Electrical appliance holder

An appliance holder comprises an electrically insulative housing defining a first cavity for receiving an electrical appliance and a second cavity for receiving a pair of electrical wires, and electrically conductive contacts for operatively connecting the electrical appliance and the pair of wires. The appliance holder additionally includes a generally U-shaped clip of electrically insulative resilient material. The clip defines a pair of legs and a bight connecting the legs, the bight and legs being configured and dimensioned to pass around a plurality of other electrical wires. The free ends of the legs are received within and releasably engage the housing for integrating the clip, the appliance holder, the pair of wires, the other electrical wires, and the electrical appliance for movement as a unit.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to an appliance holder for receiving an 
electrical appliance and a pair of electrical wires to energize the 
electrical appliance, and more particularly to a lamp holder wherein the 
electrical appliance is a lamp. 
In their most basic form a string of lights, of the type used to illuminate 
Christmas trees, windows, housing outlines and the like during Christmas 
and other festive occasions, comprises a plurality of lights disposed in 
series on a pair of electrical wires. One of the wires is the active wire, 
and the other is the return or ground. Because the failure of a single 
lamp breaks the series circuit and extinguishes all the bulbs, in an 
improved embodiment each lamp socket or husk is disposed in a parallel 
circuit with the active and ground wires of the pair. This permits other 
bulbs in the series circuit to remain on even though one or more of the 
bulbs in a parallel circuit is broken or removed. Alternatively, each bulb 
in the plurality of bulbs wired in series can have two filaments: an 
illumination filament and a continuity filament. If the illumination 
filament breaks or burns out, the continuity filament allows the other 
bulbs in the series circuit to continue to illuminate. In a complex 
embodiment of the light string, the bulbs are divided into various sets, 
with the various sets flashing alternately to produce an interesting 
visual impact. In this embodiment there are a plurality of active wires, 
one for each set of lights. The present invention is particularly useful 
in connection with this complex embodiment of the string light system. 
The known complex string lights have not proven to be entirely satisfactory 
in use. As the plurality of active wires and the one or more ground wires 
must extend the full length of the string, means must be provided for 
keeping the various wires in a relatively neat aesthetic package. To this 
end, the various wires are often twisted together in a spiral, but the 
spiral often unwinds during storage or mounting or unmounting of the 
strings. Fastening members have also been used to mechanically couple the 
wires intermediate the bulb sockets thereof, in order to maintain the 
wires together as they travel from one socket to another. While this has 
worked satisfactorily for the relatively small and hence lightweight bulbs 
typically employed indoors as Christmas tree decorations, it has not 
worked as well with the larger and therefore heavier bulbs commonly used 
outdoors for decorating porches, outlining house roofs or the like. 
The active wire for a particular bulb socket must by itself support the 
bulb socket and bulb depending therefrom against not only the force of 
gravity, but also any incident winds or debris impacting on the bulb or 
bulb socket. In the case of large lamps and heavy sockets especially, this 
can result in breakage of the wires intermediate the sockets or 
disconnection of the wires and the socket at their usual points of 
interconnection within the socket. In the less typical but still frequent 
situation where the socket is itself supported, if the span between that 
socket and the next socket of the set is large, the weight of the 
intervening active wire stresses and may even be sufficient to break the 
electrical connection between the active wire and the self-supported 
socket. 
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an 
appliance holder (such as a lamp holder) in which the holder is supported 
by more than just the active wire. 
Another object is to provide an appliance holder which provides support for 
the wires extending between the holders of another set intermediate their 
connections to the holders of the other set. 
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a 
self-fastening mechanical reinforcing means which may be applied to each 
holder to distribute the weight of each holder among the plurality of 
wires at each holder including those wires which do not make electrical 
contact at the holder. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
It has now been found that the above and related objects of the present 
invention are obtained in an appliance holder. In its conventional aspect, 
the appliance holder (e.g., a lamp holder) comprises a housing defining a 
first cavity for receiving an electrical appliance (e.g., a lamp), a 
second cavity for receiving a pair of electrical wires, and means for 
operatively connecting the appliance and the pair of wires. According to 
the present invention, a generally U-shaped clip of electrically 
insulative resilient material is provided. The clip defines a pair of legs 
and a bight connecting the legs. The bight and legs are configured and 
dimensioned to pass around a plurality of other electrical wires. The free 
ends of the legs are received within and releasably engage the housing for 
integrating the clip, the appliance holder, the pair of wires, the other 
electrical wires, and the electrical appliance for movement as a unit. 
Preferably the electrical appliance comprises a lamp subassembly including 
a bulb and a bulb base having a pair of electrical contacts for energizing 
the bulb, and the contact means in the housing operatively connects the 
pair of electrical wires and the bulb base electrical contacts when the 
appliance holder receives the bulb base within the first cavity. 
The appliance holder may be used in combination with a series of like 
appliance holders wherein one of the pair of electrical wires received in 
the second cavity of the appliance holder comprises one of the plurality 
of other electrical wires passing through the bight of one of the like 
appliance holders. Thus each of the other electrical wires is connected to 
at least one like appliance holder. 
In a preferred embodiment, the pair of electrical wires and the plurality 
of other electrical wires in combination support the appliance holder. In 
another preferred embodiment, for use with a support, the housing 
additionally includes means for releasably securing the housing to the 
support, whereby, when the housing is secured to and supported by the 
support, it in turn supports the pair of electrical wires and the 
plurality of other electrical wires passing through the bight. 
Preferably the first and second cavities are disposed at opposite ends of a 
generally cylindrical housing, but the second cavity is of non-circular 
cross section to preclude relative rotation of the housing and the clip 
when the legs are received in the second cavity. The bight biases the legs 
outwardly so that they are received within and releasably engage the 
second cavity of the housing. For example, the free end of each of the 
legs may define an outwardly projecting flange, and the second cavity may 
define a laterally opposed pair of surfaces adapted to receive the flanges 
when the free ends of the legs are received in the second cavity.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
Referring now to the drawing and in particular to FIG. 1 thereof, therein 
illustrated is a complex string of lights generally designated by the 
reference numeral 10. The string 10 is in turn composed of a plurality of 
sets 12, 12' of lamp holders generally designated 14 and lamps generally 
designated 16 (this term being used to refer to the combination of a lamp 
and its lamp base, if any). Each of sets 12, 12' flashes at the same time, 
but at a different time than the other sets 12, 12' . Of course, if 
desired, there may be more than two sets and two or more sets may flash at 
the same time, that time being the same or different from the time at 
which one or more other sets flash. Each set 12, 12' will include a pair 
of wires 18, 18' , each wire pair consisting of an active or live wire 20, 
20' and a return or ground wire 22. If desired, however, the several sets 
12, 12' , if wired in parallel, may utilize a common ground wire 22. It 
will be appreciated that, vis-a-vis a given lamp 16, one segment 20a of 
the active wire 20 serves the function of providing electrical energy 
(that is, truly acts as the active wire) while the other segment 20b of 
the active wire 20 acts as the return or ground wire vis-a-vis that 
particular lamp 16, although it may also act as the true active wire 20a 
for another lamp 16 disposed downstream in series in that set. 
Referring now to FIGS. 2-5 in particular, in its conventional aspects, each 
lamp holder 14 comprises a housing or husk 30 made of electrically 
insulative material and defining a first cavity 32 and a second cavity 34. 
The two cavities 32, 34 are illustrated as disposed at opposite ends of 
the housing 30, but clearly the cavities 32, 34 may be disposed in other 
respective orientations to one another, for example, at right angles. 
The first cavity 32 is adapted to receive the lamp 16, which may either be 
a bulb 38 by itself or a combination of a bulb 38 and a bulb base 40, as 
illustrated, to facilitate connection of the lamP 38 and the housing 30. 
The second cavity 34 is adapted to receive a pair of electrical wires 20, 
one of which serves as the truly active wire 20a, and the other as the 
ground wire 20b relative to the particular lamp holder 14. Electrically 
conductive contact means 42 are disposed within the housing 30 to 
operatively electrically connect the lamp 16 (and in particular the bulb 
38 either directly or via the bulb base 40) to the pair of wires 20. 
As the aspects of the light string 10, sets 12, 12', and lamp holders 14 
described hereinabove are conventional in nature further exposition 
thereof is not deemed necessary. The lamp holders may be disposed in 
series, series-parallel or parallel relation relative to the wire pair 18, 
18'. Similarly, the lamp holder may be sized as appropriate for a 
particular application; for example, midget, miniature, candellabra, 
intermediate or medium in size. Similarly, the lamp may be of the push-in, 
screwshell, skeleton or other conventional type. 
In its novel aspects, the lamp holder 14 according to the present invention 
includes a generally U-shaped clip generally designated 50. The clip 50 is 
formed of mechanically resilient material and defines a pair of legs 52 
and a bight 54 connecting the legs 52. The clip 50, and in particular the 
bight 54 and legs 52 thereof, are configured and dimensioned to pass 
around a plurality of other electrical wires, such as the active wires 20' 
of other sets 12' in the string 10 and the ground wire or wires 22 serving 
the various sets 12, 12' of the string 10. The free ends 56 of the legs 52 
are received within and releasably engage the housing 30 so as to 
integrate the clip 50, the lamp holder 14 receiving the clip 50, the pair 
of electrical wires 20a, 20b serving that lamp holder 14 and secured 
thereto, the other electrical wires 20' , 22 (such as those serving the 
other sets 12' within the string 10) passing through the clip 50, and the 
lamp 16 secured to lamp holder 14, all for movement as a unit. 
