Electrical device
By using the contact spring of the contact element in an electrical device to achieve conductive connection with the plane contact area of the circuit board, the problem of alignment between the contact element and the circuit board is solved, and the connection reliability is improved and manufacturing complexity is reduced.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202422384812.2
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2024-09-27
- Publication Date
- 2025-08-12
- Estimated Expiration
- 2034-09-27
AI Technical Summary
In the prior art, it is difficult to accurately align the plug holes of the contact elements and the circuit board in the electrical equipment, resulting in manufacturing or assembly errors, and the contact elements bear huge shear stress, affecting the reliability of the conductive connection.
A contact spring is provided with a second connection part of the contact element, and a plane contact area is provided on the surface of the circuit board. The contact spring contacts the circuit board under pre-pressure force, eliminating the need for plug-in holes, and a reliable conductive connection is achieved through the contact spring.
There is no need to accurately locate the contact elements and plug-in holes, avoid the risk of misalignment, ensure reliable conductive connection between the contact elements and the circuit board, and reduce manufacturing difficulty and shear stress.
Smart Images
Figure CN223218488U_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of electrical equipment. Background Art
[0002] Electrical equipment typically contains circuit boards and various electrical components. For the electrical equipment to operate properly, it is often necessary to electrically connect the electrical components to the circuit board. For this purpose, contact elements are often used, one end of which is electrically connected to the electrical component, and the other end of which is electrically connected to the circuit board. To electrically connect the contact elements to the circuit board, in the prior art, plug holes are typically provided in the circuit board, where the crimping ends of the contact elements are press-fitted into the plug holes of the circuit board. This requires precise alignment of the contact elements with the corresponding plug holes of the circuit board, placing high demands on manufacturing or assembly accuracy.
[0003] However, due to inevitable manufacturing or assembly errors, it is usually impossible to ensure that the contact element is precisely aligned with the corresponding plug-in hole of the circuit board, resulting in either an inability to insert the crimping end of the contact element into the corresponding plug-in hole of the circuit board. Even if the crimping end of the contact element can be inserted into the corresponding plug-in hole of the circuit board, the contact element will be subjected to a huge shear stress, which is disadvantageous. Utility Model Content
[0004] The present application provides an electrical device comprising: a housing; an electrical component disposed within the housing; a circuit board disposed within the housing; and a conductive contact element, wherein the contact element comprises a main body, a first connection portion located on one side of the main body, and a second connection portion located on the other side of the main body, the contact element being conductively connected to the electrical component via the first connection portion. The second connection portion of the contact element is provided with a contact spring, and a surface of the circuit board facing the contact element comprises a planar contact area, with an end of the contact spring facing the circuit board resting against the contact area under a preload force.
[0005] By providing a contact spring on the second connection portion of the contact element, it is possible to eliminate the need for a plug hole in the circuit board. Instead, a planar contact area can be provided on the surface of the circuit board, against which the contact spring can abut to achieve an electrically conductive connection with the circuit board. This eliminates the need for precise positioning of the contact element relative to the circuit board, particularly relative to the plug hole that would otherwise be provided in the circuit board, thus avoiding the risk of misalignment between the contact element and the plug hole that would otherwise be provided in the circuit board. Despite the elimination of the plug hole, a reliable electrically conductive connection between the contact element and the circuit board can still be achieved by pre-compressing the contact spring in the assembled state.
[0006] Optionally, the contact spring is a coil spring and the second connecting portion is configured as a guide rod, and the contact spring is sleeved onto the second connecting portion of the contact element, thereby making it easy to position and install the contact spring on the contact element.
[0007] Optionally, the main body or the second connecting portion of the contact element has a positioning hole, into which the end of the contact spring facing away from the circuit board is snapped, thereby securing the position of the contact spring relative to the contact element and improving the conductive connection between the contact element and the circuit board.
[0008] Additionally or alternatively, the second connection portion of the contact element has an external thread, and the contact spring is screwed onto the external thread of the second connection portion. In this way, the fixing stability of the contact spring on the contact element can be further improved.
[0009] Additionally or alternatively, the contact spring is secured to the body and / or second connecting portion of the contact element by welding. A weld spot with a diameter of 1 mm is sufficient to stably secure the contact spring to the contact element. When the contact spring is secured to the body and / or second connecting portion of the contact element by welding, there is no need to provide a locating hole in the body or second connecting portion of the contact element and / or to provide an external thread on the second connecting portion. This simplifies the manufacture of the contact element.
[0010] Optionally, the coil spring has a spring wire diameter of 0.2 mm to 1.0 mm. When the spring wire diameter of the coil spring is greater than or equal to 0.2 mm, a sufficiently small contact resistance (eg, less than 100 mΩ) can be provided between the coil spring and the contact area of the circuit board.
[0011] Optionally, the contact spring is integrally constructed with the contact element, whereby the contact spring constitutes the second connection portion of the contact element or constitutes a part of the second connection portion of the contact element. This simplifies the manufacture of the contact element and the contact spring and reduces costs.
[0012] Optionally, the first connecting portion of the contact element is configured in a fork shape and has a first leg and a second leg, and the contact terminal of the electrical component is clamped in a gap between the first leg and the second leg.
[0013] Optionally, the housing has a mounting hole for the contact element, and the outer side of the first connecting portion of the contact element has barbs, so that when the contact element is inserted into the mounting hole, the gap between the first leg and the second leg is reduced. In this way, the contact terminal of the electrical component can be firmly clamped between the first leg and the second leg of the first connecting portion, thereby ensuring a good conductive connection between the contact element and the electrical component.
[0014] Optionally, the contact element or the mounting hole has a limiting structure for limiting the insertion depth of the contact element in the mounting hole.
[0015] Optionally, the electrical device is an airbag controller, and the electrical element is a capacitor for providing energy for airbag ignition, wherein the capacitor has a capacitance of 2.7 mF to 5.3 mF. It has been demonstrated that the use of the contact element in the airbag controller can provide sufficiently low contact resistance (e.g., less than 100 mΩ) between the contact element and the contact area of the circuit board. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0016] The following will further describe the embodiments of the present application in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, but those skilled in the art will appreciate that these drawings are only for the purpose of explaining the embodiments and should not be used to limit the scope of the present application.
[0017] Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of an electric device according to a first embodiment of the present application;
[0018] Figure 2 is a partially enlarged view of an electrical device according to a first embodiment of the present application;
[0019] Figure 3 is a partial schematic diagram of a contact element of an electrical device according to a first embodiment of the present application;
[0020] Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of an electric device according to a second embodiment of the present application;
[0021] Figure 5 is a partial enlarged view of an electrical device according to a second embodiment of the present application;
[0022] Figure 6 is a partial schematic diagram of a contact element of an electrical device according to a second embodiment of the present application;
[0023] Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of an electric device according to a third embodiment of the present application;
[0024] Figure 8 is a partially enlarged view of an electrical device according to a third embodiment of the present application;
[0025] Figure 9 FIG. 1 is a partial schematic diagram of a contact element of an electric device according to a third embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0026] Figure 1 A cross-sectional view of an electric device 100 according to a first embodiment of the present application is schematically shown. Figure 1 As can be seen in the figure, the electrical device 100 includes a housing 10. An electrical component 20 is arranged in the housing 10. Only one electrical component 20 is shown schematically here, but more electrical components 20 can be arranged in the housing 10 as needed. In the first embodiment shown, the electrical component 20 is a capacitor. However, the electrical component 20 is not limited to the capacitor, but can be any other form of electrical component. Here, the electrical component 20 can, for example, be snapped into the positioning structure of the housing 10, thereby fixing the electrical component 20 relative to the housing 10. In addition, a circuit board 30 is also arranged in the housing 10. The circuit board 30 can be assembled with the housing 10 in any known manner, for example, it is fixed in the housing 10 by self-tapping screws. In order to electrically connect the electrical component 20 to the circuit board 30, an electrically conductive contact element 40 is also provided in the housing 10. Here, each electrical component 20 can be provided with its own contact element 40. In Figure 1 FIG2 schematically illustrates two contact elements 40. For better understanding, the left contact element 40 is shown in a cross-sectional view. It can be seen that the contact element 40 includes a body 41, a first connection portion 42 located on one side of the body 41, and a second connection portion 43 located on the other side of the body 41. The contact element 40 is electrically conductively connected to the electrical component 20 via the first connection portion 42 and to the circuit board 30 via the second connection portion 43.
[0027] exist Figure 1As can be clearly seen in FIG, the housing 10 has a mounting hole 11 for the contact element 40. The contact element 40, in particular the first connection portion 42 of the contact element 40, can be inserted into the mounting hole 11. In addition, the contact terminal 21 of the electrical component 20 also extends into the mounting hole 11. Here, the first connection portion 42 of the contact element 40 can be configured in a fork shape and have a first leg and a second leg, whereby the contact terminal 21 of the electrical component 20 can be clamped in the gap between the first leg and the second leg. In order to reliably clamp the contact terminal 21 of the electrical component 20 in the gap between the first leg and the second leg and to prevent the contact element 40 from loosening from the mounting hole 11, a barb (not shown in the figure) can be provided on the outer side of the first connecting portion 42 of the contact element 40, so that when the contact element 40 is inserted into the mounting hole 11, the first leg and the second leg are squeezed inward by the hole wall of the mounting hole 11 and elastically deformed, so that the gap between the first leg and the second leg becomes smaller, thereby firmly clamping the contact terminal 21 of the electrical component 20 between the first leg and the second leg.
[0028] In addition, in order to limit the insertion depth of the contact element 40 in the mounting hole 11, a limiting structure (not shown) can be provided for the contact element 40 or the mounting hole 11. Here, the limiting structure can be formed by the bottom of the mounting hole 11. As an alternative, a limiting stop can be provided on the outside of the main body 41 or the first connecting portion 42 of the contact element 40. When the contact element 40 is inserted into the mounting hole 11 to a predetermined depth, the limiting stop can abut against the inner wall of the housing that defines the mounting hole 11. Of course, the limiting structure is not limited to the exemplary embodiments listed above, and any other form of limiting structure can be provided as long as it can limit the insertion depth of the contact element 40 in the mounting hole 11.
[0029] from Figure 1 As can also be seen in the figure, the second connection portion 43 of the contact element 40 is provided with a contact spring 50, and the surface of the circuit board 30 facing the contact element 40 has a planar contact area. In the assembled state, the end of the contact spring 50 facing the circuit board 30 rests on the contact area under a preload force. Therefore, the second connection portion 43 of the contact element 40 no longer directly contacts the circuit board 30, but instead directly contacts the contact spring 50, and the contact spring 50 directly contacts the circuit board 30, thereby achieving an electrically conductive connection between the contact element 40 and the circuit board 30 via the contact spring 50.
[0030] In other words, unlike the prior art, no plug holes are provided in the circuit board 30. Instead, a planar contact area can be provided on the surface of the circuit board 30 facing the contact element 40, against which the contact spring 50 can abut, thereby achieving an electrically conductive connection between the contact element 40 and the circuit board 30 via the contact spring 50. This eliminates the need for precise positioning of the contact element 40 relative to the circuit board 30, particularly relative to the plug holes that would otherwise be provided in the circuit board 30, thus avoiding the risk of misalignment between the contact element 40 and the plug holes that would otherwise be provided in the circuit board 30. Despite the omission of the plug holes, a reliable electrically conductive connection between the contact element 40 and the circuit board 30 can still be achieved by pre-stressing the contact spring 50 in the assembled state.
[0031] In order to achieve the relative positioning and fixation of the contact spring 50 on the contact element 40 , various measures can be taken.
[0032] exist Figure 1 In the first embodiment shown, the contact spring 50 is a coil spring and the second connecting portion 43 is configured as a guide rod. Thus, the contact spring 50 can be fitted onto the second connecting portion 43 of the contact element 40. This allows the contact spring 50 to be initially positioned on the contact element 40 without taking any additional measures.
[0033] Figure 2 A partially enlarged view of an electrical device 100 according to the first embodiment of the present application is shown. It can be clearly seen that the contact spring 50 is mounted on the second connection portion 43 of the contact element 40. To further position and secure the contact spring 50 on the contact element 40, the body 41 of the contact element 40 has a positioning hole 44, into which the end of the contact spring 50 facing away from the circuit board 30 can be inserted. This prevents the contact spring 50 from rotating about the second connection portion 43.
[0034] Figure 3 FIG. 1 is a partial schematic diagram of a contact element 40 of an electrical device 100 according to a first embodiment of the present application, wherein the contact spring 50 is removed, so that the positioning hole 44 provided on the body 41 of the contact element 40 can be more clearly seen.
[0035] However, as an alternative, the positioning hole 44 may be provided on the second connecting portion 43 instead of on the main body 41. The position of the positioning hole 44 may be appropriately selected based on the length relationship between the second connecting portion 43 and the contact spring 50. It should be noted that the number of positioning holes 44 is not limited to the one shown in the first embodiment; rather, the contact element 40 may be provided with multiple positioning holes 44 to accommodate contact springs 50 of different lengths.
[0036] Figure 4 A cross-sectional view of an electric device 100 according to a second embodiment of the present application is schematically shown. Figure 4 The electrical device 100 shown has Figure 1 The electrical device 100 shown has substantially the same structure, so the same Figure 1 The same reference numerals are used to denote the same components.
[0037] from Figure 4 As can be seen in FIG, the electrical device 100 also includes a housing 10. An electrical component 20 and a circuit board 30 are arranged in the housing 10. In order to electrically connect the electrical component 20 to the circuit board 30, an electrically conductive contact element 40 is further provided in the housing 10. Figure 4 , two contact elements 40 are also schematically shown. For better understanding, the left contact element 40 is also shown in a cross-sectional view. It can be seen here that the contact element 40 has a body 41, a first connection portion 42 located on one side of the body 41, and a second connection portion 43 located on the other side of the body 41. The contact element 40 is electrically conductively connected to the electrical component 20 via the first connection portion 42 and is electrically conductively connected to the circuit board 30 via the second connection portion 43.
[0038] However, with Figures 1 to 3 Unlike the first embodiment shown, Figure 4 The contact element 40 of the second embodiment shown does not have a positioning hole 44 for snapping in the end of the contact spring 50 . Figure 5 A partially enlarged view of an electrical device 100 according to a second embodiment of the present application is shown. It can be more clearly seen that, in order to position and secure the contact spring 50 relative to the contact element 40, the second connection portion 43 of the contact element 40 has an external thread 45, so that the contact spring 50 can be screwed onto the external thread 45 of the second connection portion 43.
[0039] Figure 6FIG. 1 is a partial schematic diagram of a contact element 40 of an electrical device 100 according to a second embodiment of the present application, wherein the contact spring 50 is removed so that the external thread 45 of the second connecting portion 43 of the contact element 40 can be more clearly seen.
[0040] It should be noted here that although Figure 4-6 No positioning hole 44 is provided in the second embodiment shown. However, it is not excluded that a positioning hole 44 may be provided on the main body 41 and / or the second connecting portion 43 of the contact element 40 as needed, whereby the end of the contact spring 50 can also be inserted into the positioning hole 44 to limit the screwing distance of the contact spring 50 on the external thread 45.
[0041] Figure 7 Schematically shows a cross-sectional view of an electric device 100 according to a third embodiment of the present application. Figure 7 The electrical device 100 shown has Figure 1 The electrical device 100 shown has substantially the same structure, so the same Figure 1 The same reference numerals are used to denote the same components.
[0042] from Figure 7 As can be seen in FIG, the electrical device 100 also includes a housing 10. An electrical component 20 and a circuit board 30 are arranged in the housing 10. In order to electrically connect the electrical component 20 to the circuit board 30, an electrically conductive contact element 40 is further provided in the housing 10. Figure 7 , two contact elements 40 are also schematically shown. For better understanding, the left contact element 40 is also shown in a cross-sectional view. It can be seen here that the contact element 40 has a body 41, a first connection portion 42 located on one side of the body 41, and a second connection portion 43 located on the other side of the body 41. The contact element 40 is electrically conductively connected to the electrical component 20 via the first connection portion 42 and is electrically conductively connected to the circuit board 30 via the second connection portion 43.
[0043] However, with Figures 1 to 3 Unlike the first embodiment shown, Figure 7 The contact element 40 of the third embodiment shown does not have a positioning hole 44 for snapping into the end of the contact spring 50. Figures 4 to 6 The second embodiment shown is different. Figure 7 The contact element 40 of the third embodiment shown also does not have the external thread 45 provided on the second connection portion 43. Figures 1 to 6 Compared with the first and second embodiments shown, Figure 7The contact element 40 of the electrical device 100 of the third embodiment shown has the simplest structure because no additional positioning hole 44 and external thread 45 are required.
[0044] In order to position and fix the contact spring 50 relative to the contact element 40, the contact spring 50 is fixed to the main body 41 and the second connecting portion 43 of the contact element 40 by welding. Here, a welding point 46 with a diameter of 1 mm is sufficient to stably fix the contact spring to the contact element. Figure 8 FIG2 shows an enlarged partial view of an electrical device 100 according to a third embodiment of the present application. Two welding points 46 are schematically shown. However, the number of welding points 46 is not limited to the two shown in the figure. A single welding point 46 may be sufficient to securely fix the contact spring 50 to the contact element 40. Furthermore, the provision of more welding points 46 is not excluded.
[0045] In addition, Figure 8 In the illustrated embodiment, the weld 46 fixes the contact spring 50 to both the body 41 and the second connection portion 43 of the contact element 40. However, the weld 46 may fix the contact spring 50 only to the body 41 of the contact element 40 or only to the second connection portion 43 of the contact element 40.
[0046] Figure 9 A partial schematic diagram of a contact element 40 of an electrical device 100 according to a third embodiment of the present application is shown. The contact spring 50 is removed, so that it can be more clearly seen that neither a positioning hole 44 nor an external thread 45 is provided on the contact spring 50.
[0047] It should be noted here that Figures 7 to 9 The welding fixation used in the third embodiment shown can also be used in Figures 1 to 3 The first embodiment shown and Figures 4 to 6 In the second embodiment shown, the fixing strength of the contact spring 50 on the contact element 40 is further enhanced.
[0048] exist Figures 1 to 9 In the illustrated embodiment, the contact springs 50 are all formed from coil springs. Here, the coil springs have a spring wire diameter greater than or equal to 0.2 mm. When the coil spring wire diameter is greater than or equal to 0.2 mm, sufficiently low contact resistance (e.g., less than 100 mΩ) is provided between the coil spring and the contact area of the circuit board 30. Alternatively, the coil springs have a spring wire diameter of 0.2 mm to 1.0 mm.
[0049] exist Figures 1 to 9 In the embodiment shown, the contact element 40 and the contact spring 50 are independently manufactured components and are subsequently assembled and / or fixed together by additional measures. Here, the contact element 40 can be made of a stamped sheet metal in one piece, for example.
[0050] However, as an alternative, the contact element 40 and the contact spring 50 may be integrally constructed, whereby the contact spring 50 constitutes the second connecting portion 43 of the contact element 40 or constitutes a part of the second connecting portion 43 of the contact element 40. For example, the contact spring 50 and the contact element 40 may be integrally formed from a sheet material by a stamping and bending process, thereby making it very easy to manufacture the contact element 40 and the contact spring 50 at a low cost.
[0051] Here, the electrical device 100 may be an airbag controller, and the electrical component 20 may be a capacitor for providing energy for airbag ignition, the capacitor having a capacitance of 2.7 mF to 5.3 mF. It has been demonstrated that the use of the contact element 40 in the airbag controller can provide sufficiently low contact resistance (e.g., less than 100 mΩ) between the contact element 40 and the contact area of the circuit board 30.
[0052] The above are merely exemplary embodiments of the present application. The scope of protection of the present application is not limited to the above embodiments. All technical solutions within the scope of protection of the present application are within the scope of protection of the present application. It should be noted that for those skilled in the art, certain improvements and modifications that do not depart from the principles of the present application should also be considered within the scope of protection of the present application.
Claims
1. An electrical device (100), comprising: Housing (10); an electrical component (20) disposed within the housing (10); a circuit board (30) disposed within the housing (10); as well as A conductive contact element (40), wherein the contact element (40) has a main body (41) and a first connection portion (42) located on one side of the main body (41), and the contact element (40) is conductively connected to the electrical element (20) via the first connection portion (42). It is characterized in that The contact element (40) further has a second connecting portion (43) located on the other side of the main body (41). The second connecting portion (43) of the contact element (40) is provided with a contact spring (50), and the surface of the circuit board (30) facing the contact element (40) has a planar contact area, and the end of the contact spring (50) facing the circuit board (30) rests on the contact area under a pre-tensioning force.
2. The electrical device (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that The contact spring (50) is a coil spring and the second connecting portion (43) is configured as a guide rod. The contact spring (50) is mounted on the second connecting portion (43) of the contact element (40).
3. The electrical device (100) according to claim 2, characterized in that The main body (41) or the second connecting portion (43) of the contact element (40) has a positioning hole (44), and the end of the contact spring (50) facing away from the circuit board (30) is clamped into the positioning hole (44).
4. The electrical device (100) according to claim 2, characterized in that The second connection portion (43) of the contact element (40) has an external thread (45), and the contact spring (50) is screwed onto the external thread (45) of the second connection portion (43).
5. The electrical device (100) according to claim 2, characterized in that The contact spring (50) is fixed to the main body (41) and / or the second connecting portion (43) of the contact element (40) by welding.
6. The electrical device (100) according to claim 2, characterized in that The coil spring has a spring wire diameter of 0.2 mm to 1.0 mm.
7. The electrical device (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that The contact spring (50) is constructed integrally with the contact element (40), whereby the contact spring (50) constitutes the second connection portion (43) of the contact element (40) or constitutes a part of the second connection portion (43) of the contact element (40).
8. The electrical device (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that The first connection portion (42) of the contact element (40) is fork-shaped and has a first leg and a second leg, and the contact terminal (21) of the electrical component (20) is clamped in a gap between the first leg and the second leg.
9. The electrical device (100) according to claim 8, characterized in that The housing (10) has a mounting hole (11) for the contact element (40), and the outer side of the first connecting portion (42) of the contact element (40) has barbs, so that when the contact element (40) is inserted into the mounting hole (11), the gap between the first leg and the second leg becomes smaller.
10. The electric device (100) according to claim 9, characterized in that The contact element (40) or the mounting hole (11) has a limiting structure for limiting the insertion depth of the contact element (40) in the mounting hole (11).
11. The electrical device (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that The electric device (100) is an airbag controller, and the electric component (20) is a capacitor for providing energy for igniting the airbag, wherein the capacitor has a capacitance of 2.7 mF to 5.3 mF.