GB2176663A

GB2176663A - Diode-containing holder for a lamp bulb

Info

Publication number: GB2176663A
Application number: GB08611145A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Robert William Baker
Original assignee: AMP Inc
Current assignee: TE Connectivity Corp
Priority date: 1985-06-11
Filing date: 1986-05-07
Publication date: 1986-12-31
Also published as: GB8611145D0; GB2176663B; GB8514690D0

Abstract

The holder (2) comprises an insulating housing (6) having a socket portion (8), and a terminal receiving portion (10) containing first and second terminals (12 and 14) having arms (16) projecting into the socket (20) for engaging contacts (18 and 20) of a capless lamp bulb (4), and a third terminal (22) having a portion (24) for receiving one lead (26) of a diode (28). The first terminal (12) has a portion (30) for receiving the other lead (32) of the diode (28). Each terminal has a wire connecting portion (34) having i.p.d. slots (35) for receiving a supply wire. A cover (42) latchable to the terminal receiving portion (20) has stuffers (46 and 47) for stuffing the supply wires into the slots (35). <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Holder for a lamp bulb This invention relates to a holder for a lamp bulb, especially for a capless lamp bulb, comprising a housing having a first portion defining a socket for the bulb and a terminal receiving second portion, first and second electrical electrical terminals lodged in channels in said first portion and each having a contact arm projecting into the socket for engaging a respective contact of the bulb, and a third terminal lodged in a further channel in said second portion and having means for connection to a first lead of an electrical circuit component, for example a diode, the first terminal having means for connection to a second lead of said circuit component and each terminal further having means for connection to an external electrical supply circuit for the bulb and the circuit component.

In a conventional lamp holder of this type, each terminal is formed with a soldering tab or a tab for mating with a receptacle, projecting from the housing for connection to the supply circuit. The means for connection to the leads of the circuit component are in the form of soldering tags on the tabs of the first and third terminals.

One use of such a lamp holder is in a coin freed amusement machine, the bulb being arranged to be illuminated by energization of the circuit component by way of a wire connected to the tab of the third terminal.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the means for connecting each terminal to said external electrical circuit comprises a wire receiving portion of the terminal, formed with a wire receiving slot having a mouth opening towards an open end of said second portion of the housing, each first and third terminal having a lead receiving portion formed with a lead receiving slot opening in the opposite sense to the wire receiving slot of such terminal and towards the socket, to receive a respective lead of the circuit component, the housing being provided with a cover which is latchable thereto to close said open end of said second portion, the cover carrying wire stuffers for forcing wires into the wire receiving slots of the wire receiving portions of the terminals.

When assembling the lamp holder, the circuit component is dropped into the housing, and the terminals are then inserted into their channels so that the leads of the component are received in the lead receiving slots of the first and second terminals. The wires are subsequently connected to the terminals by positioning each wire in the mouth of a respective wire receiving slot and latching the cover to the second portion of the housing. Thus, soldering operations are avoided, the circuit component is protected against damage since it lies within the housing, and the terminals are inserted and the leads of the circuit component are connected to the terminals in a single operation. Also, no receptacles or other external connecting means are required.

The cover and the housing may be provided with cooperating means for guiding the cover with respect to the second portion of the housing so as to guide the wire stuffers in relation to said wire receiving slots. Conveniently, such means may comprise a tapered projection on the cover, engaging in one of the channels beside the terminal therein.

The cover may be latched to the housing, by means of latch members which are latchingly engageable with wire guides on the second portion of the housing. These wire guides may be in the form of barbs projecting between wire guiding grooves in the housing.

The latching members may be provided at opposite ends of the wire stuffers. Each wire receiving portion may have two spaced wire slots and in this case, the wire stuffers may comprise wire stuffer bars and wire stuffer members spaced from the ends of these bars.

Barriers defining the channels may be arranged to support the circuit component when it is dropped into the housing and so that its leads are retained in the lead receiving slots of the terminals when these have been inserted into the housing.

One or more of the terminals may be provided with barbs or other means for retaining it in its cavity whilst the cover and the housing are relatively manipulated to latch the cover to the second portion of the housing.

