LED illuminating device and lighting apparatus employing the same

• US 20020131275A1
• Filed: 02/12/2002
• Published: 09/19/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Estec Corporation
• Original Assignee: Estec Corporation
• Inventors: Yamamoto, Yutaka, Saito, Kazuaki, Yuzuki, Atsushi
• Granted Patent: US 6,601,984 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 362/555
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 6/00 Lighting devices intended to be free-standing F21S9/00, F21S10/00, F21S13/12 take precedence lighting devices specially adapted to be transported from place to place, e.g. lighting devices carried on wheeled supports F21L; details of supports for lighting devices F21V21/00
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 8/08 with a standard F21S6/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 9/026 rechargeable by using wind power, e.g. using wind turbines
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 9/035 the solar unit being integrated within the support for the lighting unit, e.g. within or on a pole
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 9/043 driven by wind power, e.g. by wind turbines
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 2200/15 the light being emitted along at least a portion of the outer surface of the guide
• CPC Class Codes: F21W 2111/00 Use or application of lighting devices or systems for signalling, marking or indicating, not provided for in codes F21W2102/00 – F21W2107/00
• CPC Class Codes: F21W 2131/103 of streets or roads
• CPC Class Codes: F21W 2131/305 for refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: F21Y 2115/10 Light-emitting diodes [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/001 the light being emitted along at least a portion of the lateral surface of the fibre
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 13/04 Signs, boards or panels, illuminated from behind the insignia
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/72 in street lighting
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 362/812 Signs

Abstract

An LED illuminating device that includes a light-guiding member formed of a translucent material; an LED element formed of at least one diode disposed on one end of the light-guiding member for emitting light therein; a light-emitting region along the length of the light-guiding member; and a plurality of grooves having a rectangular cross-section and formed in the circumferential surface of the light-guiding member at appropriate intervals in the axial direction. The present invention also provides an LED illuminating appliance of various configurations that employ the LED illuminating device as a light source.

Claims

1. An LED illuminating device that includes a rod-shaped light-guiding member consisting of a translucent material;

and an LED element having at least one light-emitting diode and disposed at an end of said light-guiding member for emitting light into said light-guiding member in the longitudinal direction;

characterized such that said light-guiding member has a plurality of grooves formed therein arranged along the axial direction of said light-guiding member with a desired distance therebetween for reflecting the light from said LED element to outside of said light-guiding member.

2. The LED illuminating device of claim 1, wherein said grooves are disposed only within a range of appropriate length beginning from said end at which the LED element is disposed.

3. The LED illuminating device of claim 1, wherein said grooves are disposed in parallel with each other at appropriate intervals, and extend in a direction intersecting a light axis of the light formed in said light-guiding member at an appropriate angle.

4. The LED illuminating device of claim 3, wherein said grooves comprises a first group extending along a direction intersecting said light axis at a first angle, and a second group extending along a direction intersecting the light axis at a second angle.

5. The LED illuminating device of claim 3, wherein the interval between neighboring grooves is largest near the end at which said LED element is disposed, growing smaller further away from the end at which said LED element is disposed.

6. The LED illuminating device of claim 3, wherein said light-guiding member has a configuration of a cylindrical column, part of which is cut-out along a plane intersecting said light axis to form a flat surface and a curved surface opposing the flat surface of the light reflecting section, and wherein said grooves are formed in said planed surface at appropriate intervals along the longitudinal direction of said light-guiding member and have a reflecting surface for directing the light from said LED element toward said curved surface of said light-guiding member.

7. The LED illuminating device of claim 6, wherein the configuration of the cross-section of said light-guiding member is a combination of part of a circle and a linear line connecting both ends of said circle.

8. The LED illuminating device of claim 6, wherein each of said grooves has a reflecting surface at the bottom thereof for reflecting light from said LED element to the outside through said round surface of said light-guiding member.

9. An LED illuminating appliance in the form of a streetlight comprising an illuminating unit including said LED illuminating device of claim 1 to function as a streetlight, which comprises a support post, an illuminating unit supported by said support post, wherein said illuminating unit comprises a housing accommodating a plurality of said LED illuminating devices in parallel with each other, a translucent covering forming a floodlight portion at the front side of said housing, and an electric-power source enclosed in said housing for driving said LED illuminating devices.

10. The LED illuminating appliance of claim 9, wherein said electric-power supplying device comprises a storage battery and a solar battery panel attached to said pole for supplying electric power to said storage battery, thereby to supply electric power from said storage battery to said LED illuminating devices.

11. The LED illuminating appliance of claim 9, wherein said electric-power supplying device further comprises a wind power generator attached to said pole and a storage battery for storing electric power from said wind power generator, thereby to supply electric power from said storage battery to said LED illuminating devices.

12. An LED illuminating appliance in the form of a streetlight comprising an illuminating unit including said LED illuminating device of claim 1, which comprises an illuminating unit formed as an signboard and a pole for supporting said illuminating unit, wherein said illuminating unit comprises a housing for accommodating a plurality of said LED illuminating devices arranged in parallel with each other, a translucent covering disposed in the front portion of said housing through which light from said LED illuminating devices is directed outside, a storage battery, and a solar cell panel for supplying electric power to said storage battery.

13. An LED illuminating appliance in the form of a streetlight comprising an illuminating unit including said LED illuminating device of claim 1, which comprises an illuminating unit formed as a porch light, wherein said illuminating unit comprises a housing for accommodating a plurality of said LED illuminating devices arranged in parallel with each other, a translucent covering disposed in the front portion of said housing through which the lights from said LED illuminating devices are directed outside and a switch means which is turned on by a signal from a light-receiving element so as to supply electric power to LED illuminating devices when the ambient luminous intensity becomes lower than a predetermined value.

14. An LED illuminating appliance in the form of a streetlight comprising an illuminating unit including said LED illuminating device of claim 1, which comprises an illuminating unit comprising a parallelepiped casing for accommodating a plurality of said LED illuminating devices arranged in parallel with each other, a translucent covering disposed in the front portion of said housing through which the lights from said LED illuminating devices are directed outside, and a solar cell panel disposed upper surface of said housing;

and which further comprises a storage battery and a solar cell panel for supplying electric power to said storage battery housed in said housing.

15. An LED illuminating appliance in the form of a streetlight comprising an illuminating unit including said LED illuminating device of claim 1, which comprises a cylindrical translucent covering, a cylindrical reflector having a diameter smaller than that of said covering and enclosed therein in a coaxial manner, a plurality of said LED illuminating devices disposed between said covering and said reflector in such manner that the axes of said LED illuminating devices are arranged in a cylindrical plane having a common axis with said reflector and in parallel with each other.