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AssigneeS.C. Johnson & Son, Inc.
InventorsAndrea Pedrotti, Paolo Campedelli, Stefano Baldessari
Estimating the term…
A wall-mounted, plug-in appliance includes a housing and a plug assembly, which is rotatably disposed within the housing. The plug assembly includes (i) a plug for electrically connecting the plug assembly to a wall outlet and (ii) at least one integral extra outlet to which another electrical appliance can be plugged in. The plug assembly conducts power to electrical components of the appliance at each of at least two 90-degree intervals of rotation of the plug assembly, and the extra outlet is accessible through different ones of a plurality of windows in the housing at different 90-degree intervals of rotation of the plug assembly.
A wall-mounted, plug-in appliance, comprising:
A wall-mounted, plug-in appliance, comprising:
An electrical plug-in device for dispersing a chemical active into a surrounding environment, the device comprising:
A plug-in vaporizer for dispersing a chemical active into a surrounding environment, the vaporizer comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.
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From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.
Backward citations are indexed for grants only.
Apparatus therefor: comprising a wick
Using a heat source: combined with a fan
Using a heat source: using an electrical resistance as heat source
Using heated wet elements: heated electrically
Term end not estimated
1. Field of the Invention
Our invention relates generally to a rotatable plug assembly for incorporation in an electrical appliance, and, particularly, to a rotatable plug assembly equipped with one or more extra electrical outlets.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vaporizer incorporating a preferred rotatable plug assembly.
FIG. 2 is a rotated perspective view of the vaporizer shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is an exploded assembly view of the vaporizer shown in FIG. 1.
FIGS. 1-7 illustrate a vaporizer 100 incorporating a preferred rotatable plug assembly according to our invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the vaporizer 100 comprises a multi-piece housing 110 in which a bottle 120 is detachably retained. The bottle 120 contains an evaporable substance (not shown), such as, for example, a liquid formulation including a chemical active such as an insecticide, fragrance, odor eliminator, or the like. The term “bottle” is used herein in its broadest possible sense, including any receptacle, container, pouch, etc., capable of holding a liquid formulation. A raised pattern 130 on one side of the bottle is engaged by an opening 140 in a front shell 150 of the vaporizer housing 110, while a similar raised pattern (not shown) on an opposite side of the bottle 120 is engaged by a recess 170 (shown in FIG. 3) in a middle shell 180, in order to secure the bottle 120 within the vaporizer 100. The front shell 150 is sufficiently pliant so that pulling the bottle 120 in a downward direction causes the raised patterns 130 to release from the opening 140 in the front shell 150 and the recess 170 in the middle shell 180, respectively, thereby enabling removal of the bottle 120 from the vaporizer 100. Alternatively, the neck portion of the bottle may be designed to snap or screw into the vaporizer housing. Suitable refill bottles are available in a wide variety of liquid formulations from S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc., of Racine, Wisconsin, under the GLADE® PLUGINS® and RAID® brand names.
As shown in FIG. 3, the bottle 120 includes a wick 190 for drawing the liquid formulation out of the bottle 120 and toward an upper portion of the wick 190. A lower portion of the wick 190 is immersed in the liquid formulation, and the upper portion of the wick 190 protrudes above the neck of the bottle 120. Preferably, the wick 190 is positioned within the bottle 120 by a cap 200 which includes a sheath 210 that encases the upper portion of the wick 190, except for an open area near the tip of the wick 190. Alternatively, a cap without a sheath can be utilized. Preferably, the wick is about 7 mm in diameter and is constructed of ultra high molecular weight high density polyethylene.
In the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1-7, the vaporizer housing 110 comprises three shells—the front and middle shells 150, 180 noted above and a back shell 220—which are fastened together by heat-staking or any other suitable fastening means, including, for example, rivets, press fit, snap fit, screws, ultrasonic welding, adhesives, or the like. The electrical components (discussed in more detail below) of the vaporizer 100 are housed within the space enclosed by the middle and back shells 180, 220.