INTEGRATED ASSEMBLY FOR DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRIC SIGNALS

Field of the invention

The present invention generally concerns the building industry and relates to systems for electric power distribution, LAN and telephone networks, cable broadcast and the like.

More particularly, the present invention provides an integrated assembly for distribution of electric signals for connecting plugs of electric and/or electronic power consuming units in home or work environments.

Background art

Electric power distribution networks and telephone connections are typically installed in home and work environments. Wiring may be also provided for LAN networks, cable broadcast or distribution of electric signals for different uses.

Such wiring is generally run in conduits that are mounted within the walls for aesthetic reasons and are connected to junction boxes and enclosures with sockets and/or switches, also known as bodies, possibly mounted thereto and held in position by plates and keeper plates.

The conduits and boxes that form with the wiring an integrated assembly for distribution of electric signals have a fixed arrangement and, due to their being almost totally embedded within the walls, they provide an integrated assembly that is not easy to change.

While cables may be added or replaced to some limited extent and with some difficulty, there is very little room for adding or changing the arrangement of the conduits and boxes. Such changes would require extensive masonry reconstruction work, and would make such changes more complex, time consuming and costly.

This is obviously a serious drawback of prior art integrated assemblies for distribution of electric signals, especially in view of a change of use of the premises in which such integrated systems are used.

A typical example of such condition is constituted by work premises. In such environments, there is often the need of changing the position of workstations, in response to staff reorganization or new intended use of the premises. This generally involves a different arrangement of sockets in junction boxes. Such complex rearrangements often require the use of free-hanging cables, extensions or the like which are both unpleasant to the view and dangerous for workers' safety.

In attempt to obviate the above drawbacks, conduits and junction boxes and enclosures have been provided in the art, which are designed to be mounted outside the walls. Due to their unpleasant appearance, they often have aesthetically improving shapes. As an example, baseboard raceways are provided.

These solutions increase the versatility of integrated assemblies for distribution of electric signals. Nevertheless, they still suffer from some of the above drawbacks.

Firstly, the position of boxes is fixed and can be only changed by changing the composition of the integrated assembly. Such changes are not simple, and involve installation works which also affect the walls.

Obviously, the addition of further boxes also involves the above drawback.

An additional drawback is that boxes are generally disproportionate relative to the conduits and excessively large.

Integrated assemblies for distribution of electric signals are known, in which the conduits have substantially laminar electrically conducting members therein,

which are stably connected to the conduits and extend all along the conduits. These are generally bars, which are stably associated with the inner walls of the conduits, and are used for carrying electric power. Their use avoids the use of enclosures for the sockets of the electric system. Such sockets can be directly mounted to the conduits in any position and have metal projections to provide electric contact between the socket and the above mentioned bars.

It will be appreciated that this embodiment allows to limit the above mentioned drawbacks, by reducing the use of boxes in the electric signal distribution system. Nevertheless, it will not apply to electric signals that cannot be carried by the above mentioned laminar members.

These laminar members are electromagnetically unshielded and the signals carried thereby are affected by noise and interference. While this constitutes no problem for electric power distribution, it becomes a problem if electric signals belong to LAN networks, come from antennas, from audio and/or video cable distribution systems, i.e. for low voltage and/or current electric signals.

Furthermore, since the laminar members are required to be at a distance from each other, they occupy a large space in the conduits, wherefore the conduits have a large size when considering the small number of electric signals being carried.

Also, such conduits allow no addition of laminar electric conductors besides those provided at the time of installation, and limit the possibility of changing the integrated assembly to the arrangement of sockets, while preventing the addition of further electric signals to be distributed.

Disclosure of the invention

The main object of the present invention is to obviate the above mentioned drawbacks by providing an integrated assembly for distribution of electric signals, allowing to change the arrangement and composition of the integrated

assembly without requiring any masonry works and preserving the aesthetic and functional requirements of the premises.

A further object of the present invention is to reduce or even eliminate the use of enclosures.

These and other objects, as better explained hereafter, are fulfilled by an integrated assembly for distribution of electric signals for connecting plugs of electric and/or electronic power consuming units, which comprises: - at least one conduit consisting of a hollow section designed to be attached to a wall, such section having a first longitudinal compartment with a front longitudinal opening;

- a plurality of electric conductors held within the conduit;

- at least one interface element adapted for electric connection to said electric conductors, said interface element having an inner portion designed to be snap-fitted into said first compartment and an external socket adapted for connection to one or more power plugs of electric and/or electronic power consuming units, which is characterized in that said inner portion of said at least one interface element includes connectors for electric connection of at least one of said electric conductors with said external socket, said electric conductors being electric cables of variable length to allow longitudinal displacement and fixation of each interface element in any position within said first compartment.

Thus, the furniture and positions of the electric and/or electronic power consuming units may be rearranged anytime. The present integrated assembly can be easily changed by removing the relevant interface elements from their positions in the first compartment of the conduit and displacing them to the desired location by simply appropriately rearranging the electric cable in the conduit.

For this purpose, a sufficient cable length should be left in the conduit, during installation. Thus, the electric cables will suitably be at least as long as the conduits and are disposed therein in a folded arrangement.

In another aspect of the invention, each of the electric conductors has electric leads designed to be coupled to connectors, for electric connection between the conductor and the external socket.

This advantageously increases modularity and allows the integrated assembly to be easily changed.

According to a further aspect of the invention, the inner portion of the interface elements has movable projections extending from its outer surface to define a position in which it is extracted from the interface element and a position in which it is retracted in the interface element so that, in the extracted position, the movable projections mechanically interact with corresponding undercuts formed on the lateral surfaces of the first compartment, to stably retain the interface element therein.

This provides the additional advantage of allowing the interface element to be introduced anywhere along the conduit, and to remove it therefrom by actuating appropriate actuator means for moving the projections from the extracted position to the retracted position and vice versa.

In another aspect of the invention, for sockets to be easily positioned without affecting the exterior appearance of the conduit, the longitudinal opening of the first compartment is closed by a plurality of first lids in mutually adjacent positions, whose length is at least equal to the width of the inner portion of the interface element, to define a plurality of positions over the conduit, in which such inner portion may be inserted.

Thus, the placement of a new interface element or its displacement from one point to another does not advantageously require any physical change of the lids or the use of new lids, in addition to those initially supplied with the conduit.

Brief description of the drawings

Further features and advantages of the invention will be more apparent from the detailed description of a few preferred, non-exclusive embodiments of an integrated power distribution assembly of the invention, which are described as non-limiting examples with the help of the annexed drawings, in which:

- FIG. 1 is an axonometric view of the integrated power distribution assembly of the invention;

- FIGS. 2 to 5 show a few details of the integrated assembly 1 of the invention; - FIGS. 6 and 7 show a variant embodiment of the integrated power distribution assembly of FlG. 1.

Detailed description of a preferred embodiment

Fig. 1 shows an integrated assembly 1 for distribution of electric signals, for connecting plugs of electric and/or electronic power consuming units according to the invention. It comprises:

- at least one conduit 2 consisting of a hollow section 3 adapted to be mounted to a wall; - a plurality of electric conductors 4 held within the conduit 2;

- at least one interface element 5 adapted for electric connection to the electric conductors 4.

Particularly, the section 3 has at least one first longitudinal compartment 6 having a longitudinal front opening 7.

As also shown in the example of Fig. 2, the interface element 5 in turn has an inner portion 8 which is designed to be snap-fitted into the first compartment 6

and an external socket 9 adapted for connection to one or more power plugs of electric and/or electronic power consuming units.

According to the invention, the inner portion 8 of the interface element 5 includes, as shown in the example of Fig. 3, connectors 10 for electric connection of at least one of the electric conductors 4 with the external socket 9. Furthermore, the electric conductors 4 are electric cables 11 of variable length, allowing longitudinal displacement and fixation of each interface element 5 in any position within the first compartment 6.

Thus, as mentioned above, the furniture and positions of the electric and/or electronic power consuming units may be rearranged anytime. For this purpose, the electric cables 11 introduced into the conduits 2 during installation are at least as long as the conduits 2. Such cables are obviously accommodated in the conduits 2 in a single- or multi-folded arrangement.

Note that the conduits 2 in the figures are in the form of a baseboard. This configuration allows them to be concealed and used for other purposes. However, this embodiment shall not exclude other embodiments of the invention in which the conduits are used for different purposes, or for their natural conduit purpose only. In this case, their shape will respond to such second purposes.

The versatility of the integrated power distribution assembly 1 of the invention is increased by providing each electric conductor 4, as shown in the example of Fig. 4, with electric leads 15 designed to be coupled with the connectors 10 for electric connection of the electric conductor 4 with the external socket 9.

