Vehicle Lamps

Abstract

To provide a vehicular lamp that comprises a light transmitting lens, and whose external appearance when the lamp is not lit is improved.SOLUTION: A vehicular lamp 1 comprises: a light source part 2; and an outer lens (light transmitting lens) 3 in which light of the light source part 2 is incident on an inner surface, and for emitting the incident light from an outer surface. The outer lens 3 comprises a light emitting surface part 31 for emitting the light, and an erected wall part for 35 for bending the light emitting surface part in the thickness direction of the light transmitting lens. In addition, an inner surface of the erected wall part 35 comprises a light retroreflection part (retroreflection rib) 37 for retroreflecting light incident from an outer surface, toward the outer surface. When the lamp is not lit, external light is retroreflected by the light retroreflection part 37, and emitted from the outer surface, so that the erected wall 35 is prevented from looking dark, and thereby the external appearance of the lamp is improved.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a lamp provided in a vehicle such as an automobile, and more particularly to a vehicle lamp provided with a light-transmitting lens for emitting light. [Background technology]

[0002] There are automotive lamps in which a light source or a light source unit is disposed in a lamp housing having a light-transmitting lens (also called an outer lens or a light-transmitting cover), and light emitted from the light source or the light source unit is emitted through the light-transmitting lens. Patent Document 1 describes a side turn signal lamp disposed in the side mirror (also called a door mirror) of an automobile, and this side turn signal lamp includes a light source composed of a light source and a light guide, and is configured to emit light emitted from the light source through the outer cover. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2015-77911 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the side turning signal lamp (hereinafter, simply referred to as the lamp) of Patent Document 1, a light source is disposed in a cover housing of a door mirror, and an outer cover is disposed in a state where it is exposed to the outside through an opening window opened in the cover housing. Then, light emitted from the light source unit and passing through the outer cover is irradiated from the side of the automobile toward the rear through the opening window of the cover housing.

[0005] In such lamps, in order to make the light exit surface of the outer cover, i.e., the surface that becomes the light-emitting surface when the lamp is turned on, flush with the outer surface of the cover housing due to design requirements, etc., the outer cover is provided with a standing wall portion for bending the light-emitting surface in the plate thickness direction. Since the thickness dimension of this standing wall portion increases along the light exit direction, light absorption is greater than in other parts, and when the light-emitting surface is observed from the outside when the lamp is not turned on, the standing wall portion appears dark, which causes a problem in that the appearance of the lamp is degraded.

[0006] On the other hand, a reflective step called a RR (reflex reflector) that forms a pyramid or regular tetrahedron is formed on the light exit surface of the outer cover in order to improve visibility from the outside when the lamp is not lit. This reflective step is usually made up of multiple pyramidal or regular tetrahedral conical surfaces that are each flat. Therefore, the angle at which light is retroreflected is limited, and when the lamp is not lit, if the lamp is observed from a large angle position diagonally to the left or right, the interior may be seen through depending on the viewing angle, which reduces the external appearance of the lamp.

[0007] An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle lamp having an improved appearance, particularly when the lamp is not lit, of a lamp equipped with a light-transmitting lens. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The present invention provides a vehicle lamp including a light source unit and a light-transmitting lens that receives light from the light source unit on its inner surface and emits the light from its outer surface, the light-transmitting lens including a light-emitting surface that emits light and a vertical wall for bending the light-emitting surface in the thickness direction of the light-transmitting lens, and a light-retroreflection portion on the inner surface of the vertical wall that retroreflects the light incident from the outer surface toward the outer surface. Here, the light-emitting surface includes, for example, a main emission portion that emits the light of the light source unit that is incident thereon, and the vertical wall portion extends along the periphery of the main emission portion.

[0009] In the present invention, for example, the light returning portion is formed integrally with the inner surface of the vertical wall portion and is composed of a retroreflecting rib having a triangular cross section extending along the extending direction of the vertical wall portion, or the light returning portion is formed integrally with the inner surface of the vertical wall portion and is composed of a plurality of pyramidal retroreflecting steps arranged in the extending direction of the vertical wall portion.

