Lighting Module and Strip Light Technical Field

The present invention relates to a lighting module and a strip light comprising at least one such lighting module.

Background Art

With the development of the LED illumination technology, the LED illuminating devices are used more and more as light sources in various circumstances, such as daily bulb, small- sized spot light and stage lighting. With further exploration of the illuminating devices, LED illuminating devices having linearly arranged light sources attract more and more atten- tion in the aspect of encapsulation, and higher and higher requirements are put on their industrial protection such as waterproof and dustproof. In order to satisfy the require ^¬ ments in the aspect of industrial protection of such illumi ^¬ nating devices, various different ways are used in the prior art to seal the illuminating devices.

It is proposed according to one solution in the prior art that in order to seal the illuminating devices, the PU poly- urethane glue is used as material for sealing the illuminat ^¬ ing devices so as to realize that the sealed devices meet the requirements of the industrial protection. The PU polyure- thane glue is a material generally used and widely used in the flexible strips using the LED technology. The PU glue seals the LED chip together with the drive circuit so as to realize sealing of the LED strip and meet the industrial pro- tection standard. However, at the same time, the PU material as the emergent surface of light from the LED chip will in ^¬ evitably cause CCT color temperature shift and also will mag- nify the CCT color temperature range. For realizing good il ^¬ lumination effect, all the problems should be solved or avoided in the field of LED illuminating devices.

Summary of the Invention

In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention provides a novel lighting module. The novel light ^¬ ing module is designed using an improved structure and has high light transmission, and therefore can ensure good illu ^¬ mination effect. In addition, due to the improved design of such lighting module, light emitted from such lighting module prevents the change of the CCT color temperature or magnify ^¬ ing the range due to the encapsulation glue as much as possi ^¬ ble, and also avoids the change of color aberration effec ^¬ tively, moreover, requirements of the flexible strip for re- alizing different light distribution are also met.

The first object of the present invention is realized via a lighting module, comprising a light source, a lens assigned to the light source, a circuit board and an encapsulation ma ^¬ terial, wherein the lens and the circuit board define a space accommodating the light source, the encapsulation material encapsulates the circuit board and part of the lens, and light from the light source emerges at least in part directly through the lens. Since the encapsulation material partially encapsulates the lens, light from the light source inside the lighting module can emerge not passing through the encapsula ^¬ tion material, while it emerges directly through the par ^¬ tially encapsulated lens, thus, it can reduce or even avoid the possibility that the encapsulation material exerts unnec ^¬ essary influence on the emergent light. In one preferred solution according to the present invention, a top area of the lens facing away from the circuit board is exposed outside to the encapsulation material. The encapsula ^¬ tion material configured in this way makes one part of the lens to be encapsulated, and the other part to be exposed as an emergent surface of the lighting unit. Therefore, not only the requirement that the lens is fixed in the encapsulation material can be met, but also it can ensure that the encapsu ^¬ lation material will not affect the emergent light to the best extent.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the lens comprises a circumferential area which is in sealing connection with the encapsulation material. To provide the encapsulation material in the circumferential area of the lens, the lighting unit accommodated by the lens can be well sealed circumferentially, and the lens can be fixed circum- ferentially.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the circumferential area has an anti-stripping structure, and the lens is in form-fitted connection with the encapsulation material by means of the anti-stripping structure. The anti- stripping structure, with help of its shape, is sealed in the encapsulation material; as a result, the lens connected with the anti-stripping structure is also firmly connected with the encapsulation material.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the lens has a main body protruding away from the circuit board and a fixed part extending from a circumferential edge of the main body, and the anti-stripping structure is formed on the fixed part. By means of the fixed part extending from the main body of the lens, and the anti-stripping structure provided on the fixed part, the fixed part can appropriately cooperate with the encapsulation material so that the lens can be firmly connected on the circuit board.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the anti-stripping structure is at least one groove formed on the fixed part. Through the configuration with the shape of groove, the anti-stripping structure can be in appropriate connection with the encapsulation material and can well form an engagement effect, therefore, the function of stabilizing connection between the lens and the encapsulation material is achieved. A plurality of grooves can form a wave or sawtooth array. Besides, the anti-stripping structure also can be con ^¬ figured to have other suitable shapes such as barb.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the fixed part is encapsulated by the encapsulation material. Such configuration enables the fixed part to be included in the encapsulation material, and the fixed part will not eas ^¬ ily move in the encapsulated situation, improving stability and reliability of connection between the lens and the encap ^¬ sulation material and the circuit board.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, a positioning structure is present between the lens and the circuit board. The positioning structure provides another way for the lens to be fixed with the circuit board; conse ^¬ quently, it guarantees that the lens, during the process of being encapsulated by the encapsulation material, will not be offset in position from the light source such as LED chip, for example, an optical axis of the lens and an optical axis of the light source are ensured to coincide.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the positioning structure comprises positioning poles extend- ing from the lens to one side of the circuit board and corre- sponding holes opened on the circuit board. By inserting the positioning poles in the holes on the circuit board, the lens can be connected with the circuit board; as a result, the lens can be fixed with the circuit board in directions along and perpendicular to the circuit board. Besides, this simple configuration not only realizes a simple and effective con ^¬ nection manner, but also saves the limited space on the cir ^¬ cuit board and the lens.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the positioning poles are integrated with the circuit board by hot melt process. Through the hot melt process, the posi ^¬ tioning poles can be further connected with the circuit board, so that connection between the lens and the circuit board is physically realized, enhancing the stable mechanical performance of the lighting module.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the light source is LED chip. The LED technology, as highly effective energy-saving means, provides a reliable illuminat ^¬ ing way to the lighting unit, not only has a small volume and will not take too much physical space, but also can stably emit light under the protection of the encapsulation material, and ensure a good illumination effect.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the circuit board is a flexible circuit board. The flexible circuit board endows the lighting module with good physical flexibility and can meet various requirements to shape so that the illumination function can be successfully realized in various complex circumstances.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the encapsulation material is PU glue. The encapsulation ma- ,

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terial using the PU glue has good flexibility and can be well adapted to various deformation states of the flexible circuit board so as to realize the function of smooth operation in complex application circumstances. Besides, this material also has good thermal conductivity and insulation so that stable operation environment of the lighting module is as ^¬ sured .

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, a plurality of optical units are provided , which comprise the light source and the lens assigned to the light

source , respectively. By providing lenses on different light sources, possibility of protecting respective light sources can be achieved; therefore, light emitted from each light source cannot be affected by the encapsulation material. In one preferred solution according to the present invention, a plurality of optical units are provided , which comprise at least one of the light source and the lens assigned to the at least one of the light source, respectively.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the light sources are arranged in a linear array on the cir ^¬ cuit board. The linear shape enables the light sources to be installed on the circuit board in the smallest space as much as possible such that the surface area of the circuit board is reduced, thus, design of the lighting unit is simpler, and a wide-range illumination effect is realized.

In one preferred solution according to the present invention, the circuit board further has wires for connection with a power supply. Such configuration enables the wires and the circuit board to be integrated together in the encapsulation material so as to achieve the effect of simple design and en ^¬ sure good insulation of the circuit board.

In addition, the present invention further provides a strip light characterized in that the strip light comprises at least one lighting module as mentioned. The strip light has such configuration has good flexibility so that it can be adapted to various specific application circumstances, has good illumination effect, and meanwhile can provide illumina- tion effect without color aberration or CCT shift.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The accompanying drawings constitute a part of the present Description and are used to provide further understanding of the present invention. Such accompanying drawings illustrate the embodiments of the present invention and are used to de ^¬ scribe the principles of the present invention together with the Description. In the accompanying drawings the same compo ^¬ nents are represented by the same reference numbers. As shown in the drawings : Fig. 1 is a top view of a strip light according to one embodiment of the present invention; and

Fig. 2 is a side view of a single lighting module according to one embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description of the Embodiments

In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. In this regard, direc ^¬ tional terminology, such as "top", "bottom", "upper", "lower", is used in reference to the orientation of the fig ^¬ ures being described. Because components of embodiments of the present invention can be positioned in a number of dif ^¬ ferent orientations, the directional terminology is used for purposes of illustration and is in no way limiting. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural or logical changes may made without departing from the scope of the present invention. The following detailed description, therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims.

