JP5484870B2 - Electrical center with vertical power busbar - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an electrical center, and more particularly, to an electrical center having a circuit board and a power bus bar (power bus).

  On June 11, 1991, Gary C. U.S. Pat. No. 5,032,752 issued to Detter et al. Discloses an electrical distribution center for an automotive electrical system. The power distribution center includes a stacked circuit array of various current capacities disposed between an upper housing and a lower housing. These circuit arrays each have terminal access holes for receiving terminals formed on metal circuit elements preformed by stamping. The electrical terminals are selectively connected to either an electrical device or an electronic device supported on the top of the upper housing, or selectively connected to a wiring connector connected to the outer surface of the lower housing. Yes. Metal circuit elements preformed by stamping are removably attached to the recesses of a plurality of stacked electrical insulation boards supported in the lower housing.

  The power distribution center includes a power bus (power supply bus) including an ear-shaped portion adapted to be connected to a battery cable. The power bus (power bus) is a conductive plate formed by stamping and has a plurality of large capacity male terminals. These terminals supply power to one side of each large-capacity fuse, and the other side of the fuse is connected to various electric circuits of the vehicle via wiring connectors. A plate of a power bus (power supply bus) formed by stamping is sandwiched between electrically insulating boards. See US Pat. No. 6,077,102 issued June 20, 2000 to James William Bolgi et al.

  U.S. Pat. No. 7,215,555 granted to Koichi Tagami on May 8, 2007 discloses a vehicle distribution center. In this vehicle distribution center, the bus bar structure plate has an attachment region shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, this attachment region is bonded to the bottom of the control circuit board. The electronic device is then attached to the busbar structure plate through the holes in the control circuit board, as shown in FIGS. Then, the terminal portion is bent upward from the structural plate as shown in FIG. 8, and then the bus bar structural plate is cut at several positions as shown in FIG. 2A, FIG. 2B, or FIG. A structure is formed and installed in a case as shown in FIG.

US Pat. No. 5,032,752 US Pat. No. 6,077,102 US Pat. No. 7,215,555

  The electrical center discussed in the above-mentioned patent is characterized in that the power bus bar is placed flat against the circuit board. Power busbars generate heat during use and must be dissipated in some way by conduction, radiation, and / or convection. In some cases, the dissipation of heat generated by the power busbar does not require special consideration. In other cases, however, special measures are required to dissipate the heat generated by the busbar. For example, US Pat. No. 7,215,555 granted to Koichi Tagami has a large aluminum heat sink for dissipating heat, as shown in FIG. 10 of this patent.

  The electrical center (electrical central device) of the present invention is formed to reduce the footprint of the electrical center (area and shape occupied by the device) and / or improve the dissipation of heat generated by the electrical center. Having a power bus bar oriented (orientated) and arranged.

  In one aspect, the power bus bar includes one or more generally flat straps. These straps are attached to the circuit board in a vertical or upright position, thus reducing the space required on the printed circuit board and thus the electrical center footprint (area and shape occupied by the device). Decrease.

  In another feature, the power bus bar includes one or more generally flat straps. These straps are attached to the circuit board in a vertical or upright position to increase heat transfer from the circuit board and the electrical components provided on the circuit board to the power bus bar, and from the power bus bar to the electrical center. The heat transfer to the housing can be increased.

The power bus bar may be sized to reduce its heating resistance I ² R so that the bus bar acts as a heat sink for the circuit board and the electrical components supported on the circuit board.

The power bus bar is preferably arranged to extend upward from the circuit board to take advantage of the rise in heat. The The minimum conductivity is 90% (IACS). Copper alloy UNS C15100 / ASTM B747 or similar material is a preferred busbar material.

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an electrical center showing an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the circuit board subassembly of the electrical center shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the circuit board subassembly shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a front view of the circuit board subassembly shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a detailed perspective view of the circuit board subassembly shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the circuit board subassembly installed in the lower housing of the electrical center. FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view of the electrical center. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 8-8 in FIG. FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a modified circuit board subassembly. FIG. 10 is a side view of the circuit board subassembly of the modification of FIG. FIG. 11 is a front view of a circuit board subassembly of the modification of FIG. FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a circuit board subassembly according to another modification.

