CORD WINDER ASSEMBLY

Abstract

A cord winder assembly for winding electrical extension cords has a tapered drum attached to a generally horizontal shaft. A hand crank is attached to one end of the shaft, and the tapered drum is attached to the other end of the shaft. A stand with a base and two upright members is provided to rotatably support the shaft at spaced locations between the hand crank and the tapered drum. The tapered drum has first and second ends and an outer surface with a diameter that gradually decreases from the first end toward the second end. The tapered outer surface of the drum allows a cord wound thereon to be removed easily and nested into a compact coil shape for storage. A keyhole-shaped opening is provided in the outer surface of the tapered drum adjacent to the first end for receiving and holding a plug end of the electrical cord.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to devices and methods for storing electrical cords, such as extension cords, and in particular, to a device and method for winding electrical cords into a coil shape for storage.

2. Description of the Related Art

Extension cords are used in many households to connect electrically operated devices that are operated at a distance from an electrical outlet. For example, weed cutters, power hedge clippers, holiday lights, and portable generators are often used with long extension cords. Such extension cords are often difficult to handle, especially when a homeowner attempts to place the cords into a coil shape for storage. For example, common handling of extension cords often results in tangling and twisting of the cords and generally haphazard storage.

Electric extension cords are more convenient to store when they are placed into a coiled shape. Various holders have be used for holding the cords in a coiled shape for storage. For example, Deweese (U.S. Pat. No. 4,687,154), Brown (U.S. Pat. No. 4,586,675), Gaski (U.S. Pat. No. 4,277,035) and Vitale (U.S. Pat. No. 4,193,563) disclose devices for holding cords in a coiled shape for storage. In these prior devices, the cords remain on the holder devices until they are uncoiled therefrom for use.

Other devices have been developed for manually winding a cord onto a storage reel. For example, Kovacik et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 6,186,433) discloses a cord storage unit having a spool and a winding knob rotatably mounted on a central hub. The cord remains on the spool during storage until the cord is unwound from the spool for use.

These prior devices do not typically allow a user to place several electrical cords into coiled shapes for storage, while allowing the cords to be easily removed from the device for storage in a coiled shape separate from the device.

There is a need for an improved device and method for winding electrical cords into a coil shape for storage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a device and method for winding electrical cords into a coil shape for storage, which allows the cords to be easily removed from the device and stored in a coiled shape separate from the device.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device and method for winding electrical cords into a coil shape, which can be used to coil and store several different cords.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device and method for winding electrical cords into a coil shape, which allows a cord wound thereon to be removed easily and nested into a compact coil shape for storage.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device and method for winding electrical cords into a coil shape, which is economical to manufacture, easy to use, dependable in operation, and capable of a long operating life.

To accomplish these and other objects of the present invention, a cord winder assembly for winding electrical extension cords is provided. The cord winder assembly includes a tapered drum attached to a generally horizontal shaft. A hand crank is attached to one end of the shaft, and the tapered drum is attached to the other end of the shaft. A stand with a base and two upright members is provided to rotatably support the shaft at spaced locations between the hand crank and the tapered drum. The tapered drum has first and second ends and an outer surface with a diameter that gradually decreases from the first end toward the second end. The tapered outer surface of the drum allows a cord wound thereon to be removed easily and nested into a compact coil shape for storage. A keyhole-shaped opening is provided in the outer surface of the tapered drum adjacent to the first end for receiving and holding a plug end of the electrical cord. An outer surface of the tapered drum is generally smooth and free of obstructions, and the shaft is supported in a cantilever fashion so that the electrical cord can be more easily removed from the second end of the tapered drum.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a cord winder assembly is provided, comprising: a stand having at least one upright member; a generally horizontal shaft having a means for rotating the shaft attached to a first end, the shaft being rotatably supported by the upright member; and a tapered drum attached to the shaft and arranged to rotate with the shaft about a generally horizontal axis. The tapered drum has an opening in an outer surface thereof for receiving and holding an end of an electrical cord, and the tapered drum has first and second ends and a diameter that gradually decreases from the first end toward the second end to allow a cord wound thereon to be removed easily and nested into a compact coil shape for storage.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a method of winding an electrical cord into a coil shape for storage is provided, comprising: providing a tapered drum supported to rotate about a generally horizontal axis, the tapered drum having an opening in an outer surface thereof for receiving and holding an end of the electrical cord, the tapered drum comprising first and second ends and having a diameter that gradually decreases from the first end toward the second end; inserting a plug end of the electrical cord into the opening in the outer surface of the tapered drum; rotating the tapered drum to cause the electrical cord to be wound onto the outer surface of the tapered drum; removing the plug end of the electrical cord from the opening in the outer surface of the tapered drum; and removing the electrical cord from the tapered drum by sliding the electrical cord over the second end, whereby the tapered shape of the drum allows the electrical cord to be removed easily and nested into a compact coil shape for storage.

Numerous other objects of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in this art from the following description wherein there is shown and described exemplary embodiments of the present invention. As will be realized, the invention is capable of other different embodiments, and its several details are capable of modification in various obvious aspects without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and description should be regarded as illustrative in nature and not restrictive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will become more clearly appreciated as the disclosure of the present invention is made with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cord winder assembly for winding electrical cords into a coil shape according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is another perspective view of the cord winder assembly shown in

FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the cord winder assembly shown in FIG. 1, with an electrical cord in the process of being wound onto a tapered drum thereof.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the cord winder assembly shown in FIG. 1, with the electrical cord wound onto the tapered drum.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the cord winder assembly shown in FIG. 1, showing a sequence of removing a wound coil of the electrical cord from the tapered drum and placing the coil onto a wall hanger.

FIG. 6 is a cross section end view of the cord winder assembly shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a cord winder assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention, in which a removable retainer plate is attached to an end of the tapered drum.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a cord winder assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention, in which a removable retainer plate is attached to an end of the tapered drum using magnets.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A cord winder assembly 10 for winding electrical cords according to the present invention will now be explained in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7 of the accompanying drawings.

The cord winder assembly 10 includes a stand 11 having a base member 12, a first upright member 13 extending upwardly from one end of the base member 12, and a second upright member 14 extending upwardly from another end of the base member 12. The first and second upright members 13, 14 are spaced apart from each other and have aligned openings 15 formed therein for receiving a horizontal shaft 16 that extends through both upright members 13, 14. The upright members 13, 14 support the shaft 16 at two spaced apart locations to increase the stability of the shaft 16 during use. A top brace 17 extends between the tops of the first and second upright members 13, 14 to strengthen the stand 11.

The horizontal shaft 16 has a hand crank 18 attached to a first end 16a thereof for rotating the shaft 16 during use. The hand crank 18 has a connecting member 19 attached to the shaft 16 and extending radially outwardly from the shaft 16. A hand grip 20 is connected to an outer end of the connecting member 19. Other means for rotating the shaft 16 could be used instead of the hand crank 18, such as a wheel or an electric motor attached to the shaft.

A tapered drum 21 is attached to a second end 16b of the shaft 16. The tapered drum 21 is arranged to rotate with the shaft 16 about a generally horizontal axis (i.e., the axis of rotation of the shaft 16) when the hand crank 18 is used to rotate the shaft 16. The tapered drum 21 can be connected to the shaft 16 by having respective end walls 22 of the drum 21 extend inwardly from an outer surface 23 of the drum 21 and attached to the shaft 16 by a suitable coupling 24.

The upright members 13, 14 of the stand 11 are both located between the drum 21 and the hand crank 18 to support the intermediate portion of the shaft 16. The shaft 16 extends past the second upright member 14 in a cantilever fashion with the tapered drum 21 attached to the free second end 16b of the shaft 16. This arrangement allows the tapered drum 21 to be used without interference from additional supports near the second end 16b of the shaft 16.

The tapered drum 21 has a first end 21a and a second end 21b and a diameter that gradually decreases from the first end 21a toward the second end 21b. The outer surface 23 of the drum 21 is generally smooth and free of obstructions. The tapered shape of the drum 21 allows a cord C to be wound onto the drum 21 and then removed easily and nested into a compact coil shape for storage.

The tapered drum 21 has an opening 25 formed in the outer surface 23 thereof near the first end 21a of the drum 21 for receiving and holding a plug end C1 of an electrical cord. The opening 25 includes a keyhole-shaped opening having a first large portion 25a for inserting the plug end C1 of the electrical cord C therethrough, and a second small portion 25b adjacent to the first large portion 25a in a direction of rotation of the drum 21. The second small portion 25b of the opening 25 is sized to accommodate the diameter of the electrical cord C, while preventing the plug end C1 from pulling back out. The opening 25 functions to maintain the plug end C1 within the drum 21 while the electrical cord C is being wound onto the drum 21.

The construction of the cord winder assembly 10 of the present invention is explained above. A method of using the cord winder assembly 10 to wind an electrical cord C into a coil shape for storage will now be explained.

With the cord C in an extended condition, the plug end C1 of the cord C is inserted into the opening 25 in the outer surface 23 of the drum 21. The hand crank 18 is then used to manually rotate the drum 21 to cause the electrical cord C to be wound onto the outer surface 23 of the drum 21. When the cord C is completely wound onto the drum 21, the cord C can then be removed from the drum 21 by sliding the cord C over the second end 21b of the drum 21 and removing the plug end C1 from the opening 25. The tapered shape of the drum 21 allows the cord C to be removed easily and causes the cord C to be nested into a compact coil shape ideal for storage on a wall hanger 26 or the like.

Since the cord C is completely removed from the cord winder assembly 10 after it is wound into a coil shape for storage, the cord winder assembly 10 can then be used to wind another cord. This provides a significant advantage over other cord winders on the market that require the cord to remain on the spool for storage. The cord winder assembly 10 of the present invention allows a user to wind several cords with a single cord winder assembly 10, thereby making the cord winder assembly 10 very eco-friendly.

An alternative embodiment of the cord winder assembly 10′ is illustrated in FIG. 7. In this embodiment, a retainer plate 30 is removably attached to the second end 21b of the tapered drum 21. The retainer plate 30 covers the second end 21b of the drum 21 and provides a lip at the second end 21b for maintaining the electrical cord C on the drum 21 during winding operations. Once the electrical cord C is wound onto the drum 21, the retainer plate 30 can be easily removed by removing a wing nut 31 or other suitable connector means that holds the retainer plate 30 against the second end 21b of the drum 21. With the retainer plate 30 removed, the electrical cord C wound on the drum 21 can be removed by sliding the cord C off the second end 21b of the drum 21.

Another alternative embodiment of the cord winder assembly 10″ is illustrated in FIG. 8. In this embodiment, the retainer plate 30′ is removably attached to the second end 21b of the tapered drum 21 using a pair of magnets 32 fixed to the end of the drum 21, and a steel plate 33 fixed to the retainer plate 30′. The second end 16b of the shaft 16 protrudes from the second end 21b of the drum 21 and mates with a central opening 34 in the retainer plate 30′ to align the retainer plate 30′ with the drum 21. The magnetic force between the magnets 32 and the steel plate 33 holds the retainer plate 30′ against the end 21b of the drum 21 during cord winding operations, while allowing the retainer plate 30′ to be removed quickly and easily to allow a wound cord to be removed from the drum 21.

While the invention has been specifically described in connection with specific embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that this is by way of illustration and not of limitation, and the scope of the appended claims should be construed as broadly as the prior art will permit.

Claims

1. A cord winder assembly, comprising:

a stand having at least one upright member;

a generally horizontal shaft having a means for rotating the shaft attached to a first end, said shaft being rotatably supported by said upright member; and

a tapered drum attached to said shaft and arranged to rotate with said shaft about a generally horizontal axis, said tapered drum having an opening in an outer surface thereof for receiving and holding an end of an electrical cord, said tapered drum comprising first and second ends and having a diameter that gradually decreases from said first end toward said second end to allow a cord wound thereon to be removed easily and nested into a compact coil shape for storage.

