Safety device in lighting rods

• US 6,042,367 A
• Filed: 10/15/1998
• Issued: 03/28/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 08/18/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Tokai Corporation
• Original Assignee: Tokai Corporation
• Inventors: Saito, Masaki, Ichikawa, Toshihiro
• Primary Examiner(s): DORITY, CARROLL B
• Application Number:
  US09/173,338
• Time in Patent Office: 530 Days
• Field of Search: 431/153, 431/255
• US Class Current: 431/153
• CPC Class Codes: F23Q 2/164 Arrangements for preventing undesired ignition
• CPC Class Codes: F23Q 2/287 piezoelectric

Abstract

A safety device in a lighting rod comprises a locking member having an engagement section, which interferes with a portion of an operation member and thereby locks the lighting operation of the operation member. The locking member can move in a direction, that intersects with the direction along which the operation member moves. An urging member urges the locking member to a locking direction. The locking member is provided with a lock releasing section, which can be operated in order to move the locking member in a direction, that acts against the urging force of the urging member. The lock releasing section is projected to a position, which stands facing the operating section of the operation member. The lock of the lighting operation is released by operating the lock releasing section of the locking member, and the lighting operation is carried out in this state by operating the operating section of the operation member. The locking member automatically returns to the state of the locking as the operation member returns to its original position.

Claims

1. A safety device in a lighting rod, which lighting rod is provided with a rod-like end portion and a main body, the rod-like end portion being provided with a jetting nozzle for jetting out a gas, the main body being provided with:

i) a gas tank;

ii) a valve mechanism for opening and closing a path through which the gas is supplied from the gas tank to the jetting nozzle;

iii) a piezoelectric unit for generating a discharge voltage for lighting the gas; and

iv) an operation member, which is capable of sliding, which has an operating section, and which causes the valve mechanism to supply gas to the jetting nozzle and the piezoelectric unit to be actuated in order to carry out a lighting operation, the operation section of the operation member being exposed to the exterior of the main body;

the safety device comprising;

a) a locking member which normally prevents a lighting operation but is movable to a position permitting a lighting operation; and

b) an urging member which urges the locking member to a position preventing a lighting operation;

the locking member being provided with a lock releasing section which is exposed to the exterior of the main body and which is movable to a lock release position to cause a locking section to be moved to the position permitting a lighting operation;

wherein the locking section is retained in the position permitting a lighting operation as long as the lock releasing member is retained in the lock release position, thereby permitting repeated lighting operations without requiring release and further actuation of the lock releasing section.

2. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein the locking member comprises:

1) a shaft which is inserted transversely through the main body;

2) an engagement section which is located at one end of the shaft, the engagement section being inserted into an engagement groove of the operation member so as to prevent motion of the operation member;

3) the lock releasing section being located at the other end of the shaft; and

4) an urging member receiver which receives one end of the urging member,

whereby when the lock releasing section is moved to a position causing the locking member to permit a lighting operation, the engagement section is moved into the operation member and enables the operation member to cause a lighting operation.

3. A safety device in a lighting rod which lighting rod is provided with a rod-like end portion and a main body, the rod-like end portion being provided with a jetting nozzle for jetting out a gas, the main body being provided with:

i) a gas tank;

ii) a valve mechanism for opening and closing a path through which the gas is supplied from the gas tank to the jetting nozzle;

iii) a piezoelectric unit for generating a discharge voltage for lighting the gas,

iv) an operation member which is capable of sliding, which has an operating section and which causes the valve mechanism to supply gas to the jetting nozzle and the piezoelectric unit to be actuated in order to carry out a lighting operation, the operating section of the operation member being exposed to the exterior of the main body; and

v) a guide frame which is located so as to surround the operating section of the operation member,

the safety device comprising;

a) a locking member which normally prevents a lighting operation but is movable to a position permitting a lighting operation, said locking member being associated with the guide frame such that the locking member can rotate; and

b) an urging member, which urges the locking member in a locking direction;

the locking member projecting outwardly from the guide frame when the locking member is in the position preventing a lighting operation, the locking member being provided with a lock releasing section which is capable of being operated in order to move the locking member in a direction against the urging force of the urging member to release the locking member from the position preventing a light operation;

wherein when the lock of the lighting operation has been released by operating the lock releasing section of the locking member, a lighting operation is permitted as long as the lock releasing section is retained in the lock releasing position, thereby permitting repeated lighting operation without release and further actuation of the lock release section.

4. A device as defined in claim 3 wherein the locking member is provided with a projection which interferes with a portion of the operation member when the locking member is located in the locking position, and the operation member is provided with a groove through which the projection of the locking member is inserted when the locking member has been rotated to the lock releasing position.

