EP3378128B1 - Assembly with a contact element and an electrical cable and method for producing such an assembly - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to an arrangement with a contact element and an electrical conductor according to claim 1 and a method for producing such an arrangement.

Such a contact element comprises a contact body which extends in the form of a band and is bent such that the contact body forms an opening into which a plug connector part can be inserted in a plug-in direction. The contact body here has a surface which extends around the opening and forms an inner wall of the opening. A contact lamella is arranged in the opening of the contact body in such a way that the contact lamella lies against the surface. This contact lamella is used for electrical contact with a connector part inserted into the opening of the contact body.

Such contact elements can in particular be designed to provide an electrical contact with a high current carrying capacity. The contact body is solid, for example made of copper, the thickness of the bent contact body being selected depending on the desired current carrying capacity. The (elastic, resilient) contact lamella, when an assigned connector part is inserted, ensures favorable electrical contacting under elastic contact pressure on the connector part.

Conventionally, such contact elements are designed as solid contact sleeves, usually manufactured as turned parts. In the case of such contact sleeves, an electrical conductor is generally connected to an end of the contact sleeve facing away from an insertion opening and thus axially behind the plug-in area into which the plug connector part is to be inserted. This requires a comparatively large axial installation space of such contact sleeves.

In addition, such contact sleeves can be expensive to manufacture, in particular for providing electrical contacts with a high current carrying capacity. In addition, (galvanic) surface finishing can be difficult.

Instead of contact sleeves made by turned parts, contact elements are also used today that are produced as stamped parts and bent to provide the contact element.

For example, one of the DE 10 2011 105 821 A1 Known contact element bent into a sleeve and closed circumferentially via a tab engagement. A connecting tongue for connecting an electrical conductor connects axially to the sleeve-shaped contact element.

With one from the US 6,656,002 known contact element, a contact body in the form of a stamped part is bent and closed circumferentially by a tab engagement.

Such contact elements manufactured by stamped parts are comparatively complex to produce and require complex connection of ends of the contact body via a suitable, form-fitting tab engagement. In particular in the case of comparatively low numbers of pieces (which can be customary for contact elements with a particularly high current carrying capacity), such contact elements may not be able to be produced economically without difficulty.

Another difficulty arises from the fact that the contact lamella must be fixed to the contact body along the plug-in direction in which an assigned connector part is to be inserted with a contact pin into the opening of the contact body, so that the contact lamella is not relative to the one when the plug-in part is inserted or removed Contact body slips. For this, the from the DE 10 2011 105 821 A1 Known contact element provided on the end face of the contact lamella, which encompass the contact body at its edges and in this way establish a connection to the contact body. However, this can further increase the manufacturing outlay of such contact elements.

US5078622 , US5474479 , DE2632851 disclose a contact element which has a bent contact body, in the opening of which a contact lamella is arranged.

US5078622 has a tab section projecting axially from the cylinder section for connecting the electrical conductor to the contact body.

US4082412 discloses a contact element which has a bent contact body, the contact body having a cylinder section having the opening and a tab section projecting tangentially from the cylinder section for connecting the electrical conductor to the contact body.

US5078622 discloses a contact arrangement with a contact element and an electrical conductor according to the preamble of claim 1 and a method for producing an arrangement of a contact element with an electrical conductor according to the preamble of claim 13.

The object of the present invention is to provide an arrangement with a contact element and an electrical conductor and a method for producing an arrangement of a contact element with an electrical conductor which is simple, inexpensive Enable production, even when designed for a high current carrying capacity.

This object is achieved by an object with the features of claim 1. Accordingly, the band-shaped contact body has a positive locking device with at least one positive locking element formed on the surface of the contact body. The contact lamella engages with this form-fitting device in a form-fitting manner and is thereby fixed to the contact body along the plug-in direction.

The present invention is based on the idea of introducing a form-fit device for (axially) fixing the contact lamella on the contact body into the surface of the contact body. The surface surrounds the opening and forms the inner wall of the opening. The contact lamella lies against this surface when it is inserted into the opening of the contact body.

The fact that the form-fitting device is molded into the surface of the contact body makes it possible to produce this form-fitting device before the contact body is bent, which can be done in a particularly simple manner, for example by an embossing or tensioning process. After the contact body is bent into its desired shape, the contact lamella can then be inserted into the opening formed by the contact body and thereby comes into positive engagement with the form-locking device, so that the contact lamella is thereby axially fixed to the contact body along the plug-in direction.

According to the invention, the contact body has a cylinder section which has the opening and a tab section projecting tangentially from the cylinder section for connecting an electrical conductor to the contact body, the link being connectable to the contact element in different orientations and in different directions from the contact element via the tab section can be guided away, with a connecting piece of a line core of the conductor being attached flat to the tab section and connected to the tab section by means of welding or soldering for connection to the tab section.

The cylinder section extends circumferentially around the insertion direction and forms the opening in the manner of a cylinder ring, which is circumferentially (largely) closed. The tab section protrudes tangentially from this cylinder section, that is to say tangentially to the circumferential direction around the insertion direction.

The tab section thus protrudes laterally from the cylinder section and enables an electrical conductor to be connected to the contact element. Because the tab section projects tangentially and thus laterally from the cylinder section, an electrical conductor can be connected to the contact element via the tab section next to the cylinder section. This can result in a contact element with a comparatively small axial installation space.

Further measures for fixing the contact lamella on the contact body can hereby be omitted. In particular, it is not necessary to establish a connection to the contact body by reshaping the contact lamella, for example by bending tabs of the contact lamella. When inserted into the contact body, the contact lamella automatically comes into positive engagement with the form-locking device on the surface of the contact body, so that the contact lamella is thereby fixed to the contact body.

Different variants for the design of the form-fitting device are conceivable and possible.

In a first variant, the positive locking device can be inserted into the surface molded recess, which thus forms a positive locking element. The contact lamella lies in this recess when it is arranged in the opening of the contact body.

The depression is preferably delimited axially along the plugging direction on both sides by webs which extend circumferentially along a circumferential direction around the plugging direction on the contact body. The webs are offset from one another along the plugging direction and, when the contact lamella is inserted into the opening of the contact body, take up the contact lamella between them.

At the transition between the webs and the recess arranged between them, edges are preferably formed, on which the contact lamella bears in a form-fitting manner when it is arranged in the opening of the contact body. A sharp-edged transition between the depression and the webs adjoining on both sides creates a favorable receptacle for the contact lamella, by means of which the contact lamella is fixed to the contact body along the direction of insertion.

In a second variant, the positive locking device can also be formed by a plurality of impressions molded into the surface of the contact body, which thus form positive locking elements of the positive locking device. With these impressions, the contact lamella engages positively, for example, over ends of lamella sections, so that the contact lamella is positively attached to the contact body.

The embossments are preferably offset from one another along a circumferential direction around the plug-in direction, so that a form-fitting hold of the contact lamella on the contact body is created around the opening.

In a particularly advantageous embodiment, a number of impressions extending parallel to one another can be provided. A first row of impressions can have first impressions lined up along the circumferential direction, while a second row of impressions comprises second impressions lined up along the circumferential direction. The first row of impressions and the second row of impressions are preferably offset from one another along the direction of insertion and thus arranged parallel to one another.

The first row of impressions and the second row of impressions can advantageously each have exactly the same number of impressions. A first impression of the first row is thus associated with a second impression of the second row, which is offset from the first impression along the direction of insertion.

The fact that two rows of indentations offset with respect to one another along the plug-in direction make it possible to hold the contact lamella in a form-fitting manner on both sides at ends of lamella sections of the contact lamella.

The embossments preferably each have a (sharp) edge on which, for example, one end of a lamella section of the contact lamella has a positive fit abuts and is held in a positive manner along the plug-in direction on the contact body. The embossments can have a wedge-shaped shape in cross-section (in a cross-sectional plane that is defined by the plug-in direction and the surface normal of the surface of the contact body), so that each embossment in the manner of a sawtooth in one direction forms an edge for a positive fit, in the opposite direction, however, rises diagonally and does not form an edge.

In a third variant, the at least one interlocking element of the interlocking device can also be formed by at least one groove formed in the surface of the contact body. This groove extends along a circumferential direction pointing around the insertion direction on the surface. When the contact lamella is introduced into the opening of the contact body, it engages with the groove in a form-fitting manner, so that the contact lamella is held on the contact body along the direction of insertion.

It can be provided here that two grooves offset from one another along the plugging direction are provided. In particular, a first groove extending along the circumferential direction and a second groove extending along the circumferential direction can be offset from one another along the plug-in direction, so that the contact lamella is held on the grooves in a form-fitting manner on both sides.

The grooves can in turn each form, for example, an edge on which the contact lamella bears in a form-fitting manner. In cross section, the grooves can form a wedge shape analogously to that described above for the embossments, so that a positive connection is provided only in one direction.

The contact body can, for example, be made from a bent copper strip. In an initial state, this copper strip extends in a straight line along a longitudinal axis. To produce the contact body, the copper strip is bent so that the opening for receiving the contact lamella is formed.

The thickness of the copper strip is selected depending on the desired current carrying capacity. To provide a contact element with a comparatively large current carrying capacity (for example 200 A or even higher), a copper strip with a comparatively large thickness, for example several millimeters, is selected. The copper strip can also be galvanically coated.

In one configuration, the contact body has a cylinder section having the opening and a tab section projecting tangentially from the cylinder section for connecting an electrical conductor to the contact body. The cylinder section extends circumferentially around the insertion direction and forms the opening in the manner of a cylinder ring, which is circumferentially (largely) closed. The tab section protrudes tangentially from this cylinder section, that is to say tangentially to the circumferential direction around the insertion direction.

The tab section thus protrudes laterally from the cylinder section and enables an electrical conductor to be connected to the contact element. Because the tab section projects tangentially and thus laterally from the cylinder section, an electrical conductor can be connected to the contact element via the tab section next to the cylinder section. This can result in a contact element with a comparatively small axial installation space.

In a further embodiment, the contact body is bent at one end in a bending direction around the plug direction towards the surface, so that the end of the surface is approximated. This bending forms the opening in which the contact lamella can then be arranged. In an advantageous embodiment, the contact body can in this case have a flattened portion for flat contact with the surface at the end approximated to the surface. This flattening makes it possible to bring the end into an advantageous contact with the surface of the contact body, so that an approximately circular cross section is created in the contact body. Such flattening can be particularly advantageous if a band-shaped element with a comparatively large thickness is used to provide the contact body.

In the area of the flattening, the end of the contact body can advantageously be integrally connected to the surface, in order in this way to close the annular cylinder section circumferentially to increase the mechanical strength. This can be done, for example, by means of welding, in particular laser welding.

In this context it is also conceivable and possible to establish a connection in another way, for example by screwing or riveting or by a form-fitting engagement of the end in the surface.

The object is also achieved by a method for producing an arrangement of a contact element with an electrical conductor.

It is provided here that the band-shaped contact body has a form-fitting device with at least one form-fitting element formed on the surface of the contact body, the contact lamella being positively engaged with the form-fitting device when arranged on the contact body and thereby being fixed to the contact body along the plug-in direction.

The advantages and advantageous configurations described above for the contact element also apply analogously to the method, so that reference should be made to what has been said above.

In particular, it can be provided here that in an initial state the contact body is elongated along a longitudinal axis and is bent around the plugging direction in order to form the opening in a bending direction. In an initial state, the contact body is thus present as an elongated band. into which the positive locking device has already been introduced. To produce the contact body, the elongated band is bent in the bending direction, so that there is a cylindrical ring with an opening arranged therein, in which the contact lamella can be arranged.

Contact elements of the type described here can be used, for example, in vehicle technology, for example for connecting conductors in a vehicle, and completely different applications, for example in the context of an industrial plant, are also possible.

Fig. 1

eine Ansicht eines ersten Ausführungsbeispiels eines Kontaktkörpers einer Kontaktlamelle, in einem Ausgangszustand vor dem Biegen;

Fig. 2A

eine Ansicht des Kontaktkörpers nach dem Biegen;

Fig. 2B

eine Ansicht des Kontaktkörpers mit einer darin angeordneten Kontaktlamelle;

Fig. 3

eine Querschnittsansicht entlang der Linie I-I gemäß Fig. 2A;

Fig. 4

eine Ansicht eines weiteren Ausführungsbeispiels eines Kontaktkörpers, in einem Ausgangszustand;

Fig. 5A

eine Ansicht des Kontaktkörpers nach dem Biegen;

Fig. 5B

eine Ansicht des Kontaktkörpers mit darin angeordneter Kontaktlamelle;

Fig. 6A

eine Querschnittsansicht entlang der Linie I-I gemäß Fig. 5A;

Fig. 6B

eine ausschnittsweise vergrößerte Darstellung der Querschnittsansicht gemäß Fig. 6A;

Fig. 7

eine Ansicht eines dritten Ausführungsbeispiels eines Kontaktkörpers, in einem Ausgangszustand;

Fig. 8A

eine Ansicht des Kontaktkörpers nach dem Biegen;

Fig. 8B

eine Ansicht des Kontaktkörpers, beim Einsetzen einer Kontaktlamelle;

Fig. 8C

eine Ansicht des Kontaktkörpers, bei eingesetzter Kontaktlamelle;

Fig. 9

eine Querschnittsansicht entlang der Linie II-II gemäß Fig. 8A;

Fig. 10A

eine Seitenansicht eines weiteren Ausführungsbeispiels eines Kontaktkörpers, mit einer Abflachung an einem hin zur Oberfläche des Kontaktkörpers gebogenen Ende;

Fig. 10B

eine perspektivische Ansicht des Kontaktkörpers;

Fig. 10C

eine Ansicht des Kontaktkörpers mit darin angeordneter Kontaktlamelle;

Fig. 11

eine Seitenansicht des Kontaktkörpers gemäß Fig. 10A, wobei das die Abflachung tragende Ende des Kontaktkörpers stoffschlüssig mit der Oberfläche des Kontaktkörpers verbunden ist; und

Fig. 12A-C

Ansichten eines Ausführungsbeispiels eines Kontaktkörpers, mit an einen Laschenabschnitt des Kontaktkörpers angeschlossenen, in unterschiedliche Richtungen erstreckten Leitern.

The idea on which the invention is based will be explained in more detail below with reference to the exemplary embodiments illustrated in the figures. Show it:

Fig. 1

a view of a first embodiment of a contact body of a contact blade, in an initial state before bending;

Figure 2A

a view of the contact body after bending;

Figure 2B

a view of the contact body with a contact plate arranged therein;

Fig. 3

a cross-sectional view taken along the line II Figure 2A ;

Fig. 4

a view of another embodiment of a contact body, in an initial state;

Figure 5A

a view of the contact body after bending;

Figure 5B

a view of the contact body with the contact plate arranged therein;

Figure 6A

a cross-sectional view taken along the line II Figure 5A ;

Figure 6B

a partial enlarged view of the cross-sectional view according to Figure 6A ;

Fig. 7

a view of a third embodiment of a contact body, in an initial state;

Figure 8A

a view of the contact body after bending;

Figure 8B

a view of the contact body, when inserting a contact lamella;

Figure 8C

a view of the contact body, with inserted contact lamella;

Fig. 9

a cross-sectional view along the line II-II according to Figure 8A ;

Figure 10A

a side view of another embodiment of a contact body, with a flat at an end bent towards the surface of the contact body;

Figure 10B

a perspective view of the contact body;

Figure 10C

a view of the contact body with the contact plate arranged therein;

Fig. 11

a side view of the contact body according to Figure 10A , wherein the flat end of the contact body is integrally connected to the surface of the contact body; and

Figures 12A-C

Views of an embodiment of a contact body, with conductors connected to a tab portion of the contact body and extending in different directions.

1 to 3 show a first embodiment of a contact element 1, which is made of a band-shaped contact body 10.

How from Fig. 1 As can be seen, the contact body 10 is in an initial state 1 'in the form of a strip which is elongated along a longitudinal axis L. In order to produce the contact element 1, this contact body 10 is bent from its initial state 1 ′ into a bending direction B, so that this is shown in FIG Figure 2A shown contact element 1 results.

The bent contact body 10 has a cylinder section 12 which forms an opening 120. This cylinder section 12 is formed by the fact that the contact body 10, which is extended in the form of a band, is bent in a ring shape from its initial state 1 ′ with one end 101 in the direction of a surface 104, so that the contact element 10 in FIG Figure 2A shown shape results. The surface 104 of the contact body 10 forms an inner wall surrounding the opening 120.

The band-shaped contact body 10 is bent in such a way that a tab section 13 with one end 100 protrudes tangentially from the cylinder section 12 and extends in a straight line from the cylinder section 12. The tab portion 13 serves to connect an electrical conductor to the contact element 1, as will be described below.

To complete the contact element 1, as in Figure 2B shown, a contact lamella 2 is arranged in the opening 120 of the cylinder section 12 of the contact body 10, which is radially resilient at least to a certain extent and in this way enables a plug connector part 3 to be inserted into a plug direction E in the opening 120 for electrical contact with the contact element 1. The connector part 3 can thereby be inserted into the opening 120 with a contact pin and in this way comes into contact with the contact lamella 2, which is thereby elastically stretched and provides a favorable contact pressure for electrical contacting with the contact pin of the connector part 3.

The contact lamella 2 bears against the surface 104 of the contact body 10 forming the inner wall of the opening 120 and is thus electrically contacted with the contact body 10, which is made, for example, from a copper strip.

In order to fix the contact lamella 2 in the opening 120 along the plug-in direction E, the contact body 10 has on its surface 104 facing the opening 120 a form-locking device 11 in the form of a recess 112 molded into the surface 104. The contact lamella 2 lies in this recess when it is arranged in the opening 120, so that the contact lamella 2 is held in the opening 120 in a form-fitting manner and, in particular when the plug connector part 3 is inserted or removed, is not displaced in the opening 120 along the plug-in direction E. can be.

The recess 112 is delimited on both sides by webs 110, 111, which each form a (sharp) edge 113, 114 at the transition to the recess 112. The contact lamella 2 lies between these edges 113, 114 when it is arranged in the opening 120 ( Figure 2B ), so that the contact lamella 2 is fixed on the contact body 10 between the edges 113, 114 along the plug-in direction E.

The form-fitting device 11 in the form of the recess 112 is introduced into the surface 104 before the contact body 10 is bent, for example by embossing or by a machining process. After the contact body 10 has been bent, the positive-locking device 11 in the form of the recess 112 extends circumferentially along a circumferential direction U around the plug-in direction E on the inside of the opening 120, so that the contact lamella 2 can be arranged in the recess 112 in a simple manner by inserting it into the opening 120 can.

Fig. 3 shows in a cross-sectional view the configuration of the form-fitting device 11 with the recess 112 and the webs 110, 111 delimiting the recess 112 on both sides.

The contact element 1 can, for example, form an electrical contact which can have a high current carrying capacity, for example> 100 A, in particular> 200 A. The contact element 1 is in this case connected to an electrical conductor and can be inserted through the opening 120 formed in the cylinder section 12 into a suitable contact pin of a connector part 3, so that an electrical connection of two conductors can be established via the contact element 1.

A second exemplary embodiment of a contact element 1 is shown in FIG 4 to 6A, 6B shown. In this exemplary embodiment, a positive locking device 11 is formed by impressions 115, 116 in the surface 104 of the contact body 10. The impressions 115, 116 form two rows of impressions 115, 116, which are offset from one another along the plug-in direction E and extend parallel to the surface 104 of the contact body 10.

The impressions 115, 116 are introduced into the surface 104 before the contact body 10 is bent. The embossments 115, 116 can in this case be produced by an embossing process, wherein in principle machining of these impressions 115, 116 is also conceivable and possible.

After bending, the rows of impressions 115, 116 extend circumferentially along the circumferential direction U around the insertion direction E on the inside of the opening 120, as shown in FIG Figure 5A is shown. The impressions 115, 116 take up ends 200, 201 of lamella sections 20 of the contact lamella 2 (see Figure 5B together with Figure 8B ), so that the contact lamella 2 is held in a form-fitting manner on the contact body 10 via its ends 200, 201 and is fixed on the contact body 10 along the plug-in direction E.

Due to the two-row arrangement of the impressions 115, 116, ends 200, 201 are received on both sides of the lamella sections 20, so that the contact lamella 2 is fixed in the axial direction on both sides of the contact body 10.

As shown in the cross-sectional views 6A and 6B As can be seen, the impressions 115, 116 each have a wedge shape in cross-section (along a cross-sectional plane that is defined by the insertion direction E and a surface normal of the surface 104 of the contact body 10), so that a shape according to Art of a sawtooth results (see in particular Figure 6B ). Each embossment 115, 116 here forms an edge 113, 114, against which an associated end 200, 201 of a lamella section 20 of the contact lamella 2 bears.

Because the sawtooth shape of the impressions 115, 116 of the different rows has their edges 113, 114 pointing in different, opposite directions, the contact lamella 2 is fixed to the contact body 10 both in the plugging direction E and counter to the plugging direction E. Thus, when loaded in the plug-in direction E, the contact lamella 2 is held over the edge 114 of the impressions 116 of the axially rear row of impressions 116, while when loaded against the plug-in direction E (when the connector part 3 is pulled out) the contact lamella 2 is held over the edges 113 of the impressions 115 of the axially front row of impressions 115 is positively locked.

In another, in 7 to 9 In the exemplary embodiment shown, the form-locking device 11 is formed by two grooves 117, 118 which are offset axially along the plug-in direction E and extend circumferentially around the circumferential direction U.

The grooves 117, 118 have a cross section as shown Fig. 9 can be seen in each case a sawtooth shape, analogous to that for the impressions 115, 16 for the exemplary embodiment according to 4 to 6A, 6B has been described. In this regard, reference should therefore be made to what has been said above.

The grooves 117, 118 are axially offset from one another and take ends 200, 201 (see Figure 8B ) of lamella sections 20 of the contact lamella 2 in a form-fitting manner, so that the contact lamella 2 is fixed on the contact body 10 both in the plugging direction E and counter to the plugging direction E.

In Figure 8B the contact lamella 2 is shown before being inserted into the opening 120 of the cylinder section 12 of the contact element 1. How from Figure 8B can be seen, the contact lamella 2 is not closed circumferentially and can thus be radially deformed in order to introduce it into the opening 120 in a simple manner. When plugging in the openings 120, the ends 200, 201 of the lamella sections 20 of the contact lamella 2 come into positive engagement with the grooves 117, 118, so that the contact lamella 2 is fixed on the contact body 10.

How from 7 and 8A As can be seen, the grooves 117, 118 in the exemplary embodiment shown do not extend along the entire length of the contact body 10, but only in the region which, after bending, forms the cylinder section 12 with the opening 120 formed therein. The grooves 117, 118 thus in particular do not extend into the area of the tab section 13.

In principle, the same applies to the exemplary embodiments according to 1 to 3 and 4 to 6A, 6B conceivable and possible. It is also possible there that the recess 112 (see Fig. 1 ) or the series of impressions 115, 116 (see Fig. 4 ) only extend in the area on the contact body 10 which - after bending - forms the cylinder section 12.

In the exemplary embodiments described above, the contact body 10 is bent with its end 101 in the bending direction B in the direction of the surface 104 and thus rolled towards the cylinder section 12. Because the contact body 10 in its initial state 1 'has the shape of an elongated band with a thickness that cannot be neglected, in the bent state the end 101 lies with an edge on the surface 104 of the contact body 10, which leads to a step in the inner wall of the opening 120 formed by the surface 104 of the contact body 10 (see for example Figure 2A ). Advantageously, the contact lamella 2 (which is not closed circumferentially. See Figure 8B ) inserted into the opening 120 in such a way that the point of interruption of the contact lamella 2 comes to lie precisely in the area of the shoulder at the end 101 of the contact body 10. Because the contact lamella 2 is in contact with the connector part 3 over most of the circumference when the connector part 3 is plugged in, the interruption in the contact lamella 2 and the step in the inner wall of the opening 120 are approximately negligible for the quality of the electrical contact.

In order to create an improved transition at the end 101 of the contact body 10 in the case of a contact body 10 of large thickness, which is suitable, for example, for a contact element 1 of high current carrying capacity, as in the exemplary embodiment according to FIG 10A to 10C , At the end 101 of the contact body 10, a flat 102 may be provided, which improves contact of the end 101 on the surface 104 of the Contact body 10 creates. With the flat 102, the end 101 can be bent towards the surface 104 and brought into contact with the surface 104 such that the shoulder at the transition between the end 101 and the surface 104 on the inside of the opening 120 is reduced, as can be seen from the side view according to Figure 10A can be seen.

In order to increase the mechanical stability of the contact element 1, a connection 103 can be created between the end 101 and the surface 104, for example by means of laser welding to produce a material bond between the end 101 and the surface 104.

In principle, such a connection 103 is also conceivable and possible if no flattening is provided at the end 101. So can also in the embodiments that are based on 1 to 9 have been described, basically a connection 103 to the surface 104 is made at the end 101, for example by applying a (laser) weld seam.

The tab section 13 protruding tangentially from the cylinder section 12 serves to connect a conductor 4 to the contact element 1, as shown in FIG Figures 12A to 12C is shown. Via the tab portion 13, a conductor 4 can be connected to the contact element 1 in different orientations and can be guided away from the contact element 1 in different directions, as can be seen from the figures.

To connect to the tab section 13, a connecting piece 40 of a line core of the conductor 4 is attached flat to the tab section 13 and, for example, connected to the tab section 13 by means of welding or soldering.

Because the tab section 13 projects tangentially from the cylinder section 12, the connection to the conductor 4 can take place in the transverse direction next to the cylinder section 12. The axial installation space of the contact element 1 does not increase due to the tab section 13.

The idea on which the invention is based is not limited to the exemplary embodiments described above, but can in principle also be implemented in a completely different manner.

The contact element provided can result in simple manufacture using, for example, a copper strip. The contact element can be galvanized in an additional step, but this is not absolutely necessary.

By providing a form-fitting device on the inside of the opening, the contact lamella can be reliably fixed in the opening in a simple manner without additional measures having to be provided, for example, on the contact lamella itself. The design of the contact lamella does not necessarily have to be adapted in a special way.

By connecting a conductor to a tab section of the type described, a cable outlet direction can be chosen in a flexible manner. The result is a contact element with a comparatively small axial space requirement.

Reference list

1

Contact element

1'

Initial state

10th

Contact body (band)

100.101

The End

102

Flattening

103

connection

104

surface

11

Positive locking device

110, 111

web

112

deepening

113.114

Edge

115, 116

Embossing

117.118

Groove

12th

Cylinder section

120

opening

13

Tab section

2nd

Slat

20

Slat sections

200.201

The End

3rd

Connector part

4th

ladder

40

Connector

B

Bending direction

E

Insertion direction

L

Longitudinal axis

U

Circumferential direction

Claims (14)

1. Arrangement having a contact element (1) and an electrical conductor (4), wherein the contact element (1)

   - has a contact body (10) extending in the shape of a strip and bent such that the contact body (10) forms an opening (120) into which a plug-in connector part (3) is able to be plugged in a plug-in direction (E), wherein the contact body (10) has a surface (104) extending around the opening (120) and forming an inside wall of the opening (120), and

   - has a contact strip (2), arranged in the opening (120) of the contact body (10) and bearing on the surface (104), for making electrical contact with a plug-in connector part (3) plugged into the opening (120),

   - wherein the strip-shaped contact body (10) has a form-fitting device (11) having at least one form-fitting element (111-118) formed on the surface (104) of the contact body (10), wherein the contact strip (2) is in form-fitting engagement with the form-fitting device (11) and is thereby fixed to the contact body (10) along the plug-in direction (E),

   characterized in that the contact body (10) has a cylindrical section (12) containing the opening (120) and a tab section (13), protruding tangentially from the cylindrical section (12), for connecting the electrical conductor (4) to the contact body (10), wherein the conductor (4) is able to be attached to the contact element (1) in various orientations and is able to be moved away from the contact element (1) in various directions by way of the tab section (13), wherein, for the connection to the tab section (13), a connection piece (40) of a wire core of the conductor (4) is applied flush to the tab section (13) and is materially bonded to the tab section (13) by way of welding or soldering.
2. Arrangement according to Claim 1, characterized in that the at least one form-fitting element is formed by a recess (112) formed in the surface and in which the contact strip (2) is arranged.
3. Arrangement according to Claim 2, characterized in that the recess (112), viewed along the plug-in direction (E), is defined by two bars (110, 111) between which the contact strip (2) is received.
4. Arrangement according to Claim 1, characterized in that the at least one form-fitting element is formed by a multiplicity of imprints (115, 116) formed in the surface (104) and with which the contact strip (2) is in form-fitting engagement.
5. Arrangement according to Claim 4, characterized in that at least some of the imprints (115, 116) are offset from one another along a circumferential direction (U) oriented around the plug-in direction (E).
6. Arrangement according to Claim 4 or 5, characterized in that a first row of imprints (115) has first imprints (115) aligned next to one another along the circumferential direction (U) and a second row of imprints (116) has second imprints (116) aligned next to one another along the circumferential direction (U), wherein the first row of imprints (115) and second row of imprints (116) are offset from one another along the plug-in direction (E).
7. Arrangement according to one of Claims 4 to 6, characterized in that the imprints (115, 116) each form an edge (113, 114) for the form-fitting bearing with the contact strip (2).
8. Arrangement according to Claim 1, characterized in that the at least one form-fitting element is formed by at least one groove (117, 118) that is formed in the surface (104), that extends along a circumferential direction (U) oriented around the plug-in direction (E) and with which the contact strip (2) is in form-fitting engagement.
9. Arrangement according to Claim 8, characterized in that a first groove (117) extending along the circumferential direction (U) and a second groove (118) extending along the circumferential direction (U) are offset from one another along the plug-in direction (E).
10. Arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the contact body (10) is produced from a bent copper strip.
11. Arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the contact body (10) is bent at one end (101) in a bending direction (B) around the plug-in direction (E) towards the surface (104) such that the end (101) approaches the surface (104), wherein the contact body (10), at the end (101), has a flat area (102) for bearing flat with the surface (104).
12. Arrangement according to Claim 11, characterized in that the end (101), at the flat area (102), is materially bonded to the surface (104), in particular by welding, for example by laser welding.
13. Method for producing an arrangement of a contact element (1) having an electrical conductor (4), having the following steps:

    - providing a contact body (10) extending in the shape of a strip,

    - bending the contact body (10) such that the contact body (10) forms an opening (120) into which a plug-in connector part (3) is able to be plugged in a plug-in direction (E), wherein the contact body (10) has a surface (104) extending around the opening (120) and forming an inside wall of the opening (120),

    - arranging a contact strip (2) in the opening (120) of the contact body (10) such that the contact strip (2) bears on the surface (104), wherein the contact strip (2) is designed to make electrical contact with a plug-in connector part (3) plugged into the opening (120), wherein the strip-shaped contact body (10) has a form-fitting device (11) having at least one form-fitting element (111-118) formed on the surface (104) of the contact body (10), wherein the contact strip (2), when it is arranged on the contact body (10), is brought into form-fitting engagement with the form-fitting device (11) and is thereby fixed to the contact body (10) along the plug-in direction (E),

    characterized in that the contact body (10) has a cylindrical section (12) containing the opening (120) and a tab section (13), protruding tangentially from the cylindrical section (12), for connecting the electrical conductor (4) to the contact body (10), wherein the conductor (4) is able to be attached to the contact element (1) in various orientations and is able to be moved away from the contact element (1) in various directions by way of the tab section (13), wherein, for the connection to the tab section (13), a connection piece (40) of a wire core of the conductor (4) is applied flush to the tab section (13) and is materially bonded to the tab section (13) by way of welding or soldering.
14. Method according to Claim 13, characterized in that the contact body (10) extends in the longitudinal direction along a longitudinal axis (L) in a starting state (1') and is bent in a bending direction (B) around the plug-in direction (E) in order to form the opening (120).

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