Abstract:
A system which allows for a face plate to be locked to an electrical box. The system has a male connector which is rotatably coupled to the face plate. A female receptacle receives the male connector. A partial turn of the male connector will lock and unlock the face plate to the electrical box.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    This invention relates to electrical accessories and, more specifically, to an improved system and method for securing a faceplate to an electrical box such as an outlet box or switch box and the like.  
           [0003]    2. Description of the Prior Art  
           [0004]    All homes and businesses have electrical boxes like outlet boxes, switch boxes, cable outlet boxes, phone outlet boxes, and the like built into the walls throughout the structure. Generally, these boxes are covered with a faceplate. The faceplate is used to cover the box and to prevent individuals from touching the wiring held within the box. The face plate is generally connected to the box or to the device (i.e., electrical outlet, switch, etc.) positioned in the box. The face plate is generally connected to the box or to the device via one or more screws.  
           [0005]    While the present system does work, there are several problems associated with it. First, in the construction of a new home or business, there will be multiple electrical boxes which are installed in the walls of the buildings. Each of these electrical boxes need to be covered by a face plate. This requires the electrician to screw in a face plate on each electrical box which is extremely time consuming. Second, many times when a face plate is removed, people will have a tendency to misplace the screw. Thus, one may not be able to reinstall the face plate since the screw is missing. Third, when installing a face plate, many people have a tendency to over tighten the screw to the face plate. When one over tightens the screw, it has a tendency to crack the face plate.  
           [0006]    Therefore, a need existed to provide a new system for installing face plates to electrical boxes. The new system must allow for the quick installation and removal of the face plate on the electrical box. The new system must further prevent parts from being misplaced or lost. The new system must further prevent the over tightening of the face plate to the electrical box thereby preventing cracking of the face plate.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0007]    In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new system for installing face plates to electrical boxes.  
           [0008]    It is another object of the present invention to provide a new system for installing face plates to electrical boxes that allows for the quick installation and removal of the face plate on the electrical box.  
           [0009]    It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new system for installing face plates to electrical boxes that prevents parts from being misplaced or lost.  
           [0010]    It is still another embodiment of the present invention to provide a new system for installing face plates to electrical boxes that prevents the over tightening of the face plate to the electrical box thereby preventing cracking of the face plate.  
         BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
         [0011]    In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a system for locking a face plate to an electrical box is disclosed. The system uses a male connector rotatably coupled to the face plate. A female receptacle is used to receive the male connector. A partial turn of the male connector will lock and unlock the face plate to the electrical box.  
           [0012]    In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, a housing for storing electrical components is disclosed. The housing has an electrical box. A face plate is used to cover the electrical box. A locking mechanism is used for coupling the face plate to the electrical box wherein the locking mechanism uses a partial turn to lock and unlock the locking mechanism.  
           [0013]    In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, a method for securing a face plate to an electrical box is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of: providing a male connector wherein the male connector comprises: a rod; barbed members coupled to the rod; a slotted head coupled to a first end of the rod; and a locking member coupled to a second end opposite of the first end of the rod; providing a female receptacle which receives the male connector; inserting the male connector through an opening in the face plate wherein the barbed members prevent the male connector from being removed from the opening but allowing the male connector to rotate in the opening; inserting the male connector coupled to the face plate in the female receptacle; and rotating the slotted head of the male connector.  
           [0014]    The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following, more particular, description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, as illustrated in the accompanying drawing. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0015]    [0015]FIG. 1 is an elevated perspective view of the face plate locking system of the present invention.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 2 is a front view of the face plate locking system of the present invention.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the face plate locking system taken along lines  3 - 3  of FIG. 2.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 4 is a rear view of the locking mechanism used in the face plate locking system of the present invention.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 5 a side view of the barbed member used in the face plate locking system of the present invention.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 6 is a rear view of the locking nut used in the locking mechanism of the face plate locking system of the present invention.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 7 is a side view of the supporting member used in the face plate locking system of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0022]    Referring to the Figures a face plate locking system  10  (hereinafter system  10 ) is shown. The system  10  will use a standard electrical box  12 . The electrical box  12  may be an electrical outlet box, a electrical switch box, a cable outlet box, a phone jack box, an electrical junction box, and boxes of a similar nature. The electrical box  12  is generally coupled to the frame of the house or building in which the electrical box  12  is installed.  
         [0023]    Generally, some type of electrical component will be held within the electrical box  12 . For example, an electrical receptacle, a telephone jack, a cable jack, and the like will be coupled to the electrical box  12 . However, it should be noted that the system  10  may be used to cover an electrical box  12  that does not have a component held within the electrical box  12 .  
