Abstract:
A reusable protective cover provides a means for sealing off an opening leading into the interior chamber of an electrical outlet box during construction activities to prevent foreign material from entering the chamber. The temporary protective cover has a flat rectangular back plate, a rectangular collar with independently-flexing wall sections, and a flange.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)  
       [0001]    This application is a continuation in part of application Ser. No. 29/178,220 filed on Mar. 24, 2003 and entitled “Protective Cover Plate”, which is incorporated herein by reference.  
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    This invention relates to a reusable protective cover for temporarily covering an opening to an electrical outlet box during construction. In conventional construction of commercial and residential structures, electrical outlet boxes are wired and installed within the framework of the structure prior to the installation of interior wall surfaces. Residential outlet boxes are typically installed without a mud ring, while commercial outlet boxes are typically installed with a mud ring mounted to the front of the outlet box. Wall panels, usually wallboard made of gypsum, are installed over the electrical outlet boxes and holes are cut in the panels to expose the boxes. Since the outlet boxes are wired prior to installing the wallboard, the wires are often nicked when a zip drill or router is used to cut through the wallboard and expose the outlet boxes.  
           [0003]    After a hole in the wallboard is cut, joint compound is typically applied around the outlet boxes to fill in any gaps around the outlet boxes and remedy any other irregularities in the wallboard. In the process, joint compound often finds it way into the interior of the outlet box, coating the wires and reducing the interior volume of the box. This contamination complicates installation of subsequent electrical components.  
           [0004]    In addition, typically the wall surface is painted prior to final installation of the electrical components, resulting in the accumulation of paint on the wires in the outlet box. This paint contamination can make installation of the electrical components more difficult because the colored labeling scheme of the wires is obscured. Now that paint is mainly sprayed onto wall panels, as opposed to rolled, the paint contamination problem has only worsened. As a result, for the foregoing reasons, a need exists for cost-effectively protecting both residential outlet boxes and commercial outlet boxes equipped with mud rings, and the wires contained therein.  
           [0005]    Previous attempts have been undertaken to solve these problems, however, these attempts have failed to solve all of the above problems. U.S. Pat. No. 5,639,991 issued to Gail D. Schuette discloses a Utility Box Insert which comprises a plate with two L-shaped posts extending outward from the plate. The Schuette cover recesses within the interior chamber of an electrical outlet box and the L-shaped posts anchor the cover in position by mating with screw holes on the front of the outlet box. Due to its recessed configuration within the box, the Schuette cover shields the wires but does not prevent joint compound from entering the interior of the outlet box, which may hinder the removal of the cover from inside the box. Moreover, before the Schuette cover can be installed, the wires inside the outlet box may need to be compressed to provide sufficient clearance to recess the protective plate inside the outlet box.  
           [0006]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,222 issued to Raymond L. Jordan et al discloses a Temporary Cover for Electrical Outlet Boxes that comprises a thin cover having a continuous, inwardly extending flange completely surrounding the cover to frictionally engage the inner walls of electrical outlet boxes. The front face of the cover mounts flush with the outer rim of the outlet box to block access to the interior chamber. As such, the cover does not have a recess to act as a guide for cutting away wallboard overlaying the outlet box. In addition, the continuous flange surrounding the cover may lack the flexibility needed to fit into different manufacturers&#39; outlet boxes, which often vary slightly in size. Moreover, due to the cover&#39;s complex design, fabricating it from a cost effective and durable material such as galvanized steel sheet may not be feasible.  
           [0007]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,520,363 issued to Joseph Sullivan discloses a Temporary Protective Cover for Electrical Outlet Receptacle. The Sullivan cover comprises a thin sheet of stamped metal that has a plurality of claw-shaped catches, having a spring-like character, that extend outward in the plane of a base section and engage the interior walls of an electrical outlet box. When the cover is pressed into the front opening of an electrical box, the cover is held in position by the catches, which clutch the interior walls of the box. The cover&#39;s design is not conducive for use with a commercial electrical outlet box equipped with a mud ring.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0008]    The invention is a reusable protective cover for temporarily covering an opening leading into the interior chamber of an electrical outlet box during construction activities. The temporary protective cover has a flat rectangular back plate, a rectangular collar extending outward from the back plate, and a flange connected to an outer rim of the rectangular collar. The rectangular collar has four independently-flexing wall sections, wherein at least two of the wall sections are sloped outward to frictionally engage interior surfaces of the electrical outlet box and accommodate different sizes of electrical outlet box openings. The flange is sized to overlap edges of the outlet box opening and seal off the chamber to prevent foreign material from entering the chamber.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]    [0009]FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a first embodiment of a protective cover incorporating the present invention.  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 2 is a side view of the protective cover of FIG. 1, the other side view being the same as that shown.  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 3 is an end view of the protective cover of FIG. 1, the other end view being the same as that shown.  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the protective cover of FIG. 1 about to be mated with a mud ring mounted to a single electrical outlet box.  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the protective cover of FIG. 1 blocking the outlet opening of the mud ring of FIG. 4.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a protective cover incorporating the present invention.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 7 is a side view of the protective cover of FIG. 6, the other side view being the same as that shown.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 8 is an end view of the protective cover of FIG. 6, the other end view being the same as that shown.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the rear side of the protective cover of FIG. 6 about to be mated with a residential electrical outlet box.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the protective cover of FIG. 6 blocking the outlet opening of the residential electrical outlet box of FIG. 10.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a third embodiment of a protective cover incorporating the present invention, shown blocking the outlet opening of a double electrical box, with stud and wallboard in phantom lined. 
     
    
       [0020]    While the above identified FIGS. 1-11 set forth preferred embodiments, other embodiments of the present invention are also contemplated, some of which are noted in the discussion. In all cases, this disclosure presents the illustrated embodiments of the present invention by way of representation and not limitation. Numerous other minor modification and embodiments can be devised by those skilled in the art which fall within the scope and spirit of the principals of this invention.  
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0021]    A first preferred embodiment of the present invention, protective cover  12 , is shown in FIGS. 1-5, with FIG. 1 showing a front perspective view of protective cover  12 , FIG. 2 showing a side view of protective cover  12 , FIG. 3 showing an end view of protective cover  12 , FIG. 4 showing a rear perspective view of protective cover  12 , and FIG. 5 showing a front perspective view of protective cover  12  mated to a mud ring.  
         [0022]    Protective cover  12  has a rectangular backplate  13 , a rectangular collar  14 , a flange  16 , a recess  17 , and release holes  18 . Rectangular backplate  13  has a front face  20 , a rear face  22 , and a rectangular perimeter  24 . Rectangular collar  14  has wall sections  26 A,  26 B,  26 C, and  26 D, each of which have an interior face  28  and an exterior face  30 . Rectangular collar  14  also has gaps  32 , corners  34 , and a rim  36 . Flange  16  has flange sections  38 A,  38 B,  38 C, and  38 D; gaps  40 ; an inner perimeter  42 ; and an outer perimeter  44 .  
         [0023]    Rectangular backplate  13  is preferably a flat, generally rectangular sheet that lies in a plane posterior to the plane of flange  16 . Rectangular collar  14  connects rectangular backplate  13  and flange  16 . Rectangular backplate  13  and rectangular collar  14  form recess  17 . Rectangular collar  14  is formed by wall sections  26 A- 26 D, each of which make up a side of rectangular collar  14 . Wall sections  26 A- 26 D connect to rectangular backplate  13  at rectangular perimeter  24  and extend outward towards flange  16 . Gaps  32  are located at corners  34  of rectangular collar  16  such that the gaps separate wall sections  26 A- 26 D from each other. Wall sections  26 A and  26 C, which form the shorter sides of rectangular collar  14 , have release holes  18  formed therein. Release holes  18  extend from interior face  28  to exterior face  30  of the wall sections.  
         [0024]    Flange  16  connects to rectangular collar  14  along rim  36 , and is bounded by inner perimeter  42  and outer perimeter  44 , both of which are generally rectangular. Flange  16  is composed of flange sections  38 A- 38 D, which are separated by gaps  40 . Gaps  40  extend from inner perimeter  42  at corners  34  to outer perimeter  44 , and are continuous with gaps  32 . As such, each flange section  38 A- 38 D and its associated wall section  26 A- 26 D make up a unit that flexes independent of adjacent wall and flange sections. Flange sections  38 A- 38 D lie in a plane parallel to back plate  13  and preferably form an angle with respective wall sections  26 A- 26 D slightly greater than 90 degrees.  
         [0025]    Wall sections  26 A- 26 D are preferably sloped outward from back plate  13  towards flange  16 . To accommodate this slope, inner perimeter  42  of flange  16  is preferably larger than rectangular perimeter  24  of back plate  13 .  
         [0026]    [0026]FIGS. 4 and 5 show perspective views of protective cover  12  interacting with a mud ring  50  mounted on the front of an electrical outlet box  52 . Mud rings are typically used in conjunction with electrical outlet boxes for use in commercial applications. Mud ring  50  has a mounting plate  54 , a projection ring  56 , a lip  58 , and an outlet opening  60 . Electrical outlet box  52  has sides  62 , back  64 , rim  66 , and interior chamber  68 . Mounting plate  54  is secured to electrical outlet box  52  by appropriate means. Projection ring  56 , which has a generally rectangular cross-section, extends outward from mounting plate  54  and terminates at lip  58 , thereby forming outlet opening  60 . Outlet opening  60  leads into interior chamber  68  of electrical box  52 .  
         [0027]    As discussed above, wall sections  26 A- 26 D are preferably sloped outward from back plate  13  towards flange  16 . The wall sections are sloped so that as rear face  22  of rectangular back plate  13  is pressed into outlet opening  60 , exterior face  30  of each wall section  26 A- 26 D frictionally engages lip  58 . As protective cover  12  is pressed further into outlet opening  60 , each flange section  38 A- 38 D contacts lip  58 , and the frictional engagement between wall sections  26 A- 26 D and lip  58  secures protective cover  12  in outlet opening  60 . The slope on wall sections  26 A- 26 D also allows protective cover  12  to fit mud rings of varying size, which is noteworthy because the sizes of mud ring outlet openings are not fully standardized within the industry.  
         [0028]    As discussed previously, the present invention preferably has gaps  32  and  40  located at corners  34  of rectangular collar  14  and flange  16 . These gaps allow an attached wall and flange section to flex independently as a discrete unit. The gaps, acting in concert with the slope on the wall sections, ensure that the wall sections will fit tightly against the lip of the mud ring. The gaps also provide additional range of movement for the wall sections, thereby allowing the protective cover to fit inside a range of differently-sized mud ring openings.  
         [0029]    As shown in FIG. 5, when protective cover  12  is securely mounted inside mud ring opening  60 , interior chamber  68  is sealed off from the surrounding environment. As a result, construction activities such as cutting through overlaid wallboard, applying joint compound, and painting can be carried out without introducing contaminants into interior chamber  68 , and without affecting wires contained therein.  
         [0030]    Recess  17 , which has a cross-section generally the same size as outlet opening  60 , provides a convenient means for receiving a zip drill or router. When wallboard is installed over an electrical outlet box sealed off with the present invention, the back plate and wall sections that form the recess provide an ideal means for locating the electrical outlet box and acting as a cutting guide to expose the box. A zip drill or router may then be used to cut through the overlaid wallboard and engage back plate  13  without any danger of damaging wires installed within the outlet box or shocking the person doing the cutting. The drill or router is directed around the perimeter of recess  17  to completely expose back plate  13 . Once back plate  13  is exposed, the wallboard overlapping flange  16  can be quickly removed to completely expose the protective cover.  
         [0031]    After the surrounding wallboard has been patched and painted, the protective cover may be removed from mud ring opening  60  using release holes  18 . To accomplish this, a tool, such as for example a piece of hooked wire, is inserted inside release hole  18  and used to release the protective cover. Preferably the release holes are circular, however, the holes may be of a different shape and may also be located on different wall sections.  
         [0032]    Protective cover  70 , a second preferred embodiment of the present invention, is shown in FIGS. 6-10, with FIG. 6 showing a front perspective view of protective cover  70 , FIG. 7 showing a side view of protective cover  70 , FIG. 8 showing an end view of protective cover  70 , FIG. 9 showing a rear perspective view of protective cover  70  about to be mated with a residential electrical outlet box, and FIG. 10 showing a front perspective view of protective cover  70  mated with a residential electrical outlet box.  
         [0033]    Except for two additional features, indented portions  72  and dimples  74 , protective cover  70  is identical to protective cover  12  of FIGS. 1-5. Indented portions  72  protrude outward from wall sections  26 A and  26 C into recess  17  of protective cover  70 . Dimples  74  are formed in wall sections  26 B and  26 D and protrude outward from exterior faces  30 .  
         [0034]    [0034]FIGS. 9 and 10 show protective cover  70  interacting with residential electrical outlet box  80 . Electrical outlet box  80  has sides  82 , a lip  84 , ribs  86 , an outlet opening  88 , and a chamber  90 . Ribs  86  each have a threaded screw hole to receive a screw for fastening an electrical outlet cover (not shown) to electrical outlet box  80 . To seal off chamber  90  of electrical outlet box  80 , rear face  22  of protective cover  70  is pressed into lip  84 . In the process, sloped wall sections  26 A- 26 D frictionally engage the interior of sides  82  and flex inward towards recess  17 . As the wall sections slide further into chamber  90 , dimples  74  also frictionally engage sides  82 . Dimples  74  are preferably located on the wall sections in close proximity to rim  36  to serve as an additional means for securing protective cover  70  to electrical outlet box  80 .  
         [0035]    Protective cover  70  is locked in outlet opening  88  by pressing the cover into chamber  90  until the underside surface of flange  16  engages lip  84 . As described for protective cover  12  of FIGS. 1-5, protective cover  70  may be removed from electrical outlet box  80  by inserting a tool within release holes  18 .  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 11 shows a perspective view of protective cover  92 , a third preferred embodiment of the present invention, mounted in a double electrical outlet box  94 . Protective cover  92  is identical to protective cover  70 , except it is enlarged to fit double electrical outlet boxes. Rectangular back plate  13 , wall sections  26 A and  26 C, and flange sections  38 A and  38 C are elongated. However, protective cover  92  is used in the same manner as protective cover  70 . It is also contemplated that similar alterations (not shown) may be made to protective cover  12  of FIG. 1 to allow protective cover  12  to mate with a mud ring for a double commercial electrical outlet box.  
         [0037]    In one embodiment, protective covers  10 ,  70 , and  92  may be stamped from a single sheet of galvanized steel. Other materials, such as for example plastic or rubber, may also be used, but the materials should preferably be able to resist a zip drill or router bit for a sufficient period of time without becoming compromised.  
         [0038]    Although the present invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments, workers skilled in the art will recognize that changes may be made in form and detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.