Electrical connector for establishing an electrical connection

Abstract

Electrical connector (2) for making an electrical connection, comprising: - a plug contact (4a) with a contact surface (6) for connecting to a form-corresponding plug contact (4b) of another electrical connector (2') for making an electrical connection, and - a plug housing (10) for at least partially receiving the plug contact (4a), characterized in that a water indicator (8) for detecting moisture ingress is arranged directly on the contact surface (6) of the plug contact (4a).

Description

The present invention relates to an electrical connector for making an electrical connection, a method for making such an electrical connector and a connector system comprising a first and second electrical connector. Electrical connectors for making electrical connections are known from the prior art, e.g., from DE 10 2011 052 364 B3, US 2013 0 052 848 A1, US 2018 0 323 535 A1 and DE 27 39 031 A1. For use in wet areas, these connectors are designed with seals to protect against water or moisture ingress. Despite sealing, small or large amounts of water may still penetrate and cause malfunctions. Unfortunately, if malfunctions are detected without clearly visible amounts of water or corrosion effects, it is very difficult to subsequently assess water ingress as the cause of the problem. In some cases, a fluorescein-based water detection paste is used to detect water, for example, in fuel storage tanks. This paste reacts to the presence of water with a color change. However, for field analyses to be reliably evaluated, it would be necessary to introduce a water indicator into the contact point before a questionable event - but there is no reason to do so before the questionable event. Although methods and systems are known from the state of the art, e.g. from JP 2013 011 654 A or JP 07 146 241 A, which attempt to solve the aforementioned problem at least partially, these methods and systems are structurally complex and costly to manufacture. It is therefore an object of the present invention to at least partially overcome the disadvantages described above. In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide an electrical connector for establishing an electrical connection that offers a simple and cost-effective, straightforward and robust assessment of water ingress as a cause of failure in an electrical connection. The aforementioned problem is solved by the claims. Accordingly, the problem is solved by an electrical connector with the features of independent claim 1, by a method with the features of dependent claim 10, and by a connector system according to claim 11. Further features and details of the invention will become apparent from the dependent claims, the description, and the drawings. Features and details described in connection with the electrical connector according to the invention naturally also apply in connection with the method and the connector system according to the invention, and vice versa, so that the disclosure of the individual aspects of the invention always makes, or can make, reciprocal references. According to the invention, an electrical connector is provided for establishing an electrical connection. The electrical connector has a plug contact with a contact surface for connecting to a form-corresponding plug contact of another electrical connector to establish an electrical connection, as well as a plug housing for at least partially receiving the plug contact, wherein a water indicator for detecting moisture ingress is arranged directly on the contact surface of the plug contact. According to the invention, the electrical connector in question, in particular by means of the water indicator arranged directly on the contact surface of the plug contact for detecting moisture ingress, is designed to ensure a simple and cost-effective, straightforward and robust assessment of water ingress as a cause of fault in an electrical connection. The electrical connector according to the invention can be designed or configured for transmitting low current (e.g., microamperes to a few amperes), medium current (e.g., a few dozen milliamperes to a few hundred amperes), or high current (e.g., up to a few hundred amperes). Within the scope of the invention, a direct arrangement can be understood to mean, in particular, a contacting, adjacent arrangement. With a view to a structurally simple design of an electrical connector for establishing a reliable electrical connection, the invention advantageously provides that the plug contact is designed in the form of a plug pin for insertion into a socket or in the form of a socket for receiving a plug pin. Such a design of an electrical connector also promises a robust and versatile application with a small footprint. In the context of a safe design of an electrical connector for establishing a reliable electrical connection, it can advantageously be further provided that insulation is provided for establishing an isolated electrical connection, wherein the insulation is preferably arranged on the contact surface, in particular around the contact surface. To ensure a reliable and stable electrical connection, it is advantageously possible to provide an overspring, which is preferably arranged at least partially around the plug contact. An overspring can, in particular, compensate for tolerances, ensure high contact force, provide high vibration resistance, and reduce wear. With regard to a reliable assessment of water ingress as the cause of a defect, it is advantageous according to the invention that the water indicator is arranged on the overspring, preferably on an inner surface of the overspring. Such an arrangement particularly protects the water indicator from mechanical stress such as abrasion or the like. The water indicator can preferably be applied to the contact surface by printing or wetting. For the simple and cost-effective manufacture of a given electrical connector, it is advantageous to provide that the water indicator is in the form of a coating, preferably a water-soluble coating. The coating can be sprayed or vapor-deposited, preferably by a vapor deposition process, in particular a PVD process. Alternatively, the coating can also be applied by a CVD process. With regard to a meaningful and reliable assessment of water ingress as a cause of defects, the invention advantageously provides that the coating is made of a single material, preferably with a layer thickness of less than 1 µm. A coating made of a single material can advantageously be understood as a homogeneous coating consisting of only one coating material and not of several superimposed layers of different materials. Such a coating offers, in particular, a simple and precisely adaptable structure. As already explained above, such a coating can advantageously be produced by a vapor deposition process. Furthermore, for a meaningful and reliable assessment of water ingress as a cause of defects, it can be advantageous if the coating has an embossed pattern. In the presence of water or moisture, water ingress can then be detected by a change in the embossed pattern or pattern structure. In order to provide a meaningful and reliable assessment of water ingress as a cause of failure, while simultaneously offering a sufficiently large contact area to establish an electrical connection, it can advantageously be provided that the water indicator covers a portion of the (contact) surface of the plug contact, wherein the portion of the contact surface covered by the water indicator is preferably less than 20% of the total contact surface. The invention also relates to a method for manufacturing an electrical connector, preferably one of the electrical connectors described above. The method according to the invention comprises the steps of providing a plug contact with a contact surface for connecting to a form-matching plug contact, arranging a water indicator for detecting moisture ingress directly at the contact surface of the plug contact, and arranging a plug housing for at least partially receiving the plug contact. The method according to the invention thus offers the same advantages as those already described in detail with regard to the electrical connector according to the invention. The water indicator can preferably be in the form of a thin film and, in particular, applied by a vapor deposition process. It is understood that individual, several, or all mandatory and / or optional steps of the method according to the invention can be carried out in the proposed sequence, but also in a different sequence. In particular, individual, several, or all mandatory and / or optional steps of the method according to the invention can be carried out repeatedly, e.g., cyclically. It is further understood that individual, several, or all of the mandatory and optional steps of the method according to the invention can also be carried out at least partially automatically or in a self-learning manner, in particular by a computer, preferably by computer-implemented simulation methods.The invention also relates to a connector system for establishing an electrical connection, comprising a first and a second electrical connector as described above, wherein the connectors, in particular the plug contacts of the connectors, are designed to be form-matched to one another. The connector system according to the invention thus offers the same advantages as those already described in detail with regard to the electrical connector and the method according to the invention. Further advantages, features, and details of the invention will become apparent from the following description, in which exemplary embodiments of the invention are described in detail with reference to the drawings. The features mentioned in the claims and in the description can each be essential to the invention individually or in any combination. The figures show schematically: Fig. 1 a connector system according to the invention for producing an electrical connection, comprising a first and second electrical connector according to the invention, and Fig. 2 the individual steps of a method according to the invention for producing an electrical connector according to the invention. Fig. 1 shows a connector system 1 according to the invention for producing an electrical connection, comprising a first and second electrical connector 2, 2' according to the invention. As can be seen in Fig. 1, the first electrical connector 2 (left) according to the invention has two plug contacts 4a in the form of plug pins for connecting to two corresponding plug contacts 4b of the second connector 2' in the form of sockets to establish an electrical connection. The plug contacts 4a, 4b have a contact surface 6 and a plug housing 10 for at least partially receiving the plug contacts 4a, 4b. A water indicator 8 for detecting moisture ingress is also arranged directly on the contact surface 6 of the plug contacts 4a of the first electrical connector 2 (left). For insulation purposes, insulation (not shown here) may also be provided, which may be arranged, for example, on the contact surface 6. Furthermore, a spring (not shown here) can be provided for a reliable electrical connection, which is, for example, arranged at least partially around the plug contact. The water indicator 8 can, for example, be arranged on an inner surface of such a spring. As shown in Fig. 1, the water indicator 8 is formed in the form of a coating, which is preferably in the form of a water-soluble coating. The coating is made of a single material and has a layer thickness of less than 1 µm. For easy and reliable detection of water ingress, the coating can, for example, have an embossed pattern. Fig. 2 shows the individual steps of a method according to the invention for manufacturing an electrical connector 2 according to the invention. As can be seen in Fig. 2, the method according to the invention comprises the steps of providing 100 a plug contact 4a with a contact surface 6 for connecting to a shape-corresponding plug contact 4b, arranging 200 a water indicator 8 for detecting moisture ingress directly at the contact surface 6 of the plug contact 4a, and arranging 300 a plug housing 10 for at least partially receiving the plug contact 4a. The preceding explanation of the embodiments describes the present invention solely by way of examples. Naturally, individual features of the embodiments can be freely combined with one another, provided this is technically feasible, without departing from the scope of the present invention. Reference symbol list 1 Connector system 2 Electrical connector 2' Further electrical connector 4a Plug contact 4b Form-matching plug contact 6 Contact surface 8 Water indicator 10 Plug housing 100 Providing a plug contact with a contact surface 200 Arranging a water indicator directly on the contact surface 300 Arranging a plug housing to at least partially accommodate the plug contact

Claims

Electrical connector (2) for making an electrical connection, comprising: - a plug contact (4a) with a contact surface (6) for connecting to a form-corresponding plug contact (4b) of another electrical connector (2') for making an electrical connection, and - a plug housing (10) for at least partially receiving the plug contact (4a), characterized in that a water indicator (8) for detecting moisture ingress is arranged directly on the contact surface (6) of the plug contact (4a). Electrical connector (2) according to claim 1, characterized in that the plug contact (4a) is designed in the form of a plug pin for insertion into a socket or in the form of a socket for receiving a plug pin. Electrical connector (2) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that insulation is provided for producing an insulated electrical connection, wherein the insulation is arranged on the contact surface (6). Electrical connector (2) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that an overspring is provided, wherein the overspring is arranged at least partially around the plug contact. Electrical connector (2) according to claim 4, characterized in that the water indicator (8) is arranged on the overspring, on an inner surface of the overspring. Electrical connector (2) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the water indicator (8) is formed in the form of a water-soluble coating. Electrical connector (2) according to claim 6, characterized in that the coating is formed in a uniform material, wherein the coating has a layer thickness of less than 1 µm. Electrical connector (2) according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the coating has an embossed pattern. Electrical connector (2) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the water indicator (8) covers a part of the contact surface (6) of the plug contact (4a), wherein the part of the contact surface (6) covered by the water indicator (8) is less than 20% of the total contact surface. Method for manufacturing an electrical connector (2) according to one of the preceding claims, comprising the steps: - providing (100) a plug contact (4a) with a contact surface (6) for connecting to a form-matching plug contact (4b), - arranging (200) a water indicator (8) for detecting moisture ingress directly at the contact surface (6) of the plug contact (4a) and - arranging (300) a plug housing (10) for at least partially receiving the plug contact (4a). Connector system (1) for producing an electrical connection, comprising a first and second electrical connector (2, 2') according to one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the electrical connectors (2, 2') are shaped to correspond to each other.

Images