Illumination – With plant-like ornament or wreath – Tree
Reexamination Certificate
1997-01-27
2001-04-03
Cariaso, Alan (Department: 2875)
Illumination
With plant-like ornament or wreath
Tree
C362S233000, C362S259000, C362S259000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06210016
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to decorative lighting for Christmas trees, in particular to decorative lighting adapted to illuminate the external surfaces of a tree and the interior.
A tree which is only illuminated on the external surface looks relatively plain when compared to a tree which also includes interior lighting. However, to achieve the latter with a conventional string of Christmas tree fairy lights the decorator must thread the light string and attendant light sockets and light bulbs throughout the tree, along branches and around the trunk, as well as ensuring that the outer surface of the tree is also adequately illuminated. This is tedious, time consuming and may result in the arms and hands of the decorator being scratched or abraded. These disadvantages also occur when the light string is removed after Christmas or when a light bulb has to be replaced. For these reasons, the lighting of the inside of a Christmas tree is often dispensed with, even though it is the preferred choice for many.
Alternative methods of illuminating the inside of Christmas trees are known but these tend to be complicated or expensive and still do not obviate all or many of the disadvantages described above, particularly where the lighting is to be used on a real Christmas tree as opposed to an artificial one. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an uncomplicated and inexpensive means of illuminating the exterior and interior of a Christmas tree in which the aforementioned disadvantages are obviated.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention there is provided an electrically operable decorative light string including a plug connected to one end thereof for insertion into a household socket to provide electrical power therefor, the light string including a plurality of light sockets and associated light bulbs, and a plurality of light socket support members in the form of wands (as hereafter defined) at spaced intervals along the string, each adapted to support selected groups of said light sockets and being insertable into the interior of a Christmas tree at said spaced intervals such that, in use, the light string illuminates the interior of the Christmas tree via said selected ones of said light bulbs and light sockets supported on said plurality of said wands, and illuminates the exterior of the Christmas tree with the remaining light sockets and light bulbs on the string.
The wands may typically each comprise a rod of generally transparent plastics material which includes along the length thereof a series of light socket holders with sockets and light bulbs. With this arrangement, the light string may be wound around a Christmas tree from bottom to top in a conventional manner and at spaced intervals the wands can then be easily inserted into the interior of the tree without the need for the decorator to expose arms or hands to possible injury. There is also no need to thread the entire string throughout the interior and exterior of the tree in order to provide complete illumination and hence the previously tedious and time consuming method of achieving the same objective is obviated. Similarly, when the festive season is over the light string can be easily removed by simply plucking out the wands as the light string is wound off the tree. Also, because each wand supports a number of lights, typically five to eight, they collectively serves as a wire-tidy which therefore minimises the possibility of the light string becoming knotted; and this also permits the light string to be easily rolled up when not in use.
The wands may each conveniently include means to obtains access to individual light bulbs for easy replacement thereof in the event of failure, such as by incorporating exposed areas around each individual light socket holder along the length of each wand which allow the fingers of a hand to remove and replace faulty light bulbs. Alternatively, each light socket holder may permit its respective light socket to be bent or swivelled outwards for access in order to facilitate light bulb replacement.
As well as being rod-shaped the wands may be of varying shapes including circular or oval, since their primary function is to serve as a guide for fairy lights in the string which are intended to illuminate the interior of the tree, so that the lights are supported therewithin and require no further attention once inserted in the desired position. Tie points may, however, be provided for additional security which could be used to secure the support members in place at conveniently exposed portions of branches etc. by means of wire clips or some other form of releasable fastener.
Although the wands must necessarily be sufficiently rigid to support lights thereon, they may nevertheless be made of a semi-rigid bendable material such that each may be individually pre-bent prior to or even after insertion into the tree so as to maximise their spatial position therewithin.
The wands may also be composed of individual elements which releasably interconnect with each other, each including a light socket holder. With this arrangement, the light string may be adapted to suit particular requirements, such as by making the initial wands in the string relatively longer than those towards the end of the string to correspond with the progressively shorter radius of the cone-shaped tree from bottom to top. Alternatively, the length of the wands may be pre-set so that they become progressively shorter, and hence carry fewer light sockets and light bulbs towards the end of the light string remote from the electric plug.
In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the light sockets and their respective light bulbs are moveable from a closed position in which they lie generally flat against or along each wand to a position in which each light bulb is swivelled or otherwise moved outwardly away from the major axis of the wand so that it becomes fully exposed when in use. This may be achieved by mounting each of the light socket holders on a respective pivot so that after insertion of the closed wand into the tree each light bulb may be individually moved into a generally upright position.
Alternatively, this may be achieved semi-automatically by providing a sliding mechanism of length generally corresponding to the length of each wand, having projections co-operable with each light socket so that the light sockets and thus light bulbs may be collectively either raised or lowered. With this arrangement the wand may be inserted into the tree with the light sockets and their respective light bulbs laid flat thereagainst and once in position the light bulbs can then be raised to their operating position in which they are fully visible.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3569691 (1971-03-01), Tracy
patent: 3714414 (1973-01-01), Sternius
patent: 4404621 (1983-09-01), Mauro
patent: 4462065 (1984-07-01), Rhodes
patent: 4521839 (1985-06-01), Cook et al.
patent: 4870574 (1989-09-01), Crucefix
patent: 4885664 (1989-12-01), Hermanson
patent: 5309334 (1994-05-01), Willison
patent: 5510966 (1996-04-01), Konecny
patent: 5609412 (1997-03-01), Contigiani
patent: 5700081 (1997-12-01), Mengle et al.
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