Lamp socket

• US 4,373,771 A
• Filed: 11/10/1980
• Issued: 02/15/1983
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/1980
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Original Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Inventors: Cross, William E., Plyler, Robert G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Abercrombie, Willie G.
• Application Number:
  US06/205,718
• Time in Patent Office: 827 Days
• Field of Search: 339/17 D, 339/127 R, 339/125 L, 339/128, 339/176 L, 339/188 R
• US Class Current: 439/332
• CPC Class Codes: H02B 1/044 Mounting through openings

Abstract

A lamp socket that is insertable into a generally circular opening in a mounting panel and having a pair of radially outwardly extending access slots for portions of the lamp socket, characterized in that the lamp socket includes a flexible locking tab that moves into one of the access slots to lock the lamp socket to the mounting panel after the lamp socket is rotated a limited distance about the longitudinal center axis of the lamp socket.

Claims

1. A lamp socket assembly adapted to be inserted into a socket opening formed in a mounting panel, said socket opening being generally circular in configuration and formed with a pair of diametrically opposed access slots;

a lamp socket adapted to receive a light bulb and having a body portion integrally formed with a collar located in a plane which is perpendicular to the longitudinal center axis of said body portion, said collar having an outer diameter larger than the inner diameter of said socket opening;

a pair of retainer members projecting outwardly from said collar and adapted to be inserted into said pair of access slots, each of said retainer members including a ramp portion;

a curved cantilevered beam formed integrally with and extending directly from said collar and being located in said plane thereof, said cantilevered beam having a raised locking tab projecting outwardly from the free end of said cantilevered beam, said locking tab being located along an axis parallel to said longitudinal center axis of said body portion whereby insertion of said pair of retainer members into said pair of access slots followed by rotation of said lamp socket in one direction causes said ramp portion to engage a portion of said mounting panel for positioning said portion of said mounting panel between said ramp portion and said collar to thereby hold said lamp socket to said mounting panel from movement along said longitudinal center axis of said body portion while simultaneously causing said cantilevered beam to initially flex about an axis which is perpendicular to and extends towards said longitudinal center axis of said body portion and then move said locking tab into one of said access slots to limit rotational movement of said lamp socket relative to said mounting panel; and

a tongue formed with said free end of said cantilevered beam for manually flexing said cantilevered beam about said perpendicular axis for removing said locking tab from said one of said access slots so that rotation of said lamp socket in a direction opposite to said one direction allows said lamp socket to be removed from said socket opening.