|Publication number||US7179993 B2|
|Application number||US 11/362,401|
|Publication date||Feb 20, 2007|
|Filing date||Feb 24, 2006|
|Priority date||Sep 9, 2002|
|Also published as||US6929140, US7019211, US20040045960, US20050217887, US20060175072, US20070102181, WO2004023616A2, WO2004023616A3|
|Publication number||11362401, 362401, US 7179993 B2, US 7179993B2, US-B2-7179993, US7179993 B2, US7179993B2|
|Inventors||Frank P. Rose|
|Original Assignee||Rose Frank P|
|Export Citation||BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan|
|Patent Citations (58), Referenced by (6), Classifications (17), Legal Events (4)|
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet|
The present application which is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/139,381 filed May 27, 2005, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,019,211 issued on Mar. 28, 2006 which is a Continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 10/237,635 filed Sep. 9, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,929,140 issued on Aug. 16, 2005, each of which is expressly incorporated by reference.
The present invention relates generally to an apparatus and method for securing cables, wires conduits, and junction boxes within a wall cavity and more particularly junction boxes for terminating electrical circuits on the surfaces of walls, floors, ceilings, or equipment enclosures for both high and low voltage circuits.
Electrical junction boxes, also sometimes referred to as outlet boxes, have been used since the advent of electricity in high voltage circuit applications and later with the advent of the telephone in low voltage applications. These boxes are generally mounted with the front side of the box positioned flush with the installed wall covering material and include fittings for attaching a wall plate, switches, plugs, connectors, and electrical/electronic devices to the box. The box also provides a means for connection of cables and conduits within the box or termination of cables to apparatus mounted within the box.
The use and design of junction boxes has progressed as technology has changed and as new applications were needed. With these advances, several products became available that solved each application related problem individually while requiring, in some cases, a multitude of boxes. With these varying designs many problems persist, and limited use of special features precludes production of the units in high volume thereby increasing manufacturing and end-user costs. Further, these and other problems persist resulting in unwieldy inventories for manufacturers, distributors, suppliers and installers alike. In addition, the units provided for sale often lack the most efficient design due to an attempt to provide a product, which has a more general application but, in many cases, doesn't solve any particular application well. For example, current boxes each must be mounted in a particular way due to their uni-functional design that requires the box be oriented a particular way to allow the mounting features to be effective.
Low voltage cables tend to be more fragile than high voltage cables. Because of on-going technology advancements and the need to increase bandwidth capacity of low voltage cables, low voltage cables are becoming even more fragile than previous cables. In order to prevent loss of bandwidth capacity, kinking or excessive bending of these cables should be avoided. When installing low voltage circuits, the current practice is for installers to cut the back off a standard high voltage electrical junction box. The new opening allows the necessary bending radii for the low voltage cables and, also, allows the mounting of low voltage apparatus, which often fills all of the space inside the junction box. The edges of standard electrical junction boxes can damage fragile cables when they are pulled through the openings. Installers usually do not have enough room inside standard junction boxes to coil multiple cables during the wall installation phase of construction. The aforementioned installation approach does not provide adequate protection or a neat method for holding the cables in place. Consequently, the cables stored in such a cramped, unorganized fashion are subject to damage after they are installed prior to completion of the construction phase. Further, the current practice does not provide a convenient way to secure an extra long service loop, which would allow easy connection of very small, intricate terminating devices.
High voltage cables commonly used for 120-volt outlets and lighting circuits range from two #14 conductors with a ground wire to three #12 conductors with a ground wire. As a result, the cable diameter between the two extremes can vary by as much as three times in size. Junction boxes are used to connect the circuits and mount electrical terminating devices such as outlets, switches and lighting fixtures. To facilitate these circuits, multiple openings for the cables to enter the box are required and because of limited space within the box, each opening is sized to accommodate both cable size extremes.
Methods for securing these cables within the junction box are determined by the National Electric Code (NEC). The NEC requires high voltage cables to be anchored no greater than four inches from junction boxes without a cable-securing device and 8 inches when a cable-securing device is provided. In applying these codes, multiple gang and wall boards mounted junction boxes would normally require a cable-securing device to anchor the cable would be more than 4 inches away, whereas a single junction box mounted to a framing structure is within four inches. Underwriting Laboratory (UL) certification testing for the securing device is also required. The UL test for the securing device requires the cable entering the bottom of the box to be subjected to a direct vertical pull of 25 pounds for 5 minutes in a conditioned environment of minus 20 degrees centigrade without damage to the cable sheath or conductors and a displacement of the cable of more than ⅛ inch.
Although high voltage cables tend to be more robust than low voltage cable because of the cable sheaths and wire insulation used, they can be subjected to damage when placed in the junction box. The current art available either provides no anchoring devices with an opening sized for the largest cables or provides inadequate clamping designs. The clamping designs either provide insufficient clamping of the smaller cables or provide too much clamping for the larger cables potentially damaging the cable and making it difficult pulling any size cable into the box difficult.
As a result of these and other problems there is a need for a universal junction box that includes a cable-securing device with the capability to handle both low voltage and high voltage cable in a safe and effective manner. A universal junction box is needed that can be easily mounted in a multitude of environments and orientations and reduces wall clutter while making efficient use of the available wall space. The universal junction box of the present invention increases the ease of installation by allowing easy mounting in many places and provides sufficient anchoring of all sizes of cables and commonly used flexible conduits while not causing damage to any of them. This invention reduces costs while producing installation efficiencies and reducing junction box inventories.
In accordance with the invention, a universal junction box for low and high voltage cable that allows easy installation. The universal junction box has a body with a continuous peripheral wall having an internal and an external side such that the external side encompasses a mounting tab including a frangible seam, a slanted fastening aperture and a mounting aperture, and the internal side including an integral fastening lug, the fastening lug defining a cylindrical fastener-engaging cavity dispersed within the interior of the peripheral wall.
In the detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention presented below, reference is made to the accompanying drawings in which;
The present description will be directed in particular to elements forming a part of, or in cooperation more directly with, the apparatus and method in accordance with the present invention. It is understood that elements not specifically shown or described may take various forms well known to those skilled in the art. Referring now to the drawings where like reference numerals represent similar or corresponding parts throughout several views.
The universal junction box (10) includes a continuous peripheral wall (12) with an internal side (14) and an external side (16) and at least one planar facet (18). The box (10) generally has a rectangular body (20) having a top (22), a first side (24), a bottom (26), and a second side (28). The box (10) defining a front opening (29) and a planar facet or back (30) that can include a back portion (31) so that the back may be open or closed as needed. In some instances, such as high voltage applications, the back portion (31) would be closed to accommodate the required safety features for high voltage applications. In other situations, such as in low voltage applications, the back of the box would be open to allow additional accessibility.
The internal wall (14) may include an integral fastening lug (32) defining a fastening cavity (34), such as a cylindrical fastener-engaging cavity. The top and bottom (22, 26) of the body (20) includes the integral fastening lug defining cavities (34 a, 34 b) into which one or more fasteners (36), such as mounting screws, are inserted through a device or faceplate. The cavities (34 a, 34 b) may be threaded or they may be manufactured in sizes such that insertion of a self-tapping screw will form threads in the cavity, also referred to as a channel. The fasteners (36) secure the device/faceplate to a front planar surface (38) often referred to as a front face (38) of box (10). The device/face plate, also known as a faceplate, can include an electrical cover plate, switch plate, switch, plug, connector, another device such as an electrical device and another universal box or portion of one, such as a front extension.
Also shown in
This alignment feature provides for greater stability than is currently the practice while the box (10) is being attached because the alignment tabs (41 a, 41 b) are sufficient distance apart to prevent the junction box from rocking during installation. There is no need for visual validation of alignment marks that are commonly used on current boxes for this purpose. There are other mounting features shown in
Mounting Aperture Component
An adjustable junction box feature allows for reposition of the box for variations caused by wall material (such as tile) added after installation of the original wallboard. Current designs in the art provide adjustable attachment through an adjustment screw that threads through a steel bracket, which is then attached to the junction box. This type of design involves multiple parts. This adjustable feature allows horizontal adjustment of the box to compensate for the additional depth of new wall covering, thus making the box flush with the new wall covering-material.
The mounting aperture component (42) is located within the first side (24) of box (10) and consists of a first channel (92) terminating at a bulbous aperture (94) and a second parallel channel (96) terminating at a second bulbous aperture (98). Box (10) would be attached by installing fasteners, such as screws (99 a, 99 b) partially into the structural member (43) and then placing the bulbous apertures (94, 98) over the head of screws (99 a, 99 b), respectively, and pushing the box (10) inward so that the screws slide into and along the parallel channels (92, 96). Once the box (10) is in place, screws (99 a, 99 b) would be tightened down.
After the final wall material is installed, screws (99 a, 99 b) would be loosened and the box (10) would be moved forward or backward so that the front face (38) of the body (20) is flush with the wall covering material, after which the screws (99 a, 99 b) can be retightened to secure the box (10) to the structural member (43). To remove box (10) after wall material is installed would encompass loosening screws (99 a, 99 b) slightly and sliding the box (10) forward so that the heads of screws (99 a, 99 b) enter into the space of to the bulbous apertures and tilting the box away from screws (99 a, 99 b) to disengage the box (10) from structural member (43), and then remove the boxes from the wall cavity.
The mounting aperture component (42) allows the box (10) to be easily adjusted without the need to purchase special parts to facilitate this function. The mounting aperture component (42) also allows the box (10) to be easily removed after the wallboard is installed, thereby allowing use of the wall cavity for other purposes. The mounting aperture also allows easy access to cables within the wall cavity.
Current designs in the art provide nail-mounting features on the exterior of the box through various clamping methods to hold the attachment nail in place. Further, these current designs require the nail to be included during the manufacturing process because insertion and removal of the nail is not easily facilitated. The current art has several drawbacks, which include complicated designs requiring additional material to form the nail-clamping device, which adds unnecessary cost for mold tooling and extra material to form the nail-clamping feature.
Wallboard Attachment Component
Current designs in the art provide wallboard attachment through a clamping screw with a narrow-finger that swings-out on the end of the screw to clamp the wallboard between the face of the finger and a flange on the front surface of the box. The current art has several drawbacks, which include a multi-piece design, irregular cutouts in the wallboard to insert and mount the junction box, templates to mark the wallboard cutout, and very little area for stable wallboard surface retention which can cause the junction box to rock within the wallboard cut-out if incorrectly installed.
When attaching the box (10 a) to the smaller size wallboard, the clip (140 a) would not require modification and would be inserted in slots (132, 134). For the larger size wallboard the inside finger (142) would be clipped off with electrical diagonal pliers. Clip (140 a) can be metal or plastic and sold separately. Alternatively, the plastic clip can be molded as a breakaway design attached to the screw mounting tab (40). The clip (140 a) would be installed by placing the angular tip (158) in channel (138) and inserting fingers (142, 144) through slots (132, 134), respectively, causing the clip to engage the wallboard, and then further pushing the clip to fully locked position whereby the notch (156) at the front of the clip (154) snaps into the locking notch (136) to secure the clip (140 a) in place.
The advantages of the wallboard attachment component (130) and clip (140) include: fast and easy insert, push and snap installation of the box (10); an uncomplicated all-plastic design; an unencumbered external frontal surface which allows the front of box itself to serve as the template for marking a simple rectangular cut-out area in the wallboard; and an attachment design which prevents the rocking of the outlet within the cut-out because of the large surface retention area on both sides of the wallboard provided by the clip (140).
Pull String Anchor
There are situations during an electrical installation where there is a need to install and store a pull string which allows cables to be pulled into the junction box at a later date. The current practice is to either coil up or tape the string inside the junction box. In these situations, a device to anchor the pull string would be beneficial to prevent accidental removal of the string prior to future installation of the cable. This feature also provides a method to anchor the string in a secure, permanent fashion, versus the use of tape or other fastener, which could loosen with age.
