Universal electric adapter

• US 6,328,581 B1
• Filed: 08/15/2000
• Issued: 12/11/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Chiu-San Lee, Su-Chen Shen
• Original Assignee: Chiu-Shan Lee, Shen Su-Chen Li
• Inventors: Li, Shen Su-Chen, Lee, Chiu-Shan
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu, Hien
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TRUC T
• Application Number:
  US09/637,695
• Time in Patent Office: 483 Days
• Field of Search: 439/106, 439/222, 439/653, 439/107, 439/108, 439/109, 439/649, 439/650, 439/166, 439/171, 439/174, 439/175
• US Class Current: 439/106
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/506 assembled by snap action of the parts
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 2103/00 Two poles
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 27/00 Coupling parts adapted for co-operation with two or more dissimilar counterparts for dissimilar contact members H01R13/35; supported only by co-operation with a counterpart H01R31/00; with a holder adapted for supporting apparatus to which its counterpart is attached H01R33/90
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 31/06 Intermediate parts for linking two coupling parts, e.g. adapter with a holder adapted for supporting apparatus to which its counterpart is attached H01R33/94

Abstract

A universal electric adapter includes a casing injection-molded from plastics, the casing having a front face panel, two lateral receiving chambers, a middle receiving chamber, a locating groove inside the middle receiving chamber, a plurality of coupling flanges radially inwardly disposed around a rear open side thereof, a positioning projection radially inwardly suspended in the rear open side, and two locating grooves bilaterally disposed at the periphery thereof; two metal contact frames respectively installed in the lateral receiving chambers the metal contact frames each having a protruded contact strip; a grounding frame installed in the middle receiving chamber, the grounding frame having a contact base, and a locating flange fastened to the locating groove inside the middle receiving chamber; a plug member fastened to the rear open side of the casing, the plug member having a plurality of metal prongs adapted for fastening to an electric socket, a plurality of coupling grooves spaced around the periphery thereof and respectively engaged with the coupling flanges of the casing, and a plurality of peripheral notches respectively disposed in communication with the coupling grooves of the plug member and adapted to receive the coupling flanges of the casing for enabling the coupling flanges of the casing to be respectively forced into engagement with the coupling grooves of the plug member upon a relative rotation motion between the plug member and the casing; and two grounding plates respectively fastened to the locating grooves of the casing and disposed in contact with the grounding frame.

Claims

1. A universal electric adapter comprising:

a casing injection-molded from plastics, said casing comprising a face panel disposed at a front side thereof, two lateral receiving chambers bilaterally disposed on the inside and backwardly extended to a rear open side thereof, a middle receiving chamber disposed on the inside in the middle between said lateral receiving chambers and backwardly extended to the rear open side, a first locating groove inside said middle receiving chamber, a plurality of coupling flanges radially inwardly disposed around the rear open side, a positioning projection radially inwardly suspended in the rear open side, and two second locating grooves disposed at the periphery thereof at two opposite sides;

two metal contact frames respectively installed in the lateral receiving chambers of said casing, said metal contact frames each comprising a protruded contact strip;

a grounding frame installed in the middle receiving chamber of said casing, said grounding frame comprising a contact base, and a locating flange fastened to the locating groove inside the middle receiving chamber of said casing;

a plug member fastened to the rear open side of said casing, said plug member comprising a plurality of backwardly extended metal prongs adapted for fastening to an electric socket, a plurality of coupling grooves spaced around the periphery thereof and respectively engaged with the coupling flanges of said casing, and a plurality of peripheral notches respectively disposed in communication with the coupling grooves of said plug member and adapted to receive the coupling flanges of said casing for enabling the coupling flanges of said casing to be respectively forced into engagement with the coupling grooves of said plug member upon a relative rotation motion between said plug member and said casing;

a first grounding plate and a second grounding plate respectively fastened to the second locating grooves of said casing and disposed in contact with said grounding frame.

2. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said casing further comprises a back positioning projection, and said plug member further comprises a peripheral positioning recess adapted to receive the positioning projection of said casing.

3. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said plug member is positioned on said casing at a deflection angle where the metal prongs of said plug member are not in alignment with respective plug holes on said face panel of said casing and the metal prongs of said plug member are maintained in contact with the contact strip of each of said metal contact frames, comprising a plug hole adapted for receiving the grounding prong of an electric socket of French specification, enabling the grounding prong of the electric socket of French specification to contact a contact flange of said first grounding plate.

4. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said plug member is fastened to said casing by a high-frequency scaling apparatus.

5. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said plug member is a universal plug member adapted to fit different electric sockets.

6. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said face panel comprises a set of plugholes adapted to receive different electric plugs.

7. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said face panel comprises an electric socket adapted to receive an electric plug of German specification.

8. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said face panel comprises a computer socket adapted to receive a computer plug.

9. The universal electric adapter of claim 8 wherein said computer socket comprises hot and neutral power plug holes, a grounding plug hole, and two symmetrical openings respectively bilaterally disposed in communication with said hot and neutral power plug holes to fit different electric plugs.

10. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said first grounding plate and said second grounding plates each have a through hole for the mounting of a respective grounding wire.

11. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said face panel is covered with a safety cover, comprising a set of plug holes adapted to receive one of a set of commercially available electric plugs, a recessed receiving hole and a compression spring mounted in said recessed receiving hole, said safety cover being covered on said face panel and comprising a set of insertion holes corresponding to said plug holes of said face panel, a plurality of backwardly extended, springy, peripheral mounting strips respectively coupled to said face panel for enabling said safety cover to be rotated on said face panel, and an inside projecting rod stopped at one end of said compression spring.

12. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said face panel is covered with a reversible safety cover, comprising an annular coupling groove, a set of plug holes, a recessed receiving hole disposed in communication with said annular coupling groove, and a compression spring mounted in said recessed receiving hole, said reversible safety cover being coupled to and rotated in said annular coupling groove of said face panel, and having a set of insertion holes corresponding to the plug holes of said face panel for the insertion of an electric plug, and a back projecting rod inserted into said the recessed receiving hole and stopped at one end of said compression spring.

13. The universal electric adapter of claim 12 wherein the set of insertion holes of said safety cover and the plug holes of said face panel fit a set of electric plugs of different specifications.

14. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said plug member comprises an electric wire distribution chamber in a back side thereof, a plurality of metal prongs adapted for connection to an electric socket, said metal prongs each having an inner end terminating in a screw hole, and a three-line electric cable fastened to said metal prongs, said three-line electric cable having three electric wires respectively terminating in a respective annular terminal respectively fastened to the screw hole of each of said metal prongs by a respective metal screw and disposed in contact with said metal contact frames and said grounding frame of said casing.

15. The universal electric adapter of claim 1 wherein said casing and said face panel each have a coupling hole adapted to receive an electric socket.