US3624592A

US3624592A - Hot stick operable connector for attachment to and detachment from a high-voltage conductor

Info

Publication number: US3624592A
Application number: US852343A
Authority: US
Inventors: Louis M Walter
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1969-08-22
Filing date: 1969-08-22
Publication date: 1971-11-30
Anticipated expiration: 1988-11-30

Abstract

There is disclosed a connector which may be attached to or detached from a bare high-voltage conductor through the use of a ''''hot stick'''' which is manually operable by an electrician but which insulates the electrician from the conductor. The connector includes a shank member and a first leg member which are fixedly secured to each other to form an inverted V-shaped hook. A second leg is pivoted to, and at the throat of, the hook by a cross pin carried by the shank member and the first leg. A compression spring urges the second leg away from the first leg to form a normally open hook. The second leg is movable toward the first leg by a lever-operated cam which is pivoted to, and carried by, the shank member. The means to operate the lever of said leveroperated cam means includes a carriage mounted for travel on said shank member, a spring member connected as an extension of said lever, and a roller on said carriage traveling on an end portion of said spring.

Description

Unite States Patent inventor Louis M. Walter 16709 Highway 99, Lynnwood, Wash. 98036 Appl. No. 852,343

Filed Aug. 22, 1969 Patented Nov. 30, 1971 HOT STICK OPERABLE CONNECTOR FOR ATTACHMENT TO AND DETACHMENT FROM A HIGH-VOLTAGE CONDUCTOR 10 Claims, 6 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl 339/109, 339/266 L lnt.Cl H01r 11/14 Field of Search 339/109, 108. 264, 266; 24/249 LL References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1.603.035 10/1926 Evans 339/264 X 8/1941 Johnson 339/264 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,274,998 9/1961 France sa /109 870,714 3/1953 Germany 339/109 Primary Examiner-Richard E. Moore AuomeyThomas W. Secrest ABSTRACT: There is disclosed a connector which may be attached to or detached from a bare high-voltage conductor through the use ofa hot stick" which is manually operable by an electrician but which insulates the electrician from the conductor. The connector includes a shank member and a first leg member which are fixedly secured to each other to form an inverted V-shaped hook. A second leg is pivoted to. and at the throat of. the hook by a cross pin carried by the shank member and the first leg. A compression spring urges the second leg away from the first leg to form a normally open hook. The second leg is movable toward the first leg by a lever-operated cam which is pivoted to. and carried by. the shank member. The means to operate the lever of said lever-operated cam means includes a carriage mounted for travel on said shank member, a spring member connected as an extension of said lever, and a roller on said carriage traveling on an end portion of said spring.

PATENTEUNBVBOIHYI 3.624.592

SHEET 1 UF 2 INVENTOR. 00015 /1. Lia/t PATENTED nnvsolsn 3,624,592

sum 2 or 2 INVENTOR. low/s M. Wan/fer HOT STICK OPERABLE CONNECTOR FOR ATTACHMENT TO AND DETACHMENT FROM A HIGH- VOLTAGE CONDUCTOR This invention relates to a hot stick operated connector for attachment and detachment from a conductor on which is imposed a relatively high-voltage electrical current.

In connection with the commercial distribution of electrical light and power, the load has been constantly increasing and this, not only due to our increasing population, but to the ever increasing use of more and varied appliances and devices which are electrically powered. With this ever increasing load, most commercial electrical power systems have or are now reaching maximum-load conditions. As substantially all public utilities now distribute alternating electrical current, all systems employ transformers. All of the transformers employed in a system should be live and operable or the remaining transformers must carry that much more load and often must carry loads created by an improperly functioning transfonner. Thus, there is now a very great need for connectors which may be used so that a transformer can be installed or removed and this while the system is hot," or the primary winding of a transformer or the secondary winding thereof are also hot.

Up to certain voltage levels, it is reasonably safe for trained electricians to install a transformer or to remove it from hot wires and to touch the wires in such work. Often 4,500 volts is considered the maximum voltage on which electricians may safely, and often, legally, touch the wires in connection with such work. As the total load capacity increases in our various public utilities, it is now common usage to increase the primary voltage throughout the system and thus there are now many transformers used in public utilities which have voltages impressed thereon which exceed the voltages where the electricians can work on the wires by directly contacting the wires with their hands. In connection with reference to touching the wires with their hands, of course, many. times electricians will use insulated gloves but still the above voltages are considered the maximum which the electricians may touch even though they may be wearing gloves.

Also, in present day activities, it is expected that the electricity will be delivered 24 hours a day and that the electrical appliances which have been and are being installed are of a type and of a purpose that it would cause serious difficulties to have any interruptions in the electrical service except those which are positively unavoidable.

There is now a recognized need for. electrical connectors which are certain, safe and efficient and which may be employed to attach or detach electrical conductors having impressed voltages thereon far too high for the electricians to touch the wires and which connectors must be remotely manipulated by an electrician through a conventional hot stick.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a connector comprising a shank member and a first leg member fixed thereto, forming therebetween an inverted V-shaped hook. In connection with such hook, a second leg member is disposed parallel to the shank member and has one end portion ivotally connected to the throat of the hook and the other end portion free to move toward and away from the first leg member.

Another object is to provide a lever-operated cam to urge said second leg toward said first leg and forcibly engage a bare electrical conductor between said legs.

Another object is to provide a spring member as a part of the lever operating said cam so that a resilient force is applied between said legs and against a bare conductor therebetween.

Another object is to provide a carriage, movable along said shank member and in moving operates said lever-operated cam to move the legs of said V-shaped hook toward each other to forcibly engage a bare electrical conductor and to remove said legs away from each other to permit said V- shaped hook to be removed.

Other objects of this invention will become explicit or implicit as the description proceeds in connection with the accompanying drawings. throughout which like reference numerals indicate like parts and wherein:

FIG. I is an elevational view of a device of this invention, and showing in phantom an electrician's hot stick and a transformer with one of the plurality of leads or conductors extending therefrom;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged elevational view of parts shown in FIG. 1 and with some parts fragmentarily shown;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view, with parts shown in plan, and taken substantially on broken line 3--3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 2 and shows positions the parts will assume after attaching the device to a high-voltage conductor and as the hot stick is being removed;

FIG. 5 is an elevational view taken substantially at right angles to the showing in FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a sectional view with parts in plan and taken substantially on broken line 66 to FIG. 4.

In the drawings there is illustrated a transformer I0 and one high-voltage flexible conductor 12 extending therefrom by way of example. Obviously, there are a plurality of primary and a plurality of secondary conductors extending from any transformer commonly used in connection with the distribution of electrical light and power and often many of the primary conductors are of a voltage too high to be worked hot directly by electricians. However, on many such voltages, an electrician may hold and operate a rod commonly called a hot stick.

Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional hot stick is illustrated and comprises an outer rod 14 made of electrical insulation material having an internally disposed slidingly mounted inner rod 16, also formed of electrical insulation material. A handgrasp portion 18 is connected with the inner rod 16 and is slidable on the outer rod 14. By holding the outer rod 14 with one hand and by sliding handgrip portion 18 with the other hand, the inner rod 16 may be caused to slide in either direction relative to the outer rod 14. The inner rod 16 carries at its normally upper end portion a pair of spring-loaded

claw members

20 and 22, which are preferably formed of metal for wear resistance. A sleeve 24, preferably made of electrical insulation material, is connected to the normal upper end portion of the outer rod 14. Within sleeve 24 is a collar 26, see FIGS. 1, 2, and 6, which is grooved to provide passageways for the

claw members

20 and 22 to slide lengthwise of the outer rod 14 and sleeve 24 and without turning. Also, the collar 26 is preferably formed of metal for wear resistance. Due to the fact that the

claw members

20 and 22 are spring loaded and also because of their relative size to the size of the central opening in the collar 26 in which they slide, they can be pulled into the collar 26 and a closed eye ring formed as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and they may be moved out of the collar 26 and the eye is open or broken as shown in FIG. 4. As indicated, hot sticks are old in the art and they provide an eye ring at one end portion thereof, which may be opened and closed from the opposite end portion thereof and at a remote electrically insulated location. Also, said eye fonned by said

claw members

20, 22, provides a rigid and nonflexible connection between the rod 14, I6 and an eye plate 26 (FIGS. 2 and 5) rigidly carried by a carriage 46.

The flexible conductor 12 has one end portion connected with a high-voltage winding in transformer 10 and the other end portion is connected to a connector 30 carried by the Shank member 32. The connector 30 is shown as the detachable type and thus may be connected or disconnected from the conductor 12. The shank member 32 has rigidly connected thereto a first leg member 34 and they are angularly disposed to each other so that they form an inverted V-shaped hook having a throat 36. A second leg member 38 is disposed between the shank member 32 and the first leg member 34 and the normal upper end portion of said second leg 38 is connected to the V-shaped hook at the said throat 36, while the other end portion of said second leg 38 is free to move toward and away from the first leg member 34. A preferred way of connecting said one end portion of said second leg 38 is by a pin 40 fixed in the shank member 32 and in the first leg 34 and the said pin 40 slidably mounts the second leg 38 through an opening in said second leg 38. There should be ample clearance in said sliding connection so that said second leg 38 pivots about the pin 40 and with its free end portion movable toward and away from the shank member 32. Also, the second leg 38 is relatively wide, as shown in FIG. 5, and its upper end fits rather closely to the throat 36, as shown in FIG. 2, and thus the said second leg 38 has restricted turning movement in a plane at right angles to the axis of pin 40. Also, the second leg 38 is urged toward the shank member 32 by compression coil spring 42 coiled about pin 40 and thus there is spring loading of the second leg member 38 tending to move the same away from the first leg 34.

In use, the claw members and 22 of the hot stick are moved to the open position shown in FIG. 4 of the drawings. The conductor 12 and the parts connected therewith may be hot because the secondary wires or other primary wires are connected and the voltage is too high to be handled by an electrician except through the use of a hot stick. Then the claws are moved into position and the grasp portion 18 and the outer rod 14 are manipulated so that the

claw members

20 and 22 are closed upon and firmly grasp the eye plate 28. Then through the

rod

14, 16, the inverted V-shaped hook (formed by the first leg 34 and the movable second leg 38) is hooked over live conductor 44 and the parts assume the positions shown in FIG. 2. The eye plate 28 is rigidly carried by a carriage 46 formed from spaced-apart plates and

rollers

48, 50 and 52.

Rollers

48 and 50 travel on shank member 32 with the roller 48 on one side thereof and the roller 50 on the opposite side thereof.

A lever-operated cam means comprises a cam portion 54 disposed behind second leg 38, a lever 56, and a fulcrum bolt 58 secured to shank member 32. A coil spring 60 has one end portion thereof rigid with the lever 56 and forms an extension thereof. The other end portion 64 of said spring 60 forms a trackway on which roller 52 of carriage 46 travels.

When the parts are in the position shown in FIG. 2, then the hot stick (including the sleeve 24 shown in this FIG.) ismoved downwardly causing the carriage 46 to move downwardly on shank member 32 (the

rollers

48 and 50 providing for guided travel with a minimum of friction). At the same time, the roller 52 causes the other end portion 64 of the spring 60 to move downwardly which in turn causes the lever 56 to turn on its fulcrum bolt 58 and the cam portion 54 moves the lower end portion of the second leg 38 toward the first leg 34. After the parts (excepting the parts of the hot stick) are moved to the various positions shown in FIG. 4 of the drawings, the grasp portion 18 of the hot stick is moved relative to the outer rod 14 thereof so the

claws

20, 22 open to the position shown in FIG. 4 and the hot stick is thereby disconnected from the eye plate 28 and parts connected therewith. In this position, the carriage 46 holds the end portion 64 of the spring 60 as shown in the drawings and thus the cam portion 54 holds the second leg 38 yieldingly toward the first leg 34 and provides a resilient pressure against the bare conductor 44 disposed between the second leg 38 and the first leg 34. The conductor 44, held between said

legs

38 and 34, is prevented from being squeezed out of the vise so formed between the legs by the serrations 68 on the first leg 34.

To remove a connector, comprising shank member 32 and first and

second legs

34 and 38 from a conductor 44, it is only necessary to reverse the process just described and in general, the grasp portion 18 and the outer rod 14 are manipulated so at to close the eye from

claw members

20, 22 on the eye of the eye plate 28. Thereafter, the hot stick and the carriage 46 are moved upwardly which moves the lever 56 to a position to move the cam portion 54 away from the second leg 38 and said leg 38 is urged by spring 42 away from the first leg 34. Continued upward movement unhooks the hook formed by the first and

second leg

34, 38 from the conductor 44.

It will now be apparent that there is provided a connector attachable to and detachable from a bare high-voltage con- Lil ductor 44 comprising a shank member 32 and a first leg member 34 fixedly secured thereto and forming therebetween and inverted V-shaped hook. The second leg member 38 is disposed between the shank member 32 and the first leg member 34 and the second leg member 38 is'connected at one end portion thereof to the throat of the hook by a pin 40 and the other end of said second leg member 38 is free to move toward and away from the first leg member 34. The second leg member is urged by spring 42 away from the first leg member 34 so that a normally open hook is provided to receive therein a bare high-voltage conductor 44. A lever 56 is pivoted on shank member 32 by fulcrum bolt 58 and cam portion 54 urges the second leg 38 toward the first leg member 34 when the lever 56 is turned in the appropriate direction. The serrations 68 on the first leg member 34 prevent a conductor 44 from being squeezed out of the hook. The lever operating means connected with the lever 56 comprises spring 60 and

end portions

62, 64 and carriage 46 mounted for traveling movement on shank member 32 and having a roller 52 which engages the other end portion 64 of the spring 60 functioning as a track on which said roller 52 travels. Thus, the operating means for levers 56 comprises a

spring

60, 62, 64 and carriage 46 mounted for travel on the shank member 32. The connector is readily operated for attachment of or detachment from a bare high-voltage conductor 44 by a conventional hot stick.

Obviously, changes may be made in the forms, dimensions, and arrangements of the parts of this invention without departing from the principle thereof, the above setting forth only preferred forms of embodiment of this invention.

I claim:

1. A connector attachable to and detachable from a bare high-voltage conductor comprising, a shank member and a first leg member fixed thereto forming an inverted V-shaped hook; a second leg member disposed between said shank member and said first leg member, connected at one end portion thereof with the throat portion of said hook, and having the other end portion thereof free to move toward said first leg member, said second leg member being spaced from said first leg member to snugly receive therebetween a bare high-voltage conductor; lever-operated cam means carried by said shank member, the cam portion thereof being positioned to move the said other end portion of the second leg member toward said first leg member and against any conductor adjacent thereto; and lever operating means connected with a lever portion of said lever-operated cam means shaped for engagement and operation by an electrician s hot stick.

2. The combination of claim 1, wherein the connection between the second leg member and said hook comprises a pin extending between said first leg member and said shank member, and resilient means urging the second leg member toward said shank member.

3. The combination of claim 2, wherein said resilient means comprises a compression spring.

4. The combination of claim 1, wherein said lever operating means includes a spring member.

5. The combination of claim 1, wherein said lever operating means includes therein a carriage mounted for travel on said shank member.

6. The combination of claim 5, wherein the lever portion of said lever-operated cam means carries a track member and said carriage comprises rollers contacting opposite surfaces of said shank member and a third roller contacting said track member.

7. The combination of claim 6, wherein said track member comprises a spring member.

8. The combination of claim 7, wherein said spring member comprises a coil spring having two end portions extending therefrom, one of which is secured to the lever-operated cam means and the other of which forms said track member.

9. The combination of claim 5, wherein the lever operating means connected with the lever portion of said lever-operated cam means, for engagement by an electrician a hot stick, comprises an eye member rigidly secured to said carriage.

10. A connector for making a connection with a bare highvoltage conductor and with a second conductor, said connector comprising:

a. an integral shank member and a first leg member;

b said shank member and said first leg member defining a generally V-shaped hook having a throat portion;

c. a connector means on said shank for connecting said shank to said second conductor;

d. said shank member and said first leg member being conductors of electricity;

e. a second leg member positioned between said shank member and said first leg member;

f. said second leg member connected at one end in said throat portion;

g. the other end of said second leg member being free to move with respect to said first leg member;

h. said second leg member being spaced from said first leg member to receive therebetween said bare high-voltage connector;

i. a cam rotatably positioned on said shank member;

j. said cam juxtapositioned with respect to said second leg member to move said other end of said second leg member toward said first leg member and against said bare high-voltage conductor; and,

k. a lever operating means connecting with said cam for rotating said cam to move said second leg member.

Claims

1. A connector attachable to and detachable from a bare highvoltage conductor comprising, a shank member and a first leg member fixed thereto forming an inverteD V-shaped hook; a second leg member disposed between said shank member and said first leg member, connected at one end portion thereof with the throat portion of said hook, and having the other end portion thereof free to move toward said first leg member, said second leg member being spaced from said first leg member to snugly receive therebetween a bare high-voltage conductor; lever-operated cam means carried by said shank member, the cam portion thereof being positioned to move the said other end portion of the second leg member toward said first leg member and against any conductor adjacent thereto; and lever operating means connected with a lever portion of said lever-operated cam means shaped for engagement and operation by an electrician''s hot stick.

9. The combination of claim 5, wherein the lever operating means connected with the lever portion of said lever-operated cam means, for engagement by an electrician''s hot stick, comprises an eye member rigidly secured to said carriage.

10. A connector for making a connection with a bare high-voltage conductor and with a second conductor, said connector comprising: a. an integral shank member and a first leg member; b. said shank member and said first leg member defining a generally V-shaped hook having a throat portion; c. a connector means on said shank for connecting said shank to said second conductor; d. said shank member and said first leg member being conductors of electricity; e. a second leg member positioned between said shank member and said first leg member; f. said second leg member connected at one end in said throat portion; g. the other end of said second leg member being free to move with respect to said first leg member; h. said second leg member being spaced from said first leg member to receive therebetween said bare high-voltage connector; i. a cam rotatably positioned on said shank member; j. said cam juxtapositioned with respect to said second leg member to move said other end of said second leg member toward said first leg member and against said bare high-voltage conductor; and, k. a lever operating means connecting with said cam for rotating said cam to move said second leg member.