NZ585636A - Cable connection system and associated cable terminal lugs for mains power cables - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed is a cable connection system includes a pair of electrically conductive primary cable terminal lugs. Each primary cable terminal lug has a longitudinally extending primary barrel defining a primary tunnel for receipt of a mains cable core strand; a primary palm longitudinally extending from the primary barrel and defining a primary palm front face and a primary palm rear face; a terminal block mounting aperture extending through the primary palm from the primary palm front face to the primary palm rear face; at least one primary threaded barrel aperture extending through a wall of the primary barrel into the primary tunnel; and a primary mains cable securing fastener which is threadedly received in each of the primary threaded barrel apertures. Each primary mains cable securing fastener has a leading end which extends into the primary tunnel. The cable connection system further includes an electrically conductive terminal block which has a front, a rear, an upper and a lower face. The terminal block has a pair of laterally spaced primary lug mounting apertures extending from the terminal block rear face towards the terminal block front face. The terminal block has a plurality of longitudinally extending service cable apertures extending from the lower face towards the upper face for receipt of a plurality of service cables. The terminal block also includes a plurality of securing means, each being associated with a respective service cable aperture. The connection system also includes a pair of terminal block mounting fasteners each configured to extend from the primary palm rear face of one of the primary cable terminal lugs through the terminal block mounting aperture of the primary cable terminal lug to be threadedly received in one of the primary lug mounting apertures of the terminal block so as to secure the terminal block to each of the primary cable terminal lugs with the terminal block rear face engaging the primary palm front face of each of the primary cable terminal lugs.

Description

PATENTS FORM 5 Our Ref: 952652NZ PATENTS ACT 1953 Dated: 26 May 2010 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION Cable connection system We, Cable Accessories (Australia) Pty. Ltd., an Australian company, ACN 002 184 616, of 8 Distribution Place, Seven Hills, New South Wales, 2147, Australia, hereby declare the invention, for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: 00138(2732492 1):[RG 1 la CABLE CONNECTION SYSTEM Technical Field The present invention relates to a cable connection system and associated cable terminal lugs, and particularly relates to a cable connection system and cable terminal lugs for mains power cables.

Background of the Invention Underground mains power cables, utilised for residential power distribution, are buried within the ground and have their ends extending up through the ground surface where they are terminated in distribution units, from where service cables that distribute power to individual properties are joined. A typical arrangement within such a distribution unit is depicted in Figure 1.

Each mains power cable 1 typically comprises four core strands 2 of aluminium wires that are each individually sheathed. The four sheathed core strands 2 are retained within a mains cable sheath 3.

To terminate the mains cable within the above-ground distribution unit 4, a length of approximately 300 mm of the cable 1 is exposed above the ground surface 5, and each of the four core strands 2 are separated by removing the mains cable sheath 3 above the ground surface 5. Each of the four core strands 2 is then terminated by crimping the barrel 6 of a standard crimping-type cable terminal lug 7 onto the exposed wires at the end of each core strand 2. Heatshrink tubing (not depicted) is applied to the terminal lug barrel 6 and adjacent portion of sheathed core strand 2. The four terminated core strands 2 are divided into two pairs, with each pair of terminated core strands 2 being joined by way of a bolt 8 and bus bar 9. The bolt 8 passes through the aperture in the palm 10 of one of the terminal lugs 7, through the corresponding aperture in the bus bar 9 and then through the aperture in the palm 10 of the second terminal lug 7, with a nut completing the connection.

Service cables 12, which are routed to individual properties for distribution of power to those properties, are also terminated in the distribution unit. Again, these service cables 12 are terminated by crimping a crimping-type cable terminal lug 13 onto the exposed end of the cable 12. The terminated service cables 12 are connected to the mains cable 1 by passing the bolt 8 securing a pair of mains cable core strands 2 together through the aperture provided in the service cable terminal lug 13. An earth cable 14 is similarly terminated by a crimping-type cable terminal lug and connected to the mains 2727859 1:PRW cable in the same manner as a service cable. Lighting power cables (not depicted), which provide power directly to street lighting, are also terminated by way of a crimping-type cable terminal lug and are connected to one of the core pair assemblies by way of the bolt 8. Each core pair assembly is then covered in heatshrink material.

The mains cable core strands 2 typically have a cross-sectional area of approximately 240mm (for aluminium wire core strands), whilst the service and earth cables are much smaller, typically having a cross-sectional area of approximately 50 mm2, although more recently aluminium service cables having a cross-sectional area of approximately 70 mm have become common.

The lighting cables are smaller again, with a cross-sectional area of approximately 10 mm . Terminating these three varying sized cables requires a range of expensive crimping tools and associated dies. These crimping tools and dies, apart from being rather expensive, require frequent maintenance and are often poorly maintained, resulting in poor quality terminal connections. Lack of operator skill and care also compromises the quality of the terminal connections.

The process of crimping a cable terminal lug onto a cable, particularly a large mains cable core strand, can also be quite tedious. When a pair of mains cable core strands 2 are to be connected by way of a bus bar 9, the cable terminal lugs 7 also need to be closely aligned when secured to the cable core strand 2, as the short length of cable core strand 2 protruding from the ground surface 5 cannot be readily twisted into alignment. Even when the cable terminal lug 7 appears to be aligned prior to operation of the crimping tool, movement of the cable terminal lug 7 as the tool is applied often occurs, resulting in misaligned cable terminal lugs 7 which cannot be readily connected by way of a bus bar 9.

An alternate form of power distribution connection has been proposed in Australian patent application no. 2005203073 utilising a machined cable terminal lug that accepts the mains cable within a cavity defined at one end of the barrel of the lug and accepts multiple service cables in apertures that extend laterally through the palm of the lug, utilising grub screws to secure service cables within the laterally extending apertures. This proposed form of lug requires the service cable to be bent through 90° to enable lateral entry into the lug apertures, however this is typically a difficult task for larger aluminium service cables. The lateral entry of the service cables also contributes to an uneconomic use of available space within the distribution unit (otherwise known as a pillar box). This may, for example, impede the placement of a fuse panel within the 2727859 l:PRW RECEIVED at IPONZ on 22 August 2011 3 distribution unit, particularly in the case of a three-way connection. The proposed lug is also relatively expensive to manufacture.

Object of the Invention It is the object of the present invention to substantially overcome or at least ameliorate one or more of the above disadvantages.

Summary of the Invention In a first aspect, the present invention provides a cable connection system comprising: a) a pair of electrically conductive primary cable terminal lugs, each said primary cable terminal lug having: i) a longitudinally extending primary barrel defining a primary tunnel for receipt of a mains cable core strand; ii) a primary palm longitudinally extending from said primary barrel and defining a primary palm front face and a primary palm rear face; iii) a terminal block mounting aperture extending through said primary palm from said primary palm front face to said primary palm rear face; iv) at least one primary threaded barrel aperture extending through a wall of said primary barrel into said primary tunnel; and v) a primary mains cable securing fastener threadingly received in each of said primary threaded barrel apertures, each said primary mains cable securing fastener having a leading end extendible into said primary tunnel; b) an electrically conductive terminal block having: i) a terminal block front face; ii) a terminal block rear face; iii) a terminal block upper face; iv) a terminal block lower face; v) a pair of laterally spaced primary lug mounting apertures extending from said terminal block rear face towards said terminal block front face; vi) a plurality of longitudinally extending service cable apertures extending from said terminal block lower face towards said terminal block upper face for receipt of a plurality of service cables; and vii) a plurality of securing means, one said securing means being associated with each of said service cable apertures, each such securing means being for securing a service cable in the associated said service cable aperture; and (2727859 2):PRW RECEIVED at IPONZ on 22 August 2011 4 c) a pair of terminal block mounting fasteners each configured to extend from said primary palm rear face of one of said primary cable terminal lugs through said terminal block mounting aperture of said primary cable terminal lug to be threadingly received in one of said primary lug mounting apertures of said terminal block so as to secure said terminal block to each of said primary cable terminal lugs with said terminal block rear face engaging said primary palm front face of each of said primary cable terminal lugs.

Typically, each said means for securing comprises a threaded service cable securing fastener extending through a threaded terminal block aperture extending through said terminal block front face into a respective said service cable aperture.

In a preferred form, said primary palm front face of each said primary cable terminal lug defines a laterally extending recess for receipt of said terminal block rear face, said recess having a height substantially equal to the thickness of said terminal block defined between said terminal block upper face and said terminal block lower face.

For a three-way connection, said system may further comprise: d) an electrically conductive secondary cable terminal lug having: i) a longitudinally extending secondary barrel defining a secondary tunnel for receipt of a mains cable core strand, ii) a secondary palm longitudinally extending from said secondary barrel and defining a secondary palm front face and a secondary palm rear face, iii) a bus bar mounting aperture extending through said secondary palm from said secondary palm front face to said secondary palm rear face; iv) at least one secondary threaded barrel aperture extending through a wall of said secondary barrel into said secondary tunnel; and v) a secondary mains cable securing fastener threadingly received in each of said secondary threaded barrel apertures, each said secondary mains cable securing fastener having a leading end extendible into said secondary tunnel; e) an electrically conductive bus bar having: i) a bus bar front face; ii) a bus bar rear face; iii) a pair of opposing bus bar side faces; and iv) a bus bar aperture extending through said bus bar from said bus bar front face to said bus bar rear face; and f) a bus bar mounting fastener configured to extend from said secondary palm rear face through said bus bar mounting aperture, through said bus bar aperture and into a (2727859 2):PRW threaded secondary lug mounting aperture provided in said terminal block between said primary lug mounting apertures so as to connect said secondary cable terminal lug to said primary cable terminal lugs with said bus bar front face engaging said terminal block rear face and said bus bar rear face engaging said secondary palm front face.

Typically, opposing side faces of said bus bar engage adjacent side faces of said palm of each of said primary terminal lugs.

In a preferred form, said connection system further comprises a cover assembly mounted over said cable terminal lugs and said terminal block.

Brief Description of the Drawings A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of an example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein: Figure 1 is a cross-sectional front elevation view of a prior art cable connection system; Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of a two-way cable connection system; Figure 3 is a perspective view of the two-way cable connection system of Figure 2; Figure 4 is a front elevation view of a primary cable terminal lug of the cable connection system of Figure 2; Figure 5 is a side elevation view of the primary cable terminal lug of Figure 4; Figure 6 is an inverse plan view of the primary cable terminal lug of Figure 4; Figure 7 is a rear elevation view of the primary cable terminal lug of Figure 4; Figure 8 is a perspective view of a three-way cable connection system; Figure 9 is a perspective view of a secondary cable terminal lug of the cable connection system of Figure 8; Figure 10 is a rear elevation view of the secondary cable terminal lug of Figure 9; Figure 11 is a side elevation view of the cable terminal lug of Figure 9; Figure 12 is an inverse plan view of the secondary cable terminal lug of Figure 9; Figure 13 is a perspective view of the bus bar of the cable connection system of Figure 8; Figure 14 is a perspective view of a two-way cable connection system including a cover assembly; and Figure 15 is a perspective view of a three-way cable connection system having a cover assembly. 2727859 1:PRW 6 Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments Referring to Figures 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawings, a cable connection system for a two-way connection comprises a pair of electrical conductive primary cable terminal lugs 100, an electrically conductive terminal block 120 and a pair of terminal 5 block mounting fasteners 140.

One of the primary cable terminal lugs 100 is depicted in greater detail in Figures 4 through 7. Each primary cable terminal lug 100 has a longitudinally extending primary barrel 101 and a primary palm 102 longitudinally extending from the primary barrel 101. Referring to Figure 6, the primary barrel 101 defines a primary tunnel 103 which opens 10 onto the lower end of the primary cable terminal lug 100 and is sized to receive a mains cable core strand. Here the tunnel 103 has a cross-sectional area of approximately 2 2 240mm such that it can neatly receive a 240mm cable core strand. The tunnel 103 has a depth of the order of 60mm, terminating in a blind end face immediately below the primary palm 102. is The primary palm 102 defines a primary palm front face 104 and a primary palm rear face 105. The primary palm front and rear faces 104, 105 are typically flat. The primary palm front face 104 defines a laterally extending recess 106. The primary cable terminal terminus lugs 100 are essentially mirror images of each other, having flat primary palm side faces 112 on their facing sides (see Figure 2). The upper and lower 20 extremities of the recess 106 are bounded by a flange 107 located at the top of the primary palm 102 and a shoulder 108 defined by a junction between the primary palm 102 and the primary barrel 101. A terminal block mounting aperture 109 extends through the primary palm 102 from the primary palm front face 104 to the primary palm rear face 105. At least two primary threaded barrel apertures 110 extend through the wall of the primary 25 barrel 101 into the primary tunnel 103.

A primary mains cable securing fastener 111 is threadingly received in each of the primary threaded barrel apertures 110. A leading end of each of the primary mains cable securing fasteners 111 is extendible into the primary tunnel 103 for engaging with a mains cable core strand received therein so as to secure the same. The primary mains 30 cable securing fasteners 111 are typically shear-head fasteners, the heads of which fail upon application of a predetermined torque such that a consistent level of engagement of the leading end of the shear-head fasteners 111 against the mains cable core strand is achieved thereby providing consistent securement of the mains cable core strand. The primary threaded barrel apertures 110 are longitudinally and radially offset. Provision of 35 two primary threaded barrel apertures 110 and associated shear-head fasteners 111 2727859 1:PRW ensures a more robust connection of the mains cable core strand, with each cable core strand being engaged by two fasteners. It is envisaged in some applications, however, that a single fastener may be sufficient.

The primary cable terminal lug is typically machined from conductive aluminium.

Referring back to Figures 2 and 3, the terminal block 120 has a terminal block front face 121, a terminal block rear face 122, a terminal block upper face 123, and a terminal block lower face 124. A pair of laterally spaced primary lug mounting apertures 125 extend from the terminal block rear face 122 toward the terminal block front face 121. A plurality of longitudinally extending service cable apertures 126 extend from the terminal block lower face 124 toward the terminal block upper face 123 for receipt of a plurality of service cables (and/or earth or lighting cables), one per service cable aperture 126. In the arrangement depicted, the service cable apertures 126 extend right through the thickness of the terminal block 120 onto the terminal block upper face 123.

Means are also provided for securing a service cable in each of the service cable apertures 126. In the arrangement depicted, such means are in the form of threaded service cable securing fasteners 127 extending through a threaded terminal block aperture 128 that extends through the terminal block front face 121 into a respective service cable aperture 126. In the arrangement depicted, there are two such threaded terminal block apertures 128 and threaded service cable securing fasteners 127 for each service cable aperture 126. The threaded service cable securing fasteners 127 are typically in the form of grub screws.

The body of the terminal block 120 is here machined from conductive aluminium and tin-plated. The threaded service cable securing fasteners 127 are here formed of tin-plated brass.

Formation of a two-way connection utilising the cable connection system described above will now be described. The ends of two mains cable core strands to be connected are stripped of any sheathing and each inserted into the primary tunnel 103 of one of the primary terminal lugs 100. Each primary cable terminal lug 100 is rotated if required, and the mains cable core strands manipulated if necessary, such that the primary cable terminal lugs 100 are aligned in a spaced parallel relationship with the primary palm front faces 104 generally lying in the same plane. The shear-head fasteners 111 of each of the primary cable terminal lugs 100 are then tightened so as to engage the mains cable core strands, securing the same within each primary tunnel 103. Torque is applied to the shear-head fasteners 111 until sufficient torque is reached to shear the heads of the 2727859 1:PRW fasteners 111. Whilst the primary tunnels 103 are sized to terminate a 240mm2 mains cable core strand, the connection is range-taking in that cable core strands with cross-sectional areas down to approximately 185mm2 can still be securely terminated in the primary tunnels 103.

The stripped ends of service cables (and/or earth or lighting cables) are then inserted into the service cable apertures 126 of the terminal block 120 through the terminal block lower face 124. The service cables will typically be projecting roughly vertically within the distribution unit and, accordingly, the service and earth cables can be inserted into the service cable apertures 126 by lowering the terminal block 120 over the ends of the service cables without needing to bend the service cables to any notable degree. The service cables are then secured within the service cable apertures 126 by tightening the service cable securing fasteners 127.

The terminal block 120 is then connected to both primary cable terminal lugs 100, thereby acting as a bus bar, by aligning the primary lug mounting apertures 125 of the terminal block 120 with the terminal block mounting apertures 109 of the primary cable terminal lugs 100 and passing the terminal block mounting fasteners 140 from the primary palm rear face 105 of each primary cable terminal lug 100, through the respective terminal block mounting apertures 109 and threaded into the primary lug mounting apertures 125 of the terminal block 120. The terminal block 120 is thus secured to each of the primary cable terminal lugs 100 with the terminal block rear face 122 engaging the primary palm front face 104 of each of the primary cable terminal lugs 100. The recess 106 defined by each primary palm front face 104 is sized to have a height substantially equal to, or slightly larger than, the thickness of the cable terminal block defined between the cable terminal block upper face 123 and cable terminal block 124, such that the cable terminal block is neatly received within the recess 106.

Whilst, in the process described above, the service cables are secured in the service cable apertures 126 prior to mounting of the terminal block 120 on the primary cable terminal lugs 100, it is also envisaged that the service cables might be secured within the service cable apertures 126 after the terminal block 120 has been mounted on the primary cable terminal lugs 100 if so desired.

Referring to Figure 8, a three-way connection may be formed utilising the cable connection system and process described above, with the addition of a third lug, being a secondary cable terminal lug 160 and a bus bar 180.

The secondary cable terminal lug 160 is depicted in greater detail in Figures 9 through 12. The secondary cable terminal lug 160 has a longitudinally extending 2727859 1:PRW 9 secondary barrel 161 and a secondary palm 162 longitudinally extending from the secondary barrel 161. Referring to Figure 12, the secondary barrel 161 defines a secondary tunnel 163 which opens onto the lower end of the secondary cable terminal lug 160 and is sized to receive a mains cable core strand.

The secondary palm 162 defines a secondary palm front face 164 and a secondary palm rear face 165. The secondary palm front and rear faces 164, 165 are typically flat. The secondary palm front face 164 defines a vertically extending recess 166 for receipt of the bus bar 180. A bus bar mounting aperture 169 extends through the secondary palm 162 from the secondary palm front face 164 to the secondary palm rear 10 face 165.

At least two secondary threaded barrel apertures 170 extend through the wall of the secondary barrel 161 into the secondary tunnel 163. A secondary mains cable securing fastener 171 is threadingly received in each of the secondary threaded barrel apertures 170. A leading end of each of the secondary mains cable securing fasteners 171 is is extendible into the secondary barrel for engaging with a mains cable core strand received therein so as to secure the same. The secondary mains cable securing fasteners 171 are again typically shear-head fasteners.

The secondary cable terminal lug 160 is typically machined from conductive aluminium.

The bus bar 180 is depicted in greater detail in Figure 13. The bus bar 180 is typically machined from conductive aluminium and tin-plated and has a bus bar front face 181, a bus bar rear face 182 and opposing bus bar side faces 183. A bus bar aperture 184 extends through the bus bar 180 from the bus bar front face 181 to the bus bar rear face 182. The bus bar front face 181 defines a laterally extending recess 186 for receipt of the 25 terminal block 120. The recess 186 is bounded by a pair of opposing flanges 185.

To form a three-way connection, a two-way connection may first be established in the manner described above. A third mains cable strand core is then secured within the secondary tunnel 163 of the secondary cable terminal lug 160 in the same general manner as described above in relation to the primary cable terminal lugs 100. The secondary 30 cable terminal lug is located behind the two-way connection as seen in Figure 8, the bus bar 180 is then located with the bus bar front face 181 located between the primary cable lugs 100 and engaging the terminal block rear face 122, such that the bus bar aperture is aligned with a threaded secondary lug mounting aperture 129 provided in the terminal block 120 between the primary lug mounting apertures 125 and the terminal block rear 35 face 122 is located within the recess 186 of the bus bar 180. The bus bar mounting 2727859 1:PRW aperture 169 of the secondary palm 162 is aligned with the opposing end of the bus bar aperture of the bus bar, such that the bus bar rear face 182 is received within the recess 166 of the secondary cable terminal lug 160. A bus bar mounting fastener (not depicted) is then passed from the secondary palm rear face 165 through the bus bar mounting aperture 169, through the bus bar aperture of the bus bar 180 and into the secondary lug mounting aperture 129 of the terminal block 120.

The secondary cable terminal lug 160 is thus connected to the primary cable terminal lugs 100 and the terminal block 120. The opposing bus bar side faces 183 typically engage the adjacent flat primary palm side faces 102 of the primary cable terminal lugs 100. The primary palm side faces 112 are typically flat for this purpose. A shoulder 113 defined between the primary palm side faces 112 and the primary barrel 101 of each primary cable terminal lug 100 assists in aligning the bus bar 180 such that the bus bar aperture is aligned with the secondary lug mounting aperture 129 of the terminal block 120. As will be appreciated, the three-way connection may be established from an existing two-way connection with all service cables remaining in place.

Referring to Figures 14 and 15, both the two and three-way connection systems may also include a cover assembly 220 to protect the connection. Referring firstly to Figure 12, the cover assembly 220 for a two-way connection comprises front and rear covers 221, 222 that may suitably be moulded from glass-filed nylon or other suitable non-conductive material. The front and rear covers 221, 222 are mutually secured by way of fasteners extending through apertures 223, 224 provided on the front and rear covers respectively. Mains cable access ports 225 are defined at the lower end of the front and rear covers 221, 222 when assembled over the primary cable lugs 100 and terminal block 120. An elongate service port 226 is defined in the front cover 220 directly beneath the service cable apertures 126 so as to enable simple insertion of service cables into the service cable apertures 126 with the cover assembly 220 in place. Fastener access ports 227 are also defined in the front face of the front cover 221 providing access for alien keys to engage the alien key drive recesses of the threaded service cable securing fasteners 127. The fastener ports 227 are sized to prevent entry of a user's fingers.

Referring to Figure 15, the cover assembly 220 for a three-way connection utilises the same front cover 220 as described above, however, the rear cover 222' is modified so as to receive the secondary cable terminal lug 160 with the provision of an additional mains cable access port 228.

A person skilled in the art will appreciate various other possible modifications of the connection system described. 2727859 1:PRW

Claims (8)

RECEIVED at IPONZ on 22 August 2011 11 I/WE CLAIM:

1. A cable connection system comprising: a) a pair of electrically conductive primary cable terminal lugs, each said primary cable terminal lug having: i) a longitudinally extending primary barrel defining a primary tunnel for receipt of a mains cable core strand; ii) a primary palm longitudinally extending from said primary barrel and defining a primary palm front face and a primary palm rear face; iii) a terminal block mounting aperture extending through said primary palm from said primary palm front face to said primary palm rear face; iv) at least one primary threaded barrel aperture extending through a wall of said primary barrel into said primary tunnel; and v) a primary mains cable securing fastener threadingly received in each of said primary threaded barrel apertures, each said primary mains cable securing fastener having a leading end extendible into said primary tunnel; b) an electrically conductive terminal block having: i) a terminal block front face; ii) a terminal block rear face; iii) a terminal block upper face; iv) a terminal block lower face; v) a pair of laterally spaced primary lug mounting apertures extending from said terminal block rear face towards said terminal block front face; vi) a plurality of longitudinally extending service cable apertures extending from said terminal block lower face towards said terminal block upper face for receipt of a plurality of service cables; and vii) a plurality of securing means, one said securing means being associated with each of said service cable apertures, each such securing means being for securing a service cable in the associated said service cable aperture; and c) a pair of terminal block mounting fasteners each configured to extend from said primary palm rear face of one of said primary cable terminal lugs through said terminal block mounting aperture of said primary cable terminal lug to be threadingly received in one of said primary lug mounting apertures of said terminal block so as to secure said terminal block to each of said primary cable terminal lugs with said terminal block rear face engaging said primary palm front face of each of said primary cable terminal lugs. (2727859 2):PRW RECEIVED at IPONZ on 22 August 2011 12

2. The system of claim 1, wherein each of said fasteners is a shear head fastener.

3. The system of either one of claims 1 and 2, wherein each said means for securing comprises a threaded service cable securing fastener extending through a threaded terminal block aperture extending through said terminal block front face into a respective said service cable aperture.

4. The system of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein said primary palm front face of each said primary cable terminal lug defines a laterally extending recess for receipt of said terminal block rear face, said recess having a height substantially equal to the thickness of said terminal block defined between said terminal block upper face and said terminal block lower face.

5. The system of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein said system is for a three-way connection and further comprises: d) an electrically conductive secondary cable terminal lug having: i) a longitudinally extending secondary barrel defining a secondary tunnel for receipt of a mains cable core strand, ii) a secondary palm longitudinally extending from said secondary barrel and defining a secondary palm front face and a secondary palm rear face, iii) a bus bar mounting aperture extending through said secondary palm from said secondary palm front face to said secondary palm rear face; iv) at least one secondary threaded barrel aperture extending through a wall of said secondary barrel into said secondary tunnel; and v) a secondary mains cable securing fastener threadingly received in each of said secondary threaded barrel apertures, each said secondary mains cable securing fastener having a leading end extendible into said secondary tunnel; e) an electrically conductive bus bar having: i) a bus bar front face; ii) a bus bar rear face; iii) a pair of opposing bus bar side faces; and iv) a bus bar aperture extending through said bus bar from said bus bar front face to said bus bar rear face; and (2727859 2):PRW RECEIVED at IPONZ on 22 August 2011 13 f) a bus bar mounting fastener configured to extend from said secondary palm rear face through said bus bar mounting aperture, through said bus bar aperture and into a threaded secondary lug mounting aperture provided in said terminal block between said primary lug mounting apertures so as to connect said secondary cable terminal lug to said primary cable terminal lugs with said bus bar front face engaging said terminal block rear face and said bus bar rear face engaging said secondary palm front face.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein opposing side faces of said bus bar engage adjacent side faces of said palm of each of said primary terminal lugs.

7. The system of any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising a cover assembly mounted over said cable terminal lugs and said terminal block.

8. A cable connection system substantially as hereinbefore described in relation to Figures 2 to 7, or Figures 8 to 13 of the accompanying drawings. Cable Accessories (Australia) Pty Ltd By the Attorneys for the Applicant SPRUSON & FERGUSON Per: (2727859 2):PRW