LED Headlight With One or More Stepped Upward-Facing Reflectors

• US 20140016342A1
• Filed: 07/10/2012
• Published: 01/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OSRAM Sylvania Inc. (Ams-Osram AG)
• Original Assignee: OSRAM Sylvania Inc. (Ams-Osram AG)
• Inventors: Rice, Lawrence M.
• Granted Patent: US 8,714,793 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 362/517
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/143 the main emission direction of the LED being parallel to the optical axis of the illuminating device
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/153 arranged in a matrix
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/27 Thick lenses
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/321 the reflector being a surface of revolution or a planar surface, e.g. truncated
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/365 successively reflecting the light

Abstract

A headlight is disclosed, having separate low-beam and high beam housings. The high-beam housing includes four planar inward-facing reflectors, in the shape of a pyramid, with the high-beam LED array at the apex and a plano-convex high-beam lens at the base. The low-beam housing includes three planar inward-facing reflectors along the top and lateral sides, similarly arranged as three sides of a pyramid. The low-beam housing has one or more planar, horizontal upward-facing reflectors, disposed below the longitudinal axis of the low-beam housing. Light propagating downward from the low-beam LED array directly strikes either the incident face of the low-beam lens or exactly one upward-facing reflector. When viewed from the front of the low-beam housing, the upward-facing reflectors resemble steps that descend from a lower edge of the low-beam LED array.

Claims

1. A headlight (20) having a low-beam housing (31), the low-beam housing (31) having a generally horizontal longitudinal axis (39), the low-beam housing (31) receiving light from an LED array (33) and delivering the light to a transmissive lens (32), a receiving face of the lens (32) and an emission face of the LED array (33) both having generally rectangular perimeters with generally horizontal and vertical peripheral edges, the low-beam housing (31) comprising:

a top inward-facing reflector (12) extending from a top peripheral edge of the LED array (33) to a top peripheral edge of the lens (32);

two lateral inward-facing reflectors (2, 10), each lateral inward-facing reflector (2, 10) extending from a side peripheral edge of the LED array (33) to a corresponding side peripheral edge of the lens (32), each lateral inward-facing reflector (2, 10) intersecting the top inward-facing reflector (12) along a curve (1, 11); and

a first upward-facing reflector (34) extending away from the LED array (33) toward the lens (32), the first upward-facing reflector (34) being generally planar, generally horizontal, and disposed below the longitudinal axis (39);

wherein the first upward-facing reflector (34) receives low-beam light from the LED array (33) and reflects the low-beam light upward toward the lens (32) and toward the top inward-facing reflector (12).

2. The headlight (20) of claim 1, wherein the first upward-facing reflector (34) extends far enough toward the lens (32) so that substantially all the downward-propagating light from the LED array (33) initially strikes either the receiving face of the lens (32) or the first upward-facing reflector (34).

3. The headlight (20) of claim 1, further comprising:

a second upward-facing reflector (35) extending away from the first upward-facing reflector (34) toward the lens (32), the second upward-facing reflector (35) being generally planar, generally horizontal, and disposed below the first upward-facing reflector (34);

wherein the second upward-facing reflector (35) receives low-beam light from the LED array (33) and reflects the low-beam light upward toward the lens (32) and toward the top inward-facing reflector (12).

4. The headlight (20) of claim 3, wherein the second upward-facing reflector (35) extends far enough toward the lens (32) so that substantially all the downward-propagating light from the LED array (33) initially strikes either the receiving face of the lens (32) or exactly one of the first and second upward-facing reflectors (34, 35).

5. The headlight (20) of claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of upward-facing reflectors, each upward-facing reflector in the plurality being generally planar and generally horizontal, the upward-facing reflectors in the plurality being arranged as descending steps from the LED array (33) toward the lens (32);

wherein the plurality of upward-facing reflectors extends far enough toward the lens (32) so that all the downward-propagating light from the LED array (33) initially strikes either the receiving face of the lens (32) or exactly one upward-facing reflector in the plurality.

6. The headlight (20) of claim 1, wherein the top inward-facing reflector (12) and the two lateral inward-facing reflectors (2, 10) are all generally planar.

7. The headlight (20) of claim 1, wherein the top inward-facing reflector (12) and the two lateral inward-facing reflectors (2, 10) completely subtend a half-space within the low-beam housing (31) above the longitudinal axis (39).

8. The headlight (20) of claim 1, further comprising the LED array (33).

9. The headlight (20) of claim 8, wherein the LED array (33) is elongated horizontally and is generally centered on the longitudinal axis (39).

10. The headlight (20) of claim 1, further comprising the lens (32).

11. The headlight (20) of claim 10, wherein the lens (32) is aspheric.

12. The headlight (20) of claim 10, wherein the lens (32) is plano-convex, with the planar side (37) facing the low-beam housing (31).

13. The headlight (20) of claim 1, further comprising a high-beam housing (41) disposed adjacent to the low-beam housing (31) and having a horizontal longitudinal axis (39) parallel to that of the low-beam housing (31).

14. The headlight (20) of claim 13,

wherein the high-beam housing (41) receives light from a high-beam LED array (43) and delivers the light to a transmissive high-beam lens (42);

wherein a receiving face of the high-beam lens (42) and an emission face of the high-beam LED array (43) both have generally rectangular perimeters with generally horizontal and vertical peripheral edges, and

wherein the high-beam housing (41) comprises;

a top inward-facing high-beam reflector (112) extending from a top peripheral edge of the high-beam LED array (43) to a top peripheral edge of the high-beam lens (42);

a bottom inward-facing high-beam reflector (106) extending from a bottom peripheral edge of the high-beam LED array (43) to a bottom peripheral edge of the high-beam lens (42); and

two lateral inward-facing high-beam reflectors (103, 109), each lateral inward-facing high-beam reflector (103, 109) extending from a side peripheral edge of the high-beam LED array (43) to a corresponding side peripheral edge of the high-beam lens (42), each lateral inward-facing high-beam reflector (103, 109) intersecting the top inward-facing high-beam reflector (112) along a curve (101, 111) and intersecting the bottom inward-facing high-beam reflector (106) along a curve (105, 107).

15. The headlight (20) of claim 14,

wherein the top (112), bottom (106) and two lateral (103, 109) inward-facing high-beam reflectors are planes arranged as the sides of a pyramid;

wherein the high-beam LED array (43) is disposed proximate an apex of the pyramid; and

wherein the high-beam lens (42) is disposed proximate a base of the pyramid.