JP7825464B2 - Vehicle lighting fixtures - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle lighting fixture suitable for installation in vehicles such as automobiles.

Proposed automotive lighting fixtures include an inner lens as an optical system for controlling the light emitted from a light source such as an LED (light-emitting diode) to achieve the required light distribution. Patent Document 1 proposes an inner lens with a hollow structure, which includes a first lens portion and a second lens portion arranged with a required gap between them, and which is connected by a connecting plate. This inner lens enables the lens to be lighter than a lens with a solid structure, i.e., a lens with no gap between the first lens portion and the second lens portion.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-112065

However, when installing automotive lighting fixtures on the body of a vehicle, the placement position of the light source, particularly the orientation of the light-emitting surface that emits light from the light source, can be restricted due to space requirements. As a result, it may not be possible to orient the light-emitting surface in the optimal direction to achieve the required light distribution. In such cases, it is necessary to use an inner lens to control the deflection of the light rays or ray bundles (groups of multiple light rays) emitted from the light-emitting surface. For example, a lighting fixture could be designed in which a refraction step is formed in the inner lens, and this refraction step is used to deflect the ray bundles.

In such lighting fixtures, as the deflection angle of the light beam at the inner lens increases, it becomes necessary to increase the deflection means of the inner lens, i.e., the inclination angle of the light-refracting surface of the refraction step formed on the inner lens. However, because typical inner lenses are formed by molding translucent resin, molding a refraction step with a large inclination angle makes it difficult to form a refraction step with high precision due to sink marks that occur during molding, which makes it difficult to achieve the required deflection control or light distribution control.

The object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle lamp equipped with an inner lens that can achieve the required light distribution even when the light source's light emission surface is not facing the optimal direction.

The present invention includes a light source that emits light and an inner lens that transmits and deflects the light emitted from the light source, the inner lens including a light-entering-side lens that transmits and emits light incident from the light source, and a light-exiting- side lens onto which the light emitted from the light-entering-side lens and light from the light source that is not transmitted through the light -entering-side lens are incident. A gap exists between the light-entering-side lens and the light-exiting-side lens, and the light-entering-side lens includes a deflection step that deflects the incident light in a first direction that is an inward direction in the vehicle width direction and emits it, and the light-exiting-side lens includes a deflection step that further deflects the light incident from the light-entering-side lens in the first direction and emits it, and a deflection step that deflects the light from the light source that is not transmitted through the light-entering-side lens in a second direction that is an outward direction in the vehicle width direction and emits it .

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the light-entering lens and the light-exiting lens are formed as long, thin plates, and are connected by an end plate at one end of each lens in the longitudinal direction, and by a side plate at the side edge of each lens along the longitudinal direction. It is preferable that the light-entering lens and the end plate are connected so that they intersect at an obtuse angle, and the light-exiting lens and the end plate are connected so that they intersect at an acute angle.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the light source is composed of a plurality of light-emitting elements mounted on a substrate, and the light-input lens is not positioned opposite some of the light-emitting elements, while the light-output lens is positioned opposite some of the light-emitting elements. The light-output lens then has a deflection step that deflects light emitted from some of the light sources in a second direction different from the first direction. Furthermore, it is preferable that the inner lens is configured as a second inner lens, and that a first inner lens is provided between the light source and the second inner lens to convert the light emitted from the light source into a parallel beam, and a third inner lens is provided between the second inner lens and the outer lens to diverge or diffuse the light emitted from the second inner lens.

In one embodiment of the vehicle lamp of the present invention, when installed in a vehicle, the light source has an emitting surface that is oriented in a direction that is inclined horizontally relative to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. In this case, the inner lens is preferably configured to deflect the light emitted from the light source in a first direction, which is toward the inside of the vehicle width. Furthermore, it is preferable that the inner lens be configured to deflect the light in a direction different from this first direction.

According to the present invention, light from a light source can be deflected in both the light-entering lens and the light-exiting lens of the inner lens. This allows light to be deflected in a direction that satisfies the required light distribution, even if the light-emitting surface (light-exiting surface) of the light source is not facing in the optimal direction.

