Illumination – Light source and modifier – Tiltable or rotatable as a unit
Patent
1984-11-14
1986-04-08
Lazarus, Ira S.
Illumination
Light source and modifier
Tiltable or rotatable as a unit
362287, 362371, 362401, 362419, 362432, 362804, F21V 2130
Patent
active
045816891
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention is concerned with lamps and lamp assemblies. Whilst these are of particular interest for medical and dental applications, they may of course be used in many other situations.
FIG. 1 shows a typical lamp assembly for a dental surgery. A support structure comprises an articulated two part arm on a mounting 1 (which may be secured to the ceiling), a pair of articulated arm sections 2, 3 and a bracket 4 supporting a lamp 5. The joints between these members are pivoted for rotation about axes 6 and 7 to permit horizontal translational movement of the bracket 4 in any direction, whilst the second arm 3 is pivoted about axes 8 and 9 and spring-balanced for vertical movement with a parallel ogram linkage (not shown) to maintain the bracket 4 in a vertical attitude. Thus the bracket and hence the lamp can be translated to any desired position. To permit azimuth adjustment of the lamp, the upper and lower ends of the bracket are pivotable relative to one another about a vertical axis 10. Thus this arm system permits freedom of spatial location together with azimuth movement of the light. This leave pitch movement of the light (about axis 11) to be provided within the light unit itself to complete the facility of universal spatial positioning combined with freedom to beam the light in any direction.
Conventionally the lamp 5 is fitted with handles 14, 15. In use, the dentist (if right handed) will sit or stand on his patient's right and adjust the position and angle of the lamp by means of the right-hand handle 15. If he is left-handed, he will generally sit or stand on the opposite side and use the other handle 14.
Although such arrangements have been found reasonably satisfactory, in practice they suffer from the disadvantage that, to effect movements along the line of arm 3, the user has to transmit the necessary forces to the support structure via the handle and lamp body and, in order to avoid the lamp simply rotating about its vertical pivot axis 10, must apply a compensating couple to the handle as well as the necessary directional force.
According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a lamp assembly with a support structure permitting translational movement of a lamp portion at least in a generally horizontal plane, a lamp mounted to the support portion so as to be pivotable about a generally vertical axis for azimuth adjustment of a light beam or beams from the lamp, and a handle secured to the lamp, the handle being disposed on or adjacent to the vertical pivot axis.
In this way, the user is able to effect horizontal movement of the lamp without any substantial tendency for the lamp to rotate.
A convenient arrangement is to provide that the lamp is disposed substantially entirely on one side of the pivot axis: the handle may then be disposed on the other side of the axis.
Thus in another aspect, the invention provides an adjustable lamp comprising a housing rotatably attached to a bracket for rotation about a horizontal axis extending through the housing, a light source and beam forming means within the housing arranged to form a beam directed out of the housing transversely with respect to the said axis, and a handle attached to the housing for effecting the rotation thereof, the housing and the handle being located on opposite sides of the bracket.
Of course, this arrangement implies a handle on only one side of the lamp--at least, a handle on the other side will suffer excessively from the disadvantage discussed above. To permit adjustment from the opposite side, the lamp can be made pivotable about a generally horizontal axis (usually desirable in any event for pitch adjustment). Then, if a sufficient degree of rotation of the lamp about vertical and horizontal axes is allowed for, it can be rotated through 180.degree. about both axes to assume on attitude which is a mirror-image of its former position, thereby permitting adjustment from the other side.
One embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying d
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J & D Oram Limited
Lazarus Ira S.
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