Patent Publication Number: US-6220721-B1

Title: Multi-lyte channel lighting system

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to lighting systems, and more particularly to a unitary lighting system that provides both general lighting and accent lighting. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     In many locations, it is often considered desirable to be able to provide indirect and/or direct general or ambient lighting as well as track or accent lighting. Combined illumination of this nature is often used, for example, in an architect&#39;s office or in a house in which accent lighting is used to highlight a selected area, such as one on which a painting is hung, or in a commercial establishment to highlight or concentrate light on merchandise offered for sale. 
     Ambient lighting fixtures or luminaires typically operate at one voltage, e.g. 277 volts, whereas accent or track lighting typically operates at a lower voltage, e.g. 120 volts. In a typical lighting fixture installation, a channel is secured to the ceiling and a luminaire is mounted to the channel for support and to receive electrical connection to the building electrical power supply. The known mounting channels typically, however, only provide support for a single type of lighting and do not provide more than a single operating voltage. 
     It is also often desirable for a lighting designer to be able to configure the building or room lighting system so as to provide the optimum combination of direct and indirect lighting as well as access lighting in certain areas. The known mounting channels have limited flexibility of use in that they are typically of a single length, and limited as to the locations and configurations in which they can be used. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a unitary lighting system that readily provides both general and accent lighting throughout a space. 
     It is a further object of the invention to provide a lighting system which can be readily adapted and configured for use in a variety of architectural spaces to provide general lighting, and which also allows selected areas to be highlighted by accent lighting. 
     It is another object of the invention to provide a lighting system that can be readily configured to adapt to a wide variety of architectural spaces and to provide a more interesting and varied visual structure in those spaces. 
     It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a unitary lighting system that includes both direct or indirect luminaires as well as track lighting, in an attractive and relatively inexpensive mounting system that is easy and inexpensive to install and to use, and which can be readily modified to produce new lighting patterns. 
     The present invention meets these and other objects by providing a mounting channel that is suspended from the ceiling that can be used with both luminaires and track lighting. The luminaire used in the system of the invention may be of various types to provide, as desired, direct light, indirect light, or direct/indirect light. The track lighting provides accent lighting to highlight selected areas. 
     The mounting channel includes three compartments separated by a horizontal wall and a vertical H-shaped member. Each compartment extends along the length of the mounting channel. Through wiring of different operating voltages or circuits can be placed in the adjoining compartments for respective connection either to one or more different types of luminaire, or to the track lighting fixture. When a luminaire is to be installed in the channel, the luminaire ballast is inserted into the lower compartment, the luminaire is secured to the underside of the channel, and the through wiring in one of the compartments is run to the ballast to connect it to the power line. When accent lighting is to be provided, a track section is placed in the lower compartment and the appropriate track wiring is run to the track. 
     By allowing the through-wiring to be achieved outside the lighting fixtures or modules and the track sections, the lighting modules and track sections can be spaced apart, as desired, rather than requiring separate continuous runs. Mounting channels can be connected to one another, such as by the use of end connectors of different shapes e.g. L-shaped, T-shaped, or X-shaped, so as to permit the mounting channels to be connected to one another in a desired configuration to best satisfy the requirements of the overall lighting system for general and accent lighting. 
     To the accomplishment of the above and to such further objects as may hereinafter appear, the present invention is directed to a unitary lighting system, substantially as defined in the appended claims and as described in the following specification, as considered with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a lighting installation that provides combined general and accent lighting throughout a space by the use of the mounting channel of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is an isometric view, partly broken away, illustrating adjoining mounting channels of the invention; 
     FIG. 3 illustrates one of the mounting channels of FIG. 2 illustrating the installation of a track to the channel; 
     FIG. 4 illustrates the installation of a luminaire to a mounting channel; 
     FIGS. 5A and 5B are an end view and an exploded view of a mounting channel showing the manner in which it may be mounted to a ceiling; 
     FIGS. 6A and 6B are an end view and an exploded view of the mounting channel illustrating the placement of two sets of conductors and wire connectors in the upper compartments; 
     FIGS. 7A and 7B are an end view and an exploded view of the mounting channel of the invention illustrating its use to install a luminaire; 
     FIGS. 8A and 8B are an end view and an exploded view of the mounting channel of the invention illustrating its use to install a track where accent lighting is desired; and 
     FIGS. 9A and 9B are an end view and an exploded view of a mounting channel as configured at a location at which neither a luminaire nor a track is to be installed; and 
     FIG. 10 is an isometric view illustrating the manner in which a number of mounting channels can be connected together in a desired configuration. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     FIG. 1 illustrates a number of mounting channels  10 , according to an embodiment of the invention, secured to one another and arranged in one of many possible configurations to provide combined general, ambient lighting, and accent lighting at desired locations so as to provide a varied visual atmosphere throughout a space such as an office. The ambient, direct or indirect lighting, may be provided by a plurality of luminaires  16 , and the accent lighting may be provided by spot lights  12  affixed to a plurality of tracks  14 . The luminaires  16  and the tracks  14  are mounted to the mounting tracks  10 , in a manner described in greater detail below, at selected locations along the tracks  10  corresponding to the areas at which general and accent lighting, respectively, are desired. The mounting channels  10  are designed to be suspended from the ceiling at any locations along the lengths of the channels. Depending on the goals of the lighting designer, any presently available luminaire or spot light may be installed in the mounting channels. 
     Referring to FIG. 2, there are shown two mounting channels  10   a  and  10   b,  each of which embodies features of the present invention. FIG. 3 illustrates the manner of installation of a track  14  to channel  10   a , and FIG. 4 illustrates the installation of a luminaire  16  to channel  10   b . The installations of the luminaire and track to the mounting channels are described in greater detail in a following portion of the specification. 
     As shown in FIG. 2, each of the channels  10   a ,  10   b  include an elongated, typically between five and ten feet, member made of a suitable metal such as extruded aluminum. As described in greater detail below, the channel includes two upper compartments which respectively receive two sets of wire runs or conductors  18 ,  20 , each typically consisting of three or four wires and providing different operating voltages. For the sake of clarity, only one set of conductors is illustrated in FIG.  2 . The ends of the wires that extend from the channels  10  terminate at connectors  22 , which permit conductors from one channel to be electrically connected to corresponding conductors in an adjoining channel, as shown in FIG.  2 . Spaced along the runs of conductors are wire connectors  24  from which electrical connection to the adjacent wire runs can be made to the power supply line in the ceiling, as shown by wires  26 ,  28  in FIG. 2, and to the lighting fixture, that is, spot light or luminaire, as shown respectively at wires  30  in FIG.  3  and wires  32  in FIG.  4 . 
     The mounting channels  10  may be secured to and suspended from the ceiling, as shown in FIGS. 2,  5 A and  5 B, by the attachment of a spring  34  and a latch  36  to the top section of the channel. As in mounting channel  10   a , a stem  38  may be secured at its lower end to the spring, and its upper end is passed through a canopy  40  and secured to the ceiling by the use of conventional mounting hardware. As shown, the power line wire  26  may pass through the interior of one of the stems  38 . Alternately, as in mounting channel  10   b , a cable  42  may be secured at its lower end to the upper section of the section of the channel, and its upper end secured to the ceiling through the use of conventional hardware. 
     The configuration of the mounting channel  10  can be also seen with reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B. As therein shown, the channel  10  includes a pair of longitudinally extending side walls  44 ,  46  and a central wall  48  extending between the side walls approximately one-third of the way up from their lower ends. A vertical H-shaped member  50  extends upwardly from the middle of wall  48  to divide the upper portion of the channel into compartments  52  and  54 . A lower compartment  56  is defined below wall  48  and between the lower segments of the side walls  44 ,  46 . The upper and lower bores of the H-shaped member  50  are threaded for purposes to be described in a later portion of the specification. 
     As shown in FIGS. 5A, the spring  34  is snap fit into the upper part of the channel, and is locked in the channel by means of the engagement between its fingers  57  and upper fingers  60  at the upper ends of the side walls  44 ,  46 . The lower ends of the spring  34  rest on inner projections  58  of walls  44 ,  46 . The latch  36  is snap fit into the spring  34  to prevent the spring from snapping out of the channel. 
     FIGS. 6A and 6B illustrates wire runs  18  and  20  respectively arranged within compartments  52 ,  54  and extending along the length of the mounting channel  10 . As noted previously, wire connectors  24  are provided at spaced locations along the wire runs to connect the wire runs to the ceiling power line and to the track lighting and luminaires. A wire cover  62  is urged against the wires  18 ,  20  and connectors  24 , and is secured to the channel  10  by means of a screw  64  threadably received in the upper bore section of the H-shaped member  50 . As seen best in FIG. 6A, H-shaped member  50  separates and serves as a barrier between chamber  52  and chamber  54  so that one voltage, typically 120 volts, can be applied to one of the wire runs  18 , while a second voltage, typically 277 volts may be applied to the other wire run  20 . 
     FIGS. 7A and 7B illustrate the manner of installing a luminaire  16  to one of the mounting channels. For purposes of clarity, only the ballast  66  and chassis  68  of the luminaire are shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B. As therein shown, the outer walls of the luminaire chassis are disposed about the lower ends of the channel side walls  44 ,  46  so that ballast  66  is received within the lower compartment  56 . A mounting clip  70  is placed over the upper end of the channel so that its flared hooked flanges  72  engage the upper curved ends of the chassis  68  as seen in FIG. 7A, thereby to secure the luminaire chassis to the channel. A knurled knob  76  passes through an opening in the mounting clip  70  and is hand-tightened into place until, as shown in FIG. 7A, it contacts the wire cover  62 , which extends along the length of the channel above compartments  52 ,  54 , and is positioned over the through wires (not shown in FIG. 7A) extending through the channel compartments. As the knob  76  is further tightened, wire cover  62  is urged downwards by the knob  76  against the wires, and the luminaire chassis  68  is caused to be raised upwards into the channel  10 . 
     FIGS. 8A and 8B illustrate the manner of installing a track lighting section to a mounting channel. As therein shown, a track adapter  78  is inserted into the lower compartment  56  of the channel, and in turn, a track  14  is inserted into the interior of the adapter. Adapter  78  and the track  14  are secured to the mounting channel by means of a screw  80  passing through the track and adapter and threadably received in the lower threaded bore of H-shaped member  50 . 
     At those sections of the lighting installation at which a channel is present but no luminaire or track is to be installed, a spline  82  is snap fit into the upper end of the channel. Its lower ends are, as shown in FIG. 9A, received in groove  84  at the ends of wall  48 , and its upper ends are snapped into engagement with channel fingers  58 . The spline  82  is secured to the channel by means of a screw  86  passing through the spline and threadably received in the upper threaded bore of H-shaped member  50 . A bottom cover  88  is snap fit at the lower end of the channel and engages fingers  92  at the lower ends of channel side walls  44 ,  46 . The spline  82  may extend across two adjoining channels so as to join those channels together along their lengths. 
     The ends of the adjoining channels can be secured to one another either along a common axis or, as shown in FIG. 10, by the use of L-shaped end connectors  92  suspended from the ceiling by cables  42  such that adjoining channels form right-angle connections with one another. If desired, to achieve other configurations of the channels, X-shaped and T-shaped end connectors (not shown) may be used to connect adjoining mounting channels at the desired orientation relative to one another. In this manner, a number of mounting channels  10  can be connected together in a wide variety of configurations to provide the desired combination of general and accent lighting to the space. Since the lighting elements, to wit, the luminaires and accent spot lights, can be located at any point on the mounting channels used to configure the system, the system can be readily modified to meet the changing needs of the lighting designer. 
     It will be appreciated that although the invention has been hereinabove described with regard to a specific embodiment,