US2446736A - Suspension support for electric lighting fixtures - Google Patents

Description

D. J. BlLLER Aug. 10, 1948.

SUSPENSION SUPPORT FOR ELECTRIC LIGHTING FIXTURES Filed Sept. 27, 1945 lM/EMroe:

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Patented Aug. 10, 1948 SUSPENSION SUPPORT FOR ELECTRIC LIGHTING FIXTURES David J. Biller, St. Louis, Mo., assignor to Day- Brite Lighting, Inc., St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Application September 27, 1945, Serial No. 618,839

2 Claims. (01. 248343) My invention relates to suspension supports for electric lighting fixtures or the like, particularly relatively long fluorescent lighting fixtures that are suspended from a ceiling or other overhead support by a plurality of hangers that are spaced apart longitudinally of the fixture. The invention has for its principal objects to provide for quickly and easily changing the length of the suspension support so as to vary the height of the fixture and to position the fixture horizontally despite variations in the elevation of the ceiling; to provide for bringing the supports into exactly upright or vertical position in the event that the ceiling slopes or the anchors for the supports are tilted, and to provide for strength and durability and simplicity and cheapness of construction. The invention consists in the suspension support and the construction, combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing, which forms part of the specification and wherein like symbols refer to like parts wherever they occur,

Fig. 1 is a bottom perspective view, showing a fluorescent lighting fixture suspended from a ceiling by means of suspension supports embodying my invention,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view on the line 22 in Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is an enlarged central vertical sectional view on the line 3-3 in Fig. 2,

Fig. 4 is an enlarged horizontal cross sectional view on the line 4-4 in Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 is a central longitudinal sectional view of the threaded ring for supporting the stem of the suspension support.

My suspension supporter or hanger A is particularly adapted for use in suspending an electric light fixture B from the ceiling, beam or other overhead support C. The fixture B shown in the drawing is a fluorescent or other relatively long sectional lighting fixture, which is suspended from the ceiling C at points spaced apart along the length of the fixture by means of a plurality of the suspension supports A.

As shown in the drawing, some of the suspension supports A may be suspended from the celling C by means of standard downwardly opening outlet boxes I embedded therein. Electric feed wires 2 for the fixture B lead to the outlet box I through a conduit 3 opening through one side thereof. The outlet box I has a threaded central anchor stud 1 depending from the top thereof; and a channel-shaped supporter hanger 5 has its top flange 6 apertured to receive the said stud and is seated on a nut 1 threaded thereon.

The horizontal bottom flange 6a of the channel-shaped support 5 is spaced below the ceiling C and the fiush outlet box I therein and is adapted to sustain the suspension support A. The suspension support A comprises an upper tubular fitting 8, an elongated stem 9 and a sleeve ill for coupling said fitting and stem together in end to end relation. The tubular fitting 8 has an enlarged externally threaded intermediate portion H, an externally threaded upper end portion l2 and a ball or hemispherically shaped lower end portion l3. The threaded upper end E2 of the tubular fitting 8 extends upwardly through a vertical opening 5b provided therefor in the horizontal bottom flange 6a of the channel-shaped hanger 5; and a nut I4 is threaded on said upper end of said fitting and bears against the upper surface of said flange and serves to clamp the upper end of the enlarged intermediate portion ll of said fitting tightly against the bottom surface of said flange. The outlet box I and the parts closely associated therewith are all concealed by a cup-shaped canopy l5 which is sleeved on the tubular fitting 8 and is held in abutting relation to the ceiling C by means of a round nut 16 which is threaded on the enlarged intermediate portion ll of said fitting in abutting relation to the underside of said canopy.

