Underwater floodlight fixture

Claim 1

A light fixture intended for underwater use and designed to permit substitution or replacement thereof while submerged without deenergizing the power source conductors while at the same time protecting the individual making the substitution or replacement from the possibility of arcing or electrical shock while so engaged, said fixture comprising in combination: a lamp of elongated configuration; a generally tubular member enclosing said lamp, said tubular member having outwardly-flared ends and being composed of a material through which a substantial proportion of the light rays emitted by said lamp may pass; pair of plates disposed in parallel spaced-apart relationship and respectively closing the flared ends of said tubular member in such a manner as to form a watertight seal, each plate of said pair having an opening therein aligned with the axis of said elongated lamp; a pair of triangularly-shaped flanges each having a central opening therein, said flanges being positioned to respectively encircle the flared ends of said tubular member, and with the opening in each flange being internally configured to conform to the surface portion of said tubular member proximate thereto and with the minimum diameter of each flange opening being greater than the maximum outer diameter of the flared end of the tubular member with which it is associated; a pair of compressible inserts respectively lying between said flanges and the surface portion of the tubular member proximate thereto; a plurality of threaded rods interconnecting said plates and disposed parallel to one another and to the axis of said tubular member; a plurality of nuts associated with said rods and respectively receivable thereon, whereby a tightening of said nuts acts to urge said plates toward their respective ends of said tubular member and enhance the watertight seal therebetween; each of said rods also passing through aligned openings in said pair of flanges; additional nuts associated with said rods and respectively receivable thereon adjacent said pair of flanges, whereby a tightening of said additional nuts compresses said inserts and urges said flanges toward their respective adjacent plates; a light reflector of concave configuration located exterior to said tubular member and supported by at least one of said threaded rods so as to extend in a direction generally parallel to that of both said lamp and to the tubular member within which such lamp is enclosed; a pair of electrical connecting assemblies each having a portion passing through one of the aligned openings in said pair of plates so as to project into said tubular member; a pair of adapters within said tubular member and respectIvely carried on the inwardly-projecting ends of said connecting assemblies, each adapter of said pair having an axial opening into which one end of said elongated lamp is receivable so as to make electrical contract with its respective connecting assembly; each connecting assembly of said pair being made up of a first electrical contact member projecting outwardly from the plate with which it is associated, and a second exteriorly-insulated contact member terminating one of said power source conductors and manually-separable from said first electrical contact member, said second contact member being deeply recessed within its exterior insulation when separated from said first contact member, and thereby protecting an individual making a substitution or replacement of said fixture from the possibility of harm due to arcing or electrical shock occurring while so engaged.