Description:A STOPPER BRACKET FOR BULB ANTI-ROTATION

TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present subject matter described herein relates to a headlamp of a vehicle. The present invention is particularly related to a stopper bracket provided on a bulb mount housing of a headlamp of a vehicle for preventing a fire hazard from the fall out of the bulb from the lamp during vehicle running.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present subject matter.
[0003] A headlamp is provided on the front end of a vehicle to satisfactorily illuminate the road ahead of the vehicle without causing glare and provide safety benefits during low light operation.
[0004] In the existing design, the headlamp assembly for the vehicle consists of a housing defining a cavity. The housing has a reflector and a light-transmitting section. A gasket is provided outside a circular housing cavity. A light source is positioned inside the cavity and is designed to emit light. During the assembly of the bulb in the housing, a connector is added to the bulb after the bulb gets into the locked position.
[0005] The bulb is positioned inside the housing and there is a possibility that during the replacement of the bulb by theuser, for unlocking the bulb, the customer has to rotate the bulb from the vertical orientation and towards the left side or the right side depending upon a vehicle .
[0006] There are chances that the connected bulb may not be properly locked. Therefore, during vehicle running the bulb may fall out of the housing and into the surrounding parts and areas in which the connected bulb falls may cause the parts to melt and become a fire hazard.
[0007] Therefore it is required to prevent unlocking of the bulb before disconnecting the connector at the time of bulb replacement.
OBJECTS OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0008] It forms an object of the present disclosure to overcome the aforementioned and other drawbacks/limitations in the existing solutions available in the form of related prior arts.
[0009] It is a primary object of the present disclosure is to prevent unlocking the bulb before disconnecting the connector at the time of bulb replacement.
[0010] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide a stopper bracket that prevents connecting the replaced bulb only after securely locking the bulb in the lamp .
[0011] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide the stopper bracket in a lamp that consists of a flexible gasket surrounding the bulb.
[0012] It is another object of the present disclosure that the stopper bracket can be used at different orientations irrespective of the bulb position.
[0013] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide a cost-effective solution to achieve the above objectives.
[0014] These and other objects and advantages of the present subject matter will be apparent to a person skilled in the art after consideration of the following detailed description taken into consideration with accompanying drawings in which preferred embodiments of the present subject matter are illustrated.
SUMMARY
[0015] A solution to one or more drawbacks of existing technology and additional advantages are provided through the present disclosure. Additional features and advantages are realized through the technicalities of the present disclosure. Other embodiments and aspects of the disclosure are described in detail herein and are considered to be a part of the claimed disclosure.
[0016] The present disclosure provides a solution in the form of a stopper bracket provided on a bulb mount housing to prevent falling of a bulb in the surrounding parts of a vehicle. The stopper bracket comprising of a base having an upper portion and a lower portion, wherein the upper portion is elevated with respect to the lower portion and includes a first flange, a second flange, and a third flange provided on a transverse side, wherein a third flange is extended opposite from the first flange in a direction toward a gasket, wherein the first flange has a step surface and the first flange and the third flange combinedly form a bulb-stopping surface, wherein the bulb-stopping surface is placed so that the stopper function is achieved even in different orientations of the bulb.
[0017] In an aspect, the second flange curved at a top edge at the adjoining surface between a horizontal flange and the second flange.
[0018] In an aspect, a U-shaped flange primarily covers the periphery of the lower portion of the base.
[0019] In an aspect, a front side of the stopper bracket has a plurality of ribs on an upper portion of the base and holes integrated on an embossed surface on the lower portion of the base.
[0020] In an aspect, one hole is for housing a locator and another hole is for mounting the stopper bracket on a protruding mount of the bulb mounting housing.
[0021] In an aspect, a plurality of horizontal ribs on the upper portion of the base at the back side of the stopper bracket.
[0022] In an aspect, the ends of the horizontal ribs are connected to the third transverse flange and the second transverse flange respectively.
[0023] In an aspect, the first flange and the second flange are parallel to each other.
[0024] In an aspect, wherein a C-shaped emboss is provided on the lower portion of the base on the back side of the stopper bracket.
[0025] In an aspect, the C-shaped emboss extends and fits over the protruded mount of the bulb mount housing.
[0026] In an aspect, a curved surface provided on the lower portion allows for insertion and removal of the bulb connector only when the bulb is in locked position in the lamp.
[0027] The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
[0028] It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of the present subject matter and are therefore not to be considered for limiting of its scope, for the present disclosure may admit to other equally effective embodiments. The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, a reference number identifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the figures to reference like features and components. Some embodiments of system or methods or structure in accordance with embodiments of the present subject matter are now described, by way of example, and with reference to the accompanying figures, in which:
[0029] Fig. 1 illustrates a front view of a stopper bracket mounted on a bulb mount housing according to the present disclosure;
[0030] Fig. 2 illustrates a perspective view of the stopper bracket according to the present disclosure;
[0031] Fig. 3 illustrates a side view of the stopper bracket towards the first and third flanges according to the present disclosure;
[0032] Fig. 4 illustrates a back perspective view of the stopper bracket according to the present disclosure;
[0033] Fig. 5a illustrates a protruding mount and a locator on the bulb mount housing according to the present disclosure;
[0034] Fig. 5b illustrates assembly of the stopper bracket on the protruding mount and locator on the bulb mount housing according to the present disclosure;
[0035] Fig. 6 illustrates the various positions of the bulb with respect to the bracket.
[0036] The figures depict embodiments of the present subject matter for illustration only. A person skilled in the art will easily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the structures and methods illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles of the disclosure described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
[0037] The detailed description of various exemplary embodiments of the disclosure is described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the embodiments are described herein in such details as to communicate the disclosure. However, the amount of details provided herein is not intended to limit the anticipated variations of embodiments; on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
[0038] It is also to be understood that various arrangements may be devised that, although not explicitly described or shown herein, embody the principles of the present disclosure. Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the present disclosure, as well as specific examples, are intended to encompass equivalents thereof.
[0039] It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions/acts noted may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two figures shown in succession may be executed concurrently or may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality/acts involved.
[0040] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which example embodiments belong. It will be further understood that terms, e.g., those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.
[0041] In the following detailed description of the embodiments of the disclosure, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which are shown by way of illustration of specific embodiments in which the disclosure may be practiced. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the disclosure, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The following description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense.
[0042] Hereinafter, a description of an embodiment with several components in communication with each other does not imply that all such components are required. On the contrary, a variety of optional components are described to illustrate the wide variety of possible embodiments of the present disclosure.
[0043] The present invention discloses a stopper bracket that is connected to the bulb mount housing and prevents the falling of the bulb in case the bulb is not locked properly at the time of bulb replacement. Such that the bulb may not fall off during the vehicle running condition and cause a fire hazard.
[0044] Referring to FIG. 1, it shows the stopper bracket (100) connected to the bulb mount housing (102) in a vertical orientation. The bulb (103) is also positioned in a vertical orientation during the locked condition along with a connector (104). Further the area of the interference of the bulb (103) with the stopper bracket (100) is located near a gasket (101). Therefore, the stopper bracket (100) is extended in the direction toward the gasket (101).
[0045] Referring to FIG. 2, the stopper bracket (100) has a base (201) and the base (201) is divided into an upper portion (202a) and a lower portion (202b). The upper portion (202a) is slightly elevated from the lower portion (202b) in the opposite direction as that of the gasket (101) forming a step area.
[0046] The upper portion (202a) of the base (201) has a first flange (203a), a second flange (203b) and a horizontal flange (206). The first flange (203a) and the second flange (203b) are located parallel to each other and are provided in a transverse direction. The horizontal flange (206) is provided between the ends of the first flange (203a) and the second flange (203b) and the horizontal flange (206) is provided in a horizontal direction.
[0047] Further, the first flange (203a), the second flange (203b) and the horizontal flange (206) are extended in a direction opposite to the gasket (101).
[0048] Also, the first transverse flange (203a) has a step surface (204) on the lamp mounting housing (102) and the second flange (203b) is curved at a top edge at the adjoining surface between a horizontal flange (206) and the second flange (203b).
[0049] The front side (207) of the upper portion (202a) of the base (201) has a plurality of ribs (208). The length of the ribs (208) is not restricted to a same length. The ribs (208) are positioned in a vertical orientation (in the same orientation as the bracket structure (100) to provide rigidity to the stopper bracket (100).
[0050] Also, a U-shaped flange (211) is provided to cover the periphery of the lower portion (202b) of the base (201). The U-shaped flange (211) is also elevated away from the base (201).
[0051] The front side (207) of the lower portion (202b) of the base (201) has holes (209a, 209b) that are integrated on an embossed surface (210). The holes (209a, 209b) are provided adjacent to each other. Further, one hole (209a) is for housing a locator (502 as provided in Fig. 5) and another hole (209b) is for mounting the stopper bracket (100) on a protruded mount (501 as provided in Fig. 5) of the bulb mount housing (102).
[0052] A plurality of ribs (205) are provided on the lower portion (202b) of the base (201). The ribs (205) connect the embossed surface (210) to the U-shaped flange (211), thereby providing strength to the lower portion (202b) of the base (201).
[0053] Referring to FIG. 3, A third flange (301) is provided on the transverse side and the third flange (301) is extended opposite from the first flange (203a) in a direction towards the gasket (101).
[0054] The surface area combinedly formed by the first flange (203a), horizontal flange (206) and the third flange (301) creates a bulb-stopping surface (300) that restricts or stops the unlocked bulb (103) from falling off in an unwanted place inside the vehicle so as to prevent a fire hazard.
[0055] The first flange (203a) forms a curved surface (212) in the lower portion (202b) that allows for easy insertion and removal of the bulb connector only when the bulb is in locked position in the lamp.
[0056] Referring to FIG. 4, the back side (402) of the stopper bracket (100) is shown. The upper portion (202a) of the base (201) at the back side (402) of the stopper bracket (100) has a plurality of horizontal ribs (401a, 401b, 401c). The horizontal ribs (401a, 401b, 401c) are connected to the third transverse flange (301) and the second transverse flange (203b) respectively.
[0057] The horizontal rib (401a) has a shorter length than the horizontal ribs (401b, 401c). The horizontal ribs (401a, 401b, 401c) are present to provide rigidity to the stopper bracket (100) in the case when the bulb (103) rests on the same during the unlock condition in case of falling of the bulb (103).
[0058] Referring to FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B, The back side (402) of the stopper bracket (100) has a C-shaped emboss (403) that is provided on on the lower portion (202b) of the base (201).
[0059] Referring to FIG. 6, The bulb-stopping surface (300) is placed so that the stopper function is achieved even in different orientations of the bulb (601).
[0060] The C-shaped emboss (403) is extended towards the direction of the protruding bulb mount housing (102) so as to cover over the protruded mount (501) of the bulb mount housing (102).
[0061] The locator (502) is inserted in the hole (209a). The locator (502) basically locates the stopper bracket (100) to get fixed on a correct position.

TECHNICAL ADVANTAGES
[0062] With the help of the solution as proposed herein in the context of the present disclosure, the chances of the electrically connected bulb falling of from the bulb house mounting is reduced.
[0063] With the stopper bracket the chances of a fire hazard due to falling of switched On bulb is considerably reduced.
[0064] It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as “open” terms (e.g., the term “including” should be interpreted as “including but not limited to,” the term “having” should be interpreted as “having at least,” the term “includes” should be interpreted as “includes but is not limited to,” etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation, no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases “at least one” and “one or more” to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles “a” or “an” limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to disclosures containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases “one or more” or “at least one” and indefinite articles such as “a” or “an” (e.g., “a” and/or “an” should typically be interpreted to mean “at least one” or “one or more”); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. Also, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of “two recitations,” without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, and C, etc.” is used, in general, such construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, and C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances, where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, or C, etc.” is used, in general, such construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, or C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms or both terms. For example, the phrase “A or B” will be understood to include the possibilities of “A” or “B” or “A and B.”
[0065] It will be further appreciated that functions or structures of a plurality of components or steps may be combined into a single component or step, or the functions or structures of one-step or component may be split among plural steps or components. The present disclosure contemplates all of these combinations. Unless stated otherwise, dimensions and geometries of the various structures depicted herein are not intended to be restrictive of the disclosure, and other dimensions or geometries are possible. Also, while a feature of the present disclosure may have been described in the context of only one of the illustrated embodiments, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of other embodiments, for any given application. It will also be appreciated from the above that the fabrication of the unique structures herein and the operation thereof also constitute methods in accordance with the present disclosure. The present disclosure also encompasses intermediate and end products resulting from the practice of the methods herein. The use of “comprising” or “including” also contemplates embodiments that “consist essentially of” or “consist of” the recited feature. , Claims:We claim:
1. A stopper bracket (100) provided on a bulb mount housing (102) to prevent falling of a bulb (103) in surrounding parts of a vehicle, the stopper bracket (100) comprising of:
a base (201) having an upper portion (202a) and a lower portion (202b), wherein the upper portion (202a) is elevated with respect to the lower portion (202b) and includes a first flange (203a), a second flange (203b), and a third flange (203c) provided on a transverse side,
wherein a third flange (301) is extended opposite from the first flange (203a) in a direction toward a gasket (101),
wherein the first flange (203a) has a step surface (204) and the first flange (203a) and the third flange (301) combinedly form a bulb-stopping surface (300),
wherein the bulb-stopping surface (300) is placed so that the stopper function is achieved even in different orientations of the bulb (601).

2. The stopper bracket (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second flange (203b) curved at a top edge at the adjoining surface between a horizontal flange (206) and the second flange (203b).

3. The stopper bracket (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein a U-shaped flange (211) primarily covers the periphery of the lower portion (202b) of the base (201).

4. The stopper bracket (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein a front side (207) of the stopper bracket (100) has a plurality of ribs (208) on an upper portion (202a) of the base (201) and holes (209a, 209b) integrated on an embossed surface (210) on the lower portion (202b) of the base (201).

5. The stopper bracket (100) as claimed in claim 4, wherein one hole (209a) is for housing a locator (502) and another hole (209b) is for mounting the stopper bracket (100) on a protruding mount (501) of the bulb mounting housing (102).
6. The stopper bracket (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein a plurality of horizontal ribs (401a, 401b, 401c) on the upper portion (202a) of the base (201) at the back side (402) of the stopper bracket (100).
7. The stopper bracket (100) as claimed in claim 6, wherein ends of the horizontal ribs (401a, 401b, 401c) are connected to the third transverse flange (301) and the second transverse flange (203b) respectively.
8. The stopper bracket (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first flange (203a) and the second flange (203b) are parallel to each other.
9. The stopper bracket (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein a C-shaped emboss (403) is provided on the lower portion (202b) of the base (201) on the back side (402) of the stopper bracket.
10. The stopper bracket (100) as claimed in claim 9, wherein the C-shaped emboss (403) extends and fits over the protruded mount (501) of the bulb mount housing (102).
11. The stopper bracket (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein a curved surface (212) provided on the lower portion (202b) allows for insertion and removal of the bulb connector only when the bulb is in locked position in the lamp .