Electronic adornment for simulating natural flickering light

• US 4,777,408 A
• Filed: 06/23/1986
• Issued: 10/11/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 06/23/1986
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Frederick P. Deluca
• Original Assignee: Frederick P. Deluca
• Inventors: DeLuca, Frederick P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Moore, David K.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Salindong, Theodore
• Application Number:
  US06/877,333
• Time in Patent Office: 841 Days
• Field of Search: 368/83, 368/201, 362/103, 362/104, 362/800, 362/806, 340/33, 315/158
• US Class Current: 315/158
• CPC Class Codes: A44C 15/0015 Illuminated or sound-producing jewellery
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 41/44 for providing special optical effects, e.g. progressive motion of light
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 362/806 Ornamental or decorative

Abstract

An electronic adornment for clothing, jewelry and the like includes an electrically operated light emitter and an electrical circuit operative to intermittently actuate the light emitter to closely simulate natural flickering light from faceted gemstones. The electrical circuit includes independent controls for pulse frequency and pulse width.

Claims

1. A light-emitting electronic adornment, comprising, a base item of personal adornment adapted to be worn by a person.

an electronically operated plurality of light-emission means on said base item,

a counting means and a plurality of switching means electrically interposed between said counting means and said plurality of light emission means,

an electrical circuit including source means for applying an electrical potential across said light-emission means thereby to emit light therefrom,

frequency control means electrically connected in said circuit and operative to produce output pulses of controlled frequency,

pulse width means electrically connected in said circuit and operative to produce output pulses of controlled width independent of said frequency control means,

said light-emission means being electrically connected in said circuit so as to receive pulses from said source means as modified by said frequency control means and said pulse width means, thereby to simulate natural flickering light, and

said frequency control means comprising two light sensors and a Schmitt Trigger Gate electrically connected to said source means for producing output pulses of random frequency wherein said light sensors are connected in series.

2. The adornment of claim 1 wherein said frequency control means comprises an astable multivibrator.

3. The adornment of claim 2 wherein said astable multivibrator includes a light sensor, said astable multivibrator being operative to vary the frequency of output pulses in response to changes in ambient light intensity sensed by said light sensor.

4. The adornment of claim 1 wherein said frequency control means comprises a multivibrator operative to produce pulses at a fixed frequency.

5. The adornment of claim 2 or 4 wherein said frequency control means further comprises a counter/divider electrically connected in said circuit to modify the output pulses of said multivibrator.

6. The adornment of claim 1 wherein said pulse width means comprises a one-shot multivibrator.

7. The adornment of claim 6 further comprising a phototransistor which coacts with said one-shot multivibrator to produce an output pulse of varying duration as a function of ambient light intensity.

8. The adornment of claim 1 wherein said counting means is a Johnson Counter having a "clock" input and said switching means has a plurality of switching gates, electrically connected in said circuit such that pulses from said source, as modified by said frequency control means and said pulse width means are applied to the "clock" input of said Johnson Counter and to an enable input of said switching gates wherein each pulse at the input of the Johnson Counter applies a pulse to one of the switching gates and thereby activates one of the light emitters.

9. The adornment of claim 8 further comprising a feedback circuit electrically interposed between said switching gates and the input to the Johnson Counter, said feedback circuit being operative to occasionally direct a plurality of pulses in rapid succession to the Johnson Counter for a rapid burst of light from a plurality of light emission means.

10. The adornment of claim 9 wherein said feedback circuit includes a one-shot multivibrator and a gated astable multivibrator.

11. The adornment of claim 10 wherein said gated astable multivibrator includes a phototransistor operative to vary the number of said plurality of pulses as a function of ambient light intensity.

12. The adornment of claim 8 wherein said frequency control means comprises an astable multivibrator operative to produce an output signal of randomly pulsed frequency and a counter/divider electrically connected in said circuit to modify the output signal of said astable multivibrator, said pulse width means comprising a one-shot multivibrator.

13. The adornment of claim 12 further comprising a gated astable multivibrator and inverter electrically interposed in said electrical circuit between said one-shot multivibrator and Johnson Counter.