Modular LED Lighting for Conduit Sealing
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for LED lighting assemblies that can easily attach and connect to preexisting electrical conduits, particularly in barn settings where high-pressure cleaning operations are common, and existing solutions fail to provide a watertight seal.
Innovation Solution
An integral conduit modular lighting system featuring a light board secured to a heat sink with an adhesive layer and a gasket, which securely connects to a preexisting conduit body, ensuring a watertight seal and easy installation, using a heat sink for heat conduction and providing surfaces for the adhesive and gasket.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional lighting assemblies are used in preexisting electrical conduits, then lighting functionality is provided, but the assemblies cannot withstand high-pressure cleaning operations and are not watertight
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the lighting assembly with conduit-specific mounting features, integrating the fixture directly into the conduit structure. The housing includes flanges that fit over the conduit exterior and sealing mechanisms that mate with the conduit interior, creating a unified watertight assembly that replaces traditional separate conduit and fixture installations.
Solution Approach 2:
The lighting assembly is designed to interface with standard electrical conduits while providing additional watertight sealing capabilities. The same basic fixture design can be installed in various conduit types and locations, and the assembly serves both lighting and environmental sealing functions simultaneously.
2Ease of operation
If LED lighting assemblies are designed to attach to preexisting electrical conduits, then installation ease is improved, but sealing against high-pressure water penetration becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The fixture is pre-assembled with integrated sealing components and mounting flanges before installation. The gaskets and sealing elements are pre-positioned on the housing, and the mounting geometry is pre-configured to match standard conduit dimensions, allowing installers to simply attach the complete assembly to the conduit without complex sealing procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces gaskets and sealing elements as intermediary components between the lighting fixture and the conduit. These intermediaries create the watertight barrier, isolating the electrical components from water exposure while maintaining the simplicity of the attachment process.
3Reliability
If lighting assemblies are made watertight for high-pressure cleaning resistance, then durability is improved, but manufacturing complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs gaskets made from flexible elastomeric materials that conform to the mating surfaces of the conduit and fixture housing. These thin film sealing elements provide effective water protection without requiring complex multi-layer constructions or rigid sealing mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The lighting assembly combines different materials with complementary properties: the housing uses rigid materials for structural integrity, while gaskets use flexible elastomers for sealing. This composite approach achieves durability and watertight performance through material selection rather than structural complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system allows for easy and inexpensive installation of modular LED lighting that withstands high-pressure washing without leakage, replacing existing lighting in agricultural settings by attaching to standard electrical conduits.
Implementation Method 1
a heat sink with which the light board is secured using an adhesive layer
Implementation Method 2
a gasket and adhesive layer to secure the light board to the heat sink
Implementation Method 3
a gasket and adhesive layer to secure the light board to the heat sink
Data Source
AI summary
An integral conduit modular lighting system that has a light board having circuitry that is secured to a heat sink with an adhesive layer. The heat sink has a gasket in order to securely connect the lighting system to a preexisting conduit body such that the lighting system withstand a high pressure wash without leakage to the board. The heat sink also has opening that mate with openings of preexisting electrical conduit bodies to provide installation of the modular lighting system to existing electrical conduit bodies.