CN114665320A - Right-angle connector and connector assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention discloses a right-angle connector and a connector assembly. The right-angle connector according to the present invention comprises: the cable connector comprises a shell, a first connecting piece and a second connecting piece, wherein the shell is provided with a first end and a second end, the first end faces a cable access direction and the second end faces a terminal access direction, the cable access direction and the terminal access direction are perpendicular to each other, and a cavity is formed in the shell; and a terminal assembly disposed in the housing forming cavity, the terminal assembly forming the cable connection end and the terminal connection end, wherein the terminal assembly has: a wire crimping terminal having a crimping wing part for connecting a cable and a carrier plate having an open hole; the elastic arm jack terminal comprises a plurality of elastic arms which surround the opening on the carrier plate to form an elastic receiving part; and a protective accessory with a rod-like member arranged to extend in the resilient receiving portion formed by the resilient arm when the protective accessory is fitted into the opening of the carrier plate, whereby finger contact with the terminal in the connector can be avoided and safety in operation is improved due to the protective accessory being employed in the terminal assembly.

Description

Right-angle connector and connector assembly

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of electrical connections, and more particularly, to a right angle electrical connector suitable for high power applications.

Background

Large-scale automobile enterprises in China and China are developing electric automobiles and hybrid electric automobiles to replace or partially replace traditional fuel oil and gas automobiles, and the defects of fuel oil and gas of various automobiles in the market are overcome. In various systems of electric vehicles and hybrid electric vehicles, a charging and battery replacing system plays a role in conveying electric energy and is an important basic technology supporting system; and the charging connector and the wire harness which are mutually connected with a battery box, a distribution box, a driving motor and a motor controller in the system play a key role.

With the development of electric vehicles, higher requirements are put on high-energy electric connectors. The prior high-voltage electric connector can not meet the connection requirement of large wire diameter and high current at present, and has defects in connection stability and use safety. Therefore, a new high voltage electrical connector for vehicles is needed to meet the market demand.

Disclosure of Invention

In order to overcome the defects in the prior art, the invention provides a right-angle connector, which comprises: the cable connector comprises a shell, a first connecting piece and a second connecting piece, wherein the shell is provided with a first end and a second end, the first end faces a cable access direction and the second end faces a terminal access direction, the cable access direction and the terminal access direction are perpendicular to each other, and a cavity is formed in the shell; and a terminal assembly disposed in the housing forming cavity, the terminal assembly forming the cable connection end and the terminal connection end, wherein the terminal assembly has: a wire crimping terminal having a crimping wing part for connecting a cable and a carrier plate having an opening; the elastic arm jack terminal comprises a plurality of elastic arms which surround the opening on the carrier plate to form an elastic receiving part; and a shield attachment with a rod-like member arranged to extend in a resilient receiving portion formed by the resilient arm when the shield attachment is fitted into the aperture of the carrier plate.

According to one aspect of the invention, the free end of the rod of the protective accessory is flush with or exceeds the free end of the elastic arm.

According to a further aspect of the invention, the terminal assembly further has a terminal sheath with a sleeve for surrounding the resilient arm and a base for engaging the carrier plate of the wire crimp terminal, and the protective attachment of the terminal assembly has an end cap plate with a rod-like member extending perpendicular to a surface of the end cap plate.

According to a further aspect of the invention, the crimping wing includes a first crimping portion and a second crimping portion, the first crimping portion being disposed close to the front side of the carrier plate relative to the second crimping portion, wherein the first crimping portion and the second crimping portion are continuously formed, and in a state where the crimping wing is flattened, the first crimping portion has a first width, and the second crimping portion has a second width, and the first width is greater than the second width.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, the housing is provided with a position retaining device near both ends, the position retaining device including a screw and a screw retaining portion, wherein the screw retaining portion is formed integrally with the housing.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, the position retaining device further includes a screw position retaining member, the screw retaining portion being integrally provided with a screw retaining member insertion groove, the screw position retaining member being movably inserted in the screw retaining member insertion groove, one end of the screw position retaining member being a retaining end, the other end being an operating end, the retaining end being capable of moving over a head portion of the screw in a thread-fitted state and catching the position thereof.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, the housing is provided with a cable retention portion at the second end, the cable retention portion having a cable retention cover adapted to snap into the second end of the housing and two wire catches disposed inside the cable retention cover, the two wire catches being configured to cooperate to retain the cable at the second end.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, the right-angle connector further comprises a shield assembly including a first shield member arranged along the cable insertion direction and a second shield member arranged perpendicularly to the cable insertion direction, the first shield member having an engaging portion, and one end of the second shield member forming a concave-convex indentation at a position where the second shield member engages with the engaging portion of the first shield member.

The invention also provides an electric connector assembly, which comprises the right-angle connector in each technical scheme, wherein the right-angle connector is used as a female connector; and a male end connector mated with the female end connector, the male end connector having a body and a terminal retained in the body, the terminal having an end for insertion into the female end connector, the end being provided with a groove configured to receive the stem of the protective accessory in the female end connector.

According to another aspect of the invention, the male end connector is provided with a mating position retaining device having a nut retaining portion integrally formed from the body of the male end connector and a nut received in the nut retaining portion.

In the right-angle connector, the protection accessory is adopted in the terminal assembly, so that fingers of an assembler can be prevented from touching the terminals in the right-angle connector in the operation process, and the safety in operation is improved.

Due to the adoption of the stepped crimping wing part, good mechanical performance and electrical performance are provided, and aging and performance degradation caused by using environments such as high temperature, humidity, low-speed distortion, vibration and the like can be better resisted.

The high-voltage connector assembly adopts the position retaining mechanism in threaded connection, and the screw position retaining piece is further arranged in the position retaining mechanism, so that the reliability of assembly connection is remarkably improved, and the requirement of high current-carrying equipment electrical connection with vibration influence is particularly met.

Drawings

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is made to the following description of exemplary embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

figure 1 shows a perspective view of a high voltage electrical connector assembly according to the present invention.

Figure 2A shows a perspective view of a female end connector in a high voltage electrical connector assembly according to the present invention.

Figure 2B shows a cross-sectional view of a female end connector in a high voltage electrical connector assembly according to the present invention.

Figure 2C shows an exploded perspective view of a female end connector in a high voltage electrical connector assembly according to the present invention.

Figure 3A shows a perspective view of a male end connector in a high voltage electrical connector assembly according to the present invention.

Figure 3B shows a cross-sectional view of a male end connector in a high voltage electrical connector assembly according to the present invention.

Figure 3C shows an exploded perspective view of a male end connector in a high voltage electrical connector assembly according to the present invention.

Fig. 4 shows an exploded perspective view of a terminal assembly in a high voltage electrical connector according to the present invention.

Fig. 5 illustrates a perspective view of a terminal assembly with terminals connected thereto according to the present invention.

List of reference numerals

1 electric connector assembly

10 female end connector

110 casing

111 first end

112 second end

120 terminal assembly

121 line pressing terminal

1211 crimp wing

1212 support plate

122 spring arm jack terminal

123 terminal sheath

124 protection accessory

1241 rod-shaped member

1242 end cap piece

131 inner ring

132 outer ferrule

133 first shield can

134 second shield can

1341 indentation

140 cable holding part

141 cable holding cover

142 line lock catch

150 position holding device

151 screw holding part

152 screw

153 screw position keeper

154 screw retainer socket

155 through hole

160 sealing ring

161 seal ring holder

170 insulating sleeve

20 male end connector

210 body

211 base part

212 hole

213 terminal receiving part

220 terminal

230 shield

240 matched position retention device

241 nut

260 sealing ring

270 groove

30 electric cable

Detailed Description

The present invention is further described in the following description with reference to specific embodiments and the accompanying drawings, wherein the details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention, but it is apparent that the present invention can be embodied in many other forms different from those described herein, and it will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art that the present invention can be implemented in many different forms without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a high voltage electrical connector assembly 1 according to the present invention. The high voltage electrical connector assembly 1 is a right angle electrical connector, i.e. the insertion direction of the cable 30 is perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the terminal 220, as shown in fig. 1, the high voltage electrical connector assembly 1 comprises a male end connector 20 and a female end connector 10, which are mutually matched to realize the electrical connection of the cable 30 and the terminal 220. In actual use, the body of the male end connector 20 in the high voltage electrical connector assembly 1 is fixed onto the body of the associated equipment by a plurality of fasteners, thereby fixing the entire high voltage electrical connector assembly 1 to a set position on the associated equipment. The electrical connector assembly 1 according to the invention is particularly suitable for connecting large wire diameter cables, for example 95mm²Wire diameter sized cables, accordingly, can be suitable for high current carrying applications, for example, electrical connector assembly 1 can carry currents as high as 370A.

Fig. 2A, 2B and 2C show a perspective view, a cross-sectional view and an exploded view, respectively, of a female end connector 10 in a high voltage electrical connector assembly 1 according to the present invention. As can be seen in fig. 2A-2C, the right angle female connector 10 includes a housing 110, a terminal assembly 120, a shield assembly, a cable retention portion 140, and a position retention device 150.

The housing 110 has an open first end 111 and an open second end 112, the first end 111 opening in a cable receiving direction to receive the cable 30 and the second end 112 opening in a terminal receiving direction of the male end connector 20 to receive the terminal 220 in the male end connector 20 (as shown in fig. 3C). The cable insertion direction and the terminal insertion direction are perpendicular to each other, and accordingly, the housing 110 forms a right-angled portion of 90 degrees, and a cavity having a corner is formed inside the housing 110. The terminal assembly 120 and the shield assembly are disposed in the cavity of the housing 110 with the terminal assembly 120 disposed at a corner position of the cavity to provide an electrical connection and the various components of the shield assembly extending along the cavity of the housing 110 from the first end 111 to the second end 112 to provide full shielding. The housing 110 is typically integrally formed of an electrically insulating material.

The terminal assembly 120 in the cavity of the housing 110 has a cable connection end and a terminal connection end to be electrically connected with the terminals of the cable 30 and the male terminal connector 20, respectively, in directions perpendicular to each other. Specifically, as shown in fig. 4, the terminal assembly 120 includes a wire pressing terminal 121, a spring arm receptacle terminal 122, a terminal sheath 123, and a shield fitting 124.

The crimp terminal 121 has crimp wings 1211 for connecting the cable 30 and a carrier plate 1212 having an opening. In particular, as shown in fig. 4, stepped crimp wings 1211 are employed in the crimp terminal 121 according to the present invention. The crimping wing 1211 has a first crimping portion and a second crimping portion, the first crimping portion is disposed close to the front side of the carrier 1212 relative to the second crimping portion, the second crimping portion is disposed at the rear side of the first crimping portion and closer to the first end of the female connector 10, wherein the first crimping portion and the second crimping portion are continuously formed, the first crimping portion has a first width and the second crimping portion has a second width in a state that the crimping wing is flattened, and the first width is greater than the second width. The inner surface of the first crimping part is provided with a plurality of first grooves extending perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cable approaching direction, the inner surface of the second crimping part is provided with a plurality of second grooves extending perpendicular to the longitudinal axis direction, and accordingly the width of the first grooves is larger than that of the second grooves. Compared with the traditional open-wing type wiring terminal, the stepped-wing type wire pressing terminal has more ideal crimping stability under the same process precision. The inventor finds that the step wing type wiring terminal can provide excellent transmission performance and can better resist aging and performance degradation caused by using environments such as high temperature, humidity, low-speed distortion and vibration.

The spring arm receptacle terminals 122 in the terminal assemblies 120 are adapted to engage in openings in the carrier plate 1212 of the wire crimp terminal 121. The spring-arm receptacle terminal 122 includes a plurality of spring arms with notches between adjacent spring arms separating the spring arms, the spring arms surrounding an opening in the carrier 1212 to form a spring receiver to receive the terminal 220 in the male connector 20. These resilient arms may have the same serpentine shape, thereby providing a consistent spring force for the resilient arms to stably contact the outer surface of the terminal of the male connector 20. In some applications, the spring-arm receptacle terminal 122 may also be referred to as a crown spring or crown contact spring.

The terminal assembly 120 includes therein a terminal sheath 123 having a sleeve for surrounding the resilient arm, and a base for engaging a carrier plate 1212 of the wire compression terminal 121, preferably the terminal sheath 123 is integrally formed of, for example, an insulating resin material. The base of the terminal sheath 123 is fixed to the carrier 1212 of the wire pressing terminal 121 by a snap-fit structure.

The terminal assembly 120 includes a shield fitting 124 therein, the shield fitting 124 having an end cap piece 1242 and a rod-like member 1241, the rod-like member 1241 extending perpendicular to a surface of the end cap piece 1242, the substantially disk-shaped end cap piece 1242 covering the aperture of the carrier plate 1212 when the shield fitting 124 is fitted into the aperture of the carrier plate 1212 of the wire crimp terminal 121. The rod 1241 extends through a resilient receiving portion formed around the resilient arm. Preferably, the free end of the rod 1241 is flush with or exceeds the free end of the resilient arm. The protective attachment 124 prevents a person's fingers from contacting the live resilient arm, thereby avoiding potential hazards. The disk-shaped end cap piece 1242 is preferably engaged in the end of the spring arm receptacle terminal 122 by interference fit while also further securely abutting the spring arm receptacle terminal 122 against the opening of the carrier plate of the crimp terminal 121.

In a preferred embodiment according to the invention, the shielding assembly comprises an inner and an outer ferrule 131, 132 and a first and a second shield cap 133, 134 crimped onto the cable shield as shown in fig. 2B and 2C. In the preferred embodiment, the first shield shell 133 is generally in the shape of a square column, preferably integrally formed from sheet metal, to fit into a square cavity of the housing 110 in the cable insertion direction, and is provided with an engagement portion in the form of an opening on one side thereof to facilitate engagement with one end of the second shield shell 134. The second shield 134 is formed in a cylindrical shape by a metal plate, and one end of the second shield 134 is formed with a circle of concave-convex indentations 1341, the circle of indentations 1341 is formed at a position where the second shield 134 is engaged with the engaging portion of the first shield 133, and when the first shield 133 and the second shield 134 are fitted together, the indentation 1341 structure can improve the reliability of the connection between the two shields.

Further, as shown in fig. 2B and 2C, a cable holding portion 140 is further provided at the first end 111 of the housing 110. Cable retention section 140 has a cable retention cover 141 adapted to snap fit to first end 111 of housing 110 and two wire catches 142 disposed inside cable retention cover 141. The two wire catches 142 are configured to snap into one another so that the cable 30 will be retained at the first end 111. The cable retention cap 141 is engaged to the first end 111 of the housing 110 by a snap-fit arrangement, thereby retaining the wire lock 142 to the housing 110.

As shown in fig. 2B and 2C, the female end connector 10 is provided with a sealing ring 160 at the first end 111 and the second end 112, respectively, to prevent external contaminants from entering the interior of the housing 110. The seal ring of the first end 111 is held within the housing 110 by means of the cable holder 140. The seal ring at the second end 112 is retained on the second end 112 of the housing 110 by a specially configured seal ring retainer 161. The outer shape of the sealing rings 160 at both ends matches the inner cavity shape of the housing 110.

In addition, an insulating sleeve 170 is provided in the interior cavity of the housing 110 of the female connector 10, which is shaped as a square sleeve and is adapted to fit inside the first shield 133.

Fig. 3A, 3B and 3C show a perspective view, a cross-sectional view and an exploded view, respectively, of a male end connector 20 in a high voltage electrical connector assembly 1 according to the present invention. The male connector 20 basically includes a body 210, a terminal 220, a shield and a mating position retention device.

The body 210 of the male connector 20 comprises a base portion 211 provided with a plurality of holes adapted to receive fasteners for mounting to the device body, and in which holes a sleeve may be fitted. The body 210 further includes a pair of receptacles 213 for receiving the terminals, the receptacles 213 forming a through passage extending through the base portion 211. The male end connector 20 may also include a pair of terminals 220, each terminal 220 being disposed within a respective one of the passages of the body 210.

As shown in fig. 3B, a groove 270 is provided at the upper end of the terminal 220, and when the female connector 10 and the male connector 20 are mated and plugged together, the rod 1241 of the shield fitting 124 fitted in the spring-arm-socket terminal 122 of the female connector 10 will be received in the groove 270 at the upper end of the terminal 220 of the male connector 20, and the outer peripheral surface of the terminal 220 will be crimped by the spring arm of the spring-arm-socket terminal 122.

As shown in fig. 3B, a sealing ring receiving groove is further provided on the surface of the base portion 211 of the body 210 of the male end connector 20 on the side away from the female end connector 10, and a sealing ring 260 is fitted in the receiving groove. When the connector assembly 1 is secured to a plate-like structure of a suitable device by fasteners as shown in fig. 1, the sealing ring will tightly engage with the surface of the plate-like structure, thereby providing a good sealing effect.

In addition, the male end connector 20 further includes a shield 230, and as shown in fig. 3C, the shield 230 has a cylindrical shape and is received in the terminal receiving portion 213 of the male end connector 20. Preferably, the shield 230 engages the cylindrical second shield 134 in the female connector 10 when the male connector 20 is matingly engaged with the female connector 10, thereby providing superior shielding effectiveness.

In order to ensure the reliability of the connection of the high current carrying connector assembly 1 and to avoid loosening of the connection due to factors such as vibration in practical use, the connector assembly 1 according to the present invention employs a position retaining mechanism for screw connection. The female end connector 10 has a position retention device 150, as shown in FIG. 2A, the position retention device 150 is disposed near the second end 112 of the housing 110 portion. The position holding device 150 comprises a threaded rod 152 and a threaded rod holding part 151, wherein the threaded rod holding part 151 is an integral part of the housing 110, which has a through hole through which the threaded rod 152 can pass and a frame which accommodates and at least partially surrounds the head of the threaded rod 151.

The mating position retention means 240 of the male end connector 20 is disposed on the surface of the base portion 211 of the body 210 opposite the female end connector 10, having a nut retaining portion integrally formed from the body and a nut 241 received in the nut retaining portion 151. As shown in fig. 3C, the nut 241 has an outer peripheral surface of a hexagonal cross section, which is provided in the nut holding portion 151 of the hole having a hexagonal cross section. As is clear from fig. 1, the mating state of the position retaining means 150 of the female connector 10 and the position retaining means 240 of the male connector 20, in which the screw 152 is threadedly mated with the nut 241.

In particular, the position maintaining mechanism further comprises a screw position maintaining member 153, as shown in fig. 1. One side of the screw holder 151 of the female-end connector is integrally provided with a screw holder slot 154, and the screw position holder 153 is movably inserted in the screw holder slot 154. One end of the screw position holder 153 is a holding end and the other end is an operating end, and the holding end of the screw position holder 153 is movable above the head of the screw 152 in a screw-engaged state and catches its position. Preferably, the holding end forms an arc-shaped surface relative to one surface of the head of the screw, and the operating end is provided with a plurality of convex stripes to improve the operating hand feeling. The screw holding portion also integrally has a frame at the head portion accommodating the screw 152, and the frame is provided with a through hole 155 at the side adjacent to the screw position holding piece 153, through which hole 155 the holding end can move to protrude above the head portion of the screw 152 inside the frame.

In the right-angle connector 10 according to the present invention, the protective attachments 124 are employed in the terminal assembly 120 therein, so that the fingers of the assembler can be prevented from touching the terminals in the right-angle connector 10, improving safety in operation.

Due to the adoption of the step-shaped crimping wing part, the high-temperature-resistant and high-speed-resistant crimping wing part provides good mechanical performance and electrical performance, and can better resist aging and performance degradation caused by using environments such as high temperature, humidity, low-speed distortion, vibration and the like.

The high-voltage connector assembly 1 adopts a threaded connection position retaining mechanism, and the position retaining mechanism is further provided with a screw position retaining piece 153, so that the reliability of assembly connection is obviously improved, and the requirement of high current-carrying equipment electrical connection with vibration influence is particularly met.

Although the present invention has been disclosed in terms of preferred embodiments, it is not intended to be limited thereto, and variations and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, any modification, equivalent change and modification of the above embodiments according to the technical essence of the present invention are within the protection scope defined by the claims of the present invention, unless the technical essence of the present invention departs from the content of the present invention.

Claims (10)

1. A right angle connector comprising:

a housing having a first end and a second end, the first end facing a cable access direction and the second end facing a terminal access direction, the cable access direction and the terminal access direction being perpendicular to each other, and the housing forming a cavity therein; and

a terminal assembly disposed in the housing forming cavity, the terminal assembly forming a cable connection end and a terminal connection end,

characterized in that the terminal assembly has:

a wire crimping terminal having a crimping wing part for connecting a cable and a carrier plate having an open hole;

a spring-arm-receptacle terminal comprising a plurality of spring arms forming a spring receptacle around an aperture on the carrier plate; and

a shield attachment (124) with a stem arranged to extend in the resilient receiving portion formed by the resilient arm when the shield attachment is fitted into the aperture of the carrier plate.

2. The right angle connector according to claim 1, wherein a free end of the rod-like member of the protective attachment is flush with or exceeds a free end of the resilient arm.

3. The right angle connector of claim 1, wherein said terminal assembly further has a terminal sheath having a sleeve for surrounding said spring arm and a base for engaging a carrier plate of said wire crimp terminal,

and the protective attachments of the terminal assemblies have end caps, the rod-like members extending perpendicular to the surfaces of the end caps.

4. The right angle connector of claim 1, wherein the crimping wings include a first crimping portion and a second crimping portion, the first crimping portion being disposed proximate a front side of the carrier plate relative to the second crimping portion,

wherein the first crimping portion and the second crimping portion are continuously formed, the first crimping portion has a first width and the second crimping portion has a second width in a state where the crimping wing portions are flattened, the first width being greater than the second width.

5. The right angle connector according to claim 1, wherein the housing is provided with a position retaining device near the second end, the position retaining device comprising a screw and a screw retaining portion, wherein the screw retaining portion is integrally formed with the housing.

6. The right-angle connector according to claim 5, wherein the position retaining means further comprises a screw position retaining member integrally provided with a screw retaining member insertion groove in which the screw position retaining member is movably inserted,

one end of the screw position retaining piece is a retaining end, the other end of the screw position retaining piece is an operating end, and the retaining end can move to the position above the head of the screw in the thread matching state and clamp the position of the head of the screw.

7. The right angle connector of claim 1,

the housing is provided with a cable retention at the second end having a cable retention cover adapted to snap-fit to the second end of the housing and two wire catches disposed inside the cable retention cover, the two wire catches being configured to cooperate to retain the cable at the second end.

8. A right angle connector according to claim 1, further comprising a shield assembly, the shield assembly comprising a first shield member arranged along a cable insertion direction and a second shield member arranged perpendicular to the cable insertion direction,

the first shielding part is provided with a joint part, and one end of the second shielding part forms a concave-convex indentation at the position where the second shielding part is jointed with the joint part of the first shielding part.

9. An electrical connector assembly, comprising:

the right angle connector of any one of claims 1-8, used as a female connector; and

and a male end connector mated with the female end connector, the male end connector having a body and a terminal retained in the body, the terminal having an end for insertion into the female end connector, the end being provided with a groove configured to receive the rod of the protective accessory in the female end connector.

10. The electrical connector assembly of claim 9, wherein the male end connector is provided with a mating position retention device having a nut retaining portion integrally formed from a body of the male end connector and a nut received in the nut retaining portion.

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