Pathway lighting for door handles

Abstract

A door handle device includes pathway lighting to illuminate a pathway when needed, such as during a power outage, fire, or other emergency. The pathway lighting includes at least one light source, such as a super-bright LED or other low current/power light source, that is mounted to a door and that is bright enough to illuminate a pathway. Power for the light source may be provided by an internal power source that is used to power other components (e.g., a lock, a key card reader, etc.) within the door handle device. The pathway lighting acts as a backup or supplemental light source when needed to guide people toward a desired location. The pathway lighting may also act as an interior light.

1 . A door handle device, comprising: 
 a door handle assembly; and    at least one light source that illuminates a pathway in a vicinity of the door handle device.    
   
   
       2 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the door handle assembly comprises: 
 a door handle; and    a door plate, wherein said at least one light source is adjacent to the door plate.    
   
   
       3 . The device of  claim 2 , wherein the door plate includes an opening to accommodate an electronic key, wherein the device further comprises a control unit having a power source that powers circuitry for reading the electronic key.  
   
   
       4 . The device of  claim 3 , wherein the power source also powers said at least one light source.  
   
   
       5 . The device of  claim 1 , further comprising a control unit having a power source that powers said at least one light source.  
   
   
       6 . The device of  claim 5 , further comprising at least one light sensor, wherein the control unit controls operation of said at least one light source based on ambient light detected by said at least one light sensor.  
   
   
       7 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein said at least one light source comprises at least one light emitting diode.  
   
   
       8 . The device of  claim 7 , wherein said at least one light source comprises a plurality of light emitting diodes.  
   
   
       9 . A door handle device, comprising: 
 a door handle assembly having a door handle and a door plate, the door plate including an opening to accommodate an electronic key;    at least one light source that illuminates a pathway in a vicinity of the door handle device, wherein said at least one light source is adjacent to the door plate; and    a control unit having a power source to selectively supply power to said at least one light source.    
   
   
       10 . The device of  claim 9 , further comprising at least one light sensor in communication with the control unit, wherein the control unit selectively supplies power to said at least one light source based on ambient light detected by said at least one light sensor.  
   
   
       11 . The device of  claim 9 , wherein the control unit is manually operable.  
   
   
       12 . The device of  claim 9 , further comprising a receiver in communication with the control unit to receive a wireless message, wherein the control unit selectively supplies power to said at least one light source based on the wireless message.  
   
   
       13 . The device of  claim 9 , wherein the power source also powers circuitry for reading the electronic key.  
   
   
       14 . The device of  claim 9 , wherein said at least one light source comprises a plurality of light emitting diodes (LEDs).  
   
   
       15 . The device of  claim 9 , further comprising a second door handle assembly, wherein the door handle assembly is on an exterior side of a door and the second door handle assembly is on an interior side of the door, and wherein said at least one light source comprises a first light source associated with the exterior side of the door and a second light source associated with the interior side of the door.  
   
   
       16 . The device of  claim 15 , further comprising a first light sensor associated with the first light source and a second light sensor associated with the second light source, wherein the control unit controls operation of the first light source based on ambient light detected by the first light sensor and controls operation of the second light source based on ambient light detected by the second light sensor.  
   
   
       17 . The device of  claim 15 , further comprising a receiver in communication with the control unit to receive a wireless message, wherein the control unit selectively and independently supplies power to at least one of the first light source and the second light source.  
   
   
       18 . The device of  claim 15 , wherein the control unit is manually operable to selectively and independently supply power to at least one of the first light source and the second light source.  
   
   
       19 . The device of  claim 9 , wherein the door handle assembly is on an exterior side of a door.  
   
   
       20 . The device of  claim 9 , wherein the door handle assembly is on an interior side of a door.