CN109216955B

CN109216955B - Spring contact element for a connecting terminal and connecting terminal formed therewith

Info

Publication number: CN109216955B
Application number: CN201810564084.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 康拉德·斯特罗米耶德勒
Original assignee: Wago Verwaltungs GmbH
Current assignee: Wago Verwaltungs GmbH
Priority date: 2017-07-06
Filing date: 2018-06-04
Publication date: 2021-08-17
Anticipated expiration: 2038-06-04
Also published as: DE102018116066A1; CN109216955A

Abstract

The invention relates to a spring contact element of a connection terminal, which is formed from a metal part, wherein the spring contact element has a first plug connector and a second plug connector, and the spring contact element has the following features: a) the first plug connector is designed as a spring-loaded contact, b) the second plug connector is designed as a spring-loaded contact, c) the first plug connector forms a first line insertion axis along which a first electrical line can be inserted into the first plug connector, d) the second plug connector forms a second line insertion axis along which a second electrical line can be inserted into the second plug connector, e) the first line insertion axis is non-planar and is arranged at an angle to the second line insertion axis. The invention also relates to a terminal having an insulating material housing and at least one spring contact element arranged in the insulating material housing.

Description

Spring contact element for a connecting terminal and connecting terminal formed therewith

Technical Field

The invention relates to a spring contact element for a connection terminal, which is formed from a multiply bent metal part, wherein the spring contact element has at least one first plug connector for inserting a first electrical line and a second plug connector for inserting a second electrical line. The invention also relates to a terminal having an insulating material housing and at least one spring contact element arranged in the insulating material housing.

Background

Spring contact elements with plug connectors are known in various embodiments, for example in electrical plug connections. The invention is based on the object of providing a spring contact element of the type mentioned at the outset which can be produced in a compact manner and which can be used in a wide variety of ways.

Disclosure of Invention

This object is achieved by a spring contact element of a connection terminal, which is formed from a multiply bent metal part, wherein the spring contact element has at least one first plug connector for plugging in a first electrical line and a second plug connector for plugging in a second electrical line, which spring contact element has the following features:

a) the first plug connector is designed as a spring-loaded fork contact having at least two opposing resilient contact legs between which a first electrical line can be clamped in a fixed manner,

b) the second plug connector is designed as a spring-loaded fork contact having at least two opposing elastic contact legs between which the second electrical line can be clamped in a fixed manner,

c) the first plug connector forms a first line insertion axis along which a first electrical line can be inserted into the first plug connector,

d) the second plug connector forming a second line insertion axis along which a second electrical line can be inserted into the second plug connector,

e) the first lead-in axis is non-coplanar (widtschief) and disposed at an angle relative to the second lead-in axis.

The axis which is centrally inserted into the respective plug connector is understood to be a line insertion axis which at the same time represents the line insertion direction of the electrical line into the respective plug connector.

The spring contact element according to the invention is suitable as a contact insert for a connection terminal, by means of which, for example, vertically projecting contacts can be connected to horizontal wiring. For example, contact pins arranged on the circuit board and projecting perpendicularly from the circuit board surface are inserted as second electrical lines into the second plug connector. The contact pin can then be connected via the spring contact element to a horizontal electrical line, i.e. a line running parallel to the circuit board, which is inserted as a first electrical line into the first plug connector.

The spring contact element according to the invention and the connecting terminal formed therewith can be realized in particular in a small-scale design, which is also achieved by the following means: the first line lead-in axis is arranged non-coplanar with respect to the second line lead-in axis, i.e. the first and second line lead-in axes do not intersect but run past each other at a distance. Accordingly, the respective conductor receiving areas for the first and second electrical conductors can be arranged next to one another in the spring contact element, which is necessary for a compact design. The spring contact element according to the invention allows in particular: the first electrical line entering the first plug connector can be guided laterally past the second electrical line inserted into the second plug connector without directly contacting the second electrical line.

Furthermore, the feasibility of a compact construction is facilitated by: the connecting terminal at the insulating material housing does not necessarily have to have additional conductor insertion funnels for the first and second electrical conductors. It is thus possible to: such a wire introduction funnel is provided when there is a need therefor.

Another advantage is that: the first and/or second electrical line need not be particularly fixed or guided, since the first and/or second plug connector can compensate for the line movement to a certain extent.

As mentioned, the first wire lead-in axis is arranged at an angle relative to the second wire lead-in axis, i.e. the first and second wire lead-in axes do not run parallel to each other, but are at least slightly skewed. The angle of the first line lead-in axis relative to the second line lead-in axis can be, for example, in the range between 80 ° and 180 °, and in particular the angle is approximately 90 °. In the last-mentioned case, the first line lead-in axis is arranged substantially perpendicular to the second line lead-in axis. The angular specification relates to 360 ° of roundness.

