U.S. patent application number 14/971971 was filed with the patent office on 2016-06-23 for efficiency lighting apparatus with led directly mounted to a heatsink.
This patent application is currently assigned to Mag Instrument, Inc.. The applicant listed for this patent is Mag Instrument, Inc.. Invention is credited to Anthony Maglica.
Application Number | 20160178182 14/971971 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 56128968 |
Filed Date | 2016-06-23 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160178182 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Maglica; Anthony |
June 23, 2016 |
Efficiency Lighting Apparatus with LED Directly Mounted to a
Heatsink
Abstract
LED efficiency in a lighting device, such as an aluminum
flashlight, is increased by directly mounting the LED without use
of a PCB to a heatsink that is in thermal and electrical contact
with an outer casing to dissipate heat, resulting in an LED that
operates much cool and therefore much more efficiently.
Inventors: |
Maglica; Anthony; (Ontario,
CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Mag Instrument, Inc. |
Ontario |
CA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Mag Instrument, Inc.
Ontario
CA
|
Family ID: |
56128968 |
Appl. No.: |
14/971971 |
Filed: |
December 16, 2015 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
62095733 |
Dec 22, 2014 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
362/373 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F21V 3/00 20130101; F21V
19/005 20130101; F21V 23/0428 20130101; F21V 15/04 20130101; H01M
2220/30 20130101; F21V 29/70 20150115; F21V 23/06 20130101; Y02E
60/10 20130101; F21V 29/503 20150115; H01M 10/643 20150401; F21V
29/713 20150115; F21V 17/12 20130101; F21V 29/89 20150115; H01L
33/642 20130101; H01L 2224/48091 20130101; F21L 4/027 20130101;
F21L 4/085 20130101; F21V 17/101 20130101; H01M 10/623 20150401;
H01M 10/613 20150401; F21V 7/00 20130101; F21Y 2115/10 20160801;
H01L 33/483 20130101; H01M 2/204 20130101; H01M 10/655 20150401;
F21L 4/005 20130101; H01M 2/1055 20130101; H01L 33/62 20130101;
H01M 10/0481 20130101; H01L 2224/48091 20130101; H01L 2924/00014
20130101 |
International
Class: |
F21V 29/70 20060101
F21V029/70; F21V 23/06 20060101 F21V023/06; F21V 17/10 20060101
F21V017/10; F21V 15/01 20060101 F21V015/01 |
Claims
1-10. (canceled)
11: A lighting apparatus, comprising: a light emitting diode
("LED") package having a first and a second electrically conductive
member to provide power to cause a die within the LED package to
emit light; an outer casing that is thermally and electrically
conductive; and a heatsink assembly, said heatsink assembly
comprising: an outer electrically conductive member that is
thermally conductive and which is mechanically connected to the
outer casing; a core of an electrically insulating material which
is held within the outer electrically conductive member; and an
inner electrically conductive member which is positioned and
electrically isolated from the outer electrically conductive member
by the core; wherein the first electrically conductive member of
the LED package is thermally and electrically bonded to a top
surface of the outer electrically conductive member and the second
electrically conductive member of the LED package is thermally and
electrically bonded to the inner electrically conductive member;
and wherein the LED package is turned on when power from an
electrical circuit is applied to the outer electrically conductive
member and the inner electrically conductive member.
12: The lighting apparatus of claim 11 wherein the outer casing is
integrally formed with the outer electrically conductive
member.
13: The lighting apparatus of claim 11 wherein the heatsink
assembly is held within the outer casing by an interference
fit.
14: The lighting apparatus of claim 13 wherein the lighting
apparatus is a flashlight and the outer casing is a flashlight
barrel.
15: The lighting apparatus of claim 14 wherein flashlight barrel is
made of aluminum.
16: The lighting apparatus of claim 15 wherein the lighting
apparatus is manufactured by the process of: soldering both the
first electrically conductive member to the top surface of the
outer electrically conductive member and the second electrically
conductive member to the inner electrically conductive member; and
inserting the heat sink assembly into the flashlight barrel so that
the heat sink is held by mechanical contact with the barrel.
17: The lighting apparatus of claim 16 wherein the heat sink
assembly is press fit into the flashlight barrel.
18: The lighting apparatus of claim 16 wherein the heat sink
assembly is removably secured within the flashlight barrel by a
mechanical means.
19: The lighting apparatus of claim 18 wherein the mechanical means
is a nut threaded into the flashlight barrel.
20: The lighting apparatus of claim 15 wherein the outer
electrically conductive member has a circular cross section.
21: The lighting apparatus of claim 11 wherein a thermal path is
created between the outer casing and the first electrically
conductive member of the LED package which is only interrupted by a
first thermal junction between the outer casing and the outer
electrically conductive member and a second thermal junction
between the outer electrically conductive member and the first
electrically conductive member of the LED package.
22: The lighting apparatus of claim 12 wherein a thermal path is
created between the outer casing and the first electrically
conductive member of the LED package which is only interrupted by a
thermal junction between the outer electrically conductive member
and the first electrically conductive member of the LED
package.
23: The lighting apparatus of claim 11 further comprising: a second
LED package having a third and a fourth electrically conductive
member to provide power to cause a second die within the second LED
package to emit light; a third electrically conductive member which
is positioned and electrically isolated from the outer electrically
conductive member by the core; wherein the third electrically
conductive member of the second LED package is thermally and
electrically bonded to the top surface of the outer electrically
conductive member and the fourth electrically conductive member of
the second LED package is thermally and electrically bonded to the
fourth electrically conductive member; and wherein the second LED
package is turned on when power from the electrical circuit is
applied to the heatsink and the fourth electrically conductive
member.
24: A flashlight, comprising: a flashlight barrel that is thermally
and electrically conductive; at least one light emitting diode
("LED") package, each LED package having a first and a second
electrically conductive member to provide power to cause a die
within said each LED package to emit light; and a heatsink, said
heatsink comprising: an outer electrically conductive member that
is thermally conductive and which is mechanically connected to the
outer casing; a core of an electrically insulating material which
is held within the outer electrically conductive member; and at
least one inner electrically conductive member which is positioned
and electrically isolated from the outer electrically conductive
member by the core; wherein the first electrically conductive
member of said each LED package is thermally and electrically
bonded to a top surface of the outer electrically conductive member
and the second electrically conductive member of said each LED
package is thermally and electrically bonded to one of the at least
one inner electrically conductive member; wherein said each LED
package is turned on when power from an electrical circuit is
applied to the heatsink and the at least one inner electrically
conductive member; and wherein a thermal path is created between
the flashlight barrel and the first electrically conductive member
of said each LED package which is only interrupted by two or less
thermal junctions between the flashlight barrel and the first
electrically conductive member of said each LED package.
25: The flashlight of claim 24 wherein the thermal path is only
interrupted by a first thermal junction between the flashlight
barrel and the outer electrically conductive member and a second
thermal junction between the outer electrically conductive member
and the first electrically conductive member of said each LED
package.
26: The lighting apparatus of claim 24 wherein the thermal path is
only interrupted by one thermal junction between the outer
electrically conductive member and the first electrically
conductive member of said each LED package.
27: The lighting apparatus of claim 24 wherein the first
electrically conductive member of said each LED package is soldered
to the top surface of the outer electrically conductive member and
the second electrically conductive member of said each LED package
is soldered to one of the at least one inner electrically
conductive member.
28: A method for creating a flashlight mode with increased lumens
or with increased on-time, comprising: soldering both a first
electrically conductive member of a light emitting diode ("LED")
package to a top surface of an outer electrically conductive member
of a heat sink assembly and a second electrically conductive member
of the LED package to an inner electrically conductive member of
the heatsink assembly; and inserting the heat sink assembly into a
flashlight barrel so that the heat sink assembly is held by
mechanical contact with the barrel and a thermal path is created
between the flashlight barrel and the first electrically conductive
member of the LED package which is only interrupted by a first
thermal junction between the flashlight barrel and the outer
electrically conductive member and a second thermal junction
between the outer electrically conductive member and the first
electrically conductive member of said each LED package; wherein
providing power to the first and the second electrically conductive
members of the LED cause a die within the LED package to emit
light; wherein the heatsink assembly has a core of an electrically
insulating material which is held within the outer electrically
conductive member and the inner electrically conductive member is
positioned and electrically isolated from the outer electrically
conductive member by the core; and wherein the LED package is
turned on when power from an electrical circuit is applied to the
outer electrically conductive member and the inner electrically
conductive member.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a non-provisional application which
claims priority from U.S. Ser. No. 62/095,733, filed Dec. 22, 2014,
with the same title, the disclosure of which is specifically
incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
BACKGROUND
[0002] LED efficiency and light output drops as the device heats up
during operation. Typically, LEDs are mounted on laminated printed
circuit boards. Some are mounted on special metal back or ceramic
printed circuit boards in an attempt to conduct heat away from the
LED.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The invention is generally directed to a lighting apparatus
in which at least one LED is mounted to the top surface of a heat
sink held within an outer casing that is thermally and electrically
conductive, the LED having a first conductive member which is
thermally and electrically directly connected to the heatsink
without the use of a printed circuit board and a second
electrically conductive member which is electrically isolated from
the heatsink by an electrical insulating material held within the
heatsink.
[0004] The second electrically conductive member of the LED can be
soldered to a terminal held within the electrical insulating
material while the first electrically conductive member of the LED
can also be soldered to the heat sink and the resulting heat sink
assembly can be press fit into a tube or barrel (such as an
aluminum flashlight barrel) or inserted into the tube or barrel and
then removably retained by a mechanical means such as a nut
threaded to the tube or barrel. Alternatively, the heatsink can be
integrally formed with the tube or barrel.
[0005] Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention
to provide a lighting apparatus having improved efficiency by
directly mounting an LED to a heatsink.
[0006] This and further objects and advantages will be apparent to
those skilled in the art in connection with the drawings and the
detailed description of the invention set forth below.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] The drawings will hereinafter be described by a brief
reference to the drawings and then a description of the numerical
elements identified in the drawing.
[0008] FIGS. 1A-D show a heatsink and insulating core installed in
a metal tube or flashlight barrel having the following identified
elements: [0009] 1. Tube or barrel [0010] 2. Heatsink [0011] 3.
Insulator [0012] 4. Terminal to connect power to LED [0013] 5. LED
[0014] 6. Thermal junction and first electrical connection between
LED and heatsink [0015] 7. Second electrical connection
[0016] FIG. 1B is a cross sectional view which is shown exploded in
FIG. 1D while FIGS. 1A and 1C are, respectively, top and bottom
views looking into the apparatus shown in cross section in FIG.
1B.
[0017] FIGS. 2A-D show a variation on FIGS. 1A-D in which the
heatsink and insulating core are installed in a metal tube or
flashlight barrel having the following identified elements: [0018]
1. Tube or barrel [0019] 2. Heatsink [0020] 3. Insulator [0021] 4.
Terminal to connect power to LED [0022] 5. LED [0023] 6. Thermal
junction and first electrical connection between LED and heatsink
[0024] 7. Second electrical connection
[0025] FIG. 2B is a cross sectional view which is shown exploded in
FIG. 2D while FIGS. 2A and 2C are, respectively, top and bottom
views looking into the apparatus shown in cross section in FIG.
2B.
[0026] FIGS. 3A-D show a one-piece heatsink similar to that shown
in FIGS. 2A-D having the following identified elements: [0027] 1.
Integral tube or barrel and heatsink [0028] 3. Insulator [0029] 4.
Terminal to connect power to LED [0030] 5. LED [0031] 6. Thermal
junction and first electrical connection between LED and heatsink
[0032] 7. Second electrical connection
[0033] FIG. 3B is a cross sectional view which is shown exploded in
FIG. 3D while FIGS. 3A and 3C are, respectively, top and bottom
views looking into the apparatus shown in cross section in FIG.
3B.
[0034] FIGS. 4A-D show a variation on the heatsink and insulating
core in FIGS. 1A-D. In this example, there is a printed circuit
board between the LED and the other end of the assembly having the
following identified elements: [0035] 1. Tube or barrel [0036] 2.
Heatsink [0037] 3. Insulator [0038] 4. Terminal to connect power to
LED [0039] 5. LED [0040] 6. Thermal junction and first electrical
connection between LED and heatsink [0041] 7. Second electrical
connection [0042] 8. Printed circuit board [0043] 9. Insulator
[0044] 10. Contact
[0045] FIG. 4B is a cross sectional view which is shown exploded in
FIG. 4D while FIGS. 4A and 4C are, respectively, top and bottom
views looking into the apparatus shown in cross section in FIG.
4B.
[0046] FIGS. 5A-D show a variation of the assembly shown in FIGS.
4A-D having the following identified elements: [0047] 1. Tube or
barrel [0048] 2. Heatsink [0049] 3. Insulator [0050] 4. Terminal to
connect power to LED [0051] 5. LED [0052] 6. Thermal junction and
first electrical connection between LED and heatsink [0053] 7.
Second electrical connection [0054] 8. Printed circuit board [0055]
9. Insulator [0056] 10. Contact
[0057] FIG. 5B is a cross sectional view which is shown exploded in
FIG. 5D while FIGS. 5A and 5C are, respectively, top and bottom
views looking into the apparatus shown in cross section in FIG.
5B.
[0058] FIGS. 6A-D show a heatsink similar to that in FIGS. 3A-D but
containing a printed circuit board having the following identified
elements: [0059] 1. Integral tube or barrel and heatsink [0060] 3.
Insulator [0061] 4. Terminal to connect power to LED [0062] 5. LED
[0063] 6. Thermal junction and first electrical connection between
LED and heatsink [0064] 7. Second electrical connection [0065] 8.
Printed circuit board [0066] 9. Insulator [0067] 10. Contact
[0068] FIG. 6B is a cross sectional view which is shown exploded in
FIG. 6D while FIGS. 6A and 6C are, respectively, top and bottom
views looking into the apparatus shown in cross section in FIG.
6B.
[0069] FIGS. 7A-D show a circular array of LEDs mounted on a common
heatsink. Four LEDs are shown here but there could be any number of
LEDs. FIGS. 7A-D have the following identified elements: [0070] 1.
Tube or barrel [0071] 2. Heatsink [0072] 3. Insulator [0073] 4.
Terminal to connect power to LED [0074] 5. LED [0075] 6. Thermal
junction and first electrical connection between LED and heatsink
[0076] 7. Second electrical connection
[0077] FIG. 7B is a cross sectional view which is shown exploded in
FIG. 7D while FIGS. 7A and 7C are, respectively, top and bottom
views looking into the apparatus shown in cross section in FIG.
7B.
[0078] FIGS. 8A-D show a circular array of LEDs mounted to a common
heatsink with printed circuit boards in the insulating member. Four
LEDs are shown here but there could be any number of LEDs. FIGS.
8A-D have the following identified elements: [0079] 1. Tube or
barrel [0080] 2. Heatsink [0081] 3. Insulator [0082] 4. Terminal to
connect power to LED [0083] 5. LED [0084] 6. Thermal junction and
first electrical connection between LED and heatsink [0085] 7.
Second electrical connection [0086] 8. Printed circuit board [0087]
9. Insulator [0088] 10. Contact
[0089] FIG. 8B is a cross sectional view which is shown exploded in
FIG. 8D while FIGS. 8A and 8C are, respectively, top and bottom
views looking into the apparatus shown in cross section in FIG.
8B.
[0090] FIGS. 9A-C show a linear array of LEDs on a common heatsink.
Four LEDs are shown here but there could be any number of LEDs.
FIGS. 9A-C have the following identified elements: [0091] 2.
Heatsink [0092] 3. Insulator [0093] 4. Terminal to connect power to
LED [0094] 5. LED [0095] 6. Thermal junction and first electrical
connection between LED and heatsink [0096] 7. Second electrical
connection
[0097] FIG. 9B is a cross sectional view of a single LED and FIGS.
9A and 9C are, respectively, top and bottom views of a linear array
of four LEDs.
[0098] FIGS. 10A-C show a linear array of LEDs similar to those on
FIGS. 9A and 9C but containing printed circuit boards. Four LEDs
are shown here but there could be any number of LEDs. FIGS. 10A-C
have the following identified elements: [0099] 2. Heatsink [0100]
3. Insulator [0101] 4. Terminal to connect power to LED [0102] 5.
LED [0103] 6. Thermal junction and first electrical connection
between LED and heatsink [0104] 7. Second electrical connection
[0105] 8. Printed circuit board [0106] 9. Insulator [0107] 10.
Contact
[0108] FIG. 10B is a cross sectional view of a single LED and FIGS.
10A and 10C are, respectively, top and bottom views of a linear
array of four LEDs.
[0109] FIG. 11 is a cross sectional magnified view from FIG. 1B
which shows the top of heatsink 5 without the LED in place having
the following identified elements: [0110] 6. Thermal junction and
first electrical connection between LED and heatsink [0111] 7.
Second electrical connection
[0112] FIGS. 12A-E show a typical prior art LED assembly showing
the LED soldered to a PC board and the multiple thermal junctions
required to conduct heat to ambient air having the following
identified elements: [0113] 101. Tube or barrel [0114] 102.
Heatsink [0115] 103. Insulator [0116] 104. Contact for applying
power to printed circuit board [0117] 105. LED [0118] 106. Housing
[0119] 107. Insulator [0120] 108. Contact for connecting printed
circuit board 111 to PCB 109 [0121] 109. Multilayered printed
circuit board [0122] 110. Ring Contact [0123] 111. Printed circuit
board
[0124] FIG. 12B is a cross sectional view which is shown exploded
in FIG. 12E while FIGS. 12A and 12C are, respectively, top and
bottom views looking into the apparatus shown in cross section in
FIG. 12B and FIG. 12D is an enlarged cutaway view of FIG. 12B.
[0125] FIGS. 13A-D show a widely used prior art star type, metal
and ceramic backed PC board to which the LED is mounted and the
multiple thermal junctions required to conduct heat to ambient air
having the following identified elements: [0126] 101. Tube or
barrel [0127] 102. Heatsink [0128] 105. LED [0129] 106. First power
connection [0130] 107. Second power connection [0131] 108. Star PC
board
[0132] FIG. 13B is a cross sectional view which is shown exploded
in FIG. 13D while FIGS. 13A and 13C are, respectively, top and
bottom views looking into the apparatus shown in cross section in
FIG. 13B.
[0133] FIG. 14 is a block diagram of a typical heatsink mounted LED
with positive polarity heatsink.
[0134] FIG. 15 is a block diagram of a typical heatsink mounted LED
with negative polarity heatsink.
[0135] FIG. 16 is a block diagram of a typical heatsink mounted LED
with a positive polarity heatsink that incorporates a PC board with
LED drive electronics.
[0136] FIG. 17 is a block diagram of a typical heatsink mounted LED
with a negative polarity heatsink that incorporates a PC board with
LED drive electronics.
[0137] FIG. 18 is a comparison of the performance of four different
heatsinking methods or systems. FIG. 2 curve is for the present
invention and demonstrates superior performance with minimal drop
off in lumens output over time. [0138] 1. Curve labeled FIG. 1 is a
graphical representation of the lumens output over time showing the
drop off in performance as the LED heats and efficiency drops for
the system of FIGS. 1A-D. [0139] 2. Curve labeled FIG. 2 is a
graphical representation of the lumens output over time showing
very minimal drop off in performance as the LED heats and
efficiency drops for the system of FIGS. 2A-D. [0140] 3. Curve
labeled FIG. 13 is a graphical representation of the lumens output
over time showing the drop off in performance as the LED heats and
efficiency drops for the system of FIGS. 13A-D. [0141] 4. Curve
labeled FIG. 12 is a graphical representation of the lumens output
over time showing the drop off in performance as the LED heats and
efficiency drops for the system of FIGS. 12A-E.
[0142] FIGS. 19A-B illustrate a process for manufacturing a heat
sink assembly in accordance with the present invention in which
solder S1 and S2 is used to solder pads of an LED 5 to a top
surface of a heat sink 2 to form a heat sink assembly 200. FIGS.
19C-D illustrate a press fit step of inserting heat sink assembly
200 into a tube or barrel 1.
[0143] FIGS. 20A and 20B show variations on FIGS. 19C-D in which
the heatsink and insulating core are installed in a metal tube or
flashlight barrel having the following identified elements: [0144]
1. Tube or barrel [0145] 1A. Shoulder of tube or barrel 1 [0146]
1AT. Top surface of shoulder 1A [0147] 18. Nut [0148] 2. Heatsink
[0149] 3. Insulator [0150] 4. Terminal to connect power to LED
[0151] 5. LED
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
[0152] The present invention utilizes a thermally and electrically
conductive metal outer member, a heatsink. The interior of the
heatsink, or core, is an electrical insulating material that
positions and electrically isolates a second electrically
conductive member that extends out the end opposite from the LED to
provide an electrical connection point. The top surface of this
assembly provides a mounting surface for the LED. The anode or
cathode side of the LED, and in some cases a dedicated thermal pad,
is bonded to the top surface of the heatsink by soldering or some
other thermally and electrically conductive method or material. The
electrically opposite side of the LED package is bonded to the
isolated second member. Power from an appropriate electrical
circuit is applied to the heatsink and the isolated terminal to
turn on the LED. Heat generated by the LED is conducted through the
interface with the heatsink to ambient air. The LED runs much
cooler and efficiently in this system than is possible with those
mounted on printed circuit boards. FIGS. 1A through 11 depict
variations on the design described above. As shown, the heatsink
can be different shapes depending on the application. A heatsink
can also support multiple LEDs in a variety of configurations; a
circular array and a linear array are only two of many
possibilities. Electronics with a suitable interconnect method can
also be suspended in the insulating core. It is also possible in
all cases to provide electrically insulating material that
positions and electrically isolates two electrically conductive
members that extend out the end opposite from the LED to provide
electrical connection points. In these cases the cathode and anode
LED pads are bonded to corresponding isolated pads and the LED
thermal pad is bonded to the invention's heatsink surface.
[0153] The improved heatsink method depicted in FIGS. 1A through 11
does not utilize a PC board for mounting the LED; instead, the LED
is mounted directly to the metal surface of the heatsink. This
method produces much improved heat transfer and a cooler operating,
higher lumens LED, compared to PC board mounted LED designs.
[0154] The present invention provides a direct efficient path to
conduct heat away from an LED to ambient air outside of a
flashlight or any other lighting device such as a headlamp, lantern
or spotlight, as well as all types of area lighting that utilize
high powered LEDs as a light source. Other heatsinking methods
produce thermal paths that are interrupted by a large number of
thermal junctions, some of which have poor thermal conductivity or
high thermal resistance. Examples of prior art heatsinking methods
are illustrated in FIGS. 12A through 13D. Unique to the present
invention is the ability to solder the terminal and heatsink
directly to the electrical and thermal pads of the LED. No thermal
grease or adhesives are required. In other designs the equivalent
heatsinking and electrical contact pads are on a PC board which
results in more, less efficient, thermal junctions and longer,
smaller cross section, thermal paths to ambient air. The use of
thermal grease and adhesives in these less efficient designs helps
heat transfer to some degree but not to the level of attaching the
LED directly to the heatsink. The result of the much improved heat
transfer possible with the invention is that the LED operates much
cooler and therefore much more efficiently. Higher lumens are
possible with no increase in power over conventional systems. It is
also possible to maintain lumens at the same level as other less
efficient systems but consume far less power. This is especially
important in battery powered lighting systems as on-time is
extended without reducing lumens. The superior performance of the
present invention is demonstrated by the lumens output 60 seconds
after applying a constant 4 amps of current to the LED. The
invention was better than other systems as follows:
[0155] The present invention (FIGS. 2A-D) produced 19 percent more
lumens than the system in FIGS. 13A-D (typical star, metal backed
PC board mounted LED); and
[0156] The present invention (FIGS. 2A-D) produced 93 percent more
lumens than the system in FIGS. 12A-D (multi-layer conventional PC
board with extra copper traces and vias to attempt to conduct heat
away from the LED).
[0157] It is worth noting that the efficiency of the present
invention can be increased or optimized, with the aid of the
present disclosure, by increasing or maximizing the surface area
exposure between the heatsink and the thermally and electrically
conductive outer casing while also designing the heatsink to have a
sufficient mass to effectively and efficiently conduct heat between
the heatsink and the outer casing. Thus, for example, heatsink 2 in
FIGS. 2A-D will have better results than heatsink 2 of FIGS. 1A-D,
while FIGS. 3A-D illustrate an embodiment in which the heatsink is
integrally formed with the outer casing, which should result in
better results than the heatsink of FIGS. 2A-D.
[0158] It is also worth noting that the outer casing, which is
illustrated in the exemplary embodiments depicted in FIGS. 1-11 as
a tube or barrel, need not be thermally and electrically conductive
over its entire outer surface, although an outer casing which is
thermally and electrically conductive over its entire outer surface
may achieve better results.
[0159] It is further worth noting that the advantages obtained by
the more efficient cooling of one or more LEDs obtained by the
present invention can be used to create a flashlight mode use of
increased lumens, or a flashlight mode with increased on-time, or
one or more modes that alternate between such modes or combine
elements of both such modes.
[0160] The present invention lends itself to a more efficient, less
costly, lighting device that can be manufactured economically
through automation. In illustrative embodiments shown in FIGS.
19C-D and 20A-B, a heat sink assembly 200 is created by soldering
two electrically conductive members of an LED 5 to a top surface of
heatsink 2. Commercially available LEDs typically have three pads
(see, e.g., FIG. 11D where second electrical connection 7 has one
rectangular pad while thermal junction and first electrical
connection between LED 5 and heatsink 2 have two rectangular pads)
which can all be used for soldering (solder S1 in FIG. 19A is for
one pad whereas solder S2 in FIG. 19A is for two pads). After heat
sink assembly 200 is created, it can be press fit into a tube or
barrel 1 as illustrated in FIGS. 19C and 19D or it can be removably
inserted into tube or barrel 1 and then held in place by a
removable holding mechanism, an example of which is nut 1B
illustrated in FIGS. 20A and 20B. In the embodiments illustrated in
FIGS. 20A and 20B, in an especially preferred embodiment, tube or
barrel 1 and heat sink 2 are made of aluminum, heat sink 2 is
coated with a metallic plating (e.g., nickel) that helps promote
the soldering process, and a skin cut is made of the aluminum where
heat sink 2 comes into contact with a top surface 1AT of shoulder
1A formed in tube or barrel 1 (so as to promote more efficient
thermal heat transfer).
[0161] While the invention has been described herein with reference
to certain preferred embodiments, those embodiments have been
presented by way of example only, and not to limit the scope of the
invention. Additional embodiments thereof will be obvious to those
skilled in the art having the benefit of this detailed
description.
[0162] Accordingly, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art
that still further changes and modifications in the actual concepts
described herein can readily be made without departing from the
spirit and scope of the disclosed inventions.
* * * * *