Illumination device

Abstract

An illumination device includes a housing portion having an opening for inserting an object to be housed, and a bottom face capable of supporting the object to be housed; a light source; and a light-guide plate having a light-emitting face and guiding a light of the light source to emit light from the light-emitting face. The light-guide plate is disposed between the opening of the housing portion and the bottom face, and at least one portion of the light-emitting face of the light-guide plate is arranged to form an acute angle with respect to the bottom face so as to directly irradiate the bottom face from a diagonal direction.

Claims

1. An illumination device, comprising: a housing portion having an opening-side housing portion including an opening for inserting an object to be housed and a wall member protruding outwardly from a lower portion of the opening-side housing portion, and a bottom-face-side housing portion arranged below the opening-side housing portion and including a bottom face adapted to support the object to be housed, an inclined face arranged at an upper portion of the bottom-faced-side housing portion and tapered toward the bottom face, an outer wall member arranged outside the inclined face, and a groove arranged between the outer wall member and the inclined face; a light source disposed at the housing portion; and a light-guide plate disposed in the groove of the bottom-face-side housing portion and above the inclined face, for guiding a light of the light source, the light-guide plate including a light-emitting face forming an acute angle in respect to the bottom face to emit the light to directly irradiate the bottom face, wherein the wall member covers the light-guide plate from above and surrounds the outer wall member.

2. An illumination device according to claim 1, wherein at least one portion of the light-emitting face is arranged to form 5 to 85 degrees with respect to the bottom face.

3. An illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the light-emitting face simultaneously irradiates the inclined face and the bottom face.

4. An illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the light-guide plate includes a back face facing parallel to the light-emitting face.

5. An illumination device according to claim 1, wherein the light-guide plate includes a first piece to fit into the groove of the bottom-face-side housing portion, and a second piece extending from the first piece and including the light-emitting face, and a back face facing parallel to the light-emitting face, for directing the light, and the second piece is inclined upwardly and toward a center of the housing portion so that the light-emitting face faces the inclined face and the bottom face to simultaneously irradiate the inclined face and the bottom face.

6. An illumination device according to claim 3, wherein the light-emitting face simultaneously irradiates the inclined face and a center portion of the bottom face.

7. An illumination device according to claim 5, wherein the wall member includes a first portion extending outwardly away from the center of the housing portion and above the light-guide plate, and a second portion extending downwardly from the first portion to surround the outer wall member.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an illumination device of one embodiment of the present invention.

(2) FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing an opening-side housing portion of the illumination device in FIG. 1.

(3) FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a bottom-face-side housing portion of the illumination device in FIG. 1.

(4) FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing a light-guide plate of the illumination device in FIG. 1.

(5) FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing a light source of the illumination device in FIG. 1.

(6) FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the illumination device in FIG. 1.

(7) FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of essential parts in FIG. 6.

BEST MODES OF CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

(8) Hereinafter, with reference to attached drawings, an embodiment of the present invention will be explained in detail.

(9) FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an illumination device 100 of one embodiment of the present invention. The illumination device 100 shown in FIG. 1 comprises a housing portion 10 which is a cup holder including an opening 11 for inserting an object to be housed, such as a plastic bottle and the like, and a bottom face 12 capable of supporting the object to be housed. As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the housing portion 10 includes an opening-side (upper-side) housing portion 10A and a bottom-face-side (lower-side) housing portion 10B. Then, there is disposed a light-guide plate 30 made of light-transmitting resin shown in FIG. 4 in such a way as to be sandwiched between the opening-side housing portion 10A and the bottom-face-side housing portion 10B, and the light-guide plate 30 guides a light of a light source shown in FIG. 5 so as to irradiate the light from an annular and diagonally downwardly directed light-emitting face 31. As shown in FIG. 5, the light source of the present embodiment is an LED unit 20.

(10) FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the illumination device in FIG. 1, and FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of essential parts in FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, the light-guide plate 30 is disposed between the opening 11 of the opening-side housing portion 10A and the bottom face 12 of the bottom-face-side housing portion 10B, and has a first piece 30a fit into a groove 13a between an outer wall member 13b and the inclined wall 13 and a second piece 30b having the annular light-emitting face 31 of the light-guide plate 30 forming an angle of 5 to 85 degrees, preferably an angle of 20 to 40 degrees with respect to the bottom face 12 so as to directly irradiate the bottom face 12 from a diagonal direction.

(11) Also, as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, the bottom-face-side housing portion 10B includes an inclined face 13 tapered toward the bottom face 12 on a bottom face 12 side relative to the light-guide plate 30. Then, in the present embodiment, the light-emitting face 31 of the light-guide plate 30 simultaneously irradiates the inclined face 13 and a center portion of the bottom face 12. The center portion of the bottom face 12 is an area having a shape similar to the bottom face 3 with a ratio of 1/2 or less with respect to the bottom face 12.

(12) Also, as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, the opening-side housing portion 10A includes a wall portion 14 covering the light-guide plate 30 on an opening 11 side relative to the light-guide plate 30. In an example in FIG. 7, an area shown with oblique lines represents the wall portion 14.

(13) Also, as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, the light-guide plate 30 includes a back face 32 facing parallel to the light-emitting face 31.

(14) Next, an operation of the present embodiment as mentioned above will be explained.

(15) In the present embodiment, the light-emitting face 31 of the light-guide plate 30 forms the angle of 20 to 40 degrees with respect to the bottom face 12 so as to directly irradiate the bottom face 12 from the diagonal direction. Consequently, a reflection light from the bottom face 12 can be used so as to provide a peculiar aesthetic appearance as an indirect illumination.

(16) Also, in the present embodiment, the bottom-face-side housing portion 10B includes the inclined face 13 tapered toward the bottom face 12 on the bottom face 12 side relative to the light-guide plate 30, and the light-emitting face 31 of the light-guide plate 30 simultaneously irradiates the inclined face 13 and the bottom face 12. Consequently, in addition to the reflection light from the bottom face 12, a reflection light from the inclined face 13 can be used as well so as to provide the peculiar aesthetic appearance as the indirect illumination furthermore. Especially, in the present embodiment, the center portion of the bottom face 12 is irradiated so as to provide the most beautiful aesthetic appearance as the indirect illumination.

(17) Also, in the present embodiment, a wall member 14 of the opening-side housing portion 10A includes a first portion 14a and a second portion 14b to prevent the light-guide plate 30 from being directly visually recognized from the opening 11 side so as to excel in a design property as the indirect illumination, and completely solve a problem that a direct light from the light-guide plate 30 projects onto a window glass of an automobile and the like as well.

(18) Also, in the present embodiment, the light-guide plate includes the back face 32 facing parallel to the light-emitting face 31 so as to enhance a light directivity irradiated from the light-emitting face 31, and easily control an intensity (amount) of illumination.

(19) As mentioned above, according to the present embodiment, the light-emitting face 31 of the light-guide plate 30 forms an acute angle with respect to the bottom face 12 so as to directly irradiate the bottom face 12 from the diagonal direction, so that the reflection light from the bottom face 12 can be used to provide the peculiar aesthetic appearance as the indirect illumination.

(20) Also, according to the present embodiment, the bottom-face-side housing portion 10B includes the inclined face 13 tapered toward the bottom face 12 on the bottom face 12 side relative to the light-guide plate 30, and the light-emitting face 30 simultaneously radiates the inclined face 13 and the bottom face 12, so that the reflection light from the inclined face 13 can be used as well in addition to the reflection light from the bottom face 12 so as to provide the peculiar aesthetic appearance as the indirect illumination furthermore.

(21) Also, according to the present embodiment, the light-emitting face 30 simultaneously irradiates the inclined face 13 and the center portion of the bottom face 12 so as to provide the most beautiful aesthetic appearance as the indirect illumination.

(22) Also, according to the present embodiment, the opening-side housing portion 10A includes the wall portion 14 covering the light-guide plate 30 on the opening 11 side relative to the light-guide plate 30 so as to prevent the light-guide plate 30 from being directly visually recognized. Thereby, the aesthetic appearance as the indirect illumination can be emphasized furthermore.

(23) Also, according to the present embodiment, the light-guide plate 30 includes the back face 32 facing parallel to the light-emitting face 31 so as to enhance the light directivity irradiated from the light-emitting face 31, and easily control the intensity (amount) of illumination as well.

(24) Incidentally, as shown in FIG. 7, in the illumination device 100 of the present embodiment, an illumination method can be finely adjusted by changing a design as follows.

(25) (1) A height of a lower end edge of the wall member 14 is changed.

(26) (2) The angle of the light-emitting face 31 of the light-guide plate 30 is changed.

(27) (3) An angle of the inclined face 13 is changed.

(28) Regarding all of the aforementioned changed items (1) to (3), the entirety of an annular area may be uniformly changed, or may be locally changed (so as to become uneven). Due to the aforementioned changes, a condition of an irradiation to the bottom face 12, eventually a condition of a reflection at the bottom face 12 can be adjusted. Similarly, a condition of an irradiation to the inclined face 13, eventually a condition of a reflection at the inclined face 13 can be adjusted.

(29) Also, the illumination method can be finely adjusted even by changing an amount of light of the light source 20.

EXPLANATION OF SYMBOLS

(30) 10 a housing portion

(31) 10A an opening-side housing portion

(32) 10B a bottom-face-side housing portion

(33) 11 an opening

(34) 12 a bottom face

(35) 13 an inclined face

(36) 14 a wall member

(37) 20 a light source (an LED unit)

(38) 30 a light-guide plate

(39) 31 a light-emitting face

(40) 32 a back face

(41) 100 an illumination device