Abstract:
A toby box for use in housing a toby (a stopcock), other type of valve, a meter or other object in the ground has an annular housing having an opening defined by a peripheral rim at its upper end. A hinge pivotally connects a lid to an inside part of the rim so that the lid can be opened and closed. A drainage passage is provided below the hinge whereby liquid and detritis entering about the hinge can drain or be washed away from the hinge to the interior of the housing. This helps prevent a build up of detritis about the hinge interfering with its operation.

Description:
[0001]    Pursuant to 35 USC § 119, this application claims priority to New Zealand Application Serial No. 502942, filed Feb. 18, 2000, which application is incorporated herein by specific reference.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    1. The Field of the Invention  
           [0003]    This invention relates to a toby box.  
           [0004]    2. The Relevant Technology  
           [0005]    A “toby” is the name commonly given in New Zealand to a water stopcock installed, for example, at the boundary of a road and a section of land on which a house or other building is placed. The purpose of the toby is to allow the water supply to the section to be turned off if necessary for plumbing work to be performed on the section or in the building. The toby is normally set into a hole in the ground, for example, in a pavement outside the section, where it is protected by a toby box. A known type of toby box comprises a housing within which the toby is located and a lid pivotally attached to the housing to allow for access to the toby. The setting of the toby box in the ground is such that when the lid is closed it is generally level with the surface of the ground.  
           [0006]    The hinge of the toby box is exposed to the elements. Therefore, liquid such as rain water and detritus such as dirt and plant matter can enter about the hinge and adversely affect its operation. In the known type of toby box already referred to, fine detritus can, with time, pack tightly about the hinge and prevent the lid from being opened easily, particularly by hand. If the lid is forced open by use of a lever, either the lid or the hinge may be damaged. The hinge can be cleaned but that can be difficult and time consuming. It is an object of the present invention to provide a toby box with a hinge which is less prone to fouling and jamming by detritus.  
           [0007]    It is possible for a toby box to be used to house an object other than a toby. For example, the box may be used to house some other type of valve used to control liquid or gas flow, or as a meter box to house a meter used to measure liquid or gas flow through a pipeline with which the meter is associated. In this specification, “toby box” is used in this broader sense.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0008]    The present invention broadly consists in a toby box comprising:  
           [0009]    an annular housing having an opening at its upper end, which upper end is defined by a peripheral rim;  
           [0010]    a lid;  
           [0011]    a hinge pivotally connecting the lid to an inside part of the rim whereby the lid can be swung between a closed position across the opening and an open position raised substantially clear of the opening; and  
           [0012]    a drainage passage below the hinge whereby liquid and detritus entering about the hinge can drain or be washed away from the hinge to the interior of the housing.  
           [0013]    The housing preferably has a substantially circular shape in plan view but may have any other suitable shape for the stopcock or other object it is designed to house and for the location where it is to be installed. For example, the housing may be oval, square or rectangular in its plan view shape.  
           [0014]    The housing preferably has an opening at its lower end. This enables the housing to be placed over the toby or other object already in the ground and which is to be housed. Alternatively, the lower end of the housing may be closed, whereupon the housing has one or more apertures in its wall through which pipes or cables or the like can pass to the object housed within. In this case, the object would usually be lowered into the housing through the open upper end and then connected to the pipes or cables or the like.  
           [0015]    The housing preferably has an outer flange to facilitate securing the housing in the ground in use, the outer flange comprising an outwardly extending peripheral flange located below the upper end of the housing. This outer flange helps anchor the housing in the ground when earth is packed above and below it. Alternatively, there may be earth below the flange and concrete above it or it may be embedded in concrete.  
           [0016]    The housing preferably has an inner flange on which the lid sits when in its closed position, the inner flange comprising an inwardly extending substantially peripheral flange located below the upper end of the housing. When the lid is closed it is preferably entirely located within the rim of the housing. Furthermore, when the lid is closed its upper surface preferably lies in substantially the same plane as the upper end of the housing.  
           [0017]    Preferably the housing is fitted or is capable of being fitted onto a housing extension, such as a length of pipe, which extends from the lower end of the housing. In one embodiment the housing extension is fitted to the interior of the housing, the upper end of the extension then preferably butting against the inner flange if present. In another embodiment, the housing extension is fitted to the exterior of the housing, the upper end of the extension then preferably butting against the outer flange if present.  
           [0018]    The hinge preferably comprises at least one hinge knuckle projecting from an edge of the lid into a recess in the inside part of the rim, the knuckle in said recess being pivotally connected to the rim. The at least one knuckle is preferably pivotally connected to the rim by a hinge pin and preferably has a hole through it through which the hinge pin passes. The at least one knuckle may have a tapered opening to the hole through it, this enabling the at least one knuckle to be snap-fitted to the hinge pin by the hinge pin being forced through the tapered opening to the hole. In this case, the tapered opening in the at least one knuckle is preferably substantially opposite the lid so that the lid can be fitted onto and removed from the hinge pin when in its closed position but not when in any substantially open position.  
           [0019]    The recess preferably has a bottom area open to the interior of the housing to provide said drainage passage and the bottom area preferably has a floor which slopes downwardly to the interior of the housing. There is preferably a clear gap between the at least one knuckle and the recess to facilitate passage of liquid and detritus past the hinge.  
           [0020]    The lid is preferably entirely located within the rim of the housing and preferably has a finger recess opposite the hinge to facilitate opening of the lid.  
           [0021]    Typically, the components of the toby box are made from suitable plastics materials or metals, or combinations of these, which have been moulded, cast or extruded. The toby box is made strong enough, through appropriate choices of shapes, dimensions, and material or materials of construction to be able to withstand the forces it would usually be expected to withstand in use.  
           [0022]    These and other objects and features of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, or may be learned by the practice of the invention as set forth hereinafter.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0023]    In order that the manner in which the above recited and other advantages and features of the invention are obtained, a more particular description of the invention briefly described above will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments thereof which are illustrated in the appended drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are not therefore to be considered limiting of its scope, the invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the accompanying drawings in which:  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 1 shows a plan view of the toby box with the lid in the closed position;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 2 is a side view on II-II of FIG. 1;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 3 is a cross-section on III-III of FIG. 1;  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 4 is a perspective view from the front of the toby box with the lid in an open position; and  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 5 is, like FIG. 3, a cross-section on III-III of FIG. 1 but showing a modified embodiment of the toby box.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0029]    The views of FIGS. 1, 2 and  4  are relevant to both a prior art toby box and the toby box of the present invention. In FIG. 3 the difference between the prior art toby box and that of the present invention is shown in dashed outline. In FIG. 4 the dashed vertical line L shown in the hinge area separates the construction of the prior art toby box shown to the left of the line from the construction of a preferred toby box according to the present invention shown to the right of the line.  
         [0030]    Referring to these drawings, the toby box  10  has an annular housing  12  which has an opening at its upper end  14  and another opening at its lower end  16 . The upper end is defined by a peripheral rim  18 .  
         [0031]    The housing  12  shown in the drawings has a substantially circular shape in plan view but it can be made in other shapes. For example, the housing may have an oval shape or a substantially square or rectangular shape.  
         [0032]    The preferred housing  12  has an outer flange  20 . This is an outwardly extending flange which extends about the periphery of the housing  12  and is located below the upper end  14  of the housing. The purpose or one purpose of the outer flange  20  is to facilitate the securing of the housing in the ground in the use. The housing is set in the ground with its upper end  14  approximately level with the surface of the ground. The ground is packed around the housing above and below the outer flange  20  to make it difficult for the housing to be knocked sideways or tilted in the ground or pulled inadvertently from the ground. By “ground” is meant not only earth but other packing material such as gravel, concrete and bitumen, for example.  
         [0033]    The housing  12  also has an inner flange  22 . This comprises an inwardly extending flange which extends substantially about the inner periphery of the housing. The inner flange  22  is located a little below the upper end  14  of the housing.  
         [0034]    Tobies are set at varying depths in the ground. Rather than producing a range of toby boxes having different lengths of housing  12 , it is preferred that a single size of toby box be produced where the length of the housing can, in effect, be extended. Thus, when necessary, the housing  12  can be fitted over the end of a housing extension such as pipe  24  (shown in FIG. 2) with the upper end of the pipe  24  butting against the inner flange  22 . The pipe is cut to an appropriate length for the depth of the toby below the surface of the ground. The outer diameter of the pipe  24  is preferably similar to or slightly less than the inner diameter of the housing  12 . The housing may be fixed to the pipe by a frictional fit or, if desired, by means of adhesive or suitable mechanical fastenings, such as screws for example. In the modified embodiment of FIG. 5, the housing extension  24 ′ is fitted to the outside of the housing  12 . It is shown with its upper end butting against the outer flange  20 . Again, attachment may be effected by a frictional fit or by use of adhesive or suitable mechanical fastenings. The upper end of the housing extension could be provided with clips (not shown) which are designed to clip over the flange or into a peripheral groove (not shown) in the edge of the flange. Such clips could be integral with a moulded or largely extruded plastic housing extension.  
         [0035]    The toby box  10  has a lid  26  and a hinge  28  pivotally connecting the lid to an inside part of the rim  18  whereby the lid can be swung between a closed position across the opening and an open position raised substantially clear of the opening at the upper end  14  of the housing. In the closed position, the lid is preferably entirely located within the rim  18  of the housing with the underside of the lid resting on the inner flange  22  as shown in FIGS.  3  and  5 . Because the hinge is located within the rim  18  at the upper end of the housing it is to some extent protected from the ground packed about the toby box in use.  
