MLchartDataset catalogue

Patent · US9550453B2 · B2 · US

Light bar and method of making

(11) Publication number
US9550453B2
(21) Application number
14/154,771
(22) Filing date
2014-01-14
(30) Priority date
2006-03-31
(43) Publication date
2017-01-24
(45) Date of grant
2017-01-24
(51) IPC
B60Q 1/52; B60Q 1/00; B60Q 1/26; F21S 8/10; F21V 23/04
(52) CPC
  • B60Q Arrangement of signalling or lighting devices, the mounting or supporting thereof or circuits therefor, for vehicles in general: 1/52, 1/2611
  • F21S Non-portable lighting devices; systems thereof; vehicle lighting devices specially adapted for vehicle exteriors: 41/00, 41/148, 41/151, 41/285, 41/321, 41/323, 43/13, 43/14, 43/15, 43/195, 43/31, 43/37, 45/10, 45/47, 48/10
  • F21V Functional features or details of lighting devices or systems thereof; structural combinations of lighting devices with other articles, not otherwise provided for: 23/04
  • Y10T Technical subjects covered by former us classification: 29/49002, 29/49826
(73) Assignee
Federal Signal Corp
(72) Inventors
Paul M. Gergets; Vince S. Fleszewski; Allan J. Mostello
(54) Title
Light bar and method of making
(57) Abstract

A light bar is described that is of a modular construction based on one or more large circuit boards that are populated with light beam assemblies and then fastened to an interior space of the light bar housing. Keys that automatically align the light beam assemblies on each of the boards precisely control placement of the assemblies on the board. In turn, each of the boards is keyed to the interior of the light bar housing so that when the board is fastened to the housing the light beam assemblies are automatically registered into alignment with the lenses in the housing so that the beams from the assemblies are properly oriented. The light bar is inexpensive to fabricate and can be assembled quickly and reliably, yet it provides for a high degree of customization, which is a requirement in the emergency vehicle lighting industry.

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Claims (14)

  1. A self-powered light bar for mounting to a vehicle, the light bar comprising: a housing including: two or more lenses in the housing, and a second pattern of keys formed as part of an interior of the housing; two or more emergency lighting assemblies mounted on one or more circuit boards disposed within the housing, wherein the one or more circuit boards include a first pattern of keys that mates to the second pattern of keys that is formed as part of the interior of the housing itself, such that each of the two or more emergency lighting assemblies corresponds to an individual lens of the two or more lenses in the housing; solar cells mated with the housing for providing power to the two or more emergency lighting assemblies; a storage device also mated with the housing and in communication with the solar cells for storing energy generated by the solar cells when the energy is not being used by the two or more emergency lighting assemblies; a controller mounted within the housing for controlling the two or more emergency lighting assemblies and for coordinating the flow of energy to the two or more emergency lighting assemblies from the solar cells and the storage device; and a receiver mounted within the housing for wirelessly communicating with a control head in a passenger compartment of the vehicle.
  2. The self-powered light bar of claim 1 including a fuel cell within the housing.
  3. The self-powered light bar of claim 1 wherein the storage device is a rechargeable battery.
  4. The self-powered light bar of claim 1 wherein the storage device is a capacitive device.
  5. The self-powered light bar of claim 1 including a connection in the housing and between the receiver and the controller for communicating to the controller commands entered by a user at the control head, which commands enable the controller to operate the two or more emergency lighting assemblies in keeping with the commands.
  6. The self-powered light bar of claim 2 wherein the receiver is part of a transceiver that provides for bi-directional communication between the controller and the control head.
  7. The self-powered light bar of claim 1 wherein the two or more emergency lighting assemblies includes one or more groups of light emitting diodes (LEDs), with each group associated with a beam shaping device that shapes light from the group of LEDs into an emergency light signal.
  8. The self-powered light bar of claim 7 wherein at least two of the groups of LEDs are mounted on a common circuit board.
  9. A method for retrofitting a vehicle to include an emergency signaling system, the method including: mounting an emergency signaling system contained in a housing to the vehicle without any external wiring connecting the housing and the vehicle, wherein emergency signaling system includes two or more emergency lighting assemblies mounted on one or more circuit boards disposed within the housing that include a first pattern of keys that mates to a second pattern of keys that is formed as part of an interior of the housing itself, such that each of two or more emergency lighting assemblies corresponds to an individual lens of two or more lenses in the housing; applying energy to the two or more emergency lighting assemblies from a source of energy that is mated with the common housing; providing command signals to a controller in the common housing by way of a wireless connection between the controller and a user interface remote from the common housing; and operating the two or more emergency lighting assemblies in response to commands from the controller that are in keeping with the command signals received by way of the wireless connection such that the two or more emergency lighting assemblies contained by the common housing are operated and controlled without any wiring connecting the two or more emergency lighting assemblies to sources of energy or control that are external to the common housing.
  10. The method of claim 9 wherein the mounting of the emergency signaling system to the vehicle includes mounting the emergency signaling system to a roof of the vehicle.
  11. The method of claim 9 including converting solar energy to electrical energy at the source of energy and storing the electrical energy within the common housing when the electrical energy is not applied to operating the two or more emergency lighting assemblies.
  12. The method of claim 11 including providing the stored electrical energy to the two or more emergency lighting assemblies when the electrical energy immediately available from the source of energy is insufficient to drive the two or more emergency lighting assemblies.
  13. The method of claim 12 wherein the stored electrical energy supplements the electrical energy immediately available from the source of energy in order to provide a total amount of electrical energy that is sufficient to operate the two or more emergency lighting assemblies.
  14. The method of claim 9 wherein an operator of the vehicle enters commands to the user interface, which is mounted within a passenger compartment of the vehicle.

