Automotive lamp assembly

• US 4,959,757 A
• Filed: 05/08/1989
• Issued: 09/25/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/1988
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Ichikoh Industries Limited (Valeo SE)
• Original Assignee: Ichikoh Industries Limited (Valeo SE)
• Inventors: Nakata, Yutaka
• Primary Examiner(s): Husar, Stephen F.
• Application Number:
  US07/348,917
• Time in Patent Office: 505 Days
• Field of Search: 362/61, 362/80, 362/297, 362/304, 362/310, 362/346, 362/343, 362/305, 362/307, 362/308, 362/268, 362/310
• US Class Current: 362/518
• CPC Class Codes: F21S 41/335 with continuity at the junction between adjacent areas

Abstract

The automotive lamp assembly according to the present invention comprises a divergent-type concave mirror formed by a central reflecting area in which the optical axis lies and peripheral reflecting areas continuously extending rightward and leftward from the central reflecting area, and a lamp bulb disposed on the optical axis of the concave mirror. Either of the central and peripheral reflecting areas is formed as a first reflecting curved surface composed of a part of a paraboloid of revolution to reflect the incident rays of light from the lamp bulb in directions parallel to the optical axis, and the other is formed as a second reflecting curved surface to reflect horizontally the rays of light from the lamp bulb in directions divergent from the optical axis depending upon the distance from the vertical plane in which the optical axis lies and also reflect vertically the rays of light in directions parallel to each other and to the horizontal plane in which the optical axis lies. The first reflecting curved surface defines a central hot zone in the light distribution pattern, and the second reflecting curved surface defines middle and low illuminance zones extending rightward and leftward from the center of the light distribution pattern. Therefore, the rays of light from the lamp bulb can be effectively utilized and a desired light distribution pattern can be freely obtained.

Claims

1. An automotive lamp assembly comprising a concave mirror having an optical axis and a lamp bulb disposed on said optical axis of said concave mirror, wherein said concave mirror is formed by a central reflecting area intersecting said optical axis and peripheral reflecting areas continuously extending rightward and leftward from said central reflecting area, said peripheral reflecting areas are formed as first reflecting curved surface consisting of a part of a paraboloid of revolution and which reflects the incident rays of light from said lamp bulb in directions parallel to said optical axis, and said central reflecting area is formed as a second reflecting curved surfaces which reflects horizontally the rays of light emitted from said lamp bulb in directions convergent toward or divergent from said optical axis depending upon the distance from the vertical plane in which said optical axis lies and also reflects vertically the rays of light in directions parallel to each other and to the horizontal plane in which said optical axis lies.

2. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 1, wherein boundaries between said central reflecting area and said peripheral reflecting areas are laid in two vertical planes parallel to the vertical plane in which said optical axis lies and positioned symmetrically with respect to said optical axis, said second reflecting curved surface is formed by a plurality of elongated reflecting areas each consisting of multiple minute reflecting surface elements, and the multiple reflecting surface elements belonging to each of said reflecting areas groups are so oriented as to reflect the incident rays of light from said lamp bulb in a same directions.

3. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 2, wherein the minute reflecting surface elements belonging to the two of the plurality of elongated reflecting areas forming said second reflecting curved surface that are positioned symmetrically with respect to the vertical plane in which said optical axis lies are so orientated as to reflect the incident rays from said lamp bulb in directions divergent from said optical axis with substantially same angles with respect to said

4. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 3, wherein each of the minute reflecting surface elements forming said second reflecting curved surface are so orientated as to reflect the incident rays of light from said lamp bulb in directions more divergent from said optical axis as they are nearer to the vertical plane in which said optical axis lies.

5. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 2, wherein the minute reflecting surface elements belonging to the two of the plurality of elongated reflecting areas forming said second reflecting curved surface that are positioned symmetrically with respect to the vertical plane in which said optical axis lies are so orientated as to reflect the incident rays from said lamp bulb in directions convergent toward said optical axis with substantially same angles with respect to said optical axis.

6. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 5, wherein each of the minute reflecting surface elements forming said second reflecting curved surface are so orientated as to reflect the incident rays of light from said lamp bulb in directions more convergent toward said optical axis as they are nearer to the vertical plane in which said optical axis lies.

7. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 4, wherein each of the minute reflecting surface elements forming said second reflecting curved surface is so orientated as to reflect the incident rays of light from said lamp bulb so that the reflected rays of light pass through the right and left peripheral areas of the front opening of said concave mirror through which the rays of light reflected at said first reflecting curved surface pass

8. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 7, further comprising a lamp housing to accommodate said concave mirror and which has a circumferential edge extending substantially parallelly to the rays of light reflected at said peripheral reflecting areas and which defines the front opening of said lamp housing, and a transparent front cover disposed covering the front opening of said lamp housing

9. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 7, further comprising an auxiliary concave mirror located between said lamp bulb and the front opening of said concave mirror and which is formed by a part of a spheric surface defined nearly about the center of said lamp bulb and reflects the rays of light incident directly from said lamp bulb toward said central reflecting area.

10. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 9, further comprising a lamp housing to accommodate said concave mirror and which has a circumferential edge extending substantially parallelly to the rays of light reflected at said peripheral reflecting areas and which defines the front opening of said lamp housing, and a transparent front cover disposed covering the front opening of said lamp housing

11. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 7, further comprising a lens member located at a position within the front opening of said concave mirror and substantially corresponding to said central reflecting area and which refracts the rays of light incident directly from said lamp bulb in directions parallel to said optical axis

12. An automotive lamp assembly according to claim 11, further comprising a lamp housing to accommodate said concave mirror and which has a circumferential edge extending substantially parallelly to the rays of light reflected at said peripheral reflecting areas and which defines the front opening of said lamp housing, and a transparent front cover disposed covering the front opening of said lamp housing