US3326019A

US3326019A - Lighter with guide arrangement

Info

Publication number: US3326019A
Application number: US430440A
Authority: US
Inventors: Rabe Peter
Original assignee: Heinrich Maltner GmbH
Current assignee: Heinrich Maltner GmbH
Priority date: 1964-02-14
Filing date: 1965-02-04
Publication date: 1967-06-20
Anticipated expiration: 1984-06-20
Also published as: GB1045424A; CH432097A; AT248767B

Description

June 20, P RABE LIGHTER WITH GUIDE ARRANGEMENT Filed Feb. 4, 1965 Fig. I

LIGHTER HOUSING LIGHTER HOUSING Inventor.- PQJi' Kwbg,

3,326,019 LIGHTER WITH GUIDE ARRANGEMENT Peter Rahe, Muhlheim am Main, Germany, assignor to Heinrich Maltner G.in.b.H., @fienbach am Main, Germany Filed Feb. 4, 1%5, Ser. No. 430,444] Claims priority, application Germany, Feb. 14, 1964, M 59,918 13 Claims. (Cl. 57-4) The present invention relates to a lighter with a guide arrangement for a manually operated member, such as a pushbutton for operating the lighter.

It is necessary to guide a stem or corresponding guide means of a manually operated member in a corresponding guide means on the lighter housing. In constructions according to the prior art, a cylindrical stem is secured to the manually operated member and guided in a cylindrical sleeve secured to the lighter housing. During operation, the cylindrical stem slides in axial direction in the sleeve in a telescopic manner. However, this conventional guide arrangement is unsuitable for the particular requirements of a manually operated member for a lighter. The guide means are comparatively small, and since the pushbutton is not always engaged and operated exactly in the area of the guide stem, the guide stern assumes a slanted position in the guide sleeve causing the engagement between the stem and the sleeve only at two edges on which substantial pressure is exerted whereby the friction is increased. Since only two small areas are in sliding engagement, they are soon worn, causing further angular displacements and binding and jamming of the manually operated member.

It is one object of the invention to overcome these disadvantages of prior art constructions, and to provide a lighter with a guide arrangement for a manually operated member which is subject to practically no wear, and operates at very low friction even when dust enters the guide arrangement.

It is another object of the invention to guide a manually operated member in a guide on the lighter housing in such a manner that no parts slide on each other.

It is another object of the invention to obtain perfect guidance of a manually operated member in a guide part on the lighter housing even if eccentric manual pressure tends to place the manually operated member in a slanted position.

It is another object of the invention to provide lighter with a guide arrangement including rollers, and which is easily assembled.

With these objects in view, the present invention relates to a lighter with a guide arrangement for a manually operated member, such a a pushbutton for actuating the lighter. One embodiment of the invention comprises the lighter housing, a first guide means secured to the housing; a manually operated member including a second guide means coextensive with the first guide means; and at least two roller means mounted on one of the guide means spaced from each other and being in rolling contact with the other guide means.

In one construction according to the invention, two pairs of rollers are mounted on the guide means on the lighter housing, and are in rolling engagement with opposite guide faces of a guide plate which is secured to a pushbutton member.

In another embodiment of the invention two rollers are mounted on the guide means of the manually operated member and cooperate with opposite guide faces provided on the lighter housing. The manual-1y operated member is tiltable, and only one of the rollers is in rolling contact with each of the guide faces.

tates atent C 3,32%,d-l9 Patented June 29, 1967 Due to the fact that the manually operated member is guided by spaced rollers, the guide means are not in sliding engagement, but lateral forces are transmitted at two spaced regions of the guide means where rolling friction is produced. Further-more, dust entering the guide means drop easily between the spaced rollers and guide means without increasing the friction as is the case when dust enters between guide faces in sliding engagement. This effect is particularly improved, if each roller has two end portions of greater diameter and a central connecting portion of smaller diameter, so that dust is dropped between the connecting portion and the guide face engaged by the roller end portions. The roller end portions may be cylindrical, but they can also be made substantially spherical, or frustoconical of reduced diameter toward the central portion, so that the roller end portions engage only a point of the guide face while rolling thereon. Since friction is practically eliminated by the construction of the invention, the entire manual force is used for compressing a spring which acts on the manually operated member when the igniting mechanism of the lighter is actuated.

