US3222514A - Flashlight holder - Google Patents

Description

1955 s. R. THORNTON FLASHLIGHT HOLDER Filed July 26, 1963 INVENTOR STUART/P, 7:1 OAN 70/V BY fl ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,222,514 FLASHLIGHT HOLDER Stuart R. Thornton, 3700 26th St., San Francisco 10, Calif.

Filed July 26, 1963, Ser. No. 297,934 1 Claim. (Cl. 240-525) This invention relates to a novel holder forming an attachment for a conventional flashlight and which may be conveniently utilized for mounting the flashlight on a support member, such as a forearm or wrist of the user, or on any other element of approximately the same cross sectional size.

More particularly, it is an aim of the present invention to provide a holder which can be permanently attached to the barrel or casing of a flashlight for movement relative thereto between an extended, operative position in which the holder projects substantially transversely from the flashlight, and a folded, inoperative position in which the holder embraces a part of the flashlight barrel.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawing, illustrating presently preferred embodiments thereof, and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational View showing the holder applied to a flashlight and disposed in a folded, inoperative position;

FIGURE 2 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 but showing the holder in an extended, operative position with respect to the flashlight;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 3-3 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially along the line 4-4 of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary cross sectional view, similar to a portion of FIGURE 4, and illustrating a slightly modified embodiment of the holder.

Referring more specifically to the drawing, the preferred embodiment of the holder is illustrated in FIGURES 1 to 4 and is designated generally 6. The holder 6 constitutes an attachment for a conventional flashlight, designated generally 7, having a barrel or casing 8 of substantially circular cross section.

The holder 6 includes a bearing 9 in the form of a short sleeve which is welded or otherwise secured, as seen at 10, to a portion of the exterior of the cylindrical barrel or case 8 and crosswise thereof, and preferably approximately intermediate of the ends of the flashlight 7. The holder 6 also includes a split ring member, designated generally 11, formed of a single strand of a resilient material, such as spring metal, and having an intermediate portion 12 extending through and fitting rotatively in the bearing 9 for adjustably connecting the split ring member 11 to the flashlight case 8. Accordingly, the split ring member 11 is provided with two corresponding end portions or arms 13 and 14 disposed beyond opposite ends of the bearing 9 and which are normally spring biased toward one another and so that the distal ends or terminals 15 and 16 of the arms 13 and 14, respectively, would normally assume positions in abutting engagement with one another or in overlapping relation to one another.

FIGURES 2 and 4 show the holder 6 in an operative position with the member 11 extending away from the barrel 8 and disposed substantially at a right angle to the axis of the flashlight 7. The arms or end portions 13 and 14 of the member 11 have been sprung outwardly relative to one another and so that said arms can embrace a forearm or wrist 17 of the user for detachably mounting the flashlight 7 on either the outer side or inner side of the forearm and wrist and longitudinally thereof and with the head 18 of the flashlight extending toward the hand, not shown. The end portions or arms 13 and 14 are sufliciently resilient so that said arms can be sprung out- 3,222,514 Patented Dec. 7, 1965 wardly relative to one another to engage forearms or wrists or different cross sectional sizes and to yieldably grip the support part 17 embraced thereby to detachably mount the flashlight 7 thereon, as illustrated in FIGURES 2 and 4. Since the arms 13 and 14 are individually yieldable outwardly relative to one another and to the flashlight barrel or case 8, said arms can be sprung outwardly to different extents to most effectively grip portions of the support 17. It will also be apparent that the member 11 in its extended position may yieldably grip other supports of circular or noncircular cross section for mounting the flashlight 7 thereon.

When the holder 6 is not in use, the member 11 is rotated in the bearing 9 in either direction from its position of FIGURE 2 and the arms or end portions 13 and 14 are sprung apart so that the terminals 15 and 16, re spectively, thereof will pass across opposite sides of the part of the case 8 located circumferentially in both directions from the bearing 9, after which the spread arms 13 and 14 can be released to position the member 11 in its folded or inoperative position of FIGURES 1 and 3, substantially embracing the barrel or case 8 and disposed obliquely to the longitudinal axis thereof and with the terminals 15 and 16 slightly spaced from one another. The member 11 is shown in FIGURE 1 inclined toward the head 18 but could be inclined in the same manner in the opposite direction away from the head 18. Accordingly, the holder 6 when in its inoperative position will not interfere with the normal use of the flashlight 7 and is so constructed that when once applied to the case 8 thereof it will remain a part of the flashlight and is not intended to be detached therefrom.

FIGURE 5 illustrates a slightly modified form of the holder, designated generally 6. In lieu of providing the bearing sleeve 9, the flashlight case 8 has two circumferentially spaced openings 19 formed therein and the part 20 of the case located therebetween is forced outwardly relative to the circumference of the remainder of the case 8'. The intermediate portion 12 of the split ring member 11', which corresponds to the member 11, is journaled in the spaced openings 19. The modified holder 6' otherwise corresponds to the holder 6 and functions in the same manner.

Various other modifications and changes are contemplated and may be resorted to without departing from the function or scope of the invention as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

A flashlight holder comprising a bearing sleeve secured to the exterior of a flashlight case, crosswise thereof and intermediate of the ends of the case, and a split ring member formed from a single strand of resilient material of circular cross section and having an intermediate portion journaled in the bearing sleeve for swingably mounting said member on the flashlight case, said member having corresponding resilient end portions yieldably embracing the case in a folded inoperative position of the holder and extending transversely away from the case and adapted to yieldably embrace a supporting element to mount the flashlight thereon in an operative position of the holder.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,194,930 8/1916 Austen 240-1063 1,268,622 6/1918 Reynolds 240-525 X 1,598,931 9/1926 Patche 240-525 X FOREIGN PATENTS 21,5 39 4/ 1930 Netherlands.

NORTON ANSHER, Primary Examiner.

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