Electrical apparatus to be directly coupled to sheathed cable and to wall structures

0001ELECTRICAL APPARATUS TO BE DIRECTLY COUPLED TO SHEATHED CABLE AND TO WALL STRUCTURES

0002BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION I. Field of the Invention

0003The present invention relates generally electrical apparatus adapted to be directly coupled non-metallic sheathed cable without the necessity o removing the sheathing and/or insulation from th wires of the cable. The present invention relate more specifically to electrical switch and/or plu receptacle apparatus which are adapted to be s coupled to the sheathed cable and which are furthe adapted to be secured to a wall or like structur without the necessity of a junction box or the like. II. Description of the Prior Art

0004In construction of buildings such as homes offices and the like, it is necessary to provid electrical plug receptacles (also referred to a outlets) and electrical switches (to control lights for example) along the walls of such buildings Conventionally, to provide electricity to the plu receptacles and/or switches, metal or plastic junction box units are mounted at various locations within the walls of the building. Cables comprised of three or more wires are then strung within the walls and between various junction boxes such that looped portions and/or one or more terminal ends of cables are positioned within each junction box. The cable is then coupled at one end to a source of supply such as at a fuse or breaker box and at the other end (or ends) to the plug receptacles, switches, lights, etc.

0005Typically, a non-metallic sheathed cable includes three wires. One of the wires is referred to as a hot wire and is coated with a black plastic insulation. A second wire is referred to as a neutral wire and is coated with a white plastic insulation. Finally, the third wire is referred to as a ground wire and it is not coated with insulation. The ground wire is, however, usually surrounded by paper and the hot and neutral wires are disposed on opposite sides of the ground wire and parallel thereto. In this manner, a flat cable is formed which has a width greater than its height in cross-section. The three side-by-side wires (including any insulation and paper) are then encapsulated in a plastic non-conduct- ing sheath. Thus, to couple the cable to the power source and the apparatus (e.g., plug receptacle or switch) , access must be had to the individual wires within the cables in order to connect the individu wires to the appropriate junctions at the source a at the electrical plug receptacle and/or swit apparatus. The manner in which the wires are connect to the plug receptacle and/or switch device typical requires substantial expenditure of time and labor accomplish. For example, it is known to provi screws about which individual wires of the cable m be received and then secured to threaded conducto attached to the housing or body of the plug receptac or switch apparatus. These conductors are th coupled electrically to the respective plug receptac contacts or switch poles within the housing of t apparatus.

0006To make the typical electrical interco nection just described, an electrician must typical make a cut in the looped portion of the cable whi was strung through the junction box. This cut i usually made to sever the cable into two portions whereby to have two terminal ends of the cable avail able in the junction box. Whether a loop is cut, or terminal end of a cable is previously available at t junction box, the individual wires cannot be readi accessed until the electrician removes a portion the sheathing material from each terminal portion o the cable. During this operation, not only is ti required, the electrician must be careful not to nick any of the insulation covering either of the hot or neutral wires. Thereafter, the electrician must strip or remove some of the insulation from those wires which are to be coupled to the plug receptacle and/or switch device. Further, if the terminal end of one wire is to be coupled to the terminal end of another wire so as to complete a circuit, some of the insula¬ tion of those wires must similarly be removed and the exposed portions of those wires held together by devices referred to as a wire nuts or the like. With specific reference to a switch apparatus, for example, the neutral and ground wires of one cable would typically be electrically joined with the neutral and ground wires, respectively, of another cable and held together with wire nuts, whereas the hot wires would be connected to respective junctions of the switch so as to couple each hot wire to a respective pole of the switch. Once the selected wires are connected to the junctions of the plug receptacle or switch apparatus, and the various wires joined together with wire nuts as before described, all of the wires, the wire nuts, and the housing of the plug receptacle or switch apparatus must be placed within the junction box. Thereafter, the plug receptacle or switch apparatus is usually secured to the junction box by a pair of screws which are threadably received in threaded lug extending from the junction box walls. A cover plat may then be placed over the front of the plug recepta cle or switch apparatus and secured thereto by one o more screws, as is conventional. The junction box i further necessary for safety to insure that someone o something does not accidentally come into contact wit the otherwise exposed junctions on the plug receptacl or switch apparatus and/or any wire portion which ma otherwise be left or become exposed.

0007All of these foregoing steps necessari-l entail much time on the part of highly-paid electri cians, thus making the labor costs associated wit wiring a building structure very expensive. Simi larly, material costs can become quite large due t the necessity of providing junction boxes in associa tion with each plug, receptacle and/or switch appara tus, as well as the various wire nuts and the lik which are utilized to join certain of the wire together within the junction boxes. Further, wit existing structures, it is often necessary to open u a large access area in the wall ir: order to install new or additional junction be::, such as where a outlet is to be added. Subsequer- iy, the wall must b patched around the periphery of the new unction box Such procedures can be very time consuming and costl and may discourage addition of further electrical plu receptacles or switches to existing structures. Devices have been proposed to eliminate certain of the above-mentioned time-consuming steps, such as providing a plug receptacle and/or switch apparatus with insulation piercing structures by which individual wires of the sheath cable may be coupled to the device without the step of removing the insulation therefrom. Devices of this type are shown by way of example in United States Patents Nos. 4,500,746; 4,379,605; 3,710,305; 3,163,482; 2,934,737; 2,952,004; and 2,873,435. Specifically, the terminal end of an insulated wire would be placed within the structure and the apparatus thereafter manipulated to cause a conductive knife or edge to pierce through the insu¬ lation and make electrical contact with the wire within. The conductive knife or edge is electrically coupled to a plug receptacle contact or switch pole within the housing of the apparatus whereby the wire is then electrically connected to the contact or pole. While this type of apparatus may save the time neces- sary for the electrician to strip the insulation from the wire, it does not save the time necessary for the electrician to cut away the sheathing nor does it eliminate the need for caution to avoid damage to the insulation and/or wires within the cable when removing the sheathing.

0008With the foregoing time-saving devices, it is still also necessary for the electrician to strip the insulation and join together the exposed termin ends of those wires which must be separately join together to form a complete circuit. Here, to apparatus has previously been devised by which t terminal ends of wires may be coupled together witho stripping the insulation, such as shown by way example in United States Patents Nos. 4,451,104 a 1,290,153. Such apparatus might eliminate one of t steps mentioned above, but suffer from the sa drawbacks of not eliminating certain time-consumi steps such as removing the sheath, nor do they rend unnecessary the precautions necessary as describ above. Further, such apparatus still require t expenditure of material costs. That is, some separa apparatus is still required to join the wir together. In any event, applicants are not aware th such insulation piercing devices have been used connection with the large gauge of wire in t sheathed cables commonly encountered in buildi structures. It is further a possibility that su devices have not been employed in wiring pl receptacle and/or switch apparatus because they m have to ^"be much larger than currently-used wire nu in order to accommodate the gauge of the wir involved. There is only limited space within t junction box to place all of the wires and relat coupling structures, as well as the housing of t plug receptacle or switch apparatus. Hence, the possibility of requiring large size for the insulation piercing coupling devices would make them undesirable and,, even if used, such devices would not eliminate the -.time expenditure necessary to actually join the wires.

0009Finally, it has been known to utilize insulation piercing techniques to couple each wire of a two wire cable to the respective conductors of an electrical lamp or the like, such as shown in U.S. Patent No. 1,500,641. The cable shown therein com¬ prises only a pair of wires which are surrounded by the same insulation. Further, the device of that patent is not disclosed to accommodate a cable wherein the wires are separately insulated. Moreover, it does not appear possible with that device to accommodate a three wire sheathed cable of the type which is commonly encountered in wiring utilized for building structures. Indeed, there is no provision in that device for electrically coupling to more than two wires.

0010The present invention, therefore, has as an object to provide an electrical apparatus which can be coupled to a sheathed cable having three or more wires therein without the necessity of removing the sheath¬ ing and/or insulation of the individual wires within the sheathing. A further object of the present invention to provide such an electrical apparatus in which o or more wires in one cable may be electrically coupl to one or more wires in another sheathed cable witho the necessity of cutting either of the cables.

0011An even further, object of the prese invention is to provide such an electrical apparat in which one or more wires of one cable may be coupl to one or more wires in another cable without t necessity of removing sheathing and/or insulation fr either of the cables.

0012A yet further object of the present inve tion is to provide such an electrical apparatus which selected wires of a cable may be electrical coupled to the appropriate contacts or poles of a pl receptacle or switch while simultaneously electrical coupling those selected wires to selected wires another cable.

0013A still further object of the present inve tion is to provide such an electrical apparatus which selected wires of a cable may be electrical coupled to the appropriate contacts or poles of a pl receptacle or switch while simultaneously electrical coupling those selected wires to selected wires another cable without the necessity to remove t sheathing and/or insulation of the individual wir within the sheathing of either of the cables. A still further object of the present invention is to provide such an electrical apparatus wherein the wires of the cables are inaccessible once the cable is coupled to the apparatus for safety purposes.

0014An even further object of the present invention is to provide such an electrical apparatus of the aforementioned type which can be mounted to a wall or the like of a building structure without the necessity to utilize junction boxes for the wiring or to hold the apparatus.

0015A yet further object of the present inven¬ tion is to provide an electrical switch apparatus which can be coupled to respective and electrically isolated portions of a selected wire of a sheathed cable without the necessity for separately cutting the cable and/or wire and without the necessity of remov¬ ing sheathing and/or insulation from the cable or wires thereof. A further object of the present invention is to provide apparatus of the aforementioned type which is relatively simple and straiσh orward in use and has few moving parts associated therewith. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION .To achieve the foreσcing objects, and in accordance with the purposes cf the invention as embodied and broadly described herein, an electrical apparatus is provided which comprises a non-conducti housing in which first and second electrical condu tors are placed and which are in respective electric communication with respective electrically conducti piercing tangs which extend from the housing. T apparatus further includes a channel to longitudinal receive a portion of a sheathed cable and to positi the cable such that the wires to be coupled to t conductors within the housing are in overlying rel tionship with respective electrically conducti piercing tangs. A clamp is provided for moving t cable portion toward the tangs so as to drive t tangs through the cable sheathing and any insulati surrounding the respective wires such that ea electrically conducting piercing tang is electrical connected to a selected wire portion of the cabl There is thus provided a simple-to-use electric apparatus which with relatively few moving parts c be coupled to a sheathed cable (i.e., having three more wires) without removing the sheathing or a insulation from the cable, thereby reducing labor a reducing the possibility of damaging a wire of t cable.

