Electrical box support

• US 7,432,440 B2
• Filed: 10/07/2003
• Issued: 10/07/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Thomas & Betts International LLC (ABB Limited)
• Original Assignee: Lamson & Sessions Company (ABB Limited)
• Inventors: Hull, Eric G., Riedy, Charles H., Gudin, Robert M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Estrada; Angel R
• Application Number:
  US10/680,795
• Publication Number:
  US 20050072589A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,827 Days
• Field of Search: 174/50, 174/48, 174/53, 174/54, 174/58, 174/61, 174/63, 174/17.R, 174/480, 174/481, 220/3.2, 220/3.3, 220/3.4, 220/3.7, 220/3.9, 220/4.02, 220/3.5, 220/3.6, 220/3.8, 248/560, 248/200, 248/903, 248/906, 435/535, D13/152
• US Class Current: 174/50
• CPC Class Codes: H02G 3/126 with supporting means for mounting on a single wall stud
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 248/906 Electrical outlet box support

Abstract

An electrical box having spring legs for supporting the box within a space between a pair of spaced-apart parallel concrete forms. The legs engage the inside surface of one form and bias the open end of the box against the inside surface of the other form. The legs and the bottom of the box are cooperatively configured to facilitate attachment of the legs to the box. A bendable strap is attached to the box for wrapping around reinforcing bars within the forms. The legs and strap hold the box in position when concrete is poured into the space between the forms. The entire box and support elements remain embedded within the finished concrete wall, and with the open end of the box exposed at an outer surface of the concrete wall.

Claims

1. A mud box having an open end, a bottom wall opposite from said open end, and a peripheral sidewall;

a plurality of resilient spring legs attached to said bottom wall;

said legs extending in a direction away from said bottom wall and having reversely curved free end portions engageable with one form surface for biasing said box in a direction to engage said box open end with an opposite form surface;

the distance between the form surfaces being less than the distance from the box open end to the reversel curved end portions so that the spring legs are under bending stress when the box is positioned between the form surfaces; and

said free end portions being spaced-apart a distance greater than the maximum distance across said peripheral sidewall so that the free end portions extend outwardly beyond the peripheral sidewall.

2. A mud box molded of plastic material, said box having a bottom wall and an open end opposite from said bottom wall, said bottom wall having an external surface, and a projection molded integrally with said bottom wall on said external surface thereof for attaching support legs to said box, said projection being centrally located on said bottom wall and extending outwardly from said external surface thereof said projection having a central cylindrical portion and a transverse projection portion that is spaced outwardly from said bottom wall external surface, said projection having a length in one direction perpendicular to said cylindrical portion that is greater than its width in a second direction perpendicular to said one direction.

3. The box of claim 2 including a generally U-shaped spring member having a central attachment portion with an attachment opening configured for receiving said attachment projection therethrough, said transverse projection extending outwardly of said attachment opening to engage portions of said attachment portion around said attachment opening and retain said spring leg member on said box.

4. A support kit for attachment to an electrical mud box, said kit including a pair of generally U-shaped spring leg members of a spring material that returns to its original configuration when deflected,

each spring leg member having a central attachment portion with an attachment opening therethrough, and each spring leg member having a pair of legs diverging outwardly from said attachment portion and terminating in reversely curved leg end portions that are spaced-apart a distance greater than the length of said central attachment portion.

5. The kit of claim 4 wherein said attachment portion is generally flat and said attachment opening is elongated along the length of said attachment portion.

6. The kit of claim 4 including at least one flat bendable strap having a central attachment opening therethrough.

7. A mud box having an open end and a bottom wall opposite from said open end, said bottom wall having an external attachment projection, a plurality of abutments on said bottom wall spaced outwardly from said projection and forming abutment guideways therebetween, a plurality of resilient spring legs having attachment portions that are received in said abutment guideways and have attachment openings received over said attachment projection to attach said spring legs to said box, said spring legs having free end portions engageable with one form surface for biasing said box in a direction to engage said box open end with an opposite form surface.

8. The box of claim 7 wherein at least two of said abutments have cam surfaces engageable by at least one of said attachment portions of said spring legs to cam said one attachment portion past said two abutments when said one attachment portion is placed over said projection and rotated 90°

.

9. An apparatus comprising:

a pair of spaced-apart parallel concrete forms having opposite form surfaces;

a mud box having an open end;

a plurality of resilient spring legs attached to said box;

said legs having free end portions engageable with one form surface for biasing said box in a direction to engage said box open end with the opposite form surface;

the distance between the form surfaces being less than the distance from the box open end to the free end portions of the spring legs so that the spring legs are under bending stress when the box is positioned between the form surfaces with the box open end engaging the opposite form surface and the spring leg free end portion engaging the one form surface; and

at least one elongated bendable strap attached to said box for attachment to reinforcement rods between spaced forms.

10. A mud box having an open end, a plurality of resilient spring legs attached to said box, said legs having free end portions engageable with one form surface for biasing said box in a direction to engage said box open end with an opposite form surface, each spring leg having a reversely curved bifurcated end portion to provide a pair of spaced-apart reversely curved support end portions each of which has a width that is not greater than the space between them.

11. A mud box having a bottom wall and an open end opposite from said bottom wall, said bottom wall having an external surface, a centrally located attachment projection integrally formed on said external surface and extending outwardly therefrom for attaching support legs to said box, and a plurality of abutments on said external surface of said bottom wall spaced outwardly from said attachment projection and forming abutment guideways that extend perpendicular to one another past said attachment projection.

12. The box of claim 11 wherein at least two of said abutments have cam surfaces that slope downwardly toward one of said guideways.

13. A support kit for attachment to an electrical mud box, said kit including a pair of generally U-shaped spring leg members and a flat bendable strap, each spring leg member having a central attachment portion with an attachment opening therethrough, and said strap having a central attachment opening therethrough.

14. The kit of claim 13 wherein said attachment opening in each of said spring members corresponds in size and shape to the size and shape of said attachment opening in said strap.

15. An electrical box molded of plastic material, said box having a bottom wall with an external surface, a centrally located projection molded integrally with said bottom wall and extending outwardly from said external surface thereof, at least one flat bendable metal strap having an opening therethrough, said projection and said opening being configured for reception of said projection through said opening in an alignment orientation of said projection and opening, and said projection and opening being configured for preventing movement of said projection through said opening when said strap and projection are rotated out of said alignment orientation with said projection extending through said opening.

16. The box of claim 15 including a pair of flat bendable straps extending perpendicular to one another.

17. The box of claim 15 wherein said opening has the general configuration of a double keyhole and said projection is configured for close reception therethrough.

18. An electrical box molded of plastic material, said box having a bottom wail with an external surface, a pair of elongated flat bendable metal straps, said external surface and said metal straps being configured for attachment of said straps to said bottom wall with said straps extending generally perpendicular to one another in overlying relationship.

19. An electrical box of plastic material, said box having a bottom wall with an external surface, a projection extending outwardly from said external surface, said projection having an enlarged head spaced outwardly from said external surface, a pair of elongated flat bendable metal straps having openings therethrough, said openings being configured for receiving said enlarged head therethrough, said enlarged head and at least one of said openings on at least one of said straps being configured to provide reception of said enlarged head through said one opening and to prevent withdrawal of said head from said opening after rotating said one strap about said projection.

20. The box of claim 19 wherein said straps support said box between a pair of spaced-apart concrete forms that have inner form surfaces spaced-apart between 6-8 inches, said box having an open end and said straps supporting said box between said forms with said open end positioned closely adjacent to or in engagement with one of said form inner surfaces.

21. A support kit for attachment to an electrical mud box;

said kit including a pair of generally U-shaped spring leg members;

each spring leg member having a central attachment portion with an attachment opening therethrough;

each spring leg member having a pair of legs diverging outwardly from said attachment portion and terminating in leg end portions that are spaced-apart a distance greater than the length of said central attachment portion;

a flat bendable strap having a central attachment opening therethrough; and

,

said attachment opening in each of said spring members corresponding in size and shape to the size and shape of said attachment opening in said strap.

22. A mud box having an open end;

a plurality of resilient spring legs attached to said box;

said legs having free end portions engageable with one form surface for biasing said box in a direction to engage said box open end with an opposite form surface;

said spring legs being defined by a pair of spring members;

each spring member having a central attachment portion with a pair of spring legs extending therefrom;

said attachment portions being attached to said box in perpendicular relationship to one another to provide four spaced-apart spring legs extending outwardly from said box;

a box projection having an enlarged head;

said attachment portions having openings for receiving said head; and

,

said head and said opening in at least one of said attachment portions being shaped to provide reception of said head through said opening and to prevent withdrawal of said head from said opening after said one attachment portion in rotated 90°

.

23. An electrical box molded of plastic material, said box having a bottom wall with an external surface, a pair of elongated flat bendable metal straps, said external surface and said metal straps being configured for attachment of said straps to said bottom wall with said straps extending generally perpendicular to one another in overlying relationship;

wherein said external surface has a projection thereon and said straps have openings through which said projection is receivable, said straps being positionable in overlying aligned inner and outer relationship for reception of said projection through said strap openings, and said outer strap being rotatable 90°

relative to said inner strap to move said opening in said outer strap out of aligned relationship with said projection so that said projection no longer is movable through said opening in said outer strap to thereby hold said pair of straps to said bottom wall.