Pop-up power outlet

Abstract

To provide a pop-up power outlet that allows the position of the plug connection surface to be changed by enabling the outlet unit, which protrudes from the floor surface during use, to be rotated and to hold the rotated position. [Solution] The outlet unit 5 is made to protrude outward from the opening 6 of the base plate 7 attached to the floor surface by the elastic force of a spring 9 only when in use, and when not in use, the protruding outlet unit 5 is positioned on the inner side of the base plate 7 and can be stored in a storage box 8 installed inside the floor surface. The outlet unit 5 is provided with an outlet unit rotation control unit 10 at its lower part which rotatably supports the outlet unit 5 protruding from the base plate 7, which allows the position of the plug socket 4 on the outlet unit 5 to be changed in the rotation direction, and which restricts the rotation of the outlet unit 5 at the zero rotation position and at a predetermined angle of rotation position.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a pop-up power outlet that is stored inside a floor when not in use and protrudes above the floor surface when in use.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, as a pop-up power outlet that is stored inside a floor when not in use and protrudes above the floor surface when in use, the structure is composed of: a floor plate having a cylindrical portion and a flange portion that are fitted into a mounting hole opened in the floor surface; an intermediate cylinder body provided with an outlet that is inserted into the cylindrical portion of the floor plate; a spring receiver fixed to the lower end of the floor plate; and a coil spring elastically mounted between the spring receiver and a spring receiving groove recessed in the lower part of the intermediate cylinder body. There is a pop-up power outlet in which the intermediate cylinder body provided with the outlet is configured to protrude from the upper surface of the floor plate during use by the elastic force of the coil spring (for example, refer to Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] The pop-up power outlet disclosed in the above Patent Document 1 allows the intermediate cylinder body provided with the outlet to protrude from the cylindrical portion fitted into the mounting hole opened in the floor surface only during use, and when not in use, the intermediate cylinder body can be inserted into the cylindrical portion fitted in the mounting hole to be stored inside the floor surface. Therefore, in the non-use state, the floor surface can be kept flat, which does not obstruct walking or the like, and can prevent the intermediate cylinder body provided with the outlet from being damaged by being hit by an object.

[0005] However, the pop-up type power outlet disclosed in Patent Document 1 cannot be rotated during use, that is, when a plug is connected, because the central cylinder with the outlet protruding from the floor surface cannot be rotated, and therefore the position of the plug connection port cannot be changed. Depending on the environment of the place of use, this may require a lot of effort to connect the plug, or there is a risk of damaging the connecting cable during use.

[0006] The object of the present invention is to provide a pop-up type power outlet that allows the protruding outlet unit to be rotated during use, can maintain the rotated position, thereby changing the position of the plug connection surface, and also prevents stress on the connecting cable, thereby improving usability to an unprecedented degree. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] To elaborate on the configuration of the present invention for achieving the above objectives, the invention according to claim 1 is a pop-up type power outlet in which, when in use, the outlet unit is made to protrude outward from an opening in a base plate attached to the floor surface by the elastic force of a spring, and when not in use, the protruding outlet unit is made to be stored in a storage box located on the inner side of the base plate and installed inside the floor surface, and the outlet unit is provided with an outlet unit rotation control unit at its lower part which rotatably supports the outlet unit protruding from the base plate and which can change the position of the plug socket on the outlet unit in the rotation direction, and the outlet unit rotation control unit is at the bottom of the outlet unit This pop-up type power outlet comprises a cylindrical rotating base portion integrally formed with the main body, and a power outlet unit support portion provided in a plate body with a fitting hole that fits onto the outer circumference of the rotating base portion, supporting the power outlet unit so that it can move up and down and rotate. The rotating base portion and the power outlet unit support portion are equipped with a vertical movement position restricting mechanism for restricting the vertical movement position of the power outlet unit, a rotation lock / release mechanism for locking the rotation of the power outlet unit when it is in the lower position and releasing the lock on the rotation of the power outlet unit when it is in the upper position, and a rotation angle restricting mechanism for restricting the rotation angle of the power outlet unit from a zero position to a predetermined angle.

