US1660556A - Detachable terminal connection for electric stove elements - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 28, 1928.

' J. M c. GUNN DETACHABLE TERMINAL CONNECTION FOR ELECTRIC STOVE ELEMENTS Filed July 14. 1925 v 4 JOAH M fi/al I I Patented Feb. 1928. I

UNITED STATES 1,660,556 PATENT OFFICE.

- JOHN MCCLARY GUNN, OF LONDON, ONTARIO, CANADA, ASSIGNOR TO THE MGOLABY V MANUFACTURING CO.

OF LONDON, CANADA.

DETAOHABLE TERMINAL CONNECTION FOB ELECTRIC STOVE ELEMENTS.

Application filed July 14, 1925. Serial No. 43,653.

sists in the arrangement of contacts on the heater element adapted to engage fixed contacts arranged in the stove structure.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical,

' sectional viewthrough a heater element of a stove showing the improved arrangement of electrical contacts.

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 showing the heater elementpartly removed. Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view through the electrical connections for the heater element, taken on'the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is an underside plan view of the contact member carried by the heating element.

Figure 5 is a plan 'view of a socket member of the connector.

It has been the common practice in the manufacture of electric stoves to connect the electric elements directlyto terminal wires from the controlling switches and as .the eleinents are set to t e stove top, the handling of such wiring is more or less diflicult and the connection to the element is usually made by flexible wires to allow the contacts to be stove top.

According to the present invention-the electric heating element is not directly connected by the wiring but .a contact block-1 is located in the permanent structure of the stove, it being here shown arranged within a pocket 2 formed in the underside of the element holding pan 3 secured to the underside of the stove top'4.

The block 1 is here shown provided with longitudinal flanges 5 which rest upon the ledge of the pocket 2 and uponthe flange holding strip 6at the opposite side. The block is provided with end lugs 7 formed with longitudinal slots 8 and itis secured in the pocket 2 by bolts 9.

The top surface of the block 1 is preferably convexed and is provided with an arrangement of parallel recesses 10. These recesses are connected by slots 11 with recesses secured before the element is placediiito the 12 in the bottom side and the bottom plates 13 of the spring contacts 14 are secured in the bottom recesses by the bolts 15, while the contacts 14 extend upwardly through the slots 11 into the recesses 10.

The bolts 15 arev rigidly secured to the proper electrical terminals and as the block 1 is a fixture, these connections can be made permanent.

The electric element 16 which may be of any suitable design is here shown with its bottom plate 17 provided with an opening 18 in which is located an insulating block 19. This block is provided with a pair of end lugs 20 having longitudinal slots 21 therein through which bolts 22 extend to adjustably secure the block in position on the element.

The block is providedwith a plurality of recesses 23 which correspond with the re cesses 10 in the block 1 and in each of these recesses 23 is secured a contact plate 24 which is preferably a flat sheet of metal hava ing an arc-shaped outer edge and which is bent over and secured rigidly to the block by the bolt 25. Each bolt is connected at its inner end to the required connection of the v enter the recesses 10 inthe block 1 and to engage the spring contacts 14.

-The extreme ends of the spring contacts are war the walls of the recesses 10 to effect the proper guiding influence to the contact plates 24, thus ensuring a proper contact by preventing the contact lates 24 from entering between the wall of the slot and the contacts which would result in a poor connection and cause arcing.

The concaved shape of the block 1 is designed so that the contact plates 24 may readily enter the recesses 10 from the side of the block and both the plate and the contact will be visible from the top of the stove in looking through the opening where the element is to rest.-

It is an important feature that the contacts should be visible when an element is being placed in position to ensure the proper location of the contacts and to enable the person making the assembly to see that such proper connection is effected, and that the parts are not injured.

(preferably bent or flared outwardly to- With a contact such as described the socket member is rigidly secured in the stove Structure and the plate contact is rigidly secured in the element structure, both being positively connected with their respective electrical connections without undue restriction in regard to access, that is to say, the

and requiring to be replaced, it is merely necessary to lift it out and replace it. No Wires have to be disconnected, no nutsor bolts have to be unfastened. The plates merely-slip out of the spring finger contacts and removal is effected.

The applicant is fully aware that electric elements having rigid contacts adapted to engage fixed contact connections are not in themselves new, as this arrangement may be made in many forms of devices, but he claims as new, the combination with a heating element of a stove adapted to fit into an opening in the stove top, of a readily detachable electrical connection.

What I claim as my invention is 1. An electric stove having a recess in the top, an insulating block arranged in the bottom of said recess immediately adjacent one side thereof. and having a convexed top, narrow recesses in said block extending downwardly from said convexed top, flat electric spring terminals arranged in each of the recesses in the top of said block and having their outer ends flared toward the adjacent wall of said recesses, wiring permanently connected to said electrical terminals, a removable heating element adapted to fit into the recess in the stove top, an insulating block secured in the underside of said element, a group of flat electric contacts extending downwardly from said insulating block and being permanently connected to the electric resistance and adapted to enter said recesses and engage the contactsin the block arranged at the bottom of said'recess, such engagement being accomplished prior to the final-positioning of said removable heating element.

2. The combination with an electric heating element and a stove top having an opening to receive said element, of a pan arranged under said opening and secured to the stove top and adapted to enclose the element therebelow said pan having an opening in the bottom thereof leading from the centre outwardly to adjacent the outer edge, a pocket arranged at the outer side of said pan and extending below the opening in the pan bottom, a contact block 1 arranged in said pocket having contact terminals extending upward in alignment with said bottom opening, contact terminals mounted on said heating element and adapted to extend through said bottom opening and engage the contacts therebelow, said pocket having an opening in the inner wall thereof in register with the bottom opening of the pan, said registering openings afiording a clear View of the contact terminals when being engaged.

3. In an electric stove having a recess in the top to receive the heating element, the combination with the heating element, of a block of insulating material secured to the bottom of said element at one side thereof having a plurality of rectangular recesses in the bottom side, a contact plate arranged in each of said recesses formed of'a flat sheet of metal havin a flanged edge, bolts inserted through the block securing the flanged edges of said plates rigidly against the upper side of said recesses with the free edges of said plates projecting below the block, a block of insulating material fixedly secured in the recess in the stove top and having a plurality of parallelly arranged recesses and slots opening through said recesses, and spring contacts secured to the bottom of said fixed insulating block and extending upwardly through'the slots therein and projecting into recesses in the top thereof.

' JOHN MQCLARY GUNN.

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