The metal part can be designed in particular as a one-piece metal part, which has the advantage that: the spring contact element can be produced particularly simply and inexpensively and also has a high degree of robustness. The spring contact element is thus designed as a self-supporting contact element. The multiple bent metal part can be formed, for example, as a press bent part. The first and second plug connectors can be formed in one piece from a metal part.

According to an advantageous further development of the invention, it is proposed that: the spring contact element has a base part from which a first plug connector and a second plug connector project in different directions running essentially perpendicular to one another. The base part allows a mechanically stable construction of the spring contact element and a mechanically robust coupling of the first and second plug connectors to each other or to the base part.

According to an advantageous further development of the invention, it is proposed that: one, several or all of the contact legs of the first plug connector and/or of the second plug connector, in particular the contact legs lying opposite one another, have contact tongues for contacting the first electrical conductor or the second electrical conductor, which contact tongues are connected to the base part via a spring clip bent over at least 120 °. In further embodiments, the spring bow is capable of bending at least 150 degrees, or at least 180 degrees. The angular specification relates to 360 degrees of roundness. In particular, the contact legs of the same plug connector, i.e. of the first and/or second plug connector, which are located opposite one another, can be formed with a spring clip in the proposed manner. This has the advantage that: the opposing contact legs of such a plug connector can at the same time form a wire insertion funnel, so that no additional arrangement of the wire insertion funnel on the insulating material housing of the connection terminal is required. Furthermore, a ring-shaped contact leg is realized by such a relatively strongly curved contact leg, which has a high elasticity and is able to compensate the conductor movement of the first and/or second electrical conductor in a good manner mechanically and electrically with a small conductor guidance.

According to an advantageous further development of the invention, it is proposed that: the first plug connector has a rear limiting wall formed by a metal part, which forms a depth stop for the first electrical line, and/or the second plug contact has a rear limiting wall formed by a metal part, which forms a depth stop for the second electrical line. This has the advantage that: a mechanical stop is provided when the first or second electrical conductor is introduced, so that the user can easily identify: when the electrical lead is inserted far enough. Furthermore, no further elements have to be provided to form such a depth stop, in particular no insulating material walls of the insulating material housing have to be provided. The rear delimiting wall forms together with the contact leg of the respective plug connector and/or the specific wall region of the base part a conductor receptacle (or conductor receptacle) in which the respective first or second electrical conductor can be reliably arranged.

According to an advantageous further development of the invention, it is proposed that: the first depth stop and/or the second depth stop are formed by the base part, in particular by walls of the base part which run substantially perpendicular to one another. In this way, the base part has the further function of forming the first and/or second depth stop.

According to an advantageous further development of the invention, it is proposed that: one, more or all contact legs of the first plug connector and/or of the second plug connector are formed as tulip contacts. In this embodiment in the form of a tulip contact, the electrical line makes contact at the region of the contact spring which is convexly extended, rounded or bent relative to the line, and therefore does not make contact with the clamping edge. The inserted electrical line can be pulled out of the plug connection again by means of the tulip contact without special auxiliary structures, in particular without tools or without operating elements.

According to an advantageous further development of the invention, it is proposed that: one, several or all contact legs of the first plug connector and/or of the second plug connector form clamping edges. Such a clamping edge can be provided in particular at the free end of the contact spring. This has the advantage that: the inserted electrical line is electrically contacted by at least one clamping edge and is simultaneously mechanically fixed in the plug connector and cannot be easily removed again therefrom. In particular, the contact legs of the same plug connector (first or second plug connector) which lie opposite one another are each formed with such a clamping edge, which results in a particularly reliable electrical contact and mechanical fastening.

The embodiments of the tulip contact piece and of the individual contact legs with clamping edges can in principle be combined in any desired manner, for example the contact legs of a plug connector (first or second plug connector) can be designed in the form of a tulip contact piece, and the opposing contact legs of the same plug connector are designed with clamping edges. It is also advantageous: the contact legs of the same plug-in connection which lie opposite one another are formed in the same manner, i.e. either in the form of tulip contacts or have clamping edges. For example, the first plug contact can be formed with two contact legs lying opposite one another with a clamping edge, and the second plug contact can be formed with two contact legs lying opposite one another and with a tulip contact.

The spring contact element can be designed in particular as a single contact, i.e. as a spring contact element which has only the first plug connector and the second plug connector, but has no further connection possibility for the electrical line.

The object set forth at the outset is also achieved by a terminal having an insulating material housing and at least one spring contact element of the type set forth above, which is arranged in the insulating material housing. The advantages set forth above can also be achieved thereby.

According to an advantageous further development of the invention, it is proposed that: the spring terminal has at least one actuating element, which is associated with at least one spring contact element and by means of which, when the actuating element is mechanically actuated, the opposing elastic contact legs of the first plug connector and/or of the second plug connector can be spread apart. In this way, the clamping of the electrical line between the contact legs can be eliminated without external tools, so that the electrical line can be easily removed again. The actuating element can be designed in particular as a manual actuating element which can be actuated manually by a user, if necessary by means of an actuating tool, for example a screwdriver.

By means of the actuating element, as mentioned, the resilient contact legs lying opposite one another can be spread apart. This can be understood as: the relative spacing between the contact legs can be increased by means of the operating element. This can be achieved in that the operating element acts only on one of the contact legs and deflects this, but the other contact leg remains in its position. The operating element can also be designed for: the two opposing resilient contact legs are mechanically acted upon in order to deflect the two contact legs and to open themselves. In this case, the actuating element can have two separate application elements, so that when the actuating element is mechanically actuated, the contact legs can be mechanically applied and deflected by one application element each.

According to an advantageous further development of the invention, it is proposed that: the terminal is designed as a multipolar terminal, in which a plurality of spring contact elements of the type described above are arranged next to one another in a housing of insulating material. In this way, the terminal can be designed like a multi-pole terminal connector or terminal block, wherein the individual spring contact elements can be insulated from one another or at least some of the spring contact elements can be electrically connected to one another in the terminal.

In particular, an insulating material wall can be present between the individual spring contact elements. The insulating material wall, which can have one or more through openings, does not necessarily have to be completely formed.

According to an advantageous further development of the invention, it is proposed that: the connecting terminal has a first conductor insertion opening, through which a first electrical conductor can be inserted into the first plug connector, and a second conductor insertion opening, through which a second electrical conductor can be inserted into the second plug connector, in the insulating material housing. In the embodiment of the terminal block mentioned as a multipole, an insulating material wall can be arranged between adjacent first conductor insertion openings and/or between adjacent second conductor insertion openings. This prevents undesirable short circuits between adjacent inserted electrical lines (Querschlusse).

Drawings

The invention is explained in detail below on the basis of embodiments with the aid of the figures. The drawings show

FIG. 1 shows a side view of a spring contact element, an

Fig. 2, 3 show different perspective views of the spring contact element according to fig. 1, an

FIG. 4 shows a component of a terminal, an

Fig. 5 shows a side view of the interaction of the individual components of the connecting terminal, an

Fig. 6 shows a side sectional view of a connecting terminal composed of the component according to fig. 4.

The same reference numerals are used in the drawings for elements corresponding to each other as explained in the following list.

1 first plug-in connection

2 second plug-in connection

3 base part

4 spring contact element

5 housing body of insulating material housing

6 closing cap of insulating material casing

7 operating element

10 clamping edge

11 contact spring of a first contact leg of a first plug connector

12 contact spring of a second contact leg of a first plug connector

13 spring clip for a first contact leg of a first plug connector

14 spring clip for a second contact leg of a first plug connector

15 connecting section of a first contact leg of a first plug connector

16 connecting section of the second contact leg of the first plug connector

19 first electrically conductive wire

21 first contact leg of a second plug connector

22 second contact leg of a second plug connector

29 second electrical conductor

30 first wall of the basic component

31 second wall of the base part, which second wall forms a rear limiting wall

32 third wall of the base part

34 wire receiving groove of first plug connector

35 wire receiving groove of second plug connector

36 of the base part, said fourth wall forming a rear limiting wall

37 fifth wall of the foundation member

38 sixth wall of the base part

50 locking element of housing body

60 locking element of a closure

70 manual operating region of an operating element

71 connecting element

72 first loading element

73 second loading element

L1 first line lead-in axis, which corresponds to the first line lead-in direction

L2 second line lead-in axis corresponding to second line lead-in direction

Detailed Description

Fig. 1 shows a side view of the spring contact element 4 in a position in which the elements of the first plug connector 1 are arranged in front of the elements of the second plug connector 2 in the viewing direction or in a plan view. Accordingly, some elements relating to the second plug connector are covered and are not visible in fig. 1.

Fig. 1 shows: the first plug connector 1 has two resilient contact legs, namely a

first contact leg

11, 13, 15 and a

second contact leg

12, 14, 16, which are arranged opposite one another. The two contact legs of the first plug connector 1 are connected to the base part 3. The

first contact legs

11, 13, 15 are separated from the base part 3 by means of their connecting elements 15. The spring bracket 13 is connected to the connecting part 15 and in turn to the contact spring 11 of the

first contact leg

11, 13, 15. The

second contact legs

12, 14, 16 are separated from the base part 3 by means of their connecting elements 16. The spring clip 14 is connected to the connecting element 16 and to the contact spring 12 of the

second contact leg

12, 14, 16.

The second plug connector 2 has a first contact leg 21 and a second contact leg 22 as opposing elastic contact legs, which are each connected to the base part 3. As can be seen: the

contact legs

21, 22 of the second plug connector 2 are formed as tulip contacts. The contact legs of the first plug connector 1 each have a clamping edge 10 at the free end of the

respective contact spring

11, 12. Between the clamping edges 10, the first electrical conductor 19 can be clamped securely, as is shown in fig. 5 and 6.

The first electrical line 19 is inserted into the first plug connector 1 in the first line insertion direction L1. The first wire insertion direction L1 simultaneously forms a first wire insertion axis of the first plug connector 1. A second electrical line is inserted into the second plug connector 2 in a second line insertion direction L2. The second wire insertion direction L2 simultaneously forms a second wire insertion axis of the second plug connector 2.

Fig. 2 shows a perspective view of the spring contact element 4 according to fig. 1, such that the spring contact element 4 is rotated slightly to the left about a vertical axis relative to the view of fig. 1. Visible are: the elements of the first plug connector 1 are arranged offset laterally with respect to the elements of the second plug connector 2, so that the first and second line lead-in axes L1, L2 do not intersect but run past one another. A conductor receiving groove 34 for the first electrical conductor 19 is formed by the first, second and

third walls

30, 31, 32 of the base part 3. The wall 31 serves as a rear limiting wall of the conductor accommodating groove and at the same time forms a depth stop for the first electrical conductor 19.

Fig. 3 shows a further perspective view of the spring contact element 4, wherein the view is now also rotated to the left about the vertical axis in comparison with fig. 2, so that the elements of the second plug connector 2 can be better recognized. Visible are: a conductor receiving groove for the second electrical conductor 29 is formed by the fourth, fifth and

sixth walls

36, 37, 38 of the base part 3. At the same time, the wall 36, which is the delimiting wall behind the conductor accommodating groove, forms a depth stop for the second electrical conductor 29.

Fig. 4 shows an exploded view of the individual components of the terminal formed by means of the spring contact element 4 explained above. The connection terminal has an insulating

material housing

5, 6 which is formed by a housing body 5 and a closure cap 6. The closure cap 6 can be locked into the housing body 5 from its housing side provided with an opening, in order to form a housing which is at least as closed as possible in this way. For this purpose, the housing body 5 has a locking element 50 and the closure cap 6 has a locking element 60, which is designed as a counterpart of the locking element 50, for example as a locking shoulder on the one hand and as a locking recess on the other hand.

An operating element 7 for mechanically operating the contact leg of the first plug connector 1 is also visible. The operating element 7 is arranged pivotably in the insulating

material housing

5, 6, for example in that it is coupled with the closure cap 6 via a connecting element 71. The connecting element 71 can be, for example, an elastic connecting region, for example in the form of a film hinge, or be designed as a further hinge or hinge which allows: the operating element 7 can be pivoted relative to the closure cap 6. Furthermore, the actuating element 7 has a manual actuating region 70, on which a user of the connecting terminal can mechanically load the actuating element 7 and pivot the actuating element 7. Furthermore, a first and a

second loading element

72, 73 are formed on the actuating element 7. The

loading elements

72, 73 serve for mechanically deflecting the contact legs of the first plug connector 1, as will be explained in more detail below.

Fig. 5 shows the previously explained elements of the connecting terminal, however, the housing body 5 fastened thereto is not shown for better clarity. Visible are: a first electrical line 19 is inserted into the first plug connector 1 and a second electrical line 29 is inserted into the second plug connector 2. The first electrical line 19 is clamped firmly between the

first contact legs

11, 13, 15 and the

second contact legs

12, 14, 16 of the first plug connector 1, wherein in the illustrated case the clamping edges 10 each rest on the first electrical line 19. The second electrical line 29 is fixedly clamped between the first contact leg 21 and the second contact leg 22 of the second plug connector 2.

As can be seen: the first loading element 72 is arranged at a short distance on or against the contact spring 11. The second loading element 73 is arranged at a short distance on or against the contact spring 12. If the operating element 7 is now pivoted counterclockwise, a force is exerted by the first loading element 72 on the contact spring 11 and a force is exerted by the second loading element 73 on the contact spring 12. As a result of this force, the

contact blades

11, 12 are expanded further apart from one another, so that the clamping edge 10 no longer, or at least no longer, firmly abuts the first electrical conductor 19. The first electrical line 19 can then be easily removed from the first plug connector 1.

Additionally visible in the sectional view of fig. 6 are: how the housing body 5 is connected with the closure cap 6 via the

locking elements

50, 60. In this case, the first electrical line 19 is introduced into the first plug connector 1 through a first line insertion opening, which is provided in the housing body 5. A second electrical line 29 is introduced into the second plug connector 2 through a second line introduction opening, which is arranged in the closure cap 6.

Claims

1. A spring contact element (4) of a connection terminal, which spring contact element is formed from a multiply bent metal part, wherein the spring contact element (4) has at least one first plug connector (1) for plugging in a first electrical line and a second plug connector (2) for plugging in a second electrical line, and wherein the spring contact element has the following features:

a) the first plug connector (1) is designed as a spring-loaded contact element having at least two resilient contact legs (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16) which are arranged opposite one another and between which a first electrical conductor can be clamped,

b) the second plug connector (2) is designed as a spring-loaded contact element having at least two resilient contact legs (21, 22) lying opposite one another, between which a second electrical line can be clamped in a fixed manner,

c) the first plug connector (1) forms a first line insertion axis (L1) along which a first electrical line can be inserted into the first plug connector (1),

d) the second plug connector (2) forming a second line insertion axis (L2) along which a second electrical line can be inserted into the second plug connector (2),

e) the first line insertion axis (L1) is non-planar and is arranged at an angle to the second line insertion axis (L2), wherein the first plug connector (1) has a rear first limiting wall (31) formed by the metal part, which forms a first depth stop for a first electrical line, and/or the second plug connector (2) has a rear second limiting wall (36) formed by the metal part, which forms a second depth stop for a second electrical line.

2. The spring contact element according to claim 1, characterized in that the angle of the first wire lead-in axis (L1) relative to the second wire lead-in axis (L2) is in the range between 80 ° and 180 °.

3. Spring contact element according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the spring contact element (4) has a base part (3) from which the first plug connector (1) and the second plug connector (2) project in different directions.

4. A spring contact element according to claim 3, characterised in that one, more or all contact legs (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 21, 22) of the first plug connector (1) and/or of the second plug connector (2) have contact blades (11, 12) for contacting a first or a second electrical conductor, which contact blades are connected to the base part (3) via a spring bow (13, 14) bent over at least 120 degrees.

5. A spring contact element according to claim 3, characterized in that the first depth stop and/or the second depth stop is formed by the base part (3).

6. Spring contact element according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that one, more or all contact legs (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 21, 22) of the first plug connector (1) and/or of the second plug connector (2) are formed in the form of tulip contacts.

7. Spring contact element according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that one, more or all contact legs (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 21, 22) of the first plug connector (1) and/or of the second plug connector (2) are formed with a clamping edge (10).

8. Spring contact element according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that a first electrical line entering the first plug connector (1) can be guided laterally past a second electrical line inserted into the second plug connector (2) without directly contacting the second electrical line.

9. Spring contact element according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the first plug connector (1) and the second plug connector (2) are formed in one piece from the metal piece.

10. The spring contact element of claim 2, wherein the angle of the first wire lead-in axis (L1) relative to the second wire lead-in axis (L2) is about 90 °.

11. A spring contact element according to claim 3, characterised in that the first plug connector (1) and the second plug connector (2) project from the base part in directions extending substantially perpendicularly to each other.

12. The spring contact element of claim 4, wherein the contact legs are opposed to each other.

13. Spring contact element according to claim 5, characterised in that the first depth stop and/or the second depth stop are formed by walls of the base part (3) which run substantially perpendicular to one another.

14. A terminal with an insulating material housing (5, 6) and at least one spring contact element (4) according to one of the preceding claims arranged in the insulating material housing (5, 6).

15. A terminal according to claim 14, characterized in that the terminal has at least one actuating element (7) which is associated with at least one of the spring contact elements (4) and by means of which, when the actuating element (7) is mechanically actuated, resilient contact legs (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 21, 22) of the first plug connector (1) and/or of the second plug connector (2) which lie opposite one another can be spread apart.

16. A terminal according to claim 14 or 15, characterized in that it is designed as a multipolar terminal, wherein a plurality of spring contact elements (4) according to one of claims 1 to 13 are arranged next to one another in the insulating material housing (5, 6).