Pool Section 29 Regulation 3.2(2)) AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Application Number: Lodged: Invention Title: Ceiling fan and light fitting therefor The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us: 1 CEILING FAN AND LIGHT FITTING THEREFOR FIELD OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to indoor ceiling fans used to circulate air in a room. 5 In particular the invention relates to a light fitting which can be installed on such an indoor ceiling fan. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Ceiling fans are typically designed to extend downward from the internal ceiling of a room and, by rotation of their blades, deployed to create an internal 10 draft in said room by encouraging air to cycle throughout the entire room. Accordingly, the best position for such fans is typically near the centre of said room. However, such positions are also typically preferred for the positioning of illumination devices, such as light bulbs or fluorescent tubes. 15 One way this competition for position in central portions of rooms by light fittings and ceiling fans has been resolved is by providing a ceiling fan with an integral light fitting, often positioned at a subjacent position of the central core or shaft of the fan, adjacent the point outward from which the blades of the fan extend. 20 However, this causes a problem for the manufacturer of ceiling fans, in that their number of different models, or stock keeping units (SKU's), must be doubled to accommodate the needs of customers who may require a certain fan design supplied either with or without a light fitting. This adds complexity to manufacturing operations, as well as packaging, distribution and marketing. It 25 also leads to a disadvantage for customers of fans who, following installation of a fan unsuitably either featuring or lacking a light fitting, who later decide that the alternative model is required. In such case they are obliged to purchase another fan, rendering the original fan redundant. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a ceiling fan 30 which alleviates the problems of the prior art as described above.
2 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a ceiling fan arranged to be in-situ re-configurable between a lighted configuration and a non lighted configuration, said ceiling fan having a central rotor core from which fan blades extend, said central core having an internal cavity, said ceiling fan including first electrical leads connected to a power supply and terminating in first electrical connectors, wherein said first electrical connectors are arranged to be accessible within said internal cavity; wherein: in said non-lighted configuration, a removable opaque cover is attached to said central core and encloses said internal cavity; in said lighted configuration, a removable mounting plate is attached to said central core within said internal cavity, said mounting plate having, arranged on one surface, at least one fixture for receiving an illumination device, such as a light bulb, fluorescent tube or similar, said mounting plate further including second electrical leads connected to said at least one fixture, wherein said second electrical leads extend through said mounting plate and terminate in second electrical connectors, wherein said second electrical connectors are arranged on the opposite surface of said mounting plate from said at least one fixture; wherein said second electrical connectors are adapted to be connectable to said first electrical connectors in order to provide electrical power to said at least one fixture; wherein upon attaching said mounting plate to said central core, the connected first and second electrical connectors are enclosed by said mounting plate; and a removable translucent cover is attached to said central core, thereby enclosing said internal cavity and attached mounting plate, and allowing egress of light from an illumination device received on said at least one fixture. A key advantage of a fan of the construction described above is that it is capable of relatively quick and easy conversion to accommodate an illumination device without recourse to buying and installing a new fan.
2a In addition, it enables sale of a single ceiling fan, with an optional conversion kit, including the mounting for illumination device and a removable subjacent cover, which is translucent, thereby enabling the purchaser to decide whether to install the fan with or without the lighting apparatus. Preferably, said illumination device mounting is a disc having illumination device receptors extending downward from a subjacent side, said disc being adapted to be screwed or bolted inside said cavity. Such a mounting is relatively cost effective to produce, and can readily be mounted by an unskilled person without need of special tools or knowledge. Advantageously, said power leads extend from an upper side of said disc and are adapted to be received and held releasably in electrical power outlet jacks located in said cavity via manual insertion. Again, such fittings allow the illumination device mounting to be fitted quickly and easily by the purchaser. In another aspect of the invention, there is provided a mounting for an illumination device as defined above. In another aspect of the invention, there is provided the retrofitting of the illumination device mounting described above to a ceiling fan as described above, 3 including the replacement of the opaque subjacent cover with a translucent subjacent cover. In another aspect of the invention, there is provided a ceiling fan as described above, to which an illumination device mounting, as described above, 5 of has been fitted. In another aspect of the invention, there is provided a kit for retrofitting of the mounting defined above to a ceiling fan as defined above, said kit including the mounting as defined above and a translucent subjacent cover. Now will be described, by way of a specific, non-limiting example, a 10 preferred embodiment of the invention, with reference to the attached figures. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES Figure 1 depicts a view of a ceiling fan according to the invention, prior to fitting of a lighting apparatus. Figure 2 depicts the ceiling fan of figure 1 with the lower cover removed. 15 Figure 3 depicts a bottom view of a light fitting disc, with receptors for an illumination device, adapted for fitting to the ceiling fan of figure 2. Figure 4 depicts a top view of the light fitting disc of figure 3. Figure 5 depicts the ceiling fan of figure 2 with the light fitting disc of figure 3 partially connected via electrical leads. 20 Figure 6 depicts the ceiling fan of figure 2 with the light fitting disc of figure 3 fully fitted in place. Figure 7 depicts a top view of a translucent lower cover adapted to be fitted to the ceiling fan of figure 6. Figure 8 depicts the ceiling fan of figure 6 with the translucent lower cover 25 of figure 7 fitted in place. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The following is a description of a ceiling fan and complementary lighting apparatus according to the invention. Turning first to figure 1, there is shown a ceiling fan 5 according to the 30 invention, whose external design and fundamental construction corresponds with ceiling fans marketed under the trade mark 'CONCEPT' by Hunter Pacific International Pty Ltd, of Building 8, New Line Road, Dural NSW 2158.
4 The fan 5 consists broadly of a ceiling connector 10, a central shaft 15 and a central rotor core 20. The central shaft 15 is suspended from the ceiling connector 10 and the rotor core 20 is appended to said shaft. The rotor core 20 is substantially provided in the form of a flat cylinder, having subjacent 25 and upper 5 30 ends, separated by a cylindrical side wall 35. Fan blades 40 are appended to, and extend radially outward from, the side 35 wall of said rotor core 20. The rotor core 20 features a subjacent removable opaque cover 45. Turning to figure 2, there is shown the same ceiling fan 5 of figure 1, but 10 with said opaque cover removed. Removal of the cover reveals an internal cavity 50 in the rotor core 20. Centrally mounted in the cavity is an anchoring disc 55. Said anchoring disc 55 is formed substantially as a relatively flat, inverted and truncated cone, with a flange 60 extending from the upper edge of said cone and two electrical connecting leads 65, 70 emerging from a central part of said 15 anchoring disc 55. The flange features three equally spaced, curved slots 75. Said slots feature wider 85 and narrower 90 portions of the same relative length. The periphery of the anchoring disc 55 features three equally spaced bolt or screw-holes 80. 20 Turning to figure 3, there is shown a lower view of an illumination device mounting disc 95 according to the invention. Said mounting disc 95 features complementary mountings 100 adapted to receive an illumination tube therebetween. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the above described illumination device mountings are merely one example of a multitude of 25 mountings for illumination devices which may equally be utilised. The illumination device mounting disc 95 also features three equally spaced bolt- or screw-holes 105, adapted to enable adjacent positioning with respect to the bolt- or screw-holes 80 of the anchoring disc 55. Turning to figure 4, it will be observed that electrical connection leads 110, 30 115, adapted for complementary engagement with the electrical connection leads 65, 70 extending from the anchoring disc 55, emerge from the upper side of the illumination device mounting disc 95 at positions corresponding with the positions 5 of said illumination device mountings 100. These leads are equally adapted to supply power to said mountings. Figure 5 depicts the connection of the electrical connection leads 110, 115 emanating from the illumination device mounting disc 95 to the corresponding 5 electrical connection leads 65, 70 emanating from the anchoring disc 55. Preferably, the ends of all said leads feature simple 'push-in' connection plugs which allow simple and safe manual connection, allowing the mounting of the illumination device mounting disc without recourse to the services of an electrician. 10 Following the achievement of electrical connection as described above, the illumination device mounting disc 95 is affixed to the anchoring disc 55, as shown in figure 6, by alignment of the complementary sets of bolt- or screw-holes 80, 105, followed by insertion and tightening of bolts or screws in said holes. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the above described system for affixing 15 the illumination device mounting disc to the anchoring disc is merely one of many suitable affixing systems which may equally be utilised. Figure 7 depicts a translucent cover 120 which may be fitted to the subjacent end of the rotor core 20, thereby to enclose the cavity 50, while allowing the light produced by an illumination device fitted to the illumination 20 device mountings 100 to escape from the cavity 50. Said cover is shown constructed from a main ring 125, into which has been centrally inserted a circular translucent glass disc 130. The cover 120 further features a connection ring 130 located above said main ring 125. The connection ring features three equally spaced anchoring 25 hooks 135 which are formed integrally with said connection ring 130, and take the form of inverted 'L' profiles having a horizontal portion 140 and a vertical portion 145 connecting the horizontal portion 140 to the remainder of the connection ring 130. Said horizontal portion 140 is narrower than the width of the wider portion 85 of the slots 75 provided in the flange 60 to the anchoring disc 55, but wider than 30 the narrower portion 90 of said slots. The hooks 135 are thereby adapted to pass through the wider portion 85 of said slots, allowing rotation of the cover 120 toward the narrower portion 90 of the slots to produce a suspending engagement of the cover 120 with the anchoring 6 disc 55. This allows simple manual 'insert and turn' fitting of the cover 120. Figure 8 shows the ceiling fan 5 with a translucent cover 120 thus fitted. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the above described example is merely one way in which the invention may be practically 5 implemented. Other variations in physical design are possible, whilst remaining within the spirit and scope of the invention.