Foldable cable-supporting bracket

Abstract

A cable-supporting bracket means 1 suitable for attachment to a wall or ceiling substructure (figure 3, 15). The bracket means 1 comprises a flat preform foldable into a right-angled bracket 1 suitabl

Description

This invention relates to the general subject of installing electric or fibre-optic cables in walls and ceilings of buildings and the terms ‘cable _or ‘cabling _ is intended to include any type of cabling capable of transmitting signals and / or power, such as electric cables, aerial cables and fibre-optic cables composed of a core and a cladding. When installing electrical fittings within rooms of buildings the electrician normally has to make three visits to the site, the first to install the cabling and any associated cable pigtails of electric wires between wall studs and ceiling joists, the pigtails being the cut and exposed ends of copper wire for later insertion into electrical fittings such as light fittings and wall sockets, to then record and often photograph the positioning of the cables and any pigtails; before thermal or sound insulation has been installed and plasterboard or other surface finish has been fixed over the studs or joists, thereby hiding the cabling and any pigtails. The second visit by the electrician therefore involves locating the hidden cabling and any pigtails by reference to the photographs and records obtained during the first visit and then cutting holes in e.g. the plasterboard and, where required, the insulation itself, so as to expose the cabling and any pigtails. After plastering or painting the third visit allows the electrical fittings to be finally installed and connected to the cabling. During all of this work the cabling and any associated pigtails can be accidentally moved from their original positions when e.g. installing insulation because the cabling itself is essentially loose, meaning that the process of locating the cabling and any pigtails can be time-consuming and where plasterboard has been cut in the wrong location it also has to be repaired. In addition, because different tradesmen / women are involved in the entire process of fitting out a room in a building there is often a delay in, for example, installing plasterboard and thermal insulation, then waiting for a plasterer to apply finish plaster, only after which can the electrician return to the site for a third and final visit. Accordingly, the entire process can result in significant delays in finally fixing electrical fittings and, even then, the cabling itself can end up in unintended locations behind the plasterboard, thereby constituting a potential hazard where, for example, screws or other fixings are driven through the plasterboard following completion of the initial build. The same considerations apply when fitting fibre-optic cabling and any associated pigtails, or other types of cabling. The present invention is derived from the realisation that there is a need for an alternative system of installing such cabling and associated fittings in finished walls and ceilings that ensures the cabling is retained in its intended position behind the finished wall or ceiling and which makes locating the cabling much easier during the initial build or even after, and which requires fewer visits by the electrician have less cost and minimum delay. According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a cablesupporting bracket means for attachment to a wall or ceiling sub-structure, such as a wall stud or ceiling joist, the cable-supporting bracket means comprising or including an initially generally flat preform condition that is foldable into a generally right-angled cable-supporting bracket for fixing to the sub-structure, the cable-supporting bracket means comprising or including a leg portion having at least one aperture there-along, one end of the leg portion being connected to a foot portion by a living main hinge, the foot portion having respectively opposite triangular wing portions, wherein each triangular wing portion is connected to respectively opposite sides of the foot portion by a respective living wing hinge and wherein each triangular wing portion comprises generally U-shaped locking formations in the form ofclips, wherein the leg portion comprises a raised lip around its major periphery whereby to increase rigidity or stiffness to the leg portion and a flat section not surrounded by the raised lip the flat section having respectively opposite edges serving as clip formations on or in the leg portion, which respective clip formations are engageable with the U-shaped locking formations on or in each respective wing portion, whereby to form when assembled a generally right-angled cable-supporting bracket, the arrangement being such that upon fixing of the foot portion of the cable-supporting bracket to the substructure the apertures in the leg portion permit the selective placement of cabling therethrough whereby to thereafter permit the location of the cabling relative to the wall or ceiling to be recorded by reference to the particular aperture(s) into which the cabling has been inserted and wall or ceiling finish surfaces have been installed over the cabling. In particular, the foot portion has respectively opposite wing portions, whereby to form, when assembled, a generally right-angled bracket. Each wing portion is connected to the foot portion by a wing hinge. Each wing portion is connectable to respectively opposite sides of the leg portion by a respective clip formation. Locking formations on or in each wing portion may be co-operable with the clip formations on or in the leg portion. Respective clip formations are engageable with the locking formations on or in each respective wing portions. In particular, each wing portion comprises generally U-shaped locking formations in the form ofclips. With this