GB2462665A

GB2462665A - Adapter for easy connection and disconnection of plug

Info

Publication number: GB2462665A
Application number: GB0823058A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Tae Cheul Kim
Original assignee: K I C A Inc
Current assignee: K I C A Inc
Priority date: 2008-08-11
Filing date: 2008-12-18
Publication date: 2010-02-17
Anticipated expiration: 2028-12-18
Also published as: CN101651277B; CN101651277A; KR200452404Y1; GB2462665B; KR20100001811U; GB0823058D0

Abstract

An adapter 10 includes an adapter body 20 which has a plug insertion opening, terminals 11 which are provided in the adapter body and make connections with terminals of a plug, and adapter terminals 12 which project out of the adapter body and are connected with the terminals provided in the adapter body. The adapter also includes a fastening member 30 disposed in the adapter body which can be moved to a fastening position for fastening the terminals of the plug connected to the terminals provided in the adapter body and an unfastening position for unfastening the terminals of the plug, and manipulation means manipulable from the outside of the adapter body to move the fastening member between the fastening position and the unfastening position, The fastening means may be plates 31 and 32, which can be moved outwards to grip the pins of the plug. The manipulation means may be a pinion 36 which can be operated by a screwdriver and which, when it rotates, moves the plates apart by acting as a pinion to racks (34, 35, Fig 4) on the plates. The plates may have a protrusion (38, Fig 4) to go in a depression (39, Fig 4) to lock the plates in the fastening position.

Description

ADAPTER FOR EASY CONNECTION AND DISCONNECTION OF PLUG

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an adapter for a plug which is arranged between a wall socket and a plug so that a plug can be appropriately connected to different types of wall sockets and, more particuLarly, to an adapter for easy connection and disconnection of a plug, which has an improved structure to allow connection and disconnection of a plug and an adapter to be quickly and conveniently performed.

Description of the Related Art

In general, all countries of the world in accordance with their own system supply electricity of 11OV or 220V to consumers. Thus, wall sockets serving as the final means of supplying electric power are formed into various shapes. Most electronic appliances manufactured and marketed in nations around the world are fabricated to be used in both 11OV and 220V sockets for the purposes of export, whereas the plugs of the electronic appliances are formed to adapt to the wall socket of the country where the electronic appliances are to be used.

Accordingly, there may be a case in which travelers taking a trip abroad need to connect the plug of an electronic appliance used in his or her home country to wall sockets of other countries. Accordingly it is necessary to carry an adapter for a plug which is capable of connecting a plug with different types of wall sockets.

FIGs. 9 and 10 illustrate a conventional adapter for a plug. Referring to these drawings, in an adapter 1, an upper case la and a lower case lb are connected with each other by a connection part lc so that the upper case la can be opened and closed from the lower case lb by rotation about the connection part lc. Also, in the adapter 1, by threading and unthreading a screw 3 passing through the lower case lb into and from a threaded hole 2 defined in the upper case la, the upper and lower cases la and lb can be fastened to and unfastened from each other.

Terminals 5 are provided in the lower case lb such that they can be electrically connected with terminals 4a of a plug 4. The terminals 5 are also electrically connected with adapter terminals 6 which project out of the lower case lb. The adapter terminals 6 are of a type different from the terminals 4a of the plug 4.

The terminals 5 are supported by terminal holders 7 which are formed in the lower case lb. The terminal holders 7 have mounting grooves 7a into which the terminals 5 are received and support grooves 7b in which terminal rods 4b of the plug 4 are supported. Step portions 7c are formed between the mounting grooves 7a and the support grooves 7b to be perpendicular thereto, such that ends 4c of the terminals 4a of the plug 4, which are fitted into and connected with the terminals 5, are engaged with the step portions 7c. Due to this fact, the plug 4 is prevented from being separated in the direction indicated by the arrow b in FIG. 10.