[0008] Furthermore, the invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that a cylindrical rotating base portion, which constitutes the outlet rotation control unit, is integrally formed at the bottom of the outlet unit, and a plurality of rail-shaped projections are provided on its outer circumference, projecting outward at predetermined intervals in the same circumferential direction, and the plurality of rail-shaped projections consist of vertically wide rail-shaped projections with a wide vertical length and vertically narrow rail-shaped projections with a narrow vertical length, and the vertically wide rail-shaped projections and the vertically narrow rail-shaped projections are arranged alternately with their upper end faces positioned on the same circumference, and the outlet unit support portion has, along the edge of the fitting hole, Multiple rail-shaped upright sections are provided on the outer circumference of the rotating base section, spaced at intervals equal to or longer than the width of the rail-shaped projection section, corresponding to the rail-shaped projection section. The multiple rail-shaped upright sections consist of wide vertical rail-shaped upright sections and narrow vertical rail-shaped projection sections. The wide vertical rail-shaped upright sections and the narrow vertical rail-shaped upright sections are arranged alternately with their lower end faces at the same height. As the outlet unit moves up and down, the wide vertical rail-shaped projection section and the narrow vertical rail-shaped projection section, provided on the outer circumference of the rotating base section, are provided on the outlet unit support section. The vertical movement position restricting mechanism, which restricts the vertical movement position of the outlet unit, is provided on the outlet unit support portion, which, when the outlet unit is moved upward, contacts the upper end surface of the rail-shaped projection provided on the rotation base portion of the outlet unit, thereby restricting the upward movement of the outlet unit, and when the outlet unit is moved downward, contacts the front of the outlet unit In the rotation lock / release mechanism, which locks and releases the rotation of the outlet unit, a lower position restricting portion is provided that contacts a small diameter step formed on the lower outer peripheral surface of the rail-shaped projection in the rotating base portion and restricts the downward movement of the outlet unit, when the outlet unit is moved to a lower position relative to the outlet unit support portion, the vertically wide rail-shaped projection and the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection engage with the groove between the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion, and the side edge of the vertically wide rail-shaped projection,The rotation of the outlet unit is locked by engaging with the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion on the left and right sides, and when the outlet unit is moved to an upward position relative to the outlet unit support portion, the lower end of the vertically wide rail-shaped projection portion, which is engaged in the groove between the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion, disengages from the upper end of the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion, and the lower end of the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection portion disengages from the upper end of the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion, thereby releasing the lock on the rotation of the outlet unit. The rotation angle restricting mechanism for restricting the rotation angle of the outlet from a zero position to a predetermined angle is characterized in that, when the unlocked outlet unit is rotated in the direction of the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion, the side edge of the vertically wide rail-shaped projection that has passed over the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion engages with the next vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion, thereby restricting the rotation angle, and when the outlet unit is moved to the lower position at that position, it is locked in that position by the rotation lock / release mechanism, as described in claim 1.

[0009] Furthermore, the invention according to claim 3 is a pop-up type power outlet according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the surface surrounding the plug insertion port of the outlet portion provided in the outlet unit is formed on the same surface with an area exceeding at least the spacing between the insertion blades of the plug.

[0010] Furthermore, the invention according to claim 4 is a pop-up type power outlet according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a cylindrical box base material that serves as the storage box is divided vertically into two halves to form a half-box base material, flange-shaped pieces protruding inward are provided at the lower end of each of the two divided half-box base materials, the divided sides of each half-box base material are joined and fixed by any fixing means, and the flange-shaped pieces are used as spring receiving parts that receive the lower end of the spring that biases the outlet unit stored in the storage box outward. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] The pop-up power outlet according to the present invention allows the protruding outlet unit to be rotated during use and to maintain that rotated position, thereby allowing the position of the plug connection surface to be changed. This eliminates the risk of putting stress on the connecting cable during use and provides a pop-up power outlet with improved usability. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0012] [Figure 1] This is an exploded perspective view showing an example of an embodiment of the pop-up type power outlet according to the present invention. [Figure 2] Figure 1 is a partially disassembled perspective view of a pop-up power outlet. [Figure 3] Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the outlet unit support for the pop-up type power outlet. [Figure 4] Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view showing the storage box for the pop-up type power outlet. [Figure 5] This is a cross-sectional view showing the outlet unit stored inside a storage box located within the floor. [Figure 6] This is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the outlet unit stored inside the storage box protrudes outward from an opening in the base plate attached to the floor, and the outlet unit is restricted to a lower position relative to the outlet unit support. [Figure 7] This is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the outlet unit stored inside the storage box protrudes outward from an opening in the base plate attached to the floor, and the outlet unit is restricted to an upward position relative to the outlet unit support. [Figure 8] This is a perspective view showing the outlet unit stored inside the storage box. [Figure 9] This is a perspective view showing the outlet unit stored inside the storage box protruding outwards from the opening in the base plate. [Figure 10]Figure 9 is a perspective view showing the outlet unit, which protrudes outward from the opening in the base plate, rotated 90 degrees. [Figure 11] This is an explanatory diagram showing the vertical movement, rotation lock release, rotation, and rotation lock operation of the outlet unit supported by the outlet unit support section. (A) shows the initial position with rotation locked, (B) shows rotation unlocked, (C) shows the middle of rotation, and (D) shows the rotation restricted position. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0013] Hereinafter, embodiments for implementing the pop-up type power outlet according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Figures 1 to 11 show an example of an embodiment of the pop-up type power outlet according to the present invention. Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view showing the pop-up type power outlet of this example, Figure 2 is a partially exploded perspective view of the pop-up type power outlet shown in Figure 1, Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the outlet unit support part of the pop-up type power outlet shown in Figure 1, Figure 4 is an exploded perspective view showing the storage box of the pop-up type power outlet shown in Figure 1, Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the outlet unit stored in a storage box provided in the floor, Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view showing the outlet unit stored in the storage box protruding outward from the opening of the base plate attached to the floor, and the outlet unit being restricted to a lower position relative to the outlet unit support part, and Figure 7 shows the outlet unit stored in the storage box on the floor Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view showing the outlet unit protruding outward from an opening in a base plate attached to a surface, and the outlet unit being restricted to an upward position relative to the outlet unit support. Figure 9 is a perspective view showing the outlet unit stored in a storage box, with the outlet unit stored in the storage box protruding outward from the opening in the base plate. Figure 10 is a perspective view showing the outlet unit protruding outward from the opening in the base plate shown in Figure 9, rotated 90 degrees. Figure 11 is an explanatory diagram showing the vertical movement, rotation lock release, rotation, and rotation lock operation of the outlet unit supported by the outlet unit support, where (A) is the initial position with rotation locked, (B) is rotation unlocked, (C) is in the middle of rotation, and (D) is the rotation restricted position.

[0014] In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes the pop-up power outlet of the present example. The pop-up power outlet 1 includes: an outlet unit 5 in which a plug insertion port 4 of an outlet portion 3 is provided on one side wall surface of a rectangular parallelepiped outlet box 2, and a through hole for passing a power supply cable into the outlet box 2 is formed at the bottom; a base plate 7 which has an opening 6 for passing the outlet unit 5 and is attached to a floor surface A; a storage box 8 which is located on the inner surface side of the base plate 7 and installed inside the floor surface A, and stores the outlet unit 5 that has passed through the opening 6 of the base plate 7; a spring 9 which is disposed inside the storage box 8 and causes the outlet unit 5 stored in the storage box 8 to protrude outward from the opening 6 of the base plate 7 by elastic force; and an outlet unit rotation control portion 10 which is provided at a lower portion of the outlet unit 5, rotatably supports the outlet unit 5 protruding outward from the base plate 7, and is configured to allow the position of the plug insertion port 4 provided in the outlet unit 5 to be changed in the rotational direction.

[0015] The outlet unit rotation control portion 10 includes a cylindrical rotation base shaft portion 11 integrally formed at the bottom of the outlet unit 5, and an outlet unit support portion 14 in which a fitting hole 13 that fits around the outer periphery of the rotation base shaft portion 11 is provided in a plate body 12, and which supports the outlet unit 5 so as to be vertically movable and rotatable.

[0016] The rotation base shaft portion 11 and the outlet unit support portion 14 are provided with: a vertical movement position regulating mechanism that regulates the vertical movement position of the outlet unit 5; a rotation lock / release mechanism that locks the rotation of the outlet unit 5 at the lowered position of the outlet unit 5 and releases the rotation lock of the outlet unit 5 at the raised position of the outlet unit 5; and a rotation angle regulating mechanism that regulates the rotation angle of the outlet unit 5 from the zero position to a predetermined angle.

