Abstract:
A spotlight powered using either an internal power source such as dry cell batteries or an external power source such as a 12-volt power supply. The spotlight adapted to be held by a person&#39;s hand or attached to a hook or tripod for directing a beam of light from the spotlight to a specific location. The spotlight having a battery by-pass circuit that enables the spotlight to operate independent of whether or not batteries are installed in the spotlight. This feature enhances the convenience and reduces the weight of the spotlight so that it may be operated without batteries.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention pertains to the field of high power spotlights. More particularly, this invention relates to a portable hand-held high power spotlight having a battery by-pass circuit that enables the spotlight to be powered by an external power source without having the battery in the spotlight. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     High powered spotlights incorporate a large cylindrical housing having a reflector and a high intensity bulb at one end of the housing. The bulb receives power from an external power supply and generates high intensity light. The housing attaches to a large movable support so the operator can control the movement of the spotlight and direct the high intensity beam of light at a particular object. The lack of portability resulting from large spotlights has caused designers to develop a hand-held high powered spotlight. 
     One of the primary purposes of hand-held high powered spotlights is portability; therefore, it is important they be lightweight and compact so a user can hold or carry these spotlights. Hand-held high powered spotlights are powered by a battery or an external power supply. 
     Handheld spotlights powered by an external power supply require rechargeable batteries to be placed in the spotlight in order for the spotlight to operate from the supply. The external power supply provides power to the spotlight while simultaneously recharging the batteries. Even though the batteries are not used to power the spotlight when it is connected to the external power supply, they must be in the spotlight to complete the circuit between the external power supply and the bulb. Because the batteries are required to complete the circuit, the spotlight cannot be operated on external power without the batteries. The batteries, however, add unnecessary weight to the spotlight. Furthermore, in an emergency situation, it may be inconvenient or even impossible to find batteries needed for operation of the spotlight from the external power supply. 
     It should therefore be appreciated there is a need for a high powered portable spotlight that will operate from an external power source without having batteries installed therein. The present invention fulfills this need. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is embodied in a spotlight that is powered using either an internal power source such as dry cell batteries or an external power source such as a 12-volt power supply. The spotlight is adapted to be held by a person&#39;s hand or attached to a hook or tripod for directing light from the spotlight to a specific location. The present invention incorporates a battery by-pass circuit that enables the spotlight to operate irrespective of whether or not batteries are installed in the spotlight. The by-pass circuit provides the user with flexibility because the spotlight may be operated when batteries are not installed in the battery compartment. 
     The spotlight of the present invention includes a reflector having a base at one end and an opening at the other end. The spotlight further includes a housing holding the reflector, a handle, and a cavity with electrical contacts configured to contact a battery. The handle is used to hold the spotlight or attach the spotlight to a tripod so the light projects from the spotlight to a specific location. 
     The spotlight also includes a battery by-pass circuit so the spotlight can operate irrespective of whether or not batteries are installed in the housing. The battery by-pass circuit is located substantially within the housing of the spotlight. The by-pass circuit includes a plurality of conductors, a switch, and a socket. 
     A plate, having a bulb socket interposed between first conductors, is positioned within the cavity such that the bulb socket is positioned at the base of the reflector. A bulb of at least 80 lumens is positioned in the bulb socket for producing light directed by the reflector beyond its opening. The reflector reflects light from the bulb through a plastic lens that is located at the opening of the reflector. A second conductor electrically connects the electrical contacts for the battery to the switch and the bulb socket. A third conductor connects the first conductor to the socket, with the switch therebetween. The resulting electrical circuit is independent of the second conductor. The by-pass circuit provides a connection between a socket and the bulb socket. The socket is recessed within the housing and is configured to receive a plug from an external power source to provide power to the bulb. The switch, controlled by a trigger button, is interposed between the socket and the bulb socket. The switch is positioned within the housing for activating the bulb. The trigger button is located adjacent to the handle. 
     A cord is used to power the spotlight using an external power source. The cord includes the plug at one end and to a lighter plug at the other end. The lighter plug typically receives an input voltage of 12-volts from a lighter receptacle and includes a power conversion circuit that converts the input voltage to an output voltage of approximately 6 volts. The plug is connected to the socket and transfers the output voltage from the cord to the spotlight. 
     Advantages of the invention include providing a spotlight that can operate using either batteries or an external power supply without having batteries installed within the spotlight. Furthermore, the present invention provides a lightweight and compact spotlight. 
