EP3440751A1

EP3440751A1 - A floor box

Info

Publication number: EP3440751A1
Application number: EP17716318.5A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Peter LENHARDT
Original assignee: A&h Meyer Sdn Bhd
Current assignee: A&h Meyer Sdn Bhd
Priority date: 2016-04-07
Filing date: 2017-01-26
Publication date: 2019-02-13
Also published as: WO2017176106A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a floor box (100) comprises a base (101); a side wall (102) along the boundary of the base (101) with an orifice (105) for allowing a cable and a wire access; a cover frame (103) fitted onto the side wall (102) for covering the floor box (100); a power connector (104) placed within the floor box (100) for power supply into the floor box (100); a data connector (106) placed within the floor box (100) for data supply into the floor box (100); characterized by: a holding means comprises a hollow frame (107) for receiving the power connector (104) and/or data connector (106); and a holder frame (108) having a plurality of grooves (109) complementary to the hollow frame (107) for slidably attached with said hollow frame (107) and thereby securing the power connector (104) and/or the data connector (106) in position; an elevation plate (110) placed between the base (101) and the hollow frame (107) for levelling the height of the hollow frame (107) and fitted with the power connector (104) to ease the connection of a complementary connector with minimal bending of the cable; and wherein said floor box (100) comprises more than one data connector (106) arranged in a polygonal structure.

Description

A FLOOR BOX

Background of the Invention

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a floor box, and more particularly to a novel floor box for housing electrical cables with minimise bending radius of cables in according to applicable standard.

Description of Related Arts

Floor box is an essential space used for storing of power and data connectors for distribution of power and data services. Said floor box comes in many shapes and designs to blend aesthetically with the floor. Conventional floor boxes are found in a certain shape and cavity to fit in electrical connections. An improper design wherein the top surface of the floor box is raised above the floor may risk office basis user tripping on the floor box.

U.S. Patent No. 7,410,373 B2 disclosed a communication cable connection enclosure located between a fixed surface and a removable surface. The connection enclosure has a bottom surface and a plurality of vertical peripheral walls defining a cavity, a panel positioned inside the cavity to divide the cavity into different compartments, a locking mechanism for selectively sealing a door opening; a cable opening in a wall of said connection enclosure to enable the communication cable passes through it. The design of the enclosure has the cable connector arranged vertically, which does not reduce the size of the cavity.

U.S. Patent No. 798971 1 B2 disclosed a floor box comprising a body defined by a base and parametrical side wall with an upper opening. The floor box achieves an ultra-shallow cavity by partially recessing the body of the floor box into the floor, with a portion of the perimetrical side wall exposed partially above the floor. A cover for the floor box is configured with an angled perimetrical edge to cover the exposed portion of the perimetrical side wall and upper opening of the body. The exposed portion allows electrical cables to be access the floor box and connect to an electrical supply. The floor box cavity size remains unchanged and affects the floor design. Taiwan Patent No. TWM499446 disclosed a mounting box for raised floor, which is used for distribution network setting. Said mounting box comprises a top plate, a housing coupled to bottom surface of the top plate, and a base plate. The top plate is coupled to a bottom surface of a removable display window having a rubber frame and a transparent display panel. The housing includes two side plates having heat dissipation means, two openings, empty interior, and has connecting point at each corner of the housing. The mounting box is further provided with a distribution network compartment/system, which is first mounted to the base plate. Said distribution network compartment is seated in the interior of the housing. The top plate has a light hole to ease the user to observe the light indicator used in the distribution network setting, and an empty compartment which reduce weight of the top plate. The mounting box is placed to an empty space of the raised floor. All connecting cable is connected via the openings of the housing. Besides that, said mounting box further comprises a supporting means including a hinge and a crankshaft mounted the display window to the floor, for supporting the display window when it is opened or folded.

Accordingly, it can be seen in the prior arts that there exists a need to provide a floor box with minimal cavity required for providing power and data supply without limiting the number or arrangement of power and data connectors.

Summary of Invention

It is an objective of the present invention to provide a floor box with minimal cavity to hold electrical and data connectors horizontally without reducing efficiency of the data transmission of a cable connected thereto.

It is also an objective of the present invention to provide the floor box allowing electrical connection with minimal bending of the cable and wire. It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide a floor box configuration without reducing the number of electrical connection required for typical configurations of work stations in office spaces.

It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a floor box with minimal depth and able to reduce the installation space.

Accordingly, these objectives may be achieved by following the teachings of the present invention. The present invention relates to a floor box comprising: a base; a side wall along the boundary of the base with an orifice for allowing a cable and a wire access; a cover frame fitted onto the side wall for covering the floor box; a power connector placed within the floor box for power supply into the floor box; a data connector placed within the floor box for data supply into the floor box; characterized by: a holding means comprises a hollow frame for receiving the power connector and/or data connector; and a holder frame having a plurality of grooves complementary to the hollow frame for slidably attached with said hollow frame and thereby securing the power connector and/or the data connector in position; an elevation plate placed between the base and the hollow frame for levelling the height of the hollow frame fitted with the power connector to ease the connection of a complementary connector with minimal bending of the cable; and wherein said floor box comprises more than one data connector arranged in a polygonal structure without bending wires beyond the root of applicable standards. Brief Description of the Drawings

The features of the invention will be more readily understood and appreciated from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of the preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which: Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an exploded view of a floor box.

