ELECTRICAL OUTLET COVER PLATE WITH SIGNAGE FEATURE

• US 20130180139A1
• Filed: 07/05/2012
• Published: 07/18/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/05/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jeffrey L. Underwood
• Original Assignee: Jeffrey L. Underwood
• Inventors: Underwood, Jeffrey L.
• Granted Patent: US 9,633,584 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 40/543
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 13/20 with luminescent surfaces or parts luminescent compositions C09K11/00; light sources using luminescence F21K2/00
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 1/00 Methods or apparatus specially adapted for installing, maintaining, repairing or dismantling electric cables or lines
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 3/14 Fastening of cover or lid to box
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49117 Conductor or circuit manufacturing

Abstract

A sign is combined with an electrical outlet plate which can mount near or to existing electrical infrastructure to provide information such as direction toward an exit. A protruding and/or outwardly visible surface of the sign may be painted or adorned with a sign appliqué, and can be illuminated and/or photoluminescent to provide maximum visibility with or without electrical power. Advantageously, the sign can be mounted at electrical outlets and/or electrical switches that are near the floor and away from the ceiling, such that the sign remains visible even when lines of sight within a building are impaired, such as from smoke. In one exemplary embodiment, the sign is integrated into a portion of a standard-sized duplex cover plate, which can be mounted to an existing electrical junction box to preserve the functionality of adjacent electrical outlets or switches.

Claims

1. A sign, comprising:

a cover plate adapted to be mounted to a wall near an electrical source, said cover plate having a wall mounting surface, an opposed outwardly facing plate surface, and a sign aperture extending from said wall mounting surface to said outwardly facing plate surface; and

a lens received in said sign aperture and protruding outwardly therefrom such that an outwardly facing lens surface is spaced outwardly from said outwardly facing plate surface, said lens having a visual indicia disposed on said outwardly facing lens surface,

said lens comprising at least one of;

i) a photoluminescent material capable of absorbing photons and discharging the absorbed photons over a period of at least 10 minutes, and ii) a radioluminescent material.

2. The sign of claim 1, wherein:

said lens defines an inwardly facing lens surface opposite said outwardly facing lens surface, said lens defining an interior cavity extending between said wall mounting surface of said cover plate and said inwardly facing lens surface of said lens, and

said sign further comprising a light source received within said interior cavity of said lens and spaced from the inwardly facing lens surface, said light source connectable to electrical power to provide light from within said interior cavity.

3. The sign of claim 2, wherein said light source comprises one of an incandescent light bulb and a light emitting diode configured to emit visible light.

4. The sign of claim 2, wherein said light source comprises a light emitting diode configured to emit ultraviolet light.

5. The sign of claim 1, wherein said outwardly facing lens surface is spaced outwardly from said outwardly facing plate surface by at least 0.13 inches.

6. The sign of claim 1, wherein said lens defines a rectangular profile at said sign aperture, said rectangular profile 1.3 inches wide and 2.6 inches high.

7. The sign of claim 1, wherein said lens defines a material thickness between said outwardly facing lens surface and an opposed inwardly facing lens surface, said material thickness equal to at least 0.10-inches.

8. The sign of claim 1, wherein said cover plate further comprises an apparatus aperture sized to receive at least one of a standard electrical switch and a standard electrical wall outlet.

9. The sign of claim 1, wherein said cover plate comprises a standard size electrical plate measuring 4 13/16-inches wide and 4⅞

-inches tall.

10. A sign, comprising:

an electrical cover plate having a wall mounting surface, an opposed outwardly facing plate surface, and a sign aperture extending from said wall mounting surface to said outwardly facing plate surface;

a lens received in said sign aperture and protruding outwardly therefrom such that an outwardly facing lens surface is spaced outwardly from said outwardly facing plate surface, said lens defining an interior cavity opposed to said outwardly facing lens surface,

said lens comprising at least one of;

i) a photoluminescent material capable of absorbing photons and discharging the absorbed photons over a period of at least 10 minutes, and ii) a radioluminescent material; and

a light source operable to provide light to said lens, said light source disposed within said interior cavity.

11. The sign of claim 10, wherein said lens comprises a means for conveying information disposed on said outwardly facing lens surface.

12. The sign of claim 10, further comprising a backing plate coupled to said electrical cover plate, said backing plate cooperating with an inwardly facing lens surface opposed to said outwardly facing lens surface to bound said interior cavity, said light source coupled to said backing plate.

13. A method of installing a sign, the method comprising:

removing an existing cover plate from an underlying electrical access point disposed at an interior wall of a building;

removing an electrical apparatus from one of the existing cover plate and the underlying electrical access point, said step of removing an electrical apparatus creating an available space behind a cover plate aperture when the cover plate is mounted to the electrical access point;

installing a lens over the cover plate aperture such that the lens faces outwardly through the cover plate aperture and away from a wall-contacting surface of the cover plate, and such that the lens at least partially occupies the available space behind the cover plate aperture;

the lens comprising at least one of;

i) a photoluminescent material capable of absorbing photons and discharging the absorbed photons over a period of at least 10 minutes, and ii) a radioluminescent material; and

reattaching the existing cover plate to the underlying electrical access point.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the lens protrudes outwardly from an outer surface of the cover plate when the lens is installed to the cover plate.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said step of installing the lens comprises passing the lens through the cover plate aperture from the wall-contacting surface of the cover plate past an opposed outwardly facing plate surface of the cover plate,

said step of passing the lens through the cover plate performed after said step of removing the existing cover plate and before said step of reattaching the existing cover plate.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein said step of removing an electrical apparatus comprises removing one of a ground fault circuit interrupter and a panel-type wall switch from the existing cover plate.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein said lens comprises an arrow-shaped indicia on an outwardly facing surface thereof, said steps of installing the lens and reattaching the existing cover plate performed such that the arrow-shaped indicia points to a nearby exit from the building.

18. The method of claim 13, further comprising the steps of:

installing a backing plate behind the lens, the backing plate having at least one light source having electrical conductors operably connected thereto; and

connecting the electrical conductors to building electrical power supplied at the underlying electrical access point such that the light source has a continuous supply of current while the building electrical power is operational.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the light source comprises one of an incandescent light bulb and a light emitting diode configured to emit visible light.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the light source comprises a light emitting diode configured to emit ultraviolet light.