[0017] Specifically, a plurality of rail-shaped protrusions protruding outward at predetermined intervals in the same circumferential direction on the outer periphery thereof are provided on a cylindrical rotation base shaft portion formed at the bottom of the outlet unit that constitutes the outlet rotation control unit. The plurality of rail-shaped protrusions consist of a vertical wide rail-shaped protrusion with a large vertical width and a vertical narrow rail-shaped protrusion with a small vertical width, and the vertical wide rail-shaped protrusions and the vertical narrow rail-shaped protrusions are alternately arranged with their upper end surfaces positioned on the same circumference.

[0018] In this example, the vertical wide rail-shaped protrusions and the vertical narrow rail-shaped protrusions are alternately arranged at angular intervals of 90°.

[0019] Further, in this example, the outlet unit support portion is composed of a first support portion and a second support portion that is detachably fixed to the upper side of the first support portion.

[0020] In the first support portion, a plurality of rail-shaped standing portions that stand upward along the edge of a fitting hole provided in a plate body are provided at intervals corresponding to the rail-shaped protrusions at intervals equal to or longer than the lateral width dimension of the rail-shaped protrusions provided on the outer periphery of the rotation base shaft portion. The plurality of rail-shaped standing portions consist of a vertical wide rail-shaped standing portion with a large vertical width and a vertical narrow rail-shaped standing portion with a small vertical width, and the vertical wide rail-shaped standing portions and the vertical narrow rail-shaped standing portions are alternately arranged with their lower end surfaces at the same height position.

[0021] Then, as the outlet unit moves up and down, the vertical wide rail-shaped protrusions and the vertical narrow rail-shaped protrusions provided on the outer periphery of the rotation base shaft portion can be engaged with and disengaged from the grooves between the vertical wide rail-shaped standing portions and the vertical narrow rail-shaped standing portions provided on the first support portion.

[0022] Furthermore, the second support portion 14b, like the first support portion 14a, is provided with a fitting hole 13b through which the rotating base portion 11 is inserted in the plate body 12b. On the edge of the fitting hole 13b, there are notches 18 that do not obstruct the passage of the multiple rail-shaped projections 15 provided on the outer circumference of the rotating base portion 11, namely the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b, when the rotating base portion 11 is fitted into the fitting hole 13b. These notches are provided at positional intervals corresponding to the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b. In addition, the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b have different lateral lengths, with the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a having a longer lateral length than the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b. Furthermore, the notch portion 18 also consists of a wide horizontal notch portion 18a and a narrow horizontal notch portion 18b, which correspond to the widths of the wide vertical rail-shaped projection portion 15a and the narrow vertical rail-shaped projection portion 15b.

[0023] At the position of the notch 18 provided on the edge of the fitting hole 13b of the second support portion 14b, which is fixed to the upper side of the first support portion 14a, the position of the second support portion 14b when it is fixed to the first support portion 14a is positioned above the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion 16a and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion 16b provided on the first support portion 14a.

[0024] In order to achieve this fixed position, when fixing the second support part 14b to the first support part 14a, before fixing the second support part 14b, into which the rotating base shaft part 11 is fitted, to the first support part 14a, the rotating base shaft part 11 fitted into the fitting hole 13b of the second support part 14b is rotated while the second support part 14b is lifted away from the first support part 14a, or the second support part 14b is rotated, and the vertically wide rail-shaped projection part 15a and Align the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b with the groove 17 between the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion 16a and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion 16b provided on the first support portion 14a, engage the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b with the groove 17, then move the second support portion 14b downward and fix the notch 18 to the first support portion 14a with the rail-shaped upright portion 16 of the first support portion 14a facing each other.

[0025] As a result, the positions of the notch 18 provided on the edge of the fitting hole 13b of the second support portion 14b and the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b provided on the outer circumference of the rotating base portion 11 become misaligned. This prevents the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b provided on the outer circumference of the rotating base portion 11 from coming out of the fitting hole 13b of the second support portion 14b when the rotating base portion 11 moves upward.

[0026] Furthermore, the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b of the rotating base shaft 11 have different lengths in width, and the notch 18 of the second support part 14b also consists of a horizontally wide notch 18a and a horizontally narrow notch 18b that correspond to the widths of the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b. Unless the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and the horizontally wide notch 18a coincide, the rotating base shaft 11 cannot be dislodged from the fitting hole 13b of the second support part 14b.

