Patent US6464530B1 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US6464530B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Strain relief for cables
Assignee: International Business Machines Corp
•
Filing: 2000-10-30
•
Granted: 2002-10-15
•
Expires: 2020-10-30
Abstract
Abstract A strain relief for a plurality of cables comprises two portions which act together to clamp the cables in position without the use of tools in a manner which is intuitive to a user. The first portion has hook elements projecting from a surface, each hook element being for retention of a cable. A second set of hook elements is also provided. A second portion has a cable receiving opening corresponding to the cable receiving opening in the first portion. The second portion latches to the first portion, so as to clamp the cables.
Inventors
- 👤 Peter Andrew Smith
- 👤 Ian McFarlane Denny
- 👤 Joseph James Hall
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-03 17:14
CPC Classifications
H; H01; H01R; H01R13/00; H01R13/58; H01R13/5833; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S439/00; Y10S439/942
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 18
Claim 1
Independent Claim
173 words
A strain relief for a plurality of cables, couplable to a data processing device, the strain relief comprising: a first portion having a first surface having a plurality of first hook elements projecting from the first surface, each first hook element being for releasable retention of one of the plurality of cables when present, the first surface having a plurality of second hook elements projecting from the first surface, each second hook element being for releaseable retention of said one of the cables when present; said first portion comprising a plurality of cable receiving openings, each cable receiving opening being at least partially bounded by at least one of a first hook element of said plurality of first hook elements and a second hool element of said plurality of second hook elements; and a second portion having a plurality of cable receiving openings corresponding to the plurality of cable receiving openings in the first portion, the second portion latching to the first portion, so as to clamp the plurality of cables when present.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
173 words
A strain relief for a plurality of cables, couplable to a data processing device, the strain relief comprising: a first portion having a first surface having a plurality of first hook elements projecting from the first surface, each first hook element being for releasable retention of one of the plurality of cables when present, the first surface having a plurality of second hook elements projecting from the first surface, each second hook element being for releaseable retention of said one of the cables when present; said first portion comprising a plurality of cable receiving openings, each cable receiving opening being at least partially bounded by at least one of a first hook element of said plurality of first hook elements and a second hool element of said plurality of second hook elements; and a second portion having a plurality of cable receiving openings corresponding to the plurality of cable receiving openings in the first portion, the second portion latching to the first portion, so as to clamp the plurality of cables when present.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
43 words
A strain relief as claimed in claim 1 , wherein each of the first hook elements are oriented in a first direction, each of the second hook elements are oriented in a second direction, the second direction being opposed to the first direction.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
82 words
A strain relief as claimed in claim 2 , further comprising a plurality of third and a plurality of fourth elements, projecting from said first surface, each of the third and fourth elements being located between the plurality of first hook elements and the plurality of second hook elements, each of the third and fourth elements having a cable receiving opening corresponding to each of the cable receiving openings in each of the first and second hook elements of the first portion.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
46 words
A strain relief as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the second portion is hingeably attached to the first portion at a first end of the first surface and, in use, is latchedly attached to the end of the first surface distal from the first end.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
17 words
A strain relief as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the first surface further comprises fixing locations.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
17 words
A strain relief as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the second portion is fabricated from steel.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
17 words
A strain relief as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the first portion is fabricated from steel.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
171 words
A method of relieving strain on a plurality of cables, the method comprising: providing a body, wherein the body comprises a plurality of first hooks, a plurality of second hooks, and a plurality of cable receiving openings, wherein each cable receiving opening of the plurality of cable receiving openings is at least partially bounded by at least one of a first hook of the plurality of first hooks and a second hook of the plurality of second hooks, and wherein each hook of the plurality of first hooks and each hook of the plurality of second hooks is adapted to releasably retain at least one cable of the plurality of cables when the at least one cable is present; placing at least one cable between at least one first hook of the plurality of first hooks and at least one second hook of the plurality of second hooks, thereby relieving strain on the at least one cable; and latching a cover to the body to clamp the at least one cable.
Claim 10
Independent Claim
171 words
A method of relieving strain on a plurality of cables, the method comprising: providing a body, wherein the body comprises a plurality of first hooks, a plurality of second hooks, and a plurality of cable receiving openings, wherein each cable receiving opening of the plurality of cable receiving openings is at least partially bounded by at least one of a first hook of the plurality of first hooks and a second hook of the plurality of second hooks, and wherein each hook of the plurality of first hooks and each hook of the plurality of second hooks is adapted to releasably retain at least one cable of the plurality of cables when the at least one cable is present; placing at least one cable between at least one first hook of the plurality of first hooks and at least one second hook of the plurality of second hooks, thereby relieving strain on the at least one cable; and latching a cover to the body to clamp the at least one cable.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
37 words
The method of claim 8 , wherein the plurality of first hooks face a first direction and the plurality of second hooks face a second direction, and wherein the first direction is opposite from the second direction.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 8 wherein the cover comprises a plurality of second cable receiving openings adapted to correspond to the cable receiving openings.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
168 words
A strain relief for a plurality of cables, said strain relief comprising: a first portion comprising a first surface having a plurality of hooks projecting from said first surface; said first portion comprising a plurality of cable receiving openings, each cable receiving opening being at least partially bounded by at least one hook of said plurality of hooks; each hook of said plurality of hooks adapted to resist a stress placed on at least one cable of the plurality of cables to cause the at least one cable to be retained in at least one cable receiving opening of the plurality of cable receiving openings, when the at least one cable is present; and a cover having a plurality of cover cable receiving openings corresponding to the plurality of cable receiving openings in the first portion, said cover adapted to latch to the first portion to clamp the at least one cable, when the at least one cable is present in the at least one cable receiving opening.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
168 words
A strain relief for a plurality of cables, said strain relief comprising: a first portion comprising a first surface having a plurality of hooks projecting from said first surface; said first portion comprising a plurality of cable receiving openings, each cable receiving opening being at least partially bounded by at least one hook of said plurality of hooks; each hook of said plurality of hooks adapted to resist a stress placed on at least one cable of the plurality of cables to cause the at least one cable to be retained in at least one cable receiving opening of the plurality of cable receiving openings, when the at least one cable is present; and a cover having a plurality of cover cable receiving openings corresponding to the plurality of cable receiving openings in the first portion, said cover adapted to latch to the first portion to clamp the at least one cable, when the at least one cable is present in the at least one cable receiving opening.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
49 words
The system of claim 11 , wherein a plurality of first hooks of said plurality of hook elements face a first direction and a plurality of second hooks of said plurality of hook elements face a second direction, and wherein said first direction is opposite from said second direction.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
61 words
The system of claim 12 , wherein said each first hook of said plurality of first hooks comprises a first cable receiving opening and each second hook of said plurality of second hooks comprises a second cable receiving opening, and wherein said first cable receiving opening and said second cable receiving opening are adapted to receive said at least one cable.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
46 words
The system of claim 11 , further comprising a plurality of locating elements, each of said plurality of locating elements comprising a locating cable opening located between a first hook of said plurality of first hooks and a second hook of said plurality of second hooks.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
61 words
The strain relief of claim 11 , wherein said plurality of hooks comprises a plurality of first hooks and a plurality of second hooks, each of said plurality of first hooks is oriented in a first direction and each of said plurality of second hooks is oriented in a second direction and said first direction is opposite from said second direction.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US2997531A
Cited
US4029896A
Cited
US5363539A
Cited
US5547391A
Cited
US5653411A
Cited
US5554053A
Cited
US6217385B1
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2005-10-14 | 2006-04-15 | 2006-10-15 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2009-10-14 | 2010-04-15 | 2010-10-15 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2013-10-14 | 2014-04-15 | 2014-10-15 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |