Abstract:
A gas lighter includes a fuel container, a trigger and a fuel control knob in the handle, and a piezoelectric switch operable by said trigger in the nozzle, said nozzle being prolonged sufficiently to keep the operator&#39;s hand at a safe distance from the gas flames taking place at the terminating end of said nozzle, said trigger being in engagement with a slidable lever, which is connected to a valve of said container at one end and is in engagement with said switch at the other end, said trigger and said knob being located in a range reachable by fingers of the same hand to grasp said handle with.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates to a gas lighter adapted for use in a kitchen to ignite a gas cooker. More particularly, this invention relates to a gas lighter including a fuel container, a trigger and a fuel control knob in the handle portion, and a piezoelectric switch in the nozzle portion, wherein the nozzle portion is prolonged sufficiently to keep the operator&#39;s hand at a safe distance from the ignition point provided at its terminating end, and wherein the switch is located at an effectively shortened distance from the ignition point, thereby maintaining a constant ignition efficacy regardless of the prolonged nozzle. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     A gas lighter for such use is known and in wide use, but in known gas lighters their piezoelectric switch is located in the handle. In order to keep the operator&#39;s hand at a safe distance from the gas flames, it is required to provide a relatively long nozzle, which necessarily requires that the lead line is long enough to reach from the switch to the ignition point at the nozzle end. However, voltage is likely to drop during transmission along the long lead line, thereby resulting in the unstable ignition efficacy. In addition, the known gas lighters have their handle internally packed with many components including the triggering and piezoelectric elements, and consequently the handle portion must have a complicated internal structure. 
     The present invention is directed toward solving the problem pointed out above, and has for its object to provide an improved gas lighter having a piezoelectric switch located in the nozzle portion to shorten the distance between the switch and the ignition point. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved gas lighter capable of initiating the ignition and, if desired, controlling the amount of fuel by fingers of the same hand to grasp the handle with. 
     A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved gas lighter which allows the fuel to be effectively used up with a constantly stable ignition efficacy. 
     A still further object of the present invention is to provide an improved gas lighter having a trigger which can be readily worked by a thumb&#39;s force naturally acting when the operator stretches his arm toward the burner ring of a gas cooker. 
     Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     According to the present invention, a gas lighter includes a handle portion and a nozzle portion which is prolonged enough to keep the operator&#39;s hand at a safe distance from the gas flames, the handle portion including a fuel container and a trigger, and the nozzle portion including a piezoelectric switch operable by said trigger, the piezoelectric switch being located at an effectively shortened distance from the ignition point, the trigger being associated with a lever capable of twofold operations in its single movement for triggering said switch and opening a valve to said fuel container to initiate the supply of fuel to the ignition point, the handle portion further including a fuel control knob workable by a finger, the knob being connected to said valve to cause the same to regulate the amount of fuel flow. 
    
    
     BRIEF EXPLANATION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a gas lighter embodying the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective analytical view particularly showing components included in the gas lighter in FIG. 1, and 
     FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-section. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     As shown in FIG. 1, the gas lighter of the present invention is externally made up of a shank or handle 1, a cylindrical nozzle 2 extended from a lower portion of the handle, and a trigger 4 projecting in the top surface of the handle. The handle 1 and nozzle 2 are made in one body of plastic moldings, wherein each half shell is separately molded and bonded to the other. 
     For explanation&#39;s sake, the handle 1 is divided into a front section 1a and a rear section 1b, wherein the rear section includes a selfcontained liquefied gas container 5 which is connected to a pipe 7 through a valve 6. The pipe 7 extends to the terminating end 2a of the nozzle, where ignition takes place, and is provided with an ignition tip 8 at its terminating end, which functions as a positive ignition terminal 10a. Opposed to this positive ignition terminal, there is provided a negative ignition terminal 10, which is connected to a piezoelectric switch 9. The trigger 4 is engaged with a slidable lever 11 adapted to open and close the valve 6 and also to turn on the switch 9 in its single movement. In this way, when the trigger 4 is oppressed by an operator&#39;s thumb, the lever 11 opens the valve 6 to initiate the supply of fuel, and simultaneously turns on the switch 9, thereby effecting the ignition of the fuel at the terminating end 2a of the nozzle. 
     The container 5 is fastened in the handle 1 by means of a bracket 12, and is internally divided into an upper section 5b and a lower section 5c by a horizontally extended partition 5a, wherein these two sections communicate with each other at the tail portion of the container. The container 5 is closed by a plug 5d having a detachable injection valve 13. 
     The lower section 5c of the container has a relatively thick wall in the opposite side to its tail portion, and through this thick wall a bore 14 is produced to accept the valve 6. The valve 6 is connected to a pipe 15 which extends within the lower section 5c. So long as the container contains fuel, the lower section 5c is normally filled with the fuel, thereby enabling the pipe 15 to become submerged in the fuel. The pipe 15 is provided with an fuel inlet port to secure the supply of fuel to the pipe 7 via the valve 6. The valve 6 has a top end 6a in which a ring-shaped flange 6b is provided to make engagement with the left-hand end face 11a of the lever 11, thereby securing a unitary movement of the valve and lever. When the lever is moved to the right, the valve is likewise moved to the right, thereby allowing the fuel to let out into the pipe 7. The right-hand end face 11b of the lever is engaged with the input 9a of the switch 9, which is fastened to the nozzle 2 by means of a bracket 16. The lever 11 is normally biased to the left, that is, toward the valve 6 by means of a spring (not shown) housed in the switch, which means that the gas lighter is in the inoperative state unless the trigger is worked. It is arranged that the stroke of the valve 6 is shorter than that of the switch 9, and accordingly there is provided a slight allowance between the left-hand end 11a of the lever and the flange 6b on the valve 6 as shown in FIG. 3. 
     The trigger 4 takes the form of letter L with a longer leg 4a and a shorter leg 4b, and has a pair of pins 4c fastened thereto, the pins being rotatably carried on the handle. To accept the pins 4c accommodation holes 17 are provided in each half shell. The longer leg 4a projects outside through an opening 18 produced in the handle, and the shorter leg 4b extends downward into the nozzle, wherein the terminating end of the shorter leg is insertedly held in an opening 11 in the lever 11 to effect their associated movement. In FIG. 3, when the trigger 4 is oppressed by a thumb, the shorter leg 4b tends to rotate in the counterclockwise direction, thereby causing the lever 11 as a whole to move to the right against the spring (not shown) provided in the switch 9. The opening 18 has a sufficient size to allow the shorter leg 4b to swing about the pin 4c. The lever 11 is prevented from displacing upward or downward by means of a guide plate 19 and guide pins 20, both being projectingly provided on the inside wall of the handle 1, whereby the lever 11 is only allowed to move along the length of the nozzle 2. 
     The pipe 7 is preferably made of a resilient material, and as is evident from the foregoing, extends from the top end 6a of the valve up to the ignition tip 8 of the nozzle. As shown in FIG. 3, it is preferred that the pipe 7 is laid under the lever 11 and switch 9. The ignition tip 8a is insertedly supported by a supporter 21 provided on the inside wall of the nozzle 2, such that the same is directed toward a muzzle 3, wherein a cylindrical frame guide 22 of heat-proof material is provided between the muzzle 3 and the ignition tip 8a. 
     As described above, the positive and negative ignition terminals 10a and 10 are opposedly located in the firing section, and this construction will be more particularly explained: 
     The positive ignition terminal 10a is made up of a metal sheet 23, which is connected to the positive electrode of the switch 9 at one end while being connected to the base portion of the ignition tip 8 at the other end. In this case, it is preferred that a ring-shaped connector 8a is employed to secure the end of the metal sheet 23 as shown in FIG. 3. The negative ignition terminal 10 is made up of a lead line 24 connected to the negative electrode of the switch 9, wherein the lead line 24 is preferably covered firstly with an insulating pipe 24a, for example, of &#34;Tefron&#34;, and secondly with a vinyl tube 24b. The terminating end of the lead line 24 is bended toward the ignition tip 8a of the nozzle. 
     The trigger 4 is provided with dentures on its longer leg 4a to secure a finger touch thereto. When the trigger 4 is oppressed, the lever 11 is caused to move to the right in FIG. 3. In association of the rightward movement of the lever 11 the valve 6 is opened, thereby allowing the gasified fuel therein to flow to the ignition tip 8 through the resilient pipe 7. Simultaneously, the piezoelectric switch 9 is switched on, thereby effecting electric discharge between the ignition terminals 10 and 10a. In this way the spark ignites the fuel blown through the ignition tip 8. After the fuel has been ignited, the trigger 4 is released from the finger oppression, thereby causing the lever 11 to return to its original position under the action of the spring (not shown) in the switch 9. 
     The valve 6 is provided with a pinion 6c on which a wheel 25 is fitted such that the inner threads 25a of the wheel engage with the pinion 6c to secure their associated rotation, wherein the wheel includes a knob 25b which projects outside through a slot 26 produced in the handle 1 as shown in FIG. 1. The size of the slot 26 is large enough to allow the knob 25b to move to and fro in a semi-circle, during which the valve 6 is controlled, thereby regulating the supplying amount of gas to the pipe 7. 
     It is preferred that the container 5 is made of a transparent or semitransparent plastics to enable a possible deficiency of the content to be watched from the outside. To achieve it the illustrated embodiment has a slit 27 in the handle through which the content is seen. 
     The nozzle 2 is provided with an air intake port 28 at its end portion, and with a metal cap 29 at its terminating end to protect the nozzle against the gas flames. 
     For assembling the gas lighter, each component mentioned above is fastened in place on each half shell, without the use of screws or an adhesive agent. Then the half shells are bonded to each other. Finally the metal cap 29 is capped on the end of the nozzle 2 and a lid 30 is fitted at the tail portion of the handle 1 to cover the injection valve 13.