Lamp and system for preventing or minimizing the spread of pathogens in indoor air with wall-like illumination areas

Abstract

The present invention originates from a system for preventing or minimizing the spread of viruses and preventing or minimizing the spread of viruses in indoor air, which has one or more light sources (10) indoors that divide a room into multiple small compartments by means of a so-called UV-C emitting wall, a sensor device for detecting the movement or presence of one or more persons (P) in the room, and a controller (16) designed to at least partially turn on and off one or more light sources (10) at least based on the presence of a person (P). It is proposed that the one or more light sources (10) are designed to respectively generate a wall-shaped light zone (10b), which serves as a UV-C wall, thereby dividing the room into multiple small compartments, which prevents or minimizes the spread of viruses because the viruses are inactivated by the UV-C light, and the controller (16) is designed to at least partially turn off the relevant light source (10) when the movement data detected from the sensor device indicates that it is possible that one of the persons (P) wants to cross the relevant light zone (10b).

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a lamp and a system for disinfecting indoor air and preventing / minimizing the spread of pathogens, in particular viruses, in a building with a wall-shaped illumination zone, and a corresponding method.

[0002] The health importance of indoor hygiene measures has been known not only since the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, especially in situations where many people gather to work and / or enter and leave.

[0003] Here, various systems for disinfecting indoor air with ultraviolet light have been proposed.

[0004] Suitable germicidal light is ultraviolet light. A suitable light source is therefore a UV lamp, which generally emits ultraviolet light in a wavelength range of approximately 100 - 400 nm. Among ultraviolet light, the germicidal effect increases with decreasing wavelength from UV-A via UV-B to UV-C. Therefore, the following UV-C lamps are particularly suitable, which specifically emit UV-C light in a wavelength range of approximately 100 - 280 nm. A wavelength range of approximately 200 - 280 nm is preferred because air is substantially transmissive to this light in this range. Such known light sources are mercury vapor lamps or light-emitting diodes or laser diodes for emitting the corresponding ultraviolet light.

[0005] Germicidal UV-C light can be harmful to the eyes and skin of humans. Measures for protecting people from exposure to germicidal UV-C light can include reflectors, diaphragms, and / or masks for collecting, collimating, and restricting the light. They preferably include sensors for detecting the presence of people in the spatial region where the light can be effective, especially sensors for detecting the presence of people in the region immediately before or next to the light source. A switch is connected to the sensor and the light source and turns off the light source when the sensor detects the presence of a person.

[0006] However, in the paper "Far UV-C light: A new tool for controlling the spread of air - borne mediated microbial diseases" by Welch, D., Buonanno, M., Grilj, V. et al. (Sci Rep 8, 2752 (2018)), it is described that very short - wave UV-C light (207 - 222 nm), also known as far UV-C light, inactivates bacteria efficiently without harming the exposed skin of mammals. The reason is that far UV-C light cannot penetrate the outer (non - living) layer of human skin or eyes because of its strong absorption in biological materials. However, bacteria and viruses have dimensions below 1 micron, and UV-C light can enter and inactivate them. It has been shown that far UV-C efficiently inactivates aerosolized viruses in air, where a very low dose of 222 nm light of 2 mJ / cm 2 inactivates more than 95% of aerosolized H1N1 influenza viruses.

[0007] Sensors suitable for detecting the presence of a person are motion alarms such as ultrasonic sensors or radar sensors, which utilize the Doppler effect when the ultrasonic radiation or radar radiation they emit is reflected by a moving person, or passive pyroelectric IR sensors (PIR sensors), which detect changes in thermal radiation in the furniture environment caused by a moving person. Proximity sensors such as capacitive sensors, optical sensors, ultrasonic sensors or radar sensors are also suitable, which can detect a person in the vicinity regardless of their movement.

[0008] WO 2016049143 A1, for example, discloses a system for disinfecting hospital washrooms. In the washroom, there is a UV-C light source that is turned off once a person enters the room.

[0009] US 9,550,006 B2 discloses a system with an ultraviolet light source for installation in an aircraft cabin. The safety system enables or disables the light source when a passenger or crew member enters the cabin.

[0010] US 9,095,633B1 discloses a mobile system for disinfecting a ward. The system is set up in the ward and is activated by a time switch when everyone has left the room.

[0011] WO 2015 054389A2 discloses a UV-impermeable radiation protection curtain by means of which certain areas to be disinfected in a room (such as one bed in a multi-bed ward) can be separated to allow the separated area to be disinfected with an ultraviolet light source while people can remain in other areas of the room. WO 2014 100493A1 discloses a similar system for the same purpose with movable partitions, and an ultraviolet light source is arranged on the inner side of the movable partitions.

[0012] A mobile ultraviolet light source that can be set up in a room to be disinfected or in a room area separated by a UV protection mechanism is disclosed, for example, by WO 2012142427 A1 or US 6,656,424 B1.

[0013] A disadvantage of the above systems is that the room to be disinfected must either be completely empty or require a high-cost installation of radiation protection walls or curtains. This is not achievable in rooms with frequent and unpredictable public traffic.

[0014] It is known to continuously disinfect the indoor air of rooms that are occupied for a long time, such as the waiting room of a medical clinic, by arranging a UV-C light source inside the housing of a ventilator, an air conditioner or a fan. US 2009004046A1, for example, discloses such a roof-mounted device. A disadvantage of a system operating in a recirculating air method is that the spread of potentially infectious aerosols between the persons located in the relevant room is still possible, and the aerosols may even spread more rapidly due to the ventilation of the recirculating air than without a recirculating air system.

[0015] Furthermore, a device for disinfecting the air in an enclosed space is disclosed by KR 102152810B1. A tube emitting ultraviolet light is used as the light source here, and the light emitted by it should be shaped into as parallel light rays as possible by means of an optical device. The lamp is oriented in operation such that it emits ultraviolet light towards the roof or the upper wall part if a person is located in the room. In order to be able to disinfect a larger amount of air in the room, the lamp can be rotated if there are no persons in the room who can be harmed by the ultraviolet light. But because the emitted light spreads, the lamp can only be used to disinfect areas that are completely free of people. This is the case when the illuminated area is at a high level where normally no one stays. The size of the resulting illuminated area does not allow people to move back and forth there to prevent the spread of viruses or generally the transmission of pathogens from one person to another.

[0016] The object of the present invention is to provide a lamp and a system for preventing or minimizing the transmission of pathogens in indoor air, having a wall-shaped illuminated area generated by one or more such lamps, which efficiently prevents the spread of bacteria between persons by positioning the illuminated area between the persons without having an adverse effect on the freedom of movement of people.

[0017] This object is achieved by a lamp for forming a barrier in the form of a wall-shaped illuminated area having the features of claim 1 and a system for preventing or minimizing the transmission of pathogens and in particular viruses in indoor air having such a wall-shaped illuminated area. Advantageous designs of the present invention result from the dependent claims. The "barrier" in the sense of this embodiment is not to be understood in the sense of a mechanical boundary. Instead, the barrier means that pathogens and in particular viruses can reach the other side of the barrier, but are inactivated when passing through the barrier.

[0018] The present invention relates to a lamp and a system for preventing or minimizing the transmission of pathogens in indoor air, having one or more such lamps as light sources in one or more rooms, the system in particular having sensor means for detecting the movement or presence of one or more persons in the room and a controller designed to switch on and off the one or more light sources at least depending on the presence of people.

[0019] To form a barrier against pathogens, the luminaire has at least one light-emitting mechanism that emits UV-C light to obtain a bactericidal effect. Hereinafter, for the sake of simplicity, reference will mostly be made only by way of example to viruses, although the barrier designed according to the invention also has its effect with respect to bacteria. The light emitted by the one or more light-emitting mechanisms is collimated by means of an optical device, so that an illumination area appears, the thickness of which is at least one order of magnitude smaller than its length and width, i.e., at most only 1 / 10 of its length or width.

[0020] The luminaire has a plurality of light-emitting mechanisms that emit UV-C light. The preferred light-emitting mechanism is an LED. Compared with the tubes used in the prior art, LEDs have the following advantages: they can be used in a narrow band, so that for the lamp, LEDs with a wavelength of the emitted light higher than 242 nm can be selected. Thus, it is ensured that the generated ultraviolet light does not cause ozone generation or only generates a small amount. Therefore, this lamp is particularly suitable for use in rooms where people are located. Thus, the irritation caused by the ozone generated by disinfection is avoided. In addition, the optical device of the lamp includes a plurality of optical elements for collimating the light emitted by the light-emitting mechanism. Here, at least one optical element is respectively assigned to each light-emitting mechanism. The optical element assigned to each respective light-emitting mechanism is designed such that the dimension of the light output by the light-emitting mechanism and emitted by this or these optical elements in a direction perpendicular to the emission direction is less than 12 cm, especially less than 8 cm, more preferably less than 5 cm. Thus, the successive arrangement of a plurality of such light-emitting mechanisms and their respective optical elements allows the formation of an illumination wall having the above dimensions.

[0021] Thus, the optical device is obtained in such a way that the light emitted by the light-emitting mechanism is basically only emitted in an area bounded by two mutually parallel planes. The spacing between the planes is the above-mentioned thickness. "Length" here refers to the dimension in the direction of the light emitted from the lamp, and "width" refers to the extension dimension perpendicular to the length and thickness. Here, the length refers to at least the available extension dimension of the illumination area in the emission direction, which is, for example, the distance to the floor when the lamp is installed on the ceiling. The typical dimensions of a room have a height of up to 5 meters here, so it is preferably stipulated that the minimum available extension dimension is 5 meters. It is preferred that the light emitted by the light-emitting mechanism is more strongly collimated, so that the thickness is preferably at least two orders of magnitude smaller than the minimum length and width of the illumination area.

[0022] For a lamp that should be installed in a room, it is particularly preferred that, in the case where the minimum available extension dimension is 5 meters, the thickness, i.e., the distance between the parallel planes in which the collimated light propagates, does not exceed a value of 8 cm, preferably 5 cm. The typical width of the illumination area and thus also of the lamp can also be up to 5 m. But it is preferred that the lamp is not designed to be too long, which significantly facilitates installation and transportation. The lamp can then also be arranged successively one after the other along a line to obtain a larger total width.

[0023] The optical device preferably may also include a diaphragm mechanism here. The diaphragm mechanism prevents light rays from partially emitting laterally from the illumination area. The diaphragm mechanism can be formed by, for example, a plurality of channels, where these channels together form an exit surface or are arranged in front of the exit surface within the lamp, and all the light rays emitted from the lamp can only exit through these channels arranged as a whole. Here, the channel walls are coated with a material that absorbs the emitted light or are made of a light-absorbing material. In this way, only the collimated part of the light rays emitted by the light-emitting mechanism can pass through the channels unabsorbed and exit. The scattered light (i.e., the non-collimated part of the light rays) is prevented from exiting to the environment by the diaphragm mechanism. The UV-C light finally leaving the lamp can thus be efficiently restricted to the area formed between the defined imaginary planes. This area forms the so-called UV wall.

[0024] The plurality of light-emitting mechanisms and their respective optical elements form at least one group here. The exit direction emerging from the at least one respective optical element for each light-emitting mechanism or the exit directions of a plurality of groups of a group are parallel to each other for all the light-emitting mechanisms or groups belonging to the same group and lie in the same plane, especially a plane. A group here respectively includes a plurality of light-emitting mechanisms within a group and the correspondingly assigned elements. Thus, a plurality of independent light-emitting mechanisms cooperate with the optical elements respectively assigned to the light-emitting mechanisms to form the wall-shaped illumination area as explained above. When designing two or more groups, they can be designed in such a way, in particular, that the exit directions of the light-emitting mechanisms of one group are oriented parallel to the exit directions of the light-emitting mechanisms of another group.

[0025] Particularly preferably, the optical element is designed and arranged in the lamp in such a way that the collimated light rays of one light-emitting mechanism overlap or are at least adjacent to the collimated light rays of an adjacent light-emitting mechanism in the same group. In this way, the illumination areas of all the light-emitting mechanisms corresponding to each group together form a gapless barrier also called a wall-shaped illumination area or UV wall. It is also conceivable that a plurality of groups with the same spacing between the light-emitting mechanisms are arranged in parallel with each other, and the groups are arranged offset from each other in the longitudinal direction of the lamp. However, the longitudinal displacement is less than the distance between the successively arranged light-emitting mechanisms, ideally less than half of this distance. In this way, when a gapless illumination area does not occur within a group, a common longitudinally coherent illumination area along the lamp is also obtained through the combination of multiple groups.

[0026] Each group of light-emitting devices together with their optical elements can also be divided into a plurality of small groups and the light-emitting devices of different groups can be switched on and off independently. Thus, if a safety hazard to personnel may occur in the area, only a small portion of the light-emitting devices in a group that together form a relatively large barrier for viruses can be switched off, for example. The remaining groups can still be switched on during this period. Switching off not all of the light-emitting devices of the entire lamp has the advantage that the illuminated area can be maintained at least in a local area, so that at least part of it is still protected. The "granularity" can be determined according to how many small groups a group of light-emitting devices is divided into. In extreme cases, one light-emitting device forms one small group respectively.

[0027] It is also proposed that the one or more illumination sources, which can be formed by the aforementioned lamps, are designed to generate a wall-like illumination zone that acts as a UV-C wall by means of concentrated UV-C light, thereby dividing the room into a plurality of small compartments and preventing or minimizing the spread of viruses, since the viruses are inactivated by the UV-C light. In a variant with a sensor device, the controller is advantageously designed to switch off the relevant illumination source or part thereof when the movement data detected by the sensor device indicate that one of the persons is approaching the relevant illumination zone.

[0028] For example, the approach to the illuminated area can be detected when the sensor device determines that an object enters a safety zone that is "designed adjacent to the illuminated area and monitored by the sensor device". The entry of the object can be a person (or only a human body part such as a finger, for example), but can also be another object. By detecting the entry of an object into the safety zone and correspondingly (selectively) switching off the lighting means of one or more corresponding groups, indirect threats to people caused by reflected light parts can also be prevented. In order to selectively switch off one or more groups, the "entry of the object into the safety zone" is detected in a position-resolved manner in at least one dimension.

[0029] In particular when using far-UV-C light, it is also possible to dispense with sensor devices and switch-offs for the reasons mentioned above, since there is no risk to health to be feared.

[0030] In particular, a wall-like illumination zone containing UV-C light with high intensity forms a barrier for the diffusion of germs. The intensity and wavelength of the illumination zone are coordinated in such a way that bacteria or viruses that may be contained in aerosols or droplets are killed when they traverse the wall-like illumination zone. The probability of infection can thus be significantly reduced for people who remain in compartments separated from one another by such an illumination zone. Even when the viruses are not completely killed, an effect can be obtained that corresponds to or is superior to the effect of masks or “social distance” measures.

[0031] An algorithm for calculating the probability of quickly crossing a lighting area can take into account, in addition to the position of a person, i.e., the proximity of the person to the lighting area, the direction and speed of movement of the person, and certain boundary conditions of the room. Such boundary conditions can be defined, for example, by furniture, the location of which is stored in a controller. Under normal circumstances, it is impossible for a person to climb over or jump over a table or a room partition.

[0032] A wall-shaped lighting area should refer to a lighting area that forms an approximately two-dimensional surface, i.e., the thickness it has is at least one order of magnitude smaller than its length and width. A wall-shaped lighting area can also especially be composed of a plurality of parallel-oriented light rays such as laser rays arranged side by side in close proximity.

[0033] The present invention can be used in different rooms where people stay, such as large offices, school classrooms, multi-bed wards, restaurants, or industrial workstations.

[0034] Due to the advantages discussed in the above-mentioned paper by Welch et al., the following embodiment is particularly advantageous, where the UV-C light for inactivating the virus is far UV-C light with a wavelength in the range of 200 - 222 nm, especially in the range of 207 - 222 nm. Because the light source is technically mature and for cost reasons, in some application areas, a wavelength range of 223 - 280 nm may also be advantageous.

[0035] It is also proposed that the one or more light sources are designed as light-emitting slats for installation on the roof or wall. Each of the light sources can be equipped with one or more UV-C irradiators such as LEDs or laser diodes, or include a more powerful ultraviolet source than a mercury vapor lamp or a pumped laser, and the light thereof can then be fan-shaped divided through a suitable optical arrangement to produce a desired wall shape. By being designed as installable light-emitting slats, flexible use can also be achieved when renovating a room.

[0036] If the system includes freely movable struts for holding one or more light sources, the system can also be used in areas where wall installation or roof installation is not allowed due to spatial conditions.

[0037] In another design of the present invention, the one or more light sources are respectively designed to generate a plurality of parallel-extending lighting areas, thereby producing a double wall or a multi-wall. The protective effect can be further improved thereby.

[0038] It is also proposed that the one or more light sources are designed to be arranged along the boundaries of the compartments, where the controller is designed to activate the relevant light sources when one or more people remain in the relevant compartment and deactivate at least one of the light sources when a person enters or leaves the compartment.

[0039] It is also proposed that the compartments form an ordered network. Thereby, a large area of a room can be flexibly covered.

[0040] In another design of the present invention, other light sources with disinfection or virus inactivation effects are arranged in the compartment. The controller can then be designed to activate the other light sources when no one is in the compartment. Thereby, the surfaces, computers, chairs, etc. can be fully disinfected when no one stays in the compartment.

[0041] It is also proposed that the sensor device includes a 3D camera or a TOF camera and / or one or more CCD cameras in order to be able to detect and evaluate the three-dimensional position and posture of the people in the relevant compartment.

[0042] Another aspect of the present invention relates to a method for preventing or minimizing the spread of viruses in indoor air by using one or more light sources in the room, optionally including "detecting the movement or presence of one or more people in the room" and "automatically turning on and off one or more light sources at least based on the presence of people".

[0043] It is proposed that the one or more light sources are designed to respectively generate a wall-like light zone, which serves as a UV-C wall, thereby dividing the room into multiple small compartments to prevent or minimize the spread of viruses, because the viruses are inactivated by the UV-C light, and the method includes: turning off the relevant light source when the movement data detected by the sensor device indicates that it is possible that one of the people wants to cross the relevant light zone.

[0044] Furthermore, the present invention relates to a system for preventing or minimizing the spread of viruses in a room and for disinfecting indoor air by using one or more interconnected light sources, characterized in that the one or more interconnected light sources form a so-called light wall by means of bundled UV-C light and thereby divide the room into multiple small compartments, which prevent or minimize the spread of viruses, because the viruses are inactivated by the UV-C light, which turns off their respective UV-C light walls in combination with a motion alarm when a person approaches or turns them on again when a person moves away, and there is an additional UV-C irradiator, which irradiates the room divided into separate small compartments due to the one or more UV-C light walls and inactivates the aerosols (viruses present in the air).

[0045] Other features and advantages result from the following description of the drawings. The entire specification, claims, and figures disclose the features of the invention in specific embodiments and combinations. A person skilled in the art can also consider the features separately and combine them into other combinations or sub-combinations in order to adapt the invention as defined in the claims to its requirements or a specific application area, where:

[0046] Figure 1 Shows a system for preventing or minimizing the spread of viruses in indoor air according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0047] Figures 2a - 2c Shows in three different states Figure 1a separate compartment of the system;

[0048] Figure 3a and 3b show cross-sectional schematic views of a light source and a wall-shaped light zone according to two different embodiments of the present invention;

[0049] Figure 4 show a schematic view for explaining light beam focusing to produce a wall-shaped light zone as a barrier;

[0050] Figure 5 show Figure 4 an enlarged view of a part to explain the function of the diaphragm mechanism;

[0051] Figure 6 show an example of the arrangement of optical elements of adjacent light-emitting mechanisms;

[0052] Figure 7 show a cross-section of the generated light zone and also show a safety zone monitored by a sensor device;

[0053] Figure 8 show a view for explaining the arrangement of a plurality of light-emitting mechanism elements to jointly form a part of a wall-shaped light zone by means of a reflector unit;

[0054] Figure 9 show Figure 8 an enlarged view of part IX;

[0055] Figure 10 show Figure 9 an enlarged view of part X;

[0056] Figure 11 show Figure 10 an enlarged view of part XI;

[0057] Figure 12 show Figure 11 a rotated view of the arrangement of the lens and the light-emitting mechanism element;

[0058] Figure 13 show a perspective view of the reflector unit;

[0059] Figure 14 show a view of the reflector surfaces of a group;

[0060] Figure 15 show a view of the light intensity distribution of the first reflector partial surface for the reflector unit;

[0061] Figure 16 show a view of the light intensity distribution of the second reflector partial surface for the reflector unit;

[0062] Figure 17View showing the light intensity distribution for the entire reflector unit;

[0063] Figure 18 Side view showing the selective shutdown of groups when an object enters the safety zone for explanation; and

[0064] Figure 19 Another design of the present invention showing a strut having a light source for the system of the present invention.

[0065] Before presenting the specific embodiments of the lamp for explaining the present invention to obtain protection for indoor personnel from air - borne pathogens derived from the present invention, the system established by the lamp of the present invention should first be explained.

[0066] Figure 1 Shows a first embodiment of the system according to the present invention, specifically a system for preventing or minimizing the spread of viruses in the indoor air of a large office. The large office has a floor plan with workstations and aisles arranged in rows, divided into square cubicles. Each workstation is equipped with a desk, a chair, and a filing cabinet. However, the present invention can also be used in other rooms, such as rooms with multiple workstations of different sizes or offices with an open - space concept.

[0067] A number of light sources 10 are arranged in a grid pattern on the room roof. Each light source 10 is a light - emitting strip having one or more UV - C irradiators 10a ( Figure 3a , 3b ) such as a mercury vapor lamp, an LED, or a laser diode, and respectively generates a wall - like light zone 10b. The use of an LED or a laser diode is particularly advantageous here because a very narrow light zone can thus be generated as a barrier between cubicles. Pathogens emitted by an infected person in one cubicle cannot enter an adjacent cubicle through this barrier. The light zone 10b can especially contain short - wave far - UV - C light with a wavelength in the range of 207 - 222 nm. By means of a suitable filter, harmful wavelengths can be filtered out. The use of an LED or a laser diode allows the filter required for ozone prevention to be dispensed with. LEDs can be used in a sufficiently narrow - band manner so that a wavelength range can be selected which is completely above the 242 nm wavelength critical for ozone generation and is still short - wave enough for the desired bactericidal effect. Within this range, the LED efficiency is also high enough to obtain the required light intensity. For generating far - UV - C light, excimer lamps with a Kr - Cl gas mixture are especially considered. Hereinafter, for simplicity, the wall - like light zone 10b will also be referred to as the UV - C wall. In Figure 1 , 2a and 2b, the actually invisible UV - C wall 10b is shown as a vertically downward - pointing white arrow.

[0068] In order to generate the wall-shaped illumination zone 10b, light can be bundled or collimated into parallel light rays optically or through a slit diaphragm, as will be explained in more detail below with reference to Figures 4 - 17 As will be explained in more detail below. As an alternative or supplement thereto, the illumination zone 10b can be generated by a parallel laser arrangement with a laterally overlapping radiation distribution. Another option is one or more laser rays that move or scan rapidly back and forth in a plane, similar to that in a barcode scanner, where the scanning speed and the beam diameter are coordinated with each other such that each aerosol diffusing through the UV-C wall 10b is subjected to a sufficiently large radiation dose.

[0069] The compartments 12 are separated from each other by the UV-C walls 10b respectively. In Figure 1 the illustrated embodiment, each compartment 12 is bounded by four UV-C walls 10b.

[0070] Even in Figure 1 such a special case is not shown, the existing hard walls of the room form the boundaries of the compartments 12, such that the compartments 12 at the corners of the room only need to be bounded by three or two additional UV-C walls 10b in addition to the existing hard walls. It is also conceivable to design the present invention such that a room separated by hard walls, such as an individual office, a soundproof conversation room, etc., forms a compartment 12 that can only exchange aerosols with other compartments 12 through a door opening or a passageway. In this case, it is sufficient to shield the relevant door opening or passageway from the remaining compartments 12 only with the UV-C walls 10b.

[0071] Structures such as half-height walls, room partitions, etc. can be continued or extended up to the roof by a UV-C wall 10b. In this case, the light source 10 can also be installed on the top side of the relevant structure and irradiate upwards towards the roof.

[0072] Furthermore, a sensor 14a of the sensor device 14 is provided in the light-emitting strip 10 ( Figure 3a , 3b ) for detecting the movement or presence of one or more persons P in the room.

[0073] The central controller 16 is designed by suitable software to switch on and off the one or more light sources 10 or at least a part of the individual light sources 10 at least based on the presence of the person P, as will be detailed below. The controller 16 communicates with the light source 10 for this purpose via signal lines or wirelessly, such as via WLAN.

[0074] The controller 16 evaluates the position and movement data of person P and calculates the probabilities of different displacements or movements of person P. If a person P is stationary and sitting at their work station far enough away from all the UV-C walls 10b, it is impossible for them to cross one of the UV-C walls 10b within the next few tenths of a second. However, if a person walks smoothly through an aisle that is divided into multiple compartments 12 by multiple UV-C walls 10b, the moment of crossing the next UV-C wall 10b can be well predicted. Because of the health hazard, the light source 10 is turned off when the probability is low, where the threshold can be set to a larger value when using far UV-C light due to the lower hazard compared to the long-wave UV type.

[0075] When it is determined based on the movement data detected by the sensor device 14 that it is entirely possible to cross the UV-C wall 10b, the controller 16 turns off the relevant light source 10 or at least a part thereof. To turn off only a part, all the light-emitting mechanisms arranged as irradiators within the light source 10 are grouped and perhaps divided into multiple groups, as will be explained in detail below when describing the lamp as the light source 10. If a light-emitting mechanism that extends longitudinally within the light source 10 is used, only the entire light-emitting mechanism can be turned off. Alternatively, a switchable light-shielding plate can be provided to block a certain area.

[0076] Person P can thus move freely within the room. If person P crosses the interface between two compartments 12 at this time, the controller 16 turns off the UV-C wall 10b forming the interface and turns on the UV-C wall 10b again when person P is completely within the second compartment 12.

[0077] When one or more persons P remain in the relevant compartment 12, the relevant light source 10 generally remains active, so as to disinfect viruses and bacteria in droplets or aerosols when leaving the compartment 12. Thus, persons P in different compartments 12 are separated from each other by the light zones forming the barriers. Since the light source 10 remains active when person P remains in the compartment 12, light-absorbing slats can be installed on the floor to avoid the health hazard of scattered light, which absorb the UV-C light incident from the light source 10.

[0078] Only when a person P wants to cross the UV-C wall 10b to enter or leave the compartment 12, the light source 10 assigned to the corresponding UV-C wall 10b is deactivated.

[0079] As an alternative or supplement to the detection of the movement of the indoor person as described above, it is preferably stipulated that the entry of a person or an object into a predetermined safety zone adjacent to the light zone is recognized by the sensor device. This will be further referred to below Figure 7 and Figure 18This will be introduced. Any object entering the safety zone is evaluated here to not only prevent direct irradiation of a person or a body part of a person, but also avoid possible reflections that could harm a person who may also be present, even if he is at a distance from the illuminated area. Monitoring of the safety zone designed in the immediate vicinity of the UV wall in particular has the advantage that movement very close to the safety zone does not yet cause at least part of the UV wall to be switched off. A conceivable scenario is to arrange the light source 10 of the present invention or the lamps explained below above a table in a restaurant. Typical movements made by a person sitting at the table are in an area that is far enough away from the UV wall. And if a person reaches above the table, for example to serve the other person, this is recognized when entering the safety zone and the corresponding part or the entire light source 10 is switched off. Thus, by using it in combination with the small thickness of the illuminated area, a barrier is established between people, and it generally does not require an existing distance between people sharing a room to be increased. The design of the barrier according to the present invention for preventing the transmission of pathogens from one person to another between people thus allows for safety protection against the spread of diseases between people without the people themselves having to adjust their behavior.

[0080] The transmission of pathogens occurs through the air. The typical speed of indoor air movement does not exceed 0.1 m / s. In order to reliably inactivate pathogens, they must be exposed to a minimum light energy, in the case already given of at least 0.6 m / cm 2 the virus or bacterium has a long enough residence time in the illuminated area with a preferably thickness d to achieve inactivation. In the prior art, a significantly larger volume, i.e., the thickness of the illuminated area, is required because at the generally lower light intensities obtained there, a longer residence time is required for disinfection.

[0081] Another light source 18 having a virus-inactivating or disinfecting effect is centrally installed on the roof within the compartment 12.

[0082] The controller 16 is designed to activate the other light source 18 for a predetermined time interval when no one is in the compartment 12. When a person P enters the relevant compartment 12, the light source 18 is also switched off. In order for the person P to recognize whether the disinfection of the relevant compartment 12 is completed, a light-emitting diode or a signal lamp system can be provided. Other designs of the present invention can be conceived, where the sensor device 14 includes a sensor integrated into the light source 18. The light source 18 can be integrated into a roof decorative tile, a lamp, or a ventilation grille or integrated into a housing together with other devices such as a smoke detector.

[0083] Figures 2a - 2c Shows a single compartment 12 of the Figure 1 system in three different states.

[0084] In Figure 2aIn the working state shown, person P works in compartment 12 separated by four UV-C walls 10b. All four UV-C walls 10b are turned on, so that bacteria contained in the aerosol are inactivated when crossing the interface between adjacent compartments 12.

[0085] In Figure 2b In the disinfection state shown, a person P works and leaves in compartment 12. When leaving compartment 12, one of the four UV-C walls 10b (not shown) is turned off due to the recognition of the movement of person P. Since all four UV-C walls 10b are turned on, no live bacteria will appear. In addition, the light source 18 centrally arranged on the roof becomes effective within a predetermined time to also kill bacteria floating on the work surface and in compartment 12.

[0086] In Figure 2c In the idle state shown, the disinfection is over and no person P remains in compartment 12. For energy saving, all four UV-C walls 10b and the light source 10 centrally arranged on the roof are turned off.

[0087] Figure 3a A cross-sectional schematic view of the light source 10 and the wall-shaped light zone 10b according to the first embodiment of the present invention is shown. The light zone 10b has a thickness of approximately 1 centimeter that is constant within the range of what is optically possible.

[0088] As described above, the controller 16 implements a method for preventing or minimizing the spread of viruses in the air in a room using one or more light sources 10 in the room. The method includes: detecting the movement or presence of one or more persons P in the room and automatically turning on and off one or more light sources 10 at least based on the presence of person P.

[0089] According to this method, the relevant light source 10 is turned off when the movement data detected by the sensor device 14 indicates that it is possible that one of the persons P wants to cross the relevant light zone 10b or a person or object has entered the safety zone.

[0090] Figure 3b Another embodiment of the present invention is shown. To avoid repetition, the following description of the other embodiment is basically limited to the differences from the first embodiment of the present invention. Since there are invariant features, those skilled in the art can refer to the description of the first embodiment. Features with the same or similar functions in other embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals to emphasize the similarity.

[0091] In Figure 3bIn the illustrated embodiment, each light source 10 is designed to produce a plurality of parallel-extending light zones 10b′ - 10b″′, which may have a thickness of less than 50 mm, preferably less than 40 mm, more preferably 25 mm or 1 mm, and a spacing of, for example, 1 mm. Larger spacings between the parallel light zones 10b′ - 10b″′ are possible, but increase the space requirements. Other numbers of light zones 10b′ - 10b″′ are also conceivable.

[0092] To form the aforementioned system, a lamp 50 corresponding to the Figure 4 illustrated embodiment is preferably used as the light source 10. It should be noted that the views are only schematic and in no way require an accurate reproduction of the dimensional ratios. Instead, the dimensional ratios are adjusted as seems appropriate, i.e., so that the invention can be easily understood.

[0093] As Figure 4 illustrated, the lamp 50 has a plurality of light-emitting mechanisms 51, where only one of the light-emitting mechanisms 51 can be seen in the Figure 4 cross-sectional view. The lamp 50 also has a housing 52 that is impervious to UV-C light. The housing 52 has an exit hole 53 through which the UV-C light generated by the light-emitting mechanism 51 can exit from the lamp housing 52. In the illustrated embodiment, the lamp 50 is arranged to be mounted on the roof. Obviously, it can also be mounted on the room wall. The following functions are independent of the orientation of the lamp 50.

[0094] The light-emitting mechanism 51 emits germicidal UV-C light, which is collimated by a reflector 54. The reflector 54 is an example of an optical element that can collimate the light emitted by the light-emitting mechanism 51. Other optical elements, such as appropriately designed lenses, are also conceivable. The selection and design of the optical element that can be used to collimate the emitted light can be, for example, according to economic or processing technology aspects or efficiency.

