Lighting device

Abstract

To provide a lighting device with a solar cell.SOLUTION: A lighting device 1 comprises a body 7, a solar cell panel 9, and a luminaire 11. The solar cell panel 9 is mounted on a top surface 27a of the body 7 through at least to a front surface 27b. The luminaire 11 is illuminated with electric power generated by the solar cell panel 9.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a lighting device. [Background technology]

[0002] There was a demand for solar-powered lighting devices. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a lighting device equipped with a solar cell. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] The invention described in claim 1 is a lighting device comprising a main body, a solar cell panel, and a lighting fixture, wherein the solar cell panel is arranged from the top surface of the main body to at least the front surface, and the lighting fixture is illuminated using electricity generated by the solar cell panel. [Effects of the Invention]

[0005] According to the invention described in claim 1, the lighting fixture is lit with electricity generated by the solar panel, so lighting using renewable energy is possible. The solar cell panel is provided from the top surface of the main body to at least the front surface, so that it can receive sunlight not only when the sun is directly overhead but also when the sun starts to set or rise, and can receive sunlight for a long period of time by following the movement of the sun. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0006] [Figure 1] 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an illumination device according to an embodiment of the present invention in use. [Figure 2] 2A to 2E are diagrams of the lighting device shown in FIG. 1, in which (a) is a front view, (b) is a top view, (c) is a bottom view, (d) is a right side view, and (e) is a left side view. [Figure 3]1A and 1B are diagrams of a base frame, where (a) is a front view and (b) is a side view. [Figure 4] 1A and 1B are diagrams showing the lighting device in use, in which (a) is a front view and (b) is a side view. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0007] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. As shown in FIG. 4, the lighting device 1 according to this embodiment is attached to an outdoor wall surface 3 and illuminates a signboard 5 provided on the wall surface 3. The lighting device 1 is provided on top of a signboard 5 provided on a wall surface 3, protruding forward from the wall surface 3, and illuminates the signboard 5 from diagonally above the front. The lighting device 1 is provided above the signboard 5, elongated in the left-right direction with dimensions approximately the same as the left-right width of the signboard 5, and also serves as a canopy for the signboard 5. The signboard 5 has letters or images such as A, B, C, D, etc. painted on its front.

[0008] As shown in FIG. 1, the lighting device 1 includes a main body 7, a solar panel 9, and a lighting fixture 11. The main body 7 is provided long on both sides of the wall surface 3 (see FIG. 4), and includes a base frame 13 fixed to the wall surface 3, and a canopy portion 15 provided so as to protrude forward from the base frame 13. The base frame 13 is fixed to the wall surface 3 by anchors 17. In this embodiment, the anchors 17 are arranged in pairs, one at the top and one at the bottom, with each pair being spaced apart on the left and right. Each anchor 17 is inserted into an anchor hole 17a (see FIG. 3(a)) formed in advance in the base frame 13 and hammered into the wall surface 3. The base frame 13 has an engaging portion 19 at its upper end for engaging the upper end 15a of the eave portion 15, and an engaging portion 21 at its lower end for engaging the lower end 15b of the eave portion 15 and a screw fixing portion 25 for screwing in with a screw 23. The locking portion 19 is formed with an arc-shaped inner peripheral surface 19a, and the upper end 15a is formed with a curved outer surface 15c that slides on the inner peripheral surface 19a.

[0009] The canopy portion 15 has a solar cell panel mounting surface 27. The solar cell panel mounting surface 27 has an upper surface 27a facing upward, a front surface 27b facing forward, and a lower surface 27c facing downward, with the upper surface 27a, the front surface 27b, and the lower surface 27c forming a continuous curved surface. In FIG. 1, the regions of the upper surface 27a, the front surface 27b, and the lower surface 27c are indicated by dashed dotted lines, but the boundaries between the upper surface 27a and the front surface 27b and the boundaries between the front surface 27b and the lower surface 27c separate the surfaces 27a, 27b, and 27c in the directions in which the surfaces are primarily oriented. On the upper surface 27a, a panel upper end locking portion 29 is formed to lock the upper end of the solar cell panel 9 at the end on the side of the base frame 13. The panel upper end locking portion 29 is a step portion formed on the upper surface 27a. A panel holder 33 is fixed to the panel upper end locking portion 29 with a screw 32 to hold down the upper end 9a of the solar cell panel from above. As shown in FIG. 2(b), the panel retainer 33 is a long, thin plate-like member that extends along the longitudinal direction of the eave portion 15, and the screws 32 are provided at predetermined intervals along the longitudinal direction. A panel lower end holding portion 31 into which the lower end 9b of the solar cell panel 9 is inserted and held is formed on the underside 27c of the solar cell panel mounting surface 27. The panel lower end holding portion 31 is a groove formed continuously along the longitudinal direction (left-right direction) of the eave portion 15.

[0010] The eaves portion 15 has a rear side portion 16a on the base frame 13 side that houses a battery controller unit 34 (described later), and a front side portion 16b that protrudes forward from the rear side portion 16a and houses the lighting fixture 11. The upper end 15a and the lower end 15b of the above-mentioned eaves portion 15 are formed on the wall surface 3 side of the rear side portion 16a. An upper engaging portion 37 is formed on the front upper side of the rear side portion 16a, with which the upper engaging portion 35 of the front side portion 16b engages from above, and a lower engaging portion 41 is formed on the front lower side of the rear side portion 16a, with which the lower engaging portion 39 of the front side portion 16b engages from above.

[0011] The battery controller unit 34 is connected by wiring to the solar panel 9, and stores the power generated by the solar panel 9, and controls a light sensor (not shown) and other devices attached to the main body 7. The light sensor detects when the sun sets and the surroundings become dark, and when the sun rises and the surroundings become bright. In addition, the battery controller unit 34 is connected to the lighting fixture 11 and controls the lighting by the lighting fixture 11 by transmitting or stopping power transmission to the lighting fixture 11 based on detection by the light sensor.

[0012] 2(a) denotes a wiring hole of the solar cell panel 9. 2(d) and (e) show end caps 45 that close the left and right ends of the eave portion 15.

[0013] As shown in Figures 2(a) and (b), multiple solar cell panels 9 are placed side by side on the solar cell panel mounting surface 27 of the eave portion 15, and as shown in Figure 1, one solar cell panel 9 is placed continuously over the upper surface 27a, front surface 27b and lower surface 27c of the solar cell panel mounting surface 27. This solar cell panel 9 is a flexible amorphous solar power generation sheet made mainly of resin, so that the solar cell panel 9 is lightweight and can be flexibly arranged along curved surfaces.

[0014] The lighting device 11 has light-emitting diodes (LEDs) 47 arranged at intervals on the substrate 11a, and as shown in FIG. 2(c), the light-emitting diodes 47 are provided at intervals along the longitudinal direction of the eaves portion 15. In FIG. 1, an illumination panel 49 is provided on the illumination side of the light emitting diode 47 so as to face the light emitting diode 47, for emitting uniform light without unevenness.

[0015] Next, the installation of the lighting device 1 will be described. As shown in Figure 3, the base frame 13 is placed in a position where the signboard 5 is illuminated from diagonally above, and the base frame 13 is fixed to the wall surface 3 with anchors 17 (see Figure 1) passed through anchor holes 17a of the base frame 13.

[0016] Meanwhile, the canopy portion 15 is assembled. As shown in Fig. 1, the canopy portion 15 is assembled by first incorporating the substrate 11a, on which the light-emitting diodes 47 are mounted, into the front portion 16b, and then engaging the lower engaging portion 39 of the front portion 16b with the lower engaged portion 41 of the rear portion 16a from above, and engaging the upper engaging portion 35 of the front portion 16b with the upper engaged portion 37 of the rear portion 16a from above. Thereafter, the upper engaged portion 37 of the rear portion 16a and the upper engaging portion 35 of the front portion 16b are fixed together with screws 51. On the other hand, a battery controller unit 34 is attached to the rear side portion 16a.

