The preferred embodiments of the conduit of the present invention, as well as other objects, features and advantages of this invention, will be apparent from the accompanying drawings wherein:
The present invention is a conduit clamp that secures a plurality of power and communication conduits in such a manner that each conduit can be independently tightened and loosened. The conduit clamp is particularly well suited for use with a poke-through electrical floor box, which typically has three conduits entering the bottom of the box in close proximity, with one conduit used for power and the other two conduits used for communication signals. However, the conduit clamp is not limited to use with poke-through electrical boxes, nor the type of wiring in the conduits, and can be used in any application that requires multiple conduits to be securely held in place.
The conduit clamp has first and second clamp halves that are joined together to form first and second clamp sections with independently adjustable conduit supports for a plurality of power and/or communication conduits. The first and second clamp halves have substantially similar and corresponding shapes so that they are easily joined together to form the conduit clamp. The first and second clamp halves each have an upper portion (also referred to herein as front and rear clamp components, respectively) and a lower portion (also referred to herein as front and rear clamp members, respectively) that are connected by a flexible bridge, which is described in more detail below. The front and rear clamp components join together to form the first clamp section and the front and rear clamp members join together to form the second clamp section. Each of the clamp halves also has an interior side and an exterior side, wherein the interior sides come in contact when the clamp halves are joined.
In one embodiment, the conduit clamp has three conduit supports, two outer conduit supports in the first clamp section and a center conduit support in the second clamp section. The first clamp section has an aperture or passageway, preferably between the two outer conduit supports, that is aligned with the center conduit support in the second clamp section (also referred to herein as the lower conduit support) and that has a diameter greater than the diameters of the outer conduit supports. When conduits are secured in the outer conduit supports, the aperture/passageway allows conduits secured in the center conduit support to pass through the first clamp section without restriction. After the center conduit is in the desired position, the center conduit support is tightened and the conduit is secured in place.
The two clamp sections include a plurality of independently adjustable conduit supports which allow the support for one conduit to be tightened or loosened without affecting the other conduits supported by the clamp. When the plurality of conduits extend vertically, which is the case when conduits are connected to a poke-through electrical floor box, at least one of the conduit supports in the first clamp section engages a first conduit at a different elevation than another conduit support in the second clamp section engages a second conduit. In preferred embodiments, the center (i.e. lower) conduit support in the second clamp section engages a center conduit and unrestrictedly passes through the aperture in the first clamp section, while the two outer supports independently engage communication conduits.
In a preferred embodiment, the upper portion of each clamp half has three semicircular regions on the interior side that extend from the top surface to the bottom surface and the lower portion of each clamp section has one semicircular region that extends from the top surface to the bottom surface. When the first and second clamp halves are joined together, the interior sides contact each other and the upper portions of the clamp halves form the first clamp section and the lower portions of the clamp halves form the second clamp section. The three semicircular regions in each of the upper portions are correspondingly located so that, when the two clamp halves are joined together, the semicircular regions form three apertures (referred to herein as the center aperture and two outer apertures) with parallel axes in the first clamp section. The outer apertures are used for the outer conduit supports and the center aperture/passageway is located intermediate the outer apertures. Similarly, the semicircular regions in the lower portions (i.e., the front and rear clamp members) are correspondingly located and form the center/lower conduit support in the second clamp section when the two clamp halves are joined together.
Each of the semicircular regions that form the outer and center/lower conduit supports in the first and second clamp sections, respectively, can have upper and lower engaging flanges. The flanges extend from the top and bottom surfaces of the first and second clamp components and the first and second clamp members and define a recessed area in each of the semicircular regions. When a conduit is secured in one of the conduit supports, it is engaged by the side surfaces of the flanges. In a preferred embodiment, the side surfaces of the flanges have a series of ridges that help to grip the conduit when the clamp is tightened and prevent the conduit from slipping through the conduit support.
The conduit clamp includes a plurality of fasteners that affix the first and second clamp halves together and independently secure the conduits in the conduit supports. One or more fasteners in the first clamp section are tightened to secure conduits in each of the outer conduit supports and, at the same time, affix the upper portions of the first and second clamp halves (i.e., the front and rear clamp components) together. The fasteners can be loosened to independently disengage the conduits from the outer conduit supports so that one or both of the conduits can be freely moved without restriction. Similarly, one or more fasteners in the second clamp section are tightened to secure a conduit in the center conduit support and affix lower portions of the first and second clamp halves (i.e., the front and rear clamp members) together. The fasteners can be loosened to disengage the conduit from the center/lower conduit support so that the conduit can be freely moved without restriction. Moreover, since the diameter of the center aperture in the first clamp section is larger than the outside diameter of the conduit, the fasteners in the first clamp section do not have to be loosened to allow the conduit in the center/lower conduit support to be freely moved.
Preferably, the first and second clamp sections are provided with at least two fasteners and each conduit support has at least one fastener associated with it for securing the conduits. The first clamp section has at least one fastener on either side of the center aperture and the second clamp section has at least one fastener on either side of the center/lower conduit support. A variety of different fasteners and configurations can be used. In one embodiment, the first and second clamp halves have apertures at corresponding locations so that a bolt or screw can pass through both halves and be secured by a nut. In another embodiment, one of the clamp halves has an aperture and the other clamp half has a tapped (also referred to as threaded) hole. A screw or bolt passes through the aperture and is screwed into the tapped hole. The screws in the first clamp section are loosened to release the conduits secured by the outer conduit supports and the screws in the second clamp section are loosened to release the conduit secured by the center/lower conduit support. This allows separate and individual adjustment of each of the conduits within the conduit clamp.
In a preferred embodiment, the first and second clamp halves of the conduit clamp include one or more inter-mating alignment structure, which allow the two halves to be properly aligned so that the fasteners can be quickly and easily inserted into the apertures. The inter-mating alignment structures are formed at corresponding locations on the interior sides of the two clamp halves that contact each other when they are joined together. Such inter-mating alignment structure are well known to those skilled in the art and, typically, include one or more bumps or protrusions on one of the clamp halves that correspond to one or more cavities in the other clamp half. When the two clamp halves are joined together, the cavities receive the bumps or protrusions and confirm to the user that the clamp halves are properly aligned.
The conduit clamp has a ‘T’ with the cross-bar of the ‘T’ formed by the first clamp section having the two outer clamp supports and the center aperture/passageway. The vertical portion or stem of the ‘T’ is formed by the second clamp section having the center/lower conduit support. In preferred embodiments, at least one communication conduit is supported by one of the outer conduit supports along the cross-bar of the ‘T’ and a center conduit is supported by the center/lower conduit support in the stem of the ‘T.’ The outer conduit supports and the center/lower conduit support are connected along the stem of the ‘T’ by a bridge. The bridge is flexible so that the conduit clamp can accommodate and individually adjust conduits having different diameters. The bridge can flex either inwardly or outwardly, depending on whether the conduit in the center/lower conduit support is smaller than or larger than the conduits in the outer conduit supports. If all of the conduits are the same size, the bridge does not have to flex. The bridge is preferably made from a flexible piece of metal, an elastomer or a plastic.
In one embodiment, the center conduit is a power conduit and the center aperture/passageway in the first clamp section is axially aligned with the center/lower conduit support in the second clamp section. The center aperture/passageway is larger in diameter than the center/lower conduit support so that the center conduit can pass through the first clamp section without interference. This allows the center/lower conduit support to be independently adjusted without affecting the conduits secured in the outer conduit supports in the first section. The center conduit unrestrictedly passes through the center aperture/passageway, which is located at the same elevation as and intermediate the pair of outer conduit supports.
Referring to the drawings, one embodiment of the conduit clamp 10 of the present invention is shown in
While not shown in the drawings, center/power conduit 82 typically extends a distance underneath the floor 94 and connects to a junction box where power wiring is connected. Also, not shown in the drawings are connection fittings that couple low voltage conduit runs to communications conduit 84. Both the junction box and these connection fittings are typically located underneath the clamp 10, rather than intermediate the clamp 10 and the floor 94.
Thus, a conduit clamp 10 that can support the communication conduit 84 and permit adjustment of individual conduits without affecting the support of adjacent conduits is desirable. It is also desirable to accomplish this within the confines or limitations typically imposed by a poke-through electrical floor box 90. Preferably, the conduit clamp 10 is made from a metallic material, but it can also be made from a non-metallic material, such as a plastic.
Referring now to
As shown in
The front and rear clamp components 16, 18, which form the first clamp section 12, and the front and rear clamp members 20, 22, which form the second clamp section 14, are connected by first and second flexible bridges 42, respectively. If the center conduit 82 has a larger diameter than the outer conduits 84, the flexible bridges 42 move outwardly from the axis of the center conduit 82 and allow the lower support 40 to independently secure the center conduit 82, while the first clamp section 12 independently secures the communications conduits 84.
As shown in
Each outer conduit support 46 is shaped for engaging and supporting a conduit 84 therein, preferably a conduit 84 for communications wiring (see
The clamp 10 is configured so that one screw 50 can be loosened to independently adjust one of the communications conduits 84 secured in an outer conduit support 46 without affecting or loosening the outer conduit support 46 for the other communications conduit 84. Moreover, loosening the screws 50 that secure the communications conduits 84 to the clamp 10 does not affect the support for the clamp 10, which is firmly secured to the center conduit 82 via the center/lower conduit support 40 in the second clamp section 14 (see
While the screws 50 and the thru holes 28, 44 and threaded holes 30, 45 are described in detail herein, it is understood that different fastener types are equally suitable for securing the clamp halves 24, 26 together. The only requirement for the fasteners is that they are capable of independent operation so that individual conduits 80 can be separately adjusted as needed without releasing the other conduits 80 secured in the clamp 10.
As shown in the embodiment illustrated in
During installation, the position of the clamp 10 can be adjusted by moving or sliding the clamp 10 along the conduits 82, 84 to the desired elevation. This is done before the screws 50 joining the two clamp halves 24, 26 are fully tightened and after the clamp halves 24, 26 are aligned using the alignment guides 32, 34. After the clamp 10 is positioned at the desired location, the screws 50, and particularly the screws 50 associated with the center/lower conduit support 40, are tightened to securely affix the clamp 10 to the center conduit 82. Then, the outer/communication conduits 84 can be independently adjusted, by loosening and/or tightening the respective screws 50, without affecting the other outer/communication conduit 84. Again, the reason one of the communication conduits 84 may need adjustment is that these conduits 84 are not secured to the floor box 90 as is the center conduit 82. Instead, the communication conduits 84 slide into or are pushed upward against box 90 and, hence, the possible need for adjustment.
While select preferred embodiments of this invention have been illustrated, many modifications may occur to those skilled in the art and, therefore, it is to be understood that these modifications are incorporated within these embodiments as if they were fully illustrated and described herein.
This application claims priority from provisional application Ser. No. 60/802,236, filed on May 19, 2006, which is incorporated herein in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60802236 | May 2006 | US |