conductor connection terminal

Abstract

The invention relates to a conductor connection terminal with a plurality of spring clamp connections for connecting electrical conductors, wherein the conductor connection terminal has a housing which has at least one conductor insertion opening on a first housing side and at least one conductor insertion opening on a second housing side facing away from the first housing side, wherein at least one contact insert is accommodated in the housing.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a conductor connection terminal with a plurality of spring clamp connections for connecting electrical conductors, wherein the conductor connection terminal has a housing which has at least one conductor insertion opening on a first housing side and at least one conductor insertion opening on a second housing side facing away from the first housing side, wherein at least one contact insert is accommodated in the housing.

[0002] A generic conductor connection terminal is known from DE 10 2019 120 305 A1.

[0003] The invention is based on the object of providing a further improved conductor connection terminal with conductor connections on both sides.

[0004] This task is solved in a conductor connection terminal of the type mentioned above in that the contact insert has at least the following features: a) a contact frame having a side wall, at least one first transverse wall bent from the side wall and at least one second transverse wall bent from the side wall and spaced from the first transverse wall, b) a first spring element having a first clamping leg for clamping an electrical conductor at an end region facing a conductor insertion opening on the first housing side and a second clamping leg for clamping an electrical conductor at an end region facing a conductor insertion opening on the second housing side, c) a second spring element which has a third clamping leg for clamping an electrical conductor at an end region facing a conductor insertion opening of the first housing side and a fourth clamping leg for clamping an electrical conductor at an end region facing a conductor insertion opening of the second housing side.

[0005] In this way, a very flat connection terminal, e.g. a mains connection terminal, with a large number of connection points for electrical conductors can be provided in a small installation space.

[0006] Advantageously, the first and second spring elements can be designed as separate components. This allows for easier manufacturing of the individual spring elements. Furthermore, additional functionalities, such as the conductor insertion aid explained below, can be easily implemented on such spring elements.

[0007] The first spring element can be designed as a spring element that extends from the first clamping leg to the second clamping leg. The first spring element can have a contact section between the first clamping leg and the second clamping leg, through which the first spring element is supported. The second spring element can be designed as a spring element that extends from the third clamping leg to the fourth clamping leg. The second spring element can have a contact section between the third clamping leg and the fourth clamping leg, through which the second spring element is supported. Such continuous first and / or second spring elements increase the conductor holding forces with minimal material usage. The first and second spring elements can support one another and thus have a positive influence on one another.

[0008] The first transverse wall can be bent away from the side wall at one end of the side wall. The second transverse wall can be bent away from the side wall at a diametrically opposite end of the side wall. The first transverse wall and the second transverse wall are bent away from the side wall in the same direction. The contact frame can be substantially C-shaped.

[0009] It is also possible for the first spring element to be permanently connected to the second spring element via a material bond, e.g., by welding. The material bond can be formed, for example, between the contact sections of the first and second spring elements.

[0010] The conductor connection terminal can be designed as a flat connection terminal. In this case, the first spring element can be arranged above the second spring element in the housing in a vertical direction of the housing. In an advantageous embodiment, the first spring element and the second spring element can be designed as different types of spring elements, in particular as spring elements with different heights, i.e. different dimensions in the vertical direction. For example, one of the spring elements can be designed as a spring with spring arches, in which the first and the second clamping leg are each connected via a spring arch to a contact leg of the spring element. The spring arch serves to absorb and carry out the main bending movement of the spring element when the clamping leg is deflected into an open position.The respective spring arch can extend in an arc shape with an arc angle of more than 90° or more than 100°. The second spring element can be designed as a leaf spring element, in which at least the clamping legs are connected to a contact leg of the spring element in the manner of leaf springs. The second spring element can, in particular, be designed without a spring arch of the type described above.

[0011] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first spring element and the second spring element are clamped in the contact frame between the first and second transverse walls and support each other. This allows for a stable, self-supporting construction of the spring-loaded terminal connection. The first and second spring elements can be mounted in the contact frame with little effort.

[0012] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the conductor connection terminal has a first clamping point for clamping an electrical conductor, which is formed between the first clamping leg and the at least one first transverse wall, and a second clamping point for clamping an electrical conductor, which is formed between the second clamping leg and the at least one first transverse wall. In this way, the first clamping point and the second clamping point create a first conductor connection level in the contact insert.

[0013] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the conductor connection terminal has a third clamping point for clamping an electrical conductor, which is formed between the third clamping leg and the at least one second transverse wall, and a fourth clamping point for clamping an electrical conductor, which is formed between the fourth clamping leg and the at least one second transverse wall. In this way, the third and fourth clamping points create a second conductor connection level in the contact insert. The contact insert can thus have two spaced-apart conductor connection levels.

[0014] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the contact frame has at least one support tab bent from the side wall and extending into a space between the first spring element and the second spring element, on which the first spring element and / or the second spring element is supported. The support for the first and / or the second spring element can thus be advantageously integrated into the contact frame, namely by the component in the form of the support tab, which is formed integrally with the contact frame. Thus, no additional component needs to be installed.

[0015] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, it is provided that the second spring element has a first conductor insertion aid bent out of the material of the second spring element at the end facing the first housing side and / or the second spring element has a second conductor insertion aid bent out of the material of the second spring element at the end facing the second housing side. The first conductor insertion aid simplifies the insertion of the third electrical conductor. The second conductor insertion aid simplifies the insertion of the fourth electrical conductor. The conductor insertion aid guides the respective electrical conductor to the assigned clamping point. The conductor insertion aid allows the clamping leg assigned to the respective conductor insertion aid to be slightly raised during the insertion of the electrical conductor, thus facilitating the insertion of the electrical conductor to the clamping point. The first conductor insertion aid is, for example,arranged at a first free end of the second spring element. The second conductor insertion aid is arranged, for example, at a second free end of the second spring element.

[0016] The first and / or second conductor insertion aid can be formed from the flat sheet material of the second spring element. The respective free end of the first and / or second conductor insertion aid can extend in a direction away from the second transverse wall or be bent opposite to the clamping leg associated with the respective conductor insertion aid and can advantageously be curved.

[0017] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, it is provided that the first conductor insertion aid engages around a first spring arc of the first spring element, which connects a contact section of the first spring element to the first clamping leg, and / or the second conductor insertion aid engages around a second spring arc of the first spring element, which connects a contact section of the first spring element to the second clamping leg. The first conductor insertion aid thus extends at least partially around a spring arc of the first spring element. The second conductor insertion aid can extend around another spring arc of the first spring element.

[0018] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the conductor connection terminal has a manually operable first actuating element for actuating the first clamping leg and / or a manually operable second actuating element, in particular an actuating pushbutton, for actuating the second clamping leg. The respective actuating element can be used to manually deflect the associated clamping leg, thereby opening the clamping point. When the clamping point is open, the corresponding electrical conductor can be inserted there without exerting any force, or an already clamped conductor can be removed again. If the respective actuating element is designed as an actuating pushbutton, it can be actuated by means of a pressure force exerted on an actuating surface of the actuating pushbutton. The actuating pushbutton can execute a substantially linear movement or at least a slight pivoting movement.

[0019] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the actuating elements are arranged entirely within the housing and are only accessible for manual actuation via comparatively small actuating openings in the housing. As a result, the actuating elements are largely protected from environmental influences by the housing. The actuating openings can, for example, be so small that the actuating elements cannot be actuated manually without aids, e.g. by means of a tool. In this case, an actuating opening can, in particular, be smaller in plan view than an actuating element assigned to the actuating opening. For example, the cross-sectional areas of the actuating openings can each be smaller than an actuating surface of an actuating element to which the actuating force is to be applied.

[0020] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the housing has a plurality of receiving chambers arranged side by side in a row direction, each of which accommodates a contact insert having features a) to c). In this way, the conductor connection terminal can be provided as a multi-pole conductor connection terminal, which enables the connection of a plurality of electrical conductors. Adjacent contact inserts can be electrically separated from one another. Contact inserts can also be electrically connected to one another.

