conductor terminal and electrical connector

Abstract

The invention relates to a conductor terminal block with a housing and several spring-loaded clamping terminals, each of which has at least one clamping spring for clamping an electrical conductor by means of spring force. The spring-loaded clamping terminals are arranged along an annular path, in particular a circular path, around a center point in the housing of the conductor terminal block. The conductor terminal block has an individual actuating element assigned to each of these spring-loaded clamping terminals, by actuating which the clamping spring of the assigned spring-loaded clamping terminal can be individually actuated into an open position. The invention also relates to an electrical connector, in particular a circular connector, with at least one such conductor terminal block.

Description

The invention relates to a conductor terminal block with a housing and several spring-loaded clamping terminals, each of which has at least one clamping spring for clamping an electrical conductor by means of spring force. The spring-loaded clamping terminals are arranged along an annular path, in particular a circular path, around a center point in the housing of the conductor terminal block. The conductor terminal block has an individual actuating element assigned to each of these spring-loaded clamping terminals, by actuating which the clamping spring of the assigned spring-loaded clamping terminal can be individually actuated into an open position. The invention also relates to an electrical connector, in particular a circular connector, with at least one such conductor terminal block. A conductor connection terminal of this type is known from DE 10 2021 112 960 A1. The present invention is based on the objective of providing an improved conductor terminal block in comparison. This task is accomplished in a conductor terminal of the type mentioned above by providing each individual actuating element with a first detent element, which allows the individual actuating element to be locked in the open position against a second detent element. Using these individual actuating elements, the user can move individual clamping springs into the open position as needed, independently of the other clamping springs. Advantageously, a clamping spring moved into the open position in this way is held in this position by the associated individual actuating element, because the individual actuating element is locked in the open position against the second detent element. This prevents the individual actuating element from easily moving back to its initial position, particularly not due to a restoring force from the clamping spring.In the open position, an electrical conductor can be inserted into the clamping point without requiring force. The conductor can then be clamped in place by the clamping spring, for example, by the user manually releasing the locking mechanism of the individual actuator at the second locking element. The individual actuator thus also acts as a retaining element to hold the clamping spring in the open position. In an advantageous embodiment, one, several, or all of the individual actuating elements can be designed as a sliding actuating push button or other sliding actuating element. In this way, the clamping springs can be moved into the open position by a simple sliding or pushing movement. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the conductor terminal has a release element assigned to each individual actuating element, by which the latching of the individual actuating element in the open position can be released by manual actuation. Actuating a release element releases the latching of a single individual actuating element. It is also possible for one release element to be assigned to several individual actuating elements, so that actuating such a release element releases the latching of several individual actuating elements. The first locking element can optionally be designed as a projecting detent or as a detent recess. The second locking element is then designed accordingly as its counterpart, i.e., as a detent recess if the first locking element is designed as a detent, and otherwise as a detent. If the first locking element is designed as a detent, it can protrude slightly from the housing or at least be accessible on the outside of the housing for manual actuation. In this way, the first locking element, or at least a section of the first locking element accessible on the outside of the housing, can simultaneously serve as the release element for disengaging the locking mechanism. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, a guide groove or slot is formed on the housing in which the first detent element of each individual actuating element is guided during movement from the unactuated state to the open position. This allows for defined guidance of the individual actuating element and, in particular, its first detent element, ensuring a predetermined movement sequence during actuation and preventing undesired tilting or jamming. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the respective guide groove or guide slot transitions into the second locking element in the open position. This has the advantage that the first locking element is guided precisely to the second locking element via the guide groove, thus ensuring secure locking in the open position. The guide groove can, for example, be formed on the inside of the housing. The guide slot can be formed as an elongated slot penetrating the outer wall of the housing. The second locking element can be designed as a rebate or an abrupt change in the course of the guide groove or guide slot. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, one, several, or all of the individual actuating elements each have an elastically deformable detent arm on which the first detent element is arranged, wherein the detent arm springs back elastically when the first detent element engages the detent on the second detent element. In this way, a detent mechanism that is simple and cost-effective to manufacture can be realized, in which, for example, the elastic properties of plastic can be used to achieve a secure detent. For example, the entire individual actuating element or at least its detent arm can be made of plastic. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the locking arm projects radially outwards relative to the center of the housing. It is also possible for the locking arm to extend axially within the housing. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, it is provided that, in one, several, or all individual actuating elements, the respective first detent element can be engaged with the second detent element by means of a radially outward movement and / or a tangential movement along the circumference of the housing. In this way, a secure, simple, and cost-effective detent mechanism can be realized. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, one, several, or all of the individual actuating elements have a respective manual actuating section that projects axially from the housing, e.g., at an end face of a round housing. The manual actuating section serves for simple and ergonomic manual actuation of the respective individual actuating element, e.g., by pressure actuation in the axial direction. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the first detent element of one, several, or all individual actuating elements projects radially out of the housing, at least when it is engaged with the second detent element. In this way, it is easily apparent to the user that the respective clamping spring is in the open position and that the individual actuating element is locked in this open position. Furthermore, the first detent element can then also be conveniently used as a release element. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the housing for one, several, or all spring-clamp terminals has a conductor entry channel assigned to each spring-clamp terminal, through which an electrical conductor can be inserted into the housing and clamped to the spring-clamp terminal. This has the advantage that an electrical conductor can be guided precisely to a clamping point in the housing, where the electrical conductor can then be clamped by means of the clamping spring, e.g., on a busbar. The housing can be designed, for example, as an insulated housing. The housing can be an essentially cylindrical round housing. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, one, several, or all of the individual actuating elements each have a longitudinal guide section that is guided within a conductor entry channel in a longitudinal displacement direction. This has the advantage that the conductor entry channel can simultaneously be used as a bearing and guide for each individual actuating element. This allows the conductor connection terminal to be designed in a particularly compact manner. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, a longitudinal guide section guided in a conductor entry channel extends circumferentially over at least half the circumference of the conductor entry channel. For example, the longitudinal guide section can have a U-shaped cross-section. In this way, the longitudinal guide section is guided with minimal play in the conductor entry channel and can be easily displaced. The longitudinal guide section thus at least partially assumes the conductor guidance function of the conductor entry channel. Accordingly, such a longitudinal guide section surrounds an electrical conductor inserted into the conductor entry channel over at least half its circumference. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the individual actuating elements are located directly adjacent to each other in the center of the housing and / or mutually support each other. The individual actuating elements, like the spring-clamp terminals, can also be arranged in a ring shape, particularly an annular shape, within the housing. This simplifies the mounting of the individual actuating elements and minimizes the space required. Furthermore, it simplifies the assembly of the individual components of the conductor terminal. The individual actuating elements can, for example, be shaped like circular sectors or pie slices towards the center of the housing. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the conductor terminal has at least one universal actuating element by which the clamping springs of several or all of the spring-loaded clamping connections that can be actuated by means of an individual actuating element can be actuated together into the open position when a manual actuating section of the universal actuating element is actuated. This allows the user of such a conductor terminal to actuate individual clamping springs or only one clamping spring into the open position, depending on requirements and situation, either by actuating the respective individual actuating element or, alternatively, by actuating the universal actuating element, to actuate the clamping springs of all spring-loaded clamping connections that can be actuated via the universal actuating element together into the open position. Actuating several or all spring-loaded clamping connections together via the universal actuating element is, for example,This is helpful when wiring a terminal block for the first time. However, if a partial rewiring of an already wired terminal block is required, it is often undesirable to actuate all clamping springs into the open position, but only those requiring rewiring. For this purpose, the user can selectively actuate individual actuators. For example, a universal actuator allows the clamping springs to be actuated directly into the open position. This universal actuator can be designed, for example, as a linearly sliding actuating push button. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the general actuating element is configured to indirectly actuate the respective clamping spring into the open position by actuating the individual actuating element associated with that clamping spring. In this case, the individual actuating element can be subjected to an actuating force by an actuating contour of the general actuating element. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the manual actuation section of the universal actuation element projects axially from the housing. This allows for simple manual actuation of the universal actuation element by applying a pressure force in the axial direction. Advantageously, the universal actuation element can be displaceable in the same direction as the individual actuation elements. The universal actuation element can be actuated on the same side of the housing as the individual actuation elements. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the manual actuation section of the universal actuating element is divided into several separate sectors that can be actuated independently. This allows for a significant simplification in the manufacture of the entire actuating arrangement of the conductor terminal, as the individual actuating elements can be designed in the shape of circular sectors, as mentioned above, and can transition directly into a sector of the universal actuating element in the center of the housing. The sectors of the universal actuating element can, for example, be circular sectors. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, a respective sector of the manual actuation section of the universal actuation element is coupled to a respective individual actuation element or integrally formed with it. This allows for the simple manufacture of the individual actuation element and the universal actuation element. For example, a unit consisting of an individual actuation element and a universal actuation element can be manufactured as a single injection-molded plastic component. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the universal actuating element, or at least its manual actuating section, is arranged in a central area of ​​the conductor terminal, which is located within the area bounded by the annular path of the spring-clamp terminals. This allows for simple manual actuation of the universal actuating element. The aforementioned problem is also solved by an electrical connector, in particular a circular connector, which has at least one conductor terminal of the type described above. This also allows the previously described advantages to be realized. For the purposes of the present invention, the indefinite term "a" is not to be understood as a numeral. Therefore, when, for example, a component is mentioned, this is to be interpreted as "at least one component". Where angles are specified in degrees, these refer to a circle of 360 degrees (360°). The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to exemplary embodiments and drawings. Figure 1 shows a conductor terminal with a partially opened housing in a perspective view, Figure 2 shows an individual actuating element of the conductor terminal according to Figure 1, Figure 3 shows the conductor terminal according to Figure 1 in an axial top view, Figure 4 shows the conductor terminal according to Figure 1 in a side view in the unactuated state, Figure 5 shows the conductor terminal according to Figure 4 in the actuated state, Figure 6 shows a spring-loaded clamping connection and an individual actuating element of the conductor terminal according to Figure 1 in the unactuated state, Figure 7 shows the arrangement according to Figure 6 in the actuated state, Figure 8 shows another embodiment of a conductor terminal in a perspective view in the unactuated state, Figure 9 shows the conductor terminal according to Figure 8 in the actuated state, and Figure 10 shows an individual actuating element of the conductor terminal according to Figure 8. The conductor terminal 1 shown in Fig. 1 has a housing 2, which can, for example, be designed as a round housing. The conductor terminal 1 can have 8 electrical plug contacts on one plug-in side, with which the conductor terminal 1 can be plugged together with a mating connector in the manner of a circular connector to form an electrical plug connection. The conductor terminal 1 has several spring-clamp terminals in the housing 2. The spring-clamp terminals each have a busbar component 3 and a clamping spring 4. The busbar component 3 can be designed as a frame-like busbar component 3 in the manner of a contact frame, in which the clamping spring 4 is arranged at least predominantly. As can be seen, the spring-clamp terminals are arranged in a circular