Device for removing plugs

Abstract

Device for reducing the withdrawal force for releasing a plug from a coupling, characterized in that a sleeve (5) with an internal thread structure (9) and an external thread structure (10) are arranged coaxially around the housing upper part (2) of the plug (1).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to an innovative technical modification of a CEE plug to enable withdrawal from a coupling in such a way that the plug can be released from the coupling with little force and / or with one arm.

[0002] CEE plugs and couplings are common elements for connecting electrical cables or electrical devices to the power grid, preferably with a connected load greater than or equal to 16 amperes. The coupling can be fixed or, like the plug, on the cable side. To create a secure contact, the plug is pressed into the coupling by hand. The connection is therefore force-locked and positive-locked. To secure the connection, a locking element is arranged on the coupling, which, once the plug is pressed in, is operatively connected to a retaining element of the plug. This operative connection must be broken during the release process, and only then can the plug be removed from the coupling. This is done by pulling on the housing of the plug, which requires a great deal of force.To break the operative connection, two-handed operation is generally required. This involves deactivating the safety device between the coupling and plug with one hand and simultaneously applying the counterforce to pull the plug out of the coupling with this hand, with the plug being pulled out with the other hand. This requires an enormous amount of force. Once the required pull-out force has been reached, the separation occurs suddenly, and there is a risk that this can often lead to injuries to the palms of the hands. In order to overcome or reduce the pull-out force, after the safety connection has been released, loosening movements with the plug are superimposed in addition to the pull-out force on the plug. This risks damaging the plug connection.Rigid wall mounting of the coupling can result in damage to the connection and the coupling's fastening being torn out. Since removing the plug requires considerable force and two hands, physically impaired personnel are unable to perform the separation.

[0003] The prior art already offers solutions which aim to reduce the extraction force. An innovative relevant technical solution for eliminating the known disadvantages of the CEE connection could not be found in the literature. DE 10 2014 011 011 A1 protects a device which is intended to make it easier to extract the plug from a coupling using technical means according to the invention. According to the invention, one or more cylinders are arranged axially in the housing cover of the plug in such a way that they are operatively connected to a spring. When the plug is inserted into the coupling, the axial movement of the plug preloads this spring and the plastic cylinder is locked.This locking mechanism is released manually, preferably by means of a provided pulling device, and the arranged plastic cylinder(s) press against the coupling and, thanks to the pre-tensioned spring, support the force required to release the plug / coupling connection. This application is particularly intended for applications where, due to the design, access to the coupling connection is difficult. A further disadvantage is that the plastic cylinder, when activated, acts eccentrically on the axial displacement required of the plug when releasing it from the coupling. This creates clamping forces that counteract any easier release. The implementation of the inventive concept is only applicable to low-voltage connections. Furthermore, the technical effort required to realize the inventive concept is considerable, and industrial implementation is not economical.Likewise, a transfer of the presented inventive ideas to a coupling connection for power current, according to ICE 60309, is not given and is not applicable to the realization of the task underlying this invention.

[0004] Numerous patents on circular plug-in devices have been published in the literature, e.g., AT000000265400B; DE000019604546C2, which specifically address the fastening of the insulating bases and the fastening of the contact elements. Relevant documents on reducing the release forces required to remove the plug from the coupling could not be identified.

[0005] The invention is based on the object of creating a device with which it is possible, in the case of circular plug-in devices, preferably in accordance with DIN 49462 / 63, to pull out a plug from a coupling with minimal technical effort in such a way that the force required for this is noticeably minimized and the separation of the coupling / plug can, if necessary, be carried out with only one hand.

[0006] According to the invention, this object is achieved in that a sleeve is arranged coaxially between the upper and lower parts of the plug, preferably on the upper part of the housing, in such a way that it can rotate such that radial rotation of this sleeve causes an axial linear displacement of this sleeve relative to the upper part of the housing in such a way that the pressure surface of the sleeve is pressed against the pressure surface of the coupling and, in connection with this, causes an axial displacement of the plug relative to the coupling, which leads to a release of the coupling connection. To reduce the frictional forces between the pressure surfaces, it can be advantageous to apply a PTFE coating to these friction surfaces or to arrange a PTFE ring. The plug itself preferably consists of two functional parts connected by a detachable connection, a lower and an upper housing part.The lower housing section serves to cover the current-carrying contacts, particularly to protect them, and also as a guide element for inserting the plug into the coupling. The upper housing section houses the necessary electrical components. To technically implement the inventive concept, the axial displacement of the sleeve is achieved via a spiral thread arrangement, preferably a trapezoidal thread, arranged between the upper housing section and the sleeve. An external thread structure is arranged in the upper housing section and an internal thread structure is arranged in the inner circumference of the sleeve. Due to the thread pitch, an axial displacement of the sleeve in the desired release direction then occurs by rotating the sleeve relative to the upper housing section.After the plug / coupling are brought together in the functional position, the cap arranged on the coupling snaps into the holding device of the plug and thus secures the plug / coupling connection. The design of the collar of the sleeve serves as a holding device on the plug in such a way that the protective cap snaps securely into place. In a further advantageous embodiment of the inventive concept, the axial displacement of the sleeve can be achieved by arranging guide pins in the circumferential region of the sleeve which are in operative connection with a spiral groove arranged on the outer circumference of the upper housing part or by the sleeve being in operative connection with the upper housing part of the plug via a threaded arrangement.

[0007] The main field of application of the inventive device is the connection of cables in the high-voltage range, in particular for mobile technical devices and systems.

[0008] The device according to the invention will be explained in more detail below using an exemplary embodiment. This shows: Fig. 1: The schematic representation of the device Fig. 2: A schematic representation of another possible design for guiding the sleeve 5 Fig. 3: A schematic representation of another possible design for guiding the sleeve 5 Fig. 4: A schematic representation of the holding device

[0009] In Fig. 1 shows the device according to the invention with its main elements. The housing 1 of the plug is constructed in two parts, and the upper housing part 2 is preferably connected to the lower housing part 3 via a detachable connection 12. The required contact elements 8 are arranged in the lower housing part 3. A sleeve 5 is arranged coaxially around the upper housing part 2. After the plug 1 has been brought together with the coupling 4, the sleeve 5 is in its axial position such that the locking between the plug 1 and the coupling 4 takes place in the end position of the plug 1 in such a way that the holding device 11 is brought into operative connection with the collar 19 of the sleeve 5 via the protective cap 18 and engages ( Fig. 4). This creates a safeguard between the protective cap 18 of the coupling 4 and the plug 1 via the sleeve 5 to prevent the plug 1 from being pulled out of the coupling 4. To generate the axial displacement of the sleeve 5 arranged according to the invention, a spiral thread structure, preferably a trapezoidal thread, 9; 10 is arranged between the upper housing part 2 and the inner contour of the sleeve 5, with an external thread structure 10 being arranged in the upper housing part 2 and an internal thread structure 10 being arranged in the inner circumference of the sleeve 4. Both thread structures 9; 10 are thus operatively connected such that, due to the thread pitch, an axial displacement of the sleeve 5 in the desired release direction occurs through radial rotation of the sleeve 5 relative to the upper housing part 2. This movement causes the pressure surface 6 of the sleeve 5 to be pressed against the pressure surface 7 present on the coupling side.The resulting counterforce leads to the desired axial displacement of the plug 1 relative to the coupling 4, thus causing the plug 1 to disengage from the coupling 4. To reduce the surface friction generated between the pressure surface 6 and the pressure surface 7 during the disengagement process, a PTFE coating can be applied to one or both of the pressure surfaces. Furthermore, a sliding ring 17, preferably made of Teflon, can be arranged between the pressure surfaces 6 and 7.

[0010] In Fig. 2. A further advantageous embodiment of the inventive concept is presented. Here, the axial displacement of the sleeve 5 is achieved by arranging guide pins 14 in the circumferential region of the sleeve 5, which are operatively connected to a guide groove 13 extending spirally on the outer circumference of the upper housing part 2.

[0011] Fig. Figure 3 shows a further advantageous embodiment of the inventive concept. Guideways 16 are arranged spirally, preferably recessed, in the interior of the sleeve 5 and / or in the exterior of the upper housing part 2. To implement the rotational movement of the sleeve 5 relative to the upper housing part 2, guideways 16 are arranged within these spirally shaped guideways for receiving guide elements 15, preferably spherical ones.

[0012] Fig. 4 shows the schematic arrangement of the operative connection between protective cap 18 and the upper housing part 2 for securing the connection between plug 1 and coupling 4. The collar 19 of the sleeve 5 is designed such that it is operatively connected to the protective cap 18 and snaps into place over the collar 19 under spring load. List of reference symbols 1 housing 2 Upper housing part 3 Lower housing part 4 Clutch 5 sleeve 6 Pressure surface on the sleeve 7 Pressure surface on the clutch side 8 contact elements 9 Internal thread structure 10 External thread structure 11 Holding device 12 Detachable connection 13 Guide groove 14 guide bolts 15 guide elements 16 guideway 17 sliding ring 18 Protective cap 19 Bund QUOTES CONTAINED IN THE DESCRIPTION

[0000] This list of documents submitted by the applicant was generated automatically and is included solely for the convenience of the reader. This list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA assumes no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature

[0000] DE 10 2014 011 011 A1

[0003] AT 000000265400B

[0004] DE 000019604546C2

[0004]

Claims

[1] Device for reducing the extraction force for releasing a plug from a coupling, characterized by that a sleeve (5) with an internal thread structure (9) is arranged coaxially around the upper housing part (2) of the plug (1) and an external thread structure (10) is arranged on the upper housing part (2). [2] Device according to claim 1, characterized by that one or more guide bolts (14) are arranged spirally on the upper housing part (2) of the plug (1) and a guide groove (13) is arranged spirally in the inner area of ​​the sleeve (5), [3] Device according to claim 1 and 2, characterized by that the axial displacement of the sleeve (5) is achieved by arranging spiral guideways (16) in a recessed manner in the inner region of the sleeve (5) and / or in the outer region of the upper housing part (2). [4] Device according to claims 1 to 3, characterized by that one end face of the sleeve (5) is designed as a pressure surface (6). [5] Device according to claims 1 to 4, characterized by that a sliding ring, preferably made of Teflon, is arranged between the pressure surfaces (6) and (7). [6] Device according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized by that a collar (19) of the sleeve (5) is arranged as a counter-holder to secure the protective cap (18). [7] Device according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized by that 5 guideways 13 are arranged spirally in the circumferential area of ​​the sleeve and 2 guide pins 14 are arranged spirally in the area of ​​the outer circumference of the upper housing part. [8] Device according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized by that in the inner region of the sleeve 5 and / or in the outer region of the upper housing part 2, guide tracks 16 and guide elements 15 are arranged in a spiral shape, preferably in a recessed manner.

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