Test station with a contacting device

Abstract

Test station with a contacting device (15) which serves for electrically contacting a connection arrangement of an electrical component, such as in particular one with a winding body, and is connected or connectable to a measuring device via connecting lines, characterized by that the contacting device (15) has a stationary contacting part (5) with at least one contacting element (50) and a movable contacting part (12) with at least one counter-contacting element (120) which can be automatically actuated relative to the stationary contacting part during operation to close and open a contact, wherein a connecting element (17) of the assembly is positioned between the contacting element (50) and the counter-contacting element (120) for contacting, that the movable contacting part (12) is attached to a pivoting mechanism which has a pivoting lever (9) and a pivoting section (11) rigidly connected thereto, which are pivotally mounted about a pivot axis (10), wherein the movable contacting part (12) is attached to the pivoting section (11), that the pivoting lever (9) is connected to an automatically controllable actuating unit (7) for pivoting during opening and closing and that at least one connecting line is connected to the stationary contact part (5) in order to conduct an electrical current to the measuring device.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a test station with a contacting device which serves for electrically contacting a connection arrangement of an electrical component, such as in particular one with a winding body, and which is connected or connectable to a measuring device via connecting lines.

[0002] Such a test station with a contacting device is used, as described, for example, in DE 100 60 243 A1, to check the functionality of electrical components, for example components with one or more winding bodies, such as rotors, stators, transformers, and can be integrated into a station of a more complex production plant. A carrying device for removing the component from a previous production stage, such as, for example, from an impregnation vessel with impregnating resin, is also advantageous here. Such an automatically controllable carrying device is shown in DE 10 2012 103 424 B4 and also in DE 102 41 805 B4. For contacting connection elements present on the electrical component, contacting mechanisms that can be adjusted by means of screws are known, for example (without any printed evidence), whereby the required, sometimes very high currents (of, for example,600A), but a not insignificant operating effort is involved.

[0003] DD 1 25 168 A shows a combined test device for electric motor windings with a rotary indexing table, with leads clamped to a test specimen.

[0004] In addition, spring-loaded terminal connections for inserting insulated cable ends are also known, which can be opened manually using an operating lever, as shown in DE 10 2013 101 411 A1.

[0005] The present invention is based on the object of providing a test station with a contacting device of the type mentioned above, which enables reliable contacts for testing electrical components with as little effort as possible, even in the long term.

[0006] This object is achieved with the features of claim 1. The contacting device comprises a stationary contacting part with at least one contacting element and a movable contacting part with at least one counter-contacting element that can be automatically actuated relative to the stationary contacting part during operation to close and open a contact. A connecting element of the assembly is positioned between the contacting element and the counter-contacting element for contacting. This design of the contacting device ensures long-term, reliable contacting of the respective connecting elements of the assembly, even after numerous contacting operations, while remaining simple to operate.

[0007] For the construction and reliable function, it is advantageous that at least one connecting cable is connected to the stationary contact part.

[0008] The measures that the movable contact part is attached to a pivoting mechanism which has a pivoting lever and a pivoting section rigidly connected thereto, which are pivotally mounted about a pivot axis, wherein the movable contact part is attached to the pivoting section, also contribute to an advantageous structure and reliable function.

[0009] The operation and function are also facilitated by the fact that the pivoting lever for pivoting during opening and closing is connected to an automatically controllable operating unit.

[0010] Secure contacting is further supported by the fact that the movable contacting part is attached to the pivoting section with support from a spring element, in particular a compression spring. This advantageously compensates for any tolerances within the contacting device or between connections of different components, especially when multiple connections are to be contacted simultaneously. The spring mounting also ensures reliable contacting.

[0011] The measures that the pivot lever and the pivot section enclose an angle of less than 180°, for example approximately 90°, further contribute to an advantageous mode of operation, wherein the movable contact part is arranged on the side of the pivot section facing away from the included angle.

[0012] Further advantages for the function and operation with an advantageous design result from the fact that the contacting device is attached to a support device designed to support the structural unit and is adjustable relative to the latter by means of a positioning unit.

[0013] Further advantages for the function are achieved with an advantageous design in that the contacting device can be moved automatically by means of the positioning unit into a precise contacting position of the at least one contacting element and the at least one counter-contacting element relative to at least one associated connection element of a structural unit.

[0014] The measures that contribute to reliable function are that the positioning unit has a guide unit mounted on the support device on the one hand and on the contacting device on the other.

[0015] Safe operation of the contacting device is ensured by the positioning unit being equipped with a safety catch, which prevents the contacting device from moving further once the contacting position has been reached. After the contact has been closed and released again, or after the test procedure has been completed, the contacting device is moved again accordingly. In this example, it is lifted, reloaded, and then returned to the corresponding contacting position to contact the new component.

[0016] The structure and function are further enhanced by the fact that the actuating unit for opening and closing the contacting connection or contact has an electrically or hydraulically operating drive unit which is engaged at an end section of the pivot lever remote from the pivot axis.

[0017] Further advantageous measures for operation and function consist in the fact that the carrying device is designed for the automatically controlled picking up and moving of different structural units.

[0018] The invention will be explained in more detail below using exemplary embodiments with reference to the drawings. In the drawings: Fig. 1 a section of a test station with a contacting device, an electrical unit and a support device in perspective view, Fig. 2 the contact device according to Fig. 1 in partially sectioned side view and Fig. 3 a section of the contacting device in the area of ​​a stationary contacting part and a movable contacting part.

[0019] Fig. 1 shows a test station, which can be arranged, for example, in an industrial production line, with a support device 16 that accommodates an electrical assembly 18 with at least one winding body (or winding arrangement), for example, a stator, rotor, or transformer. A contacting device 15 is mounted on the support device 16. This contacting device has contact elements 50 and mating contact elements 120 for establishing electrical contact with a connection arrangement provided on the assembly 18 with one or more connection elements 17.For this purpose, the contacting device 15 can be moved in a positionally precise manner by means of a positioning unit 1 relative to the support device 16 and thus also relative to the structural unit 18 received by the support device 16 such that the respective connection elements 17 to be contacted are positioned between the contacting elements 50 and counter-contact elements 120 located at a distance from these in the open state of the contacting device 15 in order to bring the connection elements 17 into direct, intimate electrical contact with the contacting elements 50 and the counter-contact elements 120 by subsequently closing the contacting device 15.

[0020] Fig. 3 shows an enlarged section in the area of ​​the contacting elements 50 and the counter-contacting elements 120 with the connecting elements 17 of the assembly 18 clamped between them in the electrically contacted state. Fig. 2 the electrically contacted state of the contacting device 15 with a connection element 17 can be seen.

[0021] As the Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 further show, the contacting device 15 has a pivoting mechanism with a pivoting lever arrangement pivotally mounted about a pivot axis 10, which has a pivoting lever 9 engaged by an actuating unit 7 on one side of the pivot axis 10 and a pivoting section 11 provided with one or more counter-contacting elements on the other side of the pivot axis 10. Opposite the pivoting section 11, which forms a movable contacting part 12, is a stationary contacting part 5, on which one or more contacting elements 50 are arranged and which is connected to electrical lines in order to conduct an electrical current to a testing or measuring device (not shown).The stationary contacting part 5, which is advantageously formed with stable copper rails or rails made of a similarly electrically conductive material, represents a stable abutment for the contacting and results in a defined, robust connection for the electrical lines.

[0022] The stationary contact part 5 with the contact elements 50 and the movable contact part 12 with the mating contact elements 20 form contact jaws for clamping contact with the connection elements 17. In order to compensate for any manufacturing tolerances between the clamping jaws and / or relative to the connection elements 17 and also to ensure secure contact, the mating contact elements 120 are supported on the pivoting section 11 by means of spring-elastic elements, which in the illustrated embodiment are designed as compression springs 13. The spring-elastic elements lie between the mating contact elements 120 and a stable support area of ​​the pivoting section 11, with the movable contact part 12, in turn, being pivotably mounted on the support area against the spring force of the compression spring 13.The movable contacting part 12 has an insulating body for insulating attachment to the support area and also in the connection area of ​​the compression spring 13, and is provided with one or more mutually insulated mating contact elements 120 on its contacting side associated with the respective connection element 17 during contacting. Accordingly, even if multiple contacting elements 50 are present, these or at least the mating contact elements 120 are insulated from one another.

[0023] The pivoting mechanism with the pivot lever 9 and the pivot section 11 is pivotally mounted via the pivot axis 10 on or in an insulating part 4, for example a plate-shaped part, at one end of which (front end) the stationary contacting part is attached and at the other end of which (rear end) the actuating unit 7 is mounted via further, preferably insulating connecting elements 6. The preferably plate-shaped insulating part 4 is connected by a coupling element 3 to a (lower) section of the positioning unit 1 facing the contacting device 15, which is connected by its (upper) section remote from the contacting device 15 to the support device 16 via a holding element 2, which is also plate-shaped, for example. The positioning unit 1 is designed to be adjustable in its area between the holding element 2 and the coupling element 3, for which purpose, for example, a drive part itself can have a length-adjustable guide unit 100, such as aB. forms a telescopically hydraulically adjustable cylinder unit, or a guide unit is additionally present. For adjustment, an actuator (not shown) for hydraulic or electrical adjustment is provided. In addition to adjustability in the longitudinal direction (in this case in the vertical direction), the positioning unit 1 can, for example, also be provided with guides rotatable about one or more axes of rotation or guides running in one or two further directions arranged at right angles to one another in order to obtain corresponding degrees of freedom for positioning the contacting device. As a result, the contacting device 15 with the stationary contacting part 5 and the movable contacting part 12 can be positioned with precise positioning relative to the support device 16 and thus relative to the connection elements 17 of the structural unit 18 accommodated in the support device 16.Furthermore, it is advantageously provided that the assembly 18 is movable within a production facility by means of the support device 16, for example, from an impregnation point where the winding body is impregnated with insulating impregnating resin to a further processing position remote therefrom, in particular also the testing station. The arrangement of the assembly 18 relative to the support device can be predetermined in advance, so that simple positioning of the contacting device within the support device 16 is achieved, for example, merely by raising and lowering the contacting device. The support device 16 is provided, for example, with several, e.g., three, controllable support arms, as described in the aforementioned DE 10 2012 103 424 B4 and DE 102 41 805 B4.

[0024] For safe positioning of the contacting device, it is provided with a collision protection device, which has, for example, a switch-off or limiting element, in order to prevent the contacting device from hitting the structural unit 18 accommodated in the support device.

[0025] The actuating unit 7 for actuating the pivoting mechanism with the movable contact part 12 is connected to the insulating part 4 via one or more connecting elements 6 and a pivot bearing 8. The connecting element(s) 6, together with the insulating part 4 and the stationary contact part 5, form a rigid unit on which the actuating unit 7 is pivotally mounted. The actuating unit 7 has an adjustment part, which is directly or indirectly connected to the pivoting lever 9 at one end facing the rear portion of the latter. Fig. 2, the actuating unit 7 for actuating the pivoting mechanism has an adjusting cylinder acting on the rear end section of the pivoting lever 9 with a displaceable actuating body, which is rotatably coupled to the pivoting lever 9 in a further pivot bearing 14, so that by acting on the pivoting lever 9 by the actuating unit 7 depending on the direction of adjustment (see double arrow in Fig. 2) the movable contact part 12 is moved accordingly to close or open the contact and thus to contact the connecting element(s) 17.

[0026] To control the positioning unit 1 and the actuating unit 7, as well as, if necessary, the support device 16 for picking up, moving, and releasing the assembly 18, a correspondingly designed control device is provided, which preferably contains a programmable controller. The automatic control of the contacting device 15 with the actuating unit 7 and the positioning unit 1, in conjunction with the described design, results in a contact between the respective assembly units 18 that functions reliably even over the long term, thus contributing significantly to the user-friendly, safe operation of a test station for such assembly units.

Claims

[1] Test station with a contacting device (15) which serves for electrically contacting a connection arrangement of an electrical component, such as in particular one with a winding body, and is connected or connectable to a measuring device via connecting lines, characterized by , that the contacting device (15) has a stationary contacting part (5) with at least one contacting element (50) and a movable contacting part (12) with at least one counter-contacting element (120) which can be automatically actuated relative to the stationary contacting part during operation to close and open a contact, wherein a connecting element (17) of the assembly is positioned between the contacting element (50) and the counter-contacting element (120) for contacting, that the movable contacting part (12) is attached to a pivoting mechanism which has a pivoting lever (9) and a pivoting section (11) rigidly connected thereto, which are pivotally mounted about a pivot axis (10), wherein the movable contacting part (12) is attached to the pivoting section (11), that the pivoting lever (9) is connected to an automatically controllable actuating unit (7) for pivoting during opening and closing and that at least one connecting line is connected to the stationary contact part (5) in order to conduct an electrical current to the measuring device. [2] Test station according to claim 1, characterized by that the movable contacting part (12) is attached to the pivoting section (11) with support by means of a spring element, in particular a compression spring (13). [3] Test station according to claim 1 or 2, characterized bythat the pivoting lever (9) and the pivoting section (11) enclose an angle of less than 180°, wherein the movable contacting part (12) is arranged on the side of the pivoting section (11) facing away from the included angle. [4] Test station according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the contacting device is mounted on a support device (16) designed to support the structural unit and is adjustable relative to the latter by means of a positioning unit (1). [5] Test station according to claim 4, characterized by that the contacting device can be moved automatically by means of the positioning unit (1) into a precise contacting position of the at least one contacting element (50) and the at least one counter-contacting element (120) relative to at least one associated connection element (17) of a structural unit. [6] Test station according to claim 4 or 5, characterized bythat the positioning unit (1) for adjustment has a guide unit (100) mounted on the one hand on the support device (16) and on the other hand on the contacting device. [7] Test station according to one of claims 4 to 6, characterized by that the positioning unit (1) is provided with a run-up protection which prevents further movement of the contacting device when the contacting position is reached. [8] Test station according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the actuating unit (7) for opening and closing the contact has an electrically or hydraulically operating drive unit which is engaged on an end section of the pivot lever (9) remote from the pivot axis (10). [9] Test station according to one of claims 4 to 8, characterized by that the carrying device (16) is designed for the automatically controlled receiving and moving of different structural units.

Images