LIGHT-EMITTING DIODE MODULE FOR A VEHICLE, AND PRODUCTIONS

• US 20110267833A1
• Filed: 10/27/2009
• Published: 11/03/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Saint-Gobain Glass France (Compagnie De Saint-Gobain)
• Original Assignee: Saint-Gobain Glass France (Compagnie De Saint-Gobain)
• Inventors: Verrat-Debailleul, Adèle, Mottelet, Béatrice
• Granted Patent: US 8,944,655 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 362/545
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/10036 comprising two outer glass sheets
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/1011 having predetermined tint or excitation purity
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/10155 Edge treatment or chamfering
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/10293 Edge features, e.g. inserts or holes
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/10348 comprising an obscuration band
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/10541 comprising a light source or a light guide
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/10761 containing vinyl acetal
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/268 on windscreens or windows B60Q1/302 takes precedence; lighting devices for vehicle interior on or for windows B60Q3/208
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 3/208 Sun roofs; Windows
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0068 Arrangements of plural sources, e.g. multi-colour light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0073 Light emitting diode [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0076 Stacked arrangements of multiple light guides of the same or different cross-sectional area
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0091 of the light source relative to the light guide G02B6/0021 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 156/10 Methods of surface bonding and/or assembly therefor
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 156/1043 Subsequent to assembly

Abstract

A light-emitting diode module, for a vehicle, includes a first transparent sheet having a first main face and a second main face and an edge face; the diodes each including an emitting chip able to emit one or more wavelengths in the visible, guided in the first sheet; a bracket supporting the diodes, extending as a border of the glazing and fastened to the glazing; and a seal against fluid(s), able to protect the chips and the light-emission volume of the chips before injection into the first sheet. An embodiment of the invention also relates to the manufacture of this module.

Claims

1. A light-emitting diode module, for a vehicle, comprising:

a glazing with main faces, and an edge face, the glazing comprising at least one first transparent sheet having a first main face and a second main face;

light-emitting diodes each comprising an emitting chip able to emit one or more wavelengths in the visible, guided in the first sheet;

a bracket supporting the diodes, extending as a border of the glazing and fastened to the glazing; and

a seal against fluid(s), able to protect the chips and a light-emission volume of the chips before injection into the first sheet.

2. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the diode bracket optionally has a surface bearing chips which faces the edge face of the first sheet and the seal against fluid(s) is an external adhesive, surrounding said volume, optionally placed on the surface of the diode bracket opposite said surface facing the glazing, and extending beyond the periphery of the glazing, especially one or more adhesive strips, optionally enveloping the bracket, or one or more adhesive tapes, the adhesive strip optionally having an uncovered protruding rigid core.

3. The diode module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the seal against fluid(s) comprises a seal between the glazing and the diode bracket, chosen from

an adhesive material for filling the light-emission volume that is transparent at said wavelength(s), preferably an adhesive, a thermoplastic resin, a double-sided adhesive;

or

an adhesive material for protecting the light-emission volume, which adhesive is placed in regions where the bracket makes contact with the glazing, and is transparent at said wavelength(s) of the diodes if it partially fills the light-emission volume and/or an adhesive material, for protecting the light-emission volume, which is placed to seal the free parts of the diode bracket via the sides of the bracket; and

a chip-protecting material, transparent at said wavelength(s), identical to or separate from the filling material, especially a material for pre-encapsulation of the chips.

4. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the adhesive chip-protecting material, which is transparent at said wavelength(s), is identical to the filling material and is chosen from:

an adhesive, optionally embedding the chips and fastening the chips to the first sheet of the glazing, preferably to the edge face;

or

a double-sided adhesive, bonded to the chips and the bracket via one adhesive-coated side and bonded to the first sheet of the glazing, preferably to the edge face, via the other adhesive-coated side.

5. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, comprising a polymer encapsulation, especially made of polyurethane or of a flexible thermoplastic chosen from a thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and ethylene-propylene-diene-terpolymer (EPDM), located bordering the glazing, surrounding said volume and forming an additional seal to seal said volume against fluid(s), and covering the fastening bracket, said seal against fluid(s) being chosen to seal against the liquid encapsulation material injected at a given temperature and pressure.

6. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 5, comprising, between the encapsulation and the glazing, especially mineral-glass glazing, a single-, two- or three-component primary layer, for example based on polyurethane, polyester, polyvinyl acetate or isocyanate.

7. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 5, wherein the polymer encapsulation makes contact with the chips, but not with emitting faces, even embedding the chips, except for emitting faces, the bracket preferably being a rectangular strip bonded to and/or against the periphery of one of the main faces of the glazing.

8. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, comprising a polymer seal located on the periphery of the glazing, along the edge face of the first sheet and on the periphery of the main faces of the glazing, the polymer seal forming the supporting bracket for fastening to the glazing, or the seal covering the bracket supporting the diodes.

9. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, comprising a polymer seal, located on the periphery of the glazing, especially made of EPDM, along the edge face of the first sheet and on the periphery of the main faces of the glazing, the polymer seal forming the supporting bracket for fastening to the glazing, the polymer seal being made of an elastomer and with one or more lips for sealing against fluid(s) on the periphery of the main faces of the glazing, thus forming said seal against fluid(s) of said volume and of the diodes.

10. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bracket comprises a side part facing the edge face of the first sheet and bearing chips, and wherein the glazing comprises an adhesive protective layer, at least as a border of one of the first or second faces:

the protective layer that is transparent at the wavelength(s) protrudes, extending onto the edge face between the side part and the edge face and filling the light-emission volume and/or embedding said chips;

or

the protective layer protruding with a turned-down part covering the side part, thus forming said external adhesive, preferably enveloping and/or bearing said bracket.

11. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 10, wherein the protective layer is a lamination interlayer, the glazing being laminated and comprising a second sheet, laminated via the lamination interlayer to the first sheet.

12. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 10, wherein the bracket comprises a flange, on the face of the first sheet, in contact with the protective layer, the flange being discontinuous so that said protective layer can fill the coupling and/or chip volume.

13. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 10, wherein the side part is prolonged by a flange, on the face of the first sheet, in contact with the protective layer, having anchor regions projecting into the protective layer.

14. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the glazing is laminated and comprises a second sheet, laminated via a lamination interlayer to the first sheet, and wherein the first sheet comprises a recess for housing the diodes and opening onto the first and second main faces, and in that wherein the supporting bracket, preferably a rectangular strip, is against, preferably bonded to, the periphery of the lamination face of the second sheet so as to eliminate stray light from the second sheet, especially when an optional encapsulation is flush with the face of the second sheet opposite the lamination face.

15. The diode module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the glazing is a single glazing, the first sheet being made of glass or plastic, especially PC.

16. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the diodes are edge-emitting diodes, the emitting faces facing the edge face of the first sheet and the diodes being arranged on the supporting bracket for fastening, preferably a rectangular strip, against and/or bonded to one of the main faces of the glazing preferably by a double-sided adhesive.

17. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the injection is carried out via the edge face of the first sheet via a coupling edge, said coupling edge of the first sheet is preferably rounded and/or roughened.

18. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the edge face, the corner or an edge of one of the faces of the first sheet comprises one or more recesses in which the chips are placed and, in the case of a laminated glazing, the recess of the first sheet is a single groove opening onto the main faces of the first sheet.

19. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, wherein a distance between the part bearing chips and the first sheet is less than or equal to 5 mm, and/or the distance between the chips and the first sheet is less than or equal to 2 mm.

20. The diode module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bracket has an optionally variable, local, substantially U-shaped cross section, and comprises:

at least one side part facing the edge face of the glazing, preferably bearing diodes which are not edge-emitting; and

is

prolonged by a flange, facing one main face of the glazing on the periphery, preferably bearing edge-emitting diodes; and

is

prolonged by another flange facing another main face of the glazing on the periphery.

21. The diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, wherein by extracting the guided light an interior ambient light, an interior light for reading, or an interior or exterior luminous signaling display is formed.

22. A method comprising providing a diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 1, as:

side windows, roof, rear window, windshield, of a land-based vehicle, especially an automobile, service vehicle, truck or train;

window or windshield of an airborne vehicle; and

windows or roof of an aquatic vehicle, boat or submarine.

23. A vehicle incorporating the module as claimed in claim 1.

24. A method of manufacturing the diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 10, the method comprising:

supplying a glazing comprising the first transparent sheet and said protective layer which is adhesive-coated on the first face and which protrudes over the edge of the first sheet; and

supplying the diode bracket, comprising a side part to be placed facing the edge face of the first sheet, and bearing the chips;

and one of;

for its adhesion, softening the protruding internal part, of the layer onto the edge face of the first sheet and placing the bracket against the softened protruding part which fills the guiding volume and/or embeds the chips;

or

for its adhesion, softening the protruding external part, onto the previously fastened bracket, preferably enveloping the bracket and adhering to the second face;

or

the turning-down of the protruding external part, of an adhesive-coated protective layer, onto the bracket, preferably enveloping the bracket and adhering to the second face.

25. A method of manufacturing the diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 5, comprising:

supplying a glazing comprising at least the first transparent sheet;

supplying the bracket supporting the diodes;

fastening the bracket supporting the diodes to the glazing;

placing an external adhesive, especially one or more adhesive strips or adhesive tapes, on the periphery of the glazing and surrounding said volume;

injecting the polymer encapsulation material, preferably at a temperature of 250°

C. or lower, onto the edge of the glazing with the diodes, and surrounding said volume and said external adhesive, which then form a seal for sealing said volume against the encapsulation material.

26. A method of manufacturing the diode module, for a vehicle, as claimed in claim 5, comprising:

supplying a glazing comprising at least the first transparent sheet;

supplying the bracket supporting the diodes;

fastening the bracket supporting the diodes to the glazing using an adhesive that fills said volume and optionally embeds the diodes, the fastening optionally being preceded by a pre-positioning of the bracket using an adhesive on the periphery of one of the faces of the glazing;

injecting the polymer encapsulation material, preferably at a temperature of 250°

C. or lower, onto the edge of the glazing with the diodes, surrounding said volume and the adhesive forming the seal for sealing said volume against the encapsulation material.