Abstract:
The present invention is related to a protective case for stowage of a plasma cutter wherein the plasma cutter can be placed into the protective case in the same orientation as it used. The plasma cutter is securely retained within the protective case by formations on the bottom of the case and on the lid that sandwich and hold the plasma cutter therebetween to prevent its movement within the case. The protective case also has provisions for stowing an accessory box and a plug accessory and which are also securely retained to prevent movement within the protective case.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates generally to plasma cutting systems, and, more particularly, to a protective case for containing a plasma cutter.  
         [0002]     Plasma cutting is a process in which an electric arc is used for cutting or gouging a workpiece. The plasma cutter is generally contained within a housing and provides output power to a pair of cables that extend from the plasma cutter apparatus. One of the cables has a torch that is located at the outer end of the cable and the other cable has a work clamp at its outer end that is adapted to be attached to the workpiece.  
         [0003]     The plasma cutter apparatus is designed to be a portable unit, that is, the plasma cutter can be carried by a person from location to location. Basically, the new inverter based plasma cutters now achieve the portability of other industrial power tools. With such portability, however, there is an increased risk of damage to the plasma cutter which increases the importance of protection in transport and storage.  
         [0004]     While there are protective cases used among highly portable power tools, such as drills, saws and the like, at the present, protective cases are not widely used with plasma cutters. Protective cases have also been used on portable welding equipment, however, these protective cases for that purpose require manipulation of the power source from a natural vertical position to a horizontal position. In addition, the weld and ground cables for such welding equipment must be detached from the power source and be deliberately arranged in a specific manner into a storage position.  
         [0005]     With a plasma cutter, the reorientation of the cutter is made more difficult by the comparative size, weight and amount of cabling that needs to be manipulated, as compared with standard power tools.  
         [0006]     Accordingly, it would be advantageous to have a protective case that requires little, if any, cable and power source manipulation in order stow the plasma cutter therein. In addition, it would be advantageous to have a protective case that requires minimal power source and cable manipulation for stowage in the protective case, while closely matching the aspect ratio of the plasma cutter to maximize space efficiency.  
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     Therefore, in accordance with the present invention, there is a protective case for a plasma cutter that allows the plasma cutter to be stowed in the protective case with no manipulation needed to put the plasma cutter into a particular orientation. That is, the plasma cutter is stored in the protective case in the same orientation as it is used. In addition, the aspect ratio i.e. height to width can be nearly equal to the aspect ratio of the plasma cutter itself.  
         [0008]     The protective case with the plasma cutter contained therein can be readily carried by a user and the plasma cutter is securely retained within the protective case by being sandwiched between a special formation formed on the inner surface of the lid and the inner surface of the bottom of the case.  
         [0009]     There is also space provided for the stowage of an accessory box and plug accessories and those components are also specially securely retained within the protective case so as to prevent their movement therein.  
         [0010]     These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent during the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the drawings herein.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0011]     In the drawings:  
         [0012]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a protective case for a plasma cutter constructed in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the protective case of  FIG. 1  illustrating the stowage of a plasma cutter and other components therein;  
         [0014]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the protective case with a side removed to illustrate the internal chamber of the protective case;  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  is a side cross-sectional view of the protective case with the plasma cutter and other components stowed therein;  
         [0016]      FIG. 5  is a cross sectional view taken along the line  5 - 5  of  FIG. 4 ; and  
         [0017]      FIG. 6  is a cross sectional view taken along the line  6 - 6  of  FIG. 4 .  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0018]     Turning first to  FIG. 1 , there is shown a perspective view of the protective case  10  constructed in accordance with the present invention. As can be seen, the protective case  10  comprises a base  12  having ends  14 ,  16 , lateral sides  18 ,  20  and a bottom  22 . Atop of the base  12  is a lid  24  that is preferably hingedly affixed to the base  12 . The hinge, not shown in  FIG. 1 , is located between the lid  24  and the lateral side  20  such that the lid  24  can be rotated about the hinge between an open position and the closed position as is illustrated in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0019]     Latches  26  are provided to retain the lid  24  in its closed position and the latches  26  can be conventional latches with complementary, interfitting components on the lid  24  and the lateral side  18 , it only being important that the latches  26  be strong enough to enable a user to lift the protective case  10  by means of a carrying handle  28  while containing a plasma cutter along with other components. Additional carrying handles  30  can be provided in the ends  14 ,  16  of the protective case  10 , only one of which is shown in  FIG. 1 . There may also be an inwardly slanted area  32  to facilitate the user getting a hand grip under the lid  24  to move it to its open position. The dimensions of the protective case  10  are illustrated as the width W, the height H and the length L.  
         [0020]     Turning now to  FIG. 2 , there is shown an exploded view showing the protective case  10  of the present invention and the plasma cutter  34  as well as other components that can be stowed in the protective case  10 . As shown, the plasma cutter  34  is generally rectangular in shape having ends  36 ,  38 , sides  40 ,  42 , a bottom  44  and a top  46 . The dimensions are illustrated as the width w the height h and the length  1 . Extending outwardly from the plasma cutter are a pair of cables, that is, there is a torch cable  48  and a clamp cable  50  with a torch  52  and a clamp  54  located, respectively, at the ends of those cables. A power cord  43  extends from the plasma cutter for connection to a source of power.  
         [0021]     There are other components or consumables, used or likely to be used in connection with the operation of the plasma cutter  34  that can be stowed in the protective case  10  and thus be readily available to the user. Such components may include a plug accessory  56  and an accessory box  58  that may contain miscellaneous consumables.  
         [0022]     There can also be seen in  FIG. 2 , an inner lid surface  60  that is the interior surface of the lid  24  and there is a formation  62  formed thereon. The formation  62  comprises a channel  66  having lateral, spaced apart edges  68  that project outwardly from the inner lid surface  60  and the purpose of the formation  62  will be explained later.  
         [0023]     There can also be various interlocking or strengthening features used on the overall protective case  10  when the lid  24  is in its closed position, such as a number of recesses  70  formed in the inner lid surface  60  into which interfit a number of elongated projections  72  formed in the upper edge of the base  12 .  
         [0024]     Thus in  FIG. 2  it can also be seen that the plasma cutter  34  is stowed in the protective case  10  in the same orientation that it is used, i.e. the normal bottom  44  of the plasma cutter  34  is located proximate to the bottom  22  of the protective case  10  and, therefore, the plasma cutter  34  need not be manipulated in some manner by the user to an unusual orientation to stow the plasma cutter  34 , thereby making the stowage of the plasma cutter  34  relatively easy.  
         [0025]     Turning now to  FIG. 3  there is shown a perspective view of the protective case  10  with the lateral side  18  removed in order to view the internal chamber  74  within the base  12 . Thus, there is an inner bottom surface  76  that is the interior surface of the bottom  22  of the protective case  10 .  
         [0026]     As can be seen, there is a formation  78  formed on the inner bottom surface  76  in the form of two recesses  80 . The recesses  80  are spaced apart a predetermined distance and shaped so as to receive corresponding and mating structures formed on the bottom  44  of the plasma cutter  34  as will later be seen. There is a further formation  82  located intermediate the recesses  80  in the form of a large recess  84  that is sized and shaped to snugly receive and retain the accessory box  58  ( FIG. 2 ) therein so that the accessory box  58  does not move when positioned therein.  
         [0027]     A still further formation  86  is formed in the inner bottom surface  76  and is in the shape of two generally cylindrical indentations  88  that are each adapted to receive and retain a plug accessory  56  ( FIG. 2 ) in a snap fit arrangement.  
         [0028]     Turning next to  FIG. 4 , there is shown a side cross sectional view of a protective case  10  having stowed therein a plasma cutter  34 , an accessory box  58  and a plug accessory  56 . There is sufficient space within the internal chamber  74  to stow each of the torch cable  48 , the clamp cable  50 , and the power cable (not shown) easily along with the other components. The accessory box  58  is safely and securely retained within the large recess  84  underneath the plasma cutter  34  and the plug accessory  56  is snap fitted into the cylindrical indentation  88  and is also therefore safely secured within the protective case  10 .  
         [0029]     The plasma cutter  34  is also safely and securely retained within the protective case  10  by means of the interfitting of the projections  90  in the form of feet on the bottom  44  of the plasma cutter  34  into the corresponding shaped recesses  80  in the inner bottom surface  76  of the protective case  10 . That interfitting relationship prevents the movement of the plasma cutter  34  across the inner bottom surface  76  of the protective case  10  and the further formation  62  on the inner lid surface  60  bears against the top  46  of the plasma cutter  34  and holds that top  46  to prevent lateral or vertical movement of the plasma cutter  34 .  
         [0030]     Turning now to  FIG. 5 , there is a cross sectional view taken along the line  5 - 5  of  FIG. 4  and illustrating the means of securely retaining the plasma cutter  34  within the protective case  10 . Accordingly in this view, the hinge  92  can be seen that rotatably affixes the lid  24  to the base  12 .  
         [0031]     Further in  FIG. 5 , the accessory box  58  is seen retained underneath the plasma cutter  34  and the plasma cutter  34  itself has its top  46  nested within channel  66  with the edges  68  of the channel  66  extending downward to contact opposite sides of the plasma cutter  34  so that both the accessory box  58  and the plasma cutter  34  are both securely retained within the protective case  10  and are prevented from movement therein.  
         [0032]     Finally turning to  FIG. 6 , there is a cross sectional view taken along the line  6 - 6  of  FIG. 4  and illustrating the bottom  44  of the plasma cutter  34  interfitting into the recess  80  so that the lateral movement of the plasma cutter  34  is prevented.  
         [0033]     Returning to  FIG. 1 , the dimensions are illustrated to show how the present protective case  10  can be effectively dimensioned in order to maximize the space efficiency. Taking  FIG. 1 , therefore, along with  FIG. 2 , the length dimension L of the protective case  10  is of sufficient length to allow the stowage of the plasma cutter  34  and the cables. The height H to width W ratio (H:W) i.e. the aspect ratio of the protective case  10  in its normal orientation is nearly equal to the height h to width w ratio (h:w) i.e. the aspect ratio of the plasma cutter  34  in its normal orientation. In addition, the height H of the protective case  10  has sufficiently depth to allow the cables to be stowed by coiling and dropping the cables into the space alongside the plasma cutter  34 , thereby eliminating the need to remove the cables and/or specifically secure the cables.  
         [0034]     Those skilled in the art will readily recognize numerous adaptations and modifications which can be made to the protective case for a plasma cutter of the present invention which will result in an improved case, yet all of which will fall within the scope and spirit of the present invention as defined in the following claims. Accordingly, the invention is to be limited only by the following claims and their equivalents.