Raceway system with separated wireways for power and data communication conductors

• US 6,323,421 B1
• Filed: 11/19/1999
• Issued: 11/27/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Wiremold Co (Legrand SA)
• Original Assignee: Wiremold Co (Legrand SA)
• Inventors: Shapiro, Yesfim, Cancellieri, Salvatore A., Pawson, Steven E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Reichard, Dean A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PATEL, DHIRUBHAI R
• Application Number:
  US09/444,481
• Time in Patent Office: 739 Days
• Field of Search: 174/48, 174/49, 174/68.1, 174/68.3, 174/97, 174/72.A, 220/3.3, 220/3.9, 522/871, 522/203, 522/208, 522/201, 439/113, 439/114, 439/211
• US Class Current: 174/503
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 3/0418 Covers or lids; Their fastenings
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 3/0431 Wall trunking
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 3/0608 Joints for connecting non cylindrical conduits, e.g. channels

Abstract

Raceway base and cover components define top and bottom wireway channels, and provide a third channel therebetween for housing various outlet devices that need not be placed in the wireway channels. The dividers defining these channels are molded as part of the base, and define hinge lines so that shelf defining doors can be opened for ease of wiring the raceway, and closed for isolating the cabling contained therein. Device brackets are snapped into the third channel and these device brackets are designed to receive the outlet devices as a result of a snap-in feature disclosed in a prior art U.S. Pat. No. 5,594,205.

Claims

1. A wall mountable raceway system comprising:

elongated raceway base elements, each of which has a rear wall adapted for mounting said base elements to a wall structure, said base elements including marginal edge portions defining top and bottom boundaries for a first elongated raceway channel and a second elongated raceway channel respectively, raceway divider means defining a third elongated channel between said first and second raceway channels,

elongated raceway cover components having marginal edge portions that interact with said marginal edge portions of said base elements for enclosing said third channel, and

elongated shelf defining doors provided on said base elements at hinge line defined by said base elements.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said raceway divider means comprises dividers integrally formed in said raceway base elements.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein said dividers and doors define an L-shape, said L-shape together with said top and bottom boundaries for said first and second raceway channels further define said first and second raceway channels, respectively.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said third channel is defined between said first and second raceway channels by said divider means, each said base element further defining elongated ribs adjacent said raceway base element, and rear wall, and device brackets for supporting devices to be wired from conductors in said first or second channels, said device brackets having resilient integrally molded wings received by said ribs to secure said device brackets in said third channel.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein said divider means comprise raceway dividers integrally molded with said base elements and having elongated regions of reduced cross section to facilitate shearing segments thereof from said base elements for accommodating wiring between said devices and conductors in said first or second channels.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein said raceway dividers and doors are integrally formed in said base elements.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein said raceway dividers and doors are L-shaped, said L-shaped dividers and doors together with said top and bottom boundaries for said first and second raceway channels further defining said first and second raceway channels, respectively.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein said cover components define a concave front wall with cutouts for said device brackets, and a trim plate that abuts said cover components and that accommodates a cover plate for a device so mounted in one of said device brackets.

9. The system of claim 8 further comprising internal and external corner raceway base elements, and internal and external corner raceway cover components, said corner raceway base elements having protruding top and bottom marginal edge portions as well as integrally formed dividers for alignment with said base element marginal edge portions and dividers respectively, and internal and external raceway corner cover components which do not define a concave outer face said raceway corner components having end portions that abut said raceway cover.

10. The system of claim 9 further comprising L-shaped and T-shaped raceway elbow assemblies comprising:

elbow base elements having protruding inner and outer edge portions as well as integrally formed dividers for alignment with said base element marginal edge portions and raceway dividers respectively, and L-shaped and T-shaped raceway elbow cover components which do not define a concave outer face that matches that of said raceway cover components, said elbow cover components having end portions that abut said raceway cover components.

11. In a raceway system having elongated raceway base elements, each of which includes a rear wall adapted to be mounted to a wall structure, and top and bottom marginal edge portions that receive a cover, the improvement comprising:

at least two dividers in each said base element defining an elongated channel therebetween, said at least two dividers cooperating with the top and bottom marginal edge portions of the base element to define elongated top and bottom wireways above and below said elongated channel,

and device brackets having resilient wings that are engageable with ribs formed by said channel defining base element for mounting said device brackets in said elongated channel.

12. The improvement of claim 11 further characterized by lines of weakening in said dividers to allow segments to be sheared therefrom and to allow wiring in said top or bottom wireways to be fed to a device mounted in one of said device brackets.

13. The improvement of claim 12 wherein said doors are integrally molded to at least one of said two dividers to further define said top and bottom wireways.

14. The improvement of claim 13 further including trim plates fitted over said device brackets, and overlying spaced end portions of said cover components.

15. The improvement of claim 11 wherein said dividers are integrally formed in said raceway base elements.

16. The improvement of claim 15 further including cover components with marginal edge portions that are adapted to be received by the marginal edge portions of said base elements, said cover components enclosing said third channel except where gaps are provided to receive said device brackets.

17. A raceway system comprising:

elongated raceway base elements, each said base element having a rear wall adapted for mounting said base element to an existing structure, said base element including marginal top and bottom walls that define top and bottom raceway channels respectively,

said raceway base elements defining a third channel between said top and bottom channels, and said base elements defining ribs, and

device brackets for supporting devices to be wired from conductors in said top and bottom raceway channels,

said device brackets having resilient integrally molded wings received by said ribs to secure said device brackets in said third raceway channel.

18. The system of claim 17 further comprising dividers having elongated regions of reduced cross section to facilitate shearing segments for accommodating wiring between said devices and conductors in said top and bottom raceway channels.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein said raceway dividers are integrally formed in said raceway base elements.

20. The system of claim 19 further comprising raceway cover components having marginal edge potions that interact with marginal edges of said top and bottom walls for enclosing said top, bottom and third channels.

21. The system of claim 17 wherein said device brackets have means for receiving electrical devices in openings defined by said device brackets, and wherein said means include fastener openings for slidably receiving fasteners associated with said electrical devices, said fastener openings having resilient portions for engaging the threads of said fasteners so as to require unthreading of said fasteners to remove said electrical devices after allowing the electrical devices to be assembled in a push-in manner of assembly that requires no such threading operation.

22. The system of claim 17 wherein means is provided in part on said device bracket and in part on said device for resiliently accepting a projection on one of said device bracket and device to be received in a opening defined by the other of said device bracket and device.

23. A raceway system comprising:

elongated raceway base elements, each base element having top and bottom marginal edges, and a rear wall adapted for mounting said base element to an existing structure,

raceway cover components having marginal edge portions that mate with said top and bottom marginal edges of said base elements,

divider means defining a central elongated channel between said top and bottom marginal edges of said raceway cover components and said raceway base elements, and defining top and bottom wireways for conductors of different varieties,

device brackets for supporting electrical devices to allow wiring the electrical devices to the conductors in said wireways,

means for securing said device brackets in said central raceway channel and said divider means having gaps for the conductors to be run from said wireways to the electrical devices provided in said device brackets, said means including ribs defined by the divider means and integrally molded wings defined by the device brackets.