Abstract:
A swivel fixture hanger assembly comprising a conduit box, a conduit box cover, and a swivel connector. The cover has a stationary cover section and a moveable cover section shaped to mate with the stationary cover section providing a seat for a swivel connector and coacting to define a central opening. A rigid strap pivotally connected to the stationary cover section and fixedly connected to the moveable cover section pivots the moveable cover section into and out of engagement with the stationary cover section. A fastener fastens a second end of the strap to the stationary cover section when the moveable cover section is engaged with the stationary cover section. The swivel connector has a seatable portion shaped to engage the seat of the cover and a connector portion extending through the central opening of the cover.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    The present invention generally relates to electrical housings. More specifically, the present invention relates to swivel fixture hanger assemblies.  
           [0003]    2. Description of the Prior Art  
           [0004]    The use of swivel fixture hanger assemblies to hang heavy lighting fixtures and ceiling fans in buildings having high ceilings is well known. These types of assemblies are common in factories and warehouses where the lighting fixtures or fans are hung from a long shaft  15  so that the lighting fixtures or fans are sufficiently close to the floor to be effective. The prior art swivel fixture hanger assemblies are usually constructed of an electrical conduit box covered by a single piece conduit box cover having a central dish shaped seat portion and opening wherein a swivel connector is seated. The swivel connector is rotateable within the seat portion and has a threaded fitting portion extending through the opening of the seat. An illustration of such a prior art assembly is shown in FIG. ______. A partial perforation of the central dish shaped seat portion is used to retain the swivel connector within the seat of the conduit box cover. A lighting fixture or fan is then connected to the connector via a shaft of predetermined length.  
           [0005]    Installation of lighting fixtures or ceiling fans with this type of swivel fixture hanger assembly typically require two persons to install. One person typically holds the light fixture connected to a shaft that is in turn connected to the swivel connector having the conduit box cover loosely draped around the swivel connector. As the person holds the light fixture so that the mounting holes of the conduit box cover  35  are near the mounting holes in the conduit box, the second person matches up the mounting holes and secures the conduit box cover to the conduit box by screwing the two together. This process is time consuming and expensive because it requires the time and coordination of two persons. Accordingly, there is a need for a swivel fixture hanging assembly that can be installed by one person, saving time and money.  
           [0006]    There are several prior art United States Patents issued disclosing several different types of conduit boxes and conduit box covers. The following United States Patents were uncovered in a search of prior art United States Patents.  
           [0007]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,012,043 issued to Seymour discloses an adjustable outlet box assembly and method of application including an outlet box assembly with a box cover assembly mounted thereon and having a laterally extended receptacle box member to which is attached a variable depth ring assembly. This piece of prior art shows a single piece conduit box cover having additional structure for varying the depth of an outlet.  
           [0008]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,606,147 issued to Deschamps et al. discloses an outlet box for mounting a fixture, such as a fan or a light, from a ceiling. Adjustable hanger screw mountings permit the mounting of a wide variety of fixtures to the box. Adjustability is attained by attaching the hanger screw mountings to the ends of a mounting arm which is pivotally connected to a top plate of the outlet box. This piece of prior art discloses the idea of a pivotally moveable arm in connection with a conduit box. However, this piece of prior art does not apply the use of a pivotally moveable arm to a conduit box cover that is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.  
           [0009]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,728,973 issued to Jorgensen discloses a knockout arrangement for an electrical junction box. FIG. 6 of this piece of prior art shows a single piece conduit box cover to be used with a conduit box.  
           [0010]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,762,223 issued to Kerr, Jr. discloses an electrical box for a ceiling fan support capable of supporting a relatively heavy load from the underside of a joist/beam at an installation site. FIGS. 3, 9,  10  and  15  show the use of a swivel fixture connector.  
           [0011]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,883,331 issued to Reiker discloses an electrical device mounting assembly including a box having a top wall and a side wall extending downwardly therefrom for defining a junction box cavity therein. An adhesive, such as a piece of double-sided tape, may be provided on the top wall of the junction box. The adhesive assists in the installation of the junction box by adhering the junction box to a support surface for a sufficiently long period of time so that the user may have both hands free for holding fasteners and attaching the fasteners to the support and, thus, supporting the junction box. This piece of prior art teaches the use of adhesive to temporarily hold electrical conduit assemblies, allowing installers to permanently secure a electrical conduit assembly with both hands.  
