CN110429006B - Short-circuit element - Google Patents

Abstract

The present application relates to a short-circuit element. The short-circuit element of the present application has: an insulating substrate; a 1 st electrode disposed on the insulating substrate; a 2 nd electrode provided adjacent to the 1 st electrode on the insulating substrate; a 1 st fusible conductor supported by the 1 st electrode and continuously aggregated between the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode by melting to short-circuit the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode; a heating element for heating the 1 st fusible conductor; and a 2 nd insulating layer laminated on the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode and exposing respective facing distal end portions of the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode; the 1 st fusible conductor is supported so as to protrude toward the 2 nd electrode side.

Description

Short-circuit element

This application is a divisional application of patent applications with application number 201580028661.8, application date 2015, 6/3 and title "short-circuit element".

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a short-circuit element that physically and electrically short-circuits a power line and a signal line in an open circuit state by an electrical signal.

This application claims priority based on japanese patent application No. 2014-.

Background

Rechargeable secondary batteries that can be repeatedly charged and used are often processed into battery packs and provided to users. In particular, in a lithium ion secondary battery having a high weight energy density, in order to secure safety of users and electronic devices, it is common to incorporate a large number of protection circuits such as overcharge protection and overdischarge protection in a battery pack, and to have a function of blocking an output of the battery pack in a predetermined case.

In such a protection element, an output is turned ON/OFF by using an FET switch incorporated in the battery pack, thereby performing overcharge protection or overdischarge protection of the battery pack. However, when short-circuit breakdown occurs in the FET switch for some reason, when a transient large current flows due to a lightning surge or the like, or when an output voltage abnormally decreases due to the life of the battery cell, an excessive abnormal voltage is conversely output, and the difference between the voltages of the battery cells increases, the battery pack and the electronic apparatus have to be protected from an accident such as fire. In order to safely block the output of the battery cell in such an imaginable abnormal state, a protection element including a safety element having a function of blocking a current path by an external signal is used.

As a protection element used for a protection circuit of a lithium ion secondary battery or the like, there are the following elements: as described in patent document 1, a fusible conductor is continuously connected between the 1 st electrode, the heating element-drawing electrode, and the 2 nd electrode in the current path as a part of the current path, and the fusible conductor in the current path is fused by self-heating due to overcurrent or by a heating element provided inside the protection element. With such a protection element, the molten liquid-like fusible conductor is collected on the conductor layer in contact with the heating element, thereby separating the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode from each other and blocking the current path.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1 Japanese patent laid-open No. 2010-003665

Patent document 2 Japanese laid-open patent application No. 2004-185960

Patent document 3, Japanese patent laid-open No. 2012 and 003878

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

However, in recent years, HEV (Hybrid Electric Vehicle) and EV (Electric Vehicle) using a battery and a motor have been rapidly spread. As a power source of HEVs and EVs, lithium ion secondary batteries are used in view of energy density and output characteristics. In automotive applications, high voltage and large current are required. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a dedicated single battery (cell) that can withstand high voltage and large current, but due to manufacturing cost, a plurality of battery cells are connected in series and parallel, and a common single battery is used to secure necessary voltage and current.

On the other hand, in a vehicle or the like running at high speed, there is a risk that sudden driving force reduction or sudden stop may be caused, and battery management at abnormal time is required to be set. For example, when an abnormality occurs in a battery system during travel, it is preferable to be able to supply a driving force for moving to a repair facility or a safety area, or a driving force for using a warning lamp or an air conditioner, in order to avoid a risk.

However, in the case of the battery pack in which a plurality of battery cells are connected in series as in patent document 1, when only the protection element is provided in the charge/discharge path, if an abnormality occurs in a part of the battery cells and the protection element operates, the charge/discharge path of the entire battery pack is blocked, and thus power cannot be supplied.

Here, in order to eliminate only abnormal cells in a battery pack composed of a plurality of single cells and effectively utilize normal cells, a technique of forming a short-circuiting element, that is, forming a bypass path that bypasses only the abnormal cells has been proposed.

Fig. 45 shows one configuration example of the short-circuit element, and fig. 46 shows a circuit diagram of a battery circuit to which the short-circuit element is applied. As shown in fig. 45 and 46, the short-circuit element 100 includes: the 1 st and 2 nd short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103 connected in parallel with the battery cell 101 in the charge and discharge path and normally open, 2 fusible conductors 104a and 104b for short-circuiting the 1 st and 2 nd short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103 by melting, and a heating element 105 connected in series with the fusible conductor 104a and melting the fusible conductors 104a and 104 b.

In the short-circuit element 100, a heating element 105 and an external connection electrode 111 connected to one end of the heating element 105 are formed on an insulating substrate 110 such as a ceramic substrate. In the short-circuit element 100, a heating element electrode 113 connected to the other end of the heating element 105, 1 st and 2 nd short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103, and 1 st and 2 nd support electrodes 114 and 115 supporting the 1 st and 2 nd short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103 and the soluble conductors 104a and 104b are formed on the heating element 105 via an insulating layer 112 such as glass.

The 1 st supporting electrode 114 is connected to the heating element electrode 113 exposed on the insulating layer 112, and is adjacent to the 1 st short-circuit electrode 102. The 1 st support electrode 114 supports the 1 st shorting electrode 102 and both sides of one fusible conductor 104 a. Similarly, the 2 nd supporting electrode 115 abuts on the 2 nd shorting electrode 103, and supports the 2 nd shorting electrode 103 and both sides of the other fusible conductor 104 b.

In the short-circuit element 100, a power supply path for supplying power to the heating element 105 is formed from the external connection electrode 111, through the heating element 105, the heating element electrode 113, and the soluble conductor 104a, to the 1 st short-circuit electrode 102.

The heating element 105 generates heat by itself by the current flowing through the power supply path, and the soluble conductors 104a and 104b are melted by the heat (joule heat). As shown in fig. 46, the heating element 105 is connected to a current control element 106 such as an FET via an external connection electrode 111. The current control element 106 regulates power supply to the heating element 105 when the battery unit 101 is normal, and controls a current flowing through the heating element 105 via the charge/discharge path when the battery unit is abnormal.

In a battery line using the short-circuit element 100, if an abnormal voltage or the like is detected in the battery cell 101, the battery cell 101 is blocked from the charge/discharge path by the protection element 107, and the current control element 106 is operated to flow a current to the heating element 105. In this way, the soluble conductors 104a and 104b are melted by the heat of the heating element 105. The fusible conductors 104a and 104b are fused after being shifted toward the 1 st and 2 nd short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103 having relatively large areas, and the fused conductors are continuously aggregated and bonded between the 2 short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103. Therefore, the short-circuited electrodes 102 and 103 are short-circuited via the fused conductors of the fusible conductors 104a and 104b, and thus a current path bypassing the battery cell 101 can be formed.

In the short-circuit element 100, the fusible conductor 104a melts while moving toward the 1 st short-circuit electrode 102, and the 1 st supporting electrode 114 and the 1 st short-circuit electrode 102 are disconnected from each other, thereby blocking the power supply path to the heating element 105 and stopping the heat generation of the heating element 105.

Here, in the short-circuit element 100, the short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103 are intended to be reliably short-circuited by melting of the soluble conductors 104a and 104 b. That is, in the short-circuit element 100, the fused conductors of the soluble conductors 104a and 104b are continuously aggregated between the short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103 to short-circuit the short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103, and more fused conductors are aggregated on the short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103.

However, if the shorting electrodes 102 and 103 are relatively larger in area than the 1 st and 2 nd supporting electrodes 114 and 115 in order to cause a large amount of fused conductors to be aggregated on the shorting electrodes 102 and 103, the fusible conductors 104a and 104b may move away from the 1 st and 2 nd supporting electrodes 114 and 115 to the shorting electrodes 102 and 103, for example, during reflow mounting of the shorting element 100. Therefore, the short-circuit element 100 may be in an initial short-circuit state in which the power supply path to the heating element 105 is interrupted and the short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103 are short-circuited before operation.

Further, if the area of the short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103 is reduced in order to reduce the risk of initial short-circuit, the fused conductors of the fusible conductors 104a and 104b may not be continuously aggregated between the short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103, and the short- circuit electrodes 102 and 103 may not be short-circuited.

Therefore, for various lines such as a battery line, a short-circuit element capable of forming a bypass current path to surely short-circuit between short-circuit electrodes by melting of a soluble conductor is desired.

Means for solving the problems

In order to solve the above problem, a short-circuiting element according to the present invention includes a 1 st electrode, a 2 nd electrode provided adjacent to the 1 st electrode, a 1 st soluble conductor, and a heating element for heating the 1 st soluble conductor, wherein the 1 st soluble conductor is supported by the 1 st electrode, is fused to continuously aggregate between the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode, and short-circuits the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode, and the 1 st soluble conductor is supported so as to protrude toward the 2 nd electrode.

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS OF INVENTION

According to the present invention, if the heating element generates heat, the 1 st soluble conductor is melted by the heat of the heating element, and the melted conductor protruding toward the 2 nd electrode side is aggregated around the 1 st electrode, whereby the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 can be short-circuited by also contacting the 2 nd electrode arranged adjacent to the 1 st electrode.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a view showing a short-circuiting element to which the present invention is applied, (A) is a plan view, and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

Fig. 2 is a diagram showing a state in which a short-circuiting element to which the present invention is applied operates, wherein (a) is a plan view, and (B) is a sectional view taken along line a-a'.

Fig. 3 is a circuit configuration diagram showing a short-circuit element to which the present invention is applied.

Fig. 4 is a circuit configuration diagram showing a state in which the short-circuit element to which the present invention is applied operates.

Fig. 5 is a view showing a short-circuiting element having an auxiliary fusible conductor, where (a) is a plan view and (B) is a cross-sectional view taken along line a-a'.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing a state in which the short-circuiting element having the auxiliary fusible conductor is operated, (a) is a plan view, and (B) is a sectional view taken along line a-a'.

FIG. 7 is a view showing another short-circuiting element to which the present invention is applied, wherein (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

Fig. 8 is a diagram showing a state in which another short-circuiting element to which the present invention is applied operates, wherein (a) is a plan view, and (B) is a sectional view taken along line a-a'.

Fig. 9 is a view showing other short-circuit elements having auxiliary fusible conductors, where (a) is a plan view and (B) is a cross-sectional view taken along line a-a'.

FIG. 10 is a view showing a short-circuiting element having a supporting electrode, and (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

FIG. 11 is a view showing other short-circuiting element having a supporting electrode, and (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

Fig. 12 (a) is a plan view of a surface-mounted short-circuit element, fig. 12 (B) is a plan view of a heating element or the like penetrating through the short-circuit element, and fig. 12 (C) is a cross-sectional view a-a' of fig. 12 (a).

FIG. 13 is a view showing a surface-mounted short-circuit element of a heating element during heat generation, wherein (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

FIG. 14 shows a surface-mounted short-circuit element after the heat generation of the heating element has stopped, wherein (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

FIG. 15 is a view showing a surface-mounted type short-circuiting element having a supporting electrode, wherein (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

FIG. 16 is a view showing another surface-mounted type short-circuiting element, and (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

FIG. 17 is a view showing another surface-mounted type short-circuiting element having a supporting electrode, wherein (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

FIG. 18 is a view showing a short-circuit element in which a power supply path for supplying power to a heating element is electrically independent from a 1 st electrode and a 2 nd electrode, wherein (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

Fig. 19 (a) and (B) are diagrams showing the circuit configuration of the short-circuit element in which the power supply path for supplying power to the heating element is electrically independent from the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode.

Fig. 20 is a diagram showing an example of a short-circuit line to which a short-circuit element in which a power supply path for supplying power to a heating element is electrically independent from the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode is applied.

Fig. 21 is a view showing a short-circuiting element having an auxiliary fusible conductor, where (a) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line a-a'.

FIG. 22 is a view showing a short-circuiting element having a 2 nd fusible conductor in a feeding path for feeding power to a heat-generating body, wherein (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A'.

Fig. 23 is a view showing a state in which the short-circuiting element having the 2 nd fusible conductor is operated, (a) is a plan view, and (B) is a sectional view taken along line a-a'.

Fig. 24 is a diagram showing a shorting element having a 2 nd fusible conductor and an auxiliary fusible conductor, where (a) is a plan view and (B) is a-a' sectional view.

FIG. 25 is a view showing a surface-mounted type short-circuiting element, wherein (A) is a plan view, (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A ', and (C) is a sectional view taken along line B-B'.

Fig. 26 is a plan view of the shorting element of fig. 25 with the 1 st fusible conductor removed.

FIG. 27 is a view showing a state in which a heat-generating element starts generating heat in the short-circuit element shown in FIG. 25, wherein (A) is a plan view, (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A ', and (C) is a sectional view taken along line B-B'.

FIG. 28 is a view showing a state where heat generation of the heating element is stopped in the short-circuit element shown in FIG. 25, wherein (A) is a plan view, (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A ', and (C) is a sectional view taken along line B-B'.

Fig. 29 is a plan view showing a short-circuit element in which an insulating layer is further provided between the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode.

FIG. 30 is a view showing a short-circuiting member having a No. 2 electrode provided on the top surface portion of a covering member, wherein (A) is a plan view, (B) is a sectional view taken along line A-A ', and (C) is a sectional view taken along line B-B'.

Fig. 31 is a view showing a state in which the short-circuiting element shown in fig. 30 is operated, wherein (a) is a plan view, (B) is a sectional view taken along line a-a ', and (C) is a sectional view taken along line B-B'.

Fig. 32 (a) is a cross-sectional view showing a short-circuit element in which a heating element is provided on the rear surface side of an insulating substrate, and fig. 32 (B) is a cross-sectional view showing a short-circuit element in which a heating element is provided inside an insulating substrate.

Fig. 33 (a) is a sectional view showing a short-circuit element in which a heating element is provided on the rear surface side of an insulating substrate, and fig. 33 (B) is a sectional view showing a short-circuit element in which a heating element is provided inside an insulating substrate.

Fig. 34 (a) is a sectional view showing a short-circuit element in which a heating element is provided on the rear surface side of an insulating substrate, and fig. 34 (B) is a sectional view showing a short-circuit element in which a heating element is provided inside an insulating substrate.

Fig. 35 (a) is a sectional view showing a short-circuit element in which a heating element is provided on the rear surface side of an insulating substrate, and fig. 35 (B) is a sectional view showing a short-circuit element in which a heating element is provided inside an insulating substrate.

Fig. 36 is a perspective view showing a fusible conductor having a high-melting-point metal layer and a low-melting-point metal layer and having a coating structure, where (a) shows a structure in which the high-melting-point metal layer is an inner layer and is coated with the low-melting-point metal layer, and (B) shows a structure in which the low-melting-point metal layer is an inner layer and is coated with the high-melting-point metal layer.

Fig. 37 is a perspective view showing a fusible conductor having a laminated structure of a high melting point metal layer and a low melting point metal layer, (a) showing an upper and lower 2-layer structure, and (B) showing a 3-layer structure of an inner layer and an outer layer.

Fig. 38 is a sectional view showing a fusible conductor of a multilayer structure having a high-melting-point metal layer and a low-melting-point metal layer.

Fig. 39 is a plan view showing a fusible conductor in which linear openings are formed in the surface of a high-melting-point metal layer to expose the low-melting-point metal layer, wherein (a) shows the openings formed in the longitudinal direction, and (B) shows the openings formed in the width direction.

Fig. 40 is a plan view showing a fusible conductor in which a circular opening is formed in the surface of a high melting point metal layer to expose the low melting point metal layer.

Fig. 41 is a plan view showing a fusible conductor in which a circular opening is formed in a high-melting-point metal layer and a low-melting-point metal is filled therein.

Fig. 42 is a perspective view showing a fusible conductor exposing a low melting point metal surrounded by a high melting point metal.

Fig. 43 is a view showing a state before an operation of the short-circuiting element using the soluble conductor shown in fig. 42, where (a) is a plan view, (B) is a sectional view taken along line a-a ', and (C) is a sectional view taken along line B-B'.

Fig. 44 is a view showing a state before an operation of the short-circuiting element using the soluble conductor shown in fig. 42, wherein (a) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view taken along line a-a'.

Fig. 45 is a plan view showing a short-circuit element according to a reference example.

Fig. 46 is a diagram showing a battery line structure using the short-circuiting element according to the reference example.

Description of the symbols

1 short-circuit element, 2 switches, 3 feeding path, 10 insulating substrate, 10a surface, 10b back surface, 11 st electrode, 11a external connection terminal, 12 nd electrode, 12a external connection terminal, 13 st fusible conductor, 13a fused conductor, 14 heating element, 15 joining material, 17 insulating layer, 18 heating element lead-out electrode, 18a lower layer, 18b upper layer, 19 heating element electrode, 21 auxiliary fusible conductor, 22 support electrode, 23 insulating layer, 24 flux, 25 cover member, 26 external connection electrode, 28 external line, 32 current control element, 35 detection element, 40 short-circuit element, 50 short-circuit element, 51 st line 1, 52 external line, 53 external power supply, 60 short-circuit line, 70 short-circuit element, 71 heating element feeding electrode, 72 nd 2 fusible conductor, 80 short-circuit element, 81 st insulating layer 1, 82 nd insulating layer 2, 83 support electrodes, 90 short-circuit elements, 91 high-melting-point metal layers, 92 low-melting-point metal layers, 93 openings, 94 openings, 95 openings, and 96 conductor stripes.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, a short-circuit element to which the present invention is applied will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. In addition, the drawings are only schematic, and the ratio of the dimensions and the like may be different from the actual ones. Specific dimensions and the like should be determined with reference to the following description. It is to be noted that the drawings naturally include portions having different dimensional relationships and ratios from each other.

[ short-circuit element 1]

As shown in fig. 1 (a) and (B), the short-circuiting element 1 to which the present invention is applied includes a 1 st electrode 11, a 2 nd electrode 12 provided adjacent to the 1 st electrode 11, a 1 st fusible conductor 13, and a heating element 14 for heating the 1 st fusible conductor 13, and the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is supported by the 1 st electrode 11 and is fused to continuously aggregate between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 to short-circuit the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

The 1 st electrode 11, the 2 nd electrode 12, and the heating element 14 are formed on the same plane by printing, firing, or the like of a refractory metal paste on an insulating substrate such as alumina. The 1 st electrode 11, the 2 nd electrode 12, and the heating element 14 may be formed by using a component member such as a wire or a plate made of a high-melting metal, and supporting the component member at a predetermined position.

The 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are arranged in proximity to each other and are disconnected from each other, and by the operation of the short-circuiting element 1, fused conductors 13a of the 1 st soluble conductor 13 described later are aggregated and bonded as shown in fig. 2 (a) and (B), thereby forming the switch 2 which is short-circuited via the fused conductors 13 a. The 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are each provided with external connection terminals 11a and 12a at one end. The 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are connected to an external line such as a power supply line or a digital signal line via these external connection terminals 11a and 12a, and serve as a bypass current path or a power supply path for supplying power to a functional line of the external line by the operation of the short-circuiting element 1.

When the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, which are configured by the structural members, are partially supported by the support, the support is preferably an insulating material having a thermal conductivity of 10W/m · K or less. In the short-circuit element 1, when the support supporting a part of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is housed in an alumina ceramic case having a high thermal conductivity of, for example, 25W/m · K, heat of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is released to the alumina ceramic case through the support, and it becomes difficult to heat the case.

