Power supply unit and light irradiation system

Abstract

To provide a light irradiation system which makes it easy to clearly distinguish whether the cause of a light source not lighting up despite the start of power sharing to a light irradiation unit is failure or setting.SOLUTION: A light irradiation system includes a light source, and a light control unit that adjusts the brightness of the light source, and when the power supply is started, the light source is lit with a predetermined brightness for a predetermined time regardless of the dimming value set in the light control unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a light irradiation system used for inspection and exposure, and a power supply unit thereof. [Background technology]

[0002] Some inspection light irradiation systems and exposure light irradiation systems are provided with a dimming unit that can adjust the brightness of a light source body according to a user's input. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2012-021889 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in such a light irradiation system, the light source body may not light up even if the power source is connected because the dimming value set in the dimming unit is zero or close to zero. In such a case, there is a problem that the user may mistakenly believe that the light irradiation system has broken down even though it is not. Furthermore, there is a problem that due to this mistake, the user may request the manufacturer or seller to repair the light irradiation system even though it is not broken.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a light irradiation system that makes it easy to clearly distinguish whether the reason why the light source body does not light up is due to a malfunction or due to settings in the dimming section. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In other words, the light irradiation system of the present invention comprises a light source body and a dimming unit that adjusts the brightness of the light source body, and is characterized in that when power supply is started, the light source body is lit up at a predetermined brightness for a predetermined period of time regardless of the dimming value set in the dimming unit. More specifically, the light source is configured to light up at a predetermined brightness regardless of the dimming value for a predetermined period of time before changing to the brightness of the dimming value, either immediately after power supply is started or after a predetermined period of time (e.g., several seconds) has elapsed since power supply was started. In addition, the start of power supply includes, for example, a case where a light irradiation unit constituting a light irradiation system is connected to a power supply unit that supplies power to the light irradiation unit, a case where an ON / OFF switch of the power supply unit is switched to ON while the light irradiation unit and the power supply unit are connected, or a case where an outlet of the power supply unit is connected to an external power supply, or the like.

[0007] According to the light irradiation system configured in this manner, the light source body lights up when power supply to the light irradiation unit starts regardless of the dimming value input to the dimming unit, so that if the light source body lights up when power supply to the light irradiation unit starts, it is understood that there is no malfunction in the light irradiation system, and if the light source body does not light up, it is understood that there is a malfunction in the light irradiation system. As a result, the user can clearly determine whether the reason the light source body does not light up is a malfunction of the light irradiation system or whether the light source body is not lighted up because of a mistake in setting the dimming unit or because the dimming value is zero or close to zero.

[0008] It is preferable to set the light source unit to turn off after lighting for a predetermined period of time at a predetermined brightness, since this lighting is easy to understand as a test lighting to check for a malfunction of the light irradiation system. It is also possible to confirm that the lighting can be controlled to turn off without any problems.

[0009] As a specific embodiment of the present invention, after the light source body is turned off, the light source body is turned on in accordance with the dimming value set in the dimming section.

[0010] In a light irradiation system having a plurality of light source bodies, in order to determine whether each light source body is malfunctioning, all of the plurality of light source bodies may be turned on at a predetermined brightness for a predetermined period of time.

[0011] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the light source is an LED.

[0012] The present invention also includes a power supply unit that supplies power to a light-illuminating unit having a light source body, comprising a dimming section that adjusts the brightness of the light source body, and a control section that reads out the dimming value set in the dimming section and controls the brightness of the light source body, characterized in that when power supply is started, the control section lights up the light source body at a predetermined brightness for a predetermined period of time, regardless of the dimming value set in the dimming section. Effect of the Invention

[0013] When the light source body does not light up even though power is being supplied to the light irradiation unit, it is possible to clearly distinguish whether the cause is a malfunction of the light irradiation system or a problem with the user's settings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] 1 is an overall schematic diagram of a light irradiation system according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a lighting state when power is supplied to the light irradiation unit according to the embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a lighting state of a light irradiation system according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a lighting state of a light irradiation system according to another embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] Hereinafter, an embodiment of a light irradiation system 100 according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0016] The light irradiation system 100 according to this embodiment is used, for example, for surface inspection of various workpieces, and includes, for example, a light irradiation unit 1 having a plurality of light source bodies, and a power supply unit 2 supplying current to the light irradiation unit 1, as shown in FIG.

[0017] The light irradiation unit 1 includes a light source body 11 that emits light to a workpiece, and an ON / OFF switch 12 that can switch ON / OFF a connection between the light source body 11 and a power supply unit. In this embodiment, the multiple light source bodies 11 included in the light irradiation unit 1 are, for example, LEDs.

[0018] The power supply unit 2 includes a drive unit 21 that controls the current value supplied to the light irradiation unit 1, a control unit 22 that outputs a drive signal for controlling the current value by the drive unit 21, a main switch 23 that can switch the connection between the external power supply 3 and the drive unit 21 on and off, and a dimming unit 24 that can adjust the brightness of the light emitted from the light source body 11 by setting a dimming value corresponding to the brightness.

[0019] The driving section 21 includes, for example, a current control mechanism that controls the current supplied from the external power source 3 to the light irradiation unit 1 via the driving section 21 .

[0020] The control unit 22 generates a drive signal and outputs the drive signal to the drive unit 21, for example, reading out a dimming value set in the dimming unit 24 by a user's input and generating a drive signal based on the read dimming value. Structurally, the control unit 22 is a dedicated or general-purpose computer equipped with, for example, a CPU, a memory, an input / output interface, etc. The CPU and its peripheral devices operate according to a program stored in the memory to perform its functions.

[0021] The light control unit 24 can set the brightness at which the light source body 11 is turned on by a user input, and in this embodiment, for example, includes an input means that can input a light control value by rotating an adjustment knob to specify the light control value. Note that the brightness may directly or indirectly indicate the brightness of the light emitted from the light source body 11, and is, for example, illuminance or luminance.

[0022] In the light irradiation system 100 configured in this way, the control unit 22 can adjust the brightness of the light source body 11 in the following manner, for example. The control unit 22 detects the dimming value (brightness) designated by the user in the dimming unit 24, and issues a drive signal for controlling the current value continuously or the ON / OFF duty ratio to bring the current flowing through the light irradiation unit 1 closer to a target current value corresponding to the dimming value. This drive signal causes a current control mechanism provided in the drive unit 21 to control the current flowing through the light irradiation unit 1, and the light emitted from the light source body 11 is controlled to the dimming value (brightness) designated by the user.

[0023] In the light irradiation system 100 according to this embodiment, when the light irradiation unit 1 and the power supply unit 2 are electrically connected to each other by switching ON the ON / OFF switch 12 provided in the light irradiation unit 1, the light source body 11 is turned on for a predetermined time at a predetermined brightness regardless of the dimming value set in the dimming section 24.

[0024] The light irradiation system 100 further includes a sensing mechanism (not shown) for detecting ON / OFF of the ON / OFF switch 12 and the main switch 23, for example, and when the control unit 22 recognizes, for example, by a signal from the sensing mechanism, that the power supply unit 2 is electrically connected to the light irradiation unit 1 by switching the ON / OFF switch 12 to ON, the control unit 22 generates a drive signal for turning on the light source body 11 at a predetermined brightness stored in the control unit 22, for example, without referring to the dimming value input to the dimming unit 24. More specifically, the control unit 22 generates a drive signal for turning on all of the multiple light source bodies 11 at the same time, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, and outputs the drive signal to the drive unit 21.

[0025] In this embodiment, all of the light source bodies 11 that have been turned on as described above are gradually turned off at a constant speed, for example as shown in Fig. 2, to bring the brightness to zero or near zero. After that, the control unit 22 refers to the dimming value input to the dimming unit 24 and re-controls the brightness of the light source bodies 11 in accordance with the dimming value.

[0026] The predetermined brightness is preferably a brightness that allows a user to clearly determine with the naked eye that the light source body 11 is on, and is not too dazzling when the user looks directly at the light source body 11. More specifically, even when multiple light source bodies 11 are all on at the same time, each of these light source bodies 11 is illuminated at a brightness that allows the user to determine whether it is on or not.

[0027] The light irradiation system 100 configured in this manner can provide the following effects. When the power supply unit 2 is electrically connected to the light irradiation unit 1, the plurality of light sources 11 are configured to light up for a predetermined time at a predetermined brightness, so that, for example, as shown in Fig. 2, when the light irradiation unit 1 is electrically connected to the power supply unit 2 and power is being supplied, but the light source 11 does not appear to be lighted up during use, the user can clearly determine whether or not there is a malfunction in the light irradiation unit 1. Depending on the dimming value set in the dimming section 24, the light source 11 may light up as shown in Fig. 3.

[0028] Since all the light source bodies 11 are simultaneously lit at the predetermined brightness, when any of the plurality of light source bodies 11 is not lit, it can be easily recognized that the light source body 11 that is not lit is faulty.

[0029] Since the light source body 11 is set to be turned off after being turned on for a predetermined period of time at a predetermined brightness, it is possible to distinguish whether the light source body 11 is turned on because the power supply unit 2 is connected, or whether the light source body 11 is turned on at the brightness set in the dimming section 24. It is also possible to confirm that the light source body 11 can be controlled to be turned off without any problems.

[0030] The predetermined brightness is a brightness that clearly indicates that the light source body 11 is on, but is not too dazzling, so that even when a very bright LED for surface inspection is used as the light source body 11 as in this embodiment, the user can easily check whether each of the multiple light source bodies 11 is all on.

[0031] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. The predetermined time is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, a time period that allows the user to sufficiently check whether each of the plurality of light source bodies is turned on.

[0032] The light source body may be configured to light up immediately after the start of power supply to the light irradiation unit as shown in FIG. 2, for example, or may be configured to light up after a certain period of time has elapsed since the start of power supply, for example, a few seconds.

[0033] When power supply to the light irradiation unit is started, the light source bodies do not necessarily need to be turned on at the same time, and for example, when there are a large number of light source bodies, the light source bodies may be turned on in groups of several light source bodies in sequence. The same applies to the case where the light source bodies are turned on once and then turned off.

[0034] Once the light source body is turned on, it does not necessarily have to be turned off, and may be controlled so that the dimming value input to the dimming unit is obtained from the state in which the light source body is turned on at the predetermined brightness, as shown in Fig. 4. In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the light source body is turned on and then gradually turned off, but it may be turned off immediately instead of gradually.

[0035] When the power supply to the light irradiation unit is started, the control unit may refer to the dimming value set in the dimming unit. Specifically, when the dimming value set in the dimming unit is smaller than the predetermined brightness, as described above, the light source body is turned on once at the predetermined brightness and then controlled to a brightness based on the dimming value, and when the dimming value set in the dimming unit is equal to or larger than the predetermined brightness, the control unit may directly control the brightness to be based on the dimming value set in the dimming unit without turning on the light when the power supply is started.

[0036] It is preferable that the predetermined brightness is set at the time of manufacture and cannot be changed by the user later, but it may also be possible for the manufacturer or user to reset it after manufacture or sale, for example, provided that a predetermined procedure is followed.

[0037] The present invention is not limited to the light irradiation system for surface inspection, but can be widely applied to the light irradiation system for exposure and other light irradiation systems. The number of light source bodies included in the light irradiation system can be appropriately changed according to the application of the light irradiation system, and may be one or more. Needless to say, each of the components of the light irradiation system, such as the light source body, the drive unit, the control unit, and the dimming unit, can be appropriately changed depending on the application of the light irradiation system.

[0038] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it goes without saying that various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0039] 100···Light irradiation system 1. Light irradiation unit 11...Light source (LED) 12 ON / OFF switch 2 Power supply unit 21 Drive unit 22 Control section 24 ···Light control section 3...External power supply

Claims

1. A light source; A light control unit that adjusts the brightness of the light source body, A light irradiation system characterized in that, when power supply is started, the light source body is turned on at a predetermined brightness for a predetermined time regardless of the dimming value set in the dimming unit, and then the light source body is turned off.

2. The light irradiation system according to claim 1 , wherein after the light source body is turned off, the light source body is turned on in accordance with a dimming value set in the dimming unit.

3. The light irradiation system according to claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of the light source bodies, all of the plurality of light source bodies being turned on at a predetermined brightness for a predetermined period of time.

4. The light irradiation system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the light source is an LED.

5. A lighting control method for a light irradiation system, in which when power supply is started, the light source body is turned on at a predetermined brightness for a predetermined period of time and then turned off, regardless of a dimming value set in a dimming unit that adjusts the brightness of the light source body.

6. A power supply unit for supplying power to a light irradiation unit having a light source body, A light control unit for adjusting the brightness of the light source body; a control unit that reads out the dimming value set in the dimming unit and controls the brightness of the light source body; A power supply unit characterized in that, when power supply is started, the control unit turns on the light source body at a predetermined brightness for a predetermined time regardless of the dimming value set in the dimming unit, and then turns off the light source body.

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