Abstract:
An electrical cabinet having a latchable door for providing regular access to electrical components stored therein and a mounting apparatus for holding electrical components therein. The latchable door having a latching member for holding the door in an open position. The mounting apparatus molded to the electrical cabinet and capable of securing electrical components within the cabinet.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates generally to an electrical cabinet adapted to store, or house, electrical components, and, more particularly to an electrical cabinet adapted to store printed circuit boards used in data storage and/or transfer systems. 
     As is known in the art, an electrical cabinet is used to store, or house, a variety of electrical components such as printed circuit boards. An electrical cabinet permits components housed within the cabinet to be interconnected and also allows components within the cabinet to be connected to components outside the cabinet. The components housed within the cabinet often maintain or control data storage or data transfer systems. 
     Typically, administrators of a data storage or transfer systems contained within an electrical cabinet desire regular access to particular components housed within the cabinet. The administrators desire such access to increase their ability to monitor a system&#39;s functions and/or to exert control over the housed system. 
     When an electrical cabinet is assembled, components may be installed to provide administrators with access to monitor a system&#39;s functions and/or to exert control over the systems housed in such cabinet. However, current installation techniques are labor intensive, often including the attachment or machining of several parts, and therefore cost ineffective. 
     Also, the access provided to components within electrical cabinets is inconvenient for the type of regular access administrators of systems desire. Current mechanism fail to provide quick and easy regular access to particular stored components within electrical cabinets. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, an electrical cabinet is provided for storing or housing electrical components having a door which latches in an open position. The door has an engaging member and a hinge. The engaging member contacts a latching member of the electrical cabinet as the door is opened. The engaging member deflects the latching member from a first position in the path of the door to a flexed position removed from that path. As the door is opened the engaging member passes beyond the latching member and once the door is completely opened the latching member returns resiliently to the first position fitting within a divot in the door. The latching member, positioned within this divot, holds the door up in an open position. 
     The engaging member also serves to contact the latching member and remove it from the divot as the door is closed. The engaging member again engages the latching member and, provided that sufficient force is applied, displaces the latching member out of the divot and into the flexed position, removing the latching member from the path of the door. As the latching member is displaced into the flexed position the door is allowed to close. Once closed, the latching member returns resiliently to its original position. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the present invention an electrical cabinet is provided having a printed circuit board mount. The mount is designed to hold the circuit board next to a portion of the cabinet so to provide access to displays and/or switches stored on the board. 
     The mount has a mount post, a head and a receiving slot, which together are used to mount a printed circuit board within the electrical cabinet. The mount post serves to connect and elevate the head from a surface portion of the electrical cabinet. The mount post further has a notch, which together with the head forms the receiving slot. The mount post is designed to fit snugly into a slot in the circuit board. 
     In an embodiment of the invention a latch is provided to secure the printed circuit board within the mount. The latch has a latch post and a latching member. The latch engages the printed circuit board between a surface of the latch post and a surface of the latching member holding the circuit board within the receiving slot in the mount. The latch also may have a protraction designed to fit within a latching slot in the circuit board. The protraction stabilizes the circuit board, preventing movement or torquing of the board which could break the latch. The invention is further designed to be made in a one piece molding process. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
     These and other features of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description when read together with the accompany drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electrical cabinet; 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the front of FIG. 1 with the invention in an open position; 
     FIG. 3 is a close up of the FIG. 2 along the line A—A with the invention in a closed position; 
     FIG. 4 is a side view along the lines B—B of FIG. 3; 
     FIG. 5 is a side view of FIG. 4 with the invention in an open position; 
     FIG. 6 is a close up of FIG. 5; 
     FIG. 7 is a internal view of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 8 is a close up of FIG. 7 along the line C—C; 
     FIG. 9 is FIG. 8 with the printed circuit board removed; 
     FIG. 10A is a top view of the invention holding a printed circuit board; 
     FIG. 10B is a cross-sectional side view of FIG. 10A; 
     FIG. 10C is a front view of FIG. 10A with the printed circuit board removed; 
     FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view of a printed circuit board and the invention; 
     FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the invention; 
     FIG. 13 is a side view of the invention with a printed circuit board in the process of being mounted; and 
     FIG. 14 is a side view of FIG. 13 with the printed circuit board mounted. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to FIG. 1, an electrical cabinet  100  is adapted for the storage and operation of electrical components. For example, electrical components stored within the cabinet  100  may include CPUs, printed circuit boards, backplanes, batteries, cables, connectors and wires. Typically, electrical components housed within the interior of the cabinet  100  are combined to provide electrical systems, particularly, such systems often include data storage and data transfer technologies. Cabinet  100  is typically made of molded plastic. Here, each of the parts of the cabinet are designed to be made in a single-step molding process. 
     Electrical cabinet  100  has a front  102 , a top  104 , a back  106 , two sides  108  and a bottom  110 . Bottom  110  of cabinet  100  has wheels  116  for increasing cabinet  100 &#39;s mobility. Front  102  has vents  112  for allowing air to circulate within, and be exhausted from, the cabinet  100 . The circulation of air within cabinet  100  serves to cool the components stored within the cabinet&#39;s interior. 
     Front  102  of cabinet  100  also has a door  114  for providing regular access to the interior of cabinet  100 . Door  114  functions, in particular, to provide an administrator, or any other person operating the electrical system stored by cabinet  100 , with the ability to access and monitor and/or control particular functions performed by, or controlled by, components within a cabinet  100 . 
     The door  114  may be opened (FIG. 2) and closed (FIGS. 1,  3 ) repeatedly, providing easy, regular access to the cabinet&#39;s interior. The door  114  is designed to latch, or become fixed, while it is in an open position facilitating the work of an administrator. A finger slot  118  is also provided for assisting an individual attempting to open the door  114 . 
     Referring now to FIGS. 4-6, door  114  has a hinge  402  pivotly connecting door  114  to cabinet  100 . Hinge  402  allows door  114  to rotate about an axis between open and closed positions. 
     Door  114  further has an engaging member  404 . Engaging member  404  has a forward surface  406  and a rearward surface  408 . The rearward surface  408  of engaging member  404  helps form a divot  410  in door  114 . 
     In a closed position, (FIG. 4) the forward surface  406  of engaging member  404  contacts latching member  412 . In an open position, (FIGS. 5,  6 ) latching member  412  fits into divot  410 . 
     Latching member  412 , here, is made from plastic in a single piece molding process with front  102 . Such a flexible and resilient material allows latching member  412  to be displaced into a flexed, or second position, upon the application of a force and also to resiliently snap back to its original, or first position, upon the removal of the force. 
     To open the door  114 , a sufficient force, particularly the force applied by a person&#39;s finger placed in slot  118  gently pushing up, is applied to door  114 . Such an upward force causes the forward surface  406  of engagement member  404  to engage latching member  412 . This engagement of latching member  412  by forward surface  406  bends member  412  back into a flexed, or second, position removed from the path of door  114 . As door  114  is further opened latching member  412  is further displaced until door  114  is completely opened. 
     When door  114  is completely open latching member  412  is past the forward surface  406  of engagement member  404  allowing latching member  412  to return resiliently to its original, or first, position. Such movement by latching member  412  causes it to be positioned within divot  410 , effectively latching door  114  in its open position (FIGS. 5,  6 ). 
     To close door  114 , a sufficient force, particularly the force applied by a person&#39;s hand gently pushing down on door  114 , is applied to the door  114 . Such a force causes the rearward surface  408  of engagement member  404  to engage latching member  412 . Here, rearward surface  408  deflects latching member  412  back out of the path of door  114  unlatching the door from its open position allowing the door to close. When the latching member is past the rearward surface  408  of engagement member  404  the latching member  412  returns to its original, or first, position and the door  114  is closed (FIG.  4 ). 
     Referring now to FIG. 7-8, the interior of the cabinet  100  has a printed circuit board  702 . In particular, printed circuit board  702  is mounted on two mounts  704  on the front  102  of cabinet  100  and held in position by three latches  706  also on the front  102  of cabinet  100 . Furthermore, mounts  704  and latches  706  are made of plastic in a one piece molding process as part of front  102 . 
