It is particularly applicable to, among other things, luminaires recessed into false or suspended ceilings.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION European patent 0268283 describes a luminaire that comprises supports used to support the luminaire on the supporting sections of a false ceiling. The supports comprise two-armed pivoting levers that are rotatably mounted in bearing parts or wells that are fastened to the housing of the luminaire. Each pivoting lever has a long arm and a short arm.

To enable the luminaire to be recessed into a false ceiling and held in place in it, the following steps are performed. The luminaire is inserted in an opening situated in the false ceiling. Initially, a pivoting lever is positioned parallel to a bearing part, i. e. the arms of the said lever are in a vertical position. An adjusting screw directed towards the short arm of the lever is introduced into a thread in the bearing part, the thread being arranged below the short arm. The adjusting screw has a support face for the short arm of the pivoting lever and the short arm has two mounting spigots that are engaged in such a way as to be able to rotate in the bearing part. When the adjusting screw is screwed in, it pushes against the short arm by means of the support face. As the screw is screwed in, the short arm rotates relative to the bearing part on the mounting spigots, taking with it the long arm that rotates likewise. When the screw is screwed fully in, the short arm and the long arm have rotated through approximately 90° fiom their original position. The long arm then rests on a supporting section of the false ceiling.

The major drawback of a luminaire of this kind lies in the fact that too much time and effort is required to install it. In particular, the screw has to be screwed fully in. What is more, the fixing system is complex because it calls into play a large number of mechanical components.

Hence, a technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to propose a recessable light fitting comprising a fixing support, and a fixing support of this kind, which enable a fitting of this kind to be installed quickly and without too much effort, and which enable this to be done by means of a simple mechanism.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A solution to the technical problem posed is characterized in that the light fitting comprises a fixing support, the support comprising at least one slot, said fitting comprising at least one tongue that is insertable in said slot and at least one retaining clip associated with said tongue, said tongue being able to pivot on a shaft, the retaining clip being intended to lock the tongue in such a way that the latter is able to exert a pressure on a false ceiling after having pivoted on said shaft, passing through said slot in so doing.

In a second item to which the present invention relates, the solution is characterized in that the fixing support comprises at least one slot, the slot being intended to cooperate with a tongue and at least one clip for retaining the tongue, said tongue being able to pivot on a shaft, the retaining clip being intended to exert pressure on said support in such a way that said tongue is able to exert a pressure on a false ceiling after having pivoted on said shaft, passing through said slot in so doing.

Hence, as will be seen in detail below, the clip for retaining the tongue enables the light fitting to be installed in the false ceiling quickly and effortlessly simply by exerting pressure on the clip, with a finger for example.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the tongue is a spring tongue.

In a first, non-limiting embodiment of the invention, the fixing support comprises the said shaft, which is fixed in a recess in said support, and the tongue comprises hooking means intended to fix said tongue to said shaft.

In a variant of the first embodiment, the tongue has leaf springs.

In another variant of the first embodiment, the retaining clip has a projecting portion.

In a second, non-limiting embodiment of the invention, the tongue comprises said shaft, said shaft being recessable into a recess in said support.

In a variant of the first or second embodiment, the fixing support comprises a bayonet-action system.

In another variant of the first or second embodiment, the light fitting also comprises a backing piece separate from the tongue, to which backing piece the retaining clip is fixed, said backing piece being intended to be fixed to said tongue.

In another variant of the first or second embodiment, the fixing support comprises clip-engaging arms that are intended to cooperate with retaining clips, said clip-engaging arms being situated on either side of a slot.

In another variant of the first or second embodiment, the retaining clip comprises a step.

In another variant of the first or second embodiment, the tongue comprises a curved bend and the backing piece comprises a top portion that partly covers said curved bend.

These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and will be elucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will now be described in more detail, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: - Fig. 1 is a general view of a first embodiment of light fitting having a fixing support and a tongue according to the invention.

- Fig. 2 shows a first example of light fitting, fitted to its fixing support according to the invention.

- Fig. 3 shows a second example of light fitting having a fixing support and a tongue according to the invention.

- Fig. 4 is a three-quarter view of the fixing support shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a first view of the tongue of the light fitting shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a second view of the tongue of the light fitting shown in Fig. 1.

- Fig. 7 shows the fixing support of Fig. 4 and the tongue of Fig. 6 in an unassembled position.

- Fig. 8 shows the fixing support of Fig. 4 and the tongue of Fig. 6 in a first assembled position.

- Fig. 9 shows the fixing support of Fig. 4 and the tongue of Fig. 6 in an as-supplied position, ready to be recessed into a false ceiling.

- Fig. 10 shows the fixing support of Fig. 4 and the tongue of Fig. 6 in an intermediate position during recessing into a false ceiling.

- Fig. 11 shows the fixing support of Fig. 4 and the tongue of Fig. 6 in a position where they are recessed into a false ceiling.

- Fig. 12 is an enlarged view of a retaining clip for the tongue of Fig. 6, which acts on the fixing support of Fig. 4.

- Fig. 13 shows a socket-carrier of the light fitting of Fig. 1, on the point of being fixed to the tongue of Fig. 6.

Fig. 14 is a cross-section through the complete light fitting of Fig. 1 when fitted to a false ceiling.

- Fig. 15 shows a second embodiment of the fixing support for the light fitting according to the invention.

- Fig. 16 shows a second embodiment of tongue suited to the fixing support of Fig. 15, and - Fig. 17 shows the fixing support of Fig. 15 and the tongue of Fig. 16 in an intermediate assembled position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present elucidation of the invention relates to an example of a light fitting, also referred to as a luminaire, which is able to be recessed into a false or suspended ceiling.

As shown in Fig. 1, the luminaire 1 comprises a reflector 11 that is fitted, preferably in a detachable manner, to a fixing support 10. The manner in which the reflector 11 is fitted to the support 10 is known to the man skilled in the art and will therefore not be described here. The luminaire 1 also comprises a socket-carrier 12 fitted with a fixing lug 13 and a decorative bezel 14, the socket-carrier being fixed to the reflector 11. The fixing support 10 is preferably cylindrical and has a main body 2 and a rim 3, as shown in Fig. 4. It also comprises at least one slot 4 and a recess 5. The slot 4 and the recess 5 are respectively intended to cooperate with a tongue 6 and a shaft 7. The main body 2 also has, on either side of the slot 4, vertical arms 21, referred to in the remainder of the description as clip-engaging arms 21, which are intended to cooperate with retaining clips 8 that will be described in greater detail in the description below. In the example shown in Fig. 4, the fixing support 10 has three slots 4 and associated clip-engaging arms 21. In the remainder of the description, the terms"clip/unclip"will be used to mean the swift action of engaging/disengaging a clip or an attaching means.

The rim 3 is preferably made of a plastics or metallic material. It acts as an interface between the light fitting 1 and the false ceiling. The main body 2, the rim 3 and the recess 5 preferably form an integral assembly and are molded or cast together. This has the advantage of reducing the cost of the light fitting: no means of attachment is used between these items.

It also has the advantage of grouping together, in a single body, the different functions performed by the rim 3, the recess 5 and the main body 2 of the fixing support 10. The body in question may be re-used in association with the tongue 6 and the shaft 7 in other applications such as a baffle application calling for loudspeakers to be fixed to a detachable fixing support, the loudspeaker taking the place of the reflector 11 in this case.

The slot 4 is advantageously vertical relative to the rim 3 and extends down to the recess 5, the latter being situated above the rim 3 of the support 10. The slot is adapted to

allow part of the tongue 6 to pass through it. It is therefore left open in the upper part of the main body 2 of the support 10.

