Patent Description:
This section provides background information related to the present invention, but the information does not necessarily constitute the prior art.

In order to adapt to requirements of different vehicle lamp styles and illumination light patterns, forms of illumination devices on vehicles become more and more diversified, in which a low-beam illumination device, a high-beam illumination device, a high-beam and low-beam integrated illumination device, an auxiliary low-beam illumination device, an auxiliary high-beam illumination device, etc. appear, and new technologies regarding the vehicle lamp illumination device provided with an optical collimating element also emerge one after another in recent years.

Typically, optical collimating elements such as collimating lenses are provided in the vehicle lamp illumination device to obtain approximately parallel outgoing light beams. For example, patent application <CIT> discloses an illumination device, wherein this illumination device has at least one preferably aspherical collimating lens. In addition, patent application <CIT> discloses a bidirectional collimating lens and a vehicle lamp system thereof.

<CIT> relates to a vehicle headlight, which includes an LED light-emitting device that emits a light bundle in a first main direction of propagation. The vehicle headlight includes a first reflector for deflecting the light bundle to a final main direction of propagation and a second reflector for deflecting the light bundle from the first main direction of propagation to a second main direction of propagation. The light bundle arrives at the first reflector along the second main direction of propagation. The first main direction of propagation and the final main direction of propagation span an acute angle that is smaller than the angle spanned by the first main direction of propagation and the second main direction of propagation.

With reference to the detailed description of the exemplary embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the drawings, the above and other objectives, features, and advantages of the present invention can be understood more easily. Identical or corresponding technical features or components will be denoted by identical or corresponding reference signs throughout the drawings. In the drawings, dimensions and relative positions of various components are not necessarily drawn to scale. In the drawings:.

The present invention will be described in detail by means of exemplary embodiments with reference to the drawings. It is to be noted that exemplary embodiments of the present invention are intended to enable those ordinarily skilled in the art to easily carry out the present invention, and various embodiments of the present invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments illustrated in the present invention. Correspondingly, the following detailed description of the present invention is merely for illustrative purpose, but is in no way limitation to the present invention. Besides, the same reference signs are used to denote the same components in various drawings.

It should also be noted that, for the sake of clarity, not all of the features of actual specific embodiments are described and shown in the description and drawings, and furthermore, in order to avoid obscuring the technical solutions focused in the present invention with unnecessary details, only device structures closely related to the technical solutions of the present invention are described and shown in the drawings and the description, while other details that are not relevant to the technical contents of the present invention and are known to those skilled in the art are omitted.

A vehicle lamp illumination device, in particular a headlamp of a vehicle, usually includes a primary optical system having a light source and an optical collimating element so as to achieve a satisfactory illumination light pattern. In some existing vehicle lamp illumination devices, a bidirectional collimating lens is used as an optical collimating element, but in cases where the vehicle lamp illumination device needs to obtain an illumination light pattern having a relatively large aspect ratio, the bidirectional collimating lens is generally manufactured to have a large volume and a relatively heavy weight, thereby resulting in low production efficiency and a relatively high cost.

In view of the above problems, the present invention provides an optical reflecting system for a vehicle lamp illumination device, and an exemplary embodiment of the vehicle lamp illumination device having the optical reflecting system according to the present invention is described below with reference to <FIG>.

<FIG> is a schematic diagram of a vehicle lamp illumination device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, with the vehicle lamp illumination device including a primary optical system and an optical reflecting system. The primary optical system has a light source <NUM>, and the optical reflecting system is configured to reflect light of the light source <NUM> emitted via the primary optical system. The primary optical system may include a third reflector <NUM>, and light beams emitted from the light source <NUM>, after being reflected by the third reflector <NUM>, can be received and reflected by the optical reflecting system to form an illumination light pattern of the vehicle lamp illumination device. The third reflector <NUM> in the primary optical system may be a paraboloid or paraboloid-like reflecting mirror, and a focal point of the optical reflecting system may be provided on a reflecting surface of the third reflector <NUM>. In the shown exemplary embodiment, the optical reflecting system includes a first reflector having a first reflecting surface <NUM> and a second reflector having a second reflecting surface <NUM>. The first reflecting surface <NUM> is configured to collimate light in a first direction, and the second reflecting surface <NUM> is configured to collimate light in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction. The first reflecting surface <NUM> and the second reflecting surface <NUM> have a curved shape represented by a contour line. The first reflecting surface <NUM> and the second reflecting surface <NUM> are each a curved surface formed by stretching corresponding contour line along a direction normal to a plane where the contour line is located. The optical reflecting system is configured such that light emitted from the primary optical system having the light source, after being reflected by the first reflector and the second reflector, is emitted in a form of approximately parallel light beams, so as to form the illumination light pattern of the vehicle lamp illumination device.