The clip 50 is preferably formed of an electrically insulative material and 
is conveniently formed of an electrically insulative plastic or a medium 
hard rubber which affords the desired degree of resiliency to enable the 
clip 50 to be secured to the housinq 30 against accidental displacement, 
while enabling forced manual removal of the clip 50 from the housing 30 by 
intentional squeezing of the clip 50 to draw the leg free ends 56 towards 
each other. While the leg free ends 56 of the clip 50 may be secured to 
the second cavity 34 of the housing 30 of the lamp holder 14 in a variety 
of different ways which will be readily apparent to those skilled in 
mechanical arts, preferably the leg free ends 56 include outwardly 
extending flanges or shoulders 58 which are adapted to be received and 
releasably maintained by ledges, recesses or grooves 60 defined by the 
inner wall of the second cavity 34 under the outward biasing of the leg 
free ends 56 by the clip bight 54. 
The bulb base 40 includes a pair of electrical contacts 62 for energizing 
the bulb 38, these base electrical contacts 62 being adapted for operative 
electrical connection with the pair of electrical wires 20 serving the 
lamp holder 14 via housing electrical contacts 42 when the lamp holder 14 
receives the bulb base 40 within the first cavity 32 thereof. 
The outer surface of housing 30 is preferably generally cylindrical in 
configuration, but the inner surface thereof defining the second cavity 34 
is preferably of non-circular cross section to preclude relative rotatio 
of the housing 30 and the clip 50 when the clip legs 52 are received in 
the second cavity 34. This prevents the clip 50 from stressing the pair of 
electrical wires 20a, 20b entering the second cavity 34 intermediate the 
leg free ends 56 when the clip 50 and electrical wire pair 20 share the 
second cavity 34, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4. 
As the fundamental purpose of the clip 50 is to share load between the 
various electrical wires and the lamp holder, the clip 50 is preferably 
configured and dimensioned such that the bight 54 extends laterally 
further than the legs 52, as illustrated in FIG. 6, so as to spread the 
point of contact between the various electrical wires and the bight to a 
greater degree. 
As illustrated in FIG. 1, the various electrical wires --including the pair 
of electrical wires 20a, 20b associated with a lamp holder 14 and the 
plurality of electrical wires 20' , 22 associated with the other sets 12' 
--in combination support the lamp holder 14 (including the lamp 16 
associated therewith). Preferably the housing 30 additionally includes 
means 68 for releasably securing the housing 30 to a support 70 (shown in 
phantom line in FIG. 4), which may be any structure capable of supporting 
or assisting in the support of the string 10. As illustrated, the securing 
means comprises an optionally resilient arm 68 extending generally 
parallel to the axis of housing 30 so that the supporting surface 70 may 
be trapped between the housing body 30 and the arm 68. Clearly a variety 
of other securing means may be used, depending upon the particular 
applications intended. In any case, the securing means 68 enables the 
housing 30 and hence the entire lamp holder 14 to be secured to and 
supported by the support 70 so that the lamp holder 14 can in turn support 
not only the pair of electrical wires 18, 20a, 20b, directly secured 
thereof, but also the plurality of other electrical wires passing through 
the bight 54 of clip 50. 
Thus the clip 50 can serve the function of a mechanical reinforcement for 
the electrical wires in either of two opposite ways. Where the lamp holder 
14 is not directly supported externally (for example, by means of the arm 
68), the clip 50 supports the lamp holder by spreading its weight over the 
other electrical wires, thus alleviating the strain on the pair of wires 
20a, 20b terminating in the lamp holder housing 30. On the other hand, 
where the lamp holder 14 is itself directly supported extremely (for 
example, by arm 68), the clip 50 in conjunction with housing 30 supports 
the other electrical wires passing through its bight 54 just as the lamp 
holder housing 14 itself directly supports the pair of wires 20a, 20b 
termininating therein. 
It will further be appreciated that the clip serves the function of 
maintaining the various wires adjacent thereto in a neat, aesthetically 
acceptable package, while at the same time permitting the various wires 
passing therethrough to be separated from one another and from the lamp 
holder 14 for purposes of replacement or the like simply by removal of the 
clips from the lamp holders. 
While the present invention has been described hereinabove in the context 
of a lamp holder, clearly the same principles apply to any appliance 
holder having a first cavity for receiving an electrical appliance, 
whether that electrical appliance happens to be a lamp or another type of 
electrical appliance to be energized by a pair of wires connected to the 
holder. 
To summarize, the present invention provides an appliance holder (such as a 
lamp holder) in which the holder is supported by more than just the active 
wire, which provides support for the wires extending between the holders 
of another set intermediate their connections to the holders of the other 
set, or both. 
Now that the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been shown 
and described in detail, various modifications and improvements thereon 
will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the 
appended claims are to be construed broadly and in a manner consistent 
with the spirit and scope of the invention described herein.