One-step removable wire manager connection for indoor lighting fixtures

Abstract

A hook device is attached to the inside of the knockout plug of the lighting fixture, and removing the knockout plug pulls the wires attached to the hook device out of the lighting fixture through the plug hole, allowing easy access to external wires for connection. A conventional clamping device can then be attached to secure the external wires to the lighting fixture and close the plug hole.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention generally relates to providing access to internal wires, such as those of a lighting fixture, housed within a metal housing. In particular, the present invention employs a knockout plug in the housing, the interior side of which has a hook mechanism that functions as a wire manager for attaching the housing's internal wires. Removal of the knockout plug allows these wires to be pulled out from the housing body through a knockout hole, thus enabling easy access to the wires without the need for additional openings in the housing.

Background Art

[0002] It is often necessary to open a metal housing that houses internal wires to make an electrical connection with outside wiring. Many such housings have a removable access plate, but many do not. Further, the use of these access plates requires that the access plate comply with UL certification requirements. The size of the plate and its removal (and replacement) often do not allow for easy access when making the desired connection(s). This is especially true in locations where the housing is suspended or access is restricted. Thus, in many situations, disassembly of the housing is required.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0003] The present invention overcomes these problems in the prior art by eliminating the requirement for an access plate. Thus, by removing a portion from the housing assembly, the housing structure is reduced, and the aforementioned difficulties in its use are avoided. Furthermore, the wire manager function performed inside the knockout plug not only allows for quick access to the internal wires but also presents these wires in an organized manner. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] The present invention generally applies to metal housings that house electrical wiring, but will be described below in relation to indoor lighting fixtures. The present invention is not so limited, as it is intended for any metal housing that requires external access to one or more of its internal wires.

[0005] As described below, one aspect of the present invention provides a wire retention device inside a knockout plug positioned in the housing of a lighting fixture. The size of the device and the positioning of the wires attached thereto allow the device to be pulled through a hole resulting from the removal of the knockout plug, thus providing easy access to the wires for making / changing wire connections.

[0006] Another aspect of the present invention establishes a wire management system incorporating a wire holding device.

[0007] Once the desired connection to the external wire has been made, a further aspect of the present invention allows for the use of a conventional clamping device to secure the external wire to the luminaire and close up the plug hole in accordance with UL certification requirements. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] Further details, aspects, and embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, merely as examples. Elements in the drawings are shown for simplification and clarity and are not necessarily drawn to scale. Elements in the drawings that correspond to elements already described may have the same reference numerals. [Figure 1A] An embodiment of a lighting fixture housing 100 is shown. [Figure 1B] The access knockout plug 104 according to the present invention is shown. [Figure 2] This shows an internal diagram of a lighting fixture that displays a knockout access plug. [Figure 3] A side view of the hook device 202 of the knockout access plug is shown. [Figure 4] This demonstrates the use of hook devices in the manufacturing process. [Figure 5] This demonstrates the use of hook devices in the installation process. [Figure 6] This demonstrates the use of a knockout access plug, which allows access to the internal wires by removing the plug. [Figure 7] This demonstrates the use of a knockout access plug, which allows access to the internal wires by removing the plug. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] While the present invention is open to many different embodiments, one or more specific embodiments are shown in the drawings and described herein in detail, with the understanding that this disclosure should be considered illustrative of the principles of the present invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments shown and described herein.

[0010] The elements of the operational embodiment are described below for the sake of understanding. However, it will be clear that each element is configured to perform the function described as being accomplished by it.

[0011] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and the present invention lies in any and all novel features or combinations of features described herein or enumerated in different dependent claims.

[0012] Figure 1A shows a luminaire housing 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention. The luminaire housing 100 may have two end walls / faces 110 and one or more side walls / faces 112, for example, side walls to form a rectangular housing box. Figure 1B shows an enlarged view showing a conventional knockout plug 102 and an access knockout plug 104 according to the present invention in a luminaire housing. As will be further described below, the access knockout plug includes a hook device 202 inside it, which is used to attach the internal wires of the luminaire. In one embodiment of the present invention, the access knockout plug is located in a luminaire housing orifice that includes a square cut edge 106. This square cut edge allows for the introduction of a screwdriver or similar device to allow for quicker removal of the access knockout plug from the outside of the luminaire without disturbing or damaging the wires attached to the hook.

[0013] Furthermore, a label 108 identifying the location of the access knockout plug is shown in the embodiment depicted in Figure 1B. In this embodiment, the wording is of a general nature, "CONNECTION WIRES HERE". In other embodiments, specific connection wires may be identified.

[0014] Figure 2 is an internal view of a lighting fixture showing the knockout access plug 104 and a conventional knockout plug 102 as seen from inside the lighting fixture. As shown in this embodiment, the knockout access plug hook device 202 consists of a cantilevered device that is integrated with the knockout access plug 104.

[0015] Figure 3 shows a side perspective view of the hook device 202. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hook device 202 is formed by lancening the metal side of the luminaire housing 101 and bending the cut material to form the hook device 202 shown in Figure 2. In this way, the knockout access plug and its hook device 202 are formed from the metal sheet material of the luminaire housing. Thus, no additional material is required in the manufacture of a luminaire including the knockout access plug of the claimed invention.

[0016] Figure 4 illustrates the use of a hook device in a manufacturing process. In the illustrated embodiment, one or more internal wires 402 are pushed into the hook via a snap-like feature 404 near the end of the hook. For thinner, more flexible wires, a loop may be formed around the hook with the wire(s), as shown, to secure the wire and prevent it from falling out of the hook. For thicker internal wires 402, such loop formation may not be necessary, as the shape and elasticity of the access plug hook (as shown in Figure 5) are sufficient to secure the wire.

[0017] Figures 6 and 7 illustrate the use of the present invention in the installation process. A screwdriver or similar device (not shown) is inserted into the square cut edge of the knockout access plug orifice 106 to initiate the removal of the plug. Once the knockout access plug is removed, the wire attached to its hook is pulled out of the luminaire, providing easy access to the internal wires. After the modification(s) to these wires and / or connection(s) to the external wires(s) are complete, the wires can be secured to the luminaire housing with any well-known connecting device that encloses the knockout access plug hole 702 in compliance with UL certification requirements.

[0018] The detailed description above has shown some of the many forms the invention can take. The above examples are merely illustrative of some possible embodiments of various aspects of the invention, and other persons skilled in the art will come up with equivalent modifications and / or changes when reading and understanding the invention and the accompanying drawings. In particular, with respect to the various functions performed by the components described above (devices, systems, etc.), the terms used to describe such components (including the reference to “means”) are intended to correspond to any component, such as hardware or combinations of hardware, that perform a particular function of the described component (i.e., are functionally equivalent), even if they are not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structure that performs the function in the illustrated implementation of the disclosure, unless otherwise indicated.

[0019] While certain features of the present invention have been illustrated and / or described in relation to only one of several implementations, such features may be combined with one or more other features of other implementations that may be desired and advantageous for any given or particular application. Furthermore, unless otherwise specified, a reference to a single component or item is intended to encompass two or more such components or items.

[0020] As used in this specification and the claims, the indefinite articles "a" and "an" should be understood to mean "at least one" unless the contrary is clearly indicated. The phrase "and / or" as used in this specification and the claims should be understood to mean "either or both" of the elements so joined, i.e., elements that may be present conjunctively in some cases and disjunctively in other cases. The multiple elements listed with "and / or" should be construed in the same manner, i.e., as "one or more" of the elements so joined. Other elements than those specifically identified by the "and / or" clause may optionally be present, whether or not they are related to those specifically identified elements. Thus, by way of non-limiting example, reference to "A and / or B", when used with open-ended language such as "comprising", may refer in one embodiment to only A (optionally including elements other than B), in another embodiment to only B (optionally including elements other than A), and in yet another embodiment to both A and B (optionally including other elements), etc.

[0021] When used herein and in the claims, “or” should be understood to have the same meaning as “and / or” as defined above. For example, when separating items in a list, “or” or “and / or” shall be interpreted as inclusive, that is, including at least one, but also two or more of several elements or lists of elements, and optionally including additional items not listed. Only terms such as “only one of” or “exactly one of” or, as used in the claims, “consisting of” refer to including exactly one of several elements or lists of elements, where the opposite is clearly indicated. In general, when the term “or” is used herein, it shall be interpreted as indicating an exclusive choice (i.e., “one or the other, but not both”) only when it precedes a term of exclusivity such as “either of,” “one of,” “only one of,” or “exactly one of.” “Essentially consisting of” shall, when used in the claims, have its usual meaning as used in the field of patent law.

[0022] As used in this specification and the claims, the phrase "at least one", referring to a list of one or more elements, means at least one selected from any one or more of the elements in the list of those elements, but is not necessarily limited to including at least one of each of the elements specifically listed in the list of those elements, and is not to be construed as excluding any combination of the elements in the list of those elements. This definition also allows for the possibility that elements other than those specifically identified in the list of elements referred to by the phrase "at least one" may optionally be present, whether or not they are related to the specifically identified elements. Thus, by way of non-limiting example, "at least one of A and B" (or, equivalently, "at least one of A or B", or, equivalently, "at least one of A and / or B") can refer, in one embodiment, to at least one A, optionally including two or more, with no B present (and optionally including elements other than B), in another embodiment, to at least one B, optionally including two or more, with no A present (and optionally including elements other than A), and in yet another embodiment, to at least one A, optionally including two or more, and at least one B, optionally including two or more (and optionally including other elements).

[0023] Also, unless expressly indicated otherwise, in any method claimed in this specification that includes two or more steps or acts, the order of the steps or acts of that method is not necessarily limited to the order in which the steps or acts of that method are recited.

[0024] In the claims and the above specification, please understand that all transitional phrases such as “equipment,” “includes,” “carry,” “possess,” “incorporate,” “accompany,” “hold,” and “composed of” are open-ended, meaning they include but are not limited to. As stated in Section 2111.03 of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Examination Guidelines, only the transitional phrases “composed of” and “essentially consisting of” are closed or semi-closed transitional phrases, respectively.

Claims

1. A metal housing having an internal space surrounding at least one electrical wire, wherein the housing has one or more wall surfaces, and each of the one or more wall surfaces has at least one metal surface, and the metal surface is The housing includes a metal knockout access plug having an inner surface facing the internal space, the inner surface including a hook, The at least one of the electrical wires is attached to the hook, During installation or maintenance of the housing, the removal of the access plug allows access to the at least one electrical wire so as to allow the at least one electrical wire to be pulled out of the housing and thereby to be electrically connected to one or more external wires. The knockout access plug and the hook are housed in a single sheet of metal material.

2. The housing according to claim 1, wherein the hook is biased in the direction opposite to the internal space of the housing.

3. The housing according to claim 1, wherein the metal surface includes a square cut edge adjacent to the knockout access plug, which allows the knockout access plug to be removed.

4. The housing is a lighting fixture, as described in claim 2.

5. The housing according to claim 4, wherein the hook functions as a wire manager for a plurality of wires inside the lighting fixture.

6. A method for providing access to at least one electrical wire housed in the internal space of a metal housing, wherein the housing has at least one metal surface, and the method is A step of forming a metal knockout access plug on at least one metal surface, wherein the knockout access plug has a hook device on the surface of the housing facing the internal space, The steps include attaching at least one of the electrical wires to the hook, Removing the knockout access plug is a step of pulling out the at least one electrical wire from the housing, thereby enabling access to the at least one electrical wire. Includes, The forming step is a method comprising cutting and bending the knockout access plug.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the forming step includes bending the hook so as to be biased in the opposite direction to the internal space of the housing.

8. The method according to claim 6, further comprising the step of providing a square cut edge adjacent to the knockout access plug that allows the knockout access plug to be removed.

9. The method according to claim 6, wherein the housing is a lighting fixture.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the hook functions as a wire manager for a plurality of wires inside the lighting fixture.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein enabling access to the at least one electrical wire allows for a connection between the at least one electrical wire and a wire outside the housing.

Images