Illumination – Supported by vehicle structure – Housing
Patent
1999-01-12
2000-12-26
Cariaso, Alan
Illumination
Supported by vehicle structure
Housing
362294, 362373, F21V 2900
Patent
active
06164806&
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention is based on a lighting device for vehicles as generically defined by the preamble to claim 1.
One such lighting device is known from German Patent Disclosure DE 35 42 547 A1. This lighting device, in the form of a headlight, has a sealed interior in which at least one reflector with at least one light source is disposed. The interior communicates with the environment via at least one vent opening in a portion of the lighting device that defines the interior. A drying agent, by which moisture is to be extracted from the air flowing into the interior, is disposed in the region of the vent opening. The drying agent must be refreshed repeatedly, if the penetration of moisture to the interior is to be permanently avoided. In addition, the drying agent is hard to manipulate and must be kept in a closed container and prevented from trickling out.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The lighting device according to the invention having the characteristics of the body of claim 1 has the advantage over the prior art that the entry of both water from the roadway and dirt into the interior is avoided by means of the insert that covers the vent opening; the insert is easy to manipulate and to dispose on the lighting device.
In the dependent claims, advantageous features and refinements of the lighting device of the invention are disclosed. By means of the embodiment of FIG. 2, the water-repellent property of the insert is attained in a simple way. By means of the refinement of claim 7, the penetration of water from the roadway into the interior through the insert is made still more difficult. The embodiment of claim 9 enables a simple disposition of the insert. The embodiment of claim 12 prevents water from being able to collect on the insert and penetrate into the interior. The embodiment of claim 13 makes an effective flow through the interior possible. By the refinement of claim 15, it is attained that when the vehicle is in motion, a pressure difference between the vent openings and hence a reinforced flow through the interior are brought about.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Two exemplary embodiments of the invention are shown in the drawing and described in further detail in the ensuing description. FIG. 1 shows a lighting device in vertical longitudinal section; FIG. 2 shows the detail marked II in FIG. 1 of the lighting device on a larger scale; FIG. 3 shows a portion of the lighting device in a cross section taken along the line III--III of FIG. 2; FIG. 4 shows an insert that covers a vent opening in an elevation view in the direction of the arrow IV of FIG. 2 in accordance with a first exemplary embodiment; and FIG. 5 shows the insert in the elevation view in the direction of the arrow IV in accordance with a second exemplary embodiment.
DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS
A lighting device shown in FIGS. 1-5 for vehicles, especially motor vehicles, is embodied in particular as a headlight or headlight unit and is intended to be mounted on the vehicle in the known manner. The lighting device has a sealed interior 10, in which at least one reflector 12 and at least one light source 14 are disposed. The interior 10 is defined at least in part by a housing 16 and by a glass or plastic transparent or translucent disk 18 that closes off the light exit opening of the housing. The housing 16 may have an opening 20 on its back side, through which the at least one light source 14 is accessible and which can be closed by means of a detachable cap 22, by which the interior 10 is then correspondingly jointly defined. The disk 18 may be joined to the housing 16 via an intermediate frame 24, in which case the interior 10 is also jointly defined by the intermediate frame 24. The housing 16 and the intermediate frame 24 are preferably of plastic and are made by injection molding. The intermediate frame 24 can be embodied such that an existing gap between the reflector 12 and the housing 16 is at least partly covered by it.
The housing 16 has at least one vent opening 30, throu
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Maurer Bernhard
Schmickl Klaus
Schoenettin Dietmar
Cariaso Alan
Robert & Bosch GmbH
Striker Michael J.
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