US2215713A - Electrical drop-cord fixture - Google Patents

Description

K c E P H L ELECTRICAL DROP-CORD FIXTURE Fild Dec.

FIG-2 FIG-7 INVENTOR LEE H. PECK BY ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 24, 1940 ELECTRICAL DR-O-P- CORD FIXTURE Leel-l. Peck, Chagrin Falls, Ohio, assignor to Porcelain Products, Inc., Findlay, Ohio, a corporation oi llelaware Application December 12, 1938, Serial No. 245,139

3 Claims.

trical drop-cord fixtures. as by the grommets 16. It will be understood An object of the present invention is to provide that certain of the knock-out portions may proan improved drop-cord fixture comprising a vide openings through which electric wires are minimum number of parts arranged for easy passed and secured by the screws provided to 5 manufacture and assembly and one which is very any of the conductors I5 in the base member. simple to wire up in use. Openings ll through the bottom wall of the base Another object of the invention is to provide member are for attaching the same to a supporta drop-cord fixture formed almost entirely of ing structure. dielectric material which is formed in such a The cover member I8 is preferably a single 10 manner as to require only two simple contact block of dielectric material such as porcelain genparts fitting into pockets in the dielectric to comerally hollow in form having side walls [8a, end plete the device. walls H31) and a bottom wall I80. It will be noted Other objects of the invention comprise the that the side and end walls end in a common design and arrangement of the parts so as to plane and are adapted to engage similar walls 15" carry out the purposes of this invention and will on the base member so that when the two are asbe more apparent from the specification and. sembled as shown in Fig. 4 the parts inside are drawing and the essential features thereof will completely enclosed in dielectric material thus be summarized in the claims. giving a very safe device. A raised portion i9 In the drawing, Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the on the base member engages in a notch 20 in 20. base member of the device; Fig. 2 is a bottom one of the side walls of the cover member so as plan view of the cover portion of the device; Fig. to insure the assembling of the parts in a pre- 3 is a top plan view of the cover member of Fig. determined relation. 2; Fig. i is a central longitudinal section along Portions 2] of dielectric material are arranged lines 4- 1 of Figs. 1 and 2 through the device to receive the contact members for conducting 25 with the cover and base members assembled; Fig. electricity to the drop-cord. Preferably as in the 5 is a portion of the bottom plan View of Fig. 2 form shown these are reinforc ng O partition With the electrical contact members removed; Walls extending between the side walls [811 of Fig. 6 is a sectional View taken along the line 6-43 the cover member and integral therewith. It will of Fig. 5; while Figs. 7 and 8 are two views of a e noted that t e is an Opening 22 p o id d 30 contact member. centrally of the bottom wall I80 to permit the Many of the inventive features of my device entrance of a drop-cord inside the cover memmay be utilized in fixtures designed for different her. The reinforcing walls 2| are spaced o applications and the present embodiment shows n e t e de Of this central Op i g. As most one type which is useful for open wiring and to ear y S w in s- 5 a d 6 there is a pocket 35 this end the device has been made long and nar- 23 in each of the walls 2| which is narrow and row and preferably not over 1% inches in width generally e flar in form so as to admit a, so as to fit over the edge of a 2 x 4 wood n strucmetal plate contact member with a slight amount tural member. of clearance. Two metal contact members are In Figs. 1 and i I have shown a base member required and I have made them exactly alike for 40 it of a type adapted to be used with a plurality ease in manufacture although it will be underof different fixtures and it will be understood stood that they need not c ssarily be alike. As. that the present invention may use this base Shown in Figs- 7 and 3 each C tact member 24: member or any othersuitable base member. In has a flat attaching portion 241% t which is the form shown in Figs. 1 and 4 th b m threaded a screw 25 by which an electric wire 45 her comprises a single block of dielectric material may be Secured thereto. Extending ay from such as porcelain. This block has acentral raised the attaching POTtiQn t an a g e thereto and portion i i and depressed portions I 2 at each end from one Side thereof is a Contact p n 45. thereof, there being the usual knock-out portions These Contact members y e of res lient It in the end walls of the base member or cover 191 50 member, or partly in both as here shown to per- In assembling the parts the attaching p ti n mit the introduction of the Wires of an electric 24a of each (intact m e is inserted in one circuit. The central portion H has a plurality of of the poc e s 3 a means is p ed for inparallel grooves M running lengthwise of the suring the proper assembly of the parts. To this block in which are secured electrical conductors end a slot 26 on one side of the pocket 23 is made 55 This invention relates to improvements in elecl5 which are permanently secured to the block too small to pass the head of the screw 25, while a slot 2! communicating with the pocket on the opposite side is sufiiciently wide to pass the head of the screw. When the parts are assembled in the proper manner as shown in Fig. 2 one of the contact portions 241; will overlie the central conductor I5 in the base and the other contact portion will overlie the right-hand conductor l5 as viewed in Fig. 1. It will be understood that the cover member of Fig. 2 is turned over on top of the base member of Fig. 1 in the assembly operation. The assembled parts are shown in Fig. 4 and are held assembled by bolts 28 which pass through suitable openings in the cover member and enter threaded grommets in the base member. When the parts are so assembled the base member and electrical conductors thereof press against the resilient contact portions 241) pressing the contact members into the bottom of the pockets 23.

It will be seen that I have provided a device having a few number of parts and simple to manufacture and that everything is so arranged that it cannot possibly be assembled in the wrong manner.

What I claim is:

1. A drop-cord fixture comprising a block of dielectric material having a central hollow portion, there being an opening through the lower face of said block to admit an electrical conducting cord, there being two pockets in said block, one on each side of said hollow portion, said pockets being narrow so as to admit a metal plate with slight clearance, metal plate contact members, one for each pocket, each member having a flat attaching portion adapted to fit in one of said pockets and an integral contact portion outside of said pocket, a screw threaded into each attaching portion for securing an electrical conductor thereto, there being a slot adapted to pass the head of said screw communicating with each pocket on one side thereof only whereby each contact member must be assembled in its pocket in a, predetermined manner, a base member secured to said block, and electrical conductors on said base member positioned to engage said contact portions when said base is attached to said block.

2. A drop-cord fixture as in claim 1, wherein said contact members are identical, each having its contact portion extending at an angle from its attaching portion, said contact members and pockets being arranged to space said contact portions transversely of said block, and coacting means on said block and base member insuring assembly so that said conductors engage said contact portions in a predetermined manner.

3. A drop-cord fixture as in claim 1, wherein said contact members are of resilient metal and identical, each having its contact portion extending at an angle from its attaching portion, said contact members and pockets being arranged to space said contact portions transversely of said block, coacting means on said block and base member insuring assembly so that said contact portions engage said conductors in a predetermined manner, and said base member pressing said contact members into the bottoms of said pockets.

LEE H. PECK.

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