           [0012]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,939,671 issued to Gretz discloses a ceiling mounting assembly for holding electrical devices in place on a joist that includes an electrical box having a base of three planar surfaces, each planar surface at a different depth, a first fastener device for temporarily securing the electrical box in place, a ceiling medallion for covering the electrical box, a second fastener device for temporarily securing the ceiling medallion to the electrical box, and a fixation device for securely fastening the electriccal box and the ceiling bezel to the joist. This piece of prior art shows a single piece conduit box cover.  
           [0013]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,057,778 issued to Davidson discloses a family of covers having identical indented base regions for receiving a plurality of diverse alarm indicating and/or condition-sensing modules thereon. The alarm indicating modules each have a common “footprint” for being snugly received into the indented base region of each cover. This piece of prior art shows several different types of conduit box covers of one piece construction.  
           [0014]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,475 issued to Jorgensen discloses an electrical box for mounting a ceiling fan or a light fixture in which the electrical box is the sole support for the fan or fixture. A cover can be mounted directly to the electrical box. The cover can be the attaching element between the electrical box and the fan or fixture. This piece of prior art shows a conduit box cover of single piece construction in FIG. 6.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0015]    To solve some of the problems associated with the prior art, an improved swivel fixture hanger assembly is provided.  
           [0016]    An object of the claimed invention is to provide a swivel fixture hanger assembly that allows the installation of a lighting fixture or fan using a swivel fixture by one person.  
           [0017]    Another object of the claimed invention is to provide a bifurcated conduit box cover connected to a conduit box allowing an installer to pivot a moveable cover portion to gain access to the interior of the conduit box.  
           [0018]    The claimed invention comprises a swivel fixture hanger assembly having a conduit box, a conduit box cover, and a swivel connector. The conduit box cover has a stationary cover section and a moveable cover section shaped to mate with the stationary cover section.  
           [0019]    The conduit box cover provides a seat for a swivel connector wherein the stationary cover section and the moveable cover section co-act to define a central opening. A rigid strap pivotally connected to the stationary cover section and fixedly connected to the moveable cover section pivots the moveable cover section into and out of engagement with the stationary cover section. The stationary cover section has a cutaway portion adjacent the pivot point of the rigid member allowing the moveable cover section to pivot into and out of engagement with the stationary cover section A fastener fastens a second end of the rigid strap to the stationary cover section when the moveable cover section is engaged with the stationary cover section.  
           [0020]    The swivel connector has a seatable swivel portion shaped to engage the seat of the conduit box cover and a connector portion extending through the central opening of the cover having a set of male threads within a cavity.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0021]    [0021]FIG. 1. FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the assembly  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 2. FIG. 2 shows a top view of the conduit box cover attached to an electrical conduit box.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 3. FIG. 3 shows how the assembly is installed.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 4. FIG. 4 shows a side view of the assembly.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 5. FIG. 5 shows a top view of the swivel connector.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 6. FIG. 6 shows a side view of the swivel connector.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 7. FIG. 7 shows a bottom view of the conduit box cover  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 8. FIG. 8 shows a top view of the prior art conduit box cover.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0029]    Turning now to the drawings, FIGS.  1 - 4  show the swivel fixture hanger assembly  10 . Swivel fixture hanger assemblies  10  of this type are generally used in buildings, such as factories and warehouses, where high ceilings are common. Lighting fixtures and ceiling fans are typically hung from a shaft  15  connected to the swivel connector  20  so that the lighting fixture or ceiling fan is sufficiently close to the floor to be effective for its intended use. Movements of these types of electrical fixtures while in service are compensated for by the swivel connection  25  of the assembly  10  allowing a short range of motion within the assembly  10 . The swivel connection  25  can compensate for the vibrations associated with the movements of a ceiling fan, provide a way to pivot an electrical fixture out of the way when an object requiring a larger amount of overhead clearance is needed to be moved by an electrical fixture, or compensate for movement of the structure supporting the assembly  10 .  
         [0030]    In the prior art, installation of electrical fixtures using a swivel fixture hanger assembly  10  required two persons working together to properly install the assembly  10 . Due to the single piece construction of the prior art conduit box cover shown in FIG. 8, one installer would typically have to hold the electrical fixture connected to a shaft  15  that is in turn connected to the swivel connector  20  having the single piece conduit box cover loosely draped around the swivel connector  20  while the other installer would connect the electrical wiring of the electrical fixture to the wiring in the electrical conduit box. After the wiring was completed, the installer holding the electrical fixture would have to position the electrical fixture so that the mounting holes of the conduit box cover would be close to the mounting holes in the electrical conduit box  40 . The second installer would have to match up the mounting holes of the conduit box cover with the mounting holes of the conduit box  40  and then secures the conduit box cover to the electrical conduit box  45  by screwing the two together.  
         [0031]    The process of installing an assembly using the prior art conduit box cover is time consuming in that close coordination between the two installers would have to be developed, taking time to coordinate one installer&#39;s movements with the other installer&#39;s movements. This time consuming process translates into increased costs for installing an electrical fixture using a swivel fixture hanger assembly in that two installers are being paid to make a proper installation. The claimed invention provides an assembly  10  that decreases the amount of cost involved in installing a lighting fixture or ceiling fan using a swivel connector hanger assembly  10 .  
         [0032]    The claimed invention provides a swivel connector hanger assembly  10  as shown in FIG. 1 that can be installed by one person, saving time and money during the installation of an electrical fixture using a swivel fixture hanger assembly  10 . The swivel connector hanger assembly  10  generally comprises an electrical conduit box  45 , a conduit box cover  50  designed to accept a swivel connector  20  divided into a stationary cover section  55  and a moveable cover section  60 , a pivoting rigid strap  65  connecting the moveable cover section  60  to the stationary cover section  55 , and a swivel connector  20 .  
         [0033]    The electrical conduit box  45  shown in FIGS.  1 - 4  is about 4″ square and is made of galvanized steel. Electrical conduit boxes are commercially available and are manufactured by a number of companies in many different shapes and sizes, with the more common shapes being square or round. Electrical conduit boxes are typically secured to structural members of a ceiling or wall for the electrical wiring of a building. The knockouts  70  in the walls of the conduit box are provided for electrical installers to fit electrical conduit piping to the conduit box so that electrical wiring can be placed therein.  
         [0034]    The conduit box cover  50  of the claimed invention shown in FIGS.  1 - 4  is designed to accept a swivel connector  20  and is generally sized and shaped to fit a conduit box  45 . As previously mentioned, conduit boxes come in many different shapes and sizes to fit a particular application. Therefore the conduit box cover  50  of the claimed invention may be of many different sizes and shapes to fit various sizes and shapes of conduit boxes. The conduit box cover  50  shown in FIGS.  1 - 4  is approximately 4⅛″ inches in diameter and is made of galvanized steel. The conduit box cover  50  is securable to the electrical conduit box  45  through mounting holes  35  near the edges of the conduit box cover  50 . A dish shaped swivel connector seat  75  approximately 2½″ in diameter is provided in the center of the conduit box cover  50 . The swivel connector seat  75  has a central round opening about 1½″ in diameter where the threaded connector portion  80  of a swivel connector  20  may hang through.  
         [0035]    In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the conduit box cover  50  is divided into a stationary cover section  55  and a moveable cover section  60 , as shown in FIG. 2, such that the stationary cover section  55  can solely support a swivel connector  20  having a lighting fixture or ceiling fan connected to it. This is accomplished by dividing the conduit box cover  50  such that the stationary cover section  55  has about 75% of the swivel connector seat structure  75 , allowing the swivel connector  20  to sit in the swivel connector seat portion  85  of the stationary cover section  55 . The division of the swivel connector seat  75  between the stationary cover section  55  and the moveable cover section  60  is generally governed by the amount of opening required in the swivel connector seat  75  to place the swivel connector  20  in the swivel connector seat  75  when the stationary cover section  55  is secured to the electrical conduit box  45 . The moveable cover section  60  shown in FIG. 2 is has about 25% of the swivel connector seat structure  75 .  
         [0036]    The conduit box cover  50  is divided such that the mounting holes  35  are located in the stationary cover section  55  so that the stationary cover section  55  is fixedly mounted to the conduit box before the swivel connector  20  is placed in the swivel connector seat  75  as shown in FIG. 2. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, there are two mounting holes for securing the conduit box cover  50  to the electrical conduit box  45 , but more than two mounting holes  35  are contemplated within the scope of the claimed invention. The stationary cover section  55  also has a threaded aperture  90  so that the moveable cover section  60  can be secured in place by the rigid strap  65 .  
         [0037]    The conduit box cover  50  can be sold individually or in combination with a swivel connector  20 . A partial perforation  95  in the curved side wall of the swivel connector seat  75 , as shown in FIG. 7, can be used to retain the swivel connector  20  within the seat  75  during transportation and installation of the swivel connector hanger assembly  10 . The retention of the swivel connector  20  is accomplished by the partial perforation  95  engaging a slot  100  in the swivel portion  105  of a swivel connector  20  so that a swivel connector  20  may be retained in the seat  75  of the conduit box cover  50 .  
         [0038]    The swivel connector assembly  10  shown in FIGS.  1 - 4  show a preferred embodiment of the invention where the conduit box cover  50  has one moveable cover section  60  sized and shaped to cover the remaining portion of the electrical conduit box  45 . In other embodiments of the invention there may be more than one moveable cover section  60 . The moveable cover section  60  completes the conduit box cover  50  and is sized and shaped to engaged the stationary cover section  55  of the conduit box cover  50 .  
         [0039]    [0039]FIGS. 1 and 2 show the rigid strap  65  of the claimed invention. The rigid strap  65  is made of galvanized steel and is generally C shaped to wrap around the swivel connector seat  75  of the conduit box cover  50 . The rigid strap  65  is pivotally connected to the stationary cover section  55  of the conduit box cover  50  by a rivet  110 , however other types of fasteners capable of providing a pivotal connection are contemplated. The rigid strap  65  is fixedly connected to the moveable cover section  60  by a plurality of rivets  115  or some other type of fastener capable of providing a low cost fixed connection. The terminal end  120  of the rigid strap  65  has an aperture  125  for fixedly connecting the rigid strap  65  in place to the stationary cover section  55  with a screw  130  after the swivel connector  20  has been placed in the swivel connector seat  75  and the moveable cover section  60  has been pivoted into engagement with the stationary cover section  55 .  
         [0040]    The swivel connector  20  is sized and shaped to fit in the swivel connector seat  75  having a hollow hemispherical swivel portion  105  and a connector portion  80  as shown in FIG. 3. The swivel portion  105  has a slotted opening  135  to receive the partial perforation  95  and a central round hole  140  to allow an electrical fixture&#39;s wiring to be connected to the wiring of the electrical conduit box  45  through the swivel connector  20 . The connector portion  80  of the swivel connector  20  is generally sized to fit through the round hole  145  in the swivel connector seat  75  and has several exterior flat faces  150  to allow an installer to grip the connector portion with a pair of pliers. The interior cavity  155  of the connector portion  80  has a set of female threads for connecting an electrical fixture directly to the swivel connector  20  or by way of a shaft  15  connected to the electrical fixture. The swivel connector&#39;s central round hole  140  is centered within the bottom wall  165  of the interior cavity  155  as shown in FIG. 5.  
         [0041]    The swivel connector hanger assembly  10  is generally installed by first fixedly mounting the electrical conduit box  45  to a structural component of a ceiling or wall. After the electrical conduit box  45  has been properly connected including the connection of conduit piping and wiring as desired in the particular application, the conduit box cover  50  is secured to the electrical conduit box  45  with the moveable cover section  60  pivoted away from the stationary cover section  55  and the swivel connector  20  removed as shown in FIG. 2. The swivel connector  20  is then attached to the electrical fixture having the electrical fixture wiring  170  extending through the hole of the swivel connector  20  as shown in FIG. 3. The electrical fixture is then hung by the swivel connector  20  in the swivel connector seat  75  so that the electrical fixture&#39;s wiring  170  can be connected to the wiring in the electrical conduit box  45 . The conduit box cover  50  being sectioned such that the electrical fixture can be hung in place by the stationary cover section  55  while still allowing the installer access to the interior  175  of the electrical conduit box  45  allows a single installer to install an electrical fixture, eliminating the necessity of a second installer holding the electrical fixture while the wiring is completed.  
         [0042]    Although the invention has been described by reference to some embodiments it is not intended that the novel device be limited thereby, but that modifications thereof are intended to be included as falling within the broad scope and spirit of the foregoing disclosure, the following claims and the appended drawings.