Electricity: conductors and insulators – Overhead – Towers – poles or posts
Patent
1989-09-13
1991-05-28
Picard, Leo P.
Electricity: conductors and insulators
Overhead
Towers, poles or posts
52263, H02G 326
Patent
active
050196723
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an elevated or raised access floor construction which is erected on an existing building floor to provide underfloor space for the accommodation of electrical and other services and for the distribution of such services to any position beneath the floor. More particularly, the invention is concerned with the provision of service outlets for an access floor and a novel arrangement of said outlets in which the latter are mounted at desired locations or workstations above floor level and cables or leads from the service outlets extend through the access floor for connection to junction boxes or other connection devices located in the underfloor space.
The installation and connection of electrical supplies, telecommunications and other services is specialist work. The codes of practice for such installations are set by professional institutions or governmental bodies and, with regard to raised office access floors, specify that no electrical appliances, for example, shall be connected to the electrical supply without a visible means of isolation. Also, regulations in relation to telecommunications wiring requires that this be shielded from any electrical cables to avoid interference. The same applies to computer wiring and other data transmission systems.
Typically, a raised access floor is constructed from rectangular or square panels supported, at least at their corners, on pedestals located on an existing building or subfloor. The panels may be made from timber or metal and can be lifted to provide the required access. With such access floors, the principle method of meeting the requirement for visible isolation outlets has been to provide outlet sockets at floor level in boxes set into the floor panels. Each service outlet box may, for example, contain electrical sockets wired through the underfloor space into the main electrical supply for the building. When the access floor is installed, a suitable number of service outlet boxes is distributed throughout the floor area. If the positioning of these boxes does not, at any time, coincide with the requirements of the occupants, then they are either left in position and unused, which can be unsightly and risk being a hazard in a carpeted office floor, or the panels containing the boxes are moved to different positions where they are convenient for use. Although moving the panels is not a major operation, this may not readily be performed by the occupants and will necessitate the presence of a qualified engineer for disconnecting and reconnecting the services. Hence, the present system of service outlets is relatively expensive, lacks flexibility and can leave unused outlet boxes in unsightly and potentially hazardous positions.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to alleviate the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior system of visible service outlets for access floors and to provide a novel arrangement whereby service outlets can be installed above access floor level and can be readily moved to another location, or be removed altogether and stored, depending on the requirements of the occupants.
The present invention consists in an access floor construction having an access floor formed from removable panels supported on a subfloor to form an underfloor space accommodating at least one service supply which includes at least one distribution device disposed in the underfloor space, one or more of the removable panels forming the access floor having at least one access slot or other opening in at least one edge thereof, characterized by at least one service outlet disposed above floor level and having at least one associated lead connected to an adjacent distribution device in the underfloor space via one of the access openings, the lead(s) of the service outlet being encased in trunking from the service outlet to the access opening.
The invention is particularly suitable for use with electrical services outlets for access floors. Hence, for large office floors,
REFERENCES:
patent: 3856981 (1974-12-01), Boundy
patent: 4016357 (1977-04-01), Abrahamsen
patent: 4278834 (1981-07-01), Boundy
patent: 4631879 (1986-12-01), Kobayashi et al.
Microfloor Systems Limited
Picard Leo P.
Tone David A.
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