An advantage of the universal junction box (10) with the pull string anchor (130) includes being able to anchor a cable pull string and prevent accidental removal of the string prior to future installation of the cable. It also provides a method to anchor the string in a permanent fashion.
Rear Extension Box
With the advent of several low voltage boxes installed for telecommunication needs such as telephones, computers, video, audio and the like, in addition to standard high voltage boxes for plugs and switches, wall space available to install all the necessary junction boxes has been reduced. In walls shared between rooms, this problem is further compounded because a single box mounted on one wall precludes a box mounted on the opposing wall surface in the same place and, therefore, makes it difficult to place a box in the most desirable location. As a result of the foregoing, there is a need for a junction box that can be installed in a common wall between rooms allowing access to directly opposing wall surfaces through the same junction box thereby freeing wall space.
Each surface of the top and bottom walls (306, 320) of the rear extension box (300) includes fastening lugs (312, 322) with channels (308, 326) into which mounting screws (310, 316), respectively, are inserted through a device/face plate for terminating the circuit or covering the opening for future access. Channels (308, 326) are not threaded in order to allow the mounting screws (310, 316) to pass through the rear extension box (300) and enter channels (332, 334) within the fastening lugs (32 a, 32 b) of the universal junction box (10).
Channels (332, 334) of box (10) may be threaded or they may be manufactured in sizes such that insertion of a self-tapping screw will form threads in the channel. The mounting screws (310, 316) secure the device/face plate to the back surface (318) of the rear extension box (300) and mate the front surface (324) of the rear extension box (300) to the back portion (30) of universal junction box (10) to form an integral between-wall junction box. Although not shown in the drawing, the universal junction box (10) attachment features provide the methods for mounting to a structural member, as herein described. For a universal junction box (10), if the back (30) is closed, a knockout plate (330) would be included to allow cable installation into the rear extension box (300). Further, this same knockout plate (330) allows an open back design for the universal junction box (10) for low voltage cable applications.
This design allows the mating of the front surface (324) of the rear extension box (300) to the back portion (30) of universal junction box (10) to form the combined between-wall junction box without requiring mounting screws (310, 316) to temporarily hold the between-wall junction box together during wallboard installation. Mounting screws (310, 316) are later inserted through a device/face plate for terminating the circuit or covering the opening for future access. Channels (354, 355) are not threaded allowing the mounting screws (310, 316) to pass through and enter channels (352, 356) within cylindrical mounting tabs (350, 358), respectively, of the universal junction box (10). Channels (352, 356) are the same design as (332, 334), respectively, as described above in
This between-wall design provides a combined junction box composed of universal junction box (10) conjoined to rear extension box (300), that can be installed in a common wall between rooms allowing access to directly opposing wall surfaces through the same combined junction box thereby freeing wall space. Further, this integrated design approach provides a solution through the addition of a simple rear extension which takes advantage of the basic universal junction box unit already outfitted with facilities to attach the box or wires and lending further versatility to the universal junction box concept.
Side Extension Box
Traditionally, when more than a single space/one-gang junction box is required, multiple space gang boxes are used consistent with the number of spaces required. In
The alternate locking embodiment represented in
This integrated design provides a solution for multiple gang junction box applications through the addition of a simple side extension box which takes advantage of the basic universal junction box unit already outfitted with facilities to attach the box or wires, thus lending further versatility to the universal junction box concept.
Low Voltage Features
In order to prevent loss of bandwidth capacity, kinking or excessive bending of cables should be avoided. When installing low voltage circuits, the current practice is for installers to cut the back off a standard high voltage electrical junction box. The new opening allows the necessary bending radii for the low voltage cables and, also, allows the mounting of low voltage apparatus, which often fills all of the space inside the junction box. The edges of standard electrical junction boxes can damage fragile cables when they are pulled through the openings. Installers usually do not have enough room inside standard junction boxes to coil multiple cables during the wall installation phase of construction. The aforementioned installation approach does not provide protection or a neat method for holding the cables in place. Consequently, the cables stored in such a cramped, unorganized fashion are subject to damage after they are installed prior to completion of the construction phase. Further, the current practice does not provide a convenient way to secure an extra long service loop, which would allow easy connection of very small, intricate terminating devices.
Slanted Cable Attachment
To insert the cable (626) the installer would pull it through the back (30) of the box (10) and insert it into the oblique cavity (622) at an angle that avoids stress on the cable or the need to coil the cable within the box. The next step would be to pull sufficient length of cable through oblique cavity (622) for a service loop for connection to a terminating device. To hold the cable in place during the wallboard installation phase, cable (626) would be moved back towards the vertical plane as shown in
The advantages of the slanted cable attachment feature include: an easy method to secure the cable during the wallboard installation phase of construction; protection of cables within the wall cavity and box from damage during the wallboard installation phase; and provision of extra long service loops because the longer cable can be stored in the wall cavity.
Flexible Conduit Attachment
Conduit systems are often installed to accommodate easy removal or addition of cables after completion of building construction. The use of flexible conduit is commonly used in high and low voltage circuit applications to achieve this end. Flex conduit, which is readily available in the marketplace, contains radial grooves along the surface of the conduit to allow the conduit and the cables carried within it to bend easily. The current method for installation of a flexible conduit to a junction box requires first adding a threaded bushing to the conduit, then inserting the bushing through a properly sized hole, and finally securing the bushing with a nut to anchor the conduit to the junction box. This method requires multiple pieces of hardware and is time-consuming to install. Further, this method precludes the use of flexible conduit when attaching a junction box to a wallboard surface because the flexible conduit fittings extending from the box do not fit through the opening in the wallboard to mount the junction box.
To install the 3/4 inch flexible conduit (750) shown in
As an alternate, the area between grooves (722, 724) would not be removed. The conduit would simply be pushed through circular aperture (710) from the bottom (26) of the box (10) with rocking motion until the radial grooves of the flexible conduit (750) engage the retaining bars (720, 726) and recessed edge (712). This push-through installation alternate is facilitated by the flexibility and deformation characteristics of the plastic used for the box (10) and the flexible conduit (750). While this alternate design is described for a low voltage application, this same alternate could also be used in a high voltage application because the void produced by the opening (730) would be closed when the flex conduit is installed and, hence, would be acceptable for UL certification.
To install the ½ inch flexible conduit (752) shown in
The snap-in design is simple requiring no extra pieces of hardware and is quick to install. Also, this design allows a flexible conduit to be installed when attaching a junction box directly to a wallboard surface. The flexible conduit is not precluded from use because no bushings extend below the box, as in the current art, allowing the junction box to be inserted into the wallboard surface opening with no protrusions.
Low Voltage Features
In this example, the apertures (814, 818) are the same apertures used in the flex conduit attachment (700). In
The previous discussion only presents one example of the cable-tie attachment (810). Another example would be to use the back (30) of box (10) and adjacent opening to form pillar (820) in-lieu-of openings on both sides of pillar (820). If apertures (814, 818) and pillar (820) are not available, an alternate embodiment would allow attachment of cables within box (10) by means of cable ties. This embodiment would entail the insertion of cable-ties through bridge braces (102, 108) to secure cables entering and exiting the box (10) through openings (602, 604) shown in
This design secures the cables within the box during the wallboard installation stage. The multiple openings (822, 824, 826) that form the columnar ladder offer different angles of cable insertion, thus providing varying degrees of cable self-grasping action against the rungs of the ladder. The installer selects the most suitable opening based on the resistance desired for the type and quantity of cables used.
A long service loop is facilitated by use of the wall cavity to store and protect the extra cable needed during the wallboard installation stage. When it is time to install the terminating devices, the installer would simply pull the cables (860) forward through the front (38) of the box (10). This method of securing the cables (860) allows them to disengage easily and automatically allows sufficient bending radius needed for fragile cables used in low voltage applications.