Fig. 1 is a top view of a strip light 200 according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Fig. 1, the strip light 200 according to one embodiment of the present invention has a plurality of lighting modules 100, each lighting module 100 has a light source 1 and a lens 2 as ^¬ signed to the light source 1, each lens 2 has a space R which is defined by the lens 2 and the circuit board 3, and the light sources 1 are accommodated in these spaces R, respec- tively. In an unshown embodiment, each space accommodates two or more light sources. By using the light sources 1 of LED chips, not only the purpose of saving energy can be achieved, but also the function of providing highly effective illumina ^¬ tion can be realized. Furthermore, the plurality of light sources 1 and a plurality of corresponding lens 2 are ar ^¬ ranged linearly on the circuit board 3. The circuit board 3 uses the flexible circuit board as material, and can be adapted to various application circumstances requiring physi ^¬ cal deformation. The PU glue is used as an encapsulation ma- terial 4. The PU glue has good flexibility, insulation and thermal conductivity. With the help of the PU glue, the lenses 2, the light sources 1 covered by the lenses 2, and the circuit board 3 are encapsulated, while each lens 2 is only partially encapsulated circumferentially, thus, light from the light sources 1 can be directly emitted through the lenses 2. In addition, wires 3.2 for connecting the circuit board 3 and power supply are also encapsulated in the strip light 200, realizing good insulating performance.

Fig. 2 is a side view of a single lighting module 100 accord ^¬ ing to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Fig. 2, a top area of the lens 2 protrudes away from the cir ^¬ cuit board 3, and after the lens 2 is encapsulated by the en- capsulation material 4, only the top area is exposed outside of the encapsulation material 4, and the circumferential area of the lens 2 is in sealing connection with the encapsulation material 4. Further, it can be seen that the lens 2 comprises an anti-stripping structure 2.1, a main body 2.2 and a fixed part 2.3. The main body 2.2 is in direct connection and con ^¬ tact with the circuit board 3, faces away from the circuit board 3 in an arching shape, and forms in the space surround ^¬ ing thereby the space R accommodating the light source 1. The anti-stripping structure 2.1 is configured to be in a wave structure composed of a plurality of grooves, which grooves can be arranged in the circumferential area of the lens 2 in a predetermined form, e.g. arranged parallelly or in a wave type. By means of the anti-stripping structure 2.1, the lens 2 can be in form-fitted connection with the encapsulation ma- terial 4, and fastening connection is realized and connection effectiveness is ensured. The fixed part 2.3 extends out ^¬ wardly from the circumferential edge of the main body 2.2 of the lens 2, and is in direct connection and big-area contact with the circuit board 3. The anti-stripping structure 2.1 is formed on the fixed part 2.3, as a result, the fixed part 2.3 is at least partially, completely in the present embodiment, encapsulated by the encapsulation material 4, and the lens 2, via the fixed part 2.3 and the anti-stripping structure 2.1 thereon, is in firm connection with the encapsulation material 4. Due to presence of such form-fitted connection be ^¬ tween the lens 2 and the encapsulation material 4, the light ^¬ ing module 100 has high stability and can meet requirements of illumination circumstances as many as possible.

In addition, it also can be seen from Fig. 2 that a positioning structure is arranged between the lens 2 and the circuit board 3. The positioning structure comprises positioning poles 2.4 and corresponding holes 3.1. The positioning poles 2.4 are formed on the lens 2, specifically, they extend from one side facing to the circuit board 3, and the positioning poles 2.4 can be arranged in pairs to ensure capability of stable connection on the circuit board 3. The holes 3.1 are opened on the circuit board 3 and can be arranged in pairs, and a distance between each pair of the holes 3.1 is the same as a distance between each pair of the positioning poles 2.4 on the lens 2, and they are corresponding respectively, therefore, it can be ensured that positioning poles 2.4 can be precisely inserted in the holes 3.1 as shown, respec- tively. Such configuration can guarantee, to the greatest ex ^¬ tent, during the installation and encapsulation process, that an optical axis of the lens 2 is not offset from an optical axis of the light source 1 due to an external force. Besides, the positioning poles 2.4 can be integrated with the circuit board 3 by hot melt process, and such physical connection not only can simplify the manufacturing process, but also can ensure effective connection in a limited space.

The above is merely preferred embodiments of the present in ^¬ vention but not to limit the present invention. For the per- son skilled in the art, the present invention may have vari ^¬ ous alterations and changes. Any alterations, equivalent sub ^¬ stitutions, improvements, within the spirit and principle of the present invention, should be covered in the protection scope of the present invention.

List of reference signs

1 light source

2 lens

3 circuit board

4 encapsulation material

2.1 anti-stripping structure

2.2 main body

2.3 fixed part

2.4 positioning pole

3.1 hole

3.2 wire

100 lighting module

200 strip light