MICROSTRUCTURES FOR LIGHT GUIDE ILLUMINATION
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An illumination apparatus comprising:
- a light guide having a forward and rearward surface, the light guide further comprising a plurality of edges between the forward and rearward surfaces, said light guide comprising material that supports propagation of light along the length of the light guide; and
at least a portion of at least one of the edges comprising an array of microstructures, said microstructures comprising a plurality of prisms and a plurality of lenses.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Various embodiments disclose an illumination apparatus. The apparatus may comprise a light guide supporting propagation of light and having at least a portion of one of its edges comprising an array of microstructures. These microstructures may be incorporated in the input window of the light guide to control the light intensity distributed within the light guide. In certain embodiments, the directional intensity of the light entering the light guide may be modified to achieve a desired distribution across the light guide.
127 Citations
52 Claims
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1. An illumination apparatus comprising:
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a light guide having a forward and rearward surface, the light guide further comprising a plurality of edges between the forward and rearward surfaces, said light guide comprising material that supports propagation of light along the length of the light guide; and at least a portion of at least one of the edges comprising an array of microstructures, said microstructures comprising a plurality of prisms and a plurality of lenses. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 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, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41)
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42. An illumination apparatus comprising:
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a light guide having a forward and rearward surface, the light guide further comprising a plurality of edges between the forward and rearward surfaces, said light guide comprising material that supports propagation of light along the length of the light guide; and at least a portion of at least one of the edges comprising an array of microstructures, said microstructures comprising a first set of features located on each of a second set of features, each of the second set of features smaller than each of the first set of features. - View Dependent Claims (43, 44, 45, 46)
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47. An illumination apparatus comprising:
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means for guiding light having a forward and rearward surface, the light guiding means further comprising a plurality of edges between the forward and rearward surfaces, said light guiding means comprising material that supports propagation of light along the length of the light guiding means; and at least a portion of at least one of the edges comprising an array of means for directing light, said light directing means comprising a plurality of first light directing means and a plurality of second light directing means, the first light directing means comprising angled planar surfaces and the second light directing means comprising curved surfaces. - View Dependent Claims (48)
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49. An illumination apparatus comprising:
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means for guiding light having a forward and rearward surface, the light guiding means further comprising a plurality of edges between the forward and rearward surfaces, said light guiding means comprising material that supports propagation of light along the length of the light guiding means; and at least a portion of at least one of the edges comprising an array of means for directing light, said light directing means comprising a first set of means for directing light on each of a second set of means for directing light, each of the second set of light directing means smaller than each of the first set of light directing means. - View Dependent Claims (50)
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51. A method of manufacturing an illumination apparatus comprising:
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providing a light guide having a forward and rearward surface, the light guide further comprising a plurality of edges between the forward and rearward surfaces, said light guide comprising material that supports propagation of light along the length of the light guide; and forming an array of microstructures on at least a portion of at least one of the edges, the microstructures comprising a plurality of prisms and a plurality of lenses.
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52. A method of manufacturing an illumination apparatus comprising:
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providing a light guide having a forward and rearward surface, the light guide further comprising a plurality of edges between the forward and rearward surfaces, said light guide comprising material that supports propagation of light along the length of the light guide; and forming an array of microstructures on at least a portion of at least one of the edges, the microstructures comprising a first set of features located on each of a second set of features, each of the second set of features smaller than each of the first set of features.
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Specification