[0027] In this example, as will be described later, the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and the next vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a, the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b and the next vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b, the wide rail-shaped upright 16a and the next vertically wide rail-shaped upright 16a, and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright 16b and the next vertically narrow rail-shaped upright 16b are arranged alternately with a 90° angle between them. As a result, the rotation of the outlet unit is restricted to a 90° angle from the zero position, so the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and the horizontally wide notch 18a do not coincide within the rotatable range of the rotating base shaft 11 fitted into the fitting hole 13b of the second support 14b, and the rotating base shaft 11 does not come out of the fitting hole 13b of the second support 14b.

[0028] Furthermore, the fixed first support portion 14a and second support portion 14b are such that the distance between the lower surface of the plate body 12b of the second support portion 14b and the upper end of the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion 16a of the first support portion 14a is narrower than the vertically wide rail-shaped projection portion 15a provided on the outer circumference of the rotating base portion 11, and wider than the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection portion 15b.

[0029] Furthermore, the vertical movement position restricting mechanism for restricting the vertical movement position of the outlet unit 5 is configured such that the outlet unit support portion 14 is provided with an upper position restricting portion 19 that contacts the upper end surface of the rail-shaped projection portion 15 provided on the rotation base portion 11 of the outlet unit 5 when the outlet unit 5 is moved upward, thereby restricting the upward movement of the outlet unit 5, and a lower position restricting portion 21 that contacts the small-diameter stepped portion 20 formed on the lower outer peripheral surface of the rail-shaped projection portion 15 on the rotation base portion 11 of the outlet unit 5 when the outlet unit 5 is moved downward, thereby restricting the downward movement of the outlet unit 5.

[0030] In this example, the plate 12b of the second support portion 14b is used as the upper position restricting portion 19, and a cylindrical portion 22 with a smaller diameter than the inner diameter of the fitting hole 13a is provided on the lower surface side of the first support 14a, and the stepped portion 23 between the fitting hole 13a and the small-diameter cylindrical portion 22 is used as the lower position restricting portion 21 that abuts against the small-diameter stepped portion 20 formed on the rotating base shaft portion 11.

[0031] Furthermore, in the rotation lock / release mechanism for locking and releasing the rotation of the outlet unit 5, when the outlet unit 5 is moved to a lower position relative to the outlet unit support 14 in the initial position, the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b provided on the rotation base 11 engage with the groove 17 between the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion 16a and vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion 16b provided on the first support 14a, and the side edge of the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a engages with the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion 16a and vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion 16b on the left and right sides. When the outlet unit 5 is locked in place (see Figure 11(A)), and the outlet unit 5 is moved to an upward position relative to the outlet unit support 14, the lower end of the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a, which is engaged with the groove 17 between the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion 16a and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion 16b, disengages from the upper end of the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion 16b, and the lower end of the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b disengages from the upper end of the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion 16a, thereby releasing the lock on the rotation of the outlet unit 5 (see Figure 11(B)).

[0032] In this state, the outlet unit 5 can be rotated, and by rotating the outlet unit 5, its orientation can be changed by a predetermined angle. At this time, during the rotation of the outlet unit 5, the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a provided on the rotation base part 11 passes under the horizontally narrow notch 18b of the second support part 14b. However, since the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a is wider than the horizontally narrow notch 18b, there is no risk of the rotation base part 11 coming out of the second support part 14b (see Figure 11(C)).

[0033] Furthermore, in the rotation angle regulating mechanism that restricts the rotation angle of the outlet unit 5 from the zero position to a predetermined angle, when the unlocked outlet unit 5 is rotated in the direction of the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion 16b, the side edge of the vertically wide rail-shaped projection portion 15a that has passed over the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion 16b engages with the next vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion 16a, thereby restricting the rotation angle (see Figure 11(D)).

[0034] In this example, the vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a and the next vertically wide rail-shaped projection 15a, the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b and the next vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 15b, the wide rail-shaped upright 16a and the next vertically wide rail-shaped upright 16a, and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright 16b and the next vertically narrow rail-shaped upright 16b are arranged alternately with a 90° angle between them, so the rotation of the outlet unit is restricted to an angle of 90° from the zero position.

