Electrical enclosure

Abstract

An electrical enclosure includes a metal body and a metal cover connected by a hinge to each other. The hinge includes one or more integrally formed tubes in the metal body and one or more integrally formed tubes in the metal cover. The body tubes and the cover tubes are aligned in a collinear arrangement and a hinge shaft is located within the body tubes and the cover tubes. The enclosure can have a dual flange structure wherein one of the side walls includes a flat flange and three of the side walls include edge flanges. The enclosure can also have a structure wherein each of the side walls upper portions is connected to its neighboring upper portions and each of these upper portion connections is angled relative to its corresponding side wall corner.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . An enclosure comprising: 
 a metal body; and    a metal cover connected by a hinge to the metal body;    wherein the hinge includes one or more integrally formed tubes in the metal body and one or more integrally formed tubes in the metal cover, wherein the body tubes and the cover tubes are aligned in a collinear arrangement and a hinge shaft is located within the body tubes and the cover tubes.    
     
     
         2 . The enclosure of  claim 1 , wherein the metal body includes a flat flange on an upper edge of the body and wherein the body tubes are located on the flat flange.  
     
     
         3 . The enclosure of  claim 2 , wherein the body tubes are located on the flat flange so that a hole in each of the body tubes is located above a top surface of the flat flange.  
     
     
         4 . The enclosure of  claim 2 , wherein the flat flange has a perpendicular orientation relative to a side wall of the body.  
     
     
         5 . The enclosure of  claim 2 , wherein the body includes three edge flanges.  
     
     
         6 . The enclosure of  claim 2 , further comprising a gasket attached to an inner surface of the cover, wherein the cover tubes have a center which is approximately the same distance from a surface of the cover as a center of the gasket.  
     
     
         7 . The enclosure of  claim 1 , wherein the cover includes three flanges, and wherein a side of the cover having the tubes does not include a flange.  
     
     
         8 . The enclosure of  claim 1 , wherein the body tubes are centered above a flat flange of the body and wherein the cover tubes are centered below an inner surface of the cover.  
     
     
         9 . An enclosure comprising: 
 a body having four side walls and an open top, wherein one of the four side walls includes a flat flange on an upper edge of the one wall; and    a cover connected by a hinge to the body and located so that the cover covers the open top of the body when the cover is closed;    wherein the hinge includes one or more integrally formed tubes in the body and one or more integrally formed tubes in the cover, wherein the body tubes and the cover tubes are aligned in a collinear arrangement and a hinge shaft is located within the body tubes and the cover tubes;    wherein the body tubes are located on the flat flange so that a hole in the one or more body tubes is located above a top surface of the flat flange and wherein a gasket attached to the cover and located near the hinge is forced against the flat flange with a minimal gasket wiping action when the cover is closing.    
     
     
         10 . The enclosure of  claim 9 , wherein the flat flange has a perpendicular orientation relative to the one wall of the body.  
     
     
         11 . The enclosure of  claim 9 , wherein three of the four side walls of the body each include an edge flange.  
     
     
         12 . The enclosure of  claim 11 , wherein each of the edge flanges is defined by a single bend in each of the three side walls.  
     
     
         13 . An enclosure comprising: 
 a body having four side walls and an open top, wherein one of the four side walls includes a flat flange on an upper edge of the one wall and three of the four side walls include edge flanges on an upper edge of each of the three side walls; and    a cover for covering the open top of the body, the cover having a gasket positioned to mate with the upper edges of each of the four side walls of the body.    
     
     
         14 . The enclosure of  claim 13 , wherein the cover is connected to the body by a hinge which is located on the one wall of the body which has the flat flange.  
     
     
         15 . The enclosure of  claim 14 , wherein the cover includes three flanges and does not include a flange on a side of the cover proximate the hinge.  
     
     
         16 . The enclosure of  claim 14 , wherein the hinge includes one or more integrally formed tubes in the body and one or more integrally formed tubes in the cover, wherein the body tubes and the cover tubes are aligned in a collinear arrangement and a hinge shaft is located within the body tubes and the cover tubes.  
     
     
         17 . The enclosure of  claim 16 , wherein the body tubes are located on the flat flange so that a hole in the body tube is located above a top surface of the flat flange, wherein the gasket is forced against the flat flange with a minimal wiping action.  
     
     
         18 . The enclosure of  claim 13 , wherein each of the edge flanges is defined by a single bend in each of the three side walls.  
     
     
         19 . The enclosure of  claim 18 , wherein each of the four side walls includes an upper portion and a lower portion having an angle therebetween, wherein each of the four side walls upper portions are connected to their neighboring upper portions at an end of each of the upper portions, wherein each of the upper portion connections are angled relative to a side wall corner connection corresponding thereto.  
     
     
         20 . An enclosure comprising: 
 a body having four side walls and an open top, wherein one of the four side walls includes an upper portion and a lower portion having a single bend therebetween, wherein the upper portion comprises an edge flange; and    a cover for covering the open top of the body.    
     
     
         21 . The enclosure of  claim 20 , wherein a cross-sectional angle between the lower portion of the one wall and the upper portion of the one wall is greater than 90 degrees and less than 180 degrees.  
     
     
         22 . The enclosure of  claim 20 , wherein the upper portion is angled away from the body.  
     
     
         23 . The enclosure of  claim 20 , wherein the upper portion is angled inwards towards the body.  
     
     
         24 . The enclosure of  claim 20 , wherein a second wall and a third wall of the four side walls each include an upper portion and a lower portion having a single bend therebetween, wherein the upper portion of each of the second wall and the third wall comprises an edge flange.  
     
     
         25 . The enclosure of  claim 24 , wherein a fourth wall of the four side walls includes a flat flange on an upper edge of the fourth wall.  
     
     
         26 . The enclosure of  claim 25 , wherein the cover is connected to the body by a hinge which is located on the fourth wall of the body.  
     
     
         27 . The enclosure of  claim 26 , wherein the hinge includes one or more integrally formed tubes in the body and one or more integrally formed tubes in the cover, wherein the body tubes and the cover tubes are aligned in a collinear arrangement and a hinge shaft is located within the body tubes and the cover tubes.  
     
     
         28 . The enclosure of  claim 20 , wherein a second wall, a third wall, and a fourth wall of the four side walls each include an upper portion and a lower portion having a bend therebetween, wherein the upper portions of each of the four side walls are connected to their neighboring upper portions at an end of each of the upper portions, wherein each of the upper portion connections are angled relative to a side wall corner connection corresponding thereto.  
     
     
         29 . An enclosure comprising: 
 a body having four side walls and an open top, wherein each of the four side walls includes an upper portion and a lower portion having an angle therebetween, wherein each of the four side walls upper portions are connected to their neighboring upper portions at an end of each of the upper portions, wherein each of the upper portion connections are angled relative to a side wall corner connection corresponding thereto; and    a cover for covering the open top of the body.    
     
     
         30 . The enclosure of  claim 29 , wherein three of the four side walls include edge flanges.  
     
     
         31 . The enclosure of  claim 30 , wherein a fourth wall of the four side wall includes a flat flange having an angled portion located beneath the flat flange and between the fourth wall and the flat flange.  
     
     
         32 . The enclosure of  claim 31 , wherein the cover is connected to the body by a hinge which is located on the fourth wall of the body.  
     
     
         33 . The enclosure of  claim 32 , wherein the hinge includes one or more integrally formed tubes in the body and one or more integrally formed tubes in the cover, wherein the body tubes and the cover tubes are aligned in a collinear arrangement and a hinge shaft is located within the body tubes and the cover tubes.  
     
     
         34 . A method of assembling an enclosure, the method comprising: 
 positioning one or more integral hinge tubes of a cover of the enclosure next to one or more integral hinge tubes of a body of the enclosure so that a bore of the one or more hinge tubes of the cover is aligned with a bore of the one or more integral hinge tubes of the body, thus comprising a composite bore; and    inserting a hinge pin within the composite bore.    
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 34 , further comprising mounting a latch to a wall of the body and providing a slot in the cover to engage with the latch.  
     
     
         36 . A method of manufacturing an enclosure, the method comprising: 
 forming a body wherein three sides of the body include a single bend in an upper portion of each of the three sides and wherein a fourth side of the body includes a flat flange;    forming a cover having flanges on only three sides of the cover; and    hingedly coupling the cover to the body so that a side of the cover not having a flange is located proximate the flat flange of the body.    
     
     
         37 . The method of  claim 36 , wherein hingedly coupling comprises inserting a hinge pin within one or more integral hinge tubes of the cover and one or more integral hinge tubes of the body.