CN110613215A

CN110613215A - Safety walking stick with lighting device

Info

Publication number: CN110613215A
Application number: CN201910914167.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 克莱·M·莫约
Original assignee: Ke LaiMMoyue
Current assignee: Ke LaiMMoyue
Priority date: 2019-09-25
Filing date: 2019-09-25
Publication date: 2019-12-27

Abstract

An illuminated safety cane is a cane that includes a handle and a shaft that is a rigid cylinder having a plurality of apertures covered by a plurality of windows through which a plurality of lights can provide illumination. The plurality of lights may be white, yellow or red LEDs mounted on one or more circuit boards located within the shaft. White lights may provide illumination, yellow lights may provide warning warnings, and red lights may indicate a danger or distress. The lights may be illuminated individually or in groups by user activation of an operating control located on the handle. The handle provides a grip point for the cane and contains the one or more batteries, an operational control, and a visual emergency alarm.

Description

Safety walking stick with lighting device

Technical Field

The invention relates to the field of walking sticks, in particular to a safety lighting stick.

Background

The existing walking sticks only have a support function and no lighting and safety functions. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved cane that overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages.

Disclosure of Invention

The illuminated safety cane is a cane that includes a handle and a shaft. The shaft is a rigid cylinder with a plurality of apertures covered by a plurality of windows through which a plurality of lights may provide illumination. The plurality of lights may be white, yellow or red LEDs mounted on one or more circuit boards located within the shaft. White lights may provide illumination, yellow lights may provide warning warnings, and red lights may indicate a danger or distress. The lights may be lit individually or in groups by a user activating an operating control located on the handle. The handle provides a grip for the cane and contains one or more batteries, an operating control and an audible emergency alarm.

The object of the invention is to provide a pole for supporting and stabilizing a user.

It is another object of the invention to provide white lights from within the cane to illuminate the area around the cane.

It is another object of the invention to provide a constant or flashing yellow light from within the cane to provide a warning of the presence of the user.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a constant or flashing red light from within the cane to indicate distress or danger.

These and additional objects, features and advantages of the illuminated safety cane will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description of presently preferred, but nonetheless illustrative, embodiments when taken in conjunction with the drawings.

In this regard, before explaining the present embodiment of the illuminated safety cane in detail, it is to be understood that the illuminated safety cane is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the concepts of the present disclosure may be readily utilized as a basis for designing other structures, methods, and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the illuminated safety cane.

It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the illuminated safety cane. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. They are intended to be illustrative of the descriptions provided to enable those skilled in the art to practice the disclosure, and are not intended to limit the scope of the appended claims.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 is an exploded view of one embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 3 is a front view of an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 4 is a side view of an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 5 is an in-use view of an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the described embodiments of the application and uses of the described embodiments. As used herein, the word "exemplary" or "illustrative" means "serving as an example, instance, or illustration. Any implementation described herein as "exemplary" or "illustrative" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other implementations. All of the embodiments described below are exemplary embodiments provided to enable persons skilled in the art to practice the disclosure and are not intended to limit the scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any expressed or implied theory presented in the preceding technical field, background, brief summary or the following detailed description. As used herein, the word "or" is intended to be inclusive.

Reference will now be made in detail to a first possible embodiment of the present disclosure, which is illustrated in fig. 1 to 5.

The illuminated safety cane 100 (hereinafter the invention) includes a handle 200 and a shaft 240. The present invention 100 is a cane that provides multiple sources of illumination for visibility and signaling and an emergency alarm 225 for personal safety. A user control 220 located in the handle 200 may be used to activate a plurality of illumination sources and emergency alerts 225.

The handle 200 includes a user control 220, an emergency alert 225, a battery compartment 210 and a battery compartment 215. The handle 200 may be a housing for one or more batteries 205, emergency alert 225, and user controls 220, and may also be a grab point for holding the present invention 100.

