PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-12044373-B2
Application Number: US-202318179998-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Lights with microlens arrays

Abstract:
A system may have lights produce illumination. A light may be provided with a collimated light source that produces collimated light. The collimated light source may use lenses or reflective optical elements to produce the collimated light. The light may have an array of light elements each of which emits a respective beam of the illumination. Each light element may have a preshaping lens that receives the collimated light and produces corresponding preshaped output light and an output lens that receives the output light from the preshaping lens and produces a corresponding beam of the illumination. An electrically adjustable shutter may be located between each preshaping lens and output lens to adjust the illumination between a low-beam pattern and high-beam pattern.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A vehicle exterior light assembly, comprising:
 a collimated light source configured to produce collimated light, wherein the collimated light source is configured to produce a ring of the collimated light, and wherein the collimated light source comprises:
 a light emitter that emits light; 
 a first reflective lens element that reflects the emitted light; and 
 a second reflective lens element that reflects the emitted light reflected from the first reflected lens element to produce the ring of the collimated light; and 
 
 an array of light elements that receive the collimated light. 
 
     
     
       2. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 1  wherein the array of light elements is a ring-shaped array of light elements, wherein the light elements each includes a lens that receives the collimated light and that emits illumination, and wherein each lens includes a preshaping lens element and an output lens element arranged in series. 
     
     
       3. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 2  wherein each light element includes an electrically adjustable shutter between the preshaping lens element of that light element and the output lens element of that light element and wherein the electrically adjustable shutter is configured to move between a closed position in which the illumination has a low-beam pattern and an open position in which the illumination has a high-beam pattern. 
     
     
       4. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 1  wherein the array of light elements is a ring-shaped array of light elements, and wherein the ring-shaped array of light elements has at least 50 light elements each of which emits a separate beam of illumination. 
     
     
       5. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 4  wherein each of the light elements has a respective shutter. 
     
     
       6. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 1  wherein the array of light elements is a ring-shaped array of light elements. 
     
     
       7. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 6  wherein the first reflective lens element has a circular outline and has a reflective surface with an elliptical cross-sectional profile. 
     
     
       8. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 7  wherein the second reflective lens element has an additional reflective surface with a ring shape and a parabolic cross-sectional profile. 
     
     
       9. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 1  wherein the array of light elements is a ring-shaped array of light elements, and wherein each light element comprises a first lens element configured to receive the collimated light and a second lens element configured to receive light from the first lens element and emit a corresponding beam of illumination. 
     
     
       10. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 9  wherein each light element has a shutter between the first lens element and the second lens element. 
     
     
       11. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 10  wherein the shutter of each light element is configured to move between a closed position in which some of the light from the first lens element is blocked from reaching the second lens element and an open position in which all of the light from the first lens element is allowed to pass to the second lens element. 
     
     
       12. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 11  wherein there are at least 100 light elements in the ring-shaped array. 
     
     
       13. A vehicle exterior light assembly comprising:
 a collimated light source configured to emit collimated light, wherein the collimated light source is configured to produce a ring of the collimated light, and wherein the collimated light source comprises:
 a light emitter that emits light; 
 a reflective lens element that reflects the emitted light; and 
 a mirror element that reflects the emitted light reflected from the reflective lens element to produce the ring of the collimated light; and 
 
 an array of light elements, each light element having:
 a first lens configured to receive the collimated light and configured to produce corresponding output light; and 
 a second lens configured to receive the output light from the first lens and configured to provide a corresponding beam of illumination. 
 
 
     
     
       14. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 13  wherein the array of light elements is a ring-shaped array of light elements, wherein each light element has a shutter between the first lens and the second lens of that light element, and wherein the shutter is configured to move between a closed position and an open position. 
     
     
       15. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 13  wherein the reflective lens element has a circular outline and a reflective surface with a parabolic cross-sectional profile. 
     
     
       16. The vehicle exterior light assembly defined in  claim 15  wherein the mirror element has a ring shape and a straight cross-sectional profile. 
     
     
       17. A vehicle light comprising:
 a collimated light source configured to emit collimated light, wherein the collimated light source comprises a light emitter that emits diverging light to produce a ring of the collimated light; and 
 an array of light elements configured to receive the collimated light and produce corresponding illumination, wherein:
 each light element comprises a preshaping lens configured to receive the collimated light, an output lens configured to receive preshaped light from the preshaping lens and to provide a corresponding beam of the illumination, and an electrically adjustable shutter between the preshaping lens and the output lens; and 
 the electrically adjustable shutter is configured to move between a low-beam position in which a portion of the preshaped light from the preshaping lens is blocked and a high-beam position in which the preshaped light from the preshaping lens is allowed to pass to the output lens. 
 
 
     
     
       18. The vehicle light defined in  claim 17  wherein the array of light elements is a ring-shaped array of light elements, wherein the collimated light source has a ring of collimation lenses, and wherein each collimation lens is configured to supply collimated light to a plurality of the light elements. 
     
     
       19. The vehicle light defined in  claim 18  wherein the collimated light source has a ring of light-emitting diodes each of which emits light into a respective one of the collimation lenses. 
     
     
       20. The vehicle light defined in  claim 18  wherein the collimated light source comprises a single light emitter that emits the diverging light to produce the ring of the collimated light.

