KR100999264B1 - connector for measuring cell voltage of fuel cell stack for vehicles - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a connector for measuring a cell voltage of a fuel cell stack for a vehicle. The present invention relates to a housing 20 for accommodating a terminal formed on a separator plate and a coupling strength of the connection terminal 40 coupled to the housing 20. TPA (30), and inserted into the housing 20 is connected to the terminal 11 of the separating plate 10, the connecting piece (41ca, 41da) and the support piece (41cb, 41db) made of an elastic piece to drive the vehicle The connection terminal 40 is made to maintain a solid connection despite the vibration.

Therefore, the influence of the vibration of the vehicle is minimized, so that a more accurate voltage value can be measured.

Fuel Cell Stack, Cell Voltage, Connectors, Metal Separator

Description

Connector for measuring cell voltage of fuel cell stack for vehicles

The present invention relates to a connector for measuring the cell voltage of a fuel cell stack for a vehicle, and to measuring the voltage of each cell by electrically connecting a metal separator and a control circuit of the fuel cell stack. Relates to a connector.

Fuel cells are becoming more efficient and clean energy sources, and their range of use is gradually increasing, and among them, polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEMFCs) operate at relatively lower temperatures than other fuel cells. It has fast start and response characteristics and is actively developed as a mobile power source for vehicles.

The stack of the polymer electrolyte fuel cell is a unit cell consisting of a membrane electrode assembly (MEA; Membrane Electrode Assembly) and a bipolar plate (Bipolar plate) composed of a fuel electrode, an air electrode, and a polymer electrolyte membrane therebetween. Cells are stacked in required numbers. (The potential generated in one cell is about 0.6 to 1.3V, and a plurality of cells are stacked in series so that power required for driving a vehicle can be produced.)

The stack configured as described above usually arranges a current collector and a compression plate (end plate) at both sides of the stacked separator plates, and installs tie bars penetrating them. The assembly state is maintained.

On the other hand, in order to determine the performance and failure of the stack in a vehicle, the separator of each cell is connected to a control circuit (a circuit including a measuring device and an electronic control unit for driving a fuel cell system in a vehicle) by a connector and a conductor. The voltage of each cell can be measured.

On the other hand, the terminal is inserted into the connector at a predetermined position on the side of the separation plate protruding to form a terminal string on one side of the stack in the stack assembly state, the connector is mounted on the terminal string.

However, the conventional connector is formed integrally with the length corresponding to the entire stack and is manufactured so that the terminals of all the separator plates can be inserted into the stack due to misalignment of the separator plates when the alignment of the separator plates is not good. There was a problem that it is impossible to assemble the connector.

Therefore, when the connector is forcibly mounted, the terminal of the separator may be bent (deformed) or damaged.

In addition, since it is mounted and used in a vehicle, it is greatly influenced by vibration and shock caused by driving of the vehicle, so that the measured voltage value fluctuates when the contact state between the connector and the separator plate is not firm, such as a reliable and accurate voltage value. Not only could not be measured, but in severe cases there was a problem that the connector is separated from the stack.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above problems, even when the state of the separation plate of the stack is somewhat poor, it is possible not only to measure the voltage value by connecting the connector to all the separator terminals, but also to install the connector The vehicle fuel cell stack is designed to prevent deformation and damage of the splitter terminal at the time of construction, and to secure a more accurate voltage by preventing contact between the connector and the splitter and to prevent the connector from being separated by vibration. To provide a connector for measuring the cell voltage of the object.

The present invention for achieving the above object,

The terminal insertion slit into which the terminals of any one row of the plurality of terminal rows formed on the side of the separation plate of the stack are inserted is formed on the rear surface, and the terminal insertion slit is formed in communication with the terminal insertion slit, and the upper portion of the connection terminal insertion hole is formed. A housing in which a TPA terminal insertion opening is formed;

A base frame having a through hole corresponding to the connection terminal insertion hole, a TPA terminal formed at the base frame and inserted into the TPA terminal insertion hole, and a side fixing formed on the side of the base frame to be tightly fixed to the side of the housing Terminal Positioning Assurance (TPA) having a stage;

A terminal connection part inserted into the connection terminal insertion hole of the housing through the through hole and connected to the terminal of the separation plate, and a wire gripping part connected to the terminal connection part and connected to an end of a wire connected to a control circuit; Terminals;

Characterized in that it comprises a.

The housing and the TPA are formed with stepped upper and lower portions to form a recessed surface at opposite sides of both sides, and the side fixing end of the TPA is formed on the mating surface of the TPA so that the side fixing end of the housing It adheres to the recessed surface.

In addition, guide plates corresponding to lower end surfaces of adjacent protruding surfaces are formed on both recessed surfaces of the housing.

In addition, the engaging surface of the housing is formed with a locking projection is caught the end of the side fixed end of the TPA.

The locking projection is the upper and lower two front locking projections that are caught so that the front does not fall out after the side fixing end rides when assembling the TPA, and the end of the side fixing end so that the end of the side fixing end is seated between the front locking protrusion and It consists of a rear locking projection of medium height in close contact with the.

In addition, a fixing jaw spaced a predetermined distance from the lower surface of the housing is formed in the front and rear direction of the housing, and the lower surface fixing end is inserted into the lower surface of the base frame of the TPA between the fixing jaw is supported in the left and right directions.

In addition, a horizontal hole is formed in the middle of the front surface of the housing, a horizontal plate is formed in the middle of the base frame of the TPA is inserted into the horizontal hole.

On the other hand, the terminal connecting portion of the connecting terminal is a rectangular parallelepiped shape of the front opening, the terminal insertion slit is formed on the upper surface and the lower surface, the front end of the left side and the right side is bent inwardly extending V-shaped to face each other A connecting piece is formed.

On the left side and the right side of the terminal connecting portion, a supporting piece having a shape which is bent and extended inwardly and then inclined upward is formed in the terminal connecting portion.

The wire gripping portion of the connecting terminal may include first, second, and third gripping pieces that wrap and fix the ends of the wires exposed from the covering.

According to the present invention having the configuration as described above, even if the alignment state of the separation plate of the stack is somewhat poor, it is possible to measure the voltage value of each cell by connecting the connector to the terminals of all the separation plate.

In addition, since the connector is not forcibly mounted, deformation and damage of the separator plate terminal are prevented when the connector is mounted.

In addition, due to the shape of the TPA and the connection terminal, the contact state between the connector and the separator plate is strengthened, thereby minimizing the influence of the vehicle vibration and measuring a more accurate voltage, and separating the connector from the stack while driving. There is an effect that can prevent the phenomenon.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention will be described in detail.

1 is a partially enlarged view of a separator plate to which the present invention is applied, and a terminal 11 to be connected to a terminal of a connector is formed on one side of the separator plate 10. The terminals 11 are formed in a rectangular shape, and two terminals 11 are formed at regular intervals.

Therefore, when the separation plates 10 are stacked to form a stack, as shown in FIG. 2, two rows of terminals 11 are formed on one side of the stack.

3 and 4 are a front perspective view and a rear perspective view of the housing 20 of one configuration of the present invention.

The housing 20 is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and two connection lines 21, that is, three rows in front of each other, are formed in a quadrangular shape.

A TPA terminal insertion opening 21a is formed at an upper portion of the connection terminal insertion opening 21.

The connection terminal insertion opening 21 and the TPA terminal insertion opening 21a communicate with the through hole 23 formed on the rear surface of the housing 20, and the upper and lower center lines of the connection terminal insertion opening 21 are connected to the rear surface of the housing 20. The terminal insertion slit 24 into which the terminal 11 of the separating plate 10 is inserted is formed at a position coincident with the vertical center line of the through hole 23.

On the other hand, the connection terminal insertion opening 21 is formed in a state in which the upper and lower ones are shifted in the horizontal direction by a predetermined distance from each other. That is, the upper half and the lower half of the housing 20 are formed to have a step shifted in the horizontal direction, so that both side surfaces of the housing 20 are provided with the protruding surface 25 and the enclosing surface 26, respectively.

When viewed from the front (see FIG. 3), the upper half of the housing 20 protrudes to the left and the lower half of the housing 20 protrudes to the right relative to the front side.

Accordingly, the left side of the housing 20 is the protruding surface 25 and the lower half of the housing 20 is the recessed surface 26, and the right side of the housing 20 is the recessed surface 26, and the lower half of the housing 20 is the projecting surface 26. (25).

On the other hand, the engaging surface 26 on both sides of the housing 20 is provided with a TPA fixing locking protrusion 27 for preventing the separation after the TPA 30 is mounted on the connection terminal insertion opening 21 side. , Described in detail with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6)

Guide plate 28 is formed in the recessed surface 26 of the part in which the said latching protrusion 27 was formed, in the upper half of the housing when the recessed surface is in the upper half, and in the lower end of the housing in the lower half.

5 and 6 are a front perspective view and a rear perspective view of a terminal positioning assist (TPA) 30, which is another component of the present invention.

As shown in the drawing, the TPA 30 has rectangular through-holes 31a having the same shape and area as the connection terminal insertion openings 21 on the front of the housing 20 in the same arrangement (upper and lower portions in the horizontal direction). The base frame 31, a TPA terminal 32 protruding from the upper middle portion of each through hole 31a of the rear surface of the base frame 31, and the housing 20 It comprises a side fixing end 33 is tightly fixed to the surface 26 and the bottom surface fixing end 34 is tightly fixed to the lower surface of the housing 20. Of course, the TPA terminal 32 is formed in the same width and cross-sectional shape as the TPA terminal insertion opening 21a of the housing 20.

Since the base frame 31 is also formed in a horizontally displaced upper half and lower half, both sides of the base frame 31 are formed with the protruding surface 31b and the enclosing surface 31c in the same manner as the housing 20. The positions of the depressions are opposite each other.

The side fixing end 33 is formed on the indentation surface 31c on both sides of the base frame 31, except for the indentation surface 31c of the base frame 31.

The upper end and the lower end of the side fixing end 33 are fitted between the lower end of the protruding surface 25 and the guide plate 28 of the housing 20, respectively, and the rear end is caught by the locking protrusion 27.

The locking projection 27 is the middle height of the front locking projection (27a) at a position spaced at a distance equal to the width of the two front locking projection (27a) formed on the same line up and down and the rear end of the side fixing end (33) therefrom. It consists of a rear locking projection (27b) formed in.

The front of the front locking projection (27a) is formed with an inclined surface so that the side fixing end (33) is easy to proceed beyond the ride, and the rear surface of the front end of the side fixing end (33) to be firmly in close contact It is formed in a plane perpendicular to the recessed surface (26).

On the other hand, the inner surface of the end of the side fixing end 33 is also formed as an inclined surface, and the front face of the rear catching projection 27b which is in contact with the inner surface of the end of the side fixing end 33 is inclined at the same angle. Formed.

On the other hand, in the center of the lower surface of the base frame 31, a lower surface fixing end 34 of the same shape as the side fixing end 33 (but the width thereof is somewhat narrow) is formed.

Correspondingly, a fixing jaw 22 for supporting both sides of the lower surface fixing end 34 in a horizontal direction is formed in the front and rear directions of the housing 20 on the lower surface of the housing 20.

In addition, a rectangular horizontal plate 35 is formed at the middle height of the rear surface of the base frame 31, and the horizontal hole 29 into which the horizontal plate 35 is inserted is the middle height of the front of the housing 20. , Between the upper and lower connection terminal insertion openings 21.

Next, the connection terminal 40 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.

The connecting terminal 40 is connected to the control circuit by a wire (wire), and the front end is inserted into the connecting terminal insertion opening 21 of the housing 20 and is connected to the terminal 11 of the separating plate 10. And a rear end portion is formed of a wire gripping portion 42 which surrounds the wire and maintains a connection state between the connection terminal 40 and the wire.

The terminal connecting portion 41 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape having an open front, and terminal insertion slits 41aa and 41ba are formed on the upper surface 41a and the lower surface 41b, respectively.

In addition, the front ends of the left side 41c and the right side 41d of the terminal connecting portion 41 are bent and extended into the inside of the terminal connecting portion 41 so that smooth V-shaped connecting pieces 41ca and 41da facing each other are provided. Is formed.

The intermediate bending portions of both connecting pieces 41ca and 41da abut each other, and this point becomes a connecting point P that abuts with the terminal 11 of the separating plate 10.

In addition, in the latter half of the left side surface 41c and the right side 41d of the terminal connecting portion 41, the body is cut into a recessed shape, and the remaining portion is bent to the inside of the terminal connecting portion 41 and then bent upwardly to be inclined upwardly. The support pieces 41cb and 41db are formed in the shape.

The connecting pieces 41ca and 41da and the supporting pieces 41cb and 41db are both elastic pieces that exert a reaction force against an external force in a direction in which the V shape is unfolded.

On the other hand, the wire gripping portion 42 is formed by extending behind the terminal connecting portion 41, and wraps the end of the wire exposed from the coating to secure the connection terminal 40 at the end of the wire, It consists of two or three holding pieces 42a, 42b, and 42c.

Now, with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10, the housing 20, the TPA 30, and the connection terminal 40 having the above-described structure are mounted on a stack so that the terminal 11 and the connection terminal of the separator 10 are connected to each other. The connection of 40) will be described.

First, in the state in which the separator 10 is stacked and the stack is manufactured, the housing 20 is mounted on the terminal 11 formed on the side of the separator 10. That is, the terminal 11 and the terminal insertion slit 24 are aligned so that the terminal 11 of the separation plate 10 is inserted into the terminal insertion slit 24 on the rear surface of the housing 20, and the housing 20 is separated. It is pressed into the plate (10).

At this time, since one housing 20 only needs to accommodate six terminals 11, since there is no large deviation in the alignment state of the terminals 11, all six terminals 11 may be accommodated without any problem.

For example, when the integrated connector is to be mounted on a stack of 40 separation plates as in the related art, the connector can be mounted only if it can accommodate all the positional deviations existing between the 40 terminals. Therefore, when the separation state of the separator is not good and the maximum value of the terminal position deviation exceeds the connector's allowable range, the connector cannot be mounted.

However, as described above, the present invention is not intended to accommodate the entirety of the divider terminals of the stack, but to accommodate only a small portion of the stack, so that the positional deviation between the accommodated terminals may exceed the allowable range of the housing. Greatly reduced. Thus, mounting of the housing is possible in almost all cases.

In this way, when the housing is continuously connected, the terminal 11 of all the separating plates and the connection terminal 40 to be described later can be connected.

On the other hand, when the housing 20 cannot be mounted successively in the same terminal row, when the housing is continuously mounted in one terminal row, the maximum positional deviation of the terminals accommodated in one of the housings may be within the allowable range of the housing. In some cases, the housing 20 may be mounted using both upper and lower terminal strings as shown in FIG. 10.

In this case, the maximum positional deviation value between the terminals accommodated is reduced by varying the terminals accommodated in the housing which was not available for mounting. The maximum position deviation value between terminals is reduced.) The housing can be mounted.

As described above, according to the present invention, the housing can be mounted in the upper terminal row or the lower terminal row according to the arrangement of the terminals, and the upper and lower adjacent housings can be mounted so as to overlap a predetermined width, so as to accommodate all the terminals of the entire separation plate forming the stack. Since the housing can be mounted, the connector cannot be mounted.

In addition, since such a housing mounting operation to find a suitable position to be mounted so as not to try to install excessively, the terminal of the separator is not bent (deformed) or damaged.

On the other hand, when the adjacent upper and lower housings are installed to overlap a predetermined width as described above, two terminals formed on one separation plate are accommodated in each housing. However, it is not necessary to connect the connecting terminal to both terminals formed on one separator plate so that the connecting terminal can be connected to only one terminal in one separating plate by inserting the connecting terminal into either one of the upper and lower two housings. .

After the housing 20 is mounted on the terminal of the separator as described above, the TPA 30 is mounted on the front of the housing 20.

At this time, the base frame 31 is in close contact with the front of the housing 20, each TPA terminal 32 is inserted into the TPA terminal insertion opening 21a of the corresponding position, both side fixing end 33 is the housing 20 It is in close contact with the recess 26, but the end is caught between the front locking projection 27a and the rear locking projection 27b to prevent the flow in the front and rear direction.

In addition, since it is disposed between the lower end surface of the protruding surface 25 of the upper half of the housing and the guide plate 28, the flow in the vertical direction is prevented.

In addition, since the lower surface fixing end 34 is inserted between the fixing jaw 22 of the lower surface of the housing, the upward movement and the horizontal movement are prevented.

As such, the TPA 30 may be mounted to the housing 20 in a very stable state.

In addition, since the horizontal plate 35 is inserted into the horizontal hole 29 of the housing 20, the mounting state of the TPA 30 becomes more robust.

In the above state, the connection terminal 40 is inserted through the through hole 31a of the TPA 30 and the connection terminal insertion opening 21 of the housing 20.

The wire is already connected to the wire gripping portion 42 of the connection terminal 40 before being inserted. As described above, the end of the stripped wire is the first, second, and third gripping portions of the wire gripping portion 42. The connecting terminals 40 are fixed to the ends of the wires by being wrapped by the pieces 42a, 42b, and 42c.

The connection terminal 40 is inserted into the connection terminal insertion opening 21 through the through-hole 31a in a state in which the terminal insertion slits 41aa and 41ba are disposed in the vertical direction as shown in FIG. 7.

Therefore, when the insertion of the connection terminal 40 is made completely, the separation plate which is inserted into the through hole 23 through the terminal insertion slit 24 on the back of the housing 20 into the terminal insertion slits 41aa and 41ba ( Terminal 11 of 10) is inserted to form a mutual coupling.

At this time, the terminal 11 of the separating plate 10 is pushed between the connecting pieces 41ca and 4da on both sides of the connecting terminal 40 and the connecting pieces 41ca and 4da deformed in the direction of mutually opening by the terminal 11. By the elastic restoring force, the connection point P between the terminal 11 and the connecting pieces 41ca and 4da is brought into close contact with sufficient rigidity to maintain a good connection state.

On the other hand, both support pieces 41cb and 41db on the outer surface of the connection terminal 40 are connected to both walls of the inner space when the connection terminal 40 is inserted into the connection terminal insertion opening 21 of the housing 20. It contracts and deforms in a direction that is mutually retracted, and the insertion terminal 40 is strongly supported between both walls of the inside of the connection terminal insertion opening 21 by the elastic restoring force of the support pieces 41cb and 41db generated at this time. The state can be kept stable.

On the other hand, there is a TPA terminal 32 inserted into the TPA terminal insertion opening (21a) on the upper side of the inner space of the connection terminal insertion opening 21, when the connection terminal 40 is inserted into the connection terminal insertion opening (21) The lower surface of the TPA terminal 32 and the upper surface 41a of the terminal connecting portion 41 of the connection terminal 40 are strongly adhered to each other.

That is, the press fitting effect occurs when the connection terminal 40 is inserted by the TPA terminal 32, so that the coupling state of the connection terminal 40 with the housing 20 becomes more firm.

As described above, the connection terminal 40 is not only firmly installed in the housing 20 by the shape of the connection terminal 40 itself and the coupling force reinforcing action of the TPA 30, but also the terminal 11 of the separation plate 10. In addition, since a stable connection is maintained by the action of the connecting pieces 41ca and 41da which are in close contact with both sides, even when the vehicle is driven and vibration and shocks are generated, the terminal 11 and the connection of the separator 10 are connected. As the connection state of the terminal 40 is kept stable, more accurate and reliable cell voltage values can be measured.

1 is a partially enlarged view of a separator plate to which the present invention is applied;

2 is a side view of a stack formed by stacking the separators of FIG. 1;

3 is a front perspective view of a housing which is one configuration of the present invention;

4 is a rear perspective view of the housing;

5 is a front perspective view of a TPA, which is one configuration of the present invention;

6 is a rear perspective view of the TPA;

7 is a perspective view of a connection terminal of one configuration of the present invention;

8 is a cross-sectional view of the connection terminal rotated 90 °,

9 is an assembled state perspective view of a connector according to the present invention;

10 is an application assembly example of a connector according to the present invention.

* Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings *

10: separating plate 11: terminal

20: housing 21: connection terminal insertion opening

21a: TPA terminal insertion port 22: fixed jaw

23: through hole 24: terminal insertion slit

25: projecting surface 26: recessed surface

27: engaging projection 28: guide plate

29: horizontal hole 30: TPA

31: base frame 31a: through hole

31b: protruding surface 31c: recessed surface

32: TPA terminal 33: side fixing terminal

34: lower surface fixing stage 35: horizontal plate

40: connection terminal 41: terminal connection

41a: upper surface 41b: lower surface

41c: left side 41d: right side

41aa, 41ba: Terminal insertion slit 41ca, 41da: Connection

41cb, 41db: Supporting Pieces 42a, 42b, 42c: 1st, 2nd, 3rd Grip

Claims (10)

The terminal insertion slit into which the terminals of any one row of the plurality of terminal rows formed on the side of the separation plate of the stack are inserted is formed on the rear surface, and the terminal insertion slit is formed in communication with the terminal insertion slit, and the upper portion of the connection terminal insertion hole is formed. A housing in which a TPA terminal insertion opening is formed; A base frame having a through hole corresponding to the connection terminal insertion hole, a TPA terminal formed at the base frame and inserted into the TPA terminal insertion hole, and a side fixing formed on the side of the base frame to be tightly fixed to the side of the housing Terminal Positioning Assurance (TPA) having a stage; A terminal connection part inserted into the connection terminal insertion hole of the housing through the through hole and connected to a terminal of the separation plate, and a wire gripping part connected to the terminal connection part and connected to an end of a wire connected to a control circuit; Terminals; The connector for measuring the cell voltage of the fuel cell stack for a vehicle comprising a. The method according to claim 1, wherein the housing and the TPA is formed in the upper and lower half stepped to form a recessed surface on the opposite side of both sides, the side fixing end of the TPA is formed on the mating surface of the TPA, the side fixed during assembly The connector for measuring the cell voltage of the fuel cell stack, characterized in that the stage is in close contact with the recessed surface of the housing. The connector for measuring cell voltage of a vehicle fuel cell stack according to claim 2, wherein guide plates corresponding to lower end surfaces of adjacent protruding surfaces are formed on both recessed surfaces of the housing. The connector for cell voltage measurement of a vehicle fuel cell stack according to claim 2, wherein the engaging surface of the housing is provided with a catching protrusion for catching an end portion of a side fixed end of the TPA. The side of the locking projection of claim 4, wherein the locking projection has a front and rear two front locking protrusions which are hooked to prevent the front side from falling out after the side fixing stage rides when the TPA is assembled, and an end of the side fixing stage is seated between the front locking protrusions. The connector for measuring the cell voltage of a fuel cell stack for a vehicle, characterized in that consisting of a rear locking projection of a medium height in close contact with the rear end of the fixed end. The lower surface of the housing has a fixed jaw spaced apart by a predetermined distance in the front and rear direction of the housing, the lower surface fixed end is inserted into the lower surface of the base frame between the fixing jaw and is supported in the left and right direction is formed. A connector for measuring cell voltage of a fuel cell stack for a vehicle. The connector of claim 1, wherein a horizontal hole is formed in a middle portion of the front surface of the housing, and a horizontal plate is inserted in the middle of the base frame of the TPA. The terminal connecting portion of the connection terminal is a rectangular parallelepiped shape of which the front is opened, the terminal insertion slits are formed on the upper and lower surfaces thereof, and the front ends of the left and right surfaces are bent inwardly and face each other. A connector for measuring cell voltage of a fuel cell stack for vehicles, characterized in that a V-shaped connecting piece is formed. The connector for measuring cell voltage of a vehicle fuel cell stack according to claim 8, wherein a support piece having a shape in which the left side and the right side of the terminal connection part are bent inwardly to the inside of the terminal connection part and then bent upwardly inclined upward is formed. The connector of claim 1, wherein the wire gripping portion of the connection terminal comprises first, second, and third gripping pieces that wrap and fix an end portion of the wire exposed from the cover.

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