JP2002109916A - Lighting equipment of vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To meet requirements from the vehicle side by securing a brightness and forming an accurate light distribution property. SOLUTION: For the lighting equipment of a vehicle 1 forming an irradiation light by making the light irradiate a parabolic reflection surface 6, an elliptic reflection surface 3 making the light irradiated from a light source 2, which is located at the neighboring area of the first focus f1, converge into the second focus f2, and a reflection plate 4 forming the second focus of a mirror image by moving the apparent location of the second focus, are installed. By the above, the twofold reflection type lighting equipment of the vehicle 1 is made to formed a light distribution property by capturing the light irradiated from the light source at the elliptic reflection surface 3 which has high flux light capturing ratio, converting the captured light into a beam, and supplying it to the parabolic reflection surface 6. The problem is solved by making the capture of light and the formation of the light distribution property separate from each other, and by giving optimum conditions respectively.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicular lamp, and more particularly, to a vehicular lamp used for lighting, such as a headlamp or a fog lamp, which improves a light flux capturing ratio with respect to a light source. It is an object of the present invention to provide a configuration that enables a brighter lamp to be used even with the same light source.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 5 shows an example of the configuration of a conventional vehicle lighting device 90 of this type. A light source 91 having a length such as a filament of an incandescent lamp or an arc of a discharge lamp has a length. Direction has a characteristic that the amount of light is small, and the amount of light is large in a direction perpendicular to the length (hereinafter referred to as the equator direction). Is generally adopted, and is surrounded by a reflecting mirror 92 having, for example, a paraboloid of revolution in the equator direction.

[0003] The reason is that direct light from the light source 91 emitted from the lens 93 causes dazzling light and is harmful.
Further, a socket for mounting the light source 91 is required on the side of the vehicle lighting device 90 opposite to the lens 93,
This is because the reflection mirror 92 cannot be provided in this portion, and light directed in this direction becomes invalid.

[0004]

However, in recent years, there is a strong tendency that the vehicle lighting device 90 is also a part of the design of an automobile. For example, the size of the vehicle lighting device 90 in the horizontal direction when attached to a vehicle body is large. Therefore, a so-called flat shape having a small dimension in the vertical direction is required.

In this case, the reflecting mirror 92 has a corresponding effective angle αw with respect to the light source 91 in the horizontal section, but hardly has an effective angle αh with respect to the light source 91 in the vertical section. , Vehicle lighting 9
0 becomes extremely dark, which causes a problem of lowering visibility at night.

Here, the effective angle αh with respect to the light source 91 is simply
Can be achieved by setting the focal length of the reflecting mirror 92 short,
In this case, the vehicular illumination lamp 90 has a wider angle of light projection, and as a result, the lighting effect for a distant place is reduced, and the visibility is reduced in the same manner as described above. It can not be a solution.

In particular, when the vehicular illumination lamp 90 is for passing light distribution, the light radiated downward from the light source 91 tends to include an upward component after being reflected by the reflecting mirror 92. Therefore, a hood 9 is provided below the light source 91.
1a is provided, and the downward light is shielded. Therefore,
In the case of passing light distribution, since the light amount is smaller than the initial light distribution, the decrease in the light amount of the vehicle illumination lamp 90 becomes a more serious problem.

[0008]

According to the present invention, as a specific means for solving the above-mentioned conventional problems, light from a light source installed near a first focal point is converged to a second focal point by an elliptical reflecting surface. And a substantially flat reflector that at least a part is inserted into the light flux at an appropriate angle between the first focus and the second focus, and an apparent position at the second focus. An object of the present invention is to solve the problem by providing an illumination lamp for a vehicle, characterized in that an elliptical reflection unit forming a mirror image second focal point by moving the light source is provided.

[0009]

Next, the present invention will be described in detail based on an embodiment shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of a vehicle lighting device 1 according to the present invention. In the first embodiment, the basic configuration of the present invention is shown. Naturally, it is possible to provide a vehicle lighting device that can be mounted on a vehicle.

First, the vehicular illumination lamp 1 of the first embodiment is provided with an elliptical reflecting surface 3 such as a spheroidal surface for making the light source 2 substantially coincide with the first focal point f1. Therefore,
The elliptical reflecting surface 3 forms an image of the light source 2 located at the first focal point f1 on the second focal point f2 when only the elliptical reflecting surface 3 exists.

In the present invention, the first focus f
A substantially flat reflecting plate 4 having an appropriate angle with respect to the major axis Y of the elliptical reflecting surface 3 is provided between the first focal point f1 and the second focal point f2. A mirror image second focal point f2 'is obtained at a position different from the second focal point f2 by changing the course of the light beam to be directed. At this time, for example, the reflecting plate 4 is set at an angle of 45 ° with respect to the long axis Y. The mirror image second focal point f2 'has the same characteristics as when the major axis Y is rotated by 90 degrees with respect to the second focal point f2.

In the present invention, the mirror image second focal point f
A parabolic reflecting surface 5 such as a rotating paraboloid having 2 'as a focal point f and an optical axis Z parallel to the irradiation direction of the vehicle lighting device 1.
In this case, the parabolic reflecting surface 5 may be provided only in a portion where the light flux from the elliptical reflecting surface 3 passing through the reflecting plate 4 reaches, and the shape seen from the front is For example, a shape excluding the upper half portion may be used.

In addition, in the first embodiment, a light-shielding plate 6 is provided in the vicinity of the mirror image second focal point f2 ', and the light-shielding plate 6 is provided on the elliptical reflecting surface 3 via the reflecting plate 4. When the luminous flux from the vehicle reaches the parabolic reflecting surface 5 and is reflected, and is used as the irradiation light of the vehicle lighting device 1,
For example, it is provided in order to shield a portion that becomes unnecessary light in light distribution characteristics, such as a dazzling light.

Next, the operation and effects of the above-structured vehicle lighting device 1 of the present invention will be described. Since the light source 2 has two focal points and is located in the elliptical reflecting surface 3 which is basically a closed space, for example, the elliptical reflecting surface 3 is cut along a short axis. Also when formed as a light source, the light flux capturing rate for the light source 2 can be increased.

Further, when the above configuration, that is, a shape cut along the short axis, the eccentricity of the basic ellipse and the like are set to be appropriately large, the light flux capturing efficiency can be improved, and The angle of the luminous flux when converging to the bifocal f2 can be made sharp, and therefore, the parabolic reflecting surface 5 can be downsized, for example, only the lower half is sufficient.

At this time, by providing the reflecting plate 4 according to the present invention, the direction of the light to be supplied from the elliptical reflecting surface 3 to the parabolic reflecting surface 5 can be freely set, for example, to a desired distribution. The formation can be facilitated as it can be supplied to the parabolic reflective surface 5 in an optimum state for forming optical characteristics. In addition, by providing a light shielding plate 6 near the focal point of the parabolic reflecting surface 5 for shielding a portion unnecessary when forming the light distribution characteristics, the accuracy in forming the light distribution characteristics is improved. Can be.

FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of the vehicle lighting device 1 according to the present invention. In this second embodiment, the tip of the reflector 14 is very close to the second focal point f2 of the elliptical reflecting surface 3. Of the light converging on the second focal point f2, the light having a relatively low degree of downwards does not come into contact and directly reaches the parabolic reflecting surface 5, and the light having a relatively low degree of downwards comes into contact and is reflected. It is assumed that the light is selectively reflected by an element for forming the light distribution characteristics, such as a light reaching the parabolic reflecting surface 5 later.

In this manner, the reflection plate 14
Has both the function as the reflection plate 14 and the function of the light shielding plate 6 described in the first embodiment. In the second embodiment, unlike the first embodiment, the elliptical reflecting surface 3 is provided with only approximately the upper half. Even in this state, the luminous flux utilization rate for the light source 2 is higher than that of the conventional example. Has been confirmed to be.

FIG. 3 shows a third embodiment of the vehicle lighting device 1 according to the present invention. In both the first embodiment and the second embodiment, the elliptical reflecting surface 3 has the major axis Y substantially horizontal. Although the present invention is not limited to this, the present invention is not limited to this. In the third embodiment, the elliptical reflecting surface 13 is set such that the major axis Y is upward, and the reflecting plate 4 is
A mirror image second focal point f corresponding to the upward elliptical reflecting surface 13
2 ′ is set as an angle to be directed to the parabolic reflecting surface 5 direction.

By doing so, the elliptical reflecting surface 13
The second focal point f2 is basically located at the upper side and is still at the upper side when it is directed downward by the reflector 4, so that the position of the parabolic reflective surface 5 also moves upward. That is, the parabolic reflective surface 5 is located substantially in front of the elliptical reflective surface 13, and as the vehicle lighting device 1, the area occupied in the vertical direction when mounted on the vehicle body can be reduced. It becomes possible. At the same time, the depth is reduced due to the inclination of the elliptical reflection surface 13.

FIG. 4 shows a fourth embodiment of the vehicle lighting device 1 according to the present invention. In the first to third embodiments, the reflecting plate 4 is fixed in any case. Is not limited. In the fourth embodiment, the reflecting plate is a movable reflecting plate 24 that enters and exits a light beam that converges on the second focal point f2 of the elliptical reflecting surface 3 by an appropriate driving unit such as a solenoid 7.

