RETRACTABLE BOLLARD LIGHT

Abstract

A retractable bollard light has a shell set and a main body. The shell set is configured to be set underground. The shell set includes an outer shell, an inner shell, and a top cover. The inner shell is in the outer shell, and the top cover is mounted on the outer shell and the inner shell. The top cover has a top opening formed through a top surface and a bottom surface. The main body has a moving assembly, a light source assembly, and a power module. The moving assembly is in the inner shell and is movable with respect to the inner shell. The light source assembly moves with the moving assembly out of the inner shell through the top opening. The power module is electrically connected to the moving assembly and the light source assembly. The retractable bollard light may be retracted when not in use.

Claims

1. A retractable bollard light comprising: a shell set configured to be set underground, the shell set including: an outer shell being tubular; an inner shell being tubular and disposed in the outer shell; and a top cover mounted on a top end of the outer shell and a top end of the inner shell, and the top cover having: a top surface and a bottom surface opposite to each other; and a top opening formed through the top surface and the bottom surface; and a main body movably disposed in the shell set, and the main body having: a moving assembly mounted in the inner shell and being moveable with respect to the inner shell along an extending direction of the inner shell; a light source assembly mounted on the moving assembly and thereby being movable along with the moving assembly, the light source assembly disposed in the inner shell and being capable of moving out from the inner shell through the top opening; and a power module electrically connected to the moving assembly and the light source assembly.

2. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the inner shell has: a gear rack mounted on an inner wall surface of the inner shell, and the gear rack extending along the extending direction of the inner shell; and the moving assembly has: a motor; and a gear rotatably mounted on the motor and engaging with the gear rack, and the gear being movable along the gear rack.

3. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the inner shell has: a guide track mounted on the inner wall surface of the inner shell, and the guide track extending along the extending direction of the inner shell; and the moving assembly has: a guiding unit contacting the guide track, and the guiding unit being movable along the guide track.

4. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 2, wherein the inner shell has: a guide track mounted on the inner wall surface of the inner shell, and the guide track extending along the extending direction of the inner shell; and the moving assembly has: a guiding unit contacting the guide track, and the guiding unit being movable along the guide track.

5. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 3, wherein: the guide track has a groove extending along the extending direction of the inner shell; and the guiding unit has a wheel disposed in the groove and capable of rolling in the groove of the guide track, and a width of the wheel is equal to a width of the groove.

6. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 4, wherein the guide track has a groove extending along the extending direction of the inner shell; and the guiding unit has a wheel disposed in the groove and capable of rolling in the groove of the guide track, and a width of the wheel is equal to a width of the groove.

7. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 1, wherein the light source assembly has: a housing connected to the moving assembly; a driving module mounted in the housing; an illumination unit pivotably mounted in the housing; and a link connecting with the driving module and the illumination unit, thereby the driving module capable of driving the illumination unit to pivot.

8. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 6, wherein the light source assembly has: a housing connected to the moving assembly; a driving module mounted in the housing; an illumination unit pivotably mounted in the housing; and a link connecting with the driving module and the illumination unit, thereby the driving module capable of driving the illumination unit to pivot.

9. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 7, wherein: the light source assembly has a limit block securely mounted in the housing, and thereby a moving range of the link is limited.

10. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 8, wherein: the light source assembly has a limit block securely mounted in the housing, and thereby a moving range of the link is limited.

11. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 7, wherein: the housing has an upper surface facing upward and being level with the top surface of the top cover.

12. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 10, wherein: the housing has an upper surface facing upward and being level with the top surface of the top cover.

13. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the top cover seals the top end of the outer shell and the top end of the inner shell, and the top cover has: a scraper unit surrounding the top opening, and the scraper unit protruding inwardly from an edge of the top opening, and the scraper unit contacting the light source assembly.

14. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 12, wherein: the top cover seals the top end of the outer shell and the top end of the inner shell, and the top cover has: a scraper unit surrounding the top opening, and the scraper unit protruding inwardly from an edge of the top opening, and the scraper unit contacting the light source assembly.

15. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 1, wherein the top cover has: a roller rotatably mounted on the bottom surface of the top cover and arranged around the top opening, and the roller contacting the light source assembly.

16. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 14, wherein the top cover has: a roller rotatably mounted on the bottom surface of the top cover and arranged around the top opening, and the roller contacting the light source assembly.

17. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 1, wherein the power module is capable of slowly retracting the main body after switched off.

18. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 16, wherein the power module is capable of slowly retracting the main body after switched off.

19. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 17, wherein the power module has a capacitor electrically connected to the moving assembly.

20. The retractable bollard light as claimed in claim 18, wherein the power module has a capacitor electrically connected to the moving assembly.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a retractable bollard light in accordance with the present invention, shown in a retracted state;

[0010] FIG. 2 is another perspective view of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 1, shown in an extended state;

[0011] FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 1;

[0012] FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 2;

[0013] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 1, showing a cross-sectional view of the shell set;

[0014] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 2, showing a cross-sectional view of the shell set;

[0015] FIG. 7 is a partially-enlarged and partial cross-sectional view of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 1, showing the top cover and the light source assembly;

[0016] FIG. 8 is a partially-enlarged perspective view of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 1, showing the moving assembly and the inner shell;

[0017] FIGS. 9 and 10 are serial partially-enlarged side views of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 1, showing the illumination unit changing illuminating angle;

[0018] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing electrical connection of the power module, the moving assembly, and the light source assembly of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 1;

[0019] FIG. 12 is a diagram showing electrical connection of the power storage and the main body of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 1; and

[0020] FIG. 13 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view of the retractable bollard light in FIG. 1, shown without the shell set and in another view angle from FIG. 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, a retractable bollard light in accordance with the present invention comprises a shell set 10 and a main body 20. The retractable bollard light has a retracted state as shown in FIG. 1 and an extended state as shown in FIG. 2.

[0022] With reference to FIGS. 3 to 6, the shell set 10 is configured to be set underground, and the shell set 10 includes an outer shell 11, an inner shell 12, and a top cover 13. The outer shell 11 is tubular and is arranged along an up-down direction.

[0023] The inner shell 12 is also tubular, and the inner shell 12 is disposed in the outer shell 11 along an extending direction of the outer shell 11. In this embodiment, the inner shell 12 is spaced apart from the outer shell 11, in other words, a gap is formed between the inner shell 12 and the outer shell 11, thus being convenient for a user to set the inner shell 12, but it is not limited thereto.

[0024] The inner shell 12 has a gear rack 122 and a guide track 123. The gear rack 122 is mounted on an inner wall surface 124 of the inner shell 12, and the gear rack 122 extends along an extending direction of the inner shell 12. Likewise, the guide track 123 is mounted on the inner wall surface 124 of the inner shell 12, and the guide track 123 extends along the extending direction of the inner shell 12.

[0025] To be more precise, in this embodiment, a cross-section of the inner shell 12 is polygonal, and thus the inner shell 12 has multiple inner wall surfaces 124 which are connected with each other and together surround an interior of the inner shell 12, and the gear rack 122 and the guide track 123 are each formed on a respective one of the inner wall surfaces 124. Moreover, the inner shell 12 may have multiple guide tracks 123 respectively formed on different ones of the inner wall surfaces 124, but it is not limited thereto.

[0026] In this embodiment, the guide track 123 has a groove 1231 extending along the extending direction of the inner shell 12, but it is not limited thereto, as a configuration of the guide track 123 may be altered according to need.

[0027] With reference to FIGS. 3-5 and 7, the top cover 13 is mounted on a top end 111 of the outer shell 11 and a top end 121 of the inner shell 12; to be more precise, the top cover 13 seals the top end 111 of the outer shell 11 and the top end 121 of the inner shell 12 to prevent water or dust falling into the gap between the inner shell 12 and the outer shell 11. In this embodiment, the top cover 13 is detachably mounted on the outer shell 11 and the inner shell 12, thereby facilitating ease in installation and uninstallation.

[0028] The top cover 13 has a top surface 131, a bottom surface 132, a top opening 133, a scraper unit 134, and a roller 135. The top surface 131 and the bottom surface 132 are opposite to each other. In this embodiment, the top surface 131 faces upward and is level with a ground surface.

[0029] The top opening 133 is formed through the top surface 131 and the bottom surface 132, and thereby an exterior of the inner shell 12 and the interior of the inner shell 12 spatially communicate with each other. In this embodiment, the top opening 133 is shaped rectangular with rounded corners, but it is not limited thereto.

