Weather sealed lamp socket assembly

Abstract

A socket and panel mounting assembly for connecting a lamp in a lamp housing that has a rear panel exposed to all weather conditions includes a socket mounting hole with a weather guard ring formed therearound and including a notch thereon engageable with a flexible socket lock arm that audibly indicates when the socket is in place on the panel and wherein a flexible gasket is supported on the mounted end of the socket to take up the interference between the lamp socket and the mounting hole panel thickness for further sealing the mounting hole within the ring. The hole and socket having coaxial means thereon to permit axial insertion of the socket into the mounting hole to compress the gasket and to locate the socket lock arm for engagement with the notch when the socket is moved to a locked, rotated index position on the panel. In one embodiment terminal connections to the socket are provided axially therefrom and in another embodiment terminal connections are located at right angles to the bulb access to produce a low profile configuration wherein the feed terminals are in the form of cantilever springs positioned perpendicular to the bulb centerline and located within a sealed housing having a cover secured thereto with a compressible pad of gasket material to seal the terminals at the exposed periphery of the cover to the integral socket terminal housing.