Patent Grant
8324500
Outlet covers or safety caps are used to reduce hazard to small children from shock and electrocution. Electrical outlets are usually installed at or near a child's eye level, drawing the attention of curious children. As many as 890 deaths occur each year from electrocution. According to one study, 86% of reported injuries caused by shock and electrocution involve children one to four years of age.
Safety caps are usually configured to lie flush against the plate surrounding the contact holes of an electrical outlet to prevent small children from placing objects in the contact holes, and to prevent them from removing the safety caps. However, safety caps are often difficult to remove, even for adults. This inconvenience may cause adults not to use safety caps as often as they would otherwise, exposing small children to risk of shock and electrocution. Other safety caps are configured with tapered sides or with raised edges surrounding the disk of the cap. These types of safety caps make it easier for adults to remove the safety caps, but also make it simpler for small children to remove them.
Disclosed is a safety cap, which is easily removed by adults, having a disk, one or more prongs, and one or more keyholes. The prong or prongs extend outwardly from the rear surface of the disk. When in place, the rear surface of the disk is in contact with the exterior surface of the electrical outlet and the prongs are secured tightly in the contact holes of the electrical outlet. The prongs are configured to provide sufficient resistance to removal from contact holes by children. The rear surface of the disk has one or more keyholes, which are configured to slidably couple with a device having a prong-sized projection, such as a second safety cap, for removal. To remove the safety cap, the prong of a second safety cap is slid into the keyhole of a first safety cap while the first safety cap is in use in an electrical outlet. The second safety cap is pulled outward, away from the electrical outlet, removing the prongs of the first safety cap from the contact holes to free the first safety cap from the electrical outlet.
The foregoing and other objects of the present inventions, the various features thereof, as well as the inventions themselves, may be more fully understood from the following description, when read together with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Referring to
Referring also to
The safety cap 10 has a plurality of prongs 14 that fit into the contact holes of an electrical outlet. The prongs 14 extend outwardly from the rear surface of the disk 12. The prongs 14 are shaped to fit the contact holes of the electrical outlet into which they are placed. Moreover, the prongs 14 are configured to be held tightly by the contact holes and to provide sufficient resistance to removal from the contact holes by children. The shape of the prongs 14 varies depending on the type of outlet the safety cap 10 is used to cover. For example, the prongs 14 can be two blade-like prongs to fit the contact holes found on a standard North American outlet, or there can be three that are cylindrical to fit the contact holes found on European outlets.
The edges of the disk 12 of the safety cap 10, with the exception of the notches on the interior-facing side of the safety cap 10 for the keyholes 16, can lie flush against the surface of the electrical outlet. Alternatively, the safety cap 10 can have raised edges that protrude away from the surface of the electrical outlet.
The safety cap 10 is made of, or coated with, an electrically non-conductive material including, but not limited to plastic, rubber, rubber-like polymers, or nylon. A phosphorescent material can be used to make or coat the safety cap 10 so that when activated by light or heat, the safety cap 10 emits a glow of light in low-light and dark environments for ease of seeing the safety cap 10 in the dark. The phosphorescent material can be mixed with electrically non-conductive materials to make or coat the safety cap 10.
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For convenience, certain terms employed in the specification, examples, and appended claims are collected here. Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. The initial definition provided for a group or term herein applies to that group or term throughout the present specification individually or as part of another group, unless otherwise indicated.
The articles “a” and “an” are used herein to refer to one or to more than one (i.e., to at least one) of the grammatical object of the article. By way of example, “an element” means one element or more than one element.
The term “or” is used herein to mean, and is used interchangeably with, the term “and/or,” unless context clearly indicates otherwise.
It is to be understood that while the methods and devices have been described in conjunction with the detailed description thereof, the foregoing description is intended to illustrate and not limit the scope of the inventions, which is defined by the scope of the appended claims. Other aspects, advantages, and modifications are within the scope of the following claims.
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6051788 | Nichols | Apr 2000 | A |
| 6674003 | Torres | Jan 2004 | B1 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20110300729 A1 | Dec 2011 | US |