arrangement, during the first site visit by the cable installer and after placement of the bracket{s) and cabling, the location of the cabling and any cable pigtails can be easily recorded manually, such as by counting the number of apertures in the leg portion of the bracket(s) and identifying a particular aperture into which the cabling has been installed, or by recording an image / photograph of the or each bracket and cabling whereby to locate the cabling and any associated pigtails at the second site visit after being hidden by e.g. plasterboard and attendant finish plaster or paint. At least one of the apertures in the leg portion may be generally circular. At least one of the apertures in the leg portion may be generally oblong. The leg portion includes one or more sets of circular or oblong apertures. The sets of apertures may be arranged equidistantly along the length of the leg portion. Conveniently, the bracket leg includes sets of cable-receiving apertures, each set having a circular aperture for receiving a single cable and an oblong aperture for receiving a correspondingly shaped twin cable or pairs of single cables, with each set being disposed at regular intervals along the leg. Further in accordance with the first aspect of the invention, there is also provided a kit of parts including a plurality of cable-supporting bracket means, such as in a flat-pack, in which the respective lengths of the leg portion of each cable-supporting bracket means of the plurality of cable-supporting bracket means are varied, such as corresponding to the lengths of leg for fitting between standard distances between ceiling joists and wall studs, or being in a set of brackets with a selection of different leg lengths ranging progressively from relatively short to long, thereby avoiding wastage by enabling the closest fit or match of bracket to be selected at each installation site. In a second aspect of the invention there is provided a method of installing cabling as defined in or on wall or ceiling surfaces using at least one cable-supporting bracket means generally according to the first aspect of the invention, the method including the steps, in any convenient order, of installing the or each assembled cable-supporting bracket means on substructures such as ceiling joists or wall studs and installing cabling therethrough to include any cable pigtails at positions corresponding to those required for the or each type of cable fitting, recording the position of the or each bracket, the cabling and any pigtails, and making a second visit to the site once the wall or ceiling finish surfaces have been at least partially installed, identifying with reference to the records obtained from the first visit the location of the cabling and / or any pigtails and cutting out an aperture for receiving a required fitting to be thereafter connected to the cabling or any pigtails. In accordance with the method of the invention, during the first visit to the site the cable installer can insert cabling through multiple aligned cablesupporting brackets and through common apertures or sets of apertures on each cable-supporting bracket, so as to prevent unwanted movement of the cabling before the second site visit and to ensure that after final installation of the required cable fitting the position of the cabling remains fixed, typically being in a straight line horizontally or vertically. Thus, in accordance with the method of the invention, the installation of cabling and associated fittings can be achieved with only two visits to the site, thereby saving time and money as compared to prior art methods of installing such cabling and fittings requiring three site visits, as well as ensuring that the cabling is safely retained behind the plasterboard, or other finish surface, at known positions as a consequence of recording where the or each cable-supporting bracket means is fixed and where, along the leg of the or each cable-supporting bracket means, the cabling has been installed. The position of the cabling and / or any pigtails may be recorded by use of a software application. The recording of the position of the cabling and / or any pigtails may be performed by use of a software application installed on a mobile phone or other portable device capable of taking and storing images of the bracket installation site. A software application may be programmed to record data from a work site including the location of the or each cable-supporting bracket means in accordance with the first aspect of the invention and thereafter displaying either locally or remotely the position of the or each bracket cabling and any cable pigtails whereby to permit the installation of fittings connectable to the cabling whether or not the cable installer attending the second site visit is the same as the one attending the first site visit The software application may conveniently allow one or more images of the site and the position of the cabling supported by the or each bracket to be stored for future reference on e.g. a smart phone, or to be sent to a remote location such as a server or to another smart phone. With this arrangement for example, a first electrician can install cabling and brackets in accordance with the first aspect of the invention, and after plasterboard and any plaster has been applied a second electrician can download a record of the respective positions of the or each bracket cabling and any pigtails with reference to e.g. images and / or measured positions relative to the site, such as the distance from the floor or the ceiling and the distance between one wall and an opposite wall and the particular aperture in the or each bracket into which the cabling has been inserted, thereby allowing the first electrician to continue installing cabling and associated brackets in other parts of the building or in other buildings