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Abstract

The invention of the present application provides a fuse that effectively prevents a housing from expanding due to internal pressure. A fuse 500 comprises a fuse element 400 having a fusible portion 420 provided between a pair of terminal units 410, and a housing 300 accommodating the fuse element 400. The housing 300 has wall parts, and the housing 300 is provided with at least one reinforcement part (350, 360) connecting the wall parts.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The invention of the present application relates to a fuse mainly used in an electric circuit of a motor vehicle or the like, and more particularly to a fuse accommodating a fuse element in a casing. STATE OF THE ART

[0002] In the prior art, a fuse was used to protect an electrical circuit mounted in an automobile or the like and various electrical components connected to the circuit. When an accidental overcurrent flows in the circuit, the melting portion of the fuse element contained in the fuse melts due to the heat generated by the overcurrent, protecting various electrical components and preventing excessive current from flowing in various electrical components.

[0003] There are various types of fuses depending on the application, and for example, a fuse described in Patent Literature 1 is known.

[0004] The fuse described in Patent Literature 1 is of a type in which a fuse element is housed in a housing, and includes a pair of terminal units and a fuse element with a fusible portion between the terminal units. Furthermore, in recent years, due to the increase in high voltage and high current, it has been desired to increase the number of fusible portions to increase the capacity of the fuse. As the number of fusible portions increases, the housing may expand due to the internal pressure of the gas generated when the fusible portions melt. LIST OF CITIONSPATENT LITERATURE

[0005] Patent Literature 1: JP 2021-93323 A SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION TECHNICAL TASK

[0006] Therefore, the invention of the present application provides a fuse that effectively prevents the housing from expanding due to internal pressure. SOLUTION TO THE TASK

[0007] A fuse according to the invention of the present application comprises a fuse element having a melting portion provided between a pair of terminal units, and a housing accommodating the fuse element, wherein the housing comprises wall parts, and wherein the housing is provided with at least one reinforcing part connecting the wall parts.

[0008] The reinforcement part strengthens the housing so much that the housing does not expand and deform due to the internal pressure.

[0009] In the fuse according to the invention of the present application, the housing comprises one housing section and the other housing section, and the reinforcing part is provided so as to traverse the two housing sections.

[0010] According to the above feature, the reinforcing member effectively prevents the housing sections from expanding due to the internal pressure in the direction in which the housing sections are spaced from each other.

[0011] Furthermore, in the fuse according to the invention of the present application, the reinforcing part comprises a separating part and the other separating part, wherein the one separating part is provided on the one housing part, wherein the other separating part is provided on the other housing part, and wherein the one separating part and the other separating part are formed such that they are firmly connected to each other.

[0012] According to the above feature, when each housing section is molded by a conventional method (e.g., injection molding or the like) to form each housing section, each partition part can be molded simultaneously.

[0013] Furthermore, in the fuse according to the invention of the present application, a distal end of one separating part and a distal end of the other separating part are firmly connected to each other by being fastened to each other.

[0014] According to the above feature, one partition member is directly attached to the other partition member only by joining one housing member and the other housing member so that one housing member and the other housing member are sandwiched against each other, so that it is easy to firmly connect the partition members.

[0015] Furthermore, in the fuse according to the invention of the present application, the reinforcing part is provided on one housing section, and the distal end of the reinforcing part is fixedly connected to the other housing section.

[0016] According to the above feature, the reinforcing member effectively prevents the housing sections from expanding due to the internal pressure in the direction in which the housing sections are spaced from each other.

[0017] Furthermore, in the securing device according to the invention of the present application, the reinforcing part is spaced from an inner side of the receiving space.

[0018] According to the above feature, the receiving space is not divided into left and right parts by the reinforcement part, and the receiving space around the reinforcement part is connected to a connecting space. Therefore, even with the presence of the reinforcement part, an arc-extinguishing material filled in a part of the receiving space spreads over the entire receiving space around the periphery of the reinforcement part, and the entire receiving space is firmly and seamlessly filled with the arc-extinguishing material. ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION

[0019] As described above, with the inventive fuse of the present application it is possible to effectively prevent expansion of the housing due to the internal pressure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is an overall perspective view of a housing portion of a fuse according to the invention of the present application. Fig. 2(a) is a plan view of the housing section, and Fig. 2(b) is a front view of the housing section. Fig. 3(a) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. 2(a) shown line AA, and Fig. 3(b) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. Line BB shown in Figure 2(a). Fig. 4 is an overall perspective view of the other housing portion of the fuse according to the invention of the present application. Fig. 5(a) is a plan view of the housing section, and Fig. 5(b) is a front view of the housing section. Fig. 6(a) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. 5(a) shown line CC, and Fig. 6(b) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. Line DD shown in Figure 5(a). Fig. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the fuse according to the invention of the present application. Fig. is a plan view of the fuse in assembled condition, and Fig. is a front view of the fuse in assembled state. Fig. 9(a) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. 8(a) shown line EE, and Fig. 9(b) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. Line FF shown in Figure 8(a). LIST OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS 300 housings 340 recording room 350 reinforcement part 360 reinforcement part 400 securing element 410 connection unit 420 melting section 500 backup DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0020] Each embodiment of the invention of the present application will be described below with reference to the drawings. The shape, material, and the like of the individual elements of the fuse according to the embodiment described below are merely examples and are not limited thereto.

[0021] In the Fig. 1 to 3, a housing section 100 is shown which forms a housing 300 of a fuse according to the invention. Fig. 1 is an overall perspective view of the housing section 100, Fig. 2(a) is a plan view of the housing section 100, Fig. 2(b) is a front view of the housing portion 100, Fig. 3(a) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. 2(a) shown line AA, and Fig. 3(b) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. Line BB shown in Figure 2(a).

[0022] The housing part 100 is made entirely of synthetic resin and has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. It includes an upper wall part 110 forming a top surface, a side wall part 120 forming a side surface, and front and rear wall parts 130 forming a front and a rear surface, respectively. The housing part 100 includes a receiving space 140 surrounded by the upper wall part 110, the left and right wall parts 120, and the front and rear wall parts 130. Furthermore, a lower side of the receiving space 140 is an opening side 141 and is arranged to oppose an opening side 241 of a receiving space 240 of a housing part 200 described later. Furthermore, a downwardly projecting mounting projection 121 is provided at the ends of the wall part 120 and the wall part 130, which is inserted into a later-described mounting recess 222 of the housing part 200.Further, an inwardly recessed mounting recess 122 is provided at each end of the wall portion 120 and the wall portion 130, and a mounting projection 221 of the housing portion 200 described later is inserted into the mounting recess 122. Furthermore, an insertion portion 131 having a recessed shape is formed at one end of the wall portion 130 so that a terminal unit 410 of a fuse element 400 described later can be inserted.

[0023] Furthermore, in the receiving space 140 of the housing section 100, a central partition 150 and partitions 160 are provided on both sides of the partition 150. The central partition 150 and the two partitions 160 are fixedly connected to a central partition 250 and the two partitions 260 of the housing section 200 described later to form a reinforcement member. A base portion 151 of the partition 150 is fixed near the substantially central part of the top-forming wall part 110, and a distal end 152 linearly hangs downward. Further, a downwardly projecting mounting projection 153 is provided at the distal end 152, and the mounting projection 153 is formed to fit into a later-described mounting recess 253 of the housing section 200. Similarly, a base portion 161 of the partition member 160 is fixed near the end of the top wall portion 110, and a distal end 162 hangs linearly downward.Furthermore, a downwardly projecting mounting projection 163 is provided at the distal end 162, and the mounting projection 163 is configured to fit into a later-described mounting recess 263 of the housing section 200. The partition part 160 is fixedly connected to the inside of the wall part 130. Furthermore, the base portion 151 of the partition part 150 and the base portion 161 of the partition part 160 are fixedly connected to each other by a base portion reinforcing body 159 extending along the top-forming wall part 110.

[0024] The Fig. 4 to 6 show the housing section 200 which forms the housing 300 of the fuse according to the invention of the present application. Fig. 4 is an overall perspective view of the housing section 200, Fig. 5(a) is a plan view of the housing section 200, Fig. 5(b) is a front view of the housing portion 200, Fig. 6(a) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. 5(a) shown line CC, and Fig. 6(b) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. Line DD shown in Figure 5(a).

[0025] The housing section 200 is made entirely of synthetic resin and has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. It includes a lower wall section 210 forming a bottom side, a side wall section 220 forming a side side, and front and rear wall sections 230 forming a front and rear side, respectively. The housing section 200 includes the receiving space 240 surrounded by the lower wall section 210, the left and right wall sections 220, and the front and rear wall sections 230. Furthermore, the upper side of the receiving space 240 is the opening side 241 and is arranged to face the opening side 141 of the receiving space 140 of the housing section 100. Furthermore, the upwardly projecting mounting projection 221 is provided at the ends of the wall part 220 and the wall part 230, and the mounting projection 221 is inserted into the mounting recess 122 of the housing part 100.Furthermore, the inwardly recessed mounting recess 222 is provided at the ends of the wall part 220 and the wall part 230, and the mounting projection 121 of the housing part 100 is inserted into the mounting recess 222. Furthermore, an insertion part 231 having a recessed shape is formed at the end of the wall part 230 so that a terminal unit 410 of the fuse element 400 described later can be inserted.

