The present invention relates to a lighter with a lock-off mechanism.
A lighter commonly used at present is an electric lighter-igniter using combustible gas, such as butane gas and natural gas, as a fuel. The lighter can generate a flame usually through a person pressing the operative actuator directly with their fingers and permitting the piezoelectric block in a piezoelectric device to spark so as to ignite the combustible gas. Without a lock-off mechanism (or a safety device) in the lighter, the operation of the actuator is not restricted. An unintentional operation of the actuator, such as an erroneous operation, an operation by an infant, or some unintentional collision by a hard thing acting on the actuator, can easily ignite the lighter containing the combustible gas. Such unintentional operation can hurt the infant or become a public safety hazard. In addition, when an external force unintentionally acts on the actuator, the fuel outlet valve opens, and the combustible gas leaks, resulting in a potential risk of combustion without notice. Therefore, some countries and territories have prohibited or will prohibit the production and/sale of lighters that lack a lock-off mechanism.
An object of the present invention is to overcome the above-mentioned technical defects of the prior art, and to provide a lighter having a lock-off mechanism that can prevent the lighter from being actuated in a direct manner, and avoid the above-mentioned potential risk. The lighter of the present invention can provide not only a greater ignition efficiency, but also greater safety.
In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided a lighter which comprises a tank for housing the fuel, a piezoelectric device in a housing holding the tank, and outlet device, and a windshield above the tank. The piezoelectric device comprises a piezoelectric block and an actuator, and a force applied on the piezoelectric block by the actuator causes the piezoelectric block to generate a strong instantaneous current and create electric sparks. The outlet device comprises an outlet valve, a regulator ring and a lever. The lever opens the outlet valve when driven by the actuator and the regulator ring is adapted to adjust the air output and size of the resulting flame. The actuator is provided with a lock-off mechanism comprising a gear as a rotatable control member, a rack as a linearly removable locking member, and a return spring. The gear engages with the rack to move the rack in opposition to and cooperates together with it, the return spring located between the actuator and the rack. The lower end of the rack is maintained in the lighter housing in a no-operation condition to lock the lighter. In this case, the actuator cannot move with directly applied pressure. The actuator can be moved only after the gear is rotated to cause the rack to disengage from the lighter housing to release the actuator lock.
According to one aspect of the lighter with a lock-off mechanism of the present invention, the lower end of the rack is of an arc shape, which can smoothly transit the lighter housing edges, so that the actuator can be moved and returned smoothly.
According to the other aspect of the present invention, the gear is pivotally arranged in a chamber in the actuator. The pivotal arrangement can be achieved by a rotation shaft, with two fitted projections provided on opposed sides of the gear center and placing the rotation shaft into recesses in the actuator. Other equivalent arrangements can be used to make the rotation of the gear flexible.
According to an other aspect of the present invention, the return spring is accommodated in a chamber formed by the actuator and the rack. The return spring can be a compression spring vertically mounted in the chamber or a torsion spring sleeved on the rotation shaft of the gear.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a lower cover is provided at the bottom of the tank to ensure that the tank is reliably sealed.
According to the invention, the actuator is provided at one side with the cooperating lock-off mechanism. If the lock-off mechanism is not operated, the actuator will not move, and thereby improve the safety of the lighter and prevent erroneous operation.
The present invention will be described in detail by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings.