TWI874060B - Light guide cover, light guide module and electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

A light guide cover includes a cover body. The cover body has an internal space and a central axis. The cover body includes a light source portion, a main body portion and a light exit portion in sequence along the central axis. The main body portion is connected between the light source portion and the light exit portion. The light source portion includes a first opening. The main body portion is cylindrical and includes a main body inner surface, and the main body inner surface forms at least a part of the internal space. The cover body is for allowing a light to be emitted from the light source portion, reflected from the main body inner surface and then exit from the cover body through the light exit portion. The central axis does not pass through the first opening. Therefore, it is advantageous in increasing light exit uniformity.

Description

Light guide cover, light guide module and electronic device

The present disclosure relates to a light guide cover, a light guide module and an electronic device, and in particular to a light guide cover, a light guide module and an electronic device for reflecting and then leaving the light.

Driven by the pursuit of a more convenient life, a variety of electronic devices have been developed, and the housing of electronic devices is often equipped with light-emitting units such as indicator lights, I/O ports, display screens, etc. However, in order to meet the requirements of both the appearance design and the internal parts configuration of electronic devices, the light-emitting element as the light source of the indicator light is often not designed to correspond to the center of the light-emitting surface of the indicator light. Especially when the area of the light-emitting surface is large, the light source is not designed to correspond to the center of the light-emitting surface, which will lead to uneven brightness of the light-emitting surface and often cause light leakage problems.

Based on the above, in today's electronic device market, there is an urgent need to develop an indicator light design (such as a light guide module) and an electronic device whose light source is not correspondingly designed at the center of the light emitting surface, while being able to avoid uneven brightness and light leakage problems on the light emitting surface.

The present disclosure provides a light guide cover, a light guide module and an electronic device. The light guide cover includes a cover body, the cover body has an internal space and a central axis, and the cover body includes a light source part, a main body part and a light output part in sequence along the central axis. The light source part includes a first opening, and the main body part is cylindrical and includes an inner surface of the main body. Through the light guide cover and its cover body, light is reflected from the light source part through the inner surface of the main body and then leaves the light guide cover through the light output part. The central axis does not pass through the first opening, which helps to improve the uniformity of light output.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a light guide cover is provided, comprising a cover body, the cover body having an internal space and a central axis, the cover body sequentially comprising a light source portion, a main body portion and a light output portion along the central axis, the main body portion being connected between the light source portion and the light output portion, the light source portion comprising a first opening, the main body portion being cylindrical and comprising a main body inner surface, the main body inner surface forming at least a portion of the internal space. The cover body is used for allowing light rays from the light source portion to leave the cover body through the light output portion after being reflected by the main body inner surface, and the central axis does not pass through the first opening.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, a light guide module is provided, comprising a cover body and at least one light emitting element, wherein the cover body has an internal space and a central axis, wherein the cover body sequentially comprises a light source portion, a main body portion and a light emitting portion along the central axis, wherein the main body portion is connected between the light source portion and the light emitting portion, wherein the main body portion is cylindrical and comprises a main body inner surface, wherein the main body inner surface forms at least a portion of the internal space. The light emitting element is disposed in the internal space and corresponds to the light source portion, and the light emitting element is offset from the central axis. The cover body is used for allowing light rays to leave the cover body from the light emitting portion after being reflected from the main body inner surface by the light source portion.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic device is provided, comprising the aforementioned light guide module and a housing. The light outlet portion of the housing of the light guide module comprises a second opening, and the housing is used to allow light to leave the housing through the second opening, and the central axis passes through the second opening. The housing comprises a housing opening, which is connected to the second opening of the housing.

The following will refer to the drawings to illustrate multiple embodiments of the present disclosure. For the sake of clarity, many practical details will be described together in the following description. However, it should be understood that these practical details should not be used to limit the present disclosure. In other words, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, these practical details are not necessary. In addition, in order to simplify the drawings, some commonly known structures and components will be depicted in a simple schematic manner in the drawings; and repeated components may be represented by the same number.

FIG. 1 is a three-dimensional view of a light guide cover 100 of the first embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 2A is an exploded view of a light guide module 200 of the second embodiment of the present disclosure, FIG. 2B is a front view of the light guide module 200 of FIG. 2A after assembly, and FIG. 2C is a cross-sectional view along the section line 2C-2C of FIG. 2B. Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2A to FIG. 2C together, the light guide cover 100 of the first embodiment of the present disclosure includes a cover body 110, the cover body 110 has an internal space 130 and a central axis c1, and the cover body 110 includes a light source portion 140, a main body portion 150, and a light output portion 160 in sequence along the central axis c1. The main body 150 is connected between the light source 140 and the light emitting portion 160 . The light source 140 includes a first opening 145 . The main body 150 is cylindrical and includes a main body inner surface 156 . The main body inner surface 156 forms at least a portion of the inner space 130 .

Please refer to FIG. 2A and FIG. 2C , the light guide cover 100 and its cover body 110 are used to allow the light m7 from the light source portion 140 to leave the light guide cover 100 and its cover body 110 through the light emitting portion 160 after being reflected by the main body inner surface 156, and the central axis c1 does not pass through the first opening 145. It should be noted that the optical path of the light in the light guide cover 100 is not limited by the light m7 in the figure, and the light can leave the light guide cover 100 through the light emitting portion 160 after being reflected once or multiple times by the main body inner surface 156. In this way, the light guide cover 100 helps to improve the uniformity of light emission, especially when the light-emitting element is not designed to correspond to the center of the light emitting surface, wherein the central axis c1 passes through the center of the light emitting surface. Furthermore, the light guide cover 100 is a hollow structure, and under the same light guide volume, the cost is lower than the light guide method of the prior art (such as using a solid plastic light guide strip).

In detail, the inner surface 156 of the main body can be arc-shaped and polished, and the reflectivity or diffusion rate of the inner surface 156 of the main body is between 1% and 99.9%. Thus, the inner surface 156 of the main body is a white or light-colored polished inner wall, which helps to enhance the reflection efficiency of the light m7. The inner surface 156 of the main body is designed in an arc shape, so that the light m7 can be effectively reflected to the light-emitting surface, increasing the range of the reflection angle of the light m7, thereby improving the uniformity of the light emission.

The cover body 110 can be made of light-blocking plastic material, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In the prior art, the light-emitting unit such as the indicator light usually separates the light-guiding structure and the light-shielding structure into two parts, and the cover body 110 of the light-guiding cover 100 according to the present disclosure has both light-guiding and light-shielding functions, so the parts can be simplified.

The minimum thickness t5 of the main body 150 may be equal to or greater than 0.8 mm. In this way, the light shielding efficiency of the light guide cover 100 may be improved to block more than 99% of the light source. Furthermore, the minimum thickness t5 may be equal to or greater than 1.5 mm.

The light emitting portion 160 may include a second opening 165, and the light guide cover 100 and its cover body 110 are used to allow the light m7 to leave the light guide cover 100 and its cover body 110 through the second opening 165, and the central axis c1 passes through the second opening 165. In this way, the second opening 165 can customize the light emitting appearance and enhance the light emitting uniformity. Furthermore, the cover body of the light guide cover according to the present disclosure may include a second opening, or may include a closed transparent structure as a light emitting surface, wherein the cover body including the transparent structure may be made of a plastic material by secondary injection molding.

The light guide cover 100 may further include a light emitting element 180, which is connected to the light emitting portion 160 and closes the second opening 165. The light emitting element 180 is made of a transparent material. Thus, the cover body of the light guide cover according to the disclosure may be designed to determine whether to add a light emitting element. When the light emitting area is large, adding a light emitting element helps to improve the brightness uniformity of the light emitting surface.

Please refer to Figures 2A to 2C, and the following will continue to describe the light guide module 200 of the second embodiment of the present disclosure. The light guide module 200 includes the cover body 110 described in the first embodiment and at least one light-emitting element 270. The cover body 110 has an internal space 130 and a central axis c1. The cover body 110 includes a light source portion 140, a main body portion 150 and a light output portion 160 in sequence along the central axis c1. The main body portion 150 is connected between the light source portion 140 and the light output portion 160. The main body portion 150 is cylindrical and includes a main body inner surface 156. The main body inner surface 156 forms at least a portion of the internal space 130.

Please refer to FIG. 2B and FIG. 2C , the light emitting element 270 is disposed in the inner space 130 and corresponds to the light source portion 140, and the light emitting element 270 is offset from the central axis c1. The housing 110 is used to allow the light m7 to leave the housing 110 from the light emitting portion 160 after being reflected by the inner surface 156 of the main body from the light source portion 140. In this way, the light guide module 200 helps to improve the uniformity of light output, especially when the light emitting element 270 is not designed to correspond to the center of the light emitting surface. Furthermore, in order to pursue light transmission efficiency, the light-guiding methods of the prior art (such as solid plastic light-guiding strips) have many limitations on appearance design and cannot design an assembly structure on the light-guiding body. However, the light-guiding cover 100 or cover body 110 according to the present disclosure only needs to maintain a smooth inner surface, and the external structure can be designed with a complex assembly structure, thereby effectively improving product design and assembly convenience.

For details, please refer to Figure 2C. When the central axis c1 is translated to the position of the section line 2C-2C in Figure 2B that is perpendicular to the circuit board 290 and passes through the light-emitting element 270, the angle between the light-emitting direction of the light-emitting element 270 (the direction in which the light-emitting element 270 emits the light ray m7) and the translated central axis c1 is the light-emitting angle a7. The light-emitting angle a7 can be between 0.1 degrees and 179.9 degrees (or it can be said that the light-emitting angle a7 can be between 0 degrees and 89.9 degrees both upward and downward from the direction of the central axis c1 after parallel translation. Furthermore, the light-emitting angle a7 can be between 0 degrees and 60 degrees both upward and downward from the direction of the central axis c1 after parallel translation), and the light-emitting element 270 can be a light-emitting diode (LED). This helps to improve the uniformity of light output.

The light source portion 140 includes a first opening 145, and the light guide module 200 may further include a circuit board 290, which extends from the first opening 145 to the internal space 130, and the light emitting element 270 is disposed therein and electrically connected to the circuit board 290. Thus, the first opening 145 helps the light emitting element 270 to penetrate into the housing 110, so that more than 90% of the light path can be conducted inside the housing 110. Furthermore, the side wall forming the first opening 145 surrounds the light emitting element 270 and supports the circuit board 290, which helps to prevent light leakage.

The light emitting portion 160 includes a second opening 165. The housing 110 is used to allow the light m7 to leave the housing 110 through the second opening 165. The central axis c1 passes through the second opening 165. The light guide module 200 may further include a light emitting element 180 connected to the light emitting portion 160 and closing the second opening 165. The light emitting element 180 is made of a transparent material.

The light emitting element 180 may include an inclined surface 187, which is annular and inclined to and surrounds the central axis c1. The inclined surface 187 can be used to allow the light m8 from the light source portion 140 to leave the light guide cover 100 or the cover body 110 through the second opening 165 after being reflected by the inclined surface 187. The angle between the inclined surface 187 and the central axis c1 is the inclined angle a8, which can be determined according to the length of the cover body 110 along the central axis c1 and is between 0.1 degrees and 89.9 degrees. Thus, the transparent light emitting element 180 at the light emitting portion of the light guide module 200 has a C-angle design (i.e., a sloped surface 187) at a position where light is not needed, and the light path that would have been emitted from an ineffective position can be reflected to the light emitting surface, thereby enhancing the brightness of the light emitting surface. In the second embodiment, the slope angle a8 is 45 degrees, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

The light emitting portion 160 may be cylindrical and include a light emitting inner surface 166, and the light emitting element 180 is connected to the light emitting inner surface 166. The light emitting element 180 may further include a central surface 185 (which serves as the light emitting surface of the light guide module 200 or the light guide cover 100 and may be a planar or non-planar lens), the central axis c1 passes through the central surface 185, and the inclined surface 187 surrounds the central surface 185 and is farther from the light source portion 140 than the central surface 185. This helps to enhance the brightness of the light emitting surface and the uniformity of the light emitting.

