US3403963A - Lighter - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 1, 1968 L. s. DEXTER 3,403,963

LIGHTER Filed April 13, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVEN TOR.

AT ToPNEK United States Patent 3,403,963 LIGHTER Leonard S. Dexter, 29 Dewbourne, Toronto 10, Ontario, Canada Filed Apr. 13, 1966, Ser. No. 542,244 8 Claims. (Cl. 431-254) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The present invention relates to an improved lighter of the type which utilizes a compressed fuel such as butane.

It is the primary object of the present invention to provide an improved lighter utilizing a compressed fuel which, incidental to the striking of the spark, causes a priming charge of fuel to be fed to the fuel nozzle in a positive and highly eflicient manner to thereby positively insure the lighting of the flame upon the subsequent release of fuel for prolonged combustion. Other objects and attendant advantages of the present invention will readily be perceived hereafter.

The improved lighter of the present invention includes a housing having a chamber therein for storing fuel, such as butane, at above atmospheric pressure. A spark producing means, such as the conventional spark wheel, is mounted on one end of the housing between a nozzle which provides the gas to be ignited and a button for actuating a linkage which opens a valve associated with the nozzle. The spark Wheel and the linkage are so located relative to each other so that a persons thumb after leaving the spark wheel must invariably depress the button and actuate the linkage and thus open the valve to release fuel for combustion as long as the button remains depressed. In addition a supplemental linkage is provided between the spark wheel and the above mentioned linkage so that, incidental to applying pressure to the spark wheel, the valve will be cracked and a priming charge of fuel will be released to the nozzle to thereby clear air therefrom so that upon the subsequent striking of the spark and release of the fuel by the depressing of the button as the finger leaves the spark wheel there will be a positive flow of fuel into the path of the spark to thus cause ignition. The present invention will be more fully understood when the following portions of the specification are read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of the improved lighter of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is an end elevational view of the lighter of FIGURE 1 showing the relationship between the spark wheel and a portion of the linkage for opening the fuel releasing valve;

FIGURE 3 is an end elevational view of the improved lighter of FIGURE 1 showing the portion thereof at which the flame exists and also showing the arrangement for adjusting the height of the flame;

FIGURE 4 is a plan view showing the relationship between the spark wheel, the portion of the linkage for opening the fuel releasing valve and the fuel nozzle;

FIGURE 5 is a cross sectional view through the lighter taken substantially along line 55 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5A is a detail view, partly in cross section, of a portion of the arrangement for slidably supporting the saddle and spark wheel;

FIGURE 6 is a detail view of the spark wheel and the arrangement for mounting the fuel valve opening lever taken substantially along line 66 of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 6A is a detail view, partly in cross section, of

a portion of the saddle arrangement for carrying the spark wheel;

FIGURE 7 is a greatly enlarged cross sectional view showing the mechanism of the fuel releasing valve structure; and

FIGURE 8 is a greatly enlarged view showing the construction of the filling valve.

The improved lighter 10 of the present invention includes a decorative casing 11 which is slipped over and held in press fitted relationship with a fuel housing 12 (FIGURE 5) containing fuel chamber 13 therein. The limit of movement of decorative casing 11 onto housing 12 is determined by lower lip 14 on the latter. Chamber 13 contains a supply of liquified fuel such as butane and releases said fuel when the valve structure to be described hereafter is actuated.

The arrangement for actuating lighter 10 to produce a flame is mounted at the upper end 15 of the lighter and consists of a spark wheel 16, a nozzle 17 for directing a jet of fuel upwardly, and a lever 18 having a button 19 mounted thereon, said lever opening a valve mechanism to release the gas when button 19 is depressed. At this juncture it is to be noted that spark wheel 16 is rotated in a clockwise direction in FIGURE 5 by a persons thumb. When this is done a spark will be generated. However, by virtue of the inherent action of the persons thumb in leaving spark wheel 16 while the body of the lighter is grasped by the remainder of the hand, the persons thumb will immediately fall onto button 19 to thereby pivot lever 18 about its fulcrum 20 (FIGURE 6) and thus lift nozzle 17 to release the fuel in time to be ignited by the spark which was previously generated. Air for combustion is supplied through apertures 20 in casing 11. The foregoing sequence of operation and the structure for achieving the above function will be described in greater detail hereafter.

The spark generating mechanism includes a spark wheel 16 having a central aperture therein which receives pin 21 extending between spaced upstanding arms 22 which in turn are portions of an U-shaped member 23 having the lower end 24 thereof welded to the upper surface 25 of housing 12. The end portion 26 of pin 21 receives screw 26 to thereby retain the pin in its assembled position. A tubular member 27 has its upper end 28 located immediately below spark wheel 16 to receive hollow tube 28' in telescoping relationship and flint 29 in tube 28 is biased upwardly into engagement with spark wheel 16 by spring 30 which in turn is held within tubular member 27 by screw 31. Tube 28' has its upper portion 29' suitably secured as by welding to the central part of plate 30 from which upstanding ears 31' extend, all of which in combination form a saddle. Apertures 32', which are formed in each of ears 31, receive pin 21. It is to be noted at this point that apertures 32 are circular and receive pin 21 with a relatively tight fit whereas arms 22, which also receive pin 21, contain elongated apertures 22. A tab 33' extends rearwardly from plate 30' and has a downwardly turned edge 34 which rests on the upper surface of lever 18.

It will readily be appreciated that prior to the striking of a spark by rotating spark wheel 16 in a clockwise direction in FIGURE 5 pressure must be applied with the thumb to the top of spark wheel 16. This will cause the above mentioned saddle carrying spark wheel 16 to move downwardly as tube 28 telescopes into tube 27. The spring 30 will provide a slight bias against such movement and maintain the flint 29 in contact with the spark wheel. As spark wheel 16 moves downwardly causing the saddle to move downwardly, the downwardly extending end 34 of tab 33' will press on a portion of lever 18 to the right of fulcrum 20 (FIG. 5) and thereby cause a slight clockwise rotation of lever 18 against the bias of spring 56 (FIG. 7) tending to maintain valve 53 closed. The operation of valve 53 will be described in greater detail hereafter. However, at this juncture it is to be noted that the pivotal movement of lever 18 will cause a cracking of valve 53 by causing it to move away from its seat 55 to thereby permit a slight amount of fuel to move out of housing 13 toward nozzle 17, thereby clearing any air therefrom.

When spark wheel 16 is rotated in a clockwise direction by a persons thumb the relative movement between the spark wheel and flint 29 will cause a spark to be generated which will fly to the left toward nozzle 17 in FIGURE 5. However, as noted above prior to the striking of the spark, valve 54 was cracked to permit a priming charge of fuel to pass to nozzle 17. However, after the spark has been struck and the thumb leaves wheel 16, spring 56 will cause lever 18 to assume its position shown in FIGURES and 7 where valve 53 is closed. Thus, after the spark has been generated the valve which releases the fuel through nozzle 17 is closed. Thereafter the persons thumb falls onto button 19 to effect an opening of valve 53, as will be described more fully hereafter, to then permit fuel to flow through nozzle 17 for as long as button 19 is depressed. It is to be noted at this juncture that as soon as the thumb leaves the spark wheel 16 spring 30 will expand to move flint 29 upwardly and thus cause the pin 21 mounting spark wheel 16 to rise until it engages the uppermost portions of elongated slots 22. This upward action is effected as soon as the thumb leaves spark wheel 16 and before it falls onto button 19.

Thus, in providing a flame, a compound valve opening action is experienced wherein the pressing of spark wheel 16 downwardly, as is required to generate a spark, causes a slight clockwise pivotal movement of lever 18 to thereby crack the fuel releasing valve and provide a priming charge of fuel. The rotation of wheel 16 will thereafter cause a spark to be generated. However, as soon as the thumb leaves spark wheel 16, the expansion of spring 56 will cause valve 53 to close thereby causing only a priming charge of fuel to be supplied to nozzle 17. The continued movement of the thumb after leaving spark wheel 16 will cause the thumb to fall onto button 19 to thereby cause the pivotal movement of lever 18 about fulcrum 20 to maintain valve 53 open for as long as button 19 remains depressed, the spark being generated by spark wheel 16 prior to the time of the permanent opening of the valve. Thus there is a sequence wherein there is a priming charge upon cracking of the fuel releasing valve, a closing of the valve after the spark has been struck, and a reopening of the valve to cause the spark to ignite the later released fuel.

