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A flashlight (also called an electric torch or torch) is a portable electric spotlight which emits light from a small incandescent lightbulb, or from one or more light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The light source is mounted in a housing which contains a parabolic reflector, a clear protective lens, a power source (typically electric batteries), and an electric power switch.

While most flashlights are intended to be held in the hand, there are also helmet-mounted flashlights designed for miners and campers. Some types of flashlights can be powered by hand-cranked dynamos or electromagnetic induction.History

An 1899 Eveready flashlight, one of the earliest flashlight models.

 

In 1898, Joshua Lionel Cowen invented a decorative lighting fixture for potted plants which consisted of a metal tube housing a light bulb and a dry cell battery. It failed commercially, and so Cowen sold his company and patents to Conrad Hubert that same year and turned his attention to building and selling model trains. Hubert renamed Cowen's company the American Electrical Novelty & Manufacturing Company and, recognizing the true potential of Cowen's invention, hired David Misell to produce a tubular flashlight for portable use.

They donated some models to the New York City police, who responded favorably to it.[1] These early flashlights ran on zinc-carbon batteries, which were poor at providing sustained currents; they would run down after a while and needed to rest before being usable again.[2] Since these early flashlights also used energy-inefficient carbon filament bulbs, this happened rather quickly, and consequently they could only be used in brief flashes, hence the popular name flashlight.

 

General information

A high power torch

A typical flashlight consists of a small incandescent lightbulb (or, in recent models, an LED) with associated parabolic reflector, powered by electric batteries, and with an electric power switch. The components are mounted in a housing that contains the necessary electric circuit and provides ease of handling, a means of access to the batteries for replacement, and a clear covering over the lightbulb for its protection.

Although a relatively simple device, its invention did not occur until the late 19th century because it depended upon the earlier invention of the electric battery and incandescent light bulb.

Incandescent

Incandescent flashlights use bulbs that contain a heated-up coil of tungsten wire, which gives off light energy as well as heat.The bulbs are filled with gas (usually argon perhaps with a trace of a Halogen, in higher quality models, Xenon is used.) A popular example of an incandescent flashlight is the Maglite by Mag Instrument. and are capable of producing upwards of 4,000 lumens [1]. Flashlight hobbyists often modify Maglites by replacing the bulb, reflector, switch, and batteries with more powerful options, producing much more light than a stock Maglite.

LED

Electronically regulated, variable output LED flashlight

 

Recently, flashlights which use light-emitting diodes (LEDs) instead of conventional lightbulbs have become available. LEDs have existed for decades, mainly as low-power indicator lights. In 1999, Lumileds Corporation of San Jose, CA, introduced the Luxeon LED, a high-power white-light emitter. For the first time this made possible LED flashlights with power and running time better than some incandescent lights. The first Luxeon LED flashlight was the Arc LS in 2001.

LEDs can be significantly more efficient at lower power levels and so use less battery energy than ordinary lightbulbs. Such flashlights have longer battery lifetimes, in some cases hundreds of hours, although the LED efficiency advantage diminishes at higher power levels. LEDs also survive sharp blows that often break conventional lightbulbs.

LED flashlights are often electronically regulated to maintain constant light output as the batteries fade. By contrast a non-regulated flashlight becomes progressively dimmer, sometimes spending much of the total running time below 50 percent brightness level.

A common misconception about LED-based flashlights is that they generate no heat. While lower-power LED flashlights generate little heat, more powerful LED lights do generate significant amounts of heat – although not as radiant energy, as the semiconductor junction inherently dissipates heat. For this reason higher-powered LED flashlights usually have aluminum bodies and can become quite warm during use. The use of aluminum is largely due to its thermal properties, acting as a heatsink for the high-power LED. Very few high-output LED flashlights use a plastic body due to plastic's being a thermal insulator rather than a conductor.

 

HID

Another less common type of flashlight uses a High Intensity Discharge (HID) light source. It works by passing an electric current through a ball of ionized gas, which glows very brightly.

Some advantages of this design are that they produce more light than an incandescent flashlight using the same amount of electricity, and the bulb will last a longer time and is more shock resistant than a regular incandescent bulb. However, they are more expensive and are usually rather bulky. An example of an HID flashlight is the Surefire Hellfire Weaponlight.

Other designs

A headlamp is a flashlight worn on the head for hands-free operation. Powerful headlamps mounted on helmets have been used in mining for decades, but general-purpose ones with fabric straps are now also available.

Sometimes a light is mounted to a handgun or rifle.[3][4] See also Streamlight and SureFire.

Most flashlights are cylindrical in design, with the lamp assembly attached to one end. However, early designs came in a variety of shapes. Many resembled lanterns of the day, consisting largely of a box with a handle and the lamp attached to the front. Some others were made to have a similar appearance to candles. It is possible that future developments of battery and LED technology will bring interesting new designs. For instance, one very small light consists of a few LEDs with a switch, designed to be an endcap for a 9-volt battery.

High-end flashlights

GatLight V1 Luxeon LED flashlight. Dimensions: 3.1" x 1.0"

High end lights often go for as much as several hundreds of pounds/euros/dollars. Using metals such as titanium, steel, or even silver, and often being limited in production they often end up as collector's items trading at many times their original sales price. Such flashlights are very advanced, using special batteries, have adjustable brightness levels, waterproof ratings, and are very bright. As a unique example of a high end manufacturer, with non-cylindrical, unique design, Lumencraft was one of the first manufacturer to create designs that cater more towards a higher end design and art-conscious market rather than the tactical military and law enforcement markets.

 Other power sources

Since batteries can be a burdensome cost in developed countries, let alone in the third world, the development of self-powered flashlights is a welcome advance. Some use solar panels to recharge their batteries during the day.

Mechanical power

Dynamo light (partly disassembled)

Some flashlights have an electrical generator built into them. One type of dynamo-powered flashlight has a winding crank connected to a small alternator that feeds several diode bridges with their outputs connected in parallel feeding a field effect transistor that charges a capacitor that connects to one or more LEDs. Others generate electricity using electromagnetic induction. They use a strong permanent magnet that can freely slide up and down a tube, passing through a coil of wire as it does. Shaking the flashlight will charge a capacitor or a rechargeable battery that supplies a current to a light source, typically a light-emitting diode or, more rarely, an incandescent light bulb.

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"With July barely out of the way, stores have put all matter of notebooks, pens and dorm-room supplies on sale. Back-to-school shopping has begun. And retailers are rolling out promotions earlier than normal, hoping to get a slice of tighter consumer budgets. According to a survey done by BIGresearch for the National Retail Federation, students heading to college are expected to spend an average of $599 this year, down from $642 in 2007. Spending on younger students, in grades K-12, is likely to increase only slightly from the previous year. High gas prices have cut into budgets. And if students had trouble finding a summer job in the lagging economy, ""they've been relying on their parents' income, who are strapped as it is,"" said Kathy Grannis, a spokeswoman for the retail federation. The outlook puts retailers in a tough spot. Back-to-school shopping, which generally runs from July to the beginning of September, is the second-biggest moneymaker for stores, after the winter holidays. Not wanting to lose shoppers, though, stores are likely to run ongoing sales. Here's how to get the best deal on everything from laptops to desk lamps Desk Touch Lamps . Comparison shop online: No surprise here. As with any shopping quest, you want to nose around and see what's being offered. Doing the comparisons online is easy, convenient and fuel-efficient. Most retailers are promoting back-to-school deals on their home page. Some, including Bed Bath & Beyond, have sweepstakes with prizes such as store gift cards, cash and other items. Check the circulars: Open a Sunday paper and you'll find a stack of weekly circulars in which retailers advertise sales. You also can sign up with individual stores to receive e-mails about new promotions, but sometimes newspaper circulars give you unexpected finds. Last weekend, for example, I stumbled upon a circular for a drugstore I don't regularly visit. In addition to a sale on toilet paper, I discovered that vinyl binders were three for $2 and five-subject notebooks were two for $2.99. No matter how you get the deals, though, make sure to hang on to your circulars or print out the offers. Many stores will match a competitor's price if you show proof of the lower advertised offer. Don't pay for shipping: Shopping online allows you to send products to your new address. And if you do it right, you can ship for little or no cost. Wal-Mart, for example, now lets online customers pick up items in store for free. So if you're shopping online from your home in Chicago but go to school at University of Michigan, you can pick up your items at a Wal-Mart near Ann Arbor. Other retailers will offer free shipping on select items or if you spend a certain amount. You can also offset all or part of your shipping costs with online coupons. Kohl's department store, for example, ships for free if you order merchandise worth $75 or more. But I typed ""Kohl's coupons"" into Google and found a code for 10 percent off, saving $2 on shipping charges for a desk lamp. Stick to your budget: Finally, be sure to make a list of what you'll need before you start shopping. If you stick to the list, all of the hard work you put into saving money for school supplies will pay off. "

A man who helped a petrol-soaked love rival kill himself by tossing him a cigarette lighter Cigarette Lighter Light  has won his appeal against a jail term.

The 30-year-old South Korean had been sentenced to a year in jail for his part in the apparent suicide.

But a Seoul appeal court has now agreed that he did not believe his girlfriend's ex-lover really would set light to himself.

Last September, the former boyfriend had stopped the couple in their car after dousing himself in petrol, threatening to kill himself if she did not get out.

The defendant then threw him a lighter, saying: "Go ahead and kill yourself."

The victim died of his burns.

But the appeal court said the fact the ex-lover had given his own cigarettes and lighter to a friend so they would not get damaged by the petrol and had not left a will showed he had not planned to commit suicide.

Wixom, MI - K-Tool International (KTI), a leading manufacturer of tools for the automotive aftermarket and professional mechanic, is pleased to add a tire repair kit  tire repair tool  to its product line.

The kit allows mechanics to easily and quickly repair punctures in tubeless tires. Included components are designed for professional use in rugged shop environments. Kit can be used to repair tires on cars, trucks, RVs, motor homes and more.