The advantages of the low voltage features presented herein include: an easy method to secure the cable(s) during the wallboard installation phase of construction; protection of cable(s) within the wall cavity and box from damage during the wallboard installation phase; ability to use extra long service loops facilitating the termination of very small terminating devices; and protection of fragile low voltage cables by providing sufficient bending radius needed to prevent the cable(s) from kinking.
High Voltage Features
High voltage cables commonly used for 120-volt outlet and lighting circuits range from two #14 conductors with a ground wire to three #12 conductors with a ground wire. As a result, the cable diameter between the two extremes can vary by as much as three times in size. High voltage junction boxes are used to connect the circuits and mount electrical terminating devices such as outlets, switches and lighting fixtures. To facilitate these circuits, multiple openings for the cables to enter the box are required and because of limited space within the box, each opening is sized to accommodate both cable size extremes.
Methods for securing these cables within the junction box are determined by the National Electric Code (NEC). The NEC requires high voltage cables to be anchored no greater than four inches from junction boxes without cable-securing device and 8 inches when a cable-securing device is provided. In applying these codes, multiple gang and wallboard mounted junction boxes would normally require a cable-securing device because a place to anchor the cable will be more than 4 inches away, whereas a single junction box mounted to a framing structure is within four inches. UL certification testing for the securing device is also required. The UL test for the securing device requires the cable entering the bottom of the box to be subjected to a direct vertical pull of 25 pounds for 5 minutes in a conditioned environment of minus 20 degrees centigrade without damage to the cable sheath or conductors and a displacement of the cable of more than ⅛ inch.
High voltage cables tend to be robust because of the cable sheaths and wire insulation used but can be subjected to damage when entering the junction box if not carefully installed. The current art available either provides no anchoring devices with openings sized for the largest cables or clamping designs that provide insufficient clamping of smaller cables or too much clamping for the larger cables. Too much clamping commonly can damage the cable if not properly installed and makes pulling any size cable into the box difficult. As a result of the above, there is a need for a high voltage junction box with a high voltage cable-securing device which eases installation and provides sufficient anchoring of all sizes of cables while not causing damage to them.
This plastic spring design allows the smaller cable shown in
The advantages of the slanted cable attachment feature include: an easy method to secure cables within the junction box and the ability to secure several commonly used sizes of cable equally well.
The junction box integrated design embodies several individual attributes, which when combined, build upon each other allowing the universal junction box to function in several different types of applications. The invention has been described in detail with particular reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof. It will be understood that variations in modifications can be affected within the spirit and scope of the present invention.
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|US7855338||Jul 25, 2008||Dec 21, 2010||Allied Moulded Products, Inc.||Electrical box with movable mounting system|
|US8088998||Jan 3, 2012||Nelson James M||Sectional electrical boxes|
|US20070102181 *||Jan 5, 2007||May 10, 2007||Rose Frank P||Universal Junction Box with Mounting Aperture|
|US20070120029 *||Nov 29, 2005||May 31, 2007||Rgb Systems, Inc.||A Modular Wall Mounting Apparatus|
|US20090025953 *||Jul 25, 2008||Jan 29, 2009||Troder W P||Electrical box with movable mounting system|
|US20100025064 *||Aug 4, 2008||Feb 4, 2010||James M. Nelson, III||Sectional Electrical Boxes|
|U.S. Classification||174/58, 174/61, 248/906, 174/54|
|International Classification||H02G3/08, H01H13/04|
|Cooperative Classification||Y10S248/906, H02G3/083, H02G3/086, H02G3/08, H02G3/12, H02G3/126|
|European Classification||H02G3/08C, H02G3/08B1, H02G3/12F4, H02G3/08, H02G3/12|
|Aug 13, 2010||FPAY||Fee payment|
Year of fee payment: 4
|Oct 3, 2014||REMI||Maintenance fee reminder mailed|
|Feb 20, 2015||LAPS||Lapse for failure to pay maintenance fees|
|Apr 14, 2015||FP||Expired due to failure to pay maintenance fee|
Effective date: 20150220