Patent Application
20250164524
A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. 37 CFR 1.71 (d).
This invention relates generally to CT shorting terminal blocks, and more specifically to a test adapter for CT shorting terminal blocks for circuit terminal testing.
Prior art CT shorting terminal blocks are tested by connecting electrical wires to terminal posts thereof. The problem exists when the existing wires of the CT shorting terminal blocks are disconnected to connect testing wires thereto resulting in the interruption of electric current passing therethrough and possible arc flashing and electrocution of a person performing testing thereon. Accordingly, the present invention overcomes the disadvantages associated with the prior art, by providing a terminal block test adapted to be releasably attached to a terminal block for releasably connecting electrical wires thereto without breaking or shorting current flowing through the circuit terminal.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of CT shorting terminal block testers or the like in the prior art, the present invention provides a terminal block test adapter adapted to be releasably attached to a terminal block for releasably connecting electrical wires thereto without breaking or shorting current flowing through the terminal block. The terminal block test adapter includes a plurality of spring biased connector posts within post housings adapted to be linearly aligned with connector posts within post housings of the terminal block. When in use, a proximal end of each connector post of the terminal block test adapter is adapted to be used for releasably connecting a test wire thereto for electrical testing purposes without breaking or shorting current flowing through the terminal block, with all the advantages of the prior art and none of the disadvantages.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated.
Numerous objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description of presently preferred, but nonetheless illustrative, embodiments of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of descriptions and should not be regarded as limiting.
The figures which accompany the written portion of this specification illustrate embodiments according to the teachings of the present invention.
The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings.
The embodiments of the present disclosure described below are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise forms disclosed in the following detailed description. Rather, the embodiments are chosen and described so that others skilled in the art may appreciate and understand the principles and practices of the present disclosure.
The following embodiments and the accompanying drawings, which are incorporated into and form part of this disclosure, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, certain illustrative aspects of the invention are described herein in connection with the following description and the annexed drawings. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the invention can be employed and the subject invention is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. Other advantages and novel features of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the drawings.
Turning now descriptively to drawing, referring to
When in use, the terminal block test adapter 100 is releasably attached to the terminal block 200 via the two connector posts 240 of the terminal block, the plurality of post housings 120 of the the terminal block test adapter 100 are linearly aligned with the post housings 210 of the terminal block 200, and each head 142 of each respective plurality of biased posts 140 are adapted to be in contact with a respective head 220 of a respective post of the terminal block 200. And wherein when in use, each proximal end of each threaded bolt of the terminal block test adapter is adapted to be used for releasably connecting a test wire 300 thereto for electrical testing purposes without breaking or shorting current flowing through said terminal block. As an example, in
The main body 110 of the terminal block test adapter 100 further includes a hook portion 150 on each opposite end thereof, each adapted to engage with a respective connector post 240 located on the spaced locations of the terminal block 200.
The main body 110 of the terminal block test adapter 100 is formed from a non-conductive material, while the plurality of biased posts 140 are formed from a conductive material. And, the main body 110 of the terminal block test adapter 100 and the terminal block 200 are formed having a substantially rectangular shapes.
One of the most important aspects of the instant invention is that the springs 146 of the biased posts 140 ensure that the connection between the post heads 142 of the terminal block test adapter 100 remain in constant contact with post heads 220 of the terminal block 200. The prior art does not have this feature nor perform that function. As such, the instant invention is much safer and a great improvement over the prior art.
Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that any arrangement, which is calculated to achieve the same purpose, may be substituted for the specific embodiment shown. This application is intended to cover any adaptations or variations of the present invention.
Although the invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
