Method of Manufacturing Multicolored Illuminator

• US 20100170075A1
• Filed: 06/05/2008
• Published: 07/08/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: I2IC Corporation
• Original Assignee: I2IC Corporation
• Inventors: Alekar, Manas, Kulkarni, Gaurav, Sridharan, Karthikk, Ganu, Sanat, Kanade, Udayan, Joshi, Manohar, Ganapathy, Balaji
• Granted Patent: US 8,209,841 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 29/428
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0041 provided in the bulk of the light guide
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0065 Manufacturing aspects; Material aspects
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0075 Arrangements of multiple light guides G02B6/0028 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 156/1075 of plural laminae from single stock and assembling to each other or to additional lamina
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 156/1089 of discrete laminae to single face of additional lamina
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49826 Assembling or joining
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49885 with coating before or during assembling

Abstract

A method of manufacturing a multicolored illuminator is disclosed. In an embodiment, a first transparent sheet (499) comprising light diffusing particles is provided. Second and third transparent cladding sheets (404) are provided on either sides of the first transparent sheet. A mirror (406) is provided adjacent to the second sheet. The first sheet, second sheet, third sheet and mirror are merged to give a multicolored illuminator.

Claims

1. method comprising:

manufacturing a core sheet;

providing a layer of cladding material on both the faces of the core sheet to give a light guide sheet;

cutting the light guide sheet into multiple columns; and

stacking the columns to give a laminated structure.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of providing a layer of cladding material on both the faces of the core sheet further comprises providing a mirror on one of the faces of the light guide sheet.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a layer of cladding material on at least one of the faces of the laminated structure.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a mirror on one of the faces of the laminated structure.

5. The method of claim 3, comprising partially removing the core and cladding of the columns of the laminated structure before providing the layer of cladding material.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising polishing the layer of cladding material.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the mirror comprises a reflector with corrugations.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the core sheet includes light diffusing particles.

9. The method of claim 8, comprising providing the light diffusing particles in a uniform concentration throughout the core sheet.

10. The method of claim 8, comprising providing the light diffusing particles in different concentrations at different parts of the core sheet, the concentrations being chosen such that the light emanated from the laminated structure is of a predetermined pattern.

11. The method of claim 10, comprising merging curved sheets with various concentrations of light diffusing particles to produce a core sheet including light diffusing particles in different concentrations at different places.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein curved sheets are produced by non-uniform stretching.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising stretching a sheet including light diffusing particles in different concentrations at different places to give a second sheet including light diffusing particles in different concentrations at different places.