Patent Application
20060026882
The present invention relates, in general, to the field of lighting devices. More particularly, it concerns a light assembly of pre-defined shape, for removable attachment to a mating guide.
In the art, there are many designs of single purpose light assemblies which are or can be mounted on specific devices. There are also many designs of light assemblies which are used as independent light assemblies. However, few of them are designed to be readily removably mounted on any suitable device while being able to be readily used separately, as an independent light assembly.
More particularly, in the specific field of weapons there has been a number of target illumination and/or aiming accessories, such as lasers, sights, flashlights or other accessories which can be mounted on firearms since, in this case, one major concern is proper target illumination and/or aiming at the target of interest. Most of these accessories use various forms of locking screws, captive screws, nut and bolt clamps or other similar techniques to clamp the accessory to the weapon, as opposed to a latch and rail groove mechanism which would safely guide and lock the accessory to the weapon. Examples of such prior art accessories are given in US patents or patent applications nos. U.S. 2001/0027620 A1; U.S. 2001/0045046 A1; U.S. Pat. No. 5,555,662; U.S. Pat. No. 5,584,137; U.S. Pat. No. 5,941,489; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,565,226.
As can be appreciated, the just-mentioned target illumination and/or aiming accessories present a number of caveats. Accordingly, such accessories can not be readily mounted on and detached from the weapon. In most cases, such mounting and detaching require the use of specific tools, or of both hands. Therefore, the weapon user can not simply grip the target illumination and/or aiming device with one hand and readily mount it on his/her weapon in order to proceed to a precise triggering.
Other related prior art documents also present significantly different types of attachment methods to weapons or involve weapons that do not have a standard rail which can be interfaced with target illumination and/or aiming accessories. Examples of such prior art accessories are given in US patents nos. U.S. 2002/0007581 A1; U.S. 2002/0100204 A1; U.S. Pat. No. 4,707,772; U.S. Pat. No. 4,777,754; U.S. Pat. No. 5,040,322; U.S. Pat. No. 5,727,346; U.S. Pat. No. 5,816,683; U.S. Pat. No. 5,822,905; U.S. Pat. No. 6,318,014; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,574,901. The problem of such prior art devices is again the cumbersome mounting process as well as the bulkiness of such devices. More specifically, if the accessories can not be readily mounted on the weapon, they have to be provided with their specific mounting device thus decreasing the motility of the weapon user.
Also known in the prior art is a clamping mechanism for attaching an auxiliary apparatus to the frame of a weapon, which is further characterized in that the actual attachment or removal of the apparatus can be accomplished by a user with one hand, without using separate brackets or other mechanical components. These elements are disclosed in US patent no. U.S. Pat. No. 5,430,967 (Woodman et al.).
Further, prior art target illumination and/or aiming devices are all suited for use as an independent hand held light assembly, because of their protruding clamping mechanism, which makes them non-ergonomic. Further, their exposed clamping mechanism is often prone to breakage if shocked and to contamination from exposure to dust, water, and other contaminants.
It is thus apparent, from the above-mentioned prior art documents, there is a lack for a light assembly which can be readily mounted on a mating guide, which, in a preferred application, is provided on a weapon, and which can be readily used separately, as an independent light assembly.
An object of the present invention is to provide a light assembly which satisfies the above-mentioned needs.
More specifically, an object of the present invention is to provide a light assembly to be readily mounted on a mating guide provided on any convenient device and be readily removed therefrom while resuming its original pre-defined shape, in order to be usable as a separate entity.
In accordance with the present invention, this object is achieved with a light assembly having a pre-defined shape, for removable attachment to a mating guide provided on a weapon or other device on which the light assembly is to be mounted. The light assembly comprises a housing, provided with suitable optics having a light source at one end thereof and batteries for powering the light source through a switch. The housing of the light assembly has a pair of lateral members which can both be moved between a retracted position and an extended position. When the lateral members are in the retracted position, the light assembly has the above-mentioned pre-defined shape. When the lateral members are in the extended position, these members are adapted to engage the mating guide provided on the weapon or other device on which the light assembly is to be mounted. When the lateral members are in the extended position they are locked in place by a latch lock. Preferably, each one of the lateral members is provided with a longitudinal rail groove which is shaped and sized to slidably engage a corresponding flange on the mating guide. The housing of the light assembly of the present invention further has means for preventing longitudinal movement of the light assembly on the mating guide.
