Cable raceway cable exit box

A combination of a cable raceway section with a cable exit box, wherein the raceway section is C shaped with one side having a gap in it. A cable exit box at the gap in the side of the raceway section. The box has an opening in one wall overlying the gap in the side of the raceway section and both the gap and the opening are of a length enabling a wide radius turn of cable out of the raceway section and into the box. The box is deeper than the raceway. The box has an open interior defined by sides shaped for supporting a wiring device in the opening, to which wiring device cables exiting from the raceway section are attached.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a cable tray or cable raceway comprised of 
several elongate, generally U or C shaped sections which are clamped end 
to end to produce the cable raceway. Where some of the cable or wiring is 
required external to the raceway for connection to a wiring device at a 
particular location, typically either holes are field drilled into the 
side of the raceway or knockouts are provided as part of the manufacturing 
process and can be removed. A conduit bushing is put into each hole 
through which the cable exits the raceway. Use of bushings causes a tight 
or small radius turn in the cable, which could possibly damage it. 
As an alternative to merely drilling holes, it is known to install a cable 
raceway cable exit box either directly in the raceway or sometimes to one 
lateral side of the raceway. A usually narrow, often tubular opening is 
provided between the raceway and the exit box, which has the above 
mentioned drawback of forming a tight turn in the cable. Further, the exit 
box for the cable raceway may sometimes be deep, front to back of the 
raceway, in order to house a wiring device to which some of the cables in 
the raceway would be attached. Examples of such wiring devices include 
various switches, plug sockets, electric components, illumination devices 
connected to optical fiber cables, any power or communications device, 
etc. In order to house a cable exit box, which is deep in order to contain 
a deep wiring device, and especially where the exit box is installed in 
the raceway, a deeper than normal raceway is needed to house the deep box. 
This is undesirable because extra material is required for the raceway 
which makes it more expensive, and the cable raceway greater depth may 
make it more difficult to conceal in a wall, ceiling, or the like. 
U.S. Pat. No. 4,338,484 teaches a first wire channel with an adjacent 
second wire channel disposed along one side, with gaps in the abutting 
sides of the two channels through which a wire may pass. The additional 
channel is not an exit box adapted to receive any wiring device, and the 
depth of the additional channel is substantially that of the first 
channel, since support of a wiring device in either channel is not 
contemplated. 
U.S. Pat. No. 5,403,974 shows access from a cable channel to a wiring 
device. It does not suggest a cable exit box adapted for supporting a 
wiring device therein and at the raceway section. 
U.S. Pat. No. 3,725,568 shows a conventional cable exit from a cable 
raceway. See also U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,131,512 and 2,023,433 to similar 
effect. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The invention has several objects, including avoiding tight turns in cables 
entering the cable exit box, avoiding the need for a possibly deeper cable 
raceway sized according to the depth of the cable exit box, possibly 
providing an integral one piece design without an add on exit box, and 
other objects which will become apparent from the following description of 
the invention. Another object is to be able to position a wiring device at 
a desired height position off the rear surface of the raceway section. 
According to the invention, the cable raceway cable exit box is provided 
outside one lateral side of a generally C-shaped or U-shaped cable raceway 
section. The web of the C shape is fastened to a support typically located 
behind a wall or a ceiling. The open front of the cable raceway section is 
closed by a cover, e.g. a cover that attaches to the ends of the arms of 
the C. The cable raceway section may have a desired depth between the rear 
surface and the front cover for a particular use, and the raceway need not 
be deep front to back or wider laterally side to side than is required for 
transmitting a specified set of cables to a set of wiring devices. 
To communicate from the raceway section into the cable exit box, the 
respective side of the raceway above which the exit box is disposed 
includes a gap which is of a relatively long length along the raceway, is 
significantly longer than the thickness of the cables, and approximates 
the length of the exit box, so that selected cables can be bent out of the 
raceway section and into the exit box with a gradual radius, rather than a 
sharp turn. This is useful with wires and especially beneficial with thick 
cables, with optical fibers and communication wiring requirements. A 
wiring device installed in the exit box can then be connected to the 
cables in the box. The cable raceway section with a cable exit box 
installed at one side may be produced as one piece for being installed 
between other sections of the raceway or the exit box may be installed on 
a raceway section, e.g., by being snapped into place, where needed. 
The invention permits the exit box to be installed on the raceway without 
affecting the integrity of the raceway. It also eliminates the need for 
difficult and labor intensive raceway penetrations and avoids unsightly 
conduit connections, all of which will be inside the raceway or the exit 
box adjacent the raceway. The large opening communicating between the 
raceway section and the cable exit box offers ample room for demanding 
radius requirements and a deep box or even an extra deep box can receive 
rear wired wiring devices installed in the box to which the cable is to be 
attached. Even with a deep box attached on it, the rest of the raceway 
section can be of short height front to back. The invention is also useful 
for holding standard power wiring and communication devices. Especially 
when the exit box is attachable to the raceway section, the box size and 
depth for a particular raceway section may be selected so that no matter 
how tall is the wiring device, it can be placed in the exit box. In a 
shallow exit box, a wiring device can be installed above the raceway 
(almost forward of the raceway section) while maintaining the integrity of 
the parts of the raceway section. But the exit box may also be no taller 
front to back than the raceway section. 
Since the exit box is at a lateral side of the raceway, the invention 
brings the wiring devices out of the raceway and out of the wiring path. 
This alleviates wiring congestion in the raceway and avoids installation 
complications. The configuration is universal in permitting mounting of 
the cable exit box at either side of the raceway section. 
Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent 
from the following description of a preferred embodiment considered in 
conjunction with the accompanying drawings:

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
The cable raceway section and box assembly 10 includes the present 
invention and is part of an otherwise conventional cable raceway which is 
provided with the invention at least at one, or more usually at many, 
intervals along its length. A typical cable raceway section 12 including 
the invention has opposite ends 14 and 16 that are clamped to other 
similar raceway sections, not shown, of corresponding cross-section and of 
conventional length for defining a continuous cable raceway of a length 
required for a particular installation. However, the raceway section with 
the below described cable exit box 30 may be provided with end plates (not 
shown) on the ends of the raceway section so that the raceway section can 
be used as a stand alone component, e.g., at a piece of equipment 
requiring a wiring device present, like over a laboratory work bench. The 
raceway section 12 has a base or web side 18 which is fastened to a 
support, not shown, which may include a column or beam of a building 
frame, or behind a wall or ceiling, or any other support to which the base 
of a cable raceway might be attached. The raceway section is here shown 
oriented horizontally. At both of the top and bottom edges of the base 18, 
there are two upstanding, short height sides 20 and 22, from which the 
raceway section has a generally U or C-shaped cross section. The specific 
shape of the raceway cross section is not significant here, so long as it 
has at least one side at which the below described cable exit box 30 may 
be positioned. The open or outer side of the raceway section may be 
conventionally closed by a cover 23. The cover includes flanges 25 on its 
inwardly facing side that are positioned and shaped to cooperate with 
underturned flanges 27 at the free outer edges of the sides 20 and 22 to 
secure the cover enclosing the space inside the cable raceway through 
which the cables extend. 
At a selected location along the cable raceway section 12, its side 22 is 
removed defining a gap 24 through the side through which cable may exit 
from the raceway. The length of the gap 24 is somewhat longer than one 
conventionally sees in cable raceway, which enables a cable to be passed 
through the gap turned on a wide radius. The preferred maximum length for 
the gap 24 is approximately the length of the below described exit box to 
be attached to the raceway. 
A cable exit box 30 is possibly integrally formed with or subsequently 
attached on the lateral outside of the raceway section side 22. The box 30 
has six sides. These include two lateral sidewalls 32 and a bottom wall 
33. The rear side of the box is closed by a panel 35 which would be at the 
same depth as the base 18 of the raceway section 12. Preferably, the walls 
32 and 33 have a front to back height or depth that begins at the level of 
the rear panel 35 of the box, which is at the base 18 of the raceway 
section, and extends forward past the flange 27 on the side 22, making the 
box 30 deeper than the cable raceway section of which it is a part. Holes 
or knockouts for holes may be provided for access into the box. For 
example, it may be desired to bring additional electric conduit into the 
box from a source other than the raceway and that can be done through the 
holes. 
The depth of the box 30 is selected so that standard wiring and/or 
communication devices can be installed in the box without box extensions 
or modifications. Hence, different box interior designs and box depths are 
selected for expected installations and wiring devices. The box depth or 
overall configuration need not be of one size or shape and could differ at 
different locations along the raceway and in different applications. The 
box depth may be selected to be deeper than, the same depth as, or even 
shallower than the depth of the raceway section. 
Peripheral sidewall 36 of the box 30 is open at the opening 37. That 
opening is the same size as and overlaps the gap 24 in the side 22. The 
opening 37 in the sidewall 36 has the same length and front to back height 
as the gap 24, providing a cable exit opening from the raceway section and 
into the exit box 30. 
The box 30 has an open interior volume 38 defined by internal sidewalls 42 
which are supported between the front wall 43 and the rear panel 35 of the 
exit box. The internal walls 42 are spaced inward from the peripheral 
sidewalls 32, 33, 36. The walls 42 are dimensioned and shaped to 
correspond to the periphery of a conventional wiring device 56 to be 
installed in the box, so that the walls 42 will hold the wiring device 
against shifting. The walls 42 defining the volume 38 enable the wiring 
device 56 to be installed in the box 30 without the use of auxiliary 
components to support it, such as a junction box or a bracket for 
supporting the device. This internal support or frame may include a 
physical lock on the wiring device, so that a wiring device bracket is not 
required. 
The gap 24 in the side 22 and the corresponding opening 37 in the wall 36 
of the box 30 permit selected cables 45 passing through the raceway to be 
bent around a wide radius, if desired, through the long gap 24 and opening 
37 and into the interior 38 of the box 30. Other cables 47 continue along 
the open area 48 in the raceway section to where the cables are needed. 
An optional ground post, not shown, may be made integrally with the box or 
attached elsewhere or otherwise on the raceway section. 
As noted above, the box 30 may be integrated with the raceway section 12 or 
may be a snap in place or otherwise attachable element having a common 
external dimension and the opening 37, but an interior volume 38 which is 
sized and shaped for receiving a particular type of wiring device. As 
several different types of wiring devices, communication devices, etc., 
may be used, such as a plug in socket, a circuit protection device, a 
connector to other apparatus, etc., exit boxes 30 with appropriately 
profiled open volumes 38 may be available for installation at a particular 
raceway section 12. 
A pattern of holes 52 on the front face 43 of the box 30 are adapted to 
receive fastening screws or the like from standard cover plates 54 that 
are positioned over the wiring device 56 which is installed in the open 
volume 38. 
Although the present invention has been described in relation to a 
particular embodiment thereof, many other variations and modifications and 
other uses will become apparent to those skilled in the art. It is 
preferred, therefore, that the present invention be limited not by the 
specific disclosure herein, but only by the appended claims.