may be formed in various structures. For example, the connection part 42 may be provided with a protruded part 42a having a semicylindrical tip formed at one side of the periphery of the housing 40, while the connection part 43 may be provided with a semicylindrical recessed part 43a formed at a tip of a support piece 44b protruded outward from the other side of the periphery of the housing 40. On an upper surface of the protruded part 42a having the semicylindrical tip, it is preferred to form a support piece 44a protruded outward from the periphery of the housing 40, from a viewpoint of holding strength of the protruded part 42a having the semicylindrical tip. A semicircle of the semicylindrical recessed part 43a is preferred to be slightly over 180 degrees within a range capable of being elastically fitted with the semicylindrical tip. For connecting such connection parts 42 and 43, the semicylindrical tip of the next housing 40 may be pushed from above into the semicylindrical recessed part 43a of the housing 40 positioned to the LED substrate in advance. The connection may also be performed by combining lateral movement of the protruded part 42a having the semicylindrical tip towards the semicylindrical recessed part 43a.

As the connection parts 42 and 43 other than those described above, for example, the connection part 42 may be provided with a columnar part (not shown) formed on a lower face of the support piece 44a protruded outward from one side of the periphery of the housing 40, while the connection part 43 may be provided with a columnar hole part (not shown) formed in the support piece 44b protruded outward from the other side of the periphery of the housing 40. The cross-sectional shapes of the columnar part and the columnar hole part are not limited and May be a circle or a polygon such as a square and a hexagon. For connecting such connection parts 42 and 43, the columnar part of the next housing 40 may be pushed from above into the columnar hole part of the housing 40 positioned to the LED substrate in advance, to be fitted therewith.

The connection parts 42 and 43 are preferred to be set to effect connection when the distance between the centers of the adjoining housings 40 meets the prescribed value, from viewpoints of positioning and fixing. From a viewpoint of assembly workability, the adjoining housings 40 are allowed to be slightly moved relatively along a straight line passes through the center lines of the both adjoining housings 40 (i.e., along the direction of a radius of the housing 40). However, the housings 40 are preferred to be set not to deviate from the straight line passes thorough the both center lines.

Both sides of the upper part of the housing 40 are each provided with a lens positioning recessed part 45 to be fitted with the positioning protrusion 36 of the lens 30. The positioning protrusion 36 and the recessed part 45 may be formed in any shape or structure as long as they are capable of being fitted with each other for positioning, and for example, may be a V-shaped protrusion and a V-shaped recessed part. Both sides of the upper part of the housing 40 approximately at the center between the both lens positioning recessed parts 45 are each provided with the lens fixing pawl part 47 which corresponds to the fixing ditch 37 of the lens 30 (see FIGS. 5 and 6). The lens fixing pawl parts 47 is formed at the tip of the columnar part 46 with arc-shaped cross section which extends upward from the middle of the side face of the housing 40. At the tip of the columnar part 46, a tapered face part 48 which substantially adapts to the tapered part 35 of the lens 30 is formed so as to slightly protrude from the columnar part 46 towards the center of the housing 40. Accordingly, by pressing the lens 30 downward from above the housing 40 (from the light emitting side towards the light entering side), the tapered parts 35 of the lens 30 are brought into contact with the tapered face parts 48 at the tips of the columnar parts 46, and elastically push open the tapered face parts 48. Once the fixing ditches 37 of the lens 30 pass over the tapered face parts 48, the tapered face parts 48 elastically return to their original interval, and the protruded parts of the tapered face parts 48 fit with the fixing ditches 37. In this way, the lens 30 is fixed between the protruded parts of the tapered face parts 48 of the housing 40.

A lens positioning structure and a lens fixing structure in the housing are not limited to the above description, and any structure may be employed as long as positioning and fixing of the lens in the housing can be performed.

Material of the housing 40 may be various kinds of plastic but not limited thereto. Examples of plastic for the housing 40 include polycarbonate, a polyester resin such as PED, and polypropylene.

(LED Substrate)

A plurality of LEDs 10 are mounted on the LED substrate, and one housing 40 is disposed at each of the LEDs 10. The LED substrate 20 has one positioning hole 21 for each one of the housings 40. The LED to be mounted on the LED substrate is not limited and various LEDs such as a LED which emits natural light, infrared light, or ultraviolet light, and a LED having a phosphor film may be used depending on the usage of the LED illumination apparatus. The LED substrate 20 may have a LED mounting face 22 provided with a light-reflecting layer such as a white inorganic resist layer for efficiently using light emitted from the LEDs 10.

(Disposing of Plurality of Housings in LED Substrate)

A plurality of the housings 40 with the lenses 30 are positioned and fixed thereto, are disposed on the LED mounting face 22 of the LED substrate 20. At this time, the plurality of the housings 40 may be disposed in one or two or more linear, circular, semicircular or waveform lines. As shown in FIG. 8, the plurality of the housings 40 may be disposed over two or more LED substrates 20.

