WO2001091250A1

WO2001091250A1 - Conductor rail system

Info

Publication number: WO2001091250A1
Application number: PCT/EP2001/002468
Authority: WO
Inventors: Bernd Walser; Gerald Ladstätter; Michael Spiegel; Thomas Riedler
Original assignee: Zumtobel Staff Gmbh
Priority date: 2000-05-24
Filing date: 2001-03-05
Publication date: 2001-11-29
Also published as: DE50114523D1; NO324729B1; EP1284033A1; NO20025643D0; ES2317892T3; HUP0301897A2; DE10025648A1; AU4067801A; EP1284033B1; NO20025643L; PL360835A1; PL203813B1; HU228552B1; ATE415726T1; DE10025648B4

Abstract

The invention relates to a conductor rail system for lamps, comprising several mounting rails (1) which can be connected to each other in a modular manner, in addition to an electroconductor profile held by said mounting rails (1). The profile is provided with grooves (11) which can be accessed from a contact side and which run in a longitudinal manner along the mounting rails (1), said grooves being used to receive wires (6) for an electric power supply and/or to transmit control signals. A connection element (31) comprising corrugated cavities which correspond to the grooves (11) in the electroconductor profiles is used in order to connect the electroconductor profiles of two adjacent mounting rails (1). Each cavity accommodates a metal connector (35) to which the wires arranged and connected to each other in the grooves (11) in the electroconductor profiles can be connected bilaterally.

Description

Stromschienensvstem

The present invention relates to a busbar system for lights according to the preamble of claim 1 and a connecting element.

Track systems or light strips are used in a variety of ways because they are opposite. Permanently installed or built-in lights offer a high degree of flexibility in the individual planning of lighting structures for specific requirements. So the busbar systems consist of several individual elements that are assembled according to the modular principle, so that the entire arrangement can be adapted to the rooms to be illuminated. Continuous line systems are known with which not only two-dimensional but also three-dimensional structures can be formed.

The basic structure of a busbar system is formed by mounting rails, which are assembled into the desired structure and serve to hold the power supply and control lines as well as the individual lights. The mounting rails must therefore have high stability and are usually made of metal. They can have different shapes, for example mounting rails with a Y profile or an A profile are known. The most widespread, however, are U-shaped mounting rails which are attached to a support, e.g. be attached to a ceiling or wall. The individual luminaire modules are fastened to the mounting rails, the length of an individual mounting rail usually being a multiple of the length of the luminaire modules. For example, mounting rails with a length of 3 m or 4.50 m are offered if the luminaire modules have a length of 1.50. Such integer length ratios are chosen to simplify planning when designing a light line system.

In order to ensure the power supply for the luminaires, corresponding lines run on or within the mounting rails. In addition to the lines for the power supply, other lines can also be provided for the transmission of control signals, which opens up the possibility of individually controlling and dimming the individual lights when using a suitable control system.

In a known light band system, which is sold by the applicant under the name “light line system ZX”, the lines run in the form of through-wiring within the U-shaped mounting rails, with regular Distances that correspond to the length of the light modules, tap sockets are arranged. The tapping bushes are clamped into the mounting rails, undercuts engaging corresponding inward projections of the mounting rails. The luminaire modules can be mounted at the locations specified by the tap bushings by placing them on the mounting rails that are open at the bottom and fastening them. The lines are contacted via a contacting element located on the luminaire modules, which has connection contacts which engage in openings in the tapping socket when the luminaire module is placed on the mounting rail and thereby come into contact with the corresponding wires. Furthermore, the luminaire modules have rotary knobs, which are turned after they are attached and ensure mechanical fastening to the mounting rails.

In the busbar system just described, the luminaire modules can only be arranged at the locations specified by the tapping sockets, since otherwise no electrical contacting is possible. To avoid such restrictions and thus greater flexibility for the arrangement of the individual

To maintain luminaires, track systems have been developed which are one of the

Carrier rails have a current conducting profile. This current conducting profile consists of elongated bodies made of non-conductive material - usually plastic - with in

Longitudinal direction of the mounting rails and grooves accessible from a contacting side for receiving wires for the power supply and / or

Transmission of control signals. In this case, since the non-insulated wires are exposed to the contacting side at least over the length of a single current profile body, a luminaire can be arranged anywhere within this area, so that greater freedom in planning and

Realization of the trunking system exists.

The length of a single conductor profile body is matched to the length of the mounting rail. This means that when two mounting rails are put together, the two current conducting profiles are to be connected to one another. This connection is problematic in that it must be ensured in this area that no accidental contact with a wire is possible. A corresponding standard requires that a 1 mm thick test wire in straight stretch cannot hit one of the wires. In a known busbar system, the connection is therefore made at these interfaces with the aid of a so-called row connector, which, however, itself does not offer any possibility of contact. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a technology which, in the case of a busbar system for luminaires with a current-conducting profile, also enables contacting at the interface between two mounting rails.

The object is achieved by a busbar system which has the features of claim 1 or by a connecting element according to claim 13. The connecting element used according to the invention in the busbar system is characterized in that it has groove-like recesses corresponding to the grooves of the current-conducting profiles, into each of which a metal connector is inserted, to which the wires to be connected can be connected from both sides. Contact is made in the area of the connecting element in that connection contacts of a lamp module to be connected to the busbar system are brought into contact with the upper sides of the metal connectors. The connecting element made of a non-conductive material with the metal connectors closes the gap between the current conducting profiles of two mounting rails and ensures that a luminaire module can be freely attached over the entire length of the busbar system, since the metal connector in the transition area the contact surfaces form for the connection contacts of the luminaire module. The shape of the recesses of the connecting element, like the shape of the grooves of the current-conducting profile, is selected in such a way that the required protection against contact is provided.

Developments of the invention are the subject of the dependent claims.

For example, the metal connectors can have an elongated contacting plate and U-shaped spring elements arranged at both ends thereof, by means of which the wires are clamped during insertion and pressed against the contacting plate. This also ensures that the wires do not move like a pump and may even migrate when the plastic current-conducting profile is thermally expanded. If the current-conducting profiles are located within U-shaped mounting rails, two adjacent mounting rails are mechanically connected, preferably with the aid of a short U-shaped connecting rail, half of which engages in both mounting rails. The one or more connecting elements are arranged on the side legs of the connecting rail. In addition, the connecting rail can have spring tongues next to one or both ends, which in the assembled state engage behind openings provided in the mounting rails and the connecting rail. In this way it is ensured that two support rails connected to one another by a connecting rail can be detached in a simple manner are held together, since only pressure has to be exerted on the spring tongue to release them.

A further development of the invention is concerned with the design of the current-conducting profile arranged in an individual mounting rail. The plastic bodies forming the current conducting profile are usually produced by extrusion. This traverser is disadvantageous in that plastic parts can only be produced with limited precision, since the plastic cools down very quickly after leaving the extrusion nozzle and changes its shape. As a result, one-piece current-conducting profile bodies can only be produced to a certain degree of complexity. In particular, the production of very long bodies is extremely cost-intensive here.

The development according to the invention provides a possibility of producing the current-conducting profile much more cost-effectively and in a simple manner to the

Adapt the length of a mounting rail. This is made possible by the fact that a

Current conducting profile consists of at least two wire holder elements made of non-conductive material which are joined together and which have grooves for receiving the wires.

The wire holder elements are designed in their end regions such that they overlap when they are joined together with projections located at their ends so that they overlap in the connection region between two

Wire holder elements form channels corresponding to the grooves and open towards the contacting side. These channels are only accessible from the contacting side, but otherwise enclosed as well as the grooves of the wire holder elements and the connecting element, so that the safety standard also in these

Areas is met. In this way, a continuous but safe contact possibility is created over the entire length of a wire rail.

Modular assembly of the current conducting profile from several individual wire holder elements makes it possible to offer mounting rails of various lengths, but only wire holder elements of a single length can be used to equip them with a current conducting profile, since the current conducting profile merely changes the length of the mounting rail by changing the number of wire holder elements can be adjusted. This results in a significantly lower production effort. Furthermore, no elongated and expensive to produce one-piece plastic parts have to be created. The

Wire holder elements can be produced, for example, by means of the much easier to control and less expensive injection molding process. In the case of current-conducting profiles made of plastic parts, particular attention must be paid to the fact that they can be exposed to heat radiation, not to be neglected, in particular in the vicinity of ballasts for the lights arranged on or particularly in the mounting rails. This has the consequence that the plastic parts can expand or contract when not irradiated: It is particularly problematic that the coefficient of expansion of plastic is approximately 10x greater than that of metal, so that the length of the individual wire holder elements can change significantly, whereas, on the other hand, the wires held by the current conducting profile remain almost of the same length. For this reason, the wire holder elements can have locking elements at their ends, which interlock when two wire holder elements are put together and limit mutual displacement or removal in the longitudinal direction to a predetermined play. If the wire holder elements cool down and contract, they move away to a predetermined maximum distance at which protection against contact is still provided; when heated, they come closer to each other. In this way, a continuous current control professional is formed regardless of the temperature. The wire holder elements preferably have a length of approx. 500 mm, the permitted play with which two adjoining wire holder elements can move against one another is approx. 8 mm, which is sufficient for the temperature differences which usually occur in the busbar system.

Another further development is concerned with contacting the wires within a U-shaped mounting rail by means of a lamp module which is as simple as possible. For this purpose, the luminaire module has a contacting element with a plurality of connection contacts, the contacting element being inserted into the mounting rail from the open side and then being rotated partially, preferably by 45 °. By twisting the connection contacts are inserted into the grooves of the current conducting profile and brought into contact with the wires. The contacting element can preferably be designed such that the height of at least one of the connection contacts can be adjusted. Since the wires of the current conducting profile, which are arranged at different heights, have different functions, an optional contact can be achieved by moving the connecting contacts. This offers the possibility of assigning different functions to the lights connected to the power rail system, for example using some of the lights only as emergency power lights. Furthermore, locking elements can be provided on the contacting element, which additionally engage protruding parts of the mounting rail when twisting and contacting the wires, which at the same time enables mechanical fastening to the mounting rail. On in this way, both electrical contacting and mechanical fastening of the lamp module can be carried out with the aid of a simple handle.

The present invention is to be explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawing. Show it:

Figure 1 shows the mounting rail of a busbar system with an inserted contacting element in section.

Figure 2 shows the mounting rail shown in Figure 1 without the contacting element in section.

3 shows a wire holder element in a perspective representation;

FIG. 4 shows the wire holder element shown in FIG. 3 in section;

5 shows the transition area between two assembled wire holder elements from the contacting side;

6 shows the transition region between two wire holder elements from the rear;

7 shows the arrangement of a connecting element according to the invention and a connecting rail for connecting two mounting rails;

8 shows the structure of the connecting element;

9a shows a metal connector used in the connecting element;

9b shows a spring element of the metal connector shown in FIG. 9a; and

Fig. 10, the contacting element shown in Fig. 1 in a perspective view.

The base element of the busbar system shown in FIG. 1 is a U-shaped mounting rail 1 made of metal or sheet metal, which can be fastened to a support, for example a ceiling or wall, by means of fastening means (not shown). The cover of the open lower side of the mounting rail 1 is carried out by a cover rail 5. In the case shown, this cover rail 5 is part of a lamp module fastened to the mounting rail 1, only the contacting element of the lamp module being shown in the form of a turning handle 50 in FIG. 1, but not its further components, for example, the lamp or the associated control or operating device, which can be an electronic ballast (EVG). In this case, the interior of the mounting rail 1 also serves as a receiving space for the operating devices for the lamps. Those areas of the mounting rail 1 on which no lamp modules are arranged can likewise be closed with a cover rail 5 for optical and safety reasons, the cover rail 5 being fastened by means of clamping or latching.

In the present example, current conducting profiles are arranged on the inner sides of the two side walls 3a and 3b of the mounting rail 1, which are formed by a plurality of wire holder elements 10 which are composed of plastic and which each contain two side wings 10a and 10b with a plurality of grooves 11 for receiving the wires 6. Five wires 6 are arranged in the right side wing 10a, while six wires 6 run on the left side.

The wires 6 arranged in the right side wing 10a can, for example, have the following function in the order from top to bottom.

Emergency power 1 Emergency power 2 Neutral conductor from the standard network

D 1 = control line for light control D2 = control line for light control.

The functions of the wires 6 arranged in the left side wing 10b are, for example:

Emergency power phase 1 Emergency power phase 2 Standard phase 3 Standard phase 2

Standard phase I earth. Both the number of wires used as well as their arrangement and function is only shown as an example and can be adapted to individual needs.

By contacting the corresponding wires 6, a desired function can be assigned to the connected lamp, for example the lamp can be used as an emergency light lamp. By using the two control lines for the light control, it is possible to use these two lines to form a bus system via which a large number of luminaires can be controlled using digital control commands, as is known from more complex lighting systems.

The wires 6 are contacted via a plurality of connection contacts 53 and 54 arranged on the rotary handle 50, which engage in the corresponding grooves 11 and come to bear against the wires 6. In order to enable variable and simple contacting, the connection contact 53 is, for example, arranged on the rotary handle 50 in a height-adjustable manner by means of a carrier element 55. The desired function can thus be assigned to the lamp connected to the busbar system by simply shifting the carrier element 55. A wire element 62, which is guided in a slot 63 of the rotary handle 50 and whose end 62b contacts the lower left wire 6 provided for earthing, is also provided for earthing. The more precise structure and the mode of operation of the contacting element 50 will be explained in more detail at a later point in time. The mains feed for the busbar system can be carried out, for example, by means of an appropriately adapted rotary handle, which is positioned at any point in the longitudinal direction.

The two side wings 10a, 10b of the wire holding element 10 are securely held by a plurality of guide arms 12, 12 ₄ , which engage in corresponding guide grooves x 4 _{4 of} the U-shaped mounting rail 1. The several wire holder elements 10 lined up to form a current conducting profile are pushed into the mounting rail 2 in the longitudinal direction during assembly. On the back of the side wings 10a and 10b, ie on the side of the grooves 11 opposite the contacting side, there are a plurality of support struts 16 which ensure stable storage of the grooves 11 within the mounting rail 2, so that they are not pushed back when making contact. In this way, reliable contacting of the wires 6 is supported. The connection of the two side wings 10a and 10b takes place in regular spacers via connecting webs 13, which are arranged on the middle leg 2 of the mounting rail 1. The connecting webs 13 also have downwardly projecting holding legs 15 which, together with a horizontal leg 14 projecting horizontally from the right side wing 10a, form an additional cavity 8. This cavity can be used for the storage of additional cables or lines. In addition, the horizontal leg 14 still has the task of preventing the contacting element 50 from being inserted into the mounting rail 1 in the opposite direction, as will also be explained later.

The shape of the grooves 11 of the wire holder elements 10 is selected in such a way that protection against accidental contact is ensured, as will be explained below with reference to FIG. 2. Here, in turn, the mounting rail 1 is shown with a current-conducting profile arranged therein, but now without the turning handle 50. The safety standard mentioned at the beginning provides that the wires 6 arranged in the current-conducting profile must not be exposed in such a way that a 1 mm thick test wire 7 is in a straight line - Elongation can meet a current-carrying wire 6. In the illustration, the entry angle for the test wire 7 is most favorable for the wire 6 arranged at the bottom left. As can be seen from FIG. 2, the widths, depths and opening shapes of the grooves 11 are dimensioned such that even at the smallest entry angle the test wire 7 cannot contact any of the wires 6. In this way, unintentional touching of the wires 6 is avoided and the corresponding safety standard is met.

Before the connection according to the invention of two mounting rails and the associated current conducting profiles is explained, the specific configuration of the wire holder elements 10 forming the current conducting profile will first be discussed with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6, FIG. 3 showing a wire holder element 10 in a perspective view. Essential elements of the wire holder element 10 are the two side wings 10a and 10b, which have the grooves 11 for storing the wires. They are connected to one another via two connecting webs 13. In this way, with the help of the horizontal leg 14 and the holding legs 15 protruding from the connecting webs 13, the aforementioned cavity 8 can be formed, which can be used for the storage of further lines or cables useful for the lighting system. The guide arms 12 are also located on the two side wings 10a, 10b _! to 12 ₄ , which engage in the recesses 4 _{ to 4 _{4 of} the mounting rail 1 when inserted. The representations in FIGS. 3 and 4 show the wire holder element 10 immediately after manufacture. In order to insert the wire holder element 10 into the mounting rail 1, the side wings 10a and 10b folded around the two folding points A and B by 90 ° (see FIG. 4) and then pushed into the mounting rail 1, resulting in the arrangement shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

At their ends, the two side wings 10a and 10b have projections 17 and 22, with the aid of which two joined wire holder elements 10 overlap one another. At one of the two ends, locking heads 18 are also provided, which allow a removal of two assembled wire holder elements 10 in the longitudinal direction only up to a certain maximum distance, so that a current conducting profile composed of several wire holder elements 10 is flexible in length and thus changes in length of the individual plastic ones Wire holder elements 10 can be compensated for due to temperature differences.

5 and 6, which show two assembled wire holder elements in an enlarged representation, on the one hand from the contacting side (FIG. 5) and on the other hand from the opposite rear side (FIG. 6). The parts belonging to the first wire holder element 10] are provided with the index 1, while the elements belonging to the second wire holder element 10 _{2 have} the index 2. After the two wire holder elements 10, and 10 _{2 have been joined} , these two overlap one another in such a way that a channel 23 is formed by a projection 17, the first wire holder element 10 _α and a projection 22 _{2 of} the second wire holder element 10 ₂ , which grooves 11 of the two wire holder elements 10] and 10 ₂ connects to each other. Like the grooves 11, all the channels 23 formed in this way in the connection area are only accessible from the contacting side, that is to say from above, but not from the side. This also ensures the required protection against accidental contact in the area of the channels 23.

The illustration in FIG. 6 shows that the two locking heads 18 ₂ only permit removal of the two wire holder elements 10 and 10 ₂ up to a maximum distance, which is predetermined by the fact that the locking projections 19 projecting laterally at the ends of the locking heads 18 ₂ against the stop walls 20]. This predetermined maximum distance and the length of the interlocking projections 17 and 22 are dimensioned such that even at the maximum distance of the two wire holder elements 10 and 10 ₂ from each other, the previously explained channels 23 are formed and protection against contact is ensured. On the other hand, the ends of the Bring the two wire holder elements 10j, 10 ₂ closer together until their two end faces 21] and 21 ₂ come into contact with one another. This means that both wire holder elements 10], 10 _{2 can be} shifted against each other with a certain amount of play, but protection against contact is achieved at all times. In this way, changes in the length of a single wire holder element 10, which expands due to, for example, increased temperature or contracts at lower temperatures, can be compensated for. This is particularly important because, in contrast to the wire holder elements 10 made of plastic, the wires 6 stored therein themselves cannot make such large changes in length, since the temperature coefficient of metal is only 1/10 of the coefficient of expansion of plastic. With a length of approx. 500 mm for a single wire holder element 10, an allowable play with which the adjoining wire holder elements 10 can move against each other can thus be approx. 8 mm.

The wire holder elements 10 shown can be produced from plastic in a simple manner using the injection molding process, as a result of which they can be produced very inexpensively. Furthermore, it is sufficient to produce wire holder elements 10 in only a single length, since in order to adapt the current conducting profile formed to the different lengths of the wire rails, only the number of wire holder elements 10 used has to be adapted, which in turn significantly reduces the production outlay for the entire system. The interlocking projections and the locking elements can also be designed differently.

When using the wire holder elements just presented, it would be conceivable to first mount all of the mounting rails of a busbar system and only then to equip them with the required current-conducting profiles, contacting then being possible over the entire length of the busbar system. Usually, however, the fully assembled mounting rails are already sold, in which there is already a complete current conducting profile with the wires arranged therein.

According to the present invention, however, continuous contacting is also achieved in the connection areas between two mounting rails by using the connecting element for this purpose, which has groove-shaped recesses corresponding to the grooves of the current conducting profiles and additionally accessible from the two end faces of the connecting element. This is initially shown schematically in FIG. 7. For the mechanical connection of two adjacent support rails 1, a likewise U-shaped short connection rail 30 is used, onto which the support rails 1 to be connected are pushed from both sides. A development, not shown, ensures that two support rails 1, which are connected to one another by a connecting rail 30, are held releasably together. For this purpose, each mounting rail 1 can have one or more openings in its upper region. The connecting rail 30 is then likewise provided with corresponding openings through which spring tongues protrude. The spring tongues engage behind the openings of the mounting rail 1 as soon as the connecting rail 30 has reached the corresponding position in the mounting rail 1. In order to be able to release the mounting rail 1 and the connecting rail 30 again, only pressure has to be exerted on the spring tongues. Such a releasable connection is preferably present on both sides, which means that the connecting rail 30 has such openings with the corresponding spring tongues next to its two ends. As an alternative to a connection that can be released on both sides, however, an embodiment is also possible which has the connection just described on one side by means of spring tongues, while a conventional screw connection is provided on the other side of the connecting rail 30.

A particularly advantageous variant of this development is that the spring tongues arranged at one end of the connecting rail 30 belong to a common rail locking element which is arranged on the middle leg of the connecting rail 30, the spring tongues projecting laterally through openings in the upper region of the side walls , The rail locking element is designed so that the spring tongues are drawn into the interior of the connecting rail 30 under the action of a force from above on the element. Via an additional opening provided in the middle leg of the mounting rails 1, the rail locking element can be reached from above in a simple manner and actuated, for example, by means of a screwdriver, so that the connection can be released again by a simple handle.

The wire holder elements 10, which are not shown in FIG. 7 for reasons of clarity, are configured slightly differently in the connection area in order to take account of the connection rail 30 additionally arranged in the mounting rail 1. For example, the wire holder elements 10 have no support struts 16 in this area. To connect the current-conducting profiles, two connecting elements 31 are provided on the side legs 30a and 30b of the connecting rail 30, which have the aforementioned recesses 32 exhibit. Metal connectors are arranged within these recesses 32 and can be connected from both sides to the wires to be connected to one another. The opening shape of the recesses 32 is selected in such a way that they also meet the safety criterion of protection against accidental contact. For a connection to the connecting elements 31, the wire holder elements adjacent to the connecting elements 31 are also modified at their ends.

In the example shown, identical connecting elements 31, each with six recesses 32, are arranged on both sides of the connecting rail 30. This means that the uppermost recess 32 of the connecting element 32 arranged on the right-hand side remains free, since the corresponding side wing 10a has only five grooves 11 for holding five wires 6. Of course, however, connecting elements corresponding to the exact structure of the wire holder elements can also be used.

The more precise shape of a connecting element 31 is shown in FIG. 8. It consists of a box-shaped base part 33 which is open on the underside and into which metal connectors 35 are inserted from the underside. The recesses 32 of the base part 33 are accessible from the two end faces via funnel-shaped openings 36, wherein when a wire is inserted into a funnel-shaped opening 36, the latter is brought into connection with the metal connector 35. After the metal connectors 35 have been inserted, the base part 33 is closed by a cover plate 34 from the underside. Contacting by a light module in the area of the connecting element 31 then takes place in that the connection contacts of the contacting element are pressed against the upper side of a contacting plate 37 of the metal connector 35. At the end of the metal connector 35, this task is again taken over by the wires, so that there is no gap in which contacting is not possible.

The more detailed design of a metal connector 35 is shown in FIGS. 9a and 9b. It consists of an elongated contact plate 37, which is bent a little downward on its longitudinal sides, the function of which is to take over and transmit the electrical current from the wires. A U-shaped spring element 38, which is preferably made of a chromium-nickel alloy and is shown individually in FIG. 9b, is arranged at the ends of the contacting plate 37. The spring element 38 has an inwardly curved spring tongue 39 through which a wire inserted into the metal connector 35 is clamped and pressed sufficiently firmly with regard to the electrical contact resistance against the contacting plate 37. In this way it is also avoided that the wires at one can shift or emigrate changing thermal expansion of the current conducting profile like a pump. The side of the contacting plate 37 made of tinned copper facing away from the wires forms the contacting surface for the contacts of the contacting element. To improve the contact between the contacting plate 37 and the wires, the contacting plate 37 has a slightly curved or triangular depression 43 on its underside.

The spring elements 38 are attached to the ends of the contacting plate 37 by means of recesses 40 located on the side walls of the spring elements 38, into which projections 41 of the contacting plate 37 engage. A stable arrangement of the metal connector 35 in the connecting element 31 is further supported by the fact that pins 42 made of plastic are arranged on the cover plate 34 and press against the contacting plates 37 of the metal connector 35 from the underside after the cover plate 34 has been put on. Since the pins 42 also engage in lateral recesses 43 in the downwardly bent longitudinal sides of the contacting plates 37, lateral displacement of the metal connectors 35 is also prevented at the same time. In addition, the pins 42 also represent a barrier which limits the migration of the wires. The connecting element shown here closes the gap between the wire holder elements of the current-conducting profiles, so that it is possible to assemble busbars 1 that have already been fitted with continuously contactable current-conducting profiles, wherein contact can also be made in the connection areas.

The use of this connecting element is not limited to the example shown with the wire holder elements. For example, the connecting element shown in FIGS. 7 to 9b can also be used for their connection in the light-band system mentioned at the outset, in which the current-conducting profiles are produced in one piece and are in one piece.

As an alternative to the aforementioned use of an adapted rotary handle for the power supply, a power connection element that can be connected to the end face of a mounting rail and interacts with the metal connectors can be provided, by means of which the wires of the power rail system are connected to the power lines.

Finally, the more precise structure and the mode of operation of the contacting element designed as a rotary handle 50 will be explained with reference to FIGS. 1 and 10. 10 shows the rotary handle 50 with a cover rail 5 arranged on its underside in a perspective view. essential Part of the rotary handle 50 are the contacts 53 and 54 which are arranged on the outside of the cylindrical base body 61 and which are height-adjustable for optional contacting of the different wires 6. A further, but not freely selectable but predetermined contact to ground is provided by the wire element 62. This wire element 62 is guided in a slot 63 provided on the base body 61, one end 62a of the wire element 62 being fixed in a clamping manner by its shape in the cover rail 5 of the lamp module. The other end 62b protrudes laterally at the level of the ground wire. Furthermore, the rotary handle 50 has two laterally projecting locking elements 52 in its lower region.

The contacting of the wires 6 of the current conducting profile takes place in that the rotary handle 50 connected to a lighting module is inserted into the lower opening of the mounting rail 1. As can be seen in FIG. 1, the cylindrical base body 61 is of different heights, the horizontal leg 14 arranged only on the right side of the mounting rail 1 preventing the contacting element 50 from being inserted into the mounting rail 1 in the opposite direction.

After insertion of the rotary handle 50, it is rotated by approximately 45 °, as a result of which the laterally arranged locking elements 52 engage in inwardly projecting parts of the mounting rail 1 or the current conducting profile and thus ensure mechanical fastening of the lamp module. At the same time, the

Contacts 53 and 54 are screwed into the grooves 11 of the wire holder elements 10, so that the desired electrical contact is achieved. As previously mentioned, some or all of the contacts may be height adjustable, as shown in the illustration

Example takes place in that the carrier element 55 of the contact 53 within

Guide rails 56 and 57 is vertically displaceable. The carrier element 55 and the cylindrical base body 61 with the guide rails 56 and 57 are designed in such a way that the carrier element 55 can easily snap into the positions corresponding to the wires 6, which facilitates precise positioning of the contact 53.

The slot 63 forms an eccentric stop for the wire element 62 and causes the end 62b of the wire element 62 to be pressed onto the lower left wire 6 provided for earthing during the turning of the rotary handle 50. In this way, an earthing is produced between the metallic cover rail 5, which is part of the lamp module, and the metallic mounting rail 1. For this it is necessary that the wire element 62 has a certain strength, which is why it is preferably made of a galvanized steel wire or a CrNi wire.

The cover rail 5 arranged on the underside of the rotary handle closes the mounting rail 1 downward, which at the same time prevents the ingress of dust. In the area of the contacting element 50, the cover rail 5 has an elongated slot into which the rotary toggle 58 can be inserted upwards in the locking position, so that it is flush with the cover rail 5 at the bottom. In this way, a complete closure of the mounting rail 1 is achieved.

The cover rail 5 is also used in places where no lamp modules are arranged. In the case of attaching a lamp module, however, the cover rail 5 is also the holder for all elements of the lamp module, e.g. the ballast or ballasts are arranged on top of the cover rail 5 and thus protrude into the interior of the U-shaped mounting rail. The rotary handle 50 presented enables the wires to be contacted in a simple manner and the luminaire module to be mechanically fastened in the busbar system. In particular in the case of the solution presented, in which free contacting is made possible over the entire length of the busbar system, use of the rotary handle 50 shown is advantageous since it can be used particularly flexibly and can be removed again.

The present invention thus specifies a very powerful busbar system, which for the first time offers the possibility of completely free contacting and arrangement of the luminaire modules. The result of this is that the individual luminaire modules no longer have to be adapted to specific lengths in order to find a suitable arrangement within the busbar system. enable. The application is not limited to the illustrated example of a U-shaped busbar. For example, the wire holder elements can also be used in busbars with other profiles, for example A-profiles or Y-profiles. This also applies in the same way to the connecting element presented. Furthermore, the manufacturing costs can be significantly reduced, since the wire holder elements can be manufactured in a much simpler and faster manner than is the case with the known current conducting profiles. In addition, the present invention offers a possibility of circumventing the problems which arise in connection with temperature differences, which cause a change in length and displacement of the plastic parts.

Claims

Expectations

1. Conductor rail system for luminaires with a plurality of support rails (1) which can be connected to one another in a modular manner, and a current-conducting profile held by the support rails (1), which has grooves (11) running in the longitudinal direction of the support rails (1) and accessible from a contacting side for receiving wires (6 ) for the power supply and / or transmission of control signals, characterized in that a connecting element (31) is provided for connecting the current conducting profiles of two adjacent mounting rails (1), which has groove-like recesses (32) corresponding to the grooves (11) of the current leading profiles , into each of which a metal connector (35) is inserted, to which the wires (6) to be arranged and connected to one another in the grooves (11) of the current conducting profiles can be connected from both sides.

2. Busbar system according to claim 1, characterized in that the metal connectors (35) consist of an elongated contacting plate (37), at the ends of which a U-shaped spring element (38) for clamping the wires to be connected to the metal connector (35) (6 ) is arranged.

3. Conductor rail system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the support rail (1) is U-shaped, a current conducting profile being arranged on the inner sides of the two side walls (3a, 3b) of the support rail (1).

4. Busbar system according to claim 3, characterized in that it has a U-shaped connecting rail (30) for connecting two mounting rails (1), which engages in both mounting rails (1) inside and on their side legs (30a, 30b) each have a connecting element (31) is arranged.

5. Busbar system according to claim 4, characterized in that the connecting rail (30) has spring tongues which engage in the assembled state in the support rails (1) and in the connecting rail (30) provided openings.

6. Busbar system according to claim 5, characterized in that the at one end of a connecting rail (30) arranged spring tongues are part of a rail locking element, which is designed such that the spring tongues under the action of a force from above on the rail locking element in the Inside of the connecting rail (30) are drawn

7. Busbar system according to one of claims 3 to 6, characterized in that the interior of the U-shaped mounting rail (1) serves as a receiving space for control gear for the lamps and for corresponding Kontaktieruπgselemente.

8. Busbar system according to one of claims 3 to 7, characterized in that it has a contacting element (50) with a plurality of connection contacts (53, 54) for connecting a lamp to the busbar system, which can be inserted into the opening of the mounting rail (1) and partially can be rotated in order to introduce connection contacts (53, 54) into the grooves (11) of the current conducting profile and to bring them into abutment against the wires (6) to be contacted.

9. Busbar system according to claim 8, characterized in that at least one of the connection contacts (53) is adjustable in height.

10. Conductor rail system according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that by rotating the contacting element (50) located locking elements (52) engage behind protruding parts of the mounting rail (1).

11. Busbar system according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the current-conducting profile held by a mounting rail (1) consists of at least two wire holder elements (10, 10], 10 ₂ ) which are joined together and which provide the grooves (11) for receiving the wires (6 ), wherein the wire holder elements (10, 10, 10 ₂ ) overlap when joined together with projections (17, 22) located at their ends so that they overlap in the connection area corresponding to the grooves (11) and open to the contacting side channels (23) form.

12. Busbar system according to claim 11, characterized in that the wire holder elements (10, lOj, 10 ₂ ) have locking elements (18, 19 which have a relative longitudinal movement of two wire holder elements (10, 10 ,, 10 ₂ ) attached to one another to a predetermined movement limit.

13. Connecting element for connecting current conducting profiles to a current rail system for lights, the current conducting profiles having grooves (11) running in the longitudinal direction and accessible from a contacting side for receiving wires (6) for di (power supply and / or transmission of control signals, characterized in that that the connecting element (31) has groove-shaped recesses (32) corresponding to the grooves (11) of the current conducting profiles, into each of which a metal connector (35) is inserted in such a way that the wires (to be arranged and to be connected in the grooves (11) of the current conducting profiles) 6) can be connected from both sides.

14. Connecting element according to claim 13, characterized in that the metal connectors (35) consist of an elongated contacting plate (37), at the ends of which a U-shaped spring element (38) for clamping the wires to be connected to the metal connector (35) (6 ) is arranged.