[0035] Then, by moving the outlet unit 5 to the lower position at that location, it is locked in that position by the rotation lock / release mechanism. Then, by moving the outlet unit 5 to the upper position relative to the outlet unit support part 14 at that location, the lock is released, and by rotating it in the opposite direction, the rotation is restricted to the initial position, i.e., the zero rotation position, and it is locked in that position by the rotation lock / release mechanism.

[0036] Furthermore, in this example, the surface surrounding the plug socket 4 of the outlet section 3 provided in the outlet unit 5 is formed on a single surface with an area at least exceeding the spacing between the plug's prongs.

[0037] Furthermore, the storage box 8, which is located on the inner side of the base plate 7 and installed inside the floor surface A to house the outlet unit 5, is formed by dividing a rectangular cylindrical box base material 24, which will become the storage box 8, vertically into two halves, forming a half-box base material 24a. Flange-shaped pieces 25 projecting inward are provided at the lower ends of each of the two divided half-box base materials 24a, and the divided sides of each half-box base material 24a are joined and fixed by any fixing means to form a cylindrical box base material 24. In this example, it is fixed with bolts 26 (see Figure 4). The flange-shaped pieces 25 projecting inward at the lower end of the cylindrical box base material 24 serve as a spring receiving portion 27 that receives the lower end of the spring 9 that biases the outlet unit 5 housed in the storage box 8 outward.

[0038] In this example, a guide groove 28 is provided vertically on the side wall of the storage box 8, and a guide projection 29 that engages with the guide groove 28 is provided on the outer surface of the first support portion 14a of the outlet unit support portion 14. By engaging the guide projection 29 with the guide groove 28, the outlet unit 5 stored in the storage box 8 can be moved up and down smoothly.

[0039] Furthermore, this example includes an escape restriction mechanism that prevents the protruding outlet unit 5 from coming out of the storage box 8 due to the elastic force of the spring 9, a storage position fixing mechanism that fixes the outlet unit 5 in the storage position when it is stored in the storage box 8 against the elastic force of the spring 9, and an extension position fixing mechanism that fixes the protruding outlet unit 5 in a predetermined position due to the elastic force of the spring 9.

[0040] In this example of the escape prevention mechanism, when the outlet unit 5 stored in the storage box 8 is pushed outward by the elastic force of the spring 9, the upper end surface of the guide projection piece 29 provided on the outer surface of the first support portion 14a of the outlet unit support portion 14 comes into contact with the inner surface of the base plate 7, preventing the outlet unit 5 from coming out of the storage box 8 (see Figure 6).

[0041] Furthermore, the storage position fixing mechanism in this example has the following configuration. The base plate 7 is provided with a fixing piece 31 that advances forward from the inner edge of the opening 6 towards the inside of the opening 6 by the elastic force of the spring 30 and protrudes, and then retracts against the elastic force of the spring 30 to fit inside the base plate 7, and an operating piece 32 that retracts the fixing piece 31.Engaging recesses 33 are formed on both sides of the side wall surface of the outlet box 2 where the plug socket 4 of the outlet section 3 is exposed, and are located on the top plate side, into which the fixing piece 31 can engage.

[0042] Then, the fixing piece 31, which advances and protrudes from the inner edge of the opening 6 of the base plate 7, slidably contacts the side wall surface of the outlet box 2 where the engaging recess 33 is formed. When the outlet unit 5 is stored in the storage box 8, the fixing piece 31 that is contacting the side wall surface disengages from the side wall surface, advances, and engages with the engaging recess 33, thereby fixing the outlet unit 5 stored in the storage box 8 in its stored position (see Figure 5).

[0043] Furthermore, the protruding position fixing mechanism in this example has the following configuration. On the outer surface of the first support portion 14a of the outlet unit support portion 14, an engagement recess 34 is formed at a position corresponding to the fixing piece 31 provided on the base plate 7 that constitutes the storage position fixing mechanism, into which the fixing piece 31 can engage.

[0044] Then, when the outlet unit 5, which has been extended outward by the elastic force of the spring 9, reaches a predetermined position, the fixing piece 31 moves forward by the elastic force of the spring 30 and engages with the engagement recess 34, thereby fixing the extended outlet unit 5 in the predetermined position (see Figure 6).