[0026] Further, in the receiving space 240 of the housing section 200, the central partition 250 and the partitions 260 are provided on both sides of the partition 250. Moreover, a base portion 251 of the partition 250 is fixed near the substantially central wall portion 210 forming the bottom side, and a distal end 252 protrudes linearly upward. Furthermore, the downwardly recessed mounting recess 253 is provided at the distal end 252, and the mounting recess 253 is formed to fit the mounting projection 153 of the housing section 100. Similarly, a base portion 261 of the partition 260 is fixed near the end of the bottom side wall portion 210 forming the bottom side, and a distal end 262 protrudes linearly upward. Further, the downwardly recessed mounting recess 263 is provided at the distal end 262, and the mounting recess 263 is formed so that the mounting projection 163 of the housing section 100 is mounted.The partition part 260 is firmly connected to the inside of the wall part 230. Furthermore, the base section 251 of the partition part 250 and the base section 261 of the partition part 260 are firmly connected to each other by a base section reinforcement body 259, which extends along the wall part 210 forming the bottom side.

[0027] In the following, an aspect of the assembly of a fuse 500 in the sense of the present invention is described with reference to the Fig. 7 to 9 described. Fig. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the fuse 500, Fig. 8(a) is a plan view of the fuse 500 in the assembled state, Fig. 8(b) is a front view of the fuse 500 in the assembled state, Fig. 9(a) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. 8(a) is line EE, and Fig. 9(b) is a cross-sectional view along the Fig. Line FF shown in Figure 8(a).

[0028] First, the securing element 400, as shown in Fig. 7, the fuse element 400 is formed in an elongated shape from a thin, plate-like metal plate and includes a pair of terminal units 410 and flat and elongated circuit units 430 between the terminal units 410. The circuit units 430 of the fuse element 400 are connected in parallel to each other, and a plurality of fusible sections 420 are formed on each of the circuit units 430. The fusible section 420 has a plurality of small holes 421.

[0029] The fuse element 400 includes two circuit units 430, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and may include one circuit unit 430 or three or more circuit units 430. Further, the fusible portion 420 has the plurality of small holes 421, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the thickness of the circuit unit 430 may be locally reduced to form a fusible portion, or a low-melting-point metal of tin, lead, silver, nickel, an alloy thereof, or the like may be deposited at the narrow portion of the circuit unit 430 to form a fusible portion.

[0030] As in Fig. As shown in Figure 7, when assembling the fuse 500, the housing section 100 and the housing section 200 are mounted so as to enclose the fuse element 400 from above and below, and the fusible portion 420 of the fuse element 400 is housed inside the housing 300. Specifically, the fuse element 400 is arranged on the opening side 241 of the receiving space 240 of the lower housing section 200, and the terminal unit 410 of the fuse element 400 is inserted into the insertion part 231 of the housing section 200. The central separating part 250 and the two separating parts 260 are located in a gap 440 between the circuit units 430 of the fuse element 400.

[0031] Subsequently, the housing section 100 is fitted onto the housing section 200 to cover the fuse element 400 through the opening side 141 of the receiving space 140 of the upper housing section 100, and the insertion part 131 of the housing section 100 is inserted into the terminal unit 410 of the fuse element 400. The central separator 150 and the two separator parts 160 are located in the gap 440 between the circuit units 430 of the fuse element 400, and the mounting projection 153 of the upper separator 150 is inserted into the mounting recess 253 of the lower separator 250 to be firmly connected to each other.In particular, the mounting projection 153 of the upper partition member 150 is directly inserted into the mounting recess 253 of the lower partition member 250 only by joining the upper case section 100 and the lower case section 200 so that the upper case section and the lower case section oppose each other in a sandwich structure, so that it is easy to firmly connect one partition member 150 and the other partition member 250.

[0032] Similarly, the mounting projection 163 of the upper partition 160 is inserted into the mounting recess 263 of the lower partition 260 and firmly secured. Furthermore, since the mounting projection 121 of the housing section 100 is inserted into the mounting recess 222 of the housing section 200, and the mounting projection 221 of the housing section 200 is inserted into the mounting recess 122 of the housing section 100, the connection between the housing section 100 and the housing section 200 is stronger.

[0033] Note that the mounting protrusion 153 of the upper partition member 150 is inserted into the mounting recess 253 of the lower partition member 250, but the present invention is not limited to this, and any fastening method can be used as long as the upper partition member 150 and the lower partition member 250 can be firmly connected to each other, such as a method of firmly coupling one partition member 150 and the other partition member 250 with an adhesive, a method of firmly coupling one partition member 150 and the other partition member 250 with a fastening member such as a screw, or a method of firmly coupling one partition member 150 and the other partition member 250 with a locking member such as a hook.Similarly, the mounting projection 163 of the upper partition member 160 is inserted into the mounting recess 263 of the lower partition member 260, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and any fastening method as described above may be used.

[0034] In this way, the housing 300, which includes one housing section 100 and the other housing section 200, accommodates the fusible portion 420 of the fuse element 400 to enclose the fusible portion from above and below, thereby assembling the fuse 500. As shown in the Fig. 8 and Fig. 9, a receiving space 340 having an upper and a lower receiving space (140, 240) receives the melting portion 420 so as to surround the periphery of the melting portion 420 of the circuit unit 430 of the fuse element 400.

[0035] The accommodation space 340 is filled with a granular arc-extinguishing agent (not shown) using a method similar to the conventional method. For example, the arc-extinguishing material is filled into the accommodation space 340 through a filling port 301 of the casing 300, and then the filling port 301 is closed. At this time, since a reinforcing member 350, formed by firmly connecting the separating member 150 and the separating member 250, is disposed substantially in the center of the accommodation space 340 and spaced from an inner side 341 of the accommodation space 340, with the inner side being arranged around the reinforcing member, a communication space 342 is secured between the periphery of the reinforcing member 350 and the inner side 341 of the accommodation space 340.That is, the receiving space 340 is not divided into left and right parts by the reinforcement member 350, and the receiving space 340 around the reinforcement member 350 communicates with the connecting space 342. Therefore, even with the presence of the reinforcement member 350, the arc-extinguishing material filled in a part of the receiving space 340 spreads around the periphery of the reinforcement member 350 throughout the receiving space 340, and the entire receiving space 340 is firmly and seamlessly filled with the arc-extinguishing material.

[0036] The fuse 500 is mounted by connecting the terminal unit 410, which protrudes laterally from the housing 300, to an external circuit. When an accidental overcurrent flows through a circuit or the like, the fusible portion 420 of the fuse element 400 generates heat and melts to interrupt the overcurrent. Furthermore, the arc generated when the fusible portion 420 melts is quickly extinguished by the surrounding arc-extinguishing material.

[0037] In order to cope with an increase in voltage and current, the fuse 500 contains a plurality of melting sections 420. As a result, as shown in Fig. 9, the internal pressure P of the gas generated at the time of melting of the melting portion 420 increases, and a stress is generated to expand the casing 300. However, in the fuse 500 of the invention of the present application, since the reinforcing member 350 connecting the wall parts of the casing 300 is provided, the casing 300 is reinforced so much that the casing 300 does not expand and deform due to the internal pressure P. Similarly, in the fuse 500, since the reinforcing member 360 firmly connects the wall parts of the upper partition parts 160 and the lower partition part 260, the casing 300 is reinforced so much that the casing 300 does not expand and deform due to the internal pressure P.

[0038] The Fig. 8 and Fig. The fuse 500 shown in Figure 9 includes the reinforcement member 350 located substantially in the center of the accommodation space 340 and the reinforcement members 360 located on both sides of the reinforcement member 350, but the present invention is not limited thereto and may include only one of the reinforcement members 350 and 360. By providing the reinforcement member 350 spaced from the inner side 341 of the accommodation space 340, with the inner side being arranged around the reinforcement member, a weak part of the accommodation space 340, i.e., a part spaced from the inner side 341, can be reinforced by the reinforcement member 350, so that the housing 300 can be more effectively prevented from expanding and deforming due to the internal pressure P. The reinforcement members shown in Figures Fig. 8 and Fig. The fuse 500 shown in Figure 9 comprises three reinforcement members (350, 360), but the present invention is not limited thereto, and any number of reinforcement members, such as two or four or more reinforcement members, may be provided. Furthermore, in the embodiment shown in Figures Fig. 8 and Fig. 9, the reinforcement part (350, 360) connects the upper wall part 110 and the lower wall part 120, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and each reinforcement part (350, 360) can connect any two wall parts of the housing 300. In addition, in the Fig. 8 and Fig. In the fuse 500 shown in Fig. 9, the reinforcement member (350, 360) is formed in a columnar shape connecting the wall parts, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the reinforcement member may have any shape such as a wall surface shape that separates the receiving space 340 of the housing 300 into the two sides.