Fig. 2a is a diagram displaying the inner configuration of a plurality of holders in an assembled floor box. Fig. 2b is a diagram showing a top isometric view of the assembled floor box. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing a data connector fitted to a hollow frame and to be coupled with the holder frame.

Fig. 4a is a diagram of the holder frame.

Fig. 4b is a bottom-view diagram of the holder frame.

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an elevation plate, the holder frame and the power connector.

Detailed Description of the Invention

As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting but merely as a basis for claims. It should be understood that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims. As used throughout this application, the word "may" is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). Similarly, the words "include," "including," and "includes" mean including, but not limited to. Further, the words "a" or "an" mean "at least one" and the word "plurality" means one or more, unless otherwise mentioned. Where the abbreviations or technical terms are used, these indicate the commonly accepted meanings as known in the technical field. For ease of reference, common reference numerals will be used throughout the figures when referring to the same or similar features common to the figures. The present invention will now be described with reference to Figs. The present invention relates to a floor box for electrical connection and for installation in a floor. Said floor box comprises a base (101 ); a side wall (102) along the boundary of the base (101 ) with an orifice (105) for allowing a cable and a wire access; a cover frame (103) fitted onto the side wall (102) for covering the floor box (100); a power connector (104) placed within the floor box (100) for power supply into the floor box (100); a data connector (106) placed within the floor box (100) for data supply into the floor box (100); characterized by: a holding means comprises a hollow frame (107) for receiving the power connector (104) and/or data connector (106); and a holder frame (108) having a plurality of grooves (109) complementary to the hollow frame (107) for slidably attached with said hollow frame (107) and thereby securing the power connector (104) and/or the data connector (106) in position; an elevation plate (1 10) placed between the base (101 ) and the hollow frame (107) for levelling the height of the hollow frame (107) and fitted with the power connector (104) to ease the connection of a complementary connector with minimal bending of the cable; and wherein said floor box (100) comprises more than one data connector (106) arranged in a polygonal structure.

In a preferred embodiment of the floor box (100), the cover frame (103) comprises: a flip lid (1 15) on the cover frame (103) for allowing the cable and/or the wire access into the floor box (100); and a receiving slot (1 16) for allowing the cable and/or the wire access into the floor box (100) and connected with the power connector (104) and/or the data connector (106). Said cover frame (103) may further comprise a handle for opening and closing the frame (103) on the floor box (100).

In a preferred embodiment of the floor box (100), the hollow frame (107) and the elevation plate (1 10) has a complementary fastening hole (1 13) for mounting the hollow frame (107) and the elevation plate (1 10) on the base (101 ).

In a preferred embodiment of the floor box (100), an enclosure (1 1 1 ) is fitted on top of the power connector (104) and the data connector (106) for preventing the electrical connection from dust and avoids direct contact of a user to the connectors.

In a preferred embodiment of the floor box (100), said floor box (100) further comprises a separation plate (1 12) for separating the connector compartment therein.

In a preferred embodiment of the floor box (100), the side wall (102) has a maximum height of 45mm or less.

In a preferred embodiment of the floor box (100), the bending radius of the cable is 50 mm or more.

In a preferred embodiment of the floor box (100), the power connector (104) and the data connector (106) are orientated horizontally to reduce bending of the cable and the wire.

In a preferred embodiment of the floor box (100), the floor box (100) comprises two power connectors (104) and eight data connectors (106) arranged in the polygonal shapes.

In a preferred embodiment of the floor box (100), the data connector (106) includes voice data connector; video data connector; RJ45 connector; RJ1 1 connector; RJ12 connector; secure data connector; Ethernet connector; USB connector or a combination thereof.

Below is an example of the floor box (100) from which the advantages of the present invention may be more readily understood. It is to be understood that the following example is for illustrative purpose only and should not be construed to limit the present invention in any way.

Fig.1 shows the configuration of the floor box (100) in an exploded view. Said floor box (100) comprises the base (101 ) and the side wall (102) along the boundary of the base (101 ) configured to form a housing for placing the power connector (104) and the data connector (106). Said configuration results the floor box (100) of the present invention having a depth of a maximum of 45mm, and therefore can effectively save floor space and make the installation of the floor box (100) much easier as said floor box (100) does not require the hacking of a deep cavity in the floor plate.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention and referring to Fig. 2, the floor box (100) preferably comprises two power connectors (104) and four pairs of data connectors (106). More particularly, the four pairs of the data connectors (106) in said embodiment include the four dual RJ45 connectors. In said embodiment, the floor box (100) allows the placement of more than one data connectors (106), preferably four pair of data connectors (106) arranged in the polygonal shape. Said arrangement allows the floor box (100) of the present invention to maximise the number of data connectors (106) to be placed in said floor box (100) and prevent bending of the cable of the complementary connector connected with said data connector (106) beyond the predetermined minimum bending radius.

