US1768656A - Auxiliary reflector and shield for headlights - Google Patents

Description

July 1, 1930. s. F. ARBUCKLE AUXILIARY REFLECTOR AND SHIELD FOR HEADLIGHTS Filed July '7, 1927 INVENTOR 1/,///,/////,/// SAMUEL FAEEUCKLE Patented July 1, 1939 UNITED STATES amass PATENT OFFICE SAMUEL F. ARBUCKLE, 0F HIGHLAND PARK, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR T0 MONOGRAM LENS CORPORATION, .OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, A CORPQRATION OF DELAWARE AUXILIARY REFLECTOR AND SHIELD FOR HEADLIGHTS Application filed J'uly 7,

This invention relates to auxiliary reflectors for headlights, and'its principal object is to provide an auxiliary reflector for a headlight which may be mounted upon the llght bulb of any headlight, and which will considerably increase the usefulness of the headli ht.

Another object of the invention is to provide a combined fog cap and reflector which may be mounted upon the electric light bulb, and which not only cuts oil certain u wardly and forwardly directed rays from t e hght source, but redirects a portion of the light projected by the main reflector toward the side of the road.

Another object of the invention is to provide a combined shield and auxiliary reflector which tends to remain in position upon the light bulb, due to the forces of gravity.

Another object of the invention is to provide an auxiliary reflector which may be mounted on the light bulb, and which will project a colored light toward the side of the road.

Other objects of the invention, and objects relating particularly to the methods of construction, will be evident as the description of the invention proceeds.

One embodiment of the invention has been illustrated in the accompanying drawings,

in which Fig. 1 is a sectional side elevation of a headlight embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a front view of the shield and reflector shown in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a sectional plan view through the headlight.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the invention is shown applied to a headlight having a casing 10, a reflector 11, and a lens 12 held against the periphery of the reflector by a rim 13 which may be attached to the casing 10 in any desired manner. The usual gasket 14 is shown as seal- .ing the crack between the lens and the re- 1927. Serial No. 203,949.

flector. A socket 15 is mounted in the reflector in any desired manner, and supports a light bulb 16 in the proper position with respect to the reflector. A cap 17 is provided having a general conformation similar to that of the electric light bulb and adapted, therefore, to fit closely against the glass of the bulb. This shield preferabl is adapted to cut ofl all direct ra s of lig t projected forwardly from the liglit filament and above {2 hprizontal plane through the axis of the In driving underacertain atmospheric conditions, such as through a fog, rain, or dust, upwardly directed light rays are thrown upon the particles in the air, with the result that light is reflected back into the eyes of the driver so that he is prevented from seeing the road ahead. By cutting oif these upwardly directed rays, this ditficulty is eliminated, and the driver may more easily distinguish the road which is illuminated by the beam projected from the main reflector. This shield, which I choose to call a fog cap, alone forms no part of the present invention, as it is the sub ect matter of another application Serial No. 4,996, filed January 27th, 1925. The present invention constitutes an improvement on this shield, and comprises a pair of reflecting wings 18 and 19 adapted to be attached to the shield 17, the wing 18 extending above the shield and rearwardly toward the main reflector, and the wing 19 extending below the shield and bulb and rearwardly toward the main reflector. These shields 18 and 19 are preferably slightly convex, as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, and are inclined slightly from a vertical plane through the axis of the reflector.

The reflector wings 18 and 19 intercept a small vertical strip of light, which is projected from the main reflector 11, and redirect this light toward the side of the road depending on the amount of inclination of the wings from the axis of the reflector.

this means, it is possible to throw a spot of light toward the side of the road, lighting up the right-hand gutter and also sign posts and other objects which are located above the automobile. It may be desired to concentrate this light a little more-at one spot, such as the right-hand gutter of the road, and to this end the upper tip 20 of the Wing 18 may be bent slightly toward the side, as indicated in Fig. 2, so that rays of light striking the tip may be given a downward deflection. In the same manner, the tip 21 of the lower wing 19 may be bent slightly to one side, in order to give the rays striking the same an upward deflection. By making the reflectors slightly convex, the light rays are spread through a large angle at the side of the road, but if desired, the reflectors 18 and 19 may be made flat or slightly concave with the result that the light will be very much more concentrated.

In order to hold the shield and reflectors in place on the bulb, the shield may be provided with a pair of arms 22 formed integrally with the shield, and adapted to hug the sides of the bulb extending slightly beyond the point of largest diameter. Also, to aid in holding the shield in place, I have found it desirable to extend the upper edge of the lower reflecting wing 19, so that it conforms with the surface of the bulb, and the shield and wings are therefore prevented from tipping forward on the smooth surface of the glass. Due to the extreme vibration to which the headlight is subjected on an automobile, I have also found it expedient to provide slightly more weight in the lower wing 19 than on the upper wing 18, and to concentrate this weight so that the center of gravity of the whole device will be at its lowest point when the device is in its normal position. Thus, if the shield is shaken out of place by the vibration of the automobile, the tendency will always be to return to the proper position by the action of the force of gravity.

Care shouldbe taken to have the lower edge of the upper reflector and the upper edge of the lower reflector as nearly as possible in a vertical plane with the filaments to prevent direct rays from the filaments striking the reflectors.

I have also found it very desirable to color the light which is reflected to one side of the road. Headlights are in use at the present time, wherein light is reflected toward one side of the road, but these lights have the disadvantage that inasmuch as the eye unconsciously tries to pick the center of a splotch of light, and as the splotch of light produced by such a headlight is centered toward one side of the road, the driver will find himself steering his car toward the side of the road, with the result that he must constantly steer back into the center of the road.

By coloring the light thrown out to the side of the road, the desired illumination is obtained, but at the same time the splotch of light thrown down the road is white and is so much brighter than the colored light, that the eye of the driver disregards the colored light instinctively, finding the center of the bright light, and the car may be easily kept in the center of the road.

Many modifications may be made in the construction shown without departing from the spirit of the invention, and I do not desire to limit myself to the specific construction shown and described, except as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is: v

1. In a headlight, a reflector; a light bulb; a light shield mounted on said bulb and adapted to cut off forwardly and upwardly directed light rays; and an auxiliary reflector mounted upon said shield and adapted to redirect a portion of the light from said main reflector toward the side of said headlight.

2. In a headlight, a reflector; a light bulbwithin said reflector; a light impervious shield mounted on said bulb; a plurality of resilient arms attached to said shield and encircling said bulb to hold said shield in place; and an auxiliary reflector attached to said shield and adapted to redirect light projected by said main reflector toward the side of the headlight.

3. In a headlight, a reflector; a light bulb within said reflector; a light impervious shield adapted to conform to the contour of the bulb to fit adjacent the end thereof and cut oil upwardly and forwardly directed rays from said bulb; a plurality of resilient arms yieldingly encircling said bulb to hold said shield in place; and an auxiliary reflector vertically mounted upon said shield and extending toward said main reflector to reflect toward the side of the headlight a portion of the rays projected by said main reflector.

4. In a headlight, a reflector; a light bulb within said reflector; a shield mounted upon said bulb and adapted to cut off upwardly and forwardly directed li ht rays; and an auxiliary reflector mounte upon said shield and having a portion extending beneath said bulb and contacting therewith to hold said shield and reflector in position thereon.

5. In a headlight, a reflector; a light bulb within said reflector; an auxiliary reflector for directing a portion of the light projected by said main reflector toward the side of said headlight; and means for supporting said auxiliary reflector solely u on said bulb.

6. In a headli ht, a re ector; a light bulb within said re ector; a light impervious shield having a surface adapted to conform to the surface of the bulb and adapted to cut off upwardly and forwardly directed rays emanatlng from said bulb; an arm at each side of said shield adapted to yieldingly contact with the curved surface of said light bulb where said shield is held against the surface of said bulb; and an auxiliary reflector slightly convex and rigidly attached to said shield and extending vertically above and below said bulb and rearwardl thereof to a line adjacent to and conforming with the contour of said main reflector, the lower portion of said auxiliary reflector contacting with the lower surface of said light bulb to cooperate with said arms to hold said shield and reflector in position on said bulb.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my signature.

SAMUEL F. ARBUCKLE.

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