The upper end of the cylindrical coupling sleeve It is bent inwardly, as at H, over the ballshaped lower end l3 of the tubular fitting 8, thereby providing a permanent ball-and-socket connection therebetween which permits rotary and limited swiveling movement of said sleeve relative to said fitting. The sleeve IE1 is threaded internally, as at Hi, from a point located just below the ball-shaped lower end 13 of the tubular fitting 8 to a point short of the lower end of said sleeve; the stem member 9 of the suspension support A is rigidly secured in any desired manner (not shown) to the fixture B and extends upwardly into the sleeve [0 and has an externally threaded supporting ring 19 fixed to its upper end that cooperates with the internal thread l8 of said sleeve, whereby said stem may be raised and lowered in said sleeve when the latter is rotated relative to said stem and the tubular fitting 8. Upward travel of the threaded stem supporting ring 19 in the sleeve I0 is limited by the ball-shaped lower end I3 of the fitting 8, while the internal thread I8 of said sleeve terminates short of the lower end thereof and thus limits the downward travel of said ring therein. As shown in the drawing, the bore of the stem supporting ring 19 has flared upper and lower end portions 20 and the stem 9 is reduced, as at 2|, to fit said bore and to provide a beveled annular shoulder 22 that is firmly seated in the flared lower end of said bore by bendin the upper end of the reduced portion 21 of said stem outwardly and downwardly, as at 23,, against the flared upper end of said bore. By this arrangement the ring 9 is firmly secured to the stem 9 against rotary and axial movement relative thereto.

By the arrangement described, the tubular fitting 8 may be quickly and easily clamped to the lower flange of the hanger suspended from the stud 4 of the outlet box I, while the round nut l5- on said fitting serves to rigidly clamp the canopyball-and-socket connection between the upper end of the cylindrical sleeve [9 and the lower end of the tubular fitting 8 permits the hanger pipe to be located in. an upright or vertical position in the event that the outlet box I and/or hanger 5, are mounted in the ceiling in a tilted position; and the fixture may be raised or lowered to position it horizontally and at the desired distance from theceiling by rotating the sleeve Ill relative to the tubular fitting 8. and stem. 9 so as to cause the threaded supporting ring 19 fixed to the upper end of said stem to travel vertically along the internal thread If! of said sleeve and thus change the effective length of said stem. The upper end of the sleeve It is bent or swaged over the ball-shaped lower end l3 of the tubular fiting 8, thus providing a permanent swivel connection between said sleeve andfitting; and the stem supporting ring is permanently retained within said sleeve by the portion of the fitting in the uper end thereof and by the plain unthreaded ower end thereof. If desired, the stem 9 may have aseries of vertically spaced graduations 24 thereon just below the lower end of the sleeve ll] so as to indicate the amount of vertical adjustment of the-said stem. As shown in the drawing, the stem 9 may be in. the form of a pipe so as to provide a conduit for the feed wires for the fixture.

Obviously, the hereinbefore described suspension support admits of considerable modification without departing from the invention and, I do not wisjhto be limited to the precise arrangement shown and described.

What I claim is:

1. A suspension support for an electric lighting fixture or the like comprising a conventional downwardly opening overhead outlet box having an anchor stud depending therefrom, a hanger fixed to said stud, a lower stem member adapted to be non-rotatably secured at its lower end to said fixture and having a threaded upper end portion, an upper member adapted to be nonrotatably secured to said hanger and an intermediate coupling member having a ball-andsocket connection at its upper end with the lower end of said upper member and a threaded connection with the threaded upper end of said stem member, whereby said stem and coupling members are angularly adjustable relative to said hanger supported upper member and said coupling member is rotatable relative to said upper member and stem member to raise and lower the latter and the fixture secured thereto relative to said ball-and-socket joint.

2. A suspension support for an electric lighting fixture or the like comprising a conventional downwardly opening overhead outlet box having a stud depending therefrom and an opening for electric feed wires for said fixture, a hanger fixed to said stud, a lower tubular stem member adapted to be non-rotatably secured at its lower end to said fixture, an externally threaded supporting ring fixed to said stem member adjacent to the upper end thereof, a tubular upper member adapted to be non-rotatably secured at its upper end to said hanger, a canopy supported by said upper member and concealing said box and said hanger, and a tubular intermediate coupling sleeve having a permanent ball-andsocket connection at its upper end with the lower end of said upper member and an internal thread adapted to receive and support the externally threaded ring fixed to the upper end ofsaid stem member, whereby said stem and coupling members are angularly adjustable relative; to said hanger supported upper member and said coupling member is rotatable relative to said upper member and said supporting ring to raise and" lower said stem member and the fixture secured thereto relative to said ball-and-socket joint,. said hanger supported tubular upper member having a permanently open upper end' adapted to receive said electric feed wires which extend downwardly through said tubular upper member, said sleeve and said tubular stem to said fixture.

DAVID J. BILLER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,487,891 Ryden Mar. 25, 1924 1,856,142 Surface etal. May 3, 1932

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