Patent Application
20240068630
Embodiments of this disclosure relate generally to lighting system devices, and more particularly to mounting features of lighting system devices.
Traditional lighting system devices are generally designed for and limited to a specific type of installation in mind, for example, for remodeling, new construction, recessed mount, flush mount, track mount, pendant mount, etc.
Such devices, whether a lighting fixture or an accessory, such as a lighting system sensor, lack flexibility in installation mounting options and are often physically and aesthetically intrusive into a room upon installation. Certain features of the present disclosure address these and other problems and provide other important advantages.
The embodiments of the present disclosure include a low-profile modular lighting device with flexible installation mounting options includes a lower housing, a circuit board supported by the lower housing and having electronic devices mounted thereto, and a plurality of upper housings each configured to couple to the lower housing. The electronic devices of the circuit board extend within the space defined by an interior surface and upper edge of the lower housing and within the space defined by an interior surface and lower edge of each of the plurality of upper housings when coupled to the lower housing. Each of the plurality of upper housings provide a different mounting configuration for the modular lighting device. The modular lighting device may include one or more of a motion sensor, a light sensor, and a wireless transceiver for communication with a wireless lighting system.
According to an illustrative embodiment, a modular lighting device, comprises a lower housing; a circuit board supported by the lower housing and having electronic devices mounted thereto; and a plurality of upper housings each configured to releasably couple to the lower housing, a selected one of the plurality of upper housings coupled to the lower housing; and wherein the electronic devices of the circuit board extend within the space defined by an interior surface and upper edge of the lower housing and within the space defined by an interior surface and lower edge of each of the plurality of upper housings when coupled to the lower housing; and each of the plurality of upper housings provide a different mounting configuration for the modular lighting device.
The circuit board may be located within the space defined by the interior surface and lower edge of the upper housing when coupled to the lower housing, thereby minimizing a height of the lower housing. The electronic devices may be mounted to an upper and a lower side of the circuit board. The circuit board and electronic devices mounted thereto may be enclosed by the lower housing and each of the plurality of upper housings when coupled to the lower housing.
The modular lighting device may further comprise an annular cover releasably coupled with a bottom side of the lower housing, the annular cover spanning and concealing fasteners for at least one of mounting the modular lighting device and attaching the lower housing to one of the plurality of upper housings. The selected one of the plurality of upper housings may be configured to enable mounting within a recess defined in a ceiling. The selected one of the plurality of upper housings may be sized to be received within the recess; and the lower housing may be sized to cover an area of the ceiling larger than the recess, thereby concealing the recess upon mounting the modular lighting device to the ceiling recess.
The selected one of the plurality of upper housings may optionally include a pair of spring mounts for retaining the selected one of the plurality of upper housings within the recess. The selected one of the plurality of upper housings may be configured to enable mounting upon a flat surface of a ceiling. The selected one of the plurality of upper housings may include a mounting arm terminating in a threaded conduit.
The electronic devices may include a motion sensor. The modular lighting device may further comprise a lens coupled to a central portion of the lower housing, the lens concealing the motion sensor. The electronic devices may include a light sensor. The electronic devices may include a wireless transceiver for communication with a wireless lighting control system.
At least another one of the plurality of upper housings may be sized to couple with the lower housing and enclose the selected one of the plurality of upper housings coupled to the lower housing.
Another illustrative embodiment of the modular lighting device, comprises a lower housing; a circuit board supported by the lower housing and having electronic devices mounted thereto; and a plurality of upper housings each configured to be coupled to the lower housing, a selected one of the plurality of upper housings coupled to the lower housing; and wherein the electronic devices of the circuit board span vertically from below an upper edge of the lower housing to above a lower edge of each of the plurality of upper housings when coupled to the lower housing, thereby the circuit board and electronic devices extend within a space defined by both the lower housing and each of the plurality of upper housings when coupled to the lower housing; and each of the plurality of upper housings provide a different mounting configuration for the modular lighting device.
The selected one of the plurality of upper housings may be configured to enable mounting within a recess defined in a ceiling and may be sized to be received within the recess; and the lower housing may be sized to cover an area of the ceiling larger than the recess, thereby concealing the recess and the selected one of the plurality of upper housings upon mounting the modular lighting device to the ceiling recess.
The selected one of the plurality of upper housings may include a pair of spring mounts for retaining the one of the plurality of upper housings within the recess. The selected one of the plurality of upper housings may be configured to enable mounting the upper housing upon a flat surface of a ceiling. The selected one of the plurality of upper housings may include a threaded conduit end.