As can be seen in Fig. 3, each data connector (106) is fitted into the hollow frame (107).The hollow frame (107) is then coupled to the holder frame (108) by slidably attach to the plurality of grooves (109) of the holder frame (108) for easy access and removal. The hollow frame (107) is adjustable in size to suit the depth of the floor box (100). Said configuration results the cable of the complementary connector connected to the data connector (106) experience minimal bending.

Referring to Figs.1 and 5, the elevation plate (1 10) is placed between the hollow frame (107) and the base (101 ) for elevating the height of the hollow frame (107) as well as the power connector (104) fitted to said hollow frame (107) and parallel to the orifice (105) on the side wall (102). Bending of cable or wire is known to reduce efficiency of the data transmission. Due to the elevated height of the power connector (104), the cable of the complementary connector connected to the power connector (104) experience minimal bending. Apart from fitting a data connector (106) securely, the holder frame (108) as shown in Figs. 4a and 4b is designed with complementary fastening holes (1 13) at both top and bottom ends for securing the holder frame (108) in position. A fastener (1 14) such as a screw is fastened from the bottom of the fastening hole (1 13) of the holder frame (108) to secure the data connector (104) and the holder frame (108) on the base (101 ). The complementary elevation plate (1 10) also comprises the fastening hole (1 13) for the screw to pass through to secure the elevation plate (1 10) together with the hollow frame (107). Similarly, the enclosure (1 1 1 ) is fitted on the top of power connector (104) and the data connector (106) by fastened the enclosure to the fastening hole (1 13) of the holder frame (108) with the fastener

(1 14) .

The power connector (104) is separated from the data connector (106) via the separation plate (1 12) arranged at the bottom of the enclosure (1 1 1 ). The side wall (102) may have a holder for keeping a plurality of output cables organized. A flip lid

(1 15) on the cover frame (103) is flipped open to allow the cables access into the floor box (100). More particularly, said configuration allows access of the cable of the complementary connector that connected to the power connector (104) and/or the data connector (106) affixed within the floor box (100). The minimal bending radius of the cable is maximised with the configuration of the floor box (100) of the present invention.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments, also shown in the appended figures, it will be apparent for those skilled in the art that many variations and modifications can be done within the scope of the invention as described in the specification and defined in the following claims. Description of the reference numerals used in the accompanying drawings according to the present invention:

Reference

Description

Numerals

100 Floor box

101 Base

102 Side wall

103 Cover frame

104 Power connector

105 Orifice

106 Data connector

107 Hollow frame

108 Holder frame

109 Groove

1 10 Elevation plate

1 1 1 Enclosure

1 12 Separation plate

1 13 Fastening hole

1 14 Fastener

1 15 Flip lid

1 16 Receiving slot

Claims

I/We claim:

A floor box (100), comprising:

a base (101 );

a side wall (102) along the boundary of the base (101 ) with an orifice (105) for allowing a cable and a wire access;

a cover frame (103) fitted onto the side wall (102) for covering the floor box (100);

a power connector (104) placed within the floor box (100) for power supply into the floor box (100);

a data connector (106) placed within the floor box (100) for data supply into the floor box (100);

characterized by:

a holding means comprises a hollow frame (107) for receiving the power connector (104) and/or data connector (106); and a holder frame (108) having a plurality of grooves (109) complementary to the hollow frame (107) for slidably attached with said hollow frame (107) and thereby securing the power connector (104) and/or the data connector (106) in position;

an elevation plate (1 10) placed between the base (101 ) and the hollow frame (107) for levelling the height of the hollow frame (107) fitted with the power connector (104) to ease the connection of a complementary connector with minimal bending of the cable; and

wherein said floor box (100) comprises more than one data connector (106) arranged in a polygonal structure.

The floor box (100) according to claim 1 , wherein the hollow frame (107) and the elevation plate (1 10) has a complementary fastening hole (1 13) for mounting the hollow frame (107) and the elevation plate (1 10) on the base (101 ).

3. The floor box (100) according to claim 1 , wherein an enclosure (1 1 1 ) is fitted on top of the power connector (104) and the data connector (106) for preventing the electrical connection from dust and avoid direct contact of a user to the connectors.

The floor box (100) according to claim 1 , wherein said floor box (100) further comprises a separation plate (1 12) for separating the connector compartment therein.

The floor box (100) according to claim 1 , wherein the side wall (102) has a maximum height of 45mm or less.

The floor box (100) according to claim 1 , wherein the bending radius of the cable is 50mm or more.

The floor box (100) according to claim 1 , wherein the power connector (104) and the data connector (106) are orientated horizontally to reduce bending of the cable and the wire.

The floor box (100) according to claim 1 , wherein the floor box (100) comprises two power connectors (104) and eight data connectors (106) arranged in the polygonal shapes.