EP2907201B1

EP2907201B1 - Electrical connection system

Info

Publication number: EP2907201B1
Application number: EP12806655.2A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Jean Fabre; Gilles Schmitt
Original assignee: Aptiv Technologies Ltd
Current assignee: Aptiv Technologies Ltd
Priority date: 2012-10-15
Filing date: 2012-10-15
Publication date: 2022-06-15
Anticipated expiration: 2032-10-15
Also published as: KR101950551B1; KR20150070274A; CN104798260A; EP2907201A1; WO2014060790A1; CN104798260B

Description

The present invention relates to an electrical connection system.
In particular, the present invention relates to a sealingly shielded electrical connection between an electrical connector and individually shielded electrical wires, as those used in today hybrid or electric vehicles. Some electrical connectors are intended to receive two or more electrical wires, and are provided with a shielding surrounding end portions of electrical wires received in electrical connectors. Typically, an electrical shielding, consisting of a grounded electrically conductive part, represents a means to prevent a leaking of electromagnetic interferences outside/inside the conductive wires. It is also means to protect signals carried by these wires.
Also, an insulator has to be provided between electrical wires and the electrical shielding in order to prevent any contacts between them. When connecting the electrical wires to the electrical connector, a specific solution is needed to keep the required sealing and shielding properties of such electrical junction.
To improve the shielding properties of the electrical junction, an electrically conductive wrap which individually shields wires or a bundle of wires can be used. By the means of this shielding assembly, a shielding continuity of the cable junction with the electrical connector can be achieved.
Such a sealingly shielded electrical connection for individually shielded wires, comprising a tubular electrically conductive layer and a tubular sealing layer designed to hermetically fit an inner insulating layer of the cable is known form the document WO2011045328 .
The documents WO2008/109109 and WO2011/124563 also disclose a connector for two individually shielded electrical wires.
Nevertheless, the electrical car industry faces increasing needs of high electrical power connector assembly with electromagnetic shielding efficiency together with moisture endurance which would prevent the infiltration of moisture and foreign particles into the electrical connection while keeping its shielding properties. An inappropriate shielding solution may result in electromagnetic disturbance not only at the cable junction but also between the individual wires.
The present invention aims to solve those drawbacks. For this purpose, the present invention is for an electrical wire extending along a longitudinal axis. Such electrical wire comprises a front end portion, a shield part and a sealing part, the shield part being arranged between the front end portion and the sealing part, along the longitudinal axis.
The electrical wire may consist of an electrically-conductive core, an insulating layer, an electrically conductive shielding layer and an external insulating sheath. The insulating layer may surround the electrically-conductive core. The electrically conductive shielding layer may surround the insulating layer. The external insulating sheath may surround the electrically conductive shielding layer. The shield part may be provided in the electrically conductive shielding layer. The sealing part may be provided in the external insulating sheath.
The present invention relates to an electrical connection system as defined in claim 1.
The front end portion of each electrical wire may comprise a terminal adapted to be received into the reception portion of the electrical connector. The electrical connector may comprise a front end extension to which a complementary connector can be coupled. The electrically conductive shield may pass from the reception portion to the front end extension of the electrical connector. The electrically conductive shield may consist of at least two metallic shells being mechanically coupled to each other. The external insulating sheath may be suppressed along the shield part of the electrical wire.
The electrical connection system may further comprise a clip providing electrical conductivity between the electrically conductive shielding element and the shield part. The electrical connection system may further comprise a tie clamping the electrically conductive shielding element to the electrically conductive shield. The sealing device may comprise at least a sealing sleeve. The sealing device may comprise an adapter, two elastomeric rings, arranged between the adapter and electrical wire, and a clamp, suitable to hold elastomeric rings in the adapter. The adapter may define a plurality of passageways adapted to sealingly fit with the elastomeric rings sealingly assembled to the electrical wire. The sealing sleeve may sealingly fits with the adapter. The sealing sleeve may be made of elastomeric material.
The electrical connection system may further comprise an external cover surrounding the electrically conductive shield. The electrically conductive shield may be projecting beyond the external cover. The sealing device may sealingly fit with the external cover.
With these features, it is provided a simple and a reliable sealed shielding electrical connection without losing any of the requested functions. Thus, the embodiment provides an electrical connection which is safer, time resistant, less costly for maintenance and with small leak of electromagnetic interferences inside/outside the electrical wires.
Any of the embodiments of a connector with a sealed shielding as described above may be used in an assembly comprising any of the above described connectors and a complementary connection.

Figure 1 shows an exploded front perspective view of the sealingly shielded electrical connector according to the present invention,
Figure 2 shows a front perspective view of the composed sealingly shielded electrical connector of Figure 1,
Figure 3 shows a front perspective view of shielding components commonly with the electrical wires and clamping elements,
Figure 4 shows an enlarged front cross-section according to view 5 of Figure 3,
Figure 5 shows an enlarged front cross-section according to view 6 of Figure 3,
Figure 6 shows a detailed side cross-section according to view 7 of the electrical connection system without a complementary connector as depicted in Figure 2,
Figure 7 shows a detailed side cross-section according to view 8 of the sealingly shielded connection of Figure 3,
Figure 8 shows a view of two individually shielded electrical wires of Figure 1,
Figure 9 shows a detailed cross-section according to view 9 of Figure 8 ,
Figure 10 shows a perspective view of the individually shielded electrical wire of Figure 1,
Figure 11 shows a locking mechanism locking of the sealingly shielded electrical connector of Figure 1, and
Figure 12 shows a perspective rear view of a sealing system according to the present invention.

Figure 1 shows an exploded front perspective view of the sealingly shielded electrical connector according to the present invention. According to a disclosed embodiment shown in Figure 1, the sealingly shielded electrical connector consists of

a electrical connector 28, suitable to be coupled to a complementary connector which is not currently shown and which can receive at least two electrical wires 16, and
a sealing shielding portion 29, suitable to provide a sealing and shielding protection to an electrical connection between the wires 16 and the electrical connector 28.

The electrical connector 28 comprises an internal cover 8i defining a reception portion 10 bearing an interfacial seal 11 and a front end extension 12. The reception portion 10 defines a rear end extension 22 through which the electrical wires 16 can be connected. The reception portion 10 extends from the rear end section 22 to a front portion 41 bearing the interfacial seal 11 and the front end extension 12. The front end extension 12 and the reception portion 10 of the electrical connector 28 are encased in an electrically conductive shield 9.
For example, the electrically conductive shield 9 comprises two curved metallic shells 9a and 9b, which may be similar, coupled to each other, and providing the shielding protection against electromagnetic interferences to/from outside the reception portion 10 and at the electrical connection between the electrical connector 28 and electrical wires 16.
The electrically conductive shield 9 extends from the rear end extension 22 of the reception portion 10 to the front portion 41 of the electrical connector 28. The front portion 41 and the reception portion 10 commonly with the electrically conductive shield 9 are then protected by an external cover 8e.
The external cover 8e has a front part 42, suitable to receive a complementary connector, and a rear extension 27, suitable to adopt a front section 36 of an elastomeric sealing sleeve 4. Further, the external cover 8e includes a protrusion 23, which can be seen on Figure 11 which shows a locking mechanism 24 locking of the sealingly shielded electrical connector of Figure 1.
The protrusion 23 is designed to cooperate with an opening 25 of a locking mechanism 14, particularly a locking cam 14, which enables an interaction between the external cover 8e and an outer cover 38 for the purpose of assisting the assembly of the electrical connector 28 with a mating connector, which is not currently shown. This defines a mate assist system which is not directly related to the mate assist system according to the present invention. Therefore, such mate assist system can be optional.
The outer cover 38 surrounds the external cover 8e and cooperates with another complementary connector or electrical connector. The locking mechanism 14 can perform a rotational movement relative to the protrusion 23 of the external cover 8e. The locking mechanism 14 may comprise toothed projections 26 which will cooperate with a toothed rack 24 of the outer cover 38.
The rotational movement of the locking mechanism 14 relative to the external cover 8e results in a longitudinal movement between the external cover 8e and the outer cover 38. In that manner, the moving from the pre-assembled to the assembled position, and vice versa, can be realized.
Figure 2 shows a front perspective view of the composed sealingly shielded electrical connector of Figure 1 and represents a completed embodiment without the complementary connector.
The rear section of the electrical connector 28 is adapted to receive a cable including at least two electrical wires 16. Each electrical wire 16 are advantageously individually shielded wire which comprises a terminal 21, which can be seen on Figure 10 which is a perspective view of the individually shielded electrical wire 16 of Figure 1.
The terminal 21 is adapted to be received in the reception portion 10. In this embodiment, each electrical wire 16 consists of an electrically conductive core 17, an insulating layer 18, an electrically conductive shielding layer 19 and an external insulating sheath 20 surrounding the electrically conductive shielding layer 19. Such arrangement is depicted on Figures 9 and 10.
After the terminal 21 of the electrical wire 16 is inserted into the reception portion 10 of the electrical connector 28, electrical wires 16 are to be covered by a electrically conductive shielding element 3 being a common electrically conductive shielding braid 3.
Even if electrical wires 16 are individually shielded, the protection against electromagnetic interferences of the electrical wires 16 is further improved when using the electrically conductive shielding element 3 which ensures a shielding protection from an shield part 34 of the electrical wire 16 to the electrically conductive shield 9 of the electrical connector 28. Such arrangement is depicted on Figure 7.
The electrically conductive shielding element 3, consisting of electrically conductive material, comprises a front section 43, suitable to tightly surround a rear portion 9r of the electrically conductive shield 9, and a rear section 44, encasing the shield part 34 of electrical wires 16.
A tight connection of the electrically conductive shielding element 3 to the rear portion 9r of the electrically conductive shield 9 is realized by a tie 1, shown on Figure 3, which clamps the electrically conductive shielding element 3 to and around the rear portion 9r of the electrically conductive shield 9 of the electrical connector 28.
The electrical connection between the rear section 44 of the electrically conductive shielding element 3 and the shield part 34 of electrical wires 16 can be realized by a clip 2, preferably made of an electrically conductive material.
For this purpose, the shield part 34 of each electrical wire 16, when the electrically conductive shielding element 3 is assembled using the clip 2, is rid of material to the electrically conductive shielding layer 19. The withdrawal of insulating material extends from the shield part 34 of the electrical wire 16 toward a front end portion 33 wherein the terminal 21, suitable to be received in the reception portion 10 of the electrical connector 28, is installed.
Finally, the clip 2, assembling the electrically conductive shielding element 3 to the electrically conductive shielding layer 19 of the electrical wire 16, is used. The clip 2 provides electrical conductivity between the electrically conductive shielding element 3 and the shield part 34 of the electrical wire 16. The shape of this clip 2 is adapted in such a way that it tightly surrounds the electrically conductive shielding element 3 around the respective shield part 34 of electrical wires 16, as shown on Figure 5. In that manner, a good shielding connection between individually shielded electrical wires 16 and the electrical connector 28 is achieved.
It is preferable to provide a sealed connection in order to prevent material degradation of some particular components by an infiltration of moisture or other foreign particles into the interior space of such the electrical connection.
For this purpose, a sealing device 40, extending between a sealing portion 39 of electrical wires 16 and the rear extension 27 of the external cover 8e of the electrical connector 28, is provided. The sealing device 40 may comprise the elastomeric sealing sleeve 4, an adapter 5, elastomeric rings 15a and 15b and a clamp 6.
Elastomeric rings 15a and 15b are inserted between the adapter 5 and the respective wire 16. Moreover, the clamp 6 holds elastomeric rings 15a and 15b onto the adapter 5. The clamp 6 is shown in the opened state on the drawings.
The sealing sleeve 4 has the front section 36 and a rear section 37. The front section 36 of the sealing sleeve 4 is adapted to sealingly fit with the rear extension 27 of the external cover 8e while keeping its sealing properties. The rear section 37 of the sealing sleeve 4 defines an opening 35, preferably a cylindrically shaped opening 35, suitable to sealingly fit with the external shape of the adapter 5.
The adapter 5 has a peripheral surface including a plurality of passageways 31 that are tightly and sealingly received in an inner surface of the sealing sleeve 4. Furthermore, the adapter 5 includes two cylindrically shaped openings 32 adapted to receive the elastomeric rings 15a and 15b through which the electrical wires 16 are intended to pass, as shown on Figure 12.
Elastomeric rings 15a and 15b prevent the infiltration of moisture or foreign particles into the inner space of the shielded electrical connection. Moreover, to restrict a longitudinal movement of elastomeric rings 15a and 15b relative to the electrical wire 16, the clamp 6 is used. Preferably, the clamp 6 is a plastic semi-circular lockable clamp 6. The clamp 6 can be locked in such a way that it tightly constricts the electrical wire 16, passing through, and restricts its longitudinal movement relative to the elastomeric sealing rings 15a and 15b. In this manner, an appropriate sealing connection between the electrical connector 28 and the sealing sleeve 4 is assured.
Based on the present invention, the cable has at least two individually shielded electrical wires 16 extending along a longitudinal axis. Moreover, each electrical wire 16 comprises the front end portion 33, the shield part 34 and the sealing part 39. Particularly, the shield part 34 is arranged between the front end portion 33 and the sealing part 39, along the longitudinal axis.

Claims

Electrical connection system comprising:
- at least two individually shielded electrical wires (16) extending along a longitudinal axis, each electrical wire (16) consists of an electrically conductive core (17), an insulating layer (18), an electrically conductive shielding layer (19) and an external insulating sheath (20) surrounding the electrically conductive shielding layer (19), each electrical wire (16) comprises a front end portion (33), a shield part (34) and a sealing part (39), the shield part (34) being arranged between the front end portion (33) and the sealing part (39), along the longitudinal axis;

- an electrical connector (28) having
• an internal cover (8i) comprising a reception portion (10) suitable to receive the front end portion (33) of each electrical wire (16) through a rear end extension (22), the reception portion (10) extending from the rear end extension (22) to a front portion (41) of the electrical connector (28),

• an electrically conductive shield (9) surrounding the reception portion (10), and extending from the rear end extension (22) of the reception portion (10) to the front portion (41) of the electrical connector (28),

• an external cover (8e) surrounding the electrically conductive shield (9), and having a front part (42), suitable to receive a complementary connector, and a rear extension (27),

the electrical connection system being characterized in that it further comprises:
- a sealing shielding portion (29) providing a sealing and shielding protection to an electrical connection between the wires (16) and the electrical connector, the sealing shielding portion (29) having:
• an electrically conductive shielding braid element (3) surrounding the electrical wires (16) from its shield part (34) to the electrically conductive shield (9), achieving shielding connection between individually shielded electrical wires (16) and the electrical connector (28), the electrically conductive shielding braid element (3) comprising a front section (43) tightly surrounding a rear portion (9r) of the electrically conductive shield (9), and a rear section (44) encasing the shield part (34) of electrical wires (16), and

• a sealing device (40) extending between the sealing part (39) of the electrical wires (16) and the rear extension (27) of the external cover (8e) of the electrical connector (28), the sealing device (40) comprising a elastomeric sealing sleeve (4), an adapter (5), and elastomeric rings (15a,15b), the elastomeric sealing sleeve (4) having a front section (36) sealingly fitted with the rear extension (27) of the external cover (8e), and a rear section (37) sealingly fitted with the external shape of the adapter (5), the adapter (5) having a peripheral surface including a plurality of passageways (31) that are tightly and sealingly received in a inner surface of the elastomeric sealing sleeve (4), the passageways (31) having openings (32) which sealingly fit with the elastomeric rings (15a, 15b) sealingly assembled to the electrical wire (16) .
Electrical connection system according to claim 1, characterized in that the front end portion (33) of each electrical wire (16) comprises a terminal (21) adapted to be received into the reception portion (10) of the electrical connector (28).
Electrical connection system according to claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the electrical connector (28) comprises a front end extension (12) to which a complementary connector can be coupled.
Electrical connection system according to claim 3, characterized in that the electrically conductive shield (9) passes from the reception portion (10) to the front end extension (12) of the electrical connector (28).
Electrical connection system according to any of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the electrically conductive shield (9) consists of at least two metallic shells (9a, 9b) being mechanically coupled to each other.
Electrical connection system according to any of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the external insulating sheath (20) is suppressed along the shield part (34) of the electrical wire (16).
Electrical connection system according to any of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that it further comprises a clip (2) providing electrical conductivity between the electrically conductive shielding braid element (3) and the shield part (34).
Electrical connection system according to any of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that it further comprises a tie (1) clamping the electrically conductive shielding braid element (3) to the electrically conductive shield (9) .
Electrical connection system according to any of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the sealing device (40) comprises a clamp (6), suitable to hold elastomeric rings (15a, 15b) in the adapter (5).
Electrical connection system according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the electrically conductive shield (9) is projecting beyond the external cover (8e).