Abstract:
A night-light adapted to illuminate a toilet bowl and located in the toilet&#39;s flush-handle. The light shuts off automatically and remains unobtrusive and clean during use. A semiconductor circuit built into the flush-handle extinguishes the light after a certain length of time. Powered by a lithium battery, the light will yield many hundreds of illuminations before battery replacement or whole-unit replacement become necessary. The device is substantially the same size and shape as conventional flush handles.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to night-lights for use in bathrooms, and more specifically to small, low-luminosity lights adapted to illuminate the toilet bowl and adjacent areas. Many, commercially-available, night-lights contain small, neon bulbs that emit a substantially orange light. Many other night-lights contain small, incandescent bulbs, such as are used in Christmas tree lighting. Nearly all such night-lights plug directly into a wall-mounted electrical outlet. It is commonly the case, however therein adequately illuminates the bathroom&#39;s toilet bowl. And thus arises, so to speak in mid-stream, the “male aiming problem”, which, during the night, is aggravated by the desire not to turn on a brilliant light. An attempt is often made to make do with the poor illumination, or with the poorly-placed illumination, provided by customary night-lights, with the consequence, sometimes unnoticed until the morning, of splatter. Small children, who cannot reach the bathroom-wall switch, often leave behind similar “mistakes.” Wives and mothers generally do not find any of this endearing. 
     Many night-lights intended to illuminate a conventional toilet bowl have been patented. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,136,476 and 5,150,962 and 5,513,397 all disclose devices which have in common their engagement with the toilet-bowl rim, using it as a support. These devices, though they illuminate the bowl well, share the disadvantage of being located, so to speak, next to the flight-path, and will soon show signs of buildup-soiling. Because they do not have many plane surfaces, and may not be glossy, they will be harder to keep clean than the toilet-bowl rim itself. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,413,364, discloses a device located at the rear of the toilet bowl, rather than along the bowl&#39;s side, and thus shares the same soiling problem. 
     U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,860,178 and 5,263,209 and 5,664,867 disclose devices intended to be mounted on the bottom, toroidal member of a conventional toilet seat, and in fact substantially, if not entirely, on the bottom surface thereof. Somewhat more slowly, perhaps, but with equal certainly, these devices will soil. They will be harder to keep clean than the toilet seat itself, especially around seams and lines of contact. 
     U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,736,471 and 5,276,595 disclose devices intended to be mounted to the under-side of the lid of a toilet seat. Although these devices will soil much-less readily than the devices discussed so far, they cannot be terribly comfortable to lean back against, as when reading the sports pages or the funnies, two happy bathroom pastimes. 
     U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,982,288 and 5,611,089 disclose devices which cleverly embed their lighting elements within a clear, or transparent material used to fabricate the bottom member of a toilet seat. Apart from the possibility that these devices may shed somewhat more light on the subject, particularly afterwards, than is exactly wanted, they will be relatively expensive to make and, thus, to purchase. U.S. Pat. No. 5,611,089 furthermore places its switch and power pack in the hinge area of the toilet seat, a location quite exposed to the aforesaid “male aiming problem”. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,748,096 discloses a device which audibly prompts the user to return the toilet seat to the horizontal position in order to turn off the illumination. This seems a rather fussy and intrusive, not to say imperious, device to have in a bathroom, and with which to be greeted, when all that one wants to do is to attend to a midnight urgency. The device furthermore requires a sensor to detect the position of the seat, which sensor is shown to be a switch that must be mounted with respect to the seat and bowl so that the one or the other holds it. This device will soil rather quickly. 
     Common to all of the devices discussed above is a switch-mechanism which requires some sort of action on the part of the user to ensure that the toilet illumination is switched off. Common as well is close proximity to the toilet bowl, the aforesaid devices never being father from it than the underside of the toilet-seat lid. All of these positions invite soiling, and do not particularly invite touching. 
     It is the object of the present invention to provide a bathroom night-light that does not entail any of these drawbacks. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention locates the light source in the one component of a conventional toilet that every user basically has to touch, namely the flush handle. Furthermore, the present invention shuts off the source of light automatically. After the user has turned on the illumination, no subsequent action is required of him to turn it off—he can go sleepily back to bed. 