(Cover, Heat Sink)

Peripheral parts of the light emitting sides 34 of the lenses 30 and/or the light emitting sides of the housings 40 may be covered with a cover 60 to certainly hold the lenses 30. The cover 60 can partially or completely cover the lenses 30 or the housings 40 excluding the lens bodies 31. The cover 60 may be combined with the LED substrate 20 or with a heat sink 50 integrally formed with the LED substrate. The heat sink 50 may be formed in a known structure. Note that, it is possible to omit the cover 60 if the positioning projection 41 formed at the bottom face of the housing 40 and the positioning hole 21 formed in the LED substrate are tightly fitted with each other by interference fit which allows adjoining housings to strongly connect to each other.

Material of the cover 60 is not limited and may be various kinds. In a structure with the cover 60 covering the surface of the heat sink 50 as shown in FIG. 3, material of the cover 60 is preferred to be high-heat conductive similarly to the heat sink 50. Examples of such high-heat conductive material include high-heat conductive metal such as aluminum and copper, alloy of the metal, high-heat conductive ceramics such as silicon carbide and aluminum nitride, and a high-heat conductive composite material.

Second Embodiment

While the lens 30 in First Embodiment is shaped in a circle in a plan view, the lens 30 may be shaped in an oval in a plan view or a polygon such as a square in a plan view and a hexagon in a plan view. In this case, a shape of the housing 40 in a plan view can be correspondingly changed. While the number of the lenses 30 or the housings 40 and the number of corresponding LEDs 10 are the same, depending on a shape or a structure of the lens 30, the LEDs 10 may be twice, three times or more times as many as the lenses or the housings.

Third Embodiment

In First and Second Embodiments, the necessary number of the positioning holes 21 is the same as the number of the plurality of the housings 40. However, the following lens structure 2 in Third Embodiment can reduce the number of the positioning holes 21 in the LED substrate. A lens mounting structure includes:

- a LED substrate 20 with a plurality of LEDs 10 mounted thereon in three or more lines and having positioning holes 21 aligned in two or more lines (See FIG. 4(A), FIG. 4(B), and FIG. 4(C) and FIG. 5(A), FIG. 5(B), and FIG. 5(C);
- a plurality of housings 40 disposed on an LED mounting face 22 of the LED substrate 20 correspondingly to the respective LEDs 10;
- lenses 30 positioned and fixed to the housings 40, and
- a cover 60 for holding peripheral parts of light emitting sides of the lenses 30 and/or light emitting sides of the housings 40, wherein,
- among the housings 40 mounted in two or more lines, each of the housings in both outermost lines or the housings in odd lines (hereinafter referred to as “K-line housings”) has one projection 41 to be fitted with the positioning hole 21 and is connected to the adjoining housing by connection parts 42 and 43,
- each of the housings excluding the K-line housings (hereinafter referred to as “L-line housings”) is connected to the adjoining housing 40 by the connection parts 42 and 43, and articulated to the housing 40 in the adjoining line via an articulation part, but does not have the projection 41 formed thereon,
- the K-line housings on the LED substrate 20 are positioned through fitting between the positioning holes 21 and the projections 41, and through connection by the connection parts 42 and 43,
- the L-line housings on the LED substrate 20 are positioned through connection by the connection parts 42 and 43 and through articulation via the articulation parts, and
- the cover 60 is for holding states of the positioning.

In this lens mounting structure 2, there is no need for providing the positioning hole 21 in the LED substrate in the part where the L-line housings are disposed. Note that, the articulation part may have the same structure as the connection parts 42 and 43.

Fourth Embodiment (First Lens Mounting Method)

First Lens Mounting Method in the present embodiment can be performed according to the following operations (A) to (E).

- (A) preparing
- (a) a plurality of lenses 30,
- (b) a plurality of housings 40 for positioning and fixing the lenses 30, each having a positioning projection 41 formed at the bottom face and having connection parts 42 and 43 for connection to the adjoining housing 40,
- (c) an LED substrate 20 having a plurality of housing positioning holes 21 the number of which is the same as the number of the housings 40, and
- (d) a cover 60;
- (B) positioning and fixing the lens 30 to the housing 40;
- (C) connecting the adjoining housings 40 to each other by the connection parts 42 and 43;
- (D) fitting the projection 41 of the housing 40 with the positioning hole 21, and
- (E) covering peripheral parts 38 of light emitting sides of the lenses 30 and/or light emitting sides of the housings 40 with the cover 60 to hold states of the positioning of the housings 40 in the LED substrate 20 effected by the operations (C) and (D).

In the lens 30 mounting method 1, the operation (B) is preferred to be performed before the operation (C) and (D) from a viewpoint of fixing of the housing 40 in the LED substrate 20, but can be performed after the operations (C) and (D) and before the operation (E). The operations (C) and (D) are preferred to be sequentially performed in each of the housings 40 to be positioned and fixed to the LED substrate 20 from a viewpoint of certainty of positioning and fixing in every housing 40 in the LED substrate 20. However, it is possible to perform the operation (C) in all of or the prescribed number of the housings 40 and thereafter perform the operation (D) in these housings 40. When sequentially performing the operations (C) and (D) in each of the housings 40, it is preferred to start the operations from one side of the LED substrate and proceed towards the other side from a viewpoint of workability, but it is possible to start from the central part of the LED substrate 20 and proceed towards its both ends. Note that, the LED substrate 20, the lens 30, the housing 40, the cover 60 may be the ones described in First Embodiment.

Fifth Embodiment (Second Lens Mounting Method)

The plurality of housings 40 on the LED mounting face 22 of the LED substrate 20 may be disposed in two or more lines, or may be disposed in a curved line such as a circular, semicircular, or waveform line.

While the present invention has been described above with reference to illustrative example embodiments, the present invention is by no means limited thereto. Various changes and variations that may become apparent to those skilled in the art may be made in the configuration and specifics of the present invention without departing from the scope of the present invention.

This application claims priority from Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-172808 filed on Oct. 22, 2021. The entire subject matter of the Japanese Patent Application is incorporated herein by reference.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

Some embodiments of the present invention can provide an LED mounting structure for LED illumination which allows relatively easy routing of wiring in the LED substrate, thus is compact, and can reduce costs for production or assembly, a lens mounting method using the lens mounting structure, an LED illumination apparatus including the lens mounting structure, and a LED illumination apparatus production method. The lens mounting structure, the lens mounting method, the LED illumination apparatus, and the LED illumination apparatus production method can be widely used for various LED illumination apparatuses, illumination appliances, and production thereof.

The whole or part of the example embodiments disclosed above can be described as, but not limited to, the following supplementary notes.

(Supplementary Note 1)

A lens mounting structure for an LED illumination apparatus, including:

- an LED substrate with a plurality of LEDs mounted thereon and having a plurality of positioning holes the number of which is the same as the number of a plurality of housings;
- the plurality of housings disposed on an LED mounting face of the LED substrate correspondingly to the respective LEDs and each having a projection to be fitted with the positioning hole;
- lenses positioned and fixed to the housings, and
- a cover for holding peripheral parts of light emitting sides of the lenses and/or light emitting sides of the housings, wherein
- the plurality of housings are connected to the adjoining housings by connection parts,
- each of the housings on the LED substrate is positioned through fitting between the positioning hole and the projection, and through connection by the connection parts, and
- the cover is for holding states of the positioning.

(Supplementary Note 2)

The lens mounting structure for an LED illumination apparatus according to Supplementary Note 1, wherein

- the connection part of one side of the housing is provided with a protruded part having a semicylindrical tip formed on a periphery of the one side of the housing,
- the connection part of the other side is provided with a semicylindrical recessed part formed at a tip of a support piece protruded from a periphery of the other side of the housing, and
- the semicylindrical tip of the housing is fitted with the semicylindrical recessed part of the adjoining housing.

(Supplementary Note 3)

The lens mounting structure for an LED illumination apparatus according to Supplementary Note 1, wherein

- the connection part of one side of the housing has a columnar part formed on a lower face of a support piece protruded outward from a periphery of one side of the housing,
- the connection part of the other side has a columnar recessed part formed in a support piece protruded outward from a periphery of the other side of the housing, and
- the columnar part of the housing is fitted with the columnar recessed part of the adjoining housing.

(Supplementary Note 4)

The lens mounting structure for an LED illumination apparatus according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 3, wherein

- the plurality of housings are disposed on the LED mounting face in two or more lines and connected to each other.

(Supplementary Note 5)

The lens mounting structure for an LED illumination apparatus according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 4, wherein

- the plurality of housings are disposed on the LED mounting face in linear or curved lines.

(Supplementary Note 6)

The lens mounting structure for an LED illumination apparatus according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 5, wherein

- the plurality of housings are disposed over two or more LED substrates and connected to each other.

(Supplementary Note 7)

The lens mounting structure for an LED illumination apparatus according to any one of Supplementary Notes 1 to 6, wherein

- to an area covered with the housing in the LED substrate, a ratio of an area pressured by direct contact or contact via a sheet with the housing is 0.5 to 30%.

(Supplementary Note 8)

A lens mounting structure for an LED illumination apparatus, including:

- an LED substrate with a plurality of LEDs mounted thereon in three or more lines and having positioning holes aligned in two or more lines;
- a plurality of housings disposed on an LED mounting face of the LED substrate in two or more lines correspondingly to the respective LEDs;
- lenses positioned and fixed to the housings, and
- a cover for holding peripheral parts of light emitting sides of the lenses and/or light emitting sides of the housings, wherein
- among the housings disposed in two or more lines, each of the housings in both outermost lines and the housings in odd lines (hereinafter referred to as “K-line housings”) has one projection to be fitted with the positioning hole and is connected to the adjoining housing by the connection parts,
- each of the housings excluding the K-line housings (hereinafter referred to as “L-line housings”) is connected to the adjoining housing by the connection parts and articulated to the housing in the adjoining line via an articulation part but does not have the projection formed thereon,