Light-emitting device

Abstract

A light-emitting device (1) is fixed to a mobile body (2). The light-emitting device (1) is provided with: a light source unit (10) which emits light; and a lens (11) which has a bottomed cylindrical shape, on which light emitted by the light source unit (10) is incident, and from which the incident light is also emitted. The lens (11) has: a light-projecting section (110) which constitutes the bottom of the bottomed cylindrical shape and emits light; a wall section (114) which constitutes the cylindrical section of the bottomed cylindrical shape and rises from the outer circumference of the light-projecting section (110); and locking sections (115) that lock and fix the light-emitting device (1) to the mobile body (2).

Description

Light-emitting device

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a light emitting device.

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, vehicle lighting devices have been devised as light-emitting devices that are arranged in automobiles, which are an example of moving objects, and that illuminate the sides of the automobile (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] The vehicle lighting device described in Patent Document 1 includes a light source unit having an illumination lens that emits light, a lamp case that houses the light source unit, and a translucent cover that is molded integrally with the lamp case. A translucent dome portion is formed in the center of the translucent cover, and a lens portion of the illumination lens is positioned facing the translucent cover. The light source unit is housed in the lamp case using support bosses and screws formed on the four corners of the lamp case. The vehicle lighting device is attached to an opening in a vehicle side mirror using mounting tabs and screws formed integrally with the four corners of the lamp case.

[0004] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2021-17228

[0005] However, the vehicle lighting device described in Patent Document 1 has a problem in that the lamp case inside the vehicle becomes large in order to limit the size of the vehicle lighting device that protrudes from the exterior surface of the vehicle. In particular, the lamp case is larger than the translucent dome in plan view, and further, the mounting tabs are formed on the outside of the lamp case, which causes a problem in that the vehicle lighting device becomes large in the direction of expansion in plan view.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a light-emitting device that is more compact.

[0007] A light emitting device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is a light emitting device that is fastened to a moving body, and includes a light source unit that emits light, and a cylindrical lens with a bottom that receives the light emitted by the light source unit and outputs the light that has been incident thereon, and the lens has a light projecting unit that is the bottom of the cylindrical lens and emits the light, a wall that is the cylindrical lens with a bottom and rises from the outer periphery of the light projecting unit, and a fastening unit that fastens the light emitting device to the moving body.

[0008] The present disclosure makes it possible to provide a more compact light emitting device.

[0009] Schematic diagram of a moving body according to embodiment 1. Schematic diagram of a light-emitting device according to embodiment 1. Schematic perspective view of a light-emitting device locked and fixed to a second support according to embodiment 1. Schematic side view of a light-emitting device locked and fixed to a second support according to embodiment 1. Schematic diagram of a light-emitting device viewed from below according to embodiment 1. Schematic diagram of a locking part according to embodiment 1. Schematic perspective view of a light-emitting device locked and fixed to a second support according to embodiment 2. Schematic diagram of a locking part according to embodiment 2. Schematic diagram of a locking part according to embodiment 3.

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiments described below are all comprehensive or specific examples. The numerical values, shapes, materials, components, component placement positions, and connection forms shown in the following embodiments are merely examples and are not intended to limit the present invention. Furthermore, among the components in the following embodiments, components that are not described in the independent claims that represent the highest concepts will be described as optional components. In the description of each embodiment, a description of the same configuration as the previous embodiment will be omitted.

[0011] Note that each figure is a schematic diagram and is not necessarily an exact illustration. Each figure is a schematic diagram in which emphasis, omission, and proportions have been appropriately adjusted to illustrate the present invention, and may differ from the actual shape, positional relationship, and proportions. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the term "match" includes subtle differences such as manufacturing errors. Specifically, the term "match" is used even when there is a difference of 0% to 10% in dimensions.

[0012] In the following embodiments, an orthogonal coordinate system in which three axes, an X axis, a Y axis, and a Z axis, intersect at right angles may be described.

[0013] 1 is a schematic diagram of a moving body 2 according to embodiment 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the moving body 2 includes a first support 20 and a second support 21.

[0014] The first support 20 is, for example, the body of a car, a motorcycle, or the like. The second support 21 is, for example, a side mirror, and is provided on the side of the first support 20. The second support 21 protrudes from the first support 20. The second support 21 is provided with a light emitting device 1 and an imaging device 3. In the following description, the direction perpendicular to the road surface is defined as the up-down direction, i.e., the Z-axis direction.