     In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, this automatic function is accomplished by means of a semiconductor circuit containing an N-channel, power MOSFET and a lithium battery. The duration of the illumination could, of course, be made adjustable by means of a mini-potentiometer, but is probably best left fixed at around 75 seconds or so. The power drain resulting from one use is so insubstantial that many hundreds of uses will intervene before the battery must be replaced. It is envisioned, in any case, that the handle assembly itself will be made easily and simply replaceable—whole unit replacement—and, hopefully, recyclable. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 2,475,881 discloses a means for decorating the flush handle of a toilet, but does not disclose a handle containing electronic components of any sort. U.S. Pat. No. 5,117,513 discloses a flush handle with an internal mechanism with which to control the amount of water released on each use, but this mechanism is mechanical and does not contain electronic components of any type. 
     With the foregoing in mind, it is an important object of the present invention to provide a simple, inexpensive, night-light, particularly adapted to illuminating a toilet bowl, which is neither fussy nor intrusive, and which requires no action on the part of the user in order to shut off. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an approximate, softened, lighting of the toilet-bowl area, as may be formed by a combination of direct, reflected, and scattered illumination, rather than lighting which is aimed and thus may be a bit harsh and/or concentrated. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to preserve the dark adaption of the user and to intrude as little as possible on his sleepy state. 
     It is yet another object of the present invention to remain clean while in use, and to be easily cleaned. 
     It is still another object of the present invention to be relatively simple to manufacture from standard components, using standard methods, among them injection molding. 
     The above and still further objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed specification, drawings, and appended claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
     Referring to the drawings, wherein like reference characters indicate like parts or elements throughout the several views: 
     FIG. 1 is a front, plan view of a conventional toilet next to a generic object. 
     FIG. 2 is a front, plan view of the preferred embodiment the present invention 
     FIG. 3 is a top, plan view of the toilet shown in FIG.  1 . next to a generic object. 
     FIG. 4 is a top, plan view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention 
     FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention taken through line  5 — 5  of FIG. 2 
     FIG. 6 is a side plan view of the three interior components of a conventional toilet by means of which the present invention may be connected to such a toilet, thereby to become, itself, a component part thereof. 
     FIG. 7 is a bottom, plan view of one of the components shown in FIG. 6 taken through line  7 — 7  of FIG.  6 . 
     FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the same, component shown in FIG. 7, taken through line  8 — 8  of FIG.  6 . 
     FIG. 9 is a partial, sectional view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention, sectioned as in FIG. 5, shown in vertical registry with the interior, toilet component isolated from FIG. 6 by FIGS. 7 and 8. 
     FIG. 10 is a rear, plan view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention taken through line  10 — 10  of FIG.  4 . 
     FIG. 11 is a sectional view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention taken through line  11 — 11  of FIG.  2 . 
     FIG. 12 is the electrical circuit of the preferred embodiment of the present invention depicted by means of standard, electrical symbols. 
     FIG. 13 is a rear, plan view of a second embodiment of the present invention, taken as FIG.  10 . 
     FIG. 14 is a bottom, plan view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 13 taken through line  14 — 14  of FIG.  13 . 
     FIG. 15 is a front, plan view of a third embodiment of the present invention. 
     FIG. 16 is a bottom, plan view of the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 15 taken through line  16 — 16  of FIG.  15 . 
     FIG. 17 is a front plan view of a fourth embodiment of the present invention. 
     FIG.  18 . is a sectional view of the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 17, taken through line  18 — 18  of FIG.  17 . 
     FIG. 19 is a rear plan view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 18, taken through the line  19 — 19  of FIG.  18 . 
     FIG. 20 is a sectional view, taken in the manner of FIG. 11., of a fifth embodiment of the present invention. 
     FIG. 21 is a partial, front plan view of the embodiment shown in FIG.  20 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     FIG. 1 shows conventional toilet  90 , having toilet bowl  93 , water tank  91 , and tank lid  92 . To toilet  90  is attached a conventional toilet seat having bottom seat member  94 , top seat member  95 , seen here through the opening in bottom seat member  94 , and hinge  99 . Flush handle  10  is attached to toilet  90  in the conventional position, namely the left-hand upper corner of tank  91 . As in most bathrooms, some object  96 , possibly a cabinet, possibly just a wall, with surface  98 , is shown in the immediate vicinity of toilet  90 . 
     Emanating from flush handle  10  are light rays  26 , of which there are an infinite number. The light rays depicted in FIG. 1 fan out over the toilet bowl  93 , and reflect back from surface  98  in the direction of the bowl. 
     FIG. 2 shows flush handle  10  in greater detail, showing housing  100 , light-emitting element  20 , and membrane switch  30 . Light-emitting element  20  is shown to be a low-voltage, incandescent bulb, having filament  21 . Light-emitting element  20  is further shown located in the upper, left-hand corner of housing  100 , set into an indentation in housing  100 , which indentation is first fully described in FIG.  5 . Covering light-emitting element  20  and hence sealing the indentation is transparent window  27 . 
     Affixed to first, flat, front surface  11  of housing  100  is membrane switch  30  having top surface  31 . Top surface  31  of membrane switch  30  further has a raised, or domed, central portion  32 , which facilitates tactile location of switch  30  in the dark. 
     Housing  100  is further shown to have two, other surfaces, namely first, front, flat surface  11  and surface  15 , which connects surface  11  to second, front, flat surface  14 . These surfaces are more fully documented in FIGS. 4 and 5. 
     FIG. 3 shows toilet  90  and light rays  26  emanating from flush handle  10 . Light rays  26  fan out over bowl  93 , reflecting off its glossy, oval rim. Other light rays scatter in the water within bowl  93 , while yet others reflect off surface  98  of nearby object  96 . The resulting illumination of bowl  93 , in actual practice, is softened and not harsh. 
     Flush handle  10  is shown connected to conventional lift-arm  80 , by means of which flush handle  10 , being caused to rotate through a small angle by the person using toilet  90 , causes in turn the internal mechanism of toilet  90  to release water into bowl  93 . Lift arm  80  passes through an aperture in tank  91 , and is secured to the tank by a spud and nut. These toilet components are first fully documented in FIGS. 6 through 9. 
     FIG. 3 further shows flush handle  10  in relation to top seat member  95 , and bottom member  94  of a conventional toilet seat, after both of these members have been raised and leaned back against tank lid  92 . In this top, plan view, the proximity of flush lever  10  to lid  95  seems somewhat closer than it actually is, for top member  95  generally is round and thus curves inward toward its top. Top member  95  merely appears in FIG. 3 as if it were maximally wide at the point at which it is nearest to flush handle  10 . 
     A “universal” model of flush handle  10 , in contrast to a dedicated model, will have to accommodate even the largest of standard toilet seats mounted on the smallest of standard tanks, and especially to accommodate such seats during rotation of flush handle  10 . Housing  100  will thus need to be recessed over its point of rotation, which is the point where lift arm  80  joins housing  100 . FIG. 4 shows flush handle  10  from above, and, in particular, shows this recessed form of housing  100 . Front flat surface  14  is shown recessed, or set back from, and parallel to, front, flat surface  11 , to which it is joined by substantially oblique surface  15 . Top surface  12  of housing  100  is shown flat over most of its length, with decorative rounding at its long ends. 
     FIG. 5 is a sectional view of housing  100  showing the electrical circuit and components thereof contained within. Light-emitting element  20  has glass bulb  22  attached to base  23 , from which protrude pins  24  and  25  by means of which electrical energy, namely an electric current, is conducted through filament  21 , which will thereupon emit light, provided the voltage and amperage of the current are suited to the composition of filament  21 . Light-emitting element  20  is located in an indentation in front, flat surface  11  of front wall  17  of housing  100 , which indentation is formed by light-emitting-element holder  28 . Holder  28  is shown to be an integral part of housing  100 , housing  100  being in practice a molded part, and is, in its form and its exterior surface  29 , substantially conical. Covering the indentation formed in surface  11  by holder  28  is transparent window  27 . Window  27  protects light-emitting element  20  and also allows surface  11  to be easily cleaned. 
     Also contained within housing  100  are lithium battery  60 , having positive terminal  61  and negative terminal  62 , resistor  52 , electrolytic capacitor  51 , and N-channel power MOSFET (Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor)  40 . MOSFET  40  has gate  41 , drain  42 , and source  43 . Joining these electrical components into a circuit are generic wires  54  and generic solder joints  53 . Battery  60  is shown permanently connected to the  1  other electrical components, that is hardwired into the circuit. It is this circuit that is the means whereby light-emitting element  20  automatically is made to cease emitting light after a period of time after it has intentionally been lit. 
     Set into a recess of wall  17  is simple membrane switch  30 ,  14  which is the functional, but planar, equivalent of the more-ordinary and lengthy, normally-open, push-button switch (FIGS. 17 through 19 disclose an embodiment of the present invention employing this more-ordinary switch). Membrane switch  30  has rear, adhesive surface  36  with which it is held into its recess in wall  17 . Flexible, planar lead-tail  33  enters the interior of housing  100  by passing through aperture  37  in front wall  17 . When a person presses raised portion  32  of the front surface  31  of membrane switch  30 , the normally-open state of the planar contacts within the switch momentarily changes to closed, and the electrical circuit within housing  100  is thereby activated. A person&#39;s initiating action, namely of briefly tapping switch  30 , is all that is required to cause light-emitting element  20  to emit light and, after a period of time, for light-emitting element  20  to cease to emit light. No subsequent action is required of the person to turn off the light. 
     At the long end of housing  100  opposite to the end at which light-emitting element  20  has been located is a means for engaging lift-arm  80 . This engagement means comprises a central post  70  with a socket  75  shaped to mate snugly with lift-arm  80 , as will be described in detail presently. Rotation socket  74  acts to limit rotation of flush handle  10 , as will be described in detail presently. 
     FIG. 6 shows lift-arm  80 , spud  83 , and hex nut  88 , which together are the conventional components of conventional toilet  90  enabling an ordinary flush handle to, by rotation through a small angle, cause water to drain rapidly from tank  91  into bowl  93 . Flush handle  10  operates, in other than its electrical aspect, in conventional fashion. Lift-arm  80  is bent such that the longer portion  81  of it lies substantially parallel to the long, horizontal dimension of tank  91 . Shorter portion  82  is substantially perpendicular to portion  81  and further has a flattened end  182  which is inserted into socket  75  of housing  100  of the present invention. Spud  83  passes through a generally square aperture in tank  91 , and has left-hand threaded barrel  84 , square shelf  87 , rotation finger  85 , and lift-arm, rotation finger  86 . 
     FIG. 7 shows the end of spud  83  proximate to flush handle  10 . Lift-arm  80  passes through aperture  89  in spud  83 , which aperture is sufficiently circular to allow portion  82  of lift-arm  80  to rotate within it, and sufficiently elongated along one axis to allow flattened portion  182  of lift-arm  80  to pass through it in order to mate with socket  75 . Spud  83  is so installed in tank  91  that rotation finger  85  lies at the left end of the horizontal axis of spud  83  as depicted in FIG.  7 . Rotation finger  85  will thus be inserted into rotation socket  74  of housing  100 . 
     FIG. 8 shows the end of spud  83  distal to flush handle  10 , and in particular shows square shelf  87  which, by residing in a generally-square aperture in tank  91  prevents spud  83  from rotating. Lift-arm rotation finger  86 , which may at times come into contact with portion  81  of lift arm  80 , minimizes any frictional drag on lift-arm  80  when flush handle  10  is rotated, thus facilitating the smooth working of the complete flush mechanism. 
     FIG. 9 shows housing  100  in its proper, axial relation to spud  83 . The axis of rotation of flush handle  10  is portion  82  of lift-arm  80 , and the point of rotation may thus be said to lie beneath set-back, front, flat surface  14  of housing  100 . 
     FIG. 10 shows housing  100  of FIG. 5 but now from the rear and with the same components as shown in FIG.  5  and in their same relative positions. The substantially conical shape of holder  28  is once again apparent, and indeed interior surface  16  of top wall  19  of housing  100  is seen to cut off the cone at the point where the plane of surface  16  is tangent to the base  23  of light-emitting element  20 . 
     Housing  100  may be mated to flattened end  182  of lift arm  80  by press-fitting end  182  into socket  75  of central post  70 . Central post  70  is stabilized within housing  100  by means of ribs  71 ,  72 , and  73 , which transmit torque to central post  70  and, thereby, to lift-arm  80 . The gap  74  between ribs  72  and  73  is the rotation socket  74 , in which rotation finger  85  of spud  83  resides. The rotation of flush handle  10  about its rotational axis, as defined by portion  82  of lift-arm  80 , is limited in angle by the contact of finger  85  with ribs  72  and  73 . Some slight rotational jiggling of flush handle  10  is generally possible before the release of water actually takes place from tank  91  into bowl  93 . 
