Patent Publication Number: US-7719143-B2

Title: Apparatus for providing an auxiliary electrical outlet

Description:
This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/909,011 filed on Mar. 30, 2007. 

   FIELD OF INVENTION 
   The field of the present invention is related to the field of electrical devices for providing auxiliary electrical outlets, in particular, electrical devices configured to be mounted between a lighting fixture and an electrical box housing a source of electrical power for the fixture. 
   BACKGROUND 
   A large number of existing homes (such as older single-family houses, duplexes, multi-family apartment buildings, condominiums, etc.) do not have electrical outlets on the exterior of the home, or at least on the front exterior profile of the home, either for decorative lights, such as Christmas lights, or for providing outlets for electrical yard tools, such as weed-eaters, hedge trimmers, electrical lawnmowers or the like. An expensive solution is to hire an electrician to add new wiring to the home for exterior electrical outlets. Alternate solutions can include the use of devices having an outlet that screw into the light base of a fixture or to run extension cords from either the rear of the home or from the interior through a doorway or window. These solutions are less than ideal as they may not provide a grounded outlet and may also not comply with local electrical codes. Most homes, however, will have exterior light fixtures located near the entrances to the home. 
   It is, therefore, desirable to provide an electrical apparatus having an auxiliary electrical outlet for mounting between a light fixture and the electrical box the light fixture is attached to. 
   SUMMARY 
   An apparatus for providing an auxiliary electrical outlet is provided. In one embodiment, the apparatus can include a mounting ring that is placed between a light fixture and an electrical box that provides a source of electrical power for the fixture. In this manner, an auxiliary outlet is provided while still maintaining the existing light fixture. The mounting ring can be tubular and can have a circular or polygonal shape in cross-section to match the cross-sectional shape of the electrical box. The mounting ring can comprise a front surface that the light fixture is mounted against and a rear surface that is abutted against the electrical box. The mounting ring can include an opening to provide communication between the front and rear surfaces. 
   In one embodiment, the mounting ring can include mounting holes passing through the mounting ring between the front and rear surfaces whereby an extended fastener can be used to secure the fixture to the electrical box by passing through the mounting holes thereby sandwiching the mounting ring between the light fixture and the electrical box. In another embodiment, the mounting ring can be mounted to the electrical box with a first set of fasteners and the light fixture can be mounted to the mounting ring with a second set of fasteners. 
   In another embodiment, the mounting ring can include a housing disposed thereon. The housing can include at least one electrical outlet. In this embodiment, the electrical leads from the outlet can extend from the housing through the mounting ring into the opening where they can be connected to the electrical supply leads in the electrical box. In this fashion, the outlet is wired “in parallel” with the light fixture as well known by those skilled in the art. For the purposes of this specification, references to the electrical supply leads located in the electrical box will be made in the context that the supply leads provide 60 hertz, single-phase 120 volts AC electrical power as commonly used in North America. It should be obvious to those skilled in the art that the apparatus described herein can be adapted for use with 50 or 60 hertz, 220-240 volts AC electrical power as commonly used in other parts of the world. 
   In one embodiment, the housing can extend from one side of the mounting ring whereby the auxiliary electrical outlet generally faces outwardly in the same direction as the front surface of the mounting ring. In another embodiment, one or more housings can extend outwardly from the side of the mounting ring whereby the auxiliary electrical outlet generally faces perpendicular from the front surface. In either of these embodiments, the auxiliary electrical outlet can be a conventional grounded outlet or it can be a ground-fault interrupter (“GFI”) type of outlet as well known in the art with the trip/reset buttons of the outlet mounted on the housing in order to comply with local electrical codes. In further embodiments, the apparatus can also include an infrared (“IR”) sensor control mechanism to control the supply of electrical power to either or both of the light fixture and the auxiliary electrical outlet. As well known to those skilled in the art, IR sensors can be used as motion detectors on light fixtures to turn on the light when the sensor detects a sufficient amount of infrared heat emanating from a person or an animal as they pass within a predetermined distance from the sensor. The apparatus can further include an electrical switch for manually applying power to the auxiliary electrical outlet that can be used by itself or in combination with the IR sensor control mechanism such that power is provided to the auxiliary outlet when the IR sensor is activated. The apparatus can also include a switching mechanism that can select whether the auxiliary outlet is manually turned on or off, or turned on or off when the IR sensor control mechanism is activated. In other embodiments, a light sensor control mechanism can be used in place of the IR sensor control mechanism so that the light fixture can be activated at dusk and turned off at dawn. In yet further embodiments, the apparatus can be provided solely with an IR sensor and/or a light sensor without the auxiliary outlet so that an existing light fixture can have motion detection capability and/or can be turned on at dusk and off at dawn. In yet another embodiment, the apparatus can comprise a temperature sensor to turn on the light fixture and/or the auxiliary outlet at a first predetermined temperature. In other embodiments, the light fixture and/or the auxiliary outlet can be turned off at a second predetermined temperature. This functionality can be used, as an example, to turn on power to a motor vehicle&#39;s block heater connected to the auxiliary outlet when the temperature drops below a predetermined temperature. 
   Broadly stated, an apparatus is provided for mounting between a light fixture and an electrical box providing a source of electrical power, the apparatus comprising: a mounting ring configured to be held in position between said fixture and said box when said fixture is operatively attached to said box, said mounting ring providing an opening for the electrical leads of said fixture to pass through to said box; a housing operatively disposed on said mounting ring; and at least one electrical outlet disposed in said housing whereby said at least one outlet is accessible when said mounting ring is positioned between said fixture and said box, said outlet configured to be operatively connected to said source of electrical power. 
   Broadly stated, an apparatus is provided for mounting between a light fixture and an electrical box providing a source of electrical power, the apparatus comprising: a mounting ring configured to be held in position between said fixture and said box when said fixture is operatively attached to said box, said mounting ring providing an opening for the electrical leads of said fixture to pass through to said box; a housing operatively disposed on said mounting ring; and means for controlling the supply of electrical power from said electrical power source to said light fixture disposed within said housing. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view depicting one embodiment of an apparatus having an auxiliary electrical outlet. 
       FIG. 2  is a front elevational view depicting a second embodiment of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view depicting a third embodiment of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 4  is an electrical schematic depicting the electrical circuit of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 5  is an electrical schematic depicting one embodiment of the electrical circuit of the apparatus of  FIG. 2 . 
       FIG. 6  is an electrical schematic depicting a second embodiment of the electrical circuit of the apparatus of  FIG. 2 . 
       FIG. 7  is an electrical schematic depicting a third embodiment of the electrical circuit of the apparatus of  FIG. 2 . 
       FIG. 8  is a perspective view depicting the apparatus of  FIG. 1  being mounted on a wall. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
   Referring to  FIG. 1 , one embodiment of apparatus having an auxiliary electrical outlet is shown. Apparatus  10  can include mounting ring  12  having front surface  13 , side surface  14  and rear surface  17 . Opening  15  extends through mounting ring  12  from front surface  13  to rear surface  17 . Apparatus  10  can also include mounting flange  19  and mounting holes  16 . In the illustrated embodiment, housing  18  extends from side surface  14  of mounting ring  12 . Housing  18  can include electrical outlets  20 . Electrical wires operatively coupled to electrical outlets  20  (not shown) can extend through mounting ring  12  into opening  15  where they can be coupled to electrical supply leads as well known to those skilled in the art. 
   Referring to  FIG. 2 , an alternate embodiment of apparatus  10  is shown. In this embodiment, housing  18  can comprise GFI outlets  26 . Accordingly, housing  18  can also comprise the trip/rest buttons  21  for GFI outlets  26 . In a further embodiment, apparatus  10  can include sensor  22 , in combination with electrical circuitry located in housing  18  (not shown), to control the supply of electrical power to GFI outlets  26 , to the light fixture that is attached to apparatus  10  (not shown) or to both. In one embodiment, sensor  22  can comprise an IR sensor. As well known to those skilled in the art, IR sensors have long been used as motion detectors in exterior light fixtures. By incorporating sensor  22  into apparatus  10 , an existing light fixture can then be converted to a light fixture having motion detection capability. 
   Apparatus  10  can also include switch  24  that can be configured to manually apply electrical power to GFI outlets  26  or to the light fixture or to both as would be obvious to those skilled in the art. As is obvious to those skilled in the art, switch  24  can be an electro-mechanical switch and can be single-pole/single throw (SPST) switches, single-pole/double-throw (SPDT) switches, double-pole/double-throw (DPDT) switches or any other functional equivalent switching device that can be used to switch electrical power. These other switching devices can include solid-state switches such as bipolar transistors, field-effect transistors, insulated-gate bipolar transistors, triacs or any other suitable electronic switching devices. 
   Referring back to  FIG. 2 , input wire leads  28  extend from mounting ring  12  into opening  15  and are used to connect to electrical power supply leads located in an electrical box (not shown). In this configuration, apparatus  10  can be wired “in parallel” with the light fixture attached thereon. In another embodiment, apparatus  10  can also include fixture wire leads  30  extending from mounting ring  12  into opening  15 . In this configuration, the light fixture is wired to fixture wire leads  30  so that the electrical power supplied to the light fixture can be controlled by IR sensor  22 , switch  24  or both. Located within housing  18  is electrical switching circuitry (not shown) comprising a transistor, a triac or any other suitable solid-state semiconductor switching device, as well known to those skilled in the art, that can be controlled by sensor  22  in switching electrical power from the power supply leads to the light fixture and/or to outlet  20  or  26 . 
   In other embodiments, sensor  22  can comprise a light detecting sensor (not shown), as well known to those skilled in the art, operatively coupled to the electrical switching circuitry so that the light fixture can be turned on at dusk and turned off at dawn. In yet further embodiments, apparatus  10  can be provided with either an IR sensor and/or a light-detecting sensor and without auxiliary outlet  20  or  26  so as to provide a device that can convert existing light fixtures into light fixtures having motion detection and/or light detection capability. In yet another embodiment, sensor  22  can comprise a temperature sensor to turn the light fixture and/or auxiliary outlet  20  or  26  on or off at predetermined temperatures. 
   Referring to  FIG. 3 , a further alternate embodiment of apparatus  10  is shown. In this embodiment, apparatus  10  can comprise mounting ring  42  with one or more housings  53  extending from side surface  48  of mounting ring  42 . In this embodiment, apparatus  10  has front surface  44  and rear surface  46 . Mounting flange  56  is included for abutting against an electrical box. Mounting holes  52  pass through housings  54  to permit a fastener (not shown) to pass through and fasten to an electrical box (not shown). Housings  54  can further include outlets  58  and switch  62  for manually controlling electrical power to outlets  58  and/or the light fixture attached to apparatus. In the illustrated embodiment, outlets  58  are of the GFI variety and include trip/reset buttons  60 . 
   Referring to  FIG. 4 , electrical wiring schematic  400  illustrates a basic wiring configuration of apparatus  10 . Auxiliary outlet electrical leads  406  are wired “in parallel” with light fixture electrical leads  404  to power source electrical leads  402  consisting of line lead  408 , neutral lead  410  and ground lead  412 . 
   Referring to  FIG. 5 , electrical wiring schematic  500  illustrates an alternate configuration of apparatus  10  that includes sensor control circuitry  516  and switch  514  to control power to light fixture electrical leads  504 . In this embodiment, auxiliary outlet electrical leads  506  are wired directly to power source electrical leads  502  consisting of line lead  508 , neutral lead  510  and ground lead  512 . Light fixture line lead  509  is connected to the common terminal of switch  514 . When switch  514  is set to off position  518 , the power to line lead  509  is turned off. When switch  514  is set to on position  520 , the power to line lead  509  is turned on. When switch  514  is set to position  522 , the power to line lead  509  is controlled by sensor control circuitry  516 . In this embodiment, the power to light fixture electrical leads  504  is set by a user through switch  514 . 
   Referring to  FIG. 6 , electrical wiring schematic  600  illustrates an alternate configuration of apparatus  10  that includes sensor control circuitry  616  and switch  614  to control power to light fixture electrical leads  604 . In this embodiment, auxiliary outlet electrical leads  606  are wired directly to light fixture electrical leads  604 , which are, in turn, connected to power source electrical leads  602  consisting of line lead  608 , neutral lead  610  and ground lead  612  through switch  614 . Light fixture line lead  609  is connected to the common terminal of switch  614 . When switch  614  is set to off position  618 , the power to line lead  609  is turned off. When switch  614  is set to on position  620 , the power to line lead  609  is turned on. When switch  614  is set to position  622 , the power to line lead  609  is controlled by sensor control circuitry  616 . In this embodiment, the power to light fixture electrical leads  604  and to auxiliary outlet electrical leads  606  is set by a user through switch  614 . 
   Referring to  FIG. 7 , electrical wiring schematic  700  illustrates an alternate configuration of apparatus  10  that includes sensor control circuitry  716  and switch  714  to control power to light fixture electrical leads  704  in addition to switch  724  to control the supply of power to line lead  713  to auxiliary outlet electrical leads  706  either from power source electrical leads  702  consisting of line lead  708 , neutral lead  710  and ground lead  712  or from switch  714 . In this embodiment, line lead  713  can be connected to line lead  708  when switch  724  is set to position  726 . Further, line lead  713  can be connected to line lead  709  when switch  724  is set at position  728 . Light fixture line lead  709  is connected to the common terminal of switch  714 . When switch  714  is set to off position  718 , the power to line lead  709  is turned off. When switch  714  is set to on position  720 , the power to line lead  709  is turned on. When switch  714  is set to position  722 , the power to line lead  709  is controlled by sensor control circuitry  716 . In this embodiment, the power to auxiliary outlet electrical leads  706  can be set independently from how power is connected to light fixture electrical leads  704  or set to track how power is connected to light fixture electrical leads  704  depending on how a user sets switches  724  and  714 . 
   In each of the embodiments shown in  FIGS. 5 ,  6  and  7 , the sensor control circuitry can be replaced by or can further include a light sensor control circuitry so as to include the ability to turn on the light fixture and/or the auxiliary outlet at dusk and turn them off at dawn. In addition, the sensor control circuitry can be replaced by or can further include a temperature sensor so as to the ability to turn on (or off) the light fixture and/or the auxiliary outlet at one or more predetermined temperatures. 
   Referring to  FIG. 8 , apparatus  10  is shown being mounted to electrical box  64  on wall  63 . In this figure, an embodiment of apparatus  10  as shown in  FIG. 1  is shown being simply wired in parallel with light fixture  68  where fixture wire leads  71  and outlet wire leads  67  can be spliced with line wire leads  66  in box  64  to provide an auxiliary electrical outlet that is energized whenever light fixture  68  is turned on. The term “spliced” refers to the ground wires, the neutral wires and the line or “hot” wires being joined together, respectively. In another embodiment, the embodiment of apparatus  10  as shown in  FIG. 2  can be used to provide an auxiliary electrical outlet that can be energized in the ways described in this specification. In this embodiment, input wire leads  28  (as shown in  FIG. 2 ) can be spliced to line wire leads  66  and fixture wire leads  30  (as shown in  FIG. 2 ) can be spliced to fixture wire leads  71 . Once the electrical connections have been made, fasteners  70 , such as threaded fasteners as an example, pass through openings  69  in light fixture  68  to pass through openings  16  in mounting ring  12  to attach to mounting tabs  65  in box  64 . As fasteners  70  are secured tightly to mounting tabs  65 , apparatus  10  is sandwiched between light fixture  68  and electrical box  64 . It is obvious to those skilled in the art that weather stripping can be applied between light fixture  68  and apparatus  10  as well as between apparatus  10  and electrical box  64  to minimize the influx of moisture into opening  15 . For illustration purposes only, light fixture  68  is shown in  FIG. 8  as a simple light fixture for a standard light bulb. It is obvious to those skilled in the art that any suitable light fixture can be used other than the one shown in  FIG. 8 . 
   In a further embodiment, a kit can be provided that comprises of apparatus  10  and a set of instructions on how to connect apparatus  10  between light fixture  68  and box  64 . In another embodiment, the kit can further comprise light fixture  68 . In yet further embodiments, light fixture  68  can be integral to apparatus  10  or integral to mounting ring  12  or mounting ring  42 , depending on the embodiment of apparatus  10  that light fixture  68  is integral to. 
   Although a few illustrative embodiments have been shown and described, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various changes and modifications might be made without departing from the scope of the invention. The terms and expressions used in the preceding specification have been used herein as terms of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention in the use of such terms and expressions of excluding equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof, it being recognized that the scope of the invention is defined and limited only by the claims that follow.