Vehicle Rear Light Assembly

• US 20140062689A1
• Filed: 08/29/2012
• Published: 03/06/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Yao Hung Huang
• Original Assignee: Yao Hung Huang
• Inventors: Huang, Yao Hung
• Granted Patent: US 9,162,613 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/464
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/2607 comprising at least two indicating lamps
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/2696 Mounting of devices using LEDs

Abstract

A vehicle rear light assembly (VRLA) that is enclosed within an elongated LED display unit that includes a center compartment having a plurality of red LEDs and contiguous left and right compartments each having a plurality of yellow/red LEDs. The VRLA is comprised of an electrical circuit consisting of a function select circuit that is connected to a vehicle and sequentially includes an LED drive circuit, an LED control circuit and a LED activation circuit that is connected, in combination with the LED drive circuit, to the LED display unit. The display unit allows the viewing of left and right blinking turn signals, brake lights and tail lights.

Claims

1. A vehicle rear light assembly (VRLA) that functions in combination with a vehicle that includes a left turn switch that produces a left turn input signal (11), a right turn switch that produces a right turn input signal (13), a brake pedal that produces a brake input signal (15), and a tail light switch that produces a tail light input signal (17), said VRLA comprising:

a) a function select circuit having means for receiving and processing a selected vehicle input signal and producing an output consisting of a function select signal,

a)

b) an LED drive circuit having means for receiving and processing the function select signal and producing an output consisting of an LED drive signal,

c) an LED control circuit having means for receiving and processing a selected vehicle input signal and producing an output consisting of a transistor activation signal,

b)

d) an LED activation circuit having means for receiving and processing the transistor activation signal and producing an LED activation signal, and

c)

e) an LED display unit having a plurality of LEDs that correspond to the selected vehicle input signal, wherein the LEDs are selectively illuminated when said LED display unit is applied the LED drive signal from said LED drive circuit and the LED activation signal from said LED activation circuit.

2. The VRLA as specified in claim 1 wherein said LED display unit is further comprised of an elongated LED display unit comprised of a center compartment having a plurality of red LEDs designated by the term DS1, a left compartment having a plurality of red/yellow LEDs designated by the term DS2 and a right compartment having a plurality of red/yellow LEDs designated by the term DS3.

3. The VRLA as specified in claim 2 wherein the DS1 LEDs are comprised of 9 LEDs, and the DS2 and DS3 LEDs are each comprised of 3 LEDs.

4. The VRLA as specified in claim 3 wherein the red/yellow LEDs in DS2 and DS3 are contained within a single enclosure.

5. The VRLA as specified in claim 1 wherein said LED display unit includes a structure that allows said display to be viewed from the rear window of the vehicle.

6. The VRLA as specified in claim 1 wherein said DS1, DS2 and DS3 LEDs are designed to illuminate at a lower level when the tail lights are activated and to increase the light level when the vehicle brake lights are activated.

7. A vehicle rear light assembly (VRLA) that functions in combination with a vehicle that includes a left turn switch that produces a left turn input signal (11), a right turn switch that produces a right turn input signal (13), a brake pedal that produces a brake input signal (15), and a tail light switch that produces a tail light input signal (17), said VRLA comprising:

A. a vehicle function select circuit (12) having means for receiving and processing;

a) the left turn input signal (11) and producing through an isolation diode (D1), a left turn output signal (21),

b) the right turn input signal (13) and producing through an isolation diode (D2), a right turn output signal (23),

c) the brake input signal (15) and producing through an isolation diode (D3) a brake output signal (25), and

d) the tail light input signal (17) and producing through an isolation diode (D4), a tail light output signal (27), wherein said vehicle function select circuit (12) produces a single output consisting of a function select signal (29) that corresponds to the particular vehicle function that has been selected,

B. an LED drive circuit (14) having means for receiving and processing the function select signal (29) and producing an LED drive signal (31),

C. an LED control circuit (16) having means for receiving and processing the left turn input signal (11), the right turn input signal (13), the brake input signal (15) and the tail light input signal (17), wherein said LED control circuit (16) having further means for determining which LEDs are to be activated to produce a red light or a yellow light, wherein the output of said LED control circuit (16) is a transistor activation signal (37), a transistor activation signal (39), a transistor activation signal (41), a transistor activation signal (43) and a transistor activation signal (45),

D. an LED activation circuit (18) comprising;

a) a transistor (Q1) having a collector, a base connected to the transistor activation signal (39) and an emitter connected to circuit ground,

b) a transistor (Q2) having a collector, a base connected to the transistor activation signal (41) and an emitter connected to circuit ground,

c) a transistor (Q3) having a collector, a base connected to the transistor activation signal (43) and an emitter connected to circuit ground,

d) a transistor (Q4) having a collector, a base connected to the transistor activation signal (37) and an emitter connected to circuit ground,

e) a transistor (Q5) having a collector, a base connected to the transistor activation signal (45) and an emitter connected to circuit ground, and

E. an LED display unit (20) which includes a center compartment (22) having a plurality of LEDs (DS1), a left compartment (24) having a plurality of LEDs (DS2), and a right compartment (26) having a plurality of LEDs (DS3), wherein the anode of each LED is connected to the LED drive signal (31) applied from said LED drive circuit (14), and the cathodes of the LEDs comprising (DS1) are connected to the collector of transistor (Q2) via an LED activation signal (49), the cathodes of the LEDs comprising (DS2) are connected to the collector of transistor (Q1) via an LED activation signal (51), the cathodes of the LEDs comprising (DS3) are connected to the collector of transistor (Q3) via an LED activation signal (53) and the cathodes of the LEDs comprising (DS3) are connected to the collector of transistor (Q5) via an LED activation signal (55), wherein when a particular vehicle function is selected by a driver of the vehicle, the corresponding signal (11, 13, 15, 17) is processed by said LED control circuit (16) that produces a transistor activation signal (37), a transistor activation signal (45), a transistor activation signal (39), a transistor activation signal (41) and a transistor activation signal (43), wherein these signals are applied through the LED control circuit (18) to the LED display unit (20) which is also applied the LED drive signal (31) from the LED drive circuit (14).

8. The VRLA as specified in claim 7 wherein the plurality of LEDs located on the center compartment of said LED display unit ranges from 7 to 11 LEDs, with 9 LEDs preferred.

9. The VRLA as specified in claim 8 wherein the plurality of LEDs located on the left and right compartment of said LED display unit ranges from 2 to 5 LEDs, with 3 LEDs preferred.

10. The VRLA as specified in claim 9 wherein the plurality of LEDs are electrically connected in a series-parallel configuration.

11. The VRLA as specified in claim 7 wherein said LED display unit is comprised of a hermetically sealed enclosure.

12. The VRLA as specified in claim 11 wherein said LED display unit has a rear section having a reflective inner surface.

13. The VRLA as specified in claim 12 wherein said LED display unit has a structure for being attached to the rear window of a vehicle to allow said LED display unit to be viewed from the rear of the vehicle.

14. The VRLA as specified in claim 7 wherein said LED drive circuit is comprised of a GKL2596 voltage regulator.

15. The VRLA as specified in claim 7 wherein said LED control circuit is comprised of a microcontroller.