The electronic devices of the circuit board may include at least a motion sensor; a light sensor; and a wireless transceiver for communication with a wireless lighting control system.
Yet another illustrative embodiment of a modular lighting device, comprises a lower housing; a circuit board supported by the lower housing and having electronic devices mounted thereto; and a plurality of upper housings each configured to couple to the lower housing; and wherein the electronic devices of the circuit board extend within the space defined by an interior surface and upper edge of the lower housing and within the space defined by an interior surface and lower edge of each of the plurality of upper housings when coupled to the lower housing; each of the plurality of upper housings provide a different mounting configuration for the modular lighting device; a first one of the plurality of upper housings is sized to be received within a recess enabling an upper edge of the lower housing to be mounted against ceiling; a second one of the plurality of upper housings is configured to enable mounting the upper housing upon a flat surface of a ceiling; and a third one of the plurality of upper housings includes a threaded conduit end.
This summary is provided to introduce a selection of the concepts that are described in further detail in the detailed description and drawings contained herein. This summary is not intended to identify any primary or essential features of the subject matter. Some or all of the described features may be present in the corresponding independent or dependent claims but should not be construed to be a limitation unless expressly recited in a particular claim. Each embodiment described herein does not necessarily address every object described herein, and each embodiment does not necessarily include each feature described. Other forms, embodiments, objects, advantages, benefits, features, and aspects of the present disclosure will become apparent to one of skill in the art from the detailed description and drawings contained herein. Moreover, the various apparatuses and methods described in this summary section, as well as elsewhere in this application, can be expressed as a large number of different combinations and subcombinations. All such useful, novel, and inventive combinations and subcombinations are contemplated herein, it being recognized that the explicit expression of each of these combinations is unnecessary.
Some of the figures shown herein may include dimensions or may have been created from scaled drawings. However, such dimensions, or the relative scaling within a figure, are by way of example, and not to be construed as limiting.
For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the disclosure, reference will now be made to one or more embodiments, which may or may not be illustrated in the drawings, and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the disclosure is thereby intended; any alterations and further modifications of the described or illustrated embodiments, and any further applications of the principles of the disclosure as illustrated herein are contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the disclosure relates. At least one embodiment of the disclosure is shown in great detail, although it will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art that some features or some combinations of features may not be shown for the sake of clarity.
Any reference to “invention” within this document is a reference to an embodiment of a family of inventions, with no single embodiment including features that are necessarily included in all embodiments, unless otherwise stated. Furthermore, although there may be references to benefits or advantages provided by some embodiments, other embodiments may not include those same benefits or advantages, or may include different benefits or advantages. Any benefits or advantages described herein are not to be construed as limiting to any of the claims.
The embodiments of the present disclosure include a low-profile modular lighting device 20 with flexible installation options includes a lower housing 30, a circuit board 60 with electronic devices 70 supported by the lower housing 30, and a plurality of upper housings 22, 120, 220, 320, each configured to couple to the lower housing 30. The electronic devices 70 of the circuit board 60 extend within a space defined by an interior surface 32 and upper edge 34 of the lower housing 30 and within a space defined by an interior surface 122, 222, 322 and lower edge 124, 224, 324 of each of the plurality of upper housings 22, 120, 220, 320 when coupled to the lower housing. Each of the plurality of upper housings 22, 120, 220, 320 provide a different mounting configuration for the installation of the modular lighting device 20. The electronic devices 70 of the modular lighting device 20 may include one or more of a motion sensor 82, a light sensor 86a, a user interface 90, and a wireless transceiver 80 for communication with a wireless lighting system.
Advantageously, utilizing space within the lower housing 30 for locating at least a portion of the electrical devices 70 aids in maximizing performance of devices such as the motion sensor 82, light sensor 86a, user interface 90, and wireless transceiver 80. User interface 90 may be for example, one or more switches for selecting and/or one or more indicators for indicating a mode of operation of the modular lighting device 20, including, for example, light emitter 86b and light guide 88b. Utilizing space within the upper housing 22 for at least a portion of these electrical devices 70 aids in minimizing the height 36 of the lower housing 30, thereby providing a lower-profile protrusion below a ceiling surface 10, which is generally aesthetically and architecturally desirable. For example, see the modular lighting device 20 as shown installed in
Referring to
The interior surface 32 of the lower housing 30 forms a cavity or space bounded by the upper edge 34. Advantageously, a portion of or all of the electronic devices 70 are located partially or fully in these bounds of the lower housing 30. For example, in the illustrative embodiment of
As shown in
Fasteners 48 may be used to couple, for example releasably couple, the lower housing 30 to one or more of the upper housings 122, 222, and 322, as shown in
An outer surface 33 of the lower housing may also define a central recess 38 (
Advantageously, an annular cover 46 may be secured in place over a portion of the lower housing 30, including the recesses 45 and fasteners 48. For example, annular cover 46 and lower housing 30 may include cooperating features to allow annular cover 46 to be releasably snapped into place upon the lower housing 30. Additionally, as shown in cross-sectional view
Referring to
As can be understood from cross-sectional view
Referring to
Referring to
Prior to the coupling the housings 30 and 320 together, the third upper housing 320 can be mounted to the conduit receptacle 18. The third upper housing 320 includes a body 330, an arm 332, and a threaded conduit end 334 of the arm. The threaded conduit end 334 can be secured with the conduit receptacle 18 and a power supply or other electrical connection extending from the conduit receptacle end can be connected with the electrical cable 76 prior to the lower housing 30 being coupled to the third upper housing 320. After the third upper housing 320 is mounted to the conduit receptacle 18 and electrical connections completed, the lower housing 30 can be coupled and secured to the third upper housing 320, for example, by using fasteners 48 shown in
Referring to
To mount the upper housing within the recess 12, the distal ends 146a are rotated upwardly about the spring 144a and anchor 142a and guided into and through the recess 12. Once the distal ends 146a and springs 144a of the spring mounts 140a are located above the upper ceiling surface 14, the distal ends 146a are spring-loaded by spring 144a to rotate the distal ends downwardly such that the distal ends pressing downwardly upon the upper ceiling surface 14 secure the upper edge 34 of the lower housing 30 against the lower ceiling surface 10, thereby concealing the recess 12 and upper housing 120 from view below the ceiling surface 10, for example, as illustrated in
Referring to
To mount the upper housing within the recessed can 16, the distal ends 146b are rotated inwardly about the spring 144b and anchor 142b and guided into the recess 12 and recessed can 16. Once the distal ends 146b and springs 144b of the spring mounts 140b are located above the ceiling surface 10, the distal ends 146b are spring-loaded by spring 144b to rotate the distal ends outwardly such that the distal ends pressing against the recessed can 16 secure the modular lighting device vertically relative to the ceiling surface 10. The lower housing 30 can be pressed upwardly, extending the distal ends 146b of the spring mounts 140b deeper into the recessed can 16 until the upper edge 34 of the lower housing 30 contacts the lower ceiling surface 10, thereby concealing the recess 12, recessed can 16, and upper housing 120 from view below the ceiling surface 10, for example, as illustrated in
Optionally, the third upper housing 320 is selected when the mounting surface is oriented vertically, and the first or second upper housings 120 and 220 are selected when the mounting surface is oriented horizontally.
Materials used to form lower housing 30 and upper housings 22 may be, for example but not limited to, plastic, including thermoplastics that are formed by molding, materials suitable for additive manufacturing, and sustainable materials, including but not limited to those that are formed by compression, molding, and additive manufacturing, for example, recycled paper pulp, natural textiles such as felt, and bio-plastics such as cellulose-based plastic.
In an alternative embodiment of the modular lighting device, the electrical devices 70 include an illumination source and the modular lighting device comprises a lighting fixture. In another alternative embodiment of the modular lighting device, the electrical devices 70 of include a wireless transceiver for communicating with user devices such as handheld computing devices or other connected devices, and may optionally provide access to a wide area network such as the internet and/or a local area network.
Reference systems that may be used herein can refer generally to various directions (e.g., upper, lower, forward and rearward), which are merely offered to assist the reader in understanding the various embodiments of the disclosure and are not to be interpreted as limiting.
While examples, one or more representative embodiments and specific forms of the disclosure have been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive or limiting. The description of particular features in one embodiment does not imply that those particular features are necessarily limited to that one embodiment. Some or all of the features of one embodiment can be used or applied in combination with some or all of the features of other embodiments unless otherwise indicated. One or more exemplary embodiments have been shown and described, and all changes and modifications that come within the spirit of the disclosure are desired to be protected.
Table 1 below includes element numbers and at least one word used to describe the member and/or feature represented by the element number. It is understood that none of the embodiments disclosed herein are limited to these descriptions, other words may be used in the description or claims to describe a similar member and/or feature, and these element numbers can be described by other words that would be understood by a person of ordinary skill reading and reviewing this disclosure in its entirety.
