GB2130014A

GB2130014A - Electrical switch means

Info

Publication number: GB2130014A
Application number: GB08328056A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Sadaharu Tsuyama
Original assignee: Tsuyama Mfg Co Ltd
Current assignee: Tsuyama Mfg Co Ltd
Priority date: 1982-10-22
Filing date: 1983-10-20
Publication date: 1984-05-23
Also published as: JPH0139374Y2; FR2534872B1; DE3335872A1; GB8328056D0; SE8305819L; FR2534872A1; CA1230102A; JPS5963901U; SE8305819D0; DE3335872C2

Abstract

Switch means, especially for an illuminating device 1 for a ridden vehicle, such as a bicycle, or a wheeled accessory thereto, includes a pair of lead wires 16, 17 of a resilient material, such as spring steel, having co-engageable end portions 14, 15, which may be substantially mutually perpendicular. An angularly movable distance-changing means 21 operated by an actuating means 20 changes the distance between the lead wires 16, 17 so as to selectively co-engage and disengage the lead wire ends. Resilient means 11 for biassing against angular movement of the distance-changing means 21 is also provided. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Switch means The present invention relates to switch means for illuminating devices in particular for ridden vehicles, such as bicycles, tricycles, mopeds or motorcycles, or wheeled accessories thereto e.g.

sidecars and carts for any of the aforesaid.

The invention could be used for illuminating devices for any vehicle which permits manual switching.

Such illuminating devises are needed, for example as headlights, for illumination of the vehicle and rider(s) and/or passenger(s) at night and/or in adverse weather conditions. In conventional switching means, on/off switching of electricity is forcibly made by an actuating lever rotatably mounted on a casing or slidably mounted in a slot formed in the casing and to guard against a continuous large shock, several restricting conditions had to be met for mounting mechanism including modifications to the casing, actuating lever and on/off contacts, and this has resulted in an intricate construction.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to have a shock-resistant, switch means, in particular for an illuminating device for ridden vehicles or wheeled accessories thereto.

In the present invention, the lead wires and the biassing means and the electric contacts in circuit are resilient and may be made of preferably, spring steel. Their resiliency is utilized to mount the switch actuating unit onto the casing, whereby the overall construction may be simplified and even if strong shocks are applied to the apparatus continuously over a long period of time, the switching operation may still be carried out.

According to the present invention, there is provided switch means comprising a pair of spaced-apart lead wires comprising a resilient material and having co-engageable end portions, an angularly movable distance-changing member for changing the distance between the lead wires, in accordance with clockwise and anti-clockwise movement so as to selectively co-engage and disengage the lead wire ends, actuating means for angularly moving the distance-changing member and means for biassing against angular movement of the distance-changing member.

An embodiment of this invention is described by way of example, with reference to the drawings, in which: Figure 1 is an external perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention employed as an illuminating device for bicycle.

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the illuminating device shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is an underneath view thereof: Figure 4 is an internal perspective view showing a primary part of the switching means; Figure 5 is an illustration of a disc-shaped angularly movable member in operation wherein Figures 5(A) and (B) are perspective views respectively showing the on and off states thereof, (C) is a view of both ends (14), (1 5) in (B) taken along the direction indicated by the arrow.

Figures 6(A), (B) and (C) are respectively a plan view, a side elevational view and a cross sectional view taken along the line A-A shown in (B) of the disc-shaped angularly movable member.

Referring now to Figures 1 to 3 inclusive, a headlight 1, mounted on a steering handle H of the bicycle by a band B in a conventional manner per se comprises a casing 2, an co-operable cover 3, two standard dry cells or batteries (not shown) accommodated in the casing, a lamp bulb 4 detachably mounted in the casing, a reflector 5 for the lamp bulb, a transparent front cover 6 and a switching means 7.

As shown in Figures 4 to 6, the switching means 7 is seated in a round through-hole 9 provided in the casing 2 of the illuminating device.

The through-hole 9 has a curved inner surface 8 and a disc-shaped angularly movable member 10 is seated in the complementarily-shaped throughhole 9 against the curved surface 8, a fixing spring 11 made of a single steel wire for fixing the angularly movable member. The switch means further comprises two lead wires 1 6 and 1 7 each made of steel and each extending from a different terminal 12, 13 of the two dry cells to form an on/off contact at their ends 14 and 1 5. The discshaped angularly movable member 10 is provided with an upstanding portion 18 having an inwardly extending groove 19, as shown in Figure 6(B). The angularly movable member 10 is provided with an actuating portion having a manually-engageable surface (which can be.serrated) on a lower surface and this externally projects from casing 2.The upstanding portion 1 8 has two spaced stops for limiting angular movement of the angularly movable member 10.

The angularly movable member also has a distance-changing member 21, having for example, an oblong or ellipsoidal shape in cross section, on the upper surface disposed inside of the casing for altering the distance between the lead wires 16, 1 7 from a first position, in which the ends 14, 1 5 do not meet, to a second position in which the ends 14, 1 5 do meet and vice versa.

The radially inwardly extending groove 19 has two contiguous planar inner surfaces 22 and 23 which mutually subtend an angle of about 1 20C as shown in Figure 6 (C). A switch means fixing spring 11 resiliently presses the inner surfaces of the groove 1 9 inwardly of the casing so that the disc-shaped angularly movable member 10 may rotate on the curved surface 8 of the through-hole 9. By virtue of the inwardly extending groove 19 having the planar bottom surface 22 and 23, the disc-shaped angulariy movable member 10 may be held in on/off positions for lead ends 14, 1 5.

The lead wire 16, is adapted to engage the distance-changing member 21 on the disc-shaped angularly movable member 10 so that the lead ends 14, 15 of the lead wires 16, 17 can be made to meet or part and in particular to intersect. The lead end of wire 14 is bent so as to slant away from the end of wire 1 5. Thus, turning of the actuating portion 20 causes the distance changing member 21 to rotate as shown in Figure 3, thereby causing the ends 14 and 1 5 to be brought into or out of contact with each other and hence, the illumination circuit to be made or broken.

Furthermore, when the ends 14, 1 5 contact with each other, there is resilient, sliding contact, which is not readily disturbed, even when shocks are applied to the apparatus.

To mount the disc-shaped angularly movable member 10 and the fixing spring 11 into the casing 2, the disc-shaped angularly movable member 10 is inserted from below into the through-hole 9 of the casing 2 and then the fixing spring 11 is mounted from the inside of the casing 2 so that the fixing spring resiliently lies in the groove 1 9 in the disc-shaped angularly movable member 10. More specifically, both ends of fixing spring 11 are retained against posts 24 and 25 located within the casing 2 (please see Figure 4), and by resiliency of the fixing spring, the discshaped angularly movable member 10 is held rotatably towards groove 1 9 on arcuate surface 8.

Subsequently, the lead wires 1 6 and 1 7 located in the casing 2 are resiliently held each side of the distance changing member 21 of the disc-shaped angularly movable member 10 to complete the mounting operation. Reference numeral 26 in Figure 4 denotes a retaining projection for retaining the lead wires 1 6 and 17 in the casing, and reference numerals 27 and 28 denotes lead wires to the lamp 4.

Claims

1. Switch means comprising a pair of spacedapart lead wires comprising a resilient material and having co-engageable end portions, an angularly movable distance-changing member for changing the distance between the lead wires, in accordance with clockwise and anti-clockwise movement so as to selectively co-engage and disengage the lead wire ends, actuating means for angularly moving the distance-changing member and means for biassing against angular movement of the distance-changing member.

2. Switch means according to claim 1, wherein the lead wire ends are substantially mutually perpendicular.

3. Switch means according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the distance-changing means is supported on an angularly movable member, at least a portion of which can be accommodated in complementarily-curved guide means.

4. Switch means according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the biassing means comprises a resilient member which is adapted to be located in a groove in the angularly movable member.

5. Switch means according to claim 4, wherein the resilient member has two straight portions subtending an obtuse angle and the groove in the angularly movable member has two similar surfaces against which the resilient member can act, thereby providing on and off positions of the angularly movable member.

6. Switch means according to claim 4, wherein one or both of the lead wires and the biassing means are made of spring steel.

7. Switch means for an illuminating device for a ridden vehicle or a wheeled accessory thereto according to any preceding claim.

8. Switch means constructed and arranged as herein described with reference to any of the drawings.