Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to an automotive lamp of vehicle particularly to fog lamp
of vehicle. More particularly, the present disclosure discloses a fog lamp with a suitable
mechanism to provide the better thermal performance.
Background
Fog lamps have been introduced to automotive vehicles as a safety measure to improve
the visibility under foggy conditions. The fog lamps are used in automobile during
conditions of poor visibility such as rain, fog, dust or snow. Since fog lamps are to be
used in cold weather conditions; high intensity light source is used for the fog lamps.
Hence high heat generation takes place inside the fog lamp chamber. High heat
generation inside the fog lamp affects its components adversely such as deformation/
melting of the reflector, and formation of cracks in the lens.
At present, various mechanisms are available to reduce the temperature inside the fog
lamp by providing one or more breathers holes and/or, heat shield inside the chamber.
However, these solutions are not thermally effective and also not cost effective. Also
the available solution compromises the aesthetics of the lamp.
Summary
A lamp assembly (1) for an automobile comprising a reflector (2) having a reflecting
surface and a lens (3) located in front of the reflector (2). The lens (3) has an axis (XX)
passing through center and defining the lamp assembly (1) into an upper region (4)
and a lower region (5). A light source (6) is disposed in the reflector (2) , at a location
laterally offset towards the lower region (5) from the axis (X-X) of the lamp assembly(1)
A breather hole (7) formed in the reflector (2) being located in the upper region(4)
wherein the vertically oriented breather hole (7) is having an axis (H-H) perpendicular
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to an axis (Y-Y) of the light source (6) to facilitate escape of hot air from the interior of
lamp assembly (1) to atmosphere.
Brief description of figures
Figure 1 illustrates exploded view of fog lamp of the present disclosure according to an
embodiment.
Figure 2 and 3 illustrates a front view of a fog lamp according to an embodiment of the
present disclosure.
Figure 4 shows sectional view along A-A shown in Figure 2.
Figure 5 shows the top view of the fog lamp illustrating breather hole in accordance
with the embodiment of the present disclosure.
Figure 6 shows sectional view of fog lamp along A-A showing two parabolas in
accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
Description of present disclosure
While the present disclosure is subject to various modifications and alternative forms,
specific embodiment thereof has been shown by way of example in the figures and will
be described below. It should be understood, however that it is not intended to limit the
present disclosure to the particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the present
disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternative falling within the
scope of the present disclosure.
It is to be noted that a person skilled in the art can be motivated from the present
disclosure and can perform various modifications. However, such modifications should
be construed within the scope of the present disclosure.
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Accordingly, the drawings are showing only those specific details that are pertinent to
understanding the embodiments of the present disclosure so as not to obscure the
disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art
having benefit of the description herein.
The terms “comprises”, “comprising”, or any other variations thereof, are intended to
cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that an assembly, setup, system,
device that comprises a list of components does not include only those components
but may include other components not expressly listed or inherent to such system or
device or setup. In other words, one or more elements in the system or apparatus or
device proceeded by “comprises a” does not, without more constraints, preclude the
existence of other elements or additional elements in the assembly or system or
apparatus. The following paragraphs explain present disclosure. The invention in
respect of the same may be deduced accordingly.
Accordingly the present disclosure discloses a lamp assembly (1) for an automobile
comprising: a reflector (2) having a reflecting surface , a lens (3) located in front of the
reflector (2); the lens (3) has an axis (X-X) passing through center and defining the
lamp assembly (1) into an upper region (4) and a lower region (5); a light source (6)
disposed in the reflector (2) , at a location laterally offset towards the lower region (5)
from the axis (X-X) of the lamp assembly(1) ; a breather hole (7) formed in the reflector
(2) being located in the upper region(4); wherein the vertically oriented breather hole
(7) is having an axis (H-H) perpendicular to an axis (Y-Y) of the light source (6) to
facilitate escape of hot air from the interior of lamp assembly(1) to atmosphere.
In another embodiment of the present disclosure the lamp assembly (1) having the
reflector (2) comprises an upper parabola (8) located in the upper region (4) and a lower
parabola (9) located in the lower region (5) having a focal point different from focal
point of the upper parabola (8) .
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In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure the light source (6) is placed
between focal points of the upper parabola (8) and lower parabola (9).
The lamp assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1 comprises an adjusting mechanism (10,11)
for adjusting the reflector (2) in specific direction.
In a further embodiment of the present disclosure the adjusting screw (10,11) is
supported by the reflector body (2) and engaged with the nut (10).
In a further embodiment of the present disclosure the lamp assembly (1) is mounted on
a vehicle using a bracket (12).
In an alternate embodiment of the present disclosure the light source (6) is equidistant
from the focal point of the upper parabola (8) and the lower parabola (9).
It is an aim of the present disclosure to provide a fog lamp which comes over at least
one of the problem of the existing fog lamp. By addressing to the problem of the thermal
impact the life of the fog lamp components can be increased so that they can work
continuously for longer period of time and provides the better thermal performance at
higher temperature
The present disclosure provides a solution by increasing the maximum volume area
inside the chamber to address the problem of high heat generation above the bulb/light
source to increase the performance of lamp at high temperature without using extra parts
like heat shield.
The Inventor(s) have developed a fog lamp which reduces the effect of high heat
generation inside the fog lamp and provides the better thermal performance at higher
temperature. In fog lamp of present disclosure, the bulb/light source is offset in the
downward direction so that the hot air present near the bulb has more distance to travel
upwards. Due to the said offset, the reflector is not exposed to high temperature air and
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thus its melting and deformation is prevented. Further in the present disclosure a
vertically oriented breather hole (7) is provided above the light source/bulb to facilitate
the escape of hot air thereby reducing the temperature inside the fog lamp.
Figures 1-6 illustrate a fog lamp assembly (1) according to an embodiment The fog lamp
assembly comprises a reflector (2), a lens (3) , a light source(6), an adjusting
mechanism(10,11).
Referring to figure 1,4 and 6 the reflector (3) has a front end (2a) and a rear end(2b).
The reflector surface movably secured inside the reflector . The reflector (2) has a
parabolic configuration and comprises reflecting surface for reflecting the light from the
light source (6) towards the lens (3) . The reflector (2) is configured to reflect the light
from the light source (6) in such a manner that the reflected light beam travels parallel
to each other and towards the lens (3) . The rear end (2b) of the reflector (2) is having
an opening wherein the light source (6) is suitably mounted. The front end (2a) of the
reflector (2) is configured with the lens (3) in such a manner that the lens (3) is located
in front of the reflector (2). The reflector (2) determines the intensity and distribution of
output beam.
The light source (6) includes a filament which glows upon supply of electrical energy
and generates heat. As explained in previous paragraphs, the lens (3) and the light source
(6) are assembled respectively in the front end (2a) and the rear end (2b) of the reflector
(2) forming a fog lamp assembly (1) and the whole assembly is mounted directly onto
a vehicle using a bracket (12) by means of fasteners.
In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the orientation of the reflector (2) can be
adjusted by means of the adjusting mechanism (10,11). The adjusting mechanism
comprises a nut (10) and an adjusting screw(11) for adjusting the position of reflector
(2) in specific direction and are used for aiming the fog lamp (1) according to the user’s
need and requirement. The adjusting screw (10,11) is supported by the reflector (2) and
engaged with the nut (10). The nut (10) is attached to the reflector (2) in such a manner
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that when the adjusting screws (11) is rotated using a tool for example screw driver the
position of nut (10) changes thereby changing the aiming angle of the reflector(2)
Referring to figure 4 the fog lamp assembly (1) comprises an imaginary axis X-X
passing through center of the lens (3) thereby dividing the fog lamp assembly (1) in
two regions, an upper region (4) and a lower region (5) . In an embodiment of the present
disclosure, the axis (Y-Y) of the light source (6) is parallel to the axis (X-X) passing
through the center and is offset towards the lower region (5) of the fog lamp assembly
(1). The light source (6) is disposed in the lower region (5) so that axis (Y-Y) of the
light source (6) is laterally offset from the axis X-X of the lamp assembly (1) . The term
“laterally offset” herein refers to the gap in the vertical direction between the two axis
X-X and Y-Y. Thus, the light source (6) is laterally offset from the axis X-X of the lamp
assembly (1).
Offsetting of the light source (6) towards the lower region, provides larger volume of
the upper region (4) as compared to the lower region (5) hence the distance between the
light source (6) and the reflector (2) is increased thereby increasing the travel distance
for hot air to reach from the light source (6) to the reflector (2) . This arrangement leads
to relatively cooler air reaching the reflector (2). This mitigates or reduces the chances
of melting/ distortion of the reflector (2) and thus increases life cycle of the reflector
(2). In addition, less expensive material can be used for coating the reflector (2) as
threshold thermal stability requirement of the reflector (2) is relatively low in the
present disclosure as compared to the existing fog lamps. “Thermal” stability is the
property of a material to resist irreversible change in its chemical or physical structure,
often by resisting decomposition at a high temperature.
Referring to Figures 2-6 the fog lamp comprises a vertically oriented breather hole (7)
(9) and formed on the reflector (2). The breather hole (7) is an elongated hole and may
be provided above the light source (6) in the upper region. The term “vertically oriented”
refers to orientation of the hole (7) so that the axis H-H of the elongated breather hole
(7) is perpendicular to the axis Y-Y of the light source (6). The vertical breather hole
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(7) enhances the exhaust/escape of hot air from interior of the fog lamp assembly (1)
and thus enhances breathing capacity thereof. This further reduces the temperature
inside the lamp assembly (1) and improves the functionality of the fog lamp providing
better thermal performance. The term “interior” of the fog lamp assembly (1) herewith
refers to the region enclosed between the lens (3) and the rear end of the reflector (2) .
Normally in the existing fog lamp, elongated breather hole (7) is provided in horizontal
orientation in which breather hole (7) has an axis parallel to the axis of the light source
(6) . As the density of hot air is less it tends to travel upwards in vertical direction. In
case of horizontal breather the hot air remains inside the lamp assembly (1) for larger
duration due to which the reflector (2) is exposed to hot air for larger duration.
In the present disclosure, due to offset of light source (6) towards the lower region, the
reflector (2) is divided into two parabolas, an upper parabola (8) and a lower parabola
(9) . As it can be understood that due to offset of the light source (6) , focal point of the
upper parabola (8) and the lower parabola (9) are different from each other. As it can
be further understood all the light beam from the light source (6) are to be reflected
parallel to each other from the reflector (2) . For this purpose, the light source (6) is
located between the focal point of the two parabolas. In an embodiment of the present
disclosure the light source (6) is equidistant from the focal point of the upper parabola
(8) and the lower parabola (9) . This provides the reflection of light from the two
reflecting surfaces in a predetermined direction. The presence of two reflecting surfaces
increases the chamber size of the fog lamp assembly (1) and reflects light according to
the requirement.
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Equivalents:
The embodiments herein and the various features and advantageous details thereof are
explained with reference to the non-limiting embodiments in the description.
Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques are omitted so as to
not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. The examples used herein are
intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the embodiments herein
may be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to practice the
embodiments herein. Accordingly, the examples should not be construed as limiting the
scope of the embodiments herein.
The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will so fully reveal the general
nature of the embodiments herein that others can, by applying current knowledge,
readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments without
departing from the generic concept, and, therefore, such adaptations and modifications
should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of
equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood that the phraseology or
terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.
Therefore, while the embodiments herein have been described in terms of preferred
embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments herein can be
practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the embodiments as described
herein.
Throughout this specification the word “comprise”, or variations such as “comprises”
or “comprising”, will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated element, integer
or step, or group of elements, integers or steps, but not the exclusion of any other
element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps.
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The use of the expression “at least” or “at least one” suggests the use of one or more
elements or ingredients or quantities, as the use may be in the embodiment of the
disclosure to achieve one or more of the desired objects or results.
Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles and the like that has been
included in this specification is solely for the purpose of providing a context for the
disclosure. It is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters form a
part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the
disclosure as it existed anywhere before the priority date of this application. The
numerical values mentioned for the various physical parameters, dimensions or
quantities are only approximations and it is envisaged that the values higher/lower than
the numerical values assigned to the parameters, dimensions or quantities fall within the
scope of the disclosure, unless there is a statement in the specification specific to the
contrary.
While considerable emphasis has been placed herein on the particular features of this
disclosure, it will be appreciated that various modifications can be made, and that many
changes can be made in the preferred embodiments without departing from the
principles of the disclosure. These and other modifications in the nature of the disclosure
or the preferred embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the
disclosure herein, whereby it is to be distinctly understood that the foregoing descriptive
matter is to be interpreted merely as illustrative of the disclosure and not as a limitation.
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LIST OF REFERNCE NUMERALS
A lamp assembly (1)
A Reflector (2)
Front end of Reflector (2a)
Rear end of Reflector (2b)
A Lens (3)
An Upper Region (4)
A Lower Region (5)
A Light Source (6)
A vertically oriented breather
hole
(7)
An Upper Parabola (8)
A Lower Parabola (9)
Adjusting Mechanism (10,11)
Nut (10)
Adjusting Screw (11)
Bracket (12)

We Claim:
1. A lamp assembly (1) for an automobile comprising:
- a reflector (2) having a reflecting surface ,
- a lens (3) located in front of the reflector (2); the lens (3) has an axis (X-X)
passing through center and defining the lamp assembly (1) into an upper
region (4) and a lower region (5)
- a light source (6) disposed in the reflector (2) , at a location laterally offset
towards the lower region (5) from the axis (X-X) of the lamp assembly(1)
- a breather hole (7) formed in the reflector (2) being located in the upper
region(4); wherein the vertically oriented breather hole (7) is having an axis
(H-H) perpendicular to an axis (Y-Y) of the light source (6) to facilitate
escape of hot air from the interior of lamp assembly(1) to atmosphere.
2. The lamp assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1 wherein the reflector (2) comprises:
- an upper parabola (8) located in the upper region (4)
- a lower parabola (9) located in the lower region (5)
having a focal point different from focal point of the upper parabola (8) (12).
3. The lamp assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1 wherein the light source (6) is
placed between focal points of the upper parabola (8) and lower parabola (9).
4. The lamp assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1 comprises an adjusting mechanism
(10,11) for adjusting the reflector (2) in specific direction.
5. The lamp assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1 wherein the adjusting screw (10,11)
is supported by the reflector body (2) and engaged with the nut (10).
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6. The lamp assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1 wherein the lamp assembly (1) is
mounted on a vehicle using a bracket (12).
7. The lamp assembly (1) as claimed in claim 1 wherein the light source(6) is
equidistant from the focal point of the upper parabola (8) and the lower parabola
(9).