LED COLLIMATOR ELEMENT WITH A SEMIPARABOLIC REFLECTOR

• US 20070211487A1
• Filed: 09/12/2005
• Published: 09/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lumileds LLC (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Sormani, Joseph
• Granted Patent: US 7,513,642 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 362/545
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/148 the main emission direction of the LED being perpendicular to the optical axis
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/151 arranged in one or more lines
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/285 Refractors, transparent cover plates, light guides or filters not provided in groups F21S41/24 - F21S41/2805
• CPC Class Codes: F21Y 2115/10 Light-emitting diodes [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 362/80 Light emitting diode

Abstract

The invention relates to an LED lighting device, in particular for motor vehicle headlamps, which comprises an LED element (3), a collimator (1) which emits the light emitted by the LED element (3) through a collimator opening (5) in a collimated manner, and a reflector (7) which has a semiparabolic concave reflective surface (8), an irradiated plane (9), a focal point (F) in the irradiated face (9) and an emission plane (10) which emits light in an emission direction of the reflector (7) and encloses an angle with the irradiated face (9). According to the invention, the collimator (1) is designed and/or arranged in such a way that the collimated light coming from the collimator (1), as seen in the emission direction, is irradiated into the irradiated face (9) either completely in front of or completely behind the focal point (F).

Claims

1. An LED lighting device

comprising an LED element (3),

comprising a collimator (1) which emits the light emitted by the LED element (3) through a collimator opening (5) in a collimated manner,

comprising a reflector (7) which has a semiparabolic concave reflective surface (8), an irradiated face (9), a focal point (F) in the irradiated face (9) and an emission face (10) from which light is emitted in an emission direction of the reflector (7) during operation and which encloses an angle with the irradiated face (9),

wherein the collimator (1) is designed and/or arranged in such a way that the collimated light coming from the collimator (1), as seen in the emission direction, is irradiated into the irradiated face (9) either completely in front of or completely behind the focal point (F).

2. An LED lighting device as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the reflector (7) is curved in a two-dimensional manner and has a focal line (F) in the irradiated face (9), and the light is irradiated into the irradiated face (9) either completely in front of or completely behind the focal line (F).

3. An LED lighting device as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the collimator opening (5) is arranged in the irradiated plane (9) between the focal point (F) or the focal line and an edge (11) of the irradiated face (9).

4. An LED lighting device as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the collimator opening (5) is round.

5. An LED lighting device as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the collimator opening (5) is rectangular, in particular square.

6. An LED lighting device as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the unit consisting of LED element (3) and collimator (1) is designed in an asymmetrical manner.

7. An LED lighting device as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that a number of LED elements are arranged next to one another and jointly irradiate into the reflector (7).

8. An LED lighting device as claimed in claim 6, characterized by a plurality of collimators, each of which is assigned an LED element or a group of LED elements.

9. A headlamp system, in particular for motor vehicles, comprising a lighting device as claimed in claim 1.