Method for manufacturing lens with facilitated light diffusion
AssigneeIDEAL Industries Lighting LLC
InventorsKurt Wilcox, Craig Raleigh, Corey Goldstein
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method for manufacturing of a lens for distribution of light from a light emitter. The method provides an injection-molding cavity defined by a shape-forming configuration with a texturing in at least one area of the cavity. A thermoplastic elastomer is injected into the cavity shaping a lens-region thickness of the elastomer. Such lens-region thickness is cooled and set prior to sinking of the elastomer such that the lens-region thickness retains the texturing of the shape-forming configuration forming a textured surface portion of the lens.
Claims18
A method for manufacturing a lens for distribution of light from a light emitter, the method comprising the steps of:
- providing an injection-molding cavity defined by a shape-forming configuration with a texturing in at least one area of the cavity;
- injecting a thermoplastic elastomer into the cavity shaping a first region of the lens of the elastomer;
- cooling and setting the first region prior to sinking of the elastomer such that the first region retains the texturing of the shape-forming configuration forming a textured surface portion of the lens;
- and
- injection molding one or more additional regions of the lens away from the textured surface portion of the lens.
A method for manufacturing a lens for distribution of light from a light emitter, the method comprising the steps of:
- injection molding a first region comprising a first inner surface and a first outer surface, the first region comprising a thickness measured between the first inner surface and the first outer surface;
- sequentially injection molding one or more additional regions over the first region with each of the additional regions comprising an additional inner surface and an additional outer surface;
- forming texturing on one or more of the surfaces of the first region and the additional regions;
- the first inner surface forming an overall inner surface of the lens and the additional outer surface of the last one or more additional regions forming an overall outer surface of the lens with the lens comprising an overall thickness measured between the overall inner and outer surfaces;
- and
- each of the first region and the one or more additional regions comprising a thickness that is less than the overall thickness such that the texturing on the one or more surfaces is retained prior to sinking of the region during cooling and setting;
- wherein the texturing is positioned at an area of the lens with the overall thickness being thin and away from areas with the overall thickness being thick.
A method for manufacturing a lens for distribution of light from a light emitter, the method comprising the steps of:
- injection molding an inner region with a textured inner surface that forms a lens inner surface and defining an inner cavity that receives the light from the light emitter;
- injection molding one or more intermediate regions onto the inner region in an overlapping arrangement;
- injection molding an outer region onto an outer one of the one or more intermediate regions, the outer region comprising an outer surface that receives light from the inner region and emits the light outward away from the lens;
- and
- the inner region thinner than an overall thickness of the lens measured between the inner and outer surfaces for the texturing on the inner surface to be retained prior to sinking of the inner region during cooling and setting;
- the textured inner surface is positioned along a thin wall portion of the lens and away from thick wall portions of the lens.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.