[0045] As described above, the pop-up type power outlet 1 of this example is configured such that the outlet unit 5 is extended outward from the opening 6 of the base plate 7 attached to the floor surface A by the elastic force of the spring 9 only when in use, and when not in use, the extended outlet unit 5 is positioned on the inner side of the base plate 7 and can be stored in a storage box 8 installed inside the floor surface A. The outlet unit 5 is provided with an outlet unit rotation control unit 10 at its lower part, which rotatably supports the outlet unit 5 that extends from the base plate 7 and allows the position of the plug socket 4 of the outlet unit 5 to be changed in the rotational direction. The outlet unit rotation control unit 10 is a cylindrical shape integrally formed at the bottom of the outlet unit 5. The outlet unit 5 consists of a rotating base shaft 11 and an outlet unit support part 14, which is provided in a plate body 12 with a fitting hole 13 that fits onto the outer circumference of the rotating base shaft 11 and supports the outlet unit 5 so that it can move up and down and rotate. The rotating base shaft 11 and the outlet unit support part 14 are equipped with a vertical movement position restricting mechanism that restricts the vertical movement position of the outlet unit 5, a rotation lock / release mechanism that locks the rotation of the outlet unit 5 when it is in the lower position and releases the lock on the rotation of the outlet unit 5 when it is in the upper position, and a rotation angle restricting mechanism that restricts the rotation angle of the outlet unit 5 from the zero position to a predetermined angle. As a result, the protruding outlet unit 5 can be rotated when in use and the rotated position can be maintained.

[0046] Furthermore, since the rotation lock and unlock of the outlet unit 5 can be performed by simple operations such as lifting or lowering the outlet unit 5, the orientation of the outlet section 3 through which the plug socket 4 opens can be easily changed with simple operations.

[0047] Furthermore, in this example, the surrounding surface of the plug socket 4 of the outlet section 3 provided in the outlet unit 5 is formed as a single surface with an area at least greater than the spacing between the prongs of the plug. Therefore, when inserting a plug into the plug socket 4 of the outlet section 3 while it is energized, the danger of a ground fault occurring due to only one prong of the plug being inserted into the plug socket 4 and the remaining prong contacting surrounding metal material can be avoided.

[0048] Furthermore, in this example, a cylindrical box base material 24 that will become the storage box 8 is divided vertically into two halves, half-box base materials 24a and 24b. A flange-shaped piece 25 that protrudes inward is provided at the lower end of each of the half-box base materials 24a and 24b. The divided sides of the half-box base materials 24a and 24b are joined and fixed with bolts 26. The flange-shaped piece 25 is used as a spring receiving portion 27 that receives the lower end of the spring 9 that biases the outlet unit 5 stored in the storage box 8 outward. As a result, the structure of the storage box 8 with the spring receiving portion 27 at the bottom is simplified and can be easily assembled. [Explanation of symbols]

[0049] 1. Pop-up power outlet 2. Outlet box 3. Outlet section 4 plug sockets 5 Outlet Unit 6 openings 7 Base Plate 8 Storage box 9 Spring 10. Outlet Unit Rotation Control Unit 11 Rotating base part 12, 12a, 12b plate 13, 13a, 13b fitting holes 14. Outlet unit support section 14a 1st support part 14b Second support part 15 Rail-shaped projection 15a Long-width rail-shaped projection 15b Vertically narrow rail-shaped projection 16 Rail-shaped upright section 16a Vertical wide rail-shaped upright section 16b Vertically narrow rail-shaped upright section 17 Groove 18 Notch 19 Upper position regulating section 20 Small diameter stepped section 21 Lower position regulation part 22 Cylinder part 23 Step section 24 Box base material 24a, 24b half box base material 25 Flange 26 volts 27 Spring support 28 Guide grooves 29 Guide protrusions 30 Spring 31 Fixed piece 32 Operation piece 33, 34 Engaging recess A Floor surface

Claims

1. A pop-up type power outlet is provided, wherein the outlet unit is extended outward from an opening in a base plate attached to the floor surface by the elastic force of a spring only when in use, and when not in use, the extended outlet unit can be stored in a storage box located on the inner side of the base plate and installed inside the floor surface, and the outlet unit is provided with an outlet unit rotation control unit at its lower part which rotatably supports the outlet unit that extends from the base plate and allows the position of the plug socket on the outlet unit to be changed in the rotational direction, The outlet unit rotation control unit comprises a cylindrical rotating base portion integrally formed at the bottom of the outlet unit, and an outlet unit support portion provided with a fitting hole that fits onto the outer circumference of the rotating base portion, which supports the outlet unit so that it can move up and down and rotate. A pop-up power outlet characterized in that the rotating base portion and the outlet unit support portion are provided with a vertical movement position restricting mechanism for restricting the vertical movement position of the outlet unit, a rotation lock / release mechanism for locking the rotation of the outlet unit when it is in the lower position and releasing the lock on the rotation of the outlet unit when it is in the upper position, and a rotation angle restricting mechanism for restricting the rotation angle of the outlet unit from a zero position to a predetermined angle.

2. The cylindrical rotating base portion, which constitutes the outlet rotation control unit, is integrally formed at the bottom of the outlet unit, and has a plurality of rail-shaped projections that protrude outward at predetermined intervals in the same circumferential direction on its outer circumference. The plurality of rail-shaped projections consist of vertically wide rail-shaped projections with a wide vertical length and vertically narrow rail-shaped projections with a narrow vertical length, and the vertically wide rail-shaped projections and vertically narrow rail-shaped projections are arranged alternately with their upper end faces positioned on the same circumference. The outlet unit support portion has a plurality of rail-shaped upright portions that stand upright along the edge of the fitting hole, and the width of the rail-shaped projections is The rail-shaped uprights are provided at intervals equal to or longer than the length of the rail, and each of the multiple rail-shaped uprights consists of a wide vertical rail-shaped upright and a narrow vertical rail-shaped projection, and the wide vertical rail-shaped uprights and the narrow vertical rail-shaped uprights are arranged alternately with their lower end faces at the same height, and the wide vertical rail-shaped projection and the narrow vertical rail-shaped projection provided on the outer circumference of the rotating base part are able to engage with and disengage from the groove between the wide vertical rail-shaped upright and the narrow vertical rail-shaped upright provided on the outlet unit support part as the outlet unit moves up and down. The vertical movement position restricting mechanism for restricting the vertical movement position of the outlet unit is provided with an upper position restricting portion that, when the outlet unit is moved upward, contacts the upper end surface of the rail-shaped projection provided on the rotating base shaft portion of the outlet unit, thereby restricting the upward movement of the outlet unit, and a lower position restricting portion that, when the outlet unit is moved downward, contacts a small-diameter step formed on the lower outer peripheral surface of the rail-shaped projection on the rotating base shaft portion of the outlet unit, thereby restricting the downward movement of the outlet unit. In the rotation lock / release mechanism for locking and releasing the rotation of the outlet unit, when the outlet unit is moved to a lower position relative to the outlet unit support, the vertically wide rail-shaped projection and the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection engage with the groove between the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion, and the side edges of the vertically wide rail-shaped projection engage with the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion on the left and right, thereby locking the rotation of the outlet unit. When the outlet unit is moved to an upper position relative to the outlet unit support, the lower end of the vertically wide rail-shaped projection, which is engaged with the groove between the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion and the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion, disengages from the upper end of the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion, and the lower end of the vertically narrow rail-shaped projection disengages from the upper end of the vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion, thereby releasing the rotation lock of the outlet unit. The rotation angle restricting mechanism for restricting the rotation angle of the outlet unit from a zero position to a predetermined angle is characterized in that, when the unlocked outlet unit is rotated in the direction of the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion, the side edge of the vertically wide rail-shaped projection that has passed over the vertically narrow rail-shaped upright portion engages with the next vertically wide rail-shaped upright portion, thereby restricting the rotation angle, and when the outlet unit is moved to the lower position at that position, it is locked in that position by the rotation lock / release mechanism, as described in claim 1.

3. The pop-up power outlet according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the surface surrounding the plug socket of the outlet portion provided in the outlet unit is formed on a single surface with an area exceeding at least the spacing between the plug's prongs.

4. A pop-up type power outlet according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a cylindrical box base material that serves as the storage box is divided vertically into two halves to form a half-box base material, flange-shaped pieces protruding inward are provided at the lower end of each of the two divided half-box base materials, the divided sides of each half-box base material are joined and fixed by any fixing means, and the flange-shaped pieces are used as spring receiving parts that receive the lower end of the spring that biases the outlet unit stored in the storage box outward.

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