0016To interconnect wires of two cables, t above apparatus is provided with a second set electrically conducting piercing tangs extending fr the housing and also coupled to the conductors with the housing. The apparatus is also further provided a second channel to longitudinally receive a portion of a second sheathed cable and to position the second cable such that the wires are in overlying relation- ship with respective ones of the second set of electrically conducting piercing tangs. The clamp is adapted to move both the first and second cable portions toward a respective set of tangs so as to drive the tangs of each set through the cable sheath- ing and any insulation surrounding the respective wires of a respective cable such that the respective wires of one cable are in electrical communication with the respective wires of the other through the conductors within the housing. There is thus provided an electrical apparatus by which one or more wires of the cables may be electrically coupled to one or more wires of another cable without cutting the cables and without removing the sheathing and/or any insulation from either of the cables. The conductors within the housing of the apparatus of the present invention may be coupled to the respective contacts of a plug receptacle or poles of a switch. Thus, when two cables are secured to the electrical apparatus of the present invention, the cables are simultaneously connected to provide the desired electrical switch or plug receptacle function and also to electrically join the wires of two cables. This duality of purpose is accomplished simultaneousl thereby eliminating the need to remove sheathin and/or insulation with its attendant benefits as wel as further reducing the amount of labor and material previously necessary.

0017With respect to the plug receptacle appara tus, each electrical conductor is connected to respective plug contact and the tangs are offse within the channel so as to be in overlying relation ship with a different wire of the cable. With respec to the switch apparatus, each conductor within th housing is connected to one pole of a switch and th housing is further provided with a cutting blad positioned between the piercing tangs such that as th cable is driven toward the piercing tangs, the knif edge slices through one edge of the sheathing and on of the wires within, the cable so as to electricall cut the wire into two respective wire portions Further, the tangs are aligned in the channel so tha as the cable is pushed toward the tangs, one tang wil contact one of the wire portions and the other wil contact the other wire portion such that the poles o the switch are coupled to each of the wire portions Thus, when the switch is in the off or open position the two wire portions will be electrically separated whereas when the switch is in the on or close position, the two wire portions will be in electrica communication. Thus, there is provided an electrical switch apparatus which can be coupled to respective and electrically isolated portions of a selected wire of a she.athed cable without the electrician having to cut the cable or wires and/or remove sheathing or insulation.

0018The present invention further provides mechanism whereby the apparatus may be directly secured to a wall or like structure, thereby completely eliminating the cost and labor associated with' the junction box as before described. The structure contemplated by the present invention to accomplish same includes a pair of spaced wall-gripping tabs extending away from the housing, and with mechanism to draw the two tabs toward one another once a portion of a wall is placed therebetween so as to grip the wall securely.

0019In order to provide added safety, the channels are provided with removable end walls so that selective portions of the cable may be placed in the channel such as where a cable terminates at the electrical apparatus. By removing an end wall at only one end of the channel, a terminal portion of- 'the cable may be placed in the channel such that the other end is not accessible exteriorly of the housing. On the other hand, if a portion of a looped cable is to be coupled to the apparatus, both end walls may be removed and the portion of the cable fitted in th channel such that the cable extends from both end thereof. By provision of the foregoing, there is thu provided an electrical apparatus which can be elec trically coupled to a sheathed cable such that no wir thereof will be exposed from the cable once the cabl or cables are coupled to the apparatus. Thus, th need to provide a junction box wherein wire nuts an the like would be received and protection would b provided against someone or something making elec trical contact with the junctions of the device o exposed wires is no longer necessary.

0020By virtue of the foregoing, the variou objects of the invention may be accomplished and th advantages thereof obtained.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

0022The accompanying drawings, which are incor porated in and constitute a part of this specifica tion, illustrate preferred embodiments of the inven tion and, together with a general description of th invention given above, and the detailed description o the preferred embodiments giver, below, serve t explain the principles of the invention.

0023Fig. 1 is a <img file="WO9102387A1_D0001.tif" /> , partially explode view of an electrical plug receptacle apparatus show mounted to a portion of a structural wall, al according to the principles of the present invention; Fig. 2 is an exploded view of the plug body and its contents of the electrical plug receptacle apparatus of Fig. 1;

0024Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the clamp of the electrical plug receptacle apparatus of Fig. 1 shown from the opposite side from that of Fig. 1;

0025Fig. 4 is a perspective, partially cut-away, and partially exploded view of an electrical switch apparatus according to the principles of the present invention;

0026Fig. 5 is a side view of the assembled electrical switch apparatus of Fig. 4 taken along line 5-5 of Fig. 4; and

0027Fig. 6 is a schematic representation of the electrical switch apparatus of Fig. 4 in a completed circuit arrangement.

0028The above general descriptions of the following detailed description are merely illustrative of the generic invention, and additional modes, advantages, and particulars of this invention will be readily suggested to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. ^' DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

0029Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiments of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. With reference to Figs. 1 and 2, there i shown an electrical plug receptacle apparatus according to the teachings of the present invention Plug receptacle apparatus 5 is comprised of a housin having a plug body 7 and its contents (see Fig. 2) an a clamp 9. A bolt 10 and a washer 11 are provided b which to secure clamp 9 to the back of body 7.

0030Plug body 7, which may be seen in explode detail in Fig. 2, is comprised of integral plasti housing 14 having four contiguous side walls 15, 16 17 and 18 and an interconnecting front wall 20. Fron wall 20 is comprised of a plurality of rectangula slots 21, 22 and circular slots 23 (shown in dotte line) which are positioned to provide a duplex ar rangement as is well known for receiving the mal tines or power prongs and male ground lug of a ground ed plug (all not shown) . Front wall 20 is furthe provided with a threaded bore (not shown) in th center thereof to receive a screw 24 by which a cove plate 25 is held to plug receptacle apparatus 5 i conventional fashion.

0031Housing 14 is accessible through its ope back as seen in Fig. 2 and has contained between sid walls 15-18, a plurality of integral walls 27 t define a plurality of channels 30-33. Channel 30 i defined between left side wall 15 and a wall 27, an is configured to receive a similarly shaped conducto 40 therein such that respective ends of conductor 40 are in communication with and situated rearwardly of rectangular slots 21 of front face 20. Channel 31 is defined between right side wall 17 and another of walls 27 and is configured to receive a similarly shaped conductor 41 therein such that respective ends of conductor 41 are in communication with and situated rearwardly of rectangular slots 22 of front face 20. Channel 32 is defined between bottom side wall 18 and walls 27 while second channel 33 is defined between top side wall 16 and others of walls 27. Channels 3"2, 33 are configured to receive respective end portions of conductor 42 such that each end portion of conductor 42 is in communication with and situated rearwardly of a selected one of circular slots 23 of front wall 20. Extending rearwardly from housing 14 is a threaded tube 36 into which the threaded shank of bolt 10 is to be received to draw clamp 9 into engagement with plug body 7 as will be described hereafter.

0032Conductors 40-42 are each integral metal strips or bands folded or formed as shown in Fig. 2. Specifically, conductor 40 includes a flat top wall 44 adapted to rest upon the tops of walls 27 when conduc- tor 40 is received in channel 30. Extending from wall 44 in a first direction are upper and lower L-shaped legs 45. Legs 45 extend into arcuate strips 46, 47 which are configured to match the configuration o channel 30 so as to hold conductor 40 snugly therein Strips 46, 47 terminate in similarly-formed U-shape female contacts 48. Each contact 48 is adapted t receive a male tine or power prong of an electrica plug (not shown) when it is inserted through a slot 2 in front wall 20 so as to make an electrical an mechanical connection between conductor 40 and th plug prong (not shown) . Top wall 44 of conductor 4 is notched as at 49 to provide clearance from threade tube 36. Finally, extending from opposed ends of wal 44 and in a direction opposite that of legs 45 are pair of electrically conductive insulation piercin tangs 50, 60. Conductor 41 is similar to conductor 40 an includes a flat top wall 54 adapted to rest upon th tops o walls 27 when conductor 41 is received i channel 31. Likewise, extending in a first directio from wall 54 are upper and lower L-shaped legs 55 eac of which extends into a respective arcuate strip 56 57 configured to match the configuration of channel 3 so as to hold conductor 41 snugly therein. Strips 56 57 terminate in similarly-formed U-shaped femal contacts 58 adapted to receive s male tine or powe prong of an electrical plug (not shown) inserte through a slot 22 in front wall 20 so as to make a electrical and mechanical connection between conducto 41 and the plug prong (not shown) . Top wall 54 is notched as at 59 to provide clearance from threaded tube ,36. Finally, extending from opposed ends of wall 54 and in a direction opposite legs 55 are a pair of electrically conductive insulation piercing tangs 51, 61.

0033.Conductor 42 also includes a flat top wall 64 adapted to rest upon the tops of walls 27 when conductor 42 is received such that respective end portions thereof are received within channels 32 and 33. Extending from left and right sides of wall 64 near the bottom end thereof are a pair of opposed L-shaped legs 65, each of which extends generally in the same direction as legs 45 and 55 of conductors 40 and 41, respectively. Each of legs 65 terminates at the mid-section of a leg 66 of a U-shaped female ground^' lug receiver.67. Legs 66 are joined by a back wall 68 to define the U-shaped female ground lug receiver 67. Legs 66 and legs €5 cooperate to cause legs 66 to be resiliently urged toward each other. Extending from the left and right sides of plate 64 toward the top thereof are a second pair of legs 69 which are substantially similar to legs 66 and define another U-shaped female ground lug receiver. Legs 69 are likewise resiliently urged *cward one another. Top wall 64 is provided with a hole 70 through which is received tube 36. When conductor 42 is positioned within housing 14, legs 66 extend into channel 32 as to receive a ground lug of an electrical plug (n shown) when it is inserted through a slot 23 in fro wall 20 so as to make electrical and mechanic connection between conductor 42 and the plug grou (not shown) . Similarly, legs 69 will be received channel 33 so as to receive a male ground lug of electrical plug (not shown) when it is insert through the other of slots 23 in front wall 2 Finally, extending from opposed top and bottom ends flat wall 64 and in a direction opposite legs 65, 6 and 69 are a pair of electrically conductive ins lation piercing tangs 52, 62.

0034As can be seen in Fig. 1, each of tan 50-52 and 60-62 include a plurality of teeth 75 whi are adapted to pierce the sheathing and insulation a non-metallic sheathed cable and make electric contact with a respective wire portion thereof as wi be explained hereafter. As can also be seen from Fi l , tangs 50 and 60 are spaced apart a first distan of approximately 1}", tangs 51 and 61 are spaced apa a second distance of approximately 1", and tangs and 62 are spaced apart a third distance of appro imately li". The above spacing is provided in t preferred embodiment in order to allow selected wir of a pair of cables to be coupled together through t electrical plug receptacle apparatus 5 of the present invention as will be described hereafter.

0035Once conductors 40-42 are received within their respective channels 30-33 of housing 14, backing plate 78 is received thereover to hold the conductors within housing 14. Backing plate 78 is preferably an integral plastic piece comprised of top and bottom blocks 79 and center block 81 joined by webs 80 to define a pair of channels 84 and 85. Webs 80 are provided with a plurality of offset slots 86 through which the teeth 75 of tangs 50-52 and 60-62 are received so that when assembled as in Fig. 1, tangs 50-52 extend into channel 84 and tangs 60-62 extend into channel 85. To hold backing plate 78 to housing 14, top and bottom blocks 79 are each provided with a tab 87 (only one shown) . Each of tabs 87 is matingly and lockingly receivable in mating notches or detents 88 (only one shown) in top and bottom side walls 16 and 18, respectively, of housing 14. Note that side walls 15 and 17 are notched as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 to form the opposite ends of channels 84, 85 when plate 78 is secured to housing 14.

0036Threaded tube 36 is offset with respect to the center of at least two opposed walls of housing 14. Preferably, tube 36 is centered with respect to left and right side walls 15 and 17, but off-center with respect to top and bottom walls 16 and 18. Web 80 and center block 81 of backing plate 78 are provi ed with a similarly offset hole 89 to receive tube 3 therethrough. The offset will become apparent i connection with the subsequent discussion of alignme of clamp 9 to plug body 7.

0037Clamp 9 of electrical plug receptac apparatus 5 is a trapezoidal plastic block as seen i Figs. 1 and 3. Clamp 9 has left and right side wal 95, 96 interconnected by a front wall 97. Form integral front wall 97 are a pair of C-shaped channe 100, 101 which have an exterior width W (measur

0038E parallel walls 95, 96) approximately equal to slightly less than the width of channels 84, 85 s that channels 100, 101 of clamp 9 may be receive within channels 84, 85, respectively, of plug body when clamp 9 is secured thereto. Front wall 97 o clamp 9 is provided with an offset hole 102 throu which is receivable the threaded shank of bolt 10 (se Fig. 1) so as to secure clamp 9 to plug body 7 b threading bolt 10 into tube 36. Due to the offset o hole 102, only when channel 100 is aligned wit channel 84 will hole 102 be aligned with tube 36 This prevents application of clamp 9 to plug body with the wrong clamp channel 100 or 101 in housi channel 84 or 85. This can be important when couplin multiple cables to apparatus 5 and/or to make su that the wires of the cable are coupled to the appropriate conductors within housing 14 for polari¬ zation purposes.

0039Each of clamp channels 100, 101 preferably extends from left wall 95 to side wall 96. Affixed at the ends of the interior of channels 100, 101 are left and right removable end walls 104, 105, respectively. End walls 104, 105 prevent access to channels 100, 101 through their associated left or right side wall 95, 96. As will be appreciated, once clamp 9 is secured to plug body 7, access to any of channels 84, 85, 100, 101 is possible only if an end wall 104 or 105 has been removed. End walls 104, 105 are held to channels 100, 101 by short tabs 106 which may be easily broken to permit removal of an end wall. With one or both of end walls 104, 105 removed, a portion of a sheathed cable ^'200 may be . longitudinally received in the interior of a channel 100 or 101. The interiors of the channels 100, 101 have a width W (also measured parallel walls 95, 96) which is approximately equal to the width W (see Figs. 1 and 5) of a sheathed cable

0040200 so as to snugly hold cable 200 therein and re-

0041-* strain same from transverse movenent relative clamp 9.

0042Before proceeding to an explanation of the manner in which the various wires of a sheathed cable 200 are to be coupled to the conductors within housing 14 and/or the various wires of a sheathed cable 200 are to be coupled to the various wires of a seco cable 220, reference is had to Fig. 5 showing sheathed cable 200 in transverse cross-section throu the longitudinal axis of each of the wires thereo It should be appreciated that when applicants refer cable or sheathed cable herein and in the clai hereafter, applicants are referring to non-metall sheathed cable in its conventional sense and as n explained. Sheathed cable 200 conventionally means cable having at least three wires 110, 111, and 1 which are in side-by-side relationship such that the central axes lie in substantially the same plane. T outer wires 110 and 111 of cable 200 are axially su rounded or encased by non-conductive plastic ins lation 114 and 115, respectively. Insulation 114 generally black to. indicate that wire 110 is a h wire. Similarly, insulation 115 is generally white indicate, that wire 111 is a neutral wire. Dispos between wires 110 and 111 is ground wire 112 which typically not covered by plastic insulation, althou it is usually wrapped in a paper material 116. Pap material 116 is similarly ^•_*rapped around t side-by-side arrangement of wires 110-112 and t related insulation, and thereafter all of the wire their insulation and any paper :s contained within non-conductive plastic sheathing 118. Once in t sheath, the side-by-side relationship of wires 110-112 and the associated insulation, paper and sheathing define the generally flat cable 200 having a width W greater than its height H. (see also Fig. 1) . Returning to Fig. 1, there will now be described the manner in which to couple the various wires 110-112 of cable 200 to the respective contacts 48, 58 and 66 of apparatus 5. If only a terminal portion of a cable 200 is to be so coupled, only one of end walls 104 or 105 from one of the channels 100, 101 is to be removed from clamp 9 so that one end of cable 200 extends from one wall of clamp 9. If an intermediate portion of a cable 200 is to be so coupled, such as a loop thereof, both end walls 104 or 105 of a channel- 100 or 101 are to be removed so that the cable extends beyond both walls 95, 96 of clamp 9. Thereafter, either the terminal or loop portion of cable 200 is to be longitudinally fitted in the interior, of channel 100, for example, such that the width W_ of the cable portion is co-extensive with the width W of the channel and so that the flat side of the cable is generally parallel front wall 97 of clamp 9. Due to the size relationship of W and W , the cable will be constrained against transverse movement relative clamp 9.

