U.S. patent application number 09/971255 was filed with the patent office on 2003-04-10 for enclosure having an extension member.
This patent application is currently assigned to Hoffman Enclosures, Inc.. Invention is credited to Jorgenson, Bryon K., Kipka, Shawn J..
Application Number | 20030066832 09/971255 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 29216344 |
Filed Date | 2003-04-10 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030066832 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Kipka, Shawn J. ; et
al. |
April 10, 2003 |
Enclosure having an extension member
Abstract
An electronics enclosure includes a base having a mounting hole,
an extension member having a matching mounting hole, and a cover
having a matching mounting hole. The base, cover, and extension
member are designed so that the cover is mountable to the base in a
first enclosure assembly and the extension member is mountable
between the base and the cover in a second enclosure assembly. The
electrical enclosure can include a base member having a tongue and
a cover having a groove dimensioned to mate with the tongue. The
groove can have a cross-section having a full radius arc profile
and have a foam-in-place gasket mounted therein.
Inventors: |
Kipka, Shawn J.; (St.
Francis, MN) ; Jorgenson, Bryon K.; (Lino Lakes,
MN) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Schwegman, Lundberg, Woessner & Kluth, P.A.
P.O. Box 2938
Minneapolis
MN
55402
US
|
Assignee: |
Hoffman Enclosures, Inc.
|
Family ID: |
29216344 |
Appl. No.: |
09/971255 |
Filed: |
October 4, 2001 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/4.02 ;
220/4.03 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H05K 5/062 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
220/4.02 ;
220/4.03 |
International
Class: |
B65D 006/28; B65D
008/18 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. An electronics enclosure comprising: a base having a base
mounting hole; an extension member having an extension member
mounting hole which matches the base mounting hole; and a cover
having a cover mounting hole which matches the base mounting hole;
wherein the cover is mountable to the base in a first enclosure
assembly using a first fastener which engages a portion of the
cover and which fastens to the base mounting hole, and wherein the
extension member is mountable to the base and the cover is
mountable to the extension member in a second enclosure assembly
using a second fastener which engages a portion of the cover,
extends through the extension mounting hole, and fastens to the
base mounting hole.
2. The enclosure of claim 1, wherein the base includes a tongue
located on an upper edge of the base and wherein the cover includes
a groove, wherein the tongue mates with the groove.
3. The enclosure of claim 2, wherein the extension member includes
an extension member groove on a lower surface of the extension
member which is substantially the same dimension as the groove on
the cover and the extension member includes an extension member
tongue on an upper surface of the extension member which has
substantially the same dimension as the tongue of the base.
4. The enclosure of claim 2, wherein the groove of the cover has a
cross-section having a full radius arc profile.
5. The enclosure of claim 4, further comprising a foam-in-place
gasket located within the groove.
6. The enclosure of claim 1, wherein the base and the extension
member both include internal space for holding one or more
electronic components.
7. The enclosure of claim 1, wherein the mounting hole of the cover
includes an upper section and a lower section separated by an
extending portion.
8. The enclosure of claim 1, wherein the cover includes a tab for
aligning the cover with the base when the cover is mounted on the
base.
9. The enclosure of claim 8 wherein the extension member includes
an extension member tab for aligning the extension member with the
base when the extension member is mounted on the base.
10. The enclosure of claim 1, wherein the base includes a stand-off
located on a top surface of the base which is dimensioned to
prevent the cover from being over-tightened upon the base, and
wherein the extension member includes a stand-off located on a top
surface of the extension member which is dimensioned to prevent the
cover from being over-tightened upon the extension member.
11. The enclosure of claim 1, wherein the base mounting hole
comprises a threaded hole and the extension member mounting hole
includes a non-threaded hole, wherein the fastener passes through
the extension member mounting hole and fastens to the base member
mounting hole in the second enclosure assembly.
12. An electrical enclosure comprising: a base member having a wall
which defines an inner space for holding electronic components,
wherein at least a portion of an upper edge of the wall includes a
tongue; a cover having a groove dimensioned to mate with the
tongue; wherein the groove has a cross-section profile wherein a
bottom surface of the groove includes a full radius arc
profile.
13. The enclosure of claim 12, further comprising foam-in-place
gasket material within the groove.
14. The enclosure of claim 12, further comprising a stand-off
located on a top surface of the base to prevent the tongue from
fully entering the groove when the cover is mounted on the
base.
15. The enclosure of claim 12, wherein the base includes a
removable faceplate having one or more optional knock-outs in a
surface thereof.
16. The enclosure of claim 12, further comprising an extension
member mountable between the cover and the base, wherein the
extension member includes a top surface having a tongue thereon and
a bottom surface having a groove.
17. The enclosure of claim 16, wherein the base includes a base
mounting hole, the extension member includes an extension member
mounting hole which matches the base mounting hole, and the cover
includes a cover mounting hole which matches the base mounting
hole; wherein the cover is mountable to the base in a first
enclosure assembly using a fastener located within the base
mounting hole and the cover mounting hole, and wherein the
extension member is mountable to the base and the cover is
mountable to the extension member in a second enclosure assembly
using a second fastener located within the base mounting hole, the
extension member mounting hole, and the cover mounting hole.
18. A method of assembly of an electrical enclosure, the method
comprising: placing an extension member on a base and placing a
cover on the extension member, wherein the extension member, the
base, and the cover each include matching mounting holes which
define a mounting point; and fastening the extension member between
the cover and the base using a single fastening member at the
mounting point.
19. The method of claim 18, further comprising removing the
extension member from the enclosure assembly and mounting the cover
to the base using the same mounting point in a second enclosure
assembly.
20. The method of claim 18, further comprising placing a
foam-in-place gasket within a groove in the cover, the groove
having a full radius profile.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to the field of enclosures and
more specifically to the field of electrical enclosures.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Electrical enclosures are box-shaped containers used to
house many different types and sizes of electrical devices and to
protect the devices from varying environmental conditions.
[0003] Sometimes enclosures are molded enclosures, such as plastic,
composite, and die cast enclosures. These materials require
specific tooling to manufacture each size enclosure. This makes it
more difficult and expensive to build varying size enclosures since
the manufacturing process needs to be re-tooled for each given size
of enclosure.
[0004] Moreover, enclosures are needed for varying types of
conditions. For instance, some are needed to provide protection
against dust, others against dripping water, other against
splashing or direct water. Tooling and manufacturing different
enclosures for each situation is expensive.
[0005] Accordingly, what is needed is an enclosure system which has
the flexibility to be modified while retaining the low cost and
design features provided by plastic, composite, and die cast
enclosures.
SUMMARY
[0006] One aspect of the present invention provides an enclosure
that is adapted to be modified in size in at least one overall
dimension. In one embodiment, an electronics enclosure includes a
base having a mounting hole, an extension member having a matching
mounting hole, and a cover having a matching mounting hole. The
base, cover, and extension member are designed so that the cover is
mountable to the base in a first enclosure assembly and the
extension member is mountable between the base and the cover in a
second enclosure assembly. The matching mounting holes of the
members of the enclosure allow for a single-point assembly. This
simplifies both assembly and dis-assembly of the enclosure and
allows a manufacturer to make a single base size with an assortment
of different size extension members so that it is not necessary to
retool for each size enclosure needed.
[0007] A further aspect of the present invention includes an
enclosure that is adaptable for varying environmental conditions.
In one embodiment, an electrical enclosure includes a base member
having a tongue and a cover having a groove dimensioned to mate
with the tongue. The groove has a cross-section comprising a full
radius arc profile. The full radius profile allows a form-in-place
foam gasket located within the groove to expand more evenly when
curing, which provides an enclosure having increased protection
from outside conditions.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of an enclosure in accordance
with one embodiment of the present invention.
[0009] FIG. 2 shows an exploded view of the members of the
enclosure of FIG. 1 assembled into a second enclosure assembly.
[0010] FIG. 3 shows a close-up view of a corner of a base of the
enclosure of FIG. 2.
[0011] FIG. 4A shows a cross-sectional view of a cover of the
enclosure of FIG. 1.
[0012] FIG. 4B shows an enlarged view of the groove of the cover of
FIG. 4A.
[0013] FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of a cover-to-base
assembly of an enclosure according to one embodiment of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0014] In the following detailed description, reference is made to
the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which are
shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the
invention may be practiced. It is understood that other embodiments
may be utilized and structural changes may be made without
departing from the scope of the present invention.
[0015] FIGS. 1 and 2 show an enclosure 100 according to one
embodiment of the present invention. Enclosure 100 includes abase
110, an optional extension member 120, and a cover 130. These
members can be assembled as shown in FIG. 1, with extension member
120 sandwiched between base 110 and cover 130. Alternatively, they
can be assembled as shown in FIG. 2, where extension member 120 is
omitted. Furthermore, two or more extension members 120 can be
stacked upon each other to create an even larger enclosure than the
assembly shown in FIG. 1.
[0016] Base 110 is a box-shaped structure having an outer wall
which includes four wall sections 111a-111d. Wall sections
111a-111d define an inner space 112 which can hold electronics,
electrical devices, or other equivalent items. In this embodiment,
a front panel 113 is removably mounted to wall section 111d. Panel
113 includes one or more knock-outs 114. Different panels having
various knockouts can be mounted to wall section 111d, giving a
user the advantage of a flexible design choices. For instance, one,
two, or four or more knockouts having a variety of sizes can be
provided. Base 110 can be a plastic, composite, or die cast molded
member. In other embodiments, features of the present invention can
be incorporated into an enclosure having a sheet-metal base
110.
[0017] Towards the bottom of base 110, the base includes one or
more surface mounting holes 115. In this embodiment, a mounting
hole 115 is located on a flanged section 118 located on each corner
of the base, where each wall section 111a-111d adjoins the adjacent
wall sections 111a-111d. Mounting holes 115 are for mounting the
enclosure to a supporting structure or surface.
[0018] Exposed on a top surface 116 of the wall of base 110 are one
or more mounting holes 117. Here, four mounting holes 117 are
provided, one at each corner of the base. In this embodiment, holes
117 are threaded to allow fasteners or mounting members such as
screws 140 or 240 (see FIG. 2) to be attached within the holes,
thus attaching cover 130 and extension member 120 to base 110.
Other equivalent mounting methods and fastening techniques can be
used.
[0019] In one embodiment, a tongue 119a runs around the top edge of
base 110. A matching tongue 119b runs around the top edge of
extension member 120. The bottom edges of extension member 120 and
cover 130 include grooves 122a and 122b respectively. All the
grooves and tongues have matching footprints. Accordingly, tongues
119a and 119b are both mateable with groove 122b of cover 130, and
tongue 119a can mate with grooves 122a or 122b. This permits the
interchangeable enclosure assemblies shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.
[0020] Extension member 120 is a frame-shaped member having
substantially the same perimeter shape as base 110. Extension
member has four walls defining an inner space 123 which can provide
space for holding electronic components that are too large to be
held within space 112 of base 110. One or more extension member
mounting holes 121 are provided in the corners of extension member
120. These holes 121 are dimensioned to allow screw 140 to pass
therethrough. Holes 121 match the relative location of holes 117 of
base 110. Extension member 120 can be a molded or die cast member
such as noted above for base 110. The present system does not
require the base and extension member to be the same material.
Advantageously, this allows a user to use a base and extension
member made of different materials if necessary.
[0021] Cover 130 includes one or more cover mounting holes 131.
Cover mounting holes 131 match extension member mounting holes 121
of extension member 120 and mounting holes 117 of base 110.
[0022] Advantageously, the matching mounting holes 117, 121, and
131 of the base, extension member, and cover, respectively, provide
a single-point attachment system which allows a single screw 140 to
attach cover 130 and extension member 120 to base 110 at each
mounting hole. Accordingly, a user can quickly add or remove an
extension member from the assembly without having to perform a
first step of attaching extension member to the base and then
attaching a cover to the unit. To change from the assembly of FIG.
1 to the assembly of FIG. 2 a user merely needs to unscrew screws
140, remove extension member 120 from the assembly, and reattach
cover 130 to base 110 using a single screw 240 at each mounting
point.
[0023] In other embodiments, additional extension members can be
sandwiched between the cover of the base and longer screws can be
used to attach them thereto.
[0024] Accordingly, a user can purchase a base and one or more
extension members separately. This allows a user to use the same
base for different applications, without having to purchase a
completely new enclosure. Moreover, it allows a manufacturer to
only have to manufacturer a single base of a given footprint size
since extension members allow the enclosure as a whole to grow.
Moreover, the present design is less time consuming for assembly
compared to having separate fasteners to attach the extension
member to the base and then the cover to the extension member.
[0025] In one embodiment, screws 140 or 240 are retained to the
cover 130 by o-rings 141 to prevent them from becoming lost or
damaged. Further details of o-rings 141 will be described
below.
[0026] FIG. 3 shows a close-up view of a corner of base 110 of
enclosure 100. In this embodiment, tongue 119a curves on the inside
of mounting hole 117 as the tongue runs along the edge of base 110.
A stand-off 302 is located proximate mounting hole 117. Stand-off
302 prevents over-tightening of either cover 130 (as in FIG. 2) or
extension member 120 (as in FIG. 1) on base 110. It is noted that
extension member 120 can include one or more similar stand-offs
proximate mounting holes 121 to prevent over-tightening of cover
130 on the extension member.
[0027] FIG. 4A shows a cross-sectional view of cover 130, showing
further details of groove 122b. Groove 122a of extension member 120
is similar to groove 122b and the discussion herein applies equally
to groove 122a. In the present embodiment, groove 122b has a depth
122D of approximately 0.20 inches and a width 122W of approximately
0.135 inches. Other embodiments provide different dimensions and
the present example is not meant to be exhaustive. A gasket 402 is
located within groove 122b. Tongue 119a fits within groove 122b and
is pressed into gasket 402 to provide sealing against outside
conditions. As noted above, one or more stand-offs such as
stand-off 302 can be provided to prevent over-tightening of the
cover on base 110. The stand-off helps protect the gasket material
by not allowing the tongue to enter fully within the groove
space.
[0028] In one embodiment, gasket 402 is a foam-in-place (FIP)
gasket, such as the polyurethane FIP system by H.B. Fuller Company
(St. Paul, Minn.). An FIP gasket is typically applied at room
temperature in a liquid state. The FIP gasket then expands and
cures within the groove. In one example use, the FIP gasket within
the groove mates with tongue 119a of base 110 (or tongue 119b of
extension member 120) to provide a Type 4, 4X seal between the
cover and the base.
[0029] Referring to FIG. 4B, in one embodiment groove 122b includes
a bottom surface 408 having a full round or full radius profile as
defined by radius 122R. This full round surface profile defines a
semi-circular arc portion 122C. Full round groove 122b provides an
optimal space for a foam-in-place gasket. The full round profile
allows the FIP gasket material to expand more evenly which provides
a more consistent finished gasket.
[0030] Referring again to FIG. 4A, in one embodiment a tab 404 is
located on the inner side of cover 130, extending tangentially from
the side of groove 122b. A similar tab 134 can be seen at the
bottom side of extension member 120 in FIG. 1. Tabs such as tab 404
can be located on one or more sides of cover 130. Tabs 404 do not
need to extend across a whole side of the cover. For example, tab
404 can cover a small section of one side or the whole side. Tabs
404 and 134 provide an alignment feature to assist a user in
assembling the cover and extension member on base 110. Tabs 404
(and 134) are dimensioned so that an outer surface 406 of the tab
slide-fits along the inner surface of extension member 120 (or base
110). The alignment tabs are helpful since in the single point
attachment system a user fastens all three members together at one
time and the alignment tabs help line up the mounting holes of the
three members. In some embodiments, the alignment tabs can be
located on the base instead of the cover.
[0031] FIG. 5 shows a schematic, cross-sectional view of a
cover-extension member-base assembly of an enclosure according to
one embodiment of the present invention. Cover 130 includes one or
more holes 131. Each hole 131 includes an upper counter-bore
section 502 and a lower section 504 which are divided by an
extending portion 506. Extending portion 506 extends within hole
131 to engage with a head 142 of screw 140 (or screw 240, if used).
Mounting holes 121 of extension member 120 are smooth sided,
un-threaded holes. This allows screw 140 to pass through hole 121
unimpeded. Mounting hole 117 of base 110 includes threads 117T for
matingly attaching with screw 140 (or screw 240).
[0032] Referring again to cover 130, lower section 504 of hole 131
provides space for retaining o-ring 141 on screw 140 and provides
space so that o-ring 141 does not slide up and down screw 140 each
time the cover is removed or reinstalled. This reduces scarring of
the o-ring during assembly and disassembly of an enclosure.
Accordingly, the screw is held within hole 131 without being lost
while it also does not cause any interference when the cover is set
on a surface. For instance, when extension member 110 is removed
and screw 140 is used to attach cover 130 directly to base 120 (See
FIG. 2), lower section 504 of hole 131 allows screw 240 to go
completely within hole 131 when the cover is set down on a flat
surface. In other words, section 504 does not interfere with o-ring
141 until the lower section of screw 140 is completely enclosed
within section 504.
CONCLUSION
[0033] Among other advantages, the enclosure system described
herein has the flexibility to be modified while retaining the low
cost and design features provided by molded and die cast
enclosures. The matching mounting holes of the members of the
enclosure allow for a single-point assembly. This simplifies both
assembly and dis-assembly of the enclosure and allows a
manufacturer to make a single base size with an assortment of
different size extension members so that it is not necessary to
retool for each size enclosure needed. A further aspect of the
present invention includes an enclosure that is adaptable for
varying environmental conditions. An example electrical enclosure
includes a base member having a tongue and a cover having a groove
dimensioned to mate with the tongue. The groove has a cross-section
comprising a full radius arc portion. The full radius arc portion
allows a foam-in-place foam gasket to expand more evenly which
provides a more consistent finished gasket, which provides an
enclosure having increased protection from outside conditions.
[0034] It is understood that the above description is intended to
be illustrative, and not restrictive. Many other embodiments will
be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above
description. The scope of the invention should, therefore, be
determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the
full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.
* * * * *