JP2002522736A - Gas ignition rod - Google Patents

Abstract

A gas lighting rod comprises a gas release valve (41) and a piezo-electric igniting system (14) both operated by a spring-loaded operating member (10), and a spring-loaded safety member (25) which has to be operated to release the operating member. The operating member (10) is aligned transversely and the safety member (25) comprises a pivoted lever having a lock/release arm (26) extending generally along the axis of the operating member (10) and interacting therewith and a control arm (27) engaged on the other side of the pivot (28, 55) and from the opposite side of the lighting rod from the operating member (10). The lock-release arm (26) is substantially enclosed within the operating member, and its end is sloped such that its engagement with the operating member (10) tends to urge it into the locked position if the user attempts to operate the operating member without first fully operating the safety member.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

 The present invention relates to a gas ignition rod.

[0002]

[Prior art]

The gas ignition rod is a rod-like device used for ignition, and has a gas source and an operation member. When the operating member is pressed by hand, a gas flow path leading to the end of the device is opened, and a spark is generated to ignite the gas by the piezoelectric element. The operation member is provided with a spring, and returns to a predetermined position after the operation. Various examples are disclosed, for example, in US Pat. No. 5,697,775 (Tokai).

[0003] It is important to provide a safety mechanism to reduce the chances of children operating the device. A standard safety measure is to provide a spring-loaded safety element so that the safety element must be operated before the operating element can be activated. The safety member moves sideways toward the operating member to enable actuation of the operating member. The operating member normally moves perpendicular to the axis of the ignition rod and the safety member moves horizontally to the axis of the ignition rod.

[0004]

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

We have found that the above relationship between operating member and safety member has significant drawbacks. When a large force is applied to the operating member, the safety member may be distorted. As a result, the operating member is in a free state, and can move and ignite. The spring force applied to the safety member keeps the friction with the operating member within a certain limit,
It needs to be restricted. If the spring force is too large, when the safety member is released and the operation member is operated, the movement of the operation member may be obstructed at the intermediate portion. Further, in such an intermediate state, that is, in the intermediate portion, the operating member cannot sufficiently return to the normal position, and is thus held in a state where the safety member is released. That is, the operation member is operated first, and there is no safety member to be released, and then the operation member is operated.

[0005]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

According to the present invention, there is provided a gas discharge valve and a piezoelectric ignition mechanism which are both operated by a spring-loaded operating member, and a gas ignition rod having a spring-loaded safety member which must be operated to operate the operating member. The operating member is arranged laterally, the safety member usually extends along the axis of the operating member and engages with the locking / unlocking arm interacting with the operating member, the other side of the pivot, and the ignition rod And a control arm opposing the operation member of (1), and a lever that pivots about a pivot is provided.

The end of the lock / unlock arm is engaged with the operating member when the user does not operate the safety member sufficiently first to activate the operating member. It is preferable to make an inclination so that the lock state is obtained. Preferably, the lock / release arm is substantially housed in the operating member.

[0007] The spring force provided by the piezo spring is sufficient to provide the necessary spring bias to the operating member, without the need for a spring for additional bias on the operating member.

[0008] This device has various structural advantages. The fact that the locking / unlocking arm is substantially within the operating member means that the safety member has the effect of suppressing the movement of the operating member even when a very large force is applied to the operating member. The spring force applied to the safety member can be adjusted within a wide range that does not cause excessive friction with the operating member. Furthermore, there is virtually no safety member in the device in an intermediate state, ie in an intermediate position, which activates the operating member again without operating the safety member. The safety member is biased from such an intermediate state to a normal state.

The device also has the functional advantage of being particularly simple and comfortable to operate. The user can easily hold the thumb such that the thumb comfortably touches the operating member on one side of the ignition rod and the ring finger hits the control arm of the safety member facing the operating member (or vice versa). In contrast, in prior art designs, the vertically arranged actuating members and the laterally arranged safety members make operation of the ignition rod awkward and inconvenient.

[0010]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

An ignition rod embodying the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, taking its example. FIG. 1 is a simplified lateral view of an ignition rod showing a normal state excluding a casing part. 2 and 3 are partial simplified views showing two embodiments of the ignition rod shown in FIG.

Referring to FIG. 1, the main elements of the ignition rod are the operating member 10, the safety member 25, the gas bottle 40, the nozzle assembly 45, and the casing 50. Only those elements relevant to the purpose of the invention are shown in simplified form.

The casing 50 is in the form of a clam shell, consisting of two half-shells that are generally mirror images of one another, and is mated with pin and socket elements at overlapping edges. The drawing shows the ignition rod without the front half shell so that the rear half shell 51 is visible.
This casing has other elements in place. In particular, the gas container 40
, Has a nozzle assembly 45 at the left end.

The operation member 10 has a button 11 having a hole 12, and the hole 12 is provided with a piezoelectric mechanism including two elements 13 and 14. The button 11 is moved to an upper position by a spring 15, for example,
It goes to the position shown. This spring 15 has a hole in the button (not shown)
And a stop member 52 which is a component part of the half shell 51. A piezo spring (not shown) also supplies a spring bias force to the operation button 11. In another embodiment, not shown, it is also possible to eliminate the spring 15 of the operation button 11 and to have the operation button 11 rely entirely on the biasing force of a piezo spring (not shown).

When the button 11 is manually pushed downward against the force of the spring 15 and the piezo spring, the piezoelectric mechanisms 13 and 14 move downward. The lever 19 is arranged as shown in the figure, and pivots around a pivot of a bearing 53 which is a component of the casing 50. This lever 19 is a gas bottle
It is engaged with 40 valves 41. When the piezoelectric mechanisms 13 and 14 move downward, the lever pivots counterclockwise about the pivot, actuating the valve 41 and discharging the gas flow from the bottle 40.
This gas flows to the end of the nozzle assembly 45.

The movement of the piezoelectric mechanisms 13 and 14 is restricted by a stop member 54 which is a component of the casing 50. Further pressure on the button causes the two elements of the piezoelectric mechanisms 13, 14 to compress together, causing a spark at the end of the nozzle assembly 45. Since the compression of the piezoelectric element occurs after the discharge of the gas flow, the gas flow has reached the end of the nozzle assembly by the time the spark occurs.

The safety member 25 (a part of which is shown in section) includes two arms, a lock / release arm 26 and a control arm 27. These two arms are joined to form an L-shape. The apex 28 of the L-shape forms a pivot which is a component of the casing 50
Turn inside 55. The safety member 25 is moved counterclockwise by the spring 29,
Is inside control arm 27 and presses against stop member 52, which is a component of casing 50.
The outside of the control arm 27 is generally at substantially the same height as the casing 50, as shown.

The lock / release arm 26 of the safety member 25 is in the hole 17 of the button 11. The hole includes a stop member element 16 projecting from the upper end thereof, the hole 17 being wider at the lower part and narrower at the upper part. In the normal position of the safety member 25, the tip 30 of the locking / unlocking arm presses on this protruding element 16, as shown. As a result, the operation member is locked with its movement suppressed. However, when the safety member is operated by pushing the control arm 27 by hand, the lock / release arm 26 pivots clockwise about the pivot. Thereby, the engagement between the upper end 30 and the protruding element 16 of the button 11 is released, and the upper end 30 and the upper part of the hole 17 are aligned. As a result, the button 11 can be moved and this button can be pressed by hand. When the button 11 is pressed, the lock / release arm 26 of the safety member 25 moves to the upper part of the hole 17.