[0010] In the present invention, it is preferable that the main emission part has a plurality of lens steps disposed on its inner surface, and that the lens steps are configured to be capable of reflecting light incident from the outer surface of the main emission part and emitting it from the outer surface. In this case, it is preferable that the lens steps are formed in a pyramidal shape, and that the pyramidal surface is formed by a convex or concave spherical surface or a free-form surface. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the present invention, when the lamp is not lit, external light incident on the vertical wall portion from the outer surface of the light-transmitting lens is retroreflected by the light-returning portion provided on the vertical wall portion and emitted from the outer surface of the light-transmitting lens, thereby preventing the vertical wall portion from appearing dark and improving the external appearance of the lamp. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is an external view of a right door mirror to which the lamp of the present invention is applied. [Diagram 2] Cross-sectional view of line II-II in Figure 1. [Diagram 3] Cross-sectional view of line III-III in Figure 1. [Figure 4] FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 2. [Figure 6] FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the outer lens as viewed from the inner surface side. [Figure 8] FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view showing the optical path of external light when the lamp of the embodiment is not lit, and FIG. [Figure 9]FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view showing the optical path of external light when the lamp of the comparative example is not lit, and FIG. [Figure 10] FIG. 9 is a diagram similar to FIG. 8 for explaining a modified example of the light returning portion. [Figure 11] FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view showing the optical path of external light in a lens step of an embodiment, and FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view showing the optical path of external light in a lens step of a reference example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is an external view of an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a side turn signal lamp (hereinafter, abbreviated as STS lamp) 1 incorporated in a right door mirror 100 of an automobile. The right door mirror 100 is attached to the right door 200 of the automobile by an arm part 101, and an opening window 103 is provided in a part of the outer surface of a mirror cover 102 constituting a housing of the right door mirror 100, i.e., in a part facing from the side to the rear of the automobile. The STS lamp 1 is disposed in a part facing the opening window 103 within this mirror cover 102. In the following description, the front-rear direction is a direction based on the automobile or the right door mirror 100.

[0014] 2 and 3 are schematic cross-sectional views of the right door mirror 100, taken along lines II-II and III-III in FIG. 1, respectively. The internal structure of the mirror, which is less relevant to the present invention, is not shown. FIG. 4 is a schematic exploded perspective view of the main parts. The right door mirror 100 has a lamp body 104 integrated with the arm portion 101, and is covered with the mirror cover 102. The lamp body 104 and the mirror cover 102 are each made of a non-transparent resin of a required color, such as ABS resin. A mirror (reflector) 105 equipped with a mirror tilting mechanism (not shown) is attached to the rear surface side of the lamp body 104 facing backward. A lamp chamber is formed by the mirror cover 102 on the opposite side of the front surface side of the lamp body 104, and the STS lamp 1 is disposed inside the lamp chamber.

[0015] 2 to 4, the STS lamp 1 includes a light source section 2 and an outer lens 3. The light source section 2 is composed of a light source 4 and a light guide (herein referred to as an inner lens) 5 that guides the light emitted from the light source 4, and is disposed on the front side of the lamp body 104 and supported by the lamp body 104. The outer lens 3 is a light-transmitting lens in the present invention, and is curved following the curved shape of the outer surface of the mirror cover 102, with a part of it exposed to the outside through an opening window 103 opened in the mirror cover 102, and is supported by the lamp body 104.

[0016] This STS lamp 1 is turned on in a flashing state by the driver operating a switch or the like when changing course or stopping the vehicle. When turned on, light is emitted from a part of the outer lens 3 exposed to the outside through an opening window 103 of the mirror cover 102, and this part from which light is emitted becomes the light-emitting surface of the STS lamp 1. Therefore, hereinafter, the exposed part of the outer lens 3 that becomes the light-emitting surface from which light is emitted when the STS lamp 1 is turned on will be referred to as the light-emitting surface.

[0017] The STS lamp 1 will now be described in detail. Figures 5 and 6 are enlarged views of the main parts of Figures 2 and 3, respectively. The light source 4 of the light source unit 2 includes a plurality of LEDs (light-emitting diodes) 41, three in this case, that emit amber light, and is mounted on a light source board 42 supported by the body 104. Although not shown, the light source board 42 includes a circuit electrically connected to each LED 41, and power is supplied to each LED 41 based on a predetermined signal sent from the vehicle body, causing them to emit light.

