U.S. patent application number 10/010291 was filed with the patent office on 2003-04-24 for fence assembly with lighting capability.
Invention is credited to Lin, Chang-Yuan.
Application Number | 20030075712 10/010291 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 21745056 |
Filed Date | 2003-04-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030075712 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Lin, Chang-Yuan |
April 24, 2003 |
Fence assembly with lighting capability
Abstract
A fence assembly includes at least one frame unit and a lamp
assembly. The frame unit is formed integrally from plastic, and
includes a plate body and a peripheral flange. The plate body
includes at least one first post portion and at least one second
post portion that forms an angle with the first post portion. The
peripheral flange extends rearwardly from a periphery of the plate
body such that the plate body and the peripheral flange cooperate
to confine a receiving space at a rear surface of the plate body.
The lamp assembly includes at least one lamp socket secured on the
plate body, at least one light bulb mounted on a corresponding lamp
socket, and a power cord connected to the lamp socket. The power
cord is disposed in the receiving space and is adapted to be
connected to a power source.
Inventors: |
Lin, Chang-Yuan; (Hsin-Chu,
TW) |
Correspondence
Address: |
HARNESS, DICKEY & PIERCE, P.L.C.
P.O. BOX 828
BLOOMFIELD HILLS
MI
48303
US
|
Family ID: |
21745056 |
Appl. No.: |
10/010291 |
Filed: |
October 22, 2001 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
256/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E04H 17/00 20130101;
E04H 17/1439 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
256/1 |
International
Class: |
E04H 017/00 |
Claims
I claim:
1. A fence assembly comprising: at least one frame unit, said frame
unit being formed integrally from plastic, said frame unit
including a plate body with front and rear surfaces, and a
peripheral flange extending rearwardly from a periphery of said
plate body such that said plate body and said peripheral flange
cooperate to confine a receiving space at said rear surface of said
plate body, said plate body including at least one first post
portion and at least one second post portion that is connected to
and that forms an angle with said at least one first post portion;
and a lamp assembly including at least one lamp socket secured on
said plate body at said rear surface of said plate body, at least
one light bulb mounted on a corresponding said lamp socket and
disposed at said front surface of said plate body, and a power cord
connected to said at least one lamp socket and disposed in said
receiving space, said power cord being adapted to be connected to a
power source.
2. The fence assembly of claim 1, wherein said second post portion
extends vertically and is formed with a stake end adapted to be
planted in a ground surface.
3. The fence assembly of claim 1, wherein said second post portion
extends vertically and is formed with a leg end adapted to stand on
a ground surface.
4. The fence assembly of claim 1, comprising a plurality of said
frame units, wherein said first post portion of each of said frame
units extends horizontally and has opposite ends formed with
complementary interlocking units for interconnecting adjacent ones
of said frame units.
5. The fence assembly of claim 4, wherein said complementary
interlocking units on said opposite ends of said first post portion
include a coupling block and a coupling hole for engaging said
coupling block on said first post portion of the adjacent one of
said frame units.
6. The fence assembly of claim 5, wherein each of said coupling
block and said coupling hole has a rectangular cross-section.
7. The fence assembly of claim 1, wherein said power cord has a
first end provided with an electrical plug and a second end
provided with an electrical socket.
8. The fence assembly of claim 1, wherein said lamp assembly
further includes at least one decorative cap mounted removably on
said front surface of said plate body and disposed to surround a
corresponding said light bulb.
9. The fence assembly of claim 8, wherein said decorative cap is
formed with a pair of anchor projections, said front surface of
said plate body being formed with a pair of anchor holes for
engaging removably said anchor projections.
10. The fence assembly of claim 9, wherein each of said anchor
projections has a hook end, each of said anchor holes having a
wider hole section that permits passage of said hook end of a
corresponding one of said anchor projections therethrough when said
hook end is registered with said wider hole section, and a narrower
hole section that prevents removal of said hook end of the
corresponding one of said anchor projections from said plate body
when said hook end is registered with said narrower hole section.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The invention relates to a fence assembly, more particularly
to a fence assembly with a lighting capability.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] A conventional fence assembly is generally designed to
barricade a certain area, such as a yard, a garden, and private
property, and is not capable of producing light. If the
conventional fence assembly is to be provided with lighting, a lot
of energy, time, and money will be wasted, especially when the
length of the conventional fence assembly is relatively long.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to
provide a fence assembly with a lighting capability so as to
overcome the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art.
[0006] Accordingly, a fence assembly of this invention comprises at
least one frame unit and a lamp assembly. The frame unit is formed
integrally from plastic, and includes a plate body and a peripheral
flange. The plate body has front and rear surfaces, and includes at
least one first post portion and at least one second post portion.
The second post portion is connected to and forms an angle with
first post portion. The peripheral flange extends rearwardly from a
periphery of the plate body such that the plate body and the
peripheral flange cooperate to confine a receiving space at the
rear surface of the plate body. The lamp assembly includes at least
one lamp socket, at least one light bulb, and a power cord. The
lamp socket is secured on the plate body at the rear surface of the
plate body. The light bulb is mounted on a corresponding lamp
socket, and is disposed at the front surface of the plate body. The
power cord is connected to the lamp socket, is disposed in the
receiving space, and is adapted to be connected to a power
source.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] Other features and advantages of the present invention will
become apparent in the following detailed description of the
preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings,
of which:
[0008] FIGS. 1 and 2 are front and rear perspective views of the
first preferred embodiment of a fence assembly according to the
present invention;
[0009] FIG. 3 is fragmentary perspective view illustrating a first
manner of connection between a coupling block and a coupling hole
of an adjacent frame unit;
[0010] FIG. 4 is fragmentary perspective view illustrating a second
manner of connection between the coupling block and the coupling
hole of the adjacent frame unit;
[0011] FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating a
third manner of connection between the coupling block and the
coupling hole of the adjacent frame unit;
[0012] FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating a
decorative cap of the fence assembly of the present invention;
and
[0013] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the second preferred
embodiment of a fence assembly according to the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0014] Before the present invention is described in greater detail,
it should be noted that like elements are denoted by the same
reference numerals throughout the disclosure.
[0015] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the first preferred embodiment
of a fence assembly 1 according to the present invention is shown
to comprise at least one frame unit 11 and a lamp assembly 12. The
frame unit 11 is formed integrally from plastic, and includes a
plate body 111 and a peripheral flange 112. The plate body 11 has
front and rear surfaces 1111, 1112, and includes at least one first
post portion 1113 and at least one second post portion 1114. Each
of the first post portions 1113 extends horizontally so as to be
disposed in parallel with the ground surface, and has opposite ends
formed with complementary interlocking units 13 for interconnecting
adjacent ones of the frame units 11. The complementary interlocking
units 13 on the opposite ends of the first post portion 1113
include a coupling block 131 and a coupling hole 132 for engaging
the coupling block 131 on the first post portion 1113 of the
adjacent one of the frame units 11. Each of the coupling block 131
and the coupling hole 132 has a rectangular cross-section. The
second post portion 1114 extends vertically and is connected
transversely to the first post portion 1113. In this embodiment,
the plate body 111 includes two first post portions 1113 and six
second post portions 1114. Two of the second post portions 1114 are
formed with a stake end 1115 adapted to be planted in a ground
surface. The peripheral flange 112 extends rearwardly from a
periphery of the plate body 111 such that the plate body 111 and
the peripheral flange 112 cooperate to confine a receiving space
113 at the rear surface 1112 of the plate body 111.
[0016] The lamp assembly 12 includes at least one lamp socket 121,
at least one light bulb 122, and a power cord 123. The lamp socket
121 is secured at the rear surface 1112 of the plate body 111. The
light bulb 122 is mounted on a corresponding lamp socket 121, and
is disposed at the front surface 1112 of the plate body 111. The
power cord 123 is connected electrically to each lamp socket 121,
and disposed in the receiving space 113. The power cord 123 further
has a first end provided with an electrical plug 1231, and a second
end provided with an electrical socket 1232 for connecting
electrically with the electrical plug 1231 of an adjacent frame
unit 11. A cover plate (not shown) can be disposed on the rear side
of the frame unit 11 to protect the power cord 123 from bad
weather. The lamp assembly 13 further includes at least one
decorative cap 121 mounted removably on the front surface 1111 of
the plate body 111, and disposed to surround a corresponding light
bulb 122. As shown in FIG. 6, the decorative cap 121 is formed with
a pair of anchor projections 1210 and a center hole 1211 for
extension of the light bulb 122 therethrough. Each of the anchor
projections 1210 has a hook end 1212. The front surface 1111 of the
plate body 111 is formed with a pair of anchor holes 115 for
engaging removably the anchor projections 1212. Each of the anchor
holes 115 has a wider hole section 1151 and a narrower hole section
1152. The wider hole section 1151 permits passage of the hook end
1212 of a corresponding one of the anchor projections 1210
therethrough when the hook end 1212 is registered with the wider
hole section 1151. The narrower hole section 1152 prevents removal
of the hook end 1212 of the corresponding one of the anchor
projections 1210 from the plate body 111 when the decorative cap
121 is turned relative to the plate body 111 so as to register the
hook end 1212 with the narrower hole section 1152.
[0017] In use, the interlocking units 13 of the adjacent frame
units 11 are interconnected to achieve the desired length of the
fence assembly 1. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the coupling block 131
can engage the coupling hole 132 of the adjacent frame unit 11 such
that the adjacent frame units 11 are aligned with each other or are
transverse to each other to suit the intended environment.
Alternatively, if the coupling block 131 is resilient, the coupling
block 131 can be bent upon engagement with the coupling hole 132 of
the adjacent frame unit 11 such that the adjacent frame units 11
are transverse to each other, as best shown in FIG. 5. After the
fence assembly 1 is assembled, the electrical plug 1231 and the
electrical socket 1232 of the adjacent frame units 11 are
interconnected, and the electrical plug 1231 of one of the frame
units 11 is connected to a power source, thereby enabling the light
bulbs 122 in the light sockets 121 on each of the frame units 11 to
radiate light.
[0018] FIG. 7 illustrates the second preferred embodiment of a
fence assembly 1 according to the present invention. Unlike the
first preferred embodiment, two of the second post portions 1114 of
the plate body 111 are formed with a leg end 1116 adapted to stand
on a ground surface.
[0019] While the present invention has been described in connection
with what is considered the most practical and preferred
embodiments, it is understood that this invention is not limited to
the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various
arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest
interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and
equivalent arrangements.
* * * * *