         [0024]    In the embodiment depicted in the Figures, the electrical box  12  is used to hold a dual plug receptacle  14 . However, as already stated, the other types of components or no component at all may be in the electrical box  12 . The standard threaded opening which is used to secure the face plate with a screw has been replaced. The dual plug receptacle  14  now has a female receptacle  16  which forms part of the locking mechanism for the system  10 . The female receptacle  16  will have a channel  16 A. On each side of the channel  16 A will be a rounded open end  16 B. It should be noted that the female receptacle  16  is shown in the center of the dual plug receptacle  14 . However, the female receptacle  16  could be positioned in other locations. For example, the female receptacle could be located at the top and bottom of the dual plug receptacle  14 . The female receptacle  16  may also be positioned on the electrical box  12  itself.  
         [0025]    The system  10  will further use a male connector  18 . The male connector  18  will have a barbed member  18 A. On one end of the barbed member  18 A is a slotted head  18 B. On the other end of the barbed member  18 A is a locking member  18 C. In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, the slot in the slotted head  18 B is parallel with the barbs of the barbed member  18 A and the locking member  18 B. By having the slot of the slotted head  18 B parallel with the barbs of the barbed member  18 A and the locking member  18 B, one will be able to tell if the system  10  is locked or unlocked. This will be described below.  
         [0026]    The system  10  will further have a face plate  20 . The face plate  20  will have one or more openings  22 . The openings  22  are used to allow the male connector  18  to be placed through the face plate  20  and into the female connector  16  thereby locking the face plate  20  in position. The opening  22  is large enough to allow the barbed member  18 A to be placed through the opening  22  but small enough so that the slotted head  18 B will not be able to fit through the opening  22 .  
         [0027]    The system  10  may further have a support member  24 . The support member  24  is coupled to the electrical box  12 . The support member  23  is used to support the electrical box  12  against a support  26  in the wall where the electrical box  12  is being installed. This is most clearly shown in FIG. 7. Th support member  24  has a barbed member  24 A and a head  24 B located on one end of the barbed member  24 A.  
       Operation  
       [0028]    To install the support member  24 , one must measure the distance between the support  26  and the back of the electrical box  12 . The support member  24  is then cut on the end opposite of the head  24 B to the proper dimensions. The barbed member  24 A of the support member  24  is then placed through an opening in the back of the electrical box  12 . The barbs on the barbed member  24 A will allow the barbed member  24 A to be inserted through the opening in only one direction. The barbed member  24 A can be inserted through the opening but will prevent the barbed member  24 A from being pulled back out. The barbed member  24 A will press up against the support  26  thereby supporting the electrical box  12  in the wall where the electrical box  12  is installed.  
         [0029]    When installing the face plate  20  on the electrical box  12 , the barbed member  18 A is first inserted through the opening  22  of the face plate  20 . The barbs on the barbed member  18 A will allow the barbed member  18 A to be inserted through the opening  22  in only one direction. The barbed member  18 A can be inserted through the opening  22  but will prevent the barbed member  18 A from being pulled back out. Thus, the barbed member  18  will be permanently connected to the face plate  20 , although it is free to rotate within the opening  22 . This will prevent the barbed member  18 A from being lost or misplaced when the face plate  20  is removed. The locking member  18 C is then coupled to the end of the barbed member  18 A.  
         [0030]    The barbed member  18 A is then inserted into the female receptacle  16 . As stated above, the female receptacle  16  may form part of the component in the electrical box  12  or part of the electrical box  12  itself. The locking member  18 C may have to be rotated so that the barbed member  18 A and the locking member  18 C are able to fit into the female receptacle  16 .  
         [0031]    In order to lock the system  10  in place, once the barbed member  18 A is inserted into the female receptacle  16 , the slotted head  18 B is rotated in either a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction. In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, the slotted head  18 B only needs to be rotated approximately 90° in either a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction. By rotating the slotted head  18 B, the locking member  18 C will also rotate. As can be seen most clearly in FIG. 4, when the locking member  18 C is rotated so that it is in a vertical position, the face plate  20  will be locked into position. By looking at the slotted head  18 B, one can tell if the face plate  20  is locked or unlocked. This is due to the fact that the slot in the slotted head  18 B is parallel with the barbs of the barbed member  18 A and the locking member  18   c . Thus, if the slot in the slotted head  18 B is vertical, the face plate  20  is locked. If the slot in the slotted head  18 B is horizontal, the face plate  20  is unlocked and can be removed.  
         [0032]    While the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing and other changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.