In a first preferred embodiment of the light fitting, the shaft 7 is fixed in the recess 5 in the fixing support as shown in Fig. 4. This has the advantage of giving a shaft that is more resistant to the strains experienced by, and forces transmitted by, the tongue 6.

The tongue 6 is shown in Fig. 5 in an oblique view. The tongue 6 is preferably made of a metallic material. The tongue 6 comprises a curved bend 61, an elongated portion 62 adapted to press against and rest on a false ceiling 15, and a lower portion 63. The elongated portion 62 preferably comprises a turned-up end-section 64 that enables greater support to be obtained from the false ceiling.

The tongue also has associated with it at least one retaining clip 8. In the example described, the tongue 6 has two retaining clips 8 associated with it.

In a first, non-limiting embodiment, the retaining clips 8 form part of the tongue 6 and are formed or cast in the lower portion 63 of the tongue 6.

In a second, non-limiting embodiment, as shown in Fig. 5, the retaining clips 8 are fixed in place in a backing piece 9 that is separate from the tongue 6, said backing piece 9 being intended to form an extension of the tongue 6, and particularly of the lower portion 63 of said tongue 6, the retaining clips 8 being situated in the upper part of the backing piece 9.

The separate backing piece 9 has the advantage of giving separate components, such as the tongue or the clips, which are easier to work on, and hence less expensive, than in the first embodiment where the retaining clips are integrally formed in the tongue 6. The backing piece 9 and the retaining clips 8 are preferably made of a plastics material. They preferably form a solidly secured assembly.

To allow the backing piece 9 to be fixed to the tongue 6, the lower portion 64 of the tongue 6 contains at least one slot 66 into which a lug 91 on said backing piece 9 fits. To enable the backing piece 9 to be securely fixed to the tongue 6, said backing piece 9 preferably comprises two vertical longitudinal lugs 91 and one horizontal longitudinal lug 91, which fit into respective slots 66 in the lower portion 63 of the tongue 6.

Furthermore, to enable the tongue 6 to be fixed to the fixing support 10, the tongue 6 also has, in a first preferred embodiment, hooking means 65 situated at the end of the lower portion 63. These hooking means 65 are intended to hook said tongue 6 onto a shaft 7 when the latter is fixed to the fixing support 10 as described above. They are, for example, shaft clips 65. The tongue 6 also comprises two leaf springs 67 that are preferably situated at the

point where the two slots 66 in the lower portion of the tongue 6 are located, and to be more exact are situated on the central portion that separates the two slots 66.

In Fig. 6 are shown the blade 6, and the backing piece 9 having the retaining clips 8, when said backing piece 9 is fixed to the lower portion 63 of said tongue 6. Part of the top portion of the backing piece 9 preferably partly covers the curved bend 61 in the tongue 6. It can also be seen that each retaining clip 8 has a step 81 and a projecting portion 82, which may also be referred to as a gripping tab, and that the backing piece 9 also has slots 92 that are intended to receive the leaf springs 67 on the tongue 6. The functions performed by the steps 81, the projecting portions 82 and the leaf springs 67 are described in detail below. It is of course equally possible, in a non-limiting embodiment, for the leaf springs 67 to be machined or formed directly on the backing piece 9.

To fix the luminaire 1 into a false ceiling 15, the following steps are performed.

In a first step 1) : The fixing support 10 is fitted to a false ceiling 15, the said support being supplied in an as-supplied position that is shown in Fig. 9.

To achieve this as-supplied position, in a first embodiment the assembly formed by the tongue 6 plus backing piece 9 and retaining clips 8 is positioned in such a way that the hooking means 65 are able to attach themselves to the shaft 7 in the recess 5 in the support 10, as shown in Fig. 7. The lower portion 63 of the tongue 6, and the backing piece 9, are then in a vertical position just above the slot 4 in the support 10, and the shaft 7. The parts in question are in an unassembled position.

