Indexing ring providing automatic continuity

Details Indexing ring providing automatic continuity Indexing ring providing automatic continuity

1999-12-22

2001-09-25

Reichard, Dean A. (Department: 2831)

Electricity: conductors and insulators

Boxes and housings

With grounding means

C174S151000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06294733

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to operator interface devices and specifically to automatically maintaining continuity between metallic parts of the operator interface device and a support panel.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
It is desirable to maintain electrical continuity between the metallic parts of operator interface devices (pushbuttons, key switches, selector switches, etc.) and the support panels in which they are installed. The support panels are usually provided with a coating, such as paint, to protect against corrosion. The protective coating is usually an electrically insulative material, which prevents the establishment of electrical continuity between the operator interface device and the support panel. Continuity has commonly been accomplished by providing dedicated wiring terminals for connecting a wire between the operator interface device and the support panel, or protective coating penetration features which break the protective coating to establish continuity. Both methods have required the operator interface installer to perform specific operations (tightening a screw or torquing a nut) to ensure that continuity between metallic parts of the operator interface and the support panel is established, and then maintained. It is not uncommon for these specific operations to be inadvertently forgotten by the installer, or be of such difficulty or inaccessibility that the operations are deliberately not performed. If the screw or nut should become loose or the force applied to the protective coating penetration feature is reduced, continuity between the metallic parts of the operator interface device and the support panel can be lost. It is therefore desirable that electrical continuity between the metallic parts of the operator interface device and the support panel be established and maintained automatically, without requiring any specific operation by the installer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides automatic electrical continuity between metallic parts of an operator interface device and a support panel in which the operator interface device in mounted. Continuity between the operator interface and support panel is automatically provided by wedge-shaped continuity ribs integrally formed from the indexing feature of an indexing ring which is placed between the operator interface device and the support panel. No additional wiring, special tools or torquing requirements are needed for the automatic continuity feature of the indexing ring to establish and maintain continuity between the metal parts of the operator interface device and the support panel. The integrally formed continuity ribs are shaped such that upon installation of the indexing ring sharp edges of the continuity ribs will cut through any corrosion protection, such as paint, which might be covering the support panel. The continuity ribs can also cut into the alignment feature of the operator interface device, thereby providing a metal-to-metal connection between the operator interface device, indexing ring and the support panel.


REFERENCES:
patent: 5602534 (1997-02-01), Granat
patent: 5648639 (1997-07-01), Hand
patent: 6043983 (2000-03-01), Taylor et al.
patent: 6114630 (2000-09-01), Gretz

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