U.S. patent application number 14/813477 was filed with the patent office on 2017-02-02 for electrical box having a removable module with a charging connector.
The applicant listed for this patent is Alexandra Ziesler, Sebastian H Ziesler. Invention is credited to Alexandra Ziesler, Sebastian H Ziesler.
Application Number | 20170033515 14/813477 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 57883032 |
Filed Date | 2017-02-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20170033515 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Ziesler; Sebastian H ; et
al. |
February 2, 2017 |
ELECTRICAL BOX HAVING A REMOVABLE MODULE WITH A CHARGING
CONNECTOR
Abstract
This invention disclosure is an electrical outlet receptacle
containing the high voltage AC side and low voltage DC power supply
used typically for charging and/or powering portable electronic
devices. The charge connector for interfacing with the portable
device is contained in a removable module. Furthermore the
removable module may contain a retractable charge cord or charge
cords, charge status indicator lights, power supply switches, and
it also may contain a portion of the power supply control circuitry
to provide the particular power and signaling required to interface
with the specific portable device. The other portion of the power
supply and control circuitry would be contained in the fixed
portion of the receptacle and/or the electrical box. Finally there
may be additional heat sinks to provide enough thermal dissipation
from the power supply.
Inventors: |
Ziesler; Sebastian H; (Park
City, UT) ; Ziesler; Alexandra; (Park City,
UT) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Ziesler; Sebastian H
Ziesler; Alexandra |
Park City
Park City |
UT
UT |
US
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
57883032 |
Appl. No.: |
14/813477 |
Filed: |
July 30, 2015 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01R 13/7038 20130101;
H02J 7/0045 20130101; H02J 7/02 20130101; H02J 7/0042 20130101;
H02J 7/00 20130101; H01R 25/006 20130101; H01R 13/72 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H01R 13/72 20060101
H01R013/72; H01R 25/00 20060101 H01R025/00; H05K 7/20 20060101
H05K007/20; H01R 13/703 20060101 H01R013/703; H01R 13/66 20060101
H01R013/66; H02J 7/00 20060101 H02J007/00; H01R 27/02 20060101
H01R027/02 |
Claims
1.-15. (canceled)
16. An electrical assembly comprising: an electrical box; an AC
high voltage connector in the electrical box and being electrically
coupled with an AC high voltage power supply; and an electrical
receptacle located in the electrical box, the electrical receptacle
having a cavity; a removable module removably located in the
cavity, the removable module comprising: at least one charge
connector configured to couple with an electronic device; a
removable module power supply electrically coupled to the at least
one charge connector; and a DC low voltage electrically connector
configured to electrically couple the removable module power supply
with the AC high voltage power supply when the removable module is
in the cavity.
17. The electrical assembly of claim 16, comprising a means for
fastening the removable module to the electrical receptacle.
18. (canceled)
19. The electrical assembly of claim 16, wherein the AC high
voltage connector is attached to the electrical receptacle.
20. The electrical assembly of claim 16, comprising the AC high
voltage power supply in the electrical box.
21. The electrical assembly of claim 19, wherein the AC high
voltage power supply is in the electrical receptacle.
22. The electrical assembly of claim 16, comprising the AC high
voltage power supply external to the electrical box.
23. The electrical assembly of claim 16, wherein the removable
module further includes at least one charge cord having the at
least one charge connector.
24. The electrical assembly of claim 23, wherein the removable
module includes a retractor mechanism attached to the at least one
charge cord such that the charge cord is extendable from and
retractable into the removable module.
25. The electrical assembly of claim 24, wherein the retractor
mechanism includes a locking mechanism.
26. The electrical assembly of claim 24, wherein the locking
mechanism includes a pull-to-release mechanism.
27. The electrical assembly of claim 24, wherein the locking
mechanism includes a release button.
28. The electrical assembly of claim 20, further comprising a
phantom power switch in the electrical box that electrically
couples and decouples an external power supply to the AC high
voltage power supply.
29. The electrical assembly of claim 24, comprising a means for
activating and deactivating the phantom power switch.
30. The electrical assembly of claim 24, further comprising a
phantom power switch in the electrical box that electrically
couples and decouples an external power supply to the AC high
voltage power supply, wherein the phantom power switch is operably
coupled to the retractor mechanism such that when the charging cord
is extended therefrom the external power supply is electrically
coupled to the AC high voltage power supply or when the charging
cord is retracted the external power supply is electrically
decoupled from the AC high voltage power supply.
31. The electrical assembly of claim 28, the removable module
including a button operably coupled to the phantom power
switch.
32. The electrical assembly of claim 16, wherein the removable
module power supply includes control circuitry and power conversion
and switching components configured to convert voltage coming out
of the AC high voltage power supply into power indicated by the
control circuitry.
33. The electrical assembly of claim 21, wherein the removable
module power supply includes control circuitry configured to
communicate with the portable electronic device to be charged to
determine power amount and type for a portable electronic
device.
34. The electrical assembly of claim 16, wherein the removable
module further includes an indicator light configured to specify an
amount of electricity provided to the portable electronic
device.
35. The electrical assembly of claim 20, further comprising a heat
sink coupled with the AC high voltage power supply via a thermal
bridge.
36. The electrical assembly of claim 16, wherein the electrical
receptacle further includes a high voltage electrical socket.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] Not Applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present application is related to an AC electrical
receptacle containing charging connectors for portable electronic
devices where said charging portion of the electrical receptacle
can be easily upgradable to future portable electronic device
charging and power standards by use of a removable module.
[0004] 2. Technical Background
[0005] The past several years has seen a proliferation of portable
electronic devices. Smart phones, tablets, laptops, game pads,
cameras, portable lights, and electronic toys to name a few. One
commonality amongst all these portable electronic devices is the
need to recharge their respective batteries. Several strategies by
portable electronic device manufactures for charging said batteries
have been removable batteries and a charging adapter which plug
into an AC high voltage wall electrical receptacle, a charging
adapter with proprietary plug to attach to the portable electronic
device, a charging adapter with standardized plug such as micro USB
to attach to the portable electronic device for charging, and
inductive charging pad to wirelessly charge the portable electronic
device while in close proximity to the portable electronic device.
The drawback of all these approaches is the adapter and charge cord
required. Adapters and charge cords have the down side of easily
being lost by the user, incompatibility between one adapter and a
different portable electronic device, incompatibility between the
adapter and future similar portable electronic devices, and safety
issue of the `wall wart` style adapter being easy to bump and
partially expose the high voltage prongs.
[0006] Inventors have come up with solutions which address some
concerns but not all. Current state of the art approaches include
electrical receptacles containing USB type A connector or
connectors and an associated low voltage switching power supply
used for powering the USB type A plugs. However that technology
implementation does not eliminate the issue of requiring a charge
cord to connect from the USB plug in the electrical receptacle to
the portable electronic device. These charge cords can easily be
lost. Another issue is unsightliness if one keeps the charge cord
plugged into the electrical receptacle at all times. Furthermore
current technology implementations do not address future
compatibility where the portable electronic device may require
different power or signaling requirements. Current technology does
not address the safety issue of young children attempting to plug
wires into outlets--a young child may not distinguish between the
USB type A socket and high voltage AC socket.
[0007] Other proposed inventions include a retractable charge cord
inside the electrical receptacle. However since the charge cord is
part of the electrical receptacle and not part of a removable
module, the electrical receptacle will not work with portable
electronic devices with different style charge connectors. Since
all electrical receptacles are `hard wired` to a building's high
voltage wiring and replacing it may require a municipal electrical
permit and an electrician to perform the work, both which are
costly and time consuming. Also the future compatibility issue
remains where even if the same plug style is included in future
portable electronic devices, the power requirement and signaling
protocol required by the portable electronic device may be
different. Furthermore, retractable charge cords can easily break
if one pulls on them with excessive force rendering the electrical
receptacle broken and an expensive electrician service call to
replace said electrical receptacle.
[0008] Another drawback with current electrical receptacles with
built in low power supplies is the limited amount of low voltage DC
power said electrical receptacle can provide due to thermal
constraints. Power supplies have two inherent constraints. First,
no power supply is 100% efficient and the un-efficient portion of
the power is converted into heat which must be dissipated by the
electrical receptacle. Second, there is a limited amount of heat
which can be dissipated inside a wall electrical box. For example,
an 80% efficiency 100 Watt power supply would need to dissipate 25
Watts which exceeds the power dissipation capability of a
traditional electrical box while remaining within industry
standards of acceptable temperatures within said electrical
box.
[0009] Hence there is a need for an invention which solves the
aforementioned issues of appearance, safety, upgradability to
future charging standards, repair of components of limited life
span, and thermal limitations.
[0010] 3. Background Art
[0011] U.S. Pat. No. 8,758,031 "Electrical wiring device with high
current USB charging capabilities"
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] The present invention addresses the preceding detailed needs
and provides the electrical receptacle with a removable module
containing the charging connector or connectors and provides for
improved thermal dissipation.
[0013] One embodiment of the present invention is a retractable
charge cord or plurality of retractable charge cords contained in
the removable module. The removable module may contain indicator
lights which indicate charging status. A switch may be provided to
disable the indicator lights. The removable module may also contain
a switch (e.g., phantom power switch) for deactivating the
switching power supply thus cutting phantom power usage to zero
while the charger is not in use. The phantom power switch may be a
standalone switch or it may be built into the retractable charge
cord, such that when the charge cord is fully retracted, the switch
is deactivated. The phantom power switch may also be partially
contained in the fixed portion of the electrical receptacle and
partially contained in the removable module. The high voltage
electrical portion of the phantom power switch would be contained
in the fixed portion and a push lever or other apparatus for
toggling the phantom power switch would be embedded in the
removable module. The push lever is activated by the charge cord
being fully retracted or by a toggle or button switch.
[0014] Another aspect of this invention is low voltage control
circuitry contained in the removable module where the control
circuitry is used to control the non-removable portion of the AC
high voltage power supply such that the desired power--voltage and
amperage--is generated from the fixed AC high voltage power supply
and that signaling appropriate for the targeted portable electronic
device is presented on the charging connector and can be used to
communicate with the targeted portable electronic device in order
to determine the desired power amount and type. One embodiment of
this control circuitry can meet the USB power delivery 2.0
specification which includes a signaling protocol to switch the
output voltage and amperage from the default of 5V to higher
voltage and higher amperage. This control circuitry connects from
the removable module to the fixed portion of the AC high voltage
power supply by any electrical connector readily apparent to those
skilled in the art.
[0015] Yet another aspect of this invention is means of providing
additional thermal dissipation from the electrical receptacle
through a thermal bridge. A heat sink is attached to or is part of
the electrical box which houses the electrical receptacle. A
thermal bridge connection is provided between the portions of the
switching AC high voltage power supply which generates the majority
of the waste heat, typically this is the flyback transformer, the
high voltage switching transistor, and the output diodes. Some
power supply incarnations may also include a buck regulator. This
buck regulator and associated transistor switch or switches are
other examples of components in the AC high voltage power supply
which produces significant waste heat and could be attached to the
thermal bridge. A thermal bridge has several embodiments which are
detailed in the figures below and of which would be apparent to
those skilled in the art.
[0016] Another embodiment of the present invention is that the high
voltage portion of the AC high voltage power supply is contained in
the electrical box rather than in the electrical receptacle itself.
Housing the high voltage AC portion in the electrical box is done
to allow for more physical space and more thermal dissipation than
would be possible by housing it in the electrical receptacle alone.
The invention then allows for multiple removable modules to be
attached to a single fixed portion of the AC high voltage power
supply, which saves money in manufacturing and end-user
installation due to the lower requirement of power supply
units.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0017] FIG. 1 is front view of an embodiment of an electrical
receptacle with one removable module containing two retractable
charge cables, a charge indicator light, retractor release push
buttons, and screws to attach the removable module to the fixed
electrical receptacle. The example electrical receptacle shown also
contains one standard 15A high voltage electrical socket.
[0018] FIG. 2 is an exploded side view of an embodiment of an
electrical box with a heat sink and semi-flexible heat sink cable
connected to the high voltage portion of the AC high voltage power
supply in the electrical receptacle, the removable module with the
control portion of the power supply and its DC low voltage
connector, the retractor with retraction lock release button.
[0019] FIG. 3 is a side view of an embodiment of an electrical box
with built in AC high voltage power supply and built in heat
sink.
[0020] FIG. 4 is a side view showing the phantom power switch
button in the removable module and the phantom power switch in the
fixed portion of the electrical receptacle.
[0021] FIG. 5 is a multi-module charging station with multiple
removable modules attached to a single AC high voltage power
supply.
[0022] FIG. 6 is a schematic of a removable module power supply
containing control circuitry in the lower half of the schematic and
power conversion and switching in the upper half of the
schematic.
[0023] FIG. 7 is a schematic of a cable retractor mechanism with a
button to push to release.
[0024] FIG. 8 is a schematic of a cable retractor mechanism with a
push to release linkage.
[0025] FIG. 9 is a schematic of a cable retractor mechanism with a
pull cable to release mechanism.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0026] References are made to the section lines in the accompanying
drawings. Where possible, the same section line is used in multiple
figures where the same item is referred to in the different
figures.
[0027] The described invention consists of several main parts. The
first main part is the removable module (1). The second main part
is the electrical receptacle (6). Finally the electrical box (14)
and AC high voltage power supply (12) are necessary components to
make a complete system.
[0028] The removable module (1) typically would be constructed of
an insulating plastic material similar to that used in existing
electrical receptacles. The removable module (1) contains the
charge connector (2). The charge connector (2) can be a micro-usb
connector, usb type c connector, other standards based connector or
a proprietary connector specific to a particular product such as a
Dell laptop power connector. The removable module (1) can be
swapped out for another removable module with a different charge
connector based on the type of portable electronic device connector
that is required for the portable electronic device to be charged.
These can be interchanged without disturbing the fixed electrical
receptacle (6). Also the removable module (1) may contain more than
one charge connector (2) as depicted in FIG. 1. The removable
module (1) may contain a charge indicator light (3) and potentially
a switch to disable said charge indicator light (3) for
applications which the user may not want excess light, such as a
bedroom or photographic dark room. The charge indicator light (3)
typically would consist of a LED type or multiple LEDs and could be
multicolored--the color and number of lights being displayed being
used to indicate to the user the amount of charge being sent to the
portable electronic device. For example one green light could
indicate 1 Amp 5 Volts, two green lights could indicated 2 Amps 5
Volts, one red light could indicate 1 Amp 12 Volts, two red lights
could indicate 2 Amps 12 Volts. Removable module (1) may contain
screws (5) to securely fasten the removable module (1) to the
electrical receptacle (6). An alternate screw-less mounting
mechanism could consist of friction or locking clips. The removable
module (1) may contain one release button (4) per charge connector
(2) used to release the charge connector from the removable module
(1).
[0029] Inside the removable module (1) there consists several
sub-systems as shown in FIG. 4. The charge connector (2) connects
by electrical cable (20) to the cable retractor mechanism (8).
Typically this electrical cable (20) would be light weight and
flexible such that it can wind up in the cable retractor mechanism
(8) without binding. Length of the electrical cable is relatively
short, in the one foot to three foot range. The retractor mechanism
(8) may contain a locking feature so that the cable remains
extended at the desired length until the lock is released with the
release button (4). Another type of retractor mechanism may use a
pull-to-release function rather than a push button release similar
to any retractable car seat belt. The design of such retraction
mechanism would be readily apparent to one fluent in said field.
The retractor mechanism (8) connects to the removable module power
supply (10) by another electrical cable (21). Alternately,
functions of the retractor mechanism (8) and removable module power
supply (10) may be in a single unit, thereby eliminating the need
for cable (21) and reducing the total number of components in the
device. A linkage or pushrod (17) extends out of the removable
module (1) for activating the phantom power switch (18). This
linkage or pushrod (17) typically would be made of a non-conductive
material as the phantom power switch (18) conducts high voltage.
The linkage or pushrod (17) passes the interior of the electrical
receptacle cavity partition wall (22). The linkage or pushrod (17)
can either be activated by the charge connector (2) being fully
seated in the removable module (1) or by an additional switch
button or toggle (not shown in the drawings) on the face of the
removable module (1). Thus, the removable module (1) is isolated
from the high voltage electricity. The removable module power
supply (10) contains the control circuitry necessary to communicate
with the electronic device being charged to determine the amount of
charge to be provided. It also contains power conversion and
switching to convert the low voltage coming out of the AC high
voltage power supply (12) into the type of power indicated by the
control circuitry. Such control circuitry and switching already
exists in the industry and needs not be described in further detail
here. Finally a DC low voltage electrical connector and cables (9)
connect the removable module power supply (10) with the AC high
voltage power supply (12).
[0030] The electrical receptacle (6), also called the fixed module
(6) shown in FIG. 2 is similar in size and shape of existing
electrical outlets, single gang size. The electrical receptacle (6)
contains a cavity for the removable module (1). It may contain two
or more such cavities depending on the space available and the size
of the removable module (1). A partition wall (22) separates the
potential high voltage side from the user replaceable removable
module (1). The wall (22) has mounting holes for screws (5) or has
mechanical interface for locking clips used to secure the removable
module (1) to the fixed portion of the electrical receptacle (6).
The front face of the fixed module or electrical receptacle (6) is
intended to be flush with the wall plate, similar to a standard
electrical outlet.
[0031] The electrical receptacle (6) may be multi-functional and
may contain features found in traditional electrical receptacles.
Some examples, while not an exhaustive list are a 15A 120V
electrical socket (7) shown in FIG. 1, a light switch, fan control
switch, or light dimmer. The electrical receptacle (6) may contain
an internal high voltage switch, normally closed type switch. When
the linkage or pushrod (17) is pressed against the switch from the
retractor cable (20) being fully retracted, the switch is opened,
thereby disconnecting the high voltage electricity from the AC high
voltage power supply (12). When the cable (20) is retracted, the
invention cuts waste phantom power dissipation of the AC high
voltage power supply (12) to zero. The electrical receptacle (6)
may also contain the AC high voltage power supply (12) as shown in
FIG. 4. However the AC high voltage power supply (12) may also be
located in or near the electrical box (14) depending on the
physical dimensions of the AC high voltage power supply (12).
Typically the higher maximum power capable of being delivered by
the AC high voltage power supply (12), the larger the physical
dimensions and the electrical receptacle (6) only has a certain
amount of room in it based on the dimensions of a traditional
1-gang electrical outlet. Also, there may be certain embodiments
which have a heat sink connector (11), thermal bridge (13) and heat
sink (15) to remove excess waste heat from the AC high voltage
power supply (12) when the amount of waste heat cannot be
dissipated inside the electrical receptacle (6). Finally if the AC
high voltage power supply (12) is contained inside the electrical
receptacle (6), there are either high voltage wires (16) to connect
to the building's electrical wiring, typically using wire nuts, or
terminals on the electrical receptacle for directly attaching the
building's electrical wiring. Such terminals are apparent to those
skilled in the art.
[0032] The electrical box (14) shown in FIG. 2 could be a
traditional metallic or non-metallic electrical box, 1-gang,
2-gang, or more-gang style. Such electrical boxes are permanently
attached to a building's structure. For embodiments where the AC
high voltage power supply (12) is not contained in the electrical
receptacle (6), the AC high voltage power supply would be either
attached to or built into the electrical box (14) as shown in FIG.
3. High voltage wires or AC high voltage connector (19) would be
provided to attach to the electrical receptacle (6) and to the
phantom power switch (18). Or if no phantom power switch (18) were
provided, the AC high voltage power supply (12) would contain high
voltage wires to connect to the building wiring using wire nuts or
other similar electrical attachment.
[0033] FIG. 6 shows that the control circuit (24) communicates with
the attached portable device over the electrical cable (21) to
determine the amount of power to send to the portable device. The
control circuit (24) sends the signaling to the power conversion
and switching (23) to enable the specified output voltage and
current to be delivered over the electrical cable (21). The power
conversion and switching (23) takes the input DC voltage over the
electrical cable (9) and converts to the specified output voltage
on electrical cable (21).
[0034] FIG. 7 shows that the spring loaded floating cable spool
(29) rotates on the keyed center post (32) of the cable retractor
mechanism housing (27). The keying of the center post (32) prevents
the floating center cap (34) from rotating. The angled wings (33)
of the floating center cap (34) allow the cable spool (29) to
rotate freely in the cable-extract direction, but the angled wings
(33) lock against the floating cable spool tab (28) when the spool
(29) attempts to rotate in the cable retract direction, thus
locking the extracted cable (20) at a certain length. The spring
loaded (30) push button (4) and push button to center cap linkage
(31) slides the center cap (34) down the center post (32) thereby
releasing the angled wings (33) from the cable spool tab (28). This
allows the spool (29) to then freely rotate in the cable retract
direction and retract the cable (20).
[0035] FIG. 8 shows that the linkage (31) pushes the center cap
(34) down when the release button (4) is pressed. The spring (30)
causes the linkage (31) to pull the center cap (34) up when the
release button (4) is not being pressed.
[0036] FIG. 9 shows that the sliding center cap with angled locking
teeth (36) slides up and down on the keyed center post (32). The
mating angled locking teeth of the spool (35) cause the center cap
(36) to prevent the spool from winding in the cable retract
direction on the first pull of the cable (20) but on the second
pull of the cable (20) the center cap (36) slides again thus
allowing the spool (35) to wind in the cable retract direction upon
release of the second pull of the cable (20). This pull to release
mechanism operates in a similar manner to a car seat belt retractor
and the construction and operation details of the cable retractor
mechanism would be familiar to one skilled in such art.
* * * * *