  Referring now to FIG. 1, the electrical assembly 12 includes a mounting bracket lifting assembly 16 and an electrical center (electrical central device) 20. The electrical center 20 is attached to the mounting bracket lifting assembly 16. The mounting bracket lifting assembly 16 includes means for lifting the wiring harness end connector 18 and the like and plugging the end connector 18 into the electrical socket of the electrical center 20. The mounting bracket lifting assembly 16 is described in detail in a related U.S. patent application (Applicant's case number DP-316,987) filed on the same date as the present application. By reference to the US patent application, the entire contents disclosed in this application are made part of the disclosure of this specification.

  The electrical center 20 that can be used separately from the mounting bracket lifting assembly 16 includes a lower housing 22, a circuit board subassembly 24, an upper housing 26, and electrical components 28 such as fuses and relays inserted into the upper housing 26. And a cover 30.

  2, 3, 4, and 5, the circuit board subassembly 24 includes a circuit board 32 having a board 34. On the substrate 34, an electrical trace (electrical line) denoted by reference numeral 35 is formed. The circuit board 32 includes circuit components 36 such as various types of pass-through connectors (penetrating connectors) 38 passing through the slots of the circuit board, and electrical and / or electronic devices 40 attached to the surface of the board. It has. These devices are electrically connected to each other in a predetermined manner and provide the various electrical circuit portions of the vehicle when the electrical center 20 is installed in the vehicle.

  Circuit boards are well known in the art and need not be described in further detail. However, it is noted that many electrical and / or electronic devices have limited thermal temperatures so that certain electrical or electronic devices cannot operate effectively above a certain ambient temperature environment. Should. For example, such devices must effectively dissipate when packaged in an electrical center 20, i.e., require heat sinking within the circuit of each device, thus making the device below its inherent temperature limit. Need to be able to maintain. When the ambient temperature environment is high, for example, in a vehicle engine room, the temperature limit of the device is close to the ambient temperature. In that case, additional heat may need to be dissipated through a power bus bar attached to the printed circuit board to maintain reliable electrical circuit function.

  The circuit board subassembly 24 further includes a power bus bar 42. The power bus bar 42 provides a power input path to various electric circuits of the vehicle via circuit components provided on the circuit board 32. The power bus bar 42 includes two metal U-shaped straps 44, 46 that are connected to each other at the overlapping free ends 48, 50 of the metal straps 44, 46. A rectangular or square shell 52 is formed. The free end 50 of the metal U-shaped strap 46 receives the free end 48 of the metal U-shaped strap 44 inside the offset end 50 of the metal strap 46, as best seen in FIG. Thus, it is offset laterally corresponding to the minimum thickness of the metal strap.

  The power bus bar 42 further includes a metal L-shaped power attachment tab 54. The tab includes a vertical leg 56 that is attached to the overlapping free ends 48, 50 of the metal straps 44, 46 on one side of the square shell 52. The second horizontal leg 58 extends outward from the square shell 52. In order to connect the power bus bar 42 to the vehicle battery via a battery cable (not shown), a battery bolt 60 (see FIG. 1) is attached to the second leg 58.

  The power bus bar 42 in the form of a square shell 52 is mounted around the circuit board 32 so that the straps 44, 46 are vertical or upright. That is, the straps 44, 46 are substantially perpendicular to the circuit board 32 in the direction of their minimum thickness. The metal straps 44 and 46 of the power bus bar 42 are attached by push-down tabs 62 extending downward. These push-through tabs 62 are press fit into slots 63 in the circuit board 32 as best shown in FIG. The slot 64 may or may not be coated (i.e., it may or may not be clad). The covering slot (cladding slot) is coated (cladding) with a conductor such as copper or copper alloy, that is, it is integrally connected to an electrical trace usually made of the same material. The tab 62 press-fitted into the covering slot is thus electrically connected to the circuit board 32 and mechanically coupled. Tab 62 may be soldered to the coated slot to enhance electrical connection and mechanical coupling. On the other hand, when a tab is placed in an uncoated or clad slot 64 (ie, an unclad slot 64), only a mechanical connection to the power bus bar 42 is provided.

  The tab 62 is preferably S-shaped. This is because the square shell 52 of the power bus bar 42 is arranged at or outside the edge of the circuit board 32. Further, the upper portion of the tab 62 is wide so that a shoulder 64 that engages the circuit board 32 can be constructed, thereby keeping the square shell 52 of the power bus bar 42 away from the top surface of the circuit board 32. The heat transfer from the power bus bar 42 to the circuit board 32 can be reduced.

  The shell 52 has a rectangular or square shape and the shell 52 is attached around the circuit board 32 to provide several advantages. The power bus bar 42 can be electrically connected to the circuit board 32 anywhere along the periphery of the circuit board 32, thus providing considerable design freedom in laying out the electrical traces and circuits on the circuit board. In addition, the length of electrical traces for high power paths to the various electrical and / or electronic devices supported by the circuit board can be reduced.

  The power bus bar 42 may further include surface mounting feet 66 as best shown in FIG. The surface mounting feet 66 protrude so that they can be electrically connected to contact pads that form part of one of the electrical traces 35 provided on the circuit board 32. Yes. These surface mounting feet 66 are further preferably formed so as to keep the power bus bar 42 away from the upper surface of the circuit board 32 (so as to be spaced apart).

  Referring now to FIGS. 1-6, the circuit board subassembly 24 is disposed within the shallow cavity of the lower housing 22 and over various integral sockets 68 that are molded as part of the lower housing 22. When the subassembly 24 is assembled to the lower housing 22, a pass-through connector (through connector) 38 supported by the circuit board 32 protrudes through the slot and protrudes into various integral sockets 68. The socket 68 has a lower open end for receiving the insertion portion of the wiring harness 15 as best shown in FIG. A horizontal leg 58 that supports the battery bolt 60 also projects laterally through the shallow slot and rests on the external support 70 of the lower housing 22 outside the shallow cavity that receives the circuit board 32. The upper housing 26 is then assembled to the lower housing 22 to cover the circuit board subassembly 24 and leave the horizontal legs 58 of the power attachment tabs 54 and the battery bolts 60 exposed. Upper housing 26 is attached to lower housing 22 by an internal lock nib (not shown) that engages locking slot 72 in lower housing 22. The locking slot 72 is shown in FIG. 1 and is covered in FIGS.

  Next, the relay and fuse 28 are inserted into the upper housing 26 and covered with a cover 30. Cover 30 is attached to upper housing 26 by locking arms 74 that engage cooperating locking nibs 76 on either side of cover 30.

  Because the power bus bar 42 is upright, ie, in a vertical orientation (orientation), the power from the circuit board 32, particularly the board 34 and the electrical and electronic components supported by the circuit board 32, which in many cases is heat limited. Heat transfer to the bus bar 42 is improved, and heat transfer from the power bus bar 42 to the upper housing 26, the lower housing 22, and the cover 30 by conduction, convection, and radiation is improved. Furthermore, heat transfer from the circuit board 32 and the electrical and / or electronic components supported by the circuit board 32 is preferably enhanced by keeping the power bus bar 42 away from the edge of the circuit board 32. It is done. In addition, this spacing allows the majority of the power bus bar 42 to be easily disposed between portions of the plastic upper housing 26, as best shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, the plastic upper housing 26 preferably has an internal peripheral channel 78. This inner peripheral channel 78 receives the square shell 52 of the power bus bar 42 when the plastic upper housing 26 is attached to the plastic lower housing 22.

  When the electrical center 20 is used with the mounting bracket lifting assembly 16 and the upper portion of the loading slot 82 of the mounting bracket lifting assembly 16 is closed, the plastic lower housing 22 has an optional depending tongue 80 along its perimeter. It is preferable to have. Wiring harness 84 attached to end connector 18 exits mounting bracket lifting assembly 16 through loading slot 82. A hood 86 may be provided at the free ends of the hanging tangs 80. This prevents dust and other unwanted objects from entering the mounting bracket lifting assembly 16 through the loading slot 82.

  Referring now to FIGS. 9, 10, and 11, there is shown a modified circuit board subassembly 124 embodying the present invention. The circuit board subassembly 124 includes a circuit board 132 having a board 134. The board 134 supports circuit components 136 such as a pass-through connector (through connector) 138 and a surface-mounted electronic device (not shown). The circuit components 136 are electrically connected to each other in a predetermined manner, and provide a portion of the vehicle's electrical circuit when the electrical center 20 is installed in the vehicle.

  The circuit board subassembly 124 further includes a power bus bar 142. The power bus bar 142 provides a power path to various electric circuits of the vehicle through circuit components supported on the circuit board 132. The power bus bar 142 has a one-piece structure (integral structure) and has a substantially U-shape having two flat metal straps 144 and 146. These metal straps 144 and 146 are connected to each other by vertical bridge portions (vertical bridge portions) 148 and 150 attached to the edges of the respective straps 144 and 146. The bridge portion 150 disposed at one end of the power bus bar 142 has a metal L-shaped tab 154 at the outer end of the power bus bar 142. Tab 154 has vertical legs 156 and horizontal legs 158 extending outwardly from straps 144, 146. A battery bolt 60 may be attached to the horizontal leg 158 to connect the power bus bar 142 to the vehicle battery by a battery cable (not shown).

  The parallel straps 160 and 161 may be juxtaposed portions of the metal straps 144 and 146, respectively, and may be connected to these metal straps by a curved portion 162. The curved portion 162 forms a narrow trough (concave portion) 163. The metal straps 144, 146 of the power bus bar 142 are attached to the circuit board 132 by push-down tabs 164 that extend downward and are press-fit into slots 166 in the circuit board 132, as best shown in FIGS. Yes. These tabs 164, like the tabs 62, are preferably wide at the top and provide shoulders 166 that engage the circuit board 132, and the power bus bar 142 is spaced away from the top surface of the circuit board 132. I am letting.

  The power bus bar 142 can have a U-shaped heat sink 168 made of aluminum. The U-shaped heat sink 168 can be supported by a trough 163 formed by straps 144, 146. The straps 144 and 146 are connected to the straps 160 and 161 by a curved portion 162, respectively.

  Referring now to FIG. 12, there is shown another variation of the circuit board subassembly 244 embodying the present invention. The circuit board subassembly 224 includes a circuit board 232 having a board 234. The substrate 234 supports circuit components such as pass-through connectors and surface-mounted electronic devices (not shown) that are electrically connected to each other by a predetermined method. The circuit components provide various electrical circuit portions of the vehicle when the electrical center 20 is installed in the vehicle.

  The circuit board subassembly 224 further includes a power bus bar 242. The power bus bar 242 provides power input to various electrical circuits of the vehicle through circuit components supported on the circuit board 232. The power bus bar 242 has a one-piece structure (integral structure) and has a substantially U-shape with two flat metal straps 244 and 246. These metal straps 244, 246 are connected to each other by several bridges (bridges) 248, 250 attached to the respective edges of these straps 244, 246. The bridge portion 250 disposed at one end of the power bus bar 242 has a metal L-shaped power attachment tab 254 at the outer end of the power bus bar 242. Tab 254 has vertical legs 258 and horizontal legs 256 that extend away from straps 244, 246. By attaching the battery bolt 60 to the horizontal leg 256, the power bus bar 242 can be connected to the vehicle battery by a battery cable (not shown).

  The metal straps 244 and 246 of the power bus bar 242 are attached by several push-through tabs (push-through penetrating tabs) 262 press-fitted into the slots of the circuit board 232. Tab 262, like tabs 62 and 164, is preferably wide at the top and provides a shoulder 264 that engages circuit board 232 so that power bus bar 242 is away from the top surface of circuit board 232. Separate.

  One skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the present invention is versatile. Many variations, modifications, alternative embodiments, and equivalents of the present invention other than those described above, as well as many variations, modifications, alternatives, and equivalents, may be made to the present invention and the foregoing without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. And is reasonably taught by the present invention and the foregoing description. Thus, although the invention has been described in detail herein in connection with preferred embodiments thereof, this disclosure is merely illustrative of the invention and is intended to provide all and possible disclosure of the invention. It should be understood that this was only done in The above disclosure is not intended to limit the present invention and should not be so construed as excluding any other examples, adaptations, modifications, alternatives, and equivalent arrangements. Instead, the present invention is limited only by the appended claims and their equivalents.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 Electrical assembly 16 Mounting bracket lifting assembly 18 Wiring harness end connector 20 Electrical center 22 Lower housing 24 Circuit board subassembly 26 Upper housing 28 Electrical component 30 Cover 32 Circuit board 35 Electrical trace 36 Circuit component 38 Pass-through connector 40 Electrical device And / or electronic devices

Claims (13)

An electrical center,
A circuit board assembly including a circuit board having an electrical trace and a substrate that supports at least one of an electrical component and an electronic component;
With a power bus bar with a substantially flat metal strap,
The power bus bar is attached to the circuit board such that the substantially flat metal strap is substantially perpendicular to the circuit board, thereby reducing the footprint of the electrical assembly; and / Or heat transfer from the circuit board assembly to the power bus bar can be increased,
The substantially flat strap of the power bus bar is sized to act as a heat sink for the circuit board assembly when considering the heating resistance I ² R of the power bus bar;
The substantially flat strap of the power bus bar extends upward in a direction away from the circuit board, thereby allowing an increase in heat to be utilized;
The circuit board has a plurality of slots;
The metal strap has a plurality of depending connector tabs that extend through selected slots of the plurality of slots to attach the power bus bar to the circuit board. Can
The connector tab has a shoulder that engages the circuit board and separates the power bus bar from an adjacent surface of the circuit board;
The electrical center is combined with a mounting bracket lifting assembly;
The electrical center includes a plurality of electrical connector sockets;
The mounting bracket lifting assembly supports a plurality of electrical connectors;
The electrical center is coupled to the mounting bracket lifting assembly;
The mounting bracket lifting assembly includes an electrical center having means for lifting the electrical connector into engagement with the electrical connector socket. The electrical center of claim 1,
The power bus bar has an electrical center having a plurality of substantially flat metal straps. The electrical center according to claim 2,
The plurality of substantially flat metal straps includes a first pair of substantially parallel metal straps connected to each other by at least one bridge portion. The electrical center according to claim 3,
The first pair of straps made of substantially parallel metal have an inner edge adjacent to the circuit board;
The electrical center, wherein the at least one bridge portion is provided at the inner edge of the substantially parallel first pair of straps. The electrical center according to claim 3,
The electrical center, wherein the first pair of substantially parallel straps are connected by a second pair of substantially parallel straps. The electrical center according to claim 5, wherein
The electrical center, wherein both ends of the substantially parallel first pair of straps are connected by the substantially parallel second pair of straps to form a rectangular portion. The electrical center according to claim 6, wherein
The circuit board has a plurality of slots;
The substantially parallel first pair of straps and the substantially parallel second pair of straps have a plurality of depending connector tabs connecting the parallel straps to the circuit board;
The connector tab includes an electrical center that engages the circuit board and has a shoulder that separates the strap from an adjacent surface of the circuit board. The electrical center of claim 7,
The substantially parallel first set of straps has the same length of straps;
The substantially parallel second set of straps includes a strap having the same length as the substantially parallel first set of straps, thereby forming a square structure. . An electrical center,
A circuit board assembly including a circuit board having an electrical trace and a substrate that supports at least one of an electrical component and an electronic component;
A power bus bar having a power attachment tab and a plurality of substantially flat straps;
The substantially flat strap is attached to the circuit board so as to be substantially perpendicular to the circuit board;
The substrate has a perimeter, and the plurality of substantially flat straps form a shell disposed on the perimeter of the substrate;
The generally flat strap has a suspended connector tab that engages the substrate to attach the generally flat strap to the substrate;
The connector tab has a shoulder that engages the substrate to separate the generally flat strap from the substrate;
The electrical center is combined with a mounting bracket lifting assembly;
The electrical center includes a plurality of electrical connector sockets;
The mounting bracket lifting assembly supports a plurality of electrical connectors;
The electrical center is coupled to the mounting bracket lifting assembly;
The mounting bracket lifting assembly includes an electrical center having means for lifting the electrical connector into engagement with the electrical connector socket. The electrical center of claim 9,
The electrical center, wherein the substrate and the shell are rectangular. The electrical center of claim 9,
The electrical center, wherein the substrate and the shell are square. The electrical center of claim 9, further comprising:
A housing,
The shell is disposed within the housing;
An electrical center wherein the power tab is exposed for connection to an external power source. The electrical center of claim 12,
The housing has an electrical center having a peripheral channel that receives the shell.

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