Patent Application
20060099541
This application claims priority from the Chinese utility model application No. 2004201097557 filed on Nov. 6, 2004 and entitled “Safe Barbecue Lighter,” which is incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention generally relates to a barbecue lighter with safe function, in particular, to a safety control device for lighting in a barbecue lighter.
The safety device in the conventional barbecue lighters or lighting guns or rods typically use an obstructing block or stopper positioned in the moving route of an operation or control member for triggering the lighter. A safety switch is arranged on the surface of the lighter, corresponding to the obstructing block. The obstructing block positioned in the moving route of the operation member can be switched by moving the safety switch, so to control the movement of the operation member. When the safety switch is switched to a state “On” (unlock), the operation member can be operated to cause a piezoelectric unit generating a discharge spark to light the fuel gas. When the safety switch is switched to a state “Off” (lock), the operation member is obstructed to a down push, then, gas lighting operation is prevented. However, this kind of lighter may be safe only when the safety switch is in the state “Off.” The safety device will not function correctly if it is forgotten to set to the “Off” state or relock the lighter after a lighting operation, so that a fire can be easily caused by a child or a disabled person when playing with such a lighter.
In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 6,022,212 filed on Nov. 5, 1998 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,093,017 filed on Aug. 26, 1999 and entitled “Safety Device in Lighting Rods” disclosed a safety device in a lighting rod, wherein a locking member has an action shaft comprising an engagement section which is molded integrally with a lock releasing member. When in its ordinary state, the engagement section is positioned in the transverse portion of a T-shaped engagement opening of an operation member, and the lock releasing section of the operation member is projected to the exterior of the casing. When in this ordinary state, even if a pushing force is applied to the operation member, the operation member may not be pushed down due to the engagement between the engagement section of the locking member and the T-shaped engagement opening of the operation member, and thus the lighting operation cannot be carried out. When the engagement section is pushed into an inner cavity of the operation member from the T-shaped engagement opening, it becomes possible for the shaft to slide in the inner cavity along the longitudinal portion of the T-shaped engagement opening of an operation member. In this manner, the locking member is set to the state of the lock release, and it becomes possible to push the operation member down in order to light the fuel gas. An urging member (spring) of the safety device is positioned separately from the locking member without guide pin or bar. However, this type of safety device may cause an undesired transverse movement of the locking member in the inner cavity and may occupy larger space. In addition, since the engagement section of the locking member moves orthogonally to the movement of the operation member, the fit tolerance of the engagement section and the T-shaped opening of the operation member is two dimensional, thus, its molding process is relatively rigorous, and any undesired transversal movement may cause it to be difficult for the engagement section to return to its locking position automatically after repeated lighting operations, and even lose its function of safety.
To overcome the above stated problems in the conventional safety devices in lighting rods or barbecue lighters, the present invention provides a safe barbecue lighter comprising a safety and control assembly including a fixed pin, a safety device and a control assembly, which can be easily molded and can safely return to its original position automatically after repeated operation for lighting, so that the gas vent valve mechanism and piezoelectric unit are controlled safely for the lighting operation.
In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a barbecue lighter with a safety function, comprises: a casing holding at least a fuel container, a piezoelectric unit, a gas lever for opening or closing a vent valve mechanism and an operation member for actuating the piezoelectric unit and the gas lever; a safety member positioned between the operation member and the gas lever, and including a L-shaped groove; a pin fixed on the casing and positioned in said groove so that the safety member can change its locking or unlocking status as the L-shape groove moves relatively to the fixed pin; a control assembly positioned at one side of the safety member for switching the status of the safety device; wherein the safety member will make the gas lever releasing gas under control of the control assembly and the operation member.
In accordance with the present invention, the safety member further comprises a body comprising a projecting portion at its lower part. The gas lever includes a groove on its one end portion for slidably holding a tip of the projecting portion of the safety member, and has another end portion cooperating with the vent valve mechanism. The control assembly comprising a pushing block, a pushing bar and a lock button. The safety member further comprises a slidable block at one side of the body, and wherein the pushing block comprises a vertical cavity with one side open for the slidable block sliding therein, and a first resilient element is disposed in the vertical cavity pressed against the lower portion of the slidable block of the safety member and the inner bottom of the pushing block. A second resilient element is around the pushing bar against the lock button. The safety member further comprises a stud positioned at the bottom of the slidable block for positioning and guiding the first resilient element. The gas vent mechanism comprises a flame regulator for regulating flame. The safety member is in locking status when the fixed pin is in a transverse portion of the L-shaped groove.
Further according the present invention, a barbecue lighter with safety function comprises: a casing having a fuel cavity and an operation cavity; a fuel container enclosed in the fuel cavity of the casing; an operation member disposed in the operation cavity of the casing; a piezoelectric unit disposed in the operation cavity of the casing for generating a discharge voltage; a vent valve mechanism disposed in the operation cavity of the casing; a gas lever disposed in the operation cavity of the casing, which cooperates with the vent valve mechanism to open or close the gas path; a pin fixed to the inner wall in the operation cavity; a safety device including a groove with corner positioned between the bottom of the operation member and the gas lever, the fixed pin enclosed in the groove with corner to slide relatively therein along the groove and a control assembly in the operation cavity for controlling the movement of the safety device between the locking status and the unlocking status.
Further, the safety device further comprises a body comprising a projecting portion with a projecting tip at its lower part; and a slidable block at one side of the body, and wherein the top end of the safety device is positioned against the bottom portion of the operation member.
A transverse groove is formed on one portion of the gas lever, for holding the projecting tip slidably, and the width of the projecting tip is narrower than the length of the transverse groove, and another portion of the gas lever is cooperated with the vent valve mechanism.
The control assembly comprises a pushing block which extends longitudinally, a pushing bar which extends transversely, and a lock button.
The pushing block comprises a vertical cavity formed therein with a side open for the slidable block sliding vertically therein, and a first resilient element is positioned between the lower portion of the vertical cavity against the safety device and the inner bottom of the pushing block. The pushing bar is fixed slidably to the inner wall longitudinally through a fixing block, and the lock button is positioned on the casing and projects from the casing outwardly, and a second resilient element is around the pushing bar between the fixing block and the lock button. The safety device further comprises a stud positioned at the bottom of the slidable block, for positioning and guiding the first resilient element. The first and second resilient elements are compression springs.
The groove with corner is preferably L-shaped. The lower portion of the casing can be transparent.
In its normal state (i.e. safety state), the control assembly disables or locks the movement of the safety device. In this state, when the user presses the operation member, it cannot be pressed downward also due to the fixed pin, so that the vent valve mechanism and piezoelectric action are controlled efficiently to improve the safety of the lighter. Therefore, for a person who does not know how to use the lighter appropriately, such as a child or a disabled person, the fuel gas cannot be lighted. Accordingly, careless lighting can be prevented. When the lighter is to be used, the control assembly is operated to unlock the safety device, then, the operation member is depressed to move the safety device downward. When the moving distance of the operation member arrives the igniting distance, the vent valve mechanism is open to jet the fuel gas while the piezoelectric unit produces a discharge spark to light the jet gas at the jetting nozzle at the top end of the rod.
A better understanding of the invention is obtained when the following detailed description is studied in conjunction with the following drawings.
Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Generally, the nomenclature used herein and the manufacture procedures described below are well known and commonly employed in the art. Conventional methods are used for these procedures, such as those provided in the art and various general references. Terms of orientation such as “right,” “left,” “lower,” “top,” “down” or downward and the like are relative terms, not limited to any specific orientation as used herein. Where a term is provided in the singular, the inventors also contemplate the plural of that term.
As illustrated in
A groove with corner 10-3, such as a L-shaped groove in one embodiment, is formed on the safety device 10 and the fixed pin 9 is positioned in the groove so to allow the fixed pin 9 to “move” inside along the groove from the transverse portion to the longitudinal portion of the groove, or vice versa. Actually, since fixed on the casing and positioned in said groove, the fixed pin will not move, but the safety member will move to change its locking or unlocking status as the L-shape groove moves relatively to the fixed pin in a L-shaped route. In other words, the fixed pin is enclosed or surrounded by the safety member or device 10, able for a relative movement in the groove relative to the safety member, so that the safety member or the location of the fixed pin can be switched or adjusted between two statuses, i.e., where the pin is in the transverse portion or in the longitudinal portion of the L-shaped groove, corresponding to a locking status and an unlocking status of the safety member or the lighter, respectively.
The safety device has a projection portion at the bottom, and the projection portion may further include a thinner projecting tip 10-2. The top end of the main body 10-1 of the safety device is positioned against the bottom portion of the operation member 5, and the projection portion including the projecting tip 10-2 of the safety device is cooperated with the left portion of the gas lever 8 for moving down the gas lever. On the left portion of the gas lever, a transverse groove (not shown) is provided for holding the projecting tip 10-2 and allowing the tip sliding therein, and the right portion of the gas lever is cooperated with the vent valve mechanism 6. A slidable block 10-4 is formed at right side of the safety device 10. The control assembly 11 is positioned at the right side of the safety device 10 for switching the status of the safety device or for controlling the movement of the safety device 10, wherein the control assembly is fixed on the inner wall of the casing.
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
When the lighting operation is finished, the operation member 5 returns to its original position automatically by the bounce back force provided by the first resilient element 11-5, the fixed pin 9 “moves” downward into the corner of the groove 10-3 or into the transverse groove portion of the L-shaped groove, then the control assembly 11 can move outward automatically by the bounce back force of the second resilient element 11-6 to its locking status as the fixed pin 9 “moves” to its original position, then, the safety device is in locking status again.
Also optionally, the casing may be made of transparent materials, such as at the lower part to form a visual window to the level of the fuel gas in the fuel container.
The above described exemplary embodiments are not intend to limit the scope of the present invention, as one skilled in the art can, in view of the present disclosure, expand such embodiments to correspond with the subject matter and spirits of the invention claimed below.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 2 0109755.7 | Nov 2004 | CN | national |