Accordingly, in FIG. 9, by opening the upper case la from the lower case lb by unthreading the screw 3 and moving the plug 4 downward in the direction indicated by the arrow a, the terminals 4a of the plug 4 can be connected to the terminals 5 as shown in FIG. 10. Then, by fitting the terminal rods 4b of the plug 4 into the support grooves 7b of the terminal holders 7, the plug 4 can be connected to the adapter 1. Thereupon, by closing the upper case la and threading the screw 3 into the threaded hole 2, the upper and lower cases la and lb are fastened to each other, and the plug 4 can be kept coupled to the adapter 1. Further, as can be readily seen from FIG. 10, since the ends 4c of the terminals 4a of the plug 4 are engaged with the step portions 7c of the terminal holders 7, the plug 4 is prevented from being released even when force is applied in the direction of the arrow b in FIG. 10.

When the terminals 4a of the plug 4 provided to an electronic appliance and a wall socket for supplying electric power are of different types, after inserting the plug 4 into the adapter 1 having the adapter terminals 6 adapted for the wall socket such that the terminals 4a of the plug 4 can be electrically connected with the terminals 5 provided in the adapter 1, and then by inserting the adapter terminals 6 of the adapter 1 into the wall socket, electric power can be supplied to the electronic appliance.

However, in the conventional adapter 1 for a plug, when connecting the terminals 4a of the plug 4 with the terminals 5 of the adapter 1, the screw 3 which fastens the upper and lower cases la and lb of the adapter 1 must be unthreaded to open the upper case la. Thereafter, after the terminals 4a of the plug 4 are connected with the terminals 5, the upper case la must be closed and the screw 3 must be threaded into the threaded hole 2 to fasten the upper and lower cases la and lb to each other.

Consequently, every time when connecting and disconnecting the plug 4 to and from the adapter 1, since the upper case la should be opened and closed by unthreading and threading the screw 3, the connection and disconnection cannot be performed in a quick and convenient manner, whereby inconvenience is caused to a user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the related art, and an object of the present invention is to provide an adapter for easy connection and disconnection of a plug, which can connect a wall socket connected to a power source and a plug of an electronic appliance that is different in type from the wall socket and can prevent the plug from being released from the adapter with the terminals of the plug connected with the terminals of the adapter.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an adapter for easy connection and disconnection of a plug, which allows connection and disconnection of a plug to and from an adapter to be quickly and conveniently performed through simple manipulation from the outside without disassembling the adapter, thereby improving the convenience in use.

In order to achieve the above object, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an adapter including an adapter body which has a plug insertion opening, terminals which are provided in the adapter body and are connected with terminals of a plug, and adapter terminals which project out of the adapter body and are connected with the terminals provided in the adapter body, the adapter comprising a fastening member disposed Ln the adapter body such that it can be moved between a fastening position for fastening the terminals of the plug connected to the terminals provided in the adapter body and an unfastening position for unfastening the terminals of the plug; and manipulation means manipulable from the outside of the adapter body to move the fastening member between the fastening position and the unfastening position.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the fastening member comprises fastening plates which have fork-shaped parts to be engaged with ends of the terminals of the plug in the fastening position and be disengaged from the ends of the terminals of the plug in the unfastening position.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the manipulation means comprises rack gears which are formed on the fastening plates along movement directions of the fastening plates, and a pinion gear which is meshed with the rack gears and has one end that is exposed out of the adapter body to be rotatingly manipulated from the outside.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the adapter further comprises linear guide means for linearly moving the fastening member between the fastening position and the unfastening position.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a fastening cap is coupled to an upper end of the pinion gear to support upper ends of the fastening plates, and is brought into close contact with the adapter body to be prevented from being released when the pinion gear is rotated.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the adapter further comprises movement prevention means for preventing the fastening member from moving toward the unfastening position from the fastening position without manipulation of the manipulation means.

According one aspect of the present invention, the movement prevention means comprises a protrusion which is formed on the fastening plate, and a depression which is defined on the adapter body such that the protrusion of the fastening plate can be engaged into the depression.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of an adapter according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of the adapter according to the present invention; FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the state in which an upper case and a lower case of the adapter according to the present invention are disassembled; FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a fastening member and manipulation means which are provided in the lower case of the adapter according to the present invention; FIG. 5 is a plan view illustrating the lower case of the adapter according to the present invention; FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating the state in which the fastening member and the manipulation means are assembled with each other in the adapter according to the present invention; FIGs. 7A, 7B, 8A and 8B are views illustrating the operations of the adapter according to the present invention; FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating the construction of a conventional adapter; and FIG. 10 is a plan view illustrating the conventional adapter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Reference will now be made in greater detail to a preferred embodiment of the invention, an example of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numerals will be used throughout the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts.

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of an adapter according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of the adapter according to the present invention, FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the state in which an upper case and a lower case of the adapter according to the present invention are disassembled, and FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a fastening member and manipulation means which are provided in the lower case of the adapter according to the present invention.

An adapter 10 according to the present invention includes an adapter body 20 which has a plug insertion opening 21, a pair of terminals 11 which are provided in the adapter body 20 to be connected with terminals 41 of a plug 40 inserted through the plug insertion opening 21, and a pair of adapter terminals 12 which project out of the adapter body 20 and are electrically connected with the terminals 11.

The adapter body 20 is divided into an upper case 22 and a lower case 23 which are assembled to each other through fitting or using an adhesive. The plug insertion opening 21 is defined in the upper case 22. The terminals 11, which form electrical connections with the terminals 41 of the plug 40, are provided in the lower case 23. At this time, a fuse 13 is arranged between one terminal 11 and one adapter terminal 12 such that the terminal 11 and the adapter terminal 12 can be disconnected when overcurrent is produced.

Also, a fastening member 30 is disposed in the lower case 23 to fasten and unfasten the terminals 41 of the plug 40 which are connected to the terminals 11. As can be readily seen from -10 -FIGs. 3 through 5, the fastening member 30 is structured such that it can be moved between a fastening position (see FIGs. 7B and 8B) for fastening the terminals 41 of the plug 40 and an unfastening position (see FIGs. 7A and 8A) for unfastening the terminals 41 of the plug 40. The fastening member 30 is composed of a pair of fastening plates 31 and 32 which have fork-shaped parts 31a and 32a which are engaged with ends 41a of the terminals 41 of the plug 40 in the fastening position and are disengaged from the ends 41a of the terminals 41 of the plug 40 in the unfastening position.

The pair of fastening plates 31 and 32 are placed side by side on a fastening block 33 which is coupled to the lower case 23, to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance, such that they can be linearly moved between the fastening position and the unfastening position by linear guide means. The linear guide means is structured in a manner such that guide grooves 33a and 33b are defined in the fastening block 33 to have linear shapes extending along the movement directions of the fastening plates 31 and 32 and guide pieces 31b and 32b are formed on the lower portions of the fastening plates 31 and 32 to be fitted into the guide grooves 33a and 33b so that the guide pieces 31b and 32b can be guided along the guide grooves 33a and 33b.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 4, the position of the fork-shaped part 32a of the fastening plate 32 is changed in -11 -conformity with the position of the fork-shaped part 31a of the fastening plate 31. To this end, it is preferred that a step portion 32c be formed on the fastening plate 32 and a guide piece 32d be formed on the lower end of the fork-shaped part 32a to be fitted into and guided along the guide grooves 33a.

Referring to FIGs. 7B and 8B, the fork-shaped parts 31a and 32a of the fastening plates 31 and 32 are engaged with the ends 41a of the terminals 41 of the plug 40 with the fastening plates 31 and 32 moved to the fastening position, to prevent the plug 40 from being released in a direction opposite to a direction in which it is inserted into the adapter housing 20.

Also, referring to FIGs. 7A and 8A, the fork-shaped parts 31a and 32a of the fastening plates 31 and 32 are disengaged from the ends 41a of the terminals 41 of the plug 40 with the fastening plate 31 and 32 moved to the unfastening position, to allow the plug 40 to be released out of the adapter housing 20.

The fastening member 30 structured as described above is moved between the fastening position and the unfastening position inside the adapter body 20 by manipulation means.

Referring to FIGs. 4 through 6, the manipulation means is composed of rack gears 34 and 35 which are formed on the inner surfaces of the pair of fastening plates 31 and 32 facing each other along the movement directions of the fastening plates 31 and 32, and a pinion gear 36 which is interposed between the fastening plates 31 and 32 and is meshed with both rack gears -12 - 34 and 35. One end 36a of the pinion gear 36 is exposed out of the lower case 23 of the adapter body 20 such that it is possible to rotate the pinion gear 36 from the outside.

At this time, it is preferred that a manipulation groove 36b be defined on one end 36a of the pinion gear 36 so that the pinion gear 36 can be easily rotated using a tool such as a regular screwdriver. While not shown in the drawings, a projection can be formed on one end 36a of the pinion gear 36 so that the pinion gear 36 can be directly rotated by the hand.

Further, referring to FIG. 6, it is preferred that a fastening cap 37 be coupled to the upper end of the pinion gear 36 to support the upper ends of both fastening plates 31 and 32 and be brought into close contact with the upper case 22 of the adapter body 20 to be prevented from being released when the pinion gear 36 is rotated.

Accordingly, by rotatingly manipulating the pinion gear 36 outside the adapter body 20, the fastening plates 31 and 32 can be moved between the fastening position and the unfastening position via the rack gears 34 and 35 meshed with the pinion gear 36. By this fact, the fork-shaped parts 31a and 32a can be engaged with or disengaged from the ends 41a of the terminals 41 of the plug 40 so that the plug 40 can be fastened or unfastened.

Meanwhile, in the present invention, movement prevention means is provided to prevent the fastening member 30 from moving -13 -from the fastening position to the unfastening position without the manipulation of the manipulation means. In order to constitute the movement prevention means, a protrusion 38 is formed on one surface of any one of the pair of fastening plates 31 and 32 of the fastening member 30, for example, the fastening plate 32, facing away from the other surface on which the rack gear 35 is formed. Also, a depression 39 is defined on the fastening block 33 of the adapter body 20 such that the protrusion 38 can be engaged into the depression 39 when the fastening plates 31 and 32 reach the fastening position. It is to be understood that the movement prevention means may be structured between the fastening plate 31 and the fastening block 33.

Hence, when the protrusion 38 is engaged into the depression 39 with the fastening plates 31 and 32 in the fastening position, the fastening plates 31 and 32 are prevented from moving to the unfastening position without intentional rotation of the pinion gear 36.

The operations of the adapter according to the present invention, constructed as mentioned above, will be described below.

First, as shown in FIG. 8A, as the plug 40 is inserted through the plug insertion opening 21 of the adapter body 20 and the terminals 41 of the plug 40 are electrically connected with the terminals 11, the terminals 41 of the plug 40 and the -14 -adapter terminals 12 are electrically connected with each other because the terminals 11 are electrically connected with the adapter terminals 12 projecting out of the adapter body 20.

Then, by inserting the adapter terminals 12 into a wall socket, it is possible to supply electric power to an electronic appliance using the adapter 10 even when the plug 40 of the electronic appliance and the wall socket are different types.

Next, as shown in FIGs. 2 and 6, after fitting a regular screwdriver, etc. into the manipulation groove 36b defined on one end 36a of the pinion gear 36 which is exposed out of the lower surface of the lower case 23 of the adapter body 20, the screwdriver is manipulated. If the pinion gear 36 is rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 7A, the pair of fastening plates 31 and 32 constituting the fastening member 30 are moved from the unfastening position to the fastening position shown in FIGs. 7B and 8B by the pinion gear 36 and the rack gears 34 and 35 meshed with the pinion gear 36. Due to this fact, the fork-shaped parts 31a and 32a of the fastening plates 31 and 32 are brought into close contact with and are engaged with the ends 41a of the terminals 41 of the plug 41 which are connected with the terminals 11, and the terminals 41 of the plug 40 are prevented from being released in a direction opposite to the direction in which the plug 40 is inserted into the adapter body 20.

In the state in which the fastening member 30 is in the -15 -fastening position to fasten the terminals 41 of the plug 40, the protrusion 38 of the fastening plate 32, which constitutes the movement prevention mears, is engaged into the depression 39, which is defined on the fastening block 33 of the adapter block 20. According to thLs, it is possible to prevent the fastening state of the fastening member 30 from being easily freed by external shocks or fluctuations. Further, unless the pinion gear 36 is intentionally rotated and the fastening plates 31 and 32 are moved to the unfastening position, the fastening plates 31 and 32 are prevented from being moved, whereby the fastened state of the terminals 41 of the plug 40 can be reliably maintained.

