GB2145062A - Battery-powered electrical device - Google Patents

Abstract

A battery-powered electrical device such as a beauty case or torch has a pair of spring contacts 7,8 to receive therebetween either a single battery or a plurality of batteries 6 arranged end-to-end in electrical contact with the spring contacts 7,8. The device includes a wedge-shaped switch element 11 which is mounted for movement transversely of the battery or batteries into and out of a position in which it moves the battery away from a contact or two batteries away from each other, thereby to break and to make the electrical circuit containing the battery or batteries. As applied to a beauty case, the circuit may illuminate a mirror 5 on the inner surface of the lid 2 of the case on opening the case to actuate the switch element 11. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Battery-powered electrical device The invention relates to a battery-powered electrical device and is particularly concerned with a method of making and breaking the electrical circuit through the battery or batteries which avoids the need for the provision of a switch to be connected in the circuit. The device may be of any kind in which a load, for example a lamp or motor, is to be connected in series with the battery or batteries and is particularly, but not exclusively, concerned with a box having a lid and a lamp or lamps for illuminating the interior of the box or the lid when the lid is open. For example, the box may be a so-called beauty case containing toiletries or cosmetics and having on the underside of the lid an illuminated mirror.The battery or batteries employed are particularly of cylindrical shape and so the invention may be applied to a torch having a cylindrical battery or batteries.

According to the invention, a battery-powered electrical device of the kind having a pair of spaced spring contacts to receive therebetween either a single battery or a plurality of batteries arranged end-to-end in a column with the positive and negative terminals of adjacent batteries in engagement one with the other, and in which the battery or batteries, when piaced in the device, are positioned with the positive and negative terminals of the battery, or the outerost positive and negative terminals of the column of batteries, in electrical engagement with respective contacts, also includes a wedge-shaped switch element which is mounted in the device for movement transversely of the battery, or column of batteries, from a first or "on" position in which the battery or batteries and the contacts are in electrical engagement into a second or "off" position in which the element is inserted between the or a battery and an adjacent contact or between two adjacent batteries to move the battery and the adjacent contact or the two adjacent batteries apart to break the electrical circuit, and releasable means to hold the element in said "off" position, whereby on release of said holding means, the element will be moved to said "on" position and the electrical engagement of the battery or batteries and the contacts will be restored under the resilience of the contacts.

Conveniently, the switch element may be arranged to be inserted between a pair of adjacent batteries of a column of two or more batteries, the element having a concave leading edge or surface which will be radiallyoutwardly spaced from the positive terminal of one of the pair of batteries when the wedge faces of the element become engaged with the respective adjacent end faces of the batteries, whereby the batteries will be forced apart without the element becoming engaged with the positive terminal of said one battery.

Where the batteries to be accommodated in the device are of cylindrical shape, the switch element may also have a resilient clip or clips shaped to be snapped onto the cylindrical surface of both batteries adjacent the gap therebetween which is produced on the insertion of the element and thereby to locate the element with regard to the batteries, the clip or clips when snapped onto the batteries embracing the cylindrical surface around less than a semi-circle, whereby when the retaining means has been released, the clip or clips will readily separate from the cylindrical surface of the batteries.

The resilient of the clip or clips may be sufficiently great as to aid the separation of the clip or clips from the batteries and thereby to assist the force due to the resilience of the contacts in withdrawing the element from between the batteries.

The switch element and the clip or clips may be integrally moulded in a synthetic plastics material.

Preferably the device comprises a box having a lid and either the box or the lid forms a housing for the battery or batteries, the aforesaid switch element being supported in its "on" position when the lid is open and being moved by interengagement of the lid and the box to its "off" position when the lid is closed.

By way of example, a beauty case having a hinged lid incorporating an illuminated mirror and a switch element being a battery-powered electrical device in accordance with the invention, is now described with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of parts of the box, forming the base of the beauty case, and the lid; Figure 2 is a perspective diagram showing the aforesaid switch element immediately prior to being inserted between two batteries; Figure 3 is a side view of two batteries and the switch element in its "on" position, and Figure 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing the batteries and the switch element in its "off' position.

Referring to Fig. 1, the base of the case 1 has the lid 2 hinged to it by means of hinges 3 shown separated from recesses 4 in the base to which they are pivoted. The lid 2 has a mirror 5 in or on its lower surface. The mirror 5 is illuminated by a lamp or lamps, not shown, connected in an electrical circuit to a pair of cylindrical batteries 6 mounted in the lid and arranged end-to-end in a column between spring contacts 7, 8 spaced apart in the lid. The batteries 6 are of conventional type each having a negative terminal 9 being the flat base of the casing at one end and a positive terminal 10 being a short cylindrical cap at the other end.

The electrical circuit is completed by the engagement together of the inner terminals 9 and 10 of the two batteries 6 and by the engagement of the outer terminals 9 and 10 of the two batteries 6 with the spring contacts 7 and 8 respectively under the axial loading effected by the resilience of the contacts 7 and 8. Hitherto the electrical circuit has been made and broken by the provision of a switch connected in the electrical circuit externally of the batteries and the contacts 7 and 8, the electrical engagement between the batteries and between the batteries and the contacts being permament when the batteries have been fitted between the contacts 7 and 8.

Such an arrangement including an external switch is known in torches of conventional design, for example.

An object of the invention is to avoid the need for an external switch and thereby to reduce expense and the risk of a fault developing in such a switch.

In accordance with the invention, a wedgeshaped switch element 11 is mounted transversely of the batteries 6 and aligned with the annular gap 1 2 which is present between the base of one battery and the head of the other and around the positive terminal 10 of one of the batteries. The switch element 11 is integral with a pair of jaw-iike clips 1 3 which embrace the cylindrical surfaces of the respective batteries 6 and so locate the element 11 in alignment with the gap 1 2. The jaws of the clips are resilient and when the lid is open lightly engage with the cylindrical surface of the respective battery to hold the element 11 in the "on" position shown in Figs. 2 and 3.In this position the inner terminals 9 and 10 of the batteries 6 are in engagement and the electrical circuit is complete. The element 11 has a leading parallel sided portion 14 which is positioned in the gap 1 2 and which has a concave end edge 1 5 which is spaced from and is substantially concentric with the battery terminal 10.

On pressing the element 11 initially towards the axis of the batteries 6, as will hereinafter be explained, the wedge-shaped part pushes the two batteries apart and so separates the central terminals 9 and 10 thereby breaking the electrical circuit as shown in Fig. 4. The circuit remains broken so long as the element 11 is pressed inward.

As soon as the force holding in the element 11 is removed, the resilience exerted on the outer ends of the batteries by the contacts 9 and 10 act through the batteries on the wedge surfaces of the element 11 to push it radially outward of the batteries to the position shown in Fig. 3, thereby permitting the central terminals 9 and 10 to re-engage and thus to make the electrical circuit.Additionally when the element 11 is pushed radially towards the axis of tile batteries 6, the jaws of the clips 1 3 are expanded to grip around and to follow the curvature of the cylindrical surfaces of the respective batteries 6 but the length of the jaws are such that they will when the element 11 has been fully depressed embrace the respective cylindrical surfaces over less than a semi-circle of the crosssection through the respective battery.The resilience of the clips 1 3 is such that when the radial force acting on the element 11 is removed the clips will return to their original positions in which they only lightly engage the cylindrical surfaces of the batteries and thus the resilience of the clips will assist the radially outward movement of the element 11 and thus the re-engagement of the central terminals 9. 10 of the batteries 6.

The element 11 and the clips 1 3 are integrally formed by a moulding of a synthetic plastics material of suitable resilience. The integral moulding is held in-the rectangular aperture 1 6 shown in the underneath of the lid 2 and the outer end 1 7 of the element 11 engages a face or spring 1 8 on the base 1 when the lid 2 is closed. Thus on closing the lid 2, the element 11 is pushed by the face or spring 1 8 to the "off" position shown in Fig.

4 in which the element 11 has separated the central terminals 9, 10 of the batteries 6. The element 11 is held in the "off" position so long as the lid 2 remains closed. When the lid 2 is raised, the element 11 is no longer held in its "off" position and it is pushed radially outwardly of the batteries to its "on" position shown in Fig. 3 by the combined action of the resilient contacts 7, 8 pushing against the wedge faces of the element 11 and the resilience of the clips 1 3 and so the electrical circuit to the lamp or lamps is completed by the re-engagement of the central terminals 9, 10.

Although a column of two batteries 6 has been illustrated, more than two batteries may be employed and arranged end-to-end. In that case, the element 11 would be introduced between any two adjacent batteries. Where only one battery is employed, the element 11 may be introduced between one end of the battery and the adjacent contact 7 or 8, provided the contact has been appropriately shaped to engage the adjacent battery terminal and to be separated therefrom by the element 11.

Although the element 11 has been described for use in switching on and off the lamp or lamps illuminating the mirror 5 in the lid 2 of a beauty case, it may be used in other applications where one or more batteries are held between a pair of spring contacts, for example in a torch.

Claims (7)

1. A battery-powered electrical device of the kind having a pair of spaced spring contacts to receive therebetween either a single battery or a plurality of batteries arranged end-to-end in a column with the positive and negative terminals of adjacent batteries in engagement one with the other, and in which the battery or batteries, when placed in the device, are positioned with the positive and negative terminals of the battery, or the outermost positive and negative terminals of the column of batteries, in electrical engagement with respective contacts, including a wedgeshaped switch element which is mounted in the device for movement transversely of the battery, or column of batteries, from a first or "on" position in which the battery or batteries and the contacts are in electrical engagement into a second or "off" position in which the element is inserted between the or a battery and an adjacent contact or between two adjacent batteries to move the battery and the adjacent contact or the two adjacent batteries apart to break the electrical circuit, and releasable means to hold the element in said "off' position, whereby on release of said holding means, the element will be moved to said "on" position and the electrical engagement of the battery or batteries and the contacts will be restored under the resilience of the contacts.

2. A device as claimed in Claim 1 in which the switch element is arranged to be inserted between a pair of adjacent batteries of a column of two or more batteries, the element having a concave leading edge or surface which will be radially-outwardly spaced from the positive terminal of one of the pair of batteries when the wedge faces of the element become engaged with the respective adjacent end faces of the batteries, whereby the batteries will be forced apart without the element becoming engaged with the positive terminal of said one battery.

3. A device as claimed in Claim 2 in which the batteries to be accommodated in the device are of cylindrical shape, the switch element having a resilient clip or clips shaped to be snapped onto the cylindrical surface of both batteries adjacent the gap therebetween which is produced on the insertion of the element and thereby to locate the element with regard to the batteries, the clip or clips when snapped onto the batteries embracing the cylindrical surface around less than a semi-circle, whereby when the retaining means has been released, the clip or clips will readily separate from the cylindrical surface of the batteries.

4. A device as claimed in Claim 3 in which the resilience of the clip or clips is sufficiently great as to aid the separation of the clip or clips from the batteries and thereby to assist the force due to the resilience of the contacts in withdrawing the element from between the batteries.

5. A device as claimed in Claim 3 or 4 in which the switch element and the clip or clips are integrally moulded in a synthetic plastics material.

6. A device as claimed in any preceding claim comprising a box having a lid and in which either the box or the lid forms a housing for the battery or batteries, the aforesaid switch element being supported in its "on" position when the lid is open and being moved by interengagement of the lid and the box to its "off" position when the lid is closed.

7. A device constructed and arranged substantially as described herein and shown in the accompanying drawings.