In one embodiment of the invention two pairs of rollers are mounted in open cutouts in opposite walls of the guide means on the lighter housing, permitting a very easy assembly since the rollers are held in place by a guide plate secured to the manually operated member and located between the rollers of each pair.

In the other embodiment of the invention, in which the rollers are mounted on a guide plate secured to the manually operated member, only two rollers are provided so that eccentric pressure on the pushbutton urges each roller against the respective guide face.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together With additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, illustrating one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on line AA in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary side elevation illustrating a modified detail of the embodiment of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating another embodiment of the invention.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1 to 3, a manually operated member 1 has a U-shaped cross section and a top surface adapted to be engaged by the finger of an operator. A guide means in the form of a plate 2 is secured to the yoke portion of member )1 by a bent portion and a pair of rivets. A wall 3 of the lighter housing has an opening in which a guide means in the form of a U-shaped elongated member 4 is secured. As best seen in FIG. 2, guide means 4 has two opposite walls forming the legs of the U-shape, and a connecting yoke portion. Plate 2 is located between the leg wall portions of guide member 4 and extends substantially parallel to the yoke portion. The edges at the upper ends of the opposite walls are formed with substantially rectangular cutouts 4a. Near the other end of guide means 4, two opposite substantially rectangular cutouts 4b are provided in the opposite walls 4-. Cutouts 4b are open at the longitudinal edges of the walls 4.

A pair of rollers 5 are mounted in cutout 4a, and another pair of rollers 6 is mounted in cutout 4b. Each roller has shaft end portions resting on the edges of cutouts 4a and 4b, respectively, a pair of roller portions 7 of greater diameter, and a central connecting portion 8, as shown in FIG. 2. Guide plate 2 has guide faces Zn on opposite sides thereof and is located between the rollers of each pair. The thickness of guide plate 2 is selected so that the shaft end portions 9 are urged into the corners of cutouts 4a and 4b which have a corresponding part circular shape. A spring, not shown, similar to spring 21 in FIG. 4, urges member 1 away from member 4 until a transverse pin 13 at the lower end of guide plate 2 abuts member '4. When member 1 is manually depressed, guide plate 2 moves downward while rollers S and 6, and more particularly the roller end portions 7 roll on the guide faces 2a of guide plate 2.

The assembly is extremely simple, since rollers 5 are simply placed on the straight edge portion of cutout 4a and rollers 6 are inserted through the open portion 12 into cutout 4b and also placed on the lower plate edge thereof. The rollers may be in the position as shown in FIG. 3, but when guide plate 2 is inserted between the roller end portion 7, the rollers assume the correct position illustrated in FIG. 1 for guiding guide plate 2 whereby the manually operated member 1 is held in the desired position.

It will be seen that irrespective of which part of member 1 is subjected to manual pressure, the guide plate 2 and thereby member 1 will be guided by the spaced pairs of rollers without jamming or binding. Dust entering the interior of the guide member 4 will drop between guide plate 2 and the connecting portions 8 of the rollers, as best seen in FIG. 2. The distance of movement of the manually operated member 1, 2 is indicated by the arrow a at the lower end of FIG. 1.

In the modified construction shown in FIG. 3, all parts are the same as described with reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, but cutouts 4a and 4b are formed with semicircular edge portions 10 whose diameter corresponds to the diameter of the shaft end portions 9 of the rollers. When guide plate 2 is located between the roller portions 7, the shaft end portions 9 of the rollers are located in the semicircular bearings formed by the edge portions 10, so that they cannot be raised during the upward movement of guide plate 2.

The roller end portions 7 are shown to be cylindrical in FIG. 2, but may be replaced by spherical or ball-shaped roller portions so that only line engagement between the guide faces 2a and the roller end portion '7 takes place during movement of the manually operated member 1 with guide plate 2. Ball-shaped roller end portions leave even more room for the dropping of dust entering the interior of guide means 4. It will be appreciated that pyrophoric lighters produce dust since the spark wheel abrades the flint.