The fuel releasing opening of valve 53 is invariably effected subsequent to the generation of the spark by virtue of the fact that the persons thumb in leaving spark wheel 16 must fall onto button 19 especially since it is so guided by the curved surface 32 at the upper end of casing 11. As soon as the thumb engages button 19 it will depress the right end of lever 18 downwardly in FIGURE 5 and thus cause this lever, which is of the first class type, to pivot in a clockwise direction about its fulcrum which is at the bottom of downwardly depending legs 33 (FIGURES 5 and 6). The clockwise rotation of lever 18 will result in the upward movement of the bifurcated end 34 of said lever and the lifting of nozzle 17. At this point it is to be noted that the bifurcated end 34 has tines 35 (FIGURE 7) which straddle the neck 36 of nozzle 17 and underlie shoulder 37. Therefore the upward movement of bifurcated end 34 will be accompanied by the upward movement of nozzle 17 which in turn will cause the valve mechanism within the fuel releasing valve 38 to be actuated to release the fuel which is ignited by the previously generated spark.

The fuel releasing valve mechanism 38 includes a housing 39 having a threaded portion 40 which is received in mating tapped aperture 41 in the top of housing 12, a gasket 42 insuring a fluid tight fit. A throttling cap 43 is threaded onto threaded neck 44 at the bottom of housing 39, the fit between the threads being sufficiently loose to permit fuel to flow therebetween and to be throttled to a lower pressure. A packing 45 which is made of a porous foam-like material such as rubber is located in the lower end of housing 39 and further restricts the flow of the fuel to thereby reduced its pressure as it travels upwardly within the housing. A washer 46 having a slot 47 at its upper end underlying aperture 48 permits the fuel to pass through said aperture 48 and into chamber 49 in which O-ring 50' is located. The fuel in chamber 49 will communicate with chamber 50 through conduit 51 in flame adjusting body member 52.

At this point it is to be noted that a poppet valve 53 is located at the lower end of nozzle 17 and its inclined face 54- presses against O-ring seal 55 to trap the fuel within chamber 50. Poppet valve 53 has a shoulder 56 therein which is engaged by spring 57 having its upper end in engagement with shoulder 58 of the flame adjusting member 60. \Vhenever lever 18 is pivoted in a clockwise direction, as described above, the bifurcated end portion 34 thereof will engage shoulder 37 of nozzle 17 and move the nozzle upwardly thereby unseating poppet valve 53 from O-ring 55 and permitting the fuel previously held within chamber 50 to pass upwardly into aperture 61 and through conduit 62 prior to emanating from the top of nozzle 17.

As long as button 19 is maintained in a depressed condition fuel will continue to flow from nozzle 17 and the flame will remain. However as soon as button 19 is released spring 57 will expand to cause poppet valve 53 to reseat itself on O-ring 55 to thereby terminate the flow of fuel from nozzle 17.

Included within housing 38 is an unique arrangement for varying the size of the flame produced at nozzle 17. More specifically a knurled collar 63 is provided with a wheel 64 (FIGURE 5) mounted thereon in mating relationship and held by set screw 65. If it is desired to vary the size of the flame, it is merely necessary to rotate wheel 64 and thus change the relative axial positions between the casing 65 which houses spring 57 and the housing 38 is mounted within the fuel containing housing 12. This in turn will either raise or lower the shoulder 37 of nozzle 17 with respect to bifurcated end portion 34 of lever 18. Assuming that it was raised, the subsequent movement of lever 18 in a clockwise direction will be unable to separate inclined surface 54 of poppet valve 53 from O-ring 55 to as great an extent as it could separate them prior to such raising and thus the flow of gas passing between O-ring 55 and inclined surface 54 will be throttled to a greater extent and a smaller flame will be obtained at nozzle 17. Conversely, if it is desired to provide a larger flame, Wheel 64 is rotated to cause the casing 65 to move downwardly and axially relative to housing 38 by virtue of the threaded connection therebetween at 66 and thus cause shoulder 37 to move downwardly and approach the top 25 of housing 12. Thus, when lever 18 is pivoted in a clockwise direction during lighting of the lighter, the nozzle 17 will move upwardly a greater amount than before it was lowered and thu increase the space between O-ring 55 and inclined poppet valve surface 54 to thereby permit more fuel to pass through nozzle 17 upon actuation of the lighter to thus provide a larger flame.

Because of the tight fit between interengaging threads 66, once the size of the flame is adjusted it will hold its adjustment until it is readjusted. In the foregoing respect it can be seen from FIGURE 5 that flanges 67 are provided on the underside of lever 18 and these will limit the downward movement of the right side of lever 18 in FIGURE 5 because they will engage the top surface 25 of housing 21 every time that button 19 is depressed. Thus, because of the positive stop provided by the top 25 of housing 12 the left end including the bifurcated portion 34 of lever 18 will always be limited as to how high it can move and thus by varying the vertical position of shoulder 37 of nozzle 17 in the above described manner, the amount of opening produced by poppet valve 53 can be adjusted.

The improved lighter 10 of the present invention also includes a refill valve 70 (FIGURES 5 and 8) which includes a threaded neck 71 which is received in the bottom 72 of housing 12 in mating threaded relationship, threaded neck 71 forming a part of valve housing 72. An ring 73 provides a seal between the housing 12 and the refill valve. Pressed onto housing 72 is a housing extension 74, the pressing being effected at 75. A nozzle 76 having a conduit 77 is biased with shoulder 78 against seat 79 by a spring 80 extending between shoulder 81 of housing extension 74 and shoulder 82 of member 83. Seal 79 is held in position between the end 84 of housing portion 72 and shoulder 78 when the valve is closed. The conduit 77 within nozzle 76 terminates at radial apertures 85. When nozzle 76 is moved downwardly against the bias of spring 80 during filling radial apertures 85 will move past seal 79 so that fuel may flow through conduit 77, through radial apertures 85 and into the chamber in which spring 80 is located, thence through aperture 86 into chamber 13 of housing 12 where it is stored. It will be appreciated that nozzle 76 is depressed during the sealing of chamber 12 by a suitable arrangement on the filling container (not shown). After the filling container is removed, spring 80 will expand to return all the parts to the position shown in the drawing wherein sealing is again effected so that the fuel within chamber 13 cannot leak. A cap 87 threads into aperture 88 within the refill valve to prevent dirt and the like from entering said valve, cap 87 being removed during the filling operation.

It is to be noted from FIGURES 4 and that the upper end 15 of casing 11 generally encloses most portions of the spark generating and fuel releasing mechanism, and has apertures 15' and 19' for exposing the portions of spark wheel 15 and button 19, respectively, to which digital pressure must be applied. The only other opening in upper end 15 consists of aperture 16' which permits the flame to pass outside the casing from nozzle 17. The fact that the saddle and the major portions of lever 18 and the spark wheel 16 and its associated mechanism are enclosed in the manner depicted in the drawings tends to minimize the accumulation of foreign matter on the working parts.

It can thus be seen that the improved lighter of the present invention is manifestly capable of achieving the above enumerated objects and while a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been disclosed, it will readily be appreciated that the present invention is not limited thereto but may be otherwise embodied.

I claim:

1. A lighter comprising a housing, a chamber in said housing for storing fuel, spark generating means mounted on said housing, a fuel nozzle located proximate said spark generating means and at one side thereof, conduit means in communication with said nozzle, valve means for selectively permitting flow of fuel from said housing through said conduit means to said nozzle, first linkage means coupled to said valve means for maintaining said valve means open to permit flow of fuel through said nozzle for prolonged combustion, second linkage means effectively coupled to said spark generating means for opening said valve means upon applying pressure to said spark generating means to thereby provide a priming charge of fuel from said nozzle incidental to the striking of a spark, and easing means overlying said housing and having a plurality of aperture means therein for permitting a portion of said spark generating means and a first portion of said first linkage means for receiving pressure of a persons finger to project therefrom and to permit an unobstructed opening for emanation of the flame from said nozzle, said casing means including closed portions between said aperture means for shielding a second portion of said first linkage means and said second linkage means to maintain said second linkage means and said second portion of said first linkage means substantially enclosed against the entry of foreign matter, said spark generating means including a spark wheel and spring means for biasing a flint into engagement with said spark wheel, said first linkage means including a lever having a central portion pivotally mounted relative to said housing and a first end coupled to said valve means to one side of said spark wheel and a second end located on the opposite side of said spark wheel from said nozzle, said second end comprising said first portion of said first linkage means, said second linkage means including means effectively extending between said spark wheel and said lever for depressing said second end of said lever upon the application of pressure to said spark wheel against the bias of said spring means, said second linkage means comprising means mounted for substantially rectilinear movement relative to said housing and a tab forming a part of said second linkage means and located between said spark wheel and said second end of said lever for pivoting said lever incidental to applying pressure to said spark wheel, said spring means being mounted in a tube and said means mounted for substantially rectilinear movement comprising a tubular portion mounted within said tube in telescoped relationship, with said spring extending into said tubular portion for biasing a flint therein into engagement with said spark wheel, said housing including upstanding arms, and said second linkage means including ears mounted for relative sliding movement with respect to said upstanding arms whereby said telescoping relationship between said tubular member and said tube and said relative sliding between said ears and said arms maintains said second linkage stabilized during movement thereof.