[0018] The inner lens 5 of the light source unit 2 is made of a transparent resin such as colorless acrylic, and is formed in a tapered shape with a cross-sectional dimension gradually decreasing from the front end to the rear end, and is formed in a square rod shape or square plate shape curved to approximately follow the curved shape of the outer lens 3. Alternatively, it may be a round or elliptical rod shape or pipe shape. The end face 51 of the front end of the inner lens is disposed opposite the light emitting surface of the LED 41 as a light incident surface. The light emitted by the LED 41 is incident on this light incident surface 51, and the incident light is guided inside the inner lens 5. The light incident surface 51 has a necessary step formed thereon to increase the incidence efficiency of the light from the LED 41, but the description thereof will be omitted here.

[0019] One side of the inner lens 5, i.e., a side 52 facing the opposite side to the outer lens 3, has a number of reflective steps 54 arranged in a longitudinal direction and having a fine lattice-like uneven shape. These reflective steps 54 internally reflect the light guided inside the inner lens 5, so that the side 52 is configured as a light reflecting surface of the inner lens 5.

[0020] In addition, a side surface 53 of the inner lens 5 opposite to the light reflecting surface 52 is configured as a light exit surface that outputs to the outside the light that is internally reflected by the reflection steps 54 of the light reflecting surface 52. The light exit surface 53 is disposed opposite the outer lens 3, and the light that is output from the light exit surface 53 is configured to enter the outer lens 3.

[0021] The outer lens 3 is formed of a colorless light-transmitting member such as transparent acrylic, and is formed in a shape and size that can cover at least the light exit surface 53 of the inner lens 5, as shown in Fig. 4. A part of the outer lens 3, i.e., a portion facing the light exit surface 53 of the inner lens 5, is configured as a light exit surface portion 31 having the same shape as the opening window 103 opened in the mirror cover 102, and this light exit surface portion 31 is disposed inside the opening window 103. This light exit surface portion 31 becomes the light emitting surface of the STS lamp 1 as described above. In addition, the outer lens 3 has a non-light exit surface portion 32 formed around the light exit surface portion 31, and the periphery of this non-light exit surface portion 32 is configured as a support portion 33, and this support portion 33 supports the lamp body 104.

[0022] 7 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the outer lens 3 as viewed from the inner surface side, and a standing wall portion 35 is formed along the periphery of the light exit surface portion 31 of the outer lens 3. This standing wall portion 35 is formed to bend the peripheral portion of the light exit surface portion 31 in the lens thickness direction by a required dimension, and this standing wall portion 35 bends the light exit surface portion 31 in the lens thickness direction at the periphery to a shape that protrudes in the thickness direction beyond the non-light exit surface portion 32. This light exit surface portion 31 is inserted into the opening window 103 from the inner surface side of the mirror cover 102 and is disposed so as to close the opening window 103 from the inside, so that the outer surface of the light exit surface portion 31 is configured to be substantially flush with the outer surface of the mirror cover 102 and is exposed to the outside.

[0023] The light exit surface 31 is configured as a main exit portion 34 in an area surrounded by a peripheral vertical wall portion 35. A number of pyramidal lens steps 36 are formed protrudingly on the inner surface of the main exit portion 34 in a grid-like arrangement. Here, the lens steps 36 are formed in an approximately pyramidal shape, but may be a regular tetrahedron or a shape similar thereto. The triangular pyramidal surface constituting the pyramid of each lens step 36 is formed as a convex spherical surface with a required radius of curvature or a convex free-form surface. The apex angle of the lens step 36 is set by the optical refractive index of the translucent resin constituting the outer lens 3, but is basically set to an approximately right angle or an angle close to it.

[0024] A light returning portion 37 is formed on the inner surface of the standing wall portion 35 along the periphery of the light exit surface portion 31. Here, the light returning portion 37 is formed as a convex returning rib having a triangular cross section and extending along the circumferential direction of the standing wall portion 35. The returning rib 37 is configured to internally reflect light incident from the outer surface of the outer lens 3 in the opposite direction by 180 degrees and emit it from the outer surface. Although the returning rib 37 is formed on the inner surface of the standing wall portion 35, it is not formed in a portion where no standing wall portion exists on a part of the periphery of the main light reflecting surface portion 31 as in this embodiment. The apex angle of the returning rib 37 is set to an angle of approximately 60 to 90 degrees.

