US2841695A

US2841695A - Electric fixture

Info

Publication number: US2841695A
Application number: US628092A
Authority: US
Inventors: Arthur R Bentsen
Original assignee: General Electric Co
Current assignee: General Electric Co
Priority date: 1956-12-13
Filing date: 1956-12-13
Publication date: 1958-07-01
Anticipated expiration: 1975-07-01

Description

A. R. BENTSEN 2,841,695

ELECTRIC FIXTURE July 1, 1958 Filed Dec. 15, 1956 fimew/ar fl mg 5AM 4 5% if W1 MM; 4 y 2 United States Patent ELECTRIC FIXTURE Arthur R. Bentsen, Providence, R. 1., assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Application December 13, 1956, Serial No. 628,092

3 Claims. (Cl. 240-73) This invention relates to an electric fixture; more particularly, the invention relates to a night light with a manually controlled light shield or dimmer.

For a number of years low-wattage light fixtures used as night lights have been available on the market. Normally, the fixture consists of a plug, switch, and lamp socket. Generally, there is no means provided for shading the light; and even where a shading means is present, no means is provided for varying the quantity of light emitted.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide a plug-in night light having a manual means for adjusting the light emitted.

Another object of the invention is to provide a night light having a rotatable light shield of circular configuration whereby a light crescent of any size up to full circle may be obtained.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following specification taken in conjunction with the annexed drawing wherein Fig. l is a front view of the fixture of this invention; Fig. 2 is a cutaway rear view with the back plate pivoted to one side to reveal the interior of the fixture; and Fig. 3 is an exploded view i1- lustrating the elements entering into the makeup of the fixture of this invention.

Briefly stated, in accordance with one of its aspects, the invention is directed to an electric fixture comprising a plug-in base having a switch and lamp socket connected thereto, a housing surrounding the space adjacent the socket, the housing having a translucent exteriorly convex face, and a rotatable opaque light shield in the housing positionable between a light in the socket and the translucent portion of the housing.

Referring to the drawing, the fixture comprises a housing conventionally composed of a molded phenolic composition-which in the preferred form illustrated has a circular face in which is mounted an exteriorly convex translucent face or diffuser element 11. A base portion of the housing 10 has mounted therein a socket 12 for a lamp 13. As best shown in Fig. 3, the socket 12 is preferably integral with an attachment plug 14 having conventional prongs 15 protruding outside the housing and a control switch including a manual control knob 16 protruding from the front portion of the housing 10. The attachment plug 14 is preferably of a type wherein the prongs may be rotated for vertical or horizontal alignment so as to accommodate the device to outlets having either horizontal or vertical alignment. By incorporating the attachment plug, switch, and socket contacts in a single element, as shown in Fig. 3, it is not necessary to use wire in the electric circuit connecting these elements and this has the effect of simplifying assembly of the fixture.

The translucent face 11 is conventionally formed of a plastic shell having an interior concave surface coextensive with the exterior convex surface. These concave and convex surfaces of the face element 11 are spherical segments having approximately the same radius of curvature as a light shield 17 pivotally mounted. in the housing 10 with a manual rotating knob 18 extending through the top of the fixture. The light shield 17 is substantially coaxial with the lamp socket 12 and the center of curvature of the light shield 17 is at a point approximately along this same axis. Consequently, the light shield 17 has 360 rotation within the housing 10. As it passes the face element 11, it can make sliding contact with the concave surface thereof and the shield is composed of an opaque material to block off the transmission of light through the portion of the face element 11 eclipsed by the shield 17. If desired, the concave surface of the light shield 17 may be made reflecting, as by the vacuum deposition of a thin film of aluminum, to give a focusing effect to light emitted by the lamp 13 when the shield 17 and face 11 are oppositely disposed with respect to the lamp 13. With such a reflecting surface 19, the shield 17 not only provides a waxing and waning lunar effect but also a light concentrating effect to enable a wide degree of control of the light emitted from the fixture to be achieved.

The back of the fixture is sealed by a back plate 21 pivotally mounted by a single screw 22 (Fig. 2) to enable the back plate 21 to be readily pivoted to one side so that the lamp 13 may be quickly changed.

In assembling the parts illustrated in Fig. 3, the manual control knob 18 of the shield 17 is inserted through a bearing collar 11a of the translucent face element 11, the knob 18 is inserted through the upper aperture of the control housing 10 with the bearing surface of the shield 17 in engagement with a bearing surface 10a of the housing 10 and the translucent face element 11 is placed in engagement with the front rim of the housing 10. The sides of the aperture through which the control knob 18 of the shield 17 extends serve to hold the upper portion of the assembly in position and the bottom portion is maintained in position when the attachment plugswitchsocket element engages a pair of bosses 11b of the face element 11 at the time the attachment plugswitch-socket element is placed in position in the housing 10 and maintained there by the screw 22 and an additional attachment screw 23 (Fig. 2). With this rather simple assembly completed, it is only necessary to insert a lamp 13 and swing the back plate 21 to seal off the housing 10 to provide a device ready for use.

While the invention has been described with particular reference to a specific embodiment thereof, it is obvious that many variations are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. Therefore, it is intended that the invention shall be limited in scope only as may be necessitated by the appended claims.

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

1. An electric fixture comprising a housing with a translucent exteriorly convex face which is concave with respect to the interior of said housing, exterior prongs for making contact with an electric outlet, a lamp socket positioned inside said housing, a switch inside said housing with an exterior manual control, a circuit connecting said lamp socket to said prongs through said switch, and an opaque light shield within said housing, said light shield having a spherical configuration substantially coextensive with the concave portion of said translucent face and an exterior control knob for rotating said shield around its center of curvature to bring its convex surface into contact with the concave surface of said translucent housing face.

2. An electric fixture as claimed in claim 1 wherein the concave surface of said shield is reflecting.

3. An electric fixture comprising a housing having a circular translucent exteriorly convex and interiorly concave face, a lamp socket within said housing positioned to permit a lamp mounted therein to radiate light through said face, a one-piece hemispherical light shield contoured to nest in abutting relationship with the interiorly concave portion of said face, and means for 1'0- tatably mounting said light shield within said housing, said means including a shaft terminating in a turning knob extending exteriorly of said housing, the axis of said shaft passing through the spheroidal center of said hemisphere.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS FOREIGN PATENTS Germany June 8, 1942