Abstract:
A slip on cover for the end portion of the toggle of a light switch is disclosed. The cover can slip over the toggle and adhere by suction or friction. The cover can provide a variety of decorative features, including color and glow in the dark feature to allow a person to easily find the light switch in the dark. It can provide protection for the light switch toggle to limit damage. The light switch cover can also incorporate various decorative features at the end of the light switch, including balls and hats and a wide variety of other shapes.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/210,602 filed on Mar. 20, 2009, and is a continuation in part of U.S. Design Application No. 29/310,970, filed Sep. 22, 2008. 
     
    
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    Not Applicable. 
       THE NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT 
       [0003]    Not Applicable. 
       INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC 
       [0004]    Not Applicable. 
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    The invention relates to a slip on cover for the toggle portion of an electric light switch. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    Light switches are common and well know. They are in most rooms of most buildings around the world. There are two components to the standard electric wall switch or light switch. The switch itself and the switch plate cover. The switch itself is comprised of a protruding toggle that is manipulated to activate the electric switch portion contained in the body of the switch. The switch plate cover protects the electric components of the switch. Switch plate covers come in a variety of different sizes, styles, and configurations to match the decor of a room. It is also common for switch plate covers to be changed or altered by painting or covering with wall paper, to match the decor in a room. There is no similar way to change the color or style of the toggle portion of the light switch itself other than painting the toggle. 
         [0007]    Lights switches and electric wall switches have a small lever, commonly referred to as the toggle, that is moved to turn on or off the power to the associated electric component. The most common components are the lights in a room, but some switches control other electric components, such as electric outlets. Virtually all homes, offices, commercial, industrial, and agricultural buildings have electric wall switches. Old wall switches had two buttons, but switches produced and installed since the 1950&#39;s have been the familiar light switch with a switch plate to cover the electronic component, and a switch that extends from the plate. 
         [0008]    There are a number of existing patents that disclose the addition of a lever to the end of the toggle to allow the electric switch to be turned on and off in a position away from the toggle. The most common situation involves an extension that allows a child, or person in a wheel chair, to turn on and off the lights from a position below the standard light switch. Examples of such a toggle extension include U.S. Pat. No. 3,722,319 to Reznik et al, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,256,943 to Whitlock. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0009]    The invention is a cover for the toggle portion of a standard light switch or electric wall switch. The cover is designed to snugly fit over the toggle. The light switch cover will be made from soft plastic, rubber, or any other soft and flexible material. The interior dimensions of the light switch cover will be roughly the same size as the outside dimensions of the toggle switch so that the light switch cover can slip on and stay attached to the toggle by suction or friction. This will allow the light switch cover to remain in place, but also removable for changing or replacement. In the alternative, the light switch cover can be more permanently attached with a variety of adhesives. 
         [0010]    The light switch cover can come in any colors to match the color or decor of the room. In various embodiments the light switch cover can be in a matching color to fit with or complement the decor of a room, on in a contrasting color to help make the light switch visible in a room. For example a light switch in an industrial setting might have a bright red or orange light switch cover to make the location of the light switch more visible. Light switch covers can also be made from a phosphorescent or glow in the dark material to make the light switch visible in a dark room. 
         [0011]    Light switch covers can also have any number of decorative features to make them coordinate with the decor of a room. For example a light switch cover could have a small baseball or ball-cap at the end for use in a boy&#39;s room. Other configurations, for example in the shape of a cute animal face, might be more appropriate for a girl&#39;s room. It is conceivable that the light switch cover could also be made in an unusual or grotesque shape for amusement or entertainment. Light switch covers could also be fanciful, and made in the shape of body parts, such as a tongue, a nose or a finger. 
         [0012]    The disclosed light switch cover serves numerous purposes, including decorative, safety and utilitarian purposes. Decorative purposes consist of color and design coordination. Safety purposes include such features as glow in the dark, or visibly contrasting light switch cover. Utilitarian purposes include protecting the light switch, thus allowing a building owner to change the light switch cover rather than the entire light switch after unusual damage or after normal wear and tear. An additional utilitarian feature would be that a fanciful light switch cover might induce young children to properly turn on and off lights in a room. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the light switch cover attached to a conventional light switch toggle. 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  is a perspective exploded view of the light switch cover off of a conventional light switch toggle. 
           [0015]      FIG. 3  is a detailed perspective view of the light switch cover. 
           [0016]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the light switch cover with a decorative ball. 
           [0017]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the light switch cover with the decorative feature of a hat. 
           [0018]      FIG. 6  is a front elevation view of the light switch cover configured as a ball bat. 
           [0019]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the light switch cover with a baseball. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0020]    Detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein. It is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention and that the invention may be embodied in various and alternative forms. Therefore, specified structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limitations, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention. 
         [0021]      FIG. 1  shows the preferred embodiment of the light switch cover  10  in position on the toggle  50  a standard light switch  50 . Also shown is a standard switch plate cover  60 . Conventional light switches are well known in the art, and are found in almost every home and building. The light switch turns on and off lights within a room. Some light switch are also connected to standard electric outlet boxes and so can be used to turn on and off other electric equipment within a room. Switch plate covers  60  come in a variety of sizes, shapes and colors in order to provide the purchaser with a range of decorative features. Toggles  50 , however, generally come in only a few colors. The most common are white, ivory (or off white), and grey for industrial use. It is very common for homeowners to upgrade their switch plate covers  60  to match the decor of a room. The switch plate cover  60  is often painted the color of the surrounding wall, or often covered in the same wall paper as on the wall. It is also common for parents to decorate a child&#39;s room in sports themes, or cartoon characters, and switch plate covers  60  with sports equipment or fanciful characters are quite common. In all of these cases the toggle  50  remains the original color, typically white or ivory. 
         [0022]    The present invention is a light switch cover  10  that slips onto the toggle  50  of a standard light switch. The light switch cover  10  is sized to fit snuggly over the toggle  50 . The light switch cover  10  adheres to the toggle  50  by friction or suction. Such snug fitting slip on components are well known in the art. While the friction based snug fit will be sufficient to keep the light switch cover  10  in place, it is also possible that some users may wish to more permanently secure the light switch cover  10  with a drop of glue or other adhesive.  FIG. 2  is an exploded view showing the light switch cover  10  in position to be slipped onto the toggle  50 .  FIG. 3  is a detail of the light switch cover  10 . Typical household toggles  50  are approximately one quarter inch by one quarter inch at the tip, and about one half inch long. Heavy duty light switches for use in industrial facilities are often slightly larger. Some toggles  50  have an essentially square cross section, while others have a slightly rectangular cross section. The light switch cover  10  is sized with an internal dimension the same as the standard toggle  50 . Standard toggles  50  also have a slight taper, and the light switch cover  10  is designed with a corresponding taper. 
         [0023]    In the preferred embodiment the light switch cover  10  is made of soft plastic. This material is suitable because it is both flexible and durable. In some cases it can also have a slight stickiness, which will allow it to stay in place on the toggle  50 . The use of soft plastics with slight tackiness is well known in the art, and a common way to securely, yet temporarily attach a covering to a hard body. It is possible to construct the light switch cover  10  of any suitably soft, flexible and durable material, such as Mylar, moldable soft plastics, moldable hard rubbers and a wide variety of synthetic materials. The light switch cover  10  is molded from a single piece of material. It is molded with a taper to conform to a standard light switch toggle  50 . There are two common sizes of toggle  50 , one for standard household use, and a slightly larger size for industrial and commercial use. The light switch cover  10  can easily be made to fit either standard size, and could easily be made to fit any specialized size. It is, therefore, within the conception of the invention for the light switch cover  10  to be sized to fit any light switch toggle  50 . 
         [0024]    As seen in detail in  FIG. 3 , the light switch cover  10  has an outside wall  12  with a top  11  and four sides  12  which define an internal space  13  which is sized to conform to the dimensions of a toggle  50 . The taper in the walls is designed to allow the light switch cover  10  to slip onto the toggle  50 . The slight flex of the material allows the cover  10  to slide on and snuggly fit onto the light switch by means of friction. 
         [0025]    The light switch cover  10  can be produced in any color of the visible light spectrum. This will allow a user to purchase a light switch cover  10  to match the color of the switch plate  60  and the decor of the room. It is also possible that a user might prefer for the light switch cover  10  to be a contrasting color to stand out in the room. In some settings, such as in industrial or manufacturing facilities, the light switch cover  10  would be in a highly visible color such as bright red or orange, so that workers in the facility can easily spot the toggle  50  to turn on or off the lights. The light switch cover  10  can also be produced with phosphorescence of glow in the dark properties. The use of glow in the dark plastics is well known. The will create a light switch cover  10  that is visible in a dark room. These contrasting colors or glow in the dark light switch covers  10  provide an important safety feature. 
         [0026]    In an alternate embodiment of the invention, as shown in  FIGS. 4 &amp; 5 , the light switch cover  10  would incorporate other decorative features. Through the process of injection molding it is quite easy to create any shape object from rubber, soft plastics, and other polymer materials.  FIG. 4  includes a ball  20  positioned at the top  11  of the light switch cover  10 . In this figure the ball is a simple sphere, but it is understood that the ball could be any common type of ball, including, but not limited to a baseball, basketball, bowling ball, tennis ball, golf ball, soccer ball, or any other type of sports or play ball.  FIG. 7  depicts the ball as a baseball. While the ball  20  in  FIG. 4  is shown as a sphere, it is also possible to include a non-spherical ball such as a rugby ball or football. It is also possible, and within the conception of the invention to include other sports equipment, such as a hockey puck or baseball glove. It is also possible, and within the conception of the invention to include a wide variety of other sports equipment, such as the basic outline of a baseball bat, tennis racquet, lacrosse stick, golf club, hockey stick. It is also possible, and within the conception of the invention to mold the end of the light switch cover  10  in the form of a sports shoe. It is also possible, and within the conception of the invention for the light switch cover  10  to be molded into the colors and configuration of sports team jerseys. Through the process of injection molding it is easy to incorporate color features into the molded product. 
         [0027]      FIG. 5  shows the light switch cover  10  with an incorporated hat  30 . In  FIG. 5  the hat  30  is a baseball cap, but it is within the conception of the invention to mold the hat into any conceivable hat or sports helmet, such as a football helmet. While many of the previous examples set forth above have involved toys associated with boys, it is within the conception of the invention to mold the hat  30 , and the light switch cover  10 , into toys and figures associated with girls as well. This includes, but it not limited to doll-like figures, fanciful princess hats and the like. 
         [0028]    It is also possible, and within the conception of the invention to mold the light switch cover  10  to have a face of other similar features. It is possible and within the conception of the invention to mold the light switch cover  10  into the configuration of common cartoon characters, such as Mickey Mouse, Batman, Barbie, or any other well known character. It is also possible, and within the conception of the invention, to mold the light switch cover  10  into the shape of animals and animal heads and faces, and to incorporate color to make the light switch cover  10  appear like a small animal head. This could include any known animal, but would certainly include such popular animals as dogs, cats, squirrels, and birds. It is also possible, and within the conception of the invention, to mold the light switch cover  10  into fanciful figures, such as fingers, toes, and noses, and also grotesque figures such as severed fingers, toes and noses. 
         [0029]    There are at least two possibilities if the light switch cover  10  incorporates a ball  20 , a hat  30  or other fanciful shape. It can be molded so that the light switch cover  10  is the shape, with the internal space  13  inside the fanciful shape.  FIG. 6  depicts the light switch cover  10  in the shape of a short, stubby baseball bat. This figure also discloses the internal space  13  formed by the walls  12 . In an alternative embodiment, the shape can be molded at the end of the light switch cover  10 . For example the walls  12  that attaches to the toggle  50  could be in the shape of a bat and there could be a small baseball attached at the end. Virtually any small shape could be attached at the end of the light switch cover  10 . The only limitation would be that the shape at the end could not be so big as to interfere with the movement of the toggle  50 . It is understood that the addition of a ball  20 , hat  30  or other small fanciful shape at the end of the light switch cover  10  might make it easier for small children be able to turn on and off lights, and therefore might make it more likely that they would properly turn on and off the lights. 
         [0030]    The present invention is well adapted to carry out the objectives and attain both the ends and the advantages mentioned, as well as other benefits inherent therein. While the present invention has been depicted, described, and is defined by reference to particular embodiments of the invention, such reference does not imply a limitation to the invention, and no such limitation is to be inferred. The depicted and described embodiments of the invention are exemplary only, and are not exhaustive of the scope of the invention. Consequently, the present invention is intended to be limited only by the spirit and scope of the claims, giving full cognizance to equivalents in all respects.