Westinghouse Electric Corporation

Stanley A Lopenski

John F Gilmore

The lead-in wires of a fluorescent lamp are electrically connected to the base pins by mechanical means instead of welding or soldering the members to each other in the conventional manner. This is achieved by forming the pins from solid metal or rigid heat-tempered sheet metal, trimming the lead wires to a predetermined length such that the ends thereof extend beyond the plastic insulator portion of the base when the lead wires are inserted through a pair of apertures provided in the insulator and the base is placed on the sealed end of the lamp envelope, partially inserting the metal pins in the insulator apertures, wrapping the protruding ends of the lead wires around the medial portions of the respective pins, and then force fitting the inner ends of the metal pins into the apertures so that they are firmly anchored in the plastic insulator and the wrapped-around portions of the lead wires are recessed within shallow cavities provided in the outer face of the insulator. The metal pins are thus clamped in positive electrical engagement with the 'captured' ends of the lead wires and final assembly of the base is completed during the same sequence of operations required to fasten it to the lamp envelope. The length of the exposed end portions of the metal pins and the spacing therebetween are controlled to provide pin-terminals that conform with the standards established for 'bi-pin' type fluorescent lamps and also eliminate the expensive and inefficient soldering or welding operations required to connect the lead wires to the hollow-apertured pins of conventional type bases that are preassembled and thus have such metal pins previously staked or fastened to the insulator component of the base structure.

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Pompton Plains, NJ, United States of America

Stanley A Lopenski