[0021] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the spring clamp connection formed by the third clamping leg is designed as a direct plug-in connection and / or the spring clamp connection formed by the fourth clamping leg is designed as a direct plug-in connection. Such a direct plug-in connection advantageously allows the direct insertion of an electrical conductor without the need to manually actuate an actuating element beforehand. Such a spring clamp connection designed as a direct plug-in connection can be designed without such an actuating element.

[0022] The spring-loaded terminal connection formed by the first clamping leg and / or the spring-loaded terminal connection formed by the second clamping leg can also be designed as a direct plug-in connection or be suitable for direct plugging without the actuating element provided there having to be actuated.

[0023] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first spring element and / or the second spring element has a support flange at its contact section that extends toward the other spring element, by means of which the first spring element is supported on the second spring element. In this way, the second spring element additionally supports the first spring element, e.g., to absorb increased forces acting on the first spring element, e.g., upon actuation of a manually operable actuating element of the first and / or second clamping leg.

[0024] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first spring element is formed integrally with the second spring element in the region of its contact section or is connected by a material bond. Depending on the design of the first and second spring elements, this can improve manufacturability and / or bulk material handling. Furthermore, the spring elements can support each other.

[0025] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the housing comprises at least a first housing part and a second housing part as separate housing parts, wherein the first and second housing parts can be connected to one another to form the housing. This allows for easy installation of the contact insert in the housing parts. The effort required to assemble the housing parts is relatively low, especially with a housing consisting of only two parts.

[0026] In an advantageous embodiment, the housing can have a dividing plane which runs between the first conductor connection plane and the second conductor connection plane, e.g. such that the first conductor connection plane is arranged in the space surrounded by the first housing part and the second conductor connection plane is arranged in the space surrounded by the second housing part.

[0027] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first spring element is arranged predominantly in the space surrounded by the first housing part and / or the second spring element is arranged predominantly in the space surrounded by the second housing part. In this way, the contact insert can be realized in a space-saving manner in a housing with the aforementioned horizontal division plane. The statement "predominantly arranged in the space surrounded by the first / second housing part" means that the respective spring element is arranged for more than 50% of its extension in this space.

[0028] For the purposes of the present invention, the indefinite term "a" is not to be understood as a numerical term. Therefore, if, for example, a component is mentioned, this is to be interpreted as "at least one component." Angles expressed in degrees refer to a circle of 360 degrees (360°).

[0029] The invention is explained in more detail below using exemplary embodiments and drawings.

[0030] It shows Fig. 1 a conductor connection terminal in side sectional view, Fig. 2 a contact insert of the conductor connection terminal according to Fig. 1 in side view, Fig. 3 the individual components of the contact insert according to Fig. 2 in perspective view, Fig. 4 a conductor connection terminal in perspective view.

[0031] The Fig. 1 has a housing 2, which has a first housing part 20 and a second housing part 21 connected to the first housing part 20. The first housing part 20 forms an upper part of the housing 2, the second housing part 21 a lower part of the housing 2. In the housing 2, a contact insert is arranged, which has a contact frame 3, a first spring element 4 and a second spring element 5. The contact frame 3 is essentially C-shaped, as e.g. in the Fig. 3 can be seen. The contact frame 3 has a side wall 30. In the upper housing area, i.e. in the space surrounded by the first housing part 20, a first transverse wall 31 projects from the side wall 30 at an angle, in particular at a right angle, from the side wall 30. On the opposite side of the side wall 30, a second transverse wall 32 projects from the side wall 30 at an angle, in particular at a right angle. The second transverse wall 32 is located in the lower housing area, i.e. in the space surrounded by the second housing part 21. The second transverse wall 32 can run predominantly parallel to and opposite the first transverse wall 31.

