PATENT CLAIM ANALYSIS

Application Number: 16418817
Application Type: Utility
Filing Date: 2019-05
Publication Date: 2019-09
Patent Classification: ["439", "357000"]

Abstract:
A method and apparatus (“utility”) for securing an electrical connection formed by a mating structure including prongs of a male assembly and receptacles of a female assembly are provided. The utility includes a clamping mechanism whereby the very forces that would otherwise tend to pull the connection apart serve to actuate the clamping mechanism, thereby securing the mated pair. The apparatus may be integrated into a standard receptacle, or retrofitted to work with existing devices. In one embodiment, the clamping mechanism acts solely on the ground prong of a standard plug assembly, so that it is unnecessary to consider electrical potentials applied to the clamped prong in relation to the design of the clamping mechanism. Further, the withdrawing movement of the prongs of a plug may cause elongate clamping surfaces of the clamping mechanism to frictionally engage opposing surfaces of the clamped prong.

Claim (Index 25):
A method for use in securing an electrical connection, said electrical connection being formed by a mating structure including prongs of a male assembly and sockets of a female assembly, wherein said connection is broken by withdrawal of said prongs from said sockets, comprising the steps of:\n providing a locking receptacle comprising a clamping mechanism, the clamping mechanism comprising an aperture sized to permit the passage of a prong into a socket, wherein the clamping mechanism is moveable between a release position in which the clamping mechanism is arranged to allow separation of the male assembly from the female assembly, and a locked condition in which the clamping mechanism is arranged to maintain the electrical connection, wherein the clamping mechanism is arranged to angularly deflect in reaction to a force on the prong that tends to withdraw the prong from the receptacle, thereby causing the aperture in the clamping mechanism to grip the prong thus preventing the withdrawal of the prong and maintaining the electrical connection in the locked condition, wherein a lock release grip is arranged to contact the clamping mechanism, wherein the lock release grip comprises a release grip handle arranged about two opposing sides of the locking receptacle and wherein when the clamping mechanism is in the locked condition, application of axial tension between the release grip handle and the male assembly causes the clamping mechanism to release the prong such that the male assembly can be separated from the female assembly activating said clamping mechanism by applying a force on the prong that tends to withdraw the prong from the receptacle; and releasing said clamping mechanism by exerting tension between said release grip handle and said male assembly.

Metadata:
- Claim Count in Document: 65.0
- Percentile: 100.0
- Lexical Diversity: 1.72527
- Patent Class: 439.0
- Transitional Phrase Type: open
- Component Type: 1
- Foreign Priority: False
- Related Applications: ['16266261', '12568444', '15914877', '13228331', '15332878']

Analysis Scores:
- 35 USC 101 Eligibility (BERT): 0.8385052743480971
- 35 USC 102 Novelty (BERT): 0.5795495627164862
- Combined Prediction Score: 0.812609703184936
- Mean Citation Score: 448.956874
- Max Citation Score: 489.09583
- Similarity Product: 472.0447759757793

Labels:
- Claim Label 101: 1
- Claim Label 102: 0
- Claim Label 103: 0
- Claim Label 112: 1
- Combined Label: 0
- Label 101 Adjusted: 1

Dataset: test