Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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WATERPROOF SIMPLEX RECEPTACLE
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
Not applicable.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not applicable.
REFERENCE TO A MICROFISHE APPENDIX
Not applicable.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
The invention relates to electrical systems and, more particularly, to
electrical
receptacles mounted in configurations where they may be susceptible to water
or other liquid
damage or danger.
Background Art
The use of computers, telecommunications equipment and other electronic
devices is continuing to rapidly increase in office, commercial, industrial
and other
environments. As a result, the importance of efficiently supplying power
throughout these
environments is also increasing. Historically, one problem with use of
electrical power is the
positioning of electrical power outlet ports, such as electrical receptacles.
Positioning of these
devices is important with respect to both convenience and cost efficiency.
Electrical receptacles
for supplying power to various types of devices (lighting, computers, etc)
must be located in
accessible positions for all types of use.
In this regard, it is known to employ electrical receptacles directly mounted
to
various types of furniture, such as bookshelves and desks. These receptacles
may be mounted at
a location substantially above a floor surface, and allow the user to
interconnect electrical
CA 02490400 2004-12-16
devices near their locations of use, thereby avoiding the necessity of running
device cords and
cables a substantial distance.
A system employing covered receptacles mounted within a workstation is
disclosed in Propst, U.S. Patent No. 4,372,629 issued February 8, 1993. The
Propst arrangement
includes a desk top having a rear cover hinged to a vertical back panel.
Receptacles are mounted
to the lower portion of the cover and bristles extend horizontally from the
cover to an edge of the
desktop when the cover is closed. When the cover is opened, the user can "plug
in" the cord of a
desired electrical device and close the cover, with the cord then extending
through the bristles.
A further advance of the prior art was achieved with the commonly owned Byrne,
U.S. Patent No. 4,747,788 issued May 31, 1988. In this patent, a retractable
power center is
disclosed which is manually operable. The power center includes a movable and
vertically
slidable power carriage utilized to mount electrical receptacles. The carriage
can be extended
between an open position and a closed, retracted position.
In Brownlie, et al., U.S. Patent No. 4,984,982 issued January 15, 1991 an
access
flooring module is provided, which is mounted in an opening provided in a
floor. The module is
moveable between open and closed positions, so as to receive electrical
components such as
power sockets.
Timmerman, U.S. Patent No. S,S75,668, issued November 19, 1996 discloses a
temporary power/data tap for delivery electrical power and data service to a
work surface from a
distant standard wall or floor mounted electrical receptacle. Another device
comprising utility
receptacles and specifically directed to use in a work surface is disclosed in
Gevaert, et al., U.S.
Patent No. 5,709,156 issued January 20, 1998.
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In accordance with the foregoing, various types of configurations exist with
respect to mounting electrical receptacles. However, one problem with a number
of known
electrical receptacles relates to the potential damage (or dangerous
situations) from
environmental conditions. For example, electrical receptacles may be
constructed and
configured in such a way as to be susceptible to damage from water or other
fluids. As well
known in the electrical industry, water spillage or the like may result not
only in damage to
electrical components, but may also cause dangerous situations, due to
electrical arcing or
similar electrical malfunctions caused by water spillage and seepage.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the invention, a simplex receptacle is constructed in
accordance with the invention, in a manner so as to provide substantial
waterproof properties.
The simplex receptacle includes a main body having electrical terminals. The
terminals may
include hot, neutral and ground terminals. Electrical wires or other cabling
are electrically
coupled to the terminals. A rear housing is provided, which is connected by
any suitable means
to a rear surface of the main receptacle body. A waterproofing clip is then
positioned on the
main body, so as to essentially enclose any openings which may exist in the
rear portion of the
simplex receptacle.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING
The invention will now be described with reference to the drawings, in which:
FiG. 1 is an elevation view of a simplex receptacle body, in accordance with
the
invention;
FIG. 2 is a right-side view of the simplex receptacle body shown in FIG. I;
FIG. 3 is a left-side view of the simplex receptacle body shown in FIG. 1;
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FIG. 4 is a plan view of the simplex receptacle body shown in FIG. l;
FIG. S is an underside view of the simplex receptacle body shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 6 is a partially exploded and plan view showing the relative positioning
of
the simplex receptacle body and electrical wires or cables to be connected to
the simplex
receptacle bodies;
FIG. 7 is a right-side view of the simplex receptacle body and the electrical
wires
or cables shown in FIG. 6;
FIG. 8 is a right-side view similar to FIG. 7, but showing the electrical
wires or
cables in an interconnected configuration with the simplex receptacle body;
FIG. 9 is a right-side view showing the interconnected electrical wires or
cables
and the simplex receptacle body, and further showing a sectional side view of
the rear housing to
be mounted to the simplex receptacle body;
FIG. 10 is a right-side elevation view similar to FIG. 9, but showing the
sectional
view of the rear housing as it is positioned when coupled to the simplex
receptacle body;
FIG. I 1 is a partially exploded and right side view showing the
interconnected
simplex receptacle body, electrical wires or cables, rear housing and the
waterproofing clip
positioned so as to be interconnected to the rear housing;
FIG. 12 is a right-side elevation view similar to FIG. 11, but showing the
waterproofing clip in its interconnected position;
FIG. 13 is a perspective and partially exploded view, somewhat similar to FIG.
7,
in that it shows the positioning of the electrical wires or cables as they are
being interconnected
to the simplex receptacle body;
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FIG. 14 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 13, but showing the electrical
wires
or cables interconnected to the simplex receptacle body;
FIG. 15 is similar to FIG. 1 l, but shows, in perspective view, the
interconnected
simplex receptacle body, rear housing, electrical wires or cables, and the
waterproofing clip in a
position to be connected; and
FIG. 16 is similar to FIG. 12, but shows the entire interconnection of the
waterproof simplex receptacle in accordance with the invention, in perspective
view.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The principles of the invention are disclosed, by way of example, in a
waterproof
simplex receptacle 100. The waterproof simplex receptacle 100 will be
described with respect to
FIGS. 1 -16. In accordance with the invention, the waterproof simplex
receptacle includes a
receptacle body having electrical wires or cables interconnected thereto. A
rear housing is
formed around the rear portion of the receptacle body, and substantially
encloses the electrical
wires or cables. For purposes of providing waterproof properties, a
waterproofing clip is
appropriately sized and configured so as to fit around portions of the rear
housing, in a manner so
as to "block" any openings and prevent any water seepage into the rear
housing.
Turning to the drawings, FIGS. 1- 5 illustrate, standing alone, a simplex
receptacle body 102 in accordance with the invention. With specific reference
to FIGS. 1- 5,
the receptacle body 102 includes a front portion 108 having a substantially
square or otherwise
rectangular configuration. The front portion 108 includes a front surface 104
and a rear surface
106. Extending through the front portion 108 are a series of three terminals
110. In the
particular embodiment disclosed herein, the terminals include a ground
terminal 112, neutral
terminal 114 and hot terminal 116. These terminals are conventional in nature
and well known
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in the prior art. Further, it should be emphasized that various other
electrical terminal
configurations can be utilized for a simplex receptacle in accordance with the
invention, without
departing from the basic novel concepts of the invention.
The simplex receptacle body 102 also includes a connecting mount i 18,
comprising an elongated element extending rearwardly from the rear surface 106
of the front
portion 108. The connecting mount 118 can be utilized for appropriately
securing various
elements of the waterproof simplex receptacle 100.
With reference now to FIGS. 6 - 9, 13 and 14, the waterproof simplex
receptacle
100 is adapted to be utilized with a set of electrical wires or cables 120. As
shown, for example,
in FIGS. 6 and 13, the electrical wires or cables 120 comprise three wires or
cables. These three
wires or cables 120 further comprise a ground wire 122, neutral wire 124 and
hot wire 126.
These wires are conventional in nature and may be separate wires, conduit or
other type of
cabling. Connected at the end of the ground wire 122 is a conventional ground
connector 130.