Each handy kit contains everything needed to fix a tire, including: two (2) heavy-duty zinc alloy T-handle needles; one (1) steel insertion needle; one (1) steel spiral reamer; one (1) 40-pack 4" tire string plugs; one (1) tub of tire plug lube; and two (2) Allen wrenches.

Designed for busy users who need their kit readily available, all components are packaged in a durable blow-molded plastic storage case.

Some Galveston City Council members already want to rethink a civilian police review board’s proposed meeting format, which would allow the group to gather behind closed doors without notifying the public. The council created the board, which will review complaints against the police department, last week.

Council Needs To Rethink Police Review Board

I am no lawyer but, if I were a cop, I would have serious issues with Galveston City Council’s new civilian police review board and my contractual rights as described in the “Collective bargaining agreement between the city of Galveston and the Galveston Municipal Police Association” under sections seven, 33 and 37.

The creation of the board creates a redundancy in the process in which we hold our police officers accountable and therefore is a waste of public resources and a waste of tax dollars that could be spent on other things, such as roads.

Further, the contract the city signed has an interesting point — the agreement’s article 33, section E states: “Employees shall have the right to request an independent polygraph operator at city expense should the city order an employee to take a polygraph exam. The city shall request a complaining witness to take a polygraph exam before requiring an employee to take one; however, the city shall not be prohibited from requiring a polygraph from an officer in any instance where physical or mental incapacity or death of the complaining witness prevents same.”

I hope the new board takes full advantage of this contractual agreement and asks all complainants to take a polygraph test before they take up valuable city time that we taxpayers will be paying for.

Norman Pappous
Galveston

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Traffic ‘Solutions’ Are For The Few — Not The Many

Gordon Robinson’s traffic engineering “solutions” (“Island city should engineer traffic solutions,” The Daily News, July 23) for Galveston would create major problems where only minor problems now exist. Choking major arteries down by a lane may ease the way for the comparatively few cars merging in, but it would drastically congest through traffic on the main road.

The traffic engineer’s motto should be the Vulcan credo from Star Trek — “the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.”

Most of Robinson’s “solutions” take the opposite tack, inconveniencing the many for the benefit of a few, while further congesting such major arteries as Interstate 45, Broadway and Seawall Boulevard.

As for his suggestion that all downtown stop signs should be made four-way, for consistency, the four-way stop sign is the driver’s bane, as it makes each and every car coming through the intersection stop and start several times. This drastically cuts gas mileage, while increasing brake wear, air pollution and travel time.

I’ve driven in cities all over the country and Galveston has by far the largest percentage of four-way stop signs of any I’ve seen. We need far fewer of them, not more.

My message to Robinson is, please don’t quit your day job!

David Konkel
Galveston

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The Rev. John Nathan LaBauve, who ministered for almost 10 years at St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica in Galveston, died in Bay St. Louis, Miss., after a prolonged illness. He was 85.

Father LaBauve Will Be Sorely Missed By All

Galveston County residents have undergone a great loss with the death of the Rev. John Nathan LaBauve, who was the first African-American rector-in-charge of St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica in the Galveston-Houston Archdiocese for nearly a decade.

Father LaBauve was an extraordinary and distinguished man who took priesthood seriously. My family and I had the pleasure of knowing him for several years and he will be sorely missed. He truly was a gift to us from God.

His incredible leadership, love, commitment and courage will keep our wonderful memories of him alive and well.

There will be a memorial Mass honoring Father LaBauve at 7 p.m. Thursday at St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica, 2011 Church Street in Galveston.

We know he is peacefully in a better place, saying in his native Creole lingo: “Child, child, child — this is genuinely heaven to now exist with the most prominent, our Almighty Master!”

Joyce Ann Daniel
Galveston

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In a column published Sunday, about whether motorcyclists should be required to wear helmets and the cost to the public of traumatic injuries, Associate Editor Michael A. Smith wrote: “I’m not arguing that the state should force bikers to wear helmets pocket bike helmet, but I’d like it to get them out of my pocket.” Readers can join the discussion on the blog “Editors’ Notes” at galvnews.com.

All Motorcyclists Should Pay Their Accident Costs

In regard to Michael Smith’s column “Taxpayers’ pockets need bike helmet protection” (The Daily News, July 27): The Traumatic Brain Injury Advisory Council said that brain injuries to motorcyclists not wearing helmets cost an average of $187,430, but it also found that those who wore helmets still had an average cost of $123,000.

Should taxpayers donate only to the motorcyclists who opt for the approved fashion statement?

All riders should be responsible for their costs and their act that hits taxpayers the hardest is trading four wheels for two, not taking off a hat.

If Smith must pick on the bare heads, the required insurance should cover only the additional cost incurred by crashing without headgear.

For the typical crash, that would be $10,000 to $15,000 and, for the relatively few resulting in traumatic brain injury, $64,430, not $300,000.

A free country will allow people to ride what they want, dress how they want and expect them to accept responsibility for their choices.

To that end, all motorcyclists should be required to either carry adequate insurance or opt out of public health care.

I have no doubt that the insurance companies will adjust their premiums and underwriting for any unfavorable experience among the helmetless to penalize them and reward the safety conscious.

Doug Murray
Altamonte Springs, Fla.