WO1997005424A1

WO1997005424A1 - Lamp socket

Info

Publication number: WO1997005424A1
Application number: PCT/SE1996/000972
Authority: WO
Inventors: Håkan FRANSON
Original assignee: Franson Haakan
Priority date: 1995-07-26
Filing date: 1996-07-24
Publication date: 1997-02-13
Also published as: NO980243D0; NO980243L; SE9502698D0; SE504720C2; SE9502698L

Abstract

The present invention is for devices by light fittings, more precisely a lamp socket with thereto belonging mounting means for lamp holder and other parts and fittings. The socket (1) is made in one piece having a central, circular, flat surface (3) which is surrounded by an outer edge (1) and a groove (4) between the outer edge and the central surface. In the socket there are a central hole (5) and a peripheral hole (6) for mounting of lamp holders and intake of electrical conduits. The centrally mounted lamp holder takes a position at right angle to the plane of a socket piece, while the lamp holder (24) peripherically mounted takes a position at an angle to this plane. The two seats for the lamp holders are so positioned and designed that one give light source, e.g. an incandescent light, will have its centre in the same position independent of into which lamp holder the light source is mounted.

Description

LAMP SOCKET

The present invention is for devices by light fittings, more precisely a lamp socket with thereto belonging mounting means for lamp holder and other parts and fittings.

Light fittings for mounting at walls and roofs often comprise a socket onto which are mounted lamp holders and other possible equipment and a globe or outer glass cover which wholly or partly surrounds the light source. A socket with parts and fittings mounted thereto is named a base. Based upon this common means there are a lot of varieties in order to adapt the light fittings for various purposes, both concerning use and different kinds of light sources, electric safety requirements and others. This means that the batch size of series of manufacturing of single sockets or bases will be small and that there will be considerable storing of goods in the marketing chain.

One object of the present invention is to make it possible to build a great number of light fittings of different kinds and for different purposes from a common socket piece. Exchangeable components are used in the light fittings for mounting of lamp holders, covering glasses etc. A further object of the invention is a socket which is simple and which can be manufactured in one piece by injection of moulding of a suitable plastic material without increasing the cost of tooling.

The invention will below be described more in detail with reference to the preferred embodiment of the invention shown in the enclosed figures.

Figure 1 shows a socket according to the invention.

Figure 2 is a section through the socket of figure 1 along the line B-B. Figure 3 shows a section through the socket of figure 1 along the line A-A.

Figure 4 is a cross-section along the line C-C of a part of a socket of figure 1.

Figure 5 shows a mounting ring for mounting of a lamp holder to the socket

Figure 6 shows a cross-section along the line D-D of the mounting ring of figure 4.

Figure 7 is a cross-section along the line E-E of the mounting ring of figure 5.

Figures 8 and 9 show different embodiments of reflectors.

Figure 10 shows the design of insulating material for use with light fittings equipped with incandescent light means.

The socket shown in figure 1 is made in one piece having a central, circular, flat surface 3 which is surrounded by an outer edge 1 and a groove 4 between the outer edge and the central surface. In the socket there are a central hole 5 and a peripheral hole 6 for mounting of lamp holders and intake of electrical conduits. The centrally mounted lamp holder takes a position at right angle to the plane of a socket piece, while the lamp holder 24 peripherically mounted takes a position at an angle to this plane. At the socket there are also devices, not shown in the figure, for mounting of the socket onto a base and for mounting of other electrical equipment. The lamp holders which can be mounted in two different positions have been outlined in figure 2, both as centrally positioned first lamp holder 23 and a second lamp holder 24 peripherically positioned. Both lamp holders can be mounted at the same time, but the light fittings of the embodiment shown in the figures are only intended to be used with one light source.

The two seats for the lamp holders are so positioned and designed that one given light source, e.g. an incandescent light, will have its centre in the same position independent of into which lamp holder the light source is mounted. Hereby is achieved that the design of the reflector is independent of the mounting of the lamp holder. In the example above an incandescent light has been mentioned as a light source, but all light sources normally occuring can be used, adaption of the inner design of the lamp holder being the only adaption which is required, and mounting in the socket is done in the same way in all cases. In other embodiments the lamp holder, which is placed at right angle to the plane of the socket may be more or less displaced from the centre of the socket.

The lamp holder 23 is surrounded by a cylindrical wall 7, at the lower end of which there is a bottom surface having a hole 5. Adjacent to this hole there are two fasteners for the lamp holder, each comprising an arm 10, 12 and a hook 11. The lower side of the hook, as shown in figure 3, is accessible from below through the hole 5 in a direction which is parallel with the line at right angle to the plane of the socket 3. The arm 10, 12 of the hook extends parallel to such a line and with the walls dilimiting the space around the lamp holder 23 and the groove 4.

A second lamp holder 24 may be positioned in a inclined recess, which is delimited by a wall 8 of circular shape and an inclined flat wall 9. In the flat wall 9 there is a hole 6 corresponding to the hole 5 of the centrally positioned lamp holder 23. At the upper and lower points of the hole 6 there are two notches 21, 22 which are intended for hooking of a mounting ring described below.

Around the periphery of the socket 3 there are three springs 2 for snap-in mounting of a globe over the light fitting. The mounting of these springs is shown more in detail in figure 4. Each spring has a bowshaped part which extends down into the groove 4 and an L-shaped part to mount the spring onto the socket piece. Hereby one shank of the L-shaped part is pushed into an opening of a protruding part 14 and over a stud 13, so that the stud takes a position in a hole in the spring which so is held in a defined position. In this position it is also possible to rivet the spring by deformation of the stud 13. Also the protrusion 14 is so designed that when the spring is removed all of the surfaces of the protrusion are visible and accessible along a line which is at right angle to the socket piece 3. By this and other constructive measures described above of corresponding kind it is possible to make the whole socket as one piece by injection moulding in a plastic tool which only has two parts, which in turn only move at right angle to each other.

A fastening ring which can be designed, as shown in figures 5-7, is used for mounting of the lamp holder 24 in the hole 6. The mounting device comprises a ring 15, at which there are four hooking devices each having an arm 16, 18, 20 carrying a hook 17, 19. The arms 16 and 20 with their hook 17 have the same dimensions as corresponding devices at the central hole 5. The opposite directed arms 18 are shorter, och the opening between the ring 15 and the hook 19 shall only correspond to the thickness of the goods of the socket piece, at which the ring shall be snap-in fastened in the notches 21 and 22. Also the mounting ring shown in figures 5-7 is designed according to the same principles as described above, so that all surfaces are avaialable in a direction along a line at right angle to the plane of the ring 15.

Figures 8 and 9 show the reflectors 25, 26 which are adapted for central or sidewise mounting of a lamp holder. The opening for a lamp holder which is not used is essentially covered by the reflector. When using incandescent light as light source a large amount of heat is generated which may bring with is special problems. Heat can be transferred to the goods of the socket by both radiation and convection. This kind of problems are known from earlier, conventional designs and have had as a consequence that only certain kinds of material, preferably metal, has been possible to use for sockets and that the light source has been positioned at a greater distance from the flat surface of the socket than would otherwise have been justified. It is assumed that cooling takes place thereby that air flows through the openings which exist in the socket.

Thereby that the socket of the present invention has two recesses for the lamp holder, special heating problems occur because the recess without the lamp holder is exposed to considerable heating. It has now surprisingly turned out that the heating problems can be solved by using insulating material in spite of that this material is shaped in a way which reduces or prevents the flow of air in the light fitting. The insulating material is suitably a porous polymer, preferably EPDM, having closed pores and an outer shape as shown in figure 10. From the figure is apparent how three pieces of insulating material 30, 31, 32 are punched out from a flat EPDM board, about 2 mm thick. The mainly rectangular pieces 30, 31 are intended to be positioned between the reflector and the flat surface of the socket piece, as shown in figures 8 and 9, wherein the insulation has been indicated with broken lines 28, 29. The insulation is mounted so that it covers the unused lamp holder recess. Moreover a circular plate 32 is placed at the bottom of both the recesses independant of whether a lamp holder is mounted or not. In the centre of the plate there is cross-shaped cut which is used for taking electrical wires through. Besides the insulating function the plate constitutes an elastic bottom which pushes a lamp holder mounted in the recess upwards to a well defined position in engagement with the fastening hooks. Many alternatives are possible within the frame of the inventive idea, as described above. For example, the number of mounting positions for lamp holders and their positioning can be freely varied. The system makes it possible to use conventional incandescent light bulbs as well as different types of fluorescent tube lamps by a simple exchange of lamp holder.

Claims

1) Socket for light fittings for wall or roof mounting, whereby the socket is intended to carry lamp holders for a light source, charactereized therein, that in the socket there are arrangements for mounting of both one lamp holder (23) essentially at right angle to the plane (3) of the socket and a lamp holder (24) which is inclined thereto, whereby the mounting arrangements for the lamp holders are so positioned that for a given light source its centre point will be in the same position independent of into which lamp holder (23, 24) it is placed.

2) Socket according to claim 1, characterized therein, that all surfaces of the socket are accessible in a direction which is essentially at right angle to the plane (3) of the socket.

3) Socket according to any of the preceding claims, charactereized therein, that insulating material (30, 31) has been applied so that it covers the opening of the non-used recess.

4) Socket according to claim 3, characterized therein, that insulating material (32) has been applied also to the bottom of the recesses.