Description

The invention is generally directed to signaling systems for emergency vehicles and, more particularly, to warning light assemblies for mounting to emergency vehicles.

A common type of emergency warning system for a vehicle is commonly called a “light bar.” Typically light bars are mounted to roofs of vehicles and wired to power sources in the engine compartments and controlled from control heads mounted in the passenger compartments.

Customer demands have driven light bars toward highly customizable designs. Manufacturers of light bars often start with a standard housing and then offer an array of alternative types of lighting devices to populate the interior of the light bar. For example, customers may ask for different mixes of takedown lights and alley lights, whose functions are suggested by their names. Customers may also ask for lights of different colors and different types of light sources such as light emitting diodes (LEDs), halogen lights, strobes or even lasers. Furthermore, the lighting assemblies may be fixed, rotating or oscillating.

To accommodate the demands of customers, the interiors of light bars are typically designed to provide flexibility for substituting different lighting devices as specified by the customer. Often the interior spaces of light bars house an assortment of individual light assemblies and wires to each assembly with associated connectors, making the interiors densely packed with complex wiring schemes.

These designs have evolved into highly complex interiors that are time consuming to assemble and tend to discourage automation of the assembly.

Citations (197)

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Record as JSON 
{
  "publication_number": "US9550453B2",
  "country": "US",
  "kind": "B2",
  "title": "Light bar and method of making",
  "abstract": "A light bar is described that is of a modular construction based on one or more large circuit boards that are populated with light beam assemblies and then fastened to an interior space of the light bar housing. Keys that automatically align the light beam assemblies on each of the boards precisely control placement of the assemblies on the board. In turn, each of the boards is keyed to the interior of the light bar housing so that when the board is fastened to the housing the light beam assemblies are automatically registered into alignment with the lenses in the housing so that the beams from the assemblies are properly oriented. The light bar is inexpensive to fabricate and can be assembled quickly and reliably, yet it provides for a high degree of customization, which is a requirement in the emergency vehicle lighting industry.",
  "claims": [
    "1. A self-powered light bar for mounting to a vehicle, the light bar comprising: a housing including: two or more lenses in the housing, and a second pattern of keys formed as part of an interior of the housing; two or more emergency lighting assemblies mounted on one or more circuit boards disposed within the housing, wherein the one or more circuit boards include a first pattern of keys that mates to the second pattern of keys that is formed as part of the interior of the housing itself, such that each of the two or more emergency lighting assemblies corresponds to an individual lens of the two or more lenses in the housing; solar cells mated with the housing for providing power to the two or more emergency lighting assemblies; a storage device also mated with the housing and in communication with the solar cells for storing energy generated by the solar cells when the energy is not being used by the two or more emergency lighting assemblies; a controller mounted within the housing for controlling the two or more emergency lighting assemblies and for coordinating the flow of energy to the two or more emergency lighting assemblies from the solar cells and the storage device; and a receiver mounted within the housing for wirelessly communicating with a control head in a passenger compartment of the vehicle.",
    "2. The self-powered light bar of claim 1 including a fuel cell within the housing.",
    "3. The self-powered light bar of claim 1 wherein the storage device is a rechargeable battery.",
    "4. The self-powered light bar of claim 1 wherein the storage device is a capacitive device.",
    "5. The self-powered light bar of claim 1 including a connection in the housing and between the receiver and the controller for communicating to the controller commands entered by a user at the control head, which commands enable the controller to operate the two or more emergency lighting assemblies in keeping with the commands.",
    "6. The self-powered light bar of claim 2 wherein the receiver is part of a transceiver that provides for bi-directional communication between the controller and the control head.",
    "7. The self-powered light bar of claim 1 wherein the two or more emergency lighting assemblies includes one or more groups of light emitting diodes (LEDs), with each group associated with a beam shaping device that shapes light from the group of LEDs into an emergency light signal.",
    "8. The self-powered light bar of claim 7 wherein at least two of the groups of LEDs are mounted on a common circuit board.",
    "9. A method for retrofitting a vehicle to include an emergency signaling system, the method including: mounting an emergency signaling system contained in a housing to the vehicle without any external wiring connecting the housing and the vehicle, wherein emergency signaling system includes two or more emergency lighting assemblies mounted on one or more circuit boards disposed within the housing that include a first pattern of keys that mates to a second pattern of keys that is formed as part of an interior of the housing itself, such that each of two or more emergency lighting assemblies corresponds to an individual lens of two or more lenses in the housing; applying energy to the two or more emergency lighting assemblies from a source of energy that is mated with the common housing; providing command signals to a controller in the common housing by way of a wireless connection between the controller and a user interface remote from the common housing; and operating the two or more emergency lighting assemblies in response to commands from the controller that are in keeping with the command signals received by way of the wireless connection such that the two or more emergency lighting assemblies contained by the common housing are operated and controlled without any wiring connecting the two or more emergency lighting assemblies to sources of energy or control that are external to the common housing.",
    "10. The method of claim 9 wherein the mounting of the emergency signaling system to the vehicle includes mounting the emergency signaling system to a roof of the vehicle.",
    "11. The method of claim 9 including converting solar energy to electrical energy at the source of energy and storing the electrical energy within the common housing when the electrical energy is not applied to operating the two or more emergency lighting assemblies.",
    "12. The method of claim 11 including providing the stored electrical energy to the two or more emergency lighting assemblies when the electrical energy immediately available from the source of energy is insufficient to drive the two or more emergency lighting assemblies.",
    "13. The method of claim 12 wherein the stored electrical energy supplements the electrical energy immediately available from the source of energy in order to provide a total amount of electrical energy that is sufficient to operate the two or more emergency lighting assemblies.",
    "14. The method of claim 9 wherein an operator of the vehicle enters commands to the user interface, which is mounted within a passenger compartment of the vehicle."
  ],
  "description_excerpt": "The invention is generally directed to signaling systems for emergency vehicles and, more particularly, to warning light assemblies for mounting to emergency vehicles.\n\nA common type of emergency warning system for a vehicle is commonly called a “light bar.” Typically light bars are mounted to roofs of vehicles and wired to power sources in the engine compartments and controlled from control heads mounted in the passenger compartments.\n\nCustomer demands have driven light bars toward highly customizable designs. Manufacturers of light bars often start with a standard housing and then offer an array of alternative types of lighting devices to populate the interior of the light bar. For example, customers may ask for different mixes of takedown lights and alley lights, whose functions are suggested by their names. Customers may also ask for lights of different colors and different types of light sources such as light emitting diodes (LEDs), halogen lights, strobes or even lasers. Furthermore, the lighting assemblies may be fixed, rotating or oscillating.\n\nTo accommodate the demands of customers, the interiors of light bars are typically designed to provide flexibility for substituting different lighting devices as specified by the customer. Often the interior spaces of light bars house an assortment of individual light assemblies and wires to each assembly with associated connectors, making the interiors densely packed with complex wiring schemes.\n\nThese designs have evolved into highly complex interiors that are time consuming to assemble and tend to discourage automation of the assembly.",
  "cpc": [
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  "assignees": [
    "Federal Signal Corp"
  ],
  "inventors": [
    "Paul M. Gergets",
    "Vince S. Fleszewski",
    "Allan J. Mostello"
  ],
  "filing_date": "2014-01-14",
  "publication_date": "2017-01-24",
  "grant_date": "2017-01-24",
  "priority_date": "2006-03-31",
  "application_number": "US-201414154771-A",
  "family_id": "38581730",
  "cited_by_count": 4,
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