An extensible breakout module

Abstract

The utility model provides a kind of scalable distribution module, including insulating shell and its inside conductor, shell is equipped with incoming line through-hole, outgoing line through-hole, and conductor is equipped with corresponding incoming line blind hole, outgoing line blind hole and locking screw.The application is inserted into the expansion slot of adjacent module insulating shell by U-shaped conductive strip, and with internal conductor detachable connection, realize the electrical expansion between module, to flexibly superimpose the outgoing port of multiple modules.In addition, the operating hole bottom of dust cover is coaxially provided with guide cylinder, which can effectively prevent the locking screw from falling into the shell interior when fully unscrewed and being difficult to retrieve.The utility model solves the problem of fixed and non-expandable port of traditional distribution module and the problem of easy falling and difficult to retrieve of locking screw, and has the advantages of flexible expansion, convenient installation, high maintenance efficiency and good safety.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of electrical engineering, particularly to power transmission and distribution technology, and especially to a circuit breaker branching module, specifically an expandable branching module. Background Technology

[0002] In fields such as industrial control, power distribution, and building automation, distribution modules, as a basic electrical connection element, are widely used to distribute one or more input power sources or signals to multiple outputs, thereby enabling centralized power supply and control of multiple electrical devices or components. Traditional distribution modules typically use an integrated insulating housing containing conductive elements. The housing has a fixed number of inlet and outlet through-holes, and electrical connections are achieved by crimping wires with locking screws.

[0003] However, as system scale increases and flexibility requirements rise, the limitations of existing branching modules are becoming increasingly apparent, exhibiting the following drawbacks:

[0004] 1. The existing splitter modules have a fixed number of ports, which cannot be flexibly increased according to on-site needs. When more output ports are needed, new independent splitter modules must be installed and connected via external wires, resulting in a bloated system, cumbersome wiring, increased costs, and excessive installation space usage.

[0005] 2. During wiring or maintenance, once the locking screw is completely unscrewed from the threaded hole, it can easily fall into the complex space inside the insulating housing, making it difficult to retrieve quickly, reducing operational efficiency, and potentially causing safety risks. Utility Model Content

[0006] The purpose of this utility model is to provide an expandable branching module, which solves the technical problems in the prior art of difficulty in increasing the number of ports and the locking screw falling into the insulating housing.

[0007] This utility model provides an expandable branching module, including an insulating shell and a conductor, the conductor being disposed within the insulating shell; the insulating shell has at least one inlet through hole on its front side and at least two outlet through holes on its rear side; the conductor has blind inlet holes on its front side corresponding to the number and position of the inlet through holes, and blind outlet holes on its rear side corresponding to the number and position of the outlet through holes; the top of the conductor has threaded holes radially arranged in each of the blind inlet and blind outlet holes, and each threaded hole contains a locking screw, including... A conductive strip, which is U-shaped, is provided on the front or rear side of the insulating housing. One end of the conductive strip is inserted into the expansion slot of a branching module and detachably connected to its conductor. The other end of the conductive strip is inserted into the expansion slot of another branching module and detachably connected to its conductor. A dust cover is hinged to the top opening of the insulating housing. The dust cover has operating holes corresponding to the number and position of the locking screws. A track groove is provided at the bottom of the insulating housing, and the track groove engages with an external mounting track.

[0008] Furthermore, each end of the conductive strip has a mounting hole; any of the locking screws passes through the mounting hole at the corresponding end and is threadedly connected to the conductive body.

[0009] Furthermore, the locking screw connected to the mounting hole is a flat-head screw.

[0010] Furthermore, fenders are provided on both sides of the bottom of the insulating shell, and at least one through hole is provided on the fender.

[0011] Furthermore, each of the arbitrary number of operating holes has a guide cylinder coaxially arranged at its bottom. The top of the guide cylinder is fixedly connected to the dust cover, the bottom of the guide cylinder is close to the conductor, and the inner diameter of the guide cylinder is greater than or equal to the diameter of the operating hole.

[0012] Furthermore, the insulating housing has a protrusion on one side along the axial direction of the track groove and a groove on the other side, and the protrusion and the groove are matched and engaged.

[0013] Furthermore, a clip is inserted into the bottom of the insulating housing along one radial side of the track groove, and the clip abuts against the edge of the mounting track.

[0014] Furthermore, a test hole is provided on the top of the dust cover.

[0015] Furthermore, the portion of the conductive strip located outside the insulating shell is covered with insulating material.

[0016] Furthermore, the number of inlet through holes is two, and the number of outlet through holes is five.

[0017] Compared with existing technologies, the advantages of this invention are positive and obvious:

[0018] 1. This utility model achieves convenient and reliable connection between branch modules by setting a U-shaped conductive strip and an expansion slot on the insulating shell. Users can directly couple two or more branch modules electrically and structurally without the need for external jumpers, thereby increasing the number of their respective output ports. This modular design greatly improves the system's flexibility and scalability, enabling rapid configuration according to actual needs, saving installation space and costs, and making wiring neater and more standardized.

[0019] 2. This utility model uses a guide cylinder to create a protective channel that extends directly from the outside to the top of the conductive threaded hole. Even if the locking screw is accidentally unscrewed completely during operation, the screw will be confined within the guide cylinder and will not fall into hard-to-reach gaps inside the housing. This design fundamentally solves the problem of lost screws, significantly improves the efficiency and safety of wiring and maintenance operations, and enhances the user experience and reliability of the product. Attached Figure Description

[0020] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of Embodiment 1 of this utility model.

[0021] Figure 2 An exploded view of the structure of Embodiment 1 of this utility model.

[0022] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the conductive strip connection in Embodiment 1 of this utility model.

[0023] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the installation of the conductive strip in Embodiment 1 of this utility model.

[0024] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the structure of Embodiment 2 of this utility model.

[0025] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the structure of Embodiment 3 of this utility model.

[0026] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the structure of Embodiment 4 of this utility model.

[0027] In the diagram: 1. Insulating housing; 101. Inlet through hole; 102. Outlet through hole; 103. Expansion slot; 104. Fender; 105. Through hole; 2. Conductor; 201. Inlet blind hole; 202. Outlet blind hole; 203. Threaded hole; 3. Dust cover; 301. Operating hole; 302. Buckle; 303. Guide tube; 304. Test hole; 4. Track groove; 5. Raised strip; 6. Groove; 7. Locking screw; 8. Conductive strip; 801. Mounting hole; 9. Clip; 10. Mounting track. Detailed Implementation

[0028] The following embodiments will further illustrate the present invention, but are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0029] Example 1

[0030] like Figures 1 to 4 As shown, this embodiment provides an expandable branching module, including an insulating housing 1 and a conductor 2.

[0031] The conductor 2 is fixedly installed inside the insulating housing 1 and is typically made of a highly conductive metal such as copper. The front wall of the insulating housing 1 has at least one inlet hole 101 for introducing power or signal lines; the rear wall of the insulating housing 1 has at least two outlet holes 102 for connecting multi-channel distributed wires. Corresponding to the number and position of the inlet holes 101, the front side of the conductor 2 has inlet blind holes 201, and corresponding to the number and position of the outlet holes 102, the rear side has outlet blind holes 202. The top of the conductor 2 has threaded holes 203 radially arranged in each of the inlet blind holes 201 and outlet blind holes 202. Each threaded hole 203 contains a locking screw 7; tightening the locking screw 7 secures the wire inserted into the slot, achieving a reliable electrical connection.

[0032] The system includes a conductive strip 8 for electrical expansion between modules. The conductive strip 8 is preferably U-shaped, allowing it to flexibly bridge two adjacent branch modules. An expansion slot 103 is provided on the front or rear side of the insulating housing 1, the shape of which matches the cross-sectional shape of the insertion end of the conductive strip 8. During expansion connection, one end of the conductive strip 8 is inserted into the expansion slot 103 of one branch module, achieving a detachable electrical connection with its internal conductor 2. Simultaneously, the other end of the conductive strip 8 is inserted into the expansion slot 103 of another branch module, achieving a detachable electrical connection with its internal conductor 2, thereby paralleling the circuits of the two modules and multiplying the number of output ports.

[0033] The conductive strip 8 and the conductive body 2 are detachably connected as follows: each end of the conductive strip 8 has a mounting hole 801. During connection, any locking screw 7 passes through the mounting hole 801 at the corresponding end and then is threaded into the threaded hole 203 on the conductive body 2. This method utilizes the existing locking screws 7 to complete the fixing and electrical connection of the conductive strip 8, eliminating the need for additional fasteners, resulting in a simple structure and reliable connection.

