Abstract:
An apparatus disguised as a flashlight to be used as a self protection device. This apparatus includes a housing ergonomically designed to fit a user&#39;s hand. Included in the housing are a battery, a low battery indicator device, a lighting device, a chemical spray canister, a shocking primary electrode and an additional shocking electrode, each component having a trigger assembly. The primary electrodes are triggered by a trigger switch. The additional electrode is triggered by applying force on the electrodes. The apparatus is used to either shoot the chemical spray at an assailant at a distance, or use the shocking primary electrode at a close distance, if the assailant is in front of a victim. When the assailant is at the back of the victim, the bottom additional electrode is activated for use while at the same time deactivating the shocking primary electrode. The personal safety device has a safety device that can disable the personal safety device when it is pulled from a user.

Description:
BACKGROUND  
         [0001]    The present invention relates to a personal safety device for self protection using a combination of self protection components and safety switches capable of defending attackers from the front or the back of the victim. The personal safety device is inactivated when the safety door disengages from the device such as when an assailant grabs the personal safety device from the user.  
           [0002]    Historically the primary responsibility for personal protection has always fallen on the individuals. This is true regardless of the community where one lives. Police agencies have been unable to protect everyone. Living in and around our large metropolitan cities requires that individuals, whether alone or with others, take precautionary measures to protect themselves against personal assaults. Various personal safety devices are available, including firearms, stun guns, chemical sprays, audible alarms and wireless security services.  
           [0003]    Firearms, when accessible and handled properly, are good deterrents against an aggressor. However, carrying a firearm might not be an option especially to individuals who oppose the possession and use of firearms, or who are generally intimidated by firearms. Furthermore, the idea that death may occur because of the use of firearms also makes this form of self protection undesirable. In addition, many jurisdictions require the registration of the firearm and/or a permit for concealed weapons. These registrations either hinder or prevent an individual from these forms of personal defense.  
           [0004]    Other personal protection devices such as chemical sprays, for example, pepper sprays, audible personal security alarms, and stun guns, when used properly, all have a deterrent effect on an aggressor without the consequences associated with a firearm. These devices, however, have limitations and can prove to be ineffective depending upon the circumstances.  
           [0005]    For example, a stun gun can be effective in warding off aggressors as that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,002,120. The aggressor, however, must be reasonably close, usually within an arms length, to effect an electric shock on the assailant. Further, due to its design and function, a stun gun can be ineffective when the assailant attacks a person from behind.  
           [0006]    Chemical sprays and audible alarms have their advantages and disadvantages. Chemical sprays as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,865,348 generally offer a user the advantage of deterring an assailant at a distance of as much as 10 to 15 feet, as well as giving notice to the assailant that the user is not totally defenseless. However, a chemical spray is useless when the assailant covers his eyes with eyeglasses. Audible alarms on the other hand when used as a stand alone device has lost its usefulness, since most people in the metropolitan city areas no longer pay attention to such sound generated devices.  
           [0007]    Further, in all of these known self defense devices, there are no mechanisms built in to deactivate the device which is necessary especially when an assailant takes possession of the device by force and uses the device on the user.  
           [0008]    It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a simple device for self-defense combining the benefits of light, chemical spray, low battery indicator and stun gun in a simple device, thereby enabling a prospective victim to defend himself/herself, wherever the assailant is situated, from either the front or the back.  
           [0009]    It is a further object of this invention to incorporate a deactivating mechanism for safety and for preventing an assailant to use the user&#39;s own personal safety device against the user.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0010]    The present invention is a personal safety device comprising of a combination of a lighting device, a chemical spray in a canister and shocking electrodes and means for triggering each of these in a housing designed to ergonomically accommodate a hand, having a means for securing the safety device to a user&#39;s hand. A unique feature of the personal safety device is its ability to be disabled once it is pulled by an assailant from a user&#39;s hand so long as the user is using the safety device correctly. This is important so that the same safety device will not be used by the assailant on his or her victim.  
