Lighting equipment

Abstract

To provide a lighting device which is installed at an instrument panel in a passenger compartment and has a wide range of use.SOLUTION: A lighting device 1 is installed at an instrument panel 20 in a passenger compartment. The lighting device 1 emits a light for allowing an occupant seated on a seat 26 to view directly in a first direction D1 toward the seat 26 side in the passenger compartment and emits a light for allowing the occupant to view after the light is reflected on the interior in a second direction D2 toward the interior in the passenger compartment.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a lighting device for use in a vehicle cabin. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there is known a lighting device that is installed on an instrument panel inside a vehicle cabin and used as indirect lighting (see Patent Document 1). According to the lighting device described in Patent Document 1, a lighting member having light-guiding properties is disposed on the instrument panel at the front of the vehicle cabin, and illumination light from the lighting member is irradiated toward the lower surface of the step of the instrument panel and is set not to directly enter the field of view of a driver seated in the front seat of the vehicle cabin. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 4407455 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Illumination devices used as indirect lighting, such as the illumination device described in Patent Document 1, generally have low brightness and are primarily used for ambient illumination purposes, making it difficult for current devices to be used for notification functions and the like.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a lighting device that is installed on an instrument panel inside a vehicle compartment and has a wide range of uses. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, one aspect of the present invention provides the following lighting devices [1] to [3].

[0007] [1] A lighting device that is installed on an instrument panel inside a vehicle cabin, emitting light in a first direction toward a seat inside the vehicle cabin for direct viewing by an occupant sitting in the seat, and emitting light in a second direction toward an interior of the vehicle cabin for viewing by the occupant after being reflected by the interior. [2] The lighting device according to [1] above, comprising: a light source that emits light; and a light guide that takes in the light emitted from the light source, propagates the light inside, and emits it, wherein the light guide has a first prism for reflecting and emitting the light propagating inside in the first direction, and a second prism for reflecting and emitting the light propagating inside in the second direction. [3] The lighting device described in [1] or [2] above, further comprising an outer lens made of a material that transmits light emitted from the light source, the outer lens having a first flat portion for transmitting light emitted from the light guide in the first direction, and a second flat portion for transmitting light emitted from the light guide in the second direction. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a lighting device that is installed on an instrument panel inside a vehicle cabin and has a wide range of uses. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the interior of a vehicle around an instrument panel, showing the installation location of a lighting device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an instrument panel in which an illumination device according to an embodiment of the present invention is installed. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration of a lighting device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view of an instrument panel in which a modified example of the lighting device according to the embodiment of the present invention is installed. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] [Embodiment] The lighting device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is a lighting device installed on an instrument panel inside a vehicle cabin, and emits light in a first direction D1 toward the seat inside the vehicle cabin for direct viewing by an occupant sitting in the seat, and emits light in a second direction D2 toward the interior of the vehicle cabin for viewing by the occupant after being reflected by the interior.

[0011] That is, the lighting device 1 has a function of direct illumination by emitting light in a first direction D1 and a function of illumination by emitting light in a second direction D2. indirect For example, the light emitted in the first direction D1 as direct lighting has high brightness and is mainly used for visual notification to vehicle occupants, such as alerting the driver, while the light emitted in the second direction D2 as indirect lighting can be used for ambient illumination, since it can be used to express a variety of things depending on the patterns and colors of the surfaces of interior parts that reflect the light.

[0012] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of the interior of a vehicle around an instrument panel 20, showing the installation location of a lighting device 1. Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the instrument panel 20 on which the lighting device 1 is installed. Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing the configuration of the lighting device 1.

[0013] The instrument panel 20 is an interior vehicle part that is disposed in front of the seats 26 (driver's seat 26a, passenger seat 26b) and in which vehicle instruments, air conditioning vents, etc. are provided. The instrument panel 20 has an upper panel 21 that constitutes its upper part, and a lower panel 22 that constitutes its lower part. For example, a glove box 24 and the like are provided on the lower panel 22 in front of the passenger seat, and an air conditioning vent 25 and the like are provided on the upper panel 21.

[0014] Between the upper panel 21 and the lower panel 22 disposed below it, there is provided a space 23 extending in the vehicle width direction and opening towards the seat 26. Here, the lower surface of the upper panel 21 constituting the space 23 is referred to as a lower surface 211, and the upper surface of the lower panel 22 is referred to as an upper surface 221.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 2, the lighting device 1 is installed in a space 23 of the instrument panel 20, and light emitted from the lighting device 1 is projected from the space 23 towards a seat 26 inside the vehicle cabin.

[0016] The first direction D1 faces the opening of the space 23, and most of the light emitted from the lighting device 1 in the first direction does not head toward interior components such as the upper panel 21 or the lower panel 22, and does not get reflected by the interior components, but heads directly toward the seat 26. On the other hand, the second direction D2 faces diagonally downward, and most of the light emitted from the lighting device 1 in the second direction heads toward the seat 26 after being obliquely incident on the upper surface 221 of the lower panel 22 and being reflected.

[0017] The lighting device 1 includes a light-emitting device 10 as a light source, a rod-shaped light guide 11 that takes in light emitted from the light-emitting device 10, propagates it inside, and emits it, an outer lens 12 that can transmit the light emitted from the light-emitting device 10, and a housing 13 that contains the light guide 11, fixes the light-emitting device 10 to both ends of the light guide 11, and fixes the outer lens 12 to the light extraction side of the light guide 11. The lighting device 1 is attached in the space 23 so that the longitudinal direction of the light guide 11 is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the space 23 (the vehicle width direction).

[0018] The light emitting device 10 includes a light emitting element such as an LED. The light emitting element included in the light emitting device 10 is, for example, an LED called a full-color LED in which three LEDs of red, green, and blue are packaged together, and in this case, light of a desired color can be emitted by PWM control or the like from an in-vehicle ECU (Electronic Control Unit) via an in-vehicle network.

[0019] Light guide 11 is made of a material such as transparent acrylic that allows light emitted from light emitting device 10 to pass therethrough. Light guide 11 also has a first prism 111 for reflecting and emitting light propagating inside in a first direction D1, and a second prism 112 for reflecting and emitting light propagating inside in a second direction D2, as shown in Fig. 2. First prism 111 and second prism 112 are each provided along the length direction of rod-shaped light guide 11.

[0020] The first prism 111 is composed of, for example, a group of linear grooves arranged on a plane facing the opening of the space 23, each extending along a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the light guide 11. The second prism 112 is composed of, for example, a group of linear grooves arranged on a plane facing the upper surface 221 of the lower panel 22, each extending along a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the light guide 11.

[0021] The linear grooves constituting the first prism 111 and the second prism 112 are, for example, straight grooves having a V-shaped cross section. Also, the first prism 111 and the second prism 112 may be constituted by a group of linear protrusions instead of a group of linear grooves. In this case, the linear protrusions are, for example, straight protrusions having a triangular cross section.

[0022] The light guide 11 is a rod-shaped light guide having a circular or polygonal cross section, on which a first prism 111 and a second prism 112 are provided. The light guide 11 may be curved to match the surface shape of the instrument panel 20.

[0023] 3, both end faces 113 of the light guide 11 serve as light intake surfaces. Light emitted from the light emitting device 10 enters the light guide 11 from both end faces 113 and propagates in the length direction of the light guide 11. When the light propagating inside the light guide 11 is reflected by the first prism 111, it is emitted from the light guide 11 in a first direction D1, and when the light is reflected by the second prism 112, it is emitted from the light guide 11 in a second direction D2.

[0024] The outer lens 12 is made of a material such as PC (polycarbonate) that can transmit the light emitted from the light emitting device 10. The outer lens 12 also has a first flat plate portion 121 for transmitting the light emitted from the light guide 11 in a first direction D1, and a second flat plate portion 122 for transmitting the light emitted from the light guide 11 in a second direction D2.

[0025] The first flat plate portion 121 is disposed opposite the first prism 111 (so as to be substantially parallel to the plane on which the first prism 111 is provided) so as to increase the transmittance of light emitted from the light guide 11 in the first direction D1. Similarly, the second flat plate portion 122 is disposed opposite the second prism 112 (so as to be substantially parallel to the plane on which the second prism 112 is provided) so as to increase the transmittance of light emitted from the light guide 11 in the second direction D2.

[0026] The outer lens 12 is provided so as to cover the light extraction side of the light guide 11 and so that its longitudinal direction is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the light guide 11. When the light guide 11 is curved to match the surface shape of the instrument panel 20, the outer lens 12 is also curved to match the light guide 11.

[0027] Furthermore, portions of outer lens 12 other than first flat plate portion 121 and second flat plate portion 122 may be colored black or white by painting or the like so as to prevent light emitted from light emitting device 10 from passing through.

[0028] The housing 13 is made of a material that is opaque to the light emitted from the light emitting device 10, such as PCABS that is colored black or white.

[0029] (Modification) The configuration of the lighting device according to the present invention for emitting light in the first direction D1 and the second direction D2 is not limited to the configuration of the lighting device 1 described above, which uses a light guide 11 having a first prism 111 and a second prism 112.

[0030] 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of an instrument panel 20 in which an illumination device 3, which is a modified example of the illumination device 1, is installed. The illumination device 3 differs from the illumination device 1 in that it includes two light guides, a rod-shaped light guide 31a for emitting light in a first direction D1 and a rod-shaped light guide 31b for emitting light in a second direction D2. The illumination device 3 is installed in the space 23 of the instrument panel 20, similar to the illumination device 1.

[0031] The lighting device 3 includes a light emitting device 10 as a light source, rod-shaped light guides 31a and 31b that take in light emitted from the light emitting device 10, propagate the light inside, and emit the light, an outer lens 32 that can transmit the light emitted from the light guide 31a, an outer cover 34 that blocks a part of the light emitted from the light guide 31b to limit the irradiation range, and a housing 33 that houses the light guides 31a and 31b, fixes the light emitting device 10 to both ends of the light guides 31a and 31b, and fixes the outer lens 32 and the outer cover 34 to the light extraction sides of the light guides 31a and 31b. The lighting device 3 is attached to the space 23 so that the longitudinal direction of the light guides 31a and 31b is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the space 23 (the vehicle width direction).

[0032] The light guides 31a and 31b are arranged vertically, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, so that the light guide 31a for emitting light in a first direction D1 is located on the upper side and the light guide 31b for emitting light in a second direction D2 is located on the lower side.

[0033] The light guides 31a and 31b are made of a material such as transparent acrylic that can transmit the light emitted from the light emitting device 10. As shown in Fig. 4, the light guide 31a has a first prism 311 for reflecting and emitting the light propagating inside in a first direction D1, and the light guide 31b has a second prism 312 for reflecting and emitting the light propagating inside in a second direction D2. The first prism 311 is provided along the length direction of the rod-shaped light guide 31a, and the second prism 312 is provided along the length direction of the rod-shaped light guide 31b.

[0034] The first prism 311 is composed of, for example, a group of linear grooves arranged on a plane facing the opening of the space 23, each extending along a direction perpendicular to the length direction of the light guide 31a. The second prism 312 is composed of, for example, a group of linear grooves arranged on a plane facing the upper surface 221 of the lower panel 22, each extending along a direction perpendicular to the length direction of the light guide 31b.

[0035] The linear grooves constituting the first prism 311 and the second prism 312 are, for example, straight grooves having a V-shaped cross section. Also, the first prism 311 and the second prism 312 may be constituted by a group of linear protrusions instead of a group of linear grooves. In this case, the linear protrusions are, for example, straight protrusions having a triangular cross section.

[0036] The light guide 31a is a rod-shaped light guide having a circular or polygonal cross section and provided with a first prism 311, and the light guide 31b is a rod-shaped light guide having a circular or polygonal cross section and provided with a second prism 312. The light guides 31a and 31b may be curved to match the surface shape of the instrument panel 20.

