, those skilled in the art will understand that various improvements can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention disclosed by the appended claims , Addition and replacement are possible.
