Elongated LED Light Pipe with Dichroic Mirror and Down-Conversion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Elongated LED lighting arrangements suffer from low efficiency in converting electricity to light and produce light with an unpleasing color temperature.
Innovation Solution
An elongated LED lighting arrangement featuring a light pipe with a dichroic mirror and down-converting means that absorb and re-emit light to produce a warmer color temperature, enhancing efficiency and aesthetic appeal by intermixing light rays within the light pipe.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If conventional LED lighting arrangements are used, then electricity can be converted to light, but the conversion efficiency is low and the color temperature is unpleasing
Solution Approach 1:
The lighting arrangement is segmented into multiple functional components: a light pipe for light transmission, a dichroic mirror for wavelength separation, and down-converting means for wavelength conversion. This segmentation allows each component to optimize its specific function, improving overall conversion efficiency while enabling precise control over color temperature output.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes parameter changes in light wavelength through the dichroic mirror and down-converting means. The dichroic mirror reflects specific wavelength bands while transmitting others, and the down-converting means converts higher energy wavelengths to lower energy wavelengths, thereby changing the color temperature parameter of the emitted light to achieve aesthetically pleasing warm white light.
2Use of energy by moving object
If a dichroic mirror and down-converting means are added to improve efficiency and color temperature, then conversion efficiency and aesthetic appeal improve, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The dichroic mirror and down-converting means are merged into an integrated assembly that works in conjunction with the light pipe. This merging reduces the number of separate components and simplifies the overall structure while maintaining the advanced functionality for improved conversion efficiency and color temperature control.
Solution Approach 2:
The light pipe serves multiple functions: it transmits light from the LED source, provides a mounting structure for the dichroic mirror and down-converting means, and facilitates the optical interactions necessary for wavelength conversion. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional separate components, thereby managing device complexity.
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 significantly improves the conversion of electricity to light while producing a more aesthetically pleasing warmer color temperature light, enhancing both efficiency and viewer experience.
Implementation Method 1
A first dichroic mirror is interposed between the first LED light source and the first end. The mirror is tuned to pass more than 90 percent of light within the first wavelength band from the first LED light source into the light pipe via the first end.
Implementation Method 2
Down-converting means on the sidewall is tuned to efficiently absorb light rays from the first LED light source within a wavelength range that includes at least 80 percent of the first wavelength range and to emit lower-energy light rays outside of the light pipe at respectively higher wavelengths.
Implementation Method 3
The light pipe comprises homogeneous optical material between the ends.
Data Source
AI summary
An elongated LED lighting arrangement comprises an elongated light pipe with homogeneous optical material between first and second ends. In an exemplary embodiment, an LED provides blue light to the light pipe via a first dichroic mirror tuned to pass blue light. Down-converting means on sidewall of the light pipe, tuned to receive blue light, absorbs blue light from the LED and to emit lower-energy light outside of the light pipe at respectively higher wavelengths. Light-extracting means on the sidewall extract from the light pipe some blue light without changing the wavelengths of the foregoing light. Light from the down-converting means and the light-extracting means are combined to provide a composite color. The first dichroic mirror receives some light emitted by the down-converting means and reflects back into the light pipe more than 80 percent of the light received by the mirror.