     FIG. 11 shows the relationship of filament  21  of light-emitting element  20  to housing  100 , light-emitting-element holder  28 , and window  27 . Because inner surface  16  of top wall  19  of housing  100  meets front surface  11  of front wall  17  perpendicularly and at a point as close as possible to filament  21 , light ray  261  emanating from filament  21  is limited to about 45° or so in its upward angle. By contrast, the conical form of surface  29  of light-emitting-element holder  28  allows light ray  262  to shine down at a much steeper angle, shown here to be about 75°. The practical effect of these limitations is, on the one hand, to prevent light from shining up into the eyes of the user, who will be rather sleepy, but to allow bowl  93  of toilet  90  to be well illuminated. 
     Housing  100  is further shown to have bottom surface  13  of bottom wall  18 . 
     FIG. 12 is a diagram of the circuit illustrated in FIGS.  5  and FIG. 10 drawn with standard, electrical symbols. It will be noted that the type of electrolytic capacitor C shown in FIG. 12 is polarized, whereas the type of electrolytic capacitor shown in of FIGS.  5  and FIG. 10 is unpolarized. Either type will work. However, should the polarized variety be used, then the polarity must be oriented as shown in FIG.  12 . 
     It has been found experimentally that an on-time of about 85 seconds is achieved by employing a 6 volt lithium battery V, a 4.7 microfarad electrolytic capacitor C, a 62 megohm resistor R, a 60-volt N-channel, power MOSFET Q, and a 6 volt 0.025 amp an incandescent bulb L in the circuit. If the battery has a useful life of 160 milliamp hours, then the number of uses in the circuit just described is about 
     
       
         271(=(160mAh/25mA)×(3600sec/85sec), 
       
     
     disregarding the negligible current drain from power MOSFET Q. If resistor R is replaced by a somewhat lower-rated resistor, the on-time may be decreased to any desired number of seconds. An on-time of 1 minute will yield 384 uses, or more than a year&#39;s worth, if the device is used daily. A battery with a useful life of 600 mAh will increase the number of uses to over 1000, even at 85 seconds per use. 
     Trials have indicated that a somewhat more complicated circuit, particularly one employing the  555  timer chip, are sometimes over-sensitive to jiggling. That is, the light may simply turn on by itself when toilet  90  is flushed, during the daytime for example, which is undesirable. Timer chip  555  does not, therefore, appear well suited to this application. 
     FIG. 13 discloses a second embodiment of the present invention identical in all respects to the first, except that now housing  100  may be reversibly mounted on lift-arm  80 . This is accomplished by adding rib  78  to housing  100 , where rib  78  is sufficiently wide to allow for the provision of threaded bore  76 . A set screw may now be installed in bore  76  and used to mate housing  100  reversibly to flattened end  182  of lift arm  80 . Bore  76  extends through bottom surface  13  of bottom wall  18 . 
     FIG. 14 shows hole  77  in bottom surface  13  of housing  100 . Hole  77  is where threaded bore  76  pierces bottom surface  13  of bottom wall  18 . 
     FIG. 15 shows a third embodiment of the present invention, in which the form of the housing has been simplified. Alternate housing  110  has a single, flat, front surface  111  which is not set back over the axis of rotation defined by lift arm portion  82 , as described above. The advantage of housing  110  is primarily aesthetic, in that it adopts a minimalist approach to design. The disadvantage of housing  110  is that it may come into contact with top toilet-seat member  95 , in some instances. 
     FIG. 16 shows the alternate embodiment of the invention disclosed in FIG. 15, but as seen from above, in order further to illustrate flat, front surface  111 . Ribs  71 ,  72 , and  73  and center post  70  of the embodiment of the invention disclosed in FIGS. 2,  4 ,  5 , and  10  must merely be extended forward. Building a mold for housing  110  would both be somewhat-easier, and therefore somewhat-less expensive, than building a mold for housing  100 . 