[0032] The housing 2 has, on a first housing side 27, at least one first conductor insertion opening 23 formed in the first housing part 20, and at least one third conductor insertion opening 24 formed in the second housing part 21. The housing 2 has, on a second housing side 28 opposite the first housing side 27, at least one second conductor insertion opening 25 formed in the first housing part 20, and at least one fourth conductor insertion opening 26 formed in the second housing part 21.

[0033] The first spring element 4 has a first clamping leg 41 for clamping a first electrical conductor at an end region facing the first conductor insertion opening 23, and a second clamping leg 42 for clamping a second electrical conductor at an end region facing the second conductor insertion opening 25. The second spring element 5 has a third clamping leg 51 for clamping a third electrical conductor at an end region facing the third conductor insertion opening 24, and a fourth clamping leg 52 for clamping a fourth electrical conductor at an end region facing the fourth conductor insertion opening 26.

[0034] The first spring element 4 is designed as a spring element that extends from the first clamping leg 41 to the second clamping leg 42 and has a contact section 40 between the first clamping leg 41 and the second clamping leg 42, by which the first spring element 4 is supported. The contact section 40 is connected to the first clamping leg 41 via a first spring arc 43. The contact section 40 is connected to the second clamping leg 42 via a second spring arc 44. The first spring arc 43 and / or the second spring arc 44 extends over an angle of more than 90 degrees. The second spring element 5 is designed as a spring element that extends from the third clamping leg 51 to the fourth clamping leg 52 and has a contact section 50 between the third clamping leg 51 and the fourth clamping leg 52, by which the second spring element 5 is supported.

[0035] The first transverse wall 31, together with the first clamping leg 41, forms a first clamping point 45 for clamping the first electrical conductor, i.e., the first electrical conductor can be clamped at the first clamping point 45 between the free end of the first clamping leg 41 and the first transverse wall 31. The first transverse wall 31, together with the second clamping leg 42, forms a second clamping point 46 for clamping the second electrical conductor, i.e., the second electrical conductor can be clamped at the second clamping point 46 between the free end of the second clamping leg 42 and the first transverse wall 31. The second transverse wall 32, together with the third clamping leg 51, forms a third clamping point 55 for clamping the third electrical conductor, i.e., the third electrical conductor can be clamped at the third clamping point 55 between the free end of the third clamping leg 51 and the second transverse wall 32.The second transverse wall 32 forms together with the fourth clamping leg 52 a fourth clamping point 56 for clamping the fourth electrical conductor, ie the fourth electrical conductor can be clamped at the fourth clamping point 56 between the free end of the fourth clamping leg 52 and the second transverse wall 32.

[0036] At least one support tab 33 is arranged between the contact section 40 of the first spring element 4 and the contact section 50 of the second spring element 5, or in the illustrated embodiment, two support tabs 33. The support tabs 33 are formed integrally on the contact frame 3 by cutting or punching the respective support tab 33 free from the side wall 30 and bending it substantially at a right angle. The first and second spring elements 4, 5 are each supported on the support tabs 33 against the clamping force of the respective clamping legs.

[0037] One can see in the Fig. 1 further shows that the second spring element 5 has, at the end facing the first housing side 27, a first conductor insertion aid 53 bent out of the material of the second spring element 5, and, at the end facing the second housing side 28, a second conductor insertion aid 54 bent out of the material of the second spring element 5. The first conductor insertion aid 53 is curved in an arc shape and encompasses at least part of the first spring bend 43. The second conductor insertion aid 54 is curved in an arc shape and encompasses at least part of the second spring bend 44.

[0038] The conductor connection terminal 1 has no manual actuation element for the third clamping leg 51 and the fourth clamping leg 52. The spring-loaded terminal connections formed by the clamping legs 51 and 52 are accordingly designed as direct plug-in connections.

[0039] The conductor connection terminal 1 has a first manual actuating element 81 for the first clamping leg 41 and a second manual actuating element 82 for actuating the second clamping leg 42. The first actuating element 81 and / or the second actuating element 82 can be designed as an actuating pushbutton, in particular as an actuating pushbutton guided essentially linearly in the housing 2. By manually actuating the respective actuating pushbutton 81, 82, the associated clamping leg 41, 42 can be deflected and thereby moved away from the first transverse wall 31, so that the respective clamping point 45, 46 is opened.

[0040] The housing 2 has an actuating opening 29 for the manual actuation of the first actuating element 81 and a further actuating opening 29 for the actuation of the second actuating element 82. The actuating openings 29 can be relatively small, so that actuation with the finger is not possible, but a suitable tool must be used for this purpose.

[0041] As the Fig. 1 also shows, the manual actuating elements 81, 82 can be part of a continuous actuating component 8, which is, for example, formed integrally as a plastic component. The first actuating element 81 and the second actuating element 82 can be connected in an articulated manner to a central portion 80 of the actuating component 8 via corresponding material bridges. The actuating component 8 can be supported on the contact frame 3. As the Fig. 1 and Fig. 3, the first transverse wall 31 can have an approximately central opening through which a support foot 83 of the actuating component 8 extends to the contact section 40. In this way, the actuating component 8 can be supported via the support foot 83 on the first spring element 4 or on its contact section 40.

[0042] The Fig. 2 shows the contact insert of the conductor connection terminal 1 according to Fig. 1 in a separate illustration. The already mentioned Fig. 1. A support flange 6 is also visible, which is cut out of the material of the second spring element 5 and bent upwards, so that the support flange 6 provides additional support for the first clamping spring 4, in particular by supporting the contact section 40.

[0043] The Fig. Figure 3 shows the first spring element 4, the second spring element 5, and the contact frame 3 as individual components. Visible are, for example, the support flange 6 on the second spring element 5 and the support tabs 33 on the contact frame 3. The third clamping leg 51 and the fourth clamping leg 52 are cut out of the flat material of the second spring element 5 and bent out in the form of leaf springs.

[0044] As the Fig. 4 shows, the conductor connection terminal 1 can be designed as a multi-pole conductor connection terminal with a plurality of connection possibilities for electrical conductors, in particular such that the previously described contact insert, as for example in Fig.2, is accommodated multiple times in adjacent receiving chambers of the housing 2. For example, the housing 2 can have a plurality of receiving chambers arranged next to one another in a row direction A, each of which accommodates a contact insert. Accordingly, the housing 2 has a plurality of adjacently arranged first conductor insertion openings 23, second conductor insertion openings 25, third conductor insertion openings 24, and fourth conductor insertion openings 26 for the individual contact inserts.

[0045] The conductor connection terminal can also have at least one mounting element 7 for mounting on another component, e.g., on a mounting plate. The mounting element 7 can be integrally formed on the housing 2, e.g., on the second housing part 21. List of reference symbols 1 conductor connection terminal 2 housings 3 contact frames 4 first spring element 5 second spring element 6 Support flange 7 Mounting element 8 Actuating component 20 first housing part 21 second housing part 23 first conductor insertion opening 24 third conductor insertion opening 25 second conductor insertion opening 26 fourth conductor insertion opening 27 first side of the housing 28 second housing side 29 Operating opening 30 side wall 31 first transverse wall 32 second transverse wall 33 Support tab 40 Contact section of the first spring element 41 first clamping leg 42 second clamping leg 43 first spring arch 44 second spring arch 45 first terminal point 46 second terminal point 50 Contact section of the second spring element 51 third clamping leg 52 fourth clamping leg 53 first conductor insertion aid 54 second conductor insertion aid 55 third terminal point 56 fourth terminal point 81 first manual operating element 82 second manual operating element 80 Central Section 83 Support foot A Arranging direction QUOTES CONTAINED IN THE DESCRIPTION

[0000] This list of documents submitted by the applicant was generated automatically and is included solely for the convenience of the reader. This list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA assumes no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature

[0000] DE 10 2019 120 305 A1

[0002]

Claims

[1] Conductor connection terminal (1) with a plurality of spring clamp connections for connecting electrical conductors, wherein the conductor connection terminal (1) has a housing (2) which has at least one conductor insertion opening (23, 24) on a first housing side (27) and at least one conductor insertion opening (25, 26) on a second housing side (28) facing away from the first housing side (27), wherein at least one contact insert is accommodated in the housing (2), which contact insert has at least the following features: a) a contact frame (3) having a side wall (30), at least one first transverse wall (31) bent from the side wall (30) and at least one second transverse wall (32) bent from the side wall (30) and spaced from the first transverse wall (31), b) a first spring element (4) which has a first clamping leg (41) for clamping an electrical conductor at an end region facing a conductor insertion opening (23, 24) of the first housing side (27) and a second clamping leg (42) for clamping an electrical conductor at an end region facing a conductor insertion opening (25, 26) of the second housing side (28), c) a second spring element (5) which has a third clamping leg (51) for clamping an electrical conductor at an end region facing a conductor insertion opening (23, 24) of the first housing side (27) and a fourth clamping leg (52) for clamping an electrical conductor at an end region facing a conductor insertion opening (25, 26) of the second housing side (28). [2] Conductor terminal according to claim 1, characterized bythat the first spring element (4) and the second spring element (5) are clamped in the contact frame (3) between the first and the second transverse wall (31, 32) and support each other. [3] Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the conductor connection terminal (1) has a first clamping point (45) for clamping an electrical conductor, which is formed between the first clamping leg (41) and the at least one first transverse wall (31), and a second clamping point (46) for clamping an electrical conductor, which is formed between the second clamping leg (42) and the at least one first transverse wall (31). [4] Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat the conductor connection terminal has a third clamping point (55) for clamping an electrical conductor, which is formed between the third clamping leg (51) and the at least one second transverse wall (32), and a fourth clamping point (56) for clamping an electrical conductor, which is formed between the fourth clamping leg (52) and the at least one second transverse wall (32). [5] Conductor connection terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the contact frame (3) has at least one support tab (33) which is bent away from the side wall (30) and projects into an intermediate space between the first spring element (4) and the second spring element (5), on which support tab the first spring element (4) and / or the second spring element (5) is supported. [6] Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat the second spring element (5) has, at the end facing the first housing side (27), a first conductor insertion aid (53) bent out of the material of the second spring element (5) and / or the second spring element (5) has, at the end facing the second housing side (28), a second conductor insertion aid (54) bent out of the material of the second spring element (5). [7] Conductor connection terminal according to claim 6, characterized by that the first conductor insertion aid (53) encompasses a first spring arch (43) of the first spring element (4), which connects a contact section (40) of the first spring element (4) to the first clamping leg (41) and / or the second conductor insertion aid (54) encompasses a second spring arch (44) of the first spring element (4), which connects a contact section (40) of the first spring element (4) to the second clamping leg (42). [8] Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat the conductor connection terminal (1) has a manually operable first actuating element (81) for actuating the first clamping leg (41) and / or a manually operable second actuating element (82), in particular an actuating push button, for actuating the second clamping leg (42). [9] Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the housing (2) has a plurality of receiving chambers arranged next to one another in a row direction (A), in each of which a contact insert with the features a) to c) is arranged. [10] Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the spring clamp connection formed with the third clamping leg (51) is designed as a direct plug connection and / or the spring clamp connection formed with the fourth clamping leg (52) is designed as a direct plug connection. [11] Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat the first spring element (4) and / or the second spring element (5) has on its contact section (40, 50) a support flange (6) which is extended towards the other spring element (4, 5) and by means of which the first spring element (4) is supported on the second spring element (5). [12] Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the first spring element (4) is formed in one piece with the second spring element (5) in the region of its contact section (40) or is connected by a material connection. [13] Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the housing (2) has at least a first housing part (20) and a second housing part (21) as separate housing parts, wherein the first and the second housing part (20, 21) can be connected to one another to form the housing (2). [14] Conductor terminal according to claim 13, characterized bythat the first spring element (4) is arranged predominantly in the space surrounded by the first housing part (20) and / or the second spring element (5) is arranged predominantly in the space surrounded by the second housing part (21).

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