Randomly activated outlet

An electrical outlet is connected in a parallel circuit to the compressor unit of a standard household refrigerator. A lamp can be connected to the outlet and will thus provide random lighting in the house in accordance with the on-off cycle of the refrigerator refrigeration unit thus giving the appearance that there is activity within the house to discourage burglars or the like.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
This invention relates to devices designed for random actuation of 
electrical components for the purpose of simulating activity within a 
building. 
2. Discussion of Related Art 
It is well known that the incidence of home burglaries is reduced when the 
home is actively occupied. Burglars are less likely to enter a home 
knowing that people are present on the premises than if it is known that 
the individuals are gone for an extended length of time. Accordingly, it 
is desirable when leaving a home unattended for an extended length of time 
to provide some means of indicating apparent activity in the home. One 
method of providing this result comprises the use of a preprogrammed 
electric timer which can turn on and off electrical appliances such as 
radios, lamps or the like during the same period each day. One problem 
encountered with the use of such timers is that the preprogrammed sequence 
is unchanging and can become apparent to one observing a home left for a 
long period of time. Accordingly, some device is needed which can easily 
and conveniently vary the cycle of operation of electrical appliances in 
the home. 
Other control devices for electrical equipment are also known. For 
instance, U.S. Pat. No. 2,480,827, issued Sept. 6, 1949 to Armstrong, 
shows a detachable thermostat system having an electrical receptacle to be 
plugged into an existing wall outlet. The receptacle comprises a switch 
component operated by an attached thermostat. The receptacle can be used 
for control of electric heaters or the like for heating a room. U.S. Pat. 
No. 2,674,701, issued Apr. 6, 1954 to Maseritz, shows an electrical 
control unit having a plug to be inserted into an existing electrical 
outlet. The unit is provided with a receptacle into which may be plugged 
the device to be controlled with control established remotely by 
connecting an electric switch, thermostat, clock, timer or other control 
mechanism with the circuit contained in the control unit. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
One object of the present invention is to provide an outlet which is to be 
actuated on a relatively random basis for providing an indication of 
apparent activity in a home or other structure. 
A further object of the present invention is to provide a randomly 
activated outlet which is run off an existing appliance so as to provide 
an outlet which is inexpensive to install yet effective and safe in 
operation. 
In accordance with the above objects, the randomly activated outlet of the 
present invention comprises a standardly available electrical socket which 
is mounted in an external wall of a standard refrigerator. The socket is 
wired so as to be in parallel with the compressor motor of the 
refrigerator. Accordingly, whenever the thermostat of the refrigerator 
commands a cycle of the compressor, electrical power is applied to the 
connected socket. Thus, any appliance such as a lamp, radio, television or 
the like which is connected to the socket will be activated also. The 
cycling of a standard refrigerator is somewhat random and lasts for 
varying periods of time. Therefore, any such electrical appliance 
connected to the randomly activated socket will likewise be operated on a 
somewhat random basis thereby giving the impression to a casual observer 
that the home is occupied. 
These together with other objects and advantages which will become 
subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation 
as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to 
the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals 
refer to like parts throughout.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Now with reference to the drawings, a randomly activated socket 
incorporating the principles and concepts of the present invention will be 
described in detail. In the drawings, a standard home refrigerator is 
depicted by the reference numeral 10. The refrigerator 10 includes an 
evaporator section 12 and a condenser section 14 which are used in 
conjunction with compressor 16 to maintain the temperature in box 18 at a 
predetermined low temperature with respect to the surrounding room. 
Temperature control thermostat 20 is used in a conventional manner to set 
that predetermined temperature at any desired level. 
Compressor 16 is operated from a standard house current supply through lead 
30 shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. Lead 30 contains a plug 32 which is adapted to 
fit into a standard home outlet. The motor of compressor 16 is connected 
in circuit with contacts 34 of a thermostatic unit disposed in the 
refrigerator for actuating the compressor upon the temperature within box 
18 rising above the predetermined set temperature. Obviously, when 
contacts 34 close, current is supplied to the compressor 16 and the 
refrigeration cycle begins. 
An electrical outlet 60 can be mounted in an exterior wall 62 of the 
refrigerator and is connected by standard electrical wiring 64 to the 
circuit shown in FIG. 5 in parallel with compressor 16. Thus, outlet 60 is 
activated each time the contacts of thermostat 34 close. The socket 60 can 
be any standardly available socket approved for use in a home. The socket 
is mounted in a standardly available connector box 70 which can be mounted 
on wall 62 by any suitable means. 
Once socket 60 is mounted, a lamp as shown at 80 can be connected to the 
socket and will cycle along with compressor 16 in response to the opening 
and closing of contacts 34. In place of lamp 80, a radio, television or 
any other suitable appliance which is capable of producing visual or 
audible signals can be used. Obviously, the user can adjust the cycling of 
the lamp 80 by simply adjusting the level set by control 20. If the 
temperature within box 80 is commanded to be lowered by setting a lower 
temperature at control 20, the refrigerator and lamp will cycle more 
frequently. Conversely, if the control 20 is set at a higher temperature, 
the refrigerator and lamp will cycle less often. 
It will be noted that by use of a refrigerator 10 for the actuation device 
or outlet 60, the outlet and connected lamp or other utilization device 
will be cycled during the summer, winter, day or night. Also, other 
combinations of elements can be utilized. For instance, several sockets 60 
can be connected to the refrigerator 10 and standard day-night timers can 
be connected to the sockets. One timer can be set to allow current flow 
during the daytime and another timer can be set to allow current flow 
during the night. The night timer can be used to turn on and off a lamp 
while the day timer can be used to turn on or off a sound producing device 
such as a television or radio. Thus, not only is operation of these 
electrical appliances produced at random, but different appliances can be 
operated during different portions of the day or night to provide an even 
more realistic illusion of home occupancy. 
The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the 
invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily 
occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the 
invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and 
accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted 
to, falling within the scope of the invention.