CN114830477B

CN114830477B - Two-part electrical housing

Info

Publication number: CN114830477B
Application number: CN202080088162.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: A·鲍杜; L·雅尼科
Original assignee: Legrand SNC; Legrand France SA
Current assignee: Legrand SNC; Legrand France SA
Priority date: 2019-12-20
Filing date: 2020-12-03
Publication date: 2024-04-26
Anticipated expiration: 2040-12-03
Also published as: EP4078745A1; FR3105561B1; FR3105561A1; WO2021122043A1; CN114830477A

Abstract

The invention relates to an electrical housing (1) comprising a panel support (10) and a frame (20) comprising complementary locking means (110, 260) which are movable relative to each other between a fixed position in which the frame is fixed on the panel support and a release position in which the frame is released relative to the panel support. According to the invention, the frame comprises at least one lever (250) movable to force the locker to move towards the released position, resilient return means adapted to automatically return the lever in one direction and retaining means for retaining the locker in the released position.

Description

Two-part electrical housing

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to the field of insulated electrical housings (boxes) for housing electrical mechanisms, typically socket mechanisms, circuit breaker mechanisms or inspection mechanisms.

More particularly, the present invention relates to electrical housings that are attached protruding from walls, particularly sealed electrical housings.

More precisely, the invention relates to a two-part electrical housing comprising a panel support (support plate) and a frame, the panel support and the frame comprising complementary catch means (attachment means, connection means) which are movable relative to each other between a fixed position in which the frame is fixed on the panel support and a release position in which the frame is released relative to the panel support.

Background

Currently, in order to assemble the different parts of the electrical housing, assembly methods using screws or jaws are known. Different fastening systems must be designed to meet the impact resistance, tightness, etc. This is why a plurality of fixing points are usually provided.

These different fastening systems have the common disadvantage that the operation of these different fastening systems appears tedious and tiring when the frame is intended to be released from its panel support.

In the case of screws, in fact, each screw needs to be unscrewed in turn, which takes a long time and can cause damage to the orifice into which the screw is screwed.

In the case of jaws, it is necessary to operate on all of the jaws simultaneously using a plurality of tools, which has in practice proven particularly difficult to achieve and often results in breakage of a portion of the jaws.

The greater the number of points of attachment of the frame to the panel support, the more significant these drawbacks are.

Disclosure of Invention

To remedy the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, the present invention proposes a novel fastening system which is easy to assemble the frame on the plate support and also easy to disassemble.

More specifically, according to the invention, an electrical housing according to the technical field part is proposed, wherein:

the frame comprises at least one lever adapted to put the locker in a release position;

-providing elastic return means adapted to automatically bring the locker back to the fixed position;

-a holding device is provided for holding the locker in the release position.

Thus, by means of the invention, the locker is arranged to automatically fit together during assembly of the panel support and the frame. When it is desired to disassemble the two elements, the retaining means makes it possible to simultaneously hold all the catch means in the release position, so that the frame can be removed from the panel support without any effort.

In fact, the retaining means can retain the locker in the release position when the frame is in the connected position on the panel support without any manual application of force on any element of the electrical housing, in particular the locker or the elastic return means. Preferably, the retaining means is a snap means adapted to cooperate with the snap means.

Other non-limiting and advantageous features of the electrical housing according to the invention are as follows:

-providing a ramp which, with the assembly of the frame on the panel support, can force the locker to be displaced towards the release position without reaching the release position, the ramp being shaped so that the locker can be returned to the fixed position when the frame reaches its assembled position on the panel support;

The locking means of the plate support comprise a bayonet element (catch) fixed to the plate support, the locking means of the frame being carried by the lever and being adapted to hook said bayonet element;

the catch means of the frame comprise a bayonet element fixed to the frame, the catch means of the plate support comprising elastically deformable jaws adapted to hook said bayonet element, said lever being adapted to deform the elastically deformable jaws in the release position;

the holding means comprise a concave recess in the lever, which recess is adapted to hold the elastically deformable jaw in the release position;

the retaining means are formed together with the plate support;

The holding means comprise two uprights arranged on either side of the lever and at least partially elastically deformable for being separated from each other for passing the lever along one direction and for automatically returning to their initial position for holding the lever in the other direction;

each lever forms a single part (integral piece) with the frame and is elastically deformable;

each lever is attached to a portion of the frame so as to have a unique pivoting mobility with respect to that portion of the frame;

each lever is adapted to pivot with respect to said portion of the frame about an axis perpendicular to the assembly direction of the frame on the panel support;

Each lever is adapted to pivot with respect to said portion of the frame about an axis parallel to the assembly direction of the frame on the panel support;

Each lever has a grip portion accessible by the fingers of the user for operation;

each lever has an operating portion accessible by the tool for operation;

-at least four levers are provided.

The invention also proposes an electrical box (box) comprising an electrical housing as defined above and a decorative plate attached to the front of the frame of the electrical housing, said decorative plate comprising a blocking heel adapted to be placed against a lever for preventing its displacement.

The invention also proposes an assembly comprising an equipment mechanism, a decorative plate and an electrical housing as described above, the interior of which fixes the equipment mechanism, the front of which fixes the decorative plate.

Drawings

The following description is given as a non-limiting example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, from which it will be clear what the invention consists of, and how it can be implemented.

In the drawings:

fig. 1 is an exploded perspective schematic view of an electric cabinet including an electric housing and a decorative plate according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective schematic view of the frame of the electrical housing of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective schematic view of a lever of the frame of the electrical housing of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective schematic view of a detail of the panel support of the electrical housing of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a portion of the electrical housing of FIG. 1, showing a first step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

FIG. 6 is a detailed view of region VI of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the portion of the electrical housing of FIG. 5, showing a second step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the portion of the electrical housing of FIG. 5, showing a third step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

FIG. 9 is a cut-away perspective schematic view of a portion of the electrical housing of FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a schematic perspective view of the electrical enclosure of FIG. 1, showing a first step of removing the frame relative to the panel support;

FIG. 11 is a schematic perspective view of the electrical enclosure of FIG. 1, showing a second step of removing the frame relative to the panel support;

fig. 12 is an exploded perspective schematic view of an electrical housing according to a second embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 13 is a perspective schematic view of a lever of the frame of the electrical housing of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a schematic view in cut-away perspective of the lever of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a perspective schematic view of a detail of the panel support of the electrical housing of FIG. 12;

FIG. 16 is a cut-away perspective schematic view of a portion of the electrical housing of FIG. 12, showing a first step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

fig. 17 is a cut-away perspective schematic view of the portion of the electrical housing of fig. 16, showing a second step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

fig. 18 is a perspective schematic view of the electrical enclosure of fig. 12, showing a first step of removing the frame relative to the panel support;

FIG. 19 is a schematic perspective view of the electrical enclosure of FIG. 12, showing a second step of removing the frame relative to the panel support;

fig. 20 is a schematic view in exploded perspective of a cross-section of an electrical housing according to a third embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 21 is a schematic perspective cutaway view of a lever of the frame and corresponding portion of the panel support of the electrical housing of FIG. 20;

Fig. 22 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a portion of the electrical housing of fig. 20, showing a first step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

Fig. 23 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the portion of the electrical housing of fig. 22, showing a second step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

Fig. 24 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the portion of the electrical housing of fig. 22, showing a third step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

fig. 25 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the portion of the electrical housing of fig. 22, showing a fourth step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

Fig. 26 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the portion of the electrical housing of fig. 22, showing a fifth step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

fig. 27 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the electrical housing of fig. 20, showing a first step of removing the frame relative to the panel support;

Fig. 28 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the electrical housing of fig. 20, showing a second step of removing the frame relative to the panel support;

fig. 29 is a cutaway exploded perspective schematic view of an electrical enclosure according to a fourth embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 30 is a perspective schematic view of a lever of the frame of the electrical housing of FIG. 29;

fig. 31 is a perspective schematic view of a portion of the electrical housing of fig. 29, showing a first step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

Fig. 32 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the portion of the electrical housing of fig. 31, showing a second step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

fig. 33 is a perspective schematic view of the portion of the electrical housing of fig. 31, showing a third step of assembly of the frame on the panel support;

FIG. 34 is a perspective schematic view of an assembly including the electrical housing and receptacle mechanism of FIG. 1;

Fig. 35 is a perspective schematic view of an assembly including the electrical housing and circuit breaker mechanism of fig. 1.

Detailed Description

In fig. 1, 12, 20 and 29, four embodiments of the electrical housing 1 are shown.

In these four embodiments, it relates to a sealed electrical housing intended to protrude from a wall mounting and arranged for internally receiving electrical equipment mechanisms 3A, 3B, such as a circuit breaker mechanism (see fig. 35), a socket mechanism (see fig. 34) or a (smoke, light) detection mechanism.

As a precondition, it should be noted that the same or similar elements of the different embodiments of the invention shown in the various figures will be marked with the same reference numerals and will not be explained every time.

In the description, the terms "front" and "rear" are used with respect to the line of sight of the installer of the electrical housing towards the wall to which the electrical housing is attached. For example, when the wall is a partition wall in a room, the front of the element refers to the side of the element facing the interior of the room, and the rear of the element refers to the side of the element facing the exterior of the room.

The terms "inner" (or "inner") and "outer" (or "outer") are then used with respect to the electrical housing itself and refer to the side of the element facing the center of the electrical housing and the side of the element facing the outside of the electrical housing, respectively.

In the four embodiments of the invention shown in the various figures, the electrical housings 1 have substantially the same shape.

It is thus made of two distinct parts, namely a rear part called "plate support 10" and a front part called "frame 20".

The plate support 10 is provided for fixing to a support, such as a partition wall, and for supporting the equipment mechanisms 3A, 3B. The frame 20 has a function of protecting the equipment mechanism and a function of supporting interface means allowing a user to interact with the equipment mechanisms 3A, 3B.

For example, as shown in fig. 1 (as also shown in fig. 12, 20 and 29), the panel support 10 comprises a base 100, wherein the base 100 has a substantially parallelepiped shape, but it may of course also have a different shape, in particular a cylindrical shape.

The base 100 is open at the front and comprises a square bottom 102 delimited by a side wall 101 rising from the bottom 102 and substantially perpendicular thereto. The sidewall 101 also has a generally square profile.

The bottom 102 has small-sized circular apertures 102A, here closed by a pierceable sealing cap, through which screws can be screwed in to fix the plate support 10 to the partition wall.

Here, it has two opposing circular apertures 102A and has two other opposing oblong apertures, the latter elongated along a vertical axis.

