Article of manufacture with micro-features of differing surface roughness
AssigneeRambus Delaware LLC
InventorsKurt R. Starkey, Robert M. Ezell, Fumitomo Hide
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An article of manufacture includes first and second micro-features of well-defined shape. In some embodiments, the article of manufacture is a light guide or redirecting film and the second micro-features are micro-optical elements configured to disrupt a specular optical path that includes the second micro-optical element. In other embodiments, the article of manufacture is a patterning tool for use in making an optical substrate. Embodiments of the optical substrate are formed by injection molding or embossing using the patterning tool.
Claims22
(canceled)
A light guide, comprising:
- opposed major surfaces configured to propagate light input to the light guide therebetween by total internal reflection;
- a light input edge extending between the major surfaces;
- and
- micro-optical elements of well-defined shape at at least one of the major surfaces, the micro-optical elements embodied as three-dimensional features recessed into or protruding from the major surface and configured to extract incident light from the light guide with a defined light ray angle distribution, the micro-optical elements comprising at least one distinct surface having a surface roughness configured to impart a diffuse component to light incident thereon and disrupt a specular optical path of the propagating light between the light input edge and the micro-optical element of the propagating light.
A light redirecting film, comprising:
- opposed major surfaces;
- and
- micro-optical elements of well-defined shape at at least one of the major surfaces, the micro-optical elements embodied as three-dimensional features recessed into or protruding from the major surface and configured to refract incident light from the light guide with a defined light ray angle distribution, the micro-optical elements comprising at least one distinct surface, wherein the at least one distinct surface has a surface roughness ranging from about 1 μm to about 5 μm and is configured to impart a diffuse component to light incident thereon, and the surface roughness of the at least one distinct surface is greater than a surface roughness of the opposed major surfaces.
A light guide, comprising:
- opposed major surfaces configured to propagate light input to the light guide therebetween by total internal reflection;
- a light input edge extending between the major surfaces;
- and
- light extracting means at at least one of the major surfaces for extracting light from the light guide with a defined light ray angle distribution and for imparting a diffuse component to light incident thereon to disrupt a specular optical path of the propagating light.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.