The user controller 220 may determine the operating status of the plurality of illumination sources and the emergency alert 225. As a non-limiting example, the user control may be a push button switch, wherein each subsequent press of the user control may advance the present invention 100 to the next step of the lighting cycle. By way of example and not limitation, a first press of the user control may advance the present invention 100 from a no-light state to a state where the first white light 302 is on. Subsequent pressing of the user control may advance the present invention 100 to a state where both the first white light 302 and the second white light 304 are on. Subsequent pressing of the user controls may cause the present invention 100 to advance to a state where the first white light 302 and the second white light 304 are off and the first yellow light 306 and the second yellow light 308 are flashing. This may continue through other states that activate combinations of multiple illumination sources with multiple colors, intensities, and flashing options, until finally returning to the initial state, where all illumination is turned off.

The user control may also activate the panic mode. As a non-limiting example, the limp-home mode may be activated if the user control is pressed and held for a longer period of time than an emergency timeout. When the panic mode is activated, the present invention 100 may energize the red light 310 and the panic alarm 225. The present invention 100 may continue to energize the red light 310 and the emergency alert 225 until the emergency mode is disabled. As a non-limiting example, the limp-home mode may be deactivated by pressing a user control while limp-home mode is active.

The emergency alert 225 may be an acoustic transducer. The emergency alert 225 may emit a continuous or pulsed tone, noise or sound when energized. The panic alarm 225 is intended to scare away attackers, alert others of the situation, provide a directional reference, or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, the emergency alert 225 may generate a sound pressure level of 75dB or greater. The sound pressure level of the emergency alarm 225 may be comparable to the sound pressure level of the smoke detector at 75dB to 85 dB.

The battery compartment 210 may be a cavity that houses one or more batteries 205. The battery compartment 210 may be located within the handle 200. The battery compartment 210 may include a battery door 215 for accessing the one or more batteries 205.

The shaft 240 includes a plurality of apertures 260, a plurality of transparent windows 265, one or more circuit boards 250, and a tip 245. The shaft 240 may be a hollow cylinder made of a rigid material. As a non-limiting example, the shaft 240 may be made of aluminum.

The plurality of apertures 260 may be openings on the shaft 240 to provide visibility to a plurality of illumination sources. The plurality of apertures 260 may be spaced apart such that two of the plurality of apertures 260 are located at the bottom 1/3 of the shaft 240, two of the plurality of apertures 260 are located at the middle 1/3 of the shaft 240, and one of the plurality of apertures 260 is located at the top 1/3 of the shaft 240. In some embodiments, the plurality of apertures 260 may all be located on the front side of the shaft 240.

The plurality of transparent windows 265 may be transparent coverings for the plurality of holes 260. A plurality of transparent windows 265 may be coupled to the shaft 240 to fill the plurality of apertures 260 to protect the plurality of illumination sources from the elements. As a non-limiting example, the plurality of transparent windows 265 may be made of transparent plastic.

The one or more circuit boards 250 include a plurality of illumination sources. One or more circuit boards 250 may be mounted in the hollow interior of the shaft 240 such that a plurality of illumination sources coupled to the one or more circuit boards 250 are aligned with the plurality of apertures 260. The one or more circuit boards 250 may be electrically coupled to each other and to the one or more batteries 205 via a user control.

The plurality of illumination sources includes a first white light 302, a second white light 304, a first yellow light 306, a second yellow light 308, and a red light 310. Multiple illumination sources may be illuminated to increase visibility, provide warnings, request assistance, or a combination thereof.

The first white light 302 may be located behind one of a plurality of transparent windows 265 at the bottom 1/3 of the shaft 240. The second white light 304 may be positioned behind one of a plurality of transparent windows 265 at the center 1/3 of the shaft 240. The first white light 302 and the second white light 304 may be energized at one or more intensities to provide a plurality of brightness levels. The first white light 302 and the second white light 304 may be energized to provide illumination to one or more areas adjacent to the present invention 100.

