US2855497A - Combination lamp and fire extinguisher - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 7, 1958 F. D. BACON comsmmon LAMP AND FIRE EXTINGUISHER 2; Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 22, 1957 INVENTOR. FRANCIS DALE BACON Oct. 7-, 1958 F. D; BACON COMBINATION LAMP ANDFIRE EXTINGUISHER ciied March 22, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 CD N INVENTOR. FRANCIS DALE BACON I BY 5 I 4770mm United States Patent 2,855,497 CDMBINATIONLAMP'FIREEXTZINGUISHER Francis Dale.Bacon, .Westbury, N. Y. Appl cafion March-zz,,1957, Serial No. 647,828;

'1 his:. invention relates: to: aJcombin-atiorrlamp: and fire extinguisher. More: particularly; the. invention: has reference:to alamp, which could? be eitherra flashlight. or:

electric? lantern, combined with a fire:extinguisher..

In many instances, personsi occupied? inzduties; involv ingithe. use of. lamps, flashlights,.etc;,. are often required to.-extinguish small fires-encountered during thexperformance of. their. duties.v For. example; a: night. watchman generallyr carries alamp or flashlight; andin makinghis rounds;.may discover a'smallifirc; In such; an? instance, valuable" timeis lost while arrordinary fire: extinguisher is being obtained.

Apartfrom the above,- a deviceof the type described aboveemaybe used. to advantage by.- railroad workers who. may discover. a fire in a piece of railway equipment whileamakingtheir rounds'checkingsaid equipment. Still further, the ordinary householder has use for; such a device,.since. asmall fire extinguisher is a.highly desirable articlefor maintenancein the home, the same being true ofa flashlight.

Themainobject of the present invention, accordingly,

is..to provide a combination device of the character stated which can be used as a flashlight, and can also-beused as a fire extinguisher. It is proposed, in this regard, that a coactive. relationship be provided between the. flashlight or lamp and the extinguisher. To this end, the nozzle of; thefire extinguisherv is so located as to direct the.

extinguishingfluid towarda point which will, at the same time,.be. illuminated by the beams of the flashlight or lamp.

- Another objectis to form the device ina manner such that-itsv overall size will: be-little' or. no greater than that for an ordinary flashlight or lamp.

Yetanother object is to design the article in a mannersuch that'the flashlight switch, and also the valve handle of the. fireextinguisher, willboth'be conveniently located to permit use. of: either'instantaneously and with. minimum difliculty.

Yet-another object is to provide a combination device as stated. that Willbe capable of manufacture atlow cost, willfacilitate replacement of the flashlight bulb and batteries, and will also facilitate recharging. of the container for the. extinguishing, fluid.

For further comprehension of the invention, and of. theobjects and advantages thereof, reference will beshad.

to.-the:following description and accompanying. drawings, and to the appended claims in which the various novel features-of the invention arernore particularly set forth.

. In the accompanying drawings forming a materialpart of. this disclosure:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a combination flashe light and; fire extinguisher according tothe present invention.

. Fig-. 2 is atopplan view thereof.

Fig,;.3 is a. longitudinalsectional.view substantially. on

1ine.33 of, Fig, 2.

Fig; 4' -is-an endtelevational view of the device aszseen jlQm-itheleft of Fig. 1.

2,855,497 Patented Oct. 7, 1958 "ice Fig. 5 is an enlarged, detail sectional-view on'line 5 5 of. Fig. 3 showing one of the electrical connections of the flashlight;

Fig; dis a detaillsectionalview, onanenlarged scale,

takenon the same cutting plane asiFig. 3, showing an-- otherv of theelectrical. connections;

In Figs. 1-6, the device 10 constituting the present invention includes anielongated casing: having a cylindrical rear portion 12 closediat its rear endiby a threaded cap 14, and. formed at its front end with a flared part 16 receiving the rear end portion of a: container 18 for extinguisher fluid' having. a: diameter larger 'thanthat of the casing portion 12 Container. 18 has arearr'endlwall 20, and a front end wall 22 centrally. formednwith a depression 24. Formedupon. container. 18' is a. forwardly. projecting circumferential flange receiving, and'. brazed or" otherwise fixedly securedto, theflaredtrear'end'iof a. head portion 26 0f the casing; Head: portion 26 is formed open and is threaded at its front end; to receive the threaded skirt of an. annular cap 281 which extends: about a lens 30 closing the flared forward end of a circumferentially lipped reflector 32 formed at its smaller. end with acylindricalbulb holder. 34. Thellip of the reflector is clamped between' lens .305 and the front end edge of the headportion 26', this arrangement being, per se, conventional in flashlight construction.

Seated in" the. rear end-i cap= 14"is a. spiral spring 36 heldiunder compression between" cap 14 and'the rearend of a :battery. 38ithe center post-of whicliis engaged'against the.v casing of a forward battery38} The batteries are conventional flashlight batteries, and asusual are en'-- closed in a cylindrical battery holder 40 of fiber. or other electrically insulative material.

Since the. container 18'. is disposed betweenthe. bulb andthe flashlight batteries, andsince it' is desirable to include a switch arrangement forcontrolling illumination:

of the bulb, there is provided (see: Figs; .3 and '5) an endlessring 42'- of electrically "insulative:material, extending.

about and. cemented. or otherwise. secured to the bulb holder'34; An L-shapedcontactstrip44 of springable, electrically conductive material has one: leg secured. to.

the: outer surface: of the": ring 42," and soldered orotherwisetfixedly attached to .this l'egJ-is one end-0f an'insulated lead 46. The other leg? of. the strip' 44 extends across and is spaced from the reariendi of the holder 34, in position"to.engage'thezcenterterminal.of a lamp bulb 47 engaged in the holder.

The lead 46: extends along the outer surface of" the container 18, as shown till Fig; 3; within a nozzlecover to: At its other end, lead 46 is.

be" described hereinafter; fixedly secured to. arcontactstrip 48 cemented to an insulating piece 50. which in turn'is securedto a lateral extensionzprovidedupon: one end of an elongated slidespacer: 60-is an'electricallyaconductive. bridging. strip 62 having a tenninal-64rconstantly engaged against the center post ofnthe forwardbattery;

When switch button: 54 is" shiftedforwardly from its Fig.6. position, the contact strip 48" is engaged. against strip; 62; Asaresultgacircuitiwill be-closed from the center post of the forward battery, through strip 62, contact 48; lead46, the. center terminal of bulb 47, the conductive side wall of the base of the bulb, reflector 32, the casing of the device (which casing is of electrically conductive material), spring 36, and through the batteries back to the terminal-:64. I i

Y 'The nozzle-cover'hasb'eendesignatedfat 66, and'as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 includes outwardly extending longitudinal flanges 67 brazed or otherwise fixedlyhecured to the outer surface of the casing. The nozzle cover is formed open at its front end, and fixedly engaged in the front end of the nozzle cover is anozzle68, so shaped as to cause the ejection of a high pressure stream of extinguishing fluid. The extinguishing fluid can be of extinguishing purposes.

Connected in communication with nozzle 68 is an elongated tube 70, extending within cover 66 and connected at its rear end in communication with a radial passage formed in the exteriorly projecting portion of the valve housing 58 (see Fig. 3). The branch passage is 'in communication with one end of an axial passage 72 in which is loosely fitted a plunger 74 extending into a counterbore of the passage 72, which counterbore is closed by a threaded plug 78. Acompression spring 76 is engaged between plug 78 and a head formed upon plunger '74, and opening into the counterbore below the head is a branch'passage connected to an inlet tube 80, the outer end of which is beveled and is disposed close to the bottom of the casing as best shown in Fig. 3. O-rings 82, 84 are circumposed about the plunger to prevent leakage of fluid thereabout.

The container 18 may be filled with a suitable quantity of fluid, after which the container is charged with a suitable propellant. The container is filled through a filler opening formed centrally in a threaded boss mounted in a center opening of depression 24, with a plug 85 normally closing said threaded opening.

So far as the propellant is concerned, this can be ordi nary compressed air, and the outer end of nozzle 68 can be so shaped as to receive one end of an air supply hose, such as is normally provided on air tanks that are conventional equipment in automobile service stations. Thus, the air can be forced into the container through the nozzle, with the plunger 74 held in compressed position, by

depression of a channeled handle 86 pivotally mounted at 88 upon the rear portion of cover 66 and normally held in its inoperative, upper position by a lock pin 90. Lock pin 96 may be a conventional cotter key, which as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, can be pulled out through the medium of a ring 92 connected thereto. i

In any event, assuming that the container 18 has been suitably charged with extinguishing fluid and with a propellant, the escape of the fluid will be normally prevented, the parts at this time being in their Fig. 3 position. However, when it is desired to discharge the extinguishing fluid, one pulls the lock pin. Then, handle 86 is depressed to lower the plunger 74. The head of the plunger, to which the O-ring 82 is cemented or otherwise fixedly secured, moves downwardly in the counterbore, below the inlet branch passage. The fluid now moves through tube 80, and passes about the plunger within the axial bore 72. The fluid then travels through the outlet branch passage and tube 70 for discharge through nozzle 68.

A characteristic of the device resides in the fact that the extinguisher fluid is discharged in a path such as to travel toward a point illuminated by the light beams of the flashlight or lamp. The device can thus be trained upon the trouble spot, while the fire extinguisher is in operation, with full illumination of the area in which the fire has occurred. This is of importance in view of the fact that many fires, in their earliest stages, show no signs of the flame, but show only smoke. Hence, the arrangement wherein the illumination of the trouble area:

occurs while extinguishing fluid is discharged against said area, is of considerable value. p 7 4 v The invention may have other embodiments, but in every instance there is the common, basic characteristic wherein a flashlight or lamp is used in combination with a fire extinguisher, in a single, compact casing so designed as to provide ready access to both of these component assemblies.

It is to be understood that in the fire extinguisher, any suitable fluid, dry chemical powder, inert gas or other fire extinguishing media may be used.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise construction herein disclosed and that various changes and modifications may be made Within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new, and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent is:

l. A combination electric lamp and fire extinguisher comprising a casing, a lamp assembly therein including a bulb, battery means, and a switch all in circuit, said switch controlling closing of the circuit; and a fire extinguisher assembly in the casing, between the bulb and battery means, including a container for an extinguisher fluid, nozzle means extending from said container, and valve means for controlling the flow of fluid from the container to the nozzle means, the nozzle means and bulb being arranged to effect discharge of the fluid along a path illuminated by the bulb, said bulb being disposed forwardly of the nozzle.

2. A combination electric lamp and fire extinguisher comprising a casing, a lamp assembly therein including a bulb, battery means, and a switch all in circuit, said switch controlling closing of the circuit; and a fire extinguisher assembly in the casing including a container intermediate portion carrying the container, and a front portion in which the bulb is mounted.

3. A combination electric lamp and fire extinguisher comprising a casing, a lamp assembly therein including a bulb, battery means, and a switch all in circuit," said switch controlling closing of the circuit; and a fire extinguisher assembly in the casing including a container; for an extinguisher fluid, nozzle means extending from said container, and valve means for controlling the flow of fluid from the container to the nozzle means, said casing being of elongated formation and including a rear end portion adapted to contain the battery means, an intermediate portion carrying the container, and a front portion in which the bulb is mounted, the nozzle means including a cover disposed exteriorly of and fixedly secured to the casing, and a nozzle engaged in said cover, said lamp assembly further including a connecting lead electrically connected at one end to the lamp terminal, said lead' extending through the nozzle cover to the switch.

4. A combination electric lamp and fire extinguisher comprising a casing, a lamp assembly therein including a bulb, battery means, and a switch all in circuit, said switch controlling closing of the circuit; and a fire extinguisher assembly in the casing including a container for an extinguisher fluid, nozzle means extending from said container, and valve means for controlling the flow of fluid from the container to the nozzle means, said casing being of elongated formation and including a rear end portion adapted to contain the battery means, an

intermediate portion carrying the container, and a front portion in which the bulb is mounted, the nozzle means including a cover disposed exteriorly of and fixedly secured to the casing, and a nozzle engaged in said cover,

said lamp assemblyfurther including a connecting lead electrically connected at one end to the lamp terminal, said lead extending through the nozzle cover to the switch,-

said switch including a slide movably mounted on the casing, and a contact carried by said slide to which the lead is electrically connected.

5. A combination electric lamp and fire extinguisher comprising a casing, a lamp assembly therein including a bulb, battery means, and a switch all in circuit, said switch controlling closing of the circuit; and a fire extinguisher assembly in the casing including a container for an extinguisher fluid, nozzle means extending from said container, and valve means for controlling the flow of fluid from the container to the nozzle means, said casing being of elongated formation and including a rear end portion adapted to contain the battery means, an intermediate portion carrying the container, and a front portion in which the bulb is mounted, the nozzle means including a cover disposed exteriorly of and fixedly secured to the casing, and a nozzle engaged in said cover, said lamp assembly further including a connecting lead electrically connected at one end to the lamp terminal, said lead extending through the nozzle cover to the switch, said switch including a slide movably mounted on the casing, and a contact carried by said slide to which the lead is electrically connected, the valve means including a valve casing, said lamp assembly further including a bridging contact mounted upon the valve casing in engagement with the battery means, said bridging contact being exposed for engagement by the contact of the slide on operation of the switch in one direction.

6. A combination electric lamp and fire extinguisher comprising a casing, a lamp assembly therein including a bulb, battery means, and a switch all in circuit, said switch controlling closing of the circuit; and a fire extinguisher assembly in the casing including a container for an extinguisher fluid, nozzle means extending from said container, and valve means for controlling the flow of fluid from the container to the nozzle means, said valve means including a valve casing, a plunger stem axially shiftable within the valve casing and formed with a valve at one end thereof, the valve casing being in communication with the container, the nozzle means further including a nozzle and a nozzle cover in which the nozzle is seated, said valve casing being connected in communication with the nozzle with the plunger stem being normally disposed to prevent passage of fluid through the valve casing between the container and nozzle.

7. A combination electric lamp and fire extinguisher comprising a casing, a lamp assembly therein including a bulb, battery means, and a switch all in circuit, said switch controlling closing of the circuit; and a fire extinguisher assembly in the casing including a container for an extinguisher fluid, nozzle means extending from said container, and valve means for controlling the flow of fluid from the container to the nozzle means, said valve means including a valve casing, a plunger stem axially shiftable within the valve casing and formed with a valve at one end thereof, the valve casing being in communication with the container, the nozzle means further including a nozzle and a nozzle cover in which the nozzle is seated, said valve casing being connected in communication with the nozzle with the plunger stem being normally disposed to prevent passage of fluid through the valve casing between the container and nozzle, the connection between the valve casing and the nozzle comprising a tube extending longitudinally of and within the nozzle cover.

8. A combination electric lamp and fire extinguisher comprising a casing, a lamp assembly therein including a bulb, battery means, and a switch all in circuit, said switch controlling closing of the circuit; and a fire extinguisher assembly in the casing including a container for an extinguisher fluid, nozzle means extending from said container, and valve means for controlling the flow of fluid from the container to the nozzle means, said valve means including a valve casing, a plunger stern axially shiftable within the valve casing and formed with a valve at one end thereof, the valve casing being in communication with the container, the nozzle means further including a nozzle and a nozzle cover in which the nozzle is seated, said valve casing being connected in communication with the nozzle with the plunger stem being normally disposed to prevent passage of fluid through the valve casing between the container and nozzle, the connection between the valve casing and the nozzle comprising a tube extending longitudinally of and within the nozzle cover, said plunger stem being under spring bias eflective to normally dispose the same in position to prevent said communication between the container and nozzle,

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,466,677 Sundh Sept. 4, 1923

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