           [0011]    The personal safety device have several shocking electrodes located at different faces of the safety device wherein a shocking electrode gets inactivated when another shocking electrode is activated to prevent a user from being stung by the shocking electrode that is not aimed at the assailant.  
           [0012]    The chemical spray triggering assembly comprises a triggering switch connected to a restraining triggering strip which presses upon the nozzle of a canister containing the chemical, the triggering switch controlled by the position of a series of strips perpendicularly situated from the triggering switch.  
           [0013]    The process of using the personal safety device comprises switching the on/off switch for turning the lighting device on; turning the trigger switch on while the on/off switch is on to trigger the activation of the shocking electrodes on the top surface of the safety device when the shocking electrodes is desired to be used to ward off an assailant; pressing on a nozzle of a chemical spray canister to deliver a spray when a shock is not desired; pressing on the bottom surface having shocking electrodes to activate the bottom shocking electrode when an assailant is at the user&#39;s back, the activation of the bottom shocking electrodes causing the deactivation of the top shocking electrodes; and, pulling a safety device to disengage the shocking electrodes from the power source and dislocate the chemical spray canister thereby disabling the personal safety device. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0014]    [0014]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the personal safety device.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the safety device shown in FIG. 1, taken on line a-a.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 2A is an exploded view of the receiver, fence and canister taken along b-b.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the chemical spray triggering assembly.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 4 is a plan view of the safety door of the safety device.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 5 is a plan view of the third wall of the safety device.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 6 is a side view of the safety door of the safety device.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 7A is a sectional side view of the safety door showing the key connected to a wrist strap.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 7B is a sectional side view of the safety door showing the key engaged into a locking strip preventing the door from opening.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 8 is a circuit diagram showing how the safety device is powered.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the personal safety device with a bottom extension to accommodate a secondary stun gun activation assembly.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 9A is a perspective view showing the shocking electrode triggering assembly sliding into the overhanged rail at the bottom of the personal safety device.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 10A is a vertical sectional view of the safety device taken along c-c having the secondary stun gun activation assembly in an inactive status with the disc touching a first conducting strip.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 10B is a vertical sectional view of the safety device taken along b-b having the secondary stun gun activation assembly in an active status with the disc touching a second conducting strip.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 11 is a circuit diagram showing how the safety device with a secondary stun gun is powered.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0029]    [0029]FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrates the personal safety device  20  on a housing  30 . The housing  30  has a top surface  31 , a front top surface  32  connecting to a first wall  34 , a bottom surface  33 , a second wall  35 , a third wall  36  and a fourth wall  37 . On the front top surface  32 , proximal to the top surface  31  are preferably a pair of protruding primary shocking electrodes  40 A and  40 B which when activated, stings or shocks an intruder upon contact with the electrodes. Below the shocking electrodes  40 A and  40 B, on the front top surface  32  is curved out, an aperture  41 , usually of oval, elliptical or rounded shape. The reflector  42  have walls  43  directing from and around the aperture  41 , the wall preferably decreasing in circumferential surface in a conical manner. The reflector  42  connects to a base  44  for accommodating a lighting device  45 . The lighting device  45  is commonly a light bulb usually screwed into the base  44 . A hollow tube  46  extends from an opening  47  on the front top surface  32  which connects at its opposite end  48  to a nozzle  49  of a chemical spray canister  50 . The opposite end  48  of the hollow tube  46  usually slips inside the nozzle  49 . The nozzle is typically housed inside a pressure button  51  which controls the delivery of chemicals within the canister  50 . The chemical spray canister  50  is usually located in the middle of the first inside compartment  52  of the housing  30 . The canister  50  is preferably seated inside a receiver  53 , preferably a hollow cylinder with a bottom base  54  or a receiver having a rounded surface on one end a flat surface on the other end as shown in FIG. 2A. The receiver  53  usually has the same geometric shape as the canister or the canister should fit into the receiver as in the case of receivers with a flat end as shown in FIG. 2A. The receiver  53  holding the canister  50  are in turn held on its curved or rounded surface by an arched fence  55  curved to conform with the geometric shape of the curved or rounded surface of the receiver  53  to stabilize the canister and prevent it from moving as shown in FIG. 1. The receiver  53  sits on top of a base  38  which is also the top surface of a second compartment  56  used for housing a battery and its accessories. The first wall  34  below the front top surface  32  is preferably recessed and designed to ergonomically accommodate the hand of a user. On the first wall  34  is a trigger switch  58  for triggering the shocking electrodes  40 A and  40 B.  
         [0030]    The second wall  35 , as shown in FIG. 1, preferably has an on/off switch  59  for powering the personal safety device. On the surface of the second wall  35  is a hole  60  for accommodating a rod  61 , preferably cylindrical in shape. The rod  61  is part of a chemical spray triggering assembly  62  shown in FIG. 3. The rod extends from one end on the outside surface  63  of the second wall  35  to the other end on the outside surface  64  of the fourth wall  37 . On the respective ends of the rod  61  are connected mechanical triggering switches  65 A and  65 B which are located on the outside surfaces  63  and  64  of the second and fourth wall. Rigidly attached to the middle portion of the rod  61  is a restraining triggering strip  66 . This strip  66  presses on the pressure button  51  of the canister  50  when the switches  65 A and  65 B are pressed downwards which moves the rod  61  in a counterclockwise direction. Connected to the rod  61 , below the restraining triggering strip  66  proximal to the triggering switch  65 A is a flat strip  67  oriented perpendicular to the restraining triggering strip  66 . Extending internally from the inside of the second wall  35  is a rigid strip  68  proximal and parallel to the flat strip  67 . The rigid strip  68  prevents the triggering switches  65 A and  65 B from moving clockwise because the flat strip  67  will hit the rigid strip  68 . Connected at the back of the on/off switch  59  is a thin plate or a thin strip  69 . The flat strip  67  is sandwiched between the thin strip  69  and the rigid strip  68 . The thin plate  69  is oriented vertically in the same axial position as the rigid strip  68  and the flat strip  67 . These various strips and plates are made of any rigid material. When the on/off switch is pushed upwards to the off position, the thin plate  69  also moves upwards thereby aligning with the flat strip  67 . When the thin plate  69  is aligned with the flat strip  67 , the triggering switches  65 A and  65 B are prevented from moving downwards which in turn prevent the restraining triggering strip  66  to press upon the pressure button  51  of the canister  50 . When the on-off switch  59  is switched downwards to the on position, the thin plate  69  also moves downwards out of the way of the flat strip  67 , thus allowing the mechanical triggering switches  65 A and  65 B to move downwards if force is applied onto these switches which consequently cause the triggering strip  66  to press upon the nozzle  49  of the canister  50  thereby allowing the chemical inside the canister  50  to flow through the hollow tube  46  and spray at an aimed position upon release to the atmosphere.  
         [0031]    The third wall  36  can be used to house a safety door  39  as shown in FIGS. 4, 5 and  6  which can disable both the shocking electrodes  40 A and  40 B and the chemical spray assembly  62  once the safety door  39  is disengaged or pulled from the device  20 . The safety door  39  has a locking mechanism which in here is illustrated by a key  70  having springy or resilient legs  71 . Other locking devices may be used so long as it can disengage the safety door from the safety device when the safety door is pulled. To facilitate the disengagement of the safety door  39  from the device, the safety door is preferably connected to a wrist strap  72  through which extends a user&#39;s wrist while gripping the personal safety device. The wrist strap on the user&#39;s hand will allow the user to hold on to the strap when the safety device  20  is being grabbed by the assailant such that the pull from the assailant will make the door  39  disengage from the body of the personal safety device  20 . In the locking mechanism illustrated on FIGS. 7A and 7B, the wrist strap  72  is connected to the locking mechanism or key  70 . The safety door  39  disconnects the electrical connections from the shocking electrodes  40 A and  40 B by disengaging the safety conducting strips  79 A and  79 B located at the bottom inside cover of the safety door  39  from the contacts  80 A and  80 B which allows the current to flow through from the power source. A pull of the door also disables the chemical spray assembly  62 . This is made possible by fastening the receiver  53  housing the canister  50  to the inside cover of the safety door  39  as shown in FIGS. 2 and 2A such that when the safety door is pulled out of the safety device, the door either carries with it the receiver  53  containing the canister  50  or dislocates the canister such that the chemical spray assembly  62  is no longer operable. A preferred fastening device is a hook and loop fastener  73 , commercially sold as Velcro®, where a strip or a piece of a Velcro® loop is applied on the surface of the receiver  53  facing the door  39  and the corresponding strip or piece of Velcro® hook is applied on the inside cover of the door  39  on a face to face orientation such that when the safety door  39  is closed, the door  39  also fastens to the receiver  53 . The door is kept in place or locked to the third wall by allowing the resilient legs  71  to lock into a hole  74  cut out from a plate  75  which protrudes laterally from the opening  76  of the third wall  36  as shown in FIG. 5. The resilient legs  71  have a hook like tip or a lip tip  77  which anchors on the inside surface of the plate  75 . When the safety door  39  is engaged to the personal safety device  20 , the safety door  39  fastens to the receiver  53  and the conducting strips  79 A and  79 B touch the contacts  80 A and  80 B.  
         [0032]    The fourth wall  37  has a hole  81  directly opposite the hole  60  on the second wall  35  for accommodating an end of the rod  61  of the chemical spray triggering assembly  62  as shown in FIG. 1.  
         [0033]    The top surface  31  of the personal device  20  preferably contain two flat strip shocking electrodes  82 A and  82 B as shown in FIG. 1, in addition to the shocking electrodes  40 A and  40 B also for shocking an assailant upon contact with the electrodes. Also on the same surface  31  is preferably incorporated, an indicator  100  for indicating the charge level on the battery.  
         [0034]    The electrical circuitry involved in the operation of the personal safety device  20  is shown in FIG. 8. The device  20  is powered through the on/off switch  59 . When the switch  59  is on, the lighting circuitry  83  connects with the battery  57  thereby turning the lighting device  45  on. This allows the user to use the personal safety device  20  as a flashlight which lights a dim place and aids in the identification of an assailant. When the trigger switch  58  is pressed or turned on while the on/off switch is also on, the shocking electrode powered through the stun gun circuit  84  will connect with the battery  57  through the safety contacts  85  consisting of the conducting strips  79 A and  79 B and the contacts  80 A and  80 B, thereby energizing the protruding primary shocking electrodes  40 A and  40 B and the flat strip shocking electrodes  82 . The conducting strips  79 A and  79 B are preferably constructed of two conducting metal strips connected together with a conducting wire such as a copper wire. A low battery indicator may be attached to the battery to sense when the battery is no longer providing the right amount of energy. A battery door (not shown) is cut out from the bottom surface  33  to enable the replacement of a spent battery. The design and construction of battery doors are known.  
