# US 12,763,533 B2 · Three dimensional offset right-angle 1/4-inch audio plug

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- Number: US 12,763,533 B2
- Document ID: US12763533B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 18/197,712
- Filed: 2023-05-15
- Published: 2024-11-21
- Granted: 2026-10-13
- Earliest claimed: 2023-05-15
- Applicants: Brendan McCormack
- Inventors: Brendan McCormack
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12763533B2

## CPC

- H01R 24/545: {Elbows}
- H01R 24/52: mounted in or to a panel or structure
- H01R 24/58: Contacts spaced along longitudinal axis of engagement
- H01R 2103/00: Two poles
- H01R: ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS

## Abstract

Common ¼-inch audio plugs include straight and right-angle orientations. Neither type is best suited for use with Fender Stratocaster-style guitars, whose output jacks are not surface-mounted but recessed into the body of the instrument. This invention modifies the design of the right-angle plug such that its shape reconciles the contours of Stratocaster-style jack plates with the aesthetic and practical needs of Stratocaster players. This modification occurs by introducing a new angle into the body segment of a right-angle plug, thereby creating two body segments. The proximal body segment (the one closer to the plug's shaft) serves to extend the plug from the recessed jack to the surface of the instrument. The new angle serves to orient the distal body segment (the one closer to the plug's cable) such that it, and the cable protruding therefrom, run exactly or approximately parallel to the surface of the instrument.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An audio plug comprising:
a shaft with a ¼-inch diameter; and
a body having a proximal segment and a distal segment, wherein the proximal segment is coupled to an end of the shaft and oriented at a first angle of 90 degrees relative to the shaft in a two-dimensional shaft-proximal plane, wherein the distal segment is arranged at a second angle to the proximal segment such that the distal segment extends from the shaft-proximal plane into a third dimension, wherein the second angle demarcating the proximal and distal segments of the body ranges from at least 90 degrees to 180 degrees, wherein the body is configured to house electrical connections between a cable received through an exit in the distal segment and electrical contacts of the shaft.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The audio plug of claim 1, wherein the body is cylindrical.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The audio plug of claim 1, wherein the second angle is 135 degrees.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The audio plug of claim 1, wherein the shaft-proximal plane has a first side and a second side opposite the first side, and wherein the second angle is arranged to extend the distal segment from the first side of the shaft-proximal plane into the third dimension thereby resulting in a right-handed orientation of the audio plug.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The audio plug of claim 1, wherein the shaft-proximal plane has a first side and a second side opposite the first side, and wherein the second angle is arranged to extend the distal segment from the second side of the shaft-proximal plane into the third dimension thereby resulting in a left-handed orientation of the audio plug.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The audio plug of claim 1, wherein when the audio plug is inserted into an output jack plate in a surface of a strat-style guitar, the audio plug is configured to be rotated around an axis of the shaft until the cable received through the exit of the distal segment of the audio plug is arranged parallel to the surface of the strat-style guitar by virtue of the second angle between the proximal and distal segments of the body.