The end 30 of the lock / release arm 26 of the safety member 25 is angled as shown,
The stop member 16 in the hole 17 is angled equal to or greater than that. Therefore, when the safety grip is sufficiently operated, the button 11 can be pressed. The safety grip is not fully activated, i.e. the locking / unlocking arm 26 of the safety member 25
If the end 30 of the arm has not moved to a state where it is not sufficiently engaged with the stop member 16, the inclined portion at the end 30 of the arm and the inclined surface of the stop member 16 apply pressure to the button 11, and Move the member counterclockwise to lock.

After pressing the button 12, the safety button 25 can be released. The arm 26 then returns around the pivot 53 in a counterclockwise direction, with its end lightly pressing the side of the hole 17. Then, when the button 10 is released, it rises to the position shown. The end of the arm 30 slides along the side of the hole 17 with relatively low friction until it reaches the projecting element 16 and returns to the position shown.

FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of this device. Corresponding parts bear the same reference numbers, and in particular, parts with different structures are denoted by an A. A conventional type of piezoelectric mechanism 13,14 has a pair of projecting members 18 on one of the elements 13,14. In the device shown in FIG. 2, a piezoelectric mechanism of this type is used, and a projecting member 18 is provided in the direction shown. The lock / release arm 26A of the safety member 25A is arranged to engage a protruding member 18 on the control rod 12, as shown.

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment of the device shown in FIG. 1, again using the same reference numerals, and in particular parts having different structures are marked with a B. In this device, the safety member is the lever 31. This lever has an arm with a crank-shaped upper extension 26 on the right side, which, as already mentioned, engages in the hole 17 and the projecting element 16 of the operating member 10. The lever 31 pivots at 32 about a pivot, the left arm of which extends horizontally over the pivot as shown. This safety member 31
Is separated from the control button, i.e., the safety button 25B, which extends its left end, which engages the left end of the arm to the left of the safety member.

The other end of the spring 15B engaged with the operation button 10 is a stop member 52B of the casing 50.
Is engaged in. However, spring 29B operates between safety button 25B and the right portion of safety member 31.

It is clear that both the embodiments of FIGS. 2 and 3 are applicable to the device of FIG. It goes without saying that those skilled in the art can implement various aspects as long as the essential elements of the invention described in the claims are included.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a lateral simplified view of an ignition rod showing a normal state excluding a casing part.

FIG. 2 is a partial simplified view showing another embodiment of the ignition rod shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a partial simplified view showing another embodiment of the ignition rod shown in FIG. 1;

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Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A gas release valve (10) actuated by an operating member (10), both of which are spring-loaded.
41) a gas ignition rod comprising a piezoelectric ignition mechanism (14), and a spring-loaded safety member (25) which must be operated to activate the operating member, wherein the operating member (10) is The safety member (25), which is arranged, usually includes a lock / release arm (26) extending along the axis of the operating member (10) and interacting with the operating member, and a pivot (28, 55).
A) a lever pivoting about a pivot, comprising a control arm (27) engaging the other side and facing the operating member (10) of the ignition rod. 2. Increasing the end of the lock / release arm (30) to allow the user to activate the operating member without first fully operating the safety member. 2. The gas ignition rod according to claim 1, wherein the end is engaged with the operating member to lock the operating member. 3. The gas ignition rod according to claim 1, wherein the locking / unlocking arm is substantially accommodated in the operating member. 4. The gas ignition rod according to claim 1, wherein the safety member requires a safety button having a surface portion that can be engaged by a user. 5. The gas ignition rod according to claim 1, wherein the safety button (25A) pivots about a pivot to press the separated safety member (31). 6. A separate operating member spring (15) is attached to the operating member (10) in addition to a spring having a spring force supplied by the piezoelectric ignition mechanism (14). The gas ignition rod according to any one of claims 1 to 5. 7. The gas ignition rod according to claim 1, wherein only a spring having a spring force supplied by a piezoelectric ignition mechanism is attached to the operating member. 8. Within the meaning of Article 4H of the International Treaty (Paris Convention),
Any novel and inventive feature or combination of features specifically disclosed herein.