According to another aspect of the invention, a holder for a capless lamp bulb comprises an insulating housing defining a tubular socket for the bulb and a substantially rectangular terminal receiving portion formed integrally with the socket, the socket projecting from one end of the terminal receiving portion, the opposite end of which is open, the terminal receiving portion defining first, second and third juxtaposed channels receiving first, second and third electrical terminals respectively, the first and second terminals each having a contact arm projecting into the socket for engaging a respective contact of the bulb and the first and third terminals each having a lead receiving slot between their respective wire receiving portions and the socket, each such slot receiving a respective lead of a solid state diode, each terminal having a wire receiving portion formed with a wire receiving slot opening towards the open end of the terminal receiving portion of the housing which portion is provided with wire receiving and wire guiding notches, each notch being aligned with a wire receiving slot of one of the wire receiving portions and being provided with means for guiding a wire thereinto and for retaining it therein.

For a better understanding of the present invention and to show how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made by way of example to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of a holder for a capless lamp bulb; Figure 2 is a perspective view of the bulb holder with parts removed; Figure 3 is a perspective view of the bulb holder when applied to electrical supply wires for the bulb; and Figure 4 is a plan view of the bulb holder with internal parts indicated by broken lines.

The lamp holder, which is generally referenced 2, and which is for a capless lamp bulb 4, comprises an insulating housing 6 having a tubular bulb socket portion 8 formed integrally with a substantially rectangular, terminal receiving portion 10 and projecting axially from one end thereof. First and second juxtaposed electrical terminals, 12 and 14 respectively, are each formed with a contact arm 16 projecting into the socket portion 8 and having at its free end an arcuate contact surface 17 for engagement with an appropriate contact 18 or 20 of the bulb 4. A third electrical terminal 22 juxtaposed with the terminals 12 and 14 has a lead receiving portion 24 for connection to a first lead 26 of an electrical circuit component in the form of a solid state diode 28, the first terminal 12 having a similar lead receiving portion 30 for connection to a second lead 32 of the diode 28.Each terminal 12, 14 and 22 has a substantially U-shaped wire receiving portion 34 formed with two opposed wire receiving slots 35 each having a mouth 36 opening towards an open end 38 of the portion 10 of the housing 6, which end is opposite to that from which socket portion 8 extends. The lead receiving portions 24 and 30, which are disposed between the portion 34 and the socket 8, each have a lead receiving slot 40 opening towards the socket portion 8, that is to say opening in the opposite sense to the wire receiving slots 35.

The housing 6 is provided with a cover 42 made captive thereto by means of a flexible lanyard 44 and which is latchable to the housing portion 10 to close the open end 38 thereof and is provided with wire stuffer bars 46 and wire stuffer members 47 for forcing insulated electrical wires 48 into respective ones of the wire receiving slots 35 of the portions 34 of the terminals, so that the walls of the slots 35 pierce the insulation of the wire 48 to make permanent electrical contact with the electrically conductive cores 50 thereof thereby to electrically connect the wires 48 to the bulb contacts 18 and 20 and to the leads 26 and 32 of the diode 28. The portion 10 of the housing 6 is provided with latch arms 49 for securing it to a panel (not shown), for example of a coin operated amusement machine.

The housing portion 10, has end walls 52 connected by side walls 54, the later having formed integrally therewith, longitudinally divided barriers 56 defining channels 58, 60 and 62 for receiving the terminals 12, 14 and 22 respectively. As shown in Fig. 2, two of the barriers 56 are formed with recesses 64 for receiving the body of the diode 28 so that it is supported by the barriers. Each side wall 54 is formed with a row of wire receiving notches 66 opening into the end 38 of the housing portion 10. A pair of wire guiding and wire retaining barbs 68 are provided on the portion 10 adjacent to the mouth of each notch 66. One of these barbs, each of which projects laterally into the notch 66, is positioned on either side thereof. Each notch 66 is aligned with, and is adjacent to, one of the wire receiving slots 35.

At the end of the cover 42 nearest the housing 6 is a hollow positioning member 70 which extends at right angles from the cover 42 and tapers away therefrom, for reception in the channel 58 beside the terminal 12. Each stuffer bar 46 is dimensioned for reception in the portion 34 of the respective terminal between the slots 35 thereof. Each wire stuffer member 47 has thereon a latch member 74 which is tapered outwardly of the cover 42.

Prior to assembling the terminals to the housing 6, the diode 28 is dropped into the housing so that it is supported in the recesses 64 of the barriers 56, the cover 42 being in an open position as shown in Figs. 1 and 4.

