DESC:FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to electrical socket assemblies and more particularly, to an electrical socket assembly including a receiving assembly having a blade and a holder for accommodating wire connections and pillars.

BACKGROUND

As is generally known, electrical sockets are provided on various support structures, such as walls and floors, to supply power to electrical devices. Particularly, a plug of an electrical device is inserted into slots of an electrical socket to receive power supply. The electrical socket generally includes a conducting member, one end of which is in contact with a power supply wire and the other end is adapted to be in contact with the pin of the plug. Therefore, the power from the wire to the pin is supplied through the conducting member. The conducting member also includes a contacting mechanism to keep the wire in contact with the conducting member to ensure continuous transmission of power supply. For example, a screw may be used to press the wire towards the conducting member ensuring continuous connection between the wire and the conducting member.

Generally, the conducting member and the contacting mechanism are formed as a single unit. Therefore, if either of the two components is damaged, the entire unit has to be replaced. This increases an overall operational cost of the electrical socket. Further, the conducting member as well as the contacting mechanism is formed of Brass, resulting in a high manufacturing cost of the electrical socket. Furthermore, a large number of components are used to facilitate the abovementioned mechanism. According, maintenance of the electrical socket may pose a concern. Also, such a unit is usually large in size and therefore, an overall size of the electrical socket is also large.

SUMMARY

This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts, in a simplified format, that are further described in the detailed description of the invention. This summary is neither intended to identify key or essential inventive concepts of the invention and nor is it intended for determining the scope of the invention.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, an electrical socket assembly is disclosed. The electrical socket assembly includes a housing having a base plate, and at least one receiving assembly adapted to be disposed in the base plate to accommodate wire connections and pillars. Each receiving assembly includes a blade including a base portion and an extension arm having a bent end. The extension arm is adapted to be in contact with a wire and the base portion is adapted to receive a pin of a plug. The receiving assembly includes a holder adapted to engage with the blade through at least the bent end of the extension arm. The holder includes a slot to receive a pillar adapted to establish a contact between the wire and the extension arm. The blade and the holder are individually detachable.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, a receiving assembly adapted to accommodate wire connections and a pillar of an electrical socket assembly is disclosed. The receiving assembly includes a blade including a base portion and an extension arm having a bent end. The extension arm is adapted to be in contact with a wire and the base portion is adapted to receive a pin of a plug. The receiving assembly includes a holder adapted to engage with the blade through at least the bent end of the extension arm. Each holder includes a slot to receive the pillar adapted to establish a contact between the wire and the extension arm. The blade and the holder are individually detachable.

To further clarify the advantages and features of the present invention, a more particular description of the invention will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments thereof, which is illustrated in the appended drawings. It is appreciated that these drawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope. The invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like characters represent like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 illustrates a perspective view depicting a portion of an electrical socket assembly, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
Figure 2 illustrates a perspective view of receiving assemblies of the electrical socket assembly, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and
Figure 3 illustrates a perspective view of the electrical socket assembly depicting a housing for accommodating the receiving assemblies, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Further, skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the drawings are illustrated for simplicity and may not have been necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the flow charts illustrate the method in terms of the most prominent steps involved to help to improve understanding of aspects of the present invention. Furthermore, in terms of the construction of the device, one or more components of the device may have been represented in the drawings by conventional symbols, and the drawings may show only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the drawings with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having benefit of the description herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

For the purpose of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference will now be made to the embodiment illustrated in the drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended, such alterations and further modifications in the illustrated system, and such further applications of the principles of the invention as illustrated therein being contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates. Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skilled in the art to which this invention belongs. The system, methods, and examples provided herein are illustrative only and not intended to be limiting.

For example, the term “some” as used herein may be understood as “none” or “one” or “more than one” or “all.” Therefore, the terms “none,” “one,” “more than one,” “more than one, but not all” or “all” would fall under the definition of “some.” It should be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that the terminology and structure employed herein is for describing, teaching and illuminating some embodiments and their specific features and elements and therefore, should not be construed to limit, restrict or reduce the spirit and scope of the present disclosure in any way.

For example, any terms used herein such as, “includes,” “comprises,” “has,” “consists,” and similar grammatical variants do not specify an exact limitation or restriction, and certainly do not exclude the possible addition of one or more features or elements, unless otherwise stated. Further, such terms must not be taken to exclude the possible removal of one or more of the listed features and elements, unless otherwise stated, for example, by using the limiting language including, but not limited to, “must comprise” or “needs to include.”

Whether or not a certain feature or element was limited to being used only once, it may still be referred to as “one or more features” or “one or more elements” or “at least one feature” or “at least one element.” Furthermore, the use of the terms “one or more” or “at least one” feature or element do not preclude there being none of that feature or element, unless otherwise specified by limiting language including, but not limited to, “there needs to be one or more...” or “one or more element is required.”

Unless otherwise defined, all terms and especially any technical and/or scientific terms, used herein may be taken to have the same meaning as commonly understood by a person ordinarily skilled in the art.

Reference is made herein to some “embodiments.” It should be understood that an embodiment is an example of a possible implementation of any features and/or elements of the present disclosure. Some embodiments have been described for the purpose of explaining one or more of the potential ways in which the specific features and/or elements of the proposed disclosure fulfil the requirements of uniqueness, utility, and non-obviousness.

Use of the phrases and/or terms including, but not limited to, “a first embodiment,” “a further embodiment,” “an alternate embodiment,” “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” “multiple embodiments,” “some embodiments,” “other embodiments,” “further embodiment”, “furthermore embodiment”, “additional embodiment” or other variants thereof do not necessarily refer to the same embodiments. Unless otherwise specified, one or more particular features and/or elements described in connection with one or more embodiments may be found in one embodiment, or may be found in more than one embodiment, or may be found in all embodiments, or may be found in no embodiments. Although one or more features and/or elements may be described herein in the context of only a single embodiment, or in the context of more than one embodiment, or in the context of all embodiments, the features and/or elements may instead be provided separately or in any appropriate combination or not at all. Conversely, any features and/or elements described in the context of separate embodiments may alternatively be realized as existing together in the context of a single embodiment.

Any particular and all details set forth herein are used in the context of some embodiments and therefore should not necessarily be taken as limiting factors to the proposed disclosure.

For the sake of clarity, the first digit of a reference numeral of each component of the present disclosure is indicative of the Figure number, in which the corresponding component is shown. For example, reference numerals starting with digit “1” are shown at least in Figure 1. Similarly, reference numerals starting with digit “2” are shown at least in Figure 2.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 illustrates a perspective view depicting a portion of an electrical socket assembly to illustrate constituent components, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The electrical socket assembly may hereinafter interchangeably be referred to as the socket assembly. The socket assembly may include a housing (shown in Figure 3) and at least one receiving assembly 104 adapted to be disposed in the housing.

The housing may include a base plate 102 to accommodate a receiving assembly 104 and a cover plate (shown in Figure 3) adapted to be disposed on the base plate 102. Particularly, Figure 1 illustrates the base plate 102 having the receiving assemblies 104. In the illustrated embodiment, the socket assembly is shown to include three receiving assemblies 104, individually referred to as 104-1, 104-2, and 104-3.

As would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art, the number of receiving assemblies 104 in the socket assembly is not limited to 3. In other embodiments, based on constructional and operational requirements, the socket assembly may include more or less number of receiving assemblies 104, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

Figure 2 illustrates a perspective view of the receiving assemblies 104-1, 104-2, and 104-3, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For the sake of simplicity, the subsequent disclosure is explained with respect to one of the receiving assemblies 104, referred to as the receiving assembly 104. As would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art, the description is equally applicable to the receiving assemblies 104-1, 104-2, and 104-3, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

For the sake of brevity, the description of Figure 1 and Figure 2 is explained in conjunction with each other. Referring to Figure 1 and Figure 2, the receiving assembly 104 may be adapted to accommodate wire connections and a pillar 202. The receiving assembly 104 may include a blade 106 and a holder 108 adapted to engage with the blade 106.

In an embodiment, the blade 106 may be formed of a conducting material, for example, Brass. In other embodiments, the blade 106 may be formed of any other conducting material, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The blade 106 may include a base portion 110 and an extension arm 112 having a bent end 204.

The extension arm 112 may be formed in the shape of a strip. The extension arm 112 may be adapted to be in contact with a wire, for example, a power supply wire. Considering that the blade 106 is formed of a conducting material and the extension arm 112 is in contact with the wire, the blade 106 may also be carrying the current that is supplied through the power supply wire.

Further, the base portion 110 may be adapted to receive a pin of a plug, for example, of an electrical appliance. Therefore, due to the contact between the base portion 110 and the pin, the power supply is provided to the pin and in turn to the electrical appliance.

In order to ensure continuous power supply to the blade 106 and in turn to the electrical appliance through the pin, it is relevant to ensure that the contact between the wire and the extension arm 112 is firm. The holder 108 of the receiving assembly 104 is adapted to ensure the firm contact between the wire and the extension arm 112. In an embodiment, the holder 108 may be formed of steel.

In an embodiment, the holder 108 may be hollow and cylindrical in shape. In other embodiments, the holder 108 may have any other shape, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The holder 108 may be adapted to engage with the blade 106 through at least the bent end 204 of the extension arm 112. The bent end 204 may be formed to rest on a top edge of the holder 108, resulting in forming the receiving assembly 104.

Further, the holder 108 may include a slot 206 to receive a pillar 202. The pillar 202 may be rotated to pass through the slot 206. The pillar 202 may pass through the slot 206 to press the wire against the extension arm 112 of the blade 106. Therefore, the assembly of the holder 108 and the pillar 202 may be adapted to establish a contact between the wire and the extension arm 112. In an embodiment, the pillar 202 may be understood as a screw being rotated in threads of the slot 206 to press the wire against the extension arm 112. Further, the blade 106 and the holder 108 may be individually detachable. For example, just by removing the bent end 204 of the blade 106 from the top edge of the holder 108, the blade 106 can be removed from the receiving assembly 104.

In an embodiment, the receiving assembly 104 may be disposed in the base plate 102 such that the extension arm 112 of the blade 106 is in a direction perpendicular to a direction of insertion of the pillar 208 in the slot 206 of the holder 108. In an embodiment, extension arm 112 may be disposed towards the centre of the housing in a plain view.

As would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art, the positioning of the receiving assembly 104 in the housing is not limited to the illustrated embodiment. In other embodiments, the positioning may vary depending on the constructional requirements as far as the operation remains unhindered, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

Figure 3 illustrates a perspective view of the socket assembly 300 depicting the housing 302 for accommodating the receiving assemblies 104, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As explained above, the housing 302 may include the base plate 102 and the cover plate 304 adapted to be disposed on the base plate 102. The cover plate 304 may include a plurality of slots 306 adapted to receive a plurality of pins of the plug of the electrical appliance. As illustrated, the slots 306 may individually be referred to as 306-1, 306-2, and 306-3.

As would be gathered, the receiving assembly 104 of the present disclosure includes the blade 106 and the holder 108 as the separate components. Therefore, in case of any damage to any of the components, the entire receiving assembly 104 does not have to be replaced. Rather, only the damaged component can be conveniently replaced. This would reduce an overall operational cost of the socket assembly 300. Further, the inconvenience associated with the replacement of the entire receiving assembly 104 is also significantly reduced. Also, the provision of the bent end 204 of the blade 106 facilitates an easy assembly of the blade 106 with the holder 108. Therefore, the user may be able to conveniently replace it without the need of high skilled labour.

Furthermore, in the present disclosure, only the blade 106 is now made of Brass. The holder 108 is formed of steel, which leads to significant reduction in the manufacturing cost of the socket assembly 300. Moreover, owing to the compact size of the receiving assembly 104, an overall size of the socket assembly 300 is also reduced. In addition, a number of internal components are also less in comparison to the existing socket assemblies. Also, the socket assembly 300 offers reduction in interface resistance. Therefore, the socket assembly 300 of the present disclosure is cost-effective, compact, operation-effective, easy to assemble, and easy to maintain.

While specific language has been used to describe the present subject matter, any limitations arising on account thereto, are not intended. As would be apparent to a person in the art, various working modifications may be made to the method in order to implement the inventive concept as taught herein. The drawings and the foregoing description give examples of embodiments. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that one or more of the described elements may well be combined into a single functional element. Alternatively, certain elements may be split into multiple functional elements. Elements from one embodiment may be added to another embodiment.
,CLAIMS:1. An electrical socket assembly (300) comprising:
a housing (302) having a base plate (102); and
at least one receiving assembly (104) adapted to be disposed in the base plate (102) to accommodate wire connections and pillars (202), each receiving assembly (104) comprising:
a blade (106) comprising a base portion (110) and an extension arm (112) having a bent end (204), wherein the extension arm (112) is adapted to be in contact with a wire and the base portion (110) is adapted to receive a pin of a plug; and
a holder (108) adapted to engage with the blade (106) through at least the bent end (204) of the extension arm (112), and comprising a slot (206) to receive a pillar (202) adapted to establish a contact between the wire and the extension arm (112),
wherein the blade (106) and the holder (108) are individually detachable.

2. The electrical socket assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the blade (106) is formed of brass.

3. The electrical socket assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the holder (108) is formed of steel.

4. The electrical socket assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the receiving assembly (104) is disposed in the base plate (102) such that the extension arm (112) of the blade (106) is in a direction perpendicular to a direction of insertion of the pillar (202) in the slot (206) of the holder (108).

5. The electrical socket assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the holder (108) is cylindrical.

6. The electrical socket assembly (300) as claimed in claim 1, wherein extension arm (112) is disposed towards a centre of the housing (302) in a plain view.

7. A receiving assembly (104) adapted to accommodate wire connections and a pillar (202) of an electrical socket assembly (300), the receiving assembly (104) comprising:
a blade (106) comprising a base portion (110) and an extension arm (112) having a bent end (204), wherein the extension arm (112) is adapted to be in contact with a wire and the base portion (110) is adapted to receive a pin of a plug; and
a holder (108) adapted to engage with the blade (106) through at least the bent end (204) of the extension arm (112), and comprising a slot (206) to receive the pillar (202) adapted to establish a contact between the wire and the extension arm (112),
wherein the blade (106) and the holder (108) are individually detachable.

8. The receiving assembly (104) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the blade (106) is formed of brass.

9. The receiving assembly (104) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the holder (108) is formed of steel.

10. The receiving assembly (104) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the holder (108) is cylindrical.