General Electric Company

Optical Research Associates

Avery Dennison Corporation

Energy Focus, Inc.

Federal Signal Corporation

Synopsys, Inc.

Fiberstars, Inc.

Ford Motor Company Limited

William J Cassarly

John M Davenport

Richard L Hansler

Thomas L R Davenport

Chris H Jenson

Gary Robert Allen

James P McGuire, Jr

Steven R Chapman

Roger F Buelow, Ii

Timothy J Mazies

Frederic F Ahlgren

Dennis I Couzin

Gregory P Frankiewicz

Kenneth S King

Richard C Nagle

Robert H Caywood

Jerry L Williams

Kevin M Flood

Thomas L Davenport

Mahendra Somasara Dassanayake

James T Dakin

Thomas G Parham

Jeffrey Allen Erion

Mark E Duffy

Joseph M Allison

John Rice Rogers

Rocco T Giordano

Martin N Hassink

Jacek J Jozwik

John X Li

Gregory A Sink

Dennis J Hilburger

Kent Allen Kekeis

Walter R Chapman, Jr

Jean-Pierre Vanderreydt

Alistair Allen Miller

John W Munk, Jr

Joseph Feldman

Matthew F Clapper

Willie J Cheney

Allen Miller

Thomas R Stanton

Victor A Levand, Jr, Deceased

Douglas A Nutter

John C Ehlert

An optical design system is used to design a light shaping element that directs light from a specified source to a specified light distribution. The process includes designing related faceted optical devices (reflective or refractive) such that light from a common source point is distributed across multiple target points.

Optical design using freeform tailoring

Various embodiments comprise light recycling films comprising an array of parallel ridges and grooves that form prisms that selectively reflect or transmit light. In some embodiments, the light recycling film may be used in displays that include spatial light modulators comprising a plurality of pixels. The light recycling film can limit the field-of-view of the display and enhance the luminance within that field-of-view. Various embodiments comprising multiple arrays of ridges and/or grooves can enhance uniformity of illumination of the pixels in the spatial light modulator and reduce Moir&#xe9; effects.

Light enhancing structures with a plurality of arrays of elongate features

Lighted refrigerated display case with remote light source comprises a closed container with an interior of the container refrigerated to a temperature below 7 C. The container is thermally insulated from ambient, having internal and external walls. A solid fiber optic luminaire is at least partially mounted within the container, having an elongated side-light emitting portion for emitting light from the side of the luminaire onto contents in an interior of the display case. The side-light emitting portion comprises an extractor of light arranged to preferentially extract light from the luminaire and direct the light in at least one radial direction along the length of the side-light emitting portion to at least one target area of said contents along a longitudinal axis of the side-light emitting portion. A light-delivery system provides light to the fiber optic luminaire, having a light source mounted remotely from the interior of the container.

Elongated solid luminaire with light-emitting portion with first and second extraction regions spatially divided along the longitudinal axis thereof

Various embodiments described herein comprise mixers comprising a light pipe having input and output ends and a central region therebetween. An optical path extends in a longitudinal direction from the input end through the central region to the output end. The central region of the light pipe comprises one or more rippled reflective sidewalls having a plurality of elongate ridges and valleys and sloping surfaces therebetween. Light from the input end propagating along the optical path reflects from the sloping surfaces and is redirected at a different azimuthal direction toward the output end thereby mixing the light at the output end. Illuminance and/or color mixing can therefore be provided.

Rippled mixers for uniformity and color mixing

Light enhancing structures with multiple arrays of elongate features of varying characteristics

Various embodiments described herein comprise illuminators comprising a phosphor color wheel for producing colored light. Light of a first wavelength emitted by a light source is incident on a phosphor color wheel comprising a plurality of different regions, where at least one of these regions comprises a phosphor that fluoresces at a second wavelength when illuminated with light of the first wavelength. The light from the light source and the different regions of the phosphor color wheel are movable with respect to each other such that as the different regions are illuminated by the light, different colors are produced.

Phosphor wheel illuminator

Lighted refrigerated display case with remote light source

Luminaire with directional side-light extraction comprises a light pipe with a light-carrying core, and with a light-extraction structure along a first longitudinal side of the luminaire, confined to a radial swath of the luminaire, along the longitudinal axis of the luminaire, of substantially less than 180&#xb0;. The second end of the light pipe has light-saving means for directing saved light from the second end towards the first end. The light-extraction means is adjustable to accommodate angular distributions of light from various light sources.

Efficient luminaire with directional side-light extraction

An optical apparatus comprises a light source, an optical member and a spatial light modulator. The optical member comprises optically transmissive material and has a textured major surface receiving light from the light source. The textured surface comprises first and second pluralities of non-intersecting elongate features. The pluralities are angled with respect to each other by less than about 90&#xb0; and intersect each other so as to form total internal reflection structures. The spatial light modulator has rows or columns of pixels for receiving light from the optical member at a major surface. The light source may be (i) a light guide, or (ii) a source of light providing, to the optical member, light having a peak luminance that is shifted from a normal direction to the textured major surface by more than about 30&#xb0;.

Optical apparatus with flipped compound prism structures

A luminaire with improved lateral illuminance control comprising a light pipe with a longitudinal center is disclosed. A light-extraction means applied to a radial swath of the light pipe has a longitudinal portion having dimension along its length, centered about a slice on the light pipe longitudinally; said slice being orthogonal to the longitudinal center and located in a propagation plane through which light propagates to a virtual target area intersecting the propagation plane. The light pipe intervenes between the radial swath and the target area. A first average efficiency point of the light-extraction means corresponds to the minimum distance to the target area being at least approximately 20% less than a respective, second average efficiency point corresponding to a respective maximum distance to such area. The light-extraction means efficiency varies from the first average efficiency point to the second average efficiency point though more than one non-zero value.

Luminaire with improved lateral illuminance control

Light enhancing structures with three or more arrays of elongate features

Various embodiments involving structures and methods for illumination can be employed, for example, in projectors, head-mounted displays, helmet-mounted displays, back projection TVs, flat panel displays as well as other optical systems. Certain embodiments may include prism elements for illuminating, for example, a spatial light modulator. Light may be coupled to the prism in some cases using fiber optics or lightpipes. The optical system may also include a diffuser having scatter features arranged to scatter light appropriately to produce a desired luminance profile. Other embodiments are possible as well.

Beamsplitting structures and methods in optical systems

Fiberoptic luminaire with scattering and specular side-light extractor patterns comprises a fiberoptic light pipe with elongated side-fight emitting portion. Such portion illuminates a target area with a scattering, and a specular, light extractor pattern. The extractor patterns are arranged to extract light from the side-light emitting portion over a radial angle, orthogonal to said main axis, of less than 180&#xb0;. The scattering extractor pattern atone may provide greater than 50% of light on the target area, and light extracted by the specular extractor pattern alone may produce an illuminance on a selected portion of the target area that is greater than 5% of the maximum illuminance produced on the target area by the scattering extractor pattern. Furthermore, the scattering extractor pattern may comprise a Lambertian type of extractor pattern. Each specular extractor pattern may comprise a notch having main faces parallel to within 10&#xb0; of each other.

Fiberoptic luminaire with scattering and specular side-light extractor patterns

Growing community of inventors

Wooster, OH, United States of America

William J Cassarly