US2077107A - Artificial candle - Google Patents

Description

p 1937. c. u. GRUNDMAN 2,077,107

ARTIFICIAL CANDLE Filed March 14, .1935

INVENTOR B064 r/e: [I Grandma Mme/Am;

ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 13, 1937 UNITED STATES ARTIFICIAL CANDLE Charles U. Grundman, Palisade Park, N. J.

Application March 14, 1935, Serial No. 10,997 2 Claims. (01. 240-524) This invention relates in general to an artificial candle of general application, and particularly relates to a lighting device designed for use on Christmas trees, and the invention specifically relates to a holder for supporting an electric light socket of the small plug type commonly found on Christmas tree lighting outfits.

The primary object of the invention is to provide an inexpensive, easily manufactured tubular holder, the outside of which will be colored or otherwise finished to simulate a candle, and which holder is designed to support at one end an electric light socket and at the other end is provided with mounting means, both formed as an integral part of the tubular structure and functioning without necessity of adding additional parts to the tubular holder.

Broadly this invention is attained by forming a tube, preferably of cardboard with its exposed side colored to give the appearance of a colored candle, with one end slitted to provide a splitring form of mounting for receiving the plug end of the electric light socket and with the opposite end split to form a bifurcated saddle for straddling the branch of a Christmas tree or similar rod-like support.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will be in part obvious from an inspection of the accompanying drawing and in part will be more fully set forth in the following particular description of one form of device embodying the invention, and the invention also consists in certain new and novel features of construction and combination of parts hereinafter set forth and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is a view in perspective of a tubular electric light mounting and artificial candle constituting a preferred embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a vieW partly in elevation showing the tube of Fig. 1 mounted on the branch of the Christmas tree and with an electric light bulb and socket mounted at the upper end and with parts broken away at the upper part of the tube to show the mounting of the socket in place; and

Figs. 3 and 4 are each horizontal transverse sectional views taken respectively on the lines 50 33 and 4-4 of Figs. 1 and 2.

In the drawing there is shown a pasteboard, or wrapped paper tubular member ID of cylindrical form. In one commercial embodiment of the invention the tube is three and one-half 55 inches long and eleven-sixteenths inch externa-l diameter and coated on its outer side with red paper. The upper end of the tube ll! is provided with a slit H extending longitudinally of the tube on one side thereof and terminates at its lower end in an enlarged circular opening [2. There is thus formed at the upper end of the tube a split-ring in which is intruded the plug end l3 of an electric light socket M which socket is provided with an outlining bead l5 engaging and seated on the upper edge l6 of the tube to limit the inward movement of the socket as it is inserted in the split-ring. It is understood that these parts are so designed that the split-ring is somewhat resilient and snugly engages the plug l3 to hold the socket with a frictionally tight fit. An electric light bulb I? is conventionally screwed into the upper open end of the socket. Extending from the underside of the socket l3 are electric light wires or leads l8 which are passed through the slit II as the socket is positioned in place and protrude from the interior of the tube through the opening I2 when the socket is located in its seated position shown in Fig. 2.

The lower end of the tubular member 10 is slotted with a pair of longitudinally extending slots positioned diametrically relative to each other on opposite sides of the tube, one or" which slots is shown at l9 in Fig. 1. The lower open end of the slots is beveled as shown at 29 so that the lower end of the tube may be readily inserted over a branch 2! of a Christmas tree or similar rod like support. It will be understood from this construction that the lower end of the tube is bifurcated to form a saddle 22 designed to straddle the support 2| and it will be understood that normally there will be suiiicient resiliency, or clutching efiect, atthe lower end of the tube to insure the maintaining of the construction as a whole in the upright position shown in Fig. 2. Usually that size branch or other support" 2! will be selected which will have a diameter slightly greater than the width of the slots I9 and as the tube is gently forced on to its support there will be some distortion of the edges of the slits as indicated at 23 in Fig. 2. This distortion has no permanent efiect upon the tubes and as soon as the tube is withdrawn from the branch, it will either restore itself automatically to its initial condition, or the distorted parts forming the saddle 22 maybe forced back into position simply by pressing the sides of the distorted slot back towards its original position.

It is also suggested as a more economical struc- PATENT OFFICE ture to provide a single slit extending from end to end to take the place of the two slits II and IS in those cases where there is suflicient rigidity in the tubular member ID to maintain its formed configuration.

While there has been shown, described and pointed out in the annexed claims, certain novel features of the invention, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. A holder and mounting for an electric light socket simulating a candle comprising solely a cardboard, thin walled tube open at opposite ends, having one end slitted to provide a somewhat resilient, split-rin-g form of mounting for receiving and snugly engaging the plug end of an electric light socket and having the opposite end split at diametrically opposite points to form a bifurcated saddle for straddling the branch of a Christmas tree or similar rod-like support, and said tube forming an unslitted cylindrical portion between the slitted ends.

2. An artificial candle comprising a one-piece cardboard tube of cylindrical form having opposite ends slitted and otherwise free of structural parts, one slitted end constituting a split-ring form of clamp for receiving the plug end of an electric light socket with a frictionally tight fit and the other end slitted at diametrically opposite points and constituting a saddle-like means for mounting the candle in place and the lower ends of the slits being beveled to permit the entrance into the slits of a rod-like mounting.

CHARLES U. GRUNDMAN.

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