Lighting apparatus

• US 5,808,708 A
• Filed: 12/14/1995
• Issued: 09/15/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Ohta, Youko, Oyama, Hisashi, Terasaki, Hirohide, Tanabe, Takayoshi, Takahashi, Nobuyuki, Ukai, Kenichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Dang, Hung X.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Duong, Tai V.
• Application Number:
  US08/573,498
• Time in Patent Office: 1,006 Days
• Field of Search: 349/64, 349/65, 349/61, 349/62, 349/70, 362/31, 362/32, 362/26, 385/129, 385/146, 385/901, 385/130, 385/131
• US Class Current: 349/65
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0001 specially adapted for lighting devices or systems lighting or signalling on vehicles using light guides B60Q1/00; lighting devices for vehicle dashboards B60Q3/10; lighting devices for vehicle interior using light guides B60Q3/62; lighting devices mounted on the vehicle rear part using light guides F21S43/235; measuring arrangements having light conducting pointers G01D13/265; illumination of liquid crystal displays G02F1/1336; illuminated signs G09F13/00
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0018 Redirecting means on the surface of the light guide
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/002 by shaping at least a portion of the light guide, e.g. with collimating, focussing or diverging surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/4298 coupling with non-coherent light sources and/or radiation detectors, e.g. lamps, incandescent bulbs, scintillation chambers
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133615 Edge-illuminating devices, i.e. illuminating from the side
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 385/901 Illuminating or display apparatus

Abstract

A lighting apparatus for irradiating a liquid crystal display panel from the back includes a light guiding plate having at least an end which is bent in a direction opposite to the liquid crystal display panel, and a light source disposed on the back surface of the light guiding plate with respect to the liquid crystal display panel. Light from the light source is incident on the bent section of the light guiding plate, reflected by a reflector covering the outside surface of the bent section, and then falls on a section corresponding to a data display space of the liquid crystal display panel. This structure enables an increase in the ratio of the area of a light emitting section to the area of the entire lighting apparatus.

Claims

1. A lighting apparatus comprising:

a light emitting section in the shape of a flat plate having a light emitting surface on one side, said light emitting section being made from a light transmitting material;

a light source disposed on an opposite side of said light emitting section with respect to said light emitting surface; and

a light guiding section for guiding light from said light source into said light emitting section through a side surface of said light emitting surface, said light guiding section including a light transmitting section lying in a bent shape from the side surface of said light emitting section, to a position facing said light source, said light transmitting section and said light emitting section being integrally formed from a single piece of said light transmitting material.

2. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said light source is disposed so that at least a part of said light source is positioned on an inside position of the side edge section of said light emitting surface.

3. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said light guiding section further includes a light reflecting section for covering an outside surface of said light transmitting section except at least a portion facing said light source.

4. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 3,

wherein said light source is a tube-like light source which is disposed so that an axis of said light source is parallel to a longitudinal direction of the side surface of said light emitting section,

said light transmitting section includes at the position facing said light source a light incident surface on which light from said light source is incident,

a width of said light incident surface in a direction orthogonal to a direction of the axis of said light source is substantially equal to a tube diameter of said light source, and

a thickness of said light emitting section is smaller than the width of said light incident surface.

5. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 3,

wherein a surface of said light reflecting section facing said light transmitting section is formed by a mirror surface having high reflectance.

6. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 3,

wherein said light source is a tube-like light source which is disposed so that an axis of said light source is parallel to a longitudinal direction of the side surface of said light emitting section, and

said light transmitting section is formed so that a profile perpendicular to the axis of said light source is substantially a semi-circle having the side surface of said light emitting section as a part of a chord of the semi-circle.

10. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 3,

wherein said light source is a tube-like light source which is disposed so that an axis of said light source is parallel to a longitudinal direction of the side surface of said light emitting section, and

said light transmitting section is formed so that a profile perpendicular to the axis of said light source is a substantially triangle having the side surface of said light emitting section as a part of one side of the triangle.

11. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 10,

wherein said light reflecting section has a reflecting corner with an interior angle of about 90 degrees at a position facing either two equal sides of said light transmitting section having the substantially triangular profile.

12. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 11, further comprising a reflector for covering a periphery of said light source except a portion facing said light guiding section,

wherein said reflector and said light reflecting section are formed as a single unit by the same material.

13. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 10,

wherein said light transmitting section is formed so that a profile perpendicular to the axis of said light source is substantially an isosceles triangle having the side surface of said light emitting section as a part of a base of the isosceles triangle.

14. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 13,

wherein said light reflecting section has a reflecting corner with an interior angle of about 90 degrees at a position facing either two equal sides of said light transmitting section having the substantially isosceles triangular profile.

15. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 14, further comprising a reflector for covering a periphery of said light source except a portion facing said light guiding section,

wherein said reflector and said light reflecting section are formed as a single unit by the same material.

16. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said light guiding section includes a light transmitting section formed by a light transmitting material so as to lie in a bent shape from a side surface of said light emitting section to a position facing said light source;

and

a light-incidence end surface is formed at a position of said light transmitting section facing said light source, said light-incidence end surface being a plane which is substantially perpendicular to an opposite surface of said light emitting section with respect to said light emitting surface but slightly tilts with respect to the opposite surface in a direction going away from said light source.

17. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 16,

wherein a tilt angle of said light-incidence end surface with respect to a normal line of said light emitting surface is within a range of from 2 degrees to 10 degrees.

18. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said light guiding section includes a light transmitting section formed by a light-transmitting material so as to lie in a bent shape from a side surface of said light emitting section to a position facing said light source, and

said light transmitting section comprises a light-incidence end surface in the shape of a convex surface on which light from said light source is incident at a position facing said light source.

19. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said light guiding section includes a light transmitting section formed by a light-transmitting material so as to lie in a bent shape from a side surface of said light emitting section to a position facing said light source, and

a light-incidence end surface formed at a position of said light transmitting section facing said light source, said light-incidence end surface being formed by a perpendicular surface which is substantially perpendicular to an opposite surface of said light emitting section with respect to said light emitting surface and an incline surface which tilts slightly with respect to the opposite surface in a direction going away from said light source,

wherein said perpendicular surface is positioned closer to the opposite surface of said light emitting section than said inclined surface.

20. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 19,

wherein a tilt angle of said inclined surface with respect to said perpendicular surface is within a range of from 2 degrees to 10 degrees.

25. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 1, further comprising a diffusing sheet, formed on said light emitting surface of said light emitting section, for diffusing light emitted from said light emitting surface.

27. A display device incorporating the lighting apparatus set forth in claim 1 and a light-transmitting-type image display panel placed on a light emitting side of the light emitting section of said lighting apparatus,

wherein said light source is disposed so that, when said light source is projected in a direction normal to the light emitting section, at least a portion of said light source is within a data display space R.

28. The display device as set forth in claim 27, further comprising at least one of a driving circuit for said image display panel and a control circuit for said light source, on a side of said light emitting section on which said light source is disposed.

7. A lighting apparatus comprising:

a light emitting section in the shape of a flat plate having a light emitting surface on one side, said light emitting section being made from a light transmitting material;

a light source disposed on an opposite side of said light emitting section with respect to said light emitting surface; and

a light guiding section for guiding light from said light source into said light emitting section through a side surface of said light emitting surface,

wherein said light guiding section further includes a light reflecting section for covering an outside surface of said light transmitting section except at least a portion facing said light source,

wherein said light source is a tube-like light source which is disposed so that an axis of said light source is parallel to a longitudinal direction of the side surface of said light emitting section, and

said light transmitting section is formed so that a profile perpendicular to the axis of said light source is substantially a trapezoid having the side surface of said light emitting section as a part of a base of the trapezoid.

8. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 7,

wherein said light reflecting section has a reflecting corner with an interior angle of about 90 degrees at a position facing a non-parallel side of said light transmitting section having the substantially trapezoid profile.

9. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 8, further comprising a reflector for covering a periphery of said light source except a portion facing said light guiding section,

wherein said reflector and said light reflecting section are formed as a single unit by the same material.

21. A lighting apparatus comprising:

a light emitting section in the shape of a flat plate having a light emitting surface on one side, said light emitting section being made from a light transmitting material;

a light source disposed on an opposite side of said light emitting section with respect to said light emitting surface;

a light guiding section for guiding light from said light source into said light emitting section through a side surface of said light emitting surface, and

a reflector for covering a periphery of said light source except a portion facing said light guiding section,

wherein said light guiding section includes;

a light transmitting section formed by a light transmitting material to extend from a side surface of said light emitting section to a position facing said light source; and

a light reflecting section for covering a periphery of said light transmitting section except at least a portion facing said light source, and

wherein said reflector and said light reflecting section are formed as a single unit by the same material.

22. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 21,

wherein said reflector is formed by a metal.

23. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 21,

wherein said reflector is formed by a resin having high reflectance.

24. The lighting apparatus as set forth in claim 21, further comprising an electrode holding member for holding an electrode section of said light source,

wherein said reflector and said electrode holding member are formed as a single unit.

26. A lighting apparatus comprising:

a light emitting section in the shape of a flat plate having a light emitting surface on one side, said light emitting section being made from a light transmitting material;

a light source disposed on an opposite side of said light emitting section with respect to said light emitting surface;

a light guiding section for guiding light from said light source into said light emitting section through a side surface of said light emitting surface, and

a reflecting sheet, formed on an opposite surface of said light emitting section with respect to said light emitting surface, for moving light emitted from said light emitting section back into said light emitting section.