Patent Publication Number: US-6036330-A

Title: Light switch extender

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The instant invention relates generally to electrical wall switch installations and more specifically it relates to a light switch extender. The light switch extender is attached in a sliding manner to a switch plate, so that a small child can safely and conveniently operate the lever of a light switch. The light switch extender has dual mounting positions to allow an additional length to be added thereto for the child&#39;s reach. It can be used in a bedroom, bathroom or any other room a child might want to go in. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     Numerous wall switch installations have been provided in prior art. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,105,884 to Damsky; U.S. Pat. No. 4,454,401 to Powis, Jr.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,914,265 to Mongeau and U.S. Pat. No. 5,577,602 to Conner et al. all are illustrative of such prior art. While these units may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they address, they would not be as suitable for the purposes of the present invention as heretofore described. 
     DAMSKY, ARNOLD M. 
     ELECTRICAL TOGGLE SWITCH LEVER EXTENDER 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,105,884 
     A substitute toggle switch cover plate has an elongated opening within which is reciprocatively captured. An actuating member having a recessed carrier portion at the inside is adapted to loosely enclose the control lever of an electrical toggle switch. A slide knob at the outside is for moving the carrier member together with the toggle switch lever between &#34;on&#34; and &#34;off&#34; positions. 
     POWIS, JR., GEORGE S. 
     SAFETY EXTENSION LEVER FOR WALL SWITCH 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,454,401 
     A modified wall plate for a standard toggle switch outlet is equipped with an arm or lever adapted to slide on the plate. The arm or lever is provided with a hollowed protuberance extending outwardly from the front face of the arm and arranged to receive and enclose the actuating finger of a standard toggle switch when the modified wall plate is attached at an existing wall outlet for the switch. The arm or lever is equipped with a detachable rod extending to a substantial distance below the bottom of the wall plate to a level within reach of a small child, thus enabled to safely operate the switch. 
     MONGEAU, FRANCOIS 
     EXTERIOR COVER FOR AN ELECTRICAL SOCKET OR SWITCH 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,914,265 
     New cover assemblies for electrical fixtures in buildings allow conventional outlet and (toggle) light switches to be cheaply converted into a variety of different color designs and/or colors without changing the electrical infrastructure of the fixture. The cover assemblies comprise a cover plate with an appropriate number of orifices, each orifice being covered by a slider, so that the whole cover assembly shields the conventional parts of the fixtures normally visible in building interiors. 
     CONNER, GLENN C. 
     RAPOZA, MARTIN J. 
     PERRY, SCOTT M. 
     SWITCH EXTENDER APPARATUS 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,577,602 
     A switch extender for electrical switches having a front plate slideably coupled to a back plate which in turn is attached to a wall-mounted switch plate. The back plate includes a knock-out portion which allows use of the invention with both toggle switches and rocker switches. A pair of cylindrical bars are positioned within an opening in the front plate. A toggle switch fits within a slot between the bars, and the corners of a rocker switch fit within slots outside of the bars on the front plate. Sliding the front plate relative to the back plate actuates the switch. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A primary object of the present invention is to provide a light switch extender that will overcome the shortcomings of the prior art devices. 
     Another object is to provide a light switch extender that is attached in a sliding manner to a switch plate, so that a small child can safely and conveniently operate the lever of a light switch. 
     An additional object is to provide a light switch extender which has dual mounting positions to allow an additional length to be added thereto for the child&#39;s reach, whereby it can be used in a bedroom, bathroom, or any other room a child might want to go in. 
     A further object is to provide a light switch extender that is simple and easy to use. 
     A still further object is to provide a light switch extender that is economical in cost to manufacture. 
     Further objects of the invention will appear as the description proceeds. 
     To the accomplishment of the above and related objects, this invention may be embodied in the form illustrated in the accompanying drawings, attention being called to the fact, however, that the drawings are illustrative only, and that changes may be made in the specific construction illustrated and described within the scope of the appended claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
     Various other objects, features and attendant advantages of the present invention will become more fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein; 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a room in a building with the present invention installed in place and in use by a small child, shown in phantom. 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the wall switch in a junction box in the wall with the switch plate and mounting screws exploded therefrom. 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the wall switch in the junction box in the wall, the switch plate in place in phantom and the slot head screws with shoulder washers exploded therefrom. 
     FIG. 3a is an enlarged elevational view of one of the slot head screw and shoulder washer taken in the direction of arrow 3a in FIG. 3. 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the inner actuating arm with parts broken away connected in a sliding manner to the wall switch. 
     FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross sectional view taken along line 5--5 in FIG. 1, with parts broken away. 
     FIG. 6 is a front elevational view of the inner actuating arm. 
     FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the inner actuating arm taken in the direction of arrow 7 in FIG. 6. 
     FIG. 8 is a front elevational view of the outer actuating arm. 
     FIG. 9 is a side elevational view of the outer actuating arm taken in the direction of arrow 9 in FIG. 8. 
     FIG. 10 is a rear elevational view of a modified outer actuating arm with parts broken away, showing a built-in lighting unit therein. 
     FIG. 11 is a side elevational view taken in the direction of arrow 11 in FIG. 10. 
     FIG. 12 is a cross sectional view taken along line 12--12 in FIG. 11. 
    
    
     Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Turning now descriptively to the drawings, in which similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views, FIGS. 1 through 12 illustrate the present invention being a light switch extender 10. With regard to the reference numerals used, the following numbering is used throughout the various drawing figures. 
     
         ______________________________________                                    
10            light switch extender                                       
12           elongate actuator of 10                                      
14           vertically mounting assembly of 10                           
16           switch plate of 18                                           
18           light switch in 20                                           
20           junction box in 22                                           
22           wall                                                         
24           lever of 18                                                  
26           small child                                                  
28           inner actuating arm of 12                                    
30           aperture in 28                                               
32           vertical slot in 28                                          
34           vertical slot in 28                                          
36           upper end of 28                                              
38           outer actuating arm of 12                                    
40           rear recess in 38                                            
42           upper end of 38                                              
44           attaching facility of 12                                     
46           slot head screw of 14                                        
48           shoulder washer of 14                                        
50           hole in 16                                                   
52           hole in 18                                                   
54           switch plate screw                                           
56           mounting screw of 44                                         
58           flange on 28                                                 
60           lower end of 28                                              
62           slot in 58                                                   
64           tongue on 38                                                 
66           lower end of 38                                              
68           T-shaped handle plate of 28                                  
70           T-shaped handle projection of 38                             
72           hand of 26                                                   
74           finger projection on 76                                      
76           front surface of 38                                          
78           guide rib on 80                                              
80           rear surface of 28                                           
82           second aperture in 28                                        
84           vertical slot in 28                                          
86           vertical slot in 28                                          
88           second rear recess in 38                                     
90           second finger projection                                     
92           built-in lighting unit in 38                                 
94           rear compartment in 70                                       
96           narrow opening in 94                                         
98           rear chamber in 38                                           
100          light socket of 92 between 94 and 98                         
102          light bulb in 100                                            
104          battery of 92 in 98                                          
106          photo electric eye of 92 in 98                               
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     The light switch extender 10 comprises an elongate actuator 12. An assembly 14 is for vertically mounting the elongate actuator 12 in a sliding manner to a switch plate 16 of a light switch 18 located in a junction box 20 in a wall 22. The elongate actuator 12 engages a lever 24 of the light switch 18 extends downwardly therefrom. A small child 26 who normally cannot reach the lever 24 of the light switch 18 can now operate the lever 24 of the light switch 18 between an on and off position, by sliding the elongate actuator 12 up and down. 
     The elongate actuator 12 includes an inner actuating arm 28 having an aperture 30 and a pair of vertical slots 32, 34, which are located above and below the aperture 30 adjacent an upper end 36, whereby the lever 24 of the light switch 18 extends into the aperture 30. An outer actuating arm 38 has a rear recess 40 therein adjacent an upper end 42 to extend over and cover the aperture 30 and the pair of vertical slots 32, 34 of the inner actuating arm 28. A facility 44 is for attaching the outer actuating arm 38 to the inner actuating arm 28. 
     The vertically mounting assembly 14 consists of a pair of slot head screws 46 and a pair of shoulder washers 48. The slot head screws 46 with the shoulder washers 48 are inserted through holes 50 in the switch plate 16, threaded into holes 52 in the light switch 18 after the switch plate screws 54 are removed. The slot head screws 46 are backed off until heads of the slot head screws 46 are in a vertical position to allow the pair of vertical slots 32, 34 in the inner actuating arm 28 to fit over the heads of the slot head screws 46. The heads of the slot head screws 46 can be turned a quarter turn clockwise until the heads are horizontal in a retained position. 
     The attaching facility 44 consists of a pair of mounting screws 56, which are threaded through the outer actuating arm 38 and into the inner actuating arm 28. The inner actuating arm 28 has a right angle flange 58 at a lower end 60 with a slot 62 therethrough. The outer actuating arm 38 has a tongue 64 extending downwardly at a lower end 66, which is inserted into the slot 62 in the flange 58 before the mounting screws 56 are utilized. 
     The inner actuating arm 28 has a T-shaped handle plate 68 at the lower end 60 above the flange 58. The outer actuating arm 38 has a T-shaped handle projection 70 at the lower end 66 above the tongue 64. When the outer actuating arm 38 is attached to the inner actuating arm 28, the combination of the T-shaped handle plate 68 and the T-shaped handle projection 70 can be grasped by a hand 72 of the small child 26 to operate the lever 24 of the light switch 18. 
     A finger projection 74 is horizontally formed on a front surface 76 of the outer actuating arm 38 adjacent the upper end 42, so that an adult person can engage the finger projection 74 to operate the lever 24 of the light switch 18. A guide rib 78 is vertically formed on a rear surface 80 of the inner actuating arm 28 adjacent the lower end 60, so that the guide rib 78 can ride against the wall 22 when the lever 24 of the light switch 18 is being operated. 
     The light switch extender 10 further includes the inner actuating arm 28 having a second aperture 82 and a second pair of vertical slots 84, 86, which are located above and below the second aperture 82 approximately midway. The lever 24 of the light switch 18 can extend into the second aperture 82, while the second pair of vertical slots 84, 86 can fit over the heads of the slot head screws 46. The outer actuating arm 38 has a second rear recess 88 therein approximately midway to extend over and cover the second aperture 82 and the second pair of vertical slots 84, 86 of the inner actuating arm 28. When the attaching facility 44 connects the outer actuating arm 38 to the inner actuating arm 28, the length of the light switch extender 10 will be shortened for a taller child. A second finger projection 90 is horizontally formed on the front surface 76 of the outer actuating arm 38 approximately midway, so that an adult person can engage the second finger projection 90 to operate the lever 24 of the light switch 18. 
     As shown in FIGS. 10 through 12, the light switch extender 10 can further include a built-in lighting unit 92 in the outer actuating arm 38 above the T-shaped handle projection 70 for illumination in a darkened room. The built in lighting unit 92 consists of the outer actuating arm 38 having a rear compartment 94 in the T-shaped handle projection 70 with a plurality of narrow openings 96 along the bottom thereof. A rear chamber 98 extends above the rear compartment 94. A light socket 100 is mounted vertically between the rear compartment 94 and the rear chamber 98. A light bulb 102 in the light socket 100 extends into the rear compartment 94. 
     A pair of batteries 104 in the rear chamber 98 are electrically connected to the light socket 100. A photo electric eye 106 in the rear chamber 98 extends outwardly through the front surface 76 of the outer actuating arm 38 and is electrically connected to the batteries 104. The photo electric eye 106 being sensitive to motion, will cause the light bulb 102 to turn on and radiate light downward through the narrow openings 96 in the rear compartment 94. 
     It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together may also find a useful application in other types of methods differing from the type described above. 
     While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described are pointed out in the annexed claims, it is not intended to be limited to the details above, since it will be understood that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention. 
     Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention.