DESC:FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to electrical socket assemblies and more particularly, to an electrical socket assembly including a lid to cover components disposed in a housing.

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, all such internal components are disposed within a housing of the electrical socket. Over a duration of usage of the electrical socket, the components may get loose from the housing and in turn get misplaced within the electrical socket. Further, owing to the size limitations of the electrical socket, the misplaced components may hinder the operation of other components. Such misplacement or wrong positioning of the components may lead to malfunctioning of the electrical socket. In fact, such malfunctioning may further lead to permanent damage to the electrical socket altogether. Moreover, repairing and maintenance of the electrical socket in such circumstances also pose a concern. Therefore, it is relevant to ensure that the components are suitably positioned within the housing to ensure a durable and effective operation of the electrical socket.

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 receiving assembly further includes a holder adapted to engage with the blade through at least the bent end of the extension arm. The electrical socket assembly also includes a lid adapted to be disposed within the housing such that the lid covers the receiving assembly to keep at least the holder in position within the base plate.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, a lid for covering at least one receiving assembly within a base plate of a housing of an electrical socket assembly is disclosed. The lid includes a first protrusion adapted to be in contact with a holder of a receiving assembly when the holder is disposed in the base plate. The lid includes a recess formed on the first protrusion to keep the holder in position within the base plate. The lid is adapted to be positioned within the housing such that the lid covers the at least one receiving assembly to keep at least the holder in position within the base plate.

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;
Figure 3 illustrates a perspective view of a base plate of a housing without one of the receiving assemblies, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
Figure 4 illustrates a perspective front view of a lid of the electrical socket assembly accommodating two of three receiving assemblies, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
Figure 5 illustrates a perspective side view of the lid accommodating three receiving assemblies, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
Figure 6 illustrates a perspective bottom view of the lid, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
Figure 7 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; and
Figure 8 illustrates a side perspective view of the lid depicting the profile of a recess formed on a first protrusion, 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 illustrated 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 7) and at least one receiving assembly 104 adapted to be disposed in the housing.

The housing may include a base plate 102 to accommodate the at least one receiving assembly 104 and a cover plate (shown in Figure 7) 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 pillars 202. The receiving assembly 104 may include a blade 106 and a holder 108 adapted to engage with the blade 106.

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 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.

In an embodiment, the holder 108 may be accommodated in a recess of the base plate 102 of the housing. Figure 3 illustrates a perspective view of the base plate 102 without one of the receiving assemblies 104, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to Figure 1 and Figure 3, as explained earlier, the base plate 102 may include a recess 302 to accommodate the holder 108. In an embodiment, the base plate 102 may also include a guide slot 304 formed in the recess 302. In the illustrated embodiment, the guide slot 304 is shown to be formed on a side surface of the guide slot 304. In other embodiments, the guide slot 304 may be formed on any other side of the guide slot 304, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The guide slot 304 may be adapted to guide the holder 108 in the recess 302 for accurate positioning in the recess 302.

The socket assembly may also include a lid to cover the receiving assembly 104 within the base plate 102. Figure 4 illustrates a perspective front view of a lid 400 of the socket assembly, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In the illustrated embodiment, the lid 400 is shown to accommodate two of the three receiving assemblies 104.

Figure 5 illustrates a perspective side view of the lid 400, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 6 illustrates a perspective bottom view of the lid 400, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In the embodiments illustrated in Figure 5 and Figure 6, the lid 400 is shown to accommodate all three receiving assemblies 104. For the sake of brevity, the description of Figure 4, Figure 5, and Figure 6 are explained in conjunction with each other.

Referring to Figure 4, Figure 5, and Figure 6, the lid 400 may be adapted to be disposed within the housing. Figure 7 illustrates a perspective view of the socket assembly 700 depicting the housing 702 for accommodating the receiving assemblies 104, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As explained above, the housing 702 may include the base plate 102 and the cover plate 704 adapted to be disposed on the base plate 102. The lid 400 may be disposed between the base plate 102 and the cover plate 704. The cover plate 704 may include a plurality of slots 706 adapted to receive a plurality of pins of the plug of the electrical appliance. As illustrated, the slots 706 may individually be referred to as 706-1, 706-2, and 706-3.

The lid 400 may be disposed such that the lid 400 covers the receiving assembly 104 disposed within the base plate 102. The lid 400 may be disposed to keep at least the holder 108 in position within the base plate 102. In the present embodiment, the lid 400 ensures that the holder 108 is suitably positioned within the recess 302 of the base plate 102.

In an embodiment, the lid 400 may include a first protrusion 402 adapted to be in contact with the holder 108. The first protrusion 402 may be in contact with the holder 108, when the holder 108 is disposed in the recess 302 and the lid 400 is disposed on the base plate 102.

In an embodiment, the lid 400 may include a recess 404 formed on the first protrusion 402. The recess 404 may be formed to keep the holder 108 in position within the base plate 102. In an embodiment, a profile of the recess 404 may correspond or complement a profile of the holder 108, in particular, a profile of a side of the holder 108 that is adapted to contact the first protrusion 402 of the lid 400. Figure 8 illustrates a side perspective view of the lid 400 depicting the profile of the recess 404 formed on the first protrusion 402, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. This would ensure a firm positioning of the holder 108 on the lid 400.

In an embodiment, the lid 400 may also include a second protrusion 406 adapted to support the base portion 110 of the blade 106 within the base plate 102. As illustrated, the second protrusion 406 is formed such that a side of the base portion 110 rests on the second protrusion 406 for firm positioning.

In an embodiment, the lid 400 may further include a first guiding edge portion 602-1 and a second guiding edge portion 602-2 formed in parallel to the first guiding edge portion 602-1. The first guiding edge portion 602-1 and the second guiding edge portion 602-2 may be formed towards the bottom of the lid 400. Further, the first guiding edge portion 602-1 and the second guiding edge portion 602-2 may be formed in a direction opposite to a direction of formation of the first protrusion 402. The first guiding edge portion 602-1 and the second guiding edge portion 602-2 are adapted to guide the lid 400 for positioning within the housing 702. Therefore, owing to the first guiding edge portion 602-1 and the second guiding edge portion 602-2, the lid 400 is firmly positioned within the housing 702.

In an embodiment, the lid 400 may be formed of a Polycarbonate material. In an embodiment, the lid 400 may be formed of PC Makrolon 6487.

As would be gathered, the lid 400 of the socket assembly 700 of the present disclosure ensures that the positioning of the components, such as the receiving assembly 104 stays intact within the housing 702. Particularly, the recess 404 formed on the first protrusion 402 ensures that the holder 108 is suitably positioned within the base plate 102. Further, the second protrusion 406 is formed to support the base portion 110 of the blade 106 within the base plate 102. Therefore, any possibility of the misplacement of the components disposed within the housing 702 is eliminated.

Accordingly, the consequent possibility of malfunctioning of the socket assembly 700 due to misplacement of the components is also eliminated. As a result, durability and service life of the socket assembly 700 are enhanced. Further, an overall operational cost of the socket assembly 700 is significantly reduced. Moreover, the inclusion of the lid 400 in the socket assembly 700 does not affect an overall size of the socket assembly 700.

In addition, in case of fire within the socket assembly 700, for example, due to rise in temperature or loose connections, the lid 400 operates as an additional safety wall and may restrict the fire to reach out of the socket assembly 700. Therefore, the socket assembly 700 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 (700) comprising:
a housing (702) having a base plate (102);
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); and
a holder (108) adapted to engage with the blade (106) through at least the bent end (204) of the extension arm (112); and
a lid (400) adapted to be disposed within the housing (702) such that the lid (400) covers the at least one receiving assembly (104) to keep at least the holder (108) in position within the base plate (102).

2. The electrical socket assembly (700) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lid (400) comprising a first protrusion (402) to be in contact with the holder (108) when disposed in the housing (702).

3. The electrical socket assembly (700) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the lid (400) comprising a recess (404) formed on the first protrusion (402) to keep the holder (108) in position within the base plate (102).

4. The electrical socket assembly (700) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lid (400) comprising a second protrusion (406) adapted to support the base portion (110) of the blade (106) within the base plate (102).

5. The electrical socket assembly (700) as claimed in claim 2, wherein the lid (400) comprising a first guiding edge portion (602-1) and a second guiding edge portion (602-2) that are formed in a direction opposite to a direction of formation of the first protrusion (402), wherein the first guiding edge portion (602-1) and the second guiding edge portion (602-2) are adapted to guide the lid (400) for positioning within the housing (702).

6. The electrical socket assembly (700) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lid (400) is formed of a Polycarbonate material.

7. A lid (400) for covering at least one receiving assembly (104) within a base plate (102) of a housing (702) of an electrical socket assembly (700), the lid (400) comprising:
a first protrusion (402) adapted to be in contact with a holder (108) of a receiving assembly (104) when the holder (108) is disposed in the base plate (102); and
a recess (404) formed on the first protrusion (402) to keep the holder (108) in position within the base plate (102),
wherein the lid (400) is adapted to be positioned within the housing (702) such that the lid (400) covers the at least one receiving assembly (104) to keep at least the holder (108) in position within the base plate (102).

8. The lid (400) as claimed in claim 7, comprising a second protrusion (406) adapted to support a base portion (110) of the blade (106) within the base plate (102).

9. The lid (400) as claimed in claim 7, comprising a first guiding edge portion (602-1) and a second guiding edge portion (602-2) that are formed in a direction opposite to a direction of formation of the first protrusion (402), wherein the first guiding edge portion (602-1) and the second guiding edge portion (602-2) are adapted to guide the lid (400) for positioning within the housing (702).

10. The lid (400) as claimed in claim 7, wherein the lid (400) is formed of a Polycarbonate material.