JPH076732A - Bent fluorescent lamp and lighting fixture using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Object] To provide a bent fluorescent lamp capable of preventing color unevenness and see-through, and also preventing reduction in strength, and a lighting fixture using the same. A bendable fluorescent lamp 1 in which a phosphor coating 15 is formed on the inner surface of a bulb 10 having straight portions 11 at both ends and communicating portions 12 for communicating these straight portions with each other.
At, the film thickness t of the phosphor in the communication section 12 is
It is characterized in that it is not less than 8.0 μm and not more than the film thickness T of the phosphor in the linear portion 11. [Function] Since the thickness of the fluorescent material in the communicating portion becomes thicker and the difference from the film thickness of the fluorescent material in the straight portion becomes smaller, color unevenness is eliminated and the communicating portion is no longer visible. Moreover, since the film thickness is increased, the mechanical strength is improved.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a bent fluorescent lamp in which a fluorescent film is formed on the inner surface of a bent bulb such as a U-shape, and a lighting fixture using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, a fluorescent lamp (referred to as a compact type) formed by bending a bulb into a U-shape, an H-shape, a W-shape or the like is becoming widespread. This type of fluorescent lamp has a linear portion at both ends of a bulb, and an electrode is sealed at one end of each of the linear portions and the other end is connected to each other by a connecting portion such as a bent portion. And a phosphor coating is formed on the inner surface of the bulb.

In such a bent fluorescent lamp,
When a phosphor coating is formed on the inner surface of the bulb, the coating solution of the phosphor is injected into the bulb from the opening end with the opening end of the straight portion facing upward, and when the coating solution fills the bulb. The valve is turned upside down to allow the excess coating liquid to flow out from the opening end, whereby the inner surface of the valve is wetted with the coating liquid and is coated on the inner surface of the valve. And
While the open end is held in a downward posture, drying air is blown into the valve through the open end, so-called air blowing is performed to dry the coating liquid.

As a coating solution, a solution prepared by dissolving a phosphor powder in an organic solvent is sometimes used. However, since the organic solvent is troublesome to handle due to accidents such as fire and the like, a water-soluble coating solution has recently been used. Tend to use. However, since the water-soluble phosphor coating liquid dries slowly, the air blowing is used to accelerate the drying.

However, even if such an air blow is adopted, the coating liquid flows down along the wall surface of the valve in the course of drying, so that the coating film in the communicating portion located above becomes relatively thin, In comparison with this, the linear portion located below tends to have a thick coating film thickness.

[0006]

If the film thickness of the communicating portion becomes too thin, the ability to convert ultraviolet rays into visible light deteriorates and color unevenness occurs depending on the position of the bulb.
It may be seen through during lighting and the appearance will be significantly degraded. Particularly, in the case of a luminaire in which one side direction of this type of lamp is covered with a reflector and light is emitted from the other side direction, there are conspicuous defects such as color unevenness and see-through.

In addition to the fact that the communicating portion is originally a place where stress is likely to occur, if the thickness of the fluorescent film here is thin, the mechanical strength is lowered, and there is a problem that it is easily damaged. The present invention has been made based on such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a bent fluorescent lamp and a bent fluorescent lamp capable of preventing color unevenness and see-through, and also preventing reduction in strength. It is intended to provide the used lighting equipment.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, in the bending type fluorescent lamp according to claim 1, the thickness t of the phosphor in the communicating portion is 8.0 μm or more, and in the straight portion. It is characterized in that the thickness of the phosphor is T or less. Further, in the bending type fluorescent lamp according to claim 2, when the film thickness of the phosphor in the communicating portion is t and the film thickness of the phosphor in the straight portion is T, 0.28 ≦ t / T ≦. It is characterized in that it is set to 1. The lighting fixture according to claim 3 comprises the bent fluorescent lamp according to claim 1 or 2, and a reflector that covers one side of the lamp and emits light from the other side. Is characterized by.

[0009]

According to the bent fluorescent lamp of the present invention, the thickness of the fluorescent material in the communicating portion becomes thicker and the difference from the thickness of the fluorescent material in the straight portion becomes smaller, so that the uneven color is eliminated. At the same time, the communication part is not seen through and the film thickness is increased, so that the mechanical strength is improved. Further, according to the luminaire of the present invention, it is possible to eliminate the color unevenness and see-through of the lamp, so that the variations in color and brightness are eliminated, and the light distribution characteristics are improved.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below based on the first embodiment shown in FIGS. FIG. 1 shows a U-shaped fluorescent lamp 1. In the figure, reference numeral 10 is a U-shaped bulb. The valve 10 has straight portions 11, 1 at both ends.
1, and these straight line portions 11 and 11 are connected to each other by a communication portion 12 formed of a bent portion. Straight parts 11, 11
Electrodes 14, 14 supported by the stems 13, 13 are sealed at their respective ends.

A fluorescent film 15 is formed on the inner surface of the bulb 10. Although it is desirable that the film thickness of the phosphor film be uniform over the entire surface of the bulb, a film thickness difference occurs due to variations during molding. However, in the case of the present embodiment, the thickness t of the phosphor in the communicating portion 12 is 9.0 μm, and the linear portion 1
The film thickness T of the phosphor in 1 is 28 μm on average, and t / T = 0.32.

In the conventional case, the film thickness t of the phosphor in the communicating portion 12 is about 7.5 μm on average, and the film thickness T of the phosphor in the linear portion 11 is 28 μm on average.
It was t / T = 0.268. Therefore, in the case of the present embodiment, the film thickness in the straight line portion 11 is the same as the conventional one,
The film thickness in the communication part 12 is larger than that in the conventional case, and the film thickness difference between the straight part 11 and the communication part 12 is small.

The difference in film thickness of the phosphor coating between the linear portion 11 and the communicating portion 12 can be reduced by using the drying method shown in FIG. That is, 30 in FIG.
This is a device for drying a phosphor coating, and a bent valve 10 having an inner surface coated with a water-soluble phosphor coating liquid is used to connect a valve holder 31 and a valve hook 32 to a communicating portion 1 of the valve.
2 is held upward, and the straight portion 11 is held downward.
Air for drying is blown into the inside of the valve 11 by the internal blowing device 33 from the opening at the lower end of the valve 10. At this time, air for drying is blown from above the communication part 12 toward the outer surface of the communication part 12 by the external blower 34.

The air blown from the internal blower 33 into the valve 10 has a temperature of room temperature and a flow velocity of about 5.0 m / sec. The air blown from the external blower 34 to the outer surface of the communicating portion 12 has a temperature of room temperature and a flow velocity of about 3 to 7.0 m / sec.

As described above, when the external blow is performed simultaneously with the internal blow, the temperature of the communicating portion 12 is supplemented by the external blow. That is, when the phosphor dries,
Evaporation of water removes a considerable amount of heat and cools the outer surface of the valve so that the outer surface becomes cloudy with water. Therefore, in order to supplement the heat taken away, air is blown from the outside and the heat is supplied by this air. That is, the communication section 12 is partially heated by external blow, and as a result, the phosphor coating liquid applied to the communication section 12 is prompted to dry.

In this case, however, the high temperature air (10
When sprayed at 0 to 300 ° C., dripping and unevenness of the film thickness become remarkable, and the film surface of the surface deteriorates. This is because the valve is rapidly heated, so that the drying of the coating liquid layer near the surface of the velve rapidly starts and the viscosity of the coating liquid sharply decreases. Therefore, the temperature of the blown air is preferably about room temperature.

FIG. 3 is a graph showing the relationship between the blow air flow rate of the external blow and the drying time. From this characteristic, the effect of reducing the drying time appears when the flow rate of the external blow is 1 to 3 m / sec.

FIG. 4 is a graph showing the relationship between the flow rate of blown air from the external blower and the amount of adhering phosphor. From this figure, the adhering amount of the phosphor increases up to a flow rate of the external blow of about 7 m / sec.

FIG. 5 shows the relationship between the blow air flow rate of the external blow and the film thickness of the phosphor. From the figure,
Even if the air flow rate of the external blow changes, the film thickness of the linear portion 11 hardly changes, and is about 28 μm on average. On the other hand, the film thickness of the communication part 12 increases as the air flow velocity of the external blow increases, and the film thickness increases until the flow velocity reaches about 7 m / sec. And, the film thickness of the communicating portion 12 is about 7.5 μm on average in the conventional case (the air flow rate of the external blow is zero), but becomes 8.0 to 12 μm when the external blowing method is used. The film thickness of 12 becomes large.

From the above, in the fluorescent lamp 1 of the above-mentioned embodiment, the difference between the film thickness of the communicating portion 12 and the film thickness of the straight portion 11 becomes small, so that the function of converting ultraviolet rays into visible light is different. The occurrence of color unevenness between the communicating portion 12 and the straight portion 11 is prevented. Further, since the communication portion 12 has a large film thickness, it cannot be seen through during lighting,
The appearance is also improved. FIG. 6 shows the results of the appearance test based on the thickness of the phosphor, and is a table for determining whether or not 10 test persons can see through the eyes. From this table, it is judged that when the film thickness of the phosphor coating 15 is less than 8.0 μm, the film can be seen through or is easily seen through. Therefore, the film thickness is preferably 8.0 μm or more.

Further, the communication portion 12 has a high mechanical strength due to the coating of the phosphor, and the strength increases as the film thickness increases. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the communication portion 12 from being damaged because stress is likely to be concentrated. If the film thickness of the phosphor becomes too thick, the amount of light decreases due to self-absorption by the phosphor. Therefore, the straight portion 11
The film thickness of is preferably about 28 μm.

