GB2568113A

GB2568113A - A bicycle light

Info

Publication number: GB2568113A
Application number: GB1718426.8A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Moore Cuan
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2017-11-07
Filing date: 2017-11-07
Publication date: 2019-05-08
Anticipated expiration: 2037-11-07
Also published as: IES86965B2; GB201718426D0; GB2568113B; IES20180384A2

Abstract

A bicycle light comprises first 38 and second 37 light beams. One light beam 37 is arranged asymmetrically with respect to a central axis 48 of the lamp. The first beam 38 may be a front-directed beam and the second beam 37 may be directed rearwardly to illuminate the torso of the cyclist to improve their visibility to side approaching vehicles. The second beam 37 may comprise light in the non-visible spectrum and may cause a photo-luminescent jacket worn by the cyclist to be activated.

Description

A BICYCLE LIGHT

Field of the Application

The present application relates to safety devices for cyclists and in particular to lights for bicycles.

Background

Cycling is very popular. Cycling at dusk, early in the morning, in poor weather conditions or at night exposes cyclists to danger from other vehicles due to an inability for the drivers of other vehicles to see cyclists.

It is known and indeed a legal requirement in many countries, for cyclists to use lights. An example is shown in figure 1, of a cyclist 4 riding a bicycle 2 having a front facing white light 6 which provides an illumination pattern 8 to the front of the cyclist and a red rear facing light 10 which provides an illumination pattern 12 to the rear of the cyclist.

A difficulty with such lights is that the illumination patterns are relatively focussed in forward and rearward directions and as such can be difficult for motorists approaching from the side.

To solve this problem, it is known for lights to provide holes to the side of the light so that a small amount of white light escapes from the front projecting beam and is visible from the side, but these can be difficult to see and frequently obstructed by the hands of the cyclists on the handlebars.

It is also known for cyclists to wear high visibility clothing. However, a problem with this high visibility clothing is that it is generally required to be illuminated (typically by the lights of another vehicle) to be visible. Additionally, not all cyclists wear such high visibility clothing, as depending on the climatic conditions it may or not fit over the cyclist coat or other clothing.

Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a device which improves the safety of cyclists.

Summary of the Invention

My invention resides in arranging a front bicycle light so as to also illuminate at least a part of the torso of the rider behind. Accordingly there is provided a device and bicycle light as detailed in the claims that follow.

Description of Drawings

The present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is an example of a known arrangement for a bicycle light on a bicycle;

Figure 2 is an exemplary embodiment of a lighting arrangement on a bicycle according to the present invention;

Figure 3 is an example of a lighting device for use in the arrangement of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a more detailed view of the lighting device of Figure 3; and

Figure 5 illustrates an optional mode of adjustment suitable for use in a lighting device of Figure 3.

Detailed Description

My invention, exemplary embodiments of which are shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4, comprises a front bicycle light having a front facing light 36 which provides a generally forward projecting beam of light 38. For legal reasons, the beam of light is conventionally one of white light.

As with conventional front bicycle lights, the purpose of the front facing light is twofold, firstly to warn oncoming traffic of the presence of the cyclist and secondly to light the road surface in front of the bicycle.

This latter function is less important in urban areas where there is adequate street lighting and accordingly some cyclists arrange their lights so that they face directly forward rather than to provide a forward and downward facing beam. However in all cases, the central axis of the light beam is generally parallel to the road surface or an angle downward toward the road surface.

In addition to the front facing light 36, the bicycle light in accordance with my invention also has a rear facing light. The function of this rear facing light is to illuminate a portion of the torso of the cyclist thus improving the visibility of the cyclist to vehicles approaching from the side.

As with conventional front bicycle lights, the bicycle light may be configured to be mounted directly on a handlebar using a rubber strap, hook and loop strap or similar attachment method. Alternatively, the bicycle light may clip into a holder 40 which in turn is mounted to a handlebar or other part of the bicycle structure.

The front and rear lights are provided in a body portion 46 of the bicycle light. The body portion may be shaped to clip into a holder 40. In other configurations the body portion 46 cooperates with a fixing mechanism to allow the bicycle light be secured directly to the bicycle.

A switch 42 may be provided to operate the light. The switch may for example be a push button switch 42 as shown or it may be a twist operated switch provided in the body whereby twisting one part of the body with respect to another may turn on and the light. Desirably the action of the switch effects a concurrent activation of each of the front facing and rear facing lights. In other configurations the switch may activate one or other of the front facing and rear facing lights. In one arrangement, sequential actuation of the switch facilitates activation of one of a plurality of available lighting profiles- for example continuously on front and rear facing lights, flashing front facing and continuous rear facing, flashing rear facing and continuous front facing. The present teaching is not intended to be limited to any one specific sequence of lighting configurations. For example, the front facing and rear lights may be operated by the same switch or may be individually switched. For example, to facilitate the user using the bicycle light as a hand torch, the rear facing light may be disabled so as not to blind the holder of the light.

As legal requirements obligate the front facing light to be a white light, the front facing light beam may be produced by a white light source, which may be a halogen or similar filament light bulb or more suitably one or more LEDs 52. A lens and reflector arrangement may be provided in order to provide a shaped beam from the light source. Typically this beam is a narrow beam light which projects a focused narrow beam directly in front of the bicycle to identify the bicycle to traffic in front of the bicycle and to illuminate the path for the ease of the cyclist.

In addition to this front facing light providing a front projecting light beam 38, a light according to my invention also provides a rear facing light such that the bicycle light has a first light and a second light. This second light is generally rear facing and thus if mounted on a bicycle handlebar would illuminate backwards towards the saddle of the bicycle. The purpose of this second light is to illuminate the front and front sides of the torso of the cyclist while they are cycling. The intensity of the rear facing light may be variable, so as to allow the user to select the level of self-illumination.

Suitably, the rear facing light provides a second light output of the bicycle light, a second source of light. This second source of light may share the light source used to provide the front facing light beam. In another arrangement, the second source of light may be provided by a second, separate source of light. Similarly to the first source of light, this second source of light may be a filament light bulb or one or more LEDs is provided within the body 46 of the light. The rear facing light may project out from a housing 44 which extends from the top of the light body 36. As with front light, a lens and reflector arrangement may be provided in order to provide a shaped beam from the second light source. The shaped beam is suitably shaped to provide a rear facing light beam 37 to illuminate the torso of the cyclist. Desirably, the pattern of this rear facing light beam is broader or wider than the pattern of the front facing light beam.

In contrast to the front facing light, the rear facing light beam will be at least generally horizontal and more generally angled upward from the horizontal so as to be orientated upwardly away from the road on which the bicycle travels. It will be appreciated that the front facing light is typically orientated downwardly towards the road. It will be appreciated that the angle of the rear facing light beam may be changeable to avoid directing light directly towards the eyes of the cyclist, which may hinder their vision. Such an arrangement may be facilitated by having a moveable housing 44 as is described in more detail with reference to Figure 5.

In another configuration, not shown, the body of the housing itself is moveable such that a pivoting of the body facilitates a change in angular orientation of the rear facing light. In such an arrangement, the front and rear facing lights are desirably provided on opposite ends of the housing, the movement of the housing changing their angular orientation relative to one another.

The colour of the rear facing light is also suitably white as this allows for effective illumination of the torso irrespective of the colour of clothing being worn. It is also effective with reflective materials commonly worn by cyclists either in the form of reflective vests or jackets. It will be appreciated however, that as legislation does not dictate the colour of any light that is not projecting forwardly, the colour of the rear facing light could be a colour other than white. Desirably, a light in accordance with the present invention will be sold as part of a kit, the kit including a high visibility jacket which is worn by the cyclists and is illuminated by the rear facing light.

In one configuration, not shown, the rear facing light includes a non-white light output- for example an LED providing light in the infra-red or ultraviolet spectrum. By providing non-visible light as the output of the rear facing light, it will be appreciated that the cyclist will not be distracted or blinded by the light directed onto their torso. To achieve the necessary illumination of the torso, the high visibility jacket will incorporate a photo-luminescent material such as a phosphorescent material which is activated by the light output in the non-visible spectrum. The phosphorescent material may be provided by a phosphor paint or coating but it will be appreciated that other glow in the dark materials which are activated by illumination may also be provided.

As shown in the Figures, the body of the light has a generally longitudinal axis 48 in line with the body of the light. Thus, the front facing light may have a projection pattern which is centred along the longitudinal axis of the body or slightly downward therefrom. In contrast, the rear facing light is angled from the light housing so that the light pattern 37 from the rear facing light is projecting upwards at an angle towards the torso of the cyclist. As discussed above, this may be provided by having a tiltable body or by having a light window or housing at the top of the light body which allows light to be projected rearwardly and upwardly of the longitudinal axis of the light body.

As discussed above, to accommodate different height of cyclists and different positions of cyclists relative to the light depending on the bicycle frame shape and size, the angle of the rear facing light may be adjustable over a range of angles. For example, as shown in Figure 5, the output may be adjusted over a range from a minimum angle, position 60, to a maximum position represented by position 62 with respect to the longitudinal axis 48. In such an arrangement, the housing 44 is receivable into the body of the light and can be extended outwardly using a spring loaded mechanism or the like. Other arrangements such as a ratchet mechanism, may facilitate the movement in a controlled fashion. The user may be provided with a slot or other engagement feature on an outer surface of the housing 44 to facilitate the movement of the housing relative to the body of the light.

It will be appreciated that providing first and second light outputs from the light has an effect on the power consumption of the overall light itself. This can be reduced by use of low power light emitting devices such as LEDs. The dimensions of the body can be increased to facilitate multiple batteries to extend the period between which batteries have to be replaced. In other configurations the light may be rechargeable, through use of a USB connector or the like. The integration of a USB charging element is known in the art and provides an easy way to quickly recharge the light. Other charging mechanisms such as a solar cell could be incorporated.

It will be appreciated that exemplary arrangements of a light in accordance with the present teaching have been described. Modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present teaching which is intended to be limited only insofar as is deemed necessary in the light of the appended claims

Claims

Claims

1. A bicycle lighting device for mounting on a bicycle 2, the device comprising:

a body (46) extending along a longitudinal axis (48), the body (46) being securable to the bicycle (2) and having a front light emitting portion (36) and a rear light emitting portion (44);

at least one light source (52,56) provided within the body; and wherein at least one of the front and rear light emitting portions (36,44) is located asymmetrically with respect to the longitudinal axis (48) of the body.
2. The device of claim 1, wherein the rear light emitting portion (44) generates a beam of light (37) directed upwardly away from the longitudinal axis to illuminate the torso of the cyclist.
3. The device according to any of the preceding claims further comprising a power source such as a battery or a solar cell.
4. The device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one of the light emitting portions (36, 44) comprises a reflecting means (53) and a translucent means (54, 58).
5. The device according to claim 4 wherein the translucent means is a lens (54, 58) and/or a diffuser.
6. The device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one light source (52, 56) is of the halogen or filament light bulb type.
7. The device according to any of the preceding claims 1-5, wherein the at least one light source is a light emitting diode.
8. The device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the front light emitting portion (36) has a projection pattern (38) which is centered along the longitudinal axis.
9. The device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the rear light emitting portion (44) has a light pattern (37) projecting upwards at an angle from the longitudinal axis.
10. The device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the rear emitting portion (44) comprises an angular adjustment of the projected beam of light (37).
11. The device of any one of claims 1 to 9 where in the body of the device is pivotable to allow an angular adjustment of the rear emitting portion relative to the front emitting portion.
12. The device according to the preceding claim, wherein the upper border of the beam of light can be adjusted between a minimum position (60) and a maximum position (62) with respect to the longitudinal axis (48).
13. The device according to any of the preceding claims further comprising a switch (42) for the activation of the at least one light source.
14. The device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the rear and front light emitting portions (36,44) have separate light sources (52,56).
15. The device according to the preceding claim, wherein the front and the rear light emitting portions (36,44) are selectively switchable or together at the same time.
16. The device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the projected beams of light (37,38) of the front and rear light emitting portions (36,44) have the same colour.
17. The device of any preceding claim wherein the rear light emitting portions emits light in the non-visible spectrum.
18. The device according to the preceding claim, wherein the at least one light source outputs white light.
19. The device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the body (46) is cylindrical.
20. The device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the body (46) comprises fixture means for mounting to the handlebar of the bicycle.
21. The device according to the preceding claim, characterised in that the fixture means comprises a holder (40) attachable to the handlebar onto which the body (46) can be clipped or a strap preferably made of rubber.
23. A bicycle kit comprising the device of any preceding claim and a high visibility jacket, the high visibility jacket comprising a photo-luminescent material defining a pattern on the jacket, the photo-luminescent material being activated by the light of the rear light emitting portion.
24. The kit of claim 23 wherein the rear light emitting portion emits light in the non-visible spectrum, the emitted light having a frequency matched to the frequency of the photo-luminescent material.
25. The kit of claim 24 wherein the emitted light is in the UV or IR spectrum.
26. A bicycle light comprising:

a body having a first light for providing light to the front of the bicycle and a second light for illuminating the torso of a rider of the bicycle, the first light and the second light each providing a light output which are angularly offset from the other.
27. The light of claim 26 wherein the second light provides a light output which is angularly offset from a longitudinal axis of the light.

5 28. A bicycle light comprising:

a body, a first light positioned in the body for providing light to the front of the bicycle along a first axis;

a second light positioned in the body for illuminating the torso of a rider of the io bicycle along a second axis wherein the first axis is offset from the second axis.