US20240288216A1

US20240288216A1 - Door switch connector module and home appliance including the same

Info

Publication number: US20240288216A1
Application number: US18/590,176
Authority: US
Inventors: Sung-Chul Kim; Byung-hee CHO; Suk-Eun Jung; Ki Deok Cheon
Original assignee: Tyco Electronics AMP Korea Co Ltd
Current assignee: Tyco Electronics AMP Korea Co Ltd
Priority date: 2023-02-28
Filing date: 2024-02-28
Publication date: 2024-08-29
Also published as: DE102024105313A1

Abstract

A door switch connector module includes a plug assembly disposed in an inner case of an installation target and a door switch assembly disposed outside the inner case and coupled to the plug assembly. The plug assembly has a receptacle terminal. The door switch assembly includes a main housing, a reed sensor disposed in the main housing, a tab terminal, and a cover housing coupled to the main housing and closing the main housing. The main housing has a guide boss extending in a coupling direction. The tab terminal contacts a lead of the reed sensor and extends to an outside of the main housing in parallel with the guide boss.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2023-0026892, filed on Feb. 28, 2023, and Korean Patent Application No. 10-2024-0006251, filed on Jan. 15, 2024.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

One or more embodiments relate to a door switch connector module used in a home appliance such as a refrigerator, and a home appliance including the same.

BACKGROUND

A door switch is embedded with a reed sensor to be used to detect opening and closing of a door of a home appliance, such as a refrigerator. The reed sensor includes two lead pieces formed of a magnetic body in a sealed glass tube, and detects opening and closing of a door as the two lead pieces come into contact or are separated depending on a distance from a magnet to open and close a contact.
The reed sensor is used, for example, in a refrigerator. The reed sensor is mounted on an outer case of the refrigerator, and connected to a mainboard provided in an inner case of the refrigerator using a wire-to-wire connector. The wire-to-wire connector herein is configured with a receptacle connected to the mainboard with a wire, and a plug connected to the reed sensor with a wire.
The reed sensor and the wire-to-wire connector of the related art connected using a wire cause complicated wiring and require an increased number of connectors, and therefore, productivity is low due to increased assembly and installation time and cost.

SUMMARY

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Features of the invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of example embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is a side view illustrating a state in which a door switch connector module is installed on an inner case, which is an installation target, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the door switch connector module of FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the door switch connector module of FIG. 1 taken along a line III-III;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a door switch assembly according to an embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the door switch assembly of FIG. 4 ;

FIG. 6 is a view of the door switch assembly of FIG. 5 viewed in a direction A;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a tab terminal according to an embodiment;

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of a plug assembly according to an embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a front view of the plug assembly of FIG. 8 ;

FIG. 10 is a rear view of the plug assembly of FIG. 8 ; and

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a receptacle terminal according to an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, various alterations and modifications may be made to the embodiments. Here, the embodiments are not construed as limited to the disclosure. The embodiments should be understood to include all changes, equivalents, and replacements within the idea and the technical scope of the disclosure.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not to be limiting of the embodiments. The singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises/including” and/or “includes/including” when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components and/or groups thereof.
Unless otherwise defined, all terms, including technical and scientific terms, used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains. Terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be construed to have meanings matching with contextual meanings in the relevant art, and are not to be construed to have an ideal or excessively formal meaning unless otherwise defined herein.
When describing the examples with reference to the accompanying drawings, like reference numerals refer to like elements and a repeated description related thereto will be omitted. In the description of embodiments, detailed description of well-known related structures or functions will be omitted when it is deemed that such description will cause ambiguous interpretation of the present disclosure.
In addition, the terms first, second, A, B, (a), and (b) may be used to describe constituent elements of the embodiments. These terms are used only for the purpose of discriminating one component from another component, and the nature, the sequences, or the orders of the components are not limited by the terms. When it is mentioned that one component is “connected” or “accessed” to another component, it may be understood that the one component is directly connected or accessed to another component or that still other component is interposed between the two components.
The same name may be used to describe an element included in the embodiments described above and an element having a common function. Unless otherwise mentioned, the descriptions on the embodiments may be applicable to the following embodiments and thus, duplicated descriptions will be omitted for conciseness.
Hereinafter, a door switch connector module 100 according to embodiments will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 11 .
Referring to the drawings, the door switch connector module 100 includes a door switch assembly 110 provided outside an inner case 1 which is an installation target, and a plug assembly 140 provided inside the inner case 1.
Hereinafter, a refrigerator will be described as an example of a home appliance which is an installation target of the door switch connector module 100. However, this is for convenience of description, and the installation target may be substantially various home appliances.
In the door switch connector module 100, the door switch assembly 110 and the plug assembly 140 are coupled to each other via a through hole 1 a of the inner case 1 and fixed to the inner case 1 at the same time.
Here, a cushion member 2 is provided between the plug assembly 140 and the inner case 1. The cushion member 2 is formed to have a sufficient size and thickness to prevent a foaming member from being introduced to the inside of the door switch connector module 100. For example, the cushion member 2 may have an area that is greater than or equal to a front surface of a plug housing 141.
Referring to FIGS. 3 to 7 , the door switch assembly 110 includes a reed sensor 120, a tab terminal 130, a main housing 111, and a cover housing 116. The main housing 111 is provided with the reed sensor 120 and the tab terminal 130. The main housing 111 is formed with a reed sensor mounting portion 112 which is a surface on which the reed sensor 120 is mounted and supported, and first slots 112 a which are formed on both side portions of the reed sensor mounting portion 112 and on which leads 121 of the reed sensor 120 are mounted and supported.
The main housing 111 is mounted so that the tab terminal 130 comes into contact with the leads 121 on both sides of the reed sensor mounting portion 112. For example, a second slot 113 a, into which a contact portion 131 of the tab terminal 130 is inserted and coupled, is formed to intersect with the first slot 112 a. Also, a third slot 113 b, to which a support 134 of the tab terminal 130 is coupled, may be formed. The drawings herein are for convenience of description, and sizes and positions of the second slot 113 a and the third slot 113 b may be variously changed according to a shape of the tab terminal 130.
The main housing 111 includes a guide boss 114 formed to extend in a direction in which it is coupled to the plug assembly 140.
A plurality of bumps 115, to which locking latches 116 a and 116 b of the cover housing 116 to be described below are locked, are formed on the main housing 111.
After the reed sensor 120 and the tab terminal 130 are mounted on the main housing 111, the cover housing 116 is provided to cover and close the corresponding portion. For example, the cover housing 116 has a plate shape corresponding to a portion where the reed sensor 120 and the tab terminal 130 are mounted, and includes the locking latches 116 a and 116 b that extend toward the main housing 111 from both end portions to be locked with the main housing 111. In addition, the number of locking latches 116 a and 116 b may be more than one, and for example, two locking latches may be provided on each of both ends.
When the cover housing 116 is coupled to the main housing 111, the locking latches 116 a and 116 b spread outward by their own elastic force, and ride over and are coupled to the locking bumps 115 on a side surface of the main housing 111, and the elastic force is applied in the coupled state to stably maintain the coupled state. However, the shape and the position of the locking latches 116 a and 116 b are not limited to those shown in the drawings, and the locking latches 116 a and 116 b may substantially have various shapes so that the cover housing 116 is able to be locked with the main housing 111.
The cover housing 116 may maintain the coupled state by pressing the tab terminal 130 against the main housing 111. When the coupling of the cover housing 116 to the main housing 111 is completed, as shown in FIG. 6 , the tab terminal 130 is pressed and fixed between the cover housing 116 and the main housing 111. Also, the fixed state of the tab terminal 130 may be stably maintained by a locking force of the cover housing 116.
The reed sensor 120 may be formed with an inert gas sealed therein, and the leads 121 which are formed of magnetic bodies on both end portions and form movable contacts are provided to extend to both sides thereof.
The number of tab terminals 130 may be two to come into contact with the leads 121 on both sides. However, the structures of the two tab terminals 130 are the same, and therefore, one tab terminal 130 will be described hereinafter.
Referring to FIGS. 4 and 7 , the tab terminal 130 may include the contact portion 131, on which a lead slot 131 a through which the reed sensor 120 penetrates is formed, a flat portion 133 which is bent at 90 degrees with respect to the contact portion 131 and extends in a direction in which it is coupled to the plug assembly 140, and a support 134 which fixes and supports the tab terminal 130 with respect to the main housing 111 by an external force of the tab terminal 130.
When the contact portion 131 is inserted into the second slot 113 a, the lead slot 131 a is formed to be open with a predetermined length from a lower end of the contact portion 131 so that the lead 121 penetrates. When the tab terminal 130 is coupled to the main housing 111, the tab terminal 130 is supported and fixed to the main housing 111 by the contact portion 131 and the flat portion 133 in a state where the lead 121 penetrates through the lead slot 131 a.
As shown in the embodiment of FIG. 4 , in the tab terminal 130, a lead guide opening 132, which is open so that the lead 121 penetrates, is also formed on the flat portion 133. The lead guide opening 132 is formed to be open at a position corresponding to the lead slot 131 a on an edge of the flat portion 133 opposite to the contact portion 131. Here, when the tab terminal 130 is coupled, the lead guide opening 132 prevents damage on the reed sensor 120 due to an impact or movement when the reed sensor 120 is coupled.
A barb 131 b protruding outwards to be fixed to the main housing 111 may be formed on an end portion of the contact portion 131. The barb 131 b may be formed in the form of a hook or barb that gradually spreads as it goes in a direction of being inserted into the second slot 113 a, so that the barb 131 b is inserted into and fixed to the second slot 113 a.
For example, the support 134 is provided on the same plane as the contact portion 131, that is, an edge that is bent at 90 degrees with respect to the flat portion 133 and is on the same side of the contact portion 131. In addition, the support 134 may be provided in front according to the flat portion 133.
The flat portion 133 is formed to extend from the contact portion 131 in parallel with the guide boss 114, and is formed to elongate to be exposed to the outside of the main housing 110. However, a length of an end portion of the flat portion 133 exposed to the outside is formed not to be longer than the guide boss 114.
Referring to FIGS. 8 to 11 , the plug assembly 140 includes a receptacle terminal 150, the plug housing 141, and a terminal position assurance (TPA) 145.
As shown in FIG. 11 , the receptacle terminal 150 includes a contact portion 151 which comes into contact with the tab terminal 130 on one end, and a barrel portion 152 to which a wire W is coupled and fixed on the other end.
As the barrel portion 152 is compressed and deformed while surrounding an outer peripheral surface of the wire W in a state where the wire W is accommodated therein, the barrel portion 152 is compressed with a core wire of the wire W to be electrically and physically connected thereto, and is physically coupled and fixed to an outer peripheral surface of coating of the wire W.
The contact portion 151 of the receptacle terminal 150 is bent into a round curved shape from a front end portion to form a contact spring 151 a. The contact spring 151 a has a curved surface and an elastic structure, and is not fixed except for a front end portion of the contact spring 151 a, and therefore, the tab terminal 130 may be easily inserted and separated. That is, when the door switch assembly 110 is inserted into the plug assembly 140, the tab terminal 130 may be easily inserted along an inclination of the contact spring 151 a.
Because a front end of the contact portion 151 of the receptacle terminal 150 is exposed from the plug housing 141, when the door switch assembly 110 is pulled from side to side while the door switch assembly 110 is coupled to the plug assembly 140, the door switch assembly 110 may be extracted from a hole of an inner case.
In addition, since a space for the tab terminal 130 and the guide boss 114 is formed in the plug housing 141, the door switch assembly 110 may be easily extracted when it is pulled from side to side.
Referring again to FIGS. 8 to 10 , a first coupling slot 141 a, into which the guide boss 114 is inserted and coupled, and a second coupling slot 141 b, into which the flat portion 133 of the tab terminal 130 is inserted and coupled, are formed on a front surface of the plug housing 141 that is coupled to the door switch assembly 110. In addition, a third coupling slot 141 c capable of releasing the receptacle terminal 150 and enabling rework may be formed on the plug housing 141.
Inclined surfaces 142 b and 142 c are formed on edges of the first and second coupling slots 141 a and 141 b of the plug housing 141. When the door switch assembly 110 is coupled to the plug assembly 140, since inclined surfaces 142 a, 142 b, and 142 c inclined toward the inside along a coupling direction are formed at positions where the insertion into the first and second coupling slots 141 b and 141 c starts, the guide boss 114 and the tab terminal 130 may be smoothly inserted into the first and second coupling slots 141 b and 141 c. The inclined surface 142 a herein is formed on a portion where the main housing 111 comes into contact with the plug housing 141.
A receptacle terminal mounting portion 143 a, into which the receptacle terminal 150 is inserted and coupled, is formed on a rear surface 143 of the plug housing 141, as shown in FIG. 8 .
The TPA 145, which maintains a coupled state of the receptacle terminal 150 and closes the rear surface 143 of the plug housing 141 is provided on the rear surface 143 of the plug housing 141. For example, the plug housing 141 is formed so that a portion of the rear surface 143, excluding a portion where the receptacle terminal mounting portion 143 a is formed, is open, and the TPA 145 is coupled to and closes the portion of the rear surface 143 which is open as described above from the rear side to prevent the detachment of the receptacle terminal 150 to the rear side. The TPA 145 may include a locking latch 145 b which covers the rear surface 143 of the plug housing 141 and has both end portions extending in a coupling direction for the plug housing 141. For example, the locking latch 145 b of the TPA 145 may cover a side surface 144 of the plug housing 141 and may be locked with a locking bump 144 a formed to protrude from the side surface 144 of the plug housing 141, as shown in FIG. 8 .
In addition, the plug assembly 140 may include guide ribs 143 b and 145 c guiding the coupling of the TPA 145 to the plug housing 141. For example, the first guide rib 143 b which is formed to protrude towards the inside and extends in a straight line along a direction, in which the TPA 145 is coupled to the plug housing 141, may be formed on an inner surface of the open portion of the rear surface of the plug housing 141, and the second guide rib 145 c corresponding to the first guide rib 143 b may be formed on the TPA 145. Since the TPA 145 slides while the first guide rib 143 b and the second guide rib 145 c come into contact with each other, the TPA 145 moves in a straight line into the plug housing 141 and is coupled to a correct position. In an embodiment, in the TPA 145, the second guide rib 145 c may be formed on the locking latch 145 b.
A wire groove 145 a is formed on the TPA 145 so that the wire W coupled to the plug housing 141 is able to be extracted. The wire groove 145 a may be formed as a semicircular groove corresponding to an outer peripheral surface of the wire W. One pair of the TPAs 145 symmetrical to each other may be provided on upper and lower portions of the wire W. That is, one pair of the TPAs 145 may be coupled to be symmetrical to each other with respect to an edge or a center line of a semicircle formed by the wire groove 145 a. As shown in FIG. 10 , when one pair of the TPAs 145 is coupled, the wire groove 145 a becomes a circular hole surrounding the outer peripheral surface of the wire W.
The TPA 145 covers and closes the rear surface 143 of the plug housing 140 and the wire groove 145 a surrounds the wire W, and therefore, it is possible to prevent a foaming member from being introduced into the plug housing 140. As shown in FIG. 10 , in a state where the TPA 145 is coupled, a center of a circle formed by the wire groove 145 a does not coincide with a center of a circle of a cross section of the wire W and is biased, and therefore, it is possible to prevent a foaming member from being introduced into the plug assembly 140 through the wire groove 145 a.
According to embodiments, because the door switch connector module 100 includes the door switch assembly 110 and a plug assembly 140, there is no need of a separate wire-to-wire connector, and the installation and electrical connection are completed only by inserting the door switch assembly 110 to the plug assembly 140. Therefore, an installation process of the door switch connector module 100 is simple, the cost may be reduced, and wiring harness may be simplified.
However, effects of the door switch connector module 100 and the home appliance including the same are not limited to those described above, and other effects not mentioned above are clearly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art from the following description.
While the embodiments are described with reference to drawings, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that various alterations and modifications in form and details may be made in these embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the claims and their equivalents. For example, suitable results may be achieved if the described techniques are performed in a different order, and/or if components in a described system, architecture, device, or circuit are combined in a different manner, and/or replaced or supplemented by other components or their equivalents. Therefore, other implementations, other embodiments, and equivalents to the claims are also within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A door switch connector module, comprising:

a plug assembly disposed in an inner case of an installation target, the plug assembly having a receptacle terminal; and

a door switch assembly disposed outside the inner case and coupled to the plug assembly, the door switch assembly including a main housing, a reed sensor disposed in the main housing, a tab terminal, and a cover housing coupled to the main housing and closing the main housing, the main housing has a guide boss extending in a coupling direction, the tab terminal contacts a lead of the reed sensor and extends to an outside of the main housing in parallel with the guide boss.

2. The door switch connector module of claim 1, wherein the main housing has a reed sensor mounting portion on which the reed sensor is mounted and a first slot on which the lead of the reed sensor is mounted.

3. The door switch connector module of claim 2, wherein the main housing has a second slot and a third slot that intersect with the first slot, the tab terminal is mounted on the second slot and the third slot.

4. The door switch connector module of claim 2, wherein the tab terminal has a flat portion extending to the outside of the main housing.

5. The door switch connector module of claim 4, wherein the tab terminal has a contact portion bent at 90 degrees from the flat portion and on which a lead slot is formed, the lead penetrates the lead slot when the tab terminal is inserted into the second slot.

6. The door switch connector module of claim 5, wherein the tab terminal has a support parallel with the contact portion and inserted into the third slot.

7. The door switch connector module of claim 6, wherein the flat portion has a lead guide opening, the lead penetrates the lead guide opening when the tab terminal is mounted on the main housing.

8. The door switch connector module of claim 6, wherein the contact portion has a barb on an end portion of the contact portion, the barb is inserted into and fixed to the second slot.

9. The door switch connector module of claim 2, wherein the cover housing is coupled to the main housing to close a portion of the main housing on which the reed sensor and the tab terminal are mounted, the cover housing presses the tab terminal against the main housing.

10. The door switch connector module of claim 1, wherein the plug assembly has a plug housing with a first coupling slot and a second coupling slot on a front surface of the plug housing facing a direction in which the main housing is coupled.

11. The door switch connector module of claim 10, wherein the guide boss is coupled to the first coupling slot and the tab terminal is inserted into the second coupling slot.

12. The door switch connector module of claim 11, wherein the first coupling slot and the second coupling slot have a plurality of inclined surfaces guiding the guide boss into the first coupling slot and the tab terminal into the second coupling slot.

13. The door switch connector module of claim 11, wherein the plug assembly has a terminal position assurance (TPA) coupled on a rear side of the receptacle terminal.

14. The door switch connector module of claim 13, wherein the TPA has a wire groove through which a wire connected to the receptacle terminal penetrates.

15. The door switch connector module of claim 14, wherein the TPA is coupled so that a center of the wire groove and a center of a cross section of the wire are biased.

16. The door switch connector module of claim 15, wherein the TPA is one of a pair of TPAs that are coupled symmetrically to each other with respect to a center line of the wire groove.

17. The door switch connector module of claim 13, wherein the plug housing has a first guide rib on an inner surface of a rear side of the plug housing, the first guide rib guides coupling of the TPA to the plug housing, the TPA has a second guide rib corresponding to the first guide rib.

18. The door switch connector module of claim 17, wherein the first guide rib and the second guide rib are formed in a straight line along a coupling direction of the TPA.

19. The door switch connector module of claim 13, wherein the TPA has a plurality of locking latches locked with the plug housing, the locking latches extending in the coupling direction from a pair of end portions of the TPA.

20. A home appliance, comprising:

the door switch connector module of claim 1.