Please refer to FIG. 2B , the maximum diameter d8 on the central surface 185 passing through the central axis c1 can be equal to or greater than 3 mm. Thus, in the prior art, the light-emitting surface is darker at a distance from the light-emitting element, and brighter at a distance close to the light-emitting element, especially when the diameter of the light-emitting surface is greater than 2.0 mm. The light guide module 200 according to the present disclosure can effectively improve the uniform light of the product. In the second embodiment, the maximum diameter d8 is 28.9 mm, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

The central surface 185 has a minimum diameter d7 passing through the central axis c1, and a deviation distance d6 is provided between the center of the light-emitting surface of the light-emitting element 270 and the central axis c1. The ratio of the minimum diameter d7 to the deviation distance d6 may be between 1.5 and 16. Thus, the light-guiding module 200 according to the present disclosure is applied to the case where the light-emitting element 270 deviates from the central axis c1 more seriously (for example, the aforementioned ratio is less than 4, that is, the light-emitting element 270 deviates from the central axis c1 by more than 50%), and the problem of uneven brightness of the light-emitting surface can be effectively avoided. In the second embodiment, the minimum diameter d7 is 17.5 mm, the offset distance d6 is 7.1 mm, and the ratio of the minimum diameter d7 to the offset distance d6 is 2.5, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

FIG. 3A shows a three-dimensional view of an electronic device 300 of the third embodiment of the present disclosure, and FIG. 3B shows a partial exploded view of the electronic device 300 in FIG. 3A, wherein FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B omit components that are less related to the light guide module 200. Referring to FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B, the electronic device 300 includes the light guide module 200 of the second embodiment and a housing 310, wherein the housing 310 includes a housing opening 315, which is connected to the second opening 165 of the housing 110, and the area of the housing opening 315 can be smaller than the area of the second opening 165. This helps to improve the uniformity of light emission, especially when the light-emitting element 270 is not designed to correspond to the center of the light-emitting surface.

In detail, the electronic device 300 may further include at least one positioning element (e.g., positioning elements 323, 324), at least one positioning structure (e.g., positioning structures 123, 124, 125, 126) of the cover 110 may be located on the outer surface 120 of the cover 110, and the circuit board 290 is fixed to the cover 110 through the positioning structures 124, 125, 126 and the positioning element 324.

Please refer to FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B , the light emitting direction e2 of the light guide module 200 and the assembly directions e3 and e4 of the light guide cover 100 or the cover body 110 assembled to the electronic device 300 may be different (may not be parallel), and the light emitting direction e2 of the light guide module 200 and the assembly direction e5 of the light guide module 200 assembled to the electronic device 300 may be different (may not be parallel), wherein the light emitting direction e2 is parallel to the central axis c1. Thus, the light guide module 200 is suitable for miniaturized electronic devices 300, and can effectively simplify the product mold design to reduce costs. Specifically, during the process of assembling the light guide module 200 on the electronic device 300, the positioning structure 123 (specifically a latch) of the cover body 110 and the positioning opening 333 of the positioning element 323 (which can also serve as a heat dissipation element) are rotated and engaged and positioned along the assembly direction e3, and the assembly direction e3 of the rotational positioning structure 123 is different from the disassembly direction of the cover body 110 parallel to the light emitting direction e2, so as to be suitable for the electronic device 300 with limited internal space 130. The upper surface of the circuit board 290 approaches and is connected to the cover body 110 along the light emitting direction e2 and closes at least a portion of the first opening 145. The positioning element 324 approaches and is connected to the lower surface of the circuit board 290 along the assembly direction e4. The hook portion of the positioning structure 125 of the cover body 110 positions the positioning element 324 together with the circuit board 290 on the lower side of the cover body 110 to prevent the cover body 110 and the circuit board 290 from being displaced relative to each other in the up and down directions. The positioning structure 126 (specifically a convex portion) of the cover body 110 is engaged with the groove of the positioning element 324. Furthermore, the two positioning structures 124 (specifically two thin sheets) of the cover body 110 are interfered with and assembled with the circuit board 290 to avoid light leakage and avoid the additional use of rubber or foam and other materials for light shielding, so as to reduce costs. The light guide module 200, positioning elements 323, 324 and other components that have been assembled and connected to each other are assembled into the outer shell 310 of the electronic device 300 in the assembly direction e5, as shown in Figure 3A.

Although the contents of this disclosure have been disclosed in the form of implementation as above, it is not intended to limit the contents of this disclosure. Anyone skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the contents of this disclosure. Therefore, the protection scope of the contents of this disclosure shall be subject to the scope defined by the attached patent application.

100: light guide cover 110: cover body 120: outer surface 123,124,125,126: positioning structure 130: internal space 140: light source part 145: first opening 150: main body 156: inner surface of main body 160: light output part 165: second opening 166: inner surface of light output 180: light output element 185: central surface 187: inclined surface 200: light guide module 270: light emitting element 290: circuit board 300: electronic device 310: outer shell 315: outer shell opening 323,324: positioning element 333: positioning opening a7: light output angle a8: inclined angle c1: central axis d6: offset distance d7: minimum diameter d8: maximum diameter e2: light emission direction e3, e4, e5: assembly direction m7, m8: light line t5: minimum thickness

FIG. 1 is a three-dimensional diagram of a light guide cover of the first embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 2A is an exploded view of a light guide module of the second embodiment of the present disclosure; FIG. 2B is a front view of the light guide module in FIG. 2A after assembly; FIG. 2C is a cross-sectional view along line 2C-2C in FIG. 2B; FIG. 3A is a three-dimensional diagram of an electronic device of the third embodiment of the present disclosure; and FIG. 3B is an exploded view of a portion of the electronic device in FIG. 3A.

100: Light guide cover

110: mask body

120: External surface

123,124,125,126: Positioning structure

130:Inner space

140: Light source

145: First opening

150: Main body

156: Inner surface of the main body

160: Light-emitting part

165: Second opening

166: Light-emitting inner surface

180: Light emitting element

185: Central surface

187: Inclined surface

200: Light guide module

270: Light-emitting element

290: Circuit board

c1: Central axis

Claims (20)

A light guide cover comprises: a cover body having an internal space and a central axis, wherein the cover body comprises a light source part, a main body part and a light output part in sequence along the central axis, the main body part is connected between the light source part and the light output part, the light source part comprises a first opening, the main body part is cylindrical and comprises a main body inner surface, the main body inner surface forms at least a part of the internal space, and a plurality of cross sections of the main body inner surface at different positions along the central axis are of the same shape; wherein the cover body is used for a light ray from the light source part to leave the cover body through the light output part after being reflected by the main body inner surface, and the central axis does not pass through the first opening. The light guide cover as described in claim 1, wherein the inner surface of the main body is arc-shaped and is a polished surface, and the reflectivity or diffusion rate of the inner surface of the main body is between 1% and 99.9%. As described in claim 1, the light guide cover is made of a light-blocking plastic material. A light guide cover as described in claim 3, wherein the minimum thickness of the main body is equal to or greater than 0.8 mm. As described in claim 1, the light guide cover, wherein the light exit portion includes a second opening, the cover body is used to allow the light to leave the cover body through the second opening, and the central axis passes through the second opening. The light guide cover as described in claim 5 further comprises: a light emitting element connected to the light emitting portion and closing the second opening, wherein the light emitting element is made of a transparent material. A light guide module comprises: a cover having an internal space and a central axis, wherein the cover comprises a light source portion, a main body portion and a light output portion in sequence along the central axis, the main body portion is connected between the light source portion and the light output portion, the main body portion is cylindrical and comprises a main body inner surface, the main body inner surface forms at least a part of the internal space, and multiple cross sections of the main body inner surface at different positions along the central axis are of the same shape; and at least one light emitting element is arranged in the internal space and corresponds to the light source portion, and the at least one light emitting element is offset from the central axis; wherein the cover is used for a light ray from the light source portion to leave the cover from the light output portion after being reflected by the main body inner surface. The light guide module as described in claim 7, wherein the angle between the light emitting direction of the light emitting element and the central axis is a light emitting angle, and the light emitting angle is between 0.1 degrees and 179.9 degrees. The light guide module as described in claim 7, wherein the light source portion includes a first opening, and the light guide module further includes: A circuit board extending from the first opening to the internal space, wherein the at least one light-emitting element is disposed on and electrically connected to the circuit board. The light guide module as described in claim 7, wherein the light exit portion includes a second opening, the cover is used to allow the light to leave the cover through the second opening, and the central axis passes through the second opening. The light guide module as described in claim 10 further comprises: a light emitting element connected to the light emitting portion and closing the second opening, wherein the light emitting element is made of a transparent material. A light guide module comprises: a cover having an internal space and a central axis, wherein the cover comprises a light source portion, a main body portion and a light output portion in sequence along the central axis, the main body portion is connected between the light source portion and the light output portion, the main body portion is cylindrical and comprises a main body inner surface, the main body inner surface forms at least a part of the internal space, the light output portion comprises a second opening, and the cover is used to A light is provided from the light source portion to reflect from the inner surface of the main body and then leave the housing from the light emitting portion; at least one light emitting element is disposed in the inner space and corresponds to the light source portion, and the at least one light emitting element is offset from the central axis; and a light emitting element is connected to the light emitting portion and closes the second opening, wherein the light emitting element includes an inclined surface, which is annular, and the inclined surface is inclined to and surrounds the central axis. As described in claim 12, the inclined surface is used to allow the light from the light source to leave the cover through the second opening after being reflected by the inclined surface. The light guide module as described in claim 12, wherein the angle between the inclined surface and the central axis is a tilt angle, and the tilt angle is determined according to the length of the cover along the central axis and is between 0.1 degrees and 89.9 degrees. As described in claim 12, the light-emitting portion is cylindrical and includes a light-emitting inner surface, and the light-emitting element is connected to the light-emitting inner surface; wherein the light-emitting element further includes a central surface, the central axis passes through the central surface, and the inclined surface surrounds the central surface and is farther from the light source portion than the central surface. A light guide module as described in claim 15, wherein a maximum diameter on the central plane passing through the central axis is equal to or greater than 3 mm. The light guide module as described in claim 15, wherein the central plane has a minimum diameter through the central axis, the light-emitting element has a deviation distance from the central axis, and the ratio of the minimum diameter to the deviation distance is between 1.5 and 16. An electronic device, comprising: A light guide module, comprising: a cover having an internal space and a central axis, wherein the cover sequentially comprises a light source portion, a main body portion and a light output portion along the central axis, the main body portion is connected between the light source portion and the light output portion, the main body portion is cylindrical and comprises a main body inner surface, the main body inner surface forms at least a part of the internal space, the light output portion comprises a second opening, the cover is used for allowing a light ray from the light source portion to leave the cover through the light output portion after being reflected by the main body inner surface; and at least one light emitting element, disposed in the internal space and corresponding to the light source portion, the at least one light emitting element being offset from the central axis; and an outer shell, comprising an outer shell opening, which is connected to the second opening of the cover. An electronic device as described in claim 18, wherein a light emission direction of the light guide module is different from an assembly direction of the cover body on the electronic device. The electronic device as described in claim 18 further comprises: at least one positioning element, wherein the at least one positioning structure of the cover is located on an outer surface of the cover, and a circuit board is fixed to the cover through the at least one positioning structure and the at least one positioning element.

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