Taillight Light-Guide Bar Layout for Uniform Logo Backlighting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Oblong taillights with a horizontal light-guide bar struggle to accommodate an additional lighting assembly to backlight a decorative mask with a car manufacturer's logo, due to space constraints and resulting low and uneven light intensity.
Innovation Solution
The automotive light design incorporates a pair of longitudinal light-guide bars with plate-like heads and an optical system, including collimator and deflector prisms, to achieve a high-intensity and uniform luminous flux that can backlight the central shielding mask and create a luminous logo.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a horizontal light-guide bar is used to backlight the central part of the oblong taillight, then the existing light distribution function is maintained, but there is insufficient space to accommodate an additional lighting assembly for the decorative logo mask
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the logo illumination function with the existing light-guide bar structure. The light-guide bar is configured to provide both the original horizontal light distribution and the vertical illumination for the logo mask, merging two lighting functions into a single component to avoid space conflicts.
Solution Approach 2:
The light-guide bar is designed as a multi-functional component that serves both as a light distribution element for the horizontal lighting signal and as a light guide for illuminating the decorative logo mask vertically, eliminating the need for a separate dedicated lighting assembly.
2Volume of moving object
If the light-guide bar is flattened to fit the decorative mask area, then space constraints are resolved, but the light intensity becomes low and extremely uneven
Solution Approach 1:
The light-guide bar features a non-uniform cross-sectional shape with different dimensions in different regions. The vertical dimension is larger at the ends and smaller in the central portion, creating local variations in light extraction characteristics that compensate for the flattened profile and achieve uniform light intensity distribution across the logo area.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent modifies the geometric parameters of the light-guide bar, specifically varying the vertical dimension along its length. This parameter change optimizes the light extraction efficiency at different positions, ensuring uniform illumination intensity despite the overall flattened configuration.
3Illumination intensity
If the light-guide bar maintains its original circular cross-section, then high light intensity is achieved, but it cannot accommodate the decorative logo mask in the central area
Solution Approach 1:
The light-guide bar employs a non-uniform cross-sectional design where the vertical dimension varies along its length. This local variation in geometry allows the bar to maintain sufficient light intensity while creating the necessary space configuration to accommodate and effectively illuminate the decorative logo mask.
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 solution allows for a compact and economical lighting assembly that produces a high-intensity, uniform luminous flux, enabling the creation of a recognizable car manufacturer's logo at the center of the taillight without compromising the existing light-guide bar dimensions.
Implementation Method 1
a lighting assembly (5) arranged inside the central section, comprising: a pair of longitudinal light-guide bars (8) made of photoconductive material and extending inside the rear body (2) one toward the other while substantially grazing the front half-shell (3)
Implementation Method 2
an optical system, including collimator and deflector prisms, to achieve a high-intensity and uniform luminous flux
Data Source
AI summary
An automotive light is provided that includes a lighting assembly located inside rear body and is adapted to backlight a transparent or semi-transparent sector of a front half-shell. The lighting assembly includes a pair of light-guide bars made of photoconductive material, which extend toward each other inside the rear body and a pair of electrically-powered light sources that are located within the rear body each adjacent to the distal end of a respective light-guide bar, and are oriented to direct light produced inside the body of the facing light-guide bar. The proximal ends of both light-guide bars are shaped to form respective plate-like heads that are locally substantially coplanar to each other, so as to form/delimit therebetween a small transversal slot.