In the embodiment of FIG. 4, a guide means 18 is secured to the wall of the lighter housing, wall 3 being omitted in FIG. 4 for the sake of simplicity. A manually operated member 14 has a guide means in the form of a guide plate 15 secured thereto. Guide plate 15 is located between opposite guide surfaces 19 and on opposite walls of guide means 18. A spring 21 abuts manually operated member 14 and guide means 18 to urge member 14 away from member 118 until a transverse stop pin 22 abuts the lower end of guide means 18.

Guide plate 15 is formed with two spaced bearing bores 15a in which central connecting journal portions of

rollers

16 and 17 are mounted for turning movement.

Rollers

16 and 17 have at the ends thereof roller end portions of greater diameter which are adapted to engage

guide faces

19 and 20 in rolling engagement. When eccentric pressure is exerted on member 14 at the point indicated by the arrow P, spring 21 is depressed, and guide plate 15 assumes the tilted position shown in FIG. 4 in which the roller end portions of roller 16 roll on guide face 24), while the roller end portions of roller :17 roll on guide face 19. If pressure is exerted in the region of the arrow P, guide plate 15' is tilted in the opposite direction, and roller 16 rolls on guide face 19 while roller 17 rolls on guide face 20. Irrespective of the point where manual pressure is exerted, the manually operated

member

14, 15 is guided by rolling engagement of only two rollers at a very low resistance, and a jamming or binding is impossible. Due to the wide spaces between the rollers and the guide faces, dust can easily drop through the interior of guide means 18 without causingany disturbance or increase of friction. In the embodiment of FIG. 4, guide means 15 is not necessarily a plate, but may be a cylindrical pin. The roller end portions may be frusto-conical to assure line engagement between the roller end portions and the guide faces 19 and 20.

It will be understood that. each of the elements described above, or two or more together, may also finda useful application in other types of guide arrangements for manually operated members differing from the types described above.

While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in an arrangement for guiding a manually operated member in a lighter housing by means of rollers, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing, in any way from the spirit of the present invention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can by applying current knowledge readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention and, therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalence of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a lighter, in combination, a lighter housing; a first guide means secured to said lighter housing; a manually operated member including a second guide means coextensive with said first guide means and having two opposite guide faces; and two pairs of rollers mounted on said first guide means spaced from each other, the rollers of each pair being located on opposite sides of said second guide means and being in rolling contact with said guide faces of said second guide means.

2. In a lighter, in combination, a lighter housing; a first guide means provided on said lighter housing; a manually operated member including a second guide means coextensive with said first guide means and having two opposite guide faces; and two pairs of rollers mounted on said first guide means spaced from each other, the rollers of each pair being located on opposite sides of said second guide means and being in rolling contact with said guide faces of said second guide means, each of said rollers having two end portions of greater diameter and a central connecting port-ion of smaller diameter.

3. In a lighter, in combination, a lighter housing; a first guide means secured to said lighter housing and having two opposite walls, said walls being formed with two pairs of opposite cutouts bounded by edges; a manually operated member including a second guide means coextensive with said first guide means and having two opposite guide faces; and two pairs of rollers, each roller having a pair of shaft end portions supported on said edges of said cutouts, the rollers of each pair being located on opposite sides of said second guide means and being in rolling contact with said guide faces of said second guide means, said guide faces being spaced from each other such a distance that said end portions of said rollers are held in sliding engagement with said edges of said cutouts.

4. In a lighter, in combination, a lighter housing; a first guide means secured to said lighter housing and having two opposite walls, said walls being formed with two including pairs of semicircular edge portions; a manually operated member including a second guide means coextensive with said first guide means and having two opposite guide faces; and two pairs of rollers, each roller having shaft end portions located in said cutouts in one of said semicircular edge portions, the rollers of each pair being located on opposite sides of said second guide means and being in rolling contact with said guide faces of said second guide means, said guide faces being spaced from each other such a distance that said shaft end portions are held in said semicircular edge portions slidingly movable therein.

5. An arrangement as set forth in claim 4 wherein each of said cutouts has a straight edge portion transverse to said guide faces, and wherein said semicircular edge portions are located at the ends of said straight edge portion, said cutouts being open at the longitudinal edges of said walls to permit insertion of said rollers.

6. An arrangement as set forth in claim 5 wherein said opposite walls are elongated and have edges; wherein one pair of said cutouts is of substantially rectangular shape and formed in the edges at the end of said walls, and wherein the other pair of cutouts open on lateral edges of said walls to permit insertion of said rollers.

7. In a lighter, in combination, a lighter housing; a first guide means secured to said lighter housing and having two opposite elongated guide faces; a manually operated member including a second guide means located between said guide faces; and two roller means mounted on said second guide means spaced from each other between said guide faces and in rolling contact with the same.

8. In a lighter, in combination, .a lighter housing; a first guide means secured to said lighter housing and having two opposite elongated guide faces; a manually operated member including a second guide means located be tween said guide faces; and two roller means mounted on said second guide means spaced from each other between said guide faces and in rolling contact with the same, the diameter of said roller means being less than the distance between said opposite guide faces so that one of said roller means is in rolling contact with one of said guide faces and the other roller means is in rolling contact with the other of said guide faces.

9. In a lighter, in combination, a lighter housing; a first guide means secured to said lighter housing and having two opposite elongated guide faces; a manually operated member including a second guide means located between said guide faces; and two roller means mounted on said second guide means spaced from each other between said guide faces and in rolling contact with the same, each of said roller means having a pair of end portions of greater diameter in rolling contact with one of said guide faces and a central connecting portion of smaller diameter.

10. A lighter arrangement as set forth in claim 9 wherein said second guide means is an elongated plate formed with two bearing bores along the length thereof; and wherein each of said roller means includes a pair of roller end portions of greater diameter, and a central connecting portion, said central connecting portion being turnably supported in said bearing bores, and said roller end portions being located on opposite sides of said plate projecting from the same.

11. In a lighter, in combination, a lighter housing; a first guide means secured to said lighter housing and having two opposite elongated guide faces; a manually operated member including a second guide means located between said guide faces and a stop member cooperating with an abutment on said first guide means; spring means abutting said first guide means and said manually operated member and urging the latter into a position in which said stop means abuts said first guide means and limits movement of said manually operated member; and two roller means mounted on said second guide means spaced from each other between said guide faces and in rolling contact with the same, each of said roller means having a pair of end portions of greater diameter in rolling contact with one of said guide faces and a central connecting portion of smaller diameter.

12. In a lighter, in combination, a lighter housing; a first guide means secured to said lighter housing; a manually operated member including a second guide means adjacent to said first guide means and having two opposite guide faces; and two sets of rollers mounted on said first guide means spaced from each other, the rollers of each set being located on opposite sides of said second guide means and being in rolling contact with said guide faces of said second guide means.

13. In a lighter, in combination, a lighter housing; a first guide means provided on said lighter housing; and an elongated manually operated member including a second guide means adjacent to said first guide means, one of said guide means having two opposite guide faces and the other of said guide means including two rollers spaced in longitudinal direction of said manually operable member and each engaging one of said opposite guide faces of said one guide means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,594,631 4/1952 Fortin 677.1 3,116,622 1/1964 Goddard et al 67-7.1

FOREIGN PATENTS 731,788 5/1932 France.

EDWARD J. MICHAEL, Primary Examiner.

Claims

1. IN A LIGHTER, IN COMBINATION, A LIGHTER HOUSING; A FIRST GUIDE MEANS SECURED TO SAID LIGHTER HOUSING; A MANUALLY OPERATED MEMBER INCLUDING A SECOND GUIDE MEANS COEXTENSIVE WITH SAID FIRST GUIDE MEANS AND HAVING TWO OPPOSITE GUIDE FACES; AND TWO PAIRS IF ROLLERS MOUNTED ON SAID FIRST GUIDE MEANS SPACED FROM EACH OTHER, THE ROLLERS OF EACH PAIR BEING LOCATED ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID SECOND GUIDE MEANS AND BEING ROLLING CONTACT WITH SAID GUIDE FACES OF SAID SECOND GUIDE MEANS.