Optical devices for guiding illumination
First Claim
1. An optical device for guiding illumination comprising:
- a body having a first surface and a second surface, each of said first and second surfaces being on opposite sides of the body, in which said first surface has a plurality of ramp structures, said body has an optical axis extending along a dimension parallel to said second surface; and
each of said ramp structures having a ramp surface at a first acute angle with respect to said optical axis, a front exit face following said ramp surface at a second acute angle with respect to the normal of said optical axis, in which light when inputted at one end of said body is substantially totally internally reflected within said body until exiting said body through the front exit face of two or more of said ramp structures, wherein NA is the numerical aperture of the light inputted said one end of said device, and said NA and said second acute angle are in inverse relationship with each other.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Optical devices for guiding illumination are provided each having a body of optical material with staircase or acutely angled ramp structures on its top surface for distributing light inputted from one end of the device from the front exit faces of such structures along certain angular orientations, while at least a substantial portion of the light is totally internally reflected within the body until distributed from such front exit faces. Optical devices are also provided each have a body of optical material having a bottom surface with acutely angled ramp structures and falling structures which alternate with each other, such that light is totally internally reflected within the device until reflected by such ramp structures along the bottom surface to exit the top surface of the device or transmitted through the ramp structures to an adjacent falling structure back into the device. Acutely angled ramp structures may be provided on both top and bottom surfaces of optical devices for distributing light along such top surface. Illumination apparatuses are also provided using such optical devices.
76 Citations
61 Claims
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1. An optical device for guiding illumination comprising:
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a body having a first surface and a second surface, each of said first and second surfaces being on opposite sides of the body, in which said first surface has a plurality of ramp structures, said body has an optical axis extending along a dimension parallel to said second surface; and each of said ramp structures having a ramp surface at a first acute angle with respect to said optical axis, a front exit face following said ramp surface at a second acute angle with respect to the normal of said optical axis, in which light when inputted at one end of said body is substantially totally internally reflected within said body until exiting said body through the front exit face of two or more of said ramp structures, wherein NA is the numerical aperture of the light inputted said one end of said device, and said NA and said second acute angle are in inverse relationship with each other. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 46, 47, 48, 49, 58)
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4. An optical for guiding illumination comprising:
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a body having a first surface and a second surface, each of said first and second surfaces being on opposite sides of the body, in which said first surface has a plurality of ramp structures, said body has an optical axis extending along a dimension parallel to said second surface; and each of said ramp structures having a ramp surface at a first acute angle with respect to said optical axis, and a front exit face at a second acute angle with respect to the normal of said optical axis, in which light when inputted at one end of said device is substantially totally internally reflected within said body until substantially distributed by exiting through the front exit face of each of said ramp structures, and wherein NA is the numerical aperture of the light inputted said one end of said device, and said NA and said second acute angle are in inverse relationship with each other, and wherein each adjacent pair of said ramp structures is separated by a flat surface substantially parallel to said second surface; and said body has a first end representing said one end for inputting light and a second end, and a plurality of said ramp structures each successively tapers toward said second surface between said first and second ends reducing the thickness of the body between said first surface and said second surface while maintaining said flat surface between each adjacent pair of ramp structures substantially parallel to said second surface, wherein said second surface is substantially flat between said first and second ends. - View Dependent Claims (59)
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33. A device for guiding illumination having an optical axis comprising:
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a body having a top surface with a series of structures extending in the same direction as said axis of said body, and a bottom surface which extends along a direction parallel to said axis; and each of said structures comprises a rising surface followed by falling surface, wherein for each of said structures in a direction along said top surface away from said one end of said body the rising surface forwardly tilts at an angle with respect to said axis to meet at an apex the falling surface which backwardly tilts at an angle with respect to the normal of said axis to enable light when inputted from one end of said body to be substantially emitted from said body through said falling surface of said structures while being totally or substantially internally reflected along the rising surface of said structures and said bottom surface, and wherein NA is the numerical aperture of the light inputted said one end of said device, and said NA and said angle of said falling surface arc in inverse relationship'"'"'with each other.
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34. An apparatus comprising:
a light guiding device having an optical axis extending the length of the device and at least structures each having a ramp at a first angle with respect to said optical axis with a tilted front face at a second angle with respect to the normal of said optical axis, and light when received at one end of the device substantially exits through the front face of said structures, wherein NA is the numerical aperture of the light received at said one end of the device, and said NA and said second angle are in inverse relationship with each other. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 56)
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45. An optical device for guiding illumination comprising:
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a body having a first surface and a second surface, each of said first and second surfaces being on opposite sides of the body, in which said first surface has a plurality of ramp structures, said body has an optical axis extending along a dimension parallel to said second surface, in which light when inputted at one end of said body is substantially totally internally reflected within said body until exiting said body through the front exit face of two or more of said ramp structures, wherein; Θ
R represents the angle of the ramp surface with respect to said axis;Θ
EF represents the angle of said front exit face of each of said stnictures with respect to the normal of said axis;said body is of material having a refractive index; NA is the numerical aperture of the light inputted said one end of said device; Rn is a ratio of the refractive index of the material of said body to a refractive index of the medium surrounding said body; and said angles Θ
R and Θ
EF are selected in accordance with at least equations; - View Dependent Claims (60)
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50. An optical element for guiding illumination comprising:
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two ends; a first surface and a second surface opposite said first surface, in which said first and second surfaces extend between said two ends; and said first surface has a plurality of structures each comprising a third surface followed by a fourth surface, in which said third surface meets said fourth surface at an apex, said third surface slopes upward in a first direction away from said second surface at a first angle with respect to a dimension substantially parallel to that portion of said second surface opposite that portion of said first surface having the third surface, and said fourth surface slopes backward in a second direction toward said second surface at a second angle with respect to a dimension substantially perpendicular to that portion of said second surface opposite that portion of said first surface having said fourth surface, wherein all or at least a substantial portion of light when received from one of sa;
d ends is totally internally reflected within said device until exiting from said device through the fourth surface of the structures, wherein NA is the numerical aperture of the light inputted said one of said ends, and said NA and said second angle at which said second surface slopes backward in said second direction are in inverse relationship with each other. - View Dependent Claims (51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 61)
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57. An optical device for guiding illumination comprising:
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a body having a first surface and a second surface, each of said first and second surfaces being on opposite sides of the body, in which said first surface has a plurality of ramp structures, said body has an optical axis extending along a dimension parallel to said second surface; and each of said ramp structures having a ramp surface at a first acute angle with respect to said optical axis, and a front exit face at a second acute angle with respect to the normal of said optical axis, in which light when inputted at one end of said body is substantially totally internally reflected within said body until exiting said body through the front exit face of two or more of said ramp structures which, wherein for each of said ramp structures in a direction along said first surface away from said one end of said body the ramp surface is forwardly-tilted at said first acute angle with respect to said axis until a forwardmost end forms an apex with the front exit face from which the front exit face extends backwardly tilted at said second acute angle with respect to the normal of the axis, wherein NA is the numerical aperture of the light inputted said one end of said device, and said NA and said second acute angle are in inverse relationship with each other.
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Specification