JP2011258511A - Wiring device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wiring device capable of preventing a plug from being erroneously removed from a receptacle and preventing generation of arc when erroneously removed.SOLUTION: The wiring device includes: a plug 4 having a pair of plug blades 2a, 2b and a power receiving conduction passage 3 which connects a DC load 12 to these plug blades; and a receptacle having a pair of blade receiving springs for DC power supply which is detachably and electrically connected to the pair of the plug blades of this plug and a conduction passage which connects the pair of these blade receiving springs to the DC power supply side, and also includes: a lock mechanism in which a connection state is disengageably locked when the pair of the plug blades of the plug and the pair of the blade receiving blades of the receptacle are connected to one another; and a control circuit 8 in which current flowing through the conduction passage of the plug or the receptacle interlockingly with the release of locking of this lock mechanism is suppressed or interrupted.

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to a wiring device.

  In general, an example of a wiring device includes a plug and an outlet, and these include an alternating current (AC) and a direct current (DC).

  Conventionally, in this type of AC outlet, there has been an attempt to prevent erroneous pulling of the plug being accidentally pulled out from the outlet while the electric device having the plug inserted therein is energized. As an example, a rotary type is known in which a plug is inserted into an outlet and then the outlet is rotated to lock.

  However, at present, plugs or outlets for DC are not necessarily constant because they themselves are not yet widely used. Therefore, it is unclear whether or not this AC rotary type can be adopted for DC.

  When the DC plug is erroneously pulled out and an energized current is large, an arc is generated between the connection terminal of the plug and the connection part of the DC outlet connected to the connection terminal. This arc may cause melting of the connection terminal and the connection portion, or may cause a fire.

  As an example of preventing the occurrence of such an arc, there is one described in Patent Document 1. This is intended to reduce the current flowing to the plug side by connecting a pair of connection portions of the outlet with a high-resistance parallel circuit by pressing a push button when the DC plug is pulled out from the DC outlet.

JP 2009-146782 A

  However, such conventional DC plugs and outlets have a problem in that there is no means for preventing erroneous pulling out of the plug from the outlet of the plug.

  Also, if the push button is not pushed when the plug is pulled out incorrectly, the high resistance parallel circuit is not inserted between the pair of connection parts of the outlet. I can't. For this reason, there also exists a subject that an arc may generate | occur | produce between the connection terminal of a plug, and the connection part of an outlet socket.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and provides a wiring device capable of preventing an erroneous pulling out of a plug outlet itself and preventing an arc from being generated at the time of the erroneous pulling. With the goal.

  According to this embodiment, the plug having a pair of connection terminals and a current path for connecting the connection terminals to a DC load, and a pair of DC power supplies that are detachably connected to the pair of connection terminals of the plug. And an outlet having an energization path for connecting the pair of power supply connection portions to the DC power supply side.

  In addition, when the pair of connection terminals of the plug and the pair of connection portions of the outlet are connected, a lock mechanism that locks the connection state so as to be detachable, and a plug or And a control circuit that suppresses or cuts off the current flowing in the energization path of the outlet.

  According to the present embodiment, the lock mechanism can prevent erroneous pulling out of the plug from the outlet.

  If the lock mechanism is unlocked, the plug can be pulled out from the outlet even while power is being supplied. However, when the lock mechanism is unlocked, the current flowing through the plug or outlet current path is linked to the release. Suppressed or blocked. For this reason, generation | occurrence | production of the arc at the time of incorrect extraction of a plug can be aimed at.

The electric circuit diagram of the control circuit of the wiring apparatus which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. The front view of the plug of the wiring apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. FIG. The right side view. The front view of the outlet socket of the wiring apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view showing one insertion process of the plug shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 and the outlet shown in FIG. 5. The schematic diagram just before the locking of the locking mechanism of the plug shown in FIGS. The schematic diagram at the time of locking of the locking mechanism of the plug shown in FIGS. The electric circuit diagram of the control circuit which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the same or an equivalent part in several drawing.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 7, the wiring device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes plug blades 2a, 2b, 2c, which are examples of a pair of connection terminals, and the plug blades 2a to 2c connected to a DC load 12. And a blade receiving spring 5a which is an example of a pair of DC power supply connecting portions that are detachably connected to the plug blades 2a to 2c of the plug 4 and the power receiving energization path 3 connected to the plug 4. , 5b, 5c and an outlet 6 having a power feeding path for connecting the pair of blade receiving springs 5a to 5c to the DC power source side.

  In addition, the wiring device 1 has a lock mechanism 7 that locks the connection state so as to be detachable when the pair of plug blades 2a to 2c of the plug 4 and the pair of blade receiving springs 5a to 5c of the outlet 6 are connected. And a control circuit 8 for cutting off the power receiving energizing path 3 of the plug 4 or the power supplying energizing path (not shown) of the outlet 6 in conjunction with the unlocking of the lock mechanism 7. As one embodiment of the present invention, the power receiving energization path 3 of the plug 4 may include at least a part of the plug blades 2a and 2b which are an example of a pair of connection terminals. As another embodiment of the present invention, the energization path of the outlet 6 may include at least a part of blade receiving springs 5a and 5b which are examples of a pair of DC power supply connection portions.

  That is, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the DC plug 4 of the wiring device 1 is, for example, one side wall 4b of a hexagonal rectangular tubular plug body 4a made of synthetic resin (the right side wall in FIGS. 2 and 3). ), For example, cylindrical or columnar three-pole (+, -pole, earth pole) plug blades 2a, 2b, 2c extending in the horizontal direction in the figure, each center of which has an inverted triangle at each center. It arrange | positions in the state located in. That is, for example, in the upper part in FIG. 4, a pair of positive and negative pole blades 2a, 2b are arranged at a required interval in the left-right direction in the figure, and below these blades 2a, 2b are grounding terminals. A plug blade 2c is provided. However, the arrangement of the plug blades 2a to 2c is not limited to this, and the earth electrode plug blade 2c may be omitted to constitute two poles.

  Further, the plug 4 has a hexagonal cylindrical guide tube 9 concentrically disposed on one side wall 4b of the plug body 4a so as to surround the outer periphery of the plug blades 2a to 2c with a predetermined interval. The guide tube 9 is made of, for example, a transparent material made of a synthetic resin and has an axial length slightly longer than the plug blades 2a to 2c. The inner ends of these plug blades 2a to 2 are electrically connected to a pair of terminals 10a and 10b shown in FIG. 1 and a ground terminal (not shown) through a control circuit 8 in the plug body 4a. The pair of terminals 10 a and 10 b are connected to a DC-driven electric device (not shown) as the DC load 12 through a plurality of core wires in the cord 11.

  The lock mechanism 7 is formed in the plug 4 of the synthetic resin engaging portion 13 disposed at the upper end of the guide tube 9 of the plug 4 and the synthetic resin outlet 6 shown in FIG. A pair of locking holes 21a, 21b.

  The locking portion 13 extends on the upper left end wall in FIG. 2 of the flat plate-shaped insertion guide portion 13a formed on the upper end surface of the guide tube 9 and obliquely upward to the left in FIG. And a belt-like lever 13b disposed integrally.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the lever 13b is integrally formed with locking claws 13c and 13d projecting upward in the drawing on the left and right side surfaces of the base portion integrally connected to the insertion guide portion 13a. ing.

  The lever 13b is elastically moved with the connecting portion connected to the insertion guide portion 13a as a fulcrum by pushing the upper surface of the free tip portion (left end portion in FIGS. 2 and 3) with a finger or the like toward the plug body 4a. It swings up and down in the figure.

  On the upper surface of the plug body 4a, a retractable plunger 14 is disposed on the lower surface in the swing direction of the lever 13b.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the plunger 14 includes a return coil 14a, and is configured to be able to appear and retract by the elastic force of the return coil 14a. The inner end portion of the plunger 14 is coupled to a slider (not shown) of a sliding resistor 15 which is an example of a variable resistor, and the slider of the sliding resistor 15 moves according to the movement of the plunger 14. Thus, the resistance value is controlled from the maximum to the minimum. As shown in FIG. 2, the position where the plunger 14 is free and protrudes maximum outward is defined as the original position, and the resistance value of the sliding resistor 15 becomes the minimum value at this original position. The return coil 14a constantly urges the plunger 14 to this original position.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 2, before the plug 4 is inserted into the plug insertion hole 20 of the outlet 6, or when the lock mechanism 7 is unlocked after the plug 4 is pulled out of the plug insertion hole 20 of the outlet 6, the plunger 14 is returned to the original position where the outward protrusion amount becomes maximum, and the resistance value of the sliding resistor 15 becomes minimum.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7, the plug 4 is in the middle of being inserted into the plug insertion hole 20 of the outlet 6, and the pair of locking claws 13c and 13d are in front of the fitting holes 21a and 21b. In other words, in a state before the lock mechanism 7 is locked, the pair of engaging claws 13c and 13d is engaged with the pair of engaging claws 13c and 13d in a state where the protruding upper ends in the drawing are in contact with the upper surface of the inner surface of the plug insertion hole 20 Since it slides to the hole 21a, 21b side, the lever 13b is elastically pushed down. For this reason, the protruding outer end of the plunger 14 is deeply pushed into the plug body 4a side by the lower surface of the lever 13b in the figure, so that the resistance value of the sliding resistor 15 is maximized.

  FIG. 8 shows a state where the lock mechanism 7 is locked. That is, since the plug 4 is further inserted into the plug insertion hole 20 of the outlet 6 from the state shown in FIG. 7 in which the plug 4 is inserted into the plug insertion hole 20 of the outlet 6, a pair of locking claws of the plug 4 is provided. 13c and 13d move slightly downward in the figure due to the elastic restoring force of the lever 13b, and show a state in which they are inserted into the pair of engaging holes 21a and 21b of the outlet 6. In this locked state, the substantially vertical rear walls at the left end in FIG. 8 of the pair of locking claws 13c, 13d abut against the substantially vertical rear walls at the left end in FIG. 8 of the pair of engagement holes 21a, 21b. As a result, the plug 4 is prevented from being pulled out from the outlet 6.

  In this locked state, the lever 13b moves upward in the figure, so that the plunger 14 is released from the pressed state by the lever 13b shown in FIG. 7 and becomes free. Therefore, the plunger 14 gradually protrudes upward by the spring restoring force of the return coil 14a and returns to the upper limit original position.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the control circuit 8 includes this sliding resistor 15, transistor 17, MOSFET (N-type) 18, and resistor 19.

  The MOSFET 18 has its source S and drain D interposed in the middle of the power receiving energization path 3, and when a voltage is applied to the gate G, the resistance value of the current channel gradually decreases as the gate voltage increases. Going forward (ON). The resistor 19 is a dummy load, and has a resistance value that can substantially prevent the current from the MOSFET 18 from flowing into the-(minus) pole-side conduction path during a normal load.

  5 and 7, the outlet 6 includes a plug insertion hole 20 into which the plug 4 is inserted, and a pair of engagement holes 21a that are detachably engaged with the pair of locking claws 13c and 13d of the plug 4. 21b. These engagement holes 21 a and 21 b are configured as a lock mechanism 7 together with a locking portion 13 having a pair of locking claws 13 c and 13 d of the plug 4. Each engagement hole 21a, 21b is formed inside the plug insertion hole 20 as shown in FIG.

  That is, the lock mechanism 7 is locked by engaging the pair of engaging claws 13c and 13d of the plug 4 with the pair of engaging holes 21a and 21b.

  On the other hand, in this locked state, the lever 13 is further pushed into the plug body 4a side (downward in FIGS. 2 and 7) with a finger or the like, whereby the engaging hole 15 and the pair of locking claws 13c and 13d are locked. Can be released.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the outlet 6 includes three-pole blade receiving springs 20 a, 20 b, which are electrically connected by inserting the three-pole plug blades 2 a to 2 c of the plug 4 detachably. 20c and a hexagonal fitting hole 22 into which the insertion tip of the hexagonal guide tube 9 of the plug 4 is fitted.

  Next, the operation of the wiring device 1 will be described.

  First, in the state where the locking mechanism 7 of the plug 4 is released as shown in FIG. 2, that is, in the state where the lever 13b is inclined obliquely upward to the left in the drawing and is in the original position together with the plunger 14, as shown in FIG. 6, when the plug 4 is inserted into the plug insertion hole 20, first, the inclined surfaces of the pair of locking claws 13 c and 13 d of the plug 4 are formed on the inner surface of the plug insertion hole 20 as shown in FIG. 7. The lever 13b is elastically brought into contact with the upper surface in the figure and gradually pushed downward against the elastic force. For this purpose, the lever 13b pushes the outer end of the plunger 14 downward in the figure. As a result, the resistance value of the sliding resistor 15 gradually increases in accordance with the increase in the immersion amount of the plunger 14 and gradually increases to the maximum value. For this reason, the current flowing through the sliding resistor 15 gradually decreases, the output voltage of the transistor 11 also decreases gradually, the voltage applied to the gate G of the MOSFET 18 becomes substantially minimum, and the resistance value of the current channel of the MOSFET 18 gradually increases to almost the maximum value. And almost blocked.

  When the plug 4 is pushed into the plug insertion hole 20 of the outlet 6 as shown in FIG. 8, the pair of locking claws 13c and 13d are pushed upward in FIG. The fitting holes 21a and 21b are fitted and locked. Thereby, the lock mechanism 7 is locked. In this locked state, the vertical walls at the left end in FIG. 7 of the pair of locking claws 13c and 13d abut against the vertical walls at the left end in the drawing of the pair of engagement holes 21a and 21b, so that the plug 4 is pulled out from the outlet 6 Is blocked.

  In this locked state, the lever 13b is pushed upward in the figure and returns to the original position shown in FIG. 2, so that the plunger 14 is released (free) from the pressure applied by the lever 13b and returns to the original position. For this purpose, the resistance value of the sliding resistor 15 is gradually reduced to almost the minimum value.

  For this reason, as shown in FIG. 1, the current flowing through the sliding resistor 15 increases, the output voltage of the transistor 17 rises, and is applied to the gate of the MOSFET (N-type) 18. For this reason, the resistance of the current channel of the MOSFET (N-type) 18 is reduced and the power receiving energization path 3 is conducted. As a result, the DC current received by the plug blades 2 a and 2 b of the plug 4 is supplied to an electric device (not shown) via the output terminals 10 a and 10 b and the cord 11.

  Next, a case where the plug 4 is pulled out from the outlet 6 while the electric device is being fed will be described.

  In this case, first, as shown in FIG. 8, the lever 13b in the locked state is pushed downward with a finger as shown in FIG. 7, and the plug 4 is pulled out. Then, the locked state (locked state) between the pair of locking claws 13c and 13d of the lever 13b and the pair of engaging holes 21a and 21b of the outlet 6 is released. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 2, since the plunger 14 returns to the original position, the resistance value of the sliding resistor 15 gradually increases. For this reason, the output current of the sliding resistor 15 is reduced, and further, the output voltage of the transistor 17 is also reduced, so that the gate voltage of the MOSFET 18 is also reduced, the resistance value of the current channel is increased, and the power receiving current path 3 Is cut off.

  Thereby, it is possible to prevent or reduce the occurrence of an arc between the plug blades 2a to 2c of the plug 4 and the blade receiving springs 5a to 5c of the outlet 6.

  That is, if the lock mechanism 7 is unlocked, the plug 4 can be pulled out from the outlet 6 even during energization. However, when the lock mechanism 7 is unlocked, the power receiving current path 3 of the plug 4 is interlocked with the release. Is increased by the MOSFET 18 of the control circuit 8 and cut off. For this reason, generation | occurrence | production of the arc at the time of incorrect extraction of the plug 4 can be aimed at.

  Thereafter, when the plug 4 is pulled out from the plug insertion hole 20 of the outlet 6, the power reception of the plug 4 stops, and the lever 13b returns to the original position by the elastic restoring force as shown in FIG. Due to the elastic restoring force of the return coil 14a, it protrudes outward and returns to its original position.

  In the first place, the locking mechanism 7 can prevent the plug 4 from being pulled out of the outlet 6 itself.

  Further, according to the wiring device 1, in the process from before the lock mechanism 7 is locked to when the lock mechanism 7 is locked, the electric resistance of the current channel of the MOSFET 18 is gradually decreased from the maximum value to make the power receiving energization path 3 conductive. The inrush current that flows in at the time of starting the electric device connected to the plug 4 can be avoided.

  That is, when the power receiving energization path 3 is simply ON-OFF controlled, a starting current larger than the current that flows in during normal driving of the electrical equipment suddenly enters the electrical equipment via the power receiving energization path 3 when the power receiving energization path 3 is ON. Therefore, inrush current cannot be avoided.

  However, according to this embodiment, the starting current is gradually increased by gradually decreasing the electrical resistance value of the current channel of the MOSFET 18 in conjunction with the amount of immersion of the plunger 14 that gradually increases. Since the starting current is not rushed into the electric device as it is, the rush current can be avoided.

  In addition, since the plug 4 and the outlet 6 are formed in an asymmetrical hexagonal shape, the polarities of the plug blades 2a and 2b of the plug 4 and the blade receiving springs 5a and 5b of the outlet 6 are incorrect. Incorrect insertion can be prevented.

  In the present invention, the control circuit 8 can be variously modified, and an example thereof will be described below.

  FIG. 8 illustrates only the power receiving energization path 3 on the + pole side of the control circuit 8A according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and omits the energization path on the −pole side. The control circuit 8A eliminates the transistor 17 and the MOSFET 18 of the control circuit 8 shown in FIG. 1, while inserting a JFET (N-type) 22 and the sliding resistor 15 in series in the power receiving current path 3 on the positive electrode side. The sliding resistor 15 is characterized in that the output side is connected to the gate G of the JFET 22.

  The JFET (N-type) 22 functions as a normally-closed switch that performs ON-OFF control of the power receiving energization path 3. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, when the lock mechanism 7 is locked, if the plunger 14 is immersed and the resistance value of the sliding resistor 15 increases, the sliding resistor 15 is connected to the sliding resistor 15 via the conductive JFET 22. The inflowing current decreases, the current applied to the gate G of the JFET 22 decreases below a predetermined threshold value, and the JFET 22 maintains conduction (ON).

  On the other hand, when the lock mechanism 7 is unlocked, the blanker 14 protrudes outward by the elastic restoring force of the return coil 14a as shown in FIG. 1, and the resistance value of the sliding resistor 15 decreases. For this reason, when the current applied to the gate G of the JFET 22 from the output side of the sliding resistor 15 increases to a predetermined threshold value or more, the JFET 22 is reversed to non-conduction (OFF), and the power receiving energization path 3 Is cut off.

  Therefore, if the power receiving energization path 3 of the plug 4 is accidentally pulled out from the outlet 6 while receiving power, the power receiving energization path 3 is cut off, so that the plug blades 2a and 2b of the plug 4 and the blade receiving spring of the outlet 6 are disconnected. Generation | occurrence | production of an arc between 5a, 5b can be reduced or prevented.

  Although the present embodiment is simple in configuration, since the sliding resistor 15 is inserted in the power receiving energization path 3, it is inferior to the first embodiment in that power loss is caused by the resistor 15. However, as described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the control circuits 8 and 8A are provided on the plug 4 side has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the control circuits 8 and 8A are provided on the plug 4 side. Instead, it may be provided on the outlet 6 side. Further, the locking portion 13 may be disposed on the side surface instead of on the upper end of the plug body 4a.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Wiring apparatus, 2a, 2b, 2c ... Plug blade (connection terminal), 3 ... Power receiving energization path, 4 ... Plug, 5a, 5b, 5c ... Blade receiving spring (connection part), 6 ... Outlet, 7 ... Lock mechanism 8, 8A ... control circuit, 12 ... DC load, 13 ... locking part, 13c, 13d ... a pair of locking claws, 14 ... plunger, 15 ... sliding resistor, 20 ... plug insertion hole, 21a, 21b ... A pair of engagement holes.

Claims (2)

A plug having a pair of connection terminals and a current path connecting the connection terminals to a DC load;
A pair of DC power supply connection portions detachably electrically connected to the pair of connection terminals of the plug, and an outlet having an energization path for connecting the pair of power supply connection portions to the DC power supply side;
A lock mechanism for releasably locking the connection state when the pair of connection terminals of the plug and the pair of connection portions of the outlet are connected;
A control circuit that suppresses or cuts off the current flowing in the current path of the plug or outlet in conjunction with the unlocking of the locking mechanism;
A wiring device comprising: 2. The wiring according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit is configured to gradually reduce the electrical resistance of the energization path of the plug or the outlet in conjunction with the lock when the lock mechanism is locked. 3. apparatus.

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