Therefore, in the bent fluorescent lamp 1, if the film thickness t of the fluorescent material in the communicating portion 12 is set to be 8.0 μm or more and the film thickness t of the fluorescent material in the linear portion 11 is set to be equal to or less than the film thickness T, the color unevenness is obtained. It is prevented from seeing through, and the mechanical strength is improved. Expressing this as a film thickness ratio, if the film thickness of the phosphor in the communicating portion is t and the film thickness of the phosphor in the straight portion is T, then 0.28 ≦ t / T ≦ 1 should be satisfied. become.

Compact fluorescent lamp 1 as described above
Is incorporated into a reflector 20 as shown in FIG. 7 and used as, for example, a stand lighting fixture. The reflector 20 forms a shade with an open lower surface, and accommodates the fluorescent lamp 1 in a horizontal state. Therefore, the fluorescent lamp 1 is covered with the reflector 20 on the upper surface side.

In the case of such a lighting fixture, if there is uneven color between the linear portion 11 and the communicating portion 12 of the lamp 1, the reflector 20 is
The light that is reflected by and illuminates the lower part also has uneven color and uneven brightness. On the other hand, when the fluorescent lamp 1 shown in FIG. 1 is used, color unevenness is eliminated between the straight line portion 11 and the communication portion 12, so that there is no color unevenness and brightness unevenness in the light radiated downward, The light distribution characteristics are improved.

Although a U-shaped fluorescent lamp has been described in the above embodiment, the present invention may be a W-shaped fluorescent lamp. Further, the present invention may be an H-shaped fluorescent lamp shown in FIG. The H-shaped fluorescent lamp 30 is formed by joining two straight tube-shaped glass tubes 31, 31 by a fusion-bonding portion 32 in the vicinity of their closed ends, and the discharge path has a substantially bent shape. Therefore, it can be considered as one of the bent fluorescent lamps of the present invention.
In this case, the phosphor coating 35 is applied to each straight glass tube 3 before being joined by the fusion joint 32 in advance.
It is formed on the inner surfaces of Nos. 1 and 31, and then the glass walls are heated and melted and blown off, and the glass walls are joined at the blown-off points. However, when the phosphor coating is formed on the inner surface of each straight tube type glass tube 31, 31, each tube 31, 31 has one end closed, so that the open end is closed as in the case shown in FIG. The phosphor coating solution is dried facing downward. Therefore, the film thickness of the inner surface of the closed end portion side tends to be thin. Therefore, by adopting the method of FIG. 2 and increasing the film thickness on the closed end side, that is, the communication side, the same effect as in the case of the U-shaped fluorescent lamp 1 can be obtained.

[0026]

As described above, according to the present invention, the film thickness of the phosphor in the communicating portion becomes thicker and the difference from the film thickness of the phosphor in the straight portion becomes smaller, so that the uneven color is eliminated. At the same time, the communicating portion is not seen through and the film thickness is increased, so that the mechanical strength is improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a U-shaped fluorescent lamp showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

2A and 2B show an apparatus for drying the phosphor film of the embodiment, in which FIG. 2A is a front view and FIG. 2B is a side view.

FIG. 3 is a characteristic diagram showing a relationship between an air flow rate of an external blow and a drying time.

FIG. 4 is a characteristic diagram showing the relationship between the air flow rate of external blow and the amount of adhering phosphor.

FIG. 5 is a characteristic diagram showing the relationship between the air velocity of an external blow and the film thickness of the phosphor.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a result of a test of a transparent condition.

FIG. 7 shows a second embodiment of the present invention and is a cross-sectional view of a lighting fixture in which a fluorescent lamp is incorporated in a reflector.

FIG. 8 is a front view of an H-shaped fluorescent lamp showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... U-shaped fluorescent lamp 10 ... Bulb 11 ... Straight part 1
2 ... Communication part 14 ... Electrode 15 ... Fluorescent film 20 ... Reflector 30 ... H-shaped fluorescent lamp

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A bent fluorescent lamp having a phosphor coating formed on the inner surface of a bulb having straight portions at both ends and having communicating portions for communicating these straight portions with each other. A bent fluorescent lamp having a film thickness t of 8.0 μm or more and a film thickness T or less of a phosphor in a straight line portion. 2. A bent fluorescent lamp having a phosphor coating on the inner surface of a bulb having straight portions at both ends and having communicating portions for communicating these straight portions with each other. The bent fluorescent lamp is characterized in that: 0.28 ≦ t / T ≦ 1 where t is the film thickness and T is the film thickness of the phosphor in the straight line portion. 3. A bent fluorescent lamp according to claim 1 or 2, and a reflector that covers one side of the lamp and emits light from the other side. lighting equipment.