[0039] In addition, since the reinforcement member 350 is provided to connect and pass through one casing section 100 and the other casing section 200, it is possible to effectively prevent the casing section 100 and the casing section 200 from expanding in directions away from each other due to the internal pressure P. Note that the casing 300 includes two partition parts (casing section 100, casing section 200), but the present invention is not limited to this, and the casing 300 may include a single molded part, or the casing 300 may include three or more partition parts.

[0040] Furthermore, the reinforcement member 350 is formed by firmly coupling two partition members (150, 250), but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the reinforcement member 350 may be a columnar body that traverses the receiving space 340 and is integrally molded. In this case, an integrally molded reinforcement member 350 is provided on one housing section 100 of the housing 300, and the distal end of the reinforcement member 350 is firmly connected to the other housing section 200 of the housing 300, so that the housing section 100 and the housing section 200 are firmly fixed to each other. Similarly, the reinforcement member 360 is formed by firmly coupling two partition members (160, 260), but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the reinforcement member 360 may be a columnar body that traverses the receiving space 340 and is integrally molded.Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the case where an integrally molded reinforcement member 350 is molded integrally with a housing portion 100 of the housing 300, but the reinforcement member 350 may be molded separately from the housing 300. In this case, the reinforcement member 350 is attached to the housing 300 so that it penetrates the receiving space 340, thereby reinforcing the housing 300.

[0041] In addition, since each partition member (150, 250) constituting the reinforcement piece 350 is formed in each case section (100, 200), each partition member can be formed simultaneously when each case section is molded by a conventional method (e.g., injection molding or the like) for forming each case section.

[0042] As in the Fig. 8 and Fig. As shown in Figure 9, each reinforcing member (350, 360) is spaced from the fusible element 400 such that it does not contact the fusible portion 420 of the fusible element 420. Therefore, none of the reinforcing members (350, 360) thermally and physically influences the fusible portion 420, and the melting properties of the fusible portion 420 are stabilized.

[0043] As in Fig.As shown in Figure 9, the reinforcement member 350 extends perpendicular to the extension direction of the fuse element 400, that is, in the direction parallel to the X-axis connecting the two terminals 410. Therefore, the reinforcement member 350 is less likely to be affected and thermally influenced by the internal pressure P generated by the melting portion 420, and the reinforcement member 350 maintains the design strength, and the housing 300 can be more effectively prevented from expanding and deforming due to the internal pressure P. The reinforcement member 350 extends perpendicular to the extension direction of the fuse element 400, that is, in the direction parallel to the X-axis connecting the two terminals 410, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the reinforcement member may extend so as to be inclined at any angle with respect to the X-axis.The reinforcing member 350 inclined at any angle with respect to the X-axis is less likely to be affected by the internal pressure P generated by the melting portion 420 as well as thermally, compared with the case where the reinforcing member 350 extends in the direction parallel to the X-axis.

[0044] It should be noted that the invention of the present application is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and various modifications and combinations are possible within the scope of the claims and the scope of the embodiments, and such modifications and combinations also fall within the scope of this right. 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] JP 2021-93323 A

[0005]

Claims

[1] A fuse comprising: a fuse element having a melting portion provided between a pair of terminal units, and a housing accommodating the fuse element, wherein the housing contains wall parts, and the housing is provided with at least one reinforcing part which connects the wall parts to each other. [2] Fuse according to claim 1, wherein the housing comprises one housing section and the other housing section, and wherein the reinforcement part is designed so that it passes through the two housing sections. [3] Fuse according to claim 2, wherein the reinforcing part contains a separating part and the other separating part, wherein one separating part is provided on one housing section and the other separating part is provided on the other housing section, and wherein one separating part and the other separating part are designed so that they are firmly connected to each other. [4] A fuse according to claim 3, wherein a distal end of said one separating member and a distal end of said other separating member are fixedly connected to each other by being fixed to each other. [5] Fuse according to claim 2, wherein the reinforcement part is provided on the one housing section, and wherein a distal end of the reinforcement part is firmly connected to the other housing section. [6] Fuse according to one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the reinforcing member is spaced from an inner side of a receiving space.

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