JP7675627B2 - Vehicle lighting fixtures - Google Patents

Description

This invention relates to a vehicle lamp equipped with a projection lens.

A known configuration for vehicle lighting is to form a low-beam light distribution pattern by projecting light emitted from multiple light-emitting elements forward through a projection lens.

Patent Document 1 describes such a vehicle lamp that is configured to form a light distribution pattern for overhead signs (OHS) installed above the road surface in front of the lamp in a space above the cutoff line of the low beam light distribution pattern.

The vehicle lamp described in Patent Document 1 is configured to form a step on the rear surface of the projection lens to form a light distribution pattern for OHS illumination.

International Publication No. 2020/044605

In the vehicle lamp described in the above-mentioned "Patent Document 1," a portion of the irradiated light that should originally form a low-beam light distribution pattern is used to form a light distribution pattern for OHS irradiation, which reduces the brightness of the low-beam light distribution pattern and makes it easier for uneven light distribution to occur in the low-beam light distribution pattern.

The present invention was made in consideration of these circumstances, and aims to provide a vehicle lamp that is configured to project light emitted from multiple light-emitting elements toward the front of the lamp through a projection lens, and that can form a light distribution pattern for OHS illumination while maintaining the brightness and uniformity of a light distribution pattern for low beams.

The present invention aims to achieve the above objective by providing a configuration with a specified reflective member.

That is, the vehicle lamp according to the present invention is
A vehicle lamp including a plurality of light-emitting elements and a projection lens, the vehicle lamp being configured to form a low-beam light distribution pattern by irradiating light emitted from the plurality of light-emitting elements toward a front of the lamp through the projection lens,
the plurality of light-emitting elements are arranged in a line in the left-right direction with their light-emitting surfaces facing the projection lens,
a shade is disposed between the plurality of light-emitting elements and the projection lens to block a part of the light emitted from the plurality of light-emitting elements in order to form a cutoff line of the light distribution pattern for low beam;
a reflecting member that reflects, below the shade, a direct light emitted from at least one of the plurality of light-emitting elements toward the rear side of the lamp beyond the shade, toward the projection lens ;
The plurality of light emitting elements are configured to be turned on during low beam illumination .

The "multiple light-emitting elements" are not particularly limited in their specific arrangement or number, so long as they are arranged side by side in the left-right direction with their light-emitting surfaces facing the projection lens.

The "shade" is not particularly limited in its specific arrangement or shape, so long as it is configured to form a cutoff line of a low beam light distribution pattern by blocking a portion of the light emitted from a plurality of light-emitting elements.

The above-mentioned "reflective member" is not particularly limited in its specific arrangement or shape, so long as it is configured to reflect, below the shade, the direct light emitted from at least one of the multiple light-emitting elements toward the rear of the lamp from the shade toward the projection lens.

The vehicle lamp of the present invention is configured to form a low beam light distribution pattern by irradiating light emitted from multiple light-emitting elements toward the front of the lamp through a projection lens, and the multiple light-emitting elements are arranged in a line in the left-right direction with their light-emitting surfaces facing the projection lens. In addition, a shade is arranged between the multiple light-emitting elements and the projection lens to block a portion of the light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements in order to form a cut-off line for the low beam light distribution pattern. Below this shade, a reflective member is arranged to reflect direct light emitted from at least one of the multiple light-emitting elements toward the rear of the lamp beyond the shade toward the projection lens, thereby achieving the following effects.

In other words, the direct light emitted from at least one of the multiple light-emitting elements toward the rear of the lamp beyond the shade is reflected by a reflecting member arranged below it, and then enters the projection lens, from which it is emitted toward the space above the cutoff line of the low-beam light distribution pattern, and this emitted light can form the light distribution pattern for OHS illumination.

In this case, this light distribution pattern for OHS irradiation can be formed without affecting at all the lamp configuration for forming the light distribution pattern for low beam, so the light distribution pattern for OHS irradiation can be formed while maintaining the brightness and uniformity of the light distribution pattern for low beam.

In this way, according to the present invention, in a vehicle lamp configured to irradiate light emitted from multiple light-emitting elements toward the front of the lamp through a projection lens, it is possible to form a light distribution pattern for OHS irradiation while maintaining the brightness and uniformity of the light distribution pattern for low beam.