0043If only a terminal portion of a cable is to be used, the terminus thereof is preferably placed close to remaining end wall 104 or 105 of th channel. By various combinations of the foregoi with respect to all four end walls 104, 105, more th one cable portion may be received in clamp 9 where each is only a terminal end of a cable, each is only loop portion of a cable, or one is a loop portion of cable and the other is a terminal end of a seco cable.

0044Once cable 200 is situated in channel 10 clamp 9 is situated over plug body 7 such that chann 100 is within channel 84 and hole 102 is aligned tube 36. Note that tangs 60-62 (and tangs 50-52) a in offset relationship such that when a cable-lad clamp 9 is properly positioned on plug body 7, each wires 110-112 will be in overlying relationship to respective tang 60-62 (or tangs 50-52, if the cable in channels 101 and .85) .

0045Slots 21 are generally shorter (between t and bottom walls 16 and 18) than slots 22 of fro wall 20 so as to accommodate polarized plugs (n shown) wherein the narrower power prong is to coupled only to the hot wire of the cable. Thus, is desired to couple contacts 48 (behind slots 21) hot wire 110 of cable 200 rather than neutral wire 11 thereof. To this end, it is necessary to insure th cable 200 (and/or cable 220) is positioned relati tangs 50-52 or 60-62 such that wire 110 will be plac in overlying relationship with insulation piercing tangs 50 or 60 (depending upon which channel is employed) and not with any of the other of tangs 51, 52, 61, or 62. To this end, cable 200 (and/or 220) may be provided with indicia (not shown) showing that the cable should be received in one of channels 100 or

0046101 so that wire 110 is positioned further from hole

0047102 than either of wires 111 or 112. When properly positioned, wire 110 will be in overlying relationship with either of tangs 50 or 60, wire 111 will be in overlying relationship with either of tangs 51 or 61, and wire 111 will be in overlying relationship with either of tangs 52 or 62.

0048After cable 200 is appropriately positioned by clamp 9 , bolt 10 is to be threadably received in tube 36. Bolt 10 and washer 11 cooperate to drive clamp 9 in a direction toward front wall 20 of housing 14 to thereby effect relative movement between cable 200 and teeth 75 whereby to drive cable 200 toward and into tangs 60-62. As a consequence, (1) each of tangs 60-62 will pierce sheathing 118, (2) tangs 60 and 61 will pierce insulation 114 and 115 between tangs 60 and 61 and wires 110 and 111, respectively, and any paper therebetween, and (3) tang 62 will pierce any paper between it and wire 112, whereafter tangs 60-62 will be brought into electrical contact with wires 110-112, respectively, of cable 200. In the foregoing manner, wires of a cabl 200 are brought into electrical communication wit respective conductors of an electrical plug receptacl apparatus 5 so that when the male prongs of a plu (not shown) are received through the slots 20-22 i front wall 20 and into electrical and mechanica interconnection with the appropriate contacts of th conductors therebehind, electrical communication wil be established between the plug (not shown) and an apparatus electrically coupled thereto (not shown) an the wires of cable 200.

0049If it is desired to couple the wires o another cable 220 to the wires of cable 200, cable 200 and 220 are to be positioned in channels 100, 101 respectively, as before described in connection wit cable 200. Thereafter, placing of clamp 9 on plu body 7 will similarly and simultaneously positio wires 110-112 of cable 220 over tangs 50-52 to b electrically coupled thereto as described i connection with cable 200, such that wires 110 of tw cables 200, 220 will be electrically coupled to th plug receptacle contacts 48 and to each other Similarly, wires 111 of the two cables will • b electrically coupled to each other and thei appropriate plug contact 58. Also, wires 112 of th two cables will be electrically coupled to each othe and to ground lug receivers of conductor 42. Thus, electrical plug receptacle apparatus 5 may be coupled to the wires of a sheathed cable and/or respective wires of one sheathed cable can be coupled to respective wires of another sheathed cable, all without cutting a cable, without removing sheathing from a cable, and without removing any insulation from any of the wires of the cables. Thus, a user or electrician need merely position the cable in a channel 100 or 101 of clamp 9, position clamp 9 appropriately with respect to housing 14, and tighten bolt 10 so that clamp 9 is driven toward intimate contact with housing 14 whereby the insulation piercing tangs will pierce the sheathing, insulation and paper to make electrical contact with the wires of the cable. This will eliminate much of the time-consuming and • costly labor associated with connecting the sheathed cable to the plug receptacle apparatus of the prior art. Such construction also eliminates the necessity to expose the ends of wires so that they may be joined toαp er by wire nuts or the like and, thus, eliminate Lcth the labor and materials cost associated therewith.

