Patents by Inventor Dane A. Sahlhoff

Dane A. Sahlhoff has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20180284337
    Abstract: A light guide includes opposed major surfaces and a light input edge extending therebetween. An array of micro-optical elements of well-defined shape at at least one of the opposed major surfaces corresponds to the light input edge. Each of the micro-optical elements in the array includes a longitudinal axis arranged within the range of angles relative to the light input edge. A path linearly extending along the light guide from the light input edge intersects at least a portion of the micro-optical elements in the array, at least one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a positive angle relative to the light input edge, and at least another one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a negative angle relative to the light input edge.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 23, 2018
    Publication date: October 4, 2018
    Inventors: Dane A. Sahlhoff, Greg Coghlan, Todd Winski, Kurt Starkey
  • Patent number: 9946007
    Abstract: A light guide includes opposed major surfaces and a light input edge extending therebetween. An array of micro-optical elements of well-defined shape at at least one of the opposed major surfaces corresponds to the light input edge. Each of the micro-optical elements in the array includes a longitudinal axis arranged within the range of angles relative to the light input edge. A path linearly extending along the light guide from the light input edge intersects at least a portion of the micro-optical elements in the array, at least one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a positive angle relative to the light input edge, and at least another one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a negative angle relative to the light input edge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 17, 2018
    Assignee: Rambus Delaware LLC
    Inventors: Dane A. Sahlhoff, Greg Coghlan, Todd Winski, Kurt Starkey
  • Patent number: 9910206
    Abstract: A light guide includes a first major surface; a second major surface opposed the first major surface and spaced apart from the first major surface in a thickness direction; a light input edge extending between the major surfaces; and light extracting elements at the first major surface. In some embodiments, at least a portion of the light extracting elements each include: a proximal end at the first major surface and a distal end in the thickness direction; and first and second surfaces, the first surface being a side surface extending between the proximal end and the distal end and having a curvature about a direction extending in a plane parallel to the first major surface. In some embodiments, the major surface of the light guide is curved and the first surface has a curvature about a direction extending along a surface contour of the first major surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 6, 2018
    Assignee: Rambus Delaware LLC
    Inventor: Dane A. Sahlhoff
  • Publication number: 20170371089
    Abstract: A light guide includes opposed major surfaces and a light input edge extending therebetween. An array of micro-optical elements of well-defined shape at at least one of the opposed major surfaces corresponds to the light input edge. Each of the micro-optical elements in the array includes a longitudinal axis arranged within the range of angles relative to the light input edge. A path linearly extending along the light guide from the light input edge intersects at least a portion of the micro-optical elements in the array, at least one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a positive angle relative to the light input edge, and at least another one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a negative angle relative to the light input edge.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 12, 2017
    Publication date: December 28, 2017
    Inventors: Dane A. Sahlhoff, Greg Coghlan, Todd Winski, Kurt Starkey
  • Patent number: 9703031
    Abstract: A light guide includes opposed major surfaces and a light input edge extending therebetween. An array of micro-optical elements of well-defined shape at at least one of the opposed major surfaces corresponds to the light input edge. Each of the micro-optical elements in the array includes a longitudinal axis arranged within the range of angles relative to the light input edge. A path linearly extending along the light guide from the light input edge intersects at least a portion of the micro-optical elements in the array, at least one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a positive angle relative to the light input edge, and at least another one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a negative angle relative to the light input edge.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2017
    Assignee: Rambus Delaware LLC
    Inventors: Dane A. Sahlhoff, Greg Coghlan, Todd Winski, Kurt Starkey
  • Patent number: 9645301
    Abstract: A cover element for use in a lighting assembly that includes an edge-lit light guide. The cover element includes a first major surface through which light output by the light guide enters the cover element, the light including light propagating at high angles relative to normal to the first major surface of the cover element. The cover element also includes a second major surface opposed to the first major surface and having optical elements that each have plural surfaces arranged relative one another so that the optical element redirects high angle light incident on any one of the surfaces of the optical element and travelling in a direction with any vector component orthogonal to the normal to have a reduced angle in the normal direction as the light exits the cover element through the optical element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2017
    Assignee: Rambus Delaware LLC
    Inventor: Dane A. Sahlhoff
  • Publication number: 20160091652
    Abstract: A light guide includes a first major surface; a second major surface opposed the first major surface and spaced apart from the first major surface in a thickness direction; a light input edge extending between the major surfaces; and light extracting elements at the first major surface. In some embodiments, at least a portion of the light extracting elements each include: a proximal end at the first major surface and a distal end in the thickness direction; and first and second surfaces, the first surface being a side surface extending between the proximal end and the distal end and having a curvature about a direction extending in a plane parallel to the first major surface. In some embodiments, the major surface of the light guide is curved and the first surface has a curvature about a direction extending along a surface contour of the first major surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2015
    Publication date: March 31, 2016
    Inventor: Dane A. Sahlhoff
  • Publication number: 20160033712
    Abstract: A light guide includes a first major surface, an opposed second major surface, and a light input edge extending therebetween. Micro-optical elements at at least one of the first major surface and the second major surface are arranged in an array of micro-optical element groupings. Each grouping includes a first micro-optical element and a second micro-optical element adjacent the first micro-optical element and arranged along a light propagation path extending from the light input edge. In some embodiments, the second micro-optical element is configured to redirect at least a portion of light propagating along the light propagation path and incident thereon toward the first micro-optical element such that the redirected light is incident the first micro-optical element and extracted from the light guide. In other embodiments, the second micro-optical element is configured to redirect at least a portion of the propagating light incident thereon away from the first micro-optical element.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 31, 2015
    Publication date: February 4, 2016
    Inventors: Dane A. Sahlhoff, Juhyun Lee
  • Publication number: 20160033704
    Abstract: A light guide includes a first major surface, a second major surface opposed the first major surface, and a light input edge extending between the first and second major surfaces. Micro-optical elements are at the first major surface. The micro-optical elements are embodied as protrusions from or indentations in the major surface. Each micro-optical element includes an end surface and a side surface. The micro-optical elements are configured to output 60 to 90 percent of the light incident thereon through one of the first and the second major surfaces, and are configured to output 10 to 40 percent of the light incident thereon through the other of the first and the second major surfaces.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 31, 2015
    Publication date: February 4, 2016
    Inventors: Dane A. Sahlhoff, Greg Coghlan
  • Publication number: 20150309241
    Abstract: A light guide includes opposed major surfaces and a light input edge extending therebetween. An array of micro-optical elements of well-defined shape at at least one of the opposed major surfaces corresponds to the light input edge. Each of the micro-optical elements in the array includes a longitudinal axis arranged within the range of angles relative to the light input edge. A path linearly extending along the light guide from the light input edge intersects at least a portion of the micro-optical elements in the array, at least one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a positive angle relative to the light input edge, and at least another one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a negative angle relative to the light input edge.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 16, 2014
    Publication date: October 29, 2015
    Inventors: Dane A. Sahlhoff, Greg Coghlan, Todd Winski, Kurt Starkey
  • Publication number: 20150309236
    Abstract: A light guide includes opposed major surfaces and a light input edge extending therebetween. An array of micro-optical elements of well-defined shape at at least one of the opposed major surfaces corresponds to the light input edge. Each of the micro-optical elements in the array includes a longitudinal axis arranged within the range of angles relative to the light input edge. A path linearly extending along the light guide from the light input edge intersects at least a portion of the micro-optical elements in the array, at least one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a positive angle relative to the light input edge, and at least another one of the micro-optical elements along the path arranged with its longitudinal axis at a negative angle relative to the light input edge.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 7, 2014
    Publication date: October 29, 2015
    Inventors: Dane A. Sahlhoff, Greg Coghlan, Todd Winski, Kurt Starkey
  • Publication number: 20150277018
    Abstract: A cover element for use in a lighting assembly that includes an edge-lit light guide. The cover element includes a first major surface through which light output by the light guide enters the cover element, the light including light propagating at high angles relative to normal to the first major surface of the cover element. The cover element also includes a second major surface opposed to the first major surface and having optical elements that each have plural surfaces arranged relative one another so that the optical element redirects high angle light incident on any one of the surfaces of the optical element and travelling in a direction with any vector component orthogonal to the normal to have a reduced angle in the normal direction as the light exits the cover element through the optical element.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 7, 2014
    Publication date: October 1, 2015
    Inventor: Dane A. Sahlhoff
  • Publication number: 20150160395
    Abstract: A light guide includes opposed major surfaces between which light propagates by total internal reflection, and an edge extending between the major surfaces of the light guide and extending in a lateral direction orthogonal to the thickness direction. The edge includes light input features. Each light input feature includes a light input region through which light is input into the light guide and a reflector to internally reflect light incident thereon from the light input region. The reflector includes reflective microstructures that cause the reflected light to propagate in the light guide as if originating from virtual light sources at locations laterally offset from the light input region.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 7, 2014
    Publication date: June 11, 2015
    Inventors: Dane A. Sahlhoff, Timothy A. McCollum