DESC:FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to bells and more particularly, relates to a smart bell assembly and a smart bell apparatus having the bell assembly.

BACKGROUND

A large number of consumers prefer using bells, for example, for receiving an alert when visitors come to their premises. For example, ding dong bells are quite popular across the globe. As is generally known, a bell may be connected with an operating switch that is usually mounted outside a door of the premises. In order to activate the bell, the operating switch may have to be operated by the visitor, for example, by pressing.

One of the major concerns with regard to the application of existing bells is their misuse. Sometimes, anti-social elements or kids may misuse the bell, for example, by continuously pressing an actuation switch of the bell for a longer duration. Similarly, in another case of misuse, the actuation switch may get stuck while being in a pressed state. In yet another case, the actuation switch may be pressed repetitively within a short duration of time. The existing bells are not manufactured to withstand such misuse and usually fail when such misuse continues, for example, the actuation switch is pressed for a longer time than usual.

In particular, often, such misuse may lead to overheating of internal components, such as of an internal coil wound on a bobbin of the bell. This would eventually result in causing permanent damage to the components of the bell. Figure 1 illustrates damage caused to a conventional bell 100 due to the misuse, according to an example. In the illustrated embodiment, an internal coil of the conventional bell 100 is burnt owing to the misuse. This has consequently led to damage caused to a bobbin clamp 102 housing the internal coil and the bobbin.

Further, in case where a Miniature Circuit Breaker (MCB) is not installed in a corresponding electrical circuit and the bell 100 is burnt, there is a possibility of short-circuit as well. Such short-circuit may cause damage to other appliances connected in the same electrical circuit. Considering that it is difficult to avoid such misuse of the bell, a customer may have to frequently repair or replace the bell. This, of course, causes inconvenience to the user. Moreover, the customer may have to bear a significant cost every time the bell is damaged under such circumstances.

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, a smart bell assembly is disclosed. The smart bell assembly includes a bobbin and a coil of wire wound around the bobbin. The coil of wire is adapted to carry a current flow to generate a first sound, upon actuation of an operating switch. The smart bell assembly also includes a resettable fuse disposed between the bobbin and the coil of wire. The resettable fuse is adapted to break a circuit of the bell assembly to restrict the current flow through the coil of wire, based on a temperature of the coil of wire.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, a smart bell apparatus is disclosed. The smart bell apparatus includes an operating switch and a bell assembly adapted to be connected to the operating switch. The bell assembly includes a bobbin and a coil of wire wound around the bobbin. The coil of wire is adapted to carry a current flow to generate a sound, upon actuation of the operating switch. The bell assembly includes a resettable fuse disposed between the bobbin and the coil of wire. The resettable fuse is adapted to break a circuit of the bell assembly to restrict the current flow through the coil of wire, based on a temperature of the coil of wire.

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 damage caused to a conventional bell due to misuse;
Figure 2 illustrates an environment depicting an implementation of a smart bell apparatus, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
Figure 3 illustrates an exploded view of a smart bell assembly of the apparatus, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
Figure 4 illustrates a sequence of assembly of components to form the smart bell assembly, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and
Figure 5 illustrates a sequence of operation depicting disposing of a resettable fuse between a bobbin and a coil of wire of the smart bell assembly, 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.

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

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.

Figure 2 illustrates a smart bell apparatus 200 having a resettable fuse (not shown), according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the smart bell apparatus 200 may hereinafter interchangeably be referred to as the apparatus 200. The apparatus 200 may include, but is not limited to, a smart bell assembly 202 and an operating switch 204 connected to the smart bell assembly 202. In an embodiment, the smart bell assembly 202 may hereinafter interchangeably be referred to as the bell assembly 202, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The resettable fuse may be adapted to break a circuit of the bell assembly 202 in case of misuse of the apparatus 200. The constructional and operational details of the resettable fuse are explained in detail in the subsequent sections of the disclosure.

In an embodiment, the operating switch 204 may be installed outside premises, for example, at an entrance of the premises whereas the bell assembly 202 may be installed inside the premises. Such premises may include, but is not limited to, a house, a clinic, a hotel, a restaurant, and an office. In an embodiment, the bell assembly 202 may be connected to the operating switch 204 through wires. In another embodiment, the bell assembly 202 may be wirelessly connected to the operating switch 204. A user may avail the functionality of the bell assembly 202 by actuating the operating switch 204.

In an embodiment, the operating switch 204 may be a retractable-type button. Therefore, as soon as a user releases the operating switch 204, the operating switch 204 may retain its original position. Although in the present embodiment, the operating switch 204 is illustrated as the retractable-type button, it should be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that the operating switch 204 may be of any other type, such a push-type button and a slider button, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In the illustrated embodiment, upon actuation of the operating switch 204, the bell assembly 202 is shown to be supplied with a power supply of 230V+/-10V AC. In other embodiments, the bell assembly 202 may be supplied with a power supply of other ratings, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In such embodiments, minor modifications may be made to the construction of the bell assembly 202 so as to be operated at a corresponding rating. Constructional and operational features of the bell assembly 202 are explained in detail in the description of subsequent Figures.

Figure 3 illustrates an exploded view of the bell assembly 202, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the bell assembly 202 may include, but is not limited to, a bobbin 302 having a centrally positioned cavity 318, a plunger 304 adapted to be partially accommodated in the centrally positioned cavity 318 of the bobbin 302, a spring 306 mounted on an exposed portion of the plunger 304, a coil of wire 308 adapted to be wound around the bobbin 302, a pair of metal strips 310 disposed on opposite sides of the bobbin 302, and the resettable fuse (not shown) disposed between the bobbin 302 and the coil of wire 308.

In an embodiment, the bell assembly 202 may also include a bobbin clamp 312 to house the coil of wire 308 and the bobbin 302. The bobbin 302, the plunger 304, the spring 306, the coil 308, the metal strips 310, and the bobbin clamp 312 may be assembled on a bottom plate 314 of the bell assembly 202. Further, once the abovementioned components are assembled on the bottom plate 314, a top cover 316 may be mounted on the bottom plate 314 to house the components, and consequently form the bell assembly 202.

In an embodiment, the centrally positioned cavity 318 may hereinafter interchangeably be referred to as the cavity 318. Similarly, the pair of metal strips 310 may hereinafter interchangeably be referred to as the metal strips 310, and individually be referred to as the metal strip 310-1 and the metal strip 310-2. In an embodiment, the metal strips 310 may be formed of Aluminium. In an embodiment, the metal strips 310 may be coupled to rubber-made parts as well. Further, the coil of wire 308 may be adapted to carry a current flow, for example, to generate a sound. The coil of wire 308 may be adapted to carry the current flow, upon actuation of the operating switch 204, for example, when the operating switch 204 is actuated by the user.

In an embodiment, the resettable fuse may be adapted to break a circuit of the bell assembly 202 to restrict the current flow through the coil of wire 308. In an embodiment, the resettable fuse may break the circuit of the bell assembly 202, based on a temperature of the coil of wire 308. In an embodiment, the resettable fuse may break the circuit of the bell assembly 202, when the temperature of the coil of wire 308 reaches a value more than a predefined threshold value of the temperature.

In an embodiment, the resettable fuse may include, but is not limited to, a Polymeric Positive Temperature Coefficient (PPTC) device. In an embodiment, the resettable fuse may have a chemical granular structure. In an embodiment, the resettable fuse may be formed by an insulation material that may include, but is not limited to, a cured flame-retardant epoxy polymer. Further, the resettable fuse may also include a lead material formed of Tin-plated copper.

In an embodiment, the resettable fuse may be formed of a composite of semi-crystalline polymer and conductive particles. At a temperature below the predefined threshold value, the conductive particles may form low-resistance networks in the polymer. In another embodiment, when the temperature is higher than the predefined threshold value, the crystalline material of the polymer melts to achieve an amorphous state thereby increasing a resistance of the resettable fuse. Particularly, an increase in volume during melting of the crystalline material separates the conductive particles resulting in a large non-linear increase in the resistance of the resettable fuse.

Owing to the increased resistance, the resettable fuse eliminates a possibility of damage to the bell assembly 202 due to continuous high currents and high temperature, for example, because of misuse of the bell assembly 202, such as continuous pressing of the operating switch 204. In an embodiment, the resettable fuse may be in direct contact with the coil 308. Therefore, an increased temperature of the coil 308 may immediately be detected by the resettable fuse leading to an immediate increase in the resistance.

Moreover, once the temperature is lowered, for example, when the temperature goes lower than the predefined threshold value, the resettable fuse regains an original state. For example the resettable fuse may reset to its initial state allowing the current to flow through the coil 308. Therefore, the fuse may keep resetting, as and when the temperature drops below the predefined threshold value. As would be gathered, the resettable fuse is adapted to cut off the power supply when the misuse of the bell assembly 202 is detected as an increase in the temperature of the coil of wire 308.

As mentioned earlier, the bobbin 302 may include the cavity 318. The cavity 318 may be formed along a longitudinal axis of the bobbin 302. Further, the plunger 304 may be disposed in the cavity 318 such that the length of the plunger 304 is along the longitudinal axis of the bobbin 302. The metal strips 310 may be disposed adjacent to either ends of the plunger 304.

In an embodiment, when the temperature of the coil 308 reaches a value more than the predefined threshold value and the resettable fuse comes in action, the plunger 304 may move laterally within the cavity 318 of the bobbin 302. The plunger 304 may move to establish contact or knock one of the metal strips 310. As a result of the knocking, a second sound may be generated that could be considered as an indication of misuse of the bell assembly 202. Therefore, the user may be alerted to stop misusing the bell assembly 202.

As would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art, the PPTC device is one of the many examples of the resettable fuse. Therefore, the resettable fuse should not be construed as limited to the PPTC device only. In other embodiments, the resettable fuse may be embodied as any other device having the similar capabilities to provide the abovementioned functions to a bell, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

Figure 4 illustrates a sequence of assembly of the components to form the bell assembly 202, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For the sake of brevity, features of the bell assembly 202 that are already explained in the description with reference to Figure 2 and Figure 3 are not explained in detail in the description with reference to Figure 4. Therefore, Figure 2, Figure 3, and Figure 4 may be read in conjunction with each other to achieve a better understanding of the present subject matter.

At a step 402, the bottom plate 314 of the bell assembly 202 is illustrated. At a step 404, the metal strips 310 are illustrated. In an embodiment, the metal strips 310 may be coupled with corresponding rubber parts. At a step 406, the metal strips 310 may be disposed within predefined slots of the bottom plate 314. As shown, the metal strips 310 may be disposed in the bottom plate 314 in a parallel configuration.

At a step 408, the resettable fuse 400 is shown disposed on the bobbin 302. In particular, the resettable fuse 400 is illustrated to be disposed on a drum 422 of the bobbin 302. At a step 410, the plunger 304 and the spring 306 mounted on the plunger 304 are illustrated. At a step 412, an assembly of the bobbin 302, the resettable fuse 400 disposed on the bobbin 302, the coil of wire 308 wound on the resettable fuse 400 and the bobbin 302, the plunger 304 positioned within the cavity 318 of the bobbin 302, and the spring 306 mounted on the exposed portion of the plunger 304 is illustrated. In an embodiment, the assembly of the abovementioned components may be referred to as a bobbin assembly 424.

At a step 414, the bobbin clamp 312 is illustrated. At a step 416, the bobbin clamp 312 is shown to be disposed in the bottom plate 314 and housing the bobbin 302 and the other relevant components. At a step 418, the top cover 316 is illustrated. At a step 420, the top cover 316 is shown to be mounted on the bottom plate 314 to form the bell assembly 202.

Figure 5 illustrates a sequence of operation depicting disposing of the resettable fuse 400 between the bobbin 302 and the coil of wire 308 of the bell assembly 202, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For the sake of brevity, features of the bell assembly 202 that are already explained in the description of Figure 2, Figure 3, and Figure 4 are not explained in detail in the description of Figure 5.

At a step 502, the resettable fuse 400 is shown to be disposed on the drum 422 of the bobbin 302. At a step 504, after removing enamel and insulating a joint with a tape or a sleeve, a copper wire may be connected to a first terminal of the resettable fuse 400. Further, the copper wire may be taken out of the bobbin 302. At a step 506, the resettable fuse 400 is shown to be fixed on the bobbin 302, for example, by an adhesive tape. At a step 508, after removing enamel and insulating the joint with the tape or the sleeve, a copper wire may be connected to a second terminal of the resettable fuse 400. At a step 510, a wire may be wound on the drum 422 of the bobbin 302 and an end-point of the wire may be taken out of the bobbin 302. In an embodiment, 5000 turns of wire may be wound on the bobbin 302 to form the coil of wire 308. At a step 512, a supply wire may be connected to both ends of the coil of wire 308, after removing the enamel and soldering. The joint is then insulated with adhesive insulating tape or sleeve. At a step 514, craft paper winding and testing of the coil of wire 308 may be performed. At a step 516, the bobbin 302 is shown after mounting of the resettable fuse 400 and the winding of the coil of wire 308 on the resettable fuse 400.

Although the present disclosure is explained with respect to a ding dong bell, it should not be construed as limiting. It should be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that the present disclosure is equally applicable to other bells facing such problems as mentioned in the background section of the present disclosure. In order to implement the present disclosure in other types of bells, minor modifications may be made to the construction, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

As would be gathered, the present disclosure offers a smart bell apparatus 200 which may ensure safe operation of the bell. Firstly, with respect to the implementation in various applications, the present disclosure demands minimal modification to an already existing construction of the bells. Therefore, the present disclosure offers a variety of applications and that too, in a flexible manner.

Further, the possibility of misuse of the bell assembly 202 is eliminated. As soon as the temperature of the coil 308 increases beyond the predefined threshold value, the resettable fuse 400 ensures that the resistance is increased, blocking the incoming current to the coil 308. Therefore, a circuit of the smart bell assembly 202 is interrupted to avoid overheating of the coil 308. Since the overheating of the coil 308 is avoided, any consequent damage to other components of the bell is also avoided. Moreover, this eliminates the possibility of any sort of accident, for example, fire as well.

Furthermore, since the resettable fuse 400 is directly in contact with the coil 308, a detection of the increase in the temperature is ensured prompting pre-emptive measures to contain the situation. Also, the knocking feature of the bell assembly 202 provides the user with an alert indicating misuse of the bell assembly 202. Moreover, it doesn’t affect a normal operation of the bell in any manner.

Such a control of overheating of the coil 308 and other components of the bell assembly 202 is not available in any of the existing bells. Moreover, the inconvenience caused to the user because of frequent maintenance, repairing, and replacement of the bell is minimized. In addition, owing to a longer service life of the proposed bell assembly 202, an overall cost to be incurred by the user is significantly reduced. Therefore, the smart bell assembly 202 of the present disclosure is safe, smart, risk-free, flexible in implementation, cost-effective, convenient, and has a wide range of applications.

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. A smart bell assembly (202) comprising:
a bobbin (302);
a coil of wire (308) wound around the bobbin (302), and adapted to carry a current flow to generate a first sound, upon actuation of an operating switch (204); and
a resettable fuse (400) disposed between the bobbin (302) and the coil of wire (308), wherein the resettable fuse (400) is adapted to break a circuit of the bell assembly (202) to restrict the current flow through the coil of wire (308), based on a temperature of the coil of wire (308).

2. The smart bell assembly (202) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the resettable fuse (400) is adapted to break the circuit, when the temperature of the coil reaches a value more than a predefined threshold value of the temperature.

3. The smart bell assembly (202) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the resettable fuse (400) comprises a Polymeric Positive Temperature Coefficient (PPTC) device.

4. The smart bell assembly (202) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the resettable fuse (400) comprises a cured flame-retardant epoxy polymer.

5. The smart bell assembly (202) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the resettable fuse (400) is formed of a composite of semi-crystalline polymer and conductive particles.

6. The smart bell assembly (202) as claimed in claim 5, wherein crystalline material of the polymer melts to achieve an amorphous state, increasing a resistance of the resettable fuse (400), when the temperature is higher than the predefined threshold value.

7. The smart bell assembly (202) as claimed in claim 6, wherein the resettable fuse (400) regains an original state allowing the current to flow through the wire of coil (308), when the temperature goes lower than the predefined threshold value.

8. The smart bell assembly (202) as claimed in claim 1, comprising
the bobbin (302) having a cavity (318) formed along a longitudinal axis;
a plunger (304) adapted to be disposed in the cavity (318), wherein the length of the plunger (304) is along the longitudinal axis of the bobbin (302); and
a pair of metal strips (310) disposed adjacent to either ends of the plunger (304), wherein the plunger (304) is adapted to move within the cavity (318) for hitting at least one of the pair of metal strips (310) to generate a second sound indicative of misuse of the smart bell assembly (202), when the temperature of the coil of wire (308) reaches a value more than the predefined threshold value of the temperature.

9. A smart bell apparatus (200) comprising:
an operating switch (204); and
a bell assembly (202) adapted to be connected to the operating switch (204), the bell assembly (202) comprising;
a bobbin (302);
a coil of wire (308) wound around the bobbin (302), and adapted to carry a current flow to generate a sound, upon actuation of the operating switch (204); and
a resettable fuse (400) disposed between the bobbin (302) and the coil of wire (308), wherein the resettable fuse (400) is adapted to break a circuit of the bell assembly to restrict the current flow through the coil of wire (308), based on a temperature of the coil of wire (308).

10. The smart bell apparatus (200) as claimed in claim 9, comprising:
the bobbin (302) having a cavity (318) formed along a longitudinal axis;
a plunger (304) adapted to be disposed in the cavity (318), wherein the length of the plunger (304) is along the longitudinal axis of the bobbin (302); and
a pair of metal strips (310) disposed adjacent to either ends of the plunger (304), wherein the plunger (304) is adapted to move within the cavity (318) for hitting at least one of the pair of metal strips to generate an alarming sound, when the temperature of the coil of wire (308) reaches a value more than the predefined threshold value of the temperature.