Large Area Light Source Using Segmented Light Guide Strips
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing lighting systems fail to efficiently replicate natural sunlight with high brightness and homogeneity across large areas, leading to suboptimal visual comfort and increased manufacturing costs.
Innovation Solution
A light source comprising a light guide unit with multiple strips and a collimation unit, utilizing total internal reflection and collimating elements to emit collimated light, along with a chromatic diffusing layer to achieve uniform luminance and simulate sunlight.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If LED based light sources with phosphor-converted white LEDs are used to provide cool white and warm white light, then the lighting system can achieve high brightness and color rendering, but the optical properties require complex beam shaping optical configurations including collimating optics such as lens and mirror systems
Solution Approach 1:
The light guide is divided into multiple parallel light guide strips, each receiving light from separate light emitting units. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each strip's optical path and enables simpler, more compact collimating elements compared to a single large light guide system
Solution Approach 2:
The light guide strips act as an intermediary between the light emitting units and the collimating elements. They guide and distribute the light in a controlled manner, enabling the use of simpler collimating optics while maintaining high brightness and uniform luminance distribution
2Ease of manufacture
If a single large light source is used to illuminate large areas, then the manufacturing cost can be reduced, but the brightness and homogeneity of luminance across the area deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The light source is segmented into multiple light emitting units distributed across the light guide strips. This segmentation enables each unit to contribute to uniform luminance distribution while maintaining the overall large area coverage, achieving both cost-effectiveness and visual quality
Solution Approach 2:
Each light guide strip and its associated collimating elements are optimized to produce uniform luminance in its local region. The collective effect of multiple strips ensures overall homogeneity across the large area, with each segment contributing to the global quality metric
3Illumination intensity
If light is emitted with high brightness, then the illumination intensity is improved, but the beam divergence increases reducing the collimation quality
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple light guide strips with individual collimating elements allow independent control of beam divergence for each light emitting unit. This segmentation enables optimization of collimation quality without sacrificing the overall brightness, as each strip can be tailored to achieve the desired beam characteristics
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces complex mechanical collimating systems (lenses and mirrors) with a light guide-based optical system that uses total internal reflection and simple refractive elements. This substitution achieves effective collimation with simpler, more compact components that maintain high brightness
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides a high-brightness, homogeneous light beam with low divergence, effectively replicating natural sunlight and reducing manufacturing costs through efficient light guidance and collimation.
Implementation Method 1
Each light guide strip of the plurality of light guide strips is configured for guiding light received at the at least one coupling face. The light may be guided, for example, by total internal reflection.
Implementation Method 2
Each collimating element comprises an input side and an output side, is optically associated to one of the plurality of light source regions, and is configured to receive light emerging from the associated light source region at its input side and to emit collimated light from a respective collimated light emitting region formed at its output side.
Data Source
AI summary
A light source (25) for emitting collimated light (29) in particular for a large area luminaire (21) comprises a light guide unit (43) comprising a plurality of light guide strips (91) configured for guiding light received at the at least one lateral coupling face (47), for example, by total internal reflection. The light guide strips comprise a plurality of localized light source regions (57) at a main front face (55A) for having light pass there through, wherein the light source regions (57) are provided along the light guide strip (91) within a non-source region (59). The light source (25) further comprising a plurality of light emitting units (41) for emitting light into the light guide strips (91) through respective portions of the at least one coupling face (47), and a collimation unit (45) extending along the main front face (55A) and comprising a plurality of collimating elements. Each collimating element comprises an input side and an output side, is optically associated to one of the plurality of light source regions (57), and is configured to receive light emerging from the associated light source region (57) at its input side and to emit collimated light (29) from a respective collimated light emitting region (61) formed at its output side.