[0025] In this embodiment, when the STS lamp 1 is turned on, as shown by the solid arrows in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, when the LED 41 emits light in a blinking state, the emitted amber light is incident on the light incident surface 51 of the inner lens 5 and is guided inside the inner lens 5 toward the rear end. The amber light is internally reflected by the reflecting steps 54 of the light reflecting surface 52 during this guidance and is emitted from the light emitting surface 53. Since the reflecting steps 54 are arranged in the length direction of the light reflecting surface 53, the amber light emitted from the inner lens 5 is emitted with a substantially uniform brightness (luminous intensity) along the length direction of the light emitting surface 53. The LED 41 may be composed of an LED that emits white light, and in that case, the inner lens 5 may be formed of an amber translucent resin and configured to emit the amber light from the light emitting surface 53 of the inner lens 5.

[0026] The amber light emitted from the inner lens 5 is incident on the inner surface of the outer lens 3. Of the incident light, that which is incident on the light exit surface 31 is emitted from the outer surface of the outer lens 3 through the opening window 103 of the mirror cover 102. This provides illumination from the light exit surface 31, and the STS lamp 1 is turned on when viewed from outside the side mirror 100. Note that the light emitted from the inner lens 5 and incident on the non-light exit surface 32 of the outer lens 3 is blocked by the mirror cover 102 and does not contribute to turning on the STS lamp 1.

[0027] Here, the amber light incident from the inner lens 5 to the light exit surface 31 of the outer lens 3 is refracted at a number of lens steps 36 provided in the main exit portion 34. Since the lens steps 36 are pyramidal or have a similar shape, the refracted light is emitted from the main exit portion 34 in a diffused state. Also, the amber light incident from the inner lens 5 to the standing wall portion 35 passes through the standing wall portion 35 while being somewhat diffused by the retroreflecting ribs 37 of the standing wall portion 35, and is emitted to the outside of the outer lens 3. In this way, the amber light transmitted through the light exit surface 31 of the outer lens 3 and emitted from the outer surface has a light distribution characteristic directed to a wide area in the lateral and longitudinal directions of the automobile.

[0028] On the other hand, when the STS lamp is not lit, if the STS lamp is observed from outside the vehicle, the light exit surface 31 of the outer lens 3 exposed through the opening window is visible. In terms of the external appearance at this time, as shown in Fig. 8(a), the main exit portion 34 of the light exit surface portion 31 has lens steps 36 formed on the inner surface in a substantially pyramidal or regular tetrahedral shape, so that external light incident from the outer surface of the main exit portion 34 is reflected by the lens steps 36 and exits from the outer surface of the main exit portion 34. As a result, the main exit portion 34 has the appearance of a large number of lens steps arranged in a grid pattern, each of which shines brightly.

[0029] In addition, since the vertical wall portion 35 of the light exit surface portion 31 has a retroreflecting rib 37 formed on its inner surface, the external light incident from the outer surface of the vertical wall portion 35 is guided inside the vertical wall portion 35, reflected in the opposite direction by the retroreflecting rib 37, and exits from the outer surface of the vertical wall portion 35. This gives the area of ​​the vertical wall portion 35 of the light exit surface portion 31 a bright and shiny appearance. As a result, as shown in FIG. 8(b) , the entire light exit surface portion 31 consisting of the main exit portion 34 and the vertical wall portion 35 has a bright and shiny appearance, improving the appearance of the STS lamp 1 when it is not lit. The retroreflecting rib 37 has a curved top, so that the reflected light is not shaded by the ridge of the top of the retroreflecting rib, further improving the appearance.

[0030] If the retroreflecting ribs were not formed on the inner surface of the vertical wall portion 35 of the light exit surface portion 31 as shown in Fig. 9(a), most of the external light incident on the vertical wall portion 35 from the outer surface of the light exit surface portion 31 would be transmitted through the vertical wall portion 35 and then emitted from the inner surface toward the inside of the mirror cover 102. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 9(b) as a schematic diagram, when observed from the outside, the region of the vertical wall portion 35 would have a black belt-like appearance, and a black belt-like appearance would be confirmed along the periphery of the light exit surface portion 31, and the vertical wall portion 35 would have an appearance of having a hole, degrading the appearance.

