JP2013175389A - Connector having overcurrent interrupting function - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connector having an overcurrent interrupting function which does not require fuse exchange.SOLUTION: A connector 10 is composed of a terminal body 13 in which platy male terminal fittings 11 and 11 making a pair are integrally coupled with each other by a narrow overcurrent interrupting portion 12; a mold portion 14 molded together around the overcurrent interrupting portion 12 and near an end portion on the overcurrent interrupting portion 12 side of the pair of the male terminal fittings 11 and 11; and a connector exterior 15 provided so as to cover the whole of the mold portion 14. The mold portion 14, when the overcurrent interrupting portion 12 is heated and fused by an overcurrent, is melt by the heat, and formed by resin capable of flowing into a clearance formed between both end portions of the fused overcurrent interrupting portion 12 to fill up the clearance.

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector having an overcurrent cutoff function.

  In an electric circuit of an automobile, an electric wire having an allowable current corresponding to a rated current is used. In such an electric circuit, when a current exceeding the allowable current flows through the electric wire due to a short circuit of the equipment constituting the electric circuit or damage to the electric wire, the temperature of the electric circuit is increased due to overheat. There is a risk of smoke and fire.

  For this reason, when an overcurrent exceeding an allowable current flows in the electric wire, an overcurrent cutoff functional component is usually installed in the electric circuit in order to cut off the current before smoking or firing. Generally, a fuse is used as the overcurrent cutoff functional component.

  The fuse that has achieved the overcurrent interruption function by fusing when an overcurrent flows through the electric wire is replaced with a new one after the cause of the overcurrent of the electrical circuit to be protected is removed. For this reason, it is required that the fuse does not generate smoke, deformation, or breakage and does not affect the surroundings when fusing.

  As this type of fuse, for example, the one described in Patent Document 1 below is known. Since the current fuse uses a conductive polymer material for the fuse element, no arc discharge occurs when the fuse is cut off, and no metal vapor is generated, so that it is difficult to affect the periphery of the fuse.

JP-A-3-11519

  By the way, with the increase in the output of the electric vehicle, the voltage of the DC power supply is increasing. For this reason, the fuse is required to withstand arc heat generated when the DC high voltage is cut off, and improvement of heat resistance and strength improvement are problems.

  In order to prevent breakage due to arc heat, it is conceivable to use an inorganic material such as ceramic or glass with excellent heat resistance as the material of the fuse cylinder. However, since inorganic materials are relatively difficult to process, the flexibility of the fuse shape is limited. There is a problem that it cannot be obtained and contributes to an increase in size. Further, in order to increase the strength, it is common to increase the thickness of the fuse component parts. However, increasing the thickness has a problem of increasing the size of the fuse.

  On the other hand, a large current fuse is generally connected by a bolt in order to suppress heat generation due to contact resistance of the fuse connecting portion. For this reason, in order to obtain the required axial force when replacing the fuse, it is necessary to manage the tightening torque, and workability is not good.

  As described above, there is still room for improvement in the configuration using the conventional fuse as the overcurrent cutoff functional component.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a connector having an overcurrent cutoff function that does not require fuse replacement.

  The present invention is a connector having an overcurrent cutoff function, and has a pair of electrical connection portions, and the overcurrent cutoff portion is provided between the electrical connection portions in such a manner that the electrical connection portions are connected to each other in a conductive manner. It is characterized by comprising a terminal body provided integrally and an insulating mold part molded around at least the overcurrent interrupting part.

  According to the present invention, since the overcurrent interruption function is provided to the connector itself, after the overcurrent interruption, it is not necessary to replace the fuse that requires torque management as in the past, and it is only necessary to replace the connector, so that the workability is excellent. . Moreover, although it is small, it has excellent strength and heat resistance.

  The connector of the present invention may be configured to include a connector exterior that accommodates the molded portion therein. With such a configuration, the connector strength is further improved.

  Further, the mold part can be formed of a resin that melts when the overcurrent interrupting part is melted and can bury a gap between the overcurrent interrupting parts. With such a configuration, it is possible to reliably cut off arc discharge.

  Alternatively, the mold part may be formed of an elastic body capable of forming a space around the overcurrent interrupting part when the overcurrent interrupting part is melted. With such a configuration, the inner side of the mold part is expanded by the metal gas generated when the overcurrent interrupting part is melted, and a space part is formed. Then, both end portions of the melted overcurrent interrupting portion are exposed to the space portion, and further melted while expanding the space portion by generating a metal gas, and the distance between both end portions gradually increases. . And finally, since both ends are sufficiently separated, it becomes possible to interrupt the arc discharge.

  According to the connector having an overcurrent cutoff function of the present invention, the troublesome fuse replacement as described above is unnecessary after the overcurrent cutoff, and it is excellent in workability because it is only necessary to replace the connector.

The upper sectional view of the connector which has the overcurrent interruption function of a 1st embodiment of the present invention. Similarly, a cross-sectional view of the connector showing a state where the overcurrent interrupter has melted Sectional drawing which shows the state which the overcurrent interruption | blocking part of the connector which has the overcurrent interruption | blocking function of 2nd Embodiment of this invention melted | fused out The upper sectional view of the connector which has the overcurrent interruption function of other embodiments of the present invention Similarly, a cross-sectional side view of the connector The upper sectional view of the connector which has the overcurrent interruption function of other embodiments of the present invention Similarly, a cross-sectional side view of the connector The upper sectional view of the connector which has the overcurrent interruption function of other embodiments of the present invention Similarly, a cross-sectional side view of the connector The upper sectional view of the connector which has the overcurrent interruption function of other embodiments of the present invention

<First Embodiment>
A connector having an overcurrent interruption function according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. As shown in FIG. 1, the connector 10 of the present embodiment is a terminal in which a pair of flat male terminal fittings 11, 11 (corresponding to an electrical connection portion) are integrally connected to each other by a narrow overcurrent blocking portion 12. The main body 13, the periphery of the overcurrent interrupting portion 12, and the mold portion 14 provided by collectively molding the vicinity of the end portion on the overcurrent interrupting portion 12 side of the pair of male terminal fittings 11 and 11, and the molding portion 14 It is comprised from the connector exterior 15 provided so that the whole might be covered.

  The terminal main body 13 is formed by punching a metal flat plate into a predetermined shape. When a current exceeding the allowable current flows between the pair of male terminal fittings 11, 11, the overcurrent blocking unit 12 generates heat and melts. As a result, the electric circuit is cut off.

  When the overcurrent interrupting part 12 generates heat due to an overcurrent and melts, the mold part 14 melts due to the heat and flows into the gap formed between both ends of the melted overcurrent interrupting part 12 so that the gap For example, it can be filled with a resin such as polyamide. Further, the connector exterior 15 provided so as to cover the mold part 14 is formed of a resin harder than the resin constituting the mold part 14, for example, a glass fiber reinforced resin.

  The present embodiment is configured as described above, and its operation will be described subsequently.

  First, the male terminal fitting 11 of the connector 10 is connected to a mating female terminal fitting (not shown) to form an electric circuit. When the electric circuit is energized and a current exceeding the allowable current flows through the connector 10, the overcurrent cutoff unit 12 generates heat and melts (see FIG. 2). Further, as the overcurrent interrupting part 12 generates heat, heat is also transmitted to the mold part 14 that molds the periphery of the overcurrent interrupting part 12, and a part thereof is in a molten state. Then, a part of the mold part 14 in the molten state flows into a gap formed between both ends of the melted overcurrent interrupting part 12 to fill the gap. Thereby, arc discharge is interrupted | blocked reliably.

  As described above, according to the connector 10 of the present embodiment, when an overcurrent flows in the electric circuit, the overcurrent blocking unit 12 can be cut off to cut off the current, thereby protecting the electric circuit. . Further, since the gap between both ends of the melted overcurrent interrupting portion 12 is filled with a part of the molten mold portion 14, arc discharge can be reliably interrupted.

  In addition, the overcurrent interrupting part 12 is covered with the mold part 14 and the connector exterior 15, and the heat energy and deformation generated when the overcurrent flows are absorbed by the mold part 14 and are strong. Since the connector is sealed by the connector exterior 15, it does not adversely affect the periphery of the overcurrent blocking unit 12. In addition, after removing the cause of the overcurrent in the electric circuit, the connector 10 is simply replaced with a new one, so that it takes less time than the conventional configuration in which a small fuse is carefully replaced while managing torque. Excellent workability.

Second Embodiment
A connector 20 having an overcurrent cutoff function according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The connector 20 of the present embodiment is substantially the same as the connector 10 of the first embodiment, but the type of material constituting the mold portion 24 is different. Parts having the same configurations as those of the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals.

  The mold part 24 of the connector 20 of the present embodiment is formed of a soft elastic material such as silicone rubber. When the overcurrent interrupting part 12 generates heat and melts, as shown in FIG. 3, the inner side of the mold part 24 is expanded by the generated metal gas, and a space part 26 is formed. Then, both end portions of the melted overcurrent interrupting portion 12 are exposed to the space portion 26 and further melted while expanding the space portion 26 by generating a metal gas, so that the distance between both end portions gradually increases. It gets bigger. And finally, since both ends are sufficiently separated, it becomes possible to interrupt the arc discharge.

  Thus, according to the connector 20 of this embodiment, even when an overcurrent flows through the electric circuit and the overcurrent blocking unit 12 is melted and a metal gas is generated, a part of the soft mold unit 24 is compressed. Thus, the space 26 is formed and the metal gas is contained inside, so that the surroundings are not affected.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described with reference to the above description and drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  (1) In the said embodiment, although the example of the connectors 10 and 20 which have a pair of male terminal metal fittings 11 and 11 as an electrical connection part was shown, an electrical connection part is not restricted to this form. For example, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a connector 30 having a pair of female terminal fittings 31, 31, and as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, one is a male terminal fitting 11 and the other is a female terminal fitting 31. It is also possible to provide a connector 40. Further, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the male terminal fitting 11 or the female terminal fitting 31 can be used as one side, and the other side can be used as the barrel 51 to crimp the core wire 53 of the electric wire 52.

  (2) The connector outer package 15 is not necessarily required, and for example, as shown in FIG. 10, a connector 70 having no connector outer package may be used.

10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70 ... connector 11 ... male terminal fitting (electrical connection part)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 ... Overcurrent interruption | blocking part 13 ... Terminal body 14, 24 ... Molding part 15 ... Connector exterior 26 ... Space part 31 ... Female terminal metal fitting (electrical connection part)
51 ... Barrel (electrical connection)
52 ... Electric wire

Claims (4)

A terminal main body having a pair of electrical connection portions, and an overcurrent interrupting portion integrally provided between the electrical connection portions in an aspect in which these electrical connection portions are connected so as to be conductive;
A connector having an overcurrent interruption function, comprising at least an insulating mold part molded around the overcurrent interruption part. The connector which has the overcurrent interruption function of Claim 1 provided with the connector exterior which accommodates the said mold part in an inside. The said mold part is formed when the said overcurrent interruption | blocking part melts | melts, and it is formed with resin which can embed the clearance gap between the said overcurrent interruption | blocking parts. Connector with overcurrent cutoff function. The overcurrent according to claim 1, wherein the mold part is made of an elastic body capable of forming a space around the overcurrent interruption part when the overcurrent interruption part is melted. A connector with a blocking function.

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