US2983838A - Lamp base and terminal means therefor - Google Patents

Description

May 9, 1961 w. PECHY LAMP BASE AND TERMINAL MEANS THEREFOR Filed Jan. 2. 1959 FIG. 3.

FIG. 6.

INi ENTOR. W/LU/IM P United. States Patent LAMP BASE AND TERMINAL MEANS 'rnnnaroa William Pechy, Manasquan, N.J., assignor to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, =East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Jan. 2, 1959, Ser. No. 784,488

8 Claims. (Cl. 313-318) This invention relates generally to electric lamps and, more particularly, to a base and terminal construction for gaseous discharge lamps, such as the so-called rapid start" and highly-loaded fluorescent lamps, and to a method for fabricating and incorporating such terminals into the base during the normal sequence of operations required to complete the lamp.

In certain types of double-ended gaseous discharge lamps, such as the aforesaid rapid start and highly-loaded fluorescent lamps, for example, the energizing circuit and design of the lamps are such that if one end of the lamp is inserted into its holder an electrical potential of sufficient magnitude may be developed across the lamp to cause anelectrical shock if the terminals at the other end of the lamp were accidentally contacted. In order to obviate this shock hazard and at the same time reduce the cost of the lamp base it has become the practice to provide such lamps with recessed contact type bases wherein in place of the usual basepins the ends of the lead wires themselves are utilized as the lamp terminals and incorporated into the base in such a manner as to be recessed within the insulating body portion thereof. Heretofore, this has been accomplished by threading both lead wires through an opening in the insulating body portion of the base and bending the protruding ends of said lead wires laterally in opposite directions away from each other into recessed position within slots provided in the outer face of the insulator and over pockets located at the ends of said slots. The lead wires are anchored in this position either by crimping the ends thereof into the pockets or by driving a separate fastening element such as a deformable rivet or eyelet into each pocket into clamping engagement with the inturned lead wire ends. In this manner the lead wires are disposed and held along opposite sides of the opening against the walls of the insulator which are contoured to support said wires in position for electrical engagement with the edges of blade-like electrical supply contacts of a holder for the lamp when said lamp is inserted into its holder and said contacts were accommodated by the aforesaid opening.

Due to the normal circular cross-sectional configuration of the lead wires and the blade-like conformation and disposition of the holder contacts, it was inherent in the foregoing type of prior art base that only line contact could be effected between the terminal portions of said lead wires and the edge surfaces of the holder contacts. Because the electrical juncture was thus so limited in area it was not only mandatory that the lead wires be precisely aligned with the edges of the holder contacts but that they be rigidly anchored to entirely eliminate random movement thereof during the insertion of the lamp into its holder so as to maintain such alignment, and thatexcess oxidation of the lead wires from the glass-working fires during the sealing-in operation be avoided. The aforesaid deficiencies are corrected in another type of prior art base by wedging metal inserts into the lead-receiving opening adjacent the inner walls of the base insulator and using such inserts as the lamp terminals instead of the lead wires. Laterally disposed tabs on the outer ends of the inserts are recessed below the outer face of the base insulator and apertured to receive the ends of the lead wires which are threaded through openings provided between said inserts and the adjacent walls of the insulator. Electrical connection of the lead wires with the inserts is effected by welding the protruding ends of the lead wires to the aforesaid tabular portions of the inserts, due care being taken to make the weld as close to the insert and as small as possible to prevent it from being accidentally contacted. While this latter arrangement provides a clean flat contact surface for the lamp of considerable area, it necessitates the use of two additional parts per base and the incorporation of such parts into the base structure as well as an eyeletinserting or a critical welding operation, thereby adding substantially to both the material and manufacturing cost of the base and lamp.

It is accordingly the general object of the present invention to obviate the foregoing deficiencies and objections to the prior art structures by providing an improved base and terminal construction for an electrical device which will insure a positive electrical connection between the device and its holder and require a minimum amount of labor and material.

Another and more specific object of this invention is the provision of an electrical discharge device such as a double-ended rapid start or highly-loaded fluorescent lamp which can be safely inserted into its holder and when assembled therewith will automatically make positive electrical connection with the holder contacts directly through its lead wires.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a method of efiiciently and conveniently fabricating terminal means for an electrical device from the device leadin wires and then incorporating said terminal means into a base attached to the device during the normal sequence of operations required to attach said base and complete the assembly of said device.

The aforesaid objects, and others which will become obvious to those skilled in the art as the description pro,- ceeds, are achieved according to the invention by flattening the exposed ends of the lamp lead wires to provide enlarged terminal sections of predetermined length and thickness and then incorporating the lead wires into a base having a specially conformed insulator portion adapted to receive said lead wires and protect them from accidental contact. The ends of the terminal sections are bent into a cavity provided in the outer face of the base insulator and extend along a pair of oppositely-disv posed shoulders located at the sides of said cavity. The shoulders are so disposed and conformed that they coact to pressure the flattened surfaces of the ends of the terminal sections into positive electrical engagement with the electrical supply contacts of a conventional holder adapted to receive such so-called recessed contact type bases. Thus, in contact to the prior art structures, it is not only inherent in the base and terminal construction of the present invention that clean and recessed lamp terminals of considerable area are provided which automatically insure, upon the insertion of the lamp into its holder, positive surface-to-surface engagement of the holder contacts at all times but that this preferred type of juncture is achieved directly through the lamp lead wires. Thus, not only is positive connection between the lamp and its holder achieved without any additional base parts but the aforementioned eyelet-inserting or critical welding operations necessitated by such parts are also obviated thereby substantially decreasing both the maaddition, the steps required to properly condition the lead wires to form the aforesaid terminal sections and then incorporate said sections into the base are of such character that they can be very conveniently and efficiently performed automatically by conventional equipment during the normal sequence of operations required to complete the lamp, thereby even further facilitating the fabrication of the lamp and reducing its cost.

A better understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the accompanying drawing wherein:

Fig. 1 is a side sectional view of one end of a rapid start or highly-loaded fiourescent lamp incorporating the base and recessed terminal construction of this invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the lamp end shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view along the line III-III of Fig. 1, in the direction of the arrows, the base alone being shown in section to more clearly illustrate its construction and the disposition of the retroverted ends of the lead wire terminal sections within the base slots and cavity;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the sealed-in end portion of the completed lamp shown in part in Figs. 1 to 3 and illustrates the disposition of the lead wire terminal sections after the flattening and trimming operations and just before the b asing operation;

Figs. 5 and 6, respectively, illustrate the steps of flattening and trimming the lead wires to form enlarged terminal sections in accordance with the invention;

Figs. 7 and 8 are perspective views of the interior and exterior, respectively, of the base per se which is shown in assembled relationship with the lamp end illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3;

Fig. 9 is a side view of the lamp end shown in Figs. 1 to 3 disposed in operative relation with the contactor portion of a conventional holder employed with such lamps, a part of the base and said holder portion being in section to more clearly illustrate the manner in which the lamp terminals positively seat against the accommodated holder contacts; and

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view on an enlarged scale through the area of juncture between the lamp and bolder along the line XX of Fig. 9, in the direction of the arrows, contrasting the dimensions of the lamp terminals, base cavity and the contact portion of the holder and the manner in which these elements cooperate to effect the desired positive electrical connection of the lamp and holder in accordance with the illustrated embodiment of this invention.

With specific reference to the drawing, in Fig. 1 there is shown one end of a conventional rapid start or highlyloaded fiourescent lamp 10 which lamp comprises in general a tubular envelope 12 the inner surface whereof is coated with a suitable phosphor, such as zinc silicate activated by manganese for example, capable of converting the ultraviolet radiations produced by the gaseous discharge within the lamp into visible radiations of the desired Wavelength. A vitreous stem 18 provided at each end of the envelope 12 has flexible lead Wires 14 and 16 sealed therethrough which are supportingly connected to a filamentary electrode 13 that is coated with the usual electron-emissive material, such as alkalineearth compounds for example. A vitreous tubulation protrudes outwardly from the stem 18 and is tipped-off adjacent the envelope 12 after the latter has been evacuated and charged with a measured amount of mercury and inert ionizable starting gas such as argon in accordance with conventional lamp-making practice. As shown in Figs. 1 to 3, a base 24 incorporating the structural features and lamp terminal means of this invention is attached to each end of the envelope 12 by a quantity of basing cement 38 to facilitate the connection of the lamp 10 with a suitable lamp holder and a source of electrical energy.

Since both ends of the lamp 10 and the bases 24 thereat are identical, only one end of said lamp and its base has been illustrated in the drawing and will be described for conciseness in description. The essence of this invention resides in the construction of the base 24 and in the manner in which the exposed ends of the lead wires 14 and 16 are processed and then assembled with the base to provide recessed terminal means for the lamp 10 and these will hereinafter be more fully described.

As illustrated most particularly in Figs. 7 and 8, the base 24 comprises generally a cap member having an end wall 26 and an integral upstanding boss 28 which depends outwardly from said end wall. The end wall 26 and boss 28 are fabricated from a suitable thermosetting electrically insulating material, such as phenol-furfural or phenolic resin compounds, and together constitute what may be termed the insulating body portion of the base 24. The cup-shaped peripheral portion or shell of said base may also 'be fabricated from insulating material, in which case the base 24 may be molded as a unit as in the embodiment here shown, or it may be fabricated from a suitable metal such as sheet aluminum and anchored to the aforesaid body portion as is well-known in the art.

The boss 28 is generally rectangular in shape but has rounded ends and is dimensioned to nestingly fit within a similarly shaped boss-receiving opening of a conventional holder 40 (see Fig. 9) employed with lamps having such recessed-contact bases. As shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 7, a pair of spaced apertures 34 extend through the end wall 26 and ends of the boss 28 to provide axial passageways for the lead wires 14 and '16 from the inner surface of the base 24 to the end face of said boss. An elongated cavity 30 is provided in the end face of the boss 28 which cavity extends transversely of said boss in the direction of elongation thereof and is disposed between and preferably in spaced alignment with the aforesaid apertures 34 so that the inner end wall surfaces of the boss '28 will be adjacent to and axially aligned with said apertures. The cavity 30 is of sufficient depth to accommodate the contactor portion of the holder 40 and preferably extends completely through the boss 28 and end wall 26 as here shown to accomodate the seal tip of the tubulation 20 and to conserve insulating material and facilitate base manufacture. The aforesaid inner end wall surfaces of the boss 28 are substantially flat for a considerable distance inward from the end face of said boss, preferably throughout their entire length as in the present embodiment, in a direction approximately at right angles to the direction of elongation of said boss and the cavity 30 so as to constitute a pair of parallel and oppositely-disposed longitudinally-extending shoulders 32 within said cavity. The contactor portion of the holder 40 is generally straight-sided so that the cavity 30 may be rectangular in cross-section as illustrated. As shown most particularly in Figs. 1 to 3 and 8, a pair of slots 36 extend in opposite directions from each of the shoulders 32 transversely across the end face of the boss 28 to each of the apertures 34 and preferably therebeyond completely across said boss to provide lateral passageways for the ends of the lead wires 14 and 16 when they are bent into the cavity 30, as will be hereinafter described. Thus, a passageway is provided for each of the lead wires 14 and 16 which extends from the inner surface of the base 24 through the end wall 26 and boss 28 and laterally across the end face of said boss through the appropriate one of the slots 36 to a point of termination on the shoulders 32 inward from said slots.

As will be noted in Figs. 1 and 2 and particularly in Fig. 7, the apertures 34 are elongated in cross-section in a direction approximately at right angles to the direction of elongation of both the cavity 30 and boss 28 so that the surfaces of the aforesaid shoulders 32 are substantially fiat in a direction parallel to the direction of elongation of said apertures. Attention is also directed to the fact that the slots 36 are of sufficient depth to completely recess the laterally extending parts of the leads 14 and 16 disposed therein, as in the prior art bases of this type.

In accordance with the present invention electrical connection of the lamp with its holder 40 is effected by flattening the ends of the flexible lead wires 14 and 16 protruding from the sealed end of the lamp envelope 12 to provide enlarged terminal sections 14' and 16' of appreciable stiffness and of predetermined Width and thickness. In order to obtain terminal sections of the proper dimensions and degree of stiffness it has been found necessary in practice to fabricate the outer portions of the leads from heavier gauge wire than was conventionally employed heretofore in lamps of the same rating and design. For example, in the case of a 40 watt rapid start lamp 4 ft. in length and having an envelope 1%" in diameter, the diameter of the outer leads was increased from the usual .020 of an inch to approximately .035 of an inch to permit the formation of a terminal section approximately .010 of an inch thick, .095 of an inch wide and 9 mm. long. In addition, in order to keep the oxidation of the lead wires 14 and 16 by the sealing-in fires to a minimum it has been found desirable but not essential to fabricate the outer leads from nickel wire rather than the unplated copper wire usually employed. It is to be understood that the foregoing lead wire and terminal dimensions are given by way of example only, since they will vary considerably depending upon the size of the lamp involved and exact conformation of the base employed.

The lead wires 14 and 16 are preferably flattened after the lamp 10 has been tipped-off and before it is based. This operation may be conveniently accomplished by first positioning the wires in a common plane, which includes the longitudinal axis of the lamp, and then placing the wires between the working surfaces of an anvil 50 and a pair of opposed reciprocally-movable hammers 52 and actuating said hammers to compress a preselected intermediate portion of the lead to a predetermined width and thickness, as shown in Fig. 5. The hammers 52 are then withdrawn and a pair of similarly disposed and actuable knives 54 are moved inward-1y toward each other and in cooperation with the bottom edge of the anvil 50 trim the enlarged terminal sections 14' and 16' thus formed to a predetermined length. Thus, enlarged terminal sections 14' and 16' are formed at the ends of the lead wires 14 and 16, respectively, which sections are flattened in parallel planes normal to the plane in which said lead wires are disposed and are of predetermined length, width and thickness. It should be noted that the lamp 10 and lead wires 14 and 16 are so positioned with respect to the aforementioned lead flattening and trimming means that the resultant terminal sections 14' and 16, when incorporated into the base 24 in the manner hereinafter described, will have their flattened surfaces seated against and will extend longitudinally along the shoulders 32 to a point of termination thereon located a considerable distance inward from the slots 36 (see Figs. 1, 3 and 9).

Basing of the lamp 10 is accomplished in the usual manner by threading the base 24 over the lead wires 14 and 16 and seating it on the end of the envelope 12. In accordance with the present invention, however, the lead wires 14 and 16 are threaded through the end apertures 34 rather than through a central opening similar to the cavity 30 as in the prior at base designs previously described. The apertures 34 are so dimensioned that they registrably receive the enlarged terminal sections 14' and 16' and may be appropriately flared at their inward ends to facilitate the threading of said sections through the base 24, as is shown in Figs. 1 and 7. The apertures 34 may also be slightly tapered lengthwise in their narrow dimension to more snugly accommodate the portions of the aforesaid terminal sections disposed therein, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. By virtue of the foregoing construction, the flattened lead wire terminal sections are. automatically positioned in parallel relationship by the apertures 34 during the threading operation and are thus properly oriented with respect to each other and to the base cavity for the subsequent bending operation.

After the base 24 has been seated on the end of the envelope 12 the portions of the terminal sections 14 and 16' protruding from the apertures 34 are bent over toward each other into recessed position within the slots 36 and into the cavity 30 against the shoulders 32 therein. The aforesaid terminal sections are thus retroverted and so disposed that the ends thereof extend inwardly into the cavity in spaced parallel relationship longitudinally along the shoulders 32 to a point of termination thereon located a considerable distance inward from the bottom of the slots 36, as illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3, 9 and 10. The terminal sections .14 and 16 may be bent into the slots 36 and cavity 30 in the manner above-described either during or after the basing operation. It should be noted that the aforesaid terminal sections are trimmed to such a length that the protruding ends thereof cannot touch one another after the sections have been threaded into the base 24 even if they accidentally displaced toward each other prior to the bending operation. This will prevent short circuits from occurring between these elements in the event the sealed-in lamp 10 is seasoned before final forming of the terminal sections. As will be recognized by those skilled in the art, the lead flatening and bending operations are simple enough in character that the fabrication of the lamp terminals and the incorporation thereof into the base may be conveniently and efliciently accomplished during the normal sequence of operations required tocomplete the assembly of the lamp 10.

As illustrated in Fig. 9, the holder 40 is so designed that when the lamp 10 is inserted therein the boss 28 nestingly seats within a similarly shaped opening 48 provided in said holder so that the blade- like contacts 42 and 44 of the holder along with an insulating partition 46 are, in turn, inserted into the boss cavity 30. The shoulders 32 along which the retroverted ends of the lead wire terminal sections 14' and 16 extend are spaced a distance sufficient to accommodate therebetween the aforesaid contactor portion of the holder 40 with a predetermined amount of clearance. The thickness of each of the terminal sections 14' and 16' is at least equivalent to half the total clearance between the shoulders 32 and the accommodated contactor portion of the lamp holder 40. Thus, when the lamp 10 is inserted into its holder the shoulders 32 coact to pressure the flattened surfaces of the retroverted ends of the terminal sections 14' and 16 disposed within the cavity 30 against and into surface-to-surface engagement with the appropriately notched edge surfaces of the holder contacts 42 and 44 thereby insuring a positive electrical connection between said lamp and holder at all times.

The foregoing dimensional relationship of the various parts is illustrated in Fig. 10 which is an enlarged crosssectional view through the area of juncture between the lamp base 24 and holder 40. As shown, the distance a between the shoulders 32 is greater by a predetermined amount than the span e of the holder contacts 42 and 44 when the latter are in their inserted positions within the boss cavity 30. The thickness 0 of each of the lead wire terminal sections 14 and 16 is such that their combined thickness compensates for any looseness of fit lengthwise between the boss 28 and contact portion of the holder 40 thereby pressuring the flattened surfaces of said sections against the notched edges of the aforesaid holder contacts. In fact, since the holder contacts 42 and 44 are customarily resiliently mounted within the holder 40 and thus compressible inwardly, the boss cavity 30 and aforesaid terminal sections are purposely dimensioned to make a force fit with the edges of the aforesaid holder contacts so as to resiliently compress the holder contacts and bias the notched edge surfaces thereof firmly against the flattened surfaces of said terminal,

sections when the lamp 10 is inserted into the holder 40. The width b of the cavity 30 is larger than the corresponding dimension of the contactor portion of the holder to permit free entry of the latter along this dimension. As shown, the width d of the lead wire terminal sections 14 and 16 is considerably larger than the thickness f of the blade- like holder contacts 42 and 44 thereby permitting a certain amount of misalignment between these elements Without decreasing the area of contact.

While the invention as above described has been treated in terms of a double-ended fluorescent lamp 10 having a pair of lead wires 14 and 16 at each of its ends, it will be recognized that the same beneficial results and advantages may also be derived by applying the principles of the inventionto single-ended devices having either a single or a multiplicity of lead wires protruding therefrom.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that the objects of the invention have been achieved by providing an improved recessed contact base and terminal means for electrical devices such as rapid start or highly-loaded fluorescent lamps which will automatically effect a positive electrical connection between the lamp and its holder directly through the lamp lead-in wires over a cleaner and much greater surface area than was heretofore possible. In addition, by virtue of the configuration of the improved base the aforesaid terminal means may be conveniently and efiiciently fabricated and incorporated into the base structure during the normal sequence of operations required to complete the assembly of the lamp without the need for additional base parts or operations to anchor the leads in the base thereby reducing both the material and manufacturing cost of both the lamp and base.

While one specific embodiment of this invention has been described in accordance with the patent statutes, it will be recognized by those skilled in the art that various changes both as regards the configuration and arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A base adapted for mounting on an end of an electric lamp having a pair of flexible lead wires extending therefrom, the exposed ends whereof have been flattened and form enlarged terminal sections of appreciable stiffness, said base comprising a body of insulating material having a pair of spaced apertures therethrough and a cavity extending inwardly from an exposed face-thereof and disposed between said apertures, said apertures being elongated in cross section and dimensioned registrably to receive the enlarged terminal sections of said lead wires, portions of the walls of said cavity adjacent to and axially aligned with said apertures being substantially fiat in the direction of the elongation of the adjacent aperture inwardly from the face of said body to provide oppositely-disposed longitudinally-extending shoulders in said cavity, slots in said body extending transversely in opposite directions from said shoulders across the face of said body to said apertures and dimensioned to provide lateral passageways for recessing the enlarged terminal sections of said lead wires when said terminal sections are threaded through said apertures and bent over toward each other into the aforesaid cavity and against said shoulders, said shoulders being spaced apart to accommodate therebetween the bent-over ends of said lead wire terminal sections and the insulated electrical supply contacts of a holder for said lamp and adapted thereby to pressure the flattened surfaces of the aforesaid ends of said terminal sections against and into positive electrical engagement with the accommodated electrical supply contacts when the lamp is inserted into its holder.

2. A base adapted for mounting on an end of an electric lamp having a pair of flexible lead wires extending therefrom, the exposed ends of which are flattened and form enlarged terminal sections of appreciable stiffness, said base comprising; a cap member, an upstanding bossof insulating material integral with said cap member, a pair of spaced apertures through said boss and cap memher, a cavity between said apertures extending inwardly from the end face of said boss, said apertures being elongated in cross section and dimensioned registrably to receive the enlarged terminal section of a lead wire threaded therethrough, slots extending across the end face of said boss from the said apertures and communicating with said cavity and dimensioned to provide lateral passageways for recessing the enlarged terminal sections of said lead wires when said terminal sections are threaded through said apertures and bent-over toward each other and into the aforesaid cavity, portions of the walls of said cavity inward from said slots being substantially flat in the direction of elongation of the adjacent aperture and spaced apart to accommodate therebetween the bent-over ends of said lead wire terminal sections and the insulated electrical supply contacts of a holder for said lamp and thereby pressure the flattened surfaces of the aforesaid ends of said terminal sections against and into positive electrical egnagement with the accommodated electrical supply contact when the lamp is inserted into its holder.

3. A lamp base as set forth in claim 2 wherein, said cavity is of elongated configuration, and said apertures are disposed at the ends of said cavity and are elongated in a direction transverse to the direction of elongation of said cavity.

4. In an electric discharge lamp of the type which re quires recessed contacts and which includes a sealed envelope; the combination of a pair of flexible lead wires extending from an end of said envelope, portions of the exposed ends of said lead wires being flattened and forming enlarged terminal sections of appreciable stiffness and preselected length; and a base mounted on the said end of said envelope and enclosing said leads and enlarged terminal sections thereof; said base comprising a body of insulating material having a pair of spaced apertures of elongated cross-section therethrough and a cavity extending inwardly from its outer surface and disposed between said apertures, portions of the walls of said cavity adjacent said apertures being substantially flat in the direction of elongation of the respective apertures for a considerable distance inward from the outer face of said body and adapted thereby to define a pair of opposed shoulders within said cavity, the outer face of said insulating body having a pair of slots therein joining each of said apertures with the adjacent shoulder and dimensioned to re ceive and constitute a recess for the flatened lead wire terminal sections; and said lead wires extending through said apertures and the said enlarged terminal sections being disposed in recessed position within and extending along said slots with their free ends bent inwardly into said cavity and seated flat against the respective ones of said shoulders; the spacing between said shoulders being such that the retroverted ends of said lead wire terminal sections, upon the insertion into said cavity of the insulated electrical supply contacts of a holder for said lamp, are pressed against said shoulders by and held in positive electrical engagement with the accommodated electrical supply contacts of said holder.

5. The combination of flattened lead wire terminals and a base in an electric discharge lamp as set forth in claim 4 wherein, said apertures are disposed in parallel spaced relationship and are dimensioned registrably to receive the flattened terminal sections of said lead wires, and said cavity is elongated in a direction transverse to the direction of elongation of said aperturesv 6. The combination of flattened lead wire terminals and a base in an electric discharge lamp as set forth in claim 5 wherein, the end walls of saidelongated cavity comprise said shoulders, and said end walls are substan tially flat andparallel to each other and disposed atsub- 9 stantially right angles to the direction of elongation of said cavity.

7. In the manufacture of an electric discharge lamp of the type which requires recessed contacts and which includes an envelope having an end from which a pair of lead wires extend; the method of fabricating terminal means for said lamp from said lead wires and assembling said terminals with a base mounted on the said end of said envelope; said base having a pair of apertures therethrough and a cavity in its outer surface connected to said apertures by slots, said cavity being dimensioned to receive the insulated electrical supply contacts of a holder for said lamps and being conformed to define a pair of oppositely disposed shoulders spaced to accommodate therebetween the aforesaid supply contacts with a predetermined amount of clearance, and said slots being dimensioned to receive and define recesses for said terminal means: which method comprises; flattening the exposed ends of said lead Wires to provide a pair of enlarged terminal sections of predetermined length that have a combined thickness substatially equal to the clearance between the electrical supply contacts of said holder, when in inserted position, and the aforesaid shoulders; threading said terminal sections through said apertures during the placement of said base on the said end of the envelope; bending each of the protruding ends of said lead wire terminal sections through a substantially right angle 10 toward each other and into recessed position within said slots; and then bending each of the end segments of said lead wire terminal sections that overlie said cavity through another substantially right angle around the lip of said cavity to seat them against the adjacent ones of said shoulders in opposed longitudinally-extending relationship within said cavity.

8. In an electric discharge lamp, the combination of a pair of lead wires and a base as set forth in claim 4 wherein, at least the enlarged terminal sections of said lead wires are fabricated from a metal that is resistant to oxidation by the lamp sealing-in fires, and said enlarged terminal sections are greater in width than the parts of said electrical supply contacts which they engage.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,156,048 Baier Apr. 25, 1939 2,627,048 Lamb Jan. 27, 1953 2,116,739 Lemmers Aug. 30, 1955 2,730,689 Lamb Jan. 10, 1956 2,774,589 Thomas -1 Nov. 20, 1956 2,860,274 Wright Nov. 11, 1958 2,860,502 Westra Nov. 18, 1958 2,886,629 Van Geel May 12, 1959 2,899,671 Cridland Aug. 11, 1959

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