[0017] Next, as shown in Figure 1, the upper end 15a of the eave portion 15 is angled downward and engaged with the locking portion 19 of the base frame 13 from diagonally above and in front, and then the front side of the eave portion 15 is rotated downward as shown by arrow R, causing the outer surface 15c of the upper end 15a to slide along the inner surface 19a of the locking portion 19, so that the lower end 15b of the eave portion 15 is locked with the locking portion 21 of the base frame 13 of the locking portion 19 and is placed over the screw fixing portion 25 of the base frame 13. Then, the screw fixing portion 25 of the base frame 13 and the lower end 15b of the eave portion 15 are fixed with the screw 23. When removing the eave portion 15 from the wall surface 3 for maintenance or the like, the eave portion 15 can be removed from the base frame 13 by removing the screws 23 and following the procedure in reverse to that used for installation.

[0018] The effects of this embodiment will be described. During the day, the power generated by the solar panel is stored in the battery controller unit 34, and at night, the power stored in the battery controller unit 34 is used to light the lighting fixture 11. The lighting device 1 according to this embodiment lights the lighting fixture 11 with power generated by the solar cell panel 9, and therefore provides lighting using renewable energy. The solar cell panel 9 is provided from the upper surface 27a of the main body 7 to at least the front surface 27b, so that it can receive sunlight not only when the sun is directly overhead but also when the sun starts to set or rise, and can receive sunlight for a long period of time by following the movement of the sun. Furthermore, the solar cell panel 9 is also installed facing downward on the underside 27c of the main body 7, so that it can receive sunlight reflected from the ground and generate electricity, thereby increasing the amount of power generated. In this embodiment, the solar cell panel 9 is thus continuously installed from the upper surface 27a of the main body 7 to the front surface 27b and the underside 27c, so that it can receive sunlight from many surfaces of the main body 7 and generate a large amount of power. The solar cell panel 9 is a flexible amorphous solar power generation sheet, and therefore can be arranged continuously along the curved surface of the eave portion 15. Note that the solar cell panel 9 is not limited to an amorphous type, as long as it is a flexible solar power generation sheet.

[0019] The solar cell panel 9 can be attached to the eave section 15 by inserting the lower end 9b into the panel lower end holding section 31 of the eave section 15 and pressing the upper end 9a with the panel pressing tool 33, making it easy to attach the solar cell panel 9.

[0020] The main body 7 is composed of a base frame 13 fixed to the wall surface 3 and an eave part 15 protruding forward from the base frame 13, and the upper side of the entire signboard 5 is covered with the eave part 15, so that the signboard 5 is not easily affected directly by wind and rain. The eaves part 15 can be assembled by locking the upper end 15a to the locking part 19 of the base frame 13 and engaging the lower end 15b with the engaging part 21 of the base frame 13, and then fastening the engaging part 21 with a screw 23, so that hands can be released from the eaves part 15 when fastening the screw 23, resulting in good workability. By removing the canopy portion 15 from the base frame 13, the solar cell panel 9, lighting fixture 11 and battery controller unit 34 can be removed as a unit, facilitating installation and inspection of each component such as the solar cell panel 9.

[0021] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, the underside 27c of the solar cell panel 9 is not limited to facing diagonally forward, but may be arranged to face directly downwards to further increase its area, thereby receiving more light reflected from the ground and further increasing the amount of power generation. The battery controller unit 34 is not limited to controlling the power sent to the lighting fixture 11 by detecting sunset and sunrise using a light sensor, but may also control the lighting time using a timer. [Explanation of symbols]

[0022] 1. Lighting equipment 7 Main Unit 9. Solar Panels 11 Lighting equipment 27a Top (top of the main body) 27b Front (front of the main body)

Claims

[Claim 1] The solar panel includes a main body, a solar panel, and a lighting fixture. The solar panel is provided from the top surface of the main body to at least the front surface, A lighting device characterized in that the lighting fixture is lit with electricity generated by a solar panel.

Images