In the context of the present invention, the "light source" may denote, in particular, a source of light (e.g., a light-emitting device or apparatus). For example, the light source may be a light-emitting diode (LED) that emits light when activated. In the context of the present invention, the light source may be substantially any light source or light emitter, which includes but is not limited to the light-emitting diode (LED), the laser, the fluorescent lamp, the incandescent lamp, etc..

In the context of the present invention, the primary optical system is configured to receive light from the light source and to guide and transmit the received light so as to form primary light distribution, and the primary light distribution forms a desired illumination light pattern after being projected by the optical reflecting system.

In some embodiments, the first reflector may be a first reflecting mirror and the second reflector may be a second reflecting mirror. In some embodiments, either of the first reflector and the second reflector may be paraboloidal reflector. In the context of the present invention, the "paraboloidal reflector" means, in particular, a reflector having a reflecting surface with a cross-sectional shape that is paraboloidal in profile, wherein the reflecting surface is a curved surface formed by stretching a parabola along a direction normal to a plane where the parabola is located. In other words, a generatrix forming the reflecting surface is a parabola, and the reflecting surface of the paraboloidal reflector is a paraboloid formed by unidirectionally stretching a parabola. Each section line of the reflecting surface taken along a plane perpendicular to a stretching direction is corresponding to one focal point, and the reflecting surface is corresponding to one focal line.

In some embodiments, the illumination light pattern formed by the optical reflecting system shown in <FIG> may be a high-beam illumination light pattern having a central maximum value as shown in <FIG>. The focal point of the optical reflecting system shown in <FIG> can be arranged on the reflecting surface of the third reflector <NUM>, so as to form the high-beam light pattern as shown in <FIG>, and the high-beam illumination light pattern has a light intensity central position (generally, a light-intensity central maximum value region), so as to comply with the light distribution requirement of having sufficiently large luminous intensity for high beam (referring to relevant regulations of national standard "Automobiles Headlamps with LED light sources and/or LED modules" (<CIT>)).

<FIG> shows a schematic diagram of a light path of the single rotating paraboloidal reflector. This single rotating paraboloidal reflector <NUM> is an axisymmetric secondary-curved reflecting mirror, and when the light source is located at a focal point <NUM>, light beams emitted from the light source are reflected by the rotating paraboloidal reflector <NUM> to obtain parallel light beams.

Next, a basic configuration of the optical reflecting system according to the present invention is specifically described with reference to <FIG>. <FIG> shows a schematic diagram of a light path of the optical reflecting system having the first reflector and the second reflector according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. <FIG> is a schematic diagram of a light path of light beams of the optical reflecting system in <FIG> in a vertical direction according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. <FIG> is a schematic diagram of a light path of light beams of the optical reflecting system in <FIG> in a horizontal direction according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

In embodiments of the present invention, the light beams are collimated in two directions that are generally orthogonal to a propagation direction of the light beams. In addition, two collimating directions are orthogonal to each other. For example, the light beams can be collimated in a horizontal direction (e.g., x-y plane of coordinate system shown in <FIG>) and in a vertical direction (e.g., z-direction). In the context of the present invention, for example, the horizontal direction and the vertical direction can be determined with respect to an arbitrary frame of reference, and the parallel light beams provided by the optical reflecting system are referred to as being horizontally collimated and vertically collimated.

As an example, the description will be made below with the first direction being the horizontal direction and the second direction being the vertical direction (i.e., the first reflecting surface <NUM> is configured to collimate the light beams in the horizontal direction and the second reflecting surface <NUM> is configured to collimate the light beams in the vertical direction).

In the context of the present invention, "collimation in the horizontal direction" can in particular mean that, with reference to <FIG>, the first reflecting surface <NUM> exerts a convergence effect on the light beams in a horizontal section (i.e., a section taken along the horizontal direction), that is, being capable of having a certain collimating effect on the light beams, and compared with <FIG>, the first reflecting surface <NUM> has no collimating effect on the light beams in a vertical section (i.e., a section taken along the vertical direction) (a section curve of the first reflecting surface <NUM> in the section taken along the vertical direction is a straight line), and the first reflecting surface <NUM> has a collimating effect on the light beams in a single direction within a horizontal sectional range, that is to say, a collimating direction of the first reflecting surface <NUM> is limited in the horizontal direction. "Collimation in the vertical direction" can in particular mean that, with reference to <FIG>, the second reflecting surface <NUM> exerts a convergence effect on the light beams in a vertical section, that is, being capable of having a certain collimating effect on the light beams, and compared with <FIG>, the second reflecting surface <NUM> has no collimating effect on the light beams in a horizontal section, and the second reflecting surface <NUM> has a collimating effect on the light beams in a single direction within a vertical sectional range, that is to say, a collimating direction of the second reflecting surface <NUM> is limited in the vertical direction. The second reflecting surface <NUM> has an optical characteristic of unidirectionally collimating the light beams emitted from the light source similar to that of the first reflecting surface <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, in some embodiments according to the present invention, the first reflecting surface <NUM> of the optical reflecting system can be configured to be capable of collimating light in the horizontal direction (see <FIG>), and the second reflecting surface <NUM> can be configured to collimate light in the vertical direction (see <FIG>). In cases where a focal length of the first reflecting surface <NUM> is smaller than a focal length of the second reflecting surface <NUM>, according to the principle that the larger the focal length is, the smaller the formed image is, the optical reflecting system shown in <FIG> makes a degree of diffusion of the light beams in the horizontal direction greater than a degree of diffusion in the vertical direction, and an illumination light pattern that is relatively wide in the horizontal direction and relatively narrow in the vertical direction can be obtained, that is, an illumination light pattern that is wide left and right and narrow up and down can be formed. In some examples, the LED light-emitting chip of <NUM> x <NUM> is placed at a focal point of the single rotating paraboloid (such as a single rotating paraboloid <NUM> shown in <FIG>) to form a square light spot as shown in <FIG>. When the LED light-emitting chip of <NUM> x <NUM> is placed at a focal point of a bidirectional collimating optical reflecting system shown in <FIG> of the present invention, a rectangular asymmetric light spot shown in <FIG> is formed, and as the focal length of the first reflecting surface is smaller than that of the second reflecting surface, the length of the light spot shown in <FIG> in the horizontal direction is greater than that in the vertical direction.

As shown in <FIG>, in some exemplary embodiments according to the present invention, the first reflecting surface <NUM> is a curved surface formed by stretching a paraboloid-shaped generatrix (a first contour line <NUM>) along a direction (a first stretching direction A) normal to a plane where the generatrix is located, and the second reflecting surface <NUM> is a curved surface formed by stretching a paraboloid-shaped generatrix (a second contour line <NUM>) in a direction (a second stretching direction B) normal to a plane where the generatrix is located. Specifically, the generatrix of the first reflecting surface <NUM> of the first reflector is the first contour line <NUM>, the generatrix of the second reflecting surface <NUM> of the second reflector is the second contour line <NUM>, and the direction normal to the plane where the first contour line <NUM> of the first reflecting surface <NUM> is located is the first stretching direction A, that is, the plane where the first contour line <NUM> of the first reflecting surface <NUM> is located is perpendicular to the first stretching direction A. The direction normal to the plane where the second contour line <NUM> of the second reflecting surface <NUM> of the second reflector is located is the second stretching direction B, that is, the plane where the second contour line <NUM> of the second reflecting surface <NUM> is located is perpendicular to the second stretching direction B. The second reflecting surface <NUM> has one focal line, and an intersection point of a vertical plane passing through a focal point <NUM> of the optical reflecting system and the focal line of the second reflecting surface <NUM> is a first focal point <NUM>, the focal point <NUM> of the optical reflecting system and the first focal point <NUM> of the second reflecting surface <NUM> can be mirrored about a first stretching guide line <NUM> (see <FIG>), and the first stretching guide line <NUM> is an intersection line of the vertical plane passing through the focal point <NUM> of the optical reflecting system and the first reflecting surface <NUM>.

Since the focal point <NUM> of the optical reflecting system and the first focal point <NUM> of the second reflecting surface <NUM> are mirrored with respect to the first stretching guide line <NUM>, a position of the focal point <NUM> of the optical reflecting system can be adjusted by adjusting a position of the first stretching guide line <NUM> with respect to the first focal point <NUM> of the second reflecting surface. In some embodiments, in cases where a contour line shape of the second reflecting surface <NUM> is determined, the position of the focal line of the second reflecting surface can be determined. A connecting line between the focal point <NUM> of the optical reflecting system and the first focal point <NUM> of the second contour line of the second reflecting surface <NUM> and the first stretching guide line <NUM> can form an angle b. Therefore, the angle b can be changed by changing a position of the first reflecting surface <NUM>, so as to adjust the position of the focal point <NUM> of the optical reflecting system.

