JPH10125301A - Connecting terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance the durability of a connecting terminal by enhancing its function of absorbing the movement, twisting, and vibration of a mating terminal. SOLUTION: A connecting terminal 21 comprises connecting members 25, secured to both ends of a flexible conductor 23, each of the connecting members 25 having a connection 27 to the flexible conductor 23 and a secured part 29 to a mating terminal, with the secured parts 29 secured to the pair of mating terminals; the secured parts 29 are secured to the mating terminals at an interval such that the flexible conductor 23 is arched, and the angle at which the ends of the arched flexible conductor 23 and the connections 27 extend in roughly the same direction is imparted to the connections 27 and the secured parts 29.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connection terminal connected to a terminal such as a battery.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A connection terminal 1 as shown in FIG.

The connection terminal 1 is a connection conductor in which connection members 5 are attached to both ends of a flexible conductor 3, respectively, and is used to connect a vehicle-mounted battery or the like.

The flexible conductor 3 is formed by laminating copper thin strips, and has bent portions 7, 7 and an arc-shaped expansion / contraction allowable portion 9, which are pressed.

[0005] The connecting member 5 comprises pressing plates 11 and 13 and screws 15.
Press plates 11 and 13 sandwiching the flexible conductor 3
Are screwed together with screws 15 to be integrated. A connection hole 17 provided in each connection member 5 is fitted to an electrode post of a battery and fixed with a nut.

[0006] The expansion and contraction portions 9 formed in the flexible conductor 3 absorb the spacing and twist of the connection members 5, so that connection is possible even if the electrode posts are displaced or twisted. The expansion / contraction part 9 absorbs vibration of the vehicle and protects the electrode posts.

[0007]

However, irrespective of hard copper and soft copper, copper has insufficient flexibility and strength in a plastic region. Since the bent portions 7, 7 and the arc-shaped expansion / contraction allowable portion 9 are plastically processed in 3, the function of absorbing displacement, twisting and vibration of the expansion / contraction allowable portion 9 is insufficient.

Therefore, if the displacement of the electrode posts is large, the connection becomes difficult, and the corresponding range of one type of connection terminal is narrow. Therefore, various connection terminals must be prepared for each application, which increases the cost. , The number of parts increases. In addition, displacement, torsion, vibration, and the like become difficult to absorb when they become large to some extent, and there is a risk of breakage.

In addition, the burden of displacement, torsion, and vibration is particularly likely to be concentrated on the bent portion 7, and if the load is concentrated on the plastically deformed bent portion 7, the risk of breakage is further increased.

Further, since the connecting member 5 has a structure in which the flexible conductor 3 is sandwiched between the pressing plates 11 and 13, a nut for fixing the connecting member 5 to the electrode post due to the collapse of the flexible conductor 3 is provided. It is easy to loosen and the nut may fall off due to the vibration of the vehicle.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the function of absorbing the gap (positional deviation), torsion, vibration and the like of the mating terminal is large, and the screws for fixing the connecting member to the mating terminal are loosened and dropped. The purpose is to provide no connection terminals.

[0012]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
Connecting members are fixed to both ends of the flexible conductor, each connecting member has a connecting portion to the flexible conductor and a fixing portion to the mating terminal, and these fixing portions are connected to a pair of mating terminals. A connection terminal to be fixed to a terminal, wherein the fixing portion is fixed to a counterpart terminal at an interval at which the flexible conductor has an arc shape, and is connected to an end of the flexible conductor having an arc shape. The angle between the connecting portion and the fixing portion is substantially the same as that of the connecting portion.

As described above, the connection terminal according to the first aspect has the connecting portion with the flexible conductor and the fixing portion with the counterpart terminal,
These fixing portions are fixed to the mating terminal at intervals such that the flexible conductor exhibits an arc shape, and in this state, an angle which makes the end portion of the flexible conductor and the connecting portion substantially in the same direction. Is provided between the connecting portion and the fixing portion.

Therefore, unlike the conventional example in which the flexible conductor is plastically processed and a bent portion where stress is easily concentrated is formed,
The connection terminal according to claim 1 is used in an elastic deformation region where the flexible conductor is easily arcuate, and furthermore, since there is no place where stress concentrates, there is no space between the mating terminals (displacement), twisting, Extremely large vibration absorption function.

Therefore, even if the position of the mating terminal is large, the connection is easy, and a single type of connection terminal can be used for a wide range of applications. Therefore, the number of parts and the cost are reduced accordingly. Further, since the torsion and vibration absorbing functions are large, breakage of the flexible conductor is highly prevented, and the durability is improved.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the connection terminal according to the first aspect, wherein the angle between the connecting portion and the fixing portion is substantially a right angle, and the same effects as those of the first aspect are obtained. obtain.

In addition, by making the angle between the connecting portion and the fixing portion approximately right, connecting terminals can be connected to form the flexible conductor into an arc shape without difficulty. In the state where the flexible conductor is formed in such an arc shape, the function of absorbing the positional deviation of the mating terminal is maximized, the corresponding range of one type of connection terminal is further expanded, and the number of parts and the cost reduction effect are reduced. improves.

Further, the effect of preventing breakage due to the absorption of torsion and vibration and the durability are improved.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the connection terminal according to the first or second aspect, wherein the connection member includes a connecting portion that inserts and crimps an end of the flexible conductor, And a fixing portion in which no conductive conductor is interposed, and an effect equivalent to that of the configuration of claim 1 or 2 is obtained.

In addition, unlike the conventional example in which the connection member is formed by sandwiching the flexible conductor between the pressing plates, the fixing portion of the connection terminal does not sandwich the flexible conductor. When fixing to the terminal, crushing by nut does not occur,
The loosening of the nut and the falling off of the nut due to the vibration of the vehicle or the like are prevented, and a good connection state is maintained for a long period of time.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the connection terminal according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the flexible conductor is formed of a multi-layer strip-shaped thin plate or one of a plurality of layers. The present invention is characterized in that it is a single strip, and the same effects as those of the first to third aspects are obtained.

In addition to this, if the flexible conductor is made of a multi-layered band-like thin plate, the effect of the present invention used in the elastic deformation region can be extremely high, such as displacement of the mating terminal, twisting, vibration and the like. A large absorbing function can be obtained, and even if a thin copper plate is used for the flexible conductor, it is used within the elastic deformation range, so that breakage is prevented and excellent durability is obtained.

In addition, by using the elastic conductor in the elastic deformation region, a sufficient function of absorbing torsion and vibration can be obtained, and there is no fear of breakage. You can also. If the flexible conductor is made of one strip, there is no contact resistance between the laminated thin plates as in a multi-layer configuration, so that the power supply capacity increases and the cost is reduced.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the connection terminal according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the flexible conductor is a knitted wire. The same effects as those of the first to third aspects are obtained.

In addition, the braided flexible conductor, combined with the effect of the present invention used in the elastic deformation region, has an extremely large absorbing function such as displacement, twisting and vibration of the mating terminal. In addition, even if a knitted wire obtained by knitting a thin copper wire on a flexible conductor is used within the elastic deformation range, disconnection is prevented and excellent durability is obtained.

[0026]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. This embodiment corresponds to claims 1, 2,
It has three and four features. Each drawing shows the connection terminal 21 of this embodiment. In the following description, members without reference numerals and the like are not shown.

The connection terminals 21 are connection conductors having connection members 25 attached to both ends of a flexible conductor 23, respectively, and are used to connect a battery for driving auxiliary equipment mounted on a vehicle or a battery for running an electric vehicle. Used.

The flexible conductor 23 is formed by laminating a plurality of thin copper strips.

The connecting member 25 comprises a connecting portion 27 and a fixing portion 29, which are formed at right angles.

As shown in FIG. 2, the connecting portion 27 is a cylindrical member, and is fixed to the flexible conductor 23 by inserting and crimping the end of the flexible conductor 23.

In the present invention, no processing other than the crimping is applied to the flexible conductor 23. Therefore, if no external force is applied,
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the flexible conductor 23 has a linear shape.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, each fixing portion 29 is a single plate. The fixing portion 29 is provided with a connection hole 31.

As shown in FIG. 4, the connection terminal 21 fits the connection hole 31 of one connection member 25 (fixing portion 29) into the electrode post 35 of one battery 33 and is fixed with a nut 37. At this time, the connection terminal 21 becomes linear as drawn by a solid line.

Next, as shown by the broken line, the other connecting member 25 (fixed portion 2
The connection hole 31 of 9) is fitted to the electrode post 41 of the other battery 39, and fixed with the nut 37.

In the connection terminal 21, the connecting portion 27 of each connecting member 25 and the fixing portion 29 are formed at right angles, and as shown in FIG. 2, when the fixing portions 29, 29 are attached to the electrode posts 35, 41. The flexible conductor 23 has an arc shape, and the end of the flexible conductor 23 and each connecting portion 27 are substantially in the same direction.

Thus, the connection terminal 21 is formed.

As described above, in a state where the connection terminal 21 is connected to the electrode posts 35 and 41, the flexible conductor 23 has an arc shape, and its end and the connecting portion 27 are in substantially the same direction. In addition, no excessive force acts on the flexible conductor 23.

As described above, unlike the conventional example in which the flexible conductor is plastically processed, the connection terminal 21 is different from the flexible conductor 23.
Are used in the elastic deformation region and there is no place where stress is concentrated unlike the bent portion in the conventional example.
The function of absorbing the positional deviation of 5, 41, torsion and vibration is extremely large.

Accordingly, even if the electrode posts 35 and 41 are largely displaced, the connection is easy, and it is possible to cope with a battery in which the distance between the electrode posts is greatly different only by the connection terminal 21, so that the number of parts and cost are reduced. It is greatly reduced.

Further, since stress is not concentrated and the function of absorbing torsion and vibration is large, breakage is highly prevented even in a use environment where large torsion and vibration are received, and excellent durability is obtained.

Further, since the connecting portion 27 and the fixing portion 29 are formed at right angles, the flexible conductor 23 is easily formed into an arc shape after the connection terminal 21 is connected. Since the terminal displacement absorbing function and the torsional and vibration absorbing function are maximized, the corresponding range of the connection terminal 21 is further expanded, and the effect of reducing the number of parts and cost is improved.

Further, the effect of preventing breakage due to torsion and vibration absorption is further increased, and the durability is improved.

In addition, unlike the conventional example, since the fixing portion 29 of the connection terminal 21 is made of a single plate to prevent the nut 37 from being crushed, the nut 37 is prevented from loosening and the nut 37 from falling off due to vibration of the vehicle. And a good connection is maintained for a long time.

Further, even if a copper thin plate is used for the flexible conductor 23, there is no fear of breakage because the flexible conductor 23 is used within the elastic deformation region as described above.

The connection terminal of the present invention is formed by giving an angle at which the end of the flexible conductor having an arc shape as described above and the connecting portion are substantially in the same direction to the connecting portion and the fixing portion. ,
The feature is that the flexible conductor is used within the elastic deformation range. Therefore, the angle between the connecting portion and the fixed portion is not limited to a right angle, and an arbitrary angle such as 70 ° or 110 ° may be selected.

Further, since the connection terminal of the present invention is used in the elastic deformation region as described above, a sufficient torsion and vibration absorbing function can be obtained and there is no fear of breakage. In, the flexible conductor may be formed into a single strip.

With such a single-layer structure, there is no contact resistance between the belt-like thin plates as in the multi-layer structure, so that the power supply capacity is increased and the cost is reduced.

Further, if the flexible conductor is made of a braided wire as in the structure of the fifth aspect, in addition to the effect of the present invention used in the elastic deformation region, the spacing, twisting, vibration, etc. of the mating terminals can be improved. And an extremely large absorbing function can be obtained, and since it is used in the elastic deformation region, the thin copper wire used for the knitted wire does not break.

[0049]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, unlike the conventional example in which the flexible conductor is plastically worked, the connection terminal is used in the elastic deformation region and has no place where stress is concentrated. Absorption function for displacement, torsion, vibration, etc. is extremely large.

Accordingly, a single type of connection terminal can be used for a wide range of applications, and the number of parts and cost are reduced accordingly, and the function of absorbing torsion and vibration is large. And the durability is improved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the same effect as that of the first aspect is obtained, and the connecting portion and the fixing portion are substantially perpendicular to each other, so that the flexible conductor can be easily formed into an arc shape. As a result, the function of absorbing the displacement of the mating terminal is maximized, and the range of support for one type of connection terminal is expanded, and the effect of reducing the number of parts and cost is improved. Further, the effect of preventing breakage by absorbing torsion and vibration is also improved.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the same effects as those of the first or second aspect are obtained, and unlike the conventional example, the flexible conductor is not interposed in the fixing portion of the connection terminal. The nut for fixing the fixing portion to the counterpart terminal is prevented from loosening and falling off, and a good connection state is maintained for a long time.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the same effects as those of the first to third aspects are obtained, and if the flexible conductor is formed into a multilayered thin strip, it can be used in the elastic deformation region. In combination with the effect of the present invention, an extremely large absorbing function can be obtained due to positional displacement, twisting, vibration, etc. of the mating terminal, and even if a thin plate is used for the flexible conductor, it is used within the elastic deformation region, so that breakage occurs. Is prevented and excellent durability is obtained.

Further, if the flexible conductor is formed into a single strip,
Since there is no contact resistance between the laminated thin plates as in a multi-layer configuration, the power supply capacity is increased and the cost is reduced.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the same effects as those of the first to third aspects are obtained, and the flexible conductor of the braided wire has the same effect as that of the present invention used in the elastic deformation region. Together with this, an extremely large absorption function can be obtained due to the spacing, twisting, vibration, etc. of the mating terminals, and by being used within the elastic deformation range, the thin copper wire used for knitting can be prevented from breaking, resulting in excellent durability. Is obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a connection terminal of one embodiment is connected to an electrode post of a battery.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 1, showing a shape when no external force is applied to the connection terminal of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a state in which a connection terminal of one embodiment is connected to an electrode post of a battery.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a conventional connection terminal.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 21 Connection terminal 23 Flexible conductor 25 Connection member 27 Connecting part 29 Fixed part 35, 41 Battery electrode post (counter terminal)

Claims (5)

[Claims] A connecting member is fixed to both ends of a flexible conductor. Each connecting member has a connecting portion with the flexible conductor and a fixing portion with a counterpart terminal. Is fixed to the mating terminal at intervals in which the flexible conductor has an arc shape, and the fixing portion is formed of a flexible conductor having an arc shape. A connection terminal, wherein an angle at which an end portion and the connecting portion are substantially in the same direction is provided between the connecting portion and the fixing portion. 2. The connection terminal according to claim 1, wherein an angle between the connecting portion and the fixing portion is substantially a right angle. 3. The connecting member according to claim 1, wherein the connecting member is a connecting portion that inserts and crimps an end of the flexible conductor, and is fixed without the flexible conductor interposed therebetween. And a connection terminal. 4. The invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the flexible conductor is a multi-layered strip-shaped thin plate or a single striped plate. Characteristic connection terminal. 5. The connection terminal according to claim 1, wherein the flexible conductor is a knitted wire.