     FIG. 17 shows a forth embodiment of the present invention, identical in nearly all respects to the embodiment disclosed in FIGS. 2,  4 ,  5 , and  10 , except that membrane switch  30  has been replaced by conventional push-button switch  130 , and battery  60  has been made removable. Hex-nut  133  attaches push-button switch  130  to housing  100 . The disadvantage of conventional push-button switch  130  is its high, internal, space requirement, which membrane switch  30  eliminates. As will presently be seen in FIGS. 18 and 19, push-button switch  130  is best located well above the center line of housing  100 . 
     FIG. 18 is a sectional view of the embodiment disclosed in FIG. 17, showing the internal, electrical components rearranged in order to gain sufficient, interior space both to make battery  160  removable, and thus replaceable, and to accommodate barrel  136  of push-button switch  130 . Switch  130  has contacts  134  and  135 . Battery  160 , with positive terminal  161  and negative terminal  162 , instead of being hardwired into the circuit, as before, is now held in position by battery clips  163  and  164 , which hold battery  160  by their joint, and opposite, spring tension. In such tight quarters as housing  100 , there is essentially no other position for battery  160 , if it is to store sufficient electrical energy to power the light-emitting element  20  over many, repeat uses and to be easily removable. Since FIG. 18 is a sectional rendition, we show internal spring  137  of push-button switch  130  for completeness sake. 
     FIG. 19 shows the embodiment disclosed in FIG. 18 from the rear, the better to illustrate battery clips  163  and  164  and the location of push-button switch  130 . Since, to remove and replace battery  160  will be accomplished most easily by disengaging housing  100  from lift arm  80 , this embodiment of the present invention is also provided with threaded bore  76  for the insertion of a set screw, as described above. 
     FIG. 20 discloses a fifth embodiment of the present invention, in which a wide-angle, light-emitting diode, LED  220 , has been introduced as the light-emitting element, in place of incandescent bulb  20 . This substitution necessitates reconfiguring and repositioning light-emitting-element holder  28 . Alternate light-emitting-element holder  228  is now shown located at the lower, rather than the upper, far corner of housing  100 . The indentation formed by light-emitting-element holder  228  involves both front wall  17  and bottom wall  18  of housing  100 . Substantially-conical, light-emitting-element holder  228  is shown placed at a  450  angle with respect to wall  17  and  18 , so that the axis of holder  228  passes through the line of intersection formed by front surface  11  and bottom surface  13 . It would, of course, also be possible to employ the location of holder  228  for an incandescent bulb, as well. 
     Exterior surface  229  of light-emitting-element holder  228  acts primarily as a reflector, although, even from the wide-angle LED  220 , relatively little radiation will actually strike surface  229  and be reflected from it. This is because the radiation pattern of LEDs is typically a narrow cone, rarely exceeding ± 40 ° to the half-intensity point. Although the present invention is best served by a broader pattern, a fairly decent illumination pattern may still be achieved by directing LED  220  downward, toward bowl  93 . Top-most light ray  263  and bottom-most light ray  264  describe the cone of useful light emitted by LED  220 . Lens  221  of LED  220  concentrates the emitted light into this cone. Cathode pin  224  of LED  220  is shown soldered to generic wire  54 . The anode pin (behind pin  224  in this view) is likewise soldered to another, generic wire, which wires thus join LED  220  to the electrical circuit. 
     FIG. 21 shows the bottom, far corner of housing  100 , where alternate light-emitting-element holder  228  is located. Distance, in the present context, is measured relative to the axis of rotation of flush handle  10 ; hence the designation “far corner”. Left-most light ray  265  and right-most light ray  266  once again define the useful cone of LED light. 
     It is possible actually to build an embodiment of the present invention using an LED, but the inventor does not particularly recommend it. The circuitry is necessarily more complex, because a regulator circuit must be incorporated, in order to supply a constant current to LED  220  as the voltage of battery  60  diminishes. Yet housing  100  offers very little room for such circuitry. Furthermore, LEDs, in order to attain a brightness equal even to a small incandescent bulbs, consume considerably more power, lumen for lumen, and there is not much room in flush handle  10  for a hefty battery. It may be possible in time, of course, to incorporate light-emitting means other than filament-based, incandescent bulbs, with results that compare favorably with them both on a cost and efficiency basis.