path around a center point within the housing 2. The spring-clamp terminals are located inside the housing 2, at least when the housing 2 is closed by means of another housing component. The spring-clamp terminals, or rather their clamping springs 4, can be deflected into an open position, for example, by deflecting a clamping leg of the clamping spring from a clamped position to an open position, in which an electrical conductor can be placed at a clamping point without force. To move the respective clamping spring into the open position, the conductor terminal has several individual actuating elements 5. Each spring-clamp terminal is assigned one individual actuating element 5. As can be seen, the individual actuating elements 5 are also arranged in an annular shape and meet in the center of the housing, whereby the individual actuating elements 5 can support each other in the center or at least touch each other. A first detent element 52 is arranged on each individual actuating element 5, wherein in the illustrated embodiment each individual actuating element 5 has a radially outwardly projecting detent arm 51, at the free end of which the respective first detent element 52 is formed. At the center of the housing, the conductor terminal 1 has a universal actuating element 6, by which the clamping springs 4 of all spring-loaded terminals can be actuated together into the open position. The universal actuating element 6 has a manual actuating section 60, on which a compressive force in the axial direction A can be applied to actuate the universal actuating element 6. As can be seen, the universal actuating element 6, like the individual actuating elements 5, is also divided into individual circular sectors, with each circular sector 61 of the universal actuating element 6 being assigned to or connected with an individual actuating element 5. Fig. 2 shows an individual actuating element 5 to which a circular sector-shaped section 61 of the general actuating element 6 is integrally formed. The detent arm 51 with the first detent element 52 is also visible. The individual actuating element 5 further features actuating ramps 53 by which the clamping leg of a respective clamping spring can be deflected into the open position in a sliding direction when the individual actuating element 5 is actuated. Fig. 3 shows the conductor terminal 1 with closed housing 2 in an axial top view of the side on which the universal actuating element 6 is arranged. It can be seen that the first locking elements 52, or possibly also a part of the respective locking arm 51, protrude slightly from the housing 2 in a radial direction. Also visible are the spring-clamp terminals with the respective busbar component 3 and the clamping spring 4 inserted therein. Fig. 4 shows the conductor terminal 1 in a side view with the housing closed. As in Fig. 1, the individual actuating elements 5 and the universal actuating element 6 are not actuated, i.e., the clamping springs are not yet in the open position. It can be seen that the circumferential outer wall of the housing 2 has a guide slot 20 for each individual actuating element 5. A respective detent element 52 and / or a respective detent arm 51 is guided in this slot during axial displacement as a result of manual actuation of the individual actuating element 5 or the universal actuating element 6. As can be seen, the guide slots 20 do not run exactly in the axial direction or parallel to the axial direction, but are oriented at a slight angle to it. At their lower ends, the respective guide slot 20 transitions into a second detent element 21, against which the first detent element 52 can be engaged.The second locking element 21 can be designed as a recess in guide slot 20. When an individual actuating element 5 is axially displaced as a result of manual actuation of the individual actuating element 5 or the general actuating element 6, the locking arm 51 is elastically deformed slightly due to the inclined course of the guide slot 20, resulting in a certain degree of tension in the individual actuating element 5. When the first locking element 52 engages with the second locking element 21, the locking arm 51 springs back at least partially, thus ensuring secure locking. Figure 5 shows the conductor terminal according to Figure 4 in the actuated state. For example, by actuating the general actuating element 6 in axial direction A, all clamping springs 4 are moved into the open position. Due to the one-piece construction of the general actuating element 6 or its sectors 61 with a respective individual actuating element 5, the individual actuating elements 5 are also displaced in the axial direction. In this open position, a first locking element 52 is now engaged with a second locking element 21. To release this locking mechanism, the locking of the second locking element 21 can be released by manually actuating the respective first locking element 52. For this to occur, the first locking element 52 must first be moved slightly tangentially in the circumferential direction, whereby the locking arm 51 connected to the first locking element 52 is deflected slightly by spring action. The return movement to the unactuated position, as shown in Fig. 4, can then occur automatically due to the restoring spring force of the clamping spring 4 acting on the individual actuating element 5 and can optionally be additionally assisted manually. Figure 6 shows a single individual actuating element 5 with the associated spring-loaded clamping connection in the unactuated state. Figure 7 shows the same arrangement in the actuated state, in which the clamping spring 4 is in the open position. It can be seen that the clamping spring 4 has a contact leg 41, which is connected to a clamping leg 43 via a spring arc 42. The clamping leg 43 serves to clamp an electrical conductor to a wall section of the frame-shaped busbar element 3. The clamping spring 4 is supported by its contact leg 41 against an opposite wall section of the frame-shaped busbar element 3. When the individual actuating element 5 or the general actuating element 6 is moved from the unactuated state to the actuated state, the clamping leg 43 is deflected towards the contact leg 41 by the actuating ramp 53. Figure 8 shows another embodiment of a conductor terminal 1 with a housing 2, which can, for example, be designed as a circular housing. The conductor terminal 1 can have electrical plug contacts 8 on a plug-in side, with which the conductor terminal 1 can be plugged together with a mating connector in the manner of a circular connector to form an electrical plug connection. The conductor terminal 1, in turn, has the spring-loaded clamping connections arranged in an annular shape around a center of the housing 2, as previously described, which are located in the housing 2. Each spring-loaded clamping connection is associated with an individual actuating element 5 for individually actuating the clamping spring 4. In this case, the individual actuating elements 5 are arranged in a respective conductor entry channel 22 of the housing 2 and guided therein in the axial actuation direction. It can be seen that each individual actuating element 5 has a longitudinal guide section 54, which is arranged within the conductor entry channel 22. The longitudinal guide section 54 extends circumferentially over at least half the circumference of the conductor entry channel 22. In the illustrated embodiment, the longitudinal guide section 54 extends circumferentially over approximately 75% of the circumference of the conductor entry channel 22. As can be seen, each individual actuating element 5 projects axially from the housing 2 with a manual actuating section 50. Each individual actuating element 5 can be manually actuated by the user at the manual actuating section 50. At the center of the housing, the conductor terminal 1 has a central actuating element 6, by which the clamping springs 4 of all spring-loaded terminals can be actuated together into the open position. The central actuating element 6 has a manual actuating section 60 in the center of the housing 2, at which a pressure force can be applied to actuate the central actuating element 6. As can be seen, the central actuating element 6 is divided into individual sectors 61, with each sector 61 of the central actuating element 6 being assigned to or connected with an individual actuating element 5. Figure 8 shows the conductor terminal 1 in the unactuated state, and Figure 9 shows the conductor terminal 1 in the actuated state of all individual actuating elements 5 or the general actuating element 6. As can be seen, in the actuated state, in which the clamping springs 4 are in the open position, a first locking element 52 of each individual actuating element 5 is engaged on a second locking element 21 arranged on the housing 2. The locking mechanism can be released individually for each spring-loaded terminal by the user applying a radially inward-directed pressure force to the respective first locking element 52. The return force of the clamping spring then moves the respective individual actuating element 5 back to the unactuated position. Figure 10 shows an individual actuating element 5 together with a sector 61 of the general actuating element 6 of the conductor connection terminal according to Figures 8 and 9. The sector 61 can, in turn, be formed integrally with the individual actuating element 5, e.g., as a plastic injection-molded component. It can be seen that the individual actuating element 5 has an axially extending detent arm 51 on the radially outwardly facing side of the longitudinal guide section 54, which has a first detent element 52 at its free end. The detent arm 51 is spring-loaded and deflectable. In an advantageous embodiment, the first detent element 52 can be guided in an internal guide groove of the housing 2 during the displacement process of the individual actuating element 5. Reference symbol list 1 Conductor terminal block 2 Housing 3 Busbar component 4 Clamping spring 5 Individual actuating element 6 Universal actuating element 8 Plug-in side 20 Guide slot 21 Second locking element 22 Conductor entry channel 41 Mounting leg 42 Spring arc 43 Clamping leg 50 Manual actuating section of the individual actuating element 51 Locking arm 52 First locking element 53 Actuating ramp 54 Longitudinal guide section 60 Manual actuating section of the universal actuating element 61 Sector A Axial direction QUOTES INCLUDED IN THE DESCRIPTION This list of documents cited by the applicant was automatically generated and is included solely for the reader's convenience. The list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA accepts no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature DE 10 2021 112 960 A1

[0002]

Claims

