Meter box lid with snap fit passage
OwnerRobert McKinnoninventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The lid is used to cover a utility box which houses a meter such as a water meter. The lid is compression molded from a plastic material such as medium density polyethylene, and has a planar upper surface and a planar lower surface. In one embodiment, a plurality of generally parallel spaced apart recesses are formed in the lower surface. The recesses are spaced inward of the outer edges of the lid. The area of the lower surface of the lid is greater than the total area of the recesses in the plane of the lower surface. In another embodiment, an opening leading to a cavity is formed in the edge of the lid with a press fit passage for receiving a transponder device.
Claims6
A lid for a utility box, comprising:
- a member molded from a plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides,
- said lower side comprising a lower surface having an outer edge,
- an opening formed in said outer edge of said member by wall structure and leading to a cavity for holding a transponder device,
- the transponder device is of the type having a stem extending from a housing,
- said opening having a portion for receiving the stem of the transponder device such that the housing may be located in said cavity by way of said opening with the stem extending through said portion of said opening,
- said opening having a passageway with a width normally less than the width of the stem which passageway may be expanded by pressure applied to said wall structure by the stem to allow the stem to be moved through said passageway to allow insertion and removal of the stem into and from said portion of said opening by way of said passageway,
- when the stem is located in said portion of said opening, the pressure applied to said wall structure is released such that said wall structure will hold the stem in said portion of said opening and hence the housing in said cavity.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.