Illuminant pointer needle assembly for vehicular instrument

• US 5,142,453 A
• Filed: 10/23/1990
• Issued: 08/25/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 10/26/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Yazaki Corporation
• Original Assignee: Yazaki Corporation
• Inventors: Ohta, Noriaki, Ikegaya, Tatsuo, Shiratori, Hiroyasu
• Primary Examiner(s): Lazarus, Ira S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hagarman, Sue
• Application Number:
  US07/601,643
• Time in Patent Office: 672 Days
• Field of Search: 362/23, 362/26, 362/27, 362/29, 362/30, 362/31, 362/32, 116/287, 116/288, 116/DIG. 36
• US Class Current: 362/29
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/33 Illumination features
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/698 Pointers of combined instruments
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/60 Instruments characterised by their location or relative disposition in or on vehicles arrangements of lighting devices on dashboards B60Q3/10
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 11/28 Structurally-combined illuminating devices
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 2013/227 Electroluminescent displays for vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 116/36 Illuminated dial and pointer

Abstract

Described herein is an illuminant pointer needle assembly for a vehicular instrument, which is adapted to display the index portion of a pointer needle in the color of a coloring layer applied on the surface of the index portion in the day time, in a color of illumination of a light-emitting element in the nighttime when the pointer needle is lighted up, and in a mixture color in the dusk by superposing the color of illumination of the color of coloring layer reflecting incident external light. The pointer assembly essentially includes: a pointer needle having a base end portion fixedly mounted on a pointer needle shaft of a movement unit of a meter or the like and provided with a transparent index portion; a coloring layer formed on the bottom surface of the transparent index portion to reflect incident external light; a light-emitting element fixedly mounted on the base end portion of the pointer needle to light up the index portion in a color different from that of the coloring layer.

Claims

1. An illuminant pointer needle assembly for a vehicular instrument, comprising:

a pointer needle having a base end portion fixedly mounted on a pointer needle shaft of a movement unit and provided with a transparent index portion;

a layer of a selected color formed on a bottom surface of the transparent index portion selectively reflecting incident external white light and to illuminate the transparent index portion in the selected color; and

a light-emitting element having a light-emitting diode and being fixedly mounted on the base end portion of said pointer needle, said light-emitting element formed so as to emit light of a first single wavelength range which is totally reflective to the bottom surface of the transparent index portion and thereby to light up the transparent index portion in a color according to the first single wavelength range and different from the selected color when the external white light is incident upon said pointer needle.

2. An illuminant pointer needle assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein said bottom surface of said index portion tapered toward the fore end thereof.

3. An illuminant pointer needle assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein the bottom surface of the transparent index portion is an irregular reflection surface, the selected color layer being formed on the irregular reflection surface so as to reflect light through the irregular reflection surface.

4. An illuminant pointer needle assembly as defined in claim 1 wherein the light-emitting diode is fixedly mounted on a double-faced printing wiring board fixedly supported on the base end of said pointer needle, one of two lead terminals of the light-emitting diode being connected to one face of the printed wiring board and a second of the two lead terminals being connected to a second face of the printed wiring board, the one face of the printed wiring board being electrically connected to a first electrical terminal by a first hair spring which serves to return said pointer needle to a zero position, one end of the first hair spring being connected to the first electrical terminal and a second end of the hair spring being electrically connected to the pointer needle which is electrically connected to the one face of the printed wiring board, and

the second face of the printed wiring board being electrically connected with a second electrical terminal by a second hair spring which is coiled in a direction opposite to a direction in which the first hair spring is coiled, one end of the second hair spring being connected to the second electrical terminal and a second end of the second electrical terminal being connected to the second face of the printed wiring board through a resilient conductor, the resilient conductor being compressedly accommodated in an annular space between the second end of the second hair spring and the second face of the printed wiring board, and being electrically insulated from the first hair spring and from the pointer needle shaft.

5. An illuminant pointer needle assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein said coloring layer is formed on the top surface of said index portion of said pointer needle by appplication of a light-transmitting coloring ink.

6. An illuminant pointer needle assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein said light-emitting element is a duplex light-emitting element having a pair of light-emitting diodes one of which emits light of the first single wavelength range and the other of which emits light of a second single wavelength range and connected between a pair of terminals to a power source through a drive circuit means, the light-emitting diodes each being connected in series with and forward of a unidirectional element to form series circuits, each series circuit being connected in parallel to one another and in opposite directions between the pair of terminals, the drive circuit means being for controlling which of the pair of light-emitting diodes to activate when said light-emitting element is active to emit light.

7. An illuminant pointer needle assembly as defined in claim 6, wherein said drive circuit operates so as to selectively apply electrical voltages opposite to one another according to illumination of the transparent index portion with the selected color.