US3017601A

US3017601A - Quadruple convenience outlet

Info

Publication number: US3017601A
Application number: US770995A
Authority: US
Inventors: George B Benander
Original assignee: General Electric Co
Current assignee: General Electric Co
Priority date: 1958-10-31
Filing date: 1958-10-31
Publication date: 1962-01-16
Anticipated expiration: 1979-01-16

Description

Jan. 16, 1962 G. B. BENANDER QUADRUPLE CONVENIENCE OUTLET Filed 001:. 31, 1958 George B. Benah y W 03 A United States Patent 3,017,601 QUADRUPLE CONVENIENCE OUTLET George B. Benander, Oaklawn, R.I., assignor to General Electric Company, a New York corporation Filed Oct. 31, 1958, Ser. No. 770,995 1 Claim. (Cl. 339-157) -'-The present invention relates to an electrical outlet and particularly a quadruple convenience outlet that may be used with the faceplate for a duplex convenience outlet.

. In the home, and especially in older homes with inadequate wiring, it oftentimes happens that a duplex convenience outlet is not able to handle all of the lamps, clocks, radios and television sets which are dependent on the outlet as a source of power. Cube taps are available to plug into the outlet for increasing the number of electrical devices that may be serviced from the outlet. This usually results in a grotesque tangle of cords that extend in all directions and create quite an eyesore on the surface of the wall.

. Multiple convenience'outlets are also available that handle as many as three and possibly five plugs simultaneously. In all cases, however, these multiple outlets require a special faceplate which is either an integral part of the outlet or must be sold with the outlet since it is a custom faceplate for that particular outlet only.

A principal object of the present invention is to provide a quadruple convenience outlet that may be used with a standard faceplate for a duplex convenience outlet.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a novel contact structure for a multiple convenience outlet that also utilizes an edgewise wiping action against the prongs of an attachment plug.

The convenience outlet of the present invention is a quadruple outlet that has a front face with two groups of slots for receiving the prongs of attachment plugs. Each group of slots has two pairs of slots where each pair of slots are parallel to each other for receiving the parallel prongs of an attachment plug. While I have chosen to illustrate my invention where the contacts are provided with screwless terminals, it should be readily understood by those skilled in this art that this invention could be used with screw terminals without departing from the scope of the invention. The outlet consists of two similar contact strips which are seated edgewise on the bottom wall of the outlet and are provided with a pair of spring fingers for each slot in the front face of the outlet. Each pair of spring fingers has a finger that provides flatwise wiping action against the plug prong while the other finger is arranged perpendicularly to the first finger to provide an edgewise wiping action. Moreover, each end of the contact strip comprises two pairs of spring fingers where the edgewise fingers are connected together and are supported from a looped spring which is mainly situated on the side of the contact strip that is opposite from the edgewise fingers.

My invention will be better understood from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, and its scope will be pointed out in the appended claim.

, FIGURE 1 is a front view of a quadruple convenience outlet embodying the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a right side view of the outlet of FIG- URE 1 showing four attachment plugs connected to the outlet.

FIGURE 3 is a front view of the outlet of FIGURE 1 with the upper half of the front cover broken away to expose the interior of the outlet and illustrate the nature of the two contact strips.

Patented Jan. 16,- 1-962 ice FIGURE 4 is an exploded view of the outlet that best shows the nature of the two contact strips and of the edgewise spring fingers.

Referring in detail to the drawing and in particular to FIGURE 4, there is vshown an outlet having a recessed base 10 of insulating material, a metal mounting strap 11, and a top cover 12 that is also of insulating material. The cover 12 has generally oval-shaped formations 13 at each end which are separated from each other by a flat depressed section 14. These oval-shaped formations 13 have the same configurations as found on a duplex convenience outlet. Accordingly, a standard faceplate for a duplex convenience outlet will fit over this quadruple outlet and will have a screw that can be threaded into the central opening 15 in the cover. Each oval formation 13 has a front face with two pairs of

slots

16 and 17. Hence, as seen in FIGURE 2, four

attachment plugs

18, 19, 20 and 21 may be inserted into the outlet. An opening 22, as seen in FIGURE 3, 'is made in each end of the base 10. The housing of the I outlet is formed by placing the mounting strap 11 in the base 10 and dropping the cover 12 over the base. Then suitable self-tapping screws 23 are inserted through the openings 22 in the base and are threaded into the cover 12. Likewise, the strap 11 has openings 24 which mate with the openings 22 of the base so that the fastening screws 23 also extend through the mounting strap. The strap also includes a tapped opening'25 at its center. This opening cooperates with the opening 15 in the cover for receiving a fastening screw for the faceplate, as is well understood in this art.

The recessed base 10' supports two identical contact strips 28 on its bottom Wall. The contact strips 28 are held in a parallel relation longitudinally of the base by suitable partitions, as is best seen in FIGURE 3. Each contact strip 28 has a central terminal section 29 and contacting

portions

30 and 31 on its opposite ends. The terminal section 29 cooperates with a spring locking member 32 that is best shown in FIGURE 4. This locking member has two resilient tongues 33 which are each adapted to wedge a bare conductor against the terminal portion 29 of the contact strip. The conductors (not shown) are brought in through suitable openings in the bottom wall or back of the base member. The locking member 32 also has an anchoring portion 34 which is supported in opposed grooves 35 in the base, as seen in in FIGURE 3. This type of screwless wire termination is better described in the Benander Patent No. 2,705, 785, which is also assigned to the same assignee as is the present invention. Suitable embossments 36 are made in the terminal section 29 that face the locking tongues 33 of the screwless terminals. The purpose of these embossments is to form a wire-receiving groove or seat which will tend to prevent a wire from sliding along the face of the terminal section 29 when the looking tongues are in engagement with the wires. If provision were not made for these embossment in the terminal section 29, then it might be possible to swing a wire back and forth until the wire would slide out from beneath the locking tongue.

The paramount feature of the present invention is the particular configuration of the contact strips 28. Each contacting

portion

30 and 31 has two pairs of spring fingers 37 and 37', where each pair is adapted to make engagement with a prong of an attachment plug that is inserted through one of the

slots

16 and 17 in the front cover of the outlet. Each pair of spring fingers 37, 37' has a flatwise finger 38 and an edgewise finger 39. The two flatwise elements 38 are joined together at their bottom portions by a connection 40. Likewise, the edgewise fingers 39 are joined together by a connection strip 41 which is in turn resiliently supported by a looped spring section 42. It should be understood after referring to FIGURE 4 that the looped spring 42 extends upwardly and outwardly from the plane of the contact strip as at 43. Then it is bent in a reverse curve 44 until it extends substantially perpendicularly to the plane of the contact strip. The major portion of the looped spring 42 is on one side of the contact strip while the edgewise fingers 39 and their connecting member 41 are disposed on the opposite side of the contact strip. It will be understood that the edgewise fingers 39 and connecting portion 41 are first blanked from the sheet stock at a point above the free ends of the fiatwise fingers 38. Then the rounded edgewise fingers are folded from the ends of the connecting portion 41. Finally, the looped spring 42 is formed until the edgewise fingers 39 are opposed to the spring fingers .38.

Having described above my invention of a novel quadruple convenience outlet, it will be readily understood by those skilled in this art that I have devised a quadruple outlet that can be used with a standard faceplate for a duplex convenience outlet. Novel contact strips have been utilized to their best advantage by aflording a looped spring for each pair of edgewise fingers that make engagement with the prongs of an attachment plug. The configuration of the looped spring is such that when a prong is inserted into the outlet, the spring will be Wound up which, of course, affords a strong wiping action with the plug prongs. Moreover, the insertion of one attachment plug will not loosen the gripping action for an adjacent plug. Instead, it will increase the holding force due to a twisting action in the looped spring. The contact strip has been designed to afford a maximum amount of spring action and long life for the spring fingers of the contacting portions of the contact strips.

Modifications of this invention will occur to those skilled in this art and it is to be understood, therefore, that this invention is not limited to the particular embodiments disclosed but that it is intended to cover all modifications within the true spirit and scope of this invention as claimed.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

A quadruple convenience outlet comprising an insulated housing, and a pair of contact strips positioned in the housing, each contact strip having a pair of attachment blade-receiving portions at each end, each portion having two pairs of spring fingers, one of each pair of spring fingers being arranged edgewise with respect to the other of each pair, the edgewise fingers of each end portion being supported from a spring section having a loop on the side of the contact strip that is opposite the edgewise fingers.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,938,309 Williams Dec. 5, 1933 2,106,588 Benander Jan. 25, 1938 2,143,767 Eichwald Jan. '10, 1939 2,477,952 Benander Aug. 2, 1949 2,488,976 Huppert Nov. 22, 1949 2,609,414 Weisberg Sept. 2, 1952 2,705,785 Benander Apr. 5, 1955 2,724,811 Poupitch Nov. 22, 1955 2,738,482 Benander Mar. 13, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 583,407 Great Britain Dec. 17, 1946