5. A device as defined in claim 4 wherein the groove of the operation member is provided with an engagement section which engages the projection of the locking member and prevents rotation of the locking member to the locking position when the projection of the locking member is inserted through said groove of the operation member.

6. A safety device in a lighting rod which lighting rod is provided with a rod-like end portion being provided with a jetting nozzle for jetting out a gas, the main body being provided with:

i) a gas tank;

ii) a valve mechanism for opening and closing a path through which the gas is supplied from the gas tank to the jetting nozzle;

iii) a piezoelectric unit for generating a discharge voltage for lighting the gas; and

iv) an operation member which is capable of sliding, which has an operating section and which causes the valve mechanism to supply gas to the jetting nozzle and the piezoelectric unit to be actuated in order to carry out a lighting operation, the operating section of the operation member being exposed to the exterior of the main body;

the safety device comprising;

a) a locking member which is disposed inside the main body and is movable between a locking position where it prevents the lighting operation and a lock release position where it permits the lighting operation of the operation member, and

b) an unlocking member which is exposed to the exterior of the main body and can be operated to move the locking member from the locking position to the lock release position,

wherein the locking member is movable from a normal position toward a predetermined position by sliding along the main body and when the unlocking member is in the predetermined position it can be moved toward the main body to a lock release position to move the locking member to the position where it permits a lighting operation, and wherein the locking member is retained in the position permitting a lighting operation as long as the unlocking member is retained in the lock release position.

7. A safety device as defined in claim 6 in which the direction in which the unlocking member slides from the normal position to the predetermined position is parallel to the direction along which the operation member moves and opposite to the direction in which the operation member is moved for the lighting operation.

8. A safety device as defined in claim 6 in which the locking member is moved from the locking position to the lock release position in a direction which intersects the direction along which the operation member moves, and the locking member is provided with an urging member which urges the locking member toward the locking position so that the locking member is moved together with the unlocking member when the unlocking member is pushed toward the main body in said predetermined position.

9. A safety device as defined in claim 6 in which the unlocking member is urged toward the normal position by an urging member provided between the unlocking member and the locking member.

10. A safety device as defined in claim 9 in which the locking member extends into an inner space of the unlocking member and the urging member is disposed in the inner space in a compressed state.

11. A safety device as defined in claim 6 in which the operation member is disposed on one side of the main body and the unlocking member is disposed on the other side of the main body, and the locking member extends from the said one side to the other side of the main body with one end portion of the locking member operatively connected to the operation member and the other end portion of the locking member operatively connected to the unlocking member.

12. A safety device in a lighting rod, which lighting rod is provided with a rod-like end portion and a main body, the rod-like end portion being provided with a jetting nozzle for jetting out a gas, the main body being provided with:

i) a gas tank;

ii) a valve mechanism for opening and closing a path through which the gas is supplied from the gas tank to the jetting nozzle;

iii) a piezoelectric unit for generating a discharge voltage for lighting the gas; and

iv) an operation member which is capable of sliding, which has an operating section and which causes the valve mechanism to supply gas to the jetting nozzle and the piezoelectric unit to be actuated in order to carry out a lighting operation, the operating section of the operation member being exposed to the exterior of the main body;

the safety device comprising first and second locking mechanisms, each comprising

a locking member which is movable between a locking position where it prevents the lighting operation of the operation member and a lock release position where it permits the lighting operation of the operation member; and

an unlocking member which is exposed to the exterior of the main body and can be operated to move the locking member from the locking position to the unlocking position, the unlocking members of the first and second locking mechanisms being operable separately from each other;

wherein the lock of the lighting operation is released by simultaneously operating both the unlocking members of the first and second locking mechanisms, and the lighting operation can be carried out repeatedly as long as both unlocking members are held in the operating position.

13. A safety device as defined in claim 12 in which:

the main body of the lighting rod is further provided with a protection frame which is located so as to surround the operating section of the operation member;

the first locking mechanism of the safety device comprises

a) a locking member which interferes with the operation member and thereby locks the lighting operation of the operation member and which is being capable of moving in a direction that intersects with the direction along which the operation member moves, and

b) an urging member which urges the locking member to the locking position, and

c) an unlocking member which is capable of being operated in order to move the locking member in a direction against the urging force of the urging member, the unlocking member being exposed to the exterior of the main body, and

the second locking mechanism comprising the protection frame of the main body of the lighting rod,

the protection frame having one end which serves as a base point and the other end being capable of undergoing restoration displacement extending to a side of the operation member and being provided with an engagement section which interferes with a portion of the operation member and locks the lighting operation of the operation member when the engagement section is in the locking position during the nonoperating condition of the operation member, the engagement section being movable to release the interference with the operation member in response to a lock releasing operation of the protection frame.