It shall be noted that, in the simplest embodiment, the termination consists of the end part of the stripped cable.

In any case, the interface element 5 has a modular construction, and its destination may be changed by replacing the external socket 9. Therefore, the

conduits 2 of the integrated assembly 1 of the invention may contain multiple electric cables 11 for different uses, each having such electric leads 15, for easy change of the integrated assembly 1. Accordingly, one need simply extract the desired cable 11 from the conduit 2 and connect its termination 15 to its appropriate interface element 5, whose inner portion 8 will be later inserted into the first compartment 6 at the desired location.

Fig. 3 shows an interface element 5 for power distribution, whereas Fig. 4 shows an interface element 5 for telephone signal distribution. These are two possible examples of the interface elements that can be used in the integrated system of the invention. Further examples include interface elements for distribution of signals of a LAN network, for cable broadcast, etc. The latter will not be shown for simplicity, as they are equivalent in all respects to those in the annexed figures.

A further particular example may be a multiple outlet socket. This is obtained by forming the interface element with a cross shape, like a common multiple outlet socket, or by providing multiple aligned external outlets within an elongate interface element to simulate the multiple outlet commonly known as "power strip". Apparently, in any case, the same interface element has an inner portion adapted to snap fit into the first compartment of the conduit.

It shall be further noted that the termination 15 of Fig. 4 consists, as mentioned above, of the end part of the electric cable, that is stripped for easy insertion into and easy contact with the connectors 10. In other cases, as shown in Fig, 4, the termination 15 is another connector, e.g. a male connector designed for connection with a corresponding portion of the connector 10 belonging to the outlet 9.

As mentioned above, for easy insertion and removal of the interface element 5, the inner portion thereof, as shown in Fig. 3, has movable projections 16 extending from its outer surface to define an extracted position and a retracted position so that, in the extracted position, the movable projections 16

mechanically interact with corresponding undercuts 17, one embodiment whereof is shown in Fig. 5, formed on the lateral surfaces of the first compartment 6, to stably retain the interface member 5 therein.

Actuator means 18 are provided therefor for a user to move such projections 16 from the extracted position to the retracted position and vice versa.

It will be understood that, since the proposed integrated system 1 uses external conduits 2, its exterior appearance is a critical factor, wherefore the front openings 7 providing access to the compartments of the conduits 2 have to be suitably covered. This also fulfils a safety requirement, in that electric cables 11 are required to be sheltered.

For these reasons, the conduits 2 have lids 18 for closing such compartments. Particularly, the front opening 7 of the first compartment 6 is closed by a plurality of first lids 20 arranged in side-by-side relationship whose length is at least equal to the width of the inner portion 8 of the interface element 5 to define, in said first compartment 6, a plurality of positions for insertion of the inner portion 8.

This allows insertion of new interface elements 5 or displacement of elements 5 from one point to another, without physically changing the lids 18.

According to another aspect of the invention, each of such first lids 20 is a closure element elastically hinged on one side to a first edge 21 of the first compartment 6 for elastic pivotal motion thereabout. Also, the second edge 22 of the first compartment 6 has a projection which is adapted to stop the elastic pivotal motion of the closure element when it obstructs at least one portion of the front opening 7.

Typically, the elasticity of the pivotal motion of the closure element that forms the first lid 20 may be provided by one or more springs orthogonal to the surface defined by each first lid 20, or disposed along the pivoting axis of such

first lid 20. Such solutions are only two examples of the various possibilities of imparting elasticity to the pivotal motion, and shall not be intended to limit the present invention in any manner.

In any case, besides improving the appearance of the conduit 2, such elastic pivotal motion of the first lid 20 relative to the first edge 21 of the first compartment 6 also allows easier and quicker change of the inventive integrated assembly 1 for distribution of electric signals.

The figures annexed to the present patent show that there are two compartments 6, 25, parallel and separated by partitions 26. This shall not be intended to exclude different embodiments of the invention, in which the number of compartments is other than one and two. In any case, the provision of multiple compartments addresses various needs.

First, electric cables designed for different uses are required to be separated for safety reasons and to avoid mutual interference and noise.

Furthermore, the distribution of electric cables in different compartments, provides a more orderly cable arrangement in the proposed integrated system for easy maintenance and change thereof.

In one variant of the invention, multiple first compartments may be also provided, each dedicated to one or more uses, i.e. holding cables and interface elements for different types of electric and/or electronic units.

In any case, the compartments may be arranged to communicate with each other by one or more through holes formed in the partitions therebetween. This is needed to allow the passage of electric compartments from one compartment to another. For example, it may be desirable to maintain the first compartment as clear as possible. Thus, a second compartment will hold as much electric cable as possible, and only the strictly required cable portion will be passed into the first compartment.

It shall be noted that the through holes may also have the form of slots, which may be closed or, in different embodiments, open. In this case, if the electric cables are equipped with electric leads, the latter may also be accommodated in the second compartments. Otherwise, the electric leads, if present, shall be preferably, but without limitation, accommodated in the first compartment, to avoid the need of assembling them to the electric cable when changing the integrated assembly of the invention.

Concerning the interface element 5, the inner portion 8 has at least one through hole 27 for the electric conductor 4 to access the interface element 5.

As described and illustrated above, the integrated assembly for distributing electric signals 1 according to the present invention may include electric power distribution cables associated to special interface elements, as shown in Fig. 1 and in the detail of Fig. 3.

In accordance with an additional variant embodiment of the invention, as shown in Fig. 6, the integrated assembly 100 of the invention may be designed with a conduit 102 including mainly longitudinally extending laminar bodies 130 formed of electrically conducting materials, and stably associated with the walls 131 of at least the first compartment 106.

These laminar bodies 130, which are generally bars, are adapted to be used as known in the art for distributing electric power. Thus, as shown in Fig. 7, the inner portion 108 of the interface element 105 will have electrically conducting projections 140 on its outer surface, which are designed for contact with such laminar bodies 130 and for electric contact with the connector.

Such projections may be specially designed or simply consist of one or more of the movable projections that mechanically interact with the corresponding undercuts in the conduit to stably hold the interface element therein.

It shall be noted that the laminar bodies can be also used to serve other types of electric and/or electronic power consuming units, provided that the electric signals carried thereby are not sensitive to noise or interference caused by poor shielding.

In operation, during installation of various systems in a room, an operator lays the conduits 2 along the relevant walls. The conduits 2 should be laid along all the walls of all the rooms, to avoid the need for further works. The use of such conduits 2 as baseboards, as suggested in the annexed figures, addresses this need.

Then, the operator will introduce all the required electric cables 11 into the conduits 2 with their appropriate electric leads 14. Finally, the operator will close the front openings 7 of the compartments 6, 25 of the conduits 2 with their lids 18.

The interface elements 5 may be added by the operator or by the user him/herself. This process consists in determining the most appropriate locations for each electric and/or electronic unit, extracting the termination 15 of the relevant cable 11 from the conduit 2, introducing it into the interface element 5 while causing it to be operably associated with the connectors 10, and inserting the inner portion 8 of the interface element 5 into the first compartment 6 of the conduit 2 at the desired location.

It will be appreciated that any change to the integrated system 1 of the invention is particularly simple. In case of addition of new interface elements 5, if the relevant cables 11 are already provided, the above described process will be sufficient, otherwise new electric cables 11 will have to be provided in the conduit 2.

In case of displacement of interface elements 5 from one location to the other, these may be simply extracted from the first compartment 6 and inserted in the new positions. It shall be noted that the particular embodiment of the first lids 20

described above allows such operation to be carried out without removing and replacing them.

The electric cable 11 shall obviously have to be laid again. For this purpose, it shall be simply extracted or reintroduced in a folded arrangement into its compartment in the conduit 2. If such compartment is the first compartment 6, this is easily obtained by pulling it from the appropriate end. However, if the cable is designed to be laid along two compartments 6 and 25, there may be the need of removing the lid 18 of the second compartment 25 to pull the cable 11 through the hole of the partition between the two compartments 6, 25 and appropriately dispose it. This would be an easy and direct operation for anyone.

The above disclosure clearly shows that the integrated assembly for distribution of electric signals of the invention fulfils all the intended objects, and particularly allows the arrangement and composition of the integrated assembly to be changed without requiring any masonry change and preserving the aesthetic and functional requirements of the premises.

Namely the invention, both in its main embodiment and in its variants reduces or even eliminates the use of junction enclosures.

It shall be understood that the integrated assembly of this invention is susceptible of a number of further changes and variants, in addition to those mentioned above, within the inventive principle as disclosed in the appended claims.

Furthermore, all the details may be replaced by technically equivalent elements or components, and any size, shape and material may be used according to various needs.