GB2198293A - Terminal strip - Google Patents

Abstract

A terminal strip comprises a plurality of housings 11 each connected to its neighbour by a bridge piece 12 and housing a connector body 16 having lateral screws 19 extending through projections 13. The housing is moulded with one side open so that the connector body complete with screws can be assembled into a housing the open side of which can be closed by a flap 20 which may be formed integrally with or separately from the housing. Alternatively, the side of the housing provided with the projections 13 may be formed separately from the rest of the housing. <IMAGE>

Description

"TERMINAL STRIP" This invention relates to so-called terminal strips of the kind comprising a plurality of terminal housings arranged in a row, each housing being connected to its neighbour by a bridge piece and each housing defining an elongated opening in which is located a metallic connector body, and a pair of lateral openings which accommodate retaining screws which screw into screw threaded apertures in the connector body and in use serve to secure cables inserted in the opposite ends of a bore extending through the connector body.

In the manufacture of such strips it is customary to mould the terminal housings integrally with the bridge pieces from synthetic resin material to form a strip of say 12 housings. The connector bodies are then located into the elongated openings in the housings following which the screws are inserted into the lateral openings and partly engaged within the screw threaded apertures.

The object of the present invention is to provide a method of making a terminal strip of the kind specified in a simple and convenient form.

According to the invention a method of making a terminal strip of the kind specified comprises forming the connector bodies and assembling the retaining screws thereto, moulding the terminal housings and interconnecting bridge members in such a manner as to leave each housing open at least at its side opposite the lateral openings, inserting the connector bodies into the housings and closing the open sides of the housings.

In the accompanying drawinggs: Figure 1 illustrates a known form of terminal strip, Figure 2 shows one example of a terminal strip in accordance with the invention, Figure 3 shows a further example of a terminal strip in accordance with the invention, and Figure 4 shows a still further example.

Referring to Figure 1 of the drawings a known form of terminal strip is indicated at 10, the upper left hand view in Figure 1 illustrating the strip in side elevation and the lower left hand figure in Figure 1 illustrating a plan view of the strip. The strip comprises a plurality of terminal housings 11 adjacent housings being interconnected by apertured bridge pieces 12. Each housing has a pair of upstanding hollow projections 13 and conveniently the housing, bridge pieces and projections are moulded from electrically insulating synthetic resin material such as polyamide or polypropylene. Each housing defines an elongated opening 14 and each projection defines a lateral opening 15.

Each housing accommodates a connector body 16 in which is formed a bore 17 and opening into the bore 17 are a pair of spaced screw threaded apertures 18 with which can be engaged retaining screws 19. The retaining screws locate in the lateral openings 15 of the projections 13 and the strip is assembled by first inserting the connector bodies into the elongated openings 14 and then inserting the screws 19 through the lateral openings 15 following which the screws 19 are partly tightened in the screw threaded apertures 18. The screws 19 act to prevent the connector bodies sliding out of the elongated openings 14 and it is convenient to ensure that the heads of the screws are in frictional engagement with the walls defining the lateral openings 15.

The construction described above requires that the connector bodies 16 be fairly accurately located within the elongated openings before the screws can be engaged within the screw threaded apertures 18.

In order to overcome the problem of having to assemble the screws to the connector bodies after the latter have been assembled into the elongated openings, it is proposed to construct the moulded portion of the strip in such a manner as to permit the screws to be assembled to the connector body before the screw/connector body asembly is assembled to the moulding. One way of achieving this is illustrated in Figure 2 and it will be seen that each terminal housing 11 is open at its side opposite the lateral openings 15. In this manner the connector body 16 with the retaining screws 19 assembled thereto, can be placed in position with the heads of the screws located within the apertures in the projections 13. The open side of the housing is closed by a flap which is indicated at 20 in Figure 2, the flap being moulded at the same time as the remaining portion of the terminal housing.It is a simple matter once the connector bodies have been assembled, to turn the flap 20 so that it blocks the open side of each housing. The flap is secured in position in any convenient manner as by welding or by arranging interengaging means on the flap and terminal housings. The flap 20, whilst it is convenient to mould it at the same time as the remaining portion of the terminal strip, can be moulded separately. In the arrangement shown in Figure 2 the flap extends the full length of the terminal strip and would be provided with apertures coinciding with the apertures in the bridge pieces.

Whilst it is preferable that the flap be of elongated form and hinged to the housing bodies, the flap can be formed separately and divided as shown in Figure 4 into closure members 21 for the individual terminal housings.

Figure 4 also illustrates a form of retaining means in which the closure members 21 are provided with ribs for engagement within shaped recesses formed in the wall of the terminal housing which defines the open side.

Figure 3 shows a further arrangement of the strip and in the example of Figure 3 the projections 14 are moulded to the one side 22 of the connector housing the remaining portion 23 of the connector housing being formed separately. As will be seen from the left hand figures in Figure 3, the sides 22 of the individual connector housing are interconnected by bridging members 24 and the remaining portions 23 of the connector housing are interconnected by bridging members 25. This arrangement permits the screws 19, which are already assembled to the connector body 16, to be located within the projections 13 after which the moulded parts are assembled together to form the terminal strip. As will be seen in Figure 3, the sides 22 are provided with shaped projections 26 which, in the assembled state, engage under ledges 27 to secure the two parts of the moulding in assembled relationship. In each of the connector strips described above it will be understood that when screws or the like are secured within the apertures in the bridge pieces, the moulding parts will be held relative to each other.

Claims (8)

1. A method of making a terminal strip of the kind comprising a plurality of terminal housings arranged in a row, each housing being connected to its neighbour by a bridge piece and each housing defining an elongated opening in which is located a metallic conductor body, and a pair of lateral openings which accommodate retaining screws which screw into screw threaded apertures in the connector body and in use serve to secure cables inserted in the opposite ends of a bore extending through the connector body, the method comprising forming the connector bodies and assembling the retaining screws thereto, moulding the terminal housings and interconnecting bridge members in such a manner as to leave each housing open on at least one side, inserting the connector bodies into the housing and closing the open sides of the housings.

2. A method according to Claim 1 in which the side of each housing opposite the openings is closed by a flap engageable with the housing.

3. A method according to Claim 2 in which the flaps are moulded integrally with the remaining portions of the housings and the bridge pieces.

4. A method according to Claim 3 in which the flaps are secured as by welding to the remaining portions of the housings.

5. A method according to Claim 2 in which the flaps and housings are formed separately and interengaging means is provided on the flaps and housings to retain the flaps in position.

6. A method according to Claim 1 in which the open sides of the housings are closed by separately moulded pieces which define said lateral openings, said connector bodies being first assembled to said pieces with the screws extending through said openings, the connector bodies then being passed through the openings and said pieces serving to close the open sides.

7. A terminal strip of the kind specified whenever constructed in accordance with the methods claimed in Claims 1-6.

8. A method of making a terminal strip substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 2, 3 or 4.