JP2009152055A - Crimp terminal and crimping structure of crimp terminal to aluminum wire - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a crimp terminal without fear of a tip part of a conductor caulking piece getting opened after caulking, and capable of satisfying both mechanical connection performance and electric connection performance, even if it is applied for an aluminum wire. <P>SOLUTION: The thickness of a part of a conductive metal plate body that forms a pair of conductor caulking pieces 13a is formed smaller than that of other conductive metal plate body. Accordingly, rigidity of a conductor crimping part 13 is enhanced. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an open barrel type crimp terminal provided with a U-shaped conductor crimping portion, and a crimping structure of the crimp terminal to an aluminum electric wire.

  FIG. 2 is a view for explaining a conventional general open barrel type crimp terminal and its crimping method, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a portion where the crimp terminal is crimped to an electric wire. In the figure, 110 is a crimp terminal, 100 is an electric wire, and 131 and 132 are a lower mold and an upper mold of a crimp jig.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the crimp terminal 110 is formed by press-molding a single conductive metal plate, and its longitudinal direction (hereinafter, this direction is referred to as “front-rear direction”, and a direction perpendicular thereto is defined. A conductor crimping portion 113 that is provided with an electrical connection portion 112 for the counterpart terminal or the like on one end side of the wire 100 and is crimped to the exposed conductor 100a at the tip end of the wire 100 on the other end side, And a cover crimping portion 114 that is crimped to a portion having the insulating coating 100b. The electrical connection portion 112, the conductor crimping portion 113, and the coating crimping portion 114 are configured to include a common bottom plate portion 111. Has been.

  The conductor crimping portion 113 is a U-shaped section in which a pair of conductor crimping pieces 113a are erected on both lateral edges of the bottom plate portion 111 continuous from the electrical connecting portion 112, and a crimp terminal is provided on the inner surface thereof. 110 is provided with a plurality of serrations 113b extending in the left-right direction (that is, shallow grooves lined by pressing) 113b. The covering crimping portion 114 is a U-shaped section in which a pair of covering crimping pieces 114a are formed upright on both side edges of the bottom plate portion 111. The conductor crimping portion 113 and the covering crimping portion 114 are Are arranged at an appropriate interval in the front-rear direction.

  In order to crimp the conductor crimping portion 113 of the crimp terminal 110 to the exposed conductor 100a of the tip end of the electric wire 100, the crimp terminal 110 is placed on the mounting surface 131a of the lower mold 131 and the exposed conductor of the tip end of the electric wire 100 is exposed. 100 a is inserted between the conductor crimping pieces 113 a of the conductor crimping part 113 and placed on the bottom plate part 111. Then, by lowering the upper mold 132, the leading end side of the conductor crimping piece 113a is gradually tilted inward on the guide slope 132a of the upper mold 132, and finally, the central chevron 132b from the guide slope 132a. The conductor crimping piece 113a is rounded so as to be folded back toward the conductor 100a with a curved surface continuous to the conductor 100a, and the conductor 100a is bitten into the conductor 100a as shown in FIG. The conductor crimping piece 113a is crimped so as to wrap the wire. The covering crimping portion 114 is crimped in advance to the portion having the insulating coating 100b of the electric wire 100 in the same manner as described above prior to the crimping of the conductor crimping portion 113.

  When the conductor crimping portion 113 is crimped to the conductor 100a of the electric wire 100 by caulking the conductor crimping piece 113a in this way, the conductive metal constituting the crimp terminal 110 and the conductor 100a of the electric wire 100 adhere to each other (molecules or molecules). The crimp terminal 110 and the electric wire 100 can be strongly and mechanically coupled to each other.

  The crimp terminal 110 having such a configuration is widely known in Patent Document 1 and the like.

  By the way, it is common to use a copper wire for a wire harness routed inside a vehicle such as an automobile, and it is difficult to use an aluminum wire that is inferior in properties (physical properties) such as conductivity and strength. For that reason, it has not been used much in the past. However, in recent years, there has been a growing demand for the use of aluminum wires in view of lighter vehicles, lower fuel consumption, and recyclability.

