Patents Assigned to Quarkstar LLC
  • Patent number: 10795071
    Abstract: A solid-state luminaire module includes one or more light-emitting elements (LEEs) arranged to provide light; and a light guide including a receiving end arranged to receive the light provided by the LEEs and an opposing end, a pair of opposing side surfaces extending along a length of the light guide to guide the received light in a forward direction to the opposing end, and a redirecting end-face located at the opposing end and configured to reflect the guided light—that reaches the opposing end—back into the light guide as return light, such that substantially all the return light impinges on the pair of opposing side surfaces at incident angles larger than a critical incidence angle and transmits through the pair of opposing side surfaces into the ambient as output light of the luminaire module, the output light to propagate in backward directions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 6, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Louis Lerman, Ferdinand Schinagl, Allan Brent York
  • Patent number: 10774999
    Abstract: A variety of illumination devices for general illumination utilizing solid state light sources (e.g., light-emitting diodes) are disclosed. In general, an illumination device can include multiple light sources that are disposed on a substrate, where at least some of the light sources include a light-emitting diode (LED) and a corresponding inelastic scattering element surrounding, at least in part, the LED. The inelastic scattering elements can have different light emission spectra. The illumination device can further include a light-mixing element adapted to receive light that is output by the light sources, where, during operation of the illumination device, each inelastic scattering element inelastically scatters light emitted from its corresponding LED, and the light-mixing element mixes the light received from the inelastic scattering elements to provide the output light.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 15, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventor: Ferdinand Schinagl
  • Patent number: 10746374
    Abstract: A light emitting device includes a light emitting diode (LED); a transparent optic having a refractive index noptic; and a phosphor layer spaced apart from the LED and positioned between the LED and the transparent optic. The phosphor layer has an effective refractive index nphosphor, where a gap between the LED and the phosphor layer has a refractive index ngap that is less than nphosphor. The transparent optic has an inner convex surface in contact with the phosphor layer. The inner convex surface has an inner radius of curvature r; and an outer convex surface facing away from the phosphor layer and being a surface through which the light emitting device emits light into a medium adjacent the outer convex surface. The medium has a refractive index nmedium. The outer convex surface has an outer radius of curvature R, such that r/R is equal to nmedium/noptic.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Steven C. Allen, Andrew J. Steckl
  • Patent number: 10739510
    Abstract: A luminaire includes (i) light-emitting elements (LEEs), (ii) couplers to receive light from the LEEs and to redirect the received light, and (iii) a light guide including input and output ends and a pair of opposing surfaces both extending along an axis of the light guide. The light guide receives light from the couplers at the input end and guides light along the axis to the output end. The luminaire includes (iv) a diffuser adjacent the light guide to diffuse at least a portion of the light output by the light guide, and (v) a reflector to receive the light emitted from the output end of the light guide, such that light output by the light guide without impinging on the diffuser impinges on only one of the surfaces of the reflector. When operated, the luminaire outputs light within first and second output angular ranges.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 11, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventor: Louis Lerman
  • Patent number: 10725229
    Abstract: An illumination device includes a plurality of light-emitting elements (LEEs); a light guide extending in a forward direction from a first end to a second end to receive at the first end light emitted by the LEEs and to guide the received light to the second end; an optical extractor optically coupled to the second end to receive the guided light, the optical extractor including a redirecting surface to reflect a first portion of the guided light, the reflected light being output by the optical extractor in a backward angular range, and the redirecting surface having one or more transmissive portions to transmit a second portion of the guided light in the forward direction; and one or more optical elements optically coupled to the transmissive portions, the optical elements to modify the light transmitted through the transmissive portions and to output the modified light in a forward angular range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Allan Brent York, Hans Peter Stormberg, Louis Lerman, Ferdinand Schinagl, Wilson Dau
  • Patent number: 10707435
    Abstract: Light-emitting elements such as LEDs are associated with light-converting material such as phosphor and/or other material. A donor substrate comprising the light-converting and/or other material is suitably placed relative to a target substrate associated with the light-emitting elements. A laser or other energy source is then used to transfer the light-converting and/or other material in a pattern via writing or masking from the donor substrate to the target substrate in accordance with the pattern. Addressability and targetability of the transfer process facilitates precise patterning of the target substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 7, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Ingo Speier, Robert C. Gardner, Louis Lerman, Christopher H. Lowery, Allan Brent York
  • Patent number: 10705284
    Abstract: The present technology relates to luminaires including a housing and a luminaire module disposed within the housing, where the housing has apertures through which light that is output by the luminaire module exits the luminaire towards one or more target areas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 25, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 7, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Wilson Dau, Allan Brent York, Louis Lerman, Ferdinand Schinagl, Hans Peter Stormberg
  • Patent number: 10690294
    Abstract: In one embodiment, an LED lamp has a generally bulb shape. The LEDs are low power types and are encapsulated in thin, narrow, flexible strips. The LEDs are connected in series in the strips to drop a desired voltage. The strips are affixed to the outer surface of a bulb form to provide structure to the lamp. The strips are connected in parallel to a power supply, which may be housed in the lamp. Since many low power LEDs are used and are spread out over a large surface area, there is no need for a large metal heat sink. Further, the light emission is similar to that of an incandescent bulb. In other embodiment, there is no bulb form and the strips are bendable to have a variety of shapes. In another embodiment, a light sheet is bent to provide 360 degrees of light emission. Many other embodiments are described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Robert V. Steele, Louis Lerman, Allan Brent York, Wilson Dau, Jacqueline Teng, George Lerman
  • Patent number: 10670226
    Abstract: A light-emitting device includes a lens of refractive index n having a spherical exit surface of radius R and a luminous element positioned such that at least a portion of an edge of an emitting surface of the luminous element lies on a sphere of radius R/n opposite the exit surface, whereby that portion of the edge of the emitting surface is aplanatically imaged by the spherical exit surface. The light-emitting device may further include one or more reflective sidewalls arranged to reflect a fraction of light emitted from the luminous element before it is refracted by the exit surface. A luminaire incorporating a housing and a light-emitting device of this type is also provided, which may include one or more additional optical elements such as reflectors or lenses to further direct and shape light from the light-emitting device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: George E. Smith, Robert C. Gardner
  • Patent number: 10634287
    Abstract: In one embodiment, an LED lamp has a generally bulb shape. The LEDs are low power types and are encapsulated in thin, narrow, flexible strips. The LEDs are connected in series in the strips to drop a desired voltage. The strips are affixed to the outer surface of a bulb form to provide structure to the lamp. The strips are connected in parallel to a power supply, which may be housed in the lamp. Since many low power LEDs are used and are spread out over a large surface area, there is no need for a large metal heat sink. Further, the light emission is similar to that of an incandescent bulb. In other embodiment, there is no bulb form and the strips are bendable to have a variety of shapes. In another embodiment, a light sheet is bent to provide 360 degrees of light emission. Many other embodiments are described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Robert V. Steele, Louis Lerman, Allan Brent York, Wilson Dau, Jacqueline Teng, George Lerman
  • Patent number: 10634288
    Abstract: In one embodiment, an LED lamp has a generally bulb shape. The LEDs are low power types and are encapsulated in thin, narrow, flexible strips. The LEDs are connected in series in the strips to drop a desired voltage. The strips are affixed to the outer surface of a bulb form to provide structure to the lamp. The strips are connected in parallel to a power supply, which may be housed in the lamp. Since many low power LEDs are used and are spread out over a large surface area, there is no need for a large metal heat sink. Further, the light emission is similar to that of an incandescent bulb. In other embodiment, there is no bulb form and the strips are bendable to have a variety of shapes. In another embodiment, a light sheet is bent to provide 360 degrees of light emission. Many other embodiments are described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Robert V. Steele, Louis Lerman, Allan Brent York, Wilson Dau, Jacqueline Teng, George Lerman
  • Patent number: 10551547
    Abstract: A troffer luminaire including (i) a light guide luminaire module having an optical extractor, and (ii) a reflector, where the reflector is configured to reflect light output by the optical extractor in a backward angular range toward a target surface in a forward angular range, and where a combination of the optical extractor and the first reflector is configured such that a ratio of maximum luminance to minimum luminance across the first reflector is less than a first predetermined ratio.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2015
    Date of Patent: February 4, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Victor E. Isbrucker, Ingo Speier
  • Patent number: 10548197
    Abstract: In a single lighting device including a large number of light-emitting elements (LEEs), the LEEs are divided into separately powered groups, and different combinations of the groups are fully energized to achieve the desired overall brightness. In some embodiments, the number of LEEs in each group has a binary relationship to the other groups. The resolution of the dimming is the brightness of the smallest group. In one example of five binary weighted groups of LEEs, 32 brightness levels can be achieved while the LEEs in the energized groups are fully ON. Thus, since there is no high frequency switching, there is substantially no power dissipation by the dimming control system, and there is limited noise or EMI created. The dimming control can be easily implemented with a logic circuit controlling a transistor switch for each group.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Wilson Dau, George Lerman, Ferdinand Schinagl, Jacqueline Teng, Allan Brent York
  • Patent number: 10546983
    Abstract: A lighting device includes (1) one or more solid-state lighting (SSL) devices, (2) a thick, for example prism- or cylinder- or spherical- or dome-shaped scattering element, and (3) an optical extractor with a convex output surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Roland H. Haitz, Ferdinand Schinagl
  • Patent number: 10545276
    Abstract: A luminaire module including a plurality of light-emitting elements (LEEs) arranged to emit light in a forward direction; a light guide comprising a pair of opposing side surfaces extending from a receiving end of the light guide to an opposing end of the light guide, the light guide configured to guide light received at the receiving end from the LEEs in the forward direction to the opposing end, wherein the light guide is elongated along a transverse direction orthogonal to the forward direction; and an optical extractor elongated along the transverse direction and located at the opposing end of the light guide to receive the guided light, the optical extractor comprising a redirecting surface and an output surface, wherein the received light undergoes two reflections off the redirecting surface prior to being output through the output surface in an ambient environment as output light in a backward angular range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2015
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Victor E. Isbrucker, Ingo Speier
  • Patent number: 10545279
    Abstract: The present technology relates to achieving a low manufactured cost and high design alignment robustness for fabrication of modular light guide luminaires featuring solid state light-emitting elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 18, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 28, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Allan Brent York, Ingo Speier, Hans Peter Stormberg
  • Patent number: 10520663
    Abstract: Illumination systems are described for illuminating a target area, e.g., a floor of a room, using active illumination devices in optical communication with passive illumination devices. The active and passive illumination devices of the illumination system are configured and arranged relative to each other in a variety of ways so a variety of intensity distributions can be provided by the illumination system. Such illumination system is implemented to provide light for particular lighting applications, including office lighting, garage lighting, or cabinet lighting.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2019
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventors: Hans Peter Stormberg, Louis Lerman, Robert C. Gardner, Ingo Speier, Allan Brent York
  • Patent number: D887063
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventor: Ingo Speier
  • Patent number: D887064
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventor: Ingo Speier
  • Patent number: D887065
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2020
    Assignee: Quarkstar LLC
    Inventor: Ingo Speier