The terminals 12, 14 and 22 are then inserted into the channels 58, 60 and 62, respectively, in juxtaposed relationship, in the direction of the arrow A in Fig. 1; whereby the leads 26 and 32 of the diode 28 are forced into the slots 40 of the lead receiving portions 24 and 30, respectively. The terminals 14 and 22 are force fitted into their channels so as to be provisionally retained therein. The terminal 12 is provisionally retained in its channel 58, relative to which the terminal 12 is undersized laterally of the housing portion 10, by means of a barbed retention plate 74 on the terminal 12.

In order to connect the lamp holder 2 to an external circuit for energizing the bulb 4 and the diode 28, each wire 48 is pushed down into an opposed pair of the notches 66, between the barbs 68 projecting thereinto, so that the wire 48 lies in the mouths 36 of an opposed pair of the slots 35 of the portion 34 of the appropriate terminal. The cover 42 is then moved to the closed position in which it is shown in Fig. 3, being guided with respect to the housing 6 by the engagement of the member 70 in the channel 58. As the cover 42 is moved towards its closed position, the stuffer bars 46 and stuffer members 47 force the wires down into the slots 35 so that the walls thereof pierce the insulation of the wires 48 whereby the electrically conductive cores 50 thereof are gripped between the walls of the slots 35. When the wires 48 have been driven home into the slots 35, the latching members 74 engage behind the barbs 68 so that the cover 42 is firmly latched in its closed position, so that the stuffer bars 46 and stuffer members 47 serve to retain the cores 50 of the wires 48 firmly in the slots 35. This feature is of particular advantage where the cores 50 are multistranded, it being thereby insured that the strands of the wires do not ride up in the slots 35.

Claims

1. A holder for a lamp bulb, the holder comprising an insulating housing having a first portion defining a socket for the bulb and a terminal receiving second portion, first and second electrical terminals lodged in channels said first portion and each having a contact arm projecting into the socket for engaging a respective contact of the bulb, and a third terminal lodged in a further channel in said second portion and having means for connection to a first lead of an electrical circuit component, the first terminal having means for connection to a second lead of said component and each terminal having means for connection to an external electrical supply circuit for the circuit component; wherein such connecting means comprises a wire receiving portion of the terminal, formed with a wire receiving slot having a mouth opening towards an open end of said second portion of the housing, each first and third terminal having a lead receiving portion formed with a lead receiving slot opening in the opposite sense to the wire receiving slot of such terminal and towards the socket, to receive a respective lead of the circuit component, the housing being provided with a cover which is latchable thereto to close said open end of said second portion, the cover carrying wire stuffers for forcing wires into the wire receiving slots of the wire receiving portions of the terminals.

2. A bulb holder as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the cover and the housing are provided with cooperating means for guiding the cover with respect to the housing and thus for guiding the wire stuffers with respect to the wire receiving portions of the terminals and to guide latching means on the cover with respect to latching means on the housing.

3. A bulb holder as claimed in Claim 1 or 2, wherein the cavities are defined by barriers within the housing which are formed with surfaces facing said open end of said second portion, for supporting the circuit component.

4. A bulb holder as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said second portion of the housing is provided with wire receiving notches having mouths into which project barbs on said second portion for retaining the wires in the notches, the cover being provided with tapered latch members which are engageable with the barbs to retain the cover in a position closing said open end of said second portion with the wire stutters engaging the wires to retain them in the wire receiving slots of the wire receiving portions.

5. A bulb holder as claimed in Claim 4, wherein the wire stuffers comprise wire stuffer bars and, spaced from each end of each wire stuffer bar, a wire stuffer member carrying one of the latching members, each wire receiving portion having opposed wire receiving slots between which a corresponding one of the stuffer bars is receivable.

6. A holder for a capless lamp bulb, comprising an insulating housing defining a tubular socket for the bulb and a substantially rectangular terminal receiving portion formed integrally with the socket, the socket projecting from one end of the terminal receiving portion, the opposite end of which is open, the terminal receiving portion defining first, second and third juxtaposed channels receiving first, second and third electrical terminals respectively, the first and second terminals each having a contact arm projecting into the socket for engaging a respective contact of the bulb and the first and third terminals each having a lead receiving slot between their respective wire receiving portions and the socket, each such slot receiving a respective lead of a solid state diode, each terminal having a wire receiving portion formed with a wire receiving slot opening towards the open end of the terminal receiving portion of the housing which portion is provided with wire receiving and wire guiding notches, each notch being aligned with a wire receiving slot of one of the wire receiving portions and being provided with means for guiding a wire thereinto and for retaining it therein.

7. A holder for a capless lamp bulb, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.