Patent Application
20130206553
The present lockout device and method for its use relates to the field of safety devices for use with electrical switches. Specifically, when connected to a circuit breaker switch or similar switch the present lockout device can prevent the switch from being moved from an OFF position to an ON position or vice versa without it first being disconnected from the switch.
Heavy machinery, which is typically connected to a power grid, must often be accessed or climbed upon in order to perform routine maintenance or repairs. One or more circuit breakers often control electrical power to such heavy machinery. When a worker enters or works upon this machinery, such circuit breakers are typically switched off in order to prevent it from being activated. Tragically, many workers have been killed or seriously injured when machinery has been activated either intentionally by people who do not realize that a worker or workers are inside the heavy machinery or unintentionally by people who accidentally come into contact with the circuit breaker switch, or similar switch and thus activate it.
Several lockout devices have been designed to prevent such accidental activations. See U.S. Patent Application 2004/0245077 by Benda as an example. Such lockout devices can be physically connected to the circuit breaker switch then locked into place through the use of a padlock or similar device. When properly installed, the lockout device can not be removed, and the circuit breaker switch cannot be turned on or off, until the padlock has been disconnected from the lockout device. By allowing users of such lockout devices to have complete control over a machine's electrical power, work can safely be performed in or on the machine without fear that an accidental activation of the machine will occur.
However, many present lockout devices use thumbscrews or similar attachment mechanisms to connect the lockout device to the circuit breaker switch. These attachment mechanisms can be unwieldy and can take considerable time and effort to properly connect to a circuit breaker switch. This can waste a substantial amount of time and can result in a poor connection between the lockout device and the circuit breaker switch if the user becomes impatient, or lacks the fine motor skills required to operate small thumbscrews or similar devices.
Furthermore, existing lockout devices do not offer a lockout tag holder. Under current Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations, a lockout tag identifying the owner of each lockout device must also accompany each device. Users of existing lockout devices typically attach their lockout tags to the padlocks used to secure each lockout device. However, this does not hold the lockout tags in any particular alignment and when multiple lockout tags are used in close proximity to one another, they can become disheveled, making them difficult to read.
What is needed is a lockout device that can be quickly and easily connected to, or disconnected from a circuit breaker switch, which can also comprise a lockout tag holder configured to neatly align multiple lockout tags in an arrangement that makes each easier to read.
It is an aspect of the present invention to provide a lockout device which can be quickly and easily connected to, or disconnected from a circuit breaker switch or similar electrical switch, and it is a further aspect of the present invention to provide a lockout device comprising a lockout tag holder configured to neatly align multiple lockout tags in an arrangement that makes each easier to read.
The above aspects can be obtained by a lockout device comprising: a lockout device comprising: a housing comprising a housing opening; a frame located within the housing opening, wherein the frame comprises a front end further comprising a front frame opening and a rear end further comprising a rear frame opening, and the frame further comprising a rear clutch comprising a rear clutch opening connected to the rear end of the frame and a front clutch comprising a front clutch opening connected to the front end of the frame; a sliding bar having a first end and a second end, wherein a jaw is connected to the first end of the sliding bar and the second end of the sliding bar is configured to pass through the front clutch opening, the front frame opening, then the rear clutch opening, and the rear frame opening; and a handle having a first end and a second end, wherein the first end is pivotably connected to both the housing and the frame and is configured to move between an open configuration and a closed configuration, wherein movement of the handle from the open configuration to the closed configuration causes the jaw to move toward the frame.
The above aspects can also be obtained by a lockout device comprising: a lockout device comprising: a housing having a first end comprising a housing opening and a second end comprising a housing slot; a frame connected to the first end of the housing and located within the first housing opening, wherein the frame comprises a front end comprising an opening and a rear end comprising an opening, wherein frame teeth are connected to the rear end of the frame; a rear clutch, comprising an opening, located near the rear end of the frame and a front clutch, comprising an opening, located near the front end of the frame; a large spring located within the frame, the large spring configured to push the handle away from the frame thus holding the lockout device in an open configuration; a small spring located between the rear clutch and the rear end of the frame, the small spring configured to push the rear clutch away from the rear end of the frame; a sliding bar having a first end and a second end, wherein a jaw comprising jaw teeth is connected to the first end of the slide bar and the second end of the slide bar is configured to pass through openings in the rear clutch, rear frame, front clutch, and front frame; and a handle having a first end and a second end, wherein the first end is pivotably attached to both the housing and the frame and is configured to move between an open configuration and a closed configuration, and wherein movement of the handle from the open configuration to the closed configuration causes the jaw to move toward the frame, and wherein a loophole, located at the second end of the handle is configured to pass through the housing slot when the handle is placed in the closed confi
The above aspects can also be obtained by a method using the lockout devices above.
Further features and advantages of the present device, as well as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the present device, will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the preferred embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:
This description of the exemplary embodiments is intended to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings, which are to be considered part of the entire written description. In the description, relative terms such as “lower,” “upper,” “horizontal,” “vertical,”, “above,” “below,” “up,” “down,” “top” and “bottom” as well as derivative thereof (e.g., “horizontally,” “downwardly,” “upwardly,” etc.) should be construed to refer to the orientation as then described or as shown in the drawing under discussion. These relative terms are for convenience of description and do not require that the apparatus be constructed or operated in a particular orientation. Terms concerning attachments, coupling and the like, such as “connected” and “interconnected,” refer to a relationship wherein structures are secured or attached to one another either directly or indirectly through intervening structures, as well as both movable or rigid attachments or relationships, unless expressly described otherwise.
The present lockout device can comprise an attachment mechanism that is similar to that used by many existing bar clamps. Specifically, the present lockout device can comprise a dual clutch plate mechanism capable of both moving a slide bar through openings located in each of the clutch plates and locking the slide bar in a particular position. In an embodiment, this dual clutch plate mechanism can be actuated by a handle and the sliding bar can be actuated by moving the handle radially about a pivot point located on the lockout device between an open configuration and a closed configuration. This attachment mechanism can be far easier to operate than those comprising other lockout devices, which require the use of a thumbscrew to initially connect the lockout device to a circuit breaker switch or similar electrical switch.
The present lockout device 100 can be a clamping device configured to be securely connected to a circuit breaker switch (not pictured), or similar switch. Any lockout device that can easily become dislodged from the circuit breaker switch to which it has been attached would be completely ineffective. Therefore, this connecting capability is of paramount importance to the overall functionality of any lockout device. Here, the clamping aspect of the present lockout device 100 can be achieved by a mechanism closely resembling that of many bar clamps. Not only can this design provide an extremely secure connection between the lockout device 100 and a circuit breaker switch, it can also be easy to operate, allowing for speedy connection and removal.
After the lockout device 100 has been connected to a switch, a padlock (not pictured) can be connected to the lockout device 100 through the use of a loophole 301 comprising the handle 213, according to an embodiment. A padlock's shackle (not shown in
In an embodiment, the rear clutch 208 can function as a release for the sliding bar 209. When the rear clutch 208 is placed in a position, that is roughly perpendicular to the sliding bar 209, the sliding bar 209 can be allowed to move freely through the openings 214 in the rear clutch 208 and the front clutch 207. In an embodiment, the lockout device 100, when placed in a closed configuration, can prevent access to the rear clutch 208 thus preventing the release of the sliding bar 209. Likewise, the jaw 210 can be connected to the sliding bar 209 and the jaw 210 can be prevented from moving if the sliding bar 209 has also been prevented from moving. Access to the rear clutch 208 can be prevented by moving the handle 213 parallel to, and abutted against the housing 201, thus preventing the sliding bar 209 from being released when the lockout device 100 is in a closed configuration.
In this view, the location where the frame teeth 212 can be connected to the frame 203 is clearly shown. Both the frame teeth 212 and the jaw teeth 211 (not shown in FIG.
4), can comprise serrated edges 412 configured to securely grip a circuit breaker switch (not pictured in
In this view, the attachment mechanism of the present lockout device 100 can clearly be viewed. The jaw 210 and jaw teeth 211 can be moved toward the frame 203 and frame teeth 212 by moving the sliding bar 209 toward the frame's front 503. Similarly, the jaw 210 and jaw teeth 211 can be moved away from the frame 203 and frame teeth 212 by moving the bar 209 toward the housing's back 501. Also clearly viewable in
In this view, the positions of the various parts comprising the lockout device 100 are shown as they would exist in an assembled lockout device 100, according to an embodiment. Specifically, the relative positions of the rear clutch 208 and the front clutch 207 are can be seen. Additionally, the connection of the handle 213 to the front clutch 207 is shown indicating how the front clutch 207 can be actuated by the handle 103, and specifically a cam 720 comprising the handle 103, when the handle 103 is moved back and forth between the closed configuration and the open configuration. In an embodiment, this actuation can be facilitated by the large spring 205, which can be configured so that the handle 103 will remain in the open configuration unless pressure is exerted and maintained against the handle 103 and it is moved into the closed configuration as shown in
This view also shows the position of the small spring 206 which maintains pressure against the rear clutch 208, holding the sliding bar 209 in place thus preventing the jaw 210 from moving. As discussed above, pressing the rear clutch 208 toward the frame 203 and compressing the small spring 206 can release the sliding bar 203, allowing the jaw 210 to be moved either toward or away from the frame 203. In an embodiment, the jaw 210 can be connected to the sliding bar 209 using a pin 709 or similar connection device.
Although the present device has been described in terms of exemplary embodiments, it is not limited thereto. Rather, the appended claims should be construed broadly, to include other variants and embodiments of the present device, which may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and range of equivalents of the present device.
This application claims benefit to provisional patent application No. 61/598,615 filed Feb. 14, 2012, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61598615 | Feb 2012 | US |
