초록 ▼

A compact recessed lighting system is provided. The lighting system includes a light source module and a driver separately coupled to a unified casting. The driver is formed in a “donut” shape such that the light source module may be coupled to the casting in the center hole formed by the driver. Th

A compact recessed lighting system is provided. The lighting system includes a light source module and a driver separately coupled to a unified casting. The driver is formed in a “donut” shape such that the light source module may be coupled to the casting in the center hole formed by the driver. The lighting system may also include a reflector that surrounds the light source module and shields the driver from exposure to the area surrounding the lighting system. Based on this configuration, the lighting system provides a compact design that allows the combined casting, light source module, driver, and reflector to be installed in a standard junction box instead of a “can” housing structure to reduce the overall cost of the lighting system while still complying with all building and safety codes/regulations. This configuration also allows the lighting system to achieve a UL fire-rating of at least two hours.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A compact recessed lighting system, comprising: a light source module for emitting light;a driver for powering the light source module to emit light, the driver including an electronic device to at least one of supply and regulate electrical energy to the light source module;a unified casting wit

1. A compact recessed lighting system, comprising: a light source module for emitting light;a driver for powering the light source module to emit light, the driver including an electronic device to at least one of supply and regulate electrical energy to the light source module;a unified casting with a heat conducting closed rear face, a heat conducting sidewall and an open front face wherein the heat conducting sidewall is joined to the heat conducting closed rear face at one end and defines the open front face of the unified casting at another end, wherein the heat conducting sidewall has a first dimension between the heat conducting closed rear face and the open front face of less than 2 inches and extends 360 degrees around a center axis of the unified casting to define a first cavity that extends forward from the heat conducting closed rear face to the open front face of the unified casting and outward to the heat conducting sidewall, wherein the light source module and the driver are positioned inside the first cavity while being coupled to the heat conducting closed rear face of the unified casting such that the light source module is closer to the closed rear face of the unified casting than the open front face of the unified casting, and wherein the unified casting includes a plurality of elements positioned proximate to the open front face so as to align with corresponding tabs of a standard junction box and thereby facilitate holding the unified casting up against the standard junction box when the unified casting is installed in the standard junction box; anda reflector positioned inside the first cavity of the unified casting and coupled to and surrounding the light source module such that the reflector directs light produced by the light source module into an area surrounding the compact recessed lighting system while enclosing the driver from exposure to the area surrounding the compact recessed lighting system,wherein the heat conducting closed rear face and the heat conducting sidewall of the unified casting significantly dissipate heat generated by the light source module during operation of the light source module. 2. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 1, wherein the driver is donut shaped or “C” shaped. 3. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 1, further comprising a trim directly coupled to the unified casting, wherein the trim connects to the unified casting through use of retention clips or springs. 4. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 1, wherein: the light source module is a light emitting diode (LED) module; andthe light source module is coupled to the heat conducting closed rear face of the unitary casting using at least one of a resin, one or more clips, one or more bolts, one or more screws, and one or more clamps. 5. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 1, further comprising: a lens to shield the light source module while being transmissive to light emitted by the light source module. 6. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 1, further comprising: an inner enclosure for enclosing the driver within the unified casting. 7. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 1, wherein the heat conducting sidewall of the unified casting has heat sink fins formed on its outside surface. 8. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 1, further comprising: the standard junction box having a closed rear end, an open front end, and a sidewall surrounding a second cavity,wherein:the heat conducting closed rear face of the unified casting has a second dimension across the closed rear face that is less than 3½ inches; andthe unified casting, with the light source module, the driver and the reflector therein, are substantially contained within the second cavity of the standard junction box. 9. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 8, wherein the unified casting is directly attached to the standard junction box via the plurality of elements of the unified casting and the corresponding tabs of the standard junction box. 10. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 9, further comprising: a first plurality of wires electrically coupled to the driver, wherein the first plurality of wires passes through the heat conducting closed rear face of the unified casting; anda second plurality of wires that emerge from the standard junction box and that are to bring electricity from an electrical system of a building in which the recessed lighting system is to be installed,wherein the first plurality of wires are connected to the second plurality of wires through a plurality of caps or a connector inside of the standard junction box. 11. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 9, wherein the plurality of elements of the unified casting and the corresponding tabs of the standard junction box facilitate use of at least one of screws, bolts, twist-and-lock connections and friction or tension clips to directly attach the unified casting to the standard junction box. 12. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 8, wherein the standard junction box is a fire rated junction box having an Underwriters Laboratories (UL) fire-rating of at least two hours. 13. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 1, wherein the reflector separates the driver from the light source module such that the reflector directs the light produced by the light source module into an area surrounding the compact recessed lighting system while enclosing the driver from exposure to the area surrounding the compact recessed lighting system. 14. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 1, wherein: the unified casting includes at least one rabbet proximate to the first cavity; andthe heat conducting closed rear face of the unified casting includes one or more mounting elements to receive and hold at least one of the light source module and the driver. 15. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 1, wherein the unified casting includes at least one twist-and-lock connector integrated in the unified casting. 16. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 15, further comprising: a trim directly coupled to the unified casting, for covering a hole in a ceiling or wall of a building in which the compact recessed lighting system is placed, wherein the trim connects to the unified casting via the at least one twist-and-lock connector. 17. A compact recessed lighting system, comprising: a light source module for emitting light;a driver for powering the light source module to emit light, the driver including an electronic device to at least one of supply and regulate electrical energy to the light source module;a heat conducting unified casting with a closed rear face, a sidewall and an open front face wherein the sidewall is joined to the closed rear face at one end and defines the open front face of the unified casting at another end, wherein the sidewall defines a cavity that extends forward from the closed rear face to the open front face of the unified casting and outward to the sidewall, wherein the light source module and the driver are positioned inside and completely contained within the cavity of the unified casting such that the light source module is closer to the closed rear face of the unified casting than the open front face of the unified casting and sits behind a ceiling or a wall when the unified casting is installed in a hole in the ceiling or the wall; anda reflector positioned inside the cavity of the unified casting and coupled to and surrounding the light source module such that the reflector directs light produced by the light source module into an area surrounding the compact recessed lighting system while enclosing the driver from exposure to the area surrounding the compact recessed lighting system,wherein the heat conducting unified casting significantly dissipates heat generated by the light source module during operation of the light source module. 18. The system of claim 17, wherein: the light source module is a light emitting diode (LED) module;the light source module is coupled to the unified casting using at least one of a resin, one or more clips, one or more bolts, one or more screws, and one or more clamps; andthe sidewall of the heat conducting unified casting has fins formed on its outside surface. 19. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 17, wherein: the heat conducting unified casting includes a plurality of elements positioned on the unified casting so as to align with corresponding tabs of a standard-sized junction box. 20. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 17, wherein: the heat conducting unified casting has at least a first dimension across the closed rear face that is less than 3½ inches and a second dimension along the sidewall, between the closed rear face and the open front face, that is less than 2 inches. 21. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 17, wherein: the heat conducting unified casting includes a plurality of elements positioned on the unified casting so as to align with corresponding tabs of a standard-sized junction box;the heat conducting unified casting has at least a first dimension across the closed rear face that is less than 3½ inches and a second dimension along the sidewall, between the closed rear face and the open front face, that is less than 2 inches; andthe lighting system further comprises a plurality of wires coupled to the driver and passing through the heat conducting unified casting. 22. A compact recessed lighting system, comprising: a light source module for emitting light;a driver for powering the light source module to emit light, the driver including an electronic device to at least one of supply and regulate electrical energy to the light source module;a unified casting with a closed rear face, a sidewall and an open front face wherein the sidewall is joined to the closed rear face at one end and defines the open front face of the unified casting at another end, wherein the sidewall extends 360 degrees around a center axis of the unified casting to define a cavity that extends forward from the closed rear face to the open front face of the unified casting and outward to the sidewall, wherein the light source module and the driver are positioned inside the cavity of the unified casting such that the light source module is closer to the closed rear face of the unified casting than the open front face of the unified casting; anda reflector positioned inside the cavity of the unified casting and coupled to and surrounding the light source module such that the reflector directs light produced by the light source module into an area surrounding the compact recessed lighting system while enclosing the driver from exposure to the area surrounding the compact recessed lighting system,wherein:the light source module is a light emitting diode (LED) module;the sidewall of the unified casting has fins formed on its outside surface; andthe system further comprises a plurality of wires connected to the driver and connected to a first connector of a pair of complimentary keyed or interlocking connectors, such that in operation the first connector is coupled to a second connector of the pair of complimentary keyed or interlocking connectors, wherein the second connector is coupled to electricity from an electrical system of a building in which the compact recessed lighting system is installed. 23. The system of claim 22, wherein: the driver has a shape that allows installation of the driver within the unified casting and allows direct contact of the light source module to the unified casting. 24. The system of claim 23, wherein: the system further includes the second connector of the pair of complimentary keyed or interlocking connectors, coupled to the first connector of the pair of complimentary keyed or interlocking connectors;a first end of the plurality of wires is coupled to the first connector of the pair of complimentary keyed or interlocking connectors, and a second end of the plurality of wires is coupled to a connector holder inside the cavity of the unified casting; andthe driver includes a corresponding connector that is complimentary to the connector holder inside the cavity of the unified casting, such that when the connector holder and the corresponding connector are engaged, electricity passes from the electrical system of the building to the driver. 25. The compact recessed lighting system of claim 22, wherein: the unified casting is heat conducting;the unified casting includes a plurality of elements positioned on the unified casting so as to align with corresponding tabs of a standard-sized junction box; andthe sidewall has a first dimension between the closed rear face and the open front face of less than 2 inches. 26. A lighting system, comprising: a substantially heat conducting unified casting forming a casting cavity having a front face and a rear heat conducting portion and having dimensions to fit inside a standard-sized junction box, the substantially heat conducting unified casting including a plurality of elements positioned on the casting so as to align with corresponding tabs of the standard-sized junction box;a light source module, disposed in the casting cavity, to emit light, wherein the light source module is positioned in the casting cavity closer to the rear heat conducting portion than the front face of the substantially heat conducting unified casting;a driver, disposed in the casting cavity, to power the light source module; anda reflector, disposed in the casting cavity to cover the driver and to direct light produced by the light source module out of the front face,wherein the substantially heat conducting unified casting significantly dissipates heat generated by the light source module during operation of the light source module. 27. The lighting system of claim 26, wherein the heat conducting unified casting has a depth dimension of less than 2 inches and at least one of a width dimension and a length dimension of less than 3½ inches. 28. The lighting system of claim 26, further comprising: a plurality of wires coupled to the driver in the casting cavity and passing through the unified casting and outside the casting cavity,wherein the plurality of wires passes through the rear heat conducting portion of the unified casting, and wherein the lighting system further comprises:a first connector of a pair of complimentary keyed or interlocking connectors, coupled to a first end of the plurality of wires. 29. The lighting system of claim 26, wherein: the unified casting includes at least one rabbet proximate to the casting cavity;the unified casting has a depth dimension of less than 2 inches and at least one of a width dimension and a length dimension of less than 3½ inches;the unified casting has a closed rear face;the closed rear face includes one or more mounting elements to receive and hold at least one of the light source module and the driver; andthe plurality of wires passes through the closed rear face of the unified casting. 30. The lighting system of claim 26, further comprising an enclosure to substantially contain the unified casting, wherein the enclosure comprises one of: the standard-sized junction box; anda 4-8 inch recessed lighting fixture.