1 is a perspective view of a vehicle to which the present invention is applied and a rear lamp, viewed obliquely from behind; FIG. 2 is a schematic, partially exploded perspective view of an outer lamp. FIG. 3 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a portion of the first inner lens. 10A and 10B are perspective views of the appearance of a second inner lens, in which FIG. 10A is a partially cutaway view seen from diagonally above, and FIG. 10B is a view seen from diagonally below. FIG. 5B is an enlarged view of part A in FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing the optical path of a ray bundle. FIG. 2 is a schematic side view showing the optical path of a ray bundle. FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of an automobile showing the light distribution of a TL unit.

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention, in which the vehicle lighting fixture is applied to rear lamps R-RL and L-RL of a combination structure disposed on the left and right rear portions of the body of an automobile (CAR). The left and right rear lamps R-RL and L-RL are composed of an outer lamp oRL disposed on the vehicle body side and an inner lamp iRL disposed on the trunk lid side. The present invention is applied to this outer lamp oRL. Specifically, as shown in the partially cut-away enlarged view of FIG. 1, the outer lamp oRL is equipped with an outer tail lamp unit oTLU and a turn signal lamp unit TSLU. Note that the inner lamp iRL is equipped with an inner tail lamp unit and a backup lamp unit, although explanation using reference numerals will be omitted as these are not relevant to the present invention.

Figure 2 is a schematic, partially exploded perspective view of the outer lamp oRL of the right rear lamp R-RL, and Figure 3 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in Figure 1. In the following description, the front-to-rear and left-to-right directions are based on the front-to-rear and left-to-right directions of the vehicle. Furthermore, with regard to the emission direction and deflection direction of the light beam bundle described below, the direction toward the center of the vehicle's width is referred to as the inward direction, and the opposite direction toward the outside of the vehicle width is referred to as the outward direction. Therefore, for the outer lamp oRL in Figures 2 and 3, the right direction is the outward direction and the left direction is the inward direction.

The outer lamp oRL has a lamp housing 100 composed of a partially open, container-shaped lamp body 101 and an outer cover (outer lens) 102 attached to the opening of the lamp body 101. The lamp body 101 has a wraparound shape extending from the rear to the right side of the vehicle body, with the trunk of the vehicle CAR located behind the lamp body 101. For this reason, the inner bottom surface of the lamp body 101 is inclined at a required angle relative to the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle CAR, and the interior depth from the opening to the inner bottom surface is shallow. Furthermore, the opening of the lamp body 101 is open in an area facing from the rear to the side so that the light distribution required for the outer tail lamp unit oTLU, i.e., light can be irradiated over the required angular area from the rear to the side of the vehicle CAR, is achieved. The outer cover 102 is made of a colorless, transparent, translucent material and is curved to follow the curved shape of the vehicle body from the rear to the right side.

As described above, the outer tail lamp unit oTLU and the turn signal lamp unit TSLU are disposed within the lamp housing 100. Furthermore, in the area of the lamp housing 100 where the outer tail lamp unit oTLU and the turn signal lamp unit TALU are not disposed, a pseudo-reflector known as the extension 103 shown in FIG. 1 is disposed. This extension 103 prevents the interior of the lamp housing 100 from being exposed through the outer cover 102, thereby improving the external appearance of the outer lamp oRL.

As shown in an exploded view in Figure 2, the outer tail lamp unit (hereinafter referred to as the TL unit) oTLU comprises a light source 1 and an optical system 2. The red light emitted by the light source 1 is controlled by the optical system 3 to achieve the required light distribution, and the controlled light is then emitted through the outer cover 102.

The light source 1 includes semiconductor light-emitting elements, in this case multiple LEDs (light-emitting diodes) 11 that each emit red light. The multiple LEDs 11 are mounted in a row on the surface of the light source substrate 10, with the light-emitting surface of each LED 11 facing in the same direction as the surface of the light source substrate 10. These LEDs 11 are supplied with the required power through a power supply circuit (not shown) configured on the light source substrate 10, allowing them to emit light.

