Vehicle lighting fixtures

Abstract

To provide a light guide lens that can improve the appearance of light emission even if a viewing angle from a front view is increased.SOLUTION: A light guide lens guides light L emitted from a light source, and comprises a first light guide part 7 extending in one direction, a second light guide part 8 protruded toward the side of a front surface of the first light guide part 7 from at least one end part of the first light guide part 7 along the one direction, an incidence part located on the side of one end of the first light guide part 7 in the one direction, a first reflecting part 11 located on the side of a back surface of the first light guide part 7, a first emitting part 12 located on the side of the front surface of the first light guide part 7, a connection part 9 located between the first light guide part 7 and the second light guide part 8, and a second emitting part 14 located on the side of a surface of the second light guide part 8 on which the first light guide part 7 is located.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention ,car Regarding dual-purpose lighting fixtures. [Background technology]

[0002] BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, a combination of a light source such as a light emitting diode (LED) and a light guide lens (light guide) such as an inner lens has been known as a vehicle lamp to be mounted on a vehicle (see, for example, Patent Document 1 below).

[0003] In such a vehicle lamp, light emitted from a light source enters the light guide lens from one end side and is repeatedly reflected inside the light guide lens while being guided toward the other end side of the light guide lens, and light reflected by a plurality of reflection cutouts provided on the back side of the light guide lens is emitted to the outside from the front side of the light guide lens, thereby making it possible to make the front side of the light guide lens emit light as a light-emitting portion of the vehicle lamp. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-116142 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in the conventional vehicle lighting fixtures described above, when the viewing angle of the light guide lens from the front becomes large, for example, when the front side of the light guide lens is viewed from diagonally above, the area of ​​the light emitting portion that is visible becomes smaller than when the light guide lens is viewed from the front, and the light emitting portion is perceived as dark.

[0006] Therefore, when the viewing angle from the front of the light guide lens becomes large, the difference in brightness of the emitted light changes more than when the light guide lens is viewed from the front, which can make the light emitting part look unattractive.

[0007] The present invention has been proposed in view of the above-mentioned conventional circumstances, and makes it possible to improve the appearance of light emission even when the viewing angle from the front is increased. Car To provide a dual-purpose lamp. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following means: 。 [ 1 a light source that emits light; a light guide lens that guides the light emitted from the light source; 、 a light-emitting lens disposed in front of the light-guiding lens; Equipped with The light guide lens extends in one direction. Plate-shaped a first light guiding portion; a projection protruding from at least one end of the first light guiding portion along the one direction toward the front side of the first light guiding portion; Plate-shaped a second light guiding portion; an incident portion located on one end side of the first light guiding portion in the one direction and allowing the light emitted from the light source to enter the inside of the first light guiding portion; a connecting portion located between the first light guiding portion and the second light guiding portion, which guides a portion of the light guided inside the first light guiding portion toward the inside of the second light guiding portion, the light-emitting lens is disposed with a space between it and the first light-guiding part, The first light guiding portion Located on the rear side, From the entrance Light incident on the rear side Correct a first reflecting portion that reflects light toward the surface side; Positive The light reflected by the first reflecting portion is reflected by the second reflecting portion. through the space toward the rear side of the light-emitting lens a first emission section for emitting light; have , The second light guiding portion is Located to the side, It has guided the interior Light Through the space, diagonally upward toward the rear side of the light-emitting lens The second emission Department Yes death, The second light output section has a plurality of diffusion cuts that diffuse and output the light that has been guided inside the second light guide section. A vehicle lamp characterized by: [2] A light-blocking member is provided which has an opening corresponding to a light-emitting surface provided on the front side of the light-emitting lens and is arranged to cover the front side of the light-emitting lens; The vehicle lamp according to [1], wherein the light blocking member is provided so as to block light emitted from other than the light emitting surface of the light emitting lens. [3] The vehicle lamp according to [2], wherein the light-emitting lens has a plurality of light distribution cuts that control the distribution of light emitted from the light-emitting surface. [4] The vehicle lamp according to [3], wherein the plurality of light distribution cuts include cuts that diffuse light in the vertical and horizontal directions. [ 5 a reflector disposed opposite to a rear surface of the first light guiding section and a surface of the second light guiding section opposite to a side on which the first light guiding section is located, The reflector reflects light emitted to the outside from the rear surface side of the first light guiding section and the surface side of the second light guiding section opposite to the side where the first light guiding section is located, and causes the light to enter the inside of the first light guiding section and the second light guiding section again. Any one of [1] to [4] The vehicle lighting fixture according to claim 1. [6] The vehicle lamp according to any one of [1] to [5], which constitutes a vehicle side lamp. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to improve the appearance of light emission even when the viewing angle from the front is increased. Car It is possible to provide a dual-purpose lamp. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a vehicle lamp including a light guide lens according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 2 is a perspective view of the light guide lens shown in FIG. 1 as seen from the front side. [Figure 3] 2 is a perspective view of the light guide lens shown in FIG. 1 as seen from the rear side. [Figure 4] 3 is an enlarged perspective view of the light guide lens of a circled portion A shown in FIG. 2. FIG. [Figure 5] 5 is a cross-sectional view of the light guide lens taken along line segment BB shown in FIG. 4. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings used in the following description, the dimensions of the components may be shown at different scales to make them easier to see, and the dimensional ratios of the components may not necessarily be the same as in reality.