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the mating guide is provided with a plurality of cross-slots and each one of the lateral members further includes a latch having an upper portion and a lower portion. The upper portion and the lower portion of the latch have an inner face adjacent to the side of the housing and an outer face. The lower portion of the latch also has a latch projection projecting inwardly from the inner face of the lower portion of the latch, for engaging any one of the above-mentioned cross-slots. The latch is pivotable between an operative and an inoperative position so that when the latch is in the operative position, it is normally inwardly biased, with the latch projection protruding into the side of the housing, thus providing the means for preventing longitudinal movement of the light assembly on the mating guide. When the latch is in the inoperative position, the upper portion is pivoted inwardly toward the housing while the lower portion is pivoted outwardly away from the housing, thereby preventing the latch projection from engaging the cross-slots.
In a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the mating guide is provided on a weapon.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is also provided a method for removably attaching the light assembly as defined above, to a mating guide.
The method for removably attaching the light assembly, as defined above, to a mating guide comprises the steps of:
Preferably, the method for removably attaching the light assembly further comprises the step of detaching the light assembly from the mating guide, the step of detaching comprising the sub-steps of:
In a further preferred embodiment, the method further comprises the initial step of mounting the mating guide on a weapon.
As can be appreciated, the light assembly according to the invention is very versatile, as it can be mounted on any suitably shaped mating guide (either integrated into or mounted through appropriate fasteners) provided on any suitable device while still being usable as a separate entity aside from the device and the mating guide.
These and other features, objects and advantages of the present invention will be better understood upon reading the following non-restrictive description of preferred embodiments thereof, made with reference to the accompanying drawings.
While the invention will be described in conjunction with preferred embodiments, it will be understood that it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to such embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents which may be included, as defined by the appended claims.
In the following description, similar features in the drawings have been given similar reference numerals and, in order to lighten the figures, some elements are not referred to in some figures if they were already identified in a previous figure.
Throughout the present description, the light assembly of the present invention will mostly be described and illustrated with respect to a mating guide provided on a weapon, but it should be understood that such a mating guide could be provided on any suitable device, such as for non limitative examples, a paintball gun, a bicycle, a protecting helmet (for use in mining, caving or other applications) or other headgear, a watercraft, a wristband, scuba diving gear, a belt clip, a building, a post or other construction, a tent, or any other device which could advantageously make use of a lighting assembly.
Referring to
The light assembly 10 comprises a housing, preferably with two sides. Each side of the housing of the light assembly 10 is provided with a pair of lateral members 30, preferably received by corresponding channels 40 provided on each side of the housing. As shown in
The lateral members 30 are movable between a retracted position, as shown in
In order for the lateral members 30 to remain in the retracted position, locking means are provided by the latch lock 31. Similarly, locking means are provided to prevent the lateral members 30 from extending beyond the extended position by stop screws 41.
When the lateral members 30 are locked in their retracted position, these lateral members 30 are adapted to engage the housing. Referring especially to
When the lateral members 30 are locked in their extended position, they are positioned so that the lowest point A of the housing is as close as possible to the mating guide 20 in order to allow the eventual sliding movement of the light assembly 10 on the mating guide 20. Referring more specifically to
Preferably, the mating guide is provided with a plurality of cross-slots 60 and each lateral member 30 further includes a latch 70 with an upper portion 72 and a lower portion 74. Each one of the upper portion 72 and the lower portion 74 has an inner face, adjacent to the side of the housing, and an outer face.
Each latch further has a latch projection 78 projecting inwardly from the inner face of the lower portion 74 of the latch, for engaging any one of the cross-slots 60. Each latch 70 is further characterized in that it is preferably rotatable about a pivot between an operative position and an inoperative position.
Without departing from the scope of the present invention, it will be apparent for any person skilled in the art that the means for preventing longitudinal movement of the light assembly can comprise at least two, and preferably a plurality of projections protruding downwardly and outwardly from the area below the housing closest to the guide. Such projections would serve the same purpose as the latch projections 78 in their operative position.
Referring again to
As can also be appreciated from
Furthermore, the light assembly 10 may advantageously be of dimensions similar to the dimensions of the mating guide 20, as best shown in
The present invention also provides a method for removably attaching the light assembly, as defined above, to a mating guide, preferably provided on a weapon. The method comprises the steps of:
Preferably, the method for removably attaching the light assembly further comprises the step of detaching the light assembly from the mating guide. This step comprising the following sub-steps of:
Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to these precise embodiments and that various changes and modifications may be effected therein without departing from the scope or spirit of the present invention. It is clear from the present description that the proposed light assembly is particularly useful for mounting on a weapon. It should however be understood that the light assembly of the present invention is not limited to be used on a weapon and that any convenient applications such as mounting on a bicycle, or on a protecting helmet, for example, are also envisaged and are encompassed by the present invention.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 10814584 | Apr 2004 | US |
| Child | 11094510 | Mar 2005 | US |
