US1635116A - Headlight - Google Patents

Description

` l, July 5, 1927. w. R. DU BREUIL 635116 HEADLIGHT Filed Jan. 9, 1925 17 f (aiu,

Tamil Patented July 5 1927.

UNITED STATES `w'iur'rnitn n. nu nunon., or nLmHUBsn'ILLINoIs.

BEADLIGHT.

Applicatiomled January 9, 1935.` Serial No. 1,474.

. My said invention relates to an improvement in headlights preferably for use on automobiles and other vehicles.

Heretofore automobile headlights have been so constructed that it has been necessary to provide some means of dilusing and breaking up the rays of light in an attempt to prevent the. impairment of the sight of the driver of an approaching. vehicle, however, the di'usedlight is still blindin and obviously the provision of such di using means prevented the proper rojection of the light to most eiiiciently iluminate the roadway. g Y

lt is an object of my invention to provide a headlight having an electric light bulb 'with' a shield or hood therein, positloned directly above thelilament and having rear end and side portions extending downwardly around the same slightly below the horizontal plane of the lighting iilament, Asaidl rear portion being curved and Serving asa retlector to project the light forwardly. rlhe forwardly extending ortion of Vsaid shield prevents `the projects Ylight romextendin .above a horizontal plane but permits te light to project substantially .in such plane or very slightly below the same. Another object of the invention is to provide a li ht which will-more efficiently light the roa way by highly concentratingthe light and projecting the same in a narrow shaft or beam instead of diusing and absorbing the said light.

A further object of the invention is to provide alightof reduced size having a reilecting surface ofa short vertical height and a relatively short shield or shade extending therefrom abovethe light thus elim inating a relatively long shade or shield for the light and obviating the necessity oi the conventional redactor.

A still further object of the invention is to provide supporting means for the light ywhich will permit. al plurality of adjustments. l

A yet further object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described which consists of few parts and is simplel and inexpensive to manufacture.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, which are''made 'a part hereoie and on which similar reference `characters indicate simi lar parts;

Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of my invention,

Figure 2 is a transverse vertical section of the electric light bulb,

Figure 3 is a longitudinal vertical section of the electric light bulb,

Figure 4 is a section on the line 4 4 of Figure 3, v

Figure 5 ris a longitudinal horizontal section of the electric light bulb, and

Figure 6 isa section on the line 6*-6 of 'Figure 3.

Figures 7 and 8 are detail views illustrating the different effects of light filaments disposed at varying distances from the re lecting surfaces.

In thev drawings, the invention comprises an electric light bulb lfsupported' in a socket 11 of a casing 12 mounted by means of a ball and socket or other adjustable means one supporting bracket 13 attached to the automobile. A lens or cover 14 for the bulb is provided having an external annular Bange 15 at its rear end adapted to be engaged by an annular (or plurality of segmental)V clamping element 16 secured in any desired manner to the casing 12. The cover or casing 14 is preferably constructed of glass and may have its upper half frosted or .otherwise rendered translucent. The socket 11 in the 'casing 12 is preierablyof the usual construction and a signal light 17 also of the usual construction may be suspended in the upper section of the casing adjacent the top thereof.

The electric light bulb constituting the essential feature of my inventioncomprises a tubularglass casing of a conventional type supported upon 'a base also of the usual construction. lhe bulb is constructed with a filament 18 extending substantially diametrically and transversely through the same and is provided with a hood or shade 19 and is supported adjacent its front dared portion by means of a pair of spring clamps 20 preferably arcuate in shape and secured at the opposite sides of the shade. Obvious- 1y the method of supporting the shade adjacent its front end may be varied and the spring clamps may be dispensed with and the shield supported between spaced indes1 tations in the glass tube.

It has been found impractical to .provide a bulb of sufiiciently small size to be placed close enough to the reflector as the casing for the filament will readily melt, so that the light from the filament of the bulbs in present use is thrown downwardly directly upon the ground or is projected upwardly beyond a substantially horizontal plane. have found that by providing theshield for the light inside the bulb and curving .said

shield rearwardly and closely around the filament that it is unnecesary to have a reflector Abehind the light other than that formed by the shield and that it is also unnecessary to provide a shield of very great length since the' shield and the light are in substantially the same plane and a long shield is unnecessary. To permit the escape of heat around the filament l preferably provide a vent formed by cutting away or striking up a portion of the shield directly above the lament. In the case of the struck-up portion the same will serve as a refiector to illumine the upper portion of the bulb. It will be observed that the lower rim of the shield denes a substantially horizon'tal plane and that the lament of the light is slightly above said plane.

An essential feature of my invention is 'that the source of light shall be so related to the reiiecting surface above and in front of it as to throw the light in a flat beam close toV said surface whereby the bulk of the light will be thrown forward and will strike the ground at 'a considerable distance from the source of light. For this purpose the actual filament in an electric light should be close to said surface and this way be taken care` of by a dat or linear filament with a refiecting surface inside the bulb, as in Figures l to 6 of the drawings. This function may also be attained in other ways as by arranging one or more small bulbs with or without small reflectors underneath a reflecting surface which is approximately horizontal, or in place of bulbs other means such as are known to those skilled in the art may be used, e. g., prisms to throw a fiat beam of light against a reflecting surface such as is shown in the drawings. It will be understood that in all these arrangements the source of light is to behidden from any eye above the level of said source, and that th fiat narrow source renders it easy to conceal without either locating the reflecting surface at so steep an angie as to throw all the light on the ground too close to the vehicle for safety, or, what is equally objectionable, making the hood so long as to be awkward and objectionable. i It is desirable to arrange the vreflecting surface at the rear so as to throw the rays of light forward parallel tothe upper reflecting surface as will be understood by those skilled. in the art, so that such rays .will extend far forward instead of being reflected down to the ground close to the vehicle. j

Figures 7 and 8 illustrate the advantage had by placing the filament or other source of light close to the refiecting surface.

When such source, whether it is a lineary filament in a horizontal plane, a coiled or bent wire filament lying in a horizontal plane, or a small bulb or vother equivalent source, is arranged as illustrated in Figure 7, close to a nearly horizontal refiecting surf face, the bulk of the light is thrown forward to a considerable distance, whereas when the source is located relatively far from the upper reflecting surface vas in Fig ure 8, the upper refiecting surface or a hood or casing therefor) must extend own over Y it to prevent it from rising aboveu a horizontal plane, and therefore the refiecting surface must be at a relatively' steep angle asin Figure 8 or else the hood must extend fary forward. In the first case the light is thrown down too near to the vehicle forv safety and in the second case the hood has an awkward appearance andis more or less in the way.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the y art that changes may be made in my device without departing from the spirit of the invention and therefore I do not limit myself to the precise construction shown 1n,

the drawin s and described in the specification but on y claims.

Whatl claim is: 1. In a headlight for automobiles a source of light having means associated therewith for causing a flat beam or shaft of concentrated light relatively wide from side to side and narrow from top to bottom to be projected, and a reflecting surface arranged at a slight angle to the line of said beam to project the bulk of the light forward at a relatively slight angle to a horizontalplane, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination in an incandescent lamp of a transversely disposed filament, and a refiecting shield for said filament comprising an .elongated body adapted to be mounted longitudinally of the lamp with the rear extremity of said body curved downwardly around and closely adjacent said filament whereb the light will be project-ed forwardly an in a substantiall dat horizontal plane, substantially as set erth.

as indicated in the appended 3. The combination in an incandescent lamp of a transversely disposed filament, a reflecting shield for said filament comprising an elongated body adapted to be mounted longitudinally of the lamp with the rear extremity of said body curved downwardly around and closely adjacent said filament whereby the light will be projected forwardly and in a substantially flat horizontal plane, and means for supporting the forward portion of said shield, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination in an incandescent lamp of a transversely 'disposed filament, a reflecting shield for said filament comprising `an elongated body adapted to be mounted longitudinally of' the lamp withv the rear eX- tremity of said body curved downwardly around and closely adjacent said filament whereby the light Will be projected forwardly and in a substantially fiat horizontal plane the side of' said shield beingcurved downwardly anditerminating in a substantiall horizontal plane, substantially as set fortii.

5. The combination in an incandescent lamp of a'transversely disposed lil-aillent, a' reecting shield for said filament comprising an, elongated bod adapted to be mounted longitudinally7 of the lamp with the rear extremity of said body curved downwardly around and closely adjacent said filament whereby the light will be projected forwardly and in a substantially fiat I6 horizontal plane said shield tapering from vrefiectinot shield for said ed longitudinally of the lamp with the rear Y extremity of said body curved downwardly around and closely adjacent said filament whereby the light willv be projected forwardly and in a substantially flat horizontal plane, a tube-like casing for said shield and filament, and resilient means engaging the edges of the shield and casing adjacent the forward portions thereof for supportinrf the shield in position, substantially as set forth.

7. The' combination in an incandescent lamp of a transversely dis osedI filament, a reflecting shield for said llament comprising an elongated body adapted to be mounted longitudinally of the lamp with the rear extremity of' said body curved downwardly around and closely adjacent said filament whereby the light will be projectedv forwardly and in a substantially flat horizontal plane said shield being provided with a Ventilating passage therethrough adjacent the filament, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at lVashington, District of C0- lumbia, this 8th Vday of' January, A. D. nineteen hundred and twenty-five.

WINFIELD R. DU BREUIL.

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