Federal Signal Corporation

North American Lighting, Inc.

David R Jenkins

Ben Wang

Douglas F Kreysar

A monolithic light output device with a unitary construction is coupled to an optical fiber or light pipe to produce an output beam. The light output device has an elongated beam shaping rod connected to a solid lens by a conical transition section. The beam shaping rod modifies the distribution of the light from the optical fiber or light pipe by means of total internal reflection at its peripheral wall. The light passing through the beam shaping rod forms a modified light source at the end of the rod. The solid lens projects the modified light source outward to form the output beam. A controlled beam pattern with sharp beam edges is produced by forming the wall of the conical section at an expansion angle that is equal or larger than the maximum exit angle of the light from the modified light source. Local surface slope variations provided on the peripheral wall of the beam shaping rod redirect the light passing through the beam shaping rod to result in a desired beam distribution.

Monolithic beam shaping light output light device

A headlamp for a vehicle includes a holder for a light-distribution optical fiber of the type that has an output end emanating light of known spatial-intensity distribution, an optical coupler that has an input end adjacent the holder and includes a plurality of elements, each of which is positioned to receive light from a selected area of the light of known spatial intensity distribution and to alter the intensity or spatial distribution of that light to provide a predetermined spatial intensity distribution at an output of said coupler, and a projection lens to project the predetermined spatial intensity distribution to a desired illumination pattern. The optical coupler may be in the form of a mask and one or more filters or may be a number of light-transmitting elements that carry light from one spatial part of the input to a different spatial part in the output. In general, the optical coupler alters the intensity or angular distribution of the light pattern at the input to produce a desired light pattern at the output for projection onto the road by the projection lens.

Growing community of inventors

Chicago, IL, United States of America

David R Jenkins