Patent ID: 6890086

Claim:
A flashlight, comprising: a plurality of light sources, each providing light when energized; a housing configured so as to direct the light into a beam; an integrated circuit configured to control which of the plurality of light sources is/are illuminated; and a pushbutton switch operable by a user and electrically coupled to the integrated circuit, wherein the integrated circuit controls illumination of the light sources based on input signals from the pushbutton switch, wherein the integrated circuit is a multi-state electronic device that chances state when a signal is input from the switch, and wherein different states of the integrated circuit cause different combinations of the light sources to become illuminated, wherein the integrated circuit cycles through a fixed number of states, one state each time the pushbutton switch is depressed, and wherein the states begin at an initial state in which all of the light sources are off and then, after cycling through the fixed number of states, return to said initial state, whereupon the cycle may be repeated.