Abstract:
Some embodiments of the invention significantly increase the safety of shades attached to light fixtures by allowing movement of the shade in all directions relative to a fixed light fixture while at the same time preventing the shade from coming too close to a light bulb. Some embodiments of the invention provide a method of leveling a shade by using the natural balancing point of the shade. Other embodiments of the invention are described in the claims.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Technical Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     This disclosure relates generally to lighting systems, components, and methods and more particularly to a method and apparatus for leveling a shade on a light fixture.  
         [0003]     2. Description of the Related Art  
         [0004]      FIGS. 1-5  are diagrams that illustrate the industry standard device for attaching a shade to a lighting fixture, in this case a lamp. Like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout. With reference to  FIGS. 1-5 , a base unit  2  of the lamp supports a switch/socket assembly  4  and a harp  8 . A light bulb  6  may be inserted and removed from the switch/socket assembly  4  by screwing the base of the light bulb into the socket. A flattened portion at the top of the harp  8  supports a lamp washer  10  and a finial support  12 .  
         [0005]     The lamp washer  10  is typically crimped to the shaft of the harp  8  at two positions. Prior to crimping, a threaded end of the finial support  12  is inserted through a central hole in the middle of the lamp washer  10 . The other end of the finial support  12  is flattened and keyed to engage the shaft of the harp  8 . Consequently, when the lamp washer is crimped to the shaft of the harp  8 , the threaded end of the finial support  12  is positioned perpendicularly to the shaft of the harp  8 . The lamp washer  10  and the finial support  12  are rigidly connected. That is, a force applied to the finial support  12  causes the lamp washer  10  to move and vice versa. Additionally, the keyed end of the finial support  12  allows one to screw and unscrew a finial  14  (see  FIG. 4 ) from the finial support  12  without causing the finial support  12  to rotate.  
         [0006]      FIG. 3  illustrates a top, front, and side view of the harp  8 , the lamp washer  10 , and the finial support  12 . The dotted lines in  FIGS. 2 and 3  indicate that the lamp washer  10 , and in turn the finial support  12 , may rotate around the shaft of the harp  8  if enough rotational force is applied.  
         [0007]     A rotational force is typically applied when there is a shade  16  attached to the lamp fixture by a finial  14 , as shown in  FIG. 4 . Objects, pets, or people may physically contact the shade  16 , thereby causing the shade  16 , the finial  14 , the finial support  12 , and the lamp washer  10  to rotate around the axis of the harp  8 , as illustrated in  FIG. 5 . Of course, if force is applied to the shade  16  in a direction parallel to the axis of the harp  8 , rotation is prevented because the lamp washer  10  may only rotate in directions perpendicular to the harp axis. Thus, in these situations, the entire lamp tends to move.  
         [0008]     Neither situation outlined above is desirable. In the first case, the shade  16  may stop in a position that is too close, or even touching, a hot light bulb  6 . This is frequently the cause of many fires. In the second case, the shade  16 , the harp  8 , or the entire lamp may be damaged if the force applied to the shade is sufficient to overturn the lamp.  
         [0009]     Furthermore, the more the shade  16  is jostled over time, the looser the connection between the lamp washer  10  and the harp  8  becomes. This is due to the fact that metal at the crimped portion of the lamp washer  10  is in direct contact with the harp  8 . Thus, the metal will start to wear down with each rotation of the lamp washer  10 , making the overall connection less stable.  
         [0010]     Embodiments of the invention address these and other disadvantages of the conventional art. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0011]      FIGS. 1-5  are diagrams illustrating a conventional lamp shade attachment device.  
         [0012]      FIGS. 6A and 6B  are diagrams illustrating the components of a shade leveler according to some embodiments of the invention.  
         [0013]      FIGS. 7A and 7B  are diagrams illustrating how the shade leveler of  FIG. 6  fits together in relationship to conventional lamp fixture components.  
         [0014]      FIGS. 8A, 8B , and  8 C are top, front, and side-view diagrams, respectively, which illustrate how the shade leveler of  FIG. 6  is assembled in relationship to a conventional harp.  
         [0015]      FIGS. 9A and 9B  are front and side-view diagrams, respectively, illustrating how the shade leveler of  FIG. 6  is positioned after the components shown in  FIG. 7A  are assembled.  
         [0016]      FIGS. 10A, 10B ,  10 C, and  10 D are diagrams illustrating the operation of the shade leveler of  FIG. 6  when a force is applied to a conventional shade that is attached to it.  
         [0017]      FIG. 11  is a diagram illustrating how the shade leveler of  FIG. 6  restricts the movement of a conventional shade attached to a conventional lamp fixture.  
         [0018]      FIGS. 12A and 12B  are diagrams illustrating shade leveling rings according to other embodiments of the invention.  
         [0019]      FIGS. 13A and 13B  are front and side-view diagrams, respectively, that illustrate other embodiments of the invention that are used with a conventional S-cluster.  
         [0020]      FIGS. 14A and 14B  are diagrams illustrating the components of the shade leveler from  FIG. 13  according to alternate embodiments of the invention and how those components fit together with relationship to a conventional S-cluster.  
         [0021]      FIGS. 15A-15C  are top, front, and side-view diagrams, respectively, that illustrate the components of the shade leveler of  FIG. 14A  after being assembled and affixed to a conventional riser.  
         [0022]      FIGS. 16A and 16B  are top-view diagrams illustrating an additional component for a shade leveler according to other embodiments of the invention.  
         [0023]      FIGS. 17A and 17B  are side-view diagrams illustrating how the additional component of  FIGS. 16A and 16B  is assembled in relationship to other components of the shade leveler. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0024]     In the following detailed description of the invention, numerous exemplary embodiments of the invention are described. These embodiments are not limiting, but rather illustrate concepts of the invention that may be applied in many different embodiments. Thus, the scope of the invention should only be limited by the language of the appended claims. Throughout this detailed description, like reference numerals in the FIGURES refer to like elements.  
         [0025]      FIGS. 6A and 6B  are diagrams illustrating the components of a shade leveler according to some embodiments of the invention.  
         [0026]      FIG. 6A  is a diagram with two side views of a post  100 . The bottom portion of the post  100  has a groove that corresponds to the curved shaft of the harp  8  (see  FIGS. 7A and 7B ). This grooved, or keyed, portion of the post  110  allows a finial  14  (see  FIG. 4 ) to be screwed or unscrewed from the threads of the post without causing the post to rotate.  
         [0027]      FIG. 6B  is a diagram with a top view and a side view of a shade leveling ring  110 . As seen in  FIG. 6B , there is a hole in the central portion of the shade leveling ring  110 . The inner, central portion of the shade leveling ring  110  is raised with respect to the outermost portion of the shade leveling ring  110 .  
         [0028]     The post  100  and the shade leveling ring  110  may be manufactured from any number of conventionally known materials such as metals, plastics, ceramics, or wood.  
         [0029]      FIGS. 7A and 7B  are diagrams illustrating how the shade leveler of  FIG. 6  fits together in relationship to conventional lamp fixture components. The grooved end of the post  100  is placed against the horizontal portion of the harp  8 . The shade leveling ring  110  is then placed over the post  100  so that the threaded end of the post goes through the hole in the shade leveling ring. Next, a shade bracket  16 A from a conventional shade  16  (see  FIG. 4 ) is laid over the shade leveling ring  110 , such that the threaded end of the post  100  goes through the hole in the shade bracket  16 A. Finally, the finial  14  is screwed onto the threaded end of the post  100 . The finial  14  holds the shade bracket  16 A against the shade leveling ring  110  and prevents the shade bracket  16 A (and thus, the shade  16 ) from falling off the threaded end of the post  100 .  
         [0030]     The difference between  FIGS. 7A and 7B  is that in  FIG. 7A  the shade leveling ring  110  has a dome-shaped profile that is completely smooth while the shade leveling ring  110  of  FIG. 7A  has a dome-shaped profile with a raised edge at the uppermost portion of the dome.  
         [0031]      FIGS. 8A, 8B , and  8 C are top, front, and side-view diagrams, respectively, which illustrate how shade levelers in accordance with some embodiments of the invention are assembled in relationship to a conventional harp. As seen in  FIGS. 8A-8C , a portion of the flat, outer portion of the shade leveling ring  110  is in contact with the harp  8 . At this junction between the harp  8  and the shade leveling ring  110 , the shade leveling ring  110  is affixed to the harp  8 . The shade leveling ring  110  may be permanently affixed to the harp  8  by any number of conventional methods, such as spot welding. The shade leveling ring  110  may also be detachably affixed to the harp  8  using any number of conventional methods, such as adhesive or screws. This would allow a damaged harp  8  or shade leveling ring  110  to be separately replaced.  
         [0032]      FIGS. 9A and 9B  are front and side-view diagrams, respectively, illustrating how the shade leveler of  FIG. 6  is positioned after the components shown in  FIG. 7A  are assembled. It is easily seen in  FIGS. 9A and 9B  how the dome-shaped portion of the shade leveling ring  110  contacts the circular edge on the bottom of the shade bracket  16 A. When the finial  14  is tightened, the grooved portion of the post  100  contacts the harp  8  and prevents the post from rotating in the same direction that the finial is tightened. Similarly, the finial  14  may be loosened without rotating the post  100 . However; the grooved portion of the post  100  is only loosely held against the harp  8  by the shade leveling ring  110 . In other words, no portion of the post  100  is rigidly connected to the harp  8 . Tightening the finial  14  only serves to hold the circular edge on the bottom of the shade bracket  16 A more tightly to the dome-shaped portion of the shade leveling ring  110 .  
         [0033]      FIGS. 10A, 10B ,  10 C, and  10 D are diagrams illustrating the operation of the shade leveler of  FIG. 6  when a force is applied to a conventional shade  16  that is attached to it. This occurs when some object, pet, or person bumps or contacts the shade  16  (see  FIG. 4 ).  FIGS. 10A and 10B  are front-view diagrams, and  FIGS. 10C and 10D  are side-view diagrams.  
         [0034]     As seen in  FIG. 10A-10D , when a force is applied to the shade bracket  16 A it causes the shade bracket  16 A, the finial  14 , and the post  100  to move in relationship to the shade leveling ring  110  and the harp  8 . The dome-shaped portion of the shade leveling ring  110  allows the shade bracket  16 A to slide over the dome in the direction of any applied force. This is a significant improvement over conventional devices, where movement of the shade  16  is limited to a rotational direction about the axis of the harp  8  (see  FIGS. 2 and 3 ). With the dome-shaped profile of the shade leveling ring  110 , force can be applied in all directions to the shade  16  and the shade  16  will move in that direction.  
         [0035]     Furthermore, as mentioned above, only a tiny portion of the shade bracket  16 A is in contact with the shade leveling ring  110 . Thus, regardless of how tight the finial  14  is screwed onto the post  100 , it is relatively easy to move the shade bracket  16 A over the dome-shaped profile of the shade leveling ring  110 .  
         [0036]     In fact, when the finial  14  is merely tightened to the point where it prevents the shade bracket  16 A from falling off the post  100 , an additional advantage is achieved. The equally distributed weight of the shade  16  will cause the shade bracket  16 A to seek a naturally balanced point on the shade leveling ring  110 . Thus, if the shade  16  is bumped, the dome-shaped profile of the shade leveling ring  110  imparts a self-leveling action.  
         [0037]     Of course, at some point further movement of the shade bracket  16 A, the finial  14 , and the post  100  in relation to the harp  8  and the shade leveling ring  110  will not be possible due to the shade bracket  16 A or the post  100  impinging against the shade leveling ring  110 . Consequently, unlike the conventional shade attachment device, the shade  16  will never come to rest in a position where it is too close to the light bulb  6 , as shown in  FIG. 11 .  
         [0038]     Although the embodiments of the invention described above possess a shade leveling ring  110  with a dome-shaped profile, many other profiles and shapes are possible depending on the range of motion that the designer wishes to impart to the shade bracket  16 A.  
         [0039]     For example, raising the dome-shaped portion further from the flattened portion would result in the shade leveling ring  110  shown in  FIG. 12A . This design would allow the shade bracket  16 A (not shown) a greater degree of movement because of the additional clearance between the shade bracket  16 A and the flattened portion of the shade leveling ring  110 . Of course, the length of the post  100  would also need to be increased.  
         [0040]      FIG. 12B  is a shade leveling ring according to other embodiments of the invention. In this design, the raised portion of the shade leveling ring  110  is substantially cone-shaped.  
         [0041]     Other embodiments of the invention may alter the range of motion of the shade bracket  16 A by having a shade leveling ring  110  that has a larger diameter hole than the diameter of the post  100 . Still other embodiments of the invention may have a shade leveling ring that has a central hole that is not circular, but some other shape that allows more movement in certain directions and less movement in others. For example, the central hole may be substantially star-shaped or cross-shaped.  
         [0042]      FIGS. 13A and 13B  are front and side-view diagrams, respectively, that illustrate other embodiments of the invention that are used with a conventional S-cluster  18 . An S-cluster  18  has two sockets  20  that are used to hold lightbulbs (not shown). The S-cluster  18  also includes a riser  22 . The shade leveler  120  according to these embodiments of the invention sits atop the riser  22 .  
         [0043]      FIGS. 14A and 14B  are diagrams illustrating the components of the shade leveler from  FIG. 13  according to alternate embodiments of the invention and how those components fit together with relationship to a conventional S-cluster. Like the embodiments described above, the shade leveler  120  includes a post  100  and a shade leveling ring  110 .  
         [0044]     However, since the conventional S-cluster does not use a harp, the shade leveler  120  also includes a base  105  that has a ridge on top of it. The base  105  is affixed to the top of the riser  22 . Like the embodiments explained above, the grooved bottom portion of the post  100  and the ridge on the base  105  interface with each other and allow the finial  14  to be tightened and loosened without turning the post  100 . As usual, a conventional shade bracket  16 A is held on the post  100  by a conventional finial  14 .  
         [0045]     While both of the shade leveling rings  110  in  FIGS. 14A and 14B  are substantially dome-shaped, the shade leveling ring  110  of  FIG. 14B  has a raised edge at the uppermost portion of the dome, similar to the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 7B .  
         [0046]     The base  105 , the post  100 , and the shade leveling ring  110  may be manufactured from any number of conventionally known materials such as metals, plastics, ceramics, or wood.  
         [0047]      FIGS. 15A-15C  are top, front, and side-view diagrams, respectively, that illustrate the components of the shade leveler of  FIG. 14A  after being assembled and affixed to the riser  22 . A flat, outer portion of the shade leveling ring  110  contacts the ridge on the base  105 . At this junction the shade leveling ring  110  may be permanently or detachably affixed to the base  105 . The contact point between the shade leveling ring  110  and the base  105  is analogous to the contact point between the shade leveling ring  110  and the harp  8  illustrated in  FIGS. 8A-8C . The shade leveling ring  110  holds the post  100  loosely against base  105 . In other words, no portion of the post is rigidly connected to the base  105 . The entire shade leveler  120 , once assembled, may be permanently or detachably affixed to the riser  22 . The shade leveling ring  110  may be permanently affixed to the base  105  by any number of conventional methods, such as spot welding. The shade leveling ring  110  may also be detachably affixed to the base  105  using any number of conventional methods, such as adhesive or screws.  
         [0048]     While the embodiments of the invention described in  FIGS. 13, 14 , and  15  include an additional component (the base  105 ) compared to the other embodiments described in this disclosure, the operation of these embodiments is substantially the same as the operation explained above with respect to  FIGS. 10 and 11 . Thus, for the sake of brevity, the operation of the embodiments illustrated in  FIGS. 13, 14 , and  15  will not be duplicated here.  
         [0049]      FIGS. 16A and 16B  are top-view diagrams illustrating an additional component for a shade leveler according to still other embodiments of the invention.  FIGS. 16A and 16B  illustrate a finial ring  115 . The finial ring  115  has a rectangular slot  116 . The slot  116  is configured to allow the post  100  to pass through the center of the finial ring  115 .  
         [0050]      FIGS. 17A and 17B  are side-view diagrams corresponding to  FIGS. 16A and 16B , respectively, illustrating how the finial ring  115  of  FIGS. 16A and 16B  is assembled in relationship to other components of the shade leveler. The shade leveling ring  110  holds the post  100  against a harp (not shown). Unlike the embodiments illustrated in  FIGS. 6-11 , in this case the shade leveling ring  110  is rigidly affixed to the post  100 . That is, the shade leveling ring  110  and the post  100  cannot move in relation to each other.  
         [0051]     Like the other embodiments described above, a finial  14  is threaded on the post  100  to hold a shade bracket  16 A against the dome-shaped portion of the shade leveling ring  110 . However, in this case the finial ring  115  is inserted between the shade bracket  16 A and the finial  14 . The finial ring  115  also has a dome-shaped profile. The dome-shaped profile of the finial ring may or may not be the same as the dome-shaped profile of the shade leveling ring  110 .  
         [0052]     The finial ring  115  allows the shade bracket  16 A to pivot on top of the shade leveling ring  110  even when the post  100  is rigidly affixed to the shade leveling ring  110 . The rectangular slot  116  in the finial ring  115  allows the finial ring to move in relationship to the fixed post  100 . Without the finial ring  115 , the flat bottom surface of the finial  14  would otherwise contact the flat upper surface of the shade bracket  16 A, preventing it from sliding on the dome-shaped upper surface of the shade leveling ring  110 .  
         [0053]     It should be apparent that in the embodiments described in  FIGS. 16A, 16B ,  17 A, and  17 B, the range of motion for the shade bracket  16 A is additionally limited by the shape of the rectangular slot  116 . In other embodiments of the invention, the shape of the slot  116  in the finial ring  115  may be different to allow for other desired ranges of motion. For example, the rectangular slot  116  could be replaced with a circular hole with a diameter larger than that of the post  100 . This would allow movement of the shade bracket  16 A in all directions.  
         [0054]     Alternatively, the opening in the finial ring  115  could be cross-shaped or star-shaped. These examples are not limiting, rather they are just a few examples of the many variations that are possible and contemplated by embodiments of the invention.  
         [0055]     Having described and illustrated the principles of the invention in several exemplary embodiments, it should be apparent that the invention can be modified in arrangement and detail without departing from such principles. I claim all modifications and variation coming within the spirit and scope of the following claims.