0050To secure electrical plug receptacle apparatus 5 to its desired location on the wall 120 of a building structure or the like (not shown) , housing 14 is provided with structure adapted to secu apparatus 5 directly to wall 120 or a like structur This securing structure preferably includes stationary tab 122 extending from each of top a bottom walls 16, 18 and perpendicular thereto, and parallel, pivoting tab .124 similarly extendi therefrom. Tab 122 is generally in the same plane front wall 20 of housing 14, whereas tab 124 is spac therebehind approximately -J" to provide a space in which an edge of a wall may be received. Front t 122 is provided with a slot 126 through which receivable a screw 127 or the like. Screw 127 further receivable in a threaded hole 128 in tab 12 Tabs 124 are preferably joined to respective walls 1 and 18 by thin strip portions 129, whereat tab 124 m pivot from its perpendicular position shown in Fig. as screw 127 is threadably received in threaded ho 128.

0051To secure apparatus 5 to wall 120 afte coupling cable 200 and/or cable 220 to apparatus 5 the apparatus is receivable through a slot 135 forme in wall 120 by tilting apparatus 5 at an angle o approximately 45°, such that top wall 16 is positione near one corner 136 of slot 135 and bottom wall 18 positioned near the opposite, confronting corner slot 135 whereupon apparatus 5 may be inserted throu slot 135 from a position exteriorly of wall 135 until tabs 124 pass therethrough to be positioned interiorly of wall 120. Thereafter, apparatus 5 is to be rotated to a 0° position as shown in Fig. 1 such that portions of wall 120 are situated between front tabs 122 and pivot tabs 124. Thereafter, screws 127 are employed to cause pivot tabs 124 to angle toward front tab 122 whereby to grippingly engage interior and exterior portions of wall 120 therebetween, thus securing apparatus 5 to wall 120. Pivot tabs 124 are pref¬ erably provided with ribbed sections 132 along their upper peripheries so as to better engage the interior of wall 120. Once apparatus 5 is secured to wall 120, plate 25 may be received over front wall 20 and screw 24 utilized to secure plate 25 to apparatus 5 in conventional fashion.

0052Alternatively, screw 127 may be used to secure apparatus 5 to a conventional junction box (not shown) by removing tabs 124 from housing 14 such as by breaking them off along thin strip portions 129.

0053Thus, there is provided structure by which apparatus 5 may be selectively secured directly to a structural wall or to a junction box wherein the apparatus may be used for both new and existing building structures. In particular, if apparatus 5 is to be used on an existing wall, the hole in which apparatus 5 is to be placed need only be sized to accommodate the housing thereof, thus avoidin unsightly or expensive-to-repair oversize holes in th wall.

0054Once cables 200 and/or 220 are secured t apparatus 5, remaining end walls 104, 105 and/or th lack of any exposed slices or cuts in the cable result in there being no electrical wire or junctio exposed. Thus, it is possible to eliminate entirel the junction box (not shown) and save the labor an material costs associated therewith.

0055Reference will now be had to Figs. 4 throug 6 to explain the preferred electrical switch apparatu 150 of the present invention. With reference to Fig 6, it is understood that wires 110-112 of a cable 20 may be coupled at one end to a power source 151, suc as a breaker box, and at the other end to a uti lization device 152 which may be any electrica apparatus including a drill, a toaster, a word pro cessing machine, a lamp or other light socket, or eve an electrical plug receptacle apparatus 5 of th present invention. Wires 111 and 112 are connecte between power source 151 and utilization device 15 without electrical interruption. To provide th switch function and thereby control the on/off statu of a utilization device 152, wire 110 is severed int two electrically separate wire portions 154, 155 a indicated by the break 158 in Fig. 6. Wire portio 154 of wire 110 is coupled to power source 151 wherea second wire portion 155 of wire 110 is coupled to utilization device 152. As is well known, in order to provide a switching function, poles 160 and 162 of a switch S may be coupled to respective portions 154 and 156 of wire 110 such that when switch S is in the open position as shown in Fig. 6, utilization device 152 will be disconnected from power source 151 due to the break in wire 110 at 158. Similarly, to couple utilization device 152 to the power source 151, switch s may be closed as shown by the dotted arrow in Fig. 6 to thereby electrically couple poles 160 and 162, thus bringing wire portions 154 and 155 of wire 110 into electrical communication. Previously, break 158 was accomplished by cutting and stripping the sheathing and insulation of cable 200. Applicants eliminate these steps and overcome the related drawbacks by providing the structure as shown in Fig. 4.

