Patent ID: 7364335

Claim:
Modular optical light line unit for producing a thin, continuous, line of illumination, comprising a light line module housing having a distal face from which said line of illumination emanates, the distal face having a first end edge and a second end edge; a fiber optic bundles formed of a plurality of optic fibers, said bundles each having a proximal end and a distal end, the bundle being fanned out within the light line module housing to terminate in a flat linear array such that the distal end is arrayed as a row of fibers; a ferrule disposed on said housing at a proximal side of said housing and in which the proximal end of said fiber optic bundle is contained; and a snap-fitting solid-state light source module adapted to install upon said ferrule by pushing it in place, and which remains in place until deliberately pulled off, including a light source module housing; a solid-state light emitting device within said light source module housing; and a snap-action fitting on said module adapted to mate with said ferrule such that the illumination produced by the solid state light emitting device is incident upon the proximal end of said fiber optic bundle.