Electrical grounding and sealing of multi-position rain-tight junction box

• US 7,259,337 B1
• Filed: 03/30/2006
• Issued: 08/21/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arlington Industries Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Arlington Industries Incorporated
• Inventors: Gretz, Thomas J.
• Primary Examiner(s): PATEL, DHIRUBHAI R
• Application Number:
  US11/393,202
• Time in Patent Office: 509 Days
• Field of Search: 174/481, 174/485, 174/488, 174/50, 174/66, 220/241, 220/3.2, 220/3.8, 220/4.02, 248/906, 439/535
• US Class Current: 174/481
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 3/06 Joints for connecting lengths of protective tubing or channels, to each other or to casings, e.g. to distribution boxes; Ensuring electrical continuity in the joint
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 3/083 Inlets
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 248/906 Electrical outlet box support

Abstract

A rain tight multi-position conduit junction box kit with improved electrical grounding and sealing including a conduit junction box with a hollow junction box body having a top, a bottom, opposing side walls, a rear wall and an open front, and six apertures in the flat areas around each aperture and adapted for receiving four aperture cover plates and two fittings with an extra fitting which may be substituted for one of the cover plates in each of the top, bottom, rear wall and opposing side walls. The box has aperture cover plates for some of the apertures not used in a particular installation and conduit fittings for the remaining apertures used for the engagement of conduit.

Claims

1. A rain-tight multi-position electrically conductive conduit body with augmented electrical contact having augmented grounding and using O-ring for sealing comprising in combination:

A) a conduit box of electrically conductive material comprising;

a hollow body having a top wall, a bottom wall, opposing side walls, a rear wall, and an open front;

an unrecessed aperture in each of the rear and opposing side walls with a second unrecessed aperture in one of said side walls and an unrecessed aperture in at least one of said bottom wall or said top wall;

an unrecessed flat surface adjacent to and surrounding each of said unrecessed apertures; and

threaded holes in said unrecessed flat surface;

B) a front cover plate for said open front;

C) aperture cover plates having at least a partial flat surface adapted to marry to said unrecessed flat surface of said apertures;

D) screw holes in said aperture cover plate flat surface;

E) fittings of electrically conductive material comprising;

an external portion that engages a conduit or other electrical cable protector that is carried thereinto;

a flange having a partial flat surface adapted to marry to said unrecessed flat surface surrounding each of said apertures; and

screw holes in said flange;

F) an O-ring groove located in either said unrecessed flat surface surrounding each of said apertures or in said aperture cover plate flat surface and said flange flat surface;

G) said O-ring inserted into said groove; and

H) screws for insertion into said screw holes of said aperture cover plates and said screw holes of said fittings and tightened into said mating threaded holes to compress said O-ring whereby said partial flat fitting is tightened to the unrecessed flat surface surrounding said unrecessed surface of said apertures of said conduit box with sufficient electrical contact to provide augmented grounding.

2. The multi-position conduit body of claim 1 wherein said fittings and said apertures are on both said bottom and said top wall.

3. The multi-position conduit body of claim 2 wherein said fittings are internally threaded.

4. The multi-position conduit body of claim 3 further including at least one set screw in said internally threaded fittings for the retention of threaded conduit threaded therein.

5. The multi-position conduit body of claim 1 further including at least one set screw in said fitting for the retention of conduit inserted therein.

6. The multi-position conduit body of claim 1 which includes a kit distributed and carried with said conduit body having an extra fitting and extra screws and an extra O-ring.

7. The multi-position conduit body of claim 1 wherein said O-ring grooves are located in said aperture cover plate flat surface and in said flange flat surface.

8. The multi-position conduit body of claim 1 wherein said conduit box and said fittings are metal.