GB2221978A

GB2221978A - Portable lighting unit

Info

Publication number: GB2221978A
Application number: GB8815268A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Peter John Niccolls
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1988-06-27
Filing date: 1988-06-27
Publication date: 1990-02-21
Anticipated expiration: 2008-06-27
Also published as: GB8815268D0; GB2221978B

Abstract

A portable lighting unit comprises three extendible supporting legs 1 connected together, at their upper ends, by a frame member 2 so as to be movable into positions to form a tripod as shown. Also mounted on the frame 2 is a lamp assembly 3 including two electrical lamps 4, 5. The supporting legs are connected to the frame member 2 in such a manner as to be foldable between a splayed or open free-standing position as shown to a collapsed or folded position in which the legs are disposed side-by-side or juxtaposed. The lamp assembly 3 is hinged to the frame member 2 so as to be swingable from an upright position for use as shown to a downwardly depending position adjacent the legs. <IMAGE>

Description

PORTABLE LIGHTING UNIT The present invention relates to portable lighting units and, more particularly, to lighting units which are readily collapsible or foldable into a compact condition for convenient storage and transportation and which are primarily designed for use as traffic emergency or warning lighting.

The present invention consists in a portable lighting unit comprising supporting legs coupled together at or adjacent their upper ends so as to be relatively movable from a splayed or open freestanding position to a collapsed position in which the legs are generally juxtaposed, and a lamp assembly including two electrical lamps mounted one above the other and mounted on the legs so as to be swingable from an upright position of use in which the lamp assembly projects above the upper ends of the legs to a downwardly depending position adjacent the legs.

Hence, the invention provides a lighting unit which can be folded for carriage and storage and which scan be easily erected to stand upright on a road and act as warning lighting for traffic. The lamps may be spot or flood lamps and one or both lamps may be fitted with plain or coloured diffusers and may be flashing or continuous lights. For example, the bottom lamp of the assembly may produce a flashing or continuous light and be provided with an amber or blue diffuser and it may be directed towards oncoming traffic in an emergency situation. The upper lamp may be in the form of a spot or flood lamp illuminating the cause of an obstruction or an emergency service in operation.

The upper lamp may be mounted on the lower lamp so that it can swivel with respect to the latter. It may be arranged to swing through a vertical arc of approximately 300 above the lower lamp and to turn through a full circle in a horizontal plane. It may also be arranged to be switched independently of the lower lamp. The lamp assembly may be adapted to operate from a low voltage power supply, such as, directly from a vehicle battery or from a mains supply via a transformer.

Conveniently, the supporting legs of the unit form a tripod and are hinged together at their upper ends so as relatively to pivot about a generally vertical axis or axes from a splayed or open freestanding position to a collapsed position in which they are juxtaposed. The legs may also be adapted to be extendible to enable the height of the unit to be adjusted. For example, each leg may be formed from two parts coupled together at adjacent ends by a spring loaded mechanism which permits the lower part of the leg to be folded against the upper part and, when desired, to be moved into alignment with the latter so -as to extend the leg length.

The lamp assembly may be pivoted for movement about a generally horizontal axis so as to swing in a vertical arc from a collapsed position between or adjacent the legs to its upright position of use. To this end, the lower lamp may be mounted on a short post or standard connected by means of a suitable hinge to the upper ends of the legs. The upper lamp may be mounted on the lower lamp via a bracket permitting the upper lamp to swivel about generally vertical and horizontal axes relatively to the lower lamp.

In order that the present invention may be more readily understood, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figures 1 to 5 illustrate one embodiment of the invention in various states, Figure 6 is an enlarged elevational view of the lighting unit in a collapsed or folded state, Figure 7 is an enlarged fragmentary view illustrating the lamp assembly in its upright position of use, Figures 8 and 9 are fragmentary perspective views illustrating the hinge connections of the legs and lamp assembly, and Figure 10 are fragmentary views illustrating the construction and assembly of one of the extendible legs.

Referring to Figures 1 to 7 of the drawings, the lighting unit comprises three supporting legs 1 connected together, at their upper ends, by a frame member 2 so as to be movable into positions to form a tripod (Figs. 3, 4 and 5). Also mounted on the frame member 2 is a lamp assembly 3 including two electrical lamps 4,5. The supporting legs are connected to the frame member 2 in such a manner as to be foldable between a splayed or open free-standing position (as shown, for example, in Figure 3) to a collapsed or folded position (Figures 1,2 and 6) in which the legs are disposed side-by-side or juxtaposed. The lamp assembly 3 is hinged to the frame member 2 so as to be swingable from an upright position of use (Figures 2-5) to a downwardly depending position adjacent the legs (Figures1 and 6).

The legs 1 are formed in two parts 6,7 which are coupled together at adjacent ends by spring-loaded mechanisms 8 so that the lower parts 7 are foldable from positions juxtaposed the upper parts 6 (Figures 2,3 and 6) to positions in which they are aligned with the upper parts and extend the legs (Figures 4 and 5).

In their folded positions, the lower parts 7 of the legs may be retained folded against their respective upper parts by means of suitable spring clips 9.

Details of the hinge connections at the upper ends of the supporting legs 1 are illustrated in Figures 8 and 9. Hence, the frame member 2 is of channel section and is disposed generally horizontally. The upper ends 10 of the upper parts 6 of the legs are suitably bent so as to project between the walls of the channel frame member. The leg projecting into the open side of the channel opposite the base wall 11 thereof is welded between the channel walls, whilst the other two legs project into the channel on opposite sides of the welded leg and are pivoted between the channel walls by pivot pins 12.The two outer legs are pivotable from positions juxtaposed the welded leg to splayed or open positions in which they project from opposite ends of the channel frame member 2 and abut the base wall 11, whereby the legs 1 form a tripod providing a firm free-standing mounting for the lighting unit.

The lamp assembly 3 is connected to the frame member 2 by a post 13 fixed to the bottom of the lower lamp housing 14 and a clevis device 15 hinging the post 13 to the underneath of the frame member. The clevis device comprises two members 16 welded to the lower end of the post 13 at right angles to the latter and pivoted to a lug 17 projecting from the underneath of the frame member by a pivot pin 18. Hence, the lamp unit can be swung from its collapsed, downwardly-depending position juxtaposed the legs (Figures 1,6 and 8) to an upright position (for example, Figs. 7 and 9) in which the post 13 projects upwardly in front of the base wall 11 of the frame member 2 and the lamp assembly is located in a stable upright position above the frame member.

The upper lamp 5 is mounted on the lower lamp 4 by means of an angle bracket 20 having a horizontal arm 21 pivoted at 22 to the top of the lower lamp housing 14 and an upright arm 23 pivoted at 24 to the side of the upper lamp housing 25. The upper lamp can therefore be swivelled about its lower pivot 22 through a horizontal circle of about 3600 and about its side 24 pivot through an upward vertical arc of about 300 .

The two lamps 4,5 are connected in parallel by a lead 26. Electrical switches 27,28 are mounted on the back of the lower lamp housing 14 for individually controlling the lamps and a suitable lead (not shown) is also provided for connecting the lamps to a convenient power source, such as, a vehicle battery.

The lamps may be either spot or flood lamps with the lower lamp 4 being controlled so as to flash as a warning light. They are fitted with unbreakable lenses and clips 29 for holding coloured diffusers, if required, in front of the lenses (Fig. 7).

Figure 10 illustrates the construction of the extendible legs 1. Hence, each leg consists of tubular upper and lower parts 6,7 connected together by the spring-loaded mechanism 8 which comprises a chain 30 having one end fixed within the lower part 7 and its opposite end secured within the upper part 6 by a tension spring 31. The lower part is retained in a folded position juxtaposed the upper part by the spring clip 9 which may, for example, be moulded from plastics material. When the lower part is released from the clip, the spring-loaded mechanism tends to pull the lower part into alignment with the upper part. When the two parts are aligned, a sleeve 32 slidably mounted on the lower part is movable into a position bridging the adjacent ends of the two parts so as to lock them in alignment. By a reverse operation, it is a relatively simple matter to collapse each leg and clip the lower part in its folded position against the upper part.

Figures 4 and 5 illustrate the lighting unit standing on its extended legs 1 and the arcs of movement of the upper lamp 5 relative to the lower lamp 4.

Whilst a particular embodiment has been described, it will be understood that modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A portable lighting unit comprising supporting legs coupled together at or adjacent their upper ends so as to be relatively movable from a splayed or open freestanding position to a collapsed position in which the legs are generally juxtaposed, and a lamp assembly including two electrical lamps mounted one above the other and mounted on the legs so as to be swingable from an upright position of use in which the lamp assembly projects above the upper ends of the legs to a downwardly depending position adjacent the legs.

2. A lighting unit as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lamps are spot or flood lamps.

3. A lighting unit as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein one or both lamps are fitted with plain or coloured diffusers.

4. A lighting unit as claimed in claim 1,2 or 3, wherein one or both lamps are flashing lights.

5. A lighting unit as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the upper lamp is mounted on the lower lamp so that it can swivel with respect to the latter.

6. A lighting unit as claimed in claim 5, wherein the upper lamp is mounted on the lower lamp via a bracket permitting the upper lamp to swivel about generally vertical and horizontal axes relatively to the lower lamp.

7. A lighting unit as claimed in claim 6, wherein the upper lamp is arranged to swing through a vertical arc of approximately 3000 above the lower lamp and to turn through a full circle in a horizontal plane.

8. A lighting unit as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the upper lamp is arranged to be switched independently of the lower lamp.

9. A lighting unit as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the lamp assembly is adapted to operate from a low voltage power supply.

10. A lighting unit as claimed in claim 9, wherein the low voltage power supply is directly from a vehicle battery or from a mains supply via a transformer.

11. A lighting unit as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the supporting legs of the unit form a tripod and are hinged together at their upper ends so as relatively to pivot about a generally vertical axis or axes from a splayed or open free-standing position to a collapsed position in which they are juxtaposed.

12. A lighting unit as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the legs are adapted to be extendible to enable the height of the unit to be adjusted.

13. A lighting unit as claimed in claim 12, wherein each leg is formed from two parts coupled together at adjacent ends by a spring loaded mechanism which permits the lower part of the leg to be folded against the upper part and, when desired, to be moved into alignment with the latter so as to extend the leg length.

14. A lighting unit as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the lamp assembly can be pivoted for movement about a generally horizontal axis so as to swing in a vertical arc from a collapsed position between or adjacent the legs to its upright position of use.

15. A lighting unit as claimed in claim 14, wherein the lower lamp is mounted on a short post or standard connected by means of a suitable hinge to the upper ends of the legs.

16. A portable lighting unit substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.