Connected to the ends of each of the neutral wire 124 and hot wire 126 is a
female connector
128. Again, these connectors are conventional in nature. The ground connector
130 may be
connected in any conventional manner to the ground terminal 112 of the simplex
receptacle body
102. Correspondingly, the female connector 128 associated with the neutral
wire 124 may be
electrically connected to the neutral terminal 114 of the receptacle body 102.
Still further, the
female connector 128 associated with the hot wire 126 may be electrically
connected in a
conventional manner to the hot terminal 116 of the receptacle body 102. This
interconnection is
shown in FIGS. 8 and 14.
The waterproof simplex receptacle 100 in accordance with the invention further
includes what is characterized as a rear housing 132. The rear housing 132 is
shown in FIGS. 9,
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10, 1 l, 12, 15 and 16. With reference to these drawings, the rear housing 132
has a shape and
configuration whereby it can be secured to the rear surface 106 of the simplex
receptacle body
102, in a manner so as to substantially enclose the electrical wires or cables
120. With reference
to the drawings, the rear housing 132 includes an upper box-like structure
134. The upper box
structure 134 extends lengthwise across the top of the rear surface 106 of the
simplex receptacle
body 102. Below the upper box 134 is a main housing body 136. The main housing
body 136
has a substantially box-like configuration, and substantially encloses the
female connectors 128
associated with the neutral and hot wires 124, 126 respectively. As shown in
FIG. 9, the rear
housing 132 is inserted as part of the simplex receptacle 100 through the
electrical wires or
cables 120, and connected by any conventional means to the rear surface 106 of
the receptacle
body 102.
In accordance with one of the principal concepts of the invention, the
waterproof
simplex receptacle 100 also includes a waterproofing clip 138. The
waterproofing clip 138 is
primarily shown in FIGS. 11, 12, 15 and 16. In particular, a perspective view
of the
waterproofing clip 138 is illustrated in FIG. 15. As shown therein, the
waterproofing clip 138
includes an upper portion 140 extending lengthwise across the clip 138. A pair
of vertical
connecting portions 142 extend downwardly from opposing ends of the upper
portion 140. At
the lower ends of the vertical connecting portions 142, spring legs 144 extend
forwardly from
each of the vertical connecting portions 142. These elements of the
waterproofing clip 138 may
be separate and interconnected, or may preferably be constructed integral with
each other. In
particular, the spring clips 144 may be resilient in nature and sized so as to
be "snap fitted"
around the main housing body 136 of the rear housing 132. The spring legs 144
comprise a left
leg 146 and right leg 148. As previously stated, the legs 144 are resilient in
nature, so as to
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appropriately snap fit on the rear housing 132, thereby appropriately securing
all elements fo the
waterproof simplex receptacle 100. With the rear housing 132 and the
waterproofing clip 138,
the rear portion of the simplex receptacle 100 is essentially waterproof, and
wil! resist any
seepage of water or other liquids therein.
It should be emphasized that other configurations of the waterproof simplex
may
be utilized. Also, the concepts associated with the waterproof simplex may be
applied to other
types of receptacle configurations, such as duplex receptacles. As earlier
mentioned, various
types of electrical wires or cables may be utilized, and the simplex
receptacle may have various
terminal configurations, such as the absence of a ground terminal or the like.
Still further, it is
apparent that one of the advantages of waterproof simplex receptacles in
accordance with the
invention is that the rear housing and waterproofing clip may be "retrofitted"
to existing simplex
receptacles. Also, the concepts associated with the invention as embodied
within the waterproof
simplex receptacle 100 are not limited with respect to any particular sizes or
dimensions of
receptacles.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the pertinent arts that other
embodiments of
the invention can be designed. That is, the principles of the invention are
not limited to the
specific embodiments described herein. Accordingly, it will be apparent to
those skilled in the
art that modifications and other variations of the above-described
illustrative embodiments of the
invention may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the
novel concept of the
invention.
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