[0030] The scraper unit 134 surrounds the top opening 133 and protrudes inwardly from an edge of the top opening 133. In this embodiment, the scraper unit 134 is mounted between the top surface 131 and the bottom surface 132, but in another embodiment, the scraper unit 134 may be mounted on the top surface 131 or the bottom surface 132. The scraper unit 134 is elastic and contacts the main body 20, thereby preventing water or dust entering the inner shell 12 via the top opening 133.

[0031] The roller 135 is rotatably mounted on the bottom surface 132 of the top cover 13 and arranged around the top opening 133; to be more precise, the roller 135 is cylindrical and is arranged extending along an edge of the top opening 133. The roller 135 contacts the main body 20 and thereby helps the main body 20 move smoothly.

[0032] With reference to FIGS. 1, 2, 5, and 6, the main body 20 is movably disposed in the shell set 10.

[0033] With reference to FIGS. 3 to 6, and 13, the main body 20 has a moving assembly 21, a light source assembly 22, and a power module 23.

[0034] The moving assembly 21 is mounted in the interior of the inner shell 12, and the moving assembly 21 is capable of moving with respect to the inner shell 12 along the extending direction of the inner shell 12. The moving assembly 21 has a casing 211, a motor 212, a gear 213, and a guiding unit 214. The motor 212 is mounted in the casing 211, and the gear 213 is rotatably mounted on the motor 212. The gear 213 is located outside of the casing 211 and engages with the gear rack 122, and thus the motor 212 is capable of driving the gear 213 to move along the gear rack 122.

[0035] With reference to FIGS. 3, 4, 6, and 8, the guiding unit 214 is mounted on a bottom side of the casing 211 and protrudes radially to contact the guide track 123, thereby the guiding unit 214 being movable along the guide track 123 and preventing the main body 20 from rotating with respect to the inner shell 12 during moving.

[0036] To be more precise, the guiding unit 214 has a wheel 2141 disposed in the groove 1231 of the guide track 123, and the wheel 2141 is capable of rolling in the groove 1231, a width of the wheel 2141 is equal to a width of the groove 1231, thereby helping reducing effect of friction between the guiding unit 214 and the guide track 123, such that the main body 20 may move smoothly. In another embodiment, the configurations of the guiding unit 214 and the guide track 123 may be altered according to need.

[0037] With reference to FIGS. 4 to 7 and 13, the light source assembly 22 is mounted on the moving assembly 21, such that the light source assembly 22 is movable along with the moving assembly 21. The light source assembly 22 is disposed in the interior of the inner shell 12 and is capable of moving out from the inner shell 12 through the top opening 133.

[0038] The light source assembly 22 has a housing 221, a driving module 222, an illumination unit 223, and a link 224. The housing 221 is connected to the moving assembly 21, and with reference to FIG. 5, the housing 221 has an upper surface 2211 which faces upward, and the upper surface 2211 is level with the top surface 131 of the top cover 13 when the retractable bollard light is in the retracted state.

[0039] With reference to FIGS. 4, 6, and 7, in this embodiment, the housing 221 is shaped as a rectangular cuboid, and the scraper unit 134 contacts an outer wall surface of the housing 221. In addition, the roller 135 of the top cover 13 also contacts the outer wall surface of the housing 221 to help the main body 20 move smoothly.

[0040] With reference to FIGS. 4, 9, 10, and 13, the driving module 222 is mounted in the housing 221, and the illumination unit 223 is pivotably mounted in the housing 221. The link 224 connects with the driving module 222 and the illumination unit 223, such that the driving module 222 is capable of driving the illumination unit 223 to pivot.

[0041] In this embodiment, the illumination unit 223 is capable of pivoting around a horizontal axis, and thus the illumination unit 223 may change an illuminating angle up or down. With reference to FIGS. 9 and 10, when the driving module 222 pulls the link 224 downward, the link 224 would pull the illumination unit 223 accordingly, and thus the illumination unit 223 illuminates upward, vice versa. In addition, the light source assembly 22 may have two illumination units 223 and two links 224, one of the links 224 connects with one of the illumination units 223 and the driving module 222, and the other one of the links 224 connects with the two illumination units 223, thereby the two illumination units 223 being synchronized, but it is not limited thereto.

[0042] Besides, with reference to FIG. 9, the light source assembly 22 may have a limit block 225 securely mounted in the housing 221, and thereby a moving range of the link 224 is limited. To be more precise, the link 224 may further have a limit recess 2241, and the limit block 225 would engage with the limit recess 2241 as the driving module 222 keeps moving the link 224 along the same direction, and thus a moving range of the link 224 as well as a range of the illuminating angle of the illumination unit 223 is limited, but it is not limited thereto, as the light source assembly 22 may not have the limit block 225.

[0043] With reference to FIGS. 4, 11, and 13, the power module 23 is electrically connected to the moving assembly 21 and the light source assembly 22, and the power module 23 is capable of controlling the moving assembly 21 to move, the illumination unit 223 to illuminate, and the driving module 222 to change the illuminating angle of the illumination unit 223 with a controlling circuit 231, and the power module 23 also serves as a power supply.

[0044] In this embodiment, the power module 23 is disposed in the casing 211 of the moving assembly 21, but it is not limited thereto. In addition, the power module 23 may be capable of slowly retracting the main body 20 after switched off. To be more precise, with reference to FIGS. 4, 11, and 12, the power module 23 may have a power storage 232 that includes capacitors 2321 having large capacitance. The capacitors 2321 are electrically connected to the moving assembly 21 of the main body 20. The capacitors 2321 of the power storage 232 are charged when the retractable bollard light is switched on, and once the retractable bollard light is switched off, the power storage 232 is still capable of supplying electricity to the motor 212, and the main body 20 slowly moves down to retract.

[0045] With reference to FIGS. 4 to 6, when the retractable bollard light is extended, the motor 212 drives the gear 213 to rotate, and the moving assembly 21 moves upward along the gear rack 122 of the inner shell 12. The guiding unit 214 rolls in the guide track 123, and the roller 135 of the top cover 13 contacts the housing 221 of the light source assembly 22 and rotates.

[0046] On the other hand, when the retractable bollard light is switched off, the power storage 232 discharges and supplies power to the motor 212, the gear 213 thus rotates at a constant speed with respect to the gear rack 122, and the main body 20 retracts downward in a slow manner instead of free falling.

[0047] The retractable bollard light can be retracted to the retracted state when not in use. Since the shell set 10 is arranged underground and the upper surface 2211 of the top cover 13 and the upper surface 2211 of the housing 221 are level with the ground surface, the retractable bollard light would not affect the movements of vehicles or devices on the ground.

[0048] Since the shell set 10 may be separated into the outer shell 11 and the inner shell 12, and the top cover 13 is detachable from the outer shell 11 and the inner shell 12, it would be easy for the user to install or uninstall the bollard light.

[0049] The user may leave the outer shell 11 underground and move out the inner shell 11 as well as the main body 20 after removing the top cover 13 when the user is to conduct maintenance to the main body 20.

[0050] In addition, since the retractable bollard light is installed with parts underground, how to prevent water, dust, or any other small objects falling into the retractable bollard light is crucial. As a solution, the scraper unit 134 of the top cover 13 fills a gap between the top cover 13 and the light source assembly 22 as well as the top cover 13 seals the top end 111 of the outer shell 11 and the top end 121 of the inner shell 12 to prevent water or dust falling into the inner shell 12, hence reducing risk of damage.

[0051] When the main body 20 is moving, the guide track 123 as well as the guiding unit 214 may prevent the main body 20 rotating, and the wheel 2141 of the guiding unit 214 and the roller 135 of the top cover 13 also help the main body 20 move smoothly, thus wearing of the components as well as frequency of maintenance of the retractable bollard light may be decreased.

[0052] Furthermore, the illuminating angle of the illumination unit 223 is changeable with the driving module 222 and the link 224, such that an illumination range of the retractable bollard light can be adjusted according to occasions or weather.

[0053] Moreover, as the main body 20 is retracted with the preserved electricity in the power storage 232, the retractable bollard light can be directly switched off, instead of cutting off the power supplied to the motor 212, the illumination unit 223, and the driving module 222 separately, and thus a control design of the retractable bollard light may be simplified.

[0054] Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and features of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made in the details, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.