WO2021160473A1

WO2021160473A1 - Stacked flat cable

Info

Publication number: WO2021160473A1
Application number: PCT/EP2021/052424
Authority: WO
Inventors: Martin Greiner; Matthias Pieper; Christian Kühn
Original assignee: Kromberg & Schubert GmbH Cable & Wire
Priority date: 2020-02-13
Filing date: 2021-02-02
Publication date: 2021-08-19
Also published as: DE102020103811A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and a flat cable (1) consisting of an outer electrical insulation (10) and at least one electrical conductor structure (20) introduced inside the insulation, the conductor structure (20) consisting of a stack of a plurality of thin metal layers (21) packed one above the other.

Description

STACKED FLAT CABLE

Description:

The invention relates to a shielded flat cable in compacted Ausfüh tion and a method for producing such a shielded flat cable. Technical background

Electrical contact devices are known from the prior art, which in particular have a compacted section of an electrical connector, preferably an electrical line, for use in the medium or high current range or high voltage range, as well as a method for producing such an electrically conductive connection partner z. B. for a supply and / or distribution of electrical energy. However, many of the known line systems have disadvantages, such as insufficient current carrying capacity, lack of flexibility or high production costs.

In the electrical field, especially in the automotive field for vehicle applications, a large number of electrical connectors or connection partners are known which are used to transmit electrical currents and voltages in the medium or high current and / or voltage range. High-voltage applications in the context of the present invention are those voltages that are no longer considered safe-to-touch voltages in the context of international standards.

In particular, such connecting lines, e.g. B. for a supply and / or distribution of electrical energy in warm, possibly hot, contaminated, humid and / or chemically aggressive environments short-term and / or permanent guarantee a flawless transmission of electrical power and flexible from a confectioner can be ned. Due to a wide range of applications, a large number of the most varied of connectors is known in the automotive and also in the industrial sector.

Such electrical lines or cable harnesses are sometimes laid along complex geometries in the vehicle and must therefore be flexible, require little space and also withstand high mechanical and thermal loads. Space-saving solutions are flat cables.

According to the terminology of the cable and wire industry, a distinction is made between round cables and flat cables, with round cables being an Have a substantially round or almost round cross-section, while flat cables have a substantially flat, in particular rectangular, cross-section in which the width of the line is significantly greater than the thickness of the line. Flat cables in the context of the present invention are also those cables in which the width of the line is significantly greater than the thickness of the line.

The EMC conditions in automobiles represent a further challenge. Additional shielding devices are necessary in order to meet the required EMC conditions.

A special embodiment of lines are the flat lines known from the prior art. There are various developments to achieve different properties and characteristics.

From JP 2003-223817 A, for example, a flat cable is known that has no rectangular or at least two parallel surfaces be bordered, but has round lines. The material protrusions provided are distributed irregularly in relation to the lines. In each case, a thickening located between two adjacent lines is not ausgebil det. The same applies to the embodiment of a flat cable according to JP09-288913 A.

Another embodiment of a flat cable is known from EP 1263000 A1, the jacket of which is extruded from special materials. A thickening formed between two flat conductors is viewed as an undesirable effect during extrusion, which should be avoided as far as possible. Well-known plastics are used for the jacket, which have appropriate insulation properties and strength properties. In general, it should be noted that flat conductors made of metal or correspondingly The selected alloys can also be present in the flat cable with or without additional sheathing.

If known designs are also conducive to a certain extent to the flexibility of the flat cable, however, flat cables are sometimes exposed to stresses during their use which exceed the existing strength properties. This is particularly important for the section or area of the flat cable in which the flat cable is formed on or attached to a connection or connecting component. Flat cables are also used to make contact with moving components, for example with the lighting bars of copiers or for the power supply of rotating components, for example fittings or airbags attached to a steering wheel of a motor vehicle, whereby the connected end the flat cable must follow the rotation of the steering wheel.

In some cases, there are also solutions on the market for braided flat metal lines that, for. B. can be used as a battery or ground connection. However, these solutions are expensive to manufacture and have other disadvantages and are therefore also not available as a yard goods for a confectionary.

In addition, no customizable solutions, especially those available by the meter (on the roll or a cable drum), which are suitable for the transmission of high power, are sufficiently flexible and pliable and inexpensive to manufacture and currently applicable EMC requirements are available suffice.

These objects are achieved by the combination of features according to claim 1. According to the invention, a flat cable with a special conceptual design is proposed, the flat cable for this purpose consisting of an external electrical insulation and at least one electrical conductor structure introduced within the insulation, the conductor structure consisting of a stack of a plurality of thin metallic layers packed one above the other .

In a particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention it is provided that the conductor structure is formed from a number of at least five, preferably at least ten layers. The number in the invention is not limited to this. According to the invention, the at least five or at least ten layers can of course also differ from this resulting number of layers. In particular, it is provided that a specific orientation of the rolled, in particular metallic, copper sheets is selected so that the properties of the sheets are used in a particularly suitable way to optimize the flexibility of the flat cable. In a likewise advantageous embodiment of the invention, it is provided that the respective metallic layers are therefore designed as thin sheet metal strips or sheet metal strips which extend along the direction of extent of the entire flat cable. By using sheet metal strips and sheet metal strips of the appropriate length, a flat cable can therefore be designed as a meter product and not just short connec tion elements are produced.

In other words, it is possible in this way to produce goods by the meter or roll in the desired length as a semi-finished product, so that a cable manufacturer can use a new type of cable, in particular a high-voltage cable, for power Transfer is available as cut-to-length goods.

It is particularly advantageous if the respective metallic layers are formed from the same material or, alternatively, from different materials. Through suitable and clever material combinations, in particular through clever packing of the stacked layers, specific properties of the flat cable according to the invention can be realized. B. certain layers of particularly conductive material, such as. B. copper and copper alloys are made, while other layers are made of materials with other special specific properties, so that one through the selected material mix and in particular through the selected material thicknesses, i. H. Tape thicknesses, a large number of flat cable variants can be produced. A preferred conception of the invention provides that the metallic layers are introduced into the insulation as layers compacted in the thickness direction of the flat cable. Due to the compaction and in particular the properties of a compacting device, specific packings and packing densities can therefore be produced. Another embodiment of the invention, which is also preferred, provides that the flat cable has several electrical conductor structures separated from one another by the insulation, in particular arranged next to one another in the width direction of the flat cable, of which at least one, several or all of a stack of a plurality Thin metallic layers packed one on top of the other. In this way, a specific ribbon cable can be produced.

To this end, it can be provided in an advantageous manner that the flat cable has a greater thickness in the areas in which a conductor structure is provided than in the intermediate sections, namely between two in each case Conductor structures that run directly with one another and consist of such metallic layers, the intermediate sections being in particular each designed as a flat web section. In this way, a ribbon cable is obtained that can be manufactured particularly cost-effectively and is suitable for use in high-voltage applications.

Another embodiment according to the invention provides that a braided shield formed along the direction of extent is arranged around the one or more conductor structures within the insulation of the jacket. This enables a shielded flat cable to be implemented.

Yet another aspect of the present invention relates not only to the flat cable as such, but also to the method for producing such a flat cable. The method is characterized in that the following method steps are provided: a) Production of a conductor structure, designed as a stack from a plurality of thin metallic layers packed one above the other, in particular from thin metal sheets or metal strips. b) compacting the conductor structure before introducing it into an extruder and c) enveloping the compacted conductor structure with electrical insulation, preferably in an extruder.

In a particularly advantageous embodiment of the method according to the invention, it is provided that in step a) the metal strips are unwound from reels of a stacking unit and brought together to form a stack, in which several of the metal strips are each stacked on top of one another and are positioned relative to one another by a lateral guide. which, in order to obtain the desired conductor structure and in particular to carry out step b) in the stacked arrangement, are then fed to a compacting unit by performing the compacting step. In a particularly advantageous embodiment, the process steps take place in parallel, so to speak, in a system technology in which the strips are guided along the production direction and the individual stations are arranged in series one behind the other. Other advantageous developments of the invention are characterized in the subclaims or are shown in more detail below together with the description of the preferred embodiment of the invention with reference to the figures.

Show it

1 shows a first embodiment of the invention; Fig. 2 shows a second embodiment of the invention; 3 shows a third embodiment of the invention; 4 shows a fourth embodiment of the invention; Fig. 5 shows a fifth embodiment of the invention; 6 shows a sixth embodiment of the invention; 7 shows a seventh embodiment of the invention; 8 shows an eighth embodiment of the invention;

9 shows a ninth embodiment of the invention. In the following, the invention is explained with reference to FIGS. 1 to 9 explained in more detail, the same reference numerals indicating the same structural and / or functional features of the invention.

In FIGS. 1 to 4 different configurations of flat cables 1 are shown, all of which have an essentially rectangular cross section and an outer jacket 40 and electrical insulation 10 into which an electrical conductor structure 20 is introduced. A braided shield 30 is also introduced between the electrical insulation 10 and the outer jacket 40. The four embodiments differ essentially in the arrangement and characteristics of the geometric shape and in particular the cross-sectional shape of the braided shield 30. The electrical conductor structure 20 is each exemplarily formed on five layers 21, namely made of metallic layers 21 that are stacked one on top of the other. However, any number of technically producible thin metallic layers can be packed into a stack in order to produce said conductor structure 20.

In the exemplary embodiments according to FIGS. 5 and 6 show flat cables 1 in each of which two electrical conductor structures 20 are arranged next to one another in an insulation 10 in the width direction. The electrical conductor structures 20 are here similar to the exemplary embodiments according to FIGS. 1 to 4 from a stack of a plurality of thin metallic layers packed one on top of the other. With this configuration, there is a so-called reinforced and double insulation in the width direction between the conductor structures 20 within the flat cable, formed by the insulation 10. Around the two conductor structures 20 and around the respective insulation 10 is a common shielding braid 30 arranged. The braided shield 30 is in turn surrounded by a common outer jacket 40.

In the embodiment of FIG. 6 it can be seen that indentations or recesses 41 are provided along the outer jacket 40 at the position between the two electrical conductor structures 20 surrounded by insulation.

In the embodiment according to FIG. 7, a web line according to the invention is formed. This embodiment of the flat cable 1 is essentially made up of a combination of FIGS. 1 to 4 shown embodiments, which in turn are connected to one another via a web 11 as an inter mediate section. In the embodiments according to FIGS. 8 and 9, the electrical conductor structures 20 are stacked one on top of the other in the thickness direction, but are electrically isolated from one another. In the embodiment according to FIG. 8, the two electrical conductor structures 20 have a common insulation 10. While in the embodiment according to FIG. 9 it can be seen that each of the two conductor structures 20 forms its own insulation 10, which, however, lie flat against one another at their point of contact. A braided shield 30 is in turn formed in each of the two electrical conductor structures 20 stacked on top of one another, and an outer jacket 40 is formed around the braided shield 30.

The implementation of the invention is not restricted to the preferred exemplary embodiments specified above. Rather, a number of variants are conceivable which make use of the solution shown even in the case of fundamentally different designs.

Claims

Expectations

1. Flat cable (1) consisting of an outer electrical insulation (10) and at least one electrical conductor structure (20) introduced within the insulation, the conductor structure (20) consisting of a stack of a plurality of thin metallic layers (21) packed one on top of the other consists.

2. Flat cable (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the conductor structure (20) is formed from a number of at least 5, preferably at least 10 layers (21).

3. Flat cable (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the respective metallic layers (21) are designed as thin sheet metal strips which extend along the direction of extension of the entire flat cable GE.

4. Flat cable (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the respective metallic layers (21) are formed from the same material or from different metallic materials.

5. Flat cable (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the metallic layers (21) are introduced into the insulation (10) as layers compacted in the thickness direction (D).

6. Flat cable (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the flat cable (1) has several conductor structures (20) which are electrically separated from one another by the insulation (10), in particular in the width direction (B) of the flat cable of which at least one, several or al- ! e, each consists of a stack of a plurality of thin metallic layers (21) packed one on top of the other.

7. flat cable (1) according to claim 6, characterized in that the flat cable (1) in the areas in which a conductor structure (20) is provided, has a greater thickness, as cut in the Zwischenab (11) between two immediately next to each other ver running conductor structures (20), wherein the intermediate sections (11) are each designed in particular as a flat web section.

8. Flat cable (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a shielding braid (30) formed along the extension direction is arranged around the one or more Lei terstructures (20) within the insulation (20) and around the braided shield around an outer jacket (40).

9. A method for producing a flat cable (1) according to one of the preceding claims with the following process steps:

- Production of a conductor structure (20) of a stack from a plurality of thin metallic layers (21) packed one above the other, in particular from thin metal sheets or metal strips;

- Compacting the conductor structure (20) before introducing it into an extruder;

Enveloping the compacted conductor structure (20) with electrical insulation (10) in an extruder. .

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that in step a) metal strips from reels of a stacking unit are supplied to who, in which several of the metal strips are stacked on top of one another and thereby positioned to one another by a lateral guide and, in particular, to carry out step b) in the stacked arrangement of a compacting unit.