Here, by supporting the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 with a support made of an insulating material having a thermal conductivity of 10W/m · K or less, in the short-circuit element 1, heat conducted to the heating element 14 of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is prevented from being released to a general outer frame made of alumina ceramics or the like via the support, and the 1 st soluble conductor 13 can be heated and melted quickly. The heat dissipation to the outer frame can be suppressed by making the thermal conductivity of the support lower than that of the outer frame, and the heat dissipation to the outer frame of the general-purpose alumina ceramic can be sufficiently suppressed by making the thermal conductivity 10W/m · K or less, and further, from the viewpoint of suppressing the heat dissipation, it is preferable to use plastic or glass having a maximum thermal conductivity of 2W/m · K or less as the support material.

Any metal that is rapidly melted by heat generated by the heating element 14 can be used for the 1 st soluble conductor 13, and for example, a low melting point metal such as Sn or a lead-free solder containing Sn as a main component can be suitably used.

In addition, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 may also contain a low melting point metal and a high melting point metal. As the low melting point metal, solder such as Sn or lead-free solder containing Sn as a main component is preferably used, and as the high melting point metal, Ag, Cu, an alloy containing these as a main component, or the like is preferably used. By containing the high-melting-point metal and the low-melting-point metal, even if the low-melting-point metal melts at a reflow temperature exceeding the melting temperature of the low-melting-point metal when the short-circuit element 1 is reflow mounted, the low-melting-point metal is prevented from flowing out to the outside, and the shape of the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is maintained. Even at the time of fusing, the high melting point metal is eroded (solder erosion) by melting of the low melting point metal, and fusing can be performed quickly at a temperature equal to or lower than the melting point of the high melting point metal. The 1 st fusible conductor 13 may be formed by various structures as described later.

The 1 st fusible conductor 13 is formed in a substantially rectangular plate shape and is connected to the 1 st electrode 11 via a bonding material 15 such as a connecting solder. Here, in the short-circuiting element 1 according to the present invention, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is supported so as to protrude toward the 2 nd electrode 12 side. The 1 st fusible conductor 13 is supported in a spaced relationship from the 2 nd electrode 12 before the short-circuiting element 1 operates. Further, if the heating element 14 generates heat, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is melted by the heat of the heating element 14, and the fused conductor 13a is aggregated around the 1 st electrode 11, thereby contacting the 2 nd electrode 12 disposed adjacent to the 1 st electrode 11, and causing a short circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

The 1 st fusible conductor 13 is preferably overlapped with the 2 nd electrode 12 while being spaced apart from each other as shown in fig. 1 (B). Thus, if the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is melted by the heat of the heating element 14, it comes into contact with the 2 nd electrode 12 by tension or gravity, and a short circuit can be surely generated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

In order to prevent oxidation, improve wettability, and the like, flux (flux)24 is applied to the 1 st soluble conductor 13 (see fig. 12 and the like).

[ heating element ]

The heating element 14 for heating and melting the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is a conductive member that generates heat when energized, and is made of, for example, nichrome, W, Mo, Ru, or the like, or a material containing these. When the heating element 14 is provided on the insulating substrate, it can be formed by mixing a powder of these alloys, compositions, or compounds with a resin binder or the like to form a paste, patterning by screen printing, and firing the resulting paste.

[ insulating layer ]

The heating element 14 is connected to the 1 st electrode 11 supporting the 1 st soluble conductor 13 via an insulating layer 17, and can heat the 1 st electrode 11 via the insulating layer 17. An insulating layer 17 made of, for example, a glass layer is provided to protect and insulate the heating element 14 and to efficiently conduct the heat of the heating element 14 to the 1 st electrode 11. The 1 st electrode 11 is heated by the heating element 14, so that the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is melted, and the fused conductor 13a can be easily aggregated.

Further, the heating element 14 has one end connected to the heating element lead-out electrode 18 and the other end connected to the heating element electrode 19. The heating element extraction electrode 18 and the heating element electrode 19 are electrodes connected to an external circuit for conducting electricity to the heating element 14, and the electricity between the heating element extraction electrode 18 and the heating element electrode 19 is controlled by the external circuit with respect to the heating element 14.

In the short-circuit element 1, the heating element-drawing electrode 18 may be configured to support one end of the 1 st soluble conductor 13. In this case, in the short-circuiting element 1, as shown in fig. 1 (a) and (B), the heating element-drawing electrode 18 is provided on the 2 nd electrode 12 on the side opposite to the 1 st electrode 11, and the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is provided so as to straddle over the 2 nd electrode 12. The 1 st electrode 11 and the 1 st soluble conductor 13 are supported by the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18, and thus, in the short-circuiting element 1, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 1 st soluble conductor 13 constitute a part of a current passage for passing current to the heating element 14. Therefore, in the short-circuit element 1, if the 1 st fusible conductor 13 melts, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited, and the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element extraction electrode 18 are fused to interrupt the current path to the heating element 14, so that heat generation can be stopped. In order to aggregate more of the molten conductor 13a to the 1 st electrode 11, the heating element-drawing electrode 18 is preferably formed to be narrower than the 1 st electrode 11 in width.

[ line Structure ]

The short-circuit element 1 has a line structure as shown in fig. 3. That is, the short-circuiting element 1 is configured as the switch 2, and in a state before operation, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are insulated by being close to each other but spaced apart from each other, and are short-circuited by melting of the 1 st soluble conductor 13. By connecting the short-circuit element 1 in series to the current path of the mounted circuit board, the 1 st and 2 nd electrodes 11 and 12 are mounted between various external circuits 28A and 28B such as a power supply circuit.

In the short-circuit element 1, the power supply path 3 is formed, and the heating element 14 is connected from the 1 st electrode 11 via the 1 st fusible conductor 13 and the heating element extraction electrode 18, and further connected to the heating element electrode 19.

In the short-circuit element 1, the current supply to the power supply path 3 is normally controlled by a current control element 32 connected via the heating element electrode 19. The current control element 32 is a switching element that controls the energization of the power supply path 3, and is constituted by, for example, an FET, and is connected to a detection element 35 that detects whether or not a physical short circuit is required for an external line in which the short-circuit element 1 is incorporated. The detection element 35 is a line for detecting whether or not the current needs to be passed between the various external lines 28A and 28B in which the short-circuit element 1 is incorporated, and the current control element 32 operates when, for example, the current path between the external lines 28A and 28B needs to be physically and irreversibly short-circuited by short-circuiting the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, such as the construction of a bypass current path at the time of abnormal voltage of the battery pack, the construction of a bypass (bypass) signal path for bypassing a data server against hackers and hacking in a network communication device, or the activation of equipment and software.

Thus, in the short-circuit element 1, the current control element 32 causes the power supply path 3 to be energized, and the heating element 14 generates heat. When electricity is supplied to the heating element 14 through the power supply path 3, as shown in fig. 2 (a) and (B), the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is heated and melted by the heating element 14, and the soluble conductor 13a is gathered around the 1 st electrode 11 and is brought into contact with the 2 nd electrode 12 disposed adjacent thereto. Thus, in the short-circuit element 1, the insulated 1 st electrode 11 and the insulated 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited via the fused conductor 13a, and the external lines 28A and 28B are connected.

In this case, in the short-circuiting element 1, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is supported so as to protrude toward the 2 nd electrode 12 side, or is preferably supported so as to overlap the 2 nd electrode 12, and therefore if the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is melted by the heat of the heating element 14, the fused conductor 13a is brought into contact with the 2 nd electrode 12 by tension or gravity in the process of being aggregated around the 1 st electrode, and a short circuit can be reliably generated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

Further, in the short-circuit element 1, since the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is supported so as to protrude toward the 2 nd electrode 12, preferably so as to overlap the 2 nd electrode 12, and more preferably so as to be supported by the heating element-drawing electrode 18 at the same time, even when the short-circuit element 1 is reflow-mounted on an external circuit, for example, an initial short-circuit in which the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is shifted toward the 2 nd electrode 12 and short-circuited or a situation in which the fused conductor 13a is not continuously aggregated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 and short-circuited can be prevented.

In the short-circuit element 1, after the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 connected between the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 is fused. Thus, in the short-circuit element 1, a disconnection is generated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 connected via the 1 st soluble conductor 13, and the power supply path 3 to the heating element 14 is blocked. Therefore, the power supply to the heating element 14 is stopped, and the heating element 14 stops generating heat. The circuit configuration when the short-circuit element 1 operates is shown in fig. 4.

[ fusing sequence ]

Here, the short-circuit element 1 is formed such that the 1 st fusible conductor 13 connected between the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 is fused after the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited. This is because the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 connected through the 1 st soluble conductor 13 constitute the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14, and therefore, if the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 are fused prior to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 being short-circuited, power supply to the heating element 14 is stopped, and there is a possibility that a short-circuit cannot occur between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

Here, the short-circuit element 1 is formed such that if the heating element 14 generates heat, a short circuit occurs between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 before the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element extraction electrode 18 are interrupted. Specifically, in the short-circuit element 1, the heating element extraction electrode 18 is provided at a position farther from the heating element 14 than the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12. Thus, in the short-circuit element 1, if the heating element 14 generates heat, the 1 st electrode 11 conducts heat earlier than the heating element extraction electrode 18. Therefore, if the 1 st fusible conductor 13, which is supported by the 1 st electrode 11 so as to protrude toward the 2 nd electrode 12, is melted, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited by the melted conductor 13a while the melted conductor 13a is rapidly aggregated around the 1 st electrode 11, and then the heating element-drawing electrode 18 is blocked.

[ auxiliary fusible conductor ]

In the short-circuit element 1, as shown in fig. 5, the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 may be connected to the 2 nd electrode 12, and the heating element 14 may be connected to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 through the insulating layer 17.

By providing the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 on the 2 nd electrode 12, as shown in fig. 6, in the short-circuit element 1, the amount of the fused conductor continuously aggregated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is increased by the fused conductors 13a and 21a of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 and the auxiliary fusible conductor 21, and a short circuit can be reliably achieved. The auxiliary fusible conductor 21 may be formed using the same material as the 1 st fusible conductor 13. The auxiliary fusible conductor 21 may be formed of various structures as described later. The auxiliary fusible conductor 21 is bonded to the 2 nd electrode 12 with a bonding material 15 such as a bonding solder, similarly to the 1 st fusible conductor 13.

The auxiliary fusible conductor 21 is preferably provided to protrude from the 2 nd electrode 12 toward the 1 st electrode 11 side, and protrudes to a position overlapping with the 1 st electrode 11 while being spaced apart therefrom. Further, the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 is supported so as to overlap with the 1 st fusible conductor 13, so that the fused conductor 21a of the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 and the fused conductor 13a of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 are likely to aggregate, and thus, a short circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 can be facilitated.

The 2 nd electrode 12 joined to the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 is connected to the heating element 14 through the insulating layer 17, similarly to the 1 st electrode 11. Thus, the 2 nd electrode 12 efficiently transmits the heat of the heating element 14 through the insulating layer 17, and the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 can be rapidly melted.

Further, the melting of the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 can be accelerated by increasing the temperature increase rate due to a decrease in heat capacity, a lower specific heat of the material, a higher thermal conductivity of the material, and the like due to the hollow structure of the 2 nd electrode 12, and the short circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 can be made earlier than the melting of the 1 st fusible conductor 13, whereby the short circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 can be surely made before the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 are interrupted.

[ short-circuiting member 40]

In the short-circuit element to which the present invention is applied, as shown in fig. 7 (a) and (B), the heating element extraction electrode 18 may be provided on the 1 st electrode 11 on the opposite side to the 2 nd electrode 12, and the 1 st soluble conductor 13 may be cantilevered on the 2 nd electrode 12. In the description of the short-circuit element 40, the same components as those of the short-circuit element 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

In the short-circuit element 40, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is supported so as to protrude toward the 2 nd electrode 12, and preferably, so as to overlap the 2 nd electrode 12, so that when the heat generating element 14 is melted by heat generation, as shown in fig. 8 (a) and (B), the melted conductor 13a comes into contact with the 2 nd electrode 12 by tension or gravity, and a short circuit can be reliably generated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

In the short-circuit element 40, it is preferable that the heating element-drawing electrode 18 is provided at a position farther from the heating element 14 than the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 in order to block the gap between the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 after the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited.

In the short-circuit element 40, as shown in fig. 9 (a) and (B), the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 may be connected to the 2 nd electrode 12, and the heating element 14 may be connected to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 via the insulating layer 17. In this case, in the short-circuiting element 40, the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 is provided to protrude from the 2 nd electrode 12 toward the 1 st electrode 11 side, preferably to a position overlapping while being spaced apart from the 1 st electrode 11. Further, by supporting the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 so as to overlap with the 1 st fusible conductor 13 as well, the fused conductor 21a of the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 and the fused conductor 13a of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 can be easily aggregated, and a short circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 can be facilitated.

As shown in fig. 10 and 11, the short- circuit elements 1 and 40 may be provided with a support electrode 22 for supporting the other end of the 1 st soluble conductor 13 on the side of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 opposite to the heating element-drawing electrode 18. In the short- circuiting elements 1 and 40, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is supported at both ends by the heating element-drawing electrode 18 and the supporting electrode 22, whereby the 1 st soluble conductor 13 can be stably supported even under high-temperature environments such as during reflow mounting.

[ surface mounting type ]

Further, the short-circuit element to which the present invention is applied can be formed so as to be surface-mountable in an external wiring substrate. As shown in fig. 12 (a) to (C), the short-circuit element 1 for surface mounting is formed by forming a heating element 14, a heating element extraction electrode 18, and a heating element electrode 19 on a surface 10a of an insulating substrate 10, and laminating a 1 st electrode 11 and a 2 nd electrode 12 on the heating element 14 via an insulating layer 17. The 1 st soluble conductor 13 overlaps the 2 nd electrode 12 and is connected to the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18. Fig. 12 (a) is a plan view of the surface-mounted short-circuit element 1, fig. 12 (B) is a plan view showing the heating element 14 and the like penetrating through the short-circuit element 1, and fig. 12 (C) is a cross-sectional view taken along line a-a' of fig. 12 (a).

The insulating substrate 10 may be formed in a substantially square shape using an insulating member such as alumina, glass ceramic, mullite, or zirconia. The insulating substrate 10 may be made of a material used for a printed wiring board, such as a glass epoxy substrate or a phenol substrate, and it is necessary to pay attention to the temperature at which the 1 st soluble conductor 13 melts.

The heating element 14 can be formed by mixing a powder of an alloy, a composition, or a compound such as nichrome, W, Mo, or Ru, with a resin binder, etc., forming a paste product, patterning the paste product on the surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10 by screen printing, and firing the pattern product. The heating element extraction electrode 18 and the heating element electrode 19 can be formed by patterning and baking a high-melting-point metal paste such as Ag on the surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10 by screen printing.

Further, the heating element 14 has one end connected to the heating element lead-out electrode 18 and the other end connected to the heating element electrode 19. The heating element-drawing electrode 18 has a lower layer 18a connected to the heating element 14 formed on the surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10, and an upper layer 18b laminated on the lower layer 18a and connected to the 1 st soluble conductor 13. The upper portion 18b of the heating element-drawing electrode 18 is formed by covering the insulating layer 17 from the lower portion 18a, and is connected to the 1 st soluble conductor 13 via the bonding material 15. The heating element electrode 19 is connected to an external connection terminal 19a formed on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10. The heating element 14 is connected to an external line via the external connection terminal 19 a.

The heating element 14 is covered with an insulating layer 17 on the surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10. The insulating layer 17 is provided for protecting and insulating the heating element 14 and for efficiently transferring heat of the heating element 14 to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and is formed of, for example, a glass layer. On the insulating layer 17, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are formed adjacent to each other so as to overlap the heating element 14, and a heating element extraction electrode 18 is formed so as to be spaced apart from the heating element 14. The 1 st and 2 nd electrodes 11 and 12 are heated by the heating element 14, so that the fused conductor 13a of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is easily aggregated.

The insulating layer 17 may be formed between the insulating substrate 10 and the heating element 14. That is, in the short-circuit element 1, the heating element 14 may be formed inside the insulating layer 17 formed on the surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10.

The 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are formed by covering the insulating layer 17 from the surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10. The 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are connected to external connection terminals 11a and 12a formed on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10. The short-circuit element 1 is mounted to various external lines such as a power supply line via the external connection terminals 11a and 12 a.

The 1 st fusible conductor 13 formed in a plate shape so as to straddle the 2 nd electrode 12 is connected between the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18. The 1 st fusible conductor 13 is supported by an insulating layer 23 such as glass formed on the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 so as to be spaced apart from the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and is supported by a bonding material 15 such as a bonding solder provided on the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 so as to be electrically conductive with the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18. Thus, the short-circuit element 1 is provided with the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14 from the 1 st electrode 11, the 1 st soluble conductor 13, the heating element-drawing electrode 18, the heating element 14 to the heating element electrode 19.

The insulating layer 23 is formed by removing a part of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 which are adjacent to each other and face each other. An insulating layer 23 is also formed on the heating element-drawing electrode 18 to prevent the outflow of the bonding material 15 such as a connecting solder or the molten conductor 13 a. Further, the flux 24 is applied to the 1 st soluble conductor 13 for the purpose of preventing oxidation, improving wettability, and the like. In the short-circuit element 1, the surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10 is covered with the covering member 25.

In the short-circuit element 1, if the heating element 14 generates heat, as shown in fig. 13 (a) and (B), the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is heated through the insulating layer 17 and the 1 st and 2 nd electrodes 11 and 12, and the soluble conductor 13a is aggregated between the 1 st and 2 nd electrodes 11 and 12 to cause a short circuit. At this time, in the short-circuit element 1, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is supported so as to overlap the 2 nd electrode 12, so that when the first soluble conductor 13a is melted by heat generation of the heating element 14, the second soluble conductor 13a comes into contact with the 2 nd electrode 12 by tension or gravity, and a short circuit can be reliably generated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12. In the short-circuit element 1, the fused conductor 13a is held between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 by the insulating layer 23 provided on the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, whereby the fused conductor 13a can be prevented from flowing out to the external connection terminals 11a and 12a side and affecting the connection state with the external line.

Next, as shown in fig. 14 (a) and (B), in the short-circuit element 1, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is fused between the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element-drawing electrode 18, and the power supply path 3 to the heating element 14 is blocked, thereby stopping heat generation.

Here, in the short-circuit element 1, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 overlap the heating element 14, and the heating element extraction electrode 18 is provided at a position spaced apart from the heating element 14, so that if the heating element 14 generates heat, a short circuit can be generated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 before the interruption of the power supply path 3 between the 1 st electrode 11 and the heating element extraction electrode 18

In the short-circuit element 1, as shown in fig. 12, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 may extend toward the 1 st electrode 11 on the side opposite to the 2 nd electrode 12. Thus, in the short-circuit element 1, the amount of the fused conductor 13a aggregated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is increased, and a short circuit can be reliably generated.

In the short-circuiting element 1, as shown in fig. 15 (a) and (B), a support electrode 22 may be provided to support the end portion of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 extending on the opposite side of the 1 st electrode 11 from the 2 nd electrode 12. In the short-circuiting element 1, since both ends of the 1 st soluble conductor 13 are supported by the heating element-drawing electrode 18 and the support electrode 22, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 can be stably supported even in a high-temperature environment such as during reflow mounting.