[0037] Similar to the light guide 11, the light guides 31a and 31b have both end faces serving as light intake surfaces. Light emitted from the light emitting device 10 enters the light guides 31a and 31b from both end faces and propagates in the length direction of the light guides 31a and 31b. When the light propagating inside the light guide 31a is reflected by the first prism 311, it is emitted from the light guide 31a in a first direction D1, and when the light propagating inside the light guide 31b is reflected by the second prism 312, it is emitted from the light guide 31b in a second direction D2.

[0038] The outer lens 32 is made of a material such as PC (polycarbonate) that can transmit the light emitted from the light emitting device 10. The outer lens 32 is provided so that its longitudinal direction is aligned with the longitudinal direction of the light guide 31a so as to cover the light extraction side of the light guide 31a. When the light guide 31a is curved to match the surface shape of the instrument panel 20, the outer lens 32 is also curved to match the light guide 31a.

[0039] The outer cover 34 is made of a material such as PCABS colored in black or white that does not transmit the light emitted from the light emitting device 10. The outer cover 34 is arranged to cover a part of the upper side of the light extraction side of the light guide 31b so as to block light that is emitted from the light guide 31b and does not proceed toward the upper surface 221 of the lower panel 22 but proceeds directly toward the opening of the space 23. When the light guide 31b is curved to match the surface shape of the instrument panel 20, the outer cover 34 is also curved to match the light guide 31b.

[0040] The housing 33 is made of a material that is opaque to the light emitted from the light emitting device 10, such as PCABS that is colored black or white.

[0041] In addition, the lighting device according to the present invention may emit light from a spot light source in the first direction D1 and the second direction D2 without using a light guide. In this case, a lamp unit with a circular lens as a spot light source is prepared and installed in the space 23 of the instrument panel 20 so that its optical axis faces the first direction D1. As a result, the light traveling on the optical axis becomes direct light that is directly visible to the occupant sitting in the seat 26, and a part of the light diffusing from the circular lens travels in the second direction D2 and becomes indirect light that is visible to the occupant after being reflected by the upper surface 221 of the lower panel 22. In this configuration, it is preferable to arrange the lamp unit in such a direction that the copper wire extending from the connector does not contact the lower panel 22 (the circular lens is on the lower side, and the connector side on the opposite side is hidden behind the upper panel 21) and reduce the area of ​​the design part (the circular lens of the lamp unit and its periphery) that is visible to the occupant.

[0042] (Effects of the embodiment) The lighting device according to the embodiment of the present invention described above has a function of direct illumination by using light emitted in a first direction D1 and a function of direct illumination by using light emitted in a second direction D2. indirectTherefore, the lighting device according to the embodiment of the present invention can be used for a wide range of purposes such as a notification function for passengers and ambient illumination.

[0043] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. Furthermore, the components of the above embodiment can be combined in any manner without departing from the spirit of the invention.

[0044] In addition, the above-described embodiments do not limit the scope of the invention according to the claims. Also, it should be noted that not all of the combinations of features described in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the means for solving the problems of the invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0045] 1, 3 Lighting equipment 10 Light emitting device 11, 31a, 31b light guide 111, 311 First Prism 112, 312 Second Prism 12, 32 Outer lens 121 First plate section 122 Second plate section 20 Instrument Panel 21 Upper Panel 22 Lower Panel 221 Top surface 23 Space

Claims

1. An illumination device is provided on a side opposite to a seat of a space that is provided between an upper panel and a lower panel that constitute an instrument panel in a vehicle cabin and that opens toward a seat, and emits light in a first direction from the space toward the seat to be directly viewed by an occupant sitting in the seat, and emits light in a second direction from the space toward the lower panel to be viewed by the occupant after being reflected by the lower panel, A light source that emits light; A light guide that takes in light emitted from the light source, propagates the light therethrough, and emits the light; an outer lens made of a material that transmits light emitted from the light source; Equipped with the light guide has a first prism for reflecting and emitting the light propagating inside in the first direction, and a second prism for reflecting and emitting the light propagating inside in the second direction, the outer lens has a first flat plate portion for transmitting light emitted in the first direction from the light guide, The first flat plate portion is located at a position visible to a seated occupant. Lighting equipment.

2. The outer lens has the first flat portion and a second flat portion for transmitting light emitted from the light guide in the second direction.

10. The lighting device of claim 1.

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