[0031] In this manner, in the embodiment, the retroreflective rib 37 that retroreflects light is formed on the inner surface of the standing wall portion 35 over substantially the entire circumference, and the retroreflective rib 37 retroreflects external light incident from the outer surface of the outer lens 3 toward the outside, preventing the standing wall portion 35 from being observed as a black band. Therefore, the main emission portion 31 of the light emission surface portion 31 and the surrounding standing wall portion 35 each have a bright appearance, improving the appearance of the STS lamp 1 when it is not lit.

[0032] Here, in the embodiment, the light retroreflection portion is formed of retroreflection ribs 37 having a uniform cross-sectional shape along the extension direction of the standing wall portion 35, but as shown in FIG. 10, a configuration may be used in which a plurality of retroreflection steps 37A each having an independent configuration are arranged in the extension direction of the standing wall portion 35. In this case, they may be arranged at the same pitch dimension as the lens steps 36 formed in the main emission portion 34. In this way, when the STS lamp 1 is not lit, the standing wall portion 35 along the periphery of the light emission surface portion 31 has an appearance in which a large number of retroreflection steps 37A are each brightly shining along the circumferential direction of the main emission portion 34. Therefore, the retroreflection steps 37A are blended in with the appearance in which a large number of lens steps 36 arranged in a grid pattern in the main emission portion 34 are each brightly shining, resulting in a unified appearance.

[0033] The light retroreflection portion 37 provided on the inner surface of the standing wall portion 35 is not limited to the retroreflection rib 37 or the retroreflection step 37A described above as long as it is configured to retroreflect light incident from the outside. That is, it may be configured as a simple light reflecting surface, and for example, although not shown, it may be configured such that a light reflecting material such as aluminum is applied to the inner surface of the standing wall portion 35, or a light reflecting material is bonded to the inner surface.

[0034] As shown in the cross-sectional view of Fig. 11(a), the lens steps 36 provided in the main emission section 34 of the light emission surface 31 have four triangular cone surfaces 36a constituting each lens step 36, which are formed of a convex spherical surface with a required radius of curvature or a free convex curved surface. Therefore, when the STS lamp 1 is turned on, the amber light incident on the outer lens 3 from the inner lens 5 is refracted by the lens steps 36, but since the cone surfaces 36a are formed of a convex spherical surface or a convex curved surface, the refracted light is converged and then diverged as shown by the solid arrows, compared to when the cone surface is formed of a flat surface, and the light diffusion effect is enhanced. This improves the uniformity of brightness on the light emission surface 31 when the lamp is turned on.

[0035] Even when the STS lamp 1 is not lit, the conical surface 36a of the lens step 36 is composed of a convex spherical surface and a convex curved surface, so that the light beam (beam of light) that is incident from the outer surface of the outer lens 3 and reflected by the lens step 36 is converged or diverged by reflection, as shown by the dashed arrow. Therefore, some of the light cannot satisfy the condition for internal reflection and is emitted to the outside of the outer lens 3, and some of the light is re-incident on the outer lens 3 through the adjacent lens step 36. This re-incident light is reflected by the lens step 36 and emitted from the outer surface of the outer lens 3. As a result, the light incident on the outer lens 3 from the outside is reflected by the lens step 36 and the emission area of ​​the light that is emitted from the outer surface is expanded, and the light emission surface portion 31 has a bright appearance even when the STS lamp 1 is observed from a wide angle area in the left-right and up-down directions, improving the appearance.

[0036] 11(b), in the lens step 36 in which the conical surface 36b is a flat surface, when the STS lamp 1 is turned on, the amber light incident on the outer lens 3 from the inner lens is refracted by the lens step 36, and the angular range of the refracted light is not expanded as shown by the solid arrow, and the light diffusion effect is small. Therefore, it may be difficult to obtain uniform brightness on the light exit surface 31 when the light is turned on.

[0037] Furthermore, as shown by the dashed arrow, when the STS lamp 1 is off, the light incident from the outer surface of the outer lens 3 is reflected by the conical surface 36b of the lens step 36 with a substantially constant luminous flux and is hardly expanded, and almost no light is transmitted to the inner surface of the outer lens 3 and re-incident. Therefore, the direction of light emitted from the light exit surface 31 of the outer lens 3 is limited, and when the STS lamp 1 is observed from diagonal directions to the left and right and from diagonal directions to the top and bottom, the uniformity of the brightness of the light exit surface 31 may be lost, which may limit improvements in the external appearance.

[0038] In the present invention, the shape of the outer lens, particularly the configuration of the main emission portion of the light emission surface and the vertical wall portion, is not limited to the configuration of the embodiment. In particular, the light retroreflection portion provided on the vertical wall portion is not limited to the retroreflection rib, retroreflection step, and light reflection surface of the embodiment as long as it has a configuration that retroreflects or simply reflects light.

[0039] In addition, the lens step formed in the main emission part of the outer lens has a function of reflecting light incident from the outer surface of the outer lens in a divergent or convergent state, and has a function of emitting the reflected light from the main emission part toward a wide angle range. For example, the pyramid surface of the lens step may be a concave spherical surface or a concave free-form surface. Alternatively, the lens step may be configured as a cone, and the pyramid surface may be configured as a convex or concave curved surface.

[0040] The present invention is not limited to the STS lamp having the configuration described in the embodiment, but can be applied to a lamp having a configuration in which light from a light source is transmitted through a translucent lens and emitted. Therefore, the present invention can also be applied to a lamp having a configuration in which the light source is not provided with an inner lens as a light source, and the light from the light source is transmitted through the translucent lens directly or after being reflected by a reflector. The translucent lens in the present invention includes not only the outer lens described in the embodiment, but also a translucent member also called a translucent cover. [Explanation of symbols]

[0041] 1 STS lamp (side turn signal lamp: vehicle lamp) 2 Light source section 3 Outer lens (translucent lens) 4 light source 5 Inner lens 31 Light exit surface section 32 Non-light emitting surface section 33 Support part 34 Main emission section 35 Vertical wall 36 Lens Step 36a,36b cone surface 37 Return rib (light return part) 37A Recursive step (optical recursive section) 41 LED (Light Emitting Diode: Light Source) 51 Light incidence surface 52 Light reflective surface 53 Light exit surface 100 Side Mirror 102 Mirror cover 103 Opening window 104 Lamp body 105 Mirror

Claims

1. A vehicle lamp comprising a light source unit and a light-transmitting lens into whose inner surface light from the light source unit is incident and which emits the incident light from its outer surface, wherein the light-transmitting lens comprises a light-emitting surface unit which emits the light, and a vertical wall unit for bending the light-emitting surface unit in the thickness direction of the light-transmitting lens, and a light-returning unit on the inner surface of the vertical wall unit which retroreflects the light incident from the outer surface toward the outer surface.

2. The vehicle lamp according to claim 1 , wherein the light emitting surface portion includes a main emitting portion that emits light incident from the light source portion, and the standing wall portion extends along a periphery of the main emitting portion.

3. 3. The vehicle lamp according to claim 2, wherein the light returning portion is constituted by a retroreflecting rib which is integrally formed on an inner surface of the standing wall portion and extends in the extending direction of the standing wall portion and has a triangular cross section.

4. 3. The vehicle lamp according to claim 2, wherein the light returning portion is formed integrally with an inner surface of the standing wall portion and is composed of a plurality of cone-shaped returning steps arranged in an extending direction of the standing wall portion.

5. 5. The vehicle lamp according to claim 3, wherein the main emission portion has a plurality of lens steps disposed on an inner surface thereof, the lens steps being configured to be capable of reflecting light incident from an outer surface of the main emission portion and emitting the light from the outer surface.

6. 6. The vehicle lamp according to claim 5, wherein the lens step is formed in a cone shape, and the cone surface is formed in a convex or concave spherical surface or a free-form surface.

7. 7. The vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the light source unit includes a light-emitting element and an inner lens that guides light from the light-emitting element and emits the guided light, and the light emitted from the inner lens is incident on an inner surface of the translucent lens.

8. The vehicle lamp according to claim 7, wherein the inner lens includes a light reflecting surface having a reflecting step that internally reflects the guided light, and a light emitting surface that emits the light reflected at the reflecting step toward the translucent lens.

9. 9. The vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle lamp is configured as a side turn signal lamp of an automobile and is mounted in a mirror cover of a side mirror of the automobile, and the light exit surface portion of the outer lens is exposed to the outside through an opening window opened in the mirror cover.

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