Description:
This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application No. 63/337,400, filed May 2, 2022, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     This relates generally to systems, and, more particularly, systems that have lights. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Automobiles and other vehicles have lights. Lights may be provided with sources of illumination such as light-emitting diodes or lamps. 
     SUMMARY 
     A vehicle may have lights such as exterior light assemblies to produce illumination. An exterior light assembly may have an array of light elements. The array of light elements may be arranged in a ring. 
     The light may include a collimated light source. The collimated light source may use a ring of lenses or reflective optical elements to produce a ring of collimated light. Each light element in the ring-shaped array of light elements may have a preshaping lens element that receives a portion of the collimated light from the collimated light source and produces corresponding preshaped output light. Each light element may also have an output lens element that is arranged in series with the preshaping lens element. The output lens element receives the output light from the preshaping lens and produces a corresponding beam of illumination. 
     An electrically adjustable shutter may be located between each preshaping lens and output lens to adjust the illumination between a low-beam pattern and high-beam pattern. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG.  1    is a top view of an illustrative vehicle with lights in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG.  2    is a front view of an illustrative light in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG.  3    is a front view of a portion of an illustrative light with a ring-shaped array of light elements in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG.  4    is a cross-sectional side view of a portion of an illustrative light in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG.  5    is a diagram showing illustrative low beam and high beam illumination that may be supplied by a light in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG.  6    is a cross-sectional side view of an illustrative collimated light source having a ring of lenses in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIGS.  7  and  8    are cross-sectional side views of illustrative collimated light sources having reflective optical elements in accordance with embodiments. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     A system such as a vehicle or other system may have lights that emit illumination for a roadway or other light. System lights, which may sometimes be referred to as vehicle exterior light assemblies, may be used to provide illumination to illuminate a roadway. This allows vehicle occupants to view the roadway at night and in other low ambient lighting conditions such as at dawn or dusk, when weather reduces ambient light, or when a vehicle is traveling through a dark tunnel. Illumination may also be used to assist autonomous driving systems. 
     In an illustrative arrangement, a light may be operated in high-beam and low-beam modes. The light may contain an array of light elements arranged in a ring shape or other shape. Each light element may have lens elements and a shutter. The shutter of each element may be used to adjust between high-beam and low-beam modes. 
       FIG.  1    is a top view of a portion of an illustrative vehicle. In the example of  FIG.  1   , vehicle  10  is the type of vehicle that may carry passengers (e.g., an automobile, truck, or other automotive vehicle). Configurations in which vehicle  10  is a robot (e.g., an autonomous robot) or other vehicle that does not carry human passengers may also be used. Vehicles such as automobiles may sometimes be described herein as an example. As shown in  FIG.  1   , vehicle  10  may be operated on roads such as roadway  14 . 
     Vehicle  10  may be manually driven (e.g., by a human driver), may be operated via remote control, and/or may be autonomously operated (e.g., by an autonomous driving system or other autonomous propulsion system). Using vehicle sensors such as lidar, radar, visible and/or infrared cameras (e.g., two-dimensional and/or three-dimensional cameras), proximity (distance) sensors, and/or other sensors, an autonomous driving system and/or driver-assistance system in vehicle  10  may perform automatic braking, steering, and/or other operations to help avoid undesired collisions with pedestrians, inanimate objects, and/or other external structures such as illustrative obstacle  26  on roadway  14 . 
     Vehicle  10  may include a body such as body  12 . Body  12  may include vehicle structures such as body panels formed from metal and/or other materials, may include doors, a hood, a trunk, fenders, a chassis to which wheels are mounted, a roof, etc. Windows may be formed in doors  18  (e.g., on the sides of vehicle body  12 , on the roof of vehicle  10 , and/or in other portions of vehicle  10 ). Windows, doors  18 , and other portions of body  12  may separate the interior of vehicle  10  from the exterior environment that is surrounding vehicle  10 . Doors  18  may be opened and closed to allow people to enter and exit vehicle  10 . Seats and other structures may be formed in the interior of vehicle body  12 . 
     Vehicle  10  may have automotive lighting such as one or more lights (sometimes referred to as roadway lamps), driving lights, fog lights, daytime running lights, turn signals, brake lights, and/or other lights. As shown in  FIG.  1   , for example, vehicle  10  may have lights such as lights  16 . In general, lights  16  may be mounted on front F of vehicle  10 , on rear R of vehicle  10 , on left and/or right sides W of vehicle  10 , and/or other portions of body  12 . In an illustrative configuration, which may sometimes be described herein as an example, lights  16  are mounted to front F of body  12 . There may be, as an example, left and right lights  16  located respectively on the left and right of vehicle  10  to provide roadway illumination  20  in the forward direction (e.g., in the +Y direction in which vehicle  10  moves when driven forward in the example of  FIG.  1   ). By shining lights  16  on roadway  14  in front of vehicle  10 , vehicle  10  may illuminate roadway  14  and obstacles on roadway  14  such as obstacle  26 . 
     Vehicle  10  may have components  24 . Components  24  may include propulsion and steering systems (e.g., manually adjustable driving systems and/or autonomous driving systems having wheels coupled to body  12 , steering controls, one or more motors for driving the wheels, etc.), and other vehicle systems. Components  24  may include control circuitry and input-output devices. Control circuitry in components  24  may be configured to run an autonomous driving application, a navigation application (e.g., an application for displaying maps on a display), and software for controlling vehicle climate control devices, exterior lights, interior lighting, media playback, window movement, door operations, sensor operations, and/or other vehicle operations. For example, the control system may form part of an autonomous driving system that drives vehicle  10  on roadways such as roadway  14  autonomously using data such as sensor data. The control circuitry may include processing circuitry and storage and may be configured to perform operations in vehicle  10  using hardware (e.g., dedicated hardware or circuitry), firmware and/or software. Software code for performing operations in vehicle  10  and other data is stored on non-transitory computer readable storage media (e.g., tangible computer readable storage media) in the control circuitry. The software code may sometimes be referred to as software, data, program instructions, computer instructions, instructions, or code. The non-transitory computer readable storage media may include non-volatile memory such as non-volatile random-access memory, one or more hard drives (e.g., magnetic drives or solid state drives), one or more removable flash drives or other removable media, or other storage. Software stored on the non-transitory computer readable storage media may be executed on the processing circuitry of components  24 . The processing circuitry may include application-specific integrated circuits with processing circuitry, one or more microprocessors, a central processing unit (CPU) or other processing circuitry. 
     The input-output devices of components  24  may include displays, sensors, buttons, light-emitting diodes and other light-emitting devices, haptic devices, speakers, and/or other devices for gathering environmental measurements, information on vehicle operations, and/or user input and for providing output. The sensors in components  24  may include ambient light sensors, touch sensors, force sensors, proximity sensors, optical sensors such as cameras operating at visible, infrared, and/or ultraviolet wavelengths (e.g., fisheye cameras, two-dimensional cameras, three-dimensional cameras, and/or other cameras), capacitive sensors, resistive sensors, ultrasonic sensors (e.g., ultrasonic distance sensors), microphones, radio-frequency sensors such as radar sensors, lidar (light detection and ranging) sensors, door open/close sensors, seat pressure sensors and other vehicle occupant sensors, window sensors, position sensors for monitoring location, orientation, and movement, speedometers, satellite positioning system sensors, and/or other sensors. Output devices in components  24  may be used to provide vehicle occupants and others with haptic output, audio output, visual output (e.g., displayed content, light, etc.), and/or other suitable output. 
     During operation, the control circuitry of components  24  may gather information from sensors and/or other input-output devices such as lidar data, camera data (images), radar data, and/or other sensor data. Cameras, touch sensors, physical controls, and other input devices may be used to gather user input. Using wireless communications with vehicle  10 , remote data sources may provide the control circuitry of components  24  with database information. Displays, speakers, and other output devices may be used to provide users with content such as interactive on-screen menu options and audio. A user may interact with this interactive content by supplying touch input to a touch sensor in a display and/or by providing user input with other input devices. If desired, the control circuitry of vehicle  10  may use sensor data, user input, information from remote databases, and/or other information in providing a driver with driver assistance information (e.g., information on nearby obstacles on a roadway and/or other environment surrounding vehicle  10 ) and/or in autonomously driving vehicle  10 . 
     Light from lights  16  can distract drivers and others in oncoming traffic, so it may be desirable to provide lights  16  with the ability to operate in a high-beam mode in which light illumination from lights  16  is provided over a relatively large area (e.g., a high-beam pattern that encompasses both objects that are far in front of vehicle  10  and objects that are closer to vehicle  10 ) and in a low-beam mode in which illumination is provided over a reduced area (e.g., a low-beam pattern that is directed downward towards roadway  14  directly in front of vehicle  10 ). When a driver or vehicle system in vehicle  10  detects oncoming traffic, the lights may be placed in the low-beam mode to avoid directing excessive light towards the oncoming traffic. When no oncoming traffic is present, the lights may be adjusted to operate in the high-beam mode to increase the area over which illumination is provided. 
       FIG.  2    is a front view of an illustrative adjustable light  16  for vehicle  10 . Vehicle  10  may have any suitable number of lights  16  (e.g., at least one, at least two, fewer than three, etc.). In an illustrative arrangement, vehicle  10  has left and right lights  16  on front F of vehicle  10 , as described in connection with  FIG.  1   . Light  16  may be mounted in an opening in body  12  or may otherwise be coupled to a supporting portion of body  12 . As shown in  FIG.  2   , light  16  may include a ring-shaped portion  32  forming a ring-shaped array  30  of light elements  36  (sometimes referred to as a light element array). Each light element  36  emits a different respective beam of light. These emitted beams are used together to produce a desired illumination pattern for light  16 . Ring-shaped portion  32  may surround central area  34 . Central area  34  may, if desired, be free of visible-light light elements such as elements  36  and may include a painted portion of vehicle body  12 , a display, ancillary lighting (e.g., infrared lighting to support infrared sensor operation for autonomous vehicle operation), sensors, and/or other components and/or vehicle structures. 