In addition, direct light emitted from the light-emitting element toward the rear of the lamp beyond the shade can be unintentionally reflected by other lamp components and become stray light, which can cause glare; however, by adopting the configuration of the present invention, the occurrence of such stray light can be effectively suppressed.

In the above configuration, if the reflective member is further configured to diffusely reflect the direct light from the multiple light-emitting elements in the left and right directions, a light distribution pattern for OHS illumination can be formed with approximately uniform brightness.

In the above configuration, if the reflective member is further formed integrally with the shade, the precision of the light distribution control can be improved, thereby improving the precision of the positional relationship between the cutoff line of the low beam light distribution pattern and the light distribution pattern for OHS irradiation. In addition, by adopting such a configuration, the number of parts in the vehicle lamp can be reduced.

In the above configuration, if a reflector that reflects the light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements toward the projection lens is further provided, the brightness of the low beam light distribution pattern can be increased and the degree of freedom of the light distribution can be increased. Furthermore, if the reflector is formed integrally with the shade, the precision of the light distribution control can be further improved and the number of parts in the vehicle lamp can be reduced.

In the above configuration, if a plurality of second light-emitting elements that are additionally turned on when high beams are irradiated and a second reflector that reflects the light emitted from these plurality of second light-emitting elements toward the projection lens are arranged below the shade, and the reflective member is integrally formed with the second reflector, it is possible to reduce the number of parts in the vehicle lamp while improving the accuracy of light distribution control, even in a lamp configuration that can selectively form a low beam light distribution pattern and a high beam light distribution pattern.

FIG. 1 is a side cross-sectional view showing a vehicle lamp according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a view taken in the direction of the arrow II. Cross-sectional view of line III-III in FIG. FIG. 2A is a diagram showing a low beam light distribution pattern formed by light emitted from the vehicle lamp, and FIG. 2B is a diagram similar to FIG. 2A showing a comparative example. FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 showing a first modified example of the embodiment; FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 showing a second modification of the embodiment; FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3, showing the second modified example. FIG. 1A is a diagram showing a low beam light distribution pattern formed by light emitted from a vehicle lamp according to the second modified example, and FIG. 1B is a diagram showing a high beam light distribution pattern.

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

Figure 1 is a side cross-sectional view showing a vehicle lamp 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a view taken in the direction of the arrow II in Figure 1.

In these figures, the direction indicated by X is "in front of the lamp," the direction indicated by Y is the "left direction" perpendicular to the "in front of the lamp" (the "right direction" when viewed from the front of the lamp), and the direction indicated by Z is the "upward direction." This is the same for the other figures.

The vehicle lamp 10 is a headlamp that is installed at the front end of the vehicle, and is configured such that a lamp unit 20 is housed within a lamp chamber formed by a lamp body 12 and a translucent cover 14.

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in Figure 2.

As shown in FIG. 3, the lamp unit 20 is a so-called projector-type lamp unit, and includes a number of light-emitting elements 30, a reflector 32, and a projection lens 50. The lamp unit 20 forms a low-beam light distribution pattern by irradiating the direct light from the number of light-emitting elements 30 and the light emitted from the number of light-emitting elements 30 and reflected by the reflector 32 toward the front of the lamp via the projection lens 50.

As shown in FIG. 3, the projection lens 50 is composed of a plano-convex aspherical lens with a convex curved front surface, and has an optical axis Ax extending in the front-to-rear direction of the lamp. This projection lens 50 projects the light source image formed on the rear focal plane, which is a focal plane including the rear focal point F, as an inverted image onto a virtual vertical screen in front of the lamp (i.e. in front of the vehicle).

The projection lens 50 is supported at its outer periphery by a lens holder 52, which is supported by a heat sink 54.

As shown in FIG. 2, the multiple light-emitting elements 30 are arranged in a line in the left-right direction above the optical axis Ax.

The multiple light-emitting elements 30 are each composed of eleven white light-emitting diodes each having a rectangular (specifically, square) light-emitting surface 30a, and are arranged at slight intervals from one another. In this case, the light-emitting element 30 located directly above the optical axis Ax and the five light-emitting elements 30 located to its right (left side when viewed from the front of the lamp) are arranged in a state where they are displaced downward relative to the remaining five light-emitting elements 30 located on the left side.

