AU758176B2 - A tag device - Google Patents

Description

P/00/011 Regulation 3.2

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AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT Name of Applicant: Actual Inventor(s): Address for Service: Invention Title: Details of Associated Provisional Application(s) No(s): Details of Parent Invention: ERIC LESTER PEARSON Eric Lester Pearson

INTELLPRO

Patent Trade Mark Attorneys Level 7, Reserve Bank Building 102 Adelaide Street BRISBANE, QLD, 4000 (GPO Box 1339, BRISBANE, 4001) A TAG DEVICE Australian Patent Application No. PP7776 filed 17 December 1998.

Australian Patent No. 681548 (formerly Application No. 40538/95 filed 19 December 1995) The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me: TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION THIS INVENTION relates to an improved tag device and in particular but not limited to an improved tag device for use in testing and tagging electrical leads and cables.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Government regulation requires periodic testing of electrical equipment by a qualified licensed electrician to ensure continuing safety. Once equipment is tested "safe", tagging involves the application of a tag to the equipment and this is usually carried out by applying a tag to a lead or cable carrying details of the test 10 including the date of testing.

:Some equipment is usually tested at six monthly intervals while other equipment is tested annually.

One known tag employs an aluminium wrap around tag clamped around the lead. This type of tag is not commonly used any more and has been outlawed in some jurisdictions as the tags are prone to cut leads and of course the tags being conductive present the risk of electrocution.

These tags also tend to catch on other equipment, clothing and so forth.

oooo An alternative and now preferred tag is a rectangular plastic wrap around label carrying adhesive. This label simply wraps around the lead and sticks to itself.

The problem with this type of tag is that equipment is frequently exposed to solvents so that the adhesive can be inadvertently dissolved and the tag lost. These tags are also prone to excessive wear.

3 The applicant's Australian Patent No. 681548 and New Zealand Patent No.

286901 provide a tag for tagging an electric lead. This tag comprises body parts which are securable about the lead. One of the parts includes an external recessed surface for carrying indicia so that markings carried by the recessed surface are not prone to wear.

The applicant's tag can be secured to another lead with the indicia intact. This may lead to confusion as to whether or not the equipment needs to be tested as the indicia is left on the tag. The tag may also be secured to the lead of an equipment which has not been tested. Indeed certain authorities now require that the indicia be damaged or broken when the tag is removed from the lead.

OBIECT OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to alleviate at least to some degree the aforementioned problems associated with the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In one aspect therefore the present invention resides in a tag having body parts securable together and preferably clipped together plastics body parts, the body parts being clippable or otherwise securable about a lead so the lead passes through the tag when the body parts are secured or clipped together. Each of the body parts includes an external recessed surface. When the parts are secured or clipped together they form a recess for carrying indicia so that markings carried by the recessed surfaces are not prone to wear by abrasion and the indicia provides a visual indication of the parts having being separated subsequent to the application of the markings.

Preferably the visual indication is provided by damaged or broken markings.

The tag is typically elongate and preferably generally cylindrical although it can be of any shape. The body parts are preferably respective halves of the tag and typically cylindrical halves are employed.

The tag typically has no abrupt ends, the ends being preferably rounded.

The tag preferably includes friction enhancing means adapted to enhance frictional engagement between the lead and the tag. Preferably the friction enhancing means comprises lead actuating deformable portions of the tag or portion of the tag causing deformation of the lead. Typically rigid projection 10 engaging the lead are employed.

The tag typically has locking clip fasteners having a locking action to inhibit *release of the clip fasteners once the body parts are clipped together. Preferably the clip fastener includes co-operating male and female connectors, the male connector and female connector preferably having engaging shoulders which ride over one another and catch as the body parts are clipped together.

The tag is preferably formed from elongate thin walled moulded plastics parts having a lead or cable sized groove defined by spaced transverse arcuate projections providing for fairly uniform distribution of plastics material through the tag body to thereby inhibit warping during manufacture.

The indicia preferably includes date of testing and so forth.

Any suitable plastic can be used although polypropylene is preferred.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In order that the present invention can be more readily understood and be put into practical effect reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings illustrating one preferred embodiment of the invention and wherein:- Figure 1 is a pictorial view illustrating application of the present invention to tagging of a flexible electrical lead; Figure 2 is an inside plan view of one half of a tag according to the present invention; and Figure 3 is an outside plan view of the tag shown in Figure.

10 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to the drawings and initially to Figure 1 there is illustrated a tagged electrical lead 10 having a plug 11, flexible cable 13 and a bullet shaped tag 14 according to the present invention and in this case made from two identical halves 15 and 16 clipped together about the flexible lead 13. A recessed surface 17 is provided in each half 15, 16 which when secured together as shown from a recess :in which the date of testing and other important information can be written on this recessed surfaces 17 in the recess.

As can be seen in Figure 2 each half 15 and 16 is formed from plastics material moulded with a two to three millimetre wall thickness and includes arcuate bridging portions 18, 19 and 20 which actually contact the lead 13.

Wasted portions 21, 22, 23 and 24 are provided so that overall each half of the tag 14 is of fairly uniform wall thickness throughout thereby promoting uniform cooling 6 effects during the moulding process. This prevents warpage and ensures that the halves faithfully clip together when being used.

The preferred plastic is polypropylene grade M548N Hi prene grade or functional equivalent.

As can be seen in the inset of Figure 2 each projection 18, 19 and includes a deformable thin feathering at 18a, 19a and 20a respectively to improve frictional engagement between tag and lead.

For clipping each half includes co-operating male and female connectors 28 as described in the applicant's patent.

10 As leads come in different sizes it is preferable to provide deformable feathering as described above adjacent the bridging portions 18, 19 and 20 to enhance frictional engagement between the lead 13 and the tag 14 when the tag halves are clipped together. Of course a number of different sized connectors can be made to suit different ranges of lead thickness.

15 When the halves 15, 16 are separated the markings on the recessed surfaces o 17 will be damaged.

It will be appreciated from the foregoing that the present invention provides oooo a tag that overcomes the deficiencies of the prior art. It will also be appreciated that whilst the above preferred form has been given by way of illustrative example of the present invention many variations and modifications thereto will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the broad ambit and scope of the invention as herein set forth.

Claims (24)

1. A tag for tagging an electric lead, the tag comprising body parts securable together, the body parts being clippable or otherwise securable about the lead so the lead passes through the tag when the body parts are secured or clipped together, each of the body parts including an external recessed surface configured to form, when the body parts are secured or clipped together, a recess for carrying indicia, the recess extending over the recessed surfaces so that markings carried by the recessed surfaces are not prone to wear by abrasion and the indicia provides a visual indication of the parts having being separated subsequent to the application 10 of the markings.

The tag according to claim 1 wherein the body parts are clipped together plastics body parts arranged for clipping together during use.

3. The tag according to claim 1 or 2 wherein the visual indication is provided by damaged or broken markings.

4. The tag according to any one of claim 1 to 3 wherein the tag is elongate in shape and the body parts are respective halves of the tag.

The tag according to claim 4 wherein the tag is cylindrical in shape and the i body parts are respective cylindrical halves of the tag.

6. The tag according to any one of claim 1 to 5 wherein the tag has no sharp corners.

7. The tag according to claim 6 wherein the tag has substantially rounded ends.

8. The tag according to any one of claim 1 to 7 wherein the tag includes friction enhancing means adapted to enhance frictional engagement between the lead and the tag. 8

9. The tag according to claim 8 wherein the friction enhancing means comprises portions of the tag lead deformable by the lead.

The tag according to one of claims 8 and 9 wherein the friction enhancing means comprising one or more portions of the tag causing deformation of the lead to enhance friction.

11. The tag according to any one of claims 8 to 10 wherein the friction enhancing means is one or more rigid projections engaging the lead.

12. The tag according to any one of claims 1 to 10 wherein the tag further comprises locking clip fasteners having a locking action to inhibit release of the clip fasteners once the body parts are clipped together. o

13. The tag according to claim 12 wherein the clip fastener includes co- operating male and female connectors.

14. The tag according to claim 13 wherein the male connector and the female ,..connector having engaging shoulders which ride over one another and catch as the body parts are clipped together.

15. The tag according to any one of claims 1 to 14 wherein the tag is formed from elongate thin walled moulded plastics parts.

,16. The tag according to claim 15 wherein the plastic parts have an electric lead or cable sized groove defined by spaced transverse arcuate projections providing for fairly uniform distribution of plastics material through the tag body to thereby inhibit warping of the tag body during manufacture.

17. The tag according to one of claims 15 and 16 wherein the wall thickness is about 2mm to 3mm.

18. The tag according to any one of claims 1 to 16 wherein the tag is made of polypropylene plastics material.

19. Thetagaccording to any one of claims 1 to 18 wherein the indicia includes date of testing and so forth.

20. A tag according to claim 1 for tagging an electric lead, the tag comprising elongated body parts which are securable about the lead so that the lead passes through the tag, the tag having friction enhancing means operable to be deformed and/or deform the lead in order to inhibit sliding of the tag along the lead, the tag forming a barrel shaped projection with rounded ends and the recessed surfaces 10 forming an elongate recess extending over the surfaces.

The tag according to claim 20 wherein the friction enhancing means comprises longitudinally spaced internal projections, the projections having a rigid base and relatively flexible peripheral edge portions that deform when the tag is applied to the lead.

22. The tag according to one of claims 20 and 21 wherein the tag has opposed rounded ends.

23. The tag according to claim 22 wherein the body parts include cooperating clip together locking fasteners biasing the friction enhancing means in deforming engagement with the lead when the bod parts are clipped together.

24. A tag substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings. DATED this 17th day of December 1999 ERIC LESTER PEARSON By his Patent Attorneys INTELLPRO