         [0035]    At least two additional shocking electrodes  86 A and  86 B protruding from the bottom surface  33  of the personal safety device  20  may be installed for defense against an assailant from the back. To accommodate this, the bottom portion of the safety device has to be extended to house this additional shocking electrode triggering assembly  87 . The personal safety device  20  may also have these additional shocking electrodes as add on accessories, in which case, the bottom surface  33  should be removable to allow the add on accessory to be slid into the bottom of the personal safety device  20  as shown in FIGS. 9 and 9A. In either design, the parts of the additional shocking electrode triggering assembly  87  also herein referred to as secondary triggering assembly, will be the same. For the add on feature, the bottom surface  33  may be removed by sliding the bottom surface from an overhang rail  88  bordering the peripheral surfaces  89  of the second, third and fourth wall. The secondary triggering assembly  87  is attached to the bottom of the safety device preferably by sliding the assembly into the overhanged rail as shown in FIGS. 9 and 9A. The secondary triggering assembly  87  as shown in FIG. 10A, comprises a rigid block  90  with a center cavity  91 . The central cavity is preferably circular with connecting terminals  92 A and  92 B at the top of the cavity and another connecting terminals  93 A and  93 B at the bottom wall  101  of the central cavity. The bottom edge of the central cavity  99  is circular and is the opening through which a rod  96  can go through. To slide the assembly  87  into the overhanged rail  88 , a groove or a matching lip or protrusion  78  at the peripheral lateral surfaces of the block  90  is inserted into the overhanged rail as shown in FIG. 9A. A cover  94  capable of enveloping the rigid block  90  has a solid base  95  having a rod  96  extending inwardly from the solid base. At the tip of the rod is a circular conductive disc  97  having a larger outer diameter than the rod  96  and the bottom edge  99  of the central cavity which keeps the rod  96  from falling away from the central cavity  91  and the cover  94  attached to the triggering assembly  87 . The rod  96  can be made of conducting and non-conducting rigid materials so long as the disc  97  is a conducting material. The methods for attaching the disc to the rod is known. On the left and right side of the rod are spring coils  98 A and  98 B whose top and bottom ends are connected to the rigid block  90  and the solid base  95 , respectively. The additional shocking electrode/s  86 A&amp;B protrude outwardly from the outside surface of the solid base  95 . This connects to the same battery  57 .  
         [0036]    When no outside force is applied to the additional shocking electrodes  86 A and  86 B, the spring coils  98 A and  98 B will be in a relax position, causing the circular conductive disc  97  to touch on the connecting terminals  93 A and  93 B located at the bottom wall  101  of the central cavity  91 . When the conductive disc  97  is in contact with the connecting terminals  93 A and  93 B, the electric current flows through the shocking electrodes  40 A,  40 B,  82 A and  82 B and no current flows through the additional shocking electrode/s  86 A&amp;B as shown in FIG. 10A and FIG. 11, path Y. When force is applied to the secondary electrodes  86 A&amp;B, preferably a pair, the cover  94  pushes against the spring coils  98 A and  98 B which cause the rod  96  to also push upward thereby disengaging the circular conductive disc  97  from its contact with the connecting terminals  93 A and  93 B but engaging this with the connecting terminals  92 A and  92 B as shown in FIG. 10B. When the conductive disc  97  is in contact with the connecting terminals  92 A and  92 B, no electric current can flow through the shocking electrodes  40 A,  40 B,  82 A and  82 B but instead, electric current will flow through the additional shocking electrodes  86 A and  86 B as shown in FIG. 11, path Z. To cause a good contact of the circular conductive disc  97  with the connecting terminals  92 A,B and  93 A,B, a cylindrical channel (not shown) may be installed from the bottom edge  99  of the central cavity  91 . The length of the cylindrical channel is preferably the same as the distance from the connecting terminals  92 A,B to the connecting terminals  93 A,B. This cylindrical channel will hold the rod  96  inside and stabilize it as it travels to and from one connecting terminal to the other. To activate the additional shocking electrodes  86 A&amp;B, both the trigger switch  58  and the on/off switch  59  should be in the on position, and force should be applied to the additional shocking electrodes. This requirement is designed to prevent the accidental activation of the additional shocking electrodes  86 A&amp;B.  
         [0037]    Unless specifically stated, the personal safety device is preferably made of a rigid plastic material.  
         [0038]    While the embodiments of the present invention have been described, it should be understood that various changes, adaptations, and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and the scope of the claims: