Rotatable Vehicle Lamp Reflector for Adaptive Beam Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current vehicle lamps lack the ability to adaptively control beam patterns effectively for various driving situations, such as switching between low-beam and high-beam modes, which can lead to inadequate illumination and glare issues.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle lamp design featuring a rotatable second reflector and an auxiliary light source, combined with a shield that controls light transmittance through a plurality of pixels, allows for adaptive beam pattern control by altering the orientation of the second reflector to switch between low-beam and high-beam modes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a fixed reflector configuration is used, then the device complexity is reduced, but the adaptability to switch between low-beam and high-beam modes is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by making the second reflector rotatable about its longitudinal axis, allowing it to dynamically change orientation between a first orientation (for low-beam mode) and a second orientation (for high-beam mode). This dynamic configuration enables the lamp to adapt between different beam patterns without requiring multiple fixed reflector assemblies, thus improving adaptability while controlling device complexity.
2Illumination intensity
If light transmittance is increased for better visibility, then illumination intensity is improved, but glare to other road users increases
Solution Approach 1:
The rotatable second reflector dynamically adjusts the direction and distribution of reflected light. In low-beam mode, it directs light downward to illuminate the road without causing glare. In high-beam mode, it redirects light upward and forward to maximize illumination intensity when no other road users are present. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to optimize illumination intensity while controlling glare based on actual driving conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the optical parameters by rotating the second reflector between different orientations, which alters the beam distribution pattern and light direction. This parameter change enables the lamp to switch between low-beam and high-beam modes, adjusting illumination intensity and glare characteristics to match driving conditions.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a rotatable second reflector is added to enable beam pattern switching, then adaptability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The second reflector serves multiple functions: it reflects light from the first reflector toward the lens in low-beam mode, and it reflects light directly from the light source in high-beam mode. This multi-functionality allows a single component to enable both beam patterns, improving adaptability without proportionally increasing device complexity compared to having separate reflector assemblies for each mode.
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 optimized low-beam and high-beam patterns, reducing glare and improving visibility by dynamically adjusting the beam distribution based on driving conditions.
Implementation Method 1
a first reflector configured to reflect the light generated by the at least one light source
Implementation Method 2
a shield configured to block a first portion of light reflected from the first reflector, and to transmit therethrough a second portion of the light reflected from the first reflector
Implementation Method 3
a lens configured to project the second portion of the light that has been transmitted through the shield toward a front side of the vehicle lamp
Implementation Method 4
a second reflector configured to: in a first state, reflect light that was reflected from the first reflector back toward the first reflector; and in a second state, reflect light that was generated by the at least one light source to be incident on the lens
Data Source
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AI summary
A vehicle lamp (800) includes: at least one light source (822) configured to generate light; a first reflector (830) configured to reflect the light generated by the at least one light source (822); a shield (840) configured to block a first portion of light reflected from the first reflector (830), and to transmit therethrough a second portion of the light reflected from the first reflector (830) to form a beam pattern; a lens (850); and a second reflector (848) configured to: in a first state, reflect light that was reflected from the first reflector (830) back toward the first reflector (830); and in a second state, reflect light that was generated by the at least one light source (822) to be incident on the lens (850), wherein the second reflector (848) is configured to rotate about an axis and cause the vehicle lamp to output in a low-beam mode or in a high-beam mode based on a rotational orientation of the second reflector (848).