POAL design with inner mask part, enables the emblem to be illuminated in different ways in combinations of solid metal finish and transparent metal finishes for illumination to show through. Can be combined with colored emblem areas.
Either entire emblem area can be illuminated, due to the even lightguide illumination or inner areas or outer areas of the emblem can be illuminated controlled by the outer emblem finishing and the inner mask design.
Map Pocket, Cup Holder Illuminations & 2M+ Long Light (All Information POM Proprietary)
POAL uses computer optical design software for advanced 3D “un- constrained” optical raytracing, photometric analysis and imaging systems design. Optical ray tracing and photometric mapping routines give real-world simulation results of the optical system to demonstrate the design performance and in many cases remove the need for prototyping before moving to production tooling.
POAL has supplied several interior illumination systems for Nissan, JLR, Bentley, Audi, etc. which has given them a good technical insight to the styling trends and technical requirements to achieve the OEMs’ goals.
All the projects POAL currently works on are custom developed for the OEM’s target vehicle, so the developments are very much project lead. However, POAL has created technology demonstrators to show its illumination capabilities outside of the current state of the art.
Ring and Cup Holder Illumination
To respond to one of the major needs for vehicle interior illumination styling, POAL has developed a lightguide based solution to give a uniformly illuminated, complete 360O ring of illumination. This technology only uses one LED to illuminate the entire 360O ring of even, seamless illumination PCBA with single LED and driver electronics.
In the final design, this assembly would be reduced to a ring with a 6x6mm cross section around the ring, so can be fitted around transmission shift bezels, etc.
POAL’s patented GloWorm® Technology:
It has a wide range of applications where specific areas of a vehicle interior are to be illuminated with a defined footprint of light, such as arm rests, console walls, door pocket interiors, etc.
The POAL’s patented GloWorm® technique is applied as an intricate laser etched pattern, defined by POAL’s own in-house developed software and machining techniques.
This allows POAL to:
- Directly laser etch the patterns to rapid prototyped lightguide substrates, made by POAL’s optical prototyping methods, to demonstrate the illumination performance early in the vehicle program.
- Directly laser etch the patterns to first off-tool injection molded “blank” lightguide substrates to demonstrate the illumination performance at vehicle check and first approval stages.
- Laser etch the final patterns on to the injection mold tool surfaces for final illumination approval and final vehicle approval stages ready for SOP.
- In this way, POAL can adjust the illumination performance and the harmonious balance between various illuminations in the vehicle throughout the vehicle development stages, to accommodate changes in graining and geometry of the illumination target surfaces.
Long Lightguides
POAL’s lightguide technology can be used to make injection molded illumination systems of around 1m in length for long door and console interior ambient lighting applications. POAL uses direct laser patterning at the prototype stages to develop the illumination performance, before laser pattering the tooling surfaces for mass manufacture. For illuminations longer the 1m different manufacturing techniques are required.
POAL has identified potential markets for lightguides longer then 1m in length for vehicle interior ambient lighting application. These 2m+ length lightguides have been proposed to illuminate vehicle roof bars, running boards and other exterior styling features.
Obviously, optical and mechanical components that are 2m+ in length cannot economically be injection molded, so POAL has started development of alternative manufacturing techniques to provide extremely long lightguide solutions in a mechanically packaged product to survive the vehicle exterior environment
The exterior housing of the illumination system will be extruded to enable a wide choice of materials to be used, to suit the optical and environmental specifications of the system and the system can be made flexible to accommodate the curves of the vehicle exterior
This further allows simple mechanical features to be added to provide ease of the product assembly, easy assembly into the target vehicle, wiring retention and hermetic sealing of the system for environmental protection of the illumination system (as shown in the schematic diagram below)
The POAL’s patented GloWorm® technology can also be used in this application, since its capability to control the direction of the illumination from the lightguide, as well as the beam width and intensity along the lightguide length, allows the illumination foot-print onto the inside of the diffuser housing of the long lightguide assembly to be controlled.
This advanced control of the light extraction and targeting of the beam makes the illumination very efficient and to illuminate a 2m+ lightguide system with a single LED at one end.
Reducing the number of LEDs to only one makes packaging the system easier, reduces the wiring requirements and gives opportunities for the LED light engine to be a serviceable item, if required.
For more information go to Polymer Optics Limited (POL) WEB page or write to designhmi@gmail.com and will forward you want to POM.
All design information here is 100% proprietary to Polymer Optics Limited (POL).
POAL’s laser etched patterns allow the structures to be easily prototyped and applied to first-off moldings and fully test before machining the tool steel. This gives a more adjustable and more reliable light control application.
POAL designed the Discovery 5 lightguides with improved light input features (factor 2x more efficient) and replaced the prismatic features with laser etched light control patterns.
POL/POAL has developed light control techniques to give fine control of light distribution and evenness of displays. Dot density distribution and light scattering properties of the etched dots can be varied to control illumination extraction and evenness. Patterns can be etched directly to plastics for prototyping stages, too.
A few features:
- 500mm long lightguide illuminated from one end only, saving cost in the electronics and wiring harness.
- Laser etched tool surfaces provide precise light extraction and intensity in areas where required.
- Cross-section of lightguide designed for easy clipping into assembly with no light losses.
- Lightguide is hard coated for abrasion and chemical resistance against various reagents.
- Design for Assembly (DFA) and Poka Yoke techniques used to reduce cost and ensure reliability.
The POAL GloWorm® technology has a wide range of applications – for example, in a typical door pocket illumination design, where the lightguide is mounted in the pocket edge to illuminate the facia of the door lining, the shape of the door facia will change the distance between the lightguide and target surface. This will give a variation in the illumination brightness and foot-print width across the door facia target surface. However, with POAL’s GloWorm® technology, you can control the illumination brightness, width and position at every point across the door facia, to give an optimum, uniform, aesthetically pleasing, illumination scheme.
GloWorm®’s capability to control the direction of the illumination as well as the beam width and intensity along the lightguide, the illumination foot-print to be shaped to the target surface.
This beam shaping can be used to control the beam footprint on contoured target surfaces but can also be used to create a straight illumination area from a shaped lightguide path.
POAL’s 360 degrees lightguides, illuminated bezels and many other interior and exterior lighting features can be combined with transparent chromium and other decorative finishes.
These decorative finishes have to be carefully designed in to the target illumination system, to compensate for the light filtering effects of the chromium coatings and to take best advantage of the decorative effects provided by the bright chromium or satin finishes.
Optical:
- Excellent transparency giving high light transport efficiency.
- No yellowing under high temperatures and prolonged high UV exposure
- High color and mechanical stability gives prolonged product life
Mechanical:
- Flexible resins giving high impact resistance
- Thick and thin component sections can be molded accurately with no sinks.
- Flexibility of the resin allows undercuts to be accommodated in the part design.
- Seals can be molded into the optic, reducing need for secondary sealing on assemblies.
- Optics have intrinsic vibration dampening and shock resistance.
- Minimal compression set under deformation loads.
- Enables over-molding onto light sources and other components.
- Hardness – 70 Shore A and other hardness available for specialist applications
Environmental:
- High thermal resistance from -40°C to 150°C
- High chemical resistance
For more information contact https://www.polymer-optics.co.uk/ or write to designhmi@gmail.com.