[0095] The light reflected from the inner side of the rotationally symmetric reflector 54 is referred to as collimated light. The collimated part of the light emitted by the light-emitting mechanism 51 exits from the exit hole 53, where, by collimation, the collimated light exits from the exit hole 53 in the z-axis direction within a hypothetical cylinder having a diameter d. The geometry of the reflector 54 is selected such that for a typical room height or room dimensions that can be estimated to have a maximum length L equal to 5 m, the diameter d of the collimated light rays is always less than 8 cm, preferably less than 5 cm. It should be noted that the said conditions are only preferred values. To achieve such a small extension dimension in the transverse direction of the exit direction, it is preferred to use LEDs as the light-emitting mechanism 51. The light intensity obtained within the diameter d is greater than 0.6 mW / cm 2, thereby ensuring that pathogens entering the illuminated area of the barrier are reliably killed. Different from the systems known from the prior art (where a large amount of air is irradiated accordingly), pathogen inactivation can thus be achieved over a short displacement distance through the thickness of the illuminated area, which thickness corresponds to the diameter d of the collimated light beam.

[0096] The longitudinal axis of the lamp 50 is perpendicular to the drawing plane. The arrangement of the light-emitting mechanism 51 and the reflector 54 shown in cross-section is repeated along the longitudinal axis of the lamp 50, wherein a plurality of light-emitting mechanisms 51 arranged in the lamp 50 and their respective associated reflectors 54 are arranged along a line, preferably a straight line. Thus, the light-emitting mechanisms 51 arranged in the lamp 50 and their respective associated reflectors 54 Figure 4 in the illustrated embodiment together form a single set, wherein the emission directions R of all individual light-emitting mechanisms 51 and their associated reflectors 54 are designed to be parallel to each other and lie in a plane. Alternatively, the emission directions can also lie in a curved surface, but preferably in a plane. Therefore, hereinafter, reference will be made representatively to a plane without prejudice to generality.

[0097] As will be explained in more detail below, the adjacent reflectors 54 are arranged along this line such that the light beams collimated by the adjacent reflectors 54 respectively are adjacent to each other within this diameter and the light beams overlap in the area A, so that the collimated light beams of the light-emitting mechanisms 51 together produce a wall-like illuminated area 10b serving as a virus barrier. The maximum extension dimension of the wall-like illuminated area 10b in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal extension of the lamp 50 and perpendicular to the emission direction, i.e., the extension dimension in the y-axis direction, is defined by two imaginary planes E1, E2. The spacing between the two planes E1, E2 thus corresponds to the diameter d of the imaginary cylinder.

[0098] The light-emitting mechanism 51 and the reflector 54 are coordinated with each other here such that the intensity of the collimated light is sufficient to sterilize, in particular greater than 0.6 mW / cm as described above 2 . And only light with negligible intensity exists outside the UV wall 10b configured in this way. This light is generated by the uncollimated part of the light emitted by the light-emitting mechanism 51, i.e., the part that emanates from the part that exits the reflector 54 without reflection. In Figure 4 the light part outside the area between the planes E1, E2 is shown by individual light beams. The illumination intensity in the area A is small enough here to rule out any health hazard to humans.

[0099] To improve safety, a diaphragm mechanism 55 is preferably arranged in the region of the exit hole 53 of the lamp 50. The diaphragm mechanism 55 can itself form the exit hole 53 here, but is alternatively arranged inside or outside the housing 52 of the lamp 50. The operation mode of the diaphragm mechanism 55 is hereinafter referred to Figure 5To explain more precisely. The diaphragm mechanism 55 ensures that the non-collimated part of the light emitted by the light-emitting mechanism 51 is blocked, that is, it prevents it from exiting through the hole 53. As Figure 4 shown, the part directly emitted by the light-emitting mechanism 51 outside the UV wall defined by the planes E1 and E2 will illuminate the area A. Therefore, in this area, if there is a dangerous intensity of the UV-C light present there, no one can stay without safety risks. Regardless of the precise positioning of the diaphragm mechanism 55, the size and position of the diaphragm mechanism 55 are set such that all the light leaving the housing 52 of the lamp 50 can pass through the passage of the diaphragm mechanism 55.

[0100] In Figure 4 it is also shown that a plurality of sensors 14a are provided on the lamp 50, which are part of the sensor device, and the information processing thereof can be integrated into the controller 16. In the illustrated embodiment, the controller 16 is integrated into the lamp 50. But at least the signals of the sensors 14a or the existing evaluation results are transmitted to the controller 16, so that the controller turns the light-emitting mechanism 51 on and off based on the evaluated signals.

[0101] Figure 5 The light-emitting mechanism 51 and the reflector 54 together with the diaphragm mechanism 55 are shown in an enlarged view. The passage 56 of the diaphragm mechanism 55 is schematically shown, which extends parallel to the exit direction R and thus allows the collimated light to pass through, while the light part extending obliquely with respect to the exit direction R is incident on the inner wall of the passage 56. To ensure that there is no danger caused by the light that may be reflected at the inner wall, the inner wall of the passage 56 is coated with a material that absorbs UV-C light, or alternatively, the diaphragm mechanism 55 is made of this material.

[0102] The diaphragm mechanism 55 can be individually provided for each reflector 54 and, for example, cover the orifice of the reflector 54, or be provided as a common diaphragm mechanism for all reflectors 54.

[0103] It should also be noted that for the detailed explanation of the lamp 50, it is assumed that a plurality of independent light-emitting mechanisms 51 jointly emit the light that finally forms the UV wall. But a light-emitting mechanism extending longitudinally can also be used to generate light.

[0104] Figure 6 The cross-section of the reflecting surfaces of the adjacent reflectors 54 in the form of the first reflector 54a and the second reflector 54b is shown extremely simplified. The two reflectors 54a, 54b are arranged in the lamp 50 with a spacing a, which is less than the diameter d of the imaginary cylinder or less than the spacing d of the imaginary planes E1, E2 that are the boundaries of the wall-shaped illumination area 10b.

[0105] In the illustrated embodiment, it is assumed that all reflectors 54 provided in a lamp 50 have the same geometry. Thus, the collimated light rays emitted by each light emitting mechanism 51 by means of its respective reflector 54 are identical with respect to their ray geometry. In principle, it is also conceivable to use different geometries for adjacent reflectors 54. The distance of the respective symmetry axes in the case of using rotationally symmetric reflectors is then always adjusted such that the imaginary cylinders enclosing the collimated light rays intersect. In order to obtain an overlap of the collimated light rays of adjacent reflectors, the adjacent reflectors can also be arranged such that their exit directions enclose a small angle with each other. In particular, the first, third, fifth,... reflectors are arranged such that their exit directions are parallel to each other, but enclose an angle with the exit directions of the second, fourth, sixth,... reflectors, where their exit directions are parallel to each other again.

[0106] As already shown above, the operation of the lamp 50 or the entire system of the present invention requires reliable protection against the emitted UV light reaching a person and causing possible harm to the person. In addition to the prediction of human movement or the detection of the location of a person already explained with respect to the system, it is also possible to detect a direct entry into the adjacent illumination area, i.e., the safety area defined by the planes E1, E2. Figure 7 A sensor device for detecting "entry into such a safety area" is shown in a highly simplified manner.

[0107] With the aid of the sensor 14a, in the illustrated embodiment, the reflection occurring when the light emitted by a so-called marking laser (linear laser) 60 strikes a surface is detected. In the illustrated embodiment, it is assumed that a person may remain on both sides of the UV wall 10b, as is generally the case in a restaurant. Therefore, marking lasers 60 and the associated cameras as sensors 14a for detecting laser reflections are provided on both sides of the UV wall 10b. The laser emitted by the marking laser 60 provided on the left side of the UV wall 10b can be seen, for example, falling on the floor or other substantially stationary installation objects on the left side. The reflection is measured by the sensor 14a.

[0108] On the right side of the UV wall 10b, an object 62 is shown, which can be, for example, a person's finger or an object moved by a person, which approaches the UV wall 10b and thus enters an area where it reflects a part of the laser light emitted by the marking laser 60. Before the moment of entry into the plane of the laser light emitted by the marking laser 60, the light is also only reflected by the ground here. When the object 62 enters, the reflection is immediately changed, which is detected by the sensor 14a. From this change, it can be inferred that the object has entered the safety area. The safety area here is the space from the UV wall 10b or the boundary plane E2 up to the light rays emitted parallel to the plane E2 by the marking laser 60 provided on the side of the plane E2.

[0109] A safety zone is also formed on the side of another plane E1. When the lamp is close to the wall and arranged parallel to the wall so that it is impossible to enter the area of the UV wall 10b from this side, the formation of the second safety zone can thus be omitted.

[0110] If multiple side-by-side illumination zones 10b'-10b''' are generated by the lamp 50, then safety zones are provided only adjacent to the outermost illumination zones respectively. Then, special protection measures can be used to protect the increased end-side spacing due to the multiple illumination zones 10b'-10b'''. They can correspond to the safety devices arranged parallel to the illumination zones as described above. If the extension range of the lamp extends between two walls or other ultraviolet-shielding structural objects, then the end-side protection can also be dispensed with.

[0111] The above descriptions respectively assume that the light curtain wall can be formed by means of a separate light-emitting mechanism and a corresponding reflector, where multiple such units are arranged in series. The shown arrangement arranges the light-emitting mechanism at the center of the reflector. However, with regard to the achievable illumination intensity, this structure is problematic. In particular, in this simple arrangement, the extension range of the light-emitting mechanism (i.e., at least the light-emitting surface of an LED) is such that the boundary between the illumination surface within the thickness d and its adjacent area A is very blurred. However, it is desirable to clearly demarcate the area that serves to kill pathogens from its surrounding environment as much as possible. Therefore, the preferred arrangement is as described below, where multiple light-emitting mechanism elements and their respective optical devices (the partial reflector surfaces of a reflector unit) are combined into a UV irradiator unit. The construction of the entire wall-shaped illumination area is then carried out such that multiple said UV irradiator units are arranged in series one after another. In addition, the foregoing description also applies to a system for generating a wall-shaped illumination area with the following arrangement.

[0112] Figure 8 First, a cross-section of the reflector unit 154 of the UV irradiator unit is shown, where the optical path generated by means of a separate partial surface of the reflector unit 154 and its associated light-emitting mechanism element 151.1 is schematically shown. The light-emitting mechanism element 151.1 used in the shown embodiment is an LED having two LED chips arranged in series in the x-axis direction. The following will also refer to Figure 11 and Figure 12 for a more detailed explanation of this arrangement. However, the specific design structure of the light-emitting surface is not restrictive for the present invention. Therefore, in particular, it can also be envisaged that, depending on the further development of LED technology, if the resulting illumination power is high enough, only one chip is used for each light-emitting diode, or multiple chips with different arrangements are used. The reflector unit 154 has multiple reflector surfaces 154U, 154O, as will be specifically explained below with reference to Figure 9 、 10 and especially also Figure 13 as will be specifically explained further.

[0113] It can already be seen in Figure 8 that the reflector unit 154 has a symmetric structure, where its symmetry plane lies in the x-z plane. In Figure 9 this, the symmetry plane is denoted by S and is shown as a dashed-dotted line. As Figure 8 shown, the light path starts from the side boundary of the LED chip that generates ultraviolet light. The emitted ultraviolet light is projected onto an illumination surface by means of a hemispherical lens, which will be explained in more detail with reference to Figure 11 . The extension dimension d in the y direction, for example, is not greater than 120 mm. The extension dimension d is the projection of the width of the light-emitting LED chip in the y-z plane. In Figure 8 it can be seen that although only half of the reflector unit 154 is irradiated by the light-emitting mechanism element 151.1, the irradiated area (which lies on a plane perpendicular to the symmetry plane S and contains the foci of the reflector surfaces 154U, 154O) is arranged symmetrically with respect to the z axis. This correspondingly applies to the non-irradiated partial surface of the reflector unit 154 in Figure 8 . Thus, it is ensured that the partial surfaces of the reflector unit 154 irradiated on both sides of the symmetry plane S reflect the ultraviolet light reflected in the y direction towards the same area with a thickness d. This is achieved by a slight inclination of the reflector surfaces such that the two foci of the reflector surfaces 154U, 154O coincide.

[0114] Figure 9 Shows Figure 8 an enlarged view of detail IX. It can be seen that the light emitted by the light-emitting mechanism element 151.1 is reflected by the first reflector surface 154U. The drawn dashed or dashed-dotted lines represent the light paths of the right or left edge (in the y direction) of the chip that emits ultraviolet light of the light-emitting mechanism element 151.1. In the upper half of the figure, it can be seen that a second reflector surface 154O is provided, which is arranged symmetrically with respect to the y-z plane (symmetry plane S). To indicate the positions of the light-emitting mechanism elements 151.1, 151.2, another such light-emitting mechanism element is schematically shown at the position denoted by 151.2. The arrangement and orientation of the light-emitting mechanism elements 151.1, 151.2 are also symmetric with respect to the x-z plane.

[0115] It can also be seen in Figure 9It can be seen that the light-emitting mechanism elements 151.1 and 151.2 are located outside the following area, where the incident light is reflected by the two reflector surfaces 154U and 154O. In this way, the shielding (obstruction) of the light reflected by the reflector unit 154 can be avoided, and the undesired reduction of the light intensity at the illumination surface or generally in the generated illumination area can be prevented. However, it should be noted that, on the other hand, the smaller angle between the z-axis and the central axis of the light emitted by the light-emitting mechanism element 151.1 may be advantageous for the further light path on the one hand and allows a smaller structural width on the other hand.

[0116] Figure 10 Shown again Figure 9 An enlarged view of the partial X. Here, the hemispherical lens 175 can now also be seen next to the light-emitting mechanism element 151.1. The use of the hemispherical lens 175 has particular practical advantages because this lens geometry is inexpensive and easy to use. For the same reason, the reflector surfaces 154U and 154O are partial surfaces of an ellipsoid. Here, one focus of the ellipsoid is located in the LED chip area where the light should be reflected, geometrically within the luminous volume (including its interface), and the other focus is located at the intersection of the z-axis and the illumination surface. The "illumination surface" can be the following reference surface here: which coincides with it according to the actual distance and installation of the used illumination surface. The reference surface can be set at a distance of 2.50 to 5 meters at a room height of up to 5 meters. Since the above conditions apply to all the reflector surfaces, the two reflector surfaces 154U and 154O symmetrically arranged with respect to the x-z plane illuminate the same area with a width d. Although the reflector surfaces 154U and 154O are arranged offset with respect to the z-axis, the slight inclination of the optical axes of the individual reflector surfaces 154U and 154O with respect to the z-axis results in: the same area in the y direction of the surface "perpendicular to the symmetry axis S and extending through the foci of the reflector surfaces 144U and 154O" is illuminated by the two reflector surfaces 154U and 154O.

[0117] Figure 11 Shown in enlarged view Figure 10 The partial XI. An enlarged image of the LED chip 176.1 generated by the hemispherical lens 175 can be seen. It can also be seen that, for the purpose of explaining Figures 8 - 10 the principle in, the light rays shown start from the edge of the LED chip 176.1, i.e., the lateral end (with respect to the y-z plane). It should be noted that the light rays not only emit from the surface of the LED chip 176.1 facing the hemispherical lens 175, but also from its lateral interfaces. The LED chip 176.1 is arranged on a support 177. This structure is the same for all the used light-emitting mechanism elements 151.i.

[0118] Figure 12A view rotated by 90° of the hemispherical lens 175 and the lighting mechanism element 151.i is shown. In this rotated view, it can be seen that the lighting mechanism element 151.i has a second LED chip 176.2 arranged adjacent to the first LED chip 176.1. The two LED chips 176.1, 176.2 are arranged such that their longitudinal extensions are parallel to the x-axis. As already explained, the hemispherical lens 175 produces a magnified projection of the LED chip surface obtained through the two LED chips 176.1, 176.2. The surfaces of these LED chips 176.1 or 176.2 facing the hemispherical lens 175 are square here and have a side length of 1 mm. Thus, a total chip area of 2 mm × 1 mm is obtained. The adjacent LED chips 176.1, 176.2 are oriented here such that the extension dimension d corresponds to the projection of the widths of the LED chips 176.1, 176.2 as explained in Figure 8 . The projection of the longitudinal extension dimension (2 mm) of the total area of these LED chips 176.1, 176.2 extends along the x-axis, as will be further explained below.

[0119] The above description relates to one reflector surface 154U respectively, where a plurality of reflector surfaces and their respective units each composed of at least the lighting mechanism element 151.i and the hemispherical lens 175 provided in front of it are combined into a UV irradiator unit. Figure 13 Two such UV irradiator units each containing six reflector surfaces and having a symmetric structure in themselves are shown in a perspective view. They are arranged longitudinally of the lamp, i.e., parallel to the x-axis in the figure. The six reflector surfaces of the left UV irradiator unit are labeled UL, UM, UR and OL, OM, OR, where the reflector surfaces labeled with U and their respective units are combined into a first group, and the reflector surfaces labeled with O and their respective units are combined into another group. In the shown embodiment, the first group and the second group are arranged symmetrically with respect to the central plane of the lamp and adjacent to each other. This central plane coincides with the symmetric plane S of the reflector. With the described relatively inclined orientation of the reflector surfaces, a favorable overlap of the light portions reflected by each group respectively occurs. Two reflector surfaces facing each other here have the same focus. However, as the available power of the LED increases, it is also conceivable to provide only one of the two groups arranged in a row. If, as in the shown embodiment, two symmetrically arranged groups are provided, a spacing can also be specified between these two groups.

[0120] In Figure 13The optical path is shown only for the partial surface UM of the reflector so as not to misidentify the perspective of the reflector unit shown. The pitch in the x direction for the reflector surface is 70 mm in a preferred embodiment. The middle reflector surfaces OM, UM are thus arranged at x = 0. The adjacent reflector surfaces UL and OL are arranged at -70 mm, or UR and OR are arranged at +70 mm. The reflector unit 154 thus has a structural length of 210 mm in the x direction.

[0121] Each reflector surface extends 60 mm in the Y direction, so that the total width of the reflector unit in the Y direction is 120 mm. This dimension (120 mm × 210 mm) corresponds to the illuminated surface "at a distance of 2500 mm from the reflector unit 154 (reference surface)". This distance is measured from the common mounting plane on the back side of the entire reflector unit. Since the area of the reflector unit 154 is the same size as the illuminated surface, an increase in the extension dimension of the wall-shaped illuminated area can be obtained by arranging a plurality of UV irradiator units in series without simultaneously increasing its thickness.

[0122] Figure 14 A longitudinal section showing three reflector surfaces UL, UM, and UR forming a group is shown. It can be seen that the two outer emission directions of the reflector surfaces UL, UR are oriented towards the center, and all three emission directions are in one plane. The emission direction of the middle reflector surface UM is then called the emission direction R of a group. In the example shown, three LEDs are integrated into a group respectively. However, this is not restrictive. Alternatively, two LEDs together with their respective reflector surfaces, or four or more LEDs together with their respective reflector surfaces can also be combined into a group respectively. In this case, the following symmetry line is called the emission direction, and the reflector surfaces are symmetrically arranged on both sides with respect to this symmetry line. Or the light-emitting mechanism is arranged with a pitch slightly larger than the grid pitch with respect to the light-emitting mechanism of the middle reflector surface UM for the two outer reflector surfaces UL and UR as will be further explained below to obtain the same effect.

[0123] Figure 15 A curve showing the change in light intensity of only one light-emitting mechanism element 151.1 arranged with respect to the reflector surface UM in the x direction and y direction is shown. It can be seen that a rectangle symmetrically distributed about the origin in the x-y plane is illuminated by the light-emitting mechanism element 151.1. However, the light emitted by another light-emitting mechanism element assigned to the reflector surface UR also illuminates the same rectangular surface. The reason is the arrangement of the light-emitting mechanism unit 151 that is slightly shifted along the x-axis with respect to the symmetry of the reflector surface. The light-emitting mechanism element for the partial surface UM of the middle reflector is arranged in the center of the reflector partial surface in the x direction, while the two outer light-emitting mechanism elements are slightly offset in position, so that the distance from the light-emitting mechanism unit of the middle reflector surface is greater than the grid pitch of the reflector surface. This results in the centering of the reflected ultraviolet rays, just as for the reflector surface URFigure 17 as shown in

[0124] Alternatively, the reflector surface or the light-emitting mechanism element can also be inclined as described above. However, on the one hand, this leads to a more complex manufacture of the reflector unit 154, or the light-emitting mechanism element can no longer be arranged in the same plane.

[0125] If one now observes the light intensity that occurs when light from six corresponding light-emitting mechanism elements 151.i is reflected by all six reflector surfaces, one obtains a light intensity distribution as Figure 16 shown.

[0126] It should be noted that the above description assumes that two LED chips together form a light-emitting mechanism element. However, it is also conceivable that more than two LED chips form a light-emitting mechanism element, provided that they are arranged in a row, for example, in groups of three. In this case, the number of reflector surfaces can even be reduced, since each reflector surface will be illuminated by the light of three LED chips in this case. What is important is to obtain a sufficiently high light intensity taking into account the losses occurring on the illumination surface. At a certain light power of the LED chips, the number of chips required to illuminate a certain surface is thus obtained. It should be noted that the light intensity occurring on the illumination surface is only a criterion for describing the power density in the wall-shaped illumination area. For killing pathogens, the light transmission area between the lamp and the illumination surface is important.

[0127] The function of the safety device mentioned above is now explained in connection with the view in Figure 18 . The arrangement shown in Figure 18 shows the lamp 50 together with the sensor 14a and the marking laser 60 as already explained with reference to Figure 7 . The laser emitted by the marking laser 60 is schematically shown by a dashed triangle. Here, the plane in which the laser is emitted is parallel and spaced with respect to "the collimated light rays that can be emitted by all the light-emitting mechanisms 51 of the lamp 50". The reflected part of the laser emitted by the marking laser 60 is detected by the sensor 14a and supplied to the evaluation device. As already explained, during the evaluation, in particular, the change in the laser reflection is measured, so that an object entering the area irradiated by the marking laser 60 can be identified by the sensor device or its information processing device 14. The sensor device 14 can in particular have a processor or other devices for processing the information transmitted by the sensor 14a. The data processing device can be implemented together with the controller 16. In the shown embodiment, the controller 16 and the information processing part of the sensor device 14 are integrated into the lamp 50 together.

[0128] In the lamp 50 shown by way of example, a total of 14 light-emitting mechanisms 51 are arranged in a straight line, where Figure 8To each of the light emitting mechanisms 51, which are not shown separately for better overview here, there is assigned an optical element in the form of a reflector 54 (not shown here without reference numeral). The emitted ultraviolet light is represented by the emission direction shown as an arrow. The emission direction of the light emitting mechanism and its associated optical element are oriented parallel to each other as directly seen from the figure. Additionally, all the emission directions of the light emitting mechanisms of the lamp 50 lie in a plane. Thus, all the light emitting mechanisms of the lamp 50 together form a set of light emitting mechanisms.

[0129] Instead of the lamp 50 having only a single set of light emitting mechanisms as shown in the figure, it is also possible to provide multiple sets of light emitting mechanisms. Within a set, the light emitting mechanism and its associated reflector are then also arranged such that their emission directions are parallel to each other and lie in a plane or, as already mentioned as an alternative above, in a surface. The planes (or surfaces) of the different sets can here be arranged parallel and spaced apart from each other, but alternatively can have an angle.

[0130] For a set of light emitting mechanisms of the lamp 50 and its associated optical elements, it is shown that this set is divided into three subgroups 57a, 57b, and 57c. Each subgroup 57a, 57b, and 57c contains multiple light emitting mechanisms and their associated optical elements. The subgroups 57a, 57b, and 57c can be individually driven, i.e., switched on and off, by the controller 60.

[0131] If now an object 62 is recognized when entering the plane irradiated by the marking laser 60 due to the signal measured by the sensor 14a, then the position of the object 62 is determined from the signal transmitted from the sensor 14a to the controller 16 or the information processing device integrated in the sensor device 14.

[0132] It should be noted that in Figure 18 only one marking laser 60 and one sensor 14a are shown, but here it is particularly preferred to provide a combination of multiple such marking lasers and sensors 14a, the detection directions of which have an angle other than 0° or 180°. With this arrangement combination, it is possible to locate the object 62 in two dimensions. Additionally, when using two such arrangements, it is also possible to individually detect another object that may be located in the shadow of the shown object 62.

[0133] When only one arrangement is used, the object 62 is positioned at least in one direction (x-axis). The recognized position is evaluated in the controller 16, and the collimated light emitted will turn off the sub-groups 57a, 57b, or 57c of the object 62 that it hits. In the illustrated embodiment, this is the middle group 57b. It should be noted that the term "position" not only refers to the center point of the recognized object 62, but also to its extension dimension. That is, if the recognized object 62 is not completely within the range of the light emitted by a sub-group 57a, 57b, or 57c, then based on the position measurement within the extension dimension of the object 62, not just one sub-group is turned off.

[0134] If the position coordinates for two directions (x-axis, y-axis) are known, then the second lamp 150 can be used. Its structure is in principle similar to that of the lamp 50 and the angle between its emission direction and the emission direction of the lamp 50 is not equal to 0° or 180°. The emission directions of the lamps 50, 150 are preferably perpendicular to each other. The emission directions of the two lamps 50, 150 are preferably in the same plane here, so the sensor device 14 including the marking laser 60 and the sensor 14a can be used together. If the object 62 is two-dimensionally positioned by means of the sensor device 14, then not only the sub-group 57b of the lamp 50 that emits ultraviolet light in the area of the recognized object 62 can be turned off, but also the corresponding sub-group 157b of the second lamp 150 is turned off. As can be directly seen from the figure, thus only a relatively small area is not irradiated by the UV-C light, thereby preventing large gaps in the barrier.

[0135] In Figure 18 the only schematically shown example, the lamps 50, 150 have their own controllers 16, 116. If the same sensor device 14 should be used to drive the two lamps 50, 150, then communication is provided between the controller 16 of the lamp 50 or the sensor device 14 and the controller 116 of the lamp 150. Or it is also possible to provide an external controller for driving the light-emitting mechanisms in a number of lamps 50, 150... as already shown in Figure 1

[0136] The above description regarding Figure 18 correspondingly applies when one sub-group includes one or more clusters.

[0137] If multiple groups are symmetrically arranged with respect to the symmetry plane S, then the distribution of the light-emitting mechanisms for the two sub-groups is preferably the same. Then no safety device is required between the symmetrically arranged groups. In this way, it is sufficient to provide such safety mechanisms on the outer sides. Here, the corresponding sub-groups or clusters of the two groups are driven together. The corresponding sub-groups or clusters are defined by the same position and the same dimension with respect to the x-axis.

[0138] Figure 19Another design of the invention shows a pillar 20 with a light source 10 for the system of the invention. The light source emits UV-C light in the horizontal direction to thus form a UV-C wall 10b. Depending on the application field, the pillar 20 can be equipped with one, two, three or four light sources 10, which can generate up to four UV-C walls 10b emitting light in different spatial directions starting from the pillar 20. The emitted UV-C light can be absorbed by adjacent pillars or light-absorbing walls or light-absorbing pillars arranged for this purpose.

[0139] In other embodiments of the invention not shown here, the pillar holds a light-emitting slat or a light source that emits light vertically downward. It is also conceivable that the light-emitting slat or the light source is placed on the ground and emits light towards the roof.

Claims

1. A lamp (50, 150) for forming a barrier against pathogens in indoor air, having: a plurality of light-emitting means (51, 51a, 51b; 151.1, 151.2) that emit UV-C light, and a plurality of optical elements (54, 54a, 54b; 154U, 154O) for collimating light, the optical elements being respectively assigned to one light-emitting means (51, 51a, 51b; 151.1, 151.2), Among them, the light-emitting means being LEDs, the plurality of light-emitting means (51, 51a, 51b; 151.1, 151.2) and these corresponding optical elements (54, 54a, 54b; 154U, 154O) form at least one set, the optical elements (54, 54a, 54b; 154U, 154O) are configured such that: within a set, the light emitted by a selected one of the light-emitting means (51, 51a, 51b; 151.1, 151.2) and collimated by the optical element corresponding to the selected one of the light-emitting means overlaps or is at least adjacent to the light emitted by a light-emitting means adjacent to the selected one of the light-emitting means and collimated by the optical element corresponding to the adjacent light-emitting means, and the exit directions R of the light emitted by the light-emitting means within a set and collimated by the optical elements lie in the same plane and form a wall-like illumination area as a barrier against pathogens.

2. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The exit directions R of the collimated light emitted by the light-emitting means (51, 51a, 51b) within a set are parallel to each other, or the exit directions R of the groups within a set are parallel to each other, where a group includes a plurality of light-emitting means (151.1, 151.2) in a set together with their associated optical elements (154U, 154O).

3. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, Each set includes a plurality of groups.

4. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The optical device of the lamp (50, 150) includes a diaphragm mechanism (55) for blocking divergent light portions.

5. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The light-emitting means are light-emitting diodes (154.1, 154.2).

6. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 5, characterized in that, Each light-emitting diode (154.1, 154.2) consists of at least two light-emitting diode chips (176.1, 176.2) arranged in series in the longitudinal direction of the lamp (50, 150).

7. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 1, characterized in that, At least one set of light-emitting means (51, 51a, 51b) is divided into a plurality of subgroups (57a, 57b, 57c; 257a, 157b, 157c), and the light-emitting means (51, 51a, 51b) of the subgroups (57a, 57b, 57c; 257a, 157b, 157c) can be switched on and off together but independently of the light-emitting means (51, 51a, 51b) of other subgroups (57a, 57b, 57c; 257a, 157b, 157c).

8. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 7, characterized in that, Each subgroup corresponds to a cluster.

9. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The lamp (50, 150) includes two sets arranged symmetrically with respect to the central plane of the lamp (50, 150).

10. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The lamp (50, 150) is designed as a light slat for mounting on a roof or a wall.

11. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The UV-C light for inactivating pathogens that is focused relative to the UV-C wall is far UV-C light with a wavelength in the range of 200 to 222 nm.

12. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 11, characterized in that, The UV-C light is far UV-C light with a wavelength in the range of 207 to 222 nm.

13. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The UV-C light for inactivating pathogens that is focused relative to the UV-C wall is UV-C light with a wavelength in the range of 223 to 280 nm.

14. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 13, characterized in that, The UV-C light is UV-C light with a wavelength exceeding 242 nm.

15. The lamp (50, 150) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The emission direction R of the light emitted from the light-emitting mechanisms within a group and collimated by the optical elements lies in the same plane.

16. A system for preventing or minimizing the spread of pathogens in indoor air, having one or more light sources (10) in the form of one or more lamps (50, 150) according to one of claims 1 to 15, characterized in that, The system includes a sensor device (14) and a controller (16) for detecting the entry of one or more persons (P) or objects into a safety zone formed adjacent to the illuminated area, the controller (16) being designed to at least partially turn on and off the one or more light sources (10) at least based on the presence of the person (P) and / or the object, wherein the controller (16) is designed to at least partially turn off the relevant light source (10) when the sensor device (14) recognizes the entry.

17. The system according to claim 16, wherein There are free-moving struts (20) for holding one or more light sources (10).

18. The system according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that, The one or more light sources (10) are designed to be arranged along the boundary of the compartment (12), wherein the controller (16) is designed to enable the relevant light source (10) when one or more persons (P) remain in the relevant compartment (12), and to deactivate at least one of the light sources (10) when a person (P) enters or leaves the compartment (12).

19. The system according to claim 18, characterized in that, in Other light sources (18) having the function of inactivating and / or disinfecting pathogens are arranged in the compartment (12), and the controller (16) is designed to enable the other light sources (18) when there is no person (P) in the compartment (12).

20. The system according to claim 16, wherein, The sensor device (14) includes a 3D camera or a TOF camera and / or one or more CCD cameras.

21. The system according to claim 16, wherein, The sensor device (14) includes at least one light source and is set up to detect changes in the reflected portion of the light emitted by the light source and reflected by an object (62) in the environment.

22. The system according to claim 16, wherein, The sensor device (14) is set up to determine the entry into the safety zone in a position-resolved manner, and the controller (16) is set up to turn off at least one light-emitting mechanism (51, 51a, 51b) based on the location of the entry.

23. A method for preventing or minimizing the spread of viruses in indoor air by using one or more light sources (10) indoors, characterized in that, The method includes: generating at least one illuminated area (10b) with at least one lamp (50, 150) according to one of claims 1 to 15; detecting the movement or presence of one or more persons (P) or objects (62) in the room; and automatically turning on and off at least a part of the light-emitting mechanisms of one or more light sources (10) at least based on the presence of the person (P) or the object (62).

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