Patent ID: 7300189

Claim:
A method for easily upgrading and downgrading lighting features in the passenger compartment of a motor vehicle, said method comprising the steps of: providing a vehicle having an on-board electrical system; providing a universal docking station for a variety of different interior lighting modules; associating the docking station with the vehicle electrical system so that a lighting module docked in the docking station is operatively connected to the vehicle electrical system; providing a battery-powered first interior lighting module including a light source, electrical contacts, and a rechargeable battery; electrically interconnecting the contacts, the rechargeable battery and the light source of the first interior lighting module for energizing the light source directly from the rechargeable battery when not docked in the docking station; providing a battery-less second interior lighting module including a light source and electrical contacts; electrically interconnecting the contacts and the light source of the second interior lighting module for energizing the light source exclusively from the vehicle electrical system; docking one of the first and second interior lighting modules in the docking station with the electrical contacts of the module automatically making an operative electrical connection with the vehicle on-board electrical system; removing the docked one of the first and second interior lighting modules from the docking station and thereby automatically disconnecting its electrical contacts from the vehicle on-board electrical system; and docking the other of the first and second interior lighting modules with the electrical contacts of the newly docked one of the first and second interior lighting modules automatically making an operative electrical connection with the vehicle on-board electrical system, whereby an unskilled person can easily replace a more expensive battery-powered first interior lighting module with a less expensive battery-less second interior lighting module and vise-versa.