[0012] As one embodiment of the present invention, a vehicle lamp 1 shown in, for example, FIGS. 1 to 5 will be described. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a vehicle lamp 1 equipped with a light guide lens 3. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the light guide lens 3 as seen from the front side. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the light guide lens 3 as seen from the rear side. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the light guide lens 3 with an enlarged portion A shown in FIG. 2 enlarged. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the light guide lens 3 taken along line segment BB shown in FIG. 4.

[0013] In addition, in the drawings shown below, an XYZ Cartesian coordinate system is set up, with the X-axis direction representing the front-to-rear direction (length direction) of the vehicle lighting fixture 1, the Y-axis direction representing the left-to-right direction (width direction) of the vehicle lighting fixture 1, and the Z-axis direction representing the up-to-down direction (height direction) of the vehicle lighting fixture 1.

[0014] The vehicle lamp 1 of this embodiment is an application of the present invention to a vehicle side lamp (position lamp) mounted on both corners on the front end side of a vehicle (not shown), for example.

[0015] In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the terms "front," "rear," "left," "right," "upper," and "lower" refer to the respective directions when viewing the vehicle lighting fixture 1 from the front (front of the vehicle).

[0016] As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle lamp 1 of this embodiment comprises a light source 2, a light-guiding lens 3, a reflector 4, a light-emitting lens 5, and an extension 6, all of which are arranged inside a lamp body (not shown).

[0017] The lamp body is composed of a housing with an opening at the front and a transparent cover lens (outer lens) that covers the opening of the housing. The shape of the lamp body can be changed as needed to match the design of the vehicle.

[0018] The light source 2 is formed of, for example, an LED that emits white light (hereinafter simply referred to as “light”) L, and emits the light L radially toward the light guide lens 3.

[0019] 1 to 5, the light guide lens 3 is made of a light guide body that guides the light L emitted from the light source 2. The light guide lens 3 can be made of a light-transmitting member made of a material with a refractive index higher than that of air, such as a transparent resin such as polycarbonate or acrylic, or glass.

[0020] The light-guiding lens 3 has a plate-shaped first light-guiding section 7 extending in one direction (in this embodiment, the width direction of the vehicle lamp 1), a plate-shaped second light-guiding section 8 protruding from at least one end (in this embodiment, the lower end) along the one direction of the first light-guiding section 7 toward the front side of the first light-guiding section 7, and a connecting section 9 connecting the lower end of the first light-guiding section 7 and the rear end of the second light-guiding section 8.

[0021] The light-guiding lens 3 has an incident section 10 located at one end side in one direction of the first light-guiding section 7, a first reflecting section 11 located on the back side of the first light-guiding section 7, a first exit section 12 located on the front side of the first light-guiding section 7, a second reflecting section 13 located at the connecting section 9, and a second exit section 14 located on the surface of the second light-guiding section 8 on which the first light-guiding section 7 is located (the upper surface in this embodiment).

[0022] The incident section 10 has a flat (planar) incident surface 10a at the tip of a light guiding rod 7a that extends from one end of the first light guiding section 7 toward the light source 2. Light L emitted from the light source 2 enters the light guiding rod 7a from the incident surface 10a (incident section 10) and is guided toward the other end of the light guiding rod 7a while repeatedly reflected inside the light guiding rod 7a. Furthermore, light L that enters the first light guiding section 7 from one end via the light guiding rod 7a is guided toward the other end of the first light guiding section 7 while repeatedly reflected inside the first light guiding section 7.

[0023] In addition, the incident section 10 is not limited to the configuration of the incident surface 10a described above, and may be configured to collimate or concentrate the light L radially emitted from the light source 2 and enter the inside of the light guiding rod 7a (first light guiding section 7).

[0024] For example, the incident section 10 may have a convex first light-collecting incident surface located at the center of the portion facing the light source 2, onto which a portion of the light L emitted from the light source 2 is incident, a substantially cylindrical second light-collecting incident surface located on the inner side of the portion that protrudes from a position surrounding the first light-collecting incident surface toward the light source 2, onto which a portion of the light L emitted from the light source 2 is incident, and a truncated conical light-collecting reflecting surface located on the outer side of the protruding portion, which reflects the light L incident from the second light-collecting incident surface, so that the light L incident from the first light-collecting incident surface is concentrated toward the optical axis, and the light L incident from the second light-collecting incident surface is concentrated toward the optical axis by being reflected by the light-collecting reflecting surface.

[0025] The first reflecting section 11 has a plurality of reflection cuts 11a that reflect light L incident on the back side of the first light guiding section 7 toward the front side of the first light guiding section 7. The plurality of reflection cuts 11a are configured by grooves with a generally V-shaped cross section that are cut out across the top and bottom of the first light guiding section 7 and are periodically arranged in the direction in which the first light guiding section 7 extends (one direction).

[0026] Furthermore, in first reflecting section 11, the depth of the grooves constituting reflection cutout 11a gradually increases from one end to the other end of first light guiding section 7 so that there is no difference in the amount of light (brightness) of light L reflected toward the front side of first light guiding section 7 due to differences in the optical path length of light L guided from one end side to the other end side of first light guiding section 7. This makes it possible to make the light L reflected by the multiple reflection cutouts 11a uniform between one end side and the other end side of first light guiding section 7.

[0027] The first emitting portion 12 has a first emitting surface 12a that emits the light L reflected by the first reflecting portion 11 to the outside of the first light guiding portion 7. The first emitting surface 12a is configured as a flat surface, and emits the light L reflected by the first reflecting portion 11 toward the front of the vehicle lamp 1.

[0028] Second reflecting portion 13 has reflecting surface 13a that reflects a portion of light L (hereinafter referred to as "light L'") guided inside first light guiding portion 7 toward the inside of second light guiding portion 8. Reflecting surface 13a is configured as a surface that is curved concavely toward the front side of second light guiding portion 8. As a result, a portion of light L (light L') that enters the inside of first light guiding portion 7 is reflected by second reflecting portion 13 of connecting portion 9 while being guided toward the other end side of first light guiding portion 7, and enters the inside of second light guiding portion 8. Furthermore, light L' reflected by reflecting surface 13a is repeatedly reflected inside second light guiding portion 8 and is guided toward the front side of second light guiding portion 8.

[0029] The second reflecting section 13 is not limited to the configuration of the reflecting surface 13a described above, and may have a configuration including a reflecting surface inclined toward the front side of the second light guiding section 8. The second reflecting section 13 may also have a configuration in which a plurality of reflecting surfaces (reflection cuts) are periodically arranged.

[0030] Second exit section 14 has second exit surface 14a that emits light L', which is guided inside second light-guiding section 8, to the outside of second light-guiding section 8. Second exit section 14 also has a plurality of diffusion cuts 15 that diffuse light L', which has entered second exit surface 14a, and emits the light L' while diffusing it.

[0031] In this embodiment, a flute cut is provided as diffusion cut 15, which diffuses light L' emitted from second exit surface 14a in the direction (one direction) in which second light guiding section 8 extends. Note that diffusion cut 15 is not necessarily limited to a configuration in which such a flute cut is provided, and for example, it may be a configuration in which a knurled cut is provided, which diffuses light L' emitted from second exit surface 14a in the direction in which second light guiding section 8 extends and in a direction perpendicular to that.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 1, the reflector 4 is disposed opposite the back surface of the first light guiding section 7 and the surface of the second light guiding section 8 opposite the side on which the first light guiding section 7 is located (the lower surface in this embodiment).

[0033] Reflector 4 is made of a reflective material having light diffusibility, such as white glass epoxy resin, or a reflective material provided with a reflective film, such as an aluminum vapor deposition film. Reflector 4 has reflective surfaces 4a and 4b on the surfaces facing first light guiding section 7 and second light guiding section 8, and reflects light L and L' emitted to the outside from the back surface side of first light guiding section 7 and the lower surface side of second light guiding section 8 by reflective surfaces 4a and 4b, and causes the light L and L' to enter the first light guiding section 7 and second light guiding section 8 again.

[0034] As a result, light L, L' that leaks out of the first light guiding section 7 and the second light guiding section 8 (light guiding lens 3) is reflected by the reflector 4, enters the light guiding lens 3 again, and is finally emitted from the first exit section 12 and the second exit section 14, thereby making it possible to increase the utilization efficiency of light L, L'.

[0035] The reflector 4 is not necessarily a necessary component and may be omitted in some cases.

[0036] The light-emitting lens 5 is disposed in front of the light-guiding lens 3, and receives the light L, L' emitted from the first emission part 12 and the second emission part 14 from the rear side, and then emits the light to the outside from the front side. This makes it possible to make the light-emitting surface 5a provided on the front side of the light-emitting lens 5 emit light.

[0037] The light emitting surface 5a is provided with a plurality of light distribution cuts 16 that control the distribution of the light L, L' emitted from the light emitting surface 5a. In this embodiment, the light distribution cuts 16 are fisheye cuts that diffuse the light L, L' emitted from the light emitting surface 5a in the vertical and horizontal directions of the vehicle lamp 1.

[0038] The extension 6 is made of a colored (e.g., black) light-blocking member, has an opening 6a corresponding to the light-emitting surface 5a of the light-emitting lens 5, and is arranged to cover the front side of the light-emitting lens 5. By covering the periphery of the light-emitting surface 5a of the light-emitting lens 5, the extension 6 blocks light L, L' emitted from areas other than the light-emitting surface 5a.

[0039] In the vehicle lamp 1 having the light guide lens 3 of this embodiment configured as described above, the light emitting surface 5a of the light emitting lens 5 can emit white light as a light emitting part of a position lamp.

[0040] In the vehicle lamp 1 of this embodiment, light L is emitted forward from the first emission portion 12 of the light guide lens 3 described above, and light L' is emitted diagonally upward forward from the second emission portion 14.

[0041] This prevents the light emitting range E2 when the front side of the light emitting surface 5a of the light emitting lens 5 is viewed from diagonally above from becoming smaller than the light emitting range E1 when the light emitting surface 5a of the light emitting lens 5 is viewed from the front, when the viewing angle from the front side of the light emitting surface 5a of the light emitting lens 5 becomes larger, for example, when the front side of the light emitting surface 5a of the light emitting lens 5 is viewed from diagonally above.

[0042] Therefore, in the vehicle lamp 1 equipped with the light-guiding lens 3 of this embodiment, when the viewing angle is increased upward, it is possible to prevent the light-emitting surface 5a of the light-emitting lens 5 from appearing dark.

[0043] As described above, in the vehicle lamp 1 equipped with the light-guiding lens 3 of this embodiment, when the viewing angle is increased upward, it is possible to improve the appearance of the light-emitting surface 5a of the light-emitting lens 5 while suppressing changes in the difference in brightness of the light emitted when the light-emitting surface 5a is viewed.

[0044] The present invention is not necessarily limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, the light-guiding lens 3 has a light-guiding rod 7a extending from one end of the first light-guiding section 7 facing the light source 2 to the other end, and an incident surface 10a located at the tip of the light-guiding rod 7a. However, the light-guiding lens 3 is not necessarily limited to this configuration, and may have any configuration in which light L emitted from the light source 2 is incident into the interior of the first light-guiding section 7 from an incident surface 10 located at one end of the first light-guiding section 7 in one direction.

[0045] Furthermore, the light-guiding lens 3 is configured such that the second light-guiding section 8 protrudes from the lower end of the first light-guiding section 7 toward the front side of the first light-guiding section 7, but is not necessarily limited to this configuration, and may be configured such that the second light-guiding section 8 protrudes from the upper end of the first light-guiding section 7 toward the front side of the first light-guiding section 7, or may be configured such that the second light-guiding section 8 protrudes from the lower end and upper end of the first light-guiding section 7 toward the front side of the first light-guiding section 7.

[0046] The vehicle lighting fixtures to which the present invention is applicable are not limited to the above-mentioned position lamps, but can be widely applied to vehicle lighting fixtures having a light-emitting surface, such as turn signals (turn lamps), daytime running lamps (DRLs), tail lamps, brake lamps (stop lamps), and back lamps.

[0047] Furthermore, the light source may be a light emitting element other than the LED described above, such as a laser diode (LD). The color of the light L emitted by the light source is not limited to the white light described above, but may be red, orange, or other color depending on the application of the vehicle lamp. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1...vehicle lamp 2...light source 3...light guide lens 4...reflector 5...light emitting lens 6...extension 7...first light guide section 8...second light guide section 9...connecting section 10...incident section 11...first reflecting section 12...first exit section 13...second reflecting section 14...second exit section 15...diffusion cut 16...light distribution cut

Claims

1. A light source that emits light; a light guide lens that guides the light emitted from the light source; a light-emitting lens disposed in front of the light-guiding lens, The light guide lens includes a first light guide portion having a plate shape extending in one direction; a plate-shaped second light guiding portion protruding from at least one end of the first light guiding portion along the one direction toward a front side of the first light guiding portion; an incident portion located on one end side of the first light guiding portion in the one direction and allowing the light emitted from the light source to enter the inside of the first light guiding portion; a connecting portion located between the first light guiding portion and the second light guiding portion, which guides a portion of the light guided inside the first light guiding portion toward the inside of the second light guiding portion, the light-emitting lens is disposed with a space between it and the first light-guiding unit, the first light guide portion includes a first reflecting portion located on the rear surface side and reflecting the light incident from the incident portion to the rear surface side toward the front surface; a first emission section located on the front side and emitting the light reflected by the first reflection section toward a rear side of the light-emitting lens through the space, the second light guiding section has a second emission section that is located below the space and that emits the light that has been guided inside through the space obliquely upward toward a rear surface side of the light emitting lens, The second light output section has a plurality of diffusion cuts that diffuse and output the light that has been guided inside the second light guide section.

2. A light-shielding member having an opening corresponding to a light-emitting surface provided on the front side of the light-emitting lens and arranged to cover the front side of the light-emitting lens, 2. The vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the light blocking member is provided so as to block light emitted from other than the light emitting surface of the light emitting lens.

3. A vehicle lighting fixture as described in Claim 2, characterized in that the light-emitting lens has multiple light distribution cuts that control the distribution of light emitted from the light-emitting surface.

4. A vehicle lighting fixture as described in Claim 3, characterized in that the multiple light distribution cuts include cuts that diffuse light in the vertical and horizontal directions.

5. a reflector disposed opposite to a rear surface of the first light guiding section and a surface of the second light guiding section opposite to a side on which the first light guiding section is located; The vehicle lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the reflector reflects light emitted to the outside from a back side of the first light guiding section and a surface side of the second light guiding section opposite to the side on which the first light guiding section is located, and causes the light to enter again into the first light guiding section and the second light guiding section.

6. A vehicle lighting fixture described in any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it constitutes a sidelight.

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