Improved lampholder for a vehicle headlight

Abstract

 Lampholder (1) for a vehicle light of the type including an annular collar (10) operationally coupled, in use, to a reflector (3) essentially coaxial with an optical axis (A) thereof and suitable to receive a light source (5) provided with a flange-shaped mounting base (6); and retaining means operationally coupled, in use, to the collar to cooperate with the base so as to lock the light source in the collar, in the direction of the optical axis; wherein the collar is provided, radially on the inside with respect to the optical axis and in correspondence with a front end thereof, with stop means (20) for the base against which, in use, the base is maintained in contact by the retaining means so as to establish a predefined position of the light source (5) with respect to a focus of the reflector; the retaining means consist of at least one elastic member fitted, in use, with a mounting portion thereof straddling a rear edge of the collar to grip the latter radially, and having an elastically deformable arm extending in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion and obliquely in relation to the optical axis radially inside the collar, so as to interfere, in use, with the base; the mounting portion being provided with means to cling it to a respective inner and/or outer lateral surface of the collar.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to an improved lampholder for a vehicle light (for example a headlight), of the type in which a collar, normally coaxial with an optical axis of a corresponding reflector of the headlight, houses, inside a seat in the reflector, a light source (e.g. a lamp) having a flange-shaped mounting base.

[0002] A lampholder of the above type is known, for example, from patent documents FR-A-2726631 and US-A-4872096, in which the lamp or other light source is retained in the desired position, with the base resting against an inner shoulder of the collar, by retaining means comprising a fork- or frame-shaped spring, which is articulated at a first end on the collar or a portion close to the collar and releasably engages, e.g. by means of a latch mechanism and with a second end opposite the first, a retainer (tooth or seat) on the collar.

[0003] Such known devices have the disadvantage of being relatively bulky and expensive and of involving awkward operations for attaching and releasing the spring to and from the retainer, which operations essentially have to be performed blind; another point to bear in mind is the effort required of the user to attach and release an elastic spring element such as said fork- or frame-shaped spring.

[0004] The lampholder described in patent document EP-B-0855551 does not solve these problems, in that it requires in any way the use of a spring of the type described above as a safety lock and also because the element provided with flexible arms mounted on the collar to retain the base of the lamp is a complex structure with relatively large axial and radial dimensions and, above all, it involves cooperation with the lamp base for locking it to the collar, which prevents accurate positioning of the lamp, particularly in the direction of the optical axis, in relation to the reflector.

[0005] The object of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks described above, by providing a lampholder for a vehicle headlight of the type employing a light source with a flange-shaped mounting base, which provides for low-cost production and assembly of both the actual lampholder and the light source, e.g. incandescent, halogen, or discharge lamp, is easy to manoeuvre in confined spaces, in particular during operations to assemble and remove the lamp, and that is compact and highly reliable.

[0006] The present invention therefore relates to a lampholder for a vehicle headlight comprising a collar suitable to receive a light source provided with a flange-shaped mounting base, as claimed in claim 1.

[0007] In particular, the collar, which is operationally coupled, in use, to a reflector and is essentially coaxial with an optical axis of said reflector, comprises retaining means for the base that, according to one aspect of the invention, consist of at least one elastic member fitted, in use, with a mounting portion thereof so as to straddle a rear edge of the collar to grip the latter radially on opposite sides, and having an elastically deformable arm extending in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion and obliquely in relation to the optical axis radially inside the collar, so as to interfere, in use, with the base.

[0008] The device according to the invention is also characterized in that said mounting portion is provided with means to cling it to a respective inner and/or outer lateral surface of the collar, consisting of respective radially innermost projecting parts of the mounting portion made of a harder material than that used to produce the collar and that, in use, face and interfere with the inner and/or outer lateral surfaces of the collar.

[0009] In this way, the light source is retained with precision, in a simple manner and with reduced overall dimensions by means of a plurality of the elastic members of the type described above, preferably three arranged at 120°, which can be formed as separate members without affecting the reliability of the overall device, and are capable of effectively retaining the lamp in the reflector seat, inside the collar, without the need for a frame-shaped spring that has to be attached and released.

[0010] Moreover, the elastically deformable arm extending in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion has a free end that, in a radial plane with respect to the collar, is V-shaped with its vertex, in use, facing the part opposite the rear edge of the collar and subtending an angle of more than 90°, the bisecting line of which is essentially perpendicular to the plane in which the arm lies. In combination, the base of the light source is also provided radially on the outside with a fin housed, in use, in a radial recess in the collar, which extends to interrupt the continuity of the rear edge thereof.

[0011] This means unlocking and locking the base in the collar is an extremely simple and convenient operation, as the user simply uses a fingertip to press the lateral fin on the base to tilt it obliquely to the collar and thus unlatch or latch the V-shaped ends of the arms of the elastic members from/to the outside edge of the base.

[0012] The V-shaped ends of the arms of the elastic members can also be unlatched or latched from/to the outside edge of the base by pressing the base or the lamp connector crosswise to or along the optical axis.

[0013] Further characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become clear from the following description of a non-limiting embodiment thereof, with reference to the drawings attached hereto, in which:

• figure 1 shows a three-quarter rear view in perspective of a lampholder according to the invention, without the lamp fitted;
• figure 2 shows the same view of the device in figure 1, on the same scale, in a different operating position;
• figure 3 shows a larger-scale three-quarter front view in perspective of an essential component of the device of figure 1;
• figure 4 shows an elevation and reduced-scale view of the component in figure 3; and
• figure 5 shows the same view of the lampholder of figure 1 with a lamp fitted.

[0014] With reference to figures 1 to 5, number 1 indicates as a whole a lampholder for a vehicle light of a known type that is not illustrated, for example a headlight; the lampholder 1 comprises an annular collar 10 which is operationally coupled, in use, to a reflector 3 of a known kind; the collar 10 is essentially coaxial with an optical axis A of said reflector 3 (figure 5) and is preferably formed in one piece with the reflector 3, in a way that is known to the person skilled in the art; however, according to possible variations that are not illustrated here and which are obvious to the person skilled in the art, the collar 10 could also be formed as a separate part from the reflector 3, e.g. it could be part of the headlight casing, or it could be an additional separate element, mountable on the casing or on the reflector 3, provided it is mounted in a fixed and certain position with respect to the reflector 3 and, especially, to the optical axis A.

[0015] The collar 10 is suitable to receive, in a specific seat 9 of the reflector 3, (figure 2) a light source which, in the example shown, consists of a lamp 5, provided with a flange-shaped mounting base 6 (figure 5), coupling, in use, inside and on the collar 10, coaxially with respect to the optical axis A, as described later on in this document.

[0016] The device 1 also comprises retaining means, indicated as a whole by number 11, which are operatively coupled, in use, to the collar 10 to cooperate with the base 6 so as to lock the light source 5 in the collar 10 in the direction of the optical axis A; for that purpose, the collar 10 is provided, radially on the inside with respect to the optical axis A and in correspondence with a front end 12 thereof, with stop means 20 (figures 1 and 2) for the base 6, consisting of an annular projecting part radially inside the collar 10 and against which, in use, the base 6 is maintained in contact by the retaining means 11 to establish a predefined position of the light source 5 with respect to a focus (not illustrated for the sake of simplicity) of the reflector 3.

[0017] According to a first aspect of the invention, the retaining means 11 consist of at least one elastic member 21, in the example shown said means consist of at least three elastic members 21 essentially arranged at an equal distance from one another and formed as separate elements. In use, the elastic members 21 are each fitted in correspondence with a rear edge 14 of the collar, e.g. arranged at intervals of approx 120°, by means of respective mounting portions 22 suitable to be coupled, directly or indirectly, to the rear edge 14 of the collar 10 so as to straddle thereupon to grip the same radially on opposite sides.

