Light fixture including light pipe having contoured cross-section

A light pipe support assembly for mounting a light pipe on a light fixture, the assembly comprising:

• a support structure having at least one pair of opposed inwardly-extending protrusions;
• and
• a light pipe supported on the support structure, the light pipe having a generally constant cross-sectional size and shape along a length of the light pipe, the light pipe comprising an elongated generally tubular jacket surrounding an elongated light-transmissive mono-filament core;
• the improvement comprising:
• the light pipe including an elongated upper lobe integrally extending from an elongated lower lobe, the lower lobe having an arcuate lateral profile;
• the light pipe including an elongated laterally pinched region between the upper lobe and the lower lobe, the pinched region having a width less than the width of the upper lobe and less than the width of the lower lobe and slightly less that the width of a gap between the inwardly-extending protrusions, the width of the gap between the protrusions being smaller than the width of the upper lobe to allow the light pipe to be supported on the support structure by resting the upper lobe on the protrusions with the pinched region disposed between the protrusions and the lower lobe suspended below the protrusions, the core being disposed in the lower lobe and the upper lobe comprising a portion of the jacket.

A method for making a light pipe support assembly comprising a support structure having a pair of opposed inwardly-extending protrusions, and an elongated light-transmissive mono-filament core supported on the support structure, the core having a generally constant cross-sectional size and shape along a length of the core, the core including an elongated upper lobe integrally extending from an elongated lower lobe, the lower lobe having an arcuate lateral profile, the core including an elongated laterally pinched region between the upper lobe and the lower lobe, the pinched region having a width less than the width of the upper lobe and less than the width of the lower lobe and slightly less that the width of a gap between the inwardly-extending protrusions, the width of the gap between the protrusions being smaller than the width of the upper lobe;

• the method including the steps of:
• providing the support structure;
• forming the light pipe by extruding the light transmissive material through a die having a die face opening approximating the desired lobed cross-sectional shape of the core;
• and
• supporting the light pipe on the support structure by positioning the light pipe pinched region between the inwardly extending protrusions of the support structure.

A method for making a light pipe support assembly comprising a support structure having a pair of opposed inwardly-extending protrusions, and a light pipe having an elongated light-transmissive mono-filament core disposed within an elongated generally tubular jacket, the light pipe supported on the support structure, the light pipe having a generally constant cross-sectional size and shape along a length of the light pipe, the light pipe including an elongated upper lobe integrally extending from an elongated lower lobe, the lower lobe having an arcuate lateral profile, the light pipe including an elongated laterally pinched region between the upper lobe and the lower lobe, the pinched region having a width less than the width of the upper lobe and less than the width of the lower lobe and slightly less that the width of a gap between the inwardly-extending protrusions, the width of the gap between the protrusions being smaller than the width of the upper lobe;

• the method including the steps of:
• providing the support structure;
• providing the elongated, generally tubular jacket;
• supporting the jacket in a configuration defining a desired cross-sectional shape of the light pipe;
• providing the light transmissive core material within the jacket;
• and
• supporting the light pipe on the support structure by positioning the light pipe pinched region between the inwardly extending protrusions of the support structure.