The first yellow light 306 may be positioned behind one of a plurality of transparent windows 265 at the bottom 1/3 of the shaft 240. The second yellow light 308 may be positioned behind one of a plurality of transparent windows 265 in the middle of the shaft 240. The first yellow light 306 and the second yellow light 308 may flash, be continuously illuminated, or a combination thereof. The first yellow light 306 and the second yellow light 308 may be energized to provide a warning signal. As a non-limiting example, the first yellow light 306 and the second yellow light 308 may alert the vehicle of the presence of the user 950.

The red light 310 may be positioned behind one of a plurality of transparent windows 265 at the upper portion 1/3 of the shaft 240. The red light 310 may flash, illuminate continuously, or a combination thereof. The red light 310 may be energized to request help, provide an alarm, or both.

The tip 245 may be a rubberized slip-resistant covering for the bottom of the shaft 240.

The one or more batteries 205 may include one or more energy storage devices. The one or more batteries 205 may be a source of electrical energy to operate the plurality of illumination sources and the emergency alert 225. The one or more batteries 205 may be replaceable or rechargeable.

In use, one or more batteries 205 are mounted in the battery compartment 210 through an opening exposed by the battery door 215. The user 950 may walk with the present invention 100 and may use the present invention 100 for balance and support. In the dark, the user 950 may press the user control 220 to illuminate the first white light 302 and the second white light 304 to illuminate the surrounding area. In some embodiments, multiple recesses of the user control 220 may allow the user 950 to select the intensity of the illumination. If the user 950 is interested in traffic, the user 950 may press the user control 220 until the first yellow light 306 and the second yellow light 308 are illuminated. In some embodiments, the first yellow light 306 and the second yellow light 308 may flash when illuminated. If user 950 feels threatened, has lost, and encounters other conditions where user 950 feels critical, user 950 may activate the panic mode using user controls 220.

As a non-limiting example, the user 950 may press and hold the user control 220 to activate the panic mode. In the emergency mode, the present invention 100 may flash the red light 310 and may emit a high volume sound from the emergency alert 225. The present invention 100 may remain in the limp-home mode until the user 950 deactivates the limp-home mode. As a non-limiting example. The user 950 may disable the panic mode by pressing the user control 220.

Definition of

Unless otherwise stated, "up," "down," "top," "bottom," "upper," and "lower" are to be construed within the framework of gravity. "downward" is the direction in which gravity pulls an object. "upward" is the opposite of "downward". The "bottom" is a portion of the object that is more downward than any other portion of the object. The "top" is a portion of the object that is more upward than any other portion of the object. "upper" means top and "lower" means bottom. As a non-limiting example, the upper end of the vertical shaft is the top end of the vertical shaft.

As used herein, "aligning" refers to placing two or more components into a position and orientation that places the components along a straight line or in the same plane, or that will allow the next step of assembly to occur. By way of non-limiting example, the next step in assembly may be to insert one component into another, requiring alignment of the components.

As used in this disclosure, a "hole" is an opening in a surface. A hole may be synonymous with a round hole, slit, gap, slot, or opening.

Throughout the specification, the terms "battery", "battery pack" and "plurality of batteries" are used interchangeably to refer to one or more wet or dry cells or cells in which chemical energy is converted to electrical energy and used as a source of dc power. Reference to recharging or replacing a battery may refer to recharging or replacing a single battery, a single battery cell, or a combination of multiple battery cells, depending on any given battery technology that may be used. The battery may require electrical contacts, which may not be shown in the figures.

As used in this disclosure, a "cavity" is an empty space or negative space formed within an object.

As used herein, the term "controller" or "control" is intended to include any device that can cause a circuit to be completed or interrupted; non-limiting examples of controllers include toggle switches, rocker switches, push-button switches, rotary switches, electromechanical relays, solid state relays, touch sensitive interfaces, and combinations thereof, whether they be normally open, normally closed, momentary contact, latching contact, single pole, multiple pole, single throw, or multiple throw.

As used herein, the terms "coupled" and "connected" mean directly or indirectly connected, and do not necessarily imply a mechanical connection.

As used in this disclosure, a "cylinder" is a geometric structure defined by two identical flat and parallel ends, also commonly referred to as bases, which are circular in shape and connected to a single curved surface, which may be referred to as a surface. The axis of the cylinder is formed by a straight line connecting the centers of each of the two identical flat and parallel ends of the cylinder. Unless otherwise stated in the present disclosure, the term cylinder specifically denotes a right circular cylinder, which is defined as a cylinder in which a curved surface perpendicularly intersects two identical flat and parallel ends.

As used in this disclosure, a "door" is a movable or removable barrier that is attached to a wall of a room or a surface of a container to allow or prevent access to the room or container through the aperture.

As used herein, "energizing" refers to applying an electrical potential to a system or subsystem.

As used herein, "front" means the side of the object closest to the forward direction of travel under normal use of the object, or the side or portion of the object that generally faces the viewer or is generally used first. "rear" or "rear" refers to the side opposite the front.

As used in this disclosure, a "handle" is an object that holds or manipulates a tool, object, or door with the hand.

As used in this disclosure, the word "internal" is used as a relational term, which implies that an object is located or contained within a boundary of a structure or space.

As used in this disclosure, a "lamp" is an electronic device that generates visible light to illuminate objects so that they can be seen.

As used in this disclosure, the term "shaft" or shaft is used to describe a rigid cylinder that is typically used as the handle of a tool or implement or as the center of a rotating machine or motor. The definition of shaft expressly includes a solid shaft, or a shaft that includes a hollow passageway through the shaft along the central axis of the shaft cylinder, whether or not the shaft has one or more sealed ends.

As used in this disclosure, a "switch" is an electrical device that starts and stops the flow of current through a circuit by completing or interrupting the circuit. The act of completing or interrupting the circuit may be referred to as actuating. Completing or interrupting a circuit with a switch is commonly referred to as closing or opening the switch, respectively. Completing or interrupting a circuit is also referred to as generating or breaking a circuit, respectively.

As used in this disclosure, a "transducer" is a device that converts a physical quantity (e.g., pressure or brightness) into an electrical signal, or a device that converts an electrical signal into a physical quantity.

As used in this disclosure, "transparent" refers to a material that allows light to pass through the material without significant scattering so that objects can be clearly seen through the material.

With respect to the above description, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the various parts of the invention, to the extent they are described above and in fig. 1 through 5, include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.

It should be noted that those skilled in the art will readily recognize various adaptations and modifications that may be made to the various embodiments of the present invention, and that such adaptations and modifications will result in improved inventions, all of which will come within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims. Accordingly, the invention is not to be restricted except in light of the attached claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. An illuminated safety cane comprising:

a handle and a shaft;

characterized in that the illuminated safety cane is a walking cane providing multiple illumination sources for visibility and signaling and an emergency alarm for personal safety;

wherein the plurality of illumination sources and the emergency alert are activated using a user control located in the handle.

2. The illuminated safety cane of claim 1 wherein the handle includes a user control, an emergency alarm, a battery compartment, and a battery door;

wherein the handle is a housing for the one or more batteries, emergency alert and user controls;

wherein the handle is a grip point for holding the illuminated safety cane.

3. The illuminated safety cane of claim 2 wherein the user control determines the operational status of the plurality of illumination sources and emergency alarms.

4. The illuminated safety cane of claim 3 wherein the user control is a push button switch, wherein each subsequent press of the user control advances the illuminated safety cane to a next step in an illumination cycle;

wherein the user control activates the panic mode.

5. The illuminated safety cane of claim 4 wherein a first press of the user control advances the illuminated safety cane from a non-illuminated state to a state in which a first white light is on;

wherein subsequent depression of the user control advances the illuminated safety cane to a state in which both the first white light and the second white light are on;

wherein a subsequent press of the user control advances the illuminated safety cane to a state where the first white light and the second white light are off and the first yellow light and the second yellow light are flashing.

6. The illuminated safety cane of claim 5 wherein the emergency mode is activated if the user control is pressed and held for a period of time longer than the emergency timeout; wherein the illuminated safety cane energizes the red light and emergency alarm when emergency mode is activated;

wherein the illuminated safety cane continues to energize the red light and emergency alarm until the emergency mode is deactivated.

7. The illuminated safety cane of claim 6 wherein the emergency mode is deactivated by depressing a user control when the emergency mode is activated.

8. The illuminated safety cane of claim 7 wherein the emergency alarm is a sound sensor; wherein the emergency alarm emits a continuous or pulsed tone, noise or sound when energized;

wherein the emergency alert is intended to scare away an attacker, alert others of the situation, provide a directional reference, or a combination thereof.

9. The illuminated safety cane of claim 8 wherein the battery compartment is a cavity that houses the one or more batteries;

wherein the battery compartment is located within the handle;

wherein the battery compartment includes a battery door for accessing one or more batteries.

10. The illuminated safety cane of claim 9 wherein the shaft includes a plurality of holes, a plurality of transparent windows, one or more circuit boards, and a tip;

wherein the shaft is a hollow cylinder made of a rigid material.

11. The illuminated safety cane of claim 10 wherein the plurality of holes are openings in the shaft to provide visibility to the plurality of illumination sources;

wherein the plurality of bores are spaced apart such that two of the plurality of bores are located at the bottom 1/3 of the shaft, two of the plurality of bores are located at the middle 1/3 of the shaft, and one of the plurality of bores is located at the top 1/3 of the shaft.

12. The illuminated safety cane of claim 11 wherein the plurality of holes are all located on a front side of the shaft.

13. The illuminated safety cane of claim 11 wherein the plurality of transparent windows are transparent coverings for the plurality of holes;

wherein a plurality of transparent windows are attached to the body to fill the plurality of holes to protect the plurality of illumination sources from inclement weather.

14. The illuminated safety cane of claim 13 wherein the plurality of transparent windows are made of a transparent plastic.

15. The illuminated safety cane of claim 13 wherein the one or more circuit boards includes the plurality of illumination sources; wherein the one or more circuit boards are mounted within the hollow interior of the shaft such that the plurality of illumination sources coupled to the one or more circuit boards are aligned with the plurality of apertures;

wherein the one or more circuit boards are electrically connected to each other and to the one or more batteries through a user control.

16. The illuminated safety cane of claim 15 wherein the plurality of illumination sources includes a first white light, a second white light, a first yellow light, a second yellow light, and a red light;

wherein the plurality of illumination sources are illuminated to increase visibility, provide a warning, request assistance, or a combination thereof.

17. The illuminated safety cane of claim 16 wherein the first white light is located behind one of the plurality of transparent windows at the bottom 1/3 of the shaft; wherein the second white light is located behind one of the plurality of transparent windows at the middle 1/3 of the shaft; wherein the first and second white lamps are energized at one or more intensities to provide a plurality of brightness levels;

wherein the first and second white lights are energized to provide illumination for one or more areas adjacent to the illuminated safety cane.

18. The illuminated safety cane of claim 17 wherein the first yellow light is located behind one of the plurality of transparent windows at the bottom 1/3 of the shaft;

wherein the second yellow light is located behind one of the plurality of transparent windows at the middle 1/3 of the shaft;

wherein the first yellow light and the second yellow light flash, continuously emit light, or a combination thereof;

wherein the first yellow light and the second yellow light are energized to provide a warning signal.

19. The illuminated safety cane of claim 18 wherein the red light is located behind one of the plurality of transparent windows at the upper portion 1/3 of the shaft;

wherein the red light flashes, glows continuously, or a combination thereof; wherein the red light is energized to request help, provide an alert, or both.

20. The illuminated safety cane of claim 19 wherein the one or more batteries include one or more energy storage devices; wherein the one or more batteries are a source of electrical energy to operate the plurality of illumination sources and the emergency alert;

wherein the one or more batteries are replaceable or rechargeable.