     Array  30  may have any suitable shape (e.g., a circular ring, a rectangular ring, a rectangular ring with rounded corners, a straight line, a solid circle, a solid rectangle, another ring shape or solid shape, etc.). Illustrative configurations in which array  30  has a ring shape may be described herein as an example. Light elements  36  may be arranged in a grid or other pattern. For example, elements  36  may be laterally spaced at regular distances along the X and Z dimensions. Arrangements in which elements  36  are unevenly spaced from each other may also be used. The element-to-element spacing D of elements  36  (in the X and Y dimensions) may have a value of at least 1 mm, at least 3 mm, at least 5 mm, less than 3 cm, less than 2 cm, less than 1 cm, less than 5 mm, less than 3 mm, less than 2 mm, less than 1 mm, 0.5 mm to 5 mm, 1 mm to 3 mm, 2 mm to 6 mm, 1 to 7 mm, 3 mm to 5 mm, 0.5 to 4 mm, or other suitable value. 
     During operation, the light output from each light element  36  may have a pinpoint appearance, so that light  16  has an overall appearance of being composed of a multitude of tiny lighting elements arranged within a ring. Each pinpoint corresponds to a respective beam of light that is being emitted by a respective one of light elements  36 . There may be any suitable number of elements  36  in light  16  (e.g., at least 10, at least 50, at least 100, at least 200, at least 400, at least 800, at least 1600, fewer than 3000, fewer than 1500, fewer than 750, fewer than 300, fewer than 150, or fewer than 75). The diameter of light  16  may be at least 2 cm, at least 4 cm, at least 8 cm, at least 20 cm, at least 40 cm, less than 200 cm, less than 100 cm, less than 50 cm, less than 25 cm, or less than 10 cm (as examples). Elements  36  may lie in a common plane (e.g., the XZ plane of  FIG.  2   ) or may have a curved shape that conforms to a curved vehicle body exterior shape. For example, elements  36  may conform to a body surface shape characterized by compound curvature (e.g., curvature about both the X and Z axes of  FIG.  2   ). 
       FIG.  3    is a front view of a portion of light  16  (e.g., a section of ring-shaped portion  32 ). As shown in  FIG.  3   , each light element  36  in ring-shaped array  30  may contain a respective lens  40 . There may be an array of lenses  40  (sometimes referred to as a microlens array) covering ring-shaped portion  32  of light  16 . 
       FIG.  4    is a cross-sectional side view of a portion of light  16 . As shown in  FIG.  4   , each lens  40  may have an input lens element  42  and an output lens element  44  arranged in series. Lenses  40  in the example of  FIG.  4    lie within a common plane (the XZ plane). If desired, lenses  40  may conform to different vehicle body shapes and/or may otherwise ne arranged in a nonplanar ring (e.g., lenses  40  may be staggered so that different lenses  40  have different positions along the Y axis of  FIG.  4   ). 
     Lens elements (lenses)  44  and  42  may be formed from any suitable transparent material (e.g., glass, polymer, etc.). In an illustrative configuration, lenses  44 , which may sometimes be referred to as output lenses, are configured to from a microlens array that supplies illumination  20  to roadway  14  ( FIG.  1   ) and lenses  42  are freeform preshaping lenses that help preshape collimated light  48  before this light reaches the input surfaces of lenses  40 . 
     During operation of light  16 , collimated light source  46  provides collimated light  48  to each light element  36 . In particular, collimated light  48  is provided to the inputs of preshaping lenses  42  and is preshaped by lenses  42  to produce preshaped light  54 . Preshaped light  54  is provided as output light from the outputs of lenses  42  to the inputs of lenses  44  and exits lenses  44  as illumination  20 . 
     As shown in  FIG.  4   , a respective shutter  50  may be placed between each input lens element  42  and output lens element  44 . Shutters  50  may be configured to block some of light  54  when light  16  is operating in a low-beam mode and to pass all of light  54  when light  16  is operating in a high-beam mode. The preshaping function of input lens elements  42  may help ensure that a satisfactory low-beam output pattern is produced for illumination  20  without sacrificing overall light efficiency (e.g., without blocking excessive amounts of light  54  during low beam operation). 
     Shutters  50  may be electrically controlled (e.g., using control signals supplied by the control circuitry of vehicle  10 ). Shutters  50  may be electrically adjustable light modulators or may be mechanical shutters moved by actuators. During operation, shutters  50  may be placed in either a closed position CL or an open position OP. For example, a mechanical shutter may be moved between closed position CL and open position OP using an electrically controlled electromechanical actuator  52 . 
     In open position OP, all of the preshaped light  54  that is produced by the lens  42  of a given light element  36  passes by shutter  50  and is provided to a corresponding output lens  44  in that given light element  36  to contribute to a desired high-beam pattern of output illumination  20  (e.g., high-beam illumination). When it is desired to transition between high-beam mode and low-beam mode, the shutter  50  of the given light element  36  may be moved from its open position OP to its closed position CL. In closed position CL, shutter  50  will block some of preshaped light  54 , thereby producing a low-beam pattern of output illumination  20 .  FIG.  5    shows illustrative patterns of illumination  20  that may be produced by each light  16 . These patterns may include low beam pattern LB (produced when shutters  50  are closed) and high-beam pattern HB (produced when shutters  50  are opened). 
     Collimated light source  46  may receive light from one or more light-emitting diodes (e.g., white light-emitting diodes) and may use collimating optics to collimate light emitted from the light-emitting diodes. The collimating optics in light source  46  may include optical elements such as lenses (e.g., polymer lenses that collimate light by refraction) and reflectors (e.g., reflective lenses and/or mirrors formed from polymer substrates coated with a reflective coating such as an aluminum coating).  FIG.  6    is a diagram of an illustrative collimated light source based on refractive optics.  FIGS.  7  and  8    are diagrams of illustrative collimated light sources based on reflective optics. 
     As shown in  FIG.  6   , collimated light source  46  may have collimation lenses  70  (e.g., refractive lenses formed from polymer, glass, or other transparent material). Lenses  70  may be arranged in a ring having central axis  78  and diameter DM. Diameter DM of  FIG.  6    may match the diameter of ring portion  32  of light  16  of  FIG.  1   . Each lens  70  may be sufficiently large to supply collimated light  48  to numerous lenses  40  (e.g., at least 10 at least 40, fewer than 200, fewer than 100, etc.). 
     Collimated light source  46  may also have a ring of light-emitting diodes  74 . Light-emitting diodes  74  may be arranged in a ring about central axis  78  so that each of light-emitting diodes  74  is associated with a corresponding one of lenses  70 . Light-emitting diodes  74  may be white light emitting diodes and may emit diverging light  76 . The diverging emitted light from each light-emitting diode  74  may be received at the input the lens  70  that is associated with that diode. As the emitted light from the light-emitting diodes passes through lenses  70 , lenses  70  collimate this light to produce a ring of collimated light  48  of diameter DM. The ring of collimated light  48  that is produced by light source  46  of  FIG.  6    may be supplied to the input of lenses  40  of light elements  36  (e.g., the inputs of lens  42 ), as shown in  FIG.  4   . 
     In the example of  FIG.  7   , collimated light source  46  has a single light-emitting diode  74  (or a cluster of light-emitting diodes located at a single location). Light source  46  of  FIG.  7    has a first reflector  90  with reflective surface  92  and a second reflector  94  with reflective surface  96 . Reflectors  90  and  94  may be formed from a substrate material such as polymer coated with a reflective coating such as an aluminum coating. Reflective surface  92  may have an elliptical cross-sectional profile that is rotationally symmetric about central axis  78  (e.g., reflector  90  may have a circular footprint when viewed along the +Y direction). Reflective surface  96  may have a parabolic cross-sectional shape and may have a ring shape of diameter DM surrounding central axis  78 . Reflective surface  92  forms a first reflective lens element (e.g., a first lens element with a circular outline when viewed in the +Y direction). Reflective surface  96  forms a second reflective lens element (e.g., a second lens element with a ring-shaped outline). During operation, diverging emitted light  76  that is emitted by light-emitting diode  74  in the +Y direction is reflected from the first reflective lens element formed from surface  92  to the second reflective lens element formed from surface  96 . The second reflective lens element reflects this light in the +Y direction as a ring of collimated light  48  (e.g., a ring of collimated light of diameter DM that is rotationally symmetric with respect to central axis  78 ). The ring of collimated light  48  that is produced by light source  46  of  FIG.  7    may be supplied to the input of lenses  40  of light elements  36  of  FIG.  4   . 
     In the example of  FIG.  8   , collimated light source  46  has a single reflector substrate forming reflector  104 . An aluminum coating or other reflective coating is provided on reflector  104  to form circular reflective lens element  100  and ring-shaped planar reflective element  102  (sometimes referred to as a ring-shaped mirror). R reflective element  100  has a circular outline when viewed along the −Y axis and has a reflective surface with a parabolic cross-sectional profile that is rotationally symmetric about central axis  78 . Reflective element  102  has a reflective surface with a ring shape with diameter DM that is rotationally symmetric about central axis  78 . The cross-sectional profile of element  102  is straight (a line). During operation, light-emitting diode  74  (or a cluster of light-emitting diodes at the location of diode  74  of  FIG.  8   ) emits diverging light  76  (e.g., white light). Light  76  is emitted in the −Y direction and illuminates reflective lens element  100 . Lens element  100  reflects this light to element  102 , which reflects this light in the +Y direction as a ring of collimated light  48 . The ring of collimated light  48  that is emitted by light source  46  of  FIG.  8    has a diameter DM and is rotationally symmetric about central axis  78 . Light  48  is supplied to the input of lenses  40  of light elements  36  of  FIG.  4   . 
     The foregoing is merely illustrative and various modifications can be made to the described embodiments. The foregoing embodiments may be implemented individually or in any combination.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20230307
Publication Date: 20240723
Grant Date: 20240723
Priority Date: 20220502
Inventors: TANG, XIAOFENG
STIEHL, KURT R
MAZUIR, Clarisse
CHILD, CHRISTOPHER P
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "F21S41/153", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21W2102/13", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/689", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/663", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/40", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/336", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/265", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/255", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/153", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/145", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/265", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/143", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/153", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "F21S41/265", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 88512847