The multiple light-emitting elements 30 are mounted on a substrate 56, which is supported by a heat sink 54.

As shown in FIG. 3, the substrate 56 is arranged in a state in which it is tilted backward with respect to a vertical plane perpendicular to the optical axis Ax. In this case, the backward tilt angle of the substrate 56 with respect to the vertical plane is set to a value of 10 to 20° (e.g., about 15°). As a result, the multiple light-emitting elements 30 are arranged with their light-emitting surfaces 30a facing upward at an angle of 10 to 20° (e.g., about 15°) with respect to the front direction of the lamp (i.e., facing the projection lens 50).

The reflector 32 is positioned forward of the substrate 56 and is supported by the heat sink 54 at both its left and right ends.

As shown in FIG. 2, the reflector 32 has a reflective surface 32a formed to surround the multiple light-emitting elements 30, and is configured to reflect the light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the projection lens 50 at this reflective surface 32a. In this case, the reflective surface 32a has a horizontally elongated concave curved reflective surface shape, and its upper edge has an external shape that is approximately horizontally elongated elliptical when the lamp is viewed from the front.

An opening 32b is formed on the reflecting surface 32a of the reflector 32, surrounding the multiple light-emitting elements 30 near their outer periphery. This opening 32b is formed so as to extend in a generally horizontally elongated rectangular shape with left and right steps along the arrangement of the multiple light-emitting elements 30.

A shade 60 is disposed between the multiple light-emitting elements 30 and the projection lens 50 to block a portion of the direct light from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 and the light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 reflected by the reflector 32, thereby forming a cutoff line for the low-beam light distribution pattern.

The shade 60 is integrally formed with the lower region of the reflector 32, and its upper surface forms part of the reflective surface 32a of the reflector 32.

The front edge 60a of the shade 60 is formed so as to extend in the left-right direction with a left-right step along a vertical plane perpendicular to the optical axis Ax at the position of the rear focal point F of the projection lens 50. Specifically, the portion of this front edge 60a to the left of the optical axis Ax (the right portion when the lamp is viewed from the front) extends horizontally at a position slightly above the optical axis Ax, and the portion to the right of the optical axis Ax extends horizontally at a position slightly below the optical axis Ax, and its left end extends diagonally in the upper left direction and is connected to the portion to the left of the optical axis Ax.

As shown in FIG. 3, the opening 32b of the reflector 32 is formed at a position slightly away from the light-emitting surfaces 30a of the multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the front of the lamp. The rear end surface 32c of the reflector 32 extends parallel to the substrate 56 at a position slightly away from the light-emitting surfaces 30a of the multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the front of the lamp, but its lower region 32c1 extends diagonally downward toward the front of the lamp beyond the plane parallel to the substrate 56.

Below the shade 60, a reflecting member 70 is arranged to reflect the direct light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the rear of the lamp from the shade 60 (i.e., the direct light emitted toward the rear of the lamp from the lower region 32c1 of the rear end surface 32c of the reflector 32) toward the projection lens 50. This reflecting member 70 is composed of a plate-shaped member having a reflecting surface 70a formed to extend diagonally downward toward the front of the lamp. This reflecting member 70 is supported by the heat sink 54 at a flat bracket portion 70b formed to bend downward from its rear end.

As shown in FIG. 2, the reflective member 70 is formed with a left-right width corresponding to a portion of the multiple light-emitting elements 30 (specifically, about seven light-emitting elements 30) that are located closer to the optical axis Ax when viewed from the front of the lamp.

The reflecting surface 70a of the reflecting member 70 is composed of multiple small reflecting surfaces 70s arranged in the left-right direction. Each small reflecting surface 70s is composed of a concave cylindrical surface that extends diagonally downward toward the front of the lamp, so that the direct light from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 is reflected as light that is somewhat diffused in the left-right direction.

As shown in FIG. 3, the downward angle of the reflecting surface 70a is set to a value such that the reflected light from the multiple small reflecting surfaces 70s passes through the rear focal plane of the projection lens 50 at a position away from the optical axis Ax downward.