After the electronic appliance is used with the plug 40 inserted into the adapter 10, when it is necessary to decouple the plug 40 from the adapter 10, the pinion gear 36 is rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 7B, by which the fastening plates 31 and 32 constituting the fastening member 30 are moved from the fastening position to the unfastening position shown in FIGs. 7A and 8A. By this fact, the fork-shaped parts 31a and 32a of the fastening plates 31 and 32 are separated and disengaged from the ends 41a of the terminals 41 of the plug 40. In this state, the plug 40 can be released from the adapter 10 by pulling the plug 40 in the direction opposite to the direction in which the plug 40 is inserted into the adapter body 20.

-16 -As described above, in the adapter 10 according to the present invention, by rotatiig the pinion gear 36 having one end 36a exposed out of the adapter body 20 in the fastening direction or the unfastening direction, the terminals 41 of the plug 40 which are connected with the terminals 11 in the adapter body 20 can be fastened or unfastened. According to this, the connection and disconnection of the plug 40 can be quickly and conveniently performed, and it is possible to eliminate the inconvenience and cumbersomeness which result in the conventional art from fastening and unfastening a plug.

Although a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disc'osed in the accompanying claims. For example, while it was described that the fork-shaped parts 31a arid 32a which are formed on the two fastening plates 31 and 32 of the fastening member 30 fasten and unfasten the terminals 41 of the plug 40, it can be envisaged that only one fastening plate can be used to fasten and unfasten one terminal of a plug.

As is apparent from the above description, in the adapter according to the present invention, the terminals of a plug are connected with the terminals of the adapter by inserting the plug through the plug insertion opening of the adapter.

-17 -Thereafter, a fastening member can be moved to a locking position through simple manipulation of rotating a pinion gear exposed out of the adapter in one direction, and the terminals of the plug can be fastened. Due to this fact, the plug is prevented from becoming separated from the adapter. Also, the fastening member can be moved to an unlocking position through simple manipulation of rotating the pinion gear in the other opposite direction, and the terminals of the plug can be unfastened. Due to this fact, the plug can be released from the adapter.

Therefore, in the present invention, the connection and the disconnection of the plug can be conveniently performed through simple manipulation of rotating the pinion gear exposed out of the adapter in one and the other opposite directions without disassembling the adapter. Accordingly, since the connection and the disconnection of the plug can be quickly and conveniently performed, convenience in use can be improved.

Claims

-18 -CLAIMS1. An adapter including an adapter body which has a plug insertion opening, terminals which are provided in the adapter body and form connections with terminals of a plug, and adapter terminals which project out of the adapter body and are connected with the terminals provided in the adapter body, the adapter comprising: a fastening member disposed in the adapter body such that it can be moved to a fastening position for fastening the terminals of the plug connected to the terminals provided in the adapter body and an unfastening position for unfastening the terminals of the plug; and manipulation means manipulable from the outside of the adapter body to move the fastening member between the fastening position and the unfastening position.
2. An adapter according to claim 1, wherein the fastening member comprises fastening plates which have fork-shaped parts to be engaged with ends of the terminals of the plug in the fastening position and be disengaged from the ends of the terminals of the plug in the unfastening position.
3. An adapter according to claim 2, wherein the manipulation means comprises rack gears which are formed on the fastening -19 -plates along movement directions of the fastening plates, and a pinion gear which is meshed with the rack gears and has one end that is exposed to an outside of the adapter body to be rotatingly manipulated from the outside.
4. An adapter according to claim 3, further comprising: linear guide means for linearly moving the fastening member between the fastening position and the unfastening position.
5. An adapter according to claim 3 or 4, wherein a fastening cap is coupled to an upper end of the pinion gear to support upper ends of the fastening plates, and is brought into close contact with the adapter body to be prevented from becoming separated when the pinion gear is rotated.
6. An adapter according to any one of claims 3 to 5, further comprising: movement prevention means for preventing the fastening member from moving toward the unfastening position from the fastening position without manipulation of the manipulation means.
7. An adapter according to claim 6, wherein the movement prevention means comprises a protrusion which is formed on the -20 -fastening plate and a depression which is defined on the adapter body, such that the protrusion of the fastening plate can be engaged into the depression.
8. An adapter including an adapter body which has a plug insertion opening, terminals which are provided in the adapter body and form connections with terminals of a plug, and adapter terminals which project out of the adapter body and are connected with the terminals provided in the adapter body, the adapter substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.