Child-Resistant Electrical Outlet Cover

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to devices for prevention of access to electrical outlets by children, and more particularly to a cover useful to protect a child from an open outlet and prevent removal of an electrical plug from an outlet.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Various devices have been invented to prevent children from putting fingers into an electrical outlet (cap 20 in U.S. Pat. No. 4,981,439 issued Jan. 1, 1991 to Piedmont) or to prevent removal of a plug from a socket (U.S. Pat. No. 3,955,870 issued May 11, 1976 to Wasserman), or to do both (U.S. Pat. No. 4,076,360 issued Feb. 28, 1978 to Singh). Other devices have also been invented. There has remained a need for a device which can do both, and is simple in construction and use, and reliable. The present invention is addressed to that need.

Described briefly, according to a typical embodiment of the present invention, a conventional electrical outlet box with conventional socket assembly installed in it has a special face plate secured to the socket assembly by a conventional retainer screw in the usual manner. The face plate has at least one opening through it in registry with a socket. The face plate has a wall around the opening with guide pins in the wall and recessed with respect to the front face of the plate and projecting inward toward the center of the opening. A plug retainer cup has an open end for reception in the recess between the socket and the front of the face plate and enclosing a plug in the socket. The cup has one bayonet-style connector slot in a wall thereof at the open end, and a modified bayonet-style slot and aperture in the opposite wall thereof. The modified combination slot and aperture are at the open end and located in a portion of the wall which can be pressed inwardly toward the center of the retainer by an adult person applying the force properly, and permitting rotation of the retainer cup into position to securely latch it to the face plate. The cup comprises two semi-cylindrical shells hinged together for easy mounting on the electrical cord before or after installation of the plug in the socket.

FIG. 1 is a perspective exploded-type view of an electrical wall outlet face plate, electrical plug, and plug retainer, according to a typical embodiment of the present invention but with the wall-mounted socket assembly shown in dashed lines to facilitate the understanding of the drawing.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the face plate mounted to the socket assembly, but with the socket assembly shown in dashed lines to facilitate the understanding of the drawing.

FIG. 3 is a section through the face plate at line 3--3 in FIG. 2 and viewed in the direction of the arrows.

FIG. 4 is an interior axial view of the plug retainer in its relaxed state.

FIG. 5 is an interior axial view of the plug retainer with the wall pushed in to facilitate installation in or removal from the face plate.

FIG. 6 is a view of the retainer opened up to show the shape of the slots and aperture therein.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing half of the retainer secured in the face plate.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 7 but showing the other half of the retainer secured in the face plate.

For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference will now be made to the embodiment illustrated in the drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended, such alterations and further modifications in the illustrated device, and such further applications of the principles of the invention as illustrated therein being contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, there is shown a portion 11 of a building wall having a socket assembly installed therein, two sockets of which 12 and 13 are shown in dotted lines to avoid confusion with features of the present invention. It should be understood that the socket assembly and rough-in box in which it is secured are standard and mounted in the wall in the conventional manner. But instead of a conventional face plate, the face plate 14 of the present invention is provided. It includes a couple of apertures with walls fittingly receiving the bosses of sockets 12 and 13 as in conventional face plates, and is secured to the socket assembly by a mounting screw 16 which can be conventional in size and length. But immediately outboard of the sockets 12 and 13, face plate 14 has recesses such as 17 for socket 12. Both of the recesses function in the same way, so a description of one will suffice for both.

Recess 17 has pins 18 and 19 projecting inwardly from the wall thereof toward the axis of the receptacle at the three o'clock and nine o'clock positions, respectively. These enable a modified bayonet-style mounting for the plug retainer 21. The retainer is in the form of a cup open at one end and substantially closed at the other and comprising two semi-cylindrical shells 22 and 23 having an elongate plastic strip 24 adhered to and extending along the bottom longitudinal margin of each, and serving as a hinge whereby the shells can be separated as indicated by the dotted line 26 in FIG. 4 along their upper margins but remain together at their lower edges. This enables opening them so that an electrical cord/plug assembly including cord 26 with plug 27 at its end can be easily installed in the retainer while a lamp or appliance (not shown) remains attached to the other end. When the retainer is closed, the hole 28 at the closed end closely encircles the cord. If the material of the shells is suitable for it, the hinge may be molded integral with the shells, rather than a distinct plastic strip.

For attachment of the retainer to the face plate, a modified bayonet-type of connector system is used. In addition to the previously mentioned pins 18 and 19 in the face plate, there is a typical L-shaped bayonet-type slot 31 in the shell 22, the slot entrance being at the open end of the shell. This is shown secured on the pin 18 in FIG. 8. In contrast, shell 24 includes what could be an identical bayonet slot but which is interrupted by a bridge portion 32 between the straight slot 33 and aperture 34. Also, it should be noted that these features 33 and 34 are between a pair of longitudinally extending very narrow slots 36 and 37 cut through the wall of the shell. In effect, therefore, the slot 33 and aperture 34 are at the distal end of a cantilever 38 whose base region 39 is located between one-third and one-half the retainer length from the closed end of the retainer. Therefore, while the retainer is made of a relatively sturdy plastic material, it is possible for an adult to push radially inward in the direction of arrow 42 (FIG. 5) on the distal end portion 41 of the beam toward the axis 43 of the retainer and thus deflect it inwardly as shown in FIG. 5. Therefore, after the plug 27 is inserted in socket 12, retainer 21 can then be moved along the cord into position covering the plug as the open end of the retainer enters recess 17 and the pins 18 and 19 are received in the slots 31 and 33, respectively. When the pins reach the bottoms (closed ends) of these slots, it is not possible to turn the retainer clockwise in the direction of arrow 44 (FIG. 1) because pin 19 will abut the bridge portion 32 between slot 33 and aperture 34. However, upon pushing the cantilever beam end portion 41 inward toward the center, the bridge 32 can be pushed inboard of the inner end of pin 19 whereupon the retainer can be turned clockwise to obtain registry of pin 19 with aperture 34 as the circumferential leg of slot 31 accommodates pin 18. At this time, the beam is released and resiliently springs back to alignment with the rest of the shell wall, and the pin 19 will then lock in aperture 34. With pins 18 and 19 in slot 31 and aperture 34, respectively, and the cylindrical wall 17 of the recess in close but sliding proximity to the outside wall of the cylindrical retainer, a very stable and reliable attachment of the retainer to the face plate is obtained. The length of the circumferential leg of slot 31 is such that the closed end is only slightly farther circumferentially from the axial portion than is aperture 34 from slot 33, so hunting for registry of aperture 34 with pin 19 as the retainer is turned clockwise in the face plate, is avoided.

It is preferable that the depth of the retainer from the closed end 46 thereof to the open end 47 thereof be only slightly greater than the distance between the stop flange 51 of the plug and the cord boss end 52 thereof so that, when the plug is fully inserted in the socket and flange 51 is abutting or proximate to the stop shoulder 53 of the face plate, the closed end 46 of the retainer will be very close to the end 52 of the cord mounting boss of the plug. In this way, even if a child would pull on the cord 26, that would not dislodge the plug from the socket. It is preferable that the wall plate recess be deep enough, and the fit of the cover be snug enough that, even if the two shells were not hinged together or snapped together, they would be held together by the fit in the face plate.

The retainer of the present invention can be made in different depths, if desired, to accommodate different lengths of plugs. Similarly, it can be installed in a socket that does not have any plug in it, and serve simply as a socket cover to keep a child from sticking anything into the socket.

While various materials can be used, the material for the face plate is preferably plastic and can be in any desired color and or decorative finish. Similarly, the material for the retainer is preferably plastic and sturdy enough to secure it on preferably metal pins in the face plate.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character, it being understood that only the preferred embodiment has been shown and described and that all changes and modifications that come within the spirit of the invention are desired to be protected.