In addition, the short-circuit element 40 may be formed for surface mounting in the same manner. In the short-circuiting element 40, as shown in fig. 16 (a) and (B), the heating element-drawing electrode 18 is provided on the insulating layer 17 on the side of the 1 st electrode 11 opposite to the 2 nd electrode 12, and the 1 st soluble conductor 13 extends to the 2 nd electrode 12. The short-circuit element 40 shown in fig. 16 has the same configuration as the short-circuit element 1 shown in fig. 12 except for the positions of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

In the short-circuiting element 40, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 may extend toward the 2 nd electrode 12 on the opposite side of the 1 st electrode 11. Thus, in the short-circuit element 1, the amount of the fused conductor 13a aggregated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is increased, and a short circuit can be reliably generated. In the short-circuiting element 40, as shown in fig. 17 (a) and (B), the supporting electrode 22 may be provided to support the end portion of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 extending on the opposite side of the 1 st electrode 11 from the 2 nd electrode 12.

[ short-circuiting member 50]

In the short-circuit element to which the present invention is applied, the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14 may be electrically independent from the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 short-circuited by the 1 st fusible conductor 13. In this short-circuit element 50, as shown in fig. 18 (a) and (B), the heating element 14 is connected at one end thereof to the heating element extraction electrode 18, and the heating element electrode 19 is formed at the other end of the heating element 14, so that the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14 is formed, and the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is supported by the 1 st electrode 11 without being connected to the heating element extraction electrode 18. In the description of the short-circuit element 50, the same components as those of the short-circuit element 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

In the short-circuit element 50, the 1 st electrode 11 supporting the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is connected to the heating element 14 through the insulating layer 17, and the heat of the heating element 14 is efficiently transmitted, whereby the 1 st soluble conductor 13 can be melted. That is, in the short-circuit element 50, the heating element 14 is electrically and thermally connected to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 1 st soluble conductor 13 independently of each other.

In the short-circuit element 50, the power supply path 3 is connected to a power supply formed in an external line via an external connection terminal 18a provided on the heating element extraction electrode 18.

In the short-circuit element 50, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is supported by the 1 st electrode 11 so as to protrude toward the 2 nd electrode 12, and if the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is melted by heating from the heating element 14, the melted conductor 13a is aggregated around the 1 st electrode 11 and comes into contact with the 2 nd electrode 12, thereby causing a short-circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

In the short-circuit element 50, since the current path between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 incorporated in the external line and the power supply path 3 of the heating element 14 for fusing the 1 st fusible conductor 13 are electrically independent of each other, the power supply voltage of the power supply path 3 can be set high regardless of the type of the external line, and even if the heating element 14 having a low rated current is used, electric power capable of obtaining a sufficient amount of heat generation for fusing the 1 st fusible conductor 13 can be supplied. Therefore, the short-circuit element 50 can be used as an external circuit for generating a short circuit via the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 in a digital signal line through which a weak current flows, other than the power supply line.

Further, since the short-circuit element 50 electrically and independently forms the current path between the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14 and the 1 st and 2 nd electrodes 11 and 12 incorporated in the external line, the current control element 32 for controlling the power supply to the heating element 14 can be selected according to the rated current of the heating element 14 regardless of the rated current of the external line, and the current control element 32 for controlling the heating element 14 (for example, 1A) having a low rated current can be used, thereby enabling the manufacturing at a lower cost.

[ line Structure ]

Next, a wiring structure of the short-circuit element 50 will be explained. Fig. 19 (a) shows a wiring diagram of the short-circuit element 50. Fig. 20 shows an example of a short-circuit line 60 using the short-circuit element 50.

The short-circuit element 50 includes a switch 2 in which the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are disconnected from each other in an initial state and a short circuit is generated by melting the 1 st soluble conductor 13, and a 1 st line 51 connecting the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is formed by the switch 2. The 1 st line 51 is connected in series between various external lines 28A, 28B such as a power supply line and a digital signal line in which the short-circuit element 50 is incorporated.

In the short-circuit element 50, the heating element extraction electrode 18, the heating element 14, and the heating element electrode 19 constitute the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14 in the initial state. The power feeding path 3 is electrically independent from the 1 st line 51, and is thermally connected to the 1 st line 51 if the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is melted by the heat of the heating element 14. One end of the heating element 14 is connected to a current control element 32 for controlling power supply via the heating element extraction electrode 18. The other end of the heating element 14 is connected to an external power supply 53 for supplying power to the heating element 14 via the heating element electrode 19.

The current control element 32 is a switching element for controlling the supply of power to the power supply path 3, and is constituted by, for example, an FET, and is connected to a detection element 35 for detecting whether or not a physical short circuit of the 1 st line 51 is necessary. The detection element 35 is a line for detecting whether or not the current needs to be passed between the various external lines 28A and 28B of the 1 st line 51 in which the short-circuit element 50 is incorporated, and for example, when it is necessary to physically and irreversibly short-circuit the current path between the external lines 28A and 28B by short-circuiting the 1 st line 51, for example, when constructing a bypass current path at the time of abnormal voltage of a battery pack, constructing a bypass (bypass) signal path for bypassing a data server against hacking or cracking in a network communication device, or activating a device or software.

Thus, the heating element 14 generates heat by supplying electric power from the external power supply 53 to the power supply path 3, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is melted, and the molten conductor 13a is continuously aggregated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12. Thereby, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited via the fused conductor 13a, and the external lines 28A and 28B are connected.

At this time, since the short-circuit element 50 has the feeding path 3 for feeding power to the heating element 14 formed electrically independently of the 1 st line 51, the power can be fed to the heating element 14 until the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited.

[ auxiliary fusible conductor ]

In the short-circuit element 50, as shown in fig. 21, the 2 nd electrode 12 may be connected to the auxiliary fusible conductor 21, and the heating element 14 may be connected to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 via the insulating layer 17. Thus, in the short-circuit element 50, the amount of the fused conductor continuously aggregated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is increased by the fused conductors 13a and 21a of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 and the auxiliary fusible conductor 21, and a short circuit can be reliably generated.

In the short-circuit element 50, the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 is provided so as to protrude from the 2 nd electrode 12 toward the 1 st electrode 11 side, and preferably protrudes to a position overlapping with and spaced apart from the 1 st electrode 11. Further, by supporting the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 so as to overlap the 1 st fusible conductor 13, the fused conductor 21a of the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 and the fused conductor 13a of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 are easily aggregated, and thus, a short circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 can be facilitated.

[ short-circuiting member 70]

In addition, in the short-circuit element to which the present invention is applied, as shown in fig. 22, the 2 nd fusible conductor 72 may be interposed in the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14. The short-circuit element 70 has a heating element power feeding electrode 71 provided adjacent to the heating element extraction electrode 18 and a 2 nd fusible conductor 72 continuously mounted between the heating element extraction electrode 18 and the heating element power feeding electrode 71. In the short-circuit element 70, the same components as those of the short-circuit element 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted. Fig. 19 (B) shows a circuit diagram of the short-circuit element 70.

The heating element power feeding electrode 71 is provided adjacent to the heating element-drawing electrode 18 and is connected to the heating element-drawing electrode 18 via the 2 nd fusible conductor 72, thereby constituting the power feeding path 3 for feeding power to the heating element 14. The heating element feeding electrode 71 is connected to an external connection terminal 71a serving as a terminal connected to an external line. The heating element power feeding electrode 71 may be made of the same material as the heating element extraction electrode 18, and may be formed simultaneously with the formation of the heating element extraction electrode 18.

The 2 nd fusible conductor 72 is continuously mounted between the heating element-drawing electrode 18 and the heating element-feeding electrode 71 which are adjacently disposed, and constitutes a part of the feeding path 3 for feeding the heating element 14 before the operation of the short-circuit element 70. The 2 nd fusible conductor 72 may be formed using the same material as the 1 st fusible conductor 13. The 2 nd fusible conductor 72 may be formed of various structures as described later.

As shown in fig. 23, in the short-circuit element 70, the 2 nd soluble conductor 72 is provided in the power supply path 3, so that the 2 nd soluble conductor 72 is fused when the heating element 14 generates heat, and the fused conductor 72a is aggregated so as to separate the heating element extraction electrode 18 and the heating element power supply electrode 71, thereby blocking the power supply path 3, and the heat generation of the heating element 14 can be automatically stopped. At this time, the 2 nd fusible conductor 72 may be formed not to be fused before the 1 st fusible conductor 13 in the short-circuit element 70.

[ fusing sequence ]

That is, this is because, in the short-circuit element 70, the heating element power feeding electrode 71 and the heating element extraction electrode 18 connected via the 2 nd fusible conductor 72 constitute the power feeding path 3 for feeding power to the heating element 14, and therefore, if the portion between the heating element power feeding electrode 71 and the heating element extraction electrode 18 is fused before the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited, the feeding of power to the heating element 14 is stopped, and there is a possibility that a short-circuit cannot occur between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

Here, in the short-circuit element 70, if the heating element 14 generates heat, a short circuit occurs between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 before the interruption between the heating element feeding electrode 71 and the heating element extraction electrode 18. Specifically, in the short-circuit element 70, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is provided at a position closer to the heating element 14 than the 2 nd fusible conductor 72. Thus, in the short-circuit element 70, if the heat generating element 14 generates heat, the heat is transferred to the 1 st soluble conductor 13 earlier than the 2 nd soluble conductor 72. Therefore, if the heating element 14 generates heat, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is rapidly melted, the fused conductor 13a is aggregated around the 1 st electrode 11, the fused conductor 13a short-circuits the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and then the 2 nd fusible conductor 72 is melted, so that the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14 can be blocked. Therefore, in the short-circuit element 70, the electric power can be reliably and continuously supplied to the heating element 14 until the short-circuit occurs between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

In the short-circuit element 70, the heating element power feeding electrode 71 is electrically connected to the 1 st electrode 11, whereby the same line configuration as that of the short-circuit element 1 can be formed, and the order of short-circuit and interruption in the line of the short-circuit element 1 can be further surely ensured by dividing the functions into the 1 st soluble conductor 13 for short-circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 and the 2 nd soluble conductor 72 for interrupting the heating element 14.

Further, since the 1 st and 2 nd fusible conductors 13 and 72 are fused more quickly as the sectional area is smaller, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 may be short-circuited before the interruption between the heating element power feeding electrode 71 and the heating element lead-out electrode 18 by forming the sectional area of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 to be smaller than the sectional area of the 2 nd fusible conductor 72.

Further, by changing the materials of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 and the 2 nd fusible conductor 72 so that the melting point of the 2 nd fusible conductor 72 is relatively higher than that of the 1 st fusible conductor 13, a short circuit may be generated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 before the interruption between the heating element power feeding electrode 71 and the heating element lead-out electrode 18. For example, when the 1 st and 2 nd fusible conductors 13 and 72 have a stacked structure of a low melting point metal and a high melting point metal, the melting point difference can be set by increasing the ratio of the low melting point metal in the 1 st fusible conductor 13 and increasing the ratio of the high melting point metal in the 2 nd fusible conductor.

[ auxiliary fusible conductor ]

In the short-circuit element 70, as shown in fig. 24, the 2 nd electrode 12 may be connected to the auxiliary fusible conductor 21, and the heating element 14 may be connected to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 via the insulating layer 17. Thus, in the short-circuit element 70, the amount of fused conductor continuously aggregated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is increased by the fused conductors 13a and 21a of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 and the auxiliary fusible conductor 21, and a short circuit can be reliably generated.

In the short-circuiting element 70, the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 is provided so as to protrude from the 2 nd electrode 12 toward the 1 st electrode 11 side, and preferably so as to protrude to a position overlapping while being spaced apart from the 1 st electrode 11. Further, by supporting the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 so as to overlap the 1 st fusible conductor 13, the fused conductor 21a of the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 and the fused conductor 13a of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 are easily aggregated, and thus, a short circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 can be facilitated.

In the short- circuit elements 50 and 70, the heating element-drawing electrode 18 may be provided on the 1 st electrode 11 on the side opposite to the 2 nd electrode 12, or the heating element-drawing electrode 18 may be provided on the 2 nd electrode 12 on the side opposite to the 1 st electrode 11. In either case, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is cantilevered by the 1 st electrode 11 and protrudes toward the 2 nd electrode 12 side, preferably overlapping. In either case, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 may extend over the 2 nd electrode 12. In either case, a support electrode that supports the end of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 may be provided.

[ short-circuiting member 80]

Further, the short-circuit element to which the present invention is applied is formed for surface mounting, and since the supporting area of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 with respect to the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is enlarged, it is possible to prevent deformation of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 and to prevent an initial short circuit.

As shown in fig. 25 and 26, the short-circuit element 80 includes: an insulating substrate 10 provided with a heating element 14, a 1 st insulating layer 81 which covers the heating element 14 and is laminated with the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, a 2 nd insulating layer 82 which is laminated on the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 and exposes the facing distal end portions of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and a heating element extraction electrode 18 which is adjacent to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 and is electrically connected to the heating element 14. Note that fig. 26 is a plan view showing the short-circuiting element 80 excluding the 1 st fusible conductor 13. In the short-circuit element 80, the same components as those of the short-circuit element 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

In the short-circuit element 80, the heating element 14, the heating element extraction electrode 18, and the heating element electrode 19 are formed on the surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10, and the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are laminated on the heating element 14 via the 1 st insulating layer 81. The 1 st insulating layer 81 is provided for protecting and insulating the heating element 14 and efficiently transmitting heat of the heating element 14 to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and is formed of, for example, a glass layer. On the 1 st insulating layer 81, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are formed adjacent to each other so as to overlap the heating element 14, and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 is formed so as to be spaced apart from the heating element 14. In the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, the fused conductor 13a of the 1 st soluble conductor 13 can be easily aggregated by being heated by the heating element 14. The heating element-drawing electrode 18 has a lower layer 18a formed on the surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10 and connected to the heating element 14, and an upper layer 18b connected to the lower layer 18a, laminated on the 1 st insulating layer 81, and connected to the 1 st soluble conductor 13.

The 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 in the short-circuit element 80 are continuously formed over a wide range in the longitudinal direction of the insulating substrate 10 formed in a rectangular shape, and are formed from both side edges to the center portion in the width direction of the insulating substrate 10 so as to face each other with a predetermined interval. The 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are laminated on the 2 nd insulating layer 82 except for the facing tip portions. Thereby, the opposing distal end portions of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are exposed.

In the short-circuit element 80, the short-circuit length of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is made longer, so that the short-circuit reliability can be improved, and the short-circuit resistance of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 after short-circuit can be reduced, thereby being capable of coping with a high rated current.

One end of the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is connected to the heating element extraction electrode 18 via a bonding material 15 such as a bonding solder, and the other end is connected to the support electrode 83 formed on the 1 st insulating layer 81 via the bonding material 15 such as a bonding solder. The 1 st soluble conductor 13 is supported by the 2 nd insulating layer 82 provided on the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and is electrically connected to the 1 st electrode 11 by a bonding material 15 such as a bonding solder. That is, in the short-circuiting element 80, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are stacked over a wide range on the 1 st insulating layer 81, and the 2 nd insulating layer 82 is stacked in addition to the respective tip portions of the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, so that the 1 st fusible conductor 13 can be widely supported from the central portion to the side edge portion by the 2 nd insulating layer 82.

Therefore, according to the short-circuit element 80, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 can be prevented from being bent at the time of reflow mounting or the like, and a short circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, that is, an initial short circuit, due to deformation of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 can be prevented.

In the short-circuit element 80, if the heating element 14 is energized to start heat generation, as shown in fig. 27, the heat of the heating element 14 is transmitted to the 1 st soluble conductor 13 via the 1 st insulating layer 81, the 1 st electrode 11, the 2 nd electrode 12, and the 2 nd insulating layer 82 to start melting. At this time, in the short-circuit element 80, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are stacked over a wide range on the 1 st insulating layer 81 so as to overlap the heating element 14. In the short-circuiting element 80, the 2 nd insulating layer 82 is widely laminated on the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is supported by the 2 nd insulating layer 82, so that the heat of the heating element 14 can be efficiently transmitted to the 1 st fusible conductor 13, and after the heat generation, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is rapidly melted on the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 can be short-circuited.

In the short-circuit element 80, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are overlapped with the heating element 14, and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 is provided at a position spaced apart from the heating element 14, whereby it is possible to prevent the heating element-drawing electrode 18 and the 1 st electrode 11 from being fused and the power supply to the heating element 14 from being stopped before the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited.

In the short-circuit element 80, when the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited, the heating element extraction electrode 18 and the 1 st electrode 11 are fused as shown in fig. 28, and the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14 is blocked.

[ Whole circumferential support ]

In the short-circuiting element 80, the 2 nd insulating layer 82 may be continuously laminated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 from above the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, so that the central portion of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 can be reliably prevented from being bent. For example, as shown in fig. 29, the 2 nd insulating layer 82 is formed by laminating the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 in the longitudinal direction and forming the 2 nd insulating layer 82 in the width direction at both ends in the longitudinal direction, whereby the 2 nd insulating layer 82 is also laminated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and thus openings are formed to expose the opposing tip portions of the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode. The 1 st fusible conductor 13 is mounted so as to cover the opening of the 2 nd insulating layer 82. Therefore, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is continuously supported over the entire circumference, and the flexure in the longitudinal direction and the width direction can be prevented.

Therefore, according to the short-circuit element 80 shown in fig. 29, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 can be reliably prevented from being bent at the time of reflow mounting or the like, and a short circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, that is, an initial short circuit, due to deformation of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 can be prevented.

[ short-circuit element 90]

Further, the short-circuiting element to which the present invention is applied may be provided with a covering member for covering the 2 nd electrode 12, while being formed for surface mounting.

As shown in fig. 30, the short-circuiting element 90 has a covering member 25 covering the surface of the insulating substrate 10, and the 2 nd electrode 12 is formed on the top surface 25b of the covering member 25 so as to face the 1 st electrode 11. In the short-circuit element 90, the same components as those of the short-circuit element 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

The covering member 25 has a side wall portion 25a and a top surface portion 25b connected to the outer edge portion of the front surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10, and may be formed using various engineering plastics and the same material as the insulating substrate 10. The covering member 25 is formed with the 2 nd electrode 12 from one side edge portion 25a to the top surface portion 25b of the covering member 25.

The 2 nd electrode 12 in the short-circuit element 90 is connected to the external connection electrode 26 formed on the surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10 by mounting the covering member 25 on the insulating substrate 10. The external connection electrode 26 is connected to an external connection terminal 26a formed on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10. The short-circuit element 90 is incorporated into various external lines such as a power supply line via the external connection terminal 26 a.

Further, the 2 nd electrode 12 is opposed to the 1 st electrode 11 laminated on the insulating layer 17 while the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is provided between the 1 st electrode 11.

In such a short-circuit element 90, if the heating element 14 generates heat, as shown in fig. 31, the heat is transmitted to the 1 st soluble conductor 13 through the insulating layer 17 and the 1 st electrode 11, and is melted. The fused conductor 13a is aggregated on the 1 st electrode 11 and also on the 2 nd electrode 12 provided on the top surface portion 25b so as to face the 1 st electrode 11. This can cause the short-circuit element 90 to short-circuit the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 via the fused conductor 13 a. In the short-circuit element 90, when the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited, the heating element-drawing electrode 18 and the 1 st electrode 11 are fused, and the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14 is blocked.

[ other structures ]

In the short- circuit elements 1, 40, 50, 70, 80, and 90, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 formed in a plate shape preferably has an area 2 times or more the connection area with the 1 st electrode 11. Thus, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 can ensure a sufficient amount of the fused conductor necessary for short-circuiting between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and the 1 st soluble conductor 13 can be fused quickly even when the end portions are supported by the heating element-drawing electrode 18 and the support electrode 22.

In the short- circuit elements 1, 40, 50, 70, 80, and 90, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 may be formed of a wire, and in this case, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 preferably has a length 2 times or more the length of the connection with the 1 st electrode 11. Thus, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 can be fused quickly even when the end portions are supported by the heating element-drawing electrode 18 and the supporting electrode 22 while securing a sufficient amount of fused conductor necessary for short-circuiting between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

Further, in each of the short- circuit elements 1, 40, 50, 70, 80, and 90, the interval between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 is preferably equal to or less than the width of the 1 st electrode 11 on the extension of the interval between the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, in the short-circuit element 1, the distance W between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12₁Preferably, the width W of the 1 st electrode 11 on the extension line of the interval between the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode₂The following. Thus, by disposing the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 at positions closer to each other, the fused conductor 13a of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is more reliably brought into contact with the 2 nd electrode 12 when the fused conductor is aggregated around the 1 st electrode 11, and the fused conductor 13a can be continuously aggregated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

[ coating treatment ]

The 1 st electrode 11, the 2 nd electrode 12, the heating element extraction electrode 18, the support electrode 22, and the heating element power feeding electrode 71 of each of the short- circuiting elements 1, 40, 50, 70, 80, and 90 may be formed using a general electrode material such as Cu or Ag, and a coating such as Ni/Au plating, Ni/Pd plating, or Ni/Pd/Au plating is preferably applied to the surface by a known method such as plating. Thus, in each of the short- circuit elements 1, 40, 50, 70, 80, and 90, the 1 st electrode 11, the 2 nd electrode 12, the heating element extraction electrode 18, the support electrode 22, and the heating element power feeding electrode 71 are prevented from being oxidized, and the 1 st soluble conductor 13 and the 2 nd soluble conductor 72 are reliably held. Further, when the short- circuit elements 1, 40, 50, 70, 80, and 90 are reflow mounted, the bonding material 15 such as a connecting solder for connecting the 1 st fusible conductor 13 and the 2 nd fusible conductor 72 or the low melting point metal forming the outer layer of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 and the 2 nd fusible conductor 72 is melted, whereby the 1 st electrode 11, the 2 nd electrode 12, the heating element lead-out electrode 18, the support electrode 22, and the heating element power feeding electrode 71 can be prevented from being corroded (corroded by the solder).

[ position of heating element ]

In addition, in the surface-mount short- circuiting elements 1, 40, 80, and 90, the heating element 14 may be formed on the front surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10, and may be provided on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10 as shown in fig. 32 (a), 33 (a), 34 (a), and 35 (a). In this case, the heating element 14 is covered with the insulating layer 17 on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10. Further, a heating element electrode 19 constituting the power supply path 3 for supplying power to the heating element 14 is also formed on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10 in the same manner. In the heating element-drawing electrode 18, a lower layer 18a connected to the heating element 14 is formed on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10, an upper layer 18b on which the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is mounted is formed on the front surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10, and the lower layer 18a and the upper layer 18b are connected via a conductive via hole.

The heating element 14 is preferably formed on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10 at a position overlapping the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12. The heating element-drawing electrode 18 is preferably provided at a position farther from the heating element 14 than the 1 st and 2 nd electrodes 11, 12.

As shown in fig. 32 (B), 33 (B), 34 (B), and 35 (B), the heating element 14 may be formed inside the insulating substrate 10 in the short- circuit elements 1, 40, 80, and 90. In this case, it is not necessary to provide the insulating layer 17 covering the heating element 14. The heating element electrode 19 connected to one end of the heating element 14 has one end connected to the heating element 14 extending into the insulating substrate 10, and is connected to an external connection terminal 19a provided on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10 via a conductive through hole. The heating element extraction electrode 18 is connected to the upper layer 18b on which the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is mounted via a conductive via hole, with the lower layer 18a connected to the heating element 14 extending into the insulating substrate 10.

It is preferable that the heating element 14 is formed inside the insulating substrate 10 at a position overlapping the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12. The heating element-drawing electrode 18 is preferably provided at a position farther from the heating element 17 than the 1 st and 2 nd electrodes 11, 12.

In the short- circuit elements 1, 40, 80, and 90, the heating element 14 is formed on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10 or inside the insulating substrate 10, and the front surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10 is flattened, whereby the 1 st electrode 11, the 2 nd electrode 12, and the heating element-drawing electrode 18 can be formed on the front surface 10 a. Therefore, the short- circuiting elements 1, 40, 80, and 90 can be made thinner by simplifying the manufacturing steps of the 1 st electrode 11, the 2 nd electrode 12, and the heating element-drawing electrode 18.

In the short- circuit elements 1, 40, 80, and 90, even if the heating element 14 is formed on the rear surface 10b of the insulating substrate 10 or inside the insulating substrate 10, the heating element 14 can be used to heat and fuse the 1 st soluble conductor 13 by using a material having excellent thermal conductivity such as fine ceramics as the material of the insulating substrate 10, as in the case of being laminated on the front surface 10a of the insulating substrate 10.

[ Structure of fusible conductor ]

As described above, the 1 st fusible conductor 13, the 2 nd fusible conductor 72, and the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 may further contain a low melting point metal and a high melting point metal. Note that in the following description, the 1 st fusible conductor 13, the 2 nd fusible conductor 72, and the auxiliary fusible conductor 21 are collectively referred to as " fusible conductors 13, 72, 21" unless a particular distinction is required. As the low melting point metal, solder such as lead-free solder containing Sn as a main component is preferably used, and as the high melting point metal, Ag, Cu, an alloy containing these as a main component, or the like is preferably used. In this case, as shown in fig. 36 (a), the fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21 may be those having a high-melting-point metal layer 91 as an inner layer and a low-melting-point metal layer 92 as an outer layer. In this case, the fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21 may be configured such that the entire surface of the high-melting-point metal layer 91 is covered with the low-melting-point metal layer 92, or may be configured such that the fusible conductors are covered except for a pair of side surfaces facing each other. The covering structure formed by the high-melting-point metal layer 91 and the low-melting-point metal layer 92 can be formed by using a known film formation technique such as plating.

As shown in fig. 36 (B), the fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21 may be those having a low-melting-point metal layer 92 as an inner layer and a high-melting-point metal layer 91 as an outer layer. In this case, the fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21 may be configured such that the entire surface of the low-melting-point metal layer 92 is covered with the high-melting-point metal layer 91, or may be configured such that the fusible conductors are covered except for a pair of side surfaces facing each other.

The fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21 may have a laminated structure in which a high melting point metal layer 91 and a low melting point metal layer 92 are laminated as shown in fig. 37.

In this case, as shown in fig. 37 (a), the soluble conductors 13, 72, and 21 may have a 2-layer structure including a lower layer connected to the 1 st electrode 11, the 2 nd electrode 12, the heating element lead-out electrode 18, the support electrode 22, and the like, and an upper layer stacked on the lower layer, and the low-melting-point metal layer 92 as the upper layer may be stacked on the upper surface of the high-melting-point metal layer 91 as the lower layer, or the high-melting-point metal layer 91 as the upper layer may be stacked on the upper surface of the low-melting-point metal layer 92 as the lower layer. Alternatively, as shown in fig. 37 (B), the soluble conductors 13, 72, 21 may have a 3-layer structure including an inner layer and outer layers laminated on the upper and lower surfaces of the inner layer, and the low-melting-point metal layer 92 as the outer layer may be laminated on the upper and lower surfaces of the high-melting-point metal layer 91 as the inner layer, or conversely, the high-melting-point metal layer 91 as the outer layer may be laminated on the upper and lower surfaces of the low-melting-point metal layer 92 as the inner layer.

As shown in fig. 38, the fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21 may have a multilayer structure of 4 or more layers in which high melting point metal layers 91 and low melting point metal layers 92 are alternately laminated. In this case, the fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21 may be structured such that the entire surface is covered with the metal layer constituting the outermost layer or the surface excluding the pair of side surfaces facing each other is covered with the metal layer.

In addition, in the fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21, the high melting point metal layer 91 may be partially stacked in a stripe shape on the surface of the low melting point metal layer 92 constituting the inner layer. Fig. 39 is a plan view of the fusible conductors 13, 72, 21.

In the fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21 shown in fig. 39 (a), a plurality of linear high-melting-point metal layers 91 are formed on the surface of the low-melting-point metal layer 92 in the longitudinal direction at predetermined intervals in the width direction, whereby linear openings 93 are formed along the longitudinal direction, and the low-melting-point metal layer 92 is exposed from the openings 93. In the soluble conductors 13, 72, and 21, the low melting point metal layer 92 is exposed from the opening 93, so that the contact area between the molten low melting point metal and the molten high melting point metal is increased, the erosion action of the high melting point metal layer 91 is further promoted, and the fusing property is improved. The opening 93 can be formed by, for example, partially plating the metal constituting the high-melting-point metal layer 91 on the low-melting-point metal layer 92.

In the soluble conductors 13, 72, and 21, as shown in fig. 39 (B), a plurality of linear high-melting-point metal layers 91 may be formed on the surface of the low-melting-point metal layer 92 at predetermined intervals in the longitudinal direction in the width direction, thereby forming linear openings 93 along the width direction.

In the soluble conductors 13, 72, and 21, as shown in fig. 40, the high melting point metal layer 91 may be formed on the surface of the low melting point metal layer 92, and a circular opening 94 may be formed on the entire surface of the high melting point metal layer 91 to expose the low melting point metal layer 92 from the opening 94. The opening 94 can be formed by, for example, partially plating the metal constituting the high-melting-point metal layer 91 on the low-melting-point metal layer 92.

In the soluble conductors 13, 72, and 21, the low melting point metal layer 92 is exposed from the opening 94, so that the contact area between the molten low melting point metal and the molten high melting point metal is increased, the erosion action of the high melting point metal is further promoted, and the meltability is improved.

In the soluble conductors 13, 72, and 21, as shown in fig. 41, a plurality of openings 95 may be formed in the high-melting-point metal layer 91 as an inner layer, and the low-melting-point metal layer 92 may be formed on the high-melting-point metal layer 91 by using a plating technique or the like to fill the openings 95. As a result, the contact area between the molten low-melting-point metal and the high-melting-point metal in the soluble conductors 13, 72, 21 is increased, and therefore the low-melting-point metal can corrode the high-melting-point metal in a shorter time.

In addition, the low melting point metal layer 92 is preferably formed to have a larger volume than the high melting point metal layer 91 in the fusible conductors 13, 72, 21. Among the fusible conductors 13, 72, 21, the low melting point metal is heated and melted by the heat generated by the heating element 14, and the high melting point metal is eroded, whereby the low melting point metal can be melted and fused quickly. Therefore, the low melting point metal layer 92 is formed to have a larger volume than the high melting point metal layer 91 in the fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21, so that the erosion action is promoted, and the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 can be quickly short-circuited.

As shown in fig. 42, the fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21 may further include: a pair of opposing 1 st side edge portions 13c, 72c, 21c formed in a substantially rectangular plate shape and formed thicker than the main surface portions 13b, 72b, 21b covered with the high melting point metal constituting the outer layer, and a pair of opposing 2 nd side edge portions 13d, 72d, 21d formed thinner than the 1 st side edge portions 13c, 72c, 21c exposing the low melting point metal constituting the inner layer.

The side surfaces of the 1 st side edge portions 13c, 72c, 21c are covered with the high-melting-point metal layer 91, and are thereby formed into thicker walls than the main surface portions 13b, 72b, 21b of the soluble conductors 13, 72, 21. The low-melting-point metal layer 92 surrounded by the high-melting-point metal layer 91 is exposed on the side surfaces of the 2 nd side edge portions 13d, 72d, and 21 d. The 2 nd side edge portions 13d, 72d, and 21d are formed to have the same thickness as the main surface portions 13b, 72b, and 21b, except for the two end portions adjacent to the 1 st side edge portions 13c, 72c, and 21 c.

The 1 st soluble conductor 13 configured as described above is connected along the heating element-drawing electrode 18 and the supporting electrode 83 while the 1 st side edge portion 13c is continuously connected between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and the 2 nd side edge portion 13d is connected in a direction facing the 2 nd insulating layer 82 formed on the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, as shown in fig. 43.

Thus, in the short-circuiting element 1, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 can be reliably prevented from being bent at the time of reflow mounting or the like, and the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 can be prevented from being short-circuited, that is, from being initially short-circuited, due to the deformation of the 1 st fusible conductor 13. In the short-circuit element 1, after the heat generating element 14 generates heat, the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is rapidly melted, and the heat is aggregated on the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, thereby causing a short circuit.

That is, since the 1 st side edge portion 13c is covered with the high-melting-point metal and the low-melting-point metal layer 92 is not exposed, it is difficult to exhibit the erosion action, and more heat energy is required to complete the melting. Therefore, even if the 1 st soluble conductor 13 is heated during reflow mounting or the like, it is difficult to bend between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and contact between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 due to bending can be prevented, thereby preventing initial short circuit between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12.

The 2 nd side edge 13d is thinner than the 1 st side edge 13 c. The low-melting-point metal layer 92 constituting the inner layer is exposed on the side surface of the 2 nd side edge portion 13 d. Accordingly, in the 2 nd side edge portion 13d, the low melting point metal layer 92 causes an erosion action of the high melting point metal layer 91, and the thickness of the eroded high melting point metal layer 91 is also formed thinner than the 1 st side edge portion 13c, so that it is possible to melt quickly with less heat than the 1 st side edge portion 13c formed to be thick with the high melting point metal layer 91.

Therefore, in the short-circuit element 1, the 2 nd side edge portion 13d is rapidly melted between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 facing each other by heat generated by the heating element 14, and the melted conductor is aggregated and bonded to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12. As a result, the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 are short-circuited in the short-circuit element 1.

Further, as shown in fig. 44, the 2 nd fusible conductor 72 configured as described above is provided with the 1 st side edge portion 72c covered with the high melting point metal continuously between the heating element extraction electrode 18 and the heating element power feeding electrode 71, and therefore, a considerable time is required for fusing, and therefore, a time until short-circuiting occurs between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 due to melting of the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is secured, and the power feeding path 3 is prevented from being blocked before the short-circuiting.

The heating element 14 may be connected to the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 even in the short- circuit elements 1, 40, 50, and 70 having no auxiliary fusible conductor 21. For example, as shown in fig. 44, in the short-circuit element 70, the 1 st fusible conductor 13 is effectively wetted by connecting and heating the heating element 14 and the 2 nd electrode 12, and the fused conductor can be aggregated between the 1 st electrode 11 and the 2 nd electrode 12 to cause a short circuit.

The fusible conductors 13, 72, and 21 having such a structure can be manufactured by covering a low melting point metal foil such as a solder foil constituting the low melting point metal layer 92 with a metal such as Ag constituting the high melting point metal layer 91. As a method of covering the low melting point metal layer foil with the high melting point metal, an electroplating method of performing high melting point metal plating by connecting a long low melting point metal foil is advantageous in terms of work efficiency and manufacturing cost.

If the high-melting-point metal plating is performed by electroplating, the current density becomes relatively high at the edge portion, i.e., the side edge portion, of the long low-melting-point metal foil, and the high-melting-point metal layer 91 is plated thick (see fig. 42). This forms the long conductor strip 96 having the side edge portion formed to be thick by the high melting point metal layer. Next, the conductor strip 96 is cut by a predetermined length in the width direction (C-C' direction in fig. 42) perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, thereby manufacturing the fusible conductors 13, 72, 21. Thus, in the soluble conductors 13, 72, 21, the side edge portions of the conductor strip 96 become the 1 st side edge portions 13c, 72c, 21c, and the cross section of the conductor strip 96 becomes the 2 nd side edge portions 13d, 72d, 21 d. The 1 st side edge portions 13c, 72c, and 21c are covered with a high-melting-point metal, and the low-melting-point metal layer 92 sandwiched between the upper and lower pair of high-melting-point metal layers 91 and 91 is exposed to the outside at the end surfaces (cut surfaces of the conductor ribbon 96) of the 2 nd side edge portions 13d, 72d, and 21 d.

Claims (14)

1. A shorting element, comprising:

the number 1 of the electrodes is that of the first electrode,

a 2 nd electrode disposed adjacent to the 1 st electrode,

a 1 st fusible conductor which is fused to continuously aggregate between the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode to short-circuit the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode,

a heat generating body for heating the 1 st fusible conductor,

an insulating substrate provided with the heating element,

a 1 st insulating layer covering the heating element and laminated with the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode,

a 2 nd insulating layer laminated on the 1 st and 2 nd electrodes and exposing respective facing distal end portions of the 1 st and 2 nd electrodes, and

a heating element lead-out electrode adjacent to the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode and electrically connected to the heating element;

the 1 st fusible conductor is supported by the 2 nd insulating layer and connected to the heating element-drawing electrode and the 1 st electrode.

2. The shorting element as recited in claim 1 wherein,

the 1 st fusible conductor overlaps with each other while being spaced apart from the 2 nd electrode.

3. The shorting element as recited in claim 1 wherein,

a power supply path for supplying power to the heating element is formed from the 1 st electrode via the 1 st soluble conductor, the heating element-drawing electrode, and a joining material.

4. The shorting element as recited in claim 3,

and blocking the gap between the 1 st electrode and the heating element-drawing electrode after the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode are short-circuited by the fused conductor of the 1 st fusible conductor.

5. The shorting element as recited in claim 4,

the heating element-drawing electrode is disposed at a position spaced apart from the heating element.

6. The short-circuit element as claimed in claim 1 or 2,

one end of the 1 st fusible conductor is connected to the heating element-drawing electrode via a bonding material, and the other end of the 1 st fusible conductor is connected to a supporting electrode formed on the 1 st insulating layer via a bonding material.

7. The short-circuit element as claimed in claim 1 or 2,

the 2 nd insulating layer has an opening exposing each of the opposing distal end portions of the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode, and the 1 st fusible conductor is mounted so as to cover the opening of the 2 nd insulating layer.

8. The short-circuit element as claimed in claim 1 or 2, having: a covering member covering a surface of the insulating substrate.

9. The short-circuit element as claimed in claim 1 or 2,

the 1 st fusible conductor is Sn or an alloy containing Sn as a main component, or Pb or an alloy containing Pb as a main component.

10. The short-circuit element as claimed in claim 1 or 2,

the 1 st fusible conductor is a composite material in which a low-melting-point metal and a high-melting-point metal are laminated.

11. The shorting element as recited in claim 10 wherein,

the low-melting-point metal is Sn or an alloy containing more than 40% of Sn, and the high-melting-point metal is Ag, Cu or an alloy containing Ag or Cu as a main component.

12. The short-circuit element as claimed in claim 1 or 2,

the 1 st fusible conductor is formed in a plate shape and has an area 2 times or more larger than a connection area with the 1 st electrode.

13. The short-circuit element as claimed in claim 1 or 2,

the 1 st fusible conductor is linear and has a length 2 times or more the length of connection with the 1 st electrode.

14. The short-circuit element as claimed in claim 1 or 2,

the interval between the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode is less than or equal to the width of the 1 st electrode on the extension line of the interval between the 1 st electrode and the 2 nd electrode.

Images