  In the case of using an aluminum electric wire, it is necessary to further improve the connection performance of the crimping part because aluminum or aluminum alloy constituting the conductor is inferior in mechanical strength and electrical conductivity to copper. For example, it is necessary to squeeze the crimping part of the conductor so that the crimping force (contact force) of the crimping terminal against the conductor made of aluminum or aluminum alloy is increased, or the compressibility of the conductor made of aluminum or aluminum alloy is increased. There is.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-135031 (FIG. 8)

  In the conventional crimp terminal, all of the electrical connection portion 112, the conductor crimp portion 113, and the covering crimp portion 114 are formed of a conductive metal plate having a uniform thickness. When the clamping piece 113a is crimped to an aluminum or aluminum alloy conductor of an aluminum electric wire, due to insufficient rigidity of the conductor crimping piece 113a, an aluminum or aluminum alloy conductor or conductor crimping piece after crimping is performed. There is a risk that the mutual rubbing portion (tip portion) of the pair of conductor crimping pieces 113a may open due to the spring back of 113a, etc., which causes a weak tightening force on the conductor made of aluminum or aluminum alloy. In addition to mechanical strength, electrical connection performance is degraded.

  In order to prevent this, if a thick metal plate is used for the conductive metal plate constituting the crimp terminal, the material cost increases and, for example, the electric contact portion 112 has a leaf spring. There were also problems such as the elasticity of the leaf springs becoming too strong.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to increase the rigidity of the conductor crimping piece constituting the conductor crimping portion, and the leading end portion of the conductor crimping piece opens after crimping. Crimp terminals that can satisfy both mechanical connection performance and electrical connection performance even when applied to aluminum wires, and a crimp structure for the crimp terminals to aluminum wires are provided. There is to do.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the crimp terminal according to the present invention is characterized by the following (1) and (2).
(1) The bottom plate portion is extended upward from both side edges of the bottom plate portion, and is bent inward so as to wrap around the conductor of the electric wire to be connected, thereby bringing the conductor into close contact with the upper surface of the bottom plate portion. A crimping terminal formed by press-molding a single conductive metal plate body, comprising a conductor crimping portion having a U-shaped cross section having a pair of conductor crimping pieces to be crimped as described above,
The portion of the conductive metal plate that forms at least the pair of conductor crimping pieces is formed thicker than the thickness of the other portions of the conductive metal plate.
(2) In the crimp terminal having the configuration of (1) above,
Chamfering is applied to the tip of the outer surface of the pair of conductor crimping pieces.

According to the crimp terminal having the configuration of (1) above, at least a portion of the conductive metal plate forming the pair of conductor crimping pieces is thicker than the plate thickness of the other conductive metal plate. Therefore, it is possible to increase the rigidity of the conductor crimping piece, thereby preventing the conductor crimping piece from being opened by the spring back after the crimping, and exhibiting a high connection force to the electric wire. Can do. In addition, since the plate thickness of the entire conductive metal plate forming the crimp terminal is not increased, it is possible to suppress an increase in cost, and even when there is a leaf spring in the electrical connection portion, it is appropriate. Elasticity can be easily imparted.
According to the crimp terminal having the configuration of (2) above, since the tip of the outer side surface of the conductor crimping piece is chamfered, when the conductor crimping piece is crimped, the tip of both conductor crimping pieces Can be smoothly performed.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the crimping structure of the crimp terminal according to the present invention with respect to the aluminum electric wire is characterized by the following (3).
(3) A bottom plate portion and the bottom plate portion that extends upward from both side edges of the bottom plate portion and is bent inward so as to wrap the aluminum or aluminum alloy conductor of the aluminum wire to be connected. A conductive crimping portion having a U-shaped cross section having a pair of conductor crimping pieces that are crimped so as to be in close contact with the upper surface of the sheet, and formed by press molding a single conductive metal plate. A crimping structure for the aluminum wire of the crimped terminal,
At least a portion of the conductive metal plate body forming the pair of conductor crimping pieces is formed to be thicker than a plate thickness of the other conductive metal plate body portion, and The conductor crimping portion is crimped to the conductor of the aluminum electric wire by crimping the pair of conductor crimping pieces in a state where the conductor of the aluminum electric wire is disposed between the clamped pieces.

  According to the crimping structure having the configuration of (3) above, the portion of the conductive metal plate that forms at least a pair of conductor crimping pieces is thicker than the thickness of the portion of the other conductive metal plate. The pair of conductor crimping pieces is crimped in a state where the aluminum or aluminum alloy conductor of the aluminum wire is disposed between the pair of conductor crimping pieces, so that the conductor crimping is performed on the conductor of the aluminum wire. Since the part is crimped, the rigidity of the conductor crimping piece can be increased, thereby preventing the conductor crimping piece from opening due to the spring back after crimping, and thus high connection to the aluminum wire. Can demonstrate power. In addition, since the plate thickness of the entire conductive metal plate forming the crimp terminal is not increased, it is possible to suppress an increase in cost, and even when there is a leaf spring in the electrical connection portion, it is appropriate. Elasticity can be imparted.

  According to the present invention, the tip of the conductor crimping piece does not open after crimping, and both mechanical connection performance and electrical connection performance are satisfied even when applied to an aluminum wire. Can do.

  The present invention has been briefly described above. Furthermore, the details of the present invention will be further clarified by reading through the best mode for carrying out the invention described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  Fig.1 (a) is a perspective view which shows the structure of the crimp terminal which is embodiment of this invention, and FIG.1 (b) is Ib-Ib arrow sectional drawing of Fig.1 (a).

  As shown in FIG. 1A, the crimp terminal 10 is formed by press-molding a single conductive metal plate (for example, a base material plated with tin). , An electrical connection for contacting and electrically connecting the other terminal to one end of the longitudinal direction (hereinafter, this direction is referred to as “front-rear direction” and the direction orthogonal thereto is referred to as “left-right direction”) An exposed conductor Wa made of aluminum or aluminum alloy at the front end of the aluminum wire W (that is, from a bundle of a plurality of aluminum or aluminum alloy wires in the form of stranded wires or the like) And a portion of the conductor exposed from the insulating coating Wb at the tip of the aluminum wire provided with the conductor and the insulating coating Wb formed so as to cover the outer periphery of the conductor. The And the conductor crimping portion 13, the aluminum electric wire W, the sheath clamping portion 14 for clamping pressure to the portion having a conductor and an insulating coating Wb, and a. The electrical connection portion 12, the conductor crimping portion 13, and the covering crimping portion 14 are configured to include a common bottom plate portion 11.

  The conductor crimping portion 13 is a U-shaped portion formed in a standing manner so as to extend a pair of conductor crimping pieces 13 a upward on both lateral edges of the bottom plate portion 11. A plurality of serrations (that is, shallow grooves lined by pressing) extending in the left-right direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction of the crimp terminal 10 are provided on the inner surface of the conductor crimping portion 13 as necessary. Further, the covering crimping portion 14 is a U-shaped section formed so as to stand upright so as to extend a pair of covering crimping pieces 14 a upward on both lateral edges of the bottom plate portion 11. The conductor crimping part 13 and the covering crimping part 14 are arranged at an appropriate interval in the front-rear direction of the crimping terminal 10.

What is important here is that the conductive metal plate forming the pair of conductor crimping pieces 13a as shown in FIG. The body part is formed to be thicker than the plate thickness of the other conductive metal plate part. That is, the entire range from the common bottom plate portion 11 to the covering crimping piece 14a of the covering crimping portion 14 including the electrical connecting portion 12 is formed by a conductive metal plate having a thickness t2. Only the conductor crimping piece 13a of the conductor crimping portion 13 has a thickness t1 larger than t2.
For example, if t1 is 1.20 mm, t2 is set to 0.7 mm. This difference in thickness can be set during press molding. In addition, an oblique chamfer 13c is applied to the tip of the outer side surface of the conductor crimping piece 13a having an increased thickness.