The bottom 102 also has a larger sized central opening 102B, which is closed here by a tearable sealing cap for the passage of an ICTA-type wire sheath, a U1000RO 2V-type or HO7 RNF-type cable or even an IRL-type tube.

As regards the side wall 101, it carries on opposite panels two cable entry ferrules 101A, of greater height than the rest of the side wall 101, each having an opening 101B closed by a tearable sealing cap and intended for the passage of an ICTA-type wire sheath, IRL-type tube or cable.

As for the frame 20, it includes a main body 200 provided to extend in an extension portion of the side wall 101 of the base 100 of the panel support 10.

For example, as shown in fig. 2 (as also shown in fig. 21 and 29), the main body 200 includes two different portions assembled with each other, namely a rear portion called "side wall 220" and a front portion called "raised portion (reinforcing portion) 210".

The side wall 220 is also generally square in profile and has a rear edge designed to mate to the front edge of the side wall 101 of the base 100.

As best shown in fig. 11, the engagement of the side walls 220 of the body 200 of the frame 20 on the base 100 of the panel support 10 is achieved here by the particular shape of the rear edges of said side walls 220, which delimit a groove 221 open towards the rear and adapted to engage to the front edges of the side walls 101 of the base 100 of the panel support 10. Here, a circumferential joint 180 provided at the front edge can be seen, which is entirely along the front edge, to ensure tightness between the frame 20 and the panel support 10.

The raised portion 210 itself forms a rim and is configured to nest and snap onto the front edge of the side wall 220. Thus, the body 200 of the frame 20 is formed by combining the side wall 220 and the elevated portion 210 by clamping. To this end, the elevation 210 includes four clips disposed at four corners thereof, which are received in pockets provided at four corners of the frame 20, the pockets having shapes corresponding to the clips.

The use of two sub-components to make the body 200 may simplify the design by molding. In a variant, the body of the frame may be formed of a single piece made of, for example, a molded plastic material.

As shown in fig. 1, the elevated portion 210 is specifically designed to receive the decorative plate 2 such that the electrical housing 1 forms an electrical cabinet together with the decorative plate 2.

In fig. 1, it can be seen that the trim panel 2 here has a structural part 2B in the form of a frame, which is equipped with teeth (not visible) for snapping onto the raised portion 210.

Here, the general shapes of the decorative plate 2, the plate-type support 10, and the frame 20 will not be described in detail, as long as the present invention can be applied to electric housings having various shapes.

More particularly, the invention relates to elements of an electrical housing 1 that can connect together a panel support 10 and a frame 20.

In fact, although the body 200 of the frame 20 is provided with a seat 100 for engagement to the panel support 10, such engagement only ensures a relative blocking (locking) of the frame 20 with respect to the panel support 10 in the plane (x, y) (parallel to the plane of the partition). In contrast, such an engagement cannot seal off the frame 20 along the axis z (orthogonal to the plane of the partition wall) with respect to the panel support 10.

To ensure such locking, the panel support 10 and the frame 20 comprise complementary locking means.

Here, four sets of locking devices are provided, which are located at the four corners of the electrical housing 1, respectively, so that it is ensured that the frame 20 is firmly fixed to the panel support 10.

Here, the sets of these lockers are identical, and only one set will be described later in this description.

In order to be able to assemble not only the frame 20 and the panel support 10 together, but also to disassemble them, each set of locking means is arranged such that:

The catch means provided on the frame 20 can be moved relative to the body 200 of the frame 20 and/or;

the locking means provided on the panel support 10 can be moved with respect to the base 100 of the panel support 10.

The two lockers of the set may thus have a fixed position in which the frame 20 is fixed to the panel support 10 and a release position in which the frame 20 may be removed from the panel support 10. The two lockers of the group may also have all intermediate positions between the two extreme positions described above.

As will be described in detail later in this specification, referring to the drawings, the electrical housing 1 further includes:

-elastic return means adapted to automatically return the locker to the fixed position;

Levers 250, 1250, 2250, 3250 designed to facilitate the bringing of the locker into the release position by the installer;

Retaining means for blocking the locking means in the release position during the time the installer takes the frame 20 off the panel support 10.

For a full understanding of the invention, a detailed description will first be given of a first embodiment of the invention, which is shown in fig. 1 to 11.

As shown in fig. 4, in this embodiment the catch means 110 provided on the plate support 10 are in the form of bayonet elements 110A which together with the base 100 of the plate support 10 form a single part, for example made by moulding a plastics material.

The bayonet piece 110A extends from the inner surface of the side wall 101 of the base 100.

It has a rear surface 112 parallel to the bottom 102 of the base 100 and has an inclined front surface so that the bayonet element 110A has a pointed profile. Accordingly, the front surface of the bayonet piece 110A forms a slope 111, the function of which will be described in detail later.

As shown in fig. 3, as regards the lever 250, here it is in the form of a rectangular platelet, two reinforcing sides 255 forming the boundary thereof. It comprises, in a central portion, a shaft 253 which extends between said two reinforcing sides 255 and which can hinge the lever 250 to the body 200 of the frame 20 about an axis parallel to the plane (x, y). As shown in fig. 5, for this purpose, the inner surface of the side wall 220 of the main body 200 of the frame 20 includes a receiving bracket open toward the front, inside which the shaft 253 can be snapped.

In this first embodiment of the invention, the catch means provided on the frame 20, intended to cooperate with the bayonet elements 110A of the plate support 10, are carried by the lever 250. In fact, as shown in fig. 3, the rear end of the lever 250 has an opening 260 adapted to engage the bayonet element 110A of the base 100 of the plate support 10.

The opening 260 has, in particular, a rear edge 261 adapted to hook onto the rear surface 112 of the bayonet element 110A to block the frame 20 on the panel support 10.

Thus, the "fixed position" of the latch of the frame 20 on the plate support 10 corresponds to the position of the lever 250 in which the opening 260 of the lever 250 engages to the bayonet 110A.

As shown in fig. 8, in this position, the rear end of the lever 250 abuts against the inner surface of the side wall 101 of the base 100 of the panel support 10. In this position, the rear edge 261 of the opening 260 of the lever 250 extends in a plane parallel to the rear surface 112 of the bayonet member 110A. Thus, if a user applies a pulling force to the frame 20, the frame 20 is not detached from the panel support 10.

The "release position" of the catch means of the frame 20 on the plate support 10 corresponds to the lever 250 in which the opening 260 of the lever 250 is completely clear of the bayonet 110A and is located at a distance from the latter.

In this position, the outer surface of the front end portion of the lever 250 abuts against the inner surface of the side wall 101 of the base 100 of the board support 10.

As shown in fig. 3 and 5, the inner surface 251 of the front end portion of the lever 250 is provided to be accessible to an installer so that the installer can flip the lever 250 from its fixed position to its released position by simple pressing of a finger.

In this embodiment, the return means is arranged to automatically bring the lever 250 back to the fixed position. As shown in fig. 3 and 5, the return means here comprise an elastically deformable small plate (blade, reed) 252 which forms a single piece (integral piece) with the rest of the lever 250 by moulding the plastic material and extends from the shaft 253 towards the outside and the front.

Thus, the platelets 252 are disposed against the interior surfaces of the side walls 220 of the body 200 of the frame 20.

The resilient design of the small plate 252 allows the pressing of the installer's finger against the inner surface 251 of the front end of the lever 250 to counteract the restoring force exerted by the small plate 252, so that the lever 250 can be manually flipped to the release position.

For mounting to the panel support 10, the frame 20 is attached along the direction z.

During this installation, the rear end edge of the lever 250 is arranged to abut the inclined surface 111 of the bayonet element 110A of the plate support 10 (see fig. 5 and 6).

With the penetration of the frame 20 on the panel support 10 (without the need for the installer to directly operate the lever 250), the ramp 111 can thus force the lever 250 to flip towards its release position (see fig. 7).

When the frame 20 reaches its assembled position on the plate support (see fig. 8), that is to say when the groove 221 provided in the rear edge of the side wall 220 is engaged to the front edge of the side wall 101 of the base 100 of the plate support 10, the opening 260 provided in the lever 250 is naturally engaged to the bayonet 110A by means of the small plate 252 returning the lever 250 to the fixed position.

As shown in fig. 9, in order to ensure better impact resistance of the frame 20 on the panel support 10, the trim panel 2 includes a locking heel 2A that extends convexly toward the rear, and the locking heel 2A is adapted to abut against the outer surface of the front end portion of the lever 250 when the trim panel 2 is clamped to the raised portion 210 of the frame 20. This abutment thus prevents the lever 250 from tipping toward its release position.

As mentioned above, a holding device 120 is provided, which is designed here for holding the lever 250 in the release position.

In this embodiment, the retaining means 120 are formed together with the plate support 10.

As shown in fig. 4, it comprises here two uprights 121, 122 rising from the bottom 102 of the base 100 of the plate support 10 and arranged on either side of the bayonet element 110A of the lever 250.

The two uprights 121, 122 are at least partially elastically deformable so as to separate from each other when the lever 250 is turned from its fixed position towards its release position, so as not to obstruct the passage of the lever 250.

In practice, the two uprights 121, 122 carry opposite ribs 121A, 122A, which extend over the whole height of these uprights. As shown in fig. 3, the lever 250 accordingly includes two ribs 255A protruding from opposite surfaces of its two reinforcing sides 255.

These different ribs 121A, 122A, 255A are thus shaped so that, when the installer manipulates the lever 250 to flip it from its fixed position towards its release position, the rib 255A of the lever 250 comes into contact with the ribs 121A, 122A of the two uprights 121, 122, which deform so that the lever 250 can continue its travel, which then resume their original shape.

When the installer releases the lever 250 and the tab 252 brings the lever 250 back to its secured position, the rib 255A of the lever 250 comes again into contact with the ribs 121A, 122A of the two uprights 121, 122. The stiffness of these ribs is such that the restoring force exerted by the platelets 252 is insufficient to deform the ribs and allow the lever 250 to pass. Thus, the lever 250 is blocked in the release position (see fig. 10).

Thus, after turning over the four levers 250 of the electrical housing 1, the installer can release these levers and then apply a pulling force on the frame 20 along the axis z (toward the front) to remove the frame 20 from the panel support 10 (see fig. 11).

During this disassembly, the rib 255A of the lever 250 no longer mates with the ribs of the uprights 121, 122, causing the lever 250 to return automatically to the fixed position. Thus, the frame 20 is again ready to be mounted to the panel support 10.