A conductor terminal (1) with a housing (2) and several spring-clamp terminals, each of which has at least one clamping spring (4) for clamping an electrical conductor by means of spring force, wherein the spring-clamp terminals are arranged along an annular path around a center in the housing (2) of the conductor terminal (1), wherein the conductor terminal (1) has for several or all of these spring-clamp terminals an individual actuating element (5) assigned to each spring-clamp terminal, by actuating which the clamping spring (4) of the assigned spring-clamp terminal can be individually actuated into an open position, characterized in that each individual actuating element (5) has a first detent element (52) with which the individual actuating element (5) can be detented in the open position on a second detent element (21). Conductor terminal according to claim 1, characterized in that the conductor terminal (1) has a release element assigned to an individual actuating element (5) by which the locking of the individual actuating element (5) in the open position can be released by means of manual actuation. Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a guide groove or a guide slot (20) is formed on the housing (2) in which the first detent element (52) of a respective individual actuating element (5) is guided when moving from the unactuated state to the open position. Conductor terminal according to claim 3, characterized in that in the area of ​​the open position the respective guide groove or guide slot (20) transitions into the second locking element (21). Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that one, several or all of the individual actuating elements (5) each have an elastically deformable locking arm (51) on which the first locking element (52) is arranged, wherein the locking arm (51) springs back elastically when the first locking element (52) transitions into the locking on the second locking element (21). Conductor terminal according to claim 5, characterized in that the locking arm (51) projects radially outwards relative to the center of the housing (2). Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, in the case of one, several or all individual actuating elements (5), the respective first locking element (52) can be locked onto the second locking element (21) by means of a radially outward movement and / or a tangential movement along the circumference of the housing (2). Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that one, several or all of the individual actuating elements (5) have a respective manual actuating section (50) which projects axially out of the housing (2). Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that in one, several or all individual actuating elements (5) the respective first locking element (52) projects radially out of the housing (2), at least when it is locked with the second locking element (21). Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the housing (2) has a conductor entry channel (22) for one, several or all spring clamp connections, each associated with the spring clamp connection, through which an electrical conductor can be inserted into the housing (2) and clamped to the spring clamp connection. conductor terminal according to claim 10, characterized in that one, several or all of the individual actuating elements (5) each have a longitudinal guide section (54) which is guided within a conductor entry channel (22) in a longitudinal displacement direction. Conductor terminal according to claim 11, characterized in that a respective longitudinal guide section (54) guided in a conductor entry channel (22) extends in the circumferential direction over at least half of the circumference of the conductor entry channel (22). Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the individual actuating elements (5) are directly adjacent in the center of the housing (2) and / or support each other. Conductor terminal according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the conductor terminal (1) has at least one general actuating element (6) by which the clamping springs (4) of several or all of the spring force clamping connections that can be actuated by means of an individual actuating element (5) can be actuated together into the open position when a manual actuating section (60) of the general actuating element (6) is actuated. Conductor terminal according to claim 14, characterized in that the manual actuating section (60) of the general actuating element (6) projects axially out of the housing (2). Conductor terminal according to one of claims 14 to 15, characterized in that the manual actuation section (60) of the lump-sum actuation element (6) is divided into several separate sectors (61) which can be actuated separately. Conductor terminal according to claim 16, characterized in that a respective sector (61) of the manual actuating section (60) of the general actuating element (6) is coupled to a respective individual actuating element (5) or is formed integrally with it. Conductor terminal according to one of claims 14 to 17, characterized in that the general actuating element (6) is configured to actuate the respective clamping spring (4) indirectly into the open position by actuating the individual actuating element (5) associated with this clamping spring (4). Conductor terminal according to one of claims 14 to 18, characterized in that the general actuating element (6) or at least its manual actuating section (60) is arranged in a central area of ​​the conductor terminal (1) which is located within the area limited by the annular path of the spring force clamp connections. Electrical connector, in particular circular connector, with at least one conductor terminal (1) according to one of the preceding claims.

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