Shock-resistant electrical outlet
AssigneeSmart Products, Inc.
InventorJohn Allison
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A shock-resistant electrical outlet is designed to prevent the application of power to the outlet only when a standard electrical plug is inserted nearly all of the way into the outlet. This is accomplished by providing at least two normally open switches in series circuit between the voltage line contact and an internal voltage contact which is engaged by the voltage prong of an electrical plug inserted into the outlet. The switches are closed by switch actuators located for simultaneous engagement by both the neutral and voltage prongs of an electrical plug when it is nearly fully inserted into the outlet to complete a circuit between the line voltage contact and the internal voltage contact in the voltage slot of the outlet.
Claims18
A shock-resistant electrical outlet including in combination:
- a plug receptacle having at least two slots, one of which is a voltage slot for receiving a voltage prong and another slot for receiving at least one other prong of an electrical plug;
- an internal voltage contact in the voltage slot for engagement by the voltage prong of a plug;
- an internal contact in the other of the slots for engagement by the one other prong of an electrical plug;
- a line contact conductively connected to the internal contact in the other of the slots;
- a voltage line contact;
- at least two normally open switches connected in series electrical circuit between the voltage line contact and the internal voltage contact;
- a first switch actuator located for engagement by the voltage prong of an electrical plug inserted into the voltage slot of the plug receptacle to close one of the two normally open switches;
- and
- a second switch actuator located for engagement by the at least one other prong of an electrical plug inserted into the other of the slots of the plug receptacle to close the other of the two normally open switches to complete an electrical circuit through the two switches between the voltage line contact and the internal voltage contact when both prongs are simultaneously inserted.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.