This invention is directed generally to a busway electrical system, and, more particularly, to a busway having a plug-in outlet (PIO) with a fingerguard protection feature.
Busway electrical distribution systems are well known in the art of electrical distribution. Busway systems are comprised of a number of factory assembled sections each including a number of individually insulated generally flat electrical conductors or busbars stacked one upon another and enclosed within a housing which provides protection and support for the busbars. The busway sections include one or more plug-in outlets having a plurality of conductive stabs. In general, the plug-in outlets include openings that are provided through the housing of the busway system at each of a plurality of power tap-off sections to expose conductive material of the busbars for connection with an appropriate connecting jaw. A plug-in unit, which is used to tap off power from the busway, is attached to a base in the plug-in opening by mounting a plurality of jaws to a corresponding stab.
Present busway systems can use improved safety features for protecting an installer from unintentional contact between the installer's fingers and the conductive stabs. What is needed, therefore, is a fingerguard protection feature for a plug-in outlet that addresses the above-stated and other problems.
In an implementation of the present invention, a plug-in outlet for a busway system has a base mounted to a busway housing, wherein the base has an opening into which an electrical stab extends from a busbar of the busway system. A fingerguard is mounted to the base and floats within the opening thereof to provide self-aligning features over the stab, as achieved by its built-in tolerances. The fingerguard includes a central barrier for shielding a leading end of the electrical stab, the central barrier extending from side walls of the fingerguard and being separated by respective gaps from a top wall and a bottom wall of the fingerguard. The fingerguard further includes a top back latch and a bottom back latch for attaching the fingerguard to the stab, the top back latch and the bottom back latch extending from respective ones of the top wall and the bottom wall toward the stab and retaining the stab toward the fingerguard.
In an alternative implementation of the present invention, a plug-in outlet of a busway system has a plurality of self-aligning fingerguards, wherein the plug-in outlet has a base with openings into which a plurality of electrical stabs extend from respective ones of a plurality of busbars. Each of the fingerguards includes a plurality of walls, including a top wall, a bottom wall, and a pair of side walls, and a barrier extending internally from the side walls, the barrier being curved such that an internal space is formed to receive a leading end of a mounted stab. The fingerguard further includes a top aperture and a bottom aperture, the top aperture separating the barrier from the top wall and the bottom aperture separating the barrier from the bottom wall. A top back latch of the fingerguard extends from the top wall, is angled toward the mounted stab, and is flexible to engage and retain a stab ramp by a snap-fit action. A pair of front latches of the fingerguard engage the base and retain the fingerguard in position relative to the base.
Additional aspects of the invention will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed description of various embodiments, which is made with reference to the drawings, a brief description of which is provided below.
The invention may best be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
Although the invention will be described in connection with certain preferred embodiments, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to those particular embodiments. On the contrary, the invention is intended to include all alternatives, modifications and equivalent arrangements as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Referring to
Typically, the stabs 106 are welded to bus bars of the busway and are offset from one another to provide proper electrical clearances. The plug-in outlet base 100 serves as a mounting platform for a plug-in unit that includes a plurality of electrical connectors (or jaws) for inserting into the electrical openings 104.
When mounted, the jaws of the plug-in unit are in electrical contact with corresponding ones of the stabs 106. The stabs 106 are exposed through the openings 104 when the door 102 is opened or removed to install the plug-in unit. To prevent unintentional contact between the installer's fingers and the stabs 106, which may be electrically active if power is not disconnected to the busway before installation is attempted, each of the stabs 106 is protected by a fingerguard 110. As described in more detail below, the fingerguard 110 accommodates position variations of the stabs 106 that are caused by manufacturing clearances and/or thermal expansion.
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The fingerguard 110 can be formed at least in part from a dielectric plastic material using an injection molded manufacturing process. For example, a candidate material is Zytel® FR50, which is a 25% glass fiber reinforced, flame retardant black polyamide 66 resin for injection molding. Other suitable materials can be also used.
Two pairs of back latches 118 extend respectively from a back end of a top wall 120 and a bottom wall 122. Each pair of the back latches 118 is optionally separated via a center divider 124. The center divider 124 separates the back latches 118 to provide independently moving latches, which further enhance the floating capability of the fingerguard 110 to self-adjust itself based on positional variations of the stab 106. The back latches 118 are designed to engage a ramp (such as ramped ends 402 shown in
The fingerguard 110 further includes a pair of front latches 126 for engaging receiving slots of the plug-in outlet base 100 in a snap-fit configuration. The front latches 126 include a retaining end 126a for locating the fingerguard 110 in position with respect to the plug-in outlet base 100.
The fingerguard 110 also includes a pair of slots 128 for receiving edges of the leading end of the received stab 106. Each of the slots 128 is defined by a pair of holding bosses 130 for maintaining the stab 106 in mating position.
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When the fingerguard 110 is mounted, the hooked ends 118a of the back latches 118 engage ramped ends 402 of the stab 106 (shown in
The fingerguard 110 is configured to have one or more “floating” features that accommodate position variations of the stab 106, which are generally caused by manufacturing clearances and/or thermal expansion. The floating aspect is achieved by designed-in clearances, which include one or more of an X clearance, a Y clearance, a Y′ clearance, and a Z clearance, as further explained below. It is noted that the X, Y, Y′, and Z clearances are not necessarily along traditional axis X, Y, and Z.
The X clearance and the Y clearance allow self-adjustment between the fingerguard 110 and the plug-in outlet base 100. In general, the X clearance accommodates position variations of the stab 106 along a front-to-back direction to allow an in/out float, and the Y clearance accommodates position variations of the stab 106 along a top-to-bottom direction to allow an up/down float.
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The X clearance permits a front to back or in/out movement of the fingerguard 110 while still maintaining the fingerguard 110 properly mounted relative to the plug-in outlet base 100 and the stab 106, wherein the barrier 112 is properly placed over a leading end 404 of the stab 106 to shield it from contact with the installer's fingers.
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The Y′ clearance and the Z clearance allow self-adjustment between the fingerguard 110 and the stab 106. In general, the Y′ clearance accommodates position variations of the stab 106 along a top-to-bottom direction, and the Z clearance accommodates position variations of the stab 106 along a side-to-side direction.
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While particular embodiments, aspects, and applications of the present invention have been illustrated and described, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise construction and compositions disclosed herein and that various modifications, changes, and variations may be apparent from the foregoing descriptions without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.