[0015] The light emitting device 1 is a device that emits light that is detected by the imaging device 3. More specifically, the light emitting device 1 is attached to the second support 21 facing downward so as to emit light toward the road surface. The light emitted by the light emitting device 1 is, for example, near-infrared light with a wavelength of approximately 700 nm to 2500 nm. More specifically, the light emitted by the light emitting device 1 is near-infrared light with a half-width that falls within the range of 700 nm to 2500 nm, and the half-width preferably falls within the range of 900 nm to 1000 nm, and the peak value preferably falls within the range of 900 nm to 1000 nm. However, the light emitted by the light emitting device 1 may be any light that is detected by the imaging device 3, and may be light in the visible light region, for example.

[0016] The imaging device 3 is a device, such as a camera, that captures an image of the road surface around the moving object 2. The imaging device 3 receives light reflected from the road surface, including near-infrared light emitted by the light-emitting device 1. With this configuration, the imaging device 3 can acquire information about the road surface.

[0017] In the first embodiment, the light emitting device 1 and the imaging device 3 are provided on the second support 21, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the light emitting device 1 and the imaging device 3 may be provided on the first support 20.

[0018] Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of the light emitting device 1 according to embodiment 1. As shown in Fig. 2, the light emitting device 1 includes a light source unit 10 that emits near-infrared light, a cylindrical lens 11 that houses the light source unit 10, and a packing 13.

[0019] The light source unit 10 is enclosed in the lens 11 and emits near-infrared light. The near-infrared light emitted by the light source unit 10 passes through the lens 11 and becomes near-infrared light irradiated by the light emitting device 1. The light source unit 10 is, for example, an LED (light-emitting diode) that emits near-infrared light. At this time, the light source unit 10 emits near-infrared light using power supplied from external wiring (not shown) connected to the connector 123.

[0020] The lens 11 is an optical component that irradiates near-infrared light emitted by the light source unit 10 onto a predetermined road surface area, and also serves as the housing of the light-emitting device 1 that houses the light source unit 10. More specifically, the lens 11 has a cylindrical shape with a bottom as a whole, including a cylindrical portion and a bottom. In the first embodiment, the lens 11 has a cylindrical shape with a bottom, including a cylindrical portion and a bottom that covers the opening of the cylindrical portion. The lens 11 is made of a resin, such as an acrylic resin, that has a transmittance of 80% or more for wavelength components of at least 900 nm or more in the wavelength range of near-infrared light. In this case, when the wavelength of visible light is 400 nm to 780 nm, the visible light transmittance of the lens is 10% or less, thereby preventing the internal structure of the lens from being seen from the outside and spoiling the appearance. The lens 11 may have a transmittance of 90% or more for wavelength components of at least 900 nm in the wavelength range of near-infrared light.

[0021] The lens 11 has a light-projecting unit 110 which is the bottom of the cylindrical lens 11 and which irradiates near-infrared light emitted by the light source unit 10, a wall 114 which is the cylindrical portion of the cylindrical lens 11 and rises from the outer periphery of the light-projecting unit 110, and a locking unit 115 which is provided on the wall 114 and which locks and fixes the light-emitting device 1 to the second support 21. By providing a plurality of locking units 115 on the wall 114, the light-emitting device 1 is firmly locked and fixed by the second support 21. In the first embodiment, three locking units 115 are provided on the lens 11.

[0022] The packing 13 is a cushioning material provided on the outer peripheral side surface of the light projecting unit 110. The outer peripheral side surface of the packing 13 coincides with the outer peripheral side surface of the wall unit 114. The packing 13 is, for example, an elastic sponge. However, the packing 13 may also be made of an elastomer having rubber elasticity.

[0023] Fig. 3A is a schematic perspective view of the light emitting device 1 locked and fixed to the second support 21 according to embodiment 1. Fig. 3B is a schematic side view of the light emitting device 1 locked and fixed to the second support 21 according to embodiment 1. Note that Fig. 3B shows the second support 21 in cross section.

[0024] 3A and 3B , the light emitting device 1 is attached to the second support 21 by being inserted into an opening provided in the second support 21. At this time, the outer bottom surface of the lens 11 and the upper surface of the edge of the opening provided in the second support 21 come into contact via the packing 13. Therefore, the packing 13 can suppress abnormal noise caused by vibration between the second support 21 and the light emitting device 1. Furthermore, the inner diameter of the opening provided in the second support 21 is smaller than the outer diameter of the lens 11. This configuration prevents the light emitting device 1 from falling off the second support 21.

[0025] The locking portions 115 refer to first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c provided on the lens 11 and second locking portions 210a, 210b, and 210c provided on the second support 21. The first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c lock and fix the light-emitting device 1 to the second support 21. The first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c are, for example, protrusions molded integrally with the wall portion 114, and have a shape that widens outward as it extends downward. The second locking portions 210a, 210b, and 210c are, for example, claws with through holes, provided on the second support 21 in correspondence with the first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c. When the light emitting device 1 is inserted into the opening provided in the second support 21, the first locking portion 115a engages with the second locking portion 210a, the first locking portion 115b engages with the second locking portion 210b, and the first locking portion 115c engages with the second locking portion 210c, respectively. As a result, the light emitting device 1 is locked and fixed to the second support 21.

[0026] 4 is a schematic diagram of the light emitting device 1 according to the first embodiment, viewed from below. As shown in FIG. 4, the first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c have at least one combination of different sizes. Specifically, there is a combination in which the first locking portions 115a and 115b have the same size, and there is a combination in which the first locking portions 115a and 115b have different sizes from the first locking portions 115a or 115b and 115c. Furthermore, there is at least one combination in which the spacing between adjacent first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c in the circumferential direction of the lens 11 is different. Specifically, the distance between first locking portion 115a and first locking portion 115b and the distance between first locking portion 115b and first locking portion 115c are equal, and the distance between first locking portion 115a and first locking portion 115b or the distance between first locking portion 115b and first locking portion 115c are different from the distance between first locking portion 115a and first locking portion 115c. This configuration makes it possible to prevent incorrect assembly when locking and fixing light emitting device 1 to second support 21.

[0027] The first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c may be of the same size as well as of different sizes, but all of the first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c may be of different sizes. Furthermore, the intervals between adjacent first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c in the circumferential direction of the lens 11 may all be different. This configuration further reduces the likelihood of incorrect assembly when locking and fixing the light-emitting device 1 to the second support 21.

[0028] 5 is a schematic diagram of the first locking portion 115a according to embodiment 1. Here, the structure by which the light emitting device 1 is locked and fixed to the second support 21 will be described using the first locking portion 115a and the second locking portion 210a as examples.

[0029] 5A shows the state before the light emitting device 1 is inserted into the opening of the second support 21. At this time, the first locking portion 115a and the second locking portion 210a are not in contact. FIG. 5B shows the process of inserting the light emitting device 1 into the opening of the second support 21 to a predetermined depth. At this time, the second locking portion 210a interferes with the first locking portion 115a and bends outward as viewed from the light emitting device 1. FIG. 5C shows the state after the light emitting device 1 has been inserted into the opening of the second support 21 to a predetermined depth. At this time, the first locking portion 115a engages with the through hole of the second locking portion 210a.

[0030] In this way, by inserting the light emitting device 1 into the opening of the second support 21 to a predetermined position, the first locking portion 115a is locked and fixed to the second locking portion 210a. The first locking portion 115b is locked and fixed to the second locking portion 210b, and the first locking portion 115c is locked and fixed to the second locking portion 210c in a similar manner. In other words, by inserting the light emitting device 1 into the opening of the second support 21 to a predetermined position, the light emitting device 1 is locked and fixed to the second support 21.

[0031] As described above, the light emitting device 1 according to the first embodiment is fastened to the moving body 2. The light emitting device 1 includes a light source unit 10 that emits light, and a cylindrical lens 11 that receives the light emitted by the light source unit 10 and outputs the light that was incident on it. The lens 11 includes a light projecting unit 110 that is the bottom of the cylindrical lens and emits light, a wall 114 that is also a cylindrical portion with a bottom and rises from the outer periphery of the light projecting unit 110, and a fastening unit 115 that fastens the light emitting device 1 to the moving body 2.

[0032] With this configuration, the light emitting device 1 is fixed to the moving body 2 by the locking portion 115 provided on the lens 11, so that the light emitting device 1 can be made smaller.

[0033] The light projecting portion 110, the wall portion 114, and the locking portion 115 are integrally molded.

[0034] With this configuration, the light emitting device 1 does not have a separate member for fastening and fixing the light emitting device 1 to the second support 21, and therefore the light emitting device 1 can be made smaller.

[0035] The lens 11 also has a packing 13 that surrounds the outer periphery of the light projecting portion 110. The outer periphery side surface of the packing 13 coincides with the outer periphery side surface of the wall portion 114.

[0036] This configuration allows the light emitting device 1 to be reduced in size by suppressing the expansion of the light emitting device 1 in the XY plane direction.

[0037] Furthermore, a plurality of locking portions 115 are provided on the side surface of the wall portion 114 .

[0038] With this configuration, the light emitting device 1 is more firmly locked and fixed to the moving body 2. Furthermore, since the locking portion 115 is provided on the wall portion 114 rising from the outer periphery of the light projecting portion 110, the locking portion 115 does not affect the engineering design of the lens 11.

[0039] The locking portions 115 have at least one combination of different sizes.

[0040] This configuration makes it possible to prevent the light emitting device 1 from being incorrectly assembled to the moving body 2 .

[0041] Furthermore, there is at least one combination in which the intervals between the locking portions 115 adjacent to each other in the circumferential direction of the lens 11 are different.

[0042] This configuration makes it possible to prevent the light emitting device 1 from being incorrectly assembled to the moving body 2 .

[0043] The moving object 2 also includes an imaging device 3 , and the light emitting device 1 emits light that is detected by the imaging device 3 .

[0044] With this configuration, the imaging device 3 can acquire information about the road surface.

[0045] Second Embodiment Next, a light emitting device 1 and a second support 21 according to a second embodiment will be described.

[0046] 6 is a schematic perspective view of the light emitting device 1 locked and fixed to the second support 21 according to the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6 , the light emitting device 1 is attached to the second support 21 by being inserted into the opening of the second support 21 and then rotated about the Z axis. At this time, the outer peripheral side surface of the lens 11 and the inner peripheral side surface of the opening provided in the second support 21 come into contact with each other via the packing 13. Therefore, the packing 13 can suppress abnormal noise caused by vibration between the second support 21 and the light emitting device 1.

[0047] 7 is a schematic diagram of the first locking portion 115a according to the second embodiment. Here, the structure by which the light emitting device 1 is locked and fixed to the second support 21 will be described using the first locking portion 115a and the second locking portion 210a as examples. The first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c are, for example, protrusions integrally molded with the wall portion 114, and have a rectangular parallelepiped shape. The second locking portions 210a, 210b, and 210c are components provided on the second support 21 corresponding to the first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c, and are, for example, claws having a through groove extending in the cylindrical side surface direction of the lens 11.

[0048] FIG. 7A shows the light-emitting device 1 inserted into the opening of the second support 21. At this time, the first locking portion 115a and the second locking portion 210a are not in contact. FIG. 7B shows the process of rotating the light-emitting device 1 inserted into the opening of the second support 21 around the Z axis. At this time, the first locking portion 115a enters the through groove of the second locking portion 210a. As a result, the second locking portion 210a interferes with the first locking portion 115a and bends upward. FIG. 7C shows the light-emitting device 1 inserted into the opening of the second support 21 rotated to a predetermined degree around the Z axis. At this time, the first locking portion 115a engages with the deepest portion of the through groove of the second locking portion 210a.

[0049] In this way, first locking portion 115a is locked and fixed to second locking portion 210a by rotating light emitting device 1 while it is inserted into the opening of second support 21. First locking portion 115b and second locking portion 210b, and first locking portion 115c and second locking portion 210c are also locked and fixed in the same way, so that light emitting device 1 is locked and fixed by inserting it into the opening of second support 21 up to a predetermined position.

[0050] Third Embodiment Next, a light emitting device 1 and a second support 21 according to a third embodiment will be described.

[0051] Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of a first locking portion 115a according to embodiment 3. As shown in Fig. 8, the first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c are used to lock and fix the light emitting device 1 to the second support 21, and are, for example, through holes provided in the wall portion 114. The second locking portions 210a, 210b, and 210c are, for example, a pair of claws each having a protrusion facing the wall portion 114. Note that the first locking portions 115a, 115b, and 115c do not necessarily have to be through holes that penetrate the wall portion 114, but may be recessed relative to the wall portion 114.

[0052] 8(a) shows the state before the light-emitting device 1 is inserted into the opening of the second support 21. At this time, the wall 114 and the second locking portion 210a are not in contact. FIG. 8(b) shows the process of inserting the light-emitting device 1 into the opening of the second support 21 to a predetermined depth. At this time, the second locking portion 210a interferes with the wall 114, and the second locking portion 210a bends outward as viewed from the wall 114. FIG. 8(c) shows the state after the light-emitting device 1 has been inserted into the opening of the second support 21 to a predetermined depth. At this time, the protrusion of the second locking portion 210a is locked and fixed to the first locking portion 115a.

[0053] In this way, first locking portion 115a is locked and fixed to second locking portion 210a by inserting light emitting device 1 up to a predetermined position into the opening of second support 21. First locking portion 115b and second locking portion 210b, and first locking portion 115c and second locking portion 210c are also locked and fixed in the same way, so light emitting device 1 is locked and fixed by inserting it up to a predetermined position into the opening of second support 21.

[0054] (Modifications) Although the light emitting device 1 according to the embodiment has been described above, the light emitting device 1 according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment.

[0055] For example, the lens 11 may not have the packing 13 , and the outer peripheral side surface of the light projecting portion 110 may coincide with the outer peripheral side surface of the wall portion 114 .

[0056] This configuration allows the light emitting device 1 to be reduced in size by suppressing the expansion of the light emitting device 1 in the XY plane direction.

[0057] Furthermore, the light emitting device 1 may be attached to the second support 21 so that the outer bottom surface of the lens 11 contacts the upper surface of the edge of the opening provided in the second support 21. Furthermore, the inner diameter of the opening provided in the second support 21 may be smaller than the outer diameter of the lens 11.

[0058] This configuration prevents the light emitting device 1 from falling off the second support 21 .

[0059] Furthermore, second locking portions 210a, 210b, 210c do not necessarily have to be claws. For example, second locking portion 210a may be cylindrical and surround wall portion 114. In this case, second locking portion 210a may be provided with a protrusion or recess at a position corresponding to first locking portion 115a, so that first locking portion 115a and second locking portion 210a can engage with each other.

[0060] Furthermore, the plurality of locking portions 115 may be provided at equal intervals from one another. In this case, the load of the light emitting device 1 is more easily distributed among the plurality of locking portions 115, so that the light emitting device 1 is more stably locked and fixed.

[0061] In addition, the present disclosure also includes forms obtained by applying various modifications to the above-described embodiments that would occur to those skilled in the art, and forms realized by arbitrarily combining the components and functions of the embodiments within the scope of the present invention. Furthermore, the present invention also includes any combination of two or more claims from the multiple claims set forth in the claims at the time of filing, provided that there is no technical contradiction. For example, when a dependent claim set forth in the claims at the time of filing is made into a multiple claim or multiple multiple claims that cite all of the superordinate claims within the scope of the technical contradiction, the present invention also includes all combinations of claims included in that multiple claim or multiple multiple multiple claims.

[0062] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 light emitting device 10 light source section 11 lens 110 light projecting section 114 wall section 115 locking section 115a, 115b, 115c first locking section 123 connector 13 packing 2 moving body 20 first support 21 second support 210a, 210b, 210c second locking section 3 imaging device

Claims

1. A light-emitting device that is engaged and fixed to a moving body, comprising: a light source unit that emits light; and a cylindrical lens with a bottom into which the light emitted by the light source unit is incident and which emits the incident light, wherein the lens has a light-projecting unit that is the bottom of the cylindrical lens and emits the light, a wall portion that is the cylindrical unit with a bottom and rises from the outer periphery of the light-projecting unit, and a locking unit that engages and fixes the light-emitting device to the moving body.

2. The light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the light projecting portion, the wall portion, and the locking portion are integrally molded.

3. The light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the lens has a packing surrounding the outer periphery of the light projecting portion, and the outer peripheral side surface of the packing coincides with the outer peripheral side surface of the wall portion.

4. The light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein an outer peripheral side surface of the light projecting portion coincides with an outer peripheral side surface of the wall portion.

5. The light emitting device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the locking portion is provided in a plurality on a side surface of the wall portion.

6. The light emitting device according to claim 5, wherein the locking portions have at least one combination of different sizes.

7. The light emitting device according to claim 5, wherein the intervals between adjacent locking portions in the circumferential direction of the lens include at least one combination of different intervals.

8. The light emitting device according to claim 5, wherein adjacent locking portions in the circumferential direction of the lens are provided at equal intervals from each other.

9. The light emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the moving object is equipped with an imaging device, and the light emitting device emits the light that is detected by the imaging device.