         [0036]    The preferred hinge  28  comprises a hinge knuckle  30 , a hinge knuckle recess  32  in the inside part of the rim  18 , and a pivotal connection between the knuckle and the recess, or rather the inside part of the rim about the recess. The knuckle  30 , which is preferably integral with the lid  26 , projects from an edge of the lid into the recess  32 . In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the recess  32  is provided by having a substantially rectangular stepped-out portion  34  formed in the rim  18 . The sidewalls  36  of the stepped-out portion fixedly support the opposite ends of a hinge pin  38 . The hinge pin passes through a hole in the knuckle  30  to provide the pivotal connection between the lid  26  and the housing  12 .  
         [0037]    The knuckle  30  can be a solid knuckle except for the hole passing through it for the hinge pin. Alternatively, and as shown in dashed outline in FIG. 1 and as shown in FIG. 4, the knuckle can have a lighter construction, comprising two spaced lugs  40  through each of which the hinge pin passes. In this latter case it is preferred that the knuckle still have a continuous upper surface  42  between the lugs  40  to reduce the amount of detritus which enters the hinge area of the toby box. Each lug  40  could be seen as constituting a hinge knuckle without this type of interconnection between them. In fact, the hinge could comprise one hinge knuckle or a plurality of hinge knuckles on the lid meshing with one hinge knuckle or a plurality of hinge knuckles on the housing. However, a relatively simple hinge construction is preferred.  
         [0038]    A prior art toby box has the inner flange  22  upon which the lid  26  sits when closed extending fully about the inner periphery of the housing  12 . That means that the inner flange  20  extends across the inside of the recess  32  as illustrated by the portion  44  shown in dashed outline in FIG. 3 and also shown to the left of line L in FIG. 4. Therefore, the bottom area  46  of the recess  32  in which the knuckle  30  is located is formed as a trough and this trough is a major contributor to the problem already identified. In particular, liquid and fine detritus enter the hinge area by the gap  48  between the knuckle  30  and the stepped-out portion  34  of the rim  18  and accumulate in the trough. With time, the detritus becomes more closely packed in the trough and in the gap making it increasingly more difficult to open the lid, especially by hand.  
         [0039]    According to the present invention, a drainage passage is provided whereby liquid and detritus entering about the hinge  28  can drain or be washed away from the hinge to the interior of the housing  12 . In one preferred embodiment of the invention, the portion  44  across the recess  32  is omitted in the manufacture of the housing  12 . The recess  32  therefore has a bottom area  46  which does not form a trough but is open directly to, and preferably slopes downwardly to the interior of the housing  12 . Therefore, fine detritus entering the gap  48  tends to fall through to the interior of the housing or be washed through by water, whether that be rainwater or water applied under pressure from a hose or other delivery means. Thus, the hinge area of the toby box of the present invention tends to keep cleaner of fine detritus than that of the prior art toby box and/or the hinge area is easier to clean. The detritus that falls through to the interior of the toby box does, of course, accumulate at the bottom of the toby box but this can be cleared out periodically. At least the lid can be readily opened to allow for this to be done.  
         [0040]    In one variation, the portion  44  shown in FIG. 3 need not be omitted entirely for the drainage passage could comprise one or more drainage holes formed through it to the bottom of the trough. However, there might still be an accumulation of fine detritus in those parts of the trough where there are not drainage holes so that this variation is not so preferred.  
         [0041]    In the modified embodiment of FIG. 5, the bottom of the recess  32  is spaced well away from the hinge  28  to leave a large space  52 . This makes it even less likely that detritus will be trapped about the hinge.  
         [0042]    Another feature of the embodiment of FIG. 5 is the manner in which the lid  26  is attached to the hinge pin  38 . The or each knuckle of the lid may have a tapered opening  54  to the hole through it, this enabling the or each knuckle to be snap-fitted to the hinge pin by the hinge pin being forced through the tapered opening to the hole. In this case, and as shown in the drawing, the tapered opening in the at least one knuckle is preferably substantially opposite the lid so that the lid can be fitted onto and removed from the hinge pin when in its closed position but not when in any substantially open position because of interference by the rim  18  about the recess  32 .  
         [0043]    In FIGS. 1 and 4, the lid is shown with a finger recess  50  in its edge opposite the hinge means  28 , that preferably being provided to facilitate opening of the lid by hand or, if still necessary, by means of a suitable lever. In either case, it is expected that less force should be required to open the lid of the toby box of the present invention compared with the prior art toby box that has been described. The lid may be provided with means (not shown) to secure it in its closed position, for example, a clip or screw. In the former case, the clip could be attached to either the lid or the housing and be engageable with the other. In the other case, a screw would usually pass through a screw hole in the lid to be screwed into the housing, for example, by way of the inner flange  22 . Alternatively, the lid may be provided with a bolt or a locking mechanism of a type not readily incapacitated by fine detritus.  
         [0044]    The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. The described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is, therefore, indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.