conductor connection terminal

Abstract

Conductor terminal (1) comprising: - an insulating housing (2) having a conductor entry opening (3); - a spring-loaded clamping connection (7) in the insulating housing (3) having a busbar (4) and a clamping spring (5), wherein the clamping spring (5) has a clamping leg (52) with a clamping edge (31) for clamping an electrical conductor (30) to the busbar (4), a support leg (51) for bearing the clamping spring (5), and a spring arc (53) connecting the support leg (51) to the clamping leg (52); - an actuating element (6) pivotably mounted in the insulating housing (2) and having a drive contour (62) designed to interact with the clamping leg (52) in order to move the clamping leg (52) against the spring force of the clamping spring (5) towards the support leg (51) into an open position; and a detent contour (22). 23) which is designed to lock the actuating lever (6) in the open position,characterized in that the conductor terminal (1) has a release element (18) which has a release section (19) that can be acted upon by an electrical conductor (30) inserted into the conductor entry opening (3) and to be clamped, and a release section (21) adjacent to the actuating lever (6) in the open position, wherein the release element (18) is formed from the detent of the actuating lever (6) pivoted into the open position to release the detent contour (22, 23) when the release force is exerted on the release section (19) by the electrical conductor (30) inserted and impacting the release section (19).

Description

The invention relates to a conductor connection terminal withan insulating housing having a conductor insertion opening,a spring force clamping connection in the insulating material housing, which has a busbar and a clamping spring, wherein the clamping spring has a clamping leg with a clamping edge for clamping an electrical conductor to the busbar, a contact leg for mounting the clamping spring, and a spring bow connecting the contact leg to the clamping leg, andan actuating element which is pivotably mounted in the insulating material housing and has a driver contour which is configured to interact with the clamping limb in order to move the clamping limