Multiwall Illumination Panel Structural Rigidity and Light Uniformity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional illumination panels face challenges with weight, material intensity, and light uniformity due to the need for rigid support frames and thick materials, as well as bright spots from individual LEDs, which hinder compact and lightweight designs with improved structural rigidity and uniform illumination.
Innovation Solution
A structurally reinforced illumination panel featuring a multiwall sheet-form structure with parallel hollow chambers and transverse ribs, incorporating LED strips and light management features to redistribute light and mask brightness variations, with electrical interconnects and sealed ends for enhanced structural integrity and light diffusion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If conventional support frames or thick rigid materials are used to maintain panel rigidity, then structural strength is improved, but weight and material intensity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The panel structure is segmented into multiple hollow chambers formed by transverse ribs dividing the panel into several compartments. This segmentation provides structural reinforcement without requiring solid thick materials, as the hollow chambers create a multi-cellular framework that maintains rigidity while reducing material usage and weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs thin-walled hollow chambers formed by transverse ribs connecting front and back sheets. These thin-film structures provide sufficient structural support when configured in a multi-cellular arrangement, eliminating the need for thick rigid materials while maintaining panel strength and reducing weight.
2Illumination intensity
If individual LEDs are used as light sources, then illumination intensity is improved, but brightness uniformity deteriorates due to bright spots
Solution Approach 1:
A light diffusing sheet is introduced as an intermediary element between the LED sources and the external environment. This diffusing sheet scatters and redistributes the light from individual LEDs, eliminating bright spots while preserving overall illumination intensity. The diffusing sheet acts as a mediator that transforms point-source illumination into uniform surface illumination.
Solution Approach 2:
The light diffusing sheet creates a homogeneous illumination distribution across the panel surface by scattering light from multiple LEDs. This homogenization process ensures uniform brightness across the entire panel area, eliminating the non-uniformity caused by individual LED bright spots while maintaining high illumination intensity.
3Strength
If panel thickness is increased to improve structural rigidity, then strength is improved, but device compactness deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The panel is divided into multiple hollow chambers by transverse ribs, creating a multi-cellular structure. This segmentation provides structural reinforcement through geometric configuration rather than increased material thickness, allowing the panel to maintain rigidity with minimal wall thickness and compact overall dimensions.
Solution Approach 2:
The panel employs a composite structure combining front and back sheets with transverse ribs forming hollow chambers. This composite configuration creates a high strength-to-thickness ratio, providing structural rigidity without requiring increased panel thickness, thus maintaining compactness while enhancing strength.
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 lightweight, structurally rigid illumination panel with improved light uniformity and reduced brightness variations, achieving a compact form while maintaining effective light distribution and structural support.
Implementation Method 1
a multiwall sheet-form structure formed by two or more optically transmissive sheets and including a plurality of parallel hollow chambers defined by the plurality of transverse ribs joining the optically transmissive sheets
Implementation Method 2
The hollow chambers may further include light management features which may be configures to redistribute light emitted by individual LEDs and/or mask brightness variations across the panel surface
Implementation Method 3
The hollow chambers include LED strips each having an array of LEDs that can be connected in series, in parallel, or in a combination therein
Data Source
AI summary
A structurally reinforced illumination panel which includes a multiwall structural panel having a pair of optically transmissive sheets joined using transverse ribs that define a series of linear hollow chambers. The linear hollow chambers extend parallel to each other between opposite edges of the panel. The panel further includes two or more strips of a thin and flexible substrate material positioned within the respective chambers, and two or more linear arrays of electrically interconnected LED sources which are distributed over a length of the respective strips and mounted to the surfaces of the strips. A thickness of the optically transmissive sheets is less than 1 mm, and thickness of at least one of the transverse ribs is less than the thickness of the optically transmissive sheets.