Electrical Box Bracket with Foldable Legs for Metal Studs
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current electrical box brackets lack easy mock-up and self-leveling capabilities, fail to securely attach to the open side of metal studs, and offer insufficient stiffness and flexural resistance, making them difficult to install and prone to damage during transportation and use.
Innovation Solution
The electrical box bracket features snap-on arms for easy mock-up and self-leveling, integral foldable legs for secure installation on both sides of metal studs, apertures with protrusions for positive retention of electrical boxes, and an embossed front face for enhanced stiffness and flexural resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional electrical box brackets are used, then the structure is simple, but the bracket lacks self-leveling capability and requires multiple screws for secure attachment
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket incorporates foldable legs that can transition between folded and extended positions, allowing the bracket to adapt to different installation scenarios and achieve self-leveling on uneven surfaces without requiring complex adjustment mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The bracket is divided into distinct functional segments including the main body, foldable legs, snap-on arms, and retention features, allowing each component to perform its specific function independently while contributing to the overall self-leveling capability
2Reliability
If traditional brackets are used, then fewer components are needed, but the bracket cannot securely attach to the open side of metal studs
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket integrates multiple attachment functions into a single device: snap-on arms for quick engagement, foldable legs for securing to open sides of studs, and retention features for preventing detachment, allowing the bracket to securely attach to various stud configurations without requiring multiple separate components
Solution Approach 2:
The snap-on arms are pre-configured with engagement features that allow the bracket to be quickly attached to studs before final tightening, and the foldable legs can be preliminarily positioned to ensure proper alignment and security during installation
3Strength
If flat brackets are used, then manufacturing is simpler, but the brackets lack sufficient stiffness and flexural resistance
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket incorporates curved and embossed features including the foldable legs with arc-shaped motion paths and embossed patterns on the bracket body, which create geometric stiffness and increase flexural resistance without adding significant manufacturing complexity compared to flat designs
4Reliability
If traditional brackets are used, then installation is straightforward, but the brackets are prone to damage during transportation and use
Solution Approach 1:
The foldable legs can be collapsed during transportation to reduce the bracket's overall size and prevent damage, then extended during installation to provide secure attachment and damage resistance during use, allowing the bracket to adapt to different operational requirements
Data Source
AI summary
An electrical box bracket includes features allowing it to engage multiple surfaces of a stud. The bracket has a front face for mounting an electrical box and a plaster ring, and a far-side tab bent backwards from the front face for making contact with a drywall behind the bracket. The front face has one or more arms that fit over the front face of a metal stud to which the bracket is to be attached. The front face also has one or more flanges projecting rearward from the same opposite sides of the front face, with stud-lock tabs for engaging a side surface or edge of a side flange of a stud. The bracket has legs that extend from the far-side tab, where the legs are foldable by an end-user to engage side surfaces of the metal stud at different distances from the far-side tab.