Information
-
Patent Grant
-
RE38120
-
Patent Number
RE38,120
-
Date Filed
Tuesday, October 10, 200023 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, May 20, 200321 years ago
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Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
- Reichard; Dean A.
- Patel; Dhiru R
Agents
-
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 174 53
- 174 54
- 174 61
- 174 63
- 174 48
- 174 50
- 248 343
- 220 32
- 220 33
- 220 39
- 220 402
- 052 39
- 362 404
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International Classifications
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Abstract
An improved electrical ceiling box including a top portion bounded by a peripheral side portion, with a pair of diametrically opposed ear lugs rigidly secured to the side portion. Each ear lug has a pair of ears integrally formed therewith extending inwardly into the interior cavity of the box. A first ear fits within a recess formed in the bottom edge of the box, while a second ear extends through a slot formed in the side portion of the box. The second ear has a mounting hole formed therein adapted for threaded engagement with a self-tapping screw, while the first ear has a receiving hole formed therethrough for supporting the distal end of the screw. In a preferred embodiment, the box has a substantially hexagonal configuration. In an alternative embodiment, the box has a circular configuration and is shallower, thereby eliminating the need for a pair of slots for receiving the first ears. Preferably, the ear lugs are formed from a heavier gauge material than the remainder of the box for improved strength and resistance to breakage from fatigue.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to electrical ceiling boxes and, more particularly, to an electrical box for mounting and supporting a ceiling fan, having improved mounting lugs for engaging the screws used to secure a ceiling fan.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Ceiling fans have become increasingly popular in both commercial and residential settings as a means for improving air circulation and, in many instances, reducing overall electrical consumption. Ceiling fan mounting assemblies come in a variety of configurations, but the vast majority are designed to be secured to a conventional electrical outlet box installed in a ceiling, i.e., a ceiling box. Conventional ceiling boxes have a pair of inwardly extending ears (flanges) integrally formed with the side portion, with each ear having a threaded hole for engaging a mounting screw used to support a ceiling fan. For ceiling fans, conventional ceiling boxes do not provide sufficient strength to serve as support structures, thus requiring additional mounting means for proper support.
Numerous efforts have been made to construct an electrical box suitable for use with heavier ceiling fans. One such effort is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,892,211 issued Jan. 9, 1990 to Jorgensen. The Jorgensen device is an electrical box having a diametrically opposed pair of ears in the same general manner as conventional boxes. In the Jorgensen box, however, the ears are unthreaded through holes, aligned with threaded mounting holes formed in the top portion of the box. The mounting screws used to support a ceiling fan pass through the holes in the ears and threadedly engage the mounting holes formed in the box. According to Jorgensen, this arrangement eliminates fatigue which can cause the ears to break off of conventional boxes. With the Jorgensen box, however, it is essential that a certain amount of clearance be maintained above the box to insure that the mounting screws are adequately engaged within the mounting holes formed in the top of the box. On some occasions, when an outlet box is mounted directly beneath a stud or ceiling joist, great care must be exercised to properly align the box during installation to insure that such clearance is maintained. Also, it is frequently difficult to thread the screws into the mounting holes since the holes, being recessed within the box, are hard to see, especially when a ceiling fan mounting plate blocks the installer's view. A need has been recognized for an improved electrical box for use with a ceiling fan which does not require any unusual care during installation of either the box or a ceiling fan, and which provides a superior mounting structure for supporting the fan.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of this invention to provide an electrical ceiling box specially adapted for mounting and supporting a ceiling fan.
It is another object to provide such an electrical box which is a structurally superior mounting surface as compared to conventional ceiling boxes.
A further object is to provide a ceiling box which is installed in a conventional manner.
A still further object is to provide a ceiling box which is structurally superior and allows installation of a ceiling fan in a conventional manner.
In order to achieve these and other objects, the present invention is an electrical box adapted to mount and support a ceiling fan, comprising a top portion and a side portion, the side portion rigidly coupled to the top portion and extending substantially normal thereto, forming a box open at one end and defining an interior cavity. A pair of first ears are rigidly secured to the side portion and extend inwardly into the interior cavity of the box, each of the first ears having a mounting hole formed therethrough threadedly engageable with a mounting screw used to attach a ceiling fan. A pair of second ears are rigidly secured to the side portion intermediate the first ears and the top portion and also extend inwardly into the interior cavity. Each of the second ears has an unthreaded receiving hole formed therethrough, through which the mounting screw can extend. The second ears provide lateral support for the mounting screws to prevent flexing of the first ears. In the preferred embodiment, the ears are integrally formed on a pair of ear lugs, which are welded to exterior surfaces of the box.
The above stated and other objects will become clear to those skilled in the art upon reading the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the appended drawing figures.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a side, bottom perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the ceiling box of this invention;
FIG. 2
is a bottom plan view thereof, on a reduced scale;
FIG. 3
is a side elevational view thereof;
FIG. 4
is a bottom plan view of an alternative embodiment;
FIG. 5
is a side elevational view of the alternative embodiment shown in
FIG. 4
;
FIG. 6
is an enlarged sectional view taken through a portion of the preferred embodiment;
FIG. 7
is a bottom plan view of the ear lug used in this invention;
FIG. 8
is an end view of the ear lug shown in
FIG. 7
;
FIG. 9
is a side sectional view of the ear lug; and
FIG. 10
is an elevational view of a portion of the exterior of the ceiling box, showing the slot and recessed area used to receive the ears of the ear lug.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring initially to
FIG. 1
, an electrical ceiling box
10
is shown, comprising a top portion
12
peripherally bounded by side portion
14
. Top portion
12
and side portion
14
may be formed from separate pieces of metal and rigidly secured to one another, as by welding, or they may be contiguous components of a single piece of metal formed by stamping or any other suitable process. As with conventional ceiling boxes, box
10
has an open end defined by edge
16
, which faces downward upon normal installation.
In the preferred embodiment of this invention, box
10
is generally octaganol in shape, as best seen in
FIG. 2. A
pair of slots
18
, best seen in
FIG. 10
, are formed in opposite sides of box
10
, as are a pair of recesses
20
formed in edge
16
. Each slot
18
and its accompanying recess
20
are specially adapted to receive ears
22
and
24
, respectively, of ear lug
26
, best seen in
FIGS. 7-9
. As seen in
FIG. 9
, ears
22
and
24
are spaced apart and separated by a web portion
28
, which preferably has a pair of raised buttons
30
formed thereon. Web
28
is preferably spot welded to the exterior surface of side portion
16
intermediate slot
18
and recess
20
, with ears
22
and
24
extending inwardly into the interior cavity of box
10
.
Top portion
12
of box
10
includes a plurality of holes
32
formed therethrough for use in securing box
10
to a conventional ceiling stud
34
by a screw
36
, as shown in FIG.
6
. In the preferred embodiment shown, ear
24
has a mounting hole
38
formed therethrough, while ear
22
has a receiving hole
40
formed therethrough. Mounting hole
38
has a smaller diameter than receiving hole
40
, and is adapted to be threaded upon operative insertion of a self-tapping screw
42
. A pair of screws
42
are preferably used to threadedly engage holes
38
on both ear lugs
18
to secure a conventional ceiling fan mounting plate
44
to box
10
. With ears
24
being substantially flush with the plane defined by edge
16
, holes
38
are easier to engage with screws
42
than in prior art devices having recessed mounting holes. Receiving hole
22
provides lateral support for the distal end of screw
42
, thereby preventing unwanted flexing of ear
24
which, in conventional boxes, frequently leads to stress-related failure. Furthermore, it is preferred that ear lug
26
be formed from a heavier gauge metal than top portion
12
and side portion
14
, thereby greatly enhancing the strength of box
10
when used to suspend a ceiling fan as disclosed herein.
An alternative embodiment of this invention is shown in the form of box
46
, depicted in
FIGS. 4 and 5
. As best seen in
FIG. 4
, box
46
comprises a top portion
48
peripherally bounded by a substantially circular side portion
50
. As with box
10
discussed above, top portion
48
and side portion
50
of box
46
are preferably pressed from a single piece of metal, to form an open-ended outlet box having a downward facing edge
52
upon installation. In addition to having a circular cross-sectional configuration, box
46
is also shallower than box
10
, which is preferable in certain mounting situations. Rather than having a pair of slots, such as slots
18
, formed in side portion
50
for receiving ears
22
of ear lugs
26
, ears
22
fits closely adjacent top portion
48
upon attachment of ear lugs
26
to side portion
50
, with top portion
48
having suitable opening formed therethrough in alignment with receiving holes
40
, thus allowing clearance for screws
42
. Preferably, ear lugs
26
are welded to side portion
50
, as with box
10
, but other attachment means may be found suitable for the purpose. Edge
52
preferably includes a pair of recesses
54
for receiving ears
24
, so that a generally flush surface may be maintained. Functionally, box
46
is substantially identical to box
10
.
As those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, the use of ear lugs
26
in a ceiling box such as boxes
10
and
46
disclosed herein will significantly increase the strength of the box for purposes of mounting and suspending a ceiling fan, which is particularly important when installing a heavier fan. While the principles of the invention have been clear from the foregoing discussion of a preferred embodiment and one alternative embodiment, it is to be understood that numerous modifications may be made in the embodiments disclosed herein without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention. Accordingly, the scope should be limited only by the language of the following claims and prior art.
Claims
- 1. An electrical ceiling box adapted to mount and support a ceiling fan, comprising:a top portion; a side portion rigidly coupled to said top portion and extending substantially normal thereto, forming a box open at one end and defining an interior cavity, said side portion having an exterior surface; a pair of first ears rigidly secured to said side portion and extending inwardly into said interior cavity , each of said first pair of ears having a mounting hole formed therethrough; a pair of second ears rigidly secured to said side portion intermediate said first pair of ears and said top portion and extending inwardly into said interior cavity , each of said second pair of ears having a receiving hole formed therethrough, each of said receiving holes being axially aligned with one of said mounting holes, wherein each of said mounting holes is adapted to threadedly engage a screw for mounting and supporting a ceiling fan thereto, and each of said receiving holes is adapted to allow said screw to extend non-engagingly therethrough,; andsaid first and second pairs of ears being integrally formed on a pair of ear lugs, each of said pair of ear lugs having a web and one of said first pair of ears and one of said second pair of ears formed thereon, said first and second ears on each of said lugs being spaced a distance from each other and separated by a webone of said first pair of ears and one of said second pair of ears on each of said lugs extending from said web toward said interior cavity, and on each of said pair of lugs said web spacing one of said first pair of ears from one of said second pair of ears thereby supporting said screw at two spaced locations along a length of said screw.
- 2. An electrical box as set forth in claim 1, wherein:said top portion and said side portion are integrally formed with one another.
- 3. An electrical box as set forth in claim 1, wherein:said side portion has a distal edge defining said open end of said box; said side portion has a pair of slots formed therein for receiving said second ears; and each of said lugs is secured to said exterior surface of said side portion with one of said first ears extending into said interior cavity adjacent said distal edge and one of said second ears extending through one of said slots.
- 4. An electrical box as set forth in claim 1 wherein:said web is spot welded to said exterior surface of said side portion.
- 5. An electrical box adapted to mount and support a ceiling fan comprising:a top portion; a side portion rigidly coupled to said top portion and extending substantially normal thereto, forming a box open at one end and defining an interior cavity, said side portion having an exterior surface; and a pair of lugs, each of said pair of lugs having a first and a second ear integrally formed with, and separated by, a web portion, said web portion of each of said pair of lugs being rigidly secured to said side portion, said first and second ears extending inwardly intotoward said interior cavity, said first ears being disposed adjacent said open end of said box, each of said first ears having a mounting hole formed therethrough and each of said second ears having a receiving hole formed therethrough, said mounting holes being axially aligned with said receiving holes, wherein each of said mounting holes is adapted to threadedly engage a screw for mounting and supporting a ceiling fan thereto, and each of said receiving holes is adapted to allow said screw to extend non-engagingly therethrough.
- 6. An electrical box as set forth in claim 5, wherein:each of said web portions is secured to said side portion by welding.
- 7. An electrical box as set forth in claim 5, wherein:said first ears are substantially flush with said open end of said box.
- 8. An electrical ceiling box adapted to mount and support a ceiling fan, comprising:a top portion; a side portion rigidly coupled to said top portion and extending substantially normal thereto, forming a box open at one end and defining an interior cavity, said side portion having an exterior surface; said side portion has a distal edge defining said open end of said box; a pair of first ears rigidly secured to said side portion and extending inwardly intotoward said interior cavity, each of said first ears having a mounting hole formed therethrough; a pair of second ears rigidly secured to said side portion intermediate said first ears and said top portion and extending inwardly intotoward said interior cavity, each of said second pair of ears having a receiving hole formed therethrough, each of said receiving holes being axially aligned with one of said mounting holes, wherein each of said mounting holes is adapted to threadedly engage a screw for mounting and supporting a ceiling fan thereto, and each of said receiving holes is adapted to allow said screw to extend non-engagely therethrough; said first and second ears are integrally formed on a pair of ear lugs, each of said pair of ear lugs having one of said first pair of ears and one of said second pair of ears formed thereon, said first and second pairs of ears being spaced apart and separated by a web; said side portion further including a pair of slots formed therein for receiving said second ears; and each of said pair of ear lugs being secured to said exterior surface of said side portion with one of said first ears extending intotoward said interior cavity adjacent said distal edge and one of said second ears extending through one of said slots.
- 9. An electrical ceiling box adapted to mount and support a ceiling fan, comprising:a top portion; a side portion rigidly coupled to said top portion and extending substantially normal thereto, forming a box open at one end and defining an interior cavity, said side portion having an exterior surface; a pair of first ears rigidly secured to said side portion and extending inwardly intotoward said interior cavity, each of said first ears having a mounting hole formed therethrough; a pair of second ears rigidly secured to said side portion intermediate said first ears and said top portion and extending inwardly intotoward said interior cavity, each of said second ears having a receiving hole formed therethrough, each of said receiving holes being axially aligned with one of said mounting holes, wherein each of said mounting holes is adapted to threadedly engage a screw for mounting and supporting a ceiling fan thereto, and each of said receiving holes is adapted to allow said screw to extend non-engagingly therethrough; said first and second ears being integrally formed on a pair of ear lugs, each of said ear lugs having one of said first ears and one of said second ears formed thereon, said first and second ears being spaced apart and separated by a web, said web being rigidly secured to said exterior surface of said side portion.
- 10. An electrical box adapted to mount and support a ceiling fan, comprising:a top portion; a side portion rigidly coupled to said top portion and extending substantially normal thereto, forming a box open at one end and defining an interior cavity, said side portion having an exterior surface; and a pair of lugs each of said lugs comprises a first and second ear integrally formed with, and separated by, a web portion; and said web portion of each of said lugs is rigidly secured to said side portion, said side portion has a pair of slots formed therein for receiving said second ears, said web portions being secured to said exterior surface of said side portion with said second ears extending inwardly through said slots, said first and second ears extending inwardly intotoward said interior cavity, said first ears being disposed adjacent said open end of said box, each of said first ears having a mounting hole formed therethrough and each of said second ears having a receiving hole formed therethrough, said mounting holes being axially aligned with said receiving holes, wherein each of said mounting holes is adapted to threadedly engage a screw for mounting and supporting a ceiling fan thereto, and each of said receiving holes is adapted to allow said screw to extend non-engagingly therethrough.
- 11. An electrical box adapted to mount and support a ceiling fan, comprising:a top portion; a side portion rigidly coupled to said top portion and extending substantially normal thereto, forming a box open at one end and defining an interior cavity, said side portion having an exterior surface; and a pair of lugs rigidly secured to said side portion, each of said lugs comprises a first and second ear integrally formed thereon, and each of said lugs having a central elongate web portion having an upper and lower end, one of said first ears being formed on said upper portion and one of said second ears being formed on said lower portion, said first and second ears being spaced apart and separated by said web for accommodating a screw at two spaced locations along its length, said first and second ears extending inwardly intotoward said interior cavity, said first ears being disposed adjacent said open end of said box, each of said first ears having a mounting hole formed therethrough and each of said second ears having a receiving hole formed therethrough, said mounting holes being axially aligned with said receiving holes, wherein each of said mounting holes is adapted to threadedly engage the screw for mounting and supporting a ceiling fan thereto, and each of said receiving holes is adapted to allow the screw to extend non-engagingly therethrough.
- 12. An electrical ceiling box adapted to mount and support a ceiling fan, comprising;a top portion; a side portion rigidly coupled to said top portion and extending substantially normal thereto, forming a box open at one end and defining an interior cavity, said side portion having an exterior surface; a pair of first carsears rigidly secured to said side portion and extending inwardly intotoward said interior cavity; a pair of second ears rigidly secured to said side portion intermediate said first ears and said top portion and extending inwardly intotoward said interior cavity, each of said first and second ears having an aperture for supporting a mounting screw, said first and second ears being integrally formed on a pair of ear lugs, each of said ear lugs having one of said first ears and one of said second ears formed thereon, said first and second ears on each of said lugs being positioned in axially spaced relation to each other and separated by a web, thereby supporting said screw at two spaced locations along a length of said screw , and said first and second ears on each of said lugs extending form said web toward said interior cavity.
- 13. An electrical box adapted to mount and support a ceiling fan comprising:a top portion; a side portion rigidly coupled to said top portion and extending substantially normal thereto, forming a box open at one end and defining an interior cavity, said side portion having an exterior surface; and a pair of lugs rigidly secured to said side portion, each of said pair of lugs having a first and a second ear formed therewith and separated by a web portion having a vertical extent, said first and second ears extending from said side portion inwardly toward said interior cavity, said first ears being disposed adjacent said open end of said box and each having a mounting hole formed therethrough, and each of said second ears having a receiving hole formed therethrough, said mounting holes being axially aligned with said receiving holes and spaced therefrom a distance which is substantially equivalent to the vertical extent of said web, and each of said mounting holes being adapted to threadedly engage a screw for mounting and supporting a ceiling fan thereto, and each of said receiving holes being adapted to allow said screw to extend non-engagingly therethrough.
- 14. An electrical box as set forth in claim 13, wherein said web of at least one of said pair of lugs abuts said side portion.
US Referenced Citations (46)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
2 194 691 |
Mar 1988 |
GB |
Divisions (1)
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Date |
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08/375438 |
Jan 1995 |
US |
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09/685936 |
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Reissues (1)
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08/375438 |
Jan 1995 |
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09/685936 |
|
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