and for the second visit to the site, (which may be days or weeks later following installation of insulation, plasterboard and plaster finish) to be made by the same or a different electrician who is therefore able to easily identify the location of the or each bracket, the cabling and any pigtails. The invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of an unassembled bracket preform for making a bracket according to the first aspect of the invention, Figure 2 is a perspective view of the assembled bracket of Figure 1, Figure 3 is a part-perspective view of part of a room in which a bracket in accordance with the first aspect of the invention has been installed on a substructure along with electric cabling and cable pigtails, and Figure 4 is a flow diagram showing the various functions of the software application. Referring firstly to Figure 1 there is shown a plan view of a bracket (1) in its flat, unassembled, preform condition comprising an elongate leg portion (2) a foot portion (3) connected to the leg portion by a living main hinge (4). On respectively opposite sides of the foot portion (3) are triangular wing portions (5) each connected to the foot portion by respective living hinges (6). Surrounding most of the perimeter of the leg portion is a raised lip (7) serving to provide rigidity to the leg portion (2), the leg portion also having a flat section (2a) not surrounded by the raised lip (7), the flat section (2a) having respectively opposite edges serving as clip formations engageable in generally U-shaped locking formations in the form of clips (8) at the free ends of the wings (5) when the bracket (1) is assembled and as shown with reference to Figure 2. Extending along the length of leg (2) are respective sets of apertures, each set comprising a circular aperture (9) and a generally oblong aperture (10), each for receiving different sizes and shapes of cabling (not shown). In the foot portion (3) there are provided bracket mounting slots (11) for receiving screw fasteners (not shown) by which the bracket (1) may be permanently fixed to a rigid sub-structure such as a wall stud or ceiling joist. The overall length of the leg (2) is below the width between wall studs or ceiling joists, which are typically with 400 mm or 600 mm centres. Thus, for convenience, an electrician may be provided with a selection of bracket preforms of varying lengths to suit such varying widths, or single sizes of bracket preform which can therefore be cut-down to a required length of leg. Figure 2 shows the bracket (1) in its fully assembled substantially right-angled condition in which the locking clips (8) on the ends of each of the wings (5) have been clipped onto the edges of the flat section (2a) of the leg (2) in order to retain its right-angled shape. The assembly of the bracket (1) may be completed before it is fixed in place on a wall stud or ceiling joist or it may instead be secured thereto when in its flat, unassembled condition, particularly if there are any difficulties accessing the bracket mounting slots (11), whereafter the leg portion (2) can be hinged to the right-angled position as shown in Figure 2 and retained in that position by the clips (8). Figure 3 shows part of a plasterboard wall section (14) with a part of the plasterboard cutaway, showing the bracket(1) in use and mounted on a wall stud (15). Extending through one of the generally oblong apertures (10) are a pair of electric cables (12), part of which have been cut to strip and expose the copper core to form respective pigtails (13) for connection to a respective electrical fitting (not shown). The bracket (1) therefore not only provides a convenient way of easily locating where the pigtails (13) are within a plaster-finished room but also serve the purpose of acting as a cable-tidy, effectively ensuring that the cables (12) are retained in their intended position and minimising any sagging of the cabling (12) when connected to respective electrical fittings. Turning to Figure 4, a flow chart details the method of use of the software application for recordal / retrieval of electrical cabling placement information. The method is divided into 2 main stages, the first a data capture method here information is either obtained by the device itself, such as location data and time / date information; inputted manually, such as room data and text notes; or obtained through other sources such as the photos, which are envisaged in use to be obtained from the in-built camera of the phone. After information has been collected from the site at the end of the first site visit, the second stage of storage / access / sharing is engaged during a second site visit. This information may be stored locally on the device or on a remote storage system, such as a server. Any number of devices capable of using the software and authorised to access the data may then, using a number of methods including searching by location data provided by the user device, access the particular site and project information, thereby allowing one or more users, who may have never visited the site before, to share access to the detailed information of cable placement. Thus, after the first site visit and electrician attending at the second side visit may not only been able to easily locate the cabling and any pigtails but may also be provided with relevant project information, such as the type of fitting to be installed at a particular location, such as a wall switch or ceiling light. Although the software application in the flow chart of figure 4 is employed as part of a mobile phone application, it could equally be utilised on an unnetworked portable device or a static device such as a personal computer. The advantage of portability and networking is, however, obvious, and the portable software application is the preferred method of use of the method described.

Claims

1. A cable-supporting bracket means (1) for attachment to a wall or ceiling substructure (15) such as a wall stud or ceiling joist, the cable-supporting bracket means (1) having an initially generally flat preform condition that is foldable into an assembled generally right-angled cable-supporting bracket (1) for fixing to the sub-structure (15), the cable-supporting bracket means (1) comprising a leg portion (2) having at least one aperture (9,10) there-along, one end of the leg portion (2) being connected to a foot portion (3) by a living main hinge (4), the foot portion (3) having respectively opposite triangular wing portions (5), wherein each triangular wing portion (5) is connected to respectively opposite sides of the foot portion (3) by a respective living wing hinge (6) and wherein each triangular wing portion (5) comprises generally U-shaped locking formations in the form of clips (8), wherein the leg portion (2) comprises a raised lip (9) around its major periphery whereby to increase rigidity or stiffness to the leg portion (2) and a flat section (2a) not surrounded by the raised lip (7), the flat section (2a) having respectively opposite edges serving as clip formations on or in the leg portion (2), which respective clip formations are engageable with the U-shaped locking formations (8) on or in each respective wing portion (5), whereby to form when assembled a generally right-angled cable-supporting bracket (1), the arrangement being such that upon fixing of the foot portion (3) of the cable-supporting bracket (1) to the substructure (15) the aperture(s) (9,10) in the leg portion (2) permit the selective placement of cabling (12) therethrough whereby to thereafter permit the location of the cabling (12) relative to the wall or ceiling to be recorded by reference to the particular aperture(s) (9,10) into which the cabling (12) has been inserted after wall or ceiling finish surfaces (14) have been installed over the cabling.

2. A cable-supporting bracket means according to claim 1 wherein at least one of the apertures (9, 10) in the leg portion (2) is generally circular.

3. A cable-supporting bracket means according to claim 1 wherein at least one of the apertures (9, 10) in the leg portion is generally oblong (10).

4. A cable-supporting bracket means according to claim 1 wherein the leg portion (2) includes one or more sets of circular or oblong apertures (9,10).

5. A cable-supporting bracket means according to claim 4 wherein sets of apertures (9,10) are arranged equidistantly along the length of the leg portion (2).

6. A kit of parts comprising a plurality of cable-supporting bracket means (1) according to any preceding claim whereby the respective lengths of the leg portion (2) of the cable-supporting bracket means (1) of the plurality of cable-supporting bracket means (1) are varied.

7. A method of installing cabling and associated fittings in or on wall or ceiling surfaces (14) using at least one cable-supporting bracket means (1) according to any preceding claim, the method including the steps, in any convenient order, of installing the or each assembled cable-supporting bracket means (1) on a sub-structure (15) such as a ceiling joist or wall stud and installing cabling (12) therethrough to include any cable pigtails (13) at positions corresponding to those required for the or each fitting, recording the position of the or each bracket (1), cabling (12) and any pigtails (13), and returning a second time to the site once the wall or ceiling plasterboard (14) or other pre- or final-finish surface has been installed, identifying with reference to the records obtained from the first visit the location of the cabling (12) and cutting out an aperture for receiving a fitting to be thereafter connected to the cabling (12) or any pigtails (13) before or after any final finish, such as plastering, has been applied.

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