0056Specifically, switch apparatus 150 as shown in Fig. 4 comprises a housing having a switch body 170, in which is contained a switch and its associated poles 171, 172 as indicated schematically in dotted line in Fig. 4 and a clamp 190. Formed in the back of switch body 170 is a channel 174 which extends between top wall 175 and bottom wall 176 of switch body 170. Within switch body 170 is provided a first conductor 178 which is connected to pole 171 and also connected to an electrically conductive insulation piercing tang 180 (with a plurality of teeth 75). Tang 180 extends - 35 -

0057into channel 174. Similarly, a second conductor 182 is connected to pole 172 and also connected to a second electrically conducting insulation piercing tang 164 (with a plurality of teeth 75) whieh similarly extends into channel 174. As seen in Fig. 5, tangs 180 and 184 are aligned within channel 174 so that when a cable 200 is placed therein as will be de¬ scribed/ wire 110 is in overlying relationship with both of tangs 180 and 184, whereas wires 111 and 112 are not so positioned.

0058Clamp 190 includes a C-shapβd channel IS2 similar to either of channels 100 or 101 of clamp 9. Thus, channel 192 haβ an interior width approximately equal to the width of cable 200 to longitudinally receive cable 200 therein and hold it against trans¬ verse movement relative clamp 190. Similarly, the outer perimeter 194 of channel 192 is sized to fit within channel 174.

0059. To couple cable 200 to switch device 150, cable 200 is placed within channel 192 and clamp 190 is mated with switch body 170. Clamp 190 and switch body 170 include holes 193, 195 (the latter being threaded) to receive therethrough and therein bolt 10 so that as bolt 10 is threaded into hole 195, clamp 190 will be driven toward switch body 170 whereby cable^' 200 is driven into teeth 75 of tangs 180 and 184. As a consequence, tangs 180 and 184 pierce sheath 118, insulation 114 and any paper therebetween, and come into electrical contact with respective portions of wire 110.

0060To provide break 158 necessary for wire 110, there is provided a blade 196 in channel 174 extending from the bottom 197 thereof to a position higher than the uppermost extremities of teeth 75 of tangs 180 and 184. Thus, cable 200 will preferably contact a knife edge 198 of blade 196 before cable 200 contacts tangs 180 and 184. As cable 200 is moved toward tangs 180 and 184, blade 196 will cut into the edge of sheath 118 adjacent wire 110, through insulation 114 of wire 110, and completely through wire 110 to splice same into upper and lower portions 154 and 155 as seen in Fig. 5. Channel 192 is provided with a slot 191 in the perimeter 194 to accomodate blade 196 as it passes into channel 192. Thus, tang 180 will be connected to portion 154 of wire 110 and tang 184 will be connected to portion 155 of wire 110 so that switch poles 170, 171 are coupled to respective wire portions 154, 155 of wire 110 to provide the switching function S as shown schematically in Fig. 6.

0061Blade 196 is typically metal. To prevent blade 196 from electrically shorting wire portion 154 to wire portion 155 thereby defeating the switch function, blade 196 is preferably coated with a non-conductive plastic material 199 between knife edge 198 of blade 196 and bottom 197 of channel 174. This electrically insulates wire portions 154, 155 from on another thereby providing break 158 as seen in Fig. 6 Note that blade 196 is only wide enough to exten partially into channel 174 from one side thereof s that it will not contact or cut sheathing, insulatio or any wire except that associated with wire 110.

0062Although not shown in Fig. 4, switch bod 170 is preferably provided with tabs 122, 124 as ar provided in connection with the electrical plu receptacle apparatus 5 of the present inventio whereby to couple switch apparatus 150 to a wall 12 in a like manner as is done in connection wit apparatus 5. Once electric switch apparatus 150 i secured to wall 120, a switch cover 189 may be secure to the front of switch body 170 by a pair of screw (not shown) as is conventional.

0063With the foregoing electrical plug recepta cle apparatus 5 and/or electrical switch apparatus 15 of the present invention, respective wire portions o a sheathed cable may be coupled to their respectiv plug contacts and/or switch poles without the necessi ty to cut the cable, remove sheathing from the cable and/or remove insulation from the respective wires thus saving considerable time and, therefore, consid erable labor costs normally associated with wirin plug receptacles and/or switches to conventiona sheathed cable. Additionally, with the apparatu according to the present invention, it is possible t electrically couple together selected wires of one cable with selected wires of another cable, while at the same time providing the electrical interconnection to the plug contacts and/or switch poles thereby further saving the labor costs, and additionally saving materials costs associated with apparatus conventionally employed to join together the selected wires such as wire nuts. Yet further, the present invention allows for elimination of the junction box thus further adding to the savings in time and materi¬ al.

0064The plastic housings of plug receptacle apparatus 5 and switch apparatus 150 are preferably made of DuPont-polyamid nylon-type 66 plastic or an equivalent plastic which is U.L. listed and meets U.L. flame class 94V-2. Electrical conductors within the apparatus are preferably .030 beryllium copper- solution annealed and heat treated at 600°F for three hours. While the present invention has been de¬ scribed with specific reference to plug receptacles and/or electrical switches, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that its applica¬ tion is more general and is applicable in connection with many types of electrical apparatus which are to be coupled to sheathed cable as referred to herein. Thus, additional advantages and modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art. The invention in its broader aspects is therefore no limited to the specific details, representativ apparatus, and illustrative examples shown and de scribed. Accordingly, departures may be made fro such details without departing from the spirit o scope of applicants' general inventive concept.

0065Having described the invention, what i claimed is: