Illumination – Illuminated scale or dial – Internal light source
Reexamination Certificate
2000-05-30
2001-10-16
Tso, Laura K. (Department: 2875)
Illumination
Illuminated scale or dial
Internal light source
C362S023000, C116S048000, C116S288000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06302552
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention relates to illuminated pointer devices for instrument panels.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Automotive instrument panels, such as on dashboards, radios, components and the like, usually employ a face plate having a body of transparent light conducting material and a decorative outer appliqué which includes legends and indicia for various knobs and gauges. Instrument gauges mounted behind the face plate have pointer members which are arranged to rotate or move along the indicia to reveal certain facts to the vehicle operator, such as vehicle speed, engine temperature, fuel level, and other vehicle parameters.
The instrument pointers are typically indirectly illuminated by lamps to afford visibility to the vehicle operator at night and low light conditions. The illumination typically is indirect and provided by lamps and lights arranged around the periphery of the face plate which conduct some light to each pointer. Typically, however, the light sources are positioned at a distance from the instrument pointers and light intensity is lost in the transition.
It is well known to provide illumination of instrument pointers by incorporating small lamps on the pointers themselves, or by using light conducting transparent pointer material optically coupled to a nearby light source. In the case of light conduction schemes, it is the usual practice to transmit light from a remote lamp to one or more transparent elements and into the pointer in such a manner that many reflections are required. As a result, only a small portion of the source light actually enters the pointer resulting in a low level of pointer illumination.
Previously, applying direct lighting to conventional gauges and instrument clusters has proven to be difficult in view of the presence of the motor and gears which are used rotate the pointer member and are positioned directly in back of the instrument panels. It also is difficult to provide pointer illumination that is sufficiently bright and will not change during pointer movement.
It thus is desirable to provide an instrument pointer mechanism for a vehicle instrument panel or the like which provides more usable light to the pointer than previously known. It is also an object of the present invention to provide pointer illumination which offers bright illumination as well as a light level which is independent of pointer angular position.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention accomplishes these objects and others by illuminating a pointer member through a tubular shaft member which is positioned directly in the motor or gear mechanism. A light source located directly below the hollow shaft member provides illumination directly through the shaft member to the instrument pointer located at the opposite end.
The tubular shaft has a reflective surface along its length in order to prevent light from escaping. The pointer member is attached to one end of the shaft and the gear member or motor can be attached along the shaft or at the other end. The hollow tubular member permits the light to travel directly from the source to a light pick up and facet in the pointer member which then directs it down the visible portion of the pointer member.
The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when it is viewed in connection with the accompanying drawings and appended claims.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5142456 (1992-08-01), Murphy
patent: 5546888 (1996-08-01), Skiver et al.
patent: 5603283 (1997-02-01), Owen
patent: 5706757 (1998-01-01), Hashimoto et al.
King Douglas Jay
Miller Stephen Lynn
Ross David Alan
Schnars Michael John
Selby Ronald Kenneth
Delphi Technologies Inc.
Funke Jimmy L.
Tso Laura K.
LandOfFree
Illuminated pointer with tubular shaft does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Illuminated pointer with tubular shaft, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Illuminated pointer with tubular shaft will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2606002