US 7,540,625 B2 Jun. 2, 2009
FLASHLIGHT WITH SELECTABLE OUTPUT LEVEL SWITCHING
Inventors: John W. Matthews, Newport Beach, CA (US); William A. Hunt, Foothill Ranch, CA(US)
Assignee: Surefire LLC, Fountain Valley, CA (US)
Notice: Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this patent is extended or adjusted under 35 U.S.C. 154(b) by 0 days.
Appl.No.: 11/710,456
Filed: Feb. 22, 2007
Prior Publication Data
US 2007/0247839 Al Oct. 25, 2007
Related U.S. Application Data
Continuation of application No. 10/732,873, filed on Dec. 9, 2003, now Pat. No. 7,186,002.
Int. CI.
F21L 4/04 (2006.01)
U.S. CI 362/205; 362/295; 362/394
Field of Classification Search 362/205 206,
362/295, 802; 200/341, 511-513, 520-521 See application file for complete search history.
A flashlight having a lamp, a power storage element, a switch, and an electronic controller. The controller has a switch input connected to the switch and operates in response to the input to deliver power from the power storage element to the lamp. The controller may be directly connected to each of the lamp, source, and switch. The switch may include several separate contact elements operating sequentially in response to movement of a switch actuator. The controller may provide different illumination levels and functions in response to different pressures and durations of actuation. The flashlight may include a dimmer level control to establish an intermediate "dimmed" output level, and operate to provide the selected dimmed output when the switch is depressed by an intermediate amount, and to provide a greater maximum output level in response to full actuation of the switch.
6 Claims, 3 Drawing Sheets
