Electrical connectors – With circuit conductors and safety grounding provision – Direct grounding of coupling part member passing into aperture
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-04
2001-06-19
Sircus, Brian (Department: 2839)
Electrical connectors
With circuit conductors and safety grounding provision
Direct grounding of coupling part member passing into aperture
C439S172000, C439S149000, C439S103000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06247941
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a combination electric connector, and more particularly to such a combination electric connector, which comprises a socket unit for receiving any of a variety of electric plugs, and a plug unit fastened to the socket unit for connection to any of a variety of electric socket.
Regular electric plugs and electric sockets commonly include a two-wire system and a three-wire system. A two-wire system electric plug or electric socket does not have a grounding terminal. A three-wire system electric plug cannot be installed in a two-wire system electric socket. When installing a three-wire system electric plug in a two-wire system electric socket, an adapter shall be used.
FIG. 16
shows an electric plug adapter
92
used with a three-wire electric plug
9
. The three-wire electric plug
9
comprises two metal blades and a grounding prong. The electric plug adapter
92
comprises three receiving holes at the backside for receiving the metal blades and grounding prong of the three-wire electric plug
9
, and two metal blades at the front side for connection to an electric socket. Because the electric plug adapter
92
is made subject to a particularly design of three-wire system electric plug, it cannot fit different electric plugs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is one object of the present invention to provide a combination electric connector, which fits any of a variety of two-wire system as well as three-wire system electric sockets, and any of a variety of two-wire system as well as three-wire system electric plugs. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the combination electric connector comprises a socket unit and a plug unit. The socket unit comprises a set of plug blade receiving holes extended through a front side thereof for receiving the metal blades of an electric plug, two grounding prong receiving portions disposed at two opposite lateral sides thereof for receiving the grounding prong or grounding wire of an electric plug, a substantially U-shaped grounding metal plate installed in the grounding prong receiving portions and extended over a rear side thereof, and two metal contact plates respectively mounted in the plug blade receiving holes and extended out of the rear side. The plug unit comprises a plurality of hooks and coupling flanges respectively fastened to the rear side of the socket unit, and a set of metal rod members respectively disposed in contact with the metal contact plates for connection to an electric socket. According to an alternate form of the present invention, the plug unit comprises a transverse plughole, and a detachable grounding prong assembly. The detachable grounding prong assembly comprises a base having a plug portion press-fitted into the transverse plug hole on the plug unit, and a grounding prong having a rear contact end disposed in contact with the grounding metal plate of the socket unit.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4201431 (1980-05-01), McDonald
patent: 5135404 (1992-08-01), Clark et al.
patent: 5213516 (1993-05-01), Okamoto
patent: 5282753 (1994-02-01), Su
patent: 5848907 (1998-12-01), Chen
patent: 5919060 (1999-07-01), Lee
patent: 5938459 (1999-08-01), Lee et al.
patent: 6053750 (2000-04-01), Waible
Lee Chiu-Shan
Li Shen Su-Chen
Nguyen Son V.
Rosenberg , Klein & Lee
Sircus Brian
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