JPH0879946A - Bus bar connection structure - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To obtain a bus bar structure in which the interlayer connection is employed in the bus bar circuit in order to decrease the number of layers of wiring board being laminated in an electric connection box and the displacement between tabs is restricted by employing such shape as allowing insertion and connection of outer male terminal. CONSTITUTION: Second and third tabs 8, 10 rising, respectively, from second and third bus bars 7, 9 arranged on the lower layer side penetrate a through hole 4 opened at the root of a first tab 3 rising from the end part of a first bus bar 2 arranged on the upper layer side and then the second and third tabs 8, 10 are disposed oppositely to the first tab 3.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a busbar connection structure, and more specifically, it realizes an interlayer connection between busbars stacked in multiple layers in an electric connection box for branching a wire harness. The present invention relates to a connection structure that enables connection of terminals.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An electrical junction box is capable of accommodating various electrical components for transportation equipment such as automobiles to form a circuit network and absorbing branch connections included in a wire harness. In particular, the electrical junction box accommodates a large number of electrical components, and in order to realize the miniaturization of the circuit by interconnecting these electrical components, a bus bar circuit is provided in a laminated structure for interlayer connection. FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 are an exploded perspective view of a main part and a cross-sectional view of a main part in an assembled state of a configuration example of such a conventional bus bar connection technique used in an electric junction box. In each drawing, the bus bar structure has a plurality of bus bars 61 and 71 having branch tabs and wiring boards 81 and 82,
83 and 83 are laminated. The bus bar 61 has branch tabs 62 and 63 that are bent in the same direction at both ends thereof. The branch tab 62 has a curved portion 64 formed at the center thereof to provide elasticity. The bus bar 71 includes three branch tabs 72, 73, 74, and one of the branch tabs 72 is formed in the same direction as the branch tab 62 having the curved portion 64.

The bus bars 61, 71 are three wiring boards 8
1, 82 and 83 are stacked on each other, and the bus bar 61
Are fitted and arranged in the arrangement grooves 84 formed in the first-layer wiring board 81. On the other hand, the bus bar 71 is disposed on the wiring substrate 83 of the third layer, the branch tabs 73 and 74 are fitted into the tab through holes 85 provided on the wiring substrate 83 of the third layer, and the branch tab 72 is Arrangement groove 8 of one-layer wiring board 81
4, the wiring board 81, 82 of the first and second layers is fitted and inserted into the tab through holes 85, so that the bus bar 61 is arranged so as to face the branch tab 62. The branch tab 72 facing the branch tab 62 provided with the curved portion 64 is provided.
And form the elastic pinching portion 100, the elastic pinching portion 1
When the external male terminal A is inserted into 00, the bus bars 61 and 71 of the first and third layers are electrically connected to each other and electrically integrated.

That is, with the above structure, the busbar structure allows a busbar having a complicated circuit pattern extending over multiple layers to be formed by dividing it into two or more simplified busbars, which allows freedom of wiring of the busbars. It is possible to reduce the size of the circuit and, by extension, the size of the electric junction box by improving the degree of arrangement and the efficiency of arrangement, and to achieve an excellent effect such as eliminating the need for a relay terminal for connection with the external male terminal. did it.

[0005]

However, in the above-mentioned prior art, when the branch tabs arranged so as to face each other have a manufacturing dimensional deviation in the direction in which the elastic holding portion expands,
The external male terminal inserted from above may not be retained. Further, since the branch tabs of each bus bar are provided in a face-to-face structure, only two layers of bus bars can be connected. Therefore, for example, the degree of freedom in the wiring of the bus bar and the further miniaturization of the electrical connection box can be reduced. It has become a constraint. Further, in a structure in which one of the branch tabs is replaced with a resin-molded elastic projection piece to form an elastic holding portion,
It was easy for the elastic projections to undergo plastic deformation due to repeated insertion / removal operations of the external terminals.

The present invention has been made in view of the above situation, and an object thereof is to make it possible to divide a circuit by connecting multiple bus bars to each other in an electric junction box and to connect an external male terminal such as a fuse element. It is to provide a busbar connection structure that enables it.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, a bus bar connection structure according to the present invention has a plurality of plate-shaped bases arranged in different layers and rises or falls from the bases in a substantially vertical direction. In a bus bar connection structure including a connecting portion, a conductive first connecting portion and a conductive second connecting portion, which are arranged to face each other in close proximity to each other by rising or falling from at least two first bases and a second base. Displacement restraint means (a through hole, a notch or a protrusion) is provided at the root portion of one of the connecting portions so as to pass through the other connecting portion and restrain the displacement of the other connecting portion. Is characterized by.

Alternatively, in the above, the second connecting portion and the third connecting portion, which are respectively raised from the second base and the third base disposed in the lower layer of the first base, are passed through the through holes provided in the first base. And is arranged to face the first connecting portion of the first base.

Further, in the above, the second connecting portion and the third connecting portion are provided side by side with each other by providing a plate surface in a direction orthogonal to the first connecting portion.

Alternatively, in the above, when the male terminal is inserted between the first connecting portion and the second connecting portion and the third connecting portion in the extended portion extended from the first connecting portion, the male terminal is inserted. It is characterized in that a curved portion which is elastically contacted with the second connecting portion and the third connecting portion is provided. Further, in the above, it is characterized in that the widths of the second connecting portion and the third connecting portion and the width of the through hole provided in the first base body are substantially the same.

[0011]

In the bus bar connection structure according to the present invention, at least two laminated plate-shaped bases are respectively arranged in close proximity to each other by raising or lowering the conductive first bases.
A through hole as a displacement restraint means that restrains the displacement of the other connecting portion by penetrating the other connecting portion through the root portion of at least one of the connecting portion and the conductive second connecting portion. Is provided. That is, for example, the connection portion of the plate-shaped substrate on the lower layer side is arranged to face the connection portion of the plate-shaped substrate on the upper layer side by being raised through the through hole provided in the plate-shaped substrate of the upper layer side. As a result, the connecting portion of the plate-shaped substrate on the lower layer side is assembled in a state where the connecting portion of the plate-shaped substrate on the lower layer side abuts the inner peripheral edge of the through hole and is opposed to the inner peripheral edge of the through hole so that the displacement is restricted. It is possible to eliminate any manufacturing dimensional deviation that acts to separate the two.

Further, since the connecting portion of the plate-shaped substrate on the lower layer side is restricted in displacement by the position regulation by the through hole provided in substantially the same size as the width of the connecting portion, it is inserted between the connecting portions. It is possible to always hold the external male terminal etc. Further, for example, since the lower layer plate-shaped substrate is provided in the direction in which the connecting portion plate surfaces are orthogonal to the upper layer plate-shaped substrate, it is possible to arrange the lower layer plate-shaped substrates in parallel over a plurality of sheets. Therefore, it is possible to connect three or more layers of the plate-shaped substrate. as a result,
The division of the busbar circuit can be further advanced, and at the same time, the degree of freedom in arranging the busbars can be improved and the electric junction box and the like can be downsized.

Further, since the bus bar circuit can be divided, the versatility of the electric connection box can be enhanced by properly using the bus bar circuit according to the difference in vehicle type and grade.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an embodiment of a bus bar connection structure according to the present invention. Further, FIG. 2 is a perspective view after assembly. In both figures, a busbar connection structure T includes three plate-shaped first busbars (first base bodies) 2 and second busbars 2 arranged in different layers in an electric connection box (not shown).
A bus bar (second base) 7 and a third bus bar (third base) 9 are provided. The end portion of the first bus bar 2 is integrally provided with a substantially rectangular conductive first tab (first connecting portion) 3 that rises from the plane of the first bus bar 2 in a substantially vertical direction. A curved portion 5 protruding inward is integrally connected to the tip of the three as an extended portion. Where the first tab 3
Is composed of an elastic member capable of elastic displacement. Further, in the first bus bar 2, a rectangular through hole 4 serving as a displacement restraint means, which will be clarified later, is formed at a position corresponding to a root portion of the first tab 3, and the through hole 4 is described later.
A is opened through A and has a predetermined width t in the longitudinal direction of the bus bar.
have.

The first bus bar 2 is placed on the plate-shaped insulator 2A. The insulator 2A is configured as a raised portion 2B in which the plate thickness surrounding the portion on which the first bus bar 2 is placed is thicker than other portions. As a result, the first bus bar 2 is positioned and fixed in the raised portion 2B.

An insulator 30A on which the middle-layer bus bar 30 is placed is disposed so as to be in contact with the lower end surface of the insulator 2A. The insulator 30A has a through-opening at a position corresponding to the through hole 4,
In addition, the plate thickness of the insulator 30A is configured such that a portion where the middle-layer bus bar 30 is mounted is another portion where the middle-layer bus bar 30 is not mounted and is thinner than a portion including the through opening described above. ing. As a result, the upper surface of the portion of the insulator 30A where the middle-layer busbar 30 is not mounted and the upper surface of the mounted middle-layer busbar 30 are formed at the same height.

An insulator 7A on which the second bus bar 7 is placed is disposed so as to be in contact with the lower end surface of the insulator 30A. Second
At the end of the bus bar 7 that faces the through hole 4, the first bus bar 2 rises in a substantially vertical direction from the plane of the second bus bar 7 and penetrates through the through hole 4 to project onto the first bus bar 2. An electrically conductive second tab (second connecting portion) 8 having a substantially rectangular shape and arranged to face the tab 3 in close proximity is integrally provided.
The second tab 8 is provided such that its width t ′ is substantially the same as the width t of the through hole 4, and its plate surface is provided along the direction orthogonal to the first tab 3. The insulator 7A is
The portion of the through hole 4 excluding the area occupied by the second tab (second connecting portion) 8 is opened, while the second bus bar 7 is embedded in the insulator 7A and the insulator It is mounted on 7A. Therefore, the upper surface of the portion of the insulator 7A where the second bus bar 7 is not mounted and the upper surface of the mounted second bus bar 7 are formed at the same height.

The upper end of the insulator 7A is top-contacted with the third
An insulator 9A on which the bus bar 9 is placed is arranged. At the end of the third bus bar 9 facing the through hole 4, the third bus bar 9
Rises in a substantially vertical direction from the plane of
A substantially rectangular conductive third tab that is arranged to face the first tab 3 so as to face the first bus bar 2 by protruding through the opening 0A and the through hole 4 and projecting on the first bus bar 2. The (third connecting portion) 10 is integrally provided. This third
Similar to the second tab 8, the tab 10 has a width t ′ that is substantially the same as the width t of the through hole 4, and the plate surface has the first surface.
It is provided along the direction orthogonal to the tab 3. That is, the second tab 8 and the third tab 10 are arranged side by side with a predetermined interval, and the displacement along the plate surface direction is restricted by the through hole 4. The third bus bar 9 is embedded in the insulator 9A and placed on the insulator 9A. Therefore, the third bus bar 9 on the insulator 9A
The upper surface of the portion where is not placed and the upper surface of the placed third bus bar 9 are formed at the same height.

Next, the assembly of the bus bar connection structure T will be described. The insulator 30A on which the middle-layer bus bar 30 is mounted is laminated in contact with the lower end surface of the insulator 2A on which the first bus bar 2 is mounted. The second tab 8 is passed through the through openings of the insulators 30A and 2A from the lower side to the upper side, and further penetrated through the through hole 4 provided in the first bus bar 2 so as to project onto the first bus bar 2. At this time, the second
The upper surface of the bus bar 7 contacts the lower end surface of the insulator 30A and is laminated. As a result, the second tab 8 is disposed in close proximity to and facing the first tab 3, and the through hole 4 contacts the rear end surface of the second tab 8 with the inner peripheral edge of the opening so that the second tab 8 is The displacement from the first tab 3 in the separating direction is restricted. That is, the second tab 8 protruding from the second bus bar 8 penetrates the through hole 4 formed in the first bus bar 2 and is assembled in a state in which the displacement is constrained.

Next, the insulator 9A on which the third bus bar 9 is placed is laminated in contact with the lower end surface of the insulator 7A on which the second bus bar 7 is placed. The third tab 10 is passed through the through openings of the insulators 7A and 30A and the insulator 2A from the lower side to the upper side, and is further penetrated through the through hole 4 provided in the first bus bar 2 to make the first bus bar 2 Make it protrude upward. At this time, when the upper surface of the third bus bar 9 is laminated so as to be in contact with the lower end surface of the insulator 7A, the third tab 10 becomes the first tab 3.
It is placed in close proximity to and facing. Further, the through hole 4 is formed by bringing the rear end surface of the third tab 10 into contact with the inner peripheral edge of the opening.
Of the first tab 3 in the separating direction is restrained.
That is, the third tab 10 protruding from the third bus bar 9
By penetrating the through hole 4 formed in the first bus bar 2, the assembly is completed with the displacement thereof constrained.

The state when the assembly is completed is shown in the perspective view of FIG. 2 and the front view of FIG. In both figures, the first tab 3
Although a structure in which a gap 11 is formed between the curved portion 5 and the front end surfaces of the second tab 8 and the third tab 10 is shown,
The gap 11 may be omitted and the first tab 3, the second tab 8 and the third tab 10 may be in contact with each other. In this state, when the male terminal 20A of the fuse element 20 is press-fitted into the space 11 from above as shown in the front view of FIG. 3, elastic contact of the bending portion 5 causes a relatively strong elastic force,
Good electrical connection is made between the male terminal 20A and the first tab 3, the second tab 8, and the third tab 10. Moreover, since the base portions of the second tab 8 and the third tab 10 are constrained by the through holes 4 provided in the base portion of the first tab 3, external force in case of dimensional deviation in manufacturing or unforeseen circumstances, etc. The displacement in the separating direction from the first tab 3 is restrained. As a result, the elastic force generated when the male terminal 20A is inserted is strengthened, and thus a more stable and reliable electrical connection state is formed.

Further, according to this structure, all of the first tab 3, the second tab 8, the third tab 10 and the male terminal 20A of the fuse element 20 are electrically connected. That is, the male terminal 20A and the first tab 3 are connected, and the male terminal 20A, the second tab 8 and the third tab 1 are further connected.
0 is connected to the second tab 8 and the third tab 10 at the same time.
An electrical connection state between them is formed. As a result, the busbar circuits divided into a plurality of layers can be electrically connected to each other to form an electrical junction box. In other words, the busbar circuits can be divided into a plurality of layers and thus the busbar connection structure can be formed. By additionally stacking the predetermined bus bar circuit or omitting the predetermined bus bar circuit, it is possible to configure a versatile electric connection box and also to achieve miniaturization of the electric connection box.

In the above description, the first tab 3 and the second tab 8 are
The third tab 10 and the third tab 10 are respectively raised from the respective bus bars, and the second tab 8 and the third tab 10 provided on the second bus bar 7 and the third bus bar 9 on the lower layer side are connected to the first bus bar 2 on the upper layer side. Although it is configured to penetrate through the through holes 4 provided, the tabs of these bus bars are lowered, and the tabs that are lowered from the upper layer are penetrated through the through holes provided in the bus bar on the lower layer side. It is also possible to further insert, for example, a male tab raised from the lower bus bar into the formed space to perform interlayer connection between the bus bars.

Further, although the second bus bar 8 and the third bus bar 9 are formed in different layers in the above description, they may be provided in the same layer and penetrate through the through holes. Further, it is possible to connect busbars formed in two or more layers to the through holes so as to connect the busbars extending in multiple layers.

FIG. 4 shows a dimensional relationship between a through hole and a tab penetrated by the through hole in the bus bar connecting device according to the present invention. In the above embodiment, the second bus bar 7 (or the third bus bar 7)
The bus bar 9) penetrates the through hole 4 so that the rear end surface of the bus bar 9 comes into contact with the inner peripheral edge of the through hole 4 to restrain the displacement.
Although it is described that the width t which is the inner diameter of the hole and the width t ′ of the bus bar are substantially the same, in reality, the width W of the bus bar is naturally larger than the inner diameter E of the hole for reasons of assembling workability and processing accuracy. It is small. However, the bus bar is constrained within the range of the inner diameter E of this hole, and is prevented from moving more than a predetermined amount by inserting an external male terminal or the like.

FIG. 5 shows a modification of the present invention. In this modified example, a cutout 4A is provided in place of the through hole 4 of the previous embodiment as a displacement restraint means formed on the bus bar on the upper layer side, for example. That is,
The first bus bar 2 is provided with a notch 4A having a substantially rectangular shape together with the insulator 2A at an edge portion corresponding to a root portion of the first tab 3. The notch width t is provided to be approximately the same as the width of the second and third tabs (not shown) laminated on the lower layer side. Since the other parts are provided in the same manner as in the previous embodiment, the same reference numerals are given and the description thereof is omitted.

FIG. 6 shows still another modification of the displacement restraint means in the present invention. In this example, as the displacement restraint means, the protrusion 4B that protrudes so as to substantially form the notch 4A in the above example is provided at a position separated from the base portion of the first tab 3 by a predetermined distance, and the protrusion 4B of the first bus bar 2 is removed. It is provided at the edge. The separation width t formed between the base portion of the first tab 3 and the protrusion 4B is substantially the same as the width of the second and third tabs (not shown) laminated on the lower layer side, as in the previous modification. It is provided in size. The other parts are designated by the same reference numerals as in the case of the previous modification, and the description thereof is omitted.

[0028]

As described above, the bus bar connection structure according to the present invention is, for example, the most suitable when the tabs rising or falling in the vertical direction from the bus bars arranged in a plurality of layers are closely arranged to face each other. Insert the external male terminal into the gap formed between the tabs on the uppermost layer and the lower layer by penetrating the tabs of multiple lower busbars through the through holes provided near the tab bases of the upper layer busbars. Thereby, multi-layer connection of the bus bars is achieved. In particular, since each bus bar on the lower layer side has its plate surface oriented in a direction orthogonal to the bus bar on the uppermost layer, these bus bars on the lower layer side can be provided side by side in a plurality of layers. Connection can be realized. Further, since the inter-layer connection over many layers can be achieved, the bus bar circuit can be easily subdivided, and the circuit design can be improved. Further, since the subdivision of the bus bar circuit can be achieved, the versatility can be given to the specification change of the electric junction box due to the difference in the vehicle type, grade and the like.

Further, in the bus bar connection structure according to the present invention, for example, the tabs of the bus bar on the lower layer side are restrained from being displaced by the through holes, so that the tabs are prevented from moving in the expanding direction due to manufacturing reasons or external factors. Thus, the fuse element and the like can be stably held.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an embodiment of a bus bar connection structure according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the bus bar connection structure of FIG. 1 when assembly is completed.

FIG. 3 is a front view of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a dimensional relationship between a through hole and a tab of a bus bar.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a bus bar according to a modification of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a bus bar according to another modification of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional bus bar connection structure.

8 is a front view of the bus bar connection structure of FIG. 7 after assembly is completed, (A) showing a state before insertion of an external male terminal, (B)
Indicates the state at the time of insertion.

[Explanation of symbols]

 T Busbar connection structure according to the present invention 2 First busbar (first base) 2A Insulator 2B Raised part 3 First tab (first connection part) 4 Through hole (displacement displacement restraint means) 4A Notch (displacement displacement restraint means) ) 4B protrusion (displacement movement restraint means) 5 curved portion 7 second busbar (second base) 7A insulator 8 second tab (second connection portion) 9 third busbar (third base) 9A insulator 10 third busbar (Third substrate) 20 Fuse element 20A Male terminal 30 Middle layer busbar 30A Insulator

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A bus bar connection structure comprising a plurality of plate-shaped bases arranged in different layers and provided with connecting portions rising or falling in a substantially vertical direction from the bases, wherein at least two first bases and a first base are provided. (2) The base portion of one of the conductive first connecting portion and the conductive second connecting portion, which are arranged to face each other in close proximity by rising or falling from the base body, penetrates the other connecting portion. Then, the bus bar connection structure is provided with a displacement restraint means (a through hole, a notch or a protrusion) for restraining the displacement of the other connecting portion. 2. In the above, the second connecting portion and the third connecting portion, which are respectively raised from the second base body and the third base body disposed in the lower layer of the first base body, penetrate through the through holes provided in the first base body. The bus bar connection structure according to claim 1, wherein the bus bar connection structure is arranged opposite to the first connection portion of the first base. 3. The busbar connection structure according to claim 2, wherein the second connection portion and the third connection portion are provided side by side with each other by providing a plate surface in a direction orthogonal to the first connection portion. . 4. The male terminal when the male terminal is inserted between the first connecting portion, the second connecting portion and the third connecting portion in the extended portion extending from the first connecting portion. The bus bar connection structure according to claim 3, wherein a curved portion is provided for elastically contacting the second connection portion and the third connection portion with each other. 5. In the above, the widths of the second connecting portion and the third connecting portion and the width of the through hole formed in the first base body are set to be substantially the same size. Busbar connection structure described.