The light source substrate 10 is fixedly supported on the inner bottom surface of the lamp body 101 with its back surface facing approximately vertical so that the multiple mounted LEDs 11 are aligned horizontally. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 3, the light source substrate 10 is arranged with its front surface facing outward in the width direction of the automobile CAR and tilted at a required angle toward the rear. Therefore, if the axis perpendicular to the light-emitting surface of each LED 11 at the center of the light-emitting surface is defined as the main light-emitting axis Ox, the light-emitting surface of each LED 11 is arranged with its main light-emitting axis Ox tilted outward in the width direction of the automobile CAR relative to the longitudinal and lateral directions.

The optical system 3 includes a first inner lens 3, a second inner lens 4, and a third inner lens 5 arranged on the light-emitting surface side of the LED 11, i.e., from the light source substrate 10 toward the outer cover 102. Each of the inner lenses 3, 4, and 5 is formed from a colorless, light-transmitting material, in this case, a colorless, transparent resin. Each of these inner lenses 3, 4, and 5 is supported on the lamp body 101 by a support member not shown in the figure. Note that the light source 1 and the optical system 2 may each be supported separately on the lamp body 101, or the light source 1 and the optical system 2 may be sub-assembled and configured as an integrated unit, and this unit may be supported on the lamp body 101.

The first inner lens 3 is disposed parallel to the surface of the light source substrate 10 with a required gap between them. As shown in the enlarged perspective view of a portion of Figure 4, the first inner lens 3 is formed as a flat plate extending horizontally. The side facing the light source substrate 10 is the light incident surface (hereinafter referred to as the first lens incident surface) 3i, and the opposite side is the light exit surface (hereinafter referred to as the first lens exit surface) 3o. The first lens incident surface 3i is formed with a Fresnel step 31 that forms a convex lens whose lens optical axis is aligned with the main light-emitting axes Ox of the multiple LEDs 11 of the light source 1. The focal point of the convex lens formed by this Fresnel step 31 is located at the center of the light-emitting surface of the LED 11. Therefore, when divergent light emitted from the LED 11 enters the first lens incident surface 31, it is controlled by the Fresnel step 31 to form a parallel beam of light.

The first lens exit surface 3o is formed with deflection steps that deflect the parallel light beams controlled at the first lens entrance surface 3i. These deflection steps are composed of refraction steps 32, 33 that refract the light beams and deflect them horizontally. A large number of refraction steps 32, 33 with sawtooth-shaped horizontal cross sections are arranged horizontally in a vertical stripe pattern. Most of the refraction steps 32 on the inner side in the vehicle width direction have a step shape in which the surface angle of the light refraction surface is set so that the transmitted light beams are refracted at a required angle toward the inside of the vehicle width with respect to the main light emission axis Ox. In this embodiment, the large number of refraction steps 32 are formed so that the refraction angle of each light beam is equal.

On the other hand, the refraction step 33 on the outer side in the vehicle width direction, i.e., the refraction step 33 through which the light beam emitted from the LED positioned furthest outward in the vehicle width direction (hereinafter referred to as the outermost LED) 11x shown in Figure 3 passes, is configured as a refraction step that refracts and deflects light in the opposite direction to the refraction step 32 on the inner side in the vehicle width direction. In other words, this refraction step 33 has a step shape in which the surface angle of the light refracting surface is set so as to refract the light beam toward the outer side in the vehicle width direction with respect to the main light emission axis Ox.

As shown in Figure 5(a) (a partially cutaway perspective view from diagonally above) and Figure 5(b) (a perspective view from diagonally below), the second inner lens 4 comprises a light-entering lens 41 and a light-exiting lens 42, each of which is a horizontally elongated flat plate. The light-entering lens 41 and the light-exiting lens 42 are arranged substantially parallel to each other with a required gap between them, and the ends of both lenses 41, 42 facing inward in the vehicle width direction and one side edge along the length of both lenses 41, 42, in this case the upper side edge, are connected by end plate 43 and side plate 44 to form a square gutter shape. The end of the light-exiting lens 42 facing outward in the vehicle width direction is configured as an extension 45 that extends horizontally beyond the end of the light-entering lens 41. This second inner lens 4 is formed by integrally molding the light-entering lens 41, light-exiting lens 42, extension 45, end plate 43, and side plate 44 from translucent resin, so it can also be said that the second inner lens 4 is configured as a lens with a hollow structure.

Figure 6 is an enlarged view of part A in Figure 5(a), showing that deflection steps are formed on the light incident surface (light incident lens incident surface) 41i and the light exit surface (light incident lens exit surface) 41o of the light incident lens 41. Similar to the refractive steps 32, 33 on the first lens exit surface 3o, these deflection steps are configured in a vertical stripe pattern with numerous refractive steps 411, 412, each with a sawtooth-shaped horizontal cross section, aligned horizontally. The refractive steps 411, 412 are configured such that the surface angle of the light refracting surface is set so that the light beam incident on the light incident lens incident surface 41i is refracted inwardly across the vehicle with respect to the main light emission axis Ox, and exits from the light incident lens exit surface 41o.

Refractive steps 421 are also formed as deflection steps on the light incident surface (light-emitting lens incident surface) 42i of the light-emitting lens 42. Similar to the refractive steps 411 of the light-entering lens 41, these refractive steps 421 are configured in a vertical stripe pattern with numerous refractive steps, each with a sawtooth-shaped horizontal cross section, aligned horizontally. The refractive steps 421 are configured such that the surface angle of the light-refractive surface is set so that the light beam incident on the light-emitting lens incident surface 42i is refracted toward the inside of the vehicle width relative to the main light-emitting axis Ox.

The second inner lens 4 is configured so that the light beam deflected by the second inner lens 4 and emitted from the light-exiting lens exit surface 42o has a larger deflection angle when emitted from the inner region in the vehicle width direction than when emitted from the outer region in the vehicle width direction. In other words, the refractive steps 411, 412, 421 formed on the light-entering lens incident surface 41i, the light-entering lens exit surface 41o, and the light-exiting lens incident surface 42i, respectively, have a gradually increasing angle of the light refracting surface from the outer region in the vehicle width direction toward the inner region, so that the second inner lens 4 as a whole has a larger deflection angle on the inner side than on the outer side in the vehicle width direction.

On the other hand, the light-emitting lens exit surface 42o is formed with refraction steps 422 for diverging the light beam in the vertical direction within a required angular range. Here, the refraction steps 422, each with a gently curved vertical cross section and extending horizontally, are aligned vertically.

In the extension 45 of the light-emitting side lens 42, deflection steps are formed on both the entrance surface (extension entrance surface 45i) and the exit surface (extension exit surface) 45o. These deflection steps are configured in a vertical stripe pattern with numerous refraction steps 451, 452, each with a sawtooth-shaped horizontal cross section, aligned horizontally. These refraction steps refract and deflect the light beam toward the outside of the vehicle width relative to the main light-emitting axis Ox.

The second inner lens 4 is positioned so that the light-entering lens incident surface 41i is parallel to the first lens exit surface 3o of the first inner lens 3. In this case, the light-entering lens 41 is positioned opposite the other LEDs 11 except for the outermost LED 11x, but is not positioned opposite the outermost LED 11x. Only the extension 45 of the light-exiting lens 42 is positioned opposite the outermost LED 11x.

When the second inner lens 4 is disposed within the lamp housing 100, the end plate 43 connecting the light-entering lens 41 and the light-emitting lens 42 at their ends in the vehicle width direction is oriented in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle to prevent interference with the lamp body 101, and to prevent the light beam emitted from the LED 11 from being blocked by the end plate 43. Therefore, as shown in Figures 3 and 5, the angle θb at the connection between the light-entering lens 41 and the end plate 43 is an obtuse angle, and the angle θa at the connection between the light-emitting lens 42 and the end plate 43 is an acute angle. In other words, each corner is an angle other than a right angle.

The third inner lens 5 is configured as a curved plate that generally conforms to the inner surface of the outer cover 102 and is arranged to cover substantially the entire surface of the light-emitting lens 42 of the second inner lens 4. The light incident surface (third lens incident surface) 5i of the third inner lens 5 is configured as a smooth surface, and the light exit surface (third lens exit surface) 5o is formed with a number of diverging steps 51 that diverge light horizontally. These diverging steps consist of a number of vertical cylindrical steps that have an arc-shaped cross section in the horizontal direction and are very narrow and extend vertically, arranged horizontally. These diverging steps can also be configured as diffusion steps that diffuse a portion of the emitted light.

When the above TL unit oTLU is lit, each LED 11 emits light and red light is emitted from its light-emitting surface. Figure 7 is a plan view schematically showing the optical path of the light when the TL unit is lit, and Figure 8 is a side view. The light emitted in a divergent state from the light-emitting surface of each LED 11 is controlled into a parallel beam of rays by the Fresnel step 31 on the first lens entrance surface 3i of the first inner lens 3. The main light-emitting axis Ox of each LED 11 is inclined at a required angle toward the rear of the vehicle, outward across the vehicle width, so the controlled parallel beam of rays is directed in the direction of the main light-emitting axis Ox, i.e., diagonally toward the rear right of the vehicle.

The light beams that pass through the first lens 3 and emerge from the first lens exit surface 3o are refracted by the refraction steps 32 of the first lens exit surface 3o and deflected toward the main light emission axis Ox. That is, the light beams from the LEDs 11 other than the outermost LED 11x on the outer side of the vehicle width are deflected toward the inner side of the vehicle width with respect to the main light emission axis Ox. On the other hand, the light beams from the outermost LED 11x are deflected toward the outer side of the vehicle width with respect to the main light emission axis Ox.

Of the light beams emitted from the first lens exit surface 3o, those excluding those from the outermost LED 11x are incident on the light-entering lens incident surface 41i of the second inner lens 4 and exit from the light-entering lens exit surface 41o. At this time, the refraction steps 411, 412 of the light-entering lens incident surface 41i and the light-entering lens exit surface 41o refract and deflect the light beams at the required refraction angle toward the inward direction of the vehicle width relative to the main light-emitting axis Ox. Furthermore, the light beams emitted from the light-entering lens exit surface 41o are incident on the light-exiting lens incident surface 42i and exit from the light-exiting lens exit surface 42o. At this time, the refraction steps 421 of the light-exiting lens incident surface 42i deflect each light beam toward the inward direction of the vehicle width at an even larger angle relative to the main light-emitting axis Ox. Furthermore, the light beam emitted from the light-emitting lens exit surface 42o is diverged by the divergence step 422 so that the amount of light (luminous intensity) is approximately uniform in the horizontal direction.

On the other hand, as described above, the light beam from the outermost LED 11x is deflected toward the outside of the vehicle width with respect to the main light-emitting axis Ox when it passes through the first inner lens 3. Therefore, it does not pass through the light-entering lens 41 of the second inner lens 4, but is incident on the extended portion incident surface 45i of the second inner lens 4 and is emitted from the extended portion exit surface 45o. At this time, the refraction steps 451, 452 provided on the extended portion incident surface 45i and the extended portion exit surface 45o deflect the light beam toward the outside of the vehicle width at an even larger angle with respect to the main light-emitting axis Ox.

All light beams emitted from the light-emitting lens exit surface 42o and extension exit surface 45o of the second inner lens 4 are transmitted through the third inner lens 5, but are diverged horizontally by the vertical cylindrical step 51 provided on the third lens exit surface 5o. As a result, as shown in Figure 9, the TL unit oTLU as a whole distributes light so that it irradiates a wide area extending from the rear to the right side of the automobile CAR. The diverging step 51 provided on this third lens exit surface 5o may be configured as a fly's eye lens, with many tiny convex or concave lenses arranged in a grid pattern.

In this way, the light beams emitted from the LEDs 11 other than the outermost LED 11x, passing through the first inner lens 3 and the second inner lens 4, and then passing through the third inner lens 5 to be emitted from the third lens exit surface 5o, are deflected inwardly across the vehicle with respect to the main light-emitting axis Ox of the LED 11 by the deflection steps (refraction steps) formed on the light-entering lens 41 and the light-exiting lens 42 of the second inner lens 4 and the third inner lens 5.

On the other hand, the light beam emitted from the outermost LED 11x is deflected outward across the vehicle with respect to the main light-emitting axis Ox of the outermost LED 11x by the deflection steps (refraction steps) 451, 452 formed on the incident surface 45i and the exit surface 45o of the extension 45 of the second inner lens 4. As a result, even though the light-emitting surface of the outermost LED 11x is facing diagonally rearward of the vehicle CAR, the emitted light beam is directed toward the right side of the vehicle CAR, allowing it to function as a so-called side marker lamp.

In this way, the TL unit oTLU of this embodiment achieves a light distribution that illuminates the required area from the rear to the right side of the vehicle by deflecting the light from the LEDs 11, which has been controlled to a parallel beam by the first inner lens 3, using the second inner lens 4, and then diverging it at the third inner lens 5. Therefore, even though it is difficult to position the light-emitting surface of the LEDs 11 facing the rear of the vehicle due to restrictions on the shape and size of the rear lamp, and the light-emitting surface of each LED 11 is facing diagonally rearward of the vehicle, the light distribution required for a tail lamp can be met.

The second inner lens 4, which constitutes the optical system 2 of the TL unit oTLU, is configured as a hollow lens with a gap between the light-entering lens 41 and the light-exiting lens 42. This allows for four surfaces to be configured as refractive surfaces: the light-entering lens incident surface 41i, the light-entering lens exit surface 41o, the light-exiting lens incident surface 42i, and the light-exiting lens exit surface 42o. This configuration doubles the number of refractive surfaces compared to a solid lens consisting of two refractive surfaces, the incident surface and the exit surface. This makes it possible to form refractive steps with smaller refractive angles on each surface of the second inner lens 4 than solid lenses. For example, the refractive angles of the refractive steps formed on each surface can be made smaller. This reduces the "sink marks" that occur during resin molding when the inclination angle of the refractive steps is designed to be large in order to increase the refractive angle, enabling the manufacture of refractive steps with high precision.

Furthermore, by providing a gap between the light-entering lens 41 and the light-exiting lens 42, the second inner lens 4 can increase the optical path length of the ray bundle from the light-entering lens incident surface 41o to the light-exiting lens exit surface 42o. This increases the amount of displacement in the vehicle width direction of the ray bundle that enters the light-entering lens incident surface 41i and exits from the light-exiting lens exit surface 42o, which is advantageous for expanding the light distribution area in the vehicle width direction. Even with this increased optical path length, the hollow structure with a gap between the light-entering lens and the light-exiting lens allows for a lighter weight compared to solid lenses.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the second inner lens 4 is designed so that the angle at the connection between the end plate 43 and the light-entering lens 41 is an obtuse angle, and the angle at the connection between the end plate 43 and the light-emitting lens 42 is an acute angle. This allows the end plate 43 to face in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, minimizing the amount of protrusion of the end plate 43 inward and outward directions across the vehicle. This prevents the light emitted from the LED 11 from being blocked by the end plate 43, and also minimizes the increase in the width of the TL unit oTLU, which is effective in expanding the trunk volume.

In addition, the second inner lens 4 of this embodiment has an integrated structure in which the light-entering lens 41 and the light-exiting lens 42 are connected by end plates 43 and side plates 44, which is effective in preventing deformation when the second inner lens 4 is molded. Therefore, when the second inner lens 4 is molded from resin, the optical characteristics due to deformation of the second inner lens 4, such as the surface precision of the entrance and exit surfaces of the light-entering lens 41 and the light-exiting lens 42, and the shape and dimensions of the refractive steps formed on these surfaces, can be formed with high precision. If there is no risk of deformation that reduces such optical characteristics when the second inner lens 4 is molded, one of the end plates 43 and the side plates 44 may be omitted.

In addition, if the horizontal divergence angle of the divergence steps 51 on the third lens exit surface 5o can be designed to be large, the refractive steps formed on the second inner lens 4, i.e., the refractive steps on the light-input side incident surface 41i, the light-input side exit surface 41o, and the light-output side incident surface 42i, may each be formed with a uniform shape and dimensions. In this case, the deflection angle of the light beams from each LED 11 on the second inner lens 4 will be uniform, and the light distribution required by the divergence of light on the third inner lens 5 can be satisfied. This makes it easier to design and manufacture the refractive steps on each surface of the second inner lens 4.