In FIG. 3, the optical paths of the direct light from the light-emitting element 30 and the reflected light from the reflector 32 are shown by thick solid lines, and the optical paths of the reflected light from the reflecting member 70 are shown by thin solid lines.

Figure 4(a) is a perspective view showing a low beam light distribution pattern PL formed on a virtual vertical screen located 25 m ahead of the vehicle by light emitted from the lamp unit 20 of the vehicle lamp 10 toward the front of the lamp.

As shown in FIG. 4(a), the low beam light distribution pattern PL is a low beam light distribution pattern with left light distribution, and has cutoff lines CL1 and CL2 at the upper edge that are staggered on the left and right. These cutoff lines CL1 and CL2 extend horizontally with left and right steps, with the V-V line that passes vertically through H-V, which is the vanishing point in front of the lamp, as the boundary, and the portion on the oncoming lane side to the right of the V-V line is formed as a lower cutoff line CL1, while the portion on the own lane side to the left of the V-V line is formed as an upper cutoff line CL2 that is stepped up from the lower cutoff line CL1 via an inclined portion.

In the low beam light distribution pattern PL, elbow point E, which is the intersection point between the lower cutoff line CL1 and the V-V line, is located approximately 0.5 to 0.6° below H-V.

The low beam light distribution pattern PL is formed as a light distribution pattern to which an OHS illumination light distribution pattern PA is added for illuminating an overhead sign OHS installed above the road surface ahead of the vehicle. This OHS illumination light distribution pattern PA is formed as a horizontally elongated light distribution pattern that spreads in the left and right directions at a position above and away from the cutoff lines CL1 and CL2.

As described above, the low beam light distribution pattern PL is formed by direct light from the multiple light emitting elements 30 and the reflected light from the reflector 32, and the left and right cutoff lines CL1 and CL2 are formed as inverted projection images of the front edge 60a of the shade 60.

The light distribution pattern PA for OHS illumination is formed by direct light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the rear of the lamp beyond the shade 60, being reflected by a reflecting member 70 arranged below it, and then being emitted toward the front of the lamp through the projection lens 50.

In this case, when the direct light from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 is reflected by the multiple small reflecting surfaces 70s that make up the reflecting surface 70a of the reflecting member 70, the light becomes somewhat diffused in the left and right directions, so that the light distribution pattern PA for OHS irradiation is formed with approximately uniform brightness.

On the other hand, FIG. 4(b) is a diagram showing a comparative example of this embodiment, and shows the light distribution pattern PA' for OHS irradiation formed when the lamp unit 20 does not include a reflective member 70, and instead a step portion is formed on the rear surface of the projection lens 50, together with the light distribution pattern PL' for low beam irradiation.

As shown in FIG. 4(b), the low beam light distribution pattern PL' is formed as a light distribution pattern substantially similar to the low beam light distribution pattern PL, but in its substantially central region, a horizontally extending streak-like dark area D' is formed.

The reason why such streaky dark areas D' are formed is that when a step is formed on the rear surface of the projection lens 50 to form the light distribution pattern PA' for OHS illumination, a portion of the illumination light that should form the light distribution pattern for low beam is lost.

Next, we will explain the effects of this embodiment.

The lamp unit 20 of the vehicle lamp 10 according to this embodiment is configured to form a low beam light distribution pattern PL by irradiating the light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the front of the lamp through the projection lens 50. In this case, the multiple light-emitting elements 30 are arranged in a line in the left-right direction with the light-emitting surface 30a facing the projection lens 50. In addition, a shade 60 is arranged between the multiple light-emitting elements 30 and the projection lens 50 to block a portion of the light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 to form the cutoff lines CL1 and CL2 of the low beam light distribution pattern PL. Below this shade 60, a reflecting member 70 is arranged to reflect the direct light emitted from at least one of the multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the rear of the lamp beyond the shade 60 toward the projection lens 50, so that the following effects can be obtained.

In other words, the direct light emitted from at least one of the multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the rear of the lamp beyond the shade 60 is reflected by the reflecting member 70 and then enters the projection lens 50, and becomes light that is emitted from this projection lens 50 toward the space above the cutoff lines CL1 and CL2 of the low-beam light distribution pattern PL, and the light distribution pattern PA for OHS irradiation can be formed by this emitted light.

In this case, the light distribution pattern PA for OHS irradiation can be formed without affecting at all the lamp configuration for forming the light distribution pattern PL for low beam, so the light distribution pattern PA for OHS irradiation can be formed while maintaining the brightness and uniformity of the light distribution pattern PL for low beam.

In this manner, according to this embodiment, in a vehicle lamp 10 configured to irradiate light emitted from multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the front of the lamp via a projection lens 50, a light distribution pattern PA for OHS irradiation can be formed while maintaining the brightness and uniformity of the light distribution pattern PL for low beam.

In this case, direct light emitted from each light-emitting element 30 toward the rear of the lamp beyond the shade 60 may be unintentionally reflected by other lamp components (such as the heat sink 54) and become stray light, which may cause glare. However, by adopting the configuration of this embodiment, the occurrence of such stray light can be effectively suppressed.

In addition, in this embodiment, the reflecting surface 70a of the reflecting member 70 is composed of multiple small reflecting surfaces 70s arranged in the left-right direction, which reflects the direct light from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 as light that is somewhat diffused in the left-right direction, making it possible to form a light distribution pattern PA for OHS irradiation with approximately uniform brightness.

In addition, this embodiment is provided with a reflector 32 that reflects the light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the projection lens 50, which increases the brightness of the low-beam light distribution pattern PL and increases the degree of freedom in the light distribution.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the reflector 32 is formed integrally with the shade 60, which improves the accuracy of light distribution control and reduces the number of parts in the vehicle lamp 10.

In addition, the reflective member 70 of this embodiment can also be formed to hide a connector (not shown) for connecting the multiple light-emitting elements 30 to a power source, and can also be used as a member to protect the wiring pattern (not shown) on the substrate 56 from sunlight.

In the above embodiment, the projection lens 50 is described as being composed of a plano-convex aspheric lens, but it may also be composed of a biconvex lens or a convex meniscus lens, etc., and may also be configured to have an outer shape other than circular.

In the above embodiment, the lighting unit 20 has been described as having 11 light-emitting elements 30, but it is also possible to configure the lighting unit 20 to have a different number of light-emitting elements 30.

In the above embodiment, the multiple light-emitting elements 30 are described as being arranged in staggered left and right positions, but it is also possible to arrange them in a single horizontal row.

In the above embodiment, the light-emitting surface 30a of each of the multiple light-emitting elements 30 has been described as having a square outer shape, but it is also possible to configure it to have an outer shape other than this (for example, a vertically elongated rectangular shape or a horizontally elongated rectangular shape, etc.).

In the above embodiment, the reflector 32 is described as being arranged to effectively utilize the light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements 30, but it is also possible to configure the device without the reflector 32.

Next, we will explain a variation of the above embodiment.

First, we will explain the first variation of the above embodiment.

Figure 5 is a diagram similar to Figure 2, showing the lighting unit 120 of the vehicle lighting fixture according to this modified example.

As shown in FIG. 5, the basic configuration of the lamp unit 120 is the same as that of the lamp unit 20 of the above embodiment, but differs from the above embodiment in that the reflective member 170 is integrally formed with the shade 60.

That is, even in this modified example, the reflective member 170 is positioned below the shade 60 and is configured to reflect the direct light emitted from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 toward the rear of the lamp beyond the shade 60 toward the projection lens 50, but is connected to the underside of the shade 60 by bracket portions 170c formed on both the left and right sides.

In this modified example, the reflecting member 170 also has a reflecting surface 170a that is made up of multiple small reflecting surfaces 170s arranged in the left-right direction, and the specific shape of the reflecting surface is the same as in the above embodiment.

Note that the reflecting member 170 of this modified example does not have a bracket portion 70b like the reflecting member 70 of the above embodiment.

Even when the configuration of this modified example is adopted, the same effects as those of the above embodiment can be obtained.

In addition, in this modified example, the reflective member 170 is formed integrally with the shade 60, which improves the accuracy of light distribution control, thereby improving the accuracy of the positional relationship between the cutoff lines CL1 and CL2 of the low beam light distribution pattern PL and the OHS illumination light distribution pattern PA. In addition, by adopting such a configuration, the number of parts in the lamp unit 120 can be reduced.

Next, we will explain the second variation of the above embodiment.

Figures 6 and 7 are similar to Figures 2 and 3 and show a lighting unit 220 of a vehicle lighting device according to this modified example.

As shown in FIG. 6, the basic configuration of the lamp unit 220 is the same as that of the lamp unit 20 of the above embodiment, but it differs from the above embodiment in that it additionally includes a plurality of second light-emitting elements 240 that are additionally turned on during high beam irradiation and a second reflector 242 that reflects the light emitted from the plurality of second light-emitting elements 240 toward the projection lens 50, arranged below the shade 260, and that the reflective member 270 is integrally formed with the second reflector 242. Accordingly, the configurations of the shade 260 and the substrate 256 are also partially different from those of the above embodiment.

Each of the multiple second light-emitting elements 240 is composed of nine white light-emitting diodes each having a rectangular light-emitting surface 240a (specifically, a square of the same size as the light-emitting surface 30a of the first light-emitting element 30), and is arranged in a horizontal row with a small gap between them.

The multiple second light emitting elements 240 are mounted on a common substrate 256 along with the multiple light emitting elements 30. This substrate 256 is supported by the heat sink 54 in a state in which it is positioned at the same backward inclination angle as the substrate 56 in the above embodiment.

The second reflector 242 has a reflecting surface 242a formed to surround the second light-emitting elements 240, and is configured to reflect the light emitted from the second light-emitting elements 240 toward the projection lens 50 at the reflecting surface 242a.

A horizontally elongated opening 242b is formed on the reflecting surface 242a of the second reflector 242, surrounding the second light-emitting elements 240 near their outer periphery. This opening 242b is formed to extend in a horizontally elongated rectangular shape along the arrangement of the second light-emitting elements 240.

The shade 260 is formed integrally with the first and second reflectors 32, 242. That is, the shade 260 is formed so that the connection portion of the first and second reflectors 32, 242 has a wedge-shaped vertical cross section that extends to the front edge 260a toward the front of the lamp, and its upper surface forms part of the reflective surface 32a of the first reflector 32, and its lower surface forms part of the reflective surface 242a of the second reflector 242.

The reflecting member 270 is configured by forming a thin through hole 242c extending in the left-right direction in the upper vicinity area of the opening 242b in the second reflector 242. In other words, the reflecting surface 270a of this reflecting member 270 is configured by forming the lower surface of the through hole 242c to extend obliquely downward toward the front side of the lamp.

The reflecting surface 270a of the reflecting member 270 is composed of multiple small reflecting surfaces 270s arranged in the left-right direction. Each small reflecting surface 270s is composed of a concave cylindrical surface that extends diagonally downward toward the front of the lamp, so that the direct light from the multiple light-emitting elements 30 is reflected as light that is somewhat diffused in the left-right direction.

As shown in FIG. 7, the downward angle of the reflecting surface 270a is set to a value such that the reflected light from the multiple small reflecting surfaces 270s passes through the rear focal plane of the projection lens 50 at a position away from the optical axis Ax downward.

In FIG. 7, the optical paths of the direct light from the light-emitting element 30 and the reflected light from the reflector 32 are shown by thick solid lines, the optical paths of the reflected light from the reflecting member 270 are shown by thin solid lines, and the optical paths of the direct light from the second light-emitting element 240 and the reflected light from the second reflector 242 are shown by dashed lines.

Figure 8(a) shows a low beam light distribution pattern PL-2 formed on the virtual vertical screen by light emitted from the lamp unit 220 toward the front of the lamp, and Figure 8(b) is a perspective view of a high beam light distribution pattern PH-2 formed on the virtual vertical screen by light emitted from the lamp unit 220 toward the front of the lamp.

As shown in FIG. 8(a), the low beam light distribution pattern PL-2 is formed as a light distribution pattern to which the OHS irradiation light distribution pattern PA-2 is added, similar to the low beam light distribution pattern PL formed in the above embodiment.

The low beam light distribution pattern PL-2 itself is a light distribution pattern similar to the low beam light distribution pattern PL. In addition, the OHS irradiation light distribution pattern PA-2 is also formed as a light distribution pattern substantially similar to the OHS irradiation light distribution pattern PA formed in the above embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 8(b), the high beam light distribution pattern PH-2 is formed as a composite light distribution pattern in which an additional light distribution pattern PB-2 is added to the low beam light distribution pattern PL-2.

The additional light distribution pattern PB-2 is formed by direct light from the multiple second light-emitting elements 240 and light emitted from the multiple second light-emitting elements 240 and reflected by the second reflector 242.

As a result, the high beam light distribution pattern PH-2 is formed as a continuous light distribution pattern that integrates the low beam light distribution pattern PL-2 and the additional light distribution pattern PB-2. At this time, the OHS illumination light distribution pattern PA-2 is formed so as to be included in the additional light distribution pattern PB-2.

Even when the configuration of this modified example is adopted, the same effects as those of the above embodiment can be obtained.

In this case, the lamp unit 220 of this modified example is configured to be able to selectively form a low beam light distribution pattern PL-2 and a high beam light distribution pattern PH-2, but even with this type of lamp configuration, it is possible to reduce the number of parts in the lamp unit 220 while improving the accuracy of light distribution control.

In the lamp unit 220 of this modified example, the multiple second light-emitting elements 240 are configured to light up all at once, but it is also possible to configure the multiple second light-emitting elements 240 to light up individually. In this case, if each of the multiple second light-emitting elements 240 is turned on and off depending on the driving conditions of the vehicle, it is possible to illuminate as widely as possible the road ahead without causing glare to the driver of an oncoming vehicle.

Note that the numerical values shown as the specifications in the above embodiment and its modified examples are merely examples, and it goes without saying that these may be set to different values as appropriate.

Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the configurations described in the above embodiment and its modified examples, and various other modified configurations can be adopted.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 vehicular lamp 12 lamp body 14 light-transmitting cover 20, 120, 220 lamp unit 30 light-emitting element 30a, 240a light-emitting surface 32a, 242a reflecting surface 32 reflector 32b, 242b opening 32c rear end surface 32c1 lower region 50 projection lens 52 lens holder 54 heat sink 56, 256 substrate 60, 260 shade 60a, 260a front end edge 70, 170, 270 reflecting member 70a, 170a, 270a reflecting surface 70b, 170c bracket portion 70s, 170s, 270s small reflecting surface 240 second light-emitting element 242 second reflector 242c through hole Ax optical axis CL1 Lower cutoff line CL2 Upper cutoff line E Elbow point F Rear focus PA, PA-2 Light distribution pattern for OHS irradiation PB-2 Additional light distribution pattern PH-2 Light distribution pattern for high beam PL, PL-2 Light distribution pattern for low beam

Claims (5)

A vehicle lamp including a plurality of light-emitting elements and a projection lens, the vehicle lamp being configured to form a low-beam light distribution pattern by irradiating light emitted from the plurality of light-emitting elements toward a front of the lamp through the projection lens,
the plurality of light-emitting elements are arranged in a line in the left-right direction with their light-emitting surfaces facing the projection lens,
a shade is disposed between the plurality of light-emitting elements and the projection lens to block a part of the light emitted from the plurality of light-emitting elements in order to form a cutoff line of the light distribution pattern for low beam;
a reflecting member that reflects, below the shade, a direct light emitted from at least one of the plurality of light-emitting elements toward the rear side of the lamp beyond the shade, toward the projection lens ;
The vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of light-emitting elements are configured to be turned on during low beam irradiation . The vehicle lamp according to claim 1, characterized in that the reflecting member is configured to diffusely reflect the direct light from the plurality of light-emitting elements in the left and right directions. The vehicle lamp according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the reflecting member is integrally formed with the shade. a reflector that reflects the light emitted from the plurality of light-emitting elements toward the projection lens,
4. The vehicular lamp according to claim 1, wherein the reflector is formed integrally with the shade. A plurality of second light-emitting elements that are additionally turned on during high beam irradiation and a second reflector that reflects the light emitted from the plurality of second light-emitting elements toward the projection lens are disposed below the shade,
5. The vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the reflective member is formed integrally with the second reflector.

Images