Advantageously, the inclined surface 111 of the bayonet element 110A is designed such that the lever 250 is turned over only a part of its travel during the assembly of the frame 20 to the plate support 10. As such, the lever 250 does not flip sufficiently so that its rib 255A passes between the ribs 121A, 122A and the columns 121, 122. That is why the lever 250 is not blocked in the release position and can automatically return to the fixed position during assembly of the frame 20 to the panel support 10.

In fig. 12 to 19, a second embodiment of the present invention is shown.

In this second embodiment, the group of lockers differs from the lockers described in fig. 1 to 11 in that the lever does not form a separate part from the main body 200 of the frame 20, but rather forms a single part integrally with the main body 200, here made of moulded plastics material.

Thus, as shown in fig. 12 and 15, in this embodiment, the locking device 110 provided here on the plate support 10 is still in the form of a bayonet element 110A.

As shown in fig. 13 and 14, the lever 1250 itself is here in the form of a rectangular plate 1251, the two reinforcing sides 1255 forming the boundaries thereof.

The lever 1250 is connected to the main body 200 of the frame 20 only through the front end thereof. It forms a hinge structure at the junction with the body 200 and thus can be elastically deformed. Thus, the lever 1250 may be considered to be hinged to the body 200 about an axis parallel to the plane (x, y).

The rear end of the lever 1250 is bent toward the inside of the electrical housing, thereby forming a flange 1256. The flange 1256 includes a slot 1257 into which an end of the screwdriver 400 may be inserted (see fig. 18 and 19).

By inserting the end of the screwdriver 400 into the slot 1257, the installer can force the lever 1250 to flip toward the interior of the electrical housing.

As shown in fig. 18 and 19, in order to ensure that the screwdriver 400 is guided toward the slit 1257, the lever 250 includes a folded portion 1258 on the front end side thereof, which extends toward the inside of the electrical housing orthogonally to the rectangular-shaped small plate 1251. The fold back portion has an end edge that is curved so as to conform to the shape of the shaft of the screwdriver 400.

In a modification, as shown in fig. 13 and 14, it is considered that the lever 250 has no turn-back portion, and the side wall 220 of the body 200 has an inner circumferential rib along a front edge of the side wall, and an inner surface of the inner circumferential rib has a curved region 1258' provided for conforming to a shape of a shaft portion of the screwdriver 400.

As shown in fig. 14, the rectangular-shaped small plate 1251 of the lever 1250 includes an opening 1260 at a rear end side thereof, which is adapted to be engaged to the bayonet piece 110A of the base 100 of the board-support 10.

Thus, the "fixed position" of the latch of the frame 20 on the panel support 10 corresponds to the rest position of the lever 1250 (that is to say, to the position in which the lever is not elastically deformed). In this position, the opening 1260 of the lever 1250 engages to the bayonet member 110A. As shown in fig. 14, in this position, the lever 1250 extends parallel to the side wall 220 of the body 200 of the frame 20.

The "release position" of the catch means of the frame 20 on the plate support 10 corresponds to a position of the lever 1250 in which the opening 1260 of the lever 1250 is completely clear of the bayonet 110A and at a distance therefrom. This elastically deformed position of the lever 1250 is achieved by means of the screwdriver 400.

It should be remembered that the return means are provided for automatically bringing the lever 1250 back to the fixed position, in this embodiment formed by the lever 1250 itself, so that, when no force is applied against it anymore, its elastically deformable characteristics ensure that it returns to the fixed position.

The rear end edge of the lever 1250 is arranged to abut the inclined surface 111 of the bayonet element 110A of the plate support 10 during mounting of the frame 20 to the plate support 10.

With the penetration of the frame 20 on the panel support 10 (that is to say without the installer having to directly operate the lever 1250), the ramp 111 can thus force the lever 1250 to flip towards its release position (see fig. 16). Here, the rear edge of the lever 1250 is beveled to facilitate its sliding over the bayonet member 110A.

When the frame 20 reaches its assembled position on the plate support (see fig. 17), the resilience of the lever 1250 can return the lever to the secured position to automatically engage the opening 1260 to the bayonet 110A.

It should be remembered that the holding means 120 are designed to hold the lever 1250 in the release position, which, as shown in fig. 15, are here also formed by two uprights 121, 122 rising from the bottom 102 of the base 100 of the plate support 10 and arranged on either side of the bayonet element 110A of the lever 1250.

In this embodiment, the two uprights 121, 122 have no ribs and are therefore designed to flip in exactly the opposite direction during the transition of the lever 1250 from its fixed position towards its release position.

As shown in fig. 15, these columns 121, 122 are beveled at their ends, thus forming beveled surfaces 121B, 122B. As shown in fig. 19, two corresponding side teeth 1254 are located on the side of the lever 1250, which protrude from the reinforcement side 1255 and are intended to slide on the inclined surfaces 121B, 122B.

Each of these side teeth 1254 has an inclined inner surface to facilitate elastic deformation of the uprights 121, 122 during transition of the lever 1250 from its fixed position towards its release position.

Each side tooth 1254 has an outer surface orthogonal to the reinforcing side 1255, and each side tooth 1254 extends from the reinforcing surface and is arranged to abut against a ramp 121B, 122B to retain the lever 1250 in the release position.

The side teeth 1254 and the ramps 121B, 122B may cause the lever 1250 to gradually return to a fixed position when an installer removes the frame 20 from the panel support 10.