  In order to crimp the conductor crimping portion 13 of the crimping terminal 10 to the tip end of the aluminum electric wire W, the crimping terminal 10 is placed on the lower mold 131 and the tip of the aluminum electric wire W is fitted as in the case shown in FIG. The exposed conductor Wa of the portion is placed on the bottom plate portion 11 so as to be disposed between the pair of conductor crimping pieces 13 a of the conductor crimping portion 13. Then, by lowering the upper mold 132, the leading end portion side of the conductor crimping piece 13a is tilted inward on the guide slope 132a of the upper mold 132, and finally, the guide slope 132a continues to the central chevron 132b. The exposed conductor Wa is wrapped by bending the leading end of the conductor crimping piece 13a with a curved surface so as to draw a curl on the exposed conductor Wa and folding it back, and biting the exposed conductor Wa while rubbing the leading ends together. The conductor crimping piece 13a is crimped in such a manner. At that time, since the chamfer 13c is provided at the distal end portion of the outer side surface of the conductor crimping piece 13a, it is possible to smoothly rub the distal end portions of the two conductor crimping pieces 13a. About the covering crimping part 14, it crimps in advance to the part which has the insulation coating Wb of the aluminum electric wire W like the above-mentioned prior to the crimping of the conductor crimping | compression-bonding part 13. FIG.

  By crimping in this way, a crimping structure in which the conductor crimping piece 13a having an increased thickness is crimped to the exposed conductor Wa is obtained.

  Therefore, since the rigidity of the conductor crimping piece 13a is increased by increasing the thickness, it is possible to effectively prevent the conductor crimping piece 13a from being opened by the springback after the crimping, and the aluminum electric wire W made of aluminum or aluminum alloy. A high connection force to the made conductor can be exhibited. In addition, since the overall thickness of the conductive metal plate forming the crimp terminal 10 is not increased, it is possible to suppress an increase in cost, and when the electrical connection portion 12 has a leaf spring, Appropriate elasticity can be easily imparted. As a specific example of the aluminum alloy, an alloy of aluminum and iron can be given. When the said aluminum alloy is employ | adopted, it is easy to extend compared with the conductor made from aluminum, and intensity | strength (especially tensile strength) can be increased.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to embodiment mentioned above, A deformation | transformation, improvement, etc. are possible suitably. In addition, the material, shape, dimensions, number, arrangement location, and the like of each component in the above-described embodiment are arbitrary and are not limited as long as the present invention can be achieved.

  For example, in the said embodiment, although the case where only the conductor crimping piece 13a of the conductor crimping part 13 was set thicker than another part was shown, in addition to that, the part of the baseplate part 11 which comprises the conductor crimping part 13 Is also set to the same thickness as that of the conductor crimping piece 13a, and the entire conductor crimping portion 13 may be thickened.

(A) is a perspective view which shows the structure of the crimp terminal which is one Embodiment of this invention, (b) is Ib-Ib arrow sectional drawing of (a). It is explanatory drawing of the crimping method of a general crimp terminal and an electric wire. It is sectional drawing of a crimping | compression-bonding part.

Explanation of symbols

10: Crimp terminal 11: Bottom plate part 13: Conductor crimping part 13a: Conductor crimping piece 13c: Chamfer W: Aluminum electric wire Wa: Exposed conductor

Claims (3)

The bottom plate portion is extended upward from both side edges of the bottom plate portion and bent inward so as to wrap the conductor of the electric wire to be connected, so that the conductor is in close contact with the top surface of the bottom plate portion. A crimp terminal formed by press-molding a single conductive metal plate body, comprising a conductor crimping portion having a U-shaped cross section having a pair of conductor crimping pieces to be tightened,
A crimp terminal, wherein at least a portion of the conductive metal plate body forming the pair of conductor crimping pieces is formed thicker than a plate thickness of the other conductive metal plate portion. .   The crimp terminal according to claim 1, wherein chamfering is performed on a front end portion of the outer side surface of the pair of conductor crimping pieces. A bottom plate portion, and the conductor is bent to the upper side of the bottom plate portion by being bent inwardly so as to wrap around the aluminum or aluminum alloy conductor of the aluminum wire to be connected. A crimp terminal formed by press-molding a single conductive metal plate body, comprising a conductor crimping portion having a U-shaped cross section having a pair of conductor crimping pieces that are crimped so as to be in close contact with each other A crimping structure for an aluminum electric wire,
At least a portion of the conductive metal plate body forming the pair of conductor crimping pieces is formed to be thicker than a plate thickness of the other conductive metal plate body portion, and The conductor crimping portion is crimped to the conductor of the aluminum electric wire by crimping the pair of conductor crimping pieces in a state where the conductor of the aluminum electric wire is disposed between the clamped pieces. Crimp structure for crimping terminals against aluminum wires.

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