EP1284035A1

EP1284035A1 - Supply track system

Info

Publication number: EP1284035A1
Application number: EP01923633A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Klaus Vamberszky; Gerald Ladstätter; Michael Spiegel
Original assignee: Zumtobel Staff GmbH
Current assignee: ZUMTOBEL LIGHTING GmbH
Priority date: 2000-05-24
Filing date: 2001-03-05
Publication date: 2003-02-19
Anticipated expiration: 2021-03-05
Also published as: ES2279807T3; ATE350786T1; DE10025647A1; HU228403B1; NO20025642L; EP1284035B1; WO2001091248A1; PL203264B1; HUP0301888A2; NO323118B1; NO20025642D0; DE50111802D1; PL366148A1; AU5035901A

Abstract

The invention relates to a supply track system for luminaires, comprising several supporting rails (1) which can be modularly interconnected; and a current conductor profile which is held in place by the supporting rails (1) and which has grooves (11) for receiving wires (6) for supplying power and/or transmitting control signals. Said grooves extend in the longitudinal direction of the supporting rails (1) and are accessible from a contacting side. According to the invention, the current conductor profile held in place by a supporting rail (1) consists of at least two wire-fixing elements (10, 101, 102) fitted together, with the grooves (11) for receiving the wires (6). According to the invention, the wire-fixing elements (10, 101, 102) engage with each other when fitted together, in such a way that they overlap with the projections (17) at their ends and form channels (23) in the connecting area which correspond to the grooves (11) and which are opened towards the contacting side.

Description

Busbar system

The present invention relates to a busbar system for lights according to the preamble of claim 1 and a wire holder element.

Track systems or light strips are used in a variety of ways because they offer a high degree of flexibility when it comes to the individual planning of lighting structures for specific requirements compared to permanently installed or built-in lights. So the busbar systems consist of several individual elements that are assembled according to the modular principle, so that the entire arrangement can be adapted to the rooms to be illuminated. Continuous line systems are known with which not only two-dimensional but also three-dimensional structures can be formed.

The basic structure of a busbar system is formed by mounting rails, which are assembled into the desired structure and serve to hold the power supply and control lines as well as the individual lights. The mounting rails must therefore have high stability and are usually made of metal. They can have different shapes, for example mounting rails with a Y profile or an A profile are known. The most widespread, however, are U-shaped mounting rails which are attached to a support, e.g. be attached to a ceiling or wall. The individual luminaire modules are fastened to the mounting rails, the length of an individual mounting rail usually being a multiple of the length of the luminaire modules. For example, mounting rails with a length of 3 m or 4.50 m are offered if the luminaire modules have a length of 1.50. Such integer length ratios are chosen to simplify planning when designing a light line system.

In order to ensure the power supply for the luminaires, corresponding lines run on or within the mounting rails. In addition to the lines for the power supply, other lines can also be provided for the transmission of control signals, which opens up the possibility of individually controlling and dimming the individual lights when using a suitable control system.

In a known light band system, which is sold by the applicant under the name “light line system ZX”, the lines run in the form of through-wiring within the U-shaped mounting rails, with regular Distances that correspond to the length of the light modules, tap sockets are arranged. The tapping bushes are clamped into the mounting rails, undercuts engaging corresponding inward projections of the mounting rails. The luminaire modules can be mounted at the locations specified by the tap bushings by placing them on the mounting rails that are open at the bottom and fastening them. The lines are contacted via a contacting element located on the luminaire modules, which has connection contacts which engage in openings in the tapping socket when the luminaire module is placed on the mounting rail and thereby come into contact with the corresponding wires. Furthermore, the luminaire modules have rotary knobs, which are turned after they are attached and ensure mechanical fastening to the mounting rails.

In the busbar system just described, the luminaire modules can only be arranged at the locations specified by the tapping sockets, since otherwise no electrical contacting is possible. To avoid such restrictions and thus greater flexibility for the arrangement of the individual

To get LeuchtenX, track systems have been developed which are one of the

Carrier rails have a current conducting profile. This current conducting profile consists of elongated! Bodies made of non-conductive material - usually plastic - with in

Longitudinal direction of the mounting rails and grooves accessible from a contal tation side for receiving wires for the power supply and / or

Transmission of control signals. In this case, since the non-insulated wires are exposed to the contacting side at least over the length of a single current profile body, a luminaire can be arranged anywhere within this area, so that greater freedom in planning and

Realization of the trunking system exists.

The length of a single conductor profile body is matched to the length of the mounting rail. Since mounting rails are available in different lengths, it is therefore necessary to also offer current-conducting profile bodies in the corresponding sizes, which increases the total costs for the current rail system, since a large number of parts must be made available. In addition, when assembling two mounting rails, it is also necessary to connect the two current conducting profiles to one another. This connection is problematic in that it must also be ensured in this area that no unintentional contact with a wire is possible. A corresponding standard requires that an immense test wire in straight stretch cannot hit one of the wires. The connection is therefore made with the help of a so-called row connector, which, however, itself offers no possibility of contacting, which means that there is still no possibility of contacting within the connection area between two mounting rails.

The plastic bodies forming the current conducting profile are produced by extrusion. This method is disadvantageous in that plastic parts can only be produced with a limited precision, since the plastic cools down very quickly after leaving the extrusion die and changes its shape. The result of this is that one-piece current-conducting profile bodies can only be produced to a certain degree of complexity.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a technology which enables a busbar system for luminaires with a busbar profile which can be easily adapted in length to the length of a mounting rail and is inexpensive to produce.

The object is achieved by a busbar system which has the features of claim 1, or by a wire holder element according to spoke 14. The busbar system is characterized in that the current-conducting profile held by a single mounting rail consists of at least two wire holder elements made of non-conductive material which are joined together and which have the grooves for receiving the wires. The wire holder elements are designed in their end regions such that when they are joined together with projections located at their ends they overlap one another in such a way that they form channels corresponding to the grooves and open towards the contacting side in the connection region between two wire holder elements. These channels are only accessible from the contacting side, but are otherwise enclosed like the grooves of the wire holder elements, so that the aforementioned safety standard is also met in these areas. Thus, a continuous but safe contacting option is created over the entire length of a mounting rail.

The modular assembly of the Slxom guide profile from several individual wire holder elements makes it possible to offer mounting rails of various lengths, but only wire holder elements of a single length can be used to equip them with a current guide profile, since the current guide profile merely changes the length of the carrier rail by changing the number of wire holder elements can be adjusted. This results in a significantly lower production effort. Furthermore, they do not have to be long and expensive to be produced one-piece plastic parts. The wire holder elements can be produced, for example, by means of the much easier to control and less expensive injection molding process.

Developments of the invention are the subject of the dependent claims.

In the case of current-conducting profiles made of plastic parts, particular attention should be paid to the fact that they can be exposed to heat radiation, not to be neglected, in particular in the vicinity of ballasts for the lights arranged on or in particular in the mounting rails. This has the consequence that the plastic parts can expand or contract when not irradiated. It is particularly problematic that the expansion coefficient of plastic is about 10x greater than that of metal, so that the length of the individual wire holder elements can change significantly, while the wires held by the current conducting profile remain almost the same length. With an advantageous development of the invention it is therefore achieved that the wire holder elements arranged one behind the other over a greater length have an expansion play, whereby it is still guaranteed that there is a possibility of contacting over the connection area and nevertheless protection against contact is provided. For this purpose, the wire holder elements have locking elements at their ends, which interlock when two wire holder elements are put together and limit mutual displacement or removal in the longitudinal direction to a predetermined play. If the wire holder elements cool down and contract, they move away to a predetermined maximum distance at which protection against contact is still provided; when heated, they come closer to each other. In this way, a continuous current-conducting profile is formed regardless of the temperature. The wire holder elements preferably have a length of approx. 500 mm, the permitted play with which two adjoining wire holder elements can move against one another is approx. 8 mm, which is sufficient for the temperature differences which usually occur in the busbar system.

The locking elements also have the advantage that the wire holder elements can be connected together to form a rail which can be inserted as a whole into the mounting rail, which makes assembly easier. The wire holder elements preferably have guide arms which engage in corresponding guide grooves which are provided on or in the mounting rail, so that the wire holder elements are securely mounted. The mounting rails can have, for example, an A profile, a Y profile or a U profile, wherein the wire holder elements are arranged according to the profile on the outside of the mounting rail or within it.

If it is a U-shaped mounting rail, wires can run on both side walls within the mounting rail, it being conceivable to use separate current-conducting profiles in each case. However, the wire holder elements preferably consist of two side wings, which have the grooves for receiving the wires and are to be arranged on the side walls, these side wings being connected to one another at regular intervals via connecting webs. These connecting webs are arranged on the middle leg of the wire rail. Furthermore, one of the two side wings can have a horizontal leg which is arranged parallel to the center leg of the mounting rail and which, together with holding legs projecting from the connecting webs, forms an additional hollow or receiving space over the length of the mounting rail, which is used for receiving additional cables or lines can.

The concept according to the invention of a modularly formed current-conducting profile made up of a plurality of wire holder elements arranged in a row offers the possibility of realizing a continuous contacting option over any length by inserting the current-conducting profile into the mounting rails after the connection of the carrier rails. For reasons of simple assembly, however, the mounting rails are usually already fully assembled, i.e. sold with an already used current conducting profile with the wires arranged in it. This is because, when creating a trunking system, it is easier to assemble the pre-assembled mounting rails than to first join empty mounting rails and then insert the current-conducting profiles. This in turn gives rise to the problem that an interface occurs between two mounting rails at which the wires of two current conducting profiles have to be connected to one another.

A development of the invention therefore relates to a connecting element, which also forms a contact possibility at these interfaces. In contrast to the known row connector, the connecting element has groove-shaped recesses accessible from the contacting side and the two end faces, which correspond to the grooves of the current-conducting profiles, a metal connector being inserted into the recesses, to which the wires to be connected are connected from both sides can be connected. This connecting element, which is also made of a non-conductive material, closes the gap between the current conducting profiles of two mounting rails and ensures that a luminaire module is fastened over the entire length of the current rail system and connected to the lines of the Busbar system can be connected because the metal connectors in the transition area form the contacting surfaces for the connection contacts of the light module. The metal connectors preferably have an elongated contacting plate and U-shaped spring elements arranged at both ends thereof, by means of which the wires are clamped during insertion and pressed against the contacting plate. At the same time, the spring elements ensure that the wires do not move like a pump when the wire holder elements are thermally expanded, and may even migrate. In the case of U-shaped mounting rails, in which current-conducting profiles are arranged on both side walls, a mechanical connection of two adjacent mounting rails is preferably carried out with the aid of a short U-shaped connecting rail, each of which engages half in both mounting rails and the connecting elements are arranged on the side limbs.

Another further development is concerned with contacting the wires within a U-shaped mounting rail by means of a lamp module which is as simple as possible. For this purpose, the luminaire module has a contacting element with a plurality of connection contacts, the contacting element being inserted into the mounting rail from the open side and then being rotated partially, preferably by 45 °. By twisting the connection contacts are inserted into the grooves of the current conducting profile and brought into contact with the wires. The contacting element can preferably be designed such that the height of at least one of the connection contacts can be adjusted. Since the wires of the current conducting profile, which are arranged at different heights, have different functions, an optional contact can be achieved by moving the connecting contacts. This offers the possibility of different functions for the lights connected to the busbar system _. assign, for example, to use some of the lights only as emergency power lights. Furthermore, locking elements can be provided on the contacting element, which additionally engage protruding parts of the mounting rail when twisting and contacting the wires, which at the same time enables mechanical fastening to the mounting rail. In this way, both electrical contacting and mechanical fastening of the luminaire module can be carried out with the aid of a simple handle.

The present invention is to be explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawing. Show it: Figure 1 shows the mounting rail of a busbar system according to the invention with an inserted contact element in section.

FIG. 2 shows the mounting rail shown in FIG. 1 without the contact element in section;

3 shows a wire holder element in perspective;

FIG. 4 shows the wire holder element shown in FIG. 3 in section;

5 shows the transition area between two assembled wire holder elements from the contacting side;

6 shows the transition region between two wire holder elements from the rear;

7 shows the arrangement of a connecting element and a connecting rail for connecting two mounting rails;

8 shows the structure of the connecting element;

9a shows a metal connector used in the connecting element;

9b shows a spring element of the metal connector shown in FIG. 9a; and

FIG. 10 shows the contacting element shown in FIG. 1 in a perspective view.

The base element of the busbar system shown in FIG. 1 is a U-shaped mounting rail 1 made of metal or sheet metal, which can be fastened to a support, for example a ceiling or wall, by means of fastening means (not shown). The open lower side of the mounting rail 1 is covered by a cover rail 5. In the illustrated case, this cover rail 5 is part of a lamp module fastened to the mounting rail 1, in FIG. 1 only the contacting element of the lamp module in the form of a turning handle 50 is shown, but not its other components, for example the lamp or the associated control or operating device, which can be an electronic ballast (EVG). In this case, the interior of the mounting rail 1 also serves as a receiving space for the operating devices for the lamps. Those areas of the mounting rail 1 on which no lamp modules are arranged can also be closed with a cover rail 5 for optical and safety reasons, the cover rail 5 being fastened by means of clamping or latching.

In the present example, current-conducting profiles are arranged on the inner sides of the two side walls 3a and 3b of the mounting rail 1, which are formed according to the invention by a plurality of wire holder elements 10 which are composed of plastic and which each contain two side wings 10a and 10b with a plurality of grooves 11 for receiving the wires 6 , Five wires 6 are arranged in the right side wing 10a, while six wires 6 run on the left side.

The wires 6 arranged in the right side wing 10a can, for example, have the following function in the order from top to bottom.

Emergency power 1 Emergency power 2

Neutral conductor from the standard network Dl = control line for light control D2 = control line for light control.

The functions of the wires 6 arranged in the left side wing 10b are, for example:

Phase of emergency power 1

Phase of emergency power 2

Standard phase 3

Standard phase 2

Standard phase 1 earth.

Both the number of wires used as well as their arrangement and function is only shown as an example and can be adapted to individual needs.

By contacting the corresponding wires 6, a desired function can be assigned to the connected lamp, for example the lamp can be used as an emergency light lamp. By using the two control lines for the light control it is possible to use these two Lines form a bus system via which a large number of lights can be controlled with the aid of digital control commands, as is known from more complex lighting systems.

The wires 6 are contacted via a plurality of connection contacts 53 and 54 arranged on the rotary handle 50, which engage in the corresponding grooves 11 and come to bear against the wires 6. In order to enable variable and simple contacting, the connection contact 53 is, for example, arranged on the rotary handle 50 in a height-adjustable manner by means of a carrier element 55. The desired function can thus be assigned to the lamp connected to the busbar system by simply shifting the carrier element 55. A wire element 62, which is guided in a slot 63 of the rotary handle 50 and whose end 62b contacts the lower left wire 6 provided for earthing, is also provided for earthing. The more precise structure and the mode of operation of the contacting element 50 will be explained in more detail at a later point in time. The mains feed for the busbar system can be carried out, for example, by means of an appropriately adapted rotary handle, which is positioned at any point in the longitudinal direction.

A secure holding position of the two side wings 10a, 10b of the wire holding element 10 takes place by means of several guide arms 12j-12 ₄ , which engage in corresponding guide grooves 4j-4 _{4 of} the U-shaped mounting rail 1. The several wire holder elements 10 lined up to form a current conducting profile are pushed into the mounting rail 2 in the longitudinal direction during assembly. On the back of the side wings 10a and 10b, ie on the side of the grooves 11 opposite the contacting side, there are a plurality of support struts 16 which ensure a stable mounting of the grooves 11 within the mounting rail 2, so that they are not pushed back when making contact. In this way, reliable contacting of the wires 6 is supported.

The two side wings 10a and 10b are connected at regular intervals via connecting webs 13 which are arranged on the middle leg 2 of the mounting rail 1. The connecting webs 13 also have downwardly projecting holding legs 15 which, together with a horizontal leg 14 projecting horizontally from the right side wing 10a, form an additional cavity 8. This cavity can be used for the storage of additional cables or lines. In addition, the horizontal leg 14 still has the task of preventing the contacting element 50 from being inserted into the mounting rail 1 in the opposite direction, as will also be explained later. The shape of the grooves 11 of the wire holder rod elements 10 is selected such that protection against contact is ensured, as will be explained below with reference to FIG. 2. Here, in turn, the mounting rail 1 is shown with a current-conducting profile arranged therein, but now without the turning handle 50. The safety standard mentioned at the beginning provides that the wires 6 arranged in the current-conducting profile must not be exposed in such a way that a 1 mm thick test wire 7 is in a straight line - Elongation can meet a current-carrying wire 6. In the illustration, the entry angle for the test wire 7 is most favorable for the wire 6 arranged at the bottom left. As can be seen from FIG. 2, the widths, depths and opening shapes of the grooves 11 are dimensioned such that even at the smallest entry angle the test wire 7 cannot contact any of the wires 6. In this way, unintentional touching of the wires 6 is avoided and the corresponding safety standard is met.

The specific embodiment of the wire holder elements 10 according to the invention will now be explained with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6, FIG. 3 showing a wire holder element 10 in a perspective view. Essential elements of the wire holder rod element 10 are the two side wings 10a and 10b, which have the grooves 11 for storing the wires. They are connected to one another via two connecting webs 13. In this way, with the help of the horizontal leg 14 and the holding legs 15 protruding from the connecting webs 13, the aforementioned cavity 8 can be formed, which can be used for the storage of further lines or cables useful for the lighting system. On the two side wings 10a, 10b there are also the guide arms 12, to 12 ₄ , which engage in the recesses 4 _t to 4 _{4 of} the mounting rail 1 when inserted. The representations in FIGS. 3 and 4 show the wire holder element 10 immediately after production. In order to insert the wire holder element 10 into the mounting rail 1, the side wings 10a and 10b are folded down by 90 ° around the two folding points A and B (see FIG. 4) and then pushed into the mounting rail 1, as a result of which the mounting brackets shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 arrangement results.

At their ends, the two side wings 10a and 10b have projections 17 and 22, respectively, with the aid of which two joined wire holder elements 10 overlap one another. At one of the two ends locking heads 18 are also provided, which allow a removal of two joined wire holder elements 10 in the longitudinal direction only up to a certain maximum distance, so that a current conducting profile composed of several wire holder elements 10 is in its Length is flexible and thus changes in length of the individual wire holder elements 10 made of plastic can be compensated for on the basis of temperature differences.

5 and 6, which show two assembled wire holder elements in an enlarged representation, on the one hand from the contacting side (FIG. 5) and on the other hand from the opposite rear side (FIG. 6). The parts belonging to the first wire holder element 10 are provided with the index 1, while the elements belonging to the second wire holder element 10 _{2 have} the index 2. After the two wire holder elements 10 and 10 _{2 have been joined} , these two overlap one another in such a way that 17 _{x of} the first wire holder element 10 _! and a channel 23 is formed by a projection 22 _{2 of} the second wire holder element 10 ₂ , which connects the grooves 11 of the two wire holder element 10 _x and 10 ₂ with each other. Like the grooves 11, all the channels 23 formed in this way in the connection area are only accessible from the contacting side, that is to say from above, but not from the side. This also ensures the required protection against accidental contact in the area of the channels 23.

The illustration in FIG. 6 shows that the two locking heads 18 ₂ only permit removal of the two wire retainer elements 10, and 10 ₂ up to a maximum distance, which is predetermined by the fact that the locking projections 19 projecting laterally at the ends of the locking heads 18 ₂ against stop walls 20, come to rest. This predetermined maximum distance and the length of the interlocking projections 17 and 22 are dimensioned such that even when the two wire holder elements 10j and 10 ₂ are at a maximum distance from one another, the previously explained channels 23 are still formed and contact protection is ensured. On the other hand, the ends of the two wire holder elements 10, 10 _{2 can} approach each other until their two end faces 21 _x and 21 ₂ come into contact with one another. This means that both wire holding members 10 Rank _l5 10 ₂ are mutually movable with a certain play, but at any time during Berührangsschutz is achieved. In this way, changes in the length of a single wire holder rod element 10, which, for example, expands due to increased temperature or contracts at lower temperatures, can be compensated for. This is particularly important because, in contrast to the wire holder elements 10 made of plastic, the wires 6 stored therein themselves cannot make such large changes in length, since the temperature coefficient of metal only 1/10 of the coefficient of expansion of plastic. With a length of approx. 500 mm for a single wire holder rod element 10, an allowable play with which the adjoining wire holder rod elements 10 can move against each other can thus be approx. 8 mm.

The wire holder elements 10 shown can be produced from plastic in a simple manner using the injection molding process, as a result of which they can be produced very inexpensively. Furthermore, it is sufficient to produce wire holder elements 10 in only a single length, since in order to adapt the current conducting profile formed to the different lengths of the wire rails, only the number of wire holder rod elements 10 used has to be adapted, which in turn significantly reduces the production outlay for the entire system. The interlocking projections and the locking elements can also be designed differently.

When using the wire holder elements according to the invention that have just been presented, it would be conceivable to first mount all of the mounting rails of a busbar system and only then to equip them with the required current-conducting profiles, contacting over the entire length of the busbar system then being possible. Usually, however, the fully assembled mounting rails are already sold, in which there is already a complete current conducting profile with the wires arranged therein. Therefore, in the following, a possibility is to be explained of realizing continuous contacting also in the connection areas between two mounting rails. This continuous contact is achieved in that a connecting element is used for this purpose, which has groove-shaped recesses corresponding to the grooves of the current conducting profiles and additionally accessible from the two end faces of the connecting element.

This is initially shown schematically in FIG. 7. For the mechanical connection of two adjacent support rails 1, a U-shaped short connection rail 30 is also used, onto which the support rails 1 to be connected are pushed from both sides. A development, not shown, ensures that two support rails 1, which are connected to one another by a connecting rail 30, are held releasably together. For this purpose, each mounting rail 1 can have one or more openings in its upper region. The connecting rail 30 is then likewise provided with corresponding openings through which spring tongues protrude. The spring tongues engage behind the openings of the mounting rail 1 as soon as the connecting rail 30 in the mounting rail 1 has reached the corresponding position. In order to be able to release the mounting rail 1 and the connecting rail 30 again, only pressure has to be exerted on the spring tongues. Such a releasable connection is preferably present on both sides, which means that the connecting rail 30 has such openings with the corresponding spring tongues next to its two ends. As an alternative to a connection that can be released on both sides, however, an embodiment is also possible which has the connection just described on one side by means of spring tongues, while a conventional screw connection is provided on the other side of the connecting rail 30.

A particularly advantageous variant of this development is that the spring tongues arranged at one end of the connecting rail 30 belong to a common rail locking element which is arranged on the middle leg of the connecting rail 30, the spring tongues projecting laterally through openings in the upper region of the side walls , The rail locking element is designed so that the spring tongues are drawn into the interior of the connecting rail 30 under the action of a force from above on the element. Via an additional opening provided in the center leg of the mounting rails 1, the rail locking element can be reached from above in a simple manner and actuated, for example, by means of a screwdriver, so that the connection can be released again with a simple handle.

The wire holder elements 10 not shown in FIG. 7 for reasons of clarity are configured slightly differently in the connection area in order to take account of the connection rail 30 additionally arranged in the mounting rail 1. For example, the wire retainer elements 10 have no support struts 16 in this area. To connect the current conducting profiles, two connecting elements 31 are provided on the side legs 30a and 30b of the connecting rail 30, which have the aforementioned recesses 32. Metal connectors are arranged within these recesses 32 and are connected from both sides to the wires to be connected to one another. The opening shape of the recesses 32 is selected such that they also meet the safety criterion of protection against contact. For connection to the connecting elements 31, the wire holder elements adjacent to the connecting elements 31 are also modified at their ends.

In the example shown, identical connecting elements 31, each with six recesses 32, are arranged on both sides of the connecting rail 30. This means that the uppermost recess 32 is arranged on the right side Connecting element 32 remains free, since the corresponding side wing 10a has only five grooves 11 to hold five wires 6. Of course, however, connecting elements corresponding to the precise structure of the wire holder rod elements can also be used.

The more precise shape of a connecting element 31 is shown in FIG. 8. It consists of a box-shaped base part 33 which is open on the underside and into which metal connectors 35 are inserted from the underside. The recesses 32 of the base part 33 are accessible from the two end faces via funnel-shaped openings 36, wherein when a wire is inserted into a funnel-shaped opening 36, the latter is brought into connection with the metal connector 35. After the metal connectors 35 have been inserted, the base part 33 is closed by a cover plate 34 from the underside. Contacting by a light module in the area of the connecting element 31 then takes place in that the connection contacts of the contacting element are pressed against the upper side of a contacting plate 37 of the metal connector 35. At the end of the metal connector 35, this task is again taken over by the wires, so that there is no gap in which contacting is not possible.

The more detailed design of a metal connector 35 is shown in FIGS. 9a and 9b. It consists of an elongated contacting plate 37, which is bent a little downward on its longitudinal sides, the function of which is to take over and transmit the electrical current from the wires. Arranged at the ends of the contacting plate 37 is a U-shaped spring element 38, preferably made of a chromium-nickel alloy rod, which is shown individually in FIG. 9b. The spring element 38 has an inwardly bent spring tongue 39, by means of which a wire inserted into the metal connector 35 is clamped and is pressed sufficiently firmly with respect to the electrical contact resistance against the contact plate 37. In this way, it is also avoided that the wires can shift or migrate like a pump when the thermal expansion of the current-conducting profile changes. The side of the contacting plate 37 made of tinned copper facing away from the wires forms the contacting surface for the contacts of the contacting element. To improve the contact between the contact plate 37 and the wires, the contact plate 37 has a slightly arcuate or triangular depression 43 on its underside.

The spring elements 38 are attached to the ends of the contacting plate 37 by means of recesses 40 on the side walls of the spring elements 38, into which projections 41 of the contacting plate 37 engage. A stable arrangement of the Metal connector 35 in the connecting element 31 is further supported by the fact that pins 42 made of plastic are arranged on the cover plate 34 and, after the cover plate 34 has been put on, press against the contacting plates 37 of the metal connector 35 from the underside. Since the pins 42 also engage in lateral recesses 43 in the downwardly bent longitudinal sides of the contacting plate 37, a lateral displacement of the metal connector 35 is also prevented at the same time. In addition, the pins 42 also represent a barrier which limits the migration of the wires. The connecting element shown here closes the gap between the wire holder elements of the current-conducting profiles, so that it is possible to assemble busbars 1 that have already been fitted with continuously contactable current-conducting profiles, wherein contact can also be made in the connection areas.

The use of this connecting element is not limited to the example shown with the wire holder elements according to the invention. For example, the connecting element shown in FIGS. 7 to 9b can also be used for their connection in the light-band system mentioned at the outset, in which the current-conducting profiles are produced in one piece and are in one piece.

As an alternative to the aforementioned use of an adapted rotary handle for the power supply, a power connection element that can be connected to the end face of a mounting rail and interacts with the metal connectors can be provided, by means of which the wires of the power rail system are connected to the power lines.

1 and 10, the more precise structure and the mode of operation of the contacting element configured as a rotary handle 50 will be explained. 10 shows the rotary handle 50 with a cover rail 5 arranged on its underside in a perspective view. An essential part of the rotary handle 50 are the contacts 53 and 54 which are arranged on the outside of the cylindrical base body 61 and which are adjustable in height for an optional contacting of the different wires 6. A further, but not freely selectable but predetermined contact to ground is provided by the wire element 62. This wire element 62 is guided in a slot 63 provided on the base body 61, one end 62a of the wire element 62 being fixed in a clamping manner by its shape in the cover rail 5 of the lamp module. The other end 62b protrudes laterally at the level of the ground wire. Furthermore, the rotary handle 50 has two laterally projecting locking elements 52 in its lower region. The contacting of the wires 6 of the current conducting profile takes place in that the rotary handle 50 connected to an illumination module is inserted into the lower opening of the mounting rail 1. As can be seen in FIG. 1, the cylindrical base body 61 is of different heights, the horizontal leg 14 arranged only on the right side of the mounting rail 1 preventing the contact element 50 from being inserted into the mounting rail 1 in the opposite direction.

After insertion of the rotary handle 50, it is rotated by approximately 45 °, as a result of which the laterally arranged locking elements 52 engage in inwardly projecting parts of the mounting rail 1 or the current conducting profile and thus ensure mechanical fastening of the lamp module. At the same time, the

Contacts 53 and 54 are screwed into the grooves 11 of the wire holder elements 10, so that the desired electrical contact is achieved. As previously mentioned, some or all of the contacts may be height adjustable, as shown in the illustration

Example takes place in that the carrier element 55 of the contact 53 within

Guide rails 56 and 57 is vertically displaceable. The carrier element 55 and the cylindrical base body 61 with the guide rails 56 and 57 are designed in such a way that the carrier element 55 can easily snap into the positions corresponding to the wires 6, which facilitates precise positioning of the contact 53.

The slot 63 forms an eccentric stop for the wire element 62 and causes the end 62b of the wire element 62 to be pressed onto the lower left wire 6 provided for earthing during the turning of the rotary handle 50. In this way, an earthing is produced between the metallic cover rail 5, which is part of the lamp module, and the metallic mounting rail 1. For this it is necessary that the wire element 62 has a certain strength, which is why it preferably consists of a galvanized steel wire or a CrNi wire.

The cover rail 5 arranged on the underside of the rotary handle closes the mounting rail 1 downward, which at the same time prevents the ingress of dust. In the area of the contacting element 50, the cover rail 5 has an elongated slot into which the rotary toggle 58 can be inserted upwards in the locking position, so that it is flush with the cover rail 5 at the bottom. In this way, a complete closure of the mounting rail 1 is achieved. The cover rail 5 is also used in places where no lamp modules are arranged. In the case of attaching a lamp module, the cover rail 5 is, however, at the same time also the holding bracket for all elements of the lamp module, for example the ballast or ballasts being arranged on top of the cover rail 5 and thus projecting into the interior of the U-shaped mounting rail , The rotary handle 50 presented enables the wires to be contacted in a simple manner and the luminaire module to be mechanically fastened in the busbar system. In particular in the case of the solution presented, in which free contacting is made possible over the entire length of the busbar system, use of the rotary handle 50 shown is advantageous since it can be used particularly flexibly and can be removed again.

The present invention thus specifies a very powerful busbar system, which for the first time offers the possibility of completely free contacting and arrangement of the luminaire modules. The result of this is that the individual luminaire modules no longer have to be adapted to specific lengths in order to enable a suitable arrangement within the busbar system. The application is not limited to the illustrated example of a U-shaped busbar. For example, the wire holder elements according to the invention can also be used in busbars with other profiles, for example A-profiles or Y-profiles. This also applies in the same way to the connecting element presented. Furthermore, the manufacturing costs can be significantly reduced since the wire holder elements can be manufactured in a much simpler and faster manner than is the case with the known current conducting profiles. In particular, the present invention offers a possibility of circumventing the problems that arise in connection with temperature differences, which cause a change in length and displacement of the plastic parts.

Claims

Expectations

1. Conductor rail system for luminaires with a plurality of support rails (1) which can be connected to one another in a modular manner and a current-conducting profile which is held by the support rails (1) and which extends in the longitudinal direction of the support rails

(I) extending and accessible from a contacting side grooves (11) for receiving wires (6) for the power supply and / or transmission of control signals, characterized in that the current-carrying profile held by a mounting rail (1) comprises at least two wire holder elements joined together (10, 10 _l5 10 ₂ ), which is the grooves

(II) for receiving the wires (6), the wire holder elements (10, 10 _l5 10 ₂ ) overlapping when joined together with projections (17, 22) located at their ends so that they engage in the connecting area of the grooves (11) form corresponding channels (23) which are open towards the contacting side.

2. Busbar system according spoke 1, characterized in that the wire holder elements (10, 10 _l5 10 ₂ ) have locking elements (18, 19) which have a relative longitudinal movement of two wire holder elements (10, 10 ,, 10 ₂ ) attached to each other to a predetermined movement limit.

3. Busbar system according spoke 1 or 2, characterized in that the wire holder elements (10, 10 _l9 10 ₂ ) have guide arms (12 _r 12 ₄ ) which engage in corresponding guide grooves (4 _r 4 ₄ ) of the mounting rail (1).

4. Busbar system according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the mounting rail (1) is U-shaped, with a current conducting profile being arranged on the inner sides of the two side walls (3a, 3b) of the mounting rail (1).

5. Busbar system according spoke 4, characterized in that the interior of the U-shaped mounting rail (1) serves as a receiving space for operating devices of the lamps and for corresponding Kontaktangang elements.

6. Busbar system according spoke 4 or 5, characterized in that the wire holder elements (10, 10,, 10 ₂ ) each consist of two side wings (10a, 10b) which are arranged on the side walls (3a, 3b) of the mounting rail (1) and have the grooves (11) for receiving the wires (6), the two side wings (10a, 10b) each being connected to one another by connecting webs (13) which are arranged on the center leg (2) of the mounting rail (1).

7. conductor rail system according spoke 6, characterized in that one of the two side wings (10 a) has a parallel to the center leg (2) of the mounting rail (1) arranged horizontal leg (14), which together with from the connecting webs (13) projecting holding legs ( 15) forms a receiving space (8) for receiving cables or lines.

8. Conductor rail system according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it has a connecting element (31) for connecting the two current conducting profiles of two successive mounting rails (1) which has corresponding groove-shaped recesses (32) in the grooves (11) of the current conducting profiles a metal connector (35) is inserted, to which the wires to be connected can be connected from both sides.

9. Busbar system according spoke 8, characterized in that the metal connectors (35) consist of an elongated contact plate (37), at the ends of which a U-shaped spring element (38) for clamping the wires to be connected to the metal connector (35) (6 ) is arranged.

10. Busbar system according to one of claims 4-7 and spoke 8 or 9, characterized in that it has a U-shaped connecting rail (30) for connecting two mounting rails (1), which engages in both mounting rails (1) on the inside and at the latter Side legs (30a, 30b) each have a connecting element (31) is arranged.

11. Busbar system according to one of claims 4-7 or 10, characterized in that this for connecting a lamp to the busbar system has a contacting element (50) with a plurality of connection contacts (53, 54) which can be inserted into the opening of the mounting rail (1) and partially rotated in order to twist connection contacts (53, 54) in insert the grooves (11) of the current conducting profile and bring them into contact with the wires (6) to be contacted.

12. Busbar system according spoke 11, characterized in that at least one of the connection contacts (53) is adjustable in height.

13. Busbar system according spoke 11 or 12, characterized in that by rotating on the Kontaktierangselement (50) located locking elements (52) engage behind protruding parts of the mounting rail (1).

14. Wirehalterangselement for modular formation of a Stromleitprofils for a busbar system, the Stromleitprofil extending in the longitudinal direction and accessible from a contacting side grooves (11) for receiving wires (6) for the power supply and / or transmission of control signals, characterized in that the Wirehalterangsele (10, 10 _l5 10 ₂ ) have the grooves (11) for receiving the wires (6) and have at their ends projections (17, 22) which when joined together with another Wirehalterangselement (10, 10J, 10 ₂ ) overlap one another so that they form channels (23) corresponding to the grooves (11) in the connection area and open towards the contacting side.

15. Wire holder rod element according spoke 14, characterized in that the wire holder rod elements (10, 10 _l5 10 ₂ ) have locking elements (18, 19) which limit a relative longitudinal movement of two wire holder rod elements (10, 10 _l5 10 ₂ ) attached to one another to a predetermined range of motion ,

16. wire holder element according spoke 14 or 15, characterized in that it consists of two side wings (10 a, 10 b) which are connected by connecting webs (13), each side wing (10 a, 10 b) at least one groove (11) for receiving of a wire (6).