A smart energy meter spring contact terminal

Abstract

This utility model provides a smart energy meter spring-loaded terminal, belonging to the field of connection devices. The smart energy meter spring-loaded terminal includes a welding plate, an elastic arm, and an arc-shaped bent portion connecting the welding plate and the elastic arm. The elastic arm has a contact portion protruding away from the welding plate for pressing against a contact conductor on an electronic device. The key feature is that a support portion is provided at the end of the elastic arm away from the bent portion. The distance between the support portion and the welding plate is greater than or equal to 0, and less than or equal to the displacement distance of the contact portion during the pressing contact with the contact conductor, so that the support portion can abut against the welding plate after the contact portion makes pressing contact with the contact conductor on the electronic device. The smart energy meter spring-loaded terminal of this utility model can maintain effective conductivity with the contact conductor even in a vibrating environment, and is less prone to poor contact.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model belongs to the field of connection devices, and in particular relates to a spring terminal for a smart energy meter. Background Technology

[0002] In smart meters, spring terminals are typically mounted on printed circuit boards by soldering. The main function of the spring terminals is to make contact with the contact conductors on other electronic devices, thereby enabling the printed circuit board to conduct electricity to the electronic device.

[0003] The background art of Chinese utility model patent with authorization announcement number CN201789118U discloses a typical spring contact terminal. The spring contact terminal includes a strip-shaped welding plate for soldering to a printed circuit board. One end of the welding plate is bent upward to form an arc-shaped bend. The end of the bend extends parallel to the welding plate to form an elastic arm. A contact portion is bent on the elastic arm. The other end of the welding plate is bent upward and then bent inward on both sides to form a stop for upper limit of the elastic arm. The end of the elastic arm away from the bend is bent to form a hook portion that can hook onto the lower side of the stop portion.

[0004] During use, the contact part on the elastic arm can press against the contact conductor on other electronic devices. However, in a vibrating environment, the elastic arm is prone to swinging up and down under the influence of vibration, which causes the contact part to temporarily separate from the contact conductor, resulting in poor contact. Utility Model Content

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide a spring-loaded terminal for a smart energy meter, so as to solve the technical problem that the spring-loaded terminal is prone to poor contact with the contact conductors of other electronic devices in a vibrating environment.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution for the smart energy meter spring terminal provided by this utility model is as follows:

[0007] A smart energy meter spring terminal includes a welding plate, an elastic arm, and an arc-shaped bent portion connecting the welding plate and the elastic arm. The elastic arm has a contact portion that protrudes away from the welding plate for pressing against a contact conductor on an electronic device. A support portion is provided at the end of the elastic arm away from the bent portion. The distance between the support portion and the welding plate is greater than or equal to 0 and less than or equal to the displacement distance of the contact portion during the pressing contact with the contact conductor, so that the support portion can be in tight contact with the welding plate after the contact portion presses against the contact conductor on the electronic device.

[0008] As a further improvement, the contact portion includes a short inclined plate and a long inclined plate connected together and arranged at an angle, with the ends of the short and long inclined plates extending obliquely to both sides respectively, and the end of the long inclined plate away from the short inclined plate being lower than the end of the short inclined plate away from the long inclined plate, and the support portion being located at the end of the long inclined plate away from the short inclined plate.

[0009] As a further improvement, the short inclined plane has the same degree of inclination as the long inclined plane.

[0010] As a further improvement, a slot is provided at the end of the welding plate away from the bend, and the portion of the welding plate located on both sides of the slot is used to contact the support.

[0011] As a further improvement, the support is formed by bending the end of the elastic arm away from the bending part, and the support is parallel to the welding plate.

[0012] As a further improvement, the bent portion at the root of the support is an arc-shaped bent structure.

[0013] As a further improvement, guide plates are provided on both sides of the welding plate by vertical bending, and a section of the elastic arm is located between the two guide plates. The guide plates are used to guide the elastic arm during the contact part and the contact conductor pressing together.

[0014] As a further improvement, the elastic arm includes a parallel mating portion located between the contact portion and the bending portion, the parallel mating portion extending parallel to the welding plate, and at least one guide plate having an inwardly bent limiting plate at one end away from the welding plate, the limiting plate being located on the side of the parallel mating portion away from the welding plate and used to limit the parallel mating portion.

[0015] As a further improvement, at least one guide plate is provided with an inwardly bent limiting plate at one end away from the welding plate. The limiting plate is located on the side of the long inclined plate away from the welding plate and is used to limit the long inclined plate.

[0016] As a further improvement, the thickness direction of the limiting plate is perpendicular to the thickness direction of the welding plate.

[0017] The beneficial effects are as follows: The smart energy meter spring-loaded terminal provided by this utility model is an improvement on the existing technology. This smart energy meter spring-loaded terminal has a support portion at the end of the elastic arm that can abut against the welding plate. In this way, during use, the end of the elastic arm can be supported by the welding plate on its lower side, and the upper side of the elastic arm is also supported by abutting against the contact conductor. This makes the elastic arm less prone to swinging under vibration, and thus less likely to detach from the contact conductor, resulting in poor contact. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of one embodiment of the spring contact terminal of the smart energy meter in this utility model;

[0019] Figure 2 This is a side view of one embodiment of the spring-loaded terminal of the smart energy meter in this utility model;

[0020] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram showing the state of the smart energy meter spring contact terminal installed on the printed circuit board in one embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0022] 1. Printed circuit board; 2. Welding board; 3. Flexible arm; 31. Parallel mating part; 32. Short inclined plate; 33. Long inclined plate; 34. Support part; 35. Arc-shaped bending structure; 4. Bending part; 5. Slotting; 6. Guide plate; 7. Top side limiting plate; 8. Inclined side limiting plate. Detailed Implementation

[0023] The present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the embodiments.

[0024] Specific Embodiment 1 of the smart energy meter spring terminal provided by this utility model:

[0025] See appendix Figure 1 and attached Figure 2 The smart energy meter spring terminal is formed by stamping and bending a single piece of thin metal sheet, including a welding plate 2, an elastic arm 3, and an arc-shaped bent portion 4 connecting the welding plate 2 and the elastic arm 3.

[0026] Welding plate 2 has a long strip structure, see appendix. Figure 3 The lower side of the soldering plate 2 can be soldered onto the printed circuit board 1 via SMT surface mount technology. The bent portion 4 is located at one end along the length of the soldering plate 2, and the bent portion 4 is bent upward so that the elastic arm 3 is located above the soldering plate 2.

[0027] See appendix Figure 1 The elastic arm 3 includes a parallel mating part 31, a contact part, and a support part 34 arranged sequentially along the direction away from the bending part 4. The parallel mating part 31 extends parallel to the welding plate 2, the contact part protrudes in the direction away from the welding plate 2, and the support part 34 can contact the upper side of the welding plate 2, thereby supporting the end of the elastic arm 3.

[0028] The contact portion includes two inclined plates arranged at an angle, the joint of which allows for pressure contact with a contact conductor on the electronic device. The two inclined plates extend in opposite directions from their joint position, with the same degree of inclination. However, the two inclined plates differ in length: the shorter inclined plate is called the short inclined plate 32, and the longer inclined plate is called the long inclined plate 33. The end of the short inclined plate 32 furthest from the long inclined plate 33 engages with the parallel mating portion 31, and the end of the long inclined plate 33 furthest from the short inclined plate 32 engages with the support portion 34.

[0029] Support 34 is a plate-shaped structure parallel to welding plate 2 and parallel mating part 31, see appendix. Figure 2 Furthermore, the support portion 34 is located above the welding plate 2 and below the parallel mating portion 31, with a certain distance between the support portion 34 and the welding plate 2 and the parallel mating portion 31 in the vertical direction. The connection position between the support portion 34 and the long inclined plate 33 is an arc-shaped bending structure 35 formed by bending.

[0030] See appendix Figure 3 In use, the smart energy meter's spring-loaded terminals are welded and fixed in groups on the printed circuit board 1. Other electronic devices that need to be electrically connected to the printed circuit board 1 are plugged into the printed circuit board 1 through a plug-in structure. The contact conductors on the electronic devices are pressed against the corresponding smart energy meter spring-loaded terminals to achieve circuit conduction.

[0031] Specifically, the contact conductor and the tip of the contact portion (that is, the junction of the short inclined plate 32 and the long inclined plate 33) make contact with each other. Under the pressure of the contact conductor, the tip of the contact portion moves downward a certain distance. The downward movement of the tip of the contact portion causes the elastic arm 3 to undergo elastic deformation, and elastic force is stored in the elastic arm 3, thereby maintaining a certain pressure between the contact portion and the contact conductor.

[0032] In this embodiment, the distance between the support portion 34 and the welding plate 2 is greater than or equal to 0, and less than or equal to the displacement distance of the contact portion during the pressing and engagement of the contact portion and the contact conductor. This ensures that the support portion 34 can make tight contact with the welding plate 2 when the contact portion presses against the contact conductor on the electronic device. In other words, after the electronic device and the printed circuit board 1 complete the conductive connection, the support portion 34 of the elastic arm 3 can be supported on the welding plate 2, so that the end of the elastic arm 3 is no longer in a cantilevered state. The welding plate 2 can provide a certain supporting reaction force to the support portion 34, so that the elastic arm 3 is not easy to swing in a vibration environment, and therefore it is not easy for the contact portion of the smart energy meter spring terminal to detach from the contact conductor.

[0033] When the distance between the support 34 and the welding plate 2 is less than the displacement distance of the contact part during the pressing and engagement of the contact part and the contact conductor, during the pressing and engagement of the elastic arm 3 and the contact conductor on the electronic device, after the support 34 abuts against the welding plate 2, the top of the contact part continues to move downward, causing the long inclined plate 33 and the short inclined plate 32 of the contact part to be pushed apart to both sides, while the support 34 slides away from the bending part 4. After the long inclined plate 33 and the short inclined plate 32 are pushed apart, a reaction force will appear on the elastic arm 3 against the contact conductor, thereby further pressing the elastic arm 3 against the contact conductor and the welding plate 2, preventing the contact part from separating from the contact conductor.

[0034] A slot 5 is provided at the end of the welding plate 2 away from the bent portion 4. The direction of the slot 5 is the same as the sliding direction of the support portion 34. The extension direction of the portion of the welding plate 2 located on both sides of the slot 5 is the same as the sliding direction of the support portion 34. The area where the support portion 34 slides on the welding plate 2 corresponds to the portion of the welding plate 2 located on both sides of the slot 5. After the slot 5 is provided, the area on the welding plate 2 used for sliding cooperation with the support portion 34 is reduced, which can reduce the sliding friction and improve the smoothness of sliding between the support portion 34 and the welding plate 2.

[0035] The support portion 34 is configured as a plate-like structure parallel to the welding plate 2 to ensure stable and reliable contact between the elastic arm 3 and the welding plate 2. In other embodiments, the support portion 34 may not be provided; for example, the end of the long inclined plate 33 can be used as the support portion 34, allowing the end of the long inclined plate 33 to directly contact the welding plate 2. An arc-shaped bending structure 35 is provided at the junction of the support portion 34 and the long inclined plate 33 to facilitate sliding cooperation between the support portion 34 and the welding plate 2. In other embodiments, the arc-shaped bending structure 35 may not be provided at the junction of the support portion 34 and the long inclined plate 33; for example, the bending angle may be sharper.

[0036] Guide plates 6 are vertically bent on both sides of the welding plate 2 in the width direction. A section of the elastic arm 3 is located between the two guide plates 6. The guide plates 6 can constrain and guide the elastic arm 3 in the vertical direction to prevent the elastic arm 3 from deviating. Due to certain processing errors, the bent part 4 of some smart energy meter spring terminals may have bending deviation. During use, the elastic arm 3 is easily pressed off. The guide plates 6 can prevent this phenomenon from occurring.

[0037] Two limiting plates are provided on the top of one of the guide plates 6, both of which are bent inwards towards the guide plate 6. One limiting plate is located above the parallel mating part 31 and is used to limit the upward movement of the parallel mating part 31; this limiting plate is the top limiting plate 7. The other limiting plate is located diagonally above the long inclined plate 33 and is used to limit the upward movement of the long inclined plate 33; this limiting plate is the oblique limiting plate 8.

[0038] After the smart energy meter spring-loaded terminals are manufactured, there is a certain pre-pressure between the parallel mating part 31 and the top side limiting plate 7, and there is a certain pre-pressure between the long inclined plate 33 and the inclined side limiting plate 8. Since the elastic arm 3 undergoes multiple bends during processing, and the deformation of the metal sheet during bending and the degree of springback after bending have certain deviations, using the limiting plate to limit the elastic arm 3 and maintain a certain pre-pressure can ensure that the shape of each smart energy meter spring-loaded terminal is consistent, which is conducive to realizing automated surface mount welding.

[0039] In this embodiment, the thickness direction of the inclined side limiting plate 8 is perpendicular to the thickness direction of the welding plate 2, which can make the size of the inclined side limiting plate 8 in the length direction of the welding plate 2 smaller, while ensuring that the inclined side limiting plate 8 is not easily deformed in the vertical direction.

[0040] In other embodiments, if the size of the inclined side limiting plate is large, the inclined side limiting plate can also be parallel to the welding plate.

[0041] In other embodiments, either the inclined side limiting plate or the top side limiting plate can be provided, and either one can also serve to limit the elastic arm.

[0042] In other implementations, if manual welding is used, the limiting plate may not be required.

[0043] In other implementations, if the machining accuracy and quality are good, the guide plate may not be required.

[0044] In other embodiments, the lengths of the two inclined plates of the contact portion can be equal, but since the support portion is positioned lower, a vertical plate for transitional connection can be provided between the contact portion and the support portion in this embodiment.

[0045] Finally, it should be noted that the above description is only a preferred embodiment of this utility model and is not intended to limit this utility model. Although this utility model has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art can still make modifications to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments without creative effort, or make equivalent substitutions for some of the technical features. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this utility model should be included within the protection scope of this utility model.

Claims

1. A spring-loaded terminal for a smart energy meter, comprising a welding plate, an elastic arm, and an arc-shaped bent portion connecting the welding plate and the elastic arm, wherein the elastic arm has a contact portion protruding away from the welding plate for pressing against a contact conductor on an electronic device, characterized in that, The end of the elastic arm away from the bending part is provided with a support part. The distance between the support part and the welding plate is greater than or equal to 0, and less than or equal to the displacement distance of the contact part during the pressing and engagement of the contact part and the contact conductor, so that the support part can be in tight contact with the welding plate after the contact part is pressed and contacted with the contact conductor on the electronic device.

2. The smart meter lug terminal of claim 1, wherein, The contact portion includes a short inclined plate and a long inclined plate connected together and arranged at an angle. The ends of the short and long inclined plates that are far apart from each other extend obliquely to both sides, and the end of the long inclined plate that is far away from the short inclined plate is lower than the end of the short inclined plate that is far away from the long inclined plate. The support portion is located at the end of the long inclined plate that is far away from the short inclined plate.

3. The smart meter lug terminal of claim 2, wherein, The short inclined plane has the same degree of inclination as the long inclined plane.

4. The smart meter lug terminal of any one of claims 1-3, wherein, A groove is provided at the end of the welding plate away from the bend, and the portions of the welding plate located on both sides of the groove are used to contact the support.

5. The smart meter lug terminal of any one of claims 1-3, wherein the lug terminal further comprises a plurality of fasteners. The support is formed by bending the end of the elastic arm away from the bending part, and the support is parallel to the welding plate.

6. The smart energy meter spring contact terminal according to claim 5, characterized in that, The bent portion at the root of the support is an arc-shaped bent structure.

7. The smart meter lug terminal of any one of claims 1-3, wherein the lug terminal further comprises a plurality of fasteners. The welding plate is vertically bent on both sides and has guide plates. A section of the elastic arm is located between the two guide plates. The guide plates are used to guide the elastic arm during the contact part and the contact conductor are pressed together.

8. The smart meter jumpers of claim 7, wherein, The elastic arm includes a parallel mating portion located between the contact portion and the bending portion, the parallel mating portion extending parallel to the welding plate, and at least one guide plate having an inwardly bent limiting plate at one end away from the welding plate, the limiting plate being located on the side of the parallel mating portion away from the welding plate and used to limit the parallel mating portion.

9. The smart meter jumpers of claim 7, wherein, At least one guide plate has an inwardly bent limiting plate at one end away from the welding plate. The limiting plate is located on the side of the long inclined plate away from the welding plate and is used to limit the long inclined plate.

10. The smart meter snap terminal of claim 9, wherein, The thickness direction of the limiting plate is perpendicular to the thickness direction of the welding plate.

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