High intensity illuminator
First Claim
1. A high intensity illuminator comprising;
- a mounting fixture;
a receiving surface spaced from said mounting fixture;
a plurality of semiconductor illumination sources, each said illumination source being operable for emitting an outwardly-diverging illumination cone along an axis of illumination of said each source at a predetermined illumination wavelength;
said plural illumination sources being mounted on said mounting fixture such that said illumination cones of said sources are overlappingly coincident on a selected portion of said receiving surface to provide at said receiving surface portion a highly uniform illumination of high intensity at said predetermined wavelength; and
a light pipe extending from an input end and terminating at an output end having a surface defining said receiving surface, said light pipe being disposed relative to said mounting fixture so that the illumination cones of said plural illumination sources enter said light pipe at said input end and are directed by said light pipe along said pipe and onto said light pipe output end.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The high intensity illuminator of the invention includes a mounting fixture, a receiving surface spaced from the mounting fixture, and a plurality of semiconductor illumination sources which are implemented, most preferably, by light emitting diodes or laser diodes. Each illumination source is operable for emitting an outwardly-diverging illumination cone along an axis of illumination of the source at a predetermined illumination wavelength. The plural illumination sources are mounted on the mounting fixture such that their illumination cones are overlappingly coincident on a selected portion of the receiving surface to provide at the receiving surface portion a highly uniform illumination of high intensity at the predetermined wavelength.
98 Citations
19 Claims
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1. A high intensity illuminator comprising;
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a mounting fixture; a receiving surface spaced from said mounting fixture; a plurality of semiconductor illumination sources, each said illumination source being operable for emitting an outwardly-diverging illumination cone along an axis of illumination of said each source at a predetermined illumination wavelength;
said plural illumination sources being mounted on said mounting fixture such that said illumination cones of said sources are overlappingly coincident on a selected portion of said receiving surface to provide at said receiving surface portion a highly uniform illumination of high intensity at said predetermined wavelength; anda light pipe extending from an input end and terminating at an output end having a surface defining said receiving surface, said light pipe being disposed relative to said mounting fixture so that the illumination cones of said plural illumination sources enter said light pipe at said input end and are directed by said light pipe along said pipe and onto said light pipe output end. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. A high intensity illuminator comprising:
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a mounting fixture; a receiving surface spaced from said mounting fixture; and a plurality of semiconductor illumination sources, each said illumination source being operable for emitting an outwardly-diverging illumination cone along an axis of illumination of said each source at a predetermined illumination wavelength;
said plural illumination sources being mounted on said mounting fixture such that said illumination cones of said sources are overlappingly coincident on a selected portion of said receiving surface to provide at said receiving surface portion a highly uniform illumination of high intensity at said predetermined wavelength;wherein said plural illumination sources comprise a first plurality of semiconductor illumination sources and said predetermined illumination wavelength comprises a first predetermined illumination wavelength, further comprising a second plurality of semiconductor illumination sources, each said illumination source of said second plurality being operable for emitting an outwardly-diverging illumination cone along an axis of illumination of said each source at a second predetermined illumination wavelength;
said second plural illumination sources being mounted on said mounting fixture such that said illumination cones of said second sources are overlappingly coincident on said selected portion of said receiving surface to provide at said receiving surface portion a highly uniform illumination of high intensity at said second predetermined wavelength. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A high intensity illuminator comprising:
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a mounting fixture; a receiving surface spaced from said mounting fixture; a plurality of semiconductor illumination sources, each said illumination source being operable for emitting an outwardly-diverging illumination cone along an axis of illumination of said each source at a predetermined illumination wavelength;
said plural illumination sources being mounted on said mounting fixture such that said illumination cones of said sources are overlappingly coincident on a selected portion of said receiving surface to provide at said receiving surface portion a highly uniform illumination of high intensity at said predetermined wavelength;means for supplying an electrical signal to said plural illumination sources for operating said sources to emit said illumination cones; and means for sensing an illumination intensity at said receiving surface portion, said sensing means being connected to said supplying means and said supplying means further comprising means for varying the electrical signal supplied to said plural illumination sources in compensating accordance with illumination intensity variations sensed by said sensing means so as to provide a substantially constant illumination intensity at said receiving surface portion. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14)
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15. A high intensity illuminator comprising:
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a mounting fixture; a receiving surface spaced from said mounting fixture; a plurality of semiconductor illumination sources, each said illumination source being operable for emitting an outwardly-diverging illumination cone along an axis of illumination of said each source at a predetermined illumination wavelength;
said plural illumination sources being mounted on said mounting fixture such that said illumination cones of said sources are overlappingly coincident on a selected portion of said receiving surface to provide at said receiving surface portion a highly uniform illumination of high intensity at said predetermined wavelength;means for supplying an electrical signal to said plural illumination sources for operating said sources to emit said illumination cones, said supplying means further comprising means for selectively modulating said illumination sources between an operating condition in which the sources emit said illumination cones and a nonoperating condition; and means for sensing an illumination intensity at said receiving surface portion, said sensing means being connected to said supplying means and said supplying means further comprising means for varying the electrical signal supplied to said plural illumination sources in compensating accordance with illumination intensity variations sensed by said sensing means so as to provide a substantially constant illumination intensity at said receiving surface portion. - View Dependent Claims (16)
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17. A high intensity illuminator comprising;
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a mounting fixture; a diffuse surface spaced from said mounting fixture; a plurality of semiconductor illumination sources, each said illumination source comprising a light emitting diode operable for emitting an outwardly-diverging illumination cone along an axis of illumination of said each source at a predetermined illumination wavelength;
said plural illumination sources being mounted on said mounting fixture such that said illumination cones of said sources are overlappingly coincident on a selected portion of said diffuse surface to provide at said diffuse surface portion a highly uniform illumination of high intensity at said predetermined wavelength;means for supplying an electrical signal to said plural illumination sources for operating said sources to emit said illumination cones; and means for sensing an illumination intensity as said diffuse surface portion, said sensing means being connected to said supplying means and said supplying means further comprising means for varying the electrical signal supplied to said plural illumination sources in compensation accordance with illumination intensity variations sensed by said sensing means so as to provide a substantially constant illumination intensity at said receiving surface portion.
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18. A high intensity illuminator comprising;
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a mounting fixture; a diffuse surface spaced from said mounting fixture; a plurality of semiconductor illumination sources, each said illumination source comprising a light emitting diode operable for emitting an outwardly-diverging illumination cone along an axis of illumination of said each source at a predetermined illumination wavelength;
said plural illumination sources being mounted on said mounting fixture such that said illumination cones of said sources are overlapping coincident on a selected portion of said diffuse surface to provide at said diffuse surface portion a highly uniform illumination of high intensity at said predetermined wavelength;means for supplying an electrical signal to said plural illumination sources for operating said sources to emit said illumination cones, said supplying means further comprising means for selectively modulating said illumination sources between an operating condition in which the sources emit said illumination cones and a nonoperating condition; and means for sensing an illumination intensity at said diffuse surface portion, said sensing means being connected to said supplying means and said supplying means further comprising means for varying the electrical signal supplied to said plural illumination sources in compensating accordance with the illumination intensity variations sensed by said sensing means so as to provide a substantially constant illumination intensity at said diffuse surface portion. - View Dependent Claims (19)
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Specification