According to the configuration of the above exemplary embodiments of the present invention, as it is possible to adjust the position of the focal point <NUM> of the optical reflecting system by adjusting relative position of the first reflecting surface <NUM> with respect to the first focal point <NUM> of the second contour line of the second reflecting surface <NUM>, flexible spatial structure arrangement of the two reflecting surfaces can be achieved while keeping a light-exiting direction unchanged, thus further improving applicability of the optical reflecting system on a vehicle.

In some embodiments, the contour line of each reflecting surface may include a parabola or a quasi-parabola. For example, as shown in <FIG>, in some embodiments according to the present invention, the first contour line of the first reflecting surface <NUM> and the second contour line of the second reflecting surface <NUM> are both parabolas. If the light source is arranged at the focal point <NUM> of the optical reflecting system, the light beams emitted from the light source can achieve collimation in the horizontal direction after being reflected by the first reflecting surface <NUM>, and then can achieve collimation in the vertical direction after being reflected by the second reflecting surface <NUM>.

<FIG> is a schematic diagram of a light path of light beams of the optical reflecting system in the vertical direction according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and <FIG> is a schematic diagram of a light path of light beams of the optical reflecting system in the horizontal direction according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. As shown in <FIG>, in some embodiments according to the present invention, the first contour line of the first reflecting surface <NUM> may be a quasi-parabola, and the second contour line of the second reflecting surface <NUM> may be a parabola. Shapes of the contour lines of the reflecting surfaces of the reflectors are configured such that the light beams reflected by the reflecting surfaces exhibit a light diffusion angle. In the embodiment where the first reflecting surface <NUM> is a quasi-parabola as shown in <FIG>, the optical reflecting system is configured such that parallel light beams are converged to a line segment or an area near the line segment after being reflected by the first reflecting surface <NUM> and the second reflecting surface <NUM>. In other words, if the light source is arranged near the focal point <NUM> of the optical reflecting system, i.e., the light beams emitted from the light source, after being reflected by the first reflecting surface <NUM>, can be diffused in the horizontal direction, for example, diffused at a certain diffusion angle (for example, see an angle a in <FIG>), and then can achieve collimation in the vertical direction after being reflected by the second reflecting surface <NUM>. Preferably, the diffusion angle in the horizontal direction is in a range between <NUM>° and <NUM>°.

The shape of the contour line of each of the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface can be set such that the light diffusion angle of the light beams obtained after being reflected by each of the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface changes as the shape of the contour line of each of the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface changes. Therefore, by changing the shape of the first contour line of the first reflecting surface, the diffusion angle of the light beams reflected by the first reflecting surface in the horizontal direction can be adjusted, and/or by changing the shape of the second contour line of the second reflecting surface, the diffusion angle of the light beams reflected by the second reflecting surface in the vertical direction can be adjusted.

According to the configuration of the above exemplary embodiments of the present invention, by changing the shape of the contour line of one or both of the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface, the light diffusion angle of the light beams reflected by corresponding reflecting surfaces can be adjusted. Therefore, the shapes of the first reflecting surface and the second reflecting surface can be separately set according to requirements of a light diffusion range of a specific illumination light pattern in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction, thus improving the design flexibility.

<FIG> are schematic diagrams of light paths of the optical reflecting system according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. <FIG> is a schematic diagram of the light path of the optical reflecting system having the first reflector and the second reflector according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. <FIG> is a schematic diagram of the light path of light beams of the optical reflecting system in <FIG> in the horizontal direction according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. <FIG> is a schematic diagram of the light path of light beams of the optical reflecting system in <FIG> in the vertical direction according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, differences between the optical reflecting system shown in <FIG> and the optical reflecting system shown in <FIG> are described.

Compared with the exemplary embodiment shown in <FIG>, the first reflecting surface <NUM> of the optical reflecting system shown in <FIG> is configured to be capable of collimating light in the vertical direction, and the second reflecting surface <NUM> is configured to collimate light in the horizontal direction. In cases where the focal length of the first reflecting surface is smaller than the focal length of the second reflecting surface, according to the principle that the larger the focal length is, the smaller the formed image is, the optical reflecting system shown in <FIG> makes a degree of diffusion of the light beams in the horizontal direction smaller than a degree of diffusion in the vertical direction, and an illumination light pattern that is relatively narrow in the horizontal direction and relatively wide in the vertical direction can be obtained, that is, an illumination light pattern that is narrow left and right and wide up and down can be formed.

In some other embodiments, the focal length of the first reflecting surface can be set to be greater than the focal length of the second reflecting surface.

Therefore, according to the optical reflecting system of the present invention, by setting the focal length of the first reflecting surface of the first reflector to be different from the focal length of the second reflector, an illumination light pattern with a relatively large aspect ratio can be realized. The first reflector and the second reflector of the optical reflecting system of the present invention can be constructed and arranged relatively independently, with high design flexibility, and the light path direction and diffusion range of the light beams in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction can be effectively controlled, so that an ideal illumination light pattern can be obtained according to needs, and meanwhile, the light distribution requirements of the national standard <CIT> for vehicle lamp illumination devices can be met.

<FIG> is a schematic diagram of a light path of the vehicle lamp illumination device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. As shown in <FIG>, in some embodiments according to the present invention, the primary optical system includes a light source <NUM> and a third reflector (e.g. third reflecting mirror) <NUM>, the third reflector <NUM> of the primary optical system shown in <FIG> can be an ellipsoid or ellipsoid-like reflecting mirror, a light shielding plate is provided in front of the reflecting mirror, and the light shielding plate includes a cut-off line structure <NUM>. This cut-off line structure <NUM> is configured to form an illumination light pattern having a bright-dark cut-off line. The focal point of the optical reflecting system can be disposed on the cut-off line structure <NUM>, and the vehicle lamp illumination device correspondingly forms a low-beam illumination light pattern having the bright-dark cut-off line as shown in <FIG>. Preferably, the cut-off line structure <NUM> is provided between the third reflector <NUM> and the optical reflecting system including the first reflector and the second reflector. The primary optical system is configured to substantially converge the light beams emitted from the light source <NUM> to the focal point or a focusing area of the optical reflecting system through the third reflector <NUM>, and the focal point of the optical reflecting system can be provided on the cut-off line structure <NUM>, such that the illumination light pattern having the bright-dark cut-off line can be formed.

<FIG> is a schematic diagram of a light path of the vehicle lamp illumination device according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in <FIG>, in some embodiments according to the present invention, the primary optical system of the vehicle lamp illumination device includes a light source <NUM> and a condenser <NUM>. The condenser <NUM> may be a transparent light guide body, and the condenser <NUM> can be configured to receive light emitted from the light source <NUM>, collimate and concentrate the received light, and guide it to the optical reflecting system. A cut-off line structure <NUM> is provided at a lower edge of a light emergent surface of the condenser <NUM>, the focal point of the optical reflecting system can be provided on the cut-off line structure <NUM>, and the vehicle lamp illumination device shown in <FIG> can form the low-beam illumination light pattern having the bright-dark cut-off line as shown in <FIG>.

In the context of the present invention, the bright-dark cut-off line refers to a dividing line where a significant change in brightness is visually perceived when light beams are transmitted to a light distribution screen. Therefore, by making the focal point of the optical reflecting system to be provided on the cut-off line structure <NUM> or <NUM>, a low-beam illumination light pattern with a clear bright-dark cut-off line can be obtained. It can be seen from <FIG> that, when the vehicle lamp illumination device including the optical reflecting system according to the present invention performs a light distribution test, a low-beam light pattern projected on the light distribution screen has an obvious bright-dark cut-off line, which complies with relevant regulations of the current national standard "Automobiles Headlamps with LED light sources and/or LED modules" (<CIT>): there is no situation where multiple bright-dark cut-off lines are visually visible.

As shown in <FIG>, in some exemplary embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle lamp illumination device includes the primary optical system and the optical reflecting system, wherein the primary optical system includes a plurality of light sources <NUM> and the third reflector <NUM> having a plurality of reflecting surfaces, for example, this primary optical system includes <NUM> light sources <NUM> and the third reflector <NUM> having <NUM> reflecting surfaces. The optical reflecting system includes the first reflecting surface <NUM> and the second reflecting surface <NUM>, the focal point of the optical reflecting system can be provided on the third reflector <NUM> having <NUM> reflecting surfaces, and the vehicle lamp illumination device can form an ADB light patterns having five light spots, thus, high-beam ADB illumination is achieved.

As shown in <FIG>, in some exemplary embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle lamp illumination device may include the primary optical system and the optical reflecting system, wherein the primary optical system includes a plurality of light sources <NUM> and a third reflector <NUM> having a plurality of reflecting surfaces, and the optical reflecting system includes a plurality of first reflecting surfaces and one second reflecting surface <NUM>. For example, as shown in <FIG>, this primary optical system includes <NUM> light sources <NUM> and the third reflector <NUM> having <NUM> reflecting surfaces, and the optical reflecting system includes four first reflecting surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> and one second reflecting surface <NUM>. The vehicle lamp illumination device shown in <FIG> can form an illumination area having <NUM> light spots (four groups in total, and five light spots in each group), and the <NUM> groups of illumination areas are superposed in an alternating manner to form an ADB light pattern with narrower pixels, so that the high-beam ADB illumination can be achieved and the control accuracy of the light pattern is higher. Compared with the vehicle lamp illumination device shown in <FIG>, the vehicle lamp illumination device shown in <FIG> can form multiple sets of matrix light patterns, and a plurality of pixels arranged side by side and connected to each other can be formed after the multiple sets of matrix light patterns are superposed, so that the control accuracy of the high-beam ADB light pattern is higher. In some embodiments, the primary optical system can be configured to cooperate with the optical reflecting system so as to form multiple sets of matrix illumination light patterns.

As shown in <FIG>, in some exemplary embodiments of the present invention, the vehicle lamp illumination device may include the primary optical system and the optical reflecting system, wherein the primary optical system may include the light source <NUM> and a third reflector <NUM>, and a cut-off line structure <NUM> is formed at a lower boundary of the third reflector <NUM>. The optical reflecting system can include the first reflecting surface <NUM> and the second reflecting surface <NUM>, and the focal point of the optical reflecting system can be provided on the cut-off line structure <NUM>. The vehicle lamp illumination device can form the low-beam illumination light pattern having the bright-dark cut-off line as shown in <FIG>.

The vehicle lamp illumination device of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention shown in <FIG> is substantially the same as the vehicle lamp illumination device of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention shown in <FIG>, except that the first reflecting surface <NUM> and the second reflecting surface <NUM> of the optical reflecting system of the vehicle lamp illumination device of the exemplary embodiment of the present invention shown in <FIG> are provided at different positions with respect to the light source. Specifically, in the embodiment shown in <FIG>, both the first reflector and the second reflector can be provided on an upper side of the light source <NUM> in the vertical direction, and light is emitted from above the light source after being collimated and reflected by the first reflector and the second reflector. While in the embodiment shown in <FIG>, both the first reflector and the second reflector can be provided on a lower side of the light source <NUM> in the vertical direction, and light is emitted below the light source after being collimated and reflected by the first reflector and the second reflector. Therefore, positions of the first reflector and the second reflector with respect to the light source can be designed according to a space inside a specific vehicle lamp body, thus increasing the adaptability of the vehicle lamp illumination device including the optical reflecting system and being applicable to various types of vehicle lamps.

In some embodiments, two reflectors can be adjacently provided on the same side of the light source (see <FIG> or <FIG>). In some embodiments, the two reflectors can be provided at two opposite sides of the light source (see <FIG>), thereby significantly saving installation space, improving space utilization rate, reducing the overall size of the optical reflecting system, and thus greatly improving the applicability of the vehicle lamp illumination device including the optical reflecting system on vehicles.

Therefore, relative positions of the first reflecting surface <NUM> of the first reflector and the second reflecting surface <NUM> of the second reflector in the optical reflecting system can be flexibly adjusted and changed, so as to better adapt to an installation space of the vehicle lamp illumination device.

In some embodiments of the present invention, the optical reflecting system for a vehicle lamp illumination device further may include a plurality of additional reflectors, for example, in some embodiments, the optical reflecting system further may include a fourth reflector configured to adjust parameters such as direction of light, and the fourth reflector includes a fourth reflecting surface <NUM>. In some embodiments, the fourth reflector is a plane reflecting mirror configured to change only the light direction. In some other embodiments, the fourth reflector also may be configured to be of a curved-surface shape, and the fourth reflector of a curved surface shape not only can change the light direction, but also can perform light distribution again on the light, so that the light pattern effect is better.

In the context of the present invention, the light emitted from the light source can exit via the optical reflecting system along the light path direction.

In some embodiments, the fourth reflector can be provided downstream of the light source and upstream of the first reflector along the light path direction and configured to receive light emitted from the light source of the primary optical system and reflect the received light to the first reflector.

In some embodiments, the fourth reflector can be provided between the first reflector and the second reflector, and is configured to receive and reflect the light collimated by the first reflector to the second reflector, and the fourth reflector, as an additional light distribution element for further adjusting parameters such as the direction of the light, is conducive to re-distribution of the light collimated and reflected by the first reflector and then reflection of the light to the second reflecting mirror, so as to form an ideal illumination light pattern that meets the illumination requirements.

In some other embodiments, as shown in <FIG>, the fourth reflector can be provided downstream of the second reflector along the light path direction, that is, the fourth reflecting surface <NUM> of the fourth reflector can be provided downstream of the second reflecting surface <NUM> along the light path direction and configured to receive and reflect the light collimated and reflected by the second reflecting surface <NUM> to form the illumination light pattern. Therefore, the fourth reflector, as an additional light distribution element, is conducive to re-distribution of the light collimated and reflected by both the first reflector and the second reflector, so as to form the ideal illumination light pattern that meets the illumination requirements.

The optical reflecting system according to the above embodiments may include the first reflector, the second reflector, and the additional fourth reflector, wherein the first reflector, the second reflector, and the additional fourth reflector can be used to collectively form the focal point of the optical reflecting system. By means of the configuration of the optical reflecting system of the above embodiments, an emergent direction of light emitted from the light source can be better adjusted through multi-level reflection, thereby better forming a desired light pattern. It should be understood that the number of reflectors and the relative positions of various reflectors can be chosen according to the light pattern desired to be formed and light distribution requirements.

The vehicle lamp illumination device of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention having the light path shown in <FIG> is described with reference to <FIG>.

As shown in <FIG>, in some embodiments according to the present invention, the vehicle lamp illumination device includes the primary optical system and the optical reflecting system, wherein the primary optical system includes the light source <NUM> and the third reflector <NUM> having a plurality of reflecting surfaces, and the optical reflecting system includes a plurality of first reflecting surfaces <NUM> (e.g. having <NUM> first reflecting surfaces) and one second reflecting surface <NUM>. Referring to <FIG>, the first reflecting surface <NUM> of the first reflector <NUM> is of a linear shape in a section taken along a longitudinal direction (a vertical direction) (see <FIG>), and the first reflecting surface <NUM> of the first reflector <NUM> is of a parabola shape in a section taken along a transverse direction (a horizontal direction) (see <FIG>). In other words, the first reflecting surface <NUM> of the first reflector <NUM> has a curved shape characterized by a parabola, wherein the curved shape is a curved surface of the parabola which is stretched along a direction normal to a plane where the parabola is located. Therefore, the first reflector <NUM> is a paraboloidal reflector and is configured to collimate light in the horizontal direction.

Referring to <FIG>, the second reflector <NUM> includes the second reflecting surface <NUM>. The second reflecting surface <NUM> of the second reflector <NUM> is of a parabola shape in a section taken along a longitudinal direction (a vertical direction) (see <FIG>), and the second reflecting surface <NUM> of the second reflector <NUM> is of a linear shape in a section taken along a transverse direction (a horizontal direction) (see <FIG>). In other words, the second reflecting surface <NUM> of the second reflector <NUM> has a curved shape characterized by a parabola, wherein the curved shape is a curved surface of the parabola which is stretched along a direction normal to a plane where the parabola is located. Therefore, the second reflector <NUM> is a paraboloidal reflector and is configured to collimate light in the vertical direction.

According to the above configurations of the exemplary embodiments of the present invention, as two reflectors are employed to collimate and converge the light beams emitted from the light source in two directions substantially orthogonal to each other, compared with the existing collimating lens elements, the optical reflecting system of the present invention has a simple and compact structure design, is easy to manufacture, further improves the production efficiency, and has significant cost effectiveness.

As shown in <FIG>, in some embodiments according to the present invention, the first reflecting surface <NUM> of the first reflector <NUM> and the second reflecting surface <NUM> of the second reflector <NUM> of the optical reflecting system are achieved by plating with a plating material. In some examples, the first reflecting surface <NUM> and the second reflecting surface <NUM> are achieved by plating aluminum or silver. In some embodiments, the plating material of the first reflecting surface <NUM> of the first reflector <NUM> and the second reflecting surface <NUM> of the second reflector <NUM> of the optical reflecting system may include, but not limited to, aluminum, chromium, nickel, silver, and gold.

Referring to <FIG>, the first reflector <NUM> and the third reflector <NUM> can be formed as one piece, the first reflector <NUM> and the second reflector <NUM> are separately manufactured, and the first reflector <NUM> and the second reflector <NUM> are detachably assembled in place in the vehicle lamp illumination device by fastening connectors (for example, screws) <NUM>. In some embodiments, the first reflector <NUM> and the second reflector <NUM> are assembled in place in the vehicle lamp illumination device by means of snap-fit connection, bonding, riveting, welding, etc., so as to ensure that the optical reflecting system, as a whole, is accurately positioned in a lamp body, is well fixed, and avoids movement. In some other embodiments, the first reflector <NUM> and the second reflector <NUM> can be integrally formed. It should be appreciated that in some embodiments, various reflectors selected can be constructed in pairs as one piece depending on an actual lamp body space while meeting the illumination requirements.

Referring to <FIG>, the vehicle lamp illumination device further includes a circuit board <NUM> for installing the light source <NUM>, the circuit board <NUM> is provided thereon with a radiator <NUM>, the radiator <NUM> can improve heat dissipation performance of the circuit board <NUM>, prevent the temperature of the light source <NUM> from being too high, and improve the stability of the light source <NUM>. The third reflector <NUM> provided below the light source of the primary optical system and the first reflector <NUM> having the first reflecting surface <NUM> form an integral structure, and the integral structure formed by the third reflector <NUM> and the first reflector <NUM> is connected to the second reflector <NUM> having the second reflecting surface <NUM>, the circuit board <NUM>, and the radiator <NUM> through the fastening connectors <NUM>. Referring to exemplary light path diagram shown in <FIG>, the light beams emitted from the light source <NUM> first are partially converged by the third reflector <NUM>, after being reflected by the first reflecting surface <NUM> of the first reflector <NUM>, collimation in the horizontal direction can be achieved, and after being reflected by the second reflecting surface <NUM> of the second reflector <NUM>, collimation in the vertical direction can be achieved. By setting the focal length of the first reflecting surface <NUM> to be different from the focal length of the first reflecting surface <NUM>, an ideal illumination light pattern with a relatively large aspect ratio can be formed according to actual requirements.

The present invention has been described above with reference to the drawings and the description of the embodiments, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. Those skilled in the art could understand that modifications and variations could be made without departing from the technical idea of the present invention, and these modifications and variations are also included in the scope of protection of the present invention defined in the appended set of claims.

The present invention provides the optical reflecting system for a vehicle lamp illumination device, wherein the optical reflecting system can realize collimation and convergence of light beams from the light source in two directions substantially orthogonal to each other. Compared with the existing collimating lens element, the optical reflecting system of the present invention has a simple and compact structure design, is easy to manufacture, further improves production efficiency, and has significant cost effectiveness. According to the vehicle lamp illumination device including the optical reflecting system of the present invention, by setting the focal length of the first reflecting surface of the first reflector to be different from the focal length of the second reflector, the illumination light pattern having a relatively large aspect ratio can be obtained.

Claim 1:
An optical reflecting system, applicable for a vehicle lamp illumination device, the vehicle lamp illumination device comprising a primary optical system having a light source (<NUM>, <NUM>), and the optical reflecting system being configured to reflect a light emitted from the light source (<NUM>, <NUM>) of the primary optical system, wherein the optical reflecting system comprises a first reflector (<NUM>) having a first reflecting surface (<NUM>) and a second reflector (<NUM>) having a second reflecting surface (<NUM>), the second reflecting surface (<NUM>) is configured to collimate the light in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction, the first reflecting surface (<NUM>) and the second reflecting surface (<NUM>) have a curved shape represented by a contour line, the first reflecting surface (<NUM>) and the second reflecting surface (<NUM>) are each a curved surface formed by stretching a corresponding contour line along a direction normal to a plane where the contour line is located, and the optical reflecting system is configured such that light beams emitted from the primary optical system having the light source (<NUM>, <NUM>), after being reflected by the first reflector (<NUM>) and reflected by the second reflector (<NUM>), are emitted in a form of approximately parallel light beams, so as to form an illumination light pattern of the vehicle lamp illumination device, characterized in that
the first reflecting surface (<NUM>) is configured to collimate the light in a first direction.