     Here in FIG. 7, board  702  is positioned directly behind door  114  allowing board  702  to be viewed when the door  114  is in its open position. Furthermore, mounts  704  and latches  706  hold board  702  at an angle relative to the floor upon which cabinet  100  is positioned providing an easier angle for an administrator to view the board  702 . For example, if the floor upon which cabinet  100  is positioned is horizontal and the front  102  of cabinet  100  is vertical the board  702  is held at an angle of approximately  30  degrees from vertical. Such a  30  degree angle relative to vertical provides an improved view for administrators to observe the functions and/or controls displayed on board  702 . 
     Mount  704 , as better seen in FIGS. 9-11, is a molded as part of front  102  of cabinet  100 . Here, mount  704  has a mount post  708  which is attached to the cabinet front  102  at its far, or rather forward end. Mount  704  also has a head  710  which is attached to mount post  708  at its near, or rather rearward end of post  708 . Here, head  710  is molded as part of front  102  and has a head surface  720 . Head  710  is connected to, and elevated from, a surface portion of front  102  of cabinet  100  by mount post  708 . 
     Mount  704  further has a notch  712  in post  708 . Notch  712  is part of post  708  and has a notch surface  722 . Together the head surface  720  and the notch surface  722  form a receiving slot  730  (FIG. 10A &amp; 10B) in mount  704 . Receiving slot  730  in a mount  704  is adapted to receive printed circuit board  702 . 
     Latch  706 , better seen in FIGS. 9 and 12, here is molded as part of cabinet  102 . Latch  706  has a latch post  808  and a latching member  810 . Latch post  808  has a post surface  818  in its near, or rather the rearward, portion and a protraction  812 . Latching member  810 , also molded as part of front  102 , is surrounded by latch post  808 . Latching member  810  has a forward surface  814  and a latching surface  816 . 
     Printed circuit board  702  (FIG.  8  and  11 ), has an internal surface  716  and a forward surface  714  opposite to the internal surface  716 . Board  702  also has a mounting edge  718  with mounting slots  728 , and a latching edge  724  with latching slots  734 . 
     Board  702  is mounted onto a mounts  704  (FIGS. 13,  14 ), and latched by latches  706  by inserting mounting slots  728  of mounting edge  718  into mount posts  708 . Latching edge  724  is rotated toward latches  706  until a portion of the forward surface  714  of board  702  is adjacent the notch surface  722  and a portion of the internal surface  716  is adjacent head surface  720  within receiving slot  730 . In particular, receiving slots  730  are so space such that notch surfaces  722  and head surfaces  720  engage board  702  at receiving slots  730  as latches  706  engage and latch board  702  in latching slots  734 . 
     Latches  706  engage and latch board  702  when the forward surface  814  of latching member  810  contacts the latching edge  724  of board  702 . The latching edge  724  of board  702  deflects latching member  810  from an original, or first, position in the path of board  702  to a flexed, or second, position displaced from such path. 
     Latching members  810  engage a portion of the latching edge  724 , here latching slots  734 , as latching edge  724  is pushed beyond the forward surface  814  of latching member  810 . Once beyond edge  724 , latching members  814  return resiliently to their first positions and latches  706  engage board  702  between latching surfaces  816 , which engage portions of internal surface  716 , and latch post surfaces  818 , which engage portions of forward surface  714  of board  702 . Furthermore, here, protrusions  812  fits within latching slots  734  holding board  702  in proper alignment with latching member  810 . This placement of board  702  in mounts  704  and laches  706  holds the board  702  securely in the desired position. 
     One skilled in the art may now make numerous modifications and uses of, and departures from, the specific apparatus and techniques disclosed herein without departing from the invention disclosed. The invention has been described with reference to vertical and horizontal directions. However other orientations are possible. For example, neither door  114 , latching member  412 , mount  704 , or latch  706  need be part of front  102  as described in the preferred embodiment. Rather, each may be made, individually or collectively, with any other part of cabinet  100 . Further, all materials, dimensions, configuration, orientations, and combinations are provided as illustrative examples only and are not intended to be the only possible embodiments within the scope of the claims. Consequently, the invention is to be construed as embracing each and every novel feature and novel combination of features present in or possessed by the apparatus and techniques disclosed herein and limited only by the spirit and scope of the appended claims.