Tailcap switch-focus flashlight

1 3 3 1 9 7 8 S P E C I F I C A T I O N TAILCAP SWITCEI-FOCU5 FLASHLIGHT ~: :

,',' E~ACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION ,,, " ~ The pre~ent invention relates primarily to fla~hlights, and in particular to a flashlight which can be conveniently held and operated by one hand. Flashlights of varying sizes, shapes and switch configuration ~are well-known~in the art. Most known flashlights utilize dry cell batteries as~their source of electrical energy.

Sometimes two or more such batteries are carried in ~ series within a tube serving as a handle for the flashlight. ;~ Typically, an electrical current is established from one electrode of the battery through a conductor to a switch, then through another conductor to another electrode of the lamp bulb.

After passing through the filament of the lamp bulb, the `~ electrical current emerges to a second electrode of the lamp bulb in electrical contact with a conductor, which in turn is in ~ ~ ;

electrical contact with the ~lashlight housing or another ~ conductor po~itioned wlthln and along the housing. ~he flash- ~` light housing usually provides àn electrical conducting path to ` ;

an electrical conductor, gqnerally a spring, in contact with the ~`~ other electrodQ o~ the battery series. Actuation of the switch to complete the electrlcal circuit enables the electrical current ~ to pa~s through the ilament, thereby generating light which is ~ ;

typically focused by a reflector to form a beam of light.

Variou~ flashlight designs~have addressed improvements to the optical characteristics of the flashlight. For example, certain de~igns incorporate highly reflective, well-defined , 1331978 ~ reflectors to enhance the quality of the light beam for a given battery configuration. Also, flashlights having a variable focus have been developed for various sizes of flashlights. The flashlight disclosed in my United States Patent Nos. 4,577,263 and 4,658,336 illustrate a miniature flashlight having such improved characteristics. In that flashlight, the switching mechanism is incorporated into the head and insulator assemblies such that rotation of the head assembly relative to the housing, or barrel, will cause the flashlight to switch on and off, and further rotation will cause the reflector to move with rei~pect to the bulb, thus varying the di persion of the reflected light beam.

In that ~lashlight, the head assembly also may be removed from ~ ~the barrel and utilized as a base into which the tailcap and ,:~ , djbarrel may be inserted in its on condition for use as a table lamp.

One of the disadvantages of certain flashlight~ whether they be "Full-sizod" flashlights or "miniature" flashlights is that these designs are such as to make the switching on and off and the focusing of thè beam awkward, if not impossible to accomplish with the hand that is holding the flashlight by lts barrel, or, handle. Because there exist9 a wide variety of uses for hand-held flashlights wherein the use would be facilitated by having a design 9uch that the flashlight could be held in one ~ hand, switched on and off and fooused with that same hand, it may ~ ;

be seen as a deficiency in thi3 art that heretofore no flashlight combining features to provide for such ease of operation has been developed. It is thereore desirable to prov1de a flashlight to be held in one hand and for which the switching and focusing '` operations may be performed with the hand holding the flashlight , ,, ~ and without requiring that hand to change its grip on the -` 1331978 ........

60724-1843 flashllght while swltching or focusing. It is also desirable in certaln clrcumstances to provide a flashlight having "one-hand" operation where a particular focus after having been ad~usted is ~ ~ ;

maintalned during the swltching operation. ~ SUMMARY~OF THE INVENTION It is an ob~ect of the present invention to provide a flashlight having a tailcap mechanism for ad~usting the beam of ;: ,- .:::

llght.

It is another ob~ect of the present invention to provlde a flashllght havlng an lmproved swltch located at the tailcap.

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It ls another ob~ect of the present inventlon to provlde ~a hand-held flashlight havlng a tailcap push button switch in combinatlon wlth a tallcap ad~usted ad~ustable beam. It ls another ob~ect of the present lnventlon to provlde a flashllght havlng an lmproved switch.

It i8 a ~urther ob~ect of the present inventlon to pro~ vlde a flashlight havlng lnterchangeabllity of parts, especlally . ,, , .:

the head cap such that varlou~ head cap design~ may be posltloned on the barrel assembly for speciflc purposes such as for example ~, to conduct medical examinations, to have an lncreased reflector surface areal and to provide for a fiber optlc cord.

It ls a further ob~ect of the present lnventlon to `~ provlde an improved push-hutton actuator.

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~ . ;' `' . '`'`' ! !' ~ ` -:`` 133~978 It i9 a further object of the present invention to provide an improved flashlight capable of producing a beam of light having a variable dispersion.

It is a further object of the present invention to ;

provide an improved flashlight which may be switched on and have its focus adjusted with the same hand without changing the grip of that hand on the flashlight barrel.

Still anotber object of the present invention is to provide an improved flashlight wherein a deslred focus may be ;~ maintained during actuation of the switch.

