Electrical connectors – With flaccid conductor and with additional connector spaced...
Reexamination Certificate
1999-12-17
2001-06-26
Sircus, Brian (Department: 2839)
Electrical connectors
With flaccid conductor and with additional connector spaced...
Reexamination Certificate
active
06250955
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to a pigtailed scotchcast assembly, and deals more particularly with an apparatus that provides for the efficient exchange or replacement of pigtails from a pigtailed scotchcast assembly.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A pigtailed scotchcast assembly is utilized in those fields requiring either pre- or post-inspection of extended cavities, ducts or piping, such as but not limited to the sewer pipe relining industry. In such fields, it is typically necessary to inspect the condition of an extended cavity through the use of a plurality of electrical components. Cameras, lights, cutters and other components are utilized for this purpose and must each be supplied with electrical power to operate. As these cavities are either too confining, unsafe or otherwise unaccommodating for a human presence, the movement of electrical components along the length of any given cavity must be performed by mechanical means. A pigtailed scotchcast assembly is therefore enlisted to provide electrical power to the various components utilized, while also assisting in pulling such components and their associated electrical wiring through the cavity itself.
As is currently known and depicted in prior art
FIG. 1
, a typical pigtailed scotchcast assembly
10
is comprised of a scotchcast
12
having an electrical cable
14
entering one end thereof and a plurality of pigtails
16
exiting the opposing end of the scotchcast
12
. The scotchcast
12
includes a pair of wings
18
each having an anchor hole
20
formed therein for dragging or pulling the pigtailed scotchcast assembly
10
along a cavity or piping. The electrical cable
14
is separated into differing bundles of conductors inside the body of the scotchcast
12
and subsequently emerges from the scotchcast
12
as pigtails
16
. The interior of the scotchcast
12
is filled with a resin and catalyst compound which, when sufficiently dried and cured over time, provides a water-tight sealant to the scotchcast
12
and the wire bundles therein.
As will be readily appreciated, when the pigtailed scotchcast assembly
10
is dragged or pulled through many cavities or pipes, the pigtails
16
, including the protective sheathing covering the pigtails
16
, tend to wear and become tattered, leading to operational failure of the supported electrical components. In these instances, inspection of the cavity or piping must be halted while the entire scotchcast assembly
10
is severed from the electrical cable
14
and another assembly attached in its place. This method is time-consuming, costly, requires expertise in electronics and must frequently accommodate the recommended 12-hour time period that a typical insulating and waterproofing resin and catalyst compound requires to cure.
With the foregoing problems and concerns in mind, it would therefore be advantageous to develop a pigtailed scotchcast assembly, which overcomes the above-described drawbacks, thereby accommodating an exchange or replacement of pigtails quickly and efficiently without the need to replace the scotchcast or splice the electrical cable.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention provide a pigtailed scotchcast assembly which may allow for efficient exchange or replacement of differing pigtails.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a pigtailed scotchcast assembly, which allows for the exchange or replacement of differing pigtails without the need for special instruments or in-depth electrical knowledge.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a pigtailed scotchcast assembly, which allows for the exchange or replacement of differing pigtails while utilizing a common scotchcast and eliminating the need for splicing the electrical cable.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a pigtailed scotchcast assembly having a two-piece design and which includes a device to protect the transitional boundary between the two pieces.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a pigtailed scotchcast assembly with increased pulling capability.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a pigtailed scotchcast assembly includes an integrated inspection apparatus for selectively housing therein an electrical cable having a plurality of conductors and terminating in a pigtail.
Such an inspection apparatus includes a first portion adapted to have the pigtail extending from one end and including a male end oriented adjacent another end thereof. A second portion, comprising a scotchcast adapted to have the electrical cable extending from one end and including a female end oriented adjacent another end thereof, is also included so that the first portion and the second portion are capable of mating with one another.
The inspection apparatus also comprises an end plug and a seal circumscribing the electrical cable wherein the seal is adapted to be located between the scotchcast and the end plug. The end plug is selectively mated with the scotchcast thereby securing the seal within said scotchcast in a water-tight manner.
The inspection apparatus may also include a protective sheath adapted to surround an interface between the first portion and the second portion, wherein an outer surface of the protective sheath is substantially coextensive with an outer surface of the scotchcast when the first portion and the second portion are mated to one another.
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patent: 2312002 (1940-12-01), Schmitt
patent: 2912667 (1959-11-01), Sloat
patent: 2962688 (1960-11-01), Werner
patent: 3229240 (1966-01-01), Harrison et al.
patent: 3753766 (1973-08-01), Brown et al.
patent: 3821558 (1964-03-01), Weber
patent: 3885849 (1975-05-01), Bailey et al.
patent: 4309128 (1982-01-01), Williams
patent: 4810209 (1989-03-01), Punako et al.
patent: 4911579 (1990-03-01), Lutz et al.
patent: 5318459 (1994-06-01), Shields
patent: 5372162 (1994-12-01), Frey
patent: 5709503 (1998-01-01), Manlow
patent: 6007372 (1994-06-01), Wood
patent: 224657 (1987-08-01), None
Duverne J F.
McCormick Paulding & Huber LLP
Sircus Brian
LandOfFree
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