US2289169A

US2289169A - Universal insulator

Info

Publication number: US2289169A
Application number: US306686A
Authority: US
Inventors: Barnsteiner Alfons; Edwin H Lockwood
Original assignee: Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Co
Current assignee: CBS Corp
Priority date: 1939-11-29
Filing date: 1939-11-29
Publication date: 1942-07-07
Anticipated expiration: 1959-07-07

Description

A BARNSTEINER ETAL UNIVERSAL INsULAToR Flled Nov 29, 1959 July 7,l 1942.

INVENTQRS J0 ///br/J Barnszewer TTORNEY Patented July 7, 1942 UNTED STATES PATENT OFFICE UNIVERSAL INSUIATOR Application November `29, 1939, Serial No. 306,686

3 Claims.

Our invention relates to insulators and more particularly to universal insulators for use with range structures, or the like.

Ceramic insulators slidably mounted upon suitable supporting fingers, rigidly attached to the rear wall of a range, have heretofore been used for supporting wires for use with electric ranges. These ceramic insulators have been of a wellknown type, with elongated slots located within only two opposite surfaces to afford means of engaging the supporting structures. However, the use of such individual insulators mounted in pairs (as sometimes required) on a supporting structure greatly increases the manufacturing Cost of the present day range, inasmuch as the use of two or more such insulators increases the time required to assemble such range as well as making such structure more diicult to assemble.

In contrast with separate insulators which must be individually mounted upon suitable supporting structures, we propose to use a single insulator capable of supporting two or more electrical wires and inherently capable of being mounted in either of two operating positions. This novel insulator enables a workman to more readily assemble the range structure and at the same time insures a positive, rugged structure.

It is, therefore, an object of our invention to provide a universal insulating member which may be slidably positioned upon a supporting structure in either of two operating positions.

A further object of our invention is to provide an inexpensive, rugged, compact block-shaped insulator having elongated slots formed within the sides and also the ends thereof, substantially parallel to the top and bottom surfaces for cooperating with a suitable supporting structure to rigidly attach such insulator to a range structure, or the like, in either of two significant positions.

Other objects of our invention will either be pointed out specifically in the course of the following description of a device embodying our invention, or will be apparent from such description.

In the accompanying drawing:

Figures l and 2 are partial, sectional and rear views, respectively, of a range illustrating insulating members embodying our invention associated therewith;

Figures 3, 4, and 5 are top, front, and side views, respectively, of the insulating member embodying our invention upon a supporting structure illustrating one of its operative positions;

Figures 6, 7, and 8 are top, front, and side views, respectively, of the insulating device embodying our invention mounted within a second supporting structure illustrating another operating position thereof; and

Figure 9 is a perspective View of the insulatin member embodying our invention.

Referring to the accompanying drawing, in which like reference characters indicate like parts in the several iigu-res, we show a universal insulator Il! removably associated with supports I2 and I4 which may be rigidly attached to the rear cover plate I6 and back splasher I8 of, say, a range structure 20 to support necessary electric wires 22 operatively associated with, say, a switch 24.

The insulating member I0 is a six sided member formed as a rectangular parallel piped with elongated cylindrical apertures 26 extending therethrough. The apertures 2B preferably eX- tend transversely through the member from the top to the bottomsurfaces thereof. Elongated slots 28 are formed within the sides and ends of the member I0 substantially parallel` to the top and bottom surfaces thereof. The slots 28 arel preferably located along the line substantially midway between such top and bottom surfaces and each slot is thus` a continuation of the slots located at each end thereof so as to` form substantially a continuous slot around the insulator. The slots 28 are formed. within the structure or member I0, a distance suitable to afford satisfactory engagement with the supporting structures I2 and I4.

Vertically extending notches 3i! may, if desired, be lformed with in the four corners of the structure IO so as to extend from the top to the bottom surfaces thereof. These notches 30 are located or formed within the structure I0 to afford cooperation with the supporting structures I2 and I4 soas, to enable such structures to more rigidly attach the insulating member thereto, as hereinafter described.

The supporting structure I2 is, in this instance, formed from a single sheet of metal having upwardly extending ngers 32 and a lower supporting portion 34 substantially normal thereto. The fingers 32 are spaced apart such a distance as to permit the` insulator I0 to be slid downwardly therebetween with such fingers being located within the elongated slots 28. The fingers 32 are slightly longer than the insulator I0 to enable the upper ends thereof to be bent backwardly and forwardly upon the insulator. Such bending of the upper portions of the fingers 32 cooperates with the upper edge of the insulator I preventing such insulator from being removed from the supporting structure I2 (see Figures l and 2.) The bent upper portions of ngers 32 are adapted to flt within the corner notches 3E) and to be substantially flush with the top surface of the insulators.

The supporting structure I4 comprises a plurality of fingers 36 and a lower supporting portion 38 formed substantially normal to such fingers. Structure I4 is similar to the supporting structure i2. However, the distance between the ngers 3G is greater than the distance between the fingers 32 of structure I2. The distance between such fingers 36 is substantiallyT equal to the length of the insulator I0 less twice the depth of the elongated slots 28 formed within the ends thereof. The structure I4 is thus adapted to receive and support the insulator Ii) in a horizontal position or in a position with the longitudinal axis oi' the insulator I0 substantially parallel to the support portion 38 of the supporting structure It. The upper ends of ngers 32 extend above the insulator i0 and may likewise be bent over upon the insulator I0 to prevent the removal of such insulator Il) therefrom, as hereinabove described.

When utilizing the supporting structures I2 and I4 with a range structure, the supporting portions 3d and Se, respectively, thereof are rigidly attached to the rear portion of the range structure. rlhe fingers 32 and 3E, respectively, of the structures l2 and I4 extend backwardly substantially normal to the rear surface of the range structure. This enables the insulating members or structures Iii to be mounted substantially normal to the rear surface of the range structure. The apertures 26 extending through the insulators l@ are thus positioned substantially parallel to the rear surface of the range. The necessary wires 22 of the range may then be positioned within the apertures 26 and thus be mounted or located substantially parallel to the rear surface of the range structure.

When wiring the range structure utilizing the insulators embodying our invention after the support brackets I2 and I4 have been rigidly attached thereto, such insulators are positioned within the supporting brackets I2 and I4. The insulators iii, being universal in operation, may be attached to either type of supporting bracket I2 or I4. In other words, the operator merely picks up any insulator a'nd inserts it within the supporting

fingers

32 or 36.. The exact location of the insulator is thus predetermined by the type of bracket previously attached to the range structure at a predetermined position. In other words, the lsupporting members I2 and I4 retain the insulator upon the range structure in any predetermined position.

It is, therefore, obvious that an operator may thus attach insulators to the surface of the range structure or the like without paying any particular attention to the general location or arrangement desired, inasmuch as the supporting brackets to receive such insulators have been predeterminedly attached to such structure. The electric wires used on the range struc-` ture and operatively associated with the heating elements and switch 24 are thus inserted through the apertures 26 without any special regard to the relative position -of such insulators.

Various modications may be made in the Cil device embodying our invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, and we desire, therefore, that only such limitations shall be placed thereon as are imposed by the prior art and the appended claims.

We claim as our invention:

1. A universal insulator comprising a rectangular parallelepiped block of insulating material having a plurality of apertures extending through the block from top to bottom thereof for supporting conductors, said block having a pair of spaced apart longitudinally extending shoulders formed .only on the opposite sides and ends thereof, said shoulders extending a sufficient distance along the block to thereby dene pairs of parallel grooves on the ends and sides of said block whereby the block may be supported in one position between a pair of spaced supporting members engaged within one pair of grooves, or in another position between another pair of spaced supporting members engaged within the other pair of grooves, the adjacent ends of said shoulders dening a space to receive the ends of said supporting members when the ends are bent over into locking position.

2. The combination with U-shaped supporting members having different spacing between the arms of the members, of a universal insulator block having the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped, said block having means for supporting conductors, and having a pair of spaced apart longitudinally extending shoulders formed on opposite sides and ends thereof, said shoulders extending a sufficient distance along the block to thereby dene pairs of parallel grooves on the ends and sides of said block, said grooves being adapted to slidably engage selectively the spaced arms of either of said supporting members whereby the block may be supported on one of said members with the cord supporting means in one position and on another of said members with the cord supporting means in another position, said shoulders also defining notches at the intersecting edges of the sides and ends of the block into whi-ch the ends of said supporting arms may be bent to thereby retain said insulator in position on the supporting member.

3. The combination with U-shaped supporting members having diierent spacing between the arms of the members, of a universal insulator block having the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped, said block having apertures extending therethrough from top to bottom for supporting conductors, and having a pair of spaced-apart longitudinally extending shoulders formed only on opposite sides and ends thereof, said shoulders extending a suflicient distance along the block to thereby dene pairs of parallel grooves on the ends and sides of said block, said grooves being adapted to slidably engage selectively the spaced arms of either of said supporting members whereby the block may be supported on one of said members with the apertures in one position and on another of said members with the apertures in another position, said shoulders also defining notches at the intersecting edges of the sides and ends of the block, into which the ends of said supporting arms may be bent to thereby retain said insulator in position on the supporting member.

ALFONS BARNSTEINER. EDWIN LOCKWOOD.