Motorcycle Lighting Device with Overlapping Headlights and Flashers

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing vehicle lighting devices do not adequately enhance the conspicuity and area illumination performance by integrating flasher lights with headlamps and position lights, lacking a cohesive design that maximizes light emission range and visual impact.

Innovation Solution

A lighting device configuration featuring overlapping headlamps, position lights, and flasher lights, with the latter placed under the position lights and extending to cover the front fender, utilizing L-shaped inner lenses and reflectors to create continuous light emission surfaces from top to bottom, enhancing visual effects and conspicuity.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Illumination intensity

If headlight, position light, and flasher light are arranged separately without overlap, then each light can be independently designed and manufactured, but the overall conspicuity and continuous light emission surface are reduced

Engineering Contradiction:
ImproveconspicuityVSAvoidarrangement complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Illumination intensityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines headlight, position light, and flasher light into an integrated lighting device where the light sources and their optical components are arranged in overlapping relationships. The headlight (H) and position light (P) overlap in the vehicle width direction, and the position light (P) and flasher light (F) overlap in the vehicle width direction, creating a unified lighting assembly that functions as a single entity rather than separate components.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent utilizes the vehicle width direction as an additional spatial dimension to arrange the lights in overlapping configurations. By viewing the vehicle from the front, the lights are positioned to overlap in the width direction, which allows multiple light functions to be integrated without increasing the vertical or longitudinal footprint, thereby creating a continuous light emission surface that enhances conspicuity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

2Illumination intensity

If position light emits light in a band-shaped range only, then the headlight outline is emphasized, but the area illumination performance and overall conspicuity are insufficient

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvearea illuminationVSAvoidlight emission pattern
Core Design Contradiction:
Illumination intensityVSShape

Solution Approach 1:

The position light serves multiple functions: it emphasizes the headlight outline through its band-shaped emission, provides area illumination through its extended coverage, and contributes to the continuous light emission surface when overlapped with the flasher light. The flasher light similarly serves both as a directional indicator and as part of the continuous illumination surface, demonstrating multi-functionality that resolves the contradiction between outline emphasis and area illumination.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Device complexity

If multiple lights are integrated in a compact arrangement, then component count is reduced, but the continuous light emission surface from top to bottom may be compromised

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecomponent countVSAvoidlight emission range
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSLength of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent arranges the flasher light (F) underneath the position light (P), which itself is underneath the headlight (H), creating a nested vertical arrangement. This nesting allows the lights to be integrated in a compact configuration while maintaining their individual functions. The overlapping in the vehicle width direction ensures that the nested arrangement still produces a continuous light emission surface when viewed from the front or sides.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

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 configuration provides improved conspicuity and area illumination by creating a continuous light emission range from top to bottom, enhancing the visual impact and appearance of the vehicle while maintaining a reduced component count and assembly complexity.

Implementation Method 1

the headlight includes a low beam headlight and a high beam headlight which use reflectors for forward reflection of illumination light from light sources

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectReflection: Reflection

Data Source

PatentEP3531009B1Lighting device for vehicle
Publication Date: 2021.03.24 HONDA MOTOR CO LTD
  • EP3531009B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3531009B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3531009B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

A lighting device for a vehicle includes: a pair of left and right headlights (H); a pair of left and right position lights (P) situated underneath the headlights (H); and a pair of left and right flasher lights (F) situated underneath the position lights (P), and the headlights (H), the positon lights (P) and the flasher light (F) are placed on the front of a motorcycle (1). The headlights (H) and the position lights (P) are placed to overlap each other in a vehicle width direction as viewed in a front view of the vehicle. The position lights (P) and the flasher lights (F) are placed to overlap each other in the vehicle width direction. The flasher lights (F) are placed to overlap, in the vehicle width direction, a part of a front fender (13) covering a front wheel (WF) of the motorcycle (1).