Background

1. Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to lighting fixtures and, more specifically, to a collapsible radial light fixture for use with light emitting diodes.

2. Discussion of Related Art

[0002] There are any number of lighting solutions for commercial spaces. From Halogen-arc, to fluorescent, to light emitting diode (LED) solutions, each of these types of lighting comes with advantages over prior technology. LEDs have shown significant growth in the marketplace over the last 10 years, and indeed have nearly completely supplanted earlier technologies based primarily on the expected lower cost of maintenance (replacement) of LED.

[0003] LED lighting is not perfect and has some challenges that were not faced by prior technologies. One of these challenges is the combination of heat generated by both the LED itself and the LED driver. The LED driver is used to rectify the 120 or 240V alternating current (AC) to 12 or 24V direct current (DC) to drive the LEDs. As with any rectifier heat is produced as a result of inefficiencies in the electrical circuitry. Moreover, the LED driver can have more functionality including maintaining either constant current or constant voltage, as well as dimmers and other functionality. All of this functionality results in significant heat generation that must be removed from the LED driver to prevent damage to the solid state components and microprocessors contained therein.

[0004] In addition to the heat generated by the LED drivers, each individual LED also produces heat. Unlike other heating solutions, there can be hundreds of individual LEDs associated with a single light fixture. As a result, the heat generated by the LEDs is also not insignificant. Further, the LEDs are typically mounted on one or more circuit boards along with one or more microprocessors and other circuitry. As a result, maintaining the LEDs' temperature below a certain threshold is also important to the overall health and longevity of the LED light fixture.

[0005] While solutions to these problems have been developed previously, improvements are always desired.

Summary

[0006] The present disclosure is directed to a light fixture including a chassis configured to receive an light emitting diode (LED) driver, a plurality of arms, each arm operably connected to the chassis and including at least one LED, a hinge associated with each of the plurality of arms, and a key hole formed in the chassis for receiving the hinge, wherein the hinge enables the movement of the plurality of arms from a first position aligned with the chassis to a second position extended from the chassis.

[0007] The chassis may be formed of two mating components, where the two mating components receive the LED driver in a friction fit arrangement. The light fixture may include at least one end plate for securing the two mating components to one another. The light fixture may further include a top plate and a bottom plate for securing the two mating components to one another.

[0008] In accordance with a further aspect of the disclosure includes a plurality of flutes formed on the chassis for dissipation of heat generated by the LED driver. The light fixture may include a plurality of LEDs operably connected to each arm. The arms may include at least one flute for dissipation of heat generated by the plurality of LEDs. Further a lens may be associated with each arm. The lens may wrap around at least a portion of the arm. A flange may be formed on each arm to limit the movement of the arm relative to the chassis.

[0009] In accordance with one aspect of the disclosure, the arms may be restrained in the first position for shipping. Further the arms may be restrained in the first position for installation. Still further the arms may be in the second position when in use. The second position may place the arms perpendicular to a long axis of the chassis.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010] Various aspects of the present disclosure are described herein below with reference to the drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, wherein:

[0011] Fig. 1 is a side view of an LED light fixture in accordance with the present disclosure;

[0012] Fig. 2 is a bottom view of an LED light fixture in accordance with the present disclosure; [0013] Fig. 3 is a bottom perspective view of an LED light fixture in accordance with the present disclosure;

[0014] Fig. 4 is a cut-away top perspective view of an LED light fixture in accordance with the present disclosure;

[0015] Fig. 5 is a side view of an LED light fixture in accordance with the present disclosure with the radial arms partially deployed;

[0016] Fig. 6 is a side view of an LED light fixture in accordance with the present disclosure having the radial arms fully folded;

[0017] Fig. 7 is a bottom view of an LED light fixture in accordance with the present disclosure having the radial arms fully folded;

[0018] Fig. 8 is a partial top view of a hinge mechanism permitting the folding and unfolding of the radial arms of the LED light fixture of Fig. 5 in accordance with the present disclosure;

[0019] Fig. 9 is an end view of the hinge mechanism of Fig. 8 in accordance with the present disclosure;

[0020] Fig. 10 is a partial bottom view of the hinge mechanism of Fig 8 in accordance with the present disclosure;

[0021] Fig. 11 is a partial view of the chassis of the LED light fixture of Fig. 5 showing a key hole for attachment of the radial arms in accordance with the present disclosure; and [0022] Fig. 12 depicts a cut-away view of the chassis of the LED light fixture of Fig. 1 housing the LED driver in accordance with the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

[0023] The present disclosure is directed to a radial light fixture 10 having improved heat dissipation and handling characteristics. The light fixture 10 also has improved shipping characteristics in view of its foldability. Fig. 1 depicts a side view of a light fixture 10 in accordance with the present disclosure. The light fixture 10 has two primary components: a chassis 12 and a plurality of arms 14. Each arm 14 includes a plurality of LEDs along its length, as will be described in greater detail below. Fig. 2 depicts a bottom view of the light fixture 10. As depicted in Fig. 2, a bottom plate 16 holds the two halves of the chassis 12 together, as will be described in greater detail below. The bottom plate 16 also covers the wiring area of the light fixture 10 and can provide a mounting portion for sensors (not shown), such as motion sensors that can be used to turn the light fixture on or off as personnel enter or leave a space.

[0024] As shown in Fig. 3, the chassis 12 includes a plurality of flutes 21 along its length. The chassis 12 is preferably formed of aluminum or another highly heat conductive material. The flutes 21 (see also Fig. 12) promote transfer (dissipation) of heat from the chassis 12 to the surrounding environment (e.g., the air) by having a large surface area. Each arm 14 includes an aluminum extrusion 18 which may also include fluting 20 to increase surface area and a lens 22 which covers the LEDs. A detailed view of this is depicted in Fig. 9. [0025] Fig. 4 depicts a cut away view of the light fixture 10. As depicted, a top plate 24 holds the two halves of the chassis 12 together, much like the bottom plate 16. The top plate helps to cover the wiring area and may provide a knock out for connection of a conduit. Further, the top plate 24 may provide a location of a hook mounting of the light fixture 10, as is commonly done in the industrial lighting industry. The LED driver 26 is depicted inside of and secured to the chassis 12. As shown, the LED driver 26 is held at a location spaced from the top plate 24 and the bottom plate 16. As will be appreciated, spacing the LED driver 26 from the bottom plate 16 helps to separate the LED driver 26 from the LEDs on the arms 14, and therewith separates these two sources of heat, allowing the heat generated by each to be separately diffused to the environment through the flutes 20 on the arms 14 and the flutes 21 on the chassis 12. The LED driver 26 is electrically connected to each of the LEDs 36 (Fig. 9) and provides power to illuminate the LEDs as desired. In some embodiments the LED driver may be configured to permit dimming of the LEDs 36.

[0026] Fig. 5 depicts the light fixture 10 of the present disclosure with the arms 14 partially deployed. Figs. 6 and 7 are a side and bottom view, respectively, of the light fixture 10 in the fully retracted position. Fig. 6 actually shows the lighting fixture 10 upside down with the top plate 24 located at the bottom of the image. At the opposite end of the light fixture 10 depicted in Fig. 6, each arm 14 ends in a flange 26. As will be described in conjunction with Figs. 8, 10, and 11, the flange 26 interacts with the flutes 21 of the chassis 12 and limits the rotation of the arms when moving from the retracted position, as shown in Fig. 6 to the fully open position shown in Fig. 1. The flanges 26 may be the ends of the extrusion 18, or may be a separate component added to the arm 14. Fig. 7 provides an end view of the arms 14, and in particular the fluting 20 formed on the extrusion 18.

[0027] Fig. 8 depicts a view of a hinge area at the intersection of the arms 14 and the chassis 12. A hinge 28 formed in or attached to the extrusion 18 of the arm 14 is received in a key hole 30 formed in the flutes 21 of the chassis 12. As depicted, the hinge is received in the key-hole via a snap fit arrangement, though other connections are not outside the scope of the present disclosure. As shown in Fig. 8, once received in the keyhole 30, the arm 14 is only permitted to rotate about the hinge 28 until the flange 26 rests against the flutes 21 of the chassis 12. This represents the fully deployed position of the light fixture 10. Further, as can be seen in Fig. 8, there is ample room and surface area between the flutes 21 and 20 to allow for air cooling of the arms 14 and the LED driver 26. Fig. 8 also depicts the ends of the lens 22 as it wraps around the extrusion 18. The lens 22 may also be adhered or glued to the extrusion 18.

[0028] Fig. 9 depicts an end view of an arm 14 on the end which attaches to the chassis 12. As depicted in Fig, 9, the arm 14 includes an extrusion 18, from which two flutes 20 extend vertically. Two struts 32 extend from the extrusion 18 and the hinge 28 and is supported by at least the struts 32, and where desired, by the flutes 20. The lens 22 wraps around the underside of the extrusion 18, opposite the flutes 20, and is secured to the extrusion 18. Also secured to the extrusion 18 is an LED printed circuit board 34 on which are mounted a plurality of LEDs 36. The LEDs may be in a single row, parallel rows, staggered rows or other configurations to promote sufficient light generation for a designated area. [0029] Fig. 10 depicts a portion of the arm 14 interfacing with the chassis 12. As can be seen, the flange 26 extends past the end of the lens 22 to interact with the flutes 21 of the chassis 12 and limit the amount of rotation of the arm 14 about the hinge 28. Fig. 10 also depicts the end of the PCB 34 mounted to the extrusion 18. The hinge 28 of the arm 14 is received in the key hole 30 formed in the flutes 21. Similarly, Fig. 11 depicts a partial view of the chassis 12, and particularly the key holes 30 formed in the flutes 21 for receiving the hinges 28 of the arms 14.

[0030] Fig. 12 depicts ½ of the chassis 12 and reveals the LED driver 26 mounted therein. A second half of the chassis 12 mates with the first half and both are secured to each other by the end plates 16, 24. As shown, the end plates 16, 24 have mounts 38 which receive a mating portion from each half of the chassis to secure them together. Screws or other mating elements may be utilized in conjunction with the mounts 38 to further secure the components.

[0031] The hinge 28, shown in detail in Figs. 8-11, may be configured such that each arm 14 in its collapsed configuration is located between adjacent fins 21 of the chassis and is positioned substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the driver heat sink to provide the radial light fixture with a radial dimension that matches that of the chassis 12, as shown in Fig. 6. This may be a preferred configuration of shipping, minimizing the overall dimension of the light fixture 10 and limiting the opportunity of damage to the arms 14. This may also be the preferred configuration of the light fixture 10 for installation. As will be appreciated, when in this configuration, an electrician or installer will not have the arms 14 in their way if in the folded configuration when trying to connect the driver 26 to a source of electrical power. Once connected and hung from a secure mounting point, a band, string, tape or other securing mechanism can be removed to allow the arms 14 to deploy. The arms 14 are sized such that the total diameter from the tip of one arm 14 to a tip of an opposite arm 14 is about 24 inches. However, those of skill in the art will recognize that the size is dependent upon the number of LEDs a single driver can support, the amount of heat the can be dissipated, and the needs of the location of installation.

[0032] When in the expanded configuration, each arm 14 is positioned about 90 degrees relative to the longitudinal axis of the chassis 12. In other embodiments of the expanded configuration, one or more of the LED bars is positioned at an angle either less than or greater than 90 degrees relative to the longitudinal axis of the chassis 12. In still other embodiments, the hinge 28 is configured to permit one or more of the LED bars to be partially deployed and thus positioned at a number of different angles of between 0- 180 degrees relative to the longitudinal axis of the chassis 12. By including collapsible arms 14 supporting a plurality of LEDs 36, the radial light fixture may have a smaller footprint and may be more easily transported. Additionally, including collapsible arms 14 that may be partially deployed in addition to being able to move between a collapsed and extended positions allows a design of the radial light fixture to be customized.

[0033] In accordance with the present disclosure, the chassis 12, with its flutes 21, acts as a heat sink promoting cooling of the LED driver 26. To achieve good heat transfer between the LED driver 26 and the chassis 12, a friction or other very tight fit may be useful. Further, because the flutes 20 are formed directly on the extrusions 18, there is minimal transfer from the arms 14 to the chassis 12 and most if not all of the heat from the LEDs 36 is dissipated by the flutes 20 formed on the arms. Further, because of the spreading of the arms 14 upon deployment, a smaller power LED (e.g., low and mid power LEDs) may be employed to achieve illumination of a given space.

[0034] Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to specific exemplary embodiments, it is obvious to the person skilled in the art that different modifications may be carried out and equivalents used as replacements without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. As a result, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments but is intended to encompass all exemplary embodiments which fall within the scope of the accompanying claims. In particular, the present disclosure also claims protection for the subject and features of the sub-claims independently of the claims referred to.