Light guide with protective outer sleeve
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A light conveying device comprising:
- a hollow light guide including a wall having a generally smooth inner side and a structured outer side, the structured outer side including a plurality of prisms defining grooves that extend along a length of the light guide; and
a protective outer sleeve bonded to the structured outer side of the light guide at three or more locations spaced about a perimeter of the light guide.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An illumination device including a light guide 22 surrounded by a protective sleeve 24. The light guide 22 is hollow and includes a cylindrical wall 26 having a structured outer surface 28 and a smooth inner surface 30. Light release structures are provided to reflect or refract light through the cylindrical wall 26 of the light guide 22. In certain embodiments, the protective sleeve is bonded to the light guide. Rigid fixtures can be used to retain the light guide in elastically deformed, non-cylindrical cross-sectional shapes.
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Citations
57 Claims
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1. A light conveying device comprising:
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a hollow light guide including a wall having a generally smooth inner side and a structured outer side, the structured outer side including a plurality of prisms defining grooves that extend along a length of the light guide; and
a protective outer sleeve bonded to the structured outer side of the light guide at three or more locations spaced about a perimeter of the light guide. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A light distribution system comprising:
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a flexible hollow light guide including a wall having a generally smooth inner side and a structured outer side, the structured outer side including a plurality of prisms defining grooves that extend along a length of the light guide;
a flexible protective outer sleeve surrounding the structured outer side of the light guide;
a light release structure provided adjacent at least one of the inner and outer sides of the light guide for causing light to be released from the light guide through the wall of the light guide; and
a fixture having a generally non-cylindrical portion that surrounds the light guide for retaining the hollow light guide in an elastically deformed, generally non-cylindrical configuration, wherein the outer sleeve prevents the structured outer side of the light guide from contacting the fixture. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37)
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38. A light conveying device comprising:
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an optical film having a generally smooth first side and a structured second side, the structured second side including a plurality or prisms defining a plurality of parallel grooves;
a flexibly protective layer bonded to at least several of the prisms of the optical film; and
wherein the protective layer is bonded to the prisms by adhesive. - View Dependent Claims (39, 40, 41)
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42. A light distribution system comprising:
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a flexible hollow light guide comprising at least one sheet of optical film, the hollow light guide including a wall having a generally smooth inner side and a structured outer side, the structured outer side including a plurality of prisms defining grooves that extend along a length of the light guide;
a light release structure provided adjacent at least one of the inner and outer sides of the light guide for causing light to be released from the light guide through the wall of the light guide; and
a rigid fixture including a retaining portion for retaining the light guide in an elastically deformed state, the retaining portion including at least two separate pieces that when joined together function to compress the light guide into a non-cylindrical configuration. - View Dependent Claims (43, 44)
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45. A light distribution system comprising:
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a flexible hollow light guide comprising at least one sheet of optical film, the hollow light guide including a wall having a generally smooth inner side and a structured outer side, the structured outer side including a plurality of prisms defining grooves that extend along a length of the light guide;
a light release structure provided adjacent at least one of the inner and outer sides of the light guide for causing light to be released from the light guide through the wall of the light guide; and
a rigid fixture including a retaining portion for retaining the light guide in an elastically deformed state, the retaining portion including at least one planar wall and at least one curved wall, the light guide including at least a first portion that is elastically deformed in conformance with a curvature of the curved wall. - View Dependent Claims (46, 47, 48)
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49. A light distribution system comprising:
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a flexible hollow light guide comprising at least one sheet of optical film, the hollow light guide including a wall having a generally smooth inner side and a structured outer side, the structured outer side including a plurality of prisms defining grooves that extend along a length of the light guide, the light guide having a tubular configuration when not deformed;
a light release structure provided adjacent at least one of the inner and outer sides of the light guide for causing light to be released from the light guide through the wall of the light guide; and
a rigid fixture including a retaining portion for retaining the light guide in an elastically deformed state, the rigid fixture having a shape selected from the group consisting of a generally square cross-sectional shape, a generally rectangular cross-sectional shape, a generally triangular cross-sectional shape, a generally oval cross-sectional shape and a generally dome-shaped cross-sectional shape. - View Dependent Claims (50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57)
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Specification