2. The cord winder assembly according to claim 1, wherein said means for rotating comprises a hand crank.

3. The cord winder assembly according to claim 2, wherein said hand crank comprises a connecting member attached to said shaft and extending radially outwardly therefrom, and a hand grip connected to an outer end of said connecting member.

4. The cord winder assembly according to claim 2, wherein said upright member is located to support said shaft between said crank and said tapered drum.

5. The cord winder assembly according to claim 4, wherein said stand comprises two upright members spaced apart from each other to support said shaft at two spaced apart locations to increase stability of said shaft during use.

6. The cord winder assembly according to claim 5, wherein said two upright members are both located to support said shaft between said crank and said first end of the tapered drum.

7. The cord winder assembly according to claim 5, wherein said stand further comprises a base member extending between said two upright members.

8. The cord winder assembly according to claim 1, wherein said outer surface of the tapered drum is generally smooth and free of obstructions so that the electrical cord can be easily removed from the second end of the tapered drum.

9. The cord winder assembly according to claim 1, wherein said shaft is supported by said at least one upright member in a cantilever fashion with said tapered drum attached to a free end of the shaft so that the electrical cord can be easily removed from the second end of the tapered drum.

10. The cord winder assembly according to claim 1, wherein said opening in the outer surface of said tapered drum is formed adjacent to said first end of said drum.

11. The cord winder assembly according to claim 10, wherein said opening comprises a keyhole-shaped opening having a first large portion for inserting a plug end of the electrical cord therethrough, and a second small portion adjacent to said first large portion in a direction of rotation of the drum for maintaining the plug end within the drum while the electrical cord is being wound onto the drum.

12. The cord winder assembly according to claim 1, further comprising a retainer plate removably attached to cover the second end of the tapered drum and to provide a lip at said second end for maintaining the electrical cord on said tapered drum during winding operations.

13. The cord winder assembly according to claim 12, further comprising a connector means for holding the retainer plate against the second end of the tapered drum, said connector means comprising a magnet.

14. A method of winding an electrical cord into a coil shape for storage, comprising:

providing a tapered drum supported to rotate about a generally horizontal axis, said tapered drum having an opening in an outer surface thereof for receiving and holding an end of the electrical cord, said tapered drum comprising first and second ends and having a diameter that gradually decreases from said first end toward said second end;

inserting a plug end of the electrical cord into said opening in the outer surface of the tapered drum;

rotating the tapered drum to cause the electrical cord to be wound onto the outer surface of the tapered drum;

removing the plug end of the electrical cord from the opening in the outer surface of the tapered drum; and

removing the electrical cord from the tapered drum by sliding the electrical cord over the second end, whereby the tapered shape of the drum allows the electrical cord to be removed easily and nested into a compact coil shape for storage.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein said step of rotating the tapered drum comprises using a hand crank to manually rotate the tapered drum.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein said tapered drum is mounted on generally horizontal shaft, and wherein said shaft is rotatably supported by an upright member located adjacent to said first end of the tapered drum.

17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising a hand crank attached to an end of the shaft, and wherein said upright member is arranged to support the shaft between said hand crank and said tapered drum.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein said shaft is rotatably supported by two upright members spaced apart from each other between said hand crank and said tapered drum to support said shaft at two locations to increase stability of said shaft during use.

19. The method according to claim 14, wherein said opening in the outer surface of said tapered drum is formed adjacent to said first end of said drum.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein said opening comprises a keyhole-shaped opening having a first large portion for inserting a plug end of an electrical cord therethrough, and a second small portion adjacent to said first large portion in a direction of rotation of the drum for maintaining the plug end within the drum while a cord is being wound onto the drum.

21. The method according to claim 14, wherein said outer surface of the tapered drum is generally smooth and free of obstructions, and wherein said shaft is supported by said at least one upright member in a cantilever fashion with said tapered drum attached to a free end of the shaft so that the electrical cord can be easily removed from the second end of the tapered drum.