JP2006066223A - Quick connection terminal device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To show the fact that an electric wire is surely connected to a terminal board, and to provide a worker with the sense of assurance of the situation. <P>SOLUTION: When a connection between a terminal board 1 and an electric wire 110 is completed, the operation part 31 of a release lever 30 shifts to a lower position than an initial position. This makes the worker confirm a sign of electric wire connection completion visually. Furthermore, the worker confirms the sign by hearing a sound (crashing sound) which occurs when a second connection part 36 crashes into the surface of a vertical wall 109 of a body 100. In addition, the evenness of the front of an axis 32 does not inhibit the release lever 30 from moving under contact with the terminal plate 1 since the release lever 30 is formed into a shape and dimensions not to make contact with the terminal plate 1 when rotating to the counter operation direction by the spring force of a locking strip 4 in connecting the electric wire. Thus, the sign of the electric wire connection completion is surely shown. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a quick connection terminal device.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a wiring device such as a switch or an outlet, a quick connection terminal device is widely used to connect an electric wire introduced into a container through an electric wire insertion hole provided in the container. This type of quick-connect terminal device is well known in the art, and a terminal plate electrically connected to a contact in a switch or a blade holder in an outlet, etc., and holding the electric wire (conductor) between the terminal plate and the electric wire A lock spring that locks the electric wire while locking the terminal plate at the same time, and a release button that releases the lock by the lock spring operated by a tool such as a driver through the operation hole provided in the body. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-185905 (paragraph 0014, FIG. 1)

  However, the conventional quick-connection terminal device has a problem of giving anxiety to the installer because it is not known from the outside whether or not the electric wire is securely connected.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a quick-connection terminal device that can display the fact that the electric wire is securely connected to the terminal plate and give a sense of security to the installer. There is to do.

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is a terminal plate that comes into contact with an electric wire introduced into the container through an electric wire insertion hole provided in the container of the wiring device, and the terminal using a spring force. A connecting means for holding the electric wire between the plate and preventing the locking portion from coming into contact with the electric wire, and a releasing means for releasing the retaining state by the connecting means. An operating part that is exposed on the surface of the body and is manually operated, a shaft part that is pivotally supported in the body and that allows the operation part to rotate, and the operating part is manually rotated around the shaft part. A release lever having a pushing portion that pushes the locking portion in contact with the electric wire of the connecting means against the spring force when moved to push the locking portion away from the electric wire. An urging means for elastically urging the urging means, and the operation against the urging force of the urging means Latches the release lever at a rotation position different from when the connection of the electric wire is completed, and latches by the electric wire when the electric wire introduced into the container through the electric wire insertion hole is connected to the terminal plate by the connecting means. Latch means for releasing the state, and the latch means is provided in the container body, and is provided in the container body, and is provided in the release lever and is engaged with the locked part. The release lever is released from the latched state of the latch means and is pushed by the urging force of the urging means. It is characterized in that it is formed in a shape and a size that do not come into contact with the terminal board when the operation portion rotates around the portion as a fulcrum.

  According to this invention, when the connection of the electric wire is not completed, the release lever is latched by the latch means at a rotation position different from that at the completion of the connection of the electric wire, but the connection means is connected to the terminal plate. When the electric wire is introduced into the container to the position, the latching state of the latch means is released by the electric wire, and the release lever that is elastically biased by the biasing means rotates in the counter-operation direction, so that the position of the operation portion is Since it changes, it can display that the electric wire was reliably connected to the terminal board by the difference in the position of the operation part, and a sense of security can be given to the installer. In addition, since the release lever is formed in a shape and size that does not come into contact with the terminal plate when the latching state of the latch means is released and the operating portion rotates around the shaft portion by the urging force of the urging means. Since the movement of the release lever is not hindered by contact with the plate, it is possible to reliably display the connection completion of the electric wire.

  The invention of claim 2 is characterized in that in the invention of claim 1, there is provided a regulating means for regulating a distance by which the pushing portion pushes the locking portion when the release lever is operated.

  According to this invention, it can prevent that a pushing part pushes and moves a locking part more than necessary.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the plurality of release levers housed in the container so as to be adjacent to each other with the same operation direction, and the plurality of release levers adjacent in the container. An interference prevention rib provided between the release levers to prevent the release levers from interfering with each other is provided.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent a plurality of adjacent release levers from interfering with each other and not moving.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the release lever includes a support portion that slidably contacts the vessel body and supports the shaft portion when the operation portion rotates. To do.

  According to the present invention, the release lever can be stably rotated.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, a step is provided on a surface of the pushing portion that contacts the locking portion when the latch means is in a latched state.

  According to this invention, even if there is a variation in the amount of rotation of the release lever until the latch means is in the latched state, the locking portion is more than necessary due to the step provided on the surface that contacts the locking portion of the pushing portion. It can be prevented from being pushed.

  The invention of claim 6 is the invention of claim 1, wherein the width dimension of the locking part in the direction intersecting the direction of introduction of the electric wire is larger than the diameter of the electric wire, and the center of the locking part in the width direction Protrusions that project the part in contact with the electric wire and approach the electric wire are provided at both ends in the width direction of the lock portion.

  According to this invention, an electric wire can be guided to the center part in the width direction of a locking part by the protrusion provided in the both ends in the width direction of a locking part.

  The invention of claim 7 is the invention of claim 1, wherein the connecting means is formed to be substantially flat, and has a contact surface that faces the lock portion while sandwiching the electric wire and contacts the electric wire. To do.

  According to this invention, contact reliability improves by increasing a contact area with an electric wire.

  The invention of claim 8 is characterized in that, in the invention of claim 1, the release lever collides with the body and emits a sound when the latching state of the latch means is released and the operation portion rotates. To do.

  According to this invention, when the release state of the latch means is released and the release lever rotates in the counter-operation direction, the release lever collides with the body and makes a sound. Can also be confirmed.

  According to the present invention, when the connection of the electric wire is not completed, the release lever is latched by the latch means at a rotation position different from that at the completion of the electric wire connection, but the connection means is connected to the terminal plate. When the electric wire is introduced into the container to the position, the latching state of the latch means is released by the electric wire, and the release lever that is elastically biased by the biasing means rotates in the counter-operation direction, so that the position of the operation portion is Therefore, it is possible to indicate that the wire is securely connected to the terminal board due to the difference in the position of the operation part, giving the operator a sense of security, and the release lever releases the latched state of the latch means. Since the urging force of the urging means is formed in a shape and dimensions that do not come into contact with the terminal plate when the operating portion rotates around the shaft portion as a fulcrum, movement of the release lever is hindered by contact with the terminal plate. Can Connection completion display good to wires there is an effect that reliably performed.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment in which a quick connection terminal device according to the present invention is applied to a terminal portion of an outlet will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the wiring device is not limited to an outlet, and it goes without saying that the technical idea of the present invention can be applied to a wiring device other than an outlet such as a switch.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the vessel 100 is made of a thermosetting synthetic resin excellent in tracking resistance and a body 101 formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape whose front surface is opened, and thermosetting property also excellent in tracking resistance. It is formed by combining a cover 102 formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape whose rear surface is opened using a synthetic resin.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the internal space of the body 101 is divided into two by a partition wall 103 provided in the middle portion in the longitudinal direction, and assembly projections 101a having a rectangular shape in plan view are formed on both side surfaces along the longitudinal direction. Projected at both ends. As shown in FIG. 5, a partition wall 104 is also formed in the cover 102, and rectangular assembly pieces 102 a are vertically suspended from both ends along the longitudinal direction of the cover 102. Then, when the front surface of the body 101 and the rear surface of the cover 102 are faced to each other, the four assembly protrusions 101a of the body 101 are formed in the rectangular assembly holes 102b penetrating the four assembly pieces 102a of the cover 102. The container 100 is assembled by fitting each of them. At this time, the internal space of the container 100 is divided into two independent chambers by the partition wall 103 of the body 101 and the partition wall 104 of the cover 102. A pair of insertion holes 102c into which parallel plate-type plug blades of plugs are inserted penetrates the front surface of the cover 102, and a pair of blade receivers that receive the plug blades inserted into the insertion ports 102c are inserted into the cover 102. (Not shown) is accommodated. A pair of storage chambers 105 formed in the body 101 via the partition wall 103 store terminal portions A for conducting the blade holder and the electric wires.

  A terminal portion A which is a quick connection terminal device according to the present embodiment includes a terminal plate 1 and a release lever 30. The terminal board 1 includes a strip-shaped main piece 2 and a pair of contact pieces 3 suspended downward from one edge along the longitudinal direction of the main piece 2 as shown in FIGS. And a pair of substantially J-shaped locking pieces 4 hanging downward from the other edge along the longitudinal direction of the main piece 2, and processing the elastic strip-shaped metal plate of the contact piece 3. The distal end portion and the distal end portion of the locking piece 4 are integrally formed by bending so as to intersect each other. The contact piece 3 is provided with a flat contact surface 3a that comes into contact with the electric wire, and a locked portion 6 whose tip is bent and raised in a direction away from the locking piece 4, and the locked portion 6 and the main piece 2 are An insertion portion 5 is formed between the wire insertion hole 106, which will be described later, through which the wire is inserted. Further, the locking piece 4 located inside the contact piece 3 is provided with a locking portion 4a at the tip thereof that presses the electric wire toward the contact piece 3 and contacts a part of the electric wire to prevent it from coming off. A bent portion 4b that is convex in a direction away from the electric wire (contact piece 3) is provided at a position below the lock portion 4a. In addition, the width dimension of the locking part 4a in the direction intersecting the direction of introduction of the electric wire (the left-right direction in FIG. 6A) is made larger than the diameter of the electric wire, and the central part of the locking part 4a in the width direction is used as the electric wire. A pair of protrusions 4 c that are brought into contact with each other and protrude in a direction approaching the electric wire are provided at both ends in the width direction of the lock portion 4 a, and the pair of protrusions 4 c are pressed by the release lever 30. The width dimension of the contact piece 3 is set smaller than the width dimension of the lock piece 4 so that the central part of the lock part 4 a faces the contact piece 3 and the pair of protrusions 4 c do not face the contact piece 3. ing.

  The release lever 30 is made of a synthetic resin molded product, and as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a rod-shaped operation part 31, a pair of shaft parts 32, and a connection projecting from both ends of the operation part 31 and connected to the shaft part 32. A pair of arm portions 35 projecting from the end of the coupling portion 34 in an opposite direction to the operation portion 31, and a pair of arm portions. A second connecting portion 36 that connects the distal ends of 35 and a substantially rectangular columnar locking portion 37 that protrudes in the same direction as the connecting portion 34 from the second connecting portion 36 are integrally formed. The shaft portion 32 has a flat front surface (upper surface in FIG. 7A) and arc-shaped curved surfaces 32a and 32b having different curvature radii at both ends of the rear surface (lower surface in FIG. 7A). Has been. Then, as shown in FIG. 9, the shaft portion 32 is rotatably supported by being placed on the bearing base 107 provided on the bottom surface of the storage chamber 105 of the body 101 so that the curved surface 32 a on the front end side comes into contact therewith. Is done.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, three longitudinal grooves 104 communicating with the storage chamber 105 are provided on both side surfaces facing the longitudinal direction of the container body 100 (body 101). The coupling portion 34 and the operation portion 31 are exposed to the outside of the container body 100 through the groove 104, and the pushing portion 33 is opposed to the protrusion 4 c of the locking piece 4 of the terminal plate 1 and is provided in the storage chamber 105. By placing the shaft portion 32 on the base 107, the shaft portion 32 is pivotally disposed along the front-rear direction (vertical direction in FIG. 1) of the container body 100 with the shaft portion 32 as a fulcrum. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, two release levers 30 that are mirror images of each other are arranged in the storage chamber 105 side by side so that the shaft portions 32 are adjacent to each other.

  By the way, when the electric wire 110 is not connected, as shown in FIG. 1A, the release lever 30 reaches the rotation position where the locking portion 37 is locked (latched) to the locked portion 6 of the terminal board 1. (Hereinafter, this rotational position is referred to as “initial position”). When the release lever 30 is in the initial position, the protruding portion 4 c of the terminal board 1 is pushed by the pushing portion 33 and the locking piece 4 is bent in a direction away from the contact piece 3. At this time, the release lever 30 is elastically biased in the counter-operation direction (counterclockwise in FIG. 1) by the spring force of the locking piece 4, but the locking portion 37 is locked to the locked portion 6 of the terminal plate 1. Therefore, the release lever 30 is held at the initial position.

  1B and 1C, when the conductor 111 of the electric wire 110 is introduced between the contact piece 3 and the locking piece 4 through the electric wire insertion hole 106, the tip of the conductor 111 is released through the insertion portion 5. The abutting portion 37 of the lever 30 is abutted and the latching portion 37 is pushed up to release the latched state between the latching portion 37 and the latched portion 6. Then, as shown in FIGS. 1D and 1E, the release lever 30 that is elastically biased by the spring force of the locking piece 4 rotates in the counter-operation direction, so that the locking portion 4a of the locking piece 4 is moved. By contacting the conductor 111, the electric wire 110 is prevented from coming off, and the conductor 111 elastically contacts the contact piece 3 by the spring force of the locking piece 4. Further, the conductor 111 is pressed toward the lock piece 4 by the contact piece 3, and the pressing force of the lock portion 4 a and the contact piece 3 is balanced to hold the electric wire 110. Further, the release lever 30 rotated in the counter-operation direction by the spring force of the locking piece 4 eventually has the second connecting portion 36 between the adjacent longitudinal grooves 104 and the operation of the release lever 30. Stops when it hits against the inner surface of the standing wall 109 located in the opening surrounded by the portion 31, the connecting portion 34, the arm portion 35, and the second connecting portion 36, but generates a sound (collision sound) at that time (FIG. 1 (f)). In the present embodiment, the width dimension of the locking part 4a in the direction intersecting the introduction direction of the electric wire 110 is made larger than the diameter of the conductor 111, and the central part of the locking part 4a in the width direction is in contact with the conductor 111. Since the protrusions 4c projecting in the direction approaching the conductor 111 are provided at both ends in the width direction of the lock portion 4a, the conductor 111 is formed at the center portion in the width direction of the lock portion 4a by these two protrusions 4c. To prevent the positions of the conductor 111 and the terminal plate 1 (the contact piece 3 and the lock piece 4) from shifting, and the release lever 30 required for pulling the lock portion 4a away from the conductor 111 can be prevented. The amount of rotation can be reduced to prevent interference with the terminal board 1.

  On the other hand, if the operation part 31 is pushed upward while the electric wire 110 is connected, the release lever 30 rotates in the opposite direction (clockwise in FIG. 1) with the shaft part 32 as a fulcrum. The pushing portion 33 presses the protrusion 4c of the terminal board 1 and the locking piece 4 is bent so that the locking portion 4a contacting the conductor 111 is separated from the conductor 111, so that the electric wire 110 can be pulled out. Become. When the release lever 30 is rotated by operating the operation portion 31, the front end portion of the shaft portion 32 comes into contact with the locking piece 4 of the terminal plate 1, and the pushing portion 33 pushes the locking portion 4a. Since the moving distance is restricted, the pushing portion 33 pushes and moves the lock portion 4a more than necessary, and the sag of the lock piece 4 of the terminal board 1 increases, or the lock piece 4 is plastically deformed. Can be prevented.

  Thus, according to the present embodiment, when the connection between the terminal board 1 and the electric wire 110 is completed, the operation portion 31 of the release lever 30 moves to a position below the initial position, thereby visually displaying the electric wire connection completion indication. And can also be aurally confirmed by the sound (collision sound) generated when the second connecting portion 36 of the release lever 30 collides with the body 100 (standing wall 109). The increase in the number of parts can be suppressed by using the release lever 30 for releasing the connection of the electric wire 110 also for the connection completion indication of the electric wire 110. Here, as shown in FIG. 10, a substantially fan-shaped support portion 38 is integrally provided in front of the shaft portion 32, and the release lever 30 is rotated by sliding the support portion 38 against the main piece 2 of the terminal plate 1. However, there is no particular problem when the release lever 30 is rotated by operating the operating portion 31 by hand, but the release lever 30 is moved by the spring force of the locking piece 4 when the electric wire is connected. Position where the release lever 30 is prevented from rotating by the resistance generated by the sliding contact between the support portion 38 and the terminal plate 1 when rotating in the counter-operation direction, and the operation portion 31 collides with the surface of the body 100 in some cases. It is conceivable that it does not rotate until. On the other hand, in this embodiment, by making the front surface of the shaft portion 32 flat, the shape and dimensions that do not come into contact with the terminal plate 1 when rotating in the counter-operation direction by the spring force of the locking piece 4 when the electric wire is connected. Since the release lever 30 is formed, the movement of the release lever 30 is not hindered by contact with the terminal board 1 as in the configuration in which the support portion 38 is provided, so that the connection completion indication of the wire is surely obtained. Can be done. Further, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, the interference prevention rib 107a protrudes from the center of the bearing base 107 to the front, and as shown in FIG. By separating the shaft portions 32 of the two release levers 30 by the interference prevention rib 107a, the two release levers 30 do not interfere with each other and do not rotate smoothly or stop at all. I have to. Further, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 11, a support portion 108 that slides on the curved surface 32 b on the rear end side of the shaft portion 32 and supports the shaft portion 32 is formed on the inner wall surface of the storage chamber 105 of the body 101. Therefore, the release lever 30 can be stably rotated without providing the support portion 38 on the release lever 30.

  By the way, the amount of rotation when moving the release lever 30 to the initial position may be different due to variations in part tolerance of the release lever 30 and the like. Since the distance to which the button is moved increases, the pushing portion 33 pushes and moves the lock portion 4a more than necessary, and the sag of the lock piece 4 of the terminal plate 1 increases, or the lock piece 4 is plastically deformed. There is a fear. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the step 33a is provided on the surface of the pushing portion 33 that contacts the locking portion 4a when the release lever 30 is in the initial position. That is, as shown in FIG. 12, when the flat surface is formed without providing the step 33a on the surface that contacts the locking portion 4a of the pushing portion 33, the release lever 30 is further rotated from the initial position (see FIG. 12 (a)). When moved, the abutment surface of the pushing portion 33 is also moved, and the locking portion 4a is further moved (see FIG. 12B). However, the step 33a is provided on the surface of the pushing portion 33 that contacts the locking portion 4a, and the contact surface on the upper side of the step 33a is inclined so as to approach the locking portion 4a as shown in FIG. Even when the lever 30 is further rotated from the initial position (see FIG. 13A), as shown in FIG. 13B, the locking portion 4a is stepped along the contact surface above the step 33a. Therefore, even if the pushing portion 33 moves, the lock portion 4a is not moved.

  In this embodiment, an example of an embedded outlet provided with a pair of insertion ports 102c in a one-module-sized container 100 is shown. However, for example, as shown in FIG. It goes without saying that the quick connection terminal device of the present invention can be applied to the terminal portion of an embedded outlet provided with two sets of insertion ports 102c, 102c, 102d including the insertion port 102d for the ground electrode. .

The principal part of this embodiment is shown, (a) is a cross-sectional view of an initial position, (b) is a cross-sectional view of a state where an electric wire has started to be introduced at the initial position, and (c) is a tip of the electric wire (conductor) at the initial position (D) is a cross-sectional view in a state where the locking portion and the locked portion are unlocked by being pushed by the tip of the electric wire (conductor), (e) Sectional drawing in the middle of rotation of a release lever, (f) is a sectional view of a state in which the release lever stops and the connection of electric wires is completed. It is a disassembled perspective view in which a part was omitted. The same as above, (a) is a perspective view seen from diagonally forward, (b) is a perspective view seen from diagonally backward. The body in the above is shown, (a) is a front view, (b) is a bottom view, (c) is a rear view, and (d) is a right side view. The cover in the same as above is shown, (a) is a front view, (b) is a bottom view, (c) is a rear view, and (d) is a right side view. The terminal board in the same as above is shown, (a) is a front view, (b) is a top view, (c) is a bottom view, (d) is a right side view, and (e) is a rear view. The release lever in the above is shown, (a) is a front view, (b) is a top view, (c) is a left side view, (d) is a bottom view, and (e) is a right side view. It is a perspective view of the release lever in the same as the above. It is the perspective view which a part of the body in the same as above was omitted. It is a top view which shows the comparative example same as the above. It is the top view which abbreviate | omitted partially showing the body and cancellation | release lever in the same as the above. It is explanatory drawing explaining operation | movement of the comparative example same as the above. It is explanatory drawing explaining operation | movement same as the above. It is a perspective view which shows the outlet socket of the three module dimension provided with the quick connection terminal apparatus of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Terminal board 3 Contact piece 4 Locking piece 4a Locking part 4c Receiving part 5 Insertion part 6 Locked part 30 Release lever 31 Operation part 32 Shaft part 33 Pushing part 37 Locking part

Claims (8)

  A terminal plate that comes into contact with the electric wire introduced into the container through an electric wire insertion hole provided in the container body of the wiring device, and holds the electric wire between the terminal plate using a spring force and a locking part A connecting means for contacting the electric wire to prevent it from coming off, and a releasing means for releasing the retaining state by the connecting means, the releasing means being exposed to the surface of the vessel body and manually operated; A shaft portion that is pivotally supported in the body and allows the operation portion to rotate, and an electric wire of the connection means against the spring force when the operation portion is rotated manually by using the shaft portion as a fulcrum. A release lever provided with a pushing portion that pushes the locking portion in contact with the electric wire in a direction to separate it from the electric wire, and an urging means for elastically urging the release lever in a counter-operation direction; The operation unit resists the urging force at a rotation position different from that at the completion of connection of the electric wire. Latch means for latching the release lever and for releasing the latched state by the electric wire when the electric wire introduced into the container through the electric wire insertion hole is connected to the terminal plate by the connecting means. The locked portion provided in the container body, the locked portion provided in the release lever and locked to the locked portion, and pushed by the tip of the electric wire introduced into the container body, The release lever is released when the latching state of the latching means is released and the operation part rotates around the shaft part by the urging force of the urging means. A quick-connection terminal device, characterized in that it is formed in a shape and dimensions that do not contact a plate.   2. The quick connection terminal device according to claim 1, further comprising a restricting means for restricting a distance by which the pushing portion pushes the locking portion when the release lever is operated.   It is provided between the plurality of release levers housed in the container so that the operation directions are aligned and adjacent to each other, and the release levers adjacent to each other in the container, and the release levers interfere with each other. The quick connection terminal device according to claim 1, further comprising an interference prevention rib for preventing the interference.   The quick release terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the release lever includes a support portion that slidably contacts the container body and supports the shaft portion when the operation portion rotates.   2. The quick-connection terminal device according to claim 1, wherein a step is provided on a surface of the pushing portion that comes into contact with the lock portion when the latch means is in a latched state.   The width dimension of the locking part in the direction intersecting the direction of introduction of the electric wire is made larger than the diameter of the electric wire, and the central part of the locking part in the width direction is brought into contact with the electric wire and protrudes in a direction approaching the electric wire. The quick connection terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the protrusions are provided at both ends in the width direction of the lock portion.   2. The quick connection terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the connecting means is formed substantially flat and has a contact surface that faces the lock portion with the electric wire interposed therebetween and contacts the electric wire.   2. The quick-connect terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the release lever collides with the body when the latching state of the latch means is released and the operation portion rotates to make a sound.

Images