The hooking means 65 are then engaged on the shaft 7. When the hooking means 65 are engaged on the shaft 7, the assembly formed by the tongue 6 and backing piece 9 is pivoted on the shaft 7 by pushing on the tongue 6, such as on the top portion of the backing piece 9 that partly covers the curved bend 61 in said tongue 6, as shown in Fig. 8, so that the tongue 6 pivots towards the interior of the fixing support 10, i. e. towards the interior of the main body 2, beginning with its end-section 64, followed by its elongated portion 62 and its curved bend 61.

In the end, what is performed is a rotation through approximately 120° from the unassembled position of the assembly formed by the tongue 6 and the backing piece 9 plus retaining clips 8. In Fig. 8, the dashed arrows indicate the direction of the pivoting movement.

The fixing support 10 is thus in the as-supplied position shown in Fig. 9, and is ready to be fitted to a false ceiling 15.

In a second step 2): The luminaire 1 is recessed into an opening (not shown) of a matched shape made in the false ceiling 15, the rim 3 remaining outside the false ceiling.

For this purpose, the tongue 6 is pivoted back through 120° on the shaft 7 by pushing in particular on the backing piece 9, or to be more exact on the top portion thereof that partly covers the curved bend 61, with a finger for example, so that the tongue 6 rotates outwards from the main body 2 of the fixing support 10.

The tongue 6 is not hampered in its rotation because part of it again passes through the slot 4. The tongue 6 is in an intermediate recessing position as shown in the view in Fig.

10. The shaft 7 and the retaining clips 8 are completely inside the main body 2 of the fixing support 10. The elongated portion 62 of the tongue 6 is situated outside the main body 2.

When the tongue 6 completes its rotation outwards from the main body 2, its end- section 64 applies itself to the false ceiling 15 as shown in Fig. 11. The tongue 6 is in a locked position. The end-section 64 of the tongue makes it possible for a larger area of contact to be obtained with the false ceiling 15 as compared with the elongated portion 62, and consequently a large area for pressure. To obtain an even large area of contact, a cover (not shown) may also be added to the end-section 64.

In a third step 3): Pressure is applied to the retaining clips 8 so that they clip into the corresponding clip-engaging arms 21 situated on either side of the slot 4 in the main body 2.

Since a retaining clip 8 is preferably flexible, there is no difficulty in clipping it into the corresponding clip-engaging arm 21, and thanks to its step 81 it remains immobilized against said clip-engaging arm 21. The retaining clip 8 is thus locked in the clip-engaging arm 21 in the way that can be seen in Fig. 12, with its projecting portion 82 projecting relative to said clip-engaging arm 21. In this position, the retaining clip enables the tongue 6 to be locked and to be retained in its locked position, i. e. the position in which it bears against the false ceiling 15, because, in this position, the clip exerts a continuous force on the tongue 6, being held hard against said tongue 6. The tongue 6 is thus easily clipped into the support 10. It cannot move back again backwards and thus remains applied to the false ceiling 15. The tongue 6 thus exerts a pressure on the false ceiling 15 so that the latter is gripped between the rim 3 and said tongue 6.

In a fourth step 4): The rest of the luminaire 1 is fitted, namely the reflector 11 mounted on the decorative bezel 14 and the socket-carrier stirrup 12 having the fixing lug 13.

For this purpose, the assembly formed by the reflector and socket-carrier is inserted in the opening in the false ceiling 15 in which the fixing support 10 is fitted, said reflector 11 taking up a position within the support 10. The fixing lug 13 on the socket-carrier 12 is then inserted

between the leaf springs 67 on the tongue 6, as shown in Fig. 13. By exerting a vertical thrust force, the fixing lug 13 is caused to latch onto the leaf springs 67 on the tongue 6, the latter then retaining the fixing lug 13 in position. The whole of the luminaire 1 is thus installed, with part of the decorative bezel 14 covering the rim 3 of the fixing support 10.

The fixing support 10 thus enables the whole of the luminaire 1 to be held against the false ceiling 15. In Fig. 14 is shown a cross-section through the luminaire 1 as a whole when fitted to a false ceiling 15. It can be seen that the fixing lug 13 is, at this time, above the leaf springs 67. It can also be seen that there is a minimal amount of functional clearance between the fixing lug 13 and the leaf springs 67. It may further be noted that the light fitting may also comprise a protective glass 16 located between the reflector 11 and the decorative bezel 14.

This protective glass allows an installer or user of the light fitting to be protected in the event of a lamp in the light fitting exploding.

In a second embodiment of the light fitting, the tongue 6 itself comprises the shaft 7, as shown in Fig. 16. The recess 5 in the fixing support 10 is intended to receive said shaft 7 and is thus of a shape suitable for this purpose, said recess being shown in Fig. 15 for this embodiment. The fixing support 10 also comprises a bayonet-action system 17 intended to receive hooks (not shown) on the reflector 11 of the luminaire. It will be noted that in this second embodiment, the retaining clips 8 are also intended to hold the tongue 6 in an as- supplied position. Said clips also comprise a step 81 and a space 83 just in front of said step 81.

To reach the as-supplied position, the shaft 7 is inserted in the recess 5 in the fixing support 10. When the shaft 7 is inserted in the recess 5, the assembly formed by the tongue 6, shaft 7 and retaining clips 8 is pivoted by pressing against the tongue 6 as shown in Fig. 17.

To cause the tongue 6 to move inside the fixing support 10, beginning with its lower portion 63 following by its curved bend 61 and then its top portion 62, pressure is applied to the retaining clips 8, with both fingers, so that the said clips too will move inside the support 10, i. e. inside the main body 2. Thanks to the retaining clip, the shaft 7 can no longer escape from the recess 5 situated in the rim 3.

It will be noted that, in another non-limiting embodiment, the two retaining clips 8 may equally well be replaced by, for example, tabs which are attached to the main body 2 at the border with the slot 4, which tabs perform the same retaining function.

Finally, the assembly formed by the tongue 6, shaft 7 and retaining clips 8 is caused to rotate through approximately 120° from the unassembled position. The fixing support 10 is then in the as-supplied position and is ready to be supplied and fitted to a false ceiling 15.

The second and third steps are identical to those for the first embodiment of the tongue 6. Subsequently, to install the rest of the luminaire 1, namely the reflector plus decorative bezel, the hooks on the reflector 11 are inserted in the bayonet-action system 17 belonging to the fixing support 10.

In a preferred embodiment, be it for the first or second embodiment of the luminaire 1 that is described above, the tongue 6 is a spring tongue. The whole tongue is preferably made of a metallic material, such as stainless steel, for example. The advantage of a tongue of this type is that it has resilient properties that enable the luminaire to be adapted to all types of false ceilings of different dimensions, i. e. more particularly of different thicknesses from 1 mm to 24 mm approximately. What this means is that the tongue 6 bends to a greater or less degree, and adopts a flatter or less flat position, as a function of the thickness of a false ceiling 15. The thicker a false ceiling 15 is, the greater the pressure the tongue will exert on it and the flatter the position adopted by the tongue 6 will be. Also, when the curved bend 61 in the spring tongue 6 is pushed, because the curved bend 62 is resilient and hence more flexible it will deform more easily; this facilitates the pressing and rotation of the spring tongue 6.

To remove the luminaire 1, and more particularly the assembly formed by the reflector, decorative bezel and socket-carrier, for example when a component such as a socket or a ballast of said luminaire 1 has to be changed, then, in the case of the first embodiment of the luminaire 1, a screwdriver blade is inserted between the spring tongue 6, or to be more exact between the backing piece 9 and the fixing lug 13 of the luminaire 1, or to be more exact the screwdriver blade is positioned in the gap 68 between the leaf springs, as shown in Fig. 6, and pressure is applied to said leaf springs 67 to spread them apart and release the fixing lug 13. Due to its weight, the luminaire 1 disengages from the fixing support 10. At this moment the luminaire can, without any problems, be withdrawn from the false ceiling with the hands.

In the case of the second embodiment of the luminaire 1, it is merely necessary to unhook the hooks on the reflector 11 from the bayonet-action system belonging to the fixing support 10.

The ballast having been changed, the luminaire 1 can then be reinstalled without any problems as described above.

To remove the fixing support 10 from the luminaire 1, if for example the luminaire 1 is damaged or has come to the end of its life, then, in the first embodiment of the light fitting, the assembly formed by the reflector, decorative bezel and socket-carrier of the luminaire 1 having been removed, in the first embodiment of the light fitting the corresponding projecting

portions 82 of the clips 8 for retaining a tongue 6 are taken hold of between two fingers and are pinched together to disengage said clips 8 from the corresponding clip-engaging arms 21 on the main body 2, the two dashed arrows in Fig. 12 indicating the direction of the pinching movement for each projecting portion 82. The tongue 6 associated with said retaining clips 8 is easily unclipped and released in this way. This operation is repeated the same number of times as there are further tongues 6, which is the example shown means two more times.

Once all the clips have been disengaged, the tongues 6 that are resting on the false ceiling 15 are released and exert pressure in the opposite direction, so that the fixing support 10 emerges automatically from the false ceiling 15. If this pressure in the opposite direction is not sufficiently great, it is merely necessary to use one hand to assist it in order to extract the fixing support 10.

In the second embodiment of the light fitting that is shown in Fig. 15 et seq. , a screwdriver blade is inserted in the space 83 in the clip 8 and the clip is retracted so that the step 81 disengages from the corresponding clip-engaging arm 21. The tongue 6 associated with the retaining clips 8 is thus released. This operation is repeated the same number of times as there are further retaining clips 8, which is the example shown means five more times.

The luminaire and the fixing support to which the present invention relates are thus easy to install and remove, quickly and effortlessly. Finally, the system employed is simple because the parts formed by the shaft, retaining clips and tongue are easy to manufacture, the fixing support generally being molded or cast all in one piece.

What is more, the fact that, because of the spring tongue system, it can be adapted to different types of false ceiling, provides an undeniable benefit in terms of cost.

Another advantage lies in the fact that the retaining clips enable the support to be installed/removed without tools, simply by clipping/unclipping the tongue to/from the support. The retaining clips enable the blade to be pushed easily against the false ceiling without the installer having to make any excessively great effort. The same is true of removal; the installer does not have to make any great effort when pinching the clips together and this is true whatever the thickness of the false ceiling.

Finally, thanks to the curved bend 61 and particularly the backing piece 9, a person installing a luminaire of this kind cannot injure himself at the time of installation or removal, and particularly he cannot cut himself on the end of the tongue, in contrast to what is the case with certain prior art fittings where the installer has to press or pull strongly with a finger on

a sharp part of the tongue and to do so all the more strongly the greater is the thickness of the false ceiling.

The scope of the invention is not of course in any way limited to the embodiments that have been described above and variations or modifications may be made thereto without thereby departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The scope of the invention extends, for example, to other embodiments in which, for example, other forms of retaining clips or other materials are used.

The luminaire to which the invention relates is not of course in any way limited to the application to false ceilings that is described above and also extends to, for example, walls having an internal cavity into which the luminaire may be introduced.

The fixing support to which the invention relates is not of course in any way limited to the application described above and extends to, for example, other applications such as loudspeaker baffles.

No reference numeral in the present text should be construed as limiting the said text.

Any reference sign in the following claims should not be construed as limiting the claim. It will be obvious that the use of the verb"to comprise"and its conjugations does not exclude the presence of any other elements besides those defined in any claim. The word"a" or"an"preceding an element does not exclude the presence of a plurality of such elements.