Remote illumination and light apportionment in appliances
AssigneeTroy Investments Inc.
InventorAharon Zeev Hed
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A space at least partly enclosed by an appliance housing can be illuminated by utilizing at least one lamp outside that space and coupling a light pipe system to that lamp so that light can be conducted into the space by a light-transmission system. Within the space light is emitted from one or more light extractors optically coupled to the light-transmission system. The light extractors are in the form of wave guides provided along a surface with formations or the like from which light is emitted.
Claims37
An appliance comprising:
- an appliance housing defining an interior chamber at least partially closed by said housing;
- an electric power connection to said appliance for electrically energizing said appliance by supplying electrical energy thereto, said chamber having walls;
- at least one lamp in said housing outside said chamber and supplied by said electric power connection with said electrical energy;
- light-transmission means illuminated by said lamp and extending to at least one of said walls for delivering light to said chamber from said lamp;
- and
- light-extraction means extending along at least one of said walls optically coupled to said light-transmission means and located in said chamber for emitting light transmitted to said light-extraction means in a direction generally transverse to a light-propagation direction therealong to illuminate said interior chamber.
An article of manufacture comprising:
- housing means defining an at least partially enclosed space;
- at least one light source in said housing means outside said space;
- light-transmission means optically coupled with said light source for conducting light toward said space;
- and
- an elongated light wave guide extending along said space, optically coupled with said light-transmission means, and provided with light-extraction means extending over at least a portion of said wave guide for extracting light therefrom to illuminate said space.
A method of apportioning light resources in an appliance having a chamber which is at least partially closed, comprising the steps of:
- (a) coupling at least one light source located outside said chamber with a light-transmission means and piping light by said light-transmission means to said chamber;
- (b) subdividing light piped to said chamber along respective paths through said light-transmission means to illuminate respective areas of said chamber with respective light fluxes and providing respective light-transmission cross section of said light-transmission means for the respective paths in accordance with said fluxes;
- and
- (c) distributing light in said areas by coupling ends of the paths of said light-transmission means to respective light extractors at said areas and emitting light along lengths of said light extractors at said areas.
A method of inhibiting microorganism growth in an enclosed space, comprising the steps of:
- (a) producing ultraviolet light at an ultraviolet light source at a location outside said space;
- (b) supplying-said ultraviolet light to said space by coupling a light-transmission means with said source outside said space and piping said ultraviolet light to said space with said light-transmission means;
- and
- (c) emitting ultraviolet light in said space from a light extractor optically coupled to said light-transmission means.
A light-emitting shelf comprising:
- a shelf formed as an elongated light wave guide and disposed in a space;
- means for coupling said shelf with a light source;
- and
- light-extraction means extending over at least a portion of said wave guide for extracting light therefrom to illuminate said space.
An illuminator comprising:
- a bent elongated light wave guide extending over most of an arc of a circle;
- means for coupling said wave guide with a light source;
- and
- continuous light-extraction means extending over at least a portion of said wave guide for extracting light therefrom to illuminate a space.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.