[0034] Furthermore, the locking screw 7 connected to the mounting hole 801 is preferably a flat-head screw. Using a flat-head screw allows its head to better press against the conductive strip 8, resulting in a tighter fit between the conductive strip 8 and the conductive body 2.

[0035] A dust cover 3 is hinged to the top opening of the insulating housing 1 via a hinge structure to prevent dust and foreign objects from entering the housing and affecting electrical safety; it can be easily opened for maintenance. The end of the dust cover 3 away from the hinge is secured to the top edge of the insulating housing 1 by a snap-fit ​​302. The dust cover 3 has operating holes 301 corresponding to the number and position of the locking screws 7, allowing operators to use screwdrivers or other tools to operate the locking screws 7 inside the housing through these operating holes 301.

[0036] The bottom of the insulating housing 1 is provided with a track groove 4. The cross-sectional shape of the track groove 4 matches the external standard mounting rail 10, such as a DIN rail, so that the branch module can be directly snapped onto the mounting rail 10 through the track groove 4, making installation and disassembly convenient.

[0037] A clip 9 is inserted into the bottom of the insulating housing 1 along one radial side of the track groove 4. After the branch module is inserted into the mounting track 10, this clip 9 can be inserted into the reserved slot at the bottom of the housing, so that one elastic arm of the clip 9 abuts against the edge of the mounting track 10. This effectively prevents the branch module from accidentally sliding or coming out along the track direction, improving the reliability of the installation.

[0038] The insulating housing 1 has a raised strip 5 on one side along the axial direction of the track groove 4, and a groove 6 on the other side. When multiple branch modules are installed side by side, the raised strip 5 of one module can match and engage with the groove 6 of its adjacent module. This design achieves mechanical interlocking between modules, ensuring that multiple modules are neatly arranged and firmly connected on the mounting track 10, and that relative displacement is not easily caused.

[0039] In this embodiment, the number of inlet through-holes 101 is set to two, and the number of outlet through-holes 102 is set to five, thus forming a standard two-in-five-out branch module basic model. By connecting two such modules through conductive strips 8, it can be quickly expanded into a two-in-ten-out branch system.

[0040] Specific usage instructions:

[0041] When expanding the capacity of the branch module, first install two independent branch modules side by side on a DIN rail, aligning the protrusions 5 and grooves 6 on their sides. Then, align the mounting holes 801 at both ends of the U-shaped conductive strip 8 with the pre-drilled locking screw holes 7 on the conductors 2 of the two modules. Next, use a flat-head screw to pass through the mounting holes 801 from the outside of the conductive strip 8 and screw it into the corresponding threaded holes 203 on the conductor 2 and tighten it. In this way, the circuits of the two branch modules are connected in parallel by the conductive strip 8. At this time, the power cord can be connected through the two inlet holes 101 of either module, and output can be obtained from the ten outlet holes 102 of the two modules, realizing flexible expansion from two inlets and five outlets to two inlets and ten outlets.

[0042] Example 2

[0043] like Figure 5 As shown, this embodiment is an optimized and improved version of the preferred solution of the structure in Embodiment 1, which addresses the problem of preventing the locking screw 7 from falling off.

[0044] Each of any number of operating holes 301 has a guide cylinder 303 coaxially mounted at its bottom. The top of the guide cylinder 303 is fixedly connected to the inner surface of the dust cover 3, and the bottom of the guide cylinder 303 extends downward, approaching the surface of the conductor 2 but leaving an appropriate gap to avoid interference. The inner diameter of the guide cylinder 303 is greater than or equal to the diameter of the operating hole 301 to ensure that tools such as screwdrivers can pass through without obstruction.

[0045] When the operator loosens the locking screw 7, even if the screw is completely unscrewed from the threaded hole 203, it will be confined within the internal cavity of the guide cylinder 303 and will not fall into the complex gaps inside the insulating housing 1. The operator can easily insert a screwdriver into the guide cylinder 303 to re-adsorb or remove the fallen screw, greatly facilitating installation and maintenance.

[0046] Example 3

[0047] like Figure 6 As shown, this embodiment adds another installation method to the preferred solution of the structure in Embodiment 1.

[0048] Fenders 104 extend outward from both sides of the bottom of the insulating housing 1. Each fender 104 has at least one through hole 105. When the user does not wish to or cannot use DIN rail mounting, the distribution module can be directly fixed to the cabinet, panel wall or other supporting surface by passing screws, bolts or other fasteners through the through holes 105 on the fender 104, providing more diverse installation options and enhancing the applicability of the product.

[0049] Example 4

[0050] like Figure 7 As shown, in this embodiment, an online testing function is added to the branching module in a preferred embodiment of the structure.

[0051] A test hole 304 is provided on the top of the dust cover 3. This test hole 304 is located above the conductor 2. Through this test hole 304, operators can use multimeter probes or oscilloscope probes to directly contact the measurement point of the conductor 2 without opening the dust cover 3 or disconnecting any wires, and quickly test the voltage, continuity, and other properties of the circuit, thereby improving the efficiency of maintenance and diagnosis.

[0052] Example 5

[0053] This embodiment improves the safety of the conductive strip 8 by adopting the preferred solution of the structure in Embodiment 1.

[0054] The portion of the conductive strip 8 located outside the insulating housing 1 is wrapped with insulating material, such as heat-shrink tubing or an insulating sheath. This insulates and isolates the exposed conductive parts, preventing the risk of electric shock due to accidental touch, and also avoids the risk of short circuits between the conductive strip 8 and other components during dense wiring, thus improving the safety of the entire expansion connection process.

[0055] In the description of this utility model, it should be understood that the terms "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," "left," "right," "top," "bottom," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicating orientation or positional relationships, are based on the orientation or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of the present invention. Although the present utility model has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some of the technical features; and these modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present utility model.

Claims

1. An expandable branching module, comprising an insulating housing (1) and a conductor (2), wherein the conductor (2) is disposed within the insulating housing (1); the insulating housing (1) has at least one inlet through hole (101) on its front side and at least two outlet through holes (102) on its rear side; the conductor (2) has blind inlet holes (201) on its front side corresponding to the number and position of the inlet through holes (101), and blind outlet holes (202) on its rear side corresponding to the number and position of the outlet through holes (102); the top of the conductor (2) has threaded holes (203) in the radial direction of each of the blind inlet holes (201) and the blind outlet holes (202), and each of the threaded holes (203) is provided with a locking screw (7), characterized in that: Includes a conductive strip (8), which is U-shaped; the front or rear side of the insulating housing (1) is provided with an expansion slot (103); one end of the conductive strip (8) is inserted into the expansion slot (103) of a splitter module and is detachably connected to its conductor (2); the other end of the conductive strip (8) is inserted into the expansion slot (103) of another splitter module and is detachably connected to its conductor (2). A dust cover (3) is hinged to the top opening of the insulating housing (1), and the dust cover (3) has operating holes (301) corresponding to the number and position of the locking screws (7). The bottom of the insulating housing (1) is provided with a track groove (4), which is engaged with the external mounting track (10).

2. The scalable splitter module according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each end of the conductive strip (8) has a mounting hole (801); any of the locking screws (7) passes through the mounting hole (801) at the corresponding end and is threadedly connected to the conductor (2).

3. The scalable splitter module according to claim 2, characterized in that: The locking screw (7) connected to the mounting hole (801) is a flat-head screw.

4. The scalable splitter module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The insulating housing (1) has fenders (104) on both sides of its bottom, and at least one through hole (105) is provided on the fenders (104).

5. The scalable splitter module according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of any number of the operation holes (301) has a guide cylinder (303) coaxially arranged at its bottom. The top of the guide cylinder (303) is fixedly connected to the dust cover (3), and the bottom of the guide cylinder (303) is close to the conductor (2). The inner diameter of the guide cylinder (303) is greater than or equal to the diameter of the operation hole (301).

6. The scalable splitter module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The insulating housing (1) has a protrusion (5) on one side along the axial direction of the track groove (4) and a groove (6) on the other side, wherein the protrusion (5) and the groove (6) are matched and engaged.

7. The scalable splitter module according to claim 1, characterized in that: A clip (9) is inserted into the bottom of the insulating housing (1) along the radial side of the track groove (4), and the clip (9) abuts against the edge of the mounting track (10).

8. The scalable splitter module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The dust cover (3) has a test hole (304) on its top.

9. The scalable splitter module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The portion of the conductive strip (8) located outside the insulating shell (1) is covered with insulating material.

10. A scalable splitter module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The number of inlet through holes (101) is two, and the number of outlet through holes (102) is five.

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