The flashlight according to~the present invention includes a barrel for containing one or more dry cell batteries ;~ disposed in a series arrangement. The flashlight has a head a~sembly which includes a face cap, a lamp or bulb holder assembly which further includes electrical conductor~ for ~aking electrical contact between electrodes of, preferably, a bi-pin lamp held therein and the barrel and a battery electrode, ` respectively. The barrel may lnclude a conductive cylindrical sleeve. The head assembly further includes a reflector and a lens. The flashlight includes a tail ass-mbly having a tailcap, an outer housing, an inner housing, an annular contact, a first plunger, a second plungor or push-button, a sprlng, an indexer and an indexee for proviting a switching or actuation function and a beam focusing function.

The head as~embly, in further detail, includes a face cap, lens, bi-pin lamp, reflector, upper insulator, lower insulator, upper insulator contact, a lower insulator contact, ;~ and O-rings for providing a sealing function. The face cap is~ . :,; .~ .

rotatably mounted onto the barrel such that the outer circumferenc- of the face cap i9, preferably, of the same diameter as ; . .' ;

~ ;,, '"" ` ~ 133~978 ~the outer diameter of the barrel. The head assembly i9 arranged within the barrel such that the upper and lower insulators together with the bi-pin lamp may be moved longitudinally within the barrel and face cap to change the relative position of the lamp to the reflector, thus providing a means to focus the beam from a spotlight to a floodlight condition. The lower insulator has a lower shoulder which on one side rests against a corres- -~ ponding shoulder on a groove portion of the barrel and on its other side has resting against it a positive contact. ~he upper insulator cooperates with the lower insulator and has an upper shoulder which on one side rests against a corresponding shoulder on a grooved portion of the barrel and on its other 3ide has ; :

positioned in it the lamp.

The tail assembly, in further detail, includes a tailcap, annular contact, outer housing, inner housing, pushbutton plunger, spring, indexer, indexee and first plunger. The flrst plunger, indexer, indexee, spring and push-button plunger are positioned withln the inner housing such that pushing the push button in a longitudinal direction will act against the spring, will cause rotation o~ the indexer which will in turn cause rotational movement of the indexee to in turn cause a lateral movement of the first plunger. The lateral movement of the first plunger will in turn cause lateral movement of the ' ' ' s, ' . ~ batteries and upper and lower insulators and lamp to either make ` `~ or break electrical contact between the lower electrode of the batteries and the annular contact at the tail end~ The outer houging i9 rotatably secured within the tailcap and further . .:,:

extends beyond the rear extremity of the tailcap. The rear ; extremity of the outer housing has knu~ling or channeling cut on ;~ its outer periphery for ease in rotating by hand.

Rotation of ~ : ' :" ' :

1331978 60724-1843 the outer houslng wlll cau~e the outer houslng, together with the lnner houslng, the batterles, the upper and lower lnsulators and the lamp to be moved longltudlnally ln relatlon to the facecap and reflector located in the head assembly of the flashllght.

Thls longltudial movement provldes for changlng the focus of the llght beam from a spotllght to a floodl~ght focus, or any variatlon in between.

The flashlight of the present deslgn may be slzed to ~ .

accommodate virtually any slzed dry cell battery.

For example, the flashlight of the present deslgn may have its barrel adapted to retain one or more "D", "C", "A", "AA", "AAA", "N", "AAAA" or :- ` speclal slze batterles.

It should be noted that all of the above- ;

slzed batteries are commonly available with the exceptlon of "speclal slzed" batterles and the "AAAA" batterles.

The "AAAA" battery is a battery whlch has heretofore been known to be a compo,~ :~ .

nent ln the conventlonal "9-volt" battery havlng "clip" contacts ~ . . , on lts upper end.

The convention~l "9-volt" battery of this design has within its outer casing six small batter~es of the "AAAA" size.

One preferred embodiment of the present lnvention is intended to include a flashllght wherein the barrel is adapted to re- ~;~ taln two "AAAA" batteries.

Prior to use in the flashli~ht of this : .~:: ., .:

design and the flashllght deslgn descrlbed ln Unlted States Patent No. 4,819,141, it ls believed that the "AAAA" battery has not been used except wlthin and as a component to the "9-volt" battery. ~:

Bi-pin lamps are known to those skilled in the art.

Although bl-pin lamps are intended for use in the preferred ~ ;

embodiments of the present lnvention, other conventional flashllght lamps, such as screw or bayonet based socket type lamps may also be used ln the pre~ent inventlon.

As is also : :~. :

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1331~78 known to those skilled in the art, the sizing and manufacturing specifications for flashlight lamps vary according to numerous factor~ such as the size of flashlight, the voltage and current characteristics of the source of electrical power, and the ~- ;

desired end characteristics such as intensity, desired length of battery life and the drainage rate on the battery.

It is ;

desirable that a flashlight lamp be designed to provide ~ approximately 5-6 hours of light from the batteries intended to be the power source. ;~ A flashlight of the present invention has a push-button i ~. and adjustable beam focusinq feature in the tail assembly which , enables a person to hold the fla3hlight in one hand, switch the flashlight on or off with the same hand and also adjust the beam with the same hand while maintaining the same grip on the flash~ light, thus providing a free hand to perform other unctions completely unrelated to manipulation of the flashlight. This combination of features of a flashlight is expected to be of great significance in many fields such as for example, the medical field, where a doctor can adjust the beam, and turn the flashlight on and off with one hand, while having ~he other hand ~ree to perform a medical examination and/or procedure.

Th~ flashllght of the pre~ent design is preferably of a I ;~ ~turdy, high-quality construction. Tbe materials o~ construction for conductive parts may be, typically, aluminum, copper, or other conductive materials having high strength and good electrical conductivity features. Typically the barrel, face cap and tail cap are made of aircraft grade, machined aluminum. The inner and outer housing, indexer, indexee, push button and first plunge~ may be made of plastic. In c~rtain embodlments the face cap, barrel and tail cap could also be made of plastic. The ,;, ~ 7 :

1331 978 ::

~0724-1843 contacts and pins are preferably made of highly conductive ` materials such as copper. Those portions of the flashlight which are insulators may be made of conventional insulator material such "~ as plastic, porcelain, or rubber materials.

Typically the upper and lower insulators and the first plunger are made of plastic.

The springs are made of conventional spring material~ having acceptable spring characteristics as well as acceptable electrical conductivity characteristics.

Various cavities placed in the tail assembly and head assembly contain conventional O-rlngs which are of an appropriate size to insure proper sealing of the battery -housing, head and tail assemblies.

According to a broad aspect of the invention there is `-provided a hand held flashlight comprising a barrel for retaining one or more dry cell batteries;

a head assembly on a first end of said barrel and including a ` ~faae aap, a lens and a reflector; `~ a lamp extending into said reflector, resiliently and axially movably mounted relative to said reflector and axially biased toward a second end of said barrel;

a tail aap on the seaond end of said barrel;

a focus member mounted in said tail cap to selectively move axially relative to said barrel~ a switah moùnted in said focus member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DR WING8 Figure 1 is a rear perspective of a first preferred embodiment flashlight o~ the present invention;

., ~ Figure 2 is a ~oreshortened, overall cross-sectional ~ ~ ~.

133197~ 60~2~ 18~3 view of the flashlight of Figure 1 taken along llne 2-2; . . --~ Figure 3 is a partial cross-sectional view of the tail . -assembly of Figure 2 taken along line 3-3;

Figure 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of the head ~.:

assembly of Figure 2 taken along line 4-4; ~- .

Figure 5 is an exploded view of the upper and lower ... insulators of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of Figure 2 taken ,~ along line 6-6; ~ Figure 7 is a rear perspective view of the reflector of ~ ~ ,. ,, , ~" ~..

Figure 4;

Figure 8 is a top plan view of the annular contact of Figure 3;

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" ~ ;.; ' '` ,'~'' :, ~: , '''''' ' ,"'''" `` 1331978 Figure 9 is a perspective view of the push-button of Figure 3; and Figure 10 is an exploded perspective view of the ~-~r~:

plunger, indexee, indexer and spring of Figure 3.

Figure 11 is a partial cros~-sectional view of the tail - assembly of a second preferred embodiment of the flashlight of the present invention; , ~:~ ,. :.~.- - ~ Figure 12 i~ a partial cross-sectional view of the tail . ~:

assembly of a third preferred embodiment of the flashlight of the ; present invention~ Figure 13 is a partial cross-seetional view of the tail asqembly of Figure 11 taken along line 13-13; .

Figure 14 is an exploded perspective view of the ratchet -.

housing, lock ring, ratchet pu.~her, detent, conical compression , . . ,, ~ ~ spring, index gear, transfer gear and holder of the third embodlment, shown in Figure 12;

Figure 15 is a perspective view of the tailcap button of Flgure 12; :

Figure 16 19 a perspective view o~ the special tailcap : section of Figure 12;

Figure 17 is a partial perspective view of the holder of ; :

Figure 12, showing internal teeth~ :

Figure 1~ Is a~rear perspective~of the second preferred ~ :

embodiment of the present invention;

; Figure 19! ig a rear perspective o~ the third preferred embodlment of the present invention, and :~ :

Flgure 20 18 a perspectlve view of a "AAAA" battery of `~ the pre~ent invention. .

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~-``` 1331978 . ~ ; ~ .~.. , 60724-1843 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT By reference to Figures 1-10, a flr t preferred embodiment ls . ,, -, ;

described.

The flrst preferred embodiment of the present lnventlon ls generally shown ln Figures 1-2.

The flashllght 1 comprlses -~ generally a right clrcular cyllnder, or barrel 2, enclosed at a ~ flrst end by a tall assembly 3 and enclosed at a second end by a s ,. .,, ~,: :.

head assembly 4.

The barrel, tall assembly and head assembly pre- ~;

ferably have the same maxlmum outer dlameter.

The lllustrated ~barrel 2 lnclude~ two dry cell batterles 5.

The dry cell batterles of the preferred embodiments are `~- of the "AAA" or "AAAA" slze, although the flashllght barrel may be adapted to retaln other battery slzes.

The "AAAA" slze battery 98 of the present lnventlon ls of conventlonal dry cell battery shape, as shown ln ~lgure 20, ;~ with a typical length from lower electrode 99 to upper electrode 100 of 1.62-1.65 inches, a typical length of the upper electrode i `~ extension beyond the casing of .04 lnches minimum, and a typlcal length of the lower electrode extenslon beyond the cRslng of .003 ~` lnches minlmum. The "AAAA" battery has a typlcal dlameter of about .305 to .325 lnches and i~ rated at 1.5 volt.

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The head assembly 4, as shown ln Flgures 2 and 4, lncludes face CRp 6, lens 7, parabolic reflector 8, bl-pln lamp 9, upper lnsulator 10 and lower lnsulator 11. O-rlng 1~ ls posltlon- ` ~` ed ln groove 13 formed by the forward edge of the face cap 6 and is held in place by the front of lens 7. O-rlng 14 is positloned ;~ in groove 15 formed in the barrel 2 and is held ln place at lts outer perlphery by the rear exten~lon of face cap 6, shown at 16. ;;~ ".,~ , ~ ,;, ~ '" ,~, 1 3 3 1 9 7 8 Referring to Figure 4, positive pin 17 extends rearward from the bi-pin lamp 9 through the upper insulator 10 and into the lower insulator 11 to make contact with positive contact 18, which in turn make~ contact with the forward battery electrode 19.

Ground pin 20 also extends rearward from the bi-pin lamp 9 ~through the upper insulator 13 and into the lower in3ulator 11 to ., make contact with ground contact 21, which in turn makes contact with the barrel 2 via conducting spring 22. The passageways 22a of the upper insulator 10 through which the pins 17 and 20 pass -~ taper outwardly toward the pin receiving end to facilitate entry of the pins therein. Further constructional details of the in~ulator~ and contacts are shown in Figure 5.

As may be seen from Figures 2 and 4, the force of the spring 22 maintains the relative position of the insulators, contacts and bi-pin lamp so as to form a conductive path.

When - ;

the batteries move forward relative to the barrel 2, as will be described in detail herelnafter, the sprlng 22 compresses, and the contacts, insulators and bi-pin lamp all mov- forward .

rqlative to the barrel 2, the face cap 6 and the parabolic reflector 8 without diarupting the conductive path described above. In thls way, the beam of light is focused from a eloodlight to a spotllght and vice versa, upon forward ar rearward movement of the batteries S relativ~to the barrel 2.

Flgurqs 2 and 4 illustrate by phantom lines a forward position of lamp 9 resulting from forward movement of the batterie~ Face cap 6 has inner threads 23, shown in Figure 4, for rotatably mounting onto the barrel 2 at ita outer threads 24.

During focusing of the beam from spotlight to floodlight and vice i versa, face cap 6 remains ~tationary. ~ During normal operation the face cap 6 remains fixed ln relation to the barrel 2.

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:~ As shown in greater detail in Figure 5, upper insulator 10 and lower insulator 11 each have a shoulder 46 and 47, ` respectively.

Shown in Figure 4, O-ring 14 fits snugly in groove 15 on -i the outer periphery of the barrel. The shoulder 48~ adjacent to groove 15, provides a rest for upper insulator shoulder 46.

Spring 22 is disposed between the shoulder 49 and the lower ::~ inqulator shoulder 47. Longitudinal movement of the batteries will cause corresponding longitud1nal movement of the assembled upper and lower insulators together with the inserted lamp 9 againot the force of coil spring 22. This movement is relative to the fixed reflector 8 and cause the dispersion of the light beam to vary from a floodlight to a spotlight focus. ~ Referring to Figure 3, tail a4sembly 3 comprises a tail ; ~ ;

cap 25, outer housing 26, inner hou~ing 27, annular contact 28, plunger 29, indexee 30, indexer 31, spring 39 and push button ~ , ` 32. As shown in Figure 3, the tail cap assembly is in the "on" position.

In tho on position, the rearward portion~o~ the rear ~ ;

battery 5 makes contact at 33 with annular contact 28 which extends radially outward to make contact at 34 with the barrel ~;

2. The ~orward edge of plunger 29 is recessed within the region defined by the edge of the crimped portion at 33 and the face ;`;~ portion, shown at 35 of annular contact 28. Annular contact 28 .

is shown in greater tetail in Figure 8. !~ , Tail cap 25 is positioned by rotating its outer threads 36 into the barrel inner threads 37, with O-ring 38 providing an ~-effective seal.

Outer housing 26 i9 rotatably posi~ioned within ~;;

tail cap 25 by tail cap inner threads 39 and outer housing outer ::: :,.: ::

;~ threads 40.

The outer housing 26 is m~ved relative to the tail ' ~ ~ '. '.'' ','",' ~',' 1331978 ~ ~ cap 25 and the barrel 2 by rotating the outer housing at its rearward projection, shown at knurled portion 41. Inner housing 27 is positioned inside the outer housing by outer threads 96 and outer housing inner threads 97 shown at the rearward portions of the housings. ~ As shown in Figures 3, 9 and 10, positioned within the inner housing are indexee 30, indexer 31, spring 39 and, puqh button 32. On the inside surface of inner housing 27 is a set of female hex splines.

On the forward outside surface of push -~ button 32 is a set of male hex splines 42 sized and arranged to :.. .: ,...

cooperate with the female splines on inner housing 27.

Push - ~. .:

~ button 32 ha~ a shoulder 43 against which spring 39 pushes to ,.. .

keep the push button in a normal, rearward extending;position.

Adjacent to the forward end of the spring 39 and within inner housing 27 i9 posltioned indexer 31. As shown in greater detail in Figure 10, indexer 31 is provided with a set of female hex spllnes 42a arran~ed to cooperate with the male splines 42 of the push button 32 upon longitudinal movement of the pu3h button. ~ :~ With each push o~ tho push button 32, the longitudinally and radlally atvanclng mal- spllnes cause the indexer 31 to rotate on~ lncrement. Indexee 30 has at lts rearwar end a sawtooth con~lguratlon Sl arranged to cooperate with a complimentary sawtooth configuration 52 on the forward end of indexer 31.

Indexeo 30 has at its forward end alternating relatively high surfaces at 44 and relatively low surfaces at 45 wlth a sloping portion therebetween at one side and a verticaI portion at the ,~ other side.

The rearward end o~ plunger 29 also has alternating ~relatively high surfaces, shown at 45 and relatively low sur~aces, shown at 44, with sloping and vertical portions there~ , between to form teeth. The~e plunger surfaces compliment the ~ ' 133~ ~78 corre~pondingly numbered surfaces on the forward end of indexee 30.

ThuR the relatively high surfaces 45 of the plunger corres- ;

pond to the relatively low surfaces 45 of the indexee. When the relatively high surfaces of the plunger and indexee 45, 44 respectively, are in contact with each other, then the forward edge of plunger 29 is in its extended position and the electrical contact at 33 is broken. When the relatively low surfaces 44 of the plunger are in contact with the relatively high surfaces 44 of the indexee, then plunger 29 is in its re~racted position, shown in Figure 3, and electrical contact between the batteries and annular contact 28 is made at 33.

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The surfaces of the teeth on the rear of the plunger 29 and forward end of indexee 30 are arranged so that each increment of rotation of indexer 31 alternatingly produces an extended and then a retracted position of plunger 29. The plunger 29 extend~ out to and remains at its fully extended position upon operation of the push button. Unlike corresponding plungers or pu3h button sw1tches of the type found in ball point pens and the like, no part of the plunger 29 or push button 32 extends beyond a refer~ ence plane durlng operatlon, where the reference plane is defined as the pIane at which the forward end of the forward plunger or push button touches at the completion of the switching operation.

The plunger 29 doea not rotate upon rotation of indexee 30. The length of movement of plunger 29 la the di~tance betwsen the peaks at 44 of indexee 30 and valleys at 45 of indexee 30 shown ln Figure lO. Such extens10n, or movement of plunger 29 from the position shown in Figure 3, w1ll in turn cause the ~ batteries, insulators lO, ll, and lamp 9 to move forward slightly, relative to the barrel 2, su~h that contact between the batter1es S and annular contact 28, shown at 33, is broken. Wher.

. ~.' " .. . :.' ..~ 331978 ~.

60724-1843 ~ the push button ls pushed agaln, the lndexee will return the ~ :

plunger 29 to its former position relative to barrel 2, contact wlll be made at 33 and the flashlight wlll turn on wlth the same ~ :~ focus as lt had when lt was last on, assumlng that outer housing 26 had not been rotated ln the lnterlm.

Durlng normal focusing of the beam and durlng swltchlng operatlons, tall cap 25 remalns ln ;5l ~' fixed relation to barrel 2. 8ealing the lnslde of the flashlight : at the tail end Is provlded by~0-rings located at 38, 46 and 47. :~ ~`~ An optlonal ground contact arrangement, not shown, for .

the upper and lower insulators of the head assembly may be used. ;~ In the flrst preferred embodlment, the ground contact 21 extends :

through the lower lnsulator 11, making contact with the ground pin 20 of the bl-pln lamp and extends down to a level ad~acent to the shoulder 47 of the lower lnsulator 11 and then extends ra~Ially outward along the shoulder of the lower Insulator ad~acent to the lnner surface of the barrel and makes contact wlth cail sprin~ 22.

In an optlonal construction, the ground contact may be constructed and arranged so that it rests in the upper and lower insulator ~.

ad~acent to the ground pin of the bl-pln lamp~ however, the ground ~;

"., ~ contact 18 made to extqnd in a forward dlrection toward the ; ~;

~orward edge of the upper ln8ulator 10 and then to extend radlally ~ outwardly along the shoulder 46 of the upper insulator to a posl~ ; tion ad~acent to the lnner surface of the barrel 2 and then to extend rearwardly, or downwardly toward the lnner shoulder 48 formed ad~acent groove 15, thus provldlng for an electrlcal con~ ~:~ tact between the ground contact and the barrel inward~of and near ~ `.

to groove 15. ..

Swltching and focu ing operation of the flashli~ht of the present inventlon will now be descrlbed in relatlon to the 5~ 55 ~' 5'`5'~ .

- - 133~978 fla hlight components shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4. In Figure 3, the flashlight is shown in an on configuration. As shown, the plunger 29 i~ in a retracted or recessed position such that its forward edge is beneath the plane defined by the crimped or forward portion at 33 of the annular contact 28.

In this on -coniguration, the bottom surface or electrode of the battery 5 touches the annular contact at 33 and provides for completion of the electrical circuit. The electrical circuit is, beginning at 33, through the batteries up through the positive electrode 13 of the upper battery, through the positive contact 18 to the posi~ tive pin 17 of the bi-pin lamp, through the bi-pin lamp filament, returning from the bi-pin lamp filament through ground pin 20, and ground contact 21 to coil spring 22, from coil spring 22 to the upper portion of the barrel 2 and then from the upper portion . ., ~ of the barrel 2 through the barrel wall down through the outer portions of annular contact 28 at 34, and finally through annular contact 28 to lts upper crlmped reglon at 33 to complete the;`~ . ~:

clrcuit wlth the lower electrode of the batteries.

I a barrel made of a insulatlng materlal, such as ~ plastic, is desired, then a strip of conductlve material, or an inner cylinder of conductive material may be positioned Inside of , ; ;

the barrel to provide a conductive path from ground contact 21 down to the; annular contact 28. Also, a conventlonal lamp havlng : : , .,:

a screw or socket base may be used, with appropriate modlfication in the insulator assembly to provide for holding the bulb and for creating and maintaining a conductive path.

Focusing of the beam i9 accompllshed by rotatlon of the .:: ,~:

outer housing 26. As may be seen in Figures 1-2, the outer housing has projectlon or extension 41`rearward of the tailcap ., ~ :

and this extension has a knurling or channeling feature.

; ''~' ' ' 1331978 ~ ~ 60724-1843 -;

Rotation of the outer houslng at the rearward extenslon causes longltudlnal movement of the outer houslng at threads 39 and 40.

Longltudinal movement of the outer houslng also necessarily causes ; longltudlnal movement of all of the parts contalned thereln, i.e., the inner housing, the indexer, the lndexee, the plunger and the spring.

Also, such movement of the outer houslng causes a sllght ~ longltudlnal movement of the annular contact wlthln the barrel.

Operatlon of the push button swltch wlll also cause a ;

longltudlnal movement of the batterles, the upper and lower in~u- ~;~ lators and the lamp relative to the barrel. However, lt should be readlly apparent that upon return of the flashllght to the "on" conditlon, the posltlon of the batterles, the upper and lower lnsulators, and the lamp 1~ the same posltlon that exlsted prlor to swltchlng the flashlight to an "off" posltlon, assumlng that the outer houslng had not been rotated when the fla~hllght was ln the "off" position.

By re~erence to Figures ll, 13 and 18 a second preferred embodiment wlll be descrlbed. In the second preferred embodiment, a tflil assembl~ somewhflt dlfferent ln structure from the one shown in, e.~.

Flgure 3, ls employed. In the second preferred embodl~ ment, the tailcap is ~ashloned from two complimentary parts, l.e., `~ tailcap end 25a and tailcap connector 501 shown ln Flgure ll.

The -` end 25a and connector 50 snap fit together at the forward extenslon 53 o~ tflilcap end 25a and mid-recess 55 of connector 50, as shown in Figure ll. Tallcap end 25a has a female octagon shape on lts lnner radlus extending from the rearward end to a predetermlned dlstance R toward the forward extenslon 53. The outer houslng 41 ls made to be of male octagon shape at lts rearward end and for i~ the same predetermlned length P ~ ;

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17 :~, ,.

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` ~331~78 ~ as regarding the female octagon shape of tailcap end 25a. The octagon portion of tailcap end 25a and outer housing 41 thus cooperate with each other 50 that rotation of the tailcap end 25a, which may have knurling or channeling, will cause corresponding rotation of outer housing 41, and longitudinal movement ;

of the bulb relative to the reflector as discussed in relation to ~ the first preferred embodiment. The operation~of the push button 32 and corresponding switching components operate in the same way a~ described with respect to the first preferred embodiment.

The ~;

octagon hape and cooperative arrangement of tailcap end 25a with outer housing~ 41, together with inner hou~ing 27 and push button 32 are shown in Figures 13 and 18.

3y reference to Figures 12, 14-17 and 19, a third ~-~ preferred embodiment will be described.

- The third preferred embodiment features an alternate -~ tail assembly structure comprising a ratchet housing 54, lock - ~ rlng 55, ratchet pusher 56, detent 57, conical compression spring 58, index gear 59, transfer gear 60, holder 61, special tailcap `;

section 62 and tailcap button 63 as shown in Figures 14-16 Th~ third preferred embodiment is assembled by first ~ittlng together ratchet housing 54, ratchet pusher 56, detent 57, conical compression spring 58, index gear 59, transfer gear 60 and holder 61 to form a first subassembly. Then lock ring 55 is snapped onto ratchet housing 54 at grove 94, shown in Figure 14, to form a second subassembly. Next, the second subassembly is scr~ewed into speclal tailcap section 62 at inner threads 92 of special tailcap section 62 and at outer threads 65 of ratchet housing 54 to form a third subassembly. Next, tallcap button 63 is snapped into the third subassembly ànd over tang~ 93 so that , ~ the tangs 93 of lock ring 55 snap into the slot3 95 of tailcap , `~ ~ , ' ) g, ' `,':

~.~ 33~78 button 63 to form an assembled third preferred embodiment tailcap assembly. The assembly may then be screwed into the barrel at i~ threads 91 shown in Figure 16 and at barrel threads 37 shown in i Figures 3 and 12.

,~ By reeerence to Figures 14-17, the switching and focusing operation of a third preferred embodiment will be described. Fir~t, the switching operation from an on to an off condition will be described. Pushing tailcap button 63 causes longitudinal movement of transfer gear 60 and index gear S9 along slot 82, which in Figure 17 shows the internal teeth configura- ~ tion of holder 61.

This longitudinal direction of movement is ~ al~o shown as the direction of~ arrow 83 in F~gure 17. 3y this motion, index gear 59 i~ lifted along and inside of the hoIder 61.

The guide tangs 78 on transfer gear 60 and the guide tangs ~76 on index qear 59 extend radialy outward of the main cylindrical bodies Oe transfer gear 60 and index~gear S9 respectively, as shown in Figure 14. These radially outwardly extending tangs Z; 78 and 76 slide in slot 82, located on the inner surface of .

holder 61.

As shown in more detall ln Flgure 17, the inner surface of hold~r 61 has formed on it a series of slots 82 and teeth 89 and 90, wlth peaks 84 and 87 as well as slanted, or lnclined teeth surfaces 85 and 88 respectively. As will be ~j~ further de~crlbed, the switchlng operatlon of the third preferred embodiment lnvolves longltudlnal and radlal ~ovement of tangs 76.

Thls movement is upward along the slots 82 in the directlon of arrow 83, then downward and radially along surfaces 85, then longltudlnally along the vertical surface~ 86 of teeth 90 in the ~;

directlon of arrow 83, and then downward and radially along ;, :

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331978 , slanted surfaces 88 of teeth 90 to produce longitudinal to radial to longitudinal indexing of the pusher 67 to open or close the electrical circuit of the flashlight.

Upon pushing tailcap button 63, the movement of tangs 76 at first is solely a longitudinal movement in the direction of ~' arrow 83 and against the force of conical compression spring 58, shown in Figure 14. AS also may be seen in Figure 14, this initial longitudinal movement is also along the shaft 71 of ,~ ratchet pusher 56. ~ "' , Upon continued pushing of tailcap button 63, the tangs ', 76 continue to move in the~direction of arrow 83 until tangs 76 clear peaks 84 of index position teeth 89, shown in Pigure 17. '~ At that time, the force of conical compression spring 58 in con- ~,'''` , junction with the~inclined surfaces 85 of the teeth 89 cause the ,,:

index gear 59 to slip down along inclined surfaces 85 in "~ longitudinal motion and also simultaneously causing index gear 59 to rotate as it slips downwardly along inclined surfaces 85.

As ,~ may be noted from Figure 14, ratchet pusher 56 also rotates upon the rotation of index gear 59 because male hex surfaces on shaft ,~ 71 of the ratchet pusher 56 cooperate with female hex surfaces 75 of lndex gear S9.

Thus, whenever there i~ rotation of index gear '~ 59, there ls correspondlng rotatlon of ratchet pusher 56 in the ' ~ ' direction of arrow 68.

Upon rotation of ratchet pusher 56, the tips 70 of teeth '~ 69 are moved frqm the valleys 73 of detent,57 to relatlvely higher surSaces 72 of detent 57. This movement of teèth 69 from ~ ~.

the valley 73 to the surfaces 72 in turn causes longitudinal ,~ movement of ratchet pusher 56 in the direction of arrow 83. The longitudinal mo,vemen~ of ratcher pu~h~r 56 pushes its end 67 ,~ ~,! ~ through the hoIe 64 in the ratchet housing 54.

Movement of the~ `: , ' ., ,' i.i, ~ ,~/ ~ ' ' ' ''. ' ' ~1 ~ .

,, ~ , i331978 j 60724-1843 3 end 67 of ratchet pusher 56 then pushes the batterles toward the ~¦ head assembly and breaks the contact wlth the rear battery elec- :

~3~ trode at 33, shown for example, ln Flgure 3.

Aq may be observed, : when the flashllght ls ln the "off" positlon, then the tips 70 of teeth 69 are restlng on the relatlvely hlgher surfaces 72 of -~ detent 57. ~ ~ Next, the swltchlng operatlon-from an "off" posltlon to ~:

~' . - , ~ ~:~ an "on" posltlon will be descrlbed ln reference to Flgure~ 14-17.

::~ Wlth the flashllght ln an "off" posltlon and the tlps 70 of teet.h 69 restlng on relatlvely hlgher surfaces 72 of detent 57, the tallcap button is pushed, causlng longltudlnal movement of trans~ fer gear 60 and lndex gear S9 to move longltudlnally only, that ls - :

.{,~ wlthout any rotatlonal movement, along the sldes 86 of teeth 90 ~ untll the tangs 76 of lndex gear 59 reach the peaks 87 of the ~` teeth 90. When the tangs 76 of Index gear 59 reach the peaks 87, then conlcal compresslon spring 58 ~orces lndex gear 59 longltudl~ . nally downward along lncllned surfaces 88, as shown ln Flgure 17. ~;

This longltudinally downward motion along the lnclined surfaces 88 ,~ also causes rotation o~ index gear 59 as it travels along the ~t 20 slanted sur~aces 88. As described before, rotatlon of index gear 59 causes rotatlon o~ ratchet pusher 56 because the male hex sur~ .l ~aces 71 on ratchet pusher 56 cooperative wlth female hex surfaces .~¦~ 75 in lndex gear 59.

As ratchet pusher 56 is rota~ed, then the ~ tips 70 o~ teeth 69 are moved along the relatively higher surfaces ~ 72 of detent 57 untll they reach the sloplng surfaces of valleys ;~ ~ 73.

When the tips 70 of the teeth 69 reach ~he sloplng surfaces .~ then the ratchet pusher 56, lncluding lts end 67 move longltudl~ nally opposlte the dlrectlon of arrow 83.

Thls movement of the ~;

end 67 causes the batterles to be moved rearwardly by the force of ~ 30 sprlng 22 ln the head assembly, shown ln ``~i ~ 21 ...

Z ~ - " ~ 1331978 Figure 4 and makes the electrical contact between the rear electrode of the rear battery 5 and the annular contact 28 at 33, .. ..

shown in Figure 3, thus closing the circuit and switching the ~flashlight on. --t~ The sloping ~urfaces 85 and 88 are chosen to be of an angle and of a length so that each complete index cycle will ~ result in a 45 rotation of those parts which rotate.

As the tang~ 76 reach the end o~ the inclined surfaces 88 the concial ; compression spring 58 continues to exert force on index gear 59 and causes it to then continue moving longitudinally into slots Y 82, as shown In Figure 17.

The ratchet puqher 56 serves as a driver between ratchet housing 54 and tailcap button 63 so that when tailcap button 63 ~is rotated by hand to adjust the beam of the flashlight as described above in regard to other preferred embodiments, then I lock ring 55 cauqes ratchet housing 5q to also rotate.

This ¦ rotational movement of the ratchet housing 54 at outer ratchet . . .

I housing threads 65 coupled to corresponding inner threads 92 of 1 . ~. .

¦ special tailcap section 62 will then result in a longitudinal j movement of the entlre inner tailcap assembly comprising the ~-~ ratchot housing 54, lock ring 55, ratchet pusher 56, detent 57, ~ ;

~; conlcal compre~sion spring 58, index gear 59, trans~er gear 60 and holder 61. The longitudinal movement of this assembly then causes corresponding longitudinal movement of the batteries ;~ against the force of spring 22 and correspondingly causes longitudinal movement of the bulb 9 relative~to~the reflector 8 to ~ focus, or ad~ust, the beam a~ previously described with respect ;~ to the other preferred embodiment~ Tangs 79 on holder 61 coopera~e with slots 74 on detent ~; 57 so that rotation of tailcap button 63 will provide for ':; ~ ',''''.'.''', '~. ' ~' ''.''. "` ~ ~. . ~. .

:;~ ' '"''",'.,'''''.' 1331978 rotation without longitudinal movement of the ratchet and gear components. In this way, focusing may be accomplished without inadvertant switching of the flashlight from on to off or vice versa.

Holder 61 is anchored by virtue of it~ being screwed at its outer threads 80 along inner threads 81 of the rearward portion of r~atchet housing 54. In order to prevent detent 57 from rotating with rotational movement of ratchet pu~her 56 when ~ the teeth 69 are rotated into the valleys 73 of detent 57, tangs i~ ~ : , , ,;

~ 1 79 of holder 61 mate with slots 74 of detent 57.

~:: .: .-` As shown Figures 12, 15 and 19, the third embodiment - - ;

tailcap button 63 i~ a singl~e constructional element which serves ::r,~ i~ to initiate both the switching function as well as the beam adjustment, or focus function.

As may be seen from`the above description, the present ¦~ invention provides for a flashlight that can be beld in one hand, 1 switched on and off and focused with the same hand without :1 ,.

changlng the grip of the holdlng hand, thus freeing the other hand for other activitles.

It is contemplated that numerous modifications may be made to the fla~hlight3 and actuators of the preferred embodimentg shown in the drawings and described above without departing from the spirit of the invention.

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