Patent Publication Number: US-9843149-B1

Title: Foldable power strip

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates generally to power strips and still more particularly to foldable power strips. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Power strips are prevalently used to provide power to a number of different electrical devices attached thereto. Because of the different locations and applications where such power strips may be used, it has been known to have power strips of varying sizes and shapes. However, these devices have fixed power cords and do not permit adjustment of the power strip and cord into different positions relative to one another. This leads to a consumer having to purchase multiple power strips or be inconvenienced by the size or shape of the power strip and the location of the cord extending outward therefrom. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention comprises a foldable power strip having components that move relative to one another about a hinge or axis to allow positioning of the power strip and cord in a number of different configurations to adjust to the environment of where the power strip is used. The power strip comprises a pair of housing members hingedly connected together for rotation between an elongated open position and a folded, closed position, with the ability to be positioned at a number of positions between the open and closed positions. The power strip includes an annular ring that receives a power cord and is positioned within a hinge coupling two power strip housing members, to permit the power strip members and power cord to each be independently rotated relative to one another. The housing members may also include side members on their inside walls that include arcuate sections that together define a recess or groove for receiving the power cord therein to protect it when the power strip housing members are in the closed position. 
     Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a foldable power strip that is economical and easy to manufacture and use. 
     Yet another object of the present invention is to protect the power cord connection to the power strip when in the closed position. 
     Still another object of the present invention is to provide a power strip that is adjustable into a number of different positions for use in a variety of different locations. 
     A further object of the present invention is to provide a foldable power strip that allows for the power cord to be independently rotated relative to the power strip members. 
     Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed disclosure, taken in conjunction with the accompanying sheets of drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of one embodiment of the foldable power strip of the present invention in the open or extended position, with the power cord extending laterally along the power strip housing. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the foldable power strip of  FIG. 1  with the power cord extending generally perpendicularly to the power strip housing. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the foldable power strip of  FIG. 1  in the closed position. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of one embodiment of the internal structure for the housing members of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 5  is an exploded perspective view of the foldable power strip of  FIG. 1  showing a second embodiment of the internal structure for the housing members. 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic diagram of the foldable power strip of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 7  is a partial sectional view of the hinge of the foldable power strip of  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     While this invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail several specific embodiments, with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered merely an exemplification of the principles of the invention and the application is limited only to the appended claims. 
       FIGS. 1 and 2  show one embodiment of the foldable power strip  10  of the present invention having a first housing member  12 , a second housing member  14  and a power cord assembly  140  separately pivotable relative to one another about a vertical axis  120 . 
     Each of the housing members  12 ,  14  includes a lower portion  16  and an upper portion  18  that may be attached to one another to form the housing. The lower and upper portions may be made out of a variety of materials including, but not limited to, Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (“ABS”). Referring to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , the lower portions  16  and upper portions  18  may include a plurality of corresponding threaded members  20  for receiving screws  22  through the lower portions  16  to permit the lower portions  16  and upper portions  18  to be attached to one another. In order to assist with the alignment of the lower portions  16  and upper portions  18 , the threaded members  20  on the lower portions  16  and upper portions  18  may include a tapered or smaller upper section  24  that can fit within the corresponding upper sections of the opposing threaded member  20 . In addition, the upper edge  30  of the lower portions  16  and upper portions  18  may include raised or offset walls or ridges  32  for fitting within corresponding walls or ridges  34  of the opposing lower portions  16  and upper portions  18 . 
     The upper portions  18  include a series of slots  38  and holes  36  for receiving one or more female plugs for electrical devices or appliances. While the power strip shown in the drawings is capable of receiving five 3-prong plugs (three on the first housing member and two on the second housing member), it is appreciated that the power strip may accommodate a different number of and/or types of plugs and not depart from the scope of the present invention. 
       FIG. 4  shows one embodiment of the internal components for housing the live, neutral and ground bus bars and terminals. The lower portions  16  of the housing members  12 ,  14  include a series of internal walls  40  defining a plurality of rectangular containers  42 , with adjacent containers  42  being located proximate to and slightly offset from one another. Openings  44 ,  46  at the opposite ends of the adjacent containers  42  define channels for receiving the live hot terminal bus bar  50  and the neutral bus bar  52 . The channels are preferably sized such that the bus bars may be press fit and retained therein during use. Connected to each of the live and neutral bus bars  50 ,  52  are terminals  54 ,  56  that are sized to fit within the respective containers  42  and which define slots  45 ,  47  for receiving the elongated narrow plugs of the three prong plug. Ground terminals  64  and bus bars  62  may be positioned within the upper housing portions  18  so that the ground terminals  64  in the bus bar  62  are aligned with the respective holes  36  of the outlet for the ground prongs of the plugs. The bus bars and terminals are made from a conductive material, including but not limited to, copper or other metals. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 5 , another embodiment of the internal structure of the housing members is illustrated. The lower portions  16  include a series of raised members  70  that define cavities  72  that are positioned to align with the ground outlet opening  36  of the upper housing portion  18  and the ground terminals  64  when the housing members  12 ,  14  are connected together. In particular, the ground bus bar  62  rests on top of or over the raised members  70  such that the outlet ground opening  36  is aligned with the ground terminal  64  and the cavity  72  to allow the ground prong of the plug to be inserted therein. The sides of the raised member may include flat vertical flanges  74  extending upward that, together with other raised members  70  on the lower housing portions  16 , guide placement of the internal sockets  80  in the power strip housing members for the neutral and live blades of the plug. Each of the interiors of the sockets  80  is sized to receive one of the live terminals  54  and neutral terminals  56  such that the slots  45 ,  47  defined by the terminals  54 ,  56  are aligned with the slots or openings  82  of the sockets  80 . 
     In order to help protect against children sticking objects within the sockets, the sockets may be tamper resistant. For example, referring to  FIG. 5 , the sockets  80  may include rectangular covers  84  that are normally positioned such that at least parts of the covers  84  extend over the openings  82  of the sockets  80 . The covers  84  include an opening  86  therein with an angled wall  88  to allow a user to use the prongs of the plug to engage each cover  80  and slide it to reveal the openings  82  in the respective socket  80 , thereby allowing the plug to be inserted therein. 
     The power strip  10  may include a buzzer  100  such as a piezo electric buzzer that can provide an auditory warning for unsafe conditions such as, but not limited to, the power strip  10  not being properly grounded. If a buzzer  100  is utilized, a speaker cover  102  may be used to allow the buzzer  100  to be readily heard outside the power strip  10 . In one embodiment, the speaker for the buzzer may produce audible sound in the range of 68-74 decibels. The power strip  10  may also include one or more lights  104  visible from the outside of the power strip housing members  12 ,  14  to provide information on the status of the power strip  10  and the sockets or outlets  80 . For example, 3-5 mm green light emitting diodes (“LEDs”) may be used to indicate that power is flowing to a particular outlet, while 3-5 mm red LEDs may be used to warn of potential dangers. 
     The lower portions  16  and upper portions  18  of the first and second housing members  12 ,  14  includes circular connectors  110 ,  112  about adjacent corners to allow the housing members  12 ,  14  to be rotationally moved relative to one another about a hinge or vertical axis  120 . In one embodiment, the circular connector  110 ,  112  of one of the lower portions  16  and upper portions  18  may include a raised wall  114  that is sized to fit in the opening  116  defined by the other of the circular connector  110 ,  112  to allow the connectors to be attached to one another. A series of circumferentially spaced-apart nodes  130  or other raised surfaces may be located on one of the outer side of the raised inner wall  114  and the respective inner wall  122  of the other of the circular connectors  110 ,  112  that may engage detents, slots or other openings or members  132  on the other of the circular connector  110 ,  112  to permit the housing members  12 ,  14  to be selectively rotated through and maintained in a series of specific angular positions (e.g., every 12.5 degrees between 0 and 180 degrees). 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 5 , the power cord assembly  140  includes a power cord housing  142  and a power cord  150 . The power cord housing  142 , which may be made out of a variety of materials including but not limited to polyvinyl chloride (“PVC”), comprises an annular ring  144  and a tubular connector  146  extending therefrom to allow the power cord  150  to be rotationally connected to the housing members  12 ,  14 . In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the annular ring  144  is sized to mate with or connect to the respective circular connectors  110 ,  112  from the housing members  12 , 14  to allow the power cord  150  and housing members  12 ,  14  to rotate independently from one another. The connectors  110 ,  112  and ring  144  may include annular flanges or walls  148 ,  149  on their tops and/or bottoms that are designed to allow the flanges  148  on the ring  144  to be nested within or on the outside of corresponding flanges  149  on the connectors  110 ,  112 . The power cord  150 , which can be a 14/3 power cord with a polyvinyl chloride (“PVC”) outer cover is inserted into the tubular connector  146 . The wires  1521 ,  152   n ,  152   g , namely the live, neutral and ground wires, extend through the center of the annular ring  144  and are connected to separate connector terminals  160  through screws  162  or other known means. Insulating rings  170  or other members are located between the respective connector terminals  160  to prevent them from contacting one another. Separate wires  1541 ,  154   n ,  154   g  extend from the ends of the connector terminals  160  to attach the live, neutral and ground wires  1521 ,  152   n ,  152   g  to the live, neutral and ground bus bars  50 ,  52 ,  62  and terminals  54 ,  56 ,  64  in each of the first and second housing members  12 ,  14 . The insulating ring  170  may include an opening  172  to permit one or more of the wires  1541 ,  154   n ,  154   g  to extend therethrough to connect to the internal components  50 ,  52 ,  62  of the powers strip  10 . 
     Caps or covers  190 ,  192  may be placed on the bottom and top of the circular connectors  110 ,  112  to protect the wires and internal components of the power strip. Side members  200  may be attached or extend from the inside walls  210  of the lower and upper members  16 ,  18  of the first and second housing members  12 ,  14 . Each of the side members  200  includes support members  202  that have a concave or arcuate surface  204  that are aligned with corresponding support members  202  on the other of the upper or lower housing members  16 ,  18  to define a recess or groove for receiving the power cord  150  when the first and second housing members  12 ,  14  are rotated into the closed position. 
     An electrical schematic diagram of a power strip of the present invention is shown in  FIG. 6  as comprising power cord  150 , sockets  80 , buzzer  100 , breaker switch  300 , line conditioner  310 , and buzzer controller  320 . Power cord  150  includes a 3-prong male plug for coupling to a power source such as, in the United States, a 110-volt alternating current source. Each prong of the male plug is operably coupled to an associated wire or conductor, namely neutral conductor  152   n , live conductor  1521 , and ground conductor  152   g . Breaker switch  300 , coupled to live conductor  1521 , may be an illuminated, single pole, single throw (“SPST”) type switch, enabling the user to manually switch power to sockets  80  on and off. Moreover, breaker switch  300  may include a solid-state circuit breaker and an associated over-voltage or other abnormal condition sensor, automatically switching breaker switch  300  from the on (closed, or conducting) to the off (open, or non-conducting) state whenever an over-voltage or other predetermined abnormal condition is detected. 
     Output  301  of breaker switch  300  is coupled to the live terminals of each socket  80 , and to the live inputs of line conditioner  310  and buzzer controller  320 . Neutral conductor  152   n  is coupled to the neutral terminals of each socket  80 , and to the neutral inputs of line conditioner  310  and buzzer controller  320 . Ground conductor  152   g  is coupled to the ground terminals of each socket  80 . 
     Line conditioner  110  may include conventional surge suppression and/or Electromagnetic interference/radio frequency interference (“EMI/RFI”) filtering circuitry, to protect electrical appliances, equipment or devices plugged into any of sockets  80  from anomalies in the source power received by power cord  150 . Buzzer controller  320  may include sensors to detect one or more alarm conditions. Upon the detection of such a condition, buzzer controller activates buzzer  100 , which may be, for example, a piezoelectric speaker, via conductors  321  and  322 . In one embodiment of the invention, buzzer controller  320  may include a sensor disposed within or proximate the male plug of power cord  150 , sensing an improperly grounded power connection. In another embodiment of the invention, buzzer controller  320  may include a sensor disposed within or proximate the male plug of power cord  150 , sensing excess heat proximate the male plug of the power cord in excess of a predetermined alarm threshold, such as, for example, approximately 125° Fahrenheit. Regardless of the type of abnormal condition sensed, the sensing of an abnormal condition by buzzer controller  320  will cause activation of buzzer  100  via conductors  321  and  322 . Buzzer controller may cause buzzer  100  to emit a continuous sound upon the detection of an alarm condition. Alternatively, buzzer controller may cause buzzer  100  to be activated in a pulsed manner, or in a manner that rises, falls, or alternates in frequency. Furthermore, buzzer  100  may instead be a higher fidelity speaker, and buzzer controller may include a voice synthesizer or stored speech, enabling one or more spoken warnings to be emitted upon the detection of an alarm condition. 
     In operation, the housing members  12 ,  14  and power cord assembly  140  may be rotated independent of one another about the vertical axis  120  to allow them to be positioned in a variety of positions relative to one another to allow the power strip  10  to be adjusted for more efficient use in a variety of locations. When the power strip  10  is in the fully closed or folded position, the power cord  150  will extend along the length of the inside walls  210  of the power strip housing members  12 ,  14  and be retained therein through support members  202  to protect the power cord housing  142  during use. 
     It will be understood that modifications and variations may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. It will be appreciated that the present disclosure is intended as an exemplification of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiment illustrated and described. The disclosure is intended to cover, by the appended claims, all such modifications as fall within the scope of the claims.