Here again, the inclined surface 111 of the bayonet element 110A is designed such that the lever 1250 is only flipped over a part of its travel during the assembly of the frame 20 to the panel support 10. As such, lever 1250 does not flip sufficiently so that its side teeth 1254 abut the columns 121, 122. That is why the lever 1250 is not blocked in the release position and can automatically return to the fixed position during the assembly of the frame 20 to the panel support 10.

In fig. 20 to 28, a third embodiment of the present invention is shown.

In this third embodiment, the latch means for latching the frame 20 to the panel support 10 is not carried by a lever but by the body 200 of the frame 20. It is a snap-fit device. The lever thus has the main function of forcing the lockers to disengage from each other.

As shown in fig. 20, in this embodiment, the latch provided on the frame 20 is in the form of a bayonet 2240 that forms a single part with the body 200 of the frame 20, for example by moulding a plastics material.

Bayonet 2240 extends beyond the inner surface of side wall 220 of frame 20. It has a front surface extending in a plane (x, y) and has a rear surface inclined relative to the plane such that the bayonet 2240 has a trapezoidal profile. Thus, the rear surface of the bayonet 2240 forms a bevel 2241.

The catch means provided on the panel support 10 are in the form of resiliently bendable claws 2110 which together with the base 100 of the panel support 10 form a single part, for example made by moulding plastics material.

The resiliently flexible fingers 2110 rise from the bottom 102 of the base 100 of the tray support 10 and along the side walls 101 of the base 100. It has an opening 2112 adapted to engage the bayonet 2240 of the frame 20, thereby hooking the bayonet 2240.

During assembly of the frame 20 to the panel support 10, the front end edge of the resiliently bendable pawl 2110 is arranged to slide against the ramp 2241 of the bayonet 2240, forcing the resiliently bendable pawl 2110 to resiliently bend towards the interior of the electrical housing (see fig. 22 to 24).

It should be remembered that the return means are provided for automatically bringing the locker back to the fixed position, in this embodiment the return means are formed by the resiliently flexible claw 2110 itself, so that when no force is applied against it anymore, its resiliently deformable nature ensures that it returns to the fixed position.

Thus, when assembly is completed, the opening 2112 provided in the resiliently flexible claw 2110 automatically engages the bayonet 2240, which can seal off the frame 20 on the panel support 10.

Thus, in this embodiment, the "fixed position" of the locker of the frame 20 on the panel support 10 corresponds to the position in which the opening 2112 provided in the resiliently bendable pawl 2110 engages the bayonet 2240.

The "released position" of the locker corresponds to a position in which the opening 2112 provided in the resiliently flexible claw 2110 is completely clear of and at a distance from the bayonet piece 2240.

In this embodiment, lever 2250 is provided to force resiliently flexible pawl 2210 to flex in the released position.

As shown in fig. 20 and 21, it comprises for this purpose a curved main plate 2251 carrying on its outer surface a shaft 2253, the ends of which extend on both sides of the main plate 2251. The shaft 2253 allows the lever 2250 to be hinged to the body 200 of the frame 20 about an axis parallel to the plane (x, y). The inner surface of the side wall 220 of the body 200 of the frame 20 comprises two receiving brackets 2230, respectively, which are open towards the front and into which the ends of the shaft 2253 can be snapped.

Here, these brackets 2230 are provided on top of two ribs protruding from the inner surface of the side wall 220 extending on both sides of the bayonet 2240, between which the elastically bendable claw 2110 slides during assembly of the frame 20 to the panel support 10.

By means of this articulation, lever 2250 is adapted to be flipped between two extreme positions, hereinafter referred to as inactive position and active position.

The front end of the main plate 2251 of the lever 2250 is provided for operation by the finger of the installer. It has a curved shape for this purpose.

In the inactive position, lever 2250 does not apply any stress to resiliently flexible claw 2110.

When the installer presses the front end of lever 2250 to flip it outwardly, it reaches an active position in which lever 2250 abuts resiliently flexible claw 2110 to force it to bend to a release position (see fig. 27).

Here, the rear end edge of lever 2250 defines an internal recess 2252 configured to receive the upper end of resiliently bendable pawl 2110.

As shown in fig. 24, therefore, internal recess 2252 is bounded on one side by internal flange 2252A and on the other side by external flange 2252B.

The inner flange 2252A is inclined towards the outside such that during assembly of the frame 20 to the panel support 10, the front ends of the resiliently bendable pawls 2110 abut against the inner flange 2252A and thereby force the lever to flip towards its active position (see fig. 23 and 24).

As such, when the resiliently flexible claw 2110 returns to the secured position, it naturally brings the lever 2250 back to the inactive position (see fig. 25) such that its upper end is received in the internal recess 2252.

As shown in fig. 26, to ensure a better impact resistance of the frame 20 on the panel support 10, the trim panel 2 comprises a blocking heel 2A extending convexly towards the rear, adapted to abut against the lever 2250 when the trim panel 2 is clamped to the raised portion 210 of the frame 20. This abutment thus prevents the lever 2250 from tipping toward its release position.

To remove the frame 20 from the panel support 10, the installer operates lever 2250 to place it in the active position. When lever 2250 is flipped over, it abuts resiliently flexible claw 2110 through its outer flange 2252B and forces the resiliently flexible claw 2110 to displace to the release position (see fig. 27).

As shown in fig. 27, the outer flange 2252B of lever 2250 forms a concave recess 2254. The recess 2254 constitutes a holding means for the resiliently flexible claw 2110 in the release position (see fig. 28). In effect, it is provided to engage the upper edge of the elastically bendable claw 2110 when the lever 2250 reaches the release position.

As shown in fig. 24, advantageously, the bevel 2241 of the bayonet 2240 is designed such that the resiliently bendable pawl 2110 bends towards its release position, but does not reach this position, during assembly of the frame 20 to the tray support 10. In this manner, the resiliently flexible claw 2110 causes the lever 2250 to flip over only a portion of its travel, such that its recess 2254 does not engage the upper edge of the resiliently flexible claw 2110. Thus, during assembly of the frame 20 to the panel support 10, the resiliently bendable pawl 2110 is not blocked in the released position.

In fig. 29 to 33, a fourth embodiment of the present invention is shown.

In this fourth embodiment, as in the first two embodiments, the lever 3250 carries a latch means for latching the frame 20 to the panel support 10. However, in this embodiment the lever is rotatably mounted movably about the axis z and acts in the manner of a quarter turn screw.

As shown in fig. 29, to accommodate the lever 3250, and to guide the rotation of the lever 3250 about the axis z, the side wall 220 of the frame 20 carries on its inner surface a tubular sleeve 3221 of substantially cylindrical rotation.

As shown in fig. 30, the lever 3250 has a rotary cylindrical body with a front portion 3251 having a diameter equal to the inner diameter of the tubular sleeve 3221 and a rear portion 3252 having a smaller diameter.

The rear portion 3252 includes lateral lugs 3253 near its free end. The lateral lug 3253 has a rectangular cross-section such that its front surface 3257 is orthogonal to the axis z. However, one of its rear edges is beveled to form a bevel 3254.

The front portion 3251 of the lever 3250 comprises, near its free end, a return tongue 3255 which is S-shaped and extends in a plane orthogonal to the axis z. The return tab 3255 includes a first portion 3255A which extends radially relative to the front portion 3251 of the lever 3250 and a second portion which continues the first portion, which is S-curved and has a small thickness so as to be elastically deformable.

As shown in fig. 31, the lever 3250 is engaged through the tubular sleeve 3221 of the side wall 220 of the frame 20 such that its return tab 3255 abuts against the front end edge of the tubular sleeve 3221 and its rear portion 3252 projects at the rear of the sleeve.

The return tongue 3255 is thus arranged for abutting, by its free end, against the inner surface of the side wall 220 of the body 200 of the frame 20, to hold the lever 3250 in the first angular position, in which the return tongue 3255 is not deformed. I.e. its fixed position.

As shown in fig. 29, 31 and 33, a latch is provided on the panel support 10 and is adapted to cooperate with a lever 3250 for latching the frame 20 on the panel support 10 in the form of a tubular base 3110.

The tubular base 3110 rises from the bottom 102 of the base 100 of the plate support 10 and forms a single part therewith, for example made by moulding a plastic material.

It defines a receiving pocket for the rear end of the lever 3250.

The tubular base 3110 has a front edge 3111, half of which is spiral-shaped over a half circumference.

It is open at the front to define an opening at the lateral lug 3253 that is larger in cross-section than the cross-section of the lever 3250.

It has a portion that widens at an intermediate height to form shoulder 3112 (see fig. 33).

The tubular base 3110 is thus shaped such that the rear end of the lever 3250 can be engaged within the tubular base 3110 when the frame 20 is attached to the panel support 10.

During this engagement, the lateral lugs 3253 of the lever 3250 bear against the helical front edge 3111 of the tubular base 3110 by way of the inclined faces 3254 thereof, forcing the lever to pivot into an angular position, in which the lever 3250 can be inserted into the tubular base 3110, with constraint of the return tongue 3255.

Once the lateral lugs 3253 are fully inserted into the tubular base 3110, the return tabs 3255 bring the lever 3250 back to the secured position such that the front surface 3257 of the lateral lugs 3253 are disposed behind the shoulder 3112 of the tubular base 3110, which thus forms a stop preventing the lever 3250 and frame 20 from being removed from the tray support 10.

As shown in fig. 31, in this embodiment, the first portion of return tab 3255 is accessible to the installer and thus forms a bearing surface so that the installer can force the lever to pivot to its release position.

The retaining means are designed to retain the lever 3250 in a release position, here in the form of snap teeth (not visible in the figures), inside the tubular base 3110 and are adapted to hook the lateral lugs 3253 when the lever 3250 is pivoted over its full travel to the release position.

As such, when the installer pivots the lever 3250 to its release position, the lever remains in that position. The lateral lugs 3253 of the lever 3250 are thus offset relative to the shoulder 3112 of the tubular base 3110, so as to no longer interfere with the disassembly of the frame 20 relative to the panel support 10.

Still here, it should be noted that the snap teeth are positioned such that they do not hook the lateral lugs 3253 of the lever 3250 during assembly of the frame 20 to the panel support 10, and thus do not prevent pivoting of the lever 3250 to the fixed position.

In a variant, the catch teeth may be located elsewhere, for example in the tubular sleeve 3221 (in which case the lever would be equipped with ribs that the catch teeth would be able to catch).

In fig. 34 and 35, an assembly is shown comprising:

the same electrical housing 1 as shown in fig. 1;

A socket mechanism 3A or a circuit breaker mechanism 3B adapted to clip onto a column raised from the bottom of the base 100 of the panel support 10 of the electrical housing; and

A decorative plate 2, which is adapted to be fixed to the front of the electrical housing and whose shape is associated with the mechanism.

In fig. 34, the decorative plate 2 includes a receiving port (wellhead) 2C of an electrical plug in a structural portion 2B in the form of a frame. It further comprises a folding cover 2E for protecting the receiving opening 2C.

In fig. 35, in contrast, the decorative panel 2 comprises a control touch panel 2D adapted to snap to a receiving means 2G provided on a wall 2F closing a structural portion 2B in the form of a frame. The receiving means 2G are used to provide flipping movability for the control pad 2D. Here, it can be seen that the wall 2F has two oblong windows, which are closed by a rigid platelet 2H, which is attached to the edges of the oblong windows by a flexible sealing film. Thus, when the lugs provided at the rear of the control contact plate 2D abut against the wall 2F, these rigid platelets are adapted to flip relative to the wall 2F, which then flip the driving member 3C of the circuit breaker mechanism 3B. Thus, the switching mechanism 3B can switch the state by controlling the flip of the touch panel 2D.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described and shown, but a person skilled in the art will understand how to make any variants.

In the different figures, the electrical housing has a square section and defines a unique position (station) that can house one or two electrical equipment mechanisms: we will refer to this as a unitary cartridge.

In a variant, it may be a multi-position cartridge, having a rectangular cross section and defining two or three positions. In this variant, the electrical housing preferably comprises a plurality of sets of locking means. For example, six groups are included in the case of a two-position cartridge and eight groups are included in the case of a three-position cartridge.

Claims

1. An electrical housing (1) comprising a panel support (10) and a frame (20), the panel support (10) comprising a first latch means (110), the frame (20) comprising a second latch means (260), said first and second latch means being complementary and being movable relative to each other between a fixed position in which the frame (20) is fixed to the panel support (10) and a released position in which the frame (20) is released relative to the panel support (10),

Wherein,

-Said frame (20) comprises at least one lever (250) adapted to put the first and second locking means in a release position;

-providing elastic return means (252) adapted to automatically bring the first and second locking means back into a fixed position; and

-Providing a retaining means (120) adapted to retain the first and second locker in the released position;

-providing a ramp (111) enabling to force the first and second lockers to be displaced towards the release position, without reaching the release position, by means of the assembly of the frame (20) on the panel support (10), the ramp (111) being configured to allow the first and second lockers to return to the fixed position when the frame (20) reaches its assembly position on the panel support (10).

2. The electrical housing (1) according to claim 1, wherein the first locking device (110) comprises a bayonet (110A) fixed to the plate support (10), the second locking device (260) being carried by a lever (250) and being adapted to hook the bayonet (110A).

3. The electrical housing (1) according to claim 1, wherein the second locker comprises a bayonet (2240) fixed to the frame (20), the first locker comprises elastically deformable jaws (2110) adapted to hook the bayonet (2240), and the lever (2250) is adapted to deform the elastically deformable jaws (2110) in the released position.

4. An electrical housing (1) according to claim 3, wherein the holding means comprises a recessed recess (2254) in the lever (2250) adapted to hold the elastically deformable claw (2110) in a release position.

5. Electrical housing (1) according to claim 1, wherein the holding means (120) are formed together with the plate support (10).

6. Electrical housing (1) according to claim 5, wherein the holding means (120) comprise two uprights (121, 122) arranged on both sides of the lever (250) and at least partially elastically deformable for being separated from each other for passing the lever (250) in one direction and for automatically returning to their initial position for holding the lever (250) in the other direction.

7. The electrical housing (1) according to claim 1, wherein each lever (1250) forms a single part with the frame (20) and is elastically deformable.

8. Electrical housing (1) according to claim 1, wherein each lever (250) is attached to a portion of the frame (20) so as to have a unique pivoting movability with respect to that portion of the frame (20).

9. Electrical housing (1) according to claim 8, wherein each lever (250) is adapted to pivot with respect to said portion of the frame (20) about an axis perpendicular to the assembly direction of the frame (20) on the panel support (10).

10. Electrical housing (1) according to claim 8, wherein each lever (250) is adapted to pivot with respect to said portion of the frame (20) about an axis parallel to the assembly direction of the frame (20) on the panel support (10).

11. The electrical housing (1) according to claim 1, wherein each lever (250) has a grip portion (251) which can be accessed by a user's finger for operation.

12. The electrical housing (1) according to claim 1, wherein each lever (1250) has an operating portion that is accessible for operation by a tool (400).

13. Electrical housing (1) according to claim 1, wherein at least four levers (250) are provided.

14. An electrical box comprising an electrical housing (1) as defined in claim 1 and a trim panel (2) attached to the front of a frame (20) of the electrical housing (1), the trim panel (2) comprising a blocking heel (2A) adapted to be placed against a lever (250) for preventing displacement thereof.

15. Assembly comprising a device mechanism (3A, 3B) and a decorative plate (2), characterized in that the assembly comprises an electrical housing (1) according to claim 1, the interior of which secures the device mechanism (3A, 3B) and the front of which secures the decorative plate (2).