Collimated LED Array with Interchangeable Beam Directors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional LED arrays with reflector cups are challenging and costly to manufacture uniformly, especially for high-intensity applications requiring specific beam characteristics, as they need multiple arrays to be tested and produced.
Innovation Solution
An LED array with a separately formed director attachment that can be affixed to a substrate, featuring beam directors arranged to control light output, allowing for interchangeable designs and improved light beam characteristics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If reflector cups are used in LED arrays, then light direction control is improved, but manufacturing complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The reflector cup is divided into a base portion and a director attachment portion. The director attachment is a separate component that can be removed and replaced, allowing different beam patterns to be achieved without manufacturing entirely new reflector cups. This segmentation reduces manufacturing complexity while maintaining light direction control.
Solution Approach 2:
The beam-directing function is extracted from the reflector cup structure and placed into a separate director attachment component. This allows the director attachment to be independently manufactured and swapped, simplifying the overall manufacturing process while preserving the ability to control light direction and beam characteristics.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple LED/reflector cup arrays are manufactured to test different beam characteristics, then beam customization is improved, but production cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The director attachment is designed to be interchangeable, allowing the same LED array to be configured with different director attachments to produce different beam patterns. This dynamic reconfigurability enables beam customization without manufacturing multiple fixed arrays, significantly reducing production costs.
Solution Approach 2:
A single LED array with interchangeable director attachments can serve multiple beam pattern requirements. The director attachments are designed with universal mounting features that allow them to be swapped on the same base portion, making one array versatile for different applications without requiring multiple specialized arrays.
3Stability of the object's composition
If uniform arrays of reflector cups are manufactured, then consistency is improved, but manufacturing difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The reflector cup system is segmented into a standardized base portion and interchangeable director attachments. The base portion can be manufactured uniformly with consistent mounting features, while the director attachments are separate standardized components. This segmentation allows for easier manufacturing of uniform arrays while maintaining consistency through standardized interfaces.
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
Enables the production of high-intensity, collimated beams with adjustable beam angles, reducing manufacturing costs and complexity by allowing for customizable beam director designs and improved light output.
Implementation Method 1
The main function of the reflector cup is to redirect light emitted in certain directions in order to control the far-field intensity pattern of the LED
Data Source
AI summary
A light emitting diode (LED) array with beam directors outputting a high-intensity collimated beam. The LED array is constructed from a substrate component on which the LEDs and necessary electronics are disposed and a director attachment having a plurality of beam directors. The beam directors have a unique structure that is designed to shape the light beam into a collimated form. The LEDs are arranged in a pattern on the substrate, and the beam directors are arranged within the director attachment to coincide with the LEDs. The substrate and the director attachment may be manufactured and processed as separate components; they are then affixed together for operation.