Light guide with opaque light cover applied by injection molding

Abstract

A light guide (1) for a motor vehicle, wherein the light guide (1) has a light-guiding body (10) made of transparent plastics material, wherein the light-guiding body (10) has at least one light-entrance surface (11) and at least one light-exit surface (12) and wherein the light-guiding body (10) is covered in a region by means of a substantially light-opaque cover material (20), wherein the cover material (20) is applied onto the region by means of an injection molding method. The use of such a light guide (1) in a motor vehicle and a method for producing such a light guide (1).

Claims

1. A light guide (1) for a motor vehicle, wherein the light guide (1) has a light-guiding body (10) made of transparent plastics material, wherein the light-guiding body (10) has at least one light-entrance surface (11) and at least one light-exit surface (12) and wherein the light-guiding body (10) is covered in a region by means of a substantially light-opaque cover material (20), wherein the substantially light-opaque cover material (20) is a molded cover material applied onto the region by means of an injection molding method; wherein the light-entrance surface (11) is oriented at an angle in relation to the light-exit surface (12); wherein the light-guiding body (10) has a reflection surface (13), which lies opposite or is adjacent to the light-entrance surface (11) and which is oriented at an angle in relation to both the light-entrance surface (11) and the light-exit surface (12), and wherein the reflection surface (13) is covered on the rear side by the molded cover material (20); wherein the light entrance surface has a concave entrance contour; wherein a portion of the molded cover material (20) is provided around the light entrance surface (11) with a collar-shape to form a plug-in connection socket (21) that is configured for receiving a light source or a light-guiding element and holding the light source or the light-guiding element adjacent the light-entrance surface (11).

2. The light guide (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the light-exit surface (12) is larger than the light-entrance surface (11).

3. The light guide (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the region of the light-guiding body (10) on which the cover material (20) is applied makes up at least 60% of the surface of the light-guiding body (10) which is not the light-entrance surface (11) and not the light-exit surface (12).

4. A motor vehicle door with a door inner trim, wherein the door inner trim has a light guide (1) as claimed in claim 1.

5. A door actuation module for a motor vehicle, wherein the door actuation module has a light guide (1) as claimed in claim 1.

6. The door actuation module as claimed in claim 5 wherein the molded cover material (20) which covers the reflection surface (13) on the rear side is bright or it is matched to the part of the motor vehicle door or of the door actuation module directly surrounding the light guide (1) in terms of hue and/or brightness or it is brighter than said part.

7. A vehicle door inner trim including the light guide of claim 1.

Description

(1) The invention is now intended to be elucidated further in an exemplary manner on the basis of drawings. In detail:

(2) FIG. 1 shows an example of a light guide according to the invention,

(3) FIG. 2 shows the light-guiding body of the light guide from FIG. 1,

(4) FIG. 3 shows a separate view of the cover material of the light guide from FIG. 1 molded around the light-guiding body, and

(5) FIG. 4 shows a view of the light guide from FIG. 1, slightly rotated in relation to FIG. 1, in which, in particular, the entrance contour can clearly be seen.

(6) FIG. 1 shows an example of a light guide 1 according to the invention for a motor vehicle. It has a light-guiding body 10 made of transparent plastics material, wherein the light-guiding body 10 has a light-entrance surface 11 and a light-exit surface 12. In a region of more than 90% of the surface, which is not the light-entrance surface 11 or light-exit surface 12, the light-guiding body 10 is covered by means of a substantially light-opaque cover material 20, which is applied onto the region by means of an injection molding method. Furthermore, this is a light guide 1 of a door inner trim of a motor vehicle. The areas around the light-exit surface 12 are likewise not molded herethey are subsequently covered by a different housing part of the door inner trim.

(7) The production contains the following steps:

(8) producing the light-guiding body 10 from transparent plastics material, with the light-entrance surface 11 and the light-exit surface 12 being shaped in the process;

(9) covering the region of the light-guiding body 10 by means of the substantially opaque cover material 20, wherein the covering is carried out by means of an injection molding method.

(10) Moreover, the following optional aspects are elucidated: the light-entrance surface 11 is oriented at an angle, in this case at approximately 90, in relation to the light-exit surface 12; the light-guiding body 10 has a reflection surface 13, which is adjacent to the light-entrance surface 11 and oriented at an angle of approximately 70 in relation to the light-entrance surface 11 and oriented at an angle of approximately 90 in relation to the light-exit surface 12; on the rear side, the reflection surface 13 is covered by means of the light-opaque cover material 20; the light-exit surface 12, the light-entrance surface 11 and the reflection surface 13 approximately form, at least in the imagined extensions thereof, a right-angled triangle with the reflection surface 13 as a hypotenuse; the light-exit surface 12 is more than 10-times larger than the light-entrance surface 11; the light-exit surface 12 is more elongate than the light-entrance surface 11.

(11) FIG. 2 shows the light-guiding body 10 of the light guide 1 from FIG. 1. In this example, the light-guiding body 10 is produced by means of an injection molding method in the same injection molding machine with which the covering is carried out. Therefore, the light guide 1 is produced in a two-component injection molding method. After it was injection molded and before the cover material 20 is injection molded onto the light-guiding body 10, the light-guiding body 10 is rotated in terms of the position thereof by means of a rotary plate.

(12) FIG. 3 shows a separate view of the injection-molded cover material 20 of the light guide 1 from FIG. 1. A plug-in apparatus 21, in this case a connection socket, of the light-entrance surface 11 for an LED is formed by means of the cover material 20.

(13) FIG. 4 shows a view of the light guide 1 from FIG. 1, slightly rotated in relation to FIG. 1, in which, in particular, the entrance contour 11.1 of the light-entrance surface 11 can clearly be seen.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

(14) 1 Light guide 10 Light-guiding body 11.1 Entrance contour 11 Light-entrance surface 12 Light-exit surface 13 Reflection surface 20 Cover material 21 Plug-in apparatus