Light emitting diode lamp device

• US 6,550,953 B1
• Filed: 08/18/2000
• Issued: 04/22/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Company Limited (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Ito, Yoshiaki, Takahashi, Toshinori, Misawa, Akihiro, Ichikawa, Tadaoki, Nawashiro, Mitsuhiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Don
• Assistant Examiner(s): A, Minh D
• Application Number:
  US09/640,913
• Time in Patent Office: 977 Days
• Field of Search: 315/56, 315/57, 315/58, 362/800, 257/79, 257/80, 257/81, 257/88, 257/89, 257/99
• US Class Current: 315/56
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 3/14 lighting through the surface to be illuminated
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 3/16 Circuits; Control arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: F21Y 2115/10 Light-emitting diodes [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0021 for housing at least a part of the light source, e.g. by forming holes or recesses
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0068 Arrangements of plural sources, e.g. multi-colour light sources
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 25/0753 the devices being arranged next to each other
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00

Abstract

A casing accommodates therein three primary colors of chip LEDs. The casing is disposed in a through hole of a plate-shaped light guide. The chip LEDs are mounted on both surfaces of a substrate so as to face a peripheral surface of the through hole (light incident surface). The casing is made of a transparent synthetic resin accommodating therein the substrate and the chip LEDs. The light emitted from the chip LEDs can be introduced directly into the light incident surface of the light guide. The three primary color of chip LEDs are controlled so that a desired color and intensity of light can be efficiently introduced into the light guide.

Claims

1. A light emitting diode (LED) lamp device comprising:

chip LEDs each of which has a light emission surface;

a substrate having a flat plate shape portion that has a pair of opposite surfaces on each of which at least one of said chip LEDs is mounted so that the light emission surface of each of the chip LEDs is placed on a plane parallel to the opposite surfaces of the flat plate shape portion of the substrate; and

a casing made of a transparent synthetic resin, the casing accommodating the chip LEDs and the substrate therein.

2. A light emitting diode (LED) lamp device comprising:

a light guide of essentially a plate shape;

a chip LED disposed on a plane perpendicular to the plane of the light guide, the chip LED emitting light directly to an end surface of the light guide;

a substrate having one or more surface on which the chip LED is mounted; and

a casing made of a transparent synthetic resin, the casing accommodating the chip LED and the substrate therein.

3. The LED lamp device according to claim 2, in which:

the light guide has a light incident surface extending in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the light guide;

the substrate is disposed essentially parallel to the light incident surface of the light guide; and

the chip LED is mounted on the substrate so as to face the light incident surface of the light guide so that the light of the chip LED goes directly onto the light incident surface.

4. The LED lamp device according to claim 2, in which the casing has a crimp on an outer surface thereof.

5. The LED lamp device according to claim 2, in which a plurality of the LED elements are mounted as the chip LED on the surface of the substrate in such a manner that the LED elements are arranged linearly in a row.

6. The LED lamp device according to claim 3, in which the chip LED is mounted on the substrate at such a position as to face the light incident surface of the light guide, the chip LED being located within the thickness of the light guide.

7. The LED lamp device according to claim 3, in which the chip LED comprises three primary colors of LED elements, the three primary colors of LED elements being located within the thickness of the light guide so as to be successively arranged in a circumferential direction of the light incident surface.

8. The LED lamp device according to claim 3, in which a plurality of sets of LED elements are provided as the chip LED on the substrate, each set of the LED elements comprising three primary colors of LED elements, each set of the three primary colors of LED elements being located within a thickness of the light guide so as to be successively arranged in a circumferential direction of the light incident surface, the plural sets of three primary colors of LED elements being arranged in plural lines.

9. The LED lamp device according to claim 3, in which two sets of LED elements are provided as the chip LED on the substrate, each set of the LED elements comprising three primary colors of LED elements, the two sets of three primary colors of LED elements being mounted on the opposite surfaces of the substrate, respectively.

10. The LED lamp device according to claim 3, in which the casing has a column shape.

11. The LED lamp device according to claim 3, in which a plurality of the casings with the substrate and the chip LED accommodated therein are disposed on the light guide, adjacent ones of the casings being arranged so that the substrates therein are perpendicular to each other.

12. A vehicle meter comprising a dial and a light source for the dial, the dial being composed of the light guide of the LED lamp device of claim 3 and the light source being composed of the chip LED of the LED lamp device of claim 3.

13. The LED lamp device according to claim 3, in which the substrate has a cross-section of one of V-shape, L-shape and cross-shape, the chip LED being mounted on three or more surfaces of the substrate.

14. The LED lamp device according to claim 3, in which the substrate has a solid or hollow column shape, the chip LED being mounted on each surface of the substrate.

15. A light emitting diode (LED) lamp device comprising:

a chip LED;

a substrate having one or more surfaces on which the chip LED is mounted;

a casing made of a transparent synthetic resin, the casing accommodating the chip LED and the substrate therein; and

a synthetic resin housing having an end portion on which the casing is fixed, the housing accommodating the substrate therein, the housing having a locking structure on an outer peripheral surface, the locking structure being mountable on an attachment hole of a base structure.

16. The LED lamp device according to claim 15, further comprising a cap covering the chip LED.

17. The LED lamp device according to claim 15, in which the housing has a structure compatible with a package socket for a lamp bulb.

18. The LED lamp device according to claim 15, in which:

the attachment hole has essentially a circular shape, the base structure having an inwardly protruding small diameter portion formed on part of the attachment hole; and

the locking mechanism has a locking rib of a bracket shape, the locking rib has an elastic protrusion and a locking protrusion, the elastic protrusion elastically in contact with an edge surface of the base structure around the attachment hole, the locking protrusion being engaged with the small diameter portion of the base structure so as to prevent rotation of the housing relative to the attachment hole of the base structure.

19. A light emitting diode (LED) lamp device comprising:

an LED lamp;

a power converting circuit converting an input power source voltage and an input power current into a voltage and a current for driving the LED lamp; and

a synthetic resin housing accommodating therein the LED lamp and the power converting circuit, the housing fixing the LED lamp at one end thereof, the housing having a locking structure on an outer peripheral surface, the locking structure being mountable on an attachment hole of a base structure.