[0018] Moreover, each elastic member 21 has an elastically deformable arm 23 extending in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion 22 so that, in use, it is arranged obliquely with respect to the optical axis A and extends radially inside the collar 10, so as to interfere, in use, with the base 6, as explained later on.

[0019] In the example shown, instead of being fitted so as to directly straddle the rear edge 14, on the side opposite the front end 12 of the base 10, the members 21 are fitted so as to straddle respective rear edges 14a (figures 1 and 2) of respective circumferential seats 24 for radially housing the mounting portion 22 of each elastic member 21, said seats 24 being formed as an integral part of the collar 10, as extensions thereof and of its rear edge 14, with respect to which, in the non-limiting example shown, the portions of edge 14a are raised, in that they are further from the front end 12 than the rest of the edge 14.

[0020] Each seat 24 is also provided, on a lateral and cylindrical surface 25 radially outside the collar 10, with a projecting member 26 for a rim 27 of the mounting portion 22 of each elastic member 21.

[0021] In particular, the mounting portion 22 of each elastic member 21 is essentially U-shaped in a radial plane with respect to the collar 10 and to the optical axis A with which the collar 10 is essentially coaxial and is delimited, on the side opposite the arm 23 by the rim 27, which is arranged at least partially opposite the elastic arm 23 in the direction of the optical axis A; moreover, the rim 27 is provided with at least one fin 28 (in the example shown it is provided with a pair of fins 28 that flank the elastic arm 23 on opposite sides thereof), extending in a cantilevered fashion from the opposite side of the arm 23 and, thus, in use, radially on the outside with respect to the collar 10, and suitable, in use, to come up against the projecting member 26 of a corresponding seat 24 to ensure the correct axial position of the member 21 and its arm 23 along the axis A.

[0022] To avoid the possibility of assembling the elastic members 21 incorrectly, the collar 10 is provided radially on the inside, on a cylindrical inner lateral surface 29 thereof, and in the example shown in correspondence with each seat 24, with at least one axial projecting part 30 (figure 2) protruding from the inner lateral surface 29 and suitable to cooperate with the rim 27, if the member 21 is mounted in reverse as illustrated in figure 2, with respect to the correct position illustrated in figure 1, to prevent the elastic member 21 from being mounted so as to straddle the rear edge 14 (in the example shown the portions of edge 14a of the seats 24) of the collar 10 when the rim 27 is radially facing the inside of said collar 10.

[0023] According to a further aspect of the invention, the mounting portion 22 is provided with means 40 (figures 3 and 4) to cling it to the respective inner 29 and/or outer 25 lateral surface of the collar 10, and in the example shown of the corresponding seats 24 thereof.

[0024] In particular, at least the collar 10 (normally the entire reflector 3 integral therewith) is made of a relatively soft synthetic plastic material, while the clinging means 40 consist of respective projecting parts 41, 42 radially inside the mounting portion 22 made of a harder material than that used to make the collar 10 and so that, in use, they face to, and interfere with, the inner 29 and/or outer 25 lateral surfaces of the collar 10, i.e. of the seats 24 thereof.

[0025] In the non-limiting embodiment shown, the projecting parts 41, 42 consist of elastically deformable pointed fins, which extend obliquely and in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion 22 radially towards said lateral surfaces, that is the inner surface 29 for the fins 41 and the outer surface 25 for the fin 42, in an opposite direction to that in which the mounting portion 22 is inserted on the rear edge 14 of the collar 10, and in the example shown on the portions of edge 14a of the seats 24. In this way, in use, the pointed fins 41, 42 are also able to partially cut into the surfaces 29, 25 and stick into the collar 10, thus securely and reliably anchoring the members 21 thereto.

[0026] According to another aspect of the invention, the elastically deformable arm 23 extending in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion 22 has a free end 50 that is V-shaped in a radial plane with respect to the collar 10 and lies so that, in use, its vertex faces the part opposite the rear edge 14 of the collar 10; the V formed by the free end 50 of each arm 23 subtending an angle α equal to or greater than 90° between two sides 51 and 52 of the V and a bisecting line B thereof, at an equal distance from the sides 51 and 52, is essentially perpendicular to the plane in which the arm 23 lies, as illustrated in figure 4.

[0027] In the non-limiting but preferred embodiment shown, the elastic member 21 (figures 3 and 4) consists of a flat metal sheet 60 cut and folded to form the mounting portion 22 and the elastically deformable arm 23; in particular, the flat metal sheet 60 comprises two lateral portions 61 and 62 and a central portion 63, which are rectilinear and arranged side by side parallel to one another, joined together at corresponding first ends by means of a common root portion 64 which extends crosswise in relation to said portions; the lateral portions 61, 62 are folded in a U-shape outside the plane in which they lie and towards the common root portion 64 to form therewith the mounting portion 22, while the central portion 63 is longer than the lateral portions 61, 62 and is folded in an asymmetrical V-shape outside the plane in which it lies and towards the common root portion 64 to form the elastically deformable arm 23 extending in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion 22.

[0028] The latter is also delimited, on the side opposite the rim 27, by an edge 66 defined by second ends of the portions 61, 62, opposite the first ends and the common root portion 64, which edge 66 is interrupted in correspondence with the elastically deformable arm 23 and which is provided, laterally on the sides of the arm 23, with respective fins 67, 68, in use extending obliquely in a cantilevered fashion and radially on the inside with respect to the collar 10 and in the direction in which the mounting portion 22 is inserted on the collar 10.

[0029] Lastly, the base 6 of the light source 5 is provided radially on the outside with at least one fin 70 (in the example shown with more than one fin 70) housed, in use, in a corresponding radial recess 71 in the collar 10 which extends to interrupt the continuity of the rear edge 14 thereof and which is arranged on the collar 10 in a position diametrically opposite one of the elastic members 21; in the example shown, there are three fins 70 essentially arranged at intervals of 120° and there are three recesses 71 on the collar 10 which are also essentially arranged at equal distances from one another and in correspondence with the portions of the edge 14 between the seats 24.

[0030] When the lamp 5 is inserted in its seat inside the collar 10, the base 6 interferes with the intermediate portion of the arm 23, between the mounting portion 22 and the end 50, which extends towards the inside of the lamp seat 9.

[0031] Proceeding with the insertion of the lamp 5 in the collar 10, the base 6 makes the arm 23 bend up to a point in which the base 6 is able to move past it and continue until it rests against the annular shoulder 20.

[0032] In this position, the arm 23 tends to re-assume its original position, but this movement is prevented as the end 50 comes up against the rear part of the base 6, locking the lamp 5 in the seat 9 and inside the collar 10, both laterally and axially.

[0033] If the end 50 is V-shaped, as described previously, it is the part of the arm 23 between the sides 51 and 52 that comes to rest against the outside edge of the base 6 to lock the lamp 5; however, in that case it is easier for the user to unlock the lamp 5, simply using a fingertip to raise one of the fins 70, so that the arms 23 bend, as the latter then push the base 6 into the release position, with a kind of "snapon" mechanism.

[0034] For that purpose, to facilitate the radial bending of the arms 23, the portions 14a of edge of the seats 24 are provided with radial grooves 90 arranged, in use, exactly opposite the position occupied by the arms 23.

Claims

1. Lampholder (1) for a vehicle light of the type comprising an annular collar (10) operatively coupled, in use, to a reflector (3) essentially coaxial with an optical axis (A) thereof and suitable to receive a light source (5) provided with a flange-shaped mounting base (6); and retaining means operatively coupled, in use, to the collar to cooperate with the base to lock the light source in the collar, in the direction of the optical axis; wherein the collar is provided, radially on the inside with respect to the optical axis and in correspondence with a front end thereof, with stop means (20) for the base against which, in use, the base is maintained in contact by the retaining means so as to establish a predefined position of the light source (5) with respect to a focus of the reflector; characterized in that the retaining means consist of at least one elastic member fitted, in use, with a mounting portion thereof straddling a rear edge of the collar to grip the latter radially on opposite sides, and having an elastically deformable arm extending in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion and obliquely in relation to the optical axis radially inside the collar, so as to interfere, in use, with the base.

2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that said mounting portion is provided with means to cling it to a respective inner and/or outer lateral surface of the collar.

3. Device according to claim 2, characterized in that at least said collar is made of a synthetic plastic material; and in that said clinging means consist of respective radially innermost projecting parts of the mounting portion made of a harder material than that used to make the collar and that, in use, face to and interfere with said inner and/or outer lateral surfaces of the collar.

4. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that said projecting parts consist of elastically deformable fins that extend obliquely in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion radially towards said inner and/or outer lateral surfaces of said collar and in the opposite direction to that in which the mounting portion is inserted on said rear edge of said collar.

5. Device according to any one of the previous claims, characterized in that said mounting portion of the elastic member is essentially U-shaped in a radial plane with respect to said collar.

6. Device according to any one of the previous claims, characterized in that said elastically deformable arm extending in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion has a free end that is V-shaped in a radial plane with respect to said collar and is arranged so that, in use, its vertex faces the side opposite said rear edge of the collar and subtends an angle of more than 90°; the bisecting line of said angle subtended by the vertex of the V formed by the free end of the elastically deformable arm being essentially perpendicular to the plane in which the latter lies.

7. Device according to any one of the previous claims, characterized in that said elastic member consists of a flat metal sheet cut and folded to form said mounting portion and said elastically deformable arm; said flat metal sheet comprising two lateral portions and a central portion, which are rectilinear and arranged side by side parallel to one another, joined together at corresponding first ends by means of a common root portion which extends crosswise in relation to said portions; the lateral portions being folded in a U-shape outside the plane in which they lie and towards the common root portion to form therewith said mounting portion and said central portion being longer than the lateral portions and folded in an asymmetrical V-shape outside the plane in which it lies and towards the common root portion to form said elastically deformable arm extending in a cantilevered fashion from the mounting portion.

8. Device according to any one of the previous claims, characterized in that said mounting portion has a rim on the side opposite said elastically deformable arm and at least partially facing the latter in the direction of the optical axis; said collar being provided radially on the inside with at least one axial projecting part extending from its inner lateral surface and suitable to cooperate with the rim to prevent the elastic member from being assembled so as to straddle the rear edge of the collar when said rim radially facing the inside of the collar.

9. Device according to claim 8, characterized in that said collar is provided with at least one circumferential seat for radially housing the mounting portion of said at least one elastic member, said seat being provided on the side of the radially external lateral surface of the collar with a projecting part for the rim; the latter being provided with at least one fin extending in a cantilevered fashion radially on the outside with respect to the collar and suitable to rest, in use, against the projecting part.

10. Device according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that said mounting portion is delimited, on the side opposite said rim, by an edge that is interrupted in correspondence with the elastically deformable arm and which is provided, on the sides of the elastically deformable arm, with respective fins extending obliquely in a cantilevered fashion radially on the inside with respect to the collar and in the direction in which the mounting portion is inserted on the collar.

11. Device according to any one of the previous claims, characterized in that said base of the light source is provided radially on the outside with a fin housed, in use, in a radial recess in the collar, which extends to interrupt the continuity of the rear edge thereof.

12. Device according to claim 11, characterized in that said retaining means comprise at least three of said elastic members, formed as separate elements and fitted on the rear edge of the collar essentially at an equal distance from one another; said radial recess for housing said fin of the base being arranged on the collar in a position diametrically opposite one of said elastic members.

13. Device according to any one of the previous claims, characterized in that said collar is formed integrally with the reflector.

Drawing