Electricity: conductors and insulators – Covers or face plates
Reexamination Certificate
1999-02-22
2001-02-06
Richard, Dean A. (Department: 2831)
Electricity: conductors and insulators
Covers or face plates
C220S003800, C220S241000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06184468
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention is generally directed to an electrical box and adaptor combination used for electrical cable terminations in various applications such as telephone wiring, electrical power sources, cable T.V., etc. Such electrical box and adaptor combinations are used to accommodate electrical devices such as switches, electrical outlets, electrical sockets, phone jacks, etc. and are embedded behind finished walls. The electrical box and adaptor combination of the present invention provides a semi-attached adaptor which is unitary with the electrical box in either an open or closed position thereby facilitating the electrician's installation and minimizing the risk of loss of, or damage to, the adaptor.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Obviously, for purposes of both safety and aesthetics, electrical wiring exists behind finished surfaces (e.g., walls and ceilings) in modern structures. External to the finished surfaces are typically control or indicator devices such as switches, electrical outlets, phone jacks and the like. While the electrical boxes that contain the wire or cable terminations are hidden from view behind finished surfaces, they must be made easily accessible for purposes of repair or inspection. In new buildings, a certificate of occupancy typically cannot be granted without inspection by an electrician to ensure that all wiring complies with local safety codes.
Electrical boxes can be installed in either wet wall or dry wall applications as is well-known in the art. In a wet wall application, the electrical box typically has a strut which extends into the wet, pliable surface becomes firmly implanted when the or wall dries and hardens. In a dry wall application, the electrical box is internally attached to the structure on wooden studs. In either application, the open portion of the electrical box extends outward (e.g., downward from a ceiling mount in internal applications).
FIG. 1
shows a prior art electrical box generally designated
10
. Electrical box
10
can have various dimensions; however, under most electrical codes implemented today, electrical box
10
typically would be 4 inches by 4 inches by 2 inches or 5 inches by 5 inches by 2 inches. Prior art electrical box
10
is comprised of steel but incorporates weakened punch-outs
12
which can easily be detached from electrical box
10
to create circular holes in which to run cables or wires. In
FIG. 1
, punch-outs
12
are available on all surfaces of electrical box
10
to avoid recircuiting of the direction of any cable or wire to be terminated in electrical box
12
. The bending of cables or wires around the edges of electrical box
12
can fray the cables and wires resulting in electrical shorting and the creation of a fire hazard.
Prior art electrical box
10
also includes a pair of diagonally opposed mounting ears
14
. Mounting ears
14
each have a screw hole
16
to receive and connect an adaptor
18
as shown it FIG.
2
. Adaptor
18
includes four curved slots
20
which permit adaptor
18
to be attached to electrical box
10
by the coupling of two diagonally opposed curved slots
20
being screwed to mounting ears
14
by means of a screw (not visible) which has a head wider than curved slot
20
. Adaptor
18
can be coupled to electrical box
10
so that the rectangular opening of adaptor
18
can receive an electrical device in either a horizontal or vertical position.
Adaptor
18
serves numerous purposes in the installation of electrical devices. First, adaptor
18
serves a somewhat protective function in that once all necessary electrical wiring is completed in electrical box
10
, adaptor
18
narrows this opening to avoid debris from entering. This narrowing of the opening of electrical box
10
by adaptor
18
also permits the rigid attachment of standard-size electrical devices to adaptor
18
(and thus electrical box
10
). In this regard, adaptor
18
comprises two opposite mounting ears
22
which each incorporate a screw hole
24
. A standard rectangular device such as a switch, socket, etc. is easily attached by means of screws (not visible) connecting the electrical device and adaptor
18
. Adaptor
18
can also be comprised of various thicknesses to ensure that the electrical device (or more specifically, its exterior cover) rests flush against a finished wall. For instance, if one-half inch plywood will ultimately be utilized as a wall surface, the adaptor would have a similar thickness so that the net result would not be that the electrical box was indented in the finished wall.
FIG. 3
shows electrical box
10
and adaptor
18
connected by a pair of diagonally opposed screws
26
. No wiring or cable terminations have been illustrated in order to facilitate the viewing of the diagrams.
The prior art electrical box and adaptor combination as described in conjunction with
FIGS. 1-3
has numerous shortcomings. First, the necessity of totally detaching adaptor
18
from electrical box
10
each time work is conducted within electrical box
10
substantially increases the likelihood of the loss of screws
26
, the weakening of mounting ears
14
, the disconfiguration of curved slots
20
, and that the adaptor will become lost or its shape disrupted. This problem often results in the need for an electrician to maintain spare sets of adaptors
18
and screws
26
, thereby resulting in increased costs. Furthermore, because the opening and closing of electrical box
10
is so time-consuming, any repair or installation of electrical box
18
is unduly burdensome.
It is, therefore, a primary object of the present invention to provide a new and improved electrical box and adaptor combination.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved electrical box and adaptor combination whereby the adaptor remains attached to the electrical box in both its open and closed position.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a new and improved electrical box and adaptor combination which saves time for an electrician by requiring no tools to open or close the electrical box.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new and improved electrical box and adaptor combination which permits easy replacement of the adaptor.
Further objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent as the following description proceeds.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Briefly stated and in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, an electrical housing assembly is shown which is adapted to be affixed behind a finished surface such as a wall or ceiling and is designed to receive an electrical device which will be exposed outwardly from the finished surface wherein the housing assembly is comprised of an electrical box which has an open side to permit an electrician to easily inspect or conduct work on the wiring contained within the housing. The electrical box includes punch-outs which permit external wiring to be inserted within the box opening. A frame-shaped flat adaptor which is designed to affix an electrical device thereto is attached to the electrical box by a hinge assembly which permits the adaptor to remain coupled to the electrical box in both a closed position and an open position. A fastener, such as a snap-on clip, secures the adaptor to the electrical box in the closed position when desired by the electrician, but is also easily detachable.
REFERENCES:
patent: 2573260 (1951-10-01), Gorman
patent: 2666546 (1954-01-01), Reilly
patent: 2791345 (1957-05-01), Troutman
patent: 2854501 (1958-09-01), Ludwig
patent: 2898688 (1959-08-01), Cottar
patent: 3015408 (1962-01-01), Campbell et al.
patent: 3472945 (1969-10-01), Tractenberg
patent: 3601276 (1971-08-01), Culpepper
patent: 3619477 (1971-11-01), Rasmussen
patent: 3745664 (1973-07-01), Altseimer
patent: 4359619 (1982-11-01), Bergoltz
patent: 4381063 (1983-04-01), Leong
patent: 4399922 (1983-08-01), Horsley
patent: 4589211 (1986-05-01), Policka
patent: 4712157 (1987-12-01), Simonson et al.
patent: 4802284 (1989-02-0
Mugno John R.
Richard Dean A.
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