Abstract:
A battery box suitable for various applications to support, for example, outdoor lighting requirements. The battery box may utilize one or a plurality of compressive seals to prevent water ingress and makes use of a stacked configuration of components to facilitate assembly and construction.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention is directed at a battery box suitable for various applications to support, for example, outdoor lighting requirements. The battery box utilizes one or a plurality of compressive seals to prevent water ingress which makes use of a stacked configuration of components to facilitate assembly and construction. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Generally, electrical devices rely upon battery support which may be contained within a housing as a power supply. Due to the presence of moist, wet environments there remains an ongoing need to provide simple and effective waterproof performance for the battery storage section. 
         [0003]    Battery storage structures for waterproof electric devices are known in the art. Many of these configurations rely upon a loading orifice that is closed by fastening screw members where pressure may then be developed upon a given water-tight seal. In such a configuration, loading forces are not spread relatively evenly on the seal and such configuration may then fail to provide sufficient waterproof performance. 
         [0004]    What is needed in the art is a battery storage structure that provide more uniform water-tight sealing that can be readily achieved by the strategic stacking of components along with positioning of elastomeric material that may be compressed to provide waterproof sealing performance. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0005]    A waterproof battery storage structure comprising an elastomeric keypad, an electronics housing configured to engage with the elastomeric keypad and an elastomeric wire grommet input/output connector for one or a plurality of wires. The storage structure also includes an electronics capture housing and a battery housing, wherein the electronics capture housing is capable of housing a printed circuit board. The elastomeric keypad is capable of compressive sealing engagement with the electronic housing and the electronic housing is capable of compressive sealing engagement with: (a) the wire grommet input/output connector and (b) the electronics capture housing. The electronics capture housing is capable of compressive sealing engagement with: (a) the wire grommet; (b) the electronics housing; and (c) the battery housing. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0006]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the battery storage structure in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0007]      FIG. 2  is a stacked view of the electronics housing prior to assembly illustrating how the identified components are assembled. 
           [0008]      FIG. 3  is a further perspective view of the electronics housing and battery housing. 
           [0009]      FIG. 4  illustrates the preferred indexing feature between the electronics housing and battery housing. 
           [0010]      FIG. 5  is a cut-away view of the stacked configuration of components to provide multiple compressive waterproof sealing locations. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0011]      FIG. 1  illustrates a perspective view of the battery storage structure  10  of the present invention. As can be seen, the structure  10  includes an electronics housing  12  that contains a keypad  14 . The electronics housing is therefore configured to house components such as the keypad  14  and additional components as discussed herein. 
         [0012]    Preferably, the battery housing  16  is mechanically attached to the electronics housing  14 , by a clip  18  that engages through an opening  20  on the electronics housing  14 . Shown at  22  is a wire grommet input/output connection for one or more wires that may preferably contain a strain-relief type structure and additional sealing capabilities as outlined more fully below. 
         [0013]    It should be noted that the electronics housing  14  and the battery housing  16  may be preferably formed of polymeric materials, including various thermoplastic resins such as polyolefins, polystyrene, impact-modified polystyrene, polyesters, polycarbonate, polsulphones, etc. The material selected may preferably be one that is particular resistance to outdoor exposure requirements and interaction with moisture by way of moisture absorption and/or hydrolysis. The battery storage structure  10  including electronics housing  14  and battery housing  16  may be preferably formed by injection molding procedures. 
         [0014]      FIG. 2  provides a stacked perspective view of the electronics housing prior to assembly, which therefore best illustrates how the components of the structure  10  are preferably assembled. As can be seen, the electronics housing  12  is preferably configured such that it includes one or a plurality of openings  24  to accommodate keypad  26 . Keypad  26  is preferably made of an elastomeric and resilient material such that it may include a peripheral portion  28  that will provide for compressive sealing to the electronics housing  14  to provide a waterproof seal. Accordingly, keypad  26  may preferably be made of elastomeric material which has a Shore Hardness value of between 50-100 A and which elastomeric material also preferably provides good resistance to both polar and non-polar solvents. That is, the elastomeric material will not solubilize in such solvents at room temperature more than 1% by weight and/or undergo swelling at a level of more than 1.0% by volume. 
         [0015]    Preferably, the elastomeric material may be sourced from a silicon type elastomer, which may be understood to include polysiloxane type structure, such as polydimethylsiloxane which may be either a thermoplastic or thermoset (crosslinked) resin. Polysiloxanes offer the additional preferred feature that not only will they provide useful compressive properties to form a waterproof seal, the nature of such material is that they will generally provide such useful mechanical characteristics over the temperature range of −50° C. to 200° C., which is more than sufficient for any general outdoor application. Other elastomers are contemplated, such as polyester and/or polyurethane based elastomers, polyamide elastomers, fluropolymer based elastomers, ethylene-propylene rubbers, and styrene-butadiene based elastomers having the Shore A hardness characteristics noted above. 
         [0016]    As also illustrated in  FIG. 2 , a printed circuit board  30  is configured to be positioned underneath the elastomeric keypad  26 . This printed circuit board is ultimately in communication with the wires passing through grommet  22  which grommet includes one or a plurality of elastomeric sections  32 . The grommet is positioned within opening  34  of electronics housing  12 . The elastomeric grommet serves as another convenient sealing feature for the battery storage container  10 . The elastomeric grommet as shown is preferably rectangular in shape including a recess portion  36  that provides cooperating surfaces that may therefore be conveniently engaged between protruding edge portions of electronics housing  12  and battery housing  16 .  FIG. 2  also identifies what may be described as the electronics capture housing  38 . The electronics capture housing may be understood as a housing structure that engages with the wire grommet  22  and/or which accommodates the printed circuit board  30 . The printed circuit board lies generally beneath the keypad  26  so that pressure inputs from the keypad by the user will lead to output commands from the printed circuit board  30  to an external device. 
         [0017]    Attention is next directed to  FIG. 3  which shows the electronic housing  12  and battery housing  16 . As can be seen generally at  17  the bottom or underside of the electronics capture housing  38  includes a peripheral protruding edge portion that may then act to compress an elastomeric seal that may be positioned or overmolded on the bottom or peripheral edge of the electronics capture housing  38  to facilitate sealing. The materials and characteristics of such seal were described above. In addition, as illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the clip  18  may again be integral and of single-piece construction with the battery housing  16 . 
         [0018]    Attention is next directed to  FIG. 4  which illustrates the preferred indexing feature of the present invention. That is, the assembly of the battery storage structure herein is such that it will only allow the consumer to assemble in one correct and compressible configuration. More specifically, protruding edge portions  42  necessarily guide battery housing  16  into engagement with electronics housing  12  in only one configuration, as illustrated. 
         [0019]    Attention is next directed to  FIG. 5  which provides a cut-away view of the stacked configuration of components to provide multiple compressive sealing locations and improved waterproofing and weatherability characteristics. As can be seen, the electronics housing  14  is now engaged in an overall waterproof compressive seal with the battery housing  16 . As can be seen at  50  a compressive watertight seal is first located as between the electronic housing  14  and battery housing  16  by way of sealing engagement of an edge portion of the electronics housing  14  within a recess  36  of the elastomeric section of the grommet  22 . The elastomeric keypad  26  and it peripheral edge portion  52  also provide compressive sealing and watertight performance as between the keypad  26  and electronics housing  12 . The electronics capture housing is shown at  38 . A portion of the elastomeric seal as between the electronics capture housing and the battery housing  16  can now be seen at  54 . 
         [0020]    Preferably, the electronics housing  12  may include an extended portion that may extend down a side of the battery housing  16  to better isolate seal  54  from the environment. For example, the extended portion  56  of the electronics housing  12  may extend down one-third to one-half of the height of the battery housing  16  and overlap the seal as between the electronics capture housing and battery housing. In such manner, electronics housing  12  with extended portion  56  may provide resistance to rain penetration or other moisture when the battery box is used in the outdoor environment. 
         [0021]    Accordingly, it may be appreciated that the stacked design herein creates a compressive sealing engagement with overall waterproof performance, without the need for screws or other types of torque-based fasteners between the identified components. This may now be preferably achieved by supplying an electronics housing  12  configured to engage with an elastomeric keypad  14 , an elastomeric wire grommet input/output connector  22  for one or a plurality of wires, an electronics capture housing  38  and a battery housing  16 . The elastomeric keypad  14  is capable of compressive sealing engagement with the electronic housing  12  and the electronic housing is capable of compressive sealing engagement with: (a) the wire grommet input/output connector  22  and (b) the electronics capture housing  38 . The electronics capture housing  38  is capable of compressive sealing engagement with: (a) the wire grommet  22 ; (b) the electronics housing  12 ; and (c) the battery housing  16 . 
         [0022]    The waterproof battery storage structure herein may advantageously be employed to support outdoor lighting requirements where a sealed and waterproof supply of stand-alone electrical power may be required, and where the batteries may now be conveniently replaced without the need for mechanical fasteners such as screws, etc. In particular, the outdoor lighting requirements may include ornamental lighting, although other electrically powered apparatus are contemplated. 
         [0023]    Although the invention has been described with respect the certain preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the present disclosure has been made by way of example only and that changes in the detailed construction may be considered without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.