DE3844295A1 - Connection unit and process for the production of a connection unit - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a connection unit having a receiving opening (8), provided on a basic body (1), and having a threaded insert (10) which can be arranged fixedly therein and bears a thread (2), the threaded insert consisting of a plastic-containing material. The invention further relates to a process for producing a connection unit of this type. <IMAGE>

Description

The invention relates to a connection unit, which he leaves, on any basic body, a durable, easy-to-provide thread to provide components in particular fluid type such as connecting piece, connecting nipple or the like. Can be permanently detachably attached.

For cost reasons, because of the simpler production and to save weight there are basic bodies on which Components in particular of a fluid type are attached should, often made of plastic. Especially in the field this tendency is recognizable in pneumatics, used there Terminal strips, valve support plates, valve housings or Similar bodies are often made of plastic. But light metal materials are also used because of the low Weight used many times.

To be able to attach external components, a respective  Base body with one or more threads be. So far you are regularly in the Base material cut or molded. This but has the disadvantage that the thread strength is only low is because the base materials mentioned normally do not have high strength. There is therefore the Danger of a threaded connection over time loosens or that a thread already when screwing in Counter thread piece of a component to be connected destroyed and is torn out. For the latter fact are also the regularly low sliding properties of the Base material responsible for high friction between the cooperating thread flanks cause.

The aim of the invention is to achieve the mentioned clear out parts and a connection unit available to put up with any choice of basic body work strong thread with good sliding properties can make available.

This goal is achieved with a connection unit a receiving opening provided on a base body and with a thread that can be arranged in it the threaded insert, the threaded insert made of art contains material.

With regard to the choice of materials in relation to the base body  there are therefore no restrictions. It is possible, the base body made of inexpensive plastic low strength and less good sliding properties to produce, which can be shaped well, for example that the base body in the context of casting processes without problems can be manufactured. To do all of this, one or more high-strength threads for connecting separate components According to the invention, it is made available from art existing thread insert in one corresponding receiving opening of the base body is firmly attached arranges. This plastic-containing material is under consideration selectable view of the requirements placed on it, and you can use a plastic material with high strength select with good sliding properties. These Materials are more expensive, but the corresponding one is Material expenditure based on the total volume of the basic body very low and consequently affects the manufacturing cost just imperceptibly. In addition, the plastic Thread insert the advantage over a metal version significant weight savings and simpler, cheaper manufacturing. It is also advantageous that due to the plastic design, a good Ab seal to the main body material is achieved, what before especially advantageous when connecting pressure-carrying components is because there are often additional sealing measures can be dispensed with.

To ensure a very high strength of the plastic-containing thread  To achieve use, the material with strength increasing additives, z. B. in Art a glass fiber reinforced plastic.

Advantageous developments of the invention are in the Subclaims listed.

A particularly inexpensive solution is the Manufacture thread insert completely from plastic. It is useful to use one as the material of the thread insert polyacetal plastic or a polyacetal plastic to use.

In any case, it is possible through the inventive Connection unit one made of two different materials to provide existing basic materials or substances, other materials in the thread area are present than in the rest of the body area. If also the basic body made of plastic or an art there is a two-way Fabric-plastic body before, the choice of material of the each substance exactly the respective requirements can be adapted.

The thread insert used in each case can be sleeve-shaped be formed and in the through opening Internal thread for screwing in a separate component exhibit.  

An embodiment in which the thread insert a has cylindrical outer contour, can be particularly manufacture inexpensively. Increased sealing properties ensures a threaded insert with conical and in particular re frustoconical outer contour, of course the receiving opening is complementary to the outside contour of the threaded insert has a shaped inner contour.

To increase the security against rotation, the outer circumference at least one flattening of the threaded insert is provided be at which a flattening of the receiving opening in in this applied condition is flat. In cross section the outer circumference of the thread insert is thus polygonal shaped, with a two being particularly cost-effective is corner or double-edged design. As alternative or additional anti-rotation device can be on the outer circumference a recess of the thread insert can be arranged, the one provided on the circumference of the receiving opening Ver opposite and facing so that both Wells together a receptacle for a twist lock form part, z. B. a pluggable fuse pen.

If the plastic-containing thread insert is detachable in the Reception opening is arranged, there is an exchange possibility to quickly remove the thread in case of wear to be able to exchange and if necessary an off exchange of different thread types and / or thread dimensions  to be able to make. It is possible to have a basic body without providing inserted thread inserts and only on site, according to the existing connection possible of the components to be connected, the required Anchor thread inserts in the base body. In this Context, it is particularly advantageous if the ever thread insert pressed into the receiving opening or is pressed.

In a further embodiment, the thread insert non-detachably fixed in the receiving opening, for. B. with the help of an adhesive connection.

The thread insert can advantageously be part of a Pouring process directly into the receiving opening be shaped.

If there are particularly high sealing requirements, can be on the thread insert, especially on the inside of the End area facing the receiving opening and / or on outside facing end area like a ring in closed bead-shaped sealing projection in axial be arranged to point the way from the thread insert, with the sealing projection facing inwards a ring shaped sealing shoulder assigned to the receiving opening opposite, on which the sealing projection comes to rest can. If the thread insert is pressed in, then the Sealing projection capable of interacting with  the sealing shoulder and possibly a good one under deformation Sealing.

In a method for manufacturing a connection unit, the one threaded insert anchored in a base body has, is provided, one made of plastic Material existing thread insert with the base body material-forming plastic or plastic-containing To encapsulate material. This gives you a special one intimate connection between the base body and the thread use.

The invention is described below with reference to the enclosed Drawing explained in more detail. In this show:

A base body in the form of a terminal block, the units with two different types of connection is provided Fig. 1, in cross-section,

Fig. 2 shows another embodiment of an integrated Anschlußein in Fig. 1 corresponding Presentation example,

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the connection unit of Fig. 2 in the direction of view according to arrow III and

FIGS. 4 and 5 are plan views of further embodiments of connector units which are arranged additionally torsionally secured in the base body.

In the individual figures, only a section of the basic body 1 is shown, which can be of arbitrary shape and is adapted to the respective requirements. It is basically a body on which one or more threads 2 are to be provided in order to enable the connection of additional parts or components, in particular a special fluid type. In Fig. 1, such a fluidic component is indicated by dashed lines at 3 , which is a connection connector which, on the one hand, has a connection thread 5 on a connection piece 4 , which can be screwed into a thread 2 on the base body , and on the other hand has a further connection piece 4 ', on which a pressure medium line or a pressure medium hose or the like. Pressure medium-carrying component can be fixed.

All of the basic bodies 1 shown are made of plastic or of a plastic-containing material, that is to say a material which is cheap and has a low weight. The properties of this material are adapted to the requirements of the base body 1 . Since this is mainly used for the distribution of a flowing pressure medium in the execution examples, no high requirements have to be placed on the strength values.

The basic bodies shown are valve carriers which are in particular plate-shaped or block-shaped and have pressure medium channels 6 running inside. Some of these channels open out on a connection side 7 of the base body 1 , where they are assigned one of the threads 2 already mentioned, in order to establish a connection with a pressure medium source or a consumer by means of a component 3 . The pressure medium channels 6 also open out at other locations, not shown, of the base body 1 , at which assembly locations are provided for attaching valves with which the flow through the pressure medium channels 6 can be controlled. If threads in the base body 1 are also necessary for attaching these valves or the like components, then these can be provided in the same manner as the threads 2 already mentioned in the manner to be described.

It is understood that the connection unit according to the invention not to be used with such valve carriers is bordered.

In detail, each base body 1 has a receiving opening 8 , which is designed in the manner of a recess, opens out on the one hand on the outside 7 of the base body 1 and, on the other hand, extends from here into the interior of the base body 1 . One of the above-mentioned pressure medium channels 6 can open at the axially inward-pointing base 9 of the in particular blind hole-like receiving opening 8 . The receiving opening 8 forms part of the connection unit according to the invention.

In addition, the connection unit contains a thread insert 10 carrying the thread 2 . It can be fixedly arranged in the associated receiving opening 8 , and in all the figures the threaded insert 10 is shown in the state arranged and fixed in the receiving opening 8 .

It is essential that the respective thread insert 10 consists of a plastic-containing material. Such material has a significantly lower weight and is much cheaper to produce than a metallic insert, but it is possible to choose the material properties so that a sufficiently high strength of the thread 2 formed on it is ensured. Consequently, the threaded insert 10 can be made of a higher quality plastic material than the base body 1 , so that with high thread strength, the total volume of the higher quality material is relatively low and consequently the overall manufacturing costs of a base body provided with high-strength threads are low.

Thus, in the illustrated embodiments using the connection units according to the invention a two-piece plastic base body ready provides the simple and inexpensive at low weight can be produced.

It is understood that the connection unit according to the invention also for basic bodies made of other materials  or in the case of basic bodies which additionally consist of further Materials exist, can be used. In particular when the other materials are light metal, e.g. B. an aluminum alloy.

By a suitable choice of the material of the thread insert 10 , good sliding properties can also be ensured with high strength, so that the connecting thread 5 of a component 3 to be attached runs with little friction, which reduces the risk of accidental tearing out of individual threads or the entire thread 2 .

The material of the threaded insert 10 can be a plastic material mixed with additives, e.g. B. glass fiber reinforced plastic material. This allows the material properties to be influenced particularly severely. But it is also possible to form the thread insert entirely from plastic and without additional foreign substances.

It has proven to be advantageous to use a polyacetal-containing plastic or a polyacetal plastic as the material for the threaded insert 10 .

The details of the illustrated exemplary embodiments of the connection unit 8 , 10 will now be discussed in more detail.

All thread inserts 10 shown are sleeve-shaped, and the thread 2 is a continuous internal thread, which connects the opening in the receiving opening 8 pressure medium channel 6 with the connection side 7 . However, it should be noted that the continuous internal thread is particularly advantageous only for the application described, in addition, the thread 2 can also be formed like a blind hole or on an extension of the threaded insert 10 projecting to the outside. The type of design depends on the intended use.

The threaded insert 10 'shown in the left half of Fig. 1' has a cylindrical outer contour 14 , and the inner contour of the associated receiving opening 8 is complementary thereto. The length of the threaded insert 10 measured in the axial direction essentially corresponds to that of the receiving opening 8 . The threaded insert 10 'is pressed or pressed into the receiving opening 8 and is held by an interference fit. This results in an automatic seal in the separation area between the circumferential areas of the threaded insert 10 and the receiving opening 8 .

Should increased demands be placed on the sealing quality, e.g. B. if the pressure medium channel 6 is to be pressurized with high pressure, additional sealing measures can be taken. Such is in the connection unit shown in the left half of Fig. 1 realized by there on the threaded insert 10 'on the axially in the interior of the receiving opening 8 , the end region an annular, bulging Dichtvor jump 16 is provided and is preferably integrally formed. It jumps forward in the axial direction and coaxially surrounds the channel enclosed by the internal thread 2 . Opposing him is a sealing shoulder 17 formed from the bottom 9 of the receiving opening 8 , which coaxially surrounds the mouth of the pressure medium channel 6 and on which the Dichtvor jump 16 comes to rest. Because of the high surface pressure occurring in the contact area between the sealing projection 16 and the sealing shoulder 17 - the sealing projection 16 can even deform under adaptation to the contour of the sealing shoulder - a very good seal is obtained.

A corresponding sealing projection 16 'is formed on the opposite, outwardly facing axial side of the threaded insert 10 ', which can cooperate with a molded on the component 3 sealing shoulder 18 for sealing.

It is understood that various embodiments are possible, in which the threaded insert 10 , 10 'without sealing projection, is equipped with only one sealing projection on one axial side or with two sealing projections. In addition, it is not necessary that the sealing projection is located directly at one axial end of the threaded insert, it could, for example, also be somewhat recessed and / or arranged laterally if the threaded insert and the receiving opening specify a corresponding contour.

In the connection unit shown in the right half of FIG. 1, the threaded insert 10 , 10 'is provided with a conical and in this case frustoconical outer contour. The inner contour of the receiving opening 8 is complementary and has the same cone angle. Advantageously, the axial length of the receiving opening 8 is slightly larger than that of the threaded insert 10 '', so that the threaded insert can be pressed firmly into the receiving opening 8 , whereby a sealing contact of the peripheral contours is achieved. The conical design of the threaded insert and receiving opening also results in automatic centering with respect to one another. The cone angles are expediently chosen so that self-locking occurs when the threaded insert 10 '' is pressed in.

While in the embodiment just mentioned with conical thread insert 10 '' additional sealing projections are not provided, this is the case with the embodiment of FIG. 2. There are molded on both axial ends of the threaded insert 10 , 10 '''' sealing projections 16 , 16 'of the type already described, which can cooperate sealingly with corresponding sealing shoulders 17 . The annular shape of the sealing projection 16 'provided on the outside of the threaded insert 10 ''', which can cooperate with a component 3 , not shown, is clearly shown in Fig. 3.

The threaded inserts 10 can be arranged detachably in the associated receiving opening 8 , so that replacement is possible if necessary. As a result, thread inserts with different thread types and thread dimensions can be used, e.g. B. thread inserts with so-called BSP, NPT, PT threads or with metric threads. Such interchangeable types of attachment are those chosen in FIG. 1.

In contrast, in the embodiment of FIGS. 2 and 3, the threaded insert 10 '''is non-detachably fixed in the associated receiving opening 8 , z. B. by gluing. However, it is understood that a respective type of attachment can be applied to any type of connection unit.

The exemplary embodiments according to FIGS. 4 and 5 additionally illustrate the possibility of arranging the respective thread insert 10 in a manner secured against rotation in the associated receiving opening 8 by positive locking. In the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 4, a flattening 19 is provided on the outer circumference of the threaded insert 10 , which lies flat against a flattening 20 of the receiving opening 8 . Both the receiving opening 8 and the threaded insert 10 therefore have a two-corner contour which counteracts rotation. It goes without saying that the contour can also be polygonal and that several flattenings can be provided.

In the embodiment according to FIG. 5 of the threaded insert 10 is a z on the outer circumference 14. B. in the production by casting immediately molded groove-like recess 21 , which extends in the area between the two axial sides of the threaded insert 10 . A corresponding de recess 21 'is the first recess 21 directly opposite in the receiving opening 8 , the z. B. has been introduced by bumping. Overall, both recesses 21 , 21 'thus represent an expedient cylindrical receptacle 22 , in which an anti-rotation part 23 - in the embodiment, a locking pin - is inserted. There is thus a type of wedge connection between the receiving opening 8 or the base body 1 and the threaded insert 10 , which prevents rotation. It goes without saying that the receptacle 22 can, for example, also be introduced by drilling, the drilling process being carried out when the threaded insert 10 is inserted.

Other types of anti-twist device are also possible, so that any thread insert 10 used in the invention can be fixed in the associated receiving opening 8 via an anti-twist device. However, the examples in FIGS. 4 and 5 are particularly expedient and can be advantageously implemented in particular in the illustrated examples of connection units.

In a further embodiment, also represented by FIGS. 2 and 3, the threaded insert 10 is molded directly into the associated opening 8 as part of a casting process. This gives an inseparable connection by locally connecting the different materials. In an advantageous method resulting in such a connection, the respective thread insert is extrusion-coated in a mold with the plastic forming the basic body material or with plastic-containing material. The result is an integral component in which the threaded inserts are firmly anchored in the associated base body and in particular adhere.

In a further method it is provided that the threaded inserts 10 are subsequently molded into the receiving openings 8 already prefabricated ter base body. In this case, a negative for the threaded opening core is introduced centrally into the respective receiving opening 8 , so that an externally defined by the inner contour of the receiving opening 8 annular space is created, which is poured or injected with the thread insert material. The core can be designed as a slider, which allows a multiple use.

Claims (17)

1. Connection unit, with a receiving opening ( 8 ) provided on a base body ( 1 ) and with a thread insert ( 10 ) which can be arranged therein and which carries a thread ( 2 ), the thread insert ( 10 ) consisting of plastic-containing material. 2. Connection unit according to claim 1, characterized in that the threaded insert ( 10 ) consists of plastic. 3. Connection unit according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the material of the threaded insert ( 10 ) is a polyacetal plastic or a polyacetal plastic. 4. Connection unit according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the receiving opening ( 8 ) for the threaded insert ( 10 ) having base body ( 1 ) consists of plastic or a plastic-containing material. 5. Connection unit according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the threaded insert ( 10 ) is sleeve-shaped and has an internal thread ( 2 ) in the through opening. 6. Connection unit according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the threaded insert ( 10 ) has a cylindrical outer contour. 7. Connection unit according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the threaded insert ( 10 ) has a conical and in particular a frustoconical outer contour. 8. Connection unit according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the receiving opening ( 8 ) has an at least substantially complementary to the outer contour of the threaded insert ( 10 ) formed inner contour. 9. Connection unit according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the threaded insert ( 10 ) secured against rotation in the receiving opening ( 8 ) can be arranged, expediently provided on the outer circumference ( 14 ) of the threaded insert ( 10 ) at least one flattened portion ( 19 ) is on which a flat ( 20 ) of the receiving opening ( 8 ) lies flat in the state used therein. 10. Connection unit according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the threaded insert ( 10 ) secured against rotation in the receiving opening ( 8 ) can be arranged, with a recess ( 21 ) is advantageously arranged on the outer circumference ( 14 ) of the threaded insert ( 10 ) , The one on the circumference of the receiving opening ( 8 ) provided recess ( 21 ') opposite and facing such that both recesses ( 21 , 21 ') together a receptacle ( 22 ) for an anti-rotation part ( 23 ), for. B. form a locking pin. 11. Connection unit according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the threaded insert is detachable is arranged at the receiving opening. 12. Connection unit according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the threaded insert ( 10 ) is non-releasably arranged in the receiving opening ( 8 ). 13. Connection unit according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the threaded insert ( 10 ) in the receiving opening ( 8 ) is pressed or pressed. 14. Connection unit according to claim 12, characterized in that the threaded insert ( 10 ) is molded directly into the receiving opening ( 8 ) as part of a casting process. 15. Connection unit according to one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that on the threaded insert ( 10 ) in particular on the inside of the receiving opening ( 8 ) facing end area and / or on the outward facing end area a closed in the form of a ring-shaped bead Sealing projection ( 16 , 16 ') is arranged pointing in the axial direction from the threaded insert ( 10 ), with the sealing projection ( 16 ) facing inwards being opposite an annular sealing shoulder ( 17 ) assigned to the receiving opening ( 8 ), to which the sealing projection ( 16 ) Plant can come. 16. A method for producing a connection unit which has a threaded insert ( 10 ) anchored in a base body ( 1 ), wherein a threaded insert ( 10 ) consisting of plastic-containing material is extrusion-coated with plastic or plastic-containing material forming the base material. 17. A method for producing a connection unit which has a threaded insert anchored in a base body, in which, for example, part of a slide forming core is introduced into a receptacle opening ( 8 ) provided in a base body and then the annular space between the core and the receptacle pouring out opening ( 8 ).