Light deflection element and light source apparatus using the same

• US 7,401,962 B2
• Filed: 07/13/2006
• Issued: 07/22/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LMS Incorporated (Davey Tree Expert Company)
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Rayon Company Limited (Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamashita, Tomoyoshi, Chiba, Issei
• Primary Examiner(s): O'Shea; Sandra L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dunwiddie; Meghan K.
• Application Number:
  US11/485,443
• Publication Number:
  US 20060250817A1
• Time in Patent Office: 740 Days
• Field of Search: 362/330, 362/339, 362/606, 362/607, 362/615, 362/620, 362/626
• US Class Current: 362/606
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 5/045 Prism arrays
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0038 Linear indentations or grooves, e.g. arc-shaped grooves or meandering grooves, extending over the full length or width of the light guide
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0053 Prismatic sheet or layer; Brightness enhancement element, sheet or layer

Abstract

A surface light source apparatus includes a primary light source (1), an optical guide (3) for guiding light emitted from the primary light source and having a light incoming surface (31) and a light outgoing surface (32), a light deflection element (4) arranged adjacent to the light outgoing surface of the optical guide and having a light incoming surface (41) and a light outgoing surface (42), and a light diffusion element (6) arranged adjacent to the light outgoing surface of the light deflection element. The light incoming surface (41) of the light deflection element has a plurality of prism strings arranged substantially parallel to each other and each having two prism surfaces. At least one of the prism surfaces of these prism strings has a prism surface consisting of at least two planes having different inclination angles. As the plane approaches the light going surface, the inclination becomes larger.

Claims

1. A light deflector comprising a light entrance surface on which light is incident and a light exit surface located on an opposite side relative to said light entrance surface and allowing the incident light to exit therefrom, wherein said light entrance surface is formed with a plurality of elongated prisms arrayed substantially parallel to each other and each composed of two prism surfaces, at least one of said prism surfaces of each of the elongated prisms comprises at least three flat reflecting surfaces having mutually different inclination angles, and any one of said flat surfaces located on a side closer to said light exit surface has a larger inclination angle.

5. A light deflector according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a ratio (d/P) of a maximum distance (d) between said flat surfaces and/or convex curved surface(s) and a virtual flat surface connecting between a prism vertex portion and a prism bottom portion relative to a pitch (P) of the elongated prisms is 0.4 to 5%.

6. A light deflector according to claim 1 or 2, wherein an allocated angle (α

) of a vertical angle of said elongated prisms is 40 degrees or less, while the other allocated angle (β

) is 25 to 50 degrees.

7. A light deflector according to claim 1 or 2, wherein an absolute (|α

β

|) of a difference between said two allocated angles α and

β

is 0.5 to 10 degrees.

8. A light deflector according to claim 1 or 2, wherein an allocated angle (α

) of a vertical angle of said elongated prisms is 40 degrees or less.

9. A light deflector according to claim 1 or 2, wherein one of said prism surfaces forming said elongated prisms is formed by said flat surfaces and/or convex curved surface(s), while the other of the prism surfaces is a substantially flat surface.

10. A light source device comprising a primary light source, a light guide that guides light emitted from said primary light source and has a light incident surface on which the light emitted from said primary light source is incident, and a light outgoing surface from which the guided light exits, and said light deflector according according to claim 1 or 2 disposed adjacent to the light outgoing surface of said light guide.

2. A light deflector comprising a light entrance surface on which light is incident and a light exit surface located on an opposite side relative to said light entrance surface and allowing the incident light to exit therefrom, wherein said light entrance surface is formed with a plurality of elongated prisms arrayed substantially parallel to each other and each composed of two reflective prism surfaces, at least one of said reflective prism surfaces of each of the elongated prisms comprises at least two convex reflective curved surfaces having mutually different inclination angles, and any one of said convex curved reflective surfaces located on a side closer to said light exit surface has a larger inclination angle.

3. A light deflector according to claim 2, wherein shapes of said convex curved surfaces differ from each other.

4. A light deflector according to claim 2, wherein said convex curved surface has a non-circular-arc shape in section.

11. A light deflector comprising one surface serving as a light entrance surface and the other surface located on an opposite side relative to said one surface and serving as a light exit surface, wherein said light entrance surface is formed with a plurality of elongated prisms arrayed parallel to each other, each of said elongated prisms has two prism surfaces being a first prism surface and a second prism surface, and at least said second prism surfaces is formed as a substantially flat surface at one portion thereof located on a sideof a vertex portion of each of said elongated prisms while formed into a convex curved surface at the other portion thereof located on a side of said light exit surface, and wherein a ratio (h/H) of a height (h) from the vertex portion of each of said elongated prisms to a portion of the convex curved surface relative to a height (H) of each of said elongated prisms is 25 to 60%.

12. A light deflector according to 11, wherein said first prism surface is a substantially flat surface.

13. A light source device comprising a primary light source, a light guide that guides light emitted from said primary light source and has a light incident surface on which the light emitted from said primary light source is incident, and a light outgoing surface from which the guided light exits, and said light deflector according to claim 11 or 12, disposed adjacent to the light outgoing surface of said light guide.