Therefore, the elliptical reflecting surface 3 focuses on the second focal point f2, which is the original position, when the movable reflecting plate 24 does not exist in the light beam, and mirrors the mirror image when the movable reflecting plate 24 exists in the light beam. The focal point is focused on the position of the bifocal f2 ', and two focal positions can be freely selected.

In addition, in the present invention, a parabolic reflecting surface 15 for traveling corresponding to the second focal point f2 and a parabolic reflecting surface 25 for passing corresponding to the mirror image second focal point f2 'are provided. Therefore, when the second focal point f2 is selected by the movable reflecting plate 24, the traveling parabolic reflecting surface 1
5, the light is applied to the passing parabolic reflective surface 25 when the mirror image second focal point f2 'is selected.

In the parabolic reflecting surface 25 for passing, for which more precise control of light is required such that no upward light is included on the opposite lane side, a light shielding plate 16 is provided. It is freely possible to shield unnecessary portions in light distribution characteristics, and this is a rather preferable embodiment.

With the above-described configuration, in the fourth embodiment, it is possible to obtain the vehicle lighting device 1 in which the passing light distribution and the traveling light distribution can be switched. here,
Particularly, as a remarkable function and effect in the fourth embodiment, the light from the elliptical reflecting surface 3 is switched by the movable reflector 24 so as to switch between the passing light distribution and the traveling light distribution. Both can have substantially the same amount of light, and there is no occurrence of a situation where the brightness tends to be insufficient even in the passing light distribution that is commonly used in most traveling these days.

[0026]

As described above, according to the present invention, a light beam which converges the light from the light source placed near the first focal point to the second focal point on the elliptic reflecting surface is obtained, and the first focal point and the second focal point are obtained. An ellipse is provided between the two focal points, a substantially flat reflector that is inserted at least partly in the light beam at an appropriate angle, and forms a mirror image second focal point whose apparent position is shifted to the second focal point. System reflecting unit is provided, and light emitted from the elliptical reflecting unit is reflected again by a parabolic reflecting surface whose focal point is provided in the vicinity of the mirror image second focal point and whose optical axis is substantially the irradiation direction. First, the light from the light source is efficiently captured by the elliptical reflective surface with a high luminous flux capture rate, and the captured light is converted into a beam. Double reflection that supplies light to a parabolic reflective surface to form light distribution characteristics As a vehicular lighting device, the capture of light and the formation of light distribution characteristics are separated, and optimal conditions are given to each of them.For example, a light quantity is insufficient even in a headlight having a shape with a limited height dimension. Does not cause
As a product that can obtain a shape and performance that also satisfies the light distribution characteristics, it improves the responsiveness to the shape of this type of vehicle lighting, and has an extremely excellent effect on improving the aesthetic appearance and performance. is there.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a first embodiment of a vehicle lighting device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a second embodiment of the vehicle lighting device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a third embodiment of the vehicle lighting device according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a fourth embodiment of a vehicle lighting device according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a state of capturing a light beam with respect to a light source in a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vehicle lighting fixture 2 ... Light source 3, 13 ... Elliptical reflective surface 4, 14, 24 ... Reflective plate 5 ... Parabolic reflective surface 15 ... Parabolic reflective surface 26 for traveling 26 ... Parabolic reflective surface for passing 6, 16 Shield plate 7 Solenoid f1 First focus f2 Second focus f2 'Mirror image Second focus Y Long axis

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) F21Y 101: 00

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A light flux which converges a light from a light source installed in the vicinity of a first focal point to a second focal point on an elliptical reflecting surface, and an angle between the first focal point and the second focal point is appropriately set. An elliptical reflection unit is provided that has a substantially flat reflector that is inserted at least partially into the light beam, and forms a mirror image second focal point whose apparent position has been moved to the second focal point. A vehicle lighting device characterized by the above-mentioned. 2. A light emitted from the elliptical reflecting unit is reflected again by a parabolic reflecting surface whose focal point is provided in the vicinity of the mirror image second focal point and whose optical axis is substantially an irradiation direction,
The vehicle lighting device according to claim 1, wherein irradiation light from the vehicle lighting device is formed. 3. The vehicle lighting device according to claim 1, wherein a light-shielding plate for forming a shape of light distribution characteristics is provided near a focal point of the parabolic reflecting surface. Lights. 4. The vehicle lighting device according to claim 3, wherein the light shielding plate is also used as a part of the reflection plate. 5. The reflector according to claim 1, wherein the reflector is a movable reflector, and the movable reflector distributes or switches a light beam to the second focal point and the mirror image second focal point. Item 5. A vehicle lighting device according to any one of Items 4.