Surface-piercing electrical connector protector

• US 5,551,888 A
• Filed: 02/03/1995
• Issued: 09/03/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Rockney J. Rhodes Sr
• Original Assignee: Rockney J. Rhodes Sr
• Inventors: Rhodes, Rockney J. Sr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu, Hien D.
• Application Number:
  US08/383,303
• Time in Patent Office: 578 Days
• Field of Search: 439/367, 439/369, 439/368, 439/371, 439/527, 439/542
• US Class Current: 439/369
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6392 for extension cord

Abstract

A surface-piercing electrical connector protector including a rigid container having a hollow interior, an opening for allowing access to the interior for placing a pair of mated electrical plugs of a pair of electrical cords therein, and a pair of through holes formed on the container adjacent to the opening with each through hole sized for snugly receiving an electrical cord extended from one of the plugs in the container; a rigid lid securable over the opening of the container; and a cord securement mechanism coupled to the lid for holding an electrical cord extended from each through hole of the container in a fixed position.

Claims

1. A surface-piercing electrical connector protector for securing a pair of mated electrical plugs and associated electrical cords to a recipient surface, protecting the plugs from damage, and ensuring a proper electrical interconnection comprising, in combination:

a rigid plastic container including a rectangular planar horizontal bottom wall with an upper surface, a lower surface, and a periphery interconnecting the upper surface with the lower surface formed of a pair of long edges and a pair of short edges extended therebetween, the container further including a pair of opposed spaced rectangular planar vertical long walls and a pair of opposed spaced rectangular planar vertical short walls, each long wall having an upper long edge, a lower long edge, and a pair of opposed side edges extended therebetween, each short wall having an upper short edge, a lower short edge, and a pair of opposed side edges extended therebetween, the side edges of the long walls and the short walls interconnected in an end-to-end configuration to define a sidewall having a rectangular cross section, an upper peripheral edge formed-of the upper long edges with the upper short edges extended therebetween, and a lower peripheral edge formed of the lower long edges with the lower short edges extended therebetween, the lower peripheral edge centered upon and integral with the upper surface of the bottom wall thereby defining a hollow interior portion bounded by the sidewall and the bottom wall and further defining a ledge extended around the sidewall, each short wall further including a first semicircular recess formed thereon at the midpoint of its upper short edge and a semicircular rubber seal secured to the first semicircular recess, one long wall further including a section of teeth projected outwards therefrom at a location near the midpoint of its associated upper long edge;

a rigid plastic lid including a pair of opposed spaced rectangular planar vertical long walls each having an upper long edge, a lower long edge, and a pair of opposed side edges extended therebetween, a pair of opposed spaced rectangular planar vertical short walls each having an upper short edge, a lower short edge, and a pair of opposed side edges extended therebetween, the side edges of the long walls and the short walls interconnected in an end-to-end configuration to define a border having a rectangular cross section, an upper peripheral edge formed of the upper long edges with the upper short edges extended therebetween, and a lower peripheral edge formed of the lower long edges with the lower short edges extended therebetween, the lower peripheral edge further including a peripheral lip with a L-shaped cross section projected outwards and downwards therefrom and a tongue extended downwards from the lip at the midpoint of a lower long edge, the lid further including a rectangular planar horizontal top wall having a periphery integral with the upper peripheral edge of the border to define a hollow interior portion, each short wall further including a second semicircular recess formed thereon at the midpoint of its lower short edge and a semicircular rubber seal secured to said second semicircular recess;

a rigid metal hinge having a lower portion coupled to one of the long walls of the container at a location directly opposite the teeth on the container and an upper portion coupled to a long wall of the lid at location opposite the tongue on the other long wall of the lid, the hinge allowing the lid to be opened for placing a pair of mated electrical plugs within the interior portion of the container and for positioning each associated electrical cord of a plug within the first semicircular recess of the container, the hinge further allowing the lid to be closed with the recesses defining a pair of axially aligned through holes, the tongue to be snapidly secured to the section of teeth on the container to prevent access to the electrical plugs, and the seals to be held snugly in contact with the associated electrical cords;

a pair of plastic arms, each arm having a generally semicircular cross section, an exterior surface, an interior surface, an inboard end integral with a short wall of the lid at a location directly above the first and second semicircular recesses, a downwardly projected outboard end, an intermediate location defined between the inboard end and outboard end, a linear inboard section extended from the inboard end to the intermediate location, and an arcuate outboard section extended from the intermediate location to the outboard end, each arm snapidly securable to an electrical cord extended from a through hole; and

a pair of spaced plastic stakes with each stake having a base end integral with the lower surface of the bottom wall of the container and a pointed tip end projected downwards therefrom, the pair of stakes adapted for piercing a recipient surface and thereby holding the container in a fixed horizontal position for use.

2. A surface-piercing electrical connector protector comprising:

a rigid container having a hollow interior, an opening for allowing access to the interior for placing a pair of mated electrical plugs of a pair of electrical cords therein, and a pair of through holes formed on the container adjacent to the opening with each of said through holes sized for snugly receiving one of said electric cords extended from one of the plugs;

a rigid lid securable over the opening of the container; and

cord securement means coupled to the lid for holding an electrical cord extended from each through hole of the container in a fixed position wherein the cord securement means is formed of a pair of generally resilient arms, each of said arms having a generally semicircular cross section, an exterior surface, an interior surface, an inboard end integral formed with the lid at a location directly above one of said through holes on the container, a downwardly projected outboard end, an intermediate location defined between the inboard end and outboard end, a linear inboard section extended from the inboard end to the intermediate location, and an arcuate outboard section extended from the intermediate location to the outboard end, each of said arms snapidly securable to one of said electric cords extended from one of said through holes.