LIGHTING DEVICE AND DISPLAY DEVICE

• US 20120044441A1
• Filed: 12/08/2009
• Published: 02/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/17/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Shigeta, Hiroaki, Usukura, Naru
• Granted Patent: US 8,698,977 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 349/65
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0021 for housing at least a part of the light source, e.g. by forming holes or recesses
• 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: H01L 25/0753 the devices being arranged next to each other
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/58 Optical field-shaping elements

Abstract

Provided is a lighting device (3) that includes a light guide plate (10) having a light entry surface (10a) through which the light originating from a light-emitting diode unit (9) enters, and a light-emitting surface (10c) from which the light that has entered through the light entry surface (10a) exits. The light-emitting diode unit (9) has light-emitting elements (26a and 27a) arranged linearly on a base member (28) with a prescribed interval therebetween, and sealing resin elements (26b and 27b) that seal respective light-emitting elements (26a and 27a). The light entry surface (10a) of the light guide plate (10) is shaped so as to engage with the sealing resin elements (26b and 27b).

Claims

1. A lighting device, comprising:

a light-emitting diode unit having a plurality of light-emitting diodes; and

a light guide plate having a light entry surface through which light originating from said light-emitting diode unit enters, and a light-emitting surface from which the light that has entered through said light entry surface is emitted, said light guide plate further guiding the light that has entered through said light entry surface to prescribed propagation directions so that the light is projected from said light-emitting surface,

wherein said light-emitting diode unit comprises;

a base member;

a plurality of light-emitting elements arranged linearly on said base member with a prescribed interval therebetween; and

sealing resin elements formed into a prescribed shape and respectively provided for said light-emitting elements to seal corresponding light-emitting elements on said base member, and

wherein said light entry surface is shaped on said light guide plate such that said light entry surface engages with said sealing resin elements respectively provided for said light-emitting elements.

2. The lighting device according to claim 1, wherein in said light-emitting diode unit, said plurality of sealing resin elements are individually formed into a half-circular columnar shape on said base member, and

wherein half-circular columnar recessed portions are formed in said light entry surface of said light guide plate to touch top portions of said half-circular columnar sealing resin elements, and also to be fitted to said half-circular columnar sealing resin elements.

3. The lighting device according to claim 1, wherein in said light-emitting diode unit, each of said plurality of sealing resin elements is formed into a half-circular columnar shape on said base member, and

wherein said light entry surface of said light guide plate has approximately half-circular columnar recessed portions that include flat surfaces formed to touch the top portions of said half-circular columnar sealing resin elements and that are also formed to be fitted to said half-circular columnar sealing resin elements.

4. The lighting device according to claim 1, wherein in said light-emitting diode unit, each of said plurality of sealing resin elements is formed into a hemispherical shape on said base member, and

wherein said light entry surface of said light guide plate has hemispherical recessed portions formed to touch the top portions of said hemispherical sealing resin elements, and also to be fitted to said hemispherical sealing resin elements.

5. The lighting device according to claim 1, wherein in said light-emitting diode unit, a first light-emitting diode section that can emit white light and a second light-emitting diode section that can emit infrared light are disposed alternately on said base member.

6. The lighting device according to claim 5, wherein said first light-emitting diode section includes a blue light-emitting element that emits blue light as said light-emitting element, and a fluorescent resin element provided on said base member as said sealing resin element to seal said blue light-emitting element, and to emit said white light by converting a portion of said blue light into yellow light and by mixing said blue light and said yellow light, and

wherein said second light-emitting diode section includes an infrared light-emitting element that emits said infrared light as said light-emitting element;

and a transparent resin element provided on said base member as said sealing resin element to seal said infrared light-emitting element.

7. The lighting device according to claim 6, wherein the light-emitting surface of said light guide plate has a predetermined effective light-emitting area that substantially emits the light originating from said light-emitting diode unit, and

wherein in said light-emitting diode unit, when the shortest distance from the contact point of said fluorescent resin element and said light entry surface to said effective light-emitting area is denoted as “

L”

, an interval “

P2”

between two adjacent blue light-emitting elements is determined based on L/P2.

8. A display device comprising a display section having a plurality of pixels, and an illuminating section that projects illumination light to said display section, wherein said illuminating section includes the lighting device according to claim 1.

9. The display device according to claim 8, wherein said display section includes a touch panel equipped with optical sensors that are disposed on a pixel-by-pixel basis to detect infrared light.

10. The display device according to claim 9, wherein a liquid crystal panel is used for said display section, and

wherein said optical sensors are unitarily disposed on an active matrix substrate of said liquid crystal panel.