US2597595A

US2597595A - Recessed ceiling fixture having magnetically attachable and adjustable light source

Info

Publication number: US2597595A
Application number: US238900A
Authority: US
Inventors: Arthur F Ordas
Original assignee: General Electric Co
Current assignee: General Electric Co
Priority date: 1951-07-27
Filing date: 1951-07-27
Publication date: 1952-05-20
Anticipated expiration: 1969-05-20

Description

M y 1952 A. F. ORDAS RECESSED CEILING FIXTURE HAVING MAGNETICALLY ATTACHABLE AND ADJUSTABLE LIGHT SOURCE Filed July 27, 1951 oidoooooooooo Patented May 20, 1952 RECESSED CEILING FIXTURE HAVING MAG.- N ETICALLY ATTACHABLE AND ADJUST- ABLEv LIGHT SOURCE.

Arthur F. Ord'as, Hunterto'wn, Indi, assignor to; General Electric Gompany, a corporation of New York Application J uly- 2'7, 1951, Serial No. 238,900

4' Claims. 1

My invention relates to illuminating devices and has significance in connection with. the mounting of an adjustable light source with respect to a fixed member of semi-sphericalor parabolic shape. I

Heretofore, it has been known to have swivel'ed or slot retained adjustable light sources which provide adjustable spot or fioodli'ghting', but for various reasons including limitations on light source movement and the high costof'the' known devices, they have not gained wide acceptance in many applications, not being generally used, for example, in homes. On the contrary, the generally accepted practice in illuminating av hom is to provide intense illumination for limitedareas by means of floor lamps or table lamps, although it has long been realized that such movable lamps have poor efiiciency, require considerable main.- tenance, collect dust, are somewhat. inflexible, very often occupy the exact spot where. it is desired to have the highest illumination,- and have cords which are sometimes allowed. to become hazardous from the standpoint of shocking children or tripping older people.

It is an object of the present invention to provide simple and. inexpensive means for overcoming the above mentioned difliculti'e's.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a readily adjustable ceili ng' fixture characterized by freedom of movement of light source in more than one direction thereby to provide intense illumination for a selectable portion.- of a wide area without the use of a movable floor or table lamp.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a completely enclosed lighting fix.- ture which allows, from. a point outside or the enclosure, ready positioning of the light source beam in any one of several directions While still allowing light to pass through the center of a small aperture provided in the fixture.

In accordance with the embodiment of my invention herein illustrated and described, I provide a readily focusable recessed ceiling light fixture comprising a spherical shell of magnetic material aifixed to the top end of a cylindrical member with an apertured cover plate fixed to the bottom end of the cylinder. The cover plate is flush mounted with the ceiling and a reflector type bulb is mounted on the spherical shell by means of magnetic members so that it may be readily moved over the inner surface of the shell as by means of a plurality of draw cords connected to the bulb socket and extending therefrom over eyelets to accessible locations beneath the ceiling.

In practicing my invention in its broader aspects, it will occur to those skilled in the art that the relationship between a movable light source and a fixed curved surface may take various. forms. in that the. principles about to be dis* closed are equallyapplicable whether the curved surface constitutes the reflector or, as in the illustrated embodiment, the reflector function is built into the movable light source itself and the curved surface is an unreflecting member.

The features of my invention which I believe to be. novel are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. My invention itself, however, both as to its orgar'iization and, method of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference. to; the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a flush mounted ceiling fixture constructed in accordance-with my invention, and Fig. 2 is a section view taken on. the line 2'-2 of Fig. 1.

In the drawing, I havev shown a flush mounted 'ceiling fixture assumed to be built-in as though mounted during construction of the associated building. The fixture has an outer housing comprising a. cylindrical portion l0 provided at. the upper end thereof with a dished or semi-spherically shaped portion H having a high content of iron. or other magnetic material. The cylindrical portion I0 is provided with a mounting flange t2. which is secured as by nails [3 to buildingjoists. or rafters I 4 after which ceiling laths l5 and" plaster F6 are applied around the cylindrical portion [0' extending therethrough. The semi-spherical shell is provided to act as a mounting for a light source. which comprises a lamp bulb H. In the illustrated embodiment I have assumed that. bulb IT has a conventional builtin. reflector and is. of the well known spot or flood type. Bulbv IT is mounted in a porcelain lamp base I 8 which is provided with magnetic mounting means which in the illustrated embodiment comprises a pair of blocks [9 of permanent magnet material which serve to hold the base against the semi-spherical shell portion II. I provide means for moving the magnet mounted lamp base I8 and bulb H, in any direction over the semi-spherical surface ll, and in the illustrated embodiment, this means comprises a plurality of draw cords 20 extending from equidistant points on a ring 2| (affixed to the assembly of base 20 and magnetic members 19) through eyelets 22 located at circumferentially equally spaced points on cylindrical portion Ill, with cords extending downward therefrom to terminate in draw cord attachments 23 (of which only one is shown, see Fig. 1) at an accessible location beneath the fixture. Suitable flexible wiring 24 and

wiring devices

25 and 26 are provided for the fixture and, if desired, the semi-spherical member may be provided with apertures 21 to allow for the removal of heat therefrom. An ornamental trim ring 3| is fastened in any suit- 3 able manner to the rest of the fixture and according to the illustrated embodiment, I have shown this accomplished by members 28 of permanent magnet material and arranged adjacent the bottom of shell portion 10 and fastened thereto as by screws 29 and by magnetic attraction engaging the top of the ring 3| so that thering is solidly secured to the fixture while at the same time it is readily removable therefrom.

An advantage of the present invention is that it allows, in connection with a movable light source, the use of a relatively small aperture 32 not interfering with a general decorative scheme, and if desired the aperture may be covered with a lens 30 of translucent material to provide a decorative closure for the hole and also serve to retain any glass fragments which might result from an implosion of the bulb thereabove.

There is thus provided a device of a character described capable of meeting the objects hereinabove set forth. With the construction of the invention, the projector type bulb can be readily swiveled around any desired center and in any direction to any extent through an angle of 45 from the vertical, or any other desired amount, so that the center of the light beam can be made to always pass through the center of the round hole in the ornamental ring. One advantage of this construction is that it allows a minimum opening so that the ceiling light source is relatively inconspicuous. The arrangement of the invention provides that the light source will a lways be constantly maintained in position whereever placed by the readily accessible remote control to provide intense illumination in a preselected area as for reading, writing, sewing, card games and the like.

While I have illustrated and described a particular embodiment of my invention, modifications thereof will occur to those skilled in the art. I desire it to be understood, therefore, that my invention is not to be limited to the particular arrangement disclosed and I intend in the appended claims to cover all modifications which do not depart from the true spirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A light fixture comprising a dished shell of magnetic material, a lamp bulb, a socket for said lamp bulb, permanent magnet means for movably mounting said socket on said shell, and draw string means for movably positioning said lamp bulb with respect to said shell.

2. An illuminfating device comprising a bottom cover plate having an aperture in the center thereof, a cylindrical portion extending upwardly from said cover plate, a semi-spherical portion of magnetic material at the top of said cylindrical portion, permanent magnet means for mounting a member on said semi-spherical portion above said aperture, a reflector member and a light source member with at least one of said last mentioned members being mounted on said shell through said permanent magnet means to be movably positionable thereon, whereby freedom of movement of said light source or said reflector may be achieved in a plurality of directions with respect to said aperture.

3. A recessed ceiling mounted light fixture comprising a semi-spherical shell of magnetic material recessed in the ceiling, a porcelain lamp base provided with permanent magnet members fastened by magnetic attraction to said semispherical shell, a reflector type lamp bulb mounted in said lamp base, a plurality of control cords secured to said base at equally spaced points around the circumference thereof, and a plurality of circumferentially equally spaced eyelets with said cords extending over the respective eyelets to change the direction of force transmittal for said cords, whereby there is provided a readily adjustable recessed ceiling lighting fixture.

4. A light fixture comprising a member of magnetic material having a concave surface, a magnet slidably mounted on the surface of said member, a source of light secured to said magnet and movable therewith, and means for slidably moving said magnet on said surface.

ARTHUR F. ORDAS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,216,261 Ashley Feb. 20, 1917 1,483,306 Julin et al. Feb. 12, 1924 2,474,942 Hawkins July 5, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 128,699 Sweden June 27, 1950