     Other features and advantages of the present invention should become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiment, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of the invention. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a hand-held spotlight according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 2A is a side view of the rubber or elastomeric material used to cover the rear portion of the handle; 
     FIG. 2B is a rear inside view of the rubber material of FIG. 2A; 
     FIG. 3A is a rear view of the spotlight showing the trigger lock in its locked or rightmost position; 
     FIG. 3B is a rear view of the spotlight showing the trigger lock in its unlocked or leftmost position; 
     FIG. 4 is a partially exploded view of the spotlight; 
     FIG. 5 is a partial side view of the spotlight showing a retractable ring attached to the spotlight housing; 
     FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the external power source cord; 
     FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of the power conversion circuit in the cord of FIG. 6; 
     FIG. 8A is a schematic diagram of the circuit in the spotlight; and 
     FIG. 8B shows a perspective view of batteries connected with socket and switch in the spotlight. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     With reference now to the illustrative drawings, and particularly to FIG. 1, there is shown a perspective view of a hand-held spotlight  10  according to the present invention. The spotlight of the present invention can be used while hiking, mountain climbing, driving or repairing an automobile, or in an emergency situation. The spotlight includes a housing  12  and a handle  14 . The housing and handle are integrally formed and are made from a durable plastic material. The handle of the spotlight protrudes from the bottom rear portion of the housing and is adapted to be held by a person&#39;s hand for directing light from the spotlight to a specific location. The housing is typically cylindrical in shape. Alternative, the housing can be square or elliptical in shape. A rear portion  16  of the handle is typically covered using a rubber or elastomeric material to provide a better grip with the person&#39;s hand. In addition, a bottom portion  18  of the handle has a threaded tripod socket  20  to accept a tripod mounting screw (not shown). Attaching the spotlight to a tripod allows hands-free operation of the spotlight for accurately directing the light generated by the spotlight to a specific location. Furthermore, attaching the spotlight to a tripod minimizes the amount of jitter or shaking produced when a person is holding the handle of the spotlight. 
     A trigger button  22  is positioned adjacent to and partially recessed within the handle  14  and is coupled to a switch (see FIGS. 8A and 8B) located within the cavity that activates the bulb. Depressing the trigger button turns the bulb on and releasing the trigger button turns the bulb off. When the trigger button is in the on or off position it can be locked in place using a trigger lock  24 . 
     FIG. 2A is a side view of the rubber or elastomeric material used to cover the rear portion  16  of the handle  14 . FIG. 2B is a rear inside view of the rubber material. A rubber lip  26  is formed inside the rubber material and provides the means to attach the rubber material to the handle  14 . The rubber lip is positioned along the entire edge of the rubber material and is secured to a plastic lip (not shown) of the handle  14 . 
     FIG. 3A is a rear view of the spotlight  10  showing the trigger lock  24  in its locked or rightmost position. FIG. 3B is a rear view of the spotlight showing the trigger lock in its unlocked or leftmost position. When the trigger button  22  (see FIG. 1) is in the on position, the trigger button can be locked in place by moving the trigger lock to its rightmost position. To unlock the trigger button, the trigger lock is moved to its leftmost position. When the trigger button is in the off position, it can be locked in place by moving the trigger lock to its rightmost position. The trigger lock allows the spotlight to remain in the on position without having to continuously press the trigger button. Further, the trigger lock provides a safety mechanism which avoids the spotlight from turning on inadvertently. For example, if the spotlight is placed face down and turns on accidentally, it could burn or ignite surfaces that it comes into contact with such as seats, carpeting, or furniture. 
     FIG. 4 is a partially exploded view of the spotlight  10 . The housing  12  has an open front end  28  and a closed back end  30 . Batteries  32  are generally positioned inside a cavity  34  of the housing via the open front end. Typically, four D size alkaline batteries are used for providing power to the spotlight. Alternatively, the spotlight  10  can be powered using an external power supply (not shown). The external power source is typically connected to a socket  36  (see FIGS. 3A and 3B) via a cord (see FIG.  6 ). The socket is shown recessed within the housing  12 . The external power source (not shown) is connected to the socket to provide power to the bulb for operating the spotlight. When using the external power source, the batteries do not have to be positioned inside the cavity for the spotlight to operate. 
     A top plate  38  having first conductors  40   a ,  40   b  and battery contacts  41   a ,  41   b  is positioned above the batteries  32  inside the cavity  34 . The battery contacts connect the batteries to one another. A bottom plate  44  (see FIGS. 8A and 8B) having bottom plate contacts  46   a ,  46   b  (see FIGS. 8A and 8B) is generally positioned at the bottom of the cavity for providing an electrical connection to the batteries  32 . The first conductors  40   a ,  40   b  and a bulb socket  48  provide an electrical connection between top plate contact  49   a  and top plate contact  49   b . Housing contacts  50   a ,  50   b  connect to top plate contacts  49   a ,  49   b , respectively, when the top plate  38  is positioned inside the cavity  34 . Second conductors  42   a ,  42   b  connect the bottom plate contacts  46   a ,  46   b  to the first conductors (see FIG.  8 B). Also, the second conductors may be connected to the switch. A third conductor  52  (see FIGS. 8A and 8B) connects the socket  36  to the first conductors. The third conductor is typically located inside the cavity  34  of the housing  12 . 
     The batteries  32  provide an electrical connection between the battery contacts  41   a ,  41   b  and the bottom plate contacts  46   a ,  46   b . Typically, a bulb  56  is inserted into the bulb socket  48  which is positioned in the center of the top plate  38 . Current flows across the first and second conductors when the batteries are providing power to the bulb and current flows across the first and third conductors when the external power source is providing power to the bulb. In one embodiment, the bulb has at least 80 lumens. In another embodiment, the bulb has approximately 85 lumens. In yet another embodiment, the bulb has between 80 to 100 lumens. The conductor  42   a  of second conductors is connected to conductor  40   a  of first conductors (see FIGS.  8 A and  8 B). The conductor  42   b  of second conductors is connected to conductor  40   b  of first conductors through the contact point  72  inside socket  36  and the switch  54  (see FIGS.  8 A and  8 B). Hence, the spotlight can be operated from the external power supply without having any batteries located in the cavity of the spotlight. 
     The spotlight  10  further includes a reflector  58  having a base at one end and an opening at the other end. The bulb  56  is positioned through a hole in the base of the reflector for producing a light beam that is directed beyond the opening of the reflector. The reflector reflects light from the bulb through a plastic lens  60  that is located at the opening of the reflector. The plastic lens is supported by a head assembly  62  which fits over the reflector. The open front end  28  of the housing  12  has external threads to fit together with internal threads of the head assembly. When the reflector is facing the user, the head assembly is generally rotated clockwise for securement to the housing. 
     FIG. 5 is a partial side view of the spotlight showing a retractable ring  64  attached to the spotlight housing  12 . The retractable ring is shown in its extended position but may be retracted by pushing the hanging ring into the housing so the ring is flush with the housing. The retractable ring is preferably secured to a hook and allows the spotlight to hang while in use or during storage. Hanging the spotlight while in use, allows the operator to be relieved from holding or carrying the spotlight. Thus, both of the user&#39;s hand may be free to perform other operations. 
     FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the external power source cord  66 . The cord includes a lighter adapter  68  and a plug  70 . The lighter adapter is inserted into a 12-volt lighter receptacle such as a 12-volt cigarette lighter receptacle in an automobile. The lighter adapter includes a power conversion circuit (shown in FIG. 7) that converts the 12 volts received from the lighter receptacle to approximately 5.8 volts for use by the spotlight  10 . The voltage from the conversion circuit is thereafter transferred to the spotlight via the plug  70  and socket  36  connection. Alternatively, the spotlight can be powered using an A.C. adaptor having an input of 110 volts and an output of 6 volts, a handheld or stationary battery pack, an automobile battery, or any other method of powering the spotlight. One of ordinary skill in the art will be able to modify the conversion circuit for use with different power sources such as the 110-volt A.C. adaptor or a 6-volt battery pack. For example, one of ordinary skill in the art will be able to design a circuit that converts an input voltage of 110 volts to an output voltage of approximately 6 volts. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of the power conversion circuit in the cord of FIG.  6 . The power conversion circuit is used to convert an input voltage to an output voltage. In one embodiment, a 12-volt input voltage is supplied to the lighter adapter  68  and the conversion circuit converts the input voltage to an output voltage of approximately 5.8 volts at plug  70 . The conversion circuit includes a combination of resistors, capacitors, inductors, diodes, and transistors. One of ordinary skill in the art will be able to design the conversion circuit to convert other input voltages to output voltages. For example, an A.C. adapter or transformer can be used to perform this function. 
     FIG. 8A is a schematic diagram of the circuit in the spotlight  10 . Plug  70  of the cord is typically connected to socket  36  of the spotlight  10 . Socket  36  is typically connected to bulb socket  48  via first conductors  40   a ,  40   b  and the third conductor  52 . The socket is also connected to the switch via a contact point  72 . Second conductors  42   a ,  42   b  connect the batteries  32  to the bulb socket. 
     Switch  54  is controlled by trigger button  22 . When trigger button  22  is in the on position, switch  54  is closed. When trigger button  22  is in the off position, switch  54  is open. 
     FIG. 8B shows a perspective view of batteries  32  connected with socket  36  and switch  54  in spotlight  10 . The first conductors  40   a ,  40   b , contacts  50   a ,  50   b , and top plate contacts  49   a ,  49   b  connect the batteries  32  and the socket  36  to the bulb socket  48  in the top plate  38 . The bottom plate contacts  46   a ,  46   b  provide a connection to the batteries  32  and are connected to the second conductors  42   a ,  42   b . A contact point  72  connects the second conductors  42   a ,  42   b  to the socket  36  and the switch. Hence, when plug  70  of the external power source cord  66  is inserted into the socket  36 , the connection of batteries  32  to bulb socket is switched to the connection of socket to bulb socket because the contact point of the socket is opened. Alternatively, when plug  70  is not inserted into the socket, the contact point maintains the connection between the second conductor  42   b  and the switch  54 . These connections allow the spotlight  10  to operate irrespective of whether or not the batteries are installed in the spotlight. The second conductors are also connected to the first conductors. The third conductor  52  connects the socket to the first conductors. 
     The foregoing detailed description of the present invention is provided for the purposes of illustration and is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise embodiment disclosed. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention is defined by the following claims.