Modular Faceplate Assembly Having Concealed Latching Means

This invention relates in general to wire management devices and deals more particularly with an improved modular faceplate assembly for mounting at a termination point in a wiring system to support one or more electrical or electronic devices such as, for example, electrical outlet receptacles and/or telecommunications jacks, to facilitate interface with the wiring system. A faceplate assembly of the type with which the improvement of the present invention is concerned is adapted for mounting on a device box, surface mounted raceway or other structure which comprises a part of a wiring system and generally includes a frame or faceplate for supporting one or more modular inserts or panels which carry discrete electrical or electronic devices. The panel or panels are releasably secured to the faceplate or other supporting structure by substantially concealed latching elements. Each insert or panel member is supported within and provides a substantial closure for at least a part of a frontal opening in the faceplate and cooperates with the faceplate to conceal the latching element or elements which retain it in assembly with the faceplate. The panel member or members may also conceal other fasteners which retain the faceplate on an associated supporting structure. A faceplate assembly of the aforedescribed type is particularly suitable for use in a premises distribution/communication system to provide a universal quick change interface for voice, data and video applications.

Some means must, of course, be provided to release each panel or insert from its associated faceplate to enable access to electrical terminations therebehind. Heretofore, discrete latch operating apertures have been provided in the frontal surfaces of such faceplate assemblies and in the regions of the retaining latch or latches to enable a tool such as a screwdriver, for example, to be inserted into and through each latch operating aperture to operate an associated latch whereby the insert or insert members which comprise the assembly may be removed from the faceplate. In such prior art faceplate assemblies each latch is often located some distance rearward of an associated insert panel so that the manner in which the panels are secured to the faceplate is not immediately evident. One who is not familiar with the latching system may accidentally scratch, mar or otherwise damage the frontal surface of the faceplate assembly in an attempt to pry or otherwise remove a panel from the faceplate. Further, the latch operating openings in the frontal surfaces of such prior art faceplate assemblies are usually readily visible and tend to detract from the otherwise smooth uninterrupted surface appearance of the assemblies. The present invention is concerned with these problems.

Accordingly, it is the general aim of the present invention to provide an improved modular faceplate assembly of the concealed latch type having latching means which is easy to operate and which provides improved latch concealment for better overall appearance.

In accordance with the present invention, a modular faceplate assembly includes a faceplate having a frontal opening, at least one modular insert received and supported within the frontal opening, and latching means including a substantially concealed latch movable between latching and releasing positions relative to the faceplate assembly for releasably retaining the modular insert in assembly with the faceplate within the frontal opening. The faceplate assembly has a latch operating aperture opening through its frontal surface for operating access to the latch. A latch operator carried by the latch and immediately accessible at the latch operating aperture forms a substantial closure for the latch operating aperture when the latch is in its latching position.

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a faceplate assembly embodying the present invention, shown with parts of the assembly broken away to reveal structure therebehind.

FIG. 2 is a somewhat enlarged sectional view taken generally along the line 2--2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a somewhat enlarged top plan view of the insert module or panel member shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a somewhat reduced perspective view of the insert module shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is another somewhat reduced perspective view of the insert module shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view of the insert module taken along the line 6--6 of FIG. 2

FIG. 7 is a somewhat enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the faceplate assembly shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 8 is a somewhat reduced front elevational view similar to FIG. 1, but illustrating another embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings and in the description which follows, the present invention is illustrated and described with reference to a faceplate assembly for use in a wire management system. The faceplate assembly, indicated generally at 10 in FIGS. 1 and 2, is particularly adapted for releasable attachment to a wall mounted device box or surface mounted raceway (not shown) to support an electronic device, as for example, a telecommunication jack (not shown) and essentially comprises a frame or faceplate member, indicated generally at 12, a modular insert or panel member, designated generally by the reference numeral 14, and concealed latches, indicated generally at 16,16, for releasably retaining the panel member 14 in assembly with the faceplate member 12. Latch operating apertures, indicated at 17, 17, open through the frontal surface of the faceplate assembly 10 to provide operating access to the concealed latches 16, 16, as will be hereinafter further discussed.

The faceplate member may be made from any suitable material and may take various forms, but in accordance with presently preferred construction it is molded from a durable resilient non-metalic plastic material. The illustrated faceplate member 12 is generally rectangular and has a forwardly facing frontal surface 18 and a rearwardly facing mounting surface 20. A generally rectangular frontal opening 22 formed in the faceplate member 12 extends through the faceplate member and opens through the frontal surface 18 for receiving the panel member 14 therein. A rearwardly offset and inwardly directed flange 24 integrally formed on the faceplate member extends around the frontal opening 22 and projects inwardly beyond the periphery of the frontal opening and toward the center of the latter opening defining a forwardly facing seating surface 26 for supporting the panel member 14 within the frontal opening.

The illustrated faceplate member 12 also includes a pair of integral catches 28, 28, shown in FIG. 2, and resiliently biased to holding positions, for releasably fastening the faceplate member to an associated supporting structure, such as a mounting frame on a device box or raceway, (not shown). However, it should be understood that other fastening arrangements may be provided for this purpose.

In accordance with presently preferred construction, the insert or panel member 14 is made from the same durable resilient non-metalic plastic material from which the faceplate member 12 is made The faceplate and panel members 12 and 14 are preferably identical in color, for a reason that will be hereinafter evident. The illustrated panel member 14 includes a generally rectangular panel 30 sized to be received within and substantially compliment the faceplate frontal opening 22. The panel 30 has front and rear surfaces respectively indicated at 32 and 34. The panel front surface 32 is generally contiguous to or coextensive with the faceplate frontal surface 18 when the panel 30 is disposed within the frontal opening 22 and in seating engagement with the seating surface 26.

Notches formed in the panel 30 open outwardly through the upper and lower peripheral edges of the panel and cooperate with the peripheral surface of the frontal opening 22 to define the latch operating apertures 17, 17. Rearwardly open upper and lower recesses 19, 19 are formed in the panel 30. Each recess 19 communicates with or opens into an associated latch operating aperture 17, substantially as shown and for a purpose which will be hereinafter apparent.

A generally rectangular fixture receiving opening 36 extends through the panel 30 and communicates with a fixture retaining structure, indicated generally at 38, integrally connected to and projecting rearwardly from the panel rear surface 34. As previously noted, the illustrated faceplate assembly 10 is particularly adapted to receive and support an electronic fixture, such as telecommunication jack (not shown), which is disposed within the fixture receiving opening 36, supported by the fixture retaining structure 38 and releasably retained in assembly with the panel member 14 in a manner well known in the art. Upper and lower end walls, respectively indicated at 40, 40, project rearwardly from the panel 30. The latter end walls are connected to and at least partially supported by the fixture retaining structure 38 and impart rigidity to the panel structure.

The latches 16, 16 for releasably retaining the panel member 14 in assembly with the frame or faceplate member 12 are substantially identical. Each latch member 16 is supported on the panel member 14 in rearwardly spaced relation to the panel 30 to cooperate with an associated keeper indicated at 41. In accordance with presently preferred construction, each keeper 41 is defined by an associated portion of the flange 24 carried by the faceplate 12.

The upper latch 16, as it appears oriented in the drawings, is integrally connected to and partially defined by the upper wall 40. A pair of parallel slots 42, 42 formed in the upper wall 40 extend rearwardly from the panel 30 to separate the upper latch 16 from the upper wall 40, as best shown in FIG. 3. Thus, the upper latch 16 is integrally connected to the upper wall 40 in rearwardly spaced relation to the panel 30 for resilient hinged flexure relative to the panel. An integral latch operator 44 at the forward end of the upper latch 16 cooperates with a cam member 46 integrally formed on the latch 16 and spaced rearwardly of the latch operator 44 to define a latching recess 48 for receiving the upper keeper 19, as best shown in FIG. 7. The latch 16 is supported on the upper wall 40 for resilient hinged flexure between latching and releasing positions, respectively indicated by full and broken lines in FIG. 7. In its latching position, the upper latch 16 is engaged with the upper keeper 41 defined by the flange 24 on the faceplate member. In its releasing or broken line position of FIG. 7 the keeper 41 is disposed outside of the latching recess 48 and the latch operator is at least partially disposed within the rearwardly open recess 19.

The latch operator has a latch releasing cam 50 for moving the latch 16 from its latching position to its releasing position in response to insertion of a latch releasing tool into the latch operating aperture 17. Specifically, the latch operator 44 has a forwardly facing latch releasing cam surface 50 thereon. The cam surface 50 is inclined rearwardly and outwardly away from the panel in a direction opposite the direction of latch movement from latching toward releasing position. Thus, insertion of a latch releasing tool, such as a small screwdriver, into the latch operating aperture 17 causes the latch 16 to move toward its releasing position upon engagement with the inclined cam surface 50. When the releasing tool attains a position between the free end of the latch operator and the faceplate the tool may be employed to move the latch to a releasing position to free an associated portion of the panel 30 from the faceplate.

When the upper latch 16 is in a releasing position it is at least partially disposed within the rearwardly open recess 19 in the panel 30. The latter recess is provided so that the upper latch operator may be located close to the panel surface 32. When the upper latch 16 is in its latching position the latch operator provides a substantial closure for the latch upper latch operating aperture 17. Since the latch is made form the same material as the panel the latch operator 44 in its latching position will not be readily visible to the casual viewer. The frontal surface of the panel 30 and the frontal surface of the faceplate 14 surrounding the panel will generally appear as a smooth uninterrupted surface.

Since the cam surface 50 on the latch operator is located within a relatively shallow latch operating aperture 17 the cam surface is immediately accessible for engagement by a tool for operation in response to insertion of the tool into the latch operating aperture 17. The latch operators 44, 44 in latching position are scarcely visible within the shallow apertures 17,17 and against the background of the same color provided by the frontal surfaces of the panel 30 and the faceplate 12.

Another faceplate assembly embodying the present invention is shown in FIG. 8 and indicated generally by the reference numeral 10a. The illustrated faceplate assembly 10a is substantially identical in most respects to the previously described panel assembly 10. However, the panel assembly 10a includes a faceplate 12a which is larger than the faceplate 12 and defines a generally rectangular frontal opening 22a which is substantially larger than the opening 22. The opening 22a is adapted to receive and contain a plurality of releasably retained modular insert panels 14a, 14a (two shown).