System for connecting appliances to wall outlets

• US 7,967,609 B2
• Filed: 09/09/2009
• Issued: 06/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/09/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Plug Away, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Plug Away, Inc.
• Inventors: Capece, Gregory V., Rocha, Nicholas, Harm, Michael R., Hajedemos, Dana C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gushi; Ross N
• Application Number:
  US12/556,222
• Publication Number:
  US 20110059623A1
• Time in Patent Office: 657 Days
• Field of Search: 439 38- 40
• US Class Current: 439/39
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/6205 Two-part coupling devices held in engagement by a magnet
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/7037 making use of a magnetically operated switch
• 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

Systems and adaptors for electrical connection of appliances are disclosed. An electrical connection includes an appliance adaptor having an appliance adaptor body, conducting members, and at least one magnet, and a wall adaptor having a wall adaptor body, conducting prongs, conducting rings, a spring member, and at least one magnet. The electrical connection system has an uncoupled state in which the at least one appliance adaptor magnet does not magnetically couple with the at least one wall adaptor magnet, the conducting members do not electrically contact the conducting rings, and the conducting rings do not electrically contact the conducting prongs. The electrical connection system also has a coupled state in which the at least one appliance adaptor magnet magnetically couples with the at least one wall adaptor magnet, the conducting members electrically contact the conducting rings, and the conducting rings electrically contact the conducting prongs.

Claims

1. An appliance adaptor of an electrical connection system utilizing magnetic coupling, the appliance adaptor comprising:

an appliance adaptor body;

two or more conducting members, each conducting member comprising a conducting receptacle and a conducting pin, the conducting receptacle being open in a first axial direction and configured to receive a prong of an appliance, the conducting pin being formed integrally with the conducting receptacle and extending through the appliance adaptor body in a second axial direction opposite the first axial direction; and

at least one magnet coupled to the appliance adaptor body, the at least one magnet being oriented to provide a magnetic attraction in the first axial direction,

wherein the appliance adaptor comprises a plurality of circumferentially-arranged magnets.

2. The appliance adaptor of claim 1, wherein the appliance adaptor body defines two or more slots, each slot being configured to receive a prong of the appliance.

3. The appliance adaptor of claim 1, the appliance adaptor comprising three conducting members.

4. The appliance adaptor of claim 1, wherein the at least one magnet comprises an annular magnetic ring.

5. A wall adaptor of an electrical connection system utilizing magnetic coupling, the wall adaptor comprising:

a wall adaptor body;

two or more conducting prongs coupled to the wall adaptor body, the two or more conducting prongs extending from the wall adaptor body in an axial direction and being configured for insertion into a wall outlet;

two or more conducting rings, the conducting rings being concentric around a line extending in the axial direction;

a spring member coupled to the wall adaptor body and the two or more conducting rings, the spring member being configured to bias the two or more conducting rings in the axial direction such that when the spring member is uncompressed, the two or more conducting rings do not electrically contact the two or more conducting prongs, and when the spring member is compressed, the two or more conducting rings electrically contact the two or more conducting prongs; and

at least one magnet coupled to the wall adaptor body, the at least one magnet being oriented to provide a magnetic attraction in the axial direction.

6. The wall adaptor of claim 5, the wall adaptor comprising three conducting prongs and three conducting rings.

7. The wall adaptor of claim 5, further comprising a ring holder, the two or more conducting rings being affixed to the ring holder, and the ring holder being coupled to the spring member.

8. The wall adaptor of claim 7, wherein the two or more conducting rings are disposed in two or more annular recesses defined in the ring holder.

9. The wall adaptor of claim 7, wherein the spring member comprises two springs coupled to the ring holder.

10. The wall adaptor of claim 5, each of the conducting rings comprising a tab,

wherein when the spring member is uncompressed, the tabs of the conducting rings do not electrically contact the conducting prongs, and when the spring member is compressed, the tabs of the conducting rings electrically contact the conducting prongs.

11. The wall adaptor of claim 10, wherein when the spring member is compressed the tabs electrically contact the conducting prongs sequentially.

12. The wall adaptor of claim 5, wherein the at least one magnet comprises a plurality of circumferentially-arranged magnets.

13. An electrical connection system utilizing magnetic coupling, the electrical connection system comprising:

an appliance adaptor having;

two or more conducting members extending through the appliance adaptor; and

at least one appliance adaptor magnet;

a wall adaptor having;

two or more concentric conducting rings;

two or more conducting prongs; and

at least one wall adaptor magnet configured to magnetically couple with the at least one appliance adaptor magnet,

the electrical connection system having an uncoupled state in which the at least one appliance adaptor magnet does not magnetically couple with the at least one wall adaptor magnet, the two or more conducting members do not electrically contact the two or more conducting rings, and the two or more conducting rings do not electrically contact the two or more conducting prongs, and

the electrical connection system having a coupled state in which the at least one appliance adaptor magnet magnetically couples with the at least one wall adaptor magnet, the two or more conducting members electrically contact the two or more conducting rings, and the two or more conducting rings electrically contact the two or more conducting prongs.

14. The electrical connection system of claim 13, wherein the two or more conducting members comprise two or more conducting pins.

15. The electrical connection system of claim 13, wherein the wall adaptor further comprises a spring member, the spring member being coupled to bias the two or more conducting rings.

16. The electrical connection system of claim 15, wherein the spring member is uncompressed in the uncoupled state of the electrical connection system and the spring member is compressed in the coupled state of the electrical connection system.

17. The electrical connection system of claim 16, wherein the appliance adaptor further comprises an appliance adaptor body, the wall adaptor further comprises a wall adaptor body, and

wherein in the coupled state, the spring member is compressed between the appliance adaptor body and the wall adaptor body.

18. The electrical connection system of claim 13, wherein one of the at least one wall adaptor magnet and the at least one appliance adaptor magnet comprises a plurality of circumferentially-arranged magnets.

19. The electrical connection system of claim 13, wherein one of the at least one wall adaptor magnet and the at least one appliance adaptor magnet comprises an annular magnetic ring.