Here, the outermost LED 11x may be composed of multiple LEDs arranged in the outward direction of the vehicle width. Furthermore, the outermost LED 11x may be configured as a turn signal lamp by controlling its blinking through a lighting circuit. In this case, it is preferable that the outermost LED 11x be composed of an LED that emits amber light.

In the present invention, the inner lens that constitutes the optical system may be configured to include at least the second inner lens. In other words, the first inner lens may be configured as part of the light source, and the third inner lens may not be specifically provided. Therefore, in such cases, the inner lens in the present invention will be configured as the second inner lens.

The above description is of an embodiment applied to a right rear lamp located on the rear right of the vehicle body, but it can also be applied similarly to a left rear lamp located on the rear left of the vehicle body. In this case, the TL unit in particular has a bilaterally symmetrical structure. Therefore, the configuration of each of the first to third inner lenses that make up the optical system, particularly the left-right relationship in the inward and outward vehicle width directions in the deflection direction due to the deflection steps formed on the second and third inner lenses, is opposite to that of the embodiment.

The present invention can also be applied to lamp units for various auxiliary lamps installed in automobile headlamps, such as clearance lamps, daytime running lamps, and fog lamps, in which case the light source is composed of an LED that emits white light.

In this invention, although a description of an embodiment will be omitted, when applied to various lamps, the first direction in this invention is not necessarily specified as the inward vehicle width direction as described in the embodiment, but may be the forward or rearward direction of the vehicle. Furthermore, the second direction may be at least a direction different from the first direction, and is not specified as the outward vehicle width direction as described in the embodiment.

1 Light source 2 Optical system 3 First inner lens 4 Second inner lens 5 Third inner lens 31 Fresnel step 32 Refraction step (deflection step)
41 Light-entering side lens 411, 412 Refraction step (deflection step)
42 Light-emitting side lens 421 Refraction step (deflection step)
43 End plate 44 Side plate 45 Extension portion 100 Lamp housing CAR Automobile R-RL, L-RL Rear lamp oTLU Outer tail lamp unit

Claims (7)

a light source that emits light; and an inner lens that transmits and deflects the light emitted from the light source, the inner lens comprising a light-entering lens that transmits and emits light incident from the light source, and a light-exiting lens into which the light emitted from the light-entering lens and light from the light source that is not transmitted through the light-entering lens are incident, wherein there is a gap between the light-entering lens and the light-exiting lens, and the light-entering lens has a deflection step that deflects the incident light in a first direction that is an inward direction in the vehicle width direction and emits it, and the light-exiting lens has a deflection step that further deflects the light incident from the light-entering lens in the first direction and emits it, and a deflection step that deflects the light from the light source that is not transmitted through the light-entering lens in a second direction that is an outward direction in the vehicle width direction and emits it . The vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein the light-entering lens and the light-exiting lens are formed in the shape of long, narrow plates, connected by an end plate at at least one end of each lens in the longitudinal direction, and connected by a side plate at the side edge of each lens along the longitudinal direction. A vehicle lamp as described in claim 2, wherein the light-entering lens and the end plate are connected so that they intersect at an obtuse angle, and the light-exiting lens and the end plate are connected so that they intersect at an acute angle. 4. The vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein each of the deflection steps of the light-entering lens and the light-emitting lens is formed as a refraction step having a sawtooth-like horizontal cross section. A vehicle lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the light source is composed of a plurality of light-emitting elements mounted on a substrate, the light-entering lens is not positioned opposite some of the light-emitting elements, and the light-emitting lens is positioned opposite some of the light-emitting elements. A vehicle lighting fixture as described in any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the inner lens is configured as a second inner lens, and a first inner lens is provided between the light source and the second inner lens to control the light emitted from the light source into a parallel beam, and a third inner lens is provided so as to cover the entire surface of the light-emitting side lens of the second inner lens to diverge or diffuse the light emitted from the second inner lens. 7. The vehicle lamp according to claim 1, wherein when the vehicle lamp is mounted on a vehicle, the light source has a light emitting surface facing in a direction inclined horizontally with respect to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle.