Semi-Cylindrical Concave Lens for LED Headlight Lateral Illumination
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional LED light sources with planar, elongated light emitting surfaces face challenges in providing sufficient light distribution in right and left directions for vehicular headlights, as they lack the directional intensity of traditional incandescent or discharge lamps, leading to insufficient illumination in these areas.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a semi-cylindrical concave lens with a focal axis aligned to the optical axis of the headlight, positioned between the optical member and the LED, to refract and spread light emitted from the planar LED surface, enhancing light distribution in both directions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If an LED with a planar light emitting surface elongated in the optical axis direction is used, then the light source can be compatible with conventional headlight optical members, but the light emission in right and left directions ahead of the vehicle becomes insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
A semi-cylindrical concave lens is introduced as an intermediary optical element between the LED light source and the conventional headlight optical members. This lens mediates the light emission by refracting and spreading the light in the right and left directions, enabling compatibility with conventional optical members while improving lateral illumination.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the optical parameters of the light emission by using a semi-cylindrical concave lens with specific focal length and curvature. This modifies the light distribution pattern from the LED, enhancing the illumination intensity in the right and left directions while maintaining the forward direction emission characteristics.
2Illumination intensity
If multiple LEDs are arranged on multiple faces of a rectangular-column base, then sufficient brightness can be achieved, but the device complexity and space arrangement become more complicated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the light distribution function from the LED arrangement itself and transfers it to a dedicated semi-cylindrical concave lens. This allows a single LED to achieve the same light distribution effect that would otherwise require multiple LEDs arranged on different faces, simplifying the overall device structure.
3Illumination intensity
If a conventional concave lens is used over the front-back and right-left directions of the LED light emitting surface, then light distribution can be controlled, but the emission directionality of an LED elongated in the optical axis direction cannot be optimized
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs an asymmetric semi-cylindrical concave lens design where the curvature is applied only in the right-left direction while the front-back direction maintains a different optical characteristic. This asymmetric configuration optimizes the emission directionality for LEDs that are elongated in the optical axis direction, allowing better light distribution control tailored to the specific LED geometry.
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
This configuration allows for improved light irradiation in both the forward and lateral directions, mimicking the light distribution of conventional light sources, thereby ensuring better visibility and safety by creating a clear cut-off line for passing lights and enhancing the overall light source compatibility with traditional headlight designs.
Implementation Method 1
Incorporating a semi-cylindrical concave lens with a focal axis aligned to the optical axis of the headlight, positioned between the optical member and the LED, to refract and spread light emitted from the planar LED surface
Data Source
AI summary
In an LED2 having a directionality in an emission direction of emitted light, light emitted from a light emitting surface of the LED 2 is refracted by a semi-cylindrical concave lens 3 to be enlarged in the circumference direction of an optical axis of a headlight 1; thus, even when the LED2 is applied to a headlight that is constituted by optical members that are similar to optical members that are compatible with conventional light sources having no directionality, such as an incandescent lamp, a discharge lamp and the like, it can be used as a light source for headlight that is capable of illuminating the right and left directions ahead of a vehicle with a sufficient brightness.