BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a cross section of a conventional PAR lamp.
FIG. 2 depicts the series of steps in the manufacture of a conventional PAR lamp.
FIG. 3 is a cross section of an embodiment of a lamp of the present invention.
FIGS. 4
a-c are pictorial depictions of three embodiments of the clip of the present invention.
FIG. 5 depicts the series of steps in the manufacture of the lamp of FIG. 3.
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
With reference now to FIGS. 3 and 4a-c, a lamp 50 of the present invention includes a lamp capsule 52, a reflector 54 with a neck region 55, a base 56, and a lens 58 that encloses capsule 52 in reflector 54. The capsule 52 may be a suitable light source with leads 60 that extend through passageways 62 that open to a heel 64 of the reflector 54. The reflector may be a glass shell that is preferably a body of revolution with a reflective coat on an interior side.
The capsule 52 is held in the reflector 54 with a conductive clip 70 (seen more clearly in FIGS. 4a-c) that spans a diameter of the heel 64 and that has tabs 72 that extend forward at opposite sides of the heel. The clip 70 has a lead attachment such as an arm 74 that extends rearward and that is attached to a portion of one of the leads 60 that projects out of one of the passageways 62. The arm 74 may be attached to the lead by soldering, welding, an adhesive, or other suitable means, such as by wrapping the arm around the lead and crimping the arm 74 onto the respective lead (see FIG. 4c). The attachment of the arm to one of the leads holds the capsule in the reflector. The preferred clip is formed from a resilient metal and is generally U-shaped, and may be a stainless steel with a high modulus of elasticity and high yield strength.
A base 56 is attached to the heel 64 and engages the tabs 72 at the opposite sides of the heel. The base 56 holds the clip 70 in place on the heel to securely position and hold the capsule 52. The base 56 includes separate terminals for the lamp and may be a standard threaded metal shell with a sidewall 76. One terminal is formed by the sidewall 76 that engages the tabs 72 so that power is provided to the capsule 52 via the sidewall 76, clip 70 and one of the leads 60. The other terminal in the base may be a standard insulated islet 78 positioned axially and including a glass gob supporting a metal ferule.
As shown in FIG. 4a, the tabs 72 may resiliently grip the opposite sides of the heel 64 to hold the clip in place during manufacture of the lamp. Alternatively, as shown in FIGS. 4b and 4c, the heel 64 may have recesses 80 at the opposite sides and the tabs 72 may fit into the recesses. The recesses may be slots cut into the base and the tabs may have corresponding dimples, such as shown in FIG. 4b, or the recesses may take other shapes and receive an end of the tabs, such as shown in FIG. 4c. The construction shown in FIG. 4c requires no extra cutting operation as the tabs snap into the existing peen holes in the reflector. The tabs are then deformed during base peening making positive electrical contact and locking the clip firmly in place. The tabs could also extend over the edge of the base and be welded to the outside.
As is shown in FIGS. 4a-c, the clip may be generally O-shaped with a central opening 82 through which one or both of the leads extend. The arm 74 may depend from an interior side of central opening 82. The clip 70 may also include a stiffening bead or dimple 84 around at least part of a periphery of the central opening.
With reference again to FIG. 3, the other of leads 60 (the one not connected to the arm of clip) may be attached with a wire 86 to a further terminal (e.g., conventionally in the bottom of the base) that is electrically isolated from the part of the base that is electrically connected to the clip 70. One or both of the leads may extend through the central opening of the clip, taking care that the other lead does not contact the clip.
As seen in the cross section of FIG. 3, an interior side 66 of the neck region 55 surrounding a rear part of the capsule may be collinear (flush) with an outer edge of at least one of the passageways 62. This arrangement helps avoid at least some of the edges that snag the capsule leads when they are inserted into the passageways in the prior art (compare FIG. 1 that includes the flat surface at the base of the interior neck region for the flare of eyelet 18).
The arm 74 may be substantially parallel to an axis of the lead 60 to which it is attached. The arm may be a semi-detached part of the clip (the arm being detached from the clip on three sides of the arm) that has been bent to be transverse to the heel, thereby forming the central opening 82 and the arm 74 at the same time.
With reference now to FIG. 5, the lamp may be assembled by clipping the clip to the heel of the lamp while aligning a portion of the clip, such as the arm, and the central opening with the respective passageways opening to the heel. The lamp capsule is then inserted in the reflector, guiding the leads through the respective passageways. One of the leads is electrically connected to a portion of the clip, such as the arm, for example by soldering or welding or crimping. The lamp capsule is now retained accurately for the remaining assembly steps. The other lead 60 may be passed through the central opening and may be electrically coupled, for example by welding, to wire 86. The base 56 is then threaded over the end of the reflector and clip assembly. The arms 72 of the clip 70 are thereby compressed into firm contact with the heel of the reflector 54 and at the same time make good electrical contact with the sidewall of the base. The base 56 is coupled to the reflector 54, for example, by peening or crimping the base to the reflector. Alternatively the base may be cemented to the reflector in a conventional manner.
This method of manufacture requires no eyelets or cement and no disk attached to the capsule to hold the capsule in place. The capsule is supported entirely be a single lead attached to the clip that rests on the heel. The tabs are compressed by the base and held tightly against the sides of the heel. The external lamp dimensions and appearance are not affected by the new structure. The direct electrical contact of clip-to-base eliminates the need for a wire connecting the capsule lead to the base sidewall. The side wire weld that attaches the capsule lead to the base is also no longer needed. This reduces machine complexity and material shrinkage. Elimination of eyelets also allows for a much smaller diameter of the neck region for increased light output and beam intensity.
This new construction is compatible with an optimized assembly process where the lens is attached last. This allows light-up testing of the based lamp before adhesive application of the lens so the costly lens and reflector can be reused in the event of capsule defect or base assembly problems.
Using the clip eliminates the eyelets, and therefore the eyelet flares, thereby enabling the funnel shaped lead passages, leading to rapid and accurate insertion of the capsule. It also enables a narrower internal diameter of the neck region resulting in more light output. The clip also eliminates one or two weld steps.
While embodiments of the present invention have been described in the foregoing specification and drawings, it is to be understood that the present invention is defined by the following claims when read in light of the specification and drawings.
Patent Application
20080057819