2. A lighter comprising a housing, a chamber in said housing for storing fuel, a fuel nozzle, conduit means for eflecting communication between said fuel nozzle and said chamber, valve means for selectively permitting fuel to flow through said conduit means to said nozzle, spark wheel means, an elongated tubular member in said housing, a hollow tube telescoped within said elongated tubular member, a spring in said elongated tubular member for biasing a flint in said hollow tube into engagement with said spark wheel means, upstanding ears coupled to said hollow tube, means for journalling said spark wheel means between said upstanding ears, arms straddling said upstanding ears, means for securing said arms to said housing, elongated slot means in said arms, pin means in said elongated slot means for securing said ears to said arms while permitting relative movement therebetween to thereby permit said hollow tube to telescope within said elongated tubular member when pressure is applied to said spark wheel in opposition to the bias of said spring, a lever operatively coupled to said valve means for causing fuel to flow through said nozzle, and a linkage operatively coupled to said upstanding ears for actuating said lever in response to theapplication of pressure to said spark wheel means to thereby release a priming charge of fuel to said nozzle.

3. A lighter as set forth in claim- 2 wherein said lever operatively coupled to said valve means includes a central portion pivotally mounted relative to said housing with a first end to one side of said spark wheel for actuating said valve means and a second end on the opposite side of said spark wheel for receiving pressure from a finger, and wherein said linkage operatively coupled to said upstanding ea-rs includes tab means located proximate said second end of said lever for eflecting pivotal movement thereof in response to the application of pressure to said spark wheel.

4. A lighter as set forth in claim 3 wherein said upstanding ears comprise a pair of upstanding ears occupying a spaced parallel relationship to each other, and wherein said arms straddling said upstanding ears comprise a pair of spaced arms occupying a spaced parallel relationship to each other, said ears being in sliding relationship with said arms so as to cause a stabilized movement of said ears, and wherein said linkage includes a plate alfixed between said upstanding ears for mounting said tab, and wherein said tab is inclined downwardly into engagement with said second end of said lever.

5. A lighter as set forth in claim 4 wherein said central portion of said lever comprises a pair of spaced downwardly extending substantially parallel legs having their lower ends resting on said housing with said legs being in abutting engagement with said arms and said legs providing said pivotal mounting of said central portion in an area between said arms.

6. A lighter as set forth in claim 5 wherein said arms are connected by a lower end portion so that said arms and said lower end portion form a U-shaped member with said lower end portion being welded to said housing, and wherein said downwardly depending legs rest on said lower end portion.

7. A lighter as set forth in claim '6 wherein said tubular member extends through said lower end portion.

8. A lighter comprising a housing, a chamber in said housing for storing fuel, a fuel nozzle, conduit means for effecting communication between said chamber and said fuel nozzle, valve means for selectively permitting fuel to fiow through said conduit means to said nozzle, a spark wheel, -a fiint tube in said housing, spring means in said flint tube for biasing a flint into engagement with said spark wheel, pin means for mounting said spark wheel, said pin means having opposite ends extending beyond said spark wheel, a saddle having a central portion and a pair of upstanding spaced substantially parallel ears for receiving said ends of said pin in fixed journalled relationship for permitting only rotation thereof, a pair of upstanding spaced substantially parallel arms mounted on and extending upwardly from said housing in bracketing contacting relationship with said ears, an elongated slot in each of said arms for receiving said ends of said pin which project beyond said ears so as to permit said pins to slide in said slots as well as to rotate in said ears, guide means affixed to said central portion of said saddle for guiding said ears for sliding movement in a direction parallel to the length of said slots, a lever, pivot means mounting said lever on said housing for pivotal movement, said lever having a first end portion to one side of said saddle for effectively engaging said valve means to selectively cause flow of fuel to said nozzle, said lever having a second end on the opposite side of said saddle for receiving a persons finger after it leaves said spark wheel to maintain said valve open, and link means afiixed to said saddle and in engagement with said second end of said lever for depressing said second end of said lever when a persons finger presses downwardly on said spark wheel and thus causes said pin to travel along the length of said slots in said arms against the bias of said spring mean.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,174,310 3/1965 Genoud 677.1

3,213,647 10/ 1965 Sakamoto 67-7.l

3,290,905 12/1966 Court 677.1

FOREIGN PATENTS 1,308,689 10/ 1962 France.

EDWARD J. MICHAEL, Primary Examiner.

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