Abstract:
A lighting fixture and a method of fabricating the same are shown and described herein in one particular embodiment, a light fixture comprises a plurality of vanes projecting radially outward from a central core, and a series of lights coupled to the fixture. The vanes can each be semi-circular, and can each be identical in size, such that the fixture as a whole is generally spherical. In addition, a method of fabricating a light fixture by bending an elongated structure alternatingly in opposite directions to form such a plurality of vanes is shown and described.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    The present invention relates to decorative lighting apparatus of the type in which a string of lights is mounted on one or more support frames to achieve a predetermined lighting design, and to methods of fabricating the same.  
           [0003]    2. Description of the Related Art  
           [0004]    Traditionally, strings of lights have been hung from eaves on houses and from other structures to decorate the structure and/or to illuminate the area surrounding the structure. Most commonly, such strings of lights have been hung during the holiday season. Typically, these strings of lights contain a series of spaced apart light bulbs of one or a variety of colors.  
           [0005]    Wire frames have been developed for holding strings of lights and for forming the lights along an outline of an object such as a Christmas tree. Similarly, solid frames have been made, such as from plywood, and in any number of shapes and sizes.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0006]    The present invention is directed toward lighting fixtures that can be attached alone or with other lighting fixtures to an electrical cord or a string of lights. One particular embodiment of the present invention comprises a plurality of vane structures projecting radially outward from a central core, and a light coupled to each vane. The vane structures can be of a semi-circular shape and can be of the same size such that the fixture has an overall shape generally appearing as a sphere. A fixture can also be formed from a single unitary structure that has been folded in alternatingly opposite directions to create the vanes and the radial spaces between the vanes.  
           [0007]    In another embodiment, the present invention is directed toward a fixture fabricated from a series of linked rings. Each ring has a central hinge and is connected to any adjacent ring by a tangential hinge generally parallel to the central hinge. The central hinges are folded in a first direction and the tangential hinges are folded in an opposing second direction to form a light fixture having a number of radially spaced apart vanes. A string of lights is mounted to the fixture.  
           [0008]    The present invention is also directed toward a method of fabricating a light fixture by alternatingly folding an elongated structure in opposing directions, then coupling a series of lights to the structure. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]    [0009]FIG. 1 is an elevation view of a light fixture and a series of lights according to one embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 2 is an exploded isometric view of a light assembly and a portion of a conductor wire from the embodiment of FIG. 1.  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 3 is a plan view of an unassembled light fixture and string of lights according to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1.  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 4 is a plan view of a portion of the fixture and light string of FIG. 3.  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of another portion of the fixture of FIG. 3.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 6 is a top view of the portion of the fixture of FIG. 5.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 7 is an enlarged plan view of the designated portion of FIG. 3.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 8 is a bottom plan view of the fixture and light string of FIG. 3, shown in a first step of fabrication.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 9 is a bottom plan view of the fixture and light string of FIG. 8, shown in a second step of fabrication.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 10 is a bottom plan view of the fixture and light string of FIG. 8, shown in a third step of fabrication.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 11 is a bottom plan view of the fixture and light strong of FIG. 8, shown in a fourth step of fabrication.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 12 is an elevation view schematically illustrating a series of fixtures according to one possible embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 13 is a bottom plan view of the series of fixtures of FIG. 12. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0022]    Referring to the drawings it is seen that one embodiment of the present invention takes the form of a lighted ball-shaped plastic frame  12  having multiple two-plied semi-circular vanes  14  radiating relative to a center axis. The vanes  14  are separated by equal acute dihedral angles a (FIG. 11) within each of which a pair of light units  16  is mounted, one on each vane forming the dihedral angle. An electric cord  18  connects the light units  16  in series.  
         [0023]    The light unit  16  of this particular embodiment is illustrated in FIG. 2. The inventor appreciates that other suitable light units could be used. The light units  16  can be of the push-in type shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,631,650 and 4,779,177, and 5,154,508, but could have two rather than three wires in the cord  18 , as illustrated. More specifically, the light units  16  may be, for example, of the type including an injection-molded two-piece plastic lampholder consisting of a socket unit  22  and a generally U-shaped base unit  23  which have a snap interfit and provide therebetween a wireway  31  for passage of the cord  18  containing an interrupted active wire  18   a  and a return wire  18   b . The socket unit  22  provides a generally circular socket cavity  22   a  along the length for receiving a push-in bulb unit  24  having an injection-molded plastic bulb holder  25  in which a bulb  26  with a pair of leads  26   a  from its filaments is mounted. Each lampholder also has a pair of elongated push-in contact elements  28  located in guideways at opposite sides of the socket cavity  22   a  and arranged to project into the wireway  31 . There the contact elements  28  pierce the insulation  18   c  of the cord  18  so as to engage the wire  18   a  of the cord on opposite sides of a respective cutout  18   d  in the wire.  
         [0024]    Projecting from the socket unit  22  on opposite sides of the wireway  31  are two locking legs  32  presenting opposed locking shoulders  32   a  adjacent their outer end for interfitting with the base unit  23 . These shoulders  32   a  are adjoined by beveled lead-in faces  32   b . The inner face of each locking leg  32  is transversely concave matching the curvature of the socket cavity  22   a.    
         [0025]    The base unit  23  has a pair of flexible guide fingers  34  shaped to engage the lead-in faces  32   b  and be flexed at their root end toward one another responsive to pushing of the base unit  23  and socket housing  22  together from opposite sides of the cord  18  after the base unit  23  has been positioned with the cord  18  straddled by the guide fingers  34  at the site of the cutout  18   d . At their root end the guide fingers  34  have retaining shoulders  35  between curved base flanges  36 . These shoulders  35  are engaged by the locking shoulders  32   a  when the base unit  23  and socket unit  22  are snap-fitted together over the cord  18 . As a result, the cord  18  is firmly gripped between the base unit  23  and socket unit  22 . The guide fingers  34  are arched transversely to provide each with a convex outer guide face  34   a  complementing the concave inner guide face of the respective locking leg  32 , and the free end of each guide finger  34  is rounded and beveled on its convex outer side as indicated at  34   b . The base unit  23  presents a post  37  arranged between the guide fingers  34  to project into the cutout  18   d  in active wire  18   a  of the cord  18 .  
         [0026]    The bulb holder  25  has a central socket to receive the bulb  26 . This socket is provided in a round plug  42  having an outwardly flared annular rim  43  spaced above its lower end, and having a relatively narrow extension  44  with opposite exterior flat side faces  44   a  between narrow pinch faces  44   b . A pair of longitudinal passages (not shown) extend through the base of the plug  42  and through the length of the extension  44  into a slot  47  located at the free end of the narrow extension  44  and intersecting the narrow faces  44   b . These narrow faces  44   b  are spaced apart slightly less than the diameter of the socket cavity  22   a  to allow for the bulb leads  26   a  and are aligned with the bottom of positioning grooves  48  which are formed in the plug  42  and extend to an annular shoulder  49  at the base of the flared rim  43 . When the bulb  26  is positioned in the bulb holder  25 , the lead wires  26   a  extend from the bulb  26  through the passages and outwardly at opposite ends of the slot  47 . The leads  26   a  double back toward the bulb  26  over the narrow pinch faces  44   b  and part way into the grooves  48 . When the bulb unit  24  is pushed into the socket unit  22  the bulb leads  26   a  are pinched between the pinch faces  44   b  and the contact elements  28  to complete a circuit bypassing the respective cutout  18   d  in the wire  18   a.    
         [0027]    In the alternative, the light units may be of the type commonly associated with “twisted wire” sets in which the terminal elements in the housing of each light unit are crimped onto the end portions of the interrupted hot wire and the return ground wire is twisted around the hot wire between the light units.  
         [0028]    As shown in FIG. 3, the frame  12  can be formed by aligned injection molded rings  50  connected together by integral plastic tangential hinges  52  having a reduced thickness along outer fold lines l o  extending tangentially between adjoining rings. In the illustrated embodiment, each ring  50  in turn has a pair of integral diametrically opposite bisecting hinges  54  spaced ninety degrees along the ring from at least one of the tangential hinges  52 . In this regard, the bisecting hinges  54  have a reduced thickness along inner fold lines l i  formed by grooves  54   a  (FIG. 5) located on the opposite face of the rings from the tangential hinges  52 . With this construction, the tangential hinges  52  bend along the outer fold lines l o  in one direction to form the outer edge of the vanes  14  while the bisecting hinges  54  bend in an opposite direction along the inner fold lines l i  to form the inner edges of the vanes. Each of the tangential hinges  52  may be interrupted by a pair of cutouts  52   b.    
         [0029]    The front face of the each ring  50 , as illustrated in FIG. 4, has a pair of diametrically opposed light clips  62  and a pair of diametrically opposed wire clips  64 . In the illustrated embodiment, the wire clips  64  are spaced 90 degrees around the ring  50  from the light clips  62 . The inventor appreciates that the rings  50  can be configured with more or fewer light clips for holding a corresponding greater or lesser number of light units  16 , and can have more or fewer wire clips  64  positioned to route the cord  18  in different directions. As best illustrated in FIG. 7, the light clips  62  have a bottom wall against which the base of a light unit  16  rests during use (FIG. 4). A retainer clip  98  can be positioned near the base wall  66  to retain the light unit  16  within the light clip  62 . The light clip  62  has a pair of opposing sidewalls  70 , each having an opening  72  through which the cord  18  extends during operation (FIG. 4). The openings  72  can be configured as edge openings along the sidewalls  70  to allow the cord  18  to be merely press-fit into the opening. The light clip  62  can have a pair of outerwalls  74  to help retain the light unit  16  in its proper configuration during use. The inventor appreciates that a wide variety of clips can be substituted for the illustrated clip without deviating from the spirit of the invention.  
         [0030]    When the frame is injection-molded, the rings  50  are in strip form with the grooves  52   a  forming the tangential hinges  52  on the front side as viewed in FIG. 3. The back side, illustrated in FIG. 5, is smooth except for the grooves  54   a  forming the bisecting hinges  54  and pairs of rearwardly projecting snap hooks  56  located on alternate halves of the rings  50  adjacent the bisecting hinges  54 . Rectangular cutouts  57  in the adjoining half of the adjoining ring  50  complement the snap hooks  56  and are arranged so that when the bills of the snap hooks are forced through the cutouts, they lock against the front side of the rim of the respective cutout.  
         [0031]    FIGS.  8 - 11  illustrate one embodiment of a method for fabricating a light fixture according to the present invention. In this particular embodiment, the frame  12  is similar to that described above and illustrated in FIG. 3. As illustrated in FIG. 8, the leftmost ring  50  does not have a tangential hinge  52  on its left edge, as it has no adjacent ring. The first hinge found from left to right is accordingly a bisecting hinge  54 . Continuing left to right, the hinges alternate between tangential hinges  52  and bisecting hinges  54 , with the final hinge being a bisecting hinge  54  for the same reason as that discussed immediately above.  
         [0032]    As illustrated in FIG. 9, the leftmost ring  50  has been bent concave upwardly about a bisecting hinge  54  to create a first dihedral angle α between a first pair of vanes. The leftmost ring  50  has been folded concave downward about a tangential hinge  52  with respect to the adjacent ring to its right.  
         [0033]    As illustrated in FIG. 10, the leftmost ring  50  has been folded beyond the point shown in FIG. 9 until it contacts the adjacent ring, creating a first vane  14 . Likewise, each bisecting hinge  54  is bent to form a concave upward dihedral angle α, and each tangential hinge  52  is bent concave downward to eventually form a vane. Ultimately, the leftmost half of the leftmost ring will mate with the rightmost half of the rightmost ring to form a final vane  14 .  
         [0034]    As illustrated in FIG. 11, the frame  12  has been completely folded into its final configuration. In this configuration, the cord  18  can be extended upward through an opening  76  to allow the fixture to be suspended during use.  
         [0035]    The invention discussed above has many advantages over the prior art. For example, the frame  12  can be injection-molded or otherwise manufactured in a flat form for ease and efficiency of packaging, delivery and/or storage. The frame  12  is also easy to fabricate, and can be configured for ease of assembly and disassembly each season. Likewise, the cord  18  carrying light units  16  can be easily installed and removed from the frame  12 . Consequently, the system can be easily stored, and the light string can be used either with or without the frame.  
         [0036]    [0036]FIGS. 12 and 13 illustrate one possible configuration of a complete lighting system according to one embodiment of the present invention. In this particular embodiment, a number of frames  12  are suspended from a cord  18  at varying elevations. The cords  18  are configured to be attachable in series with other similar or different cords to form a portion of a greater lighting display. The inventor appreciates that the configuration of fixtures  12  can vary dramatically without deviating from the scope of the present invention.  
         [0037]    The applicant appreciates that many modifications and variations can be made to the embodiments discussed above and illustrated herein without diverging from the spirit of the invention. For example, frames can be fabricated from a number of independent rings that are linked together at hinge members to fold according to the above-described method. Likewise, the frame can be manufactured from a number of half rings which are coupled to each other and to adjacent half rings by hinging members and folded according to the above-described method. As such, both the tangential hinges and the bisecting hinges can be integral or can be assembled. The illustrated embodiment is manufactured from injection-molded plastic, but the inventor appreciates that nearly any material would work. Further, the invention discloses one method of connecting portions of the frame to each other to form vanes. It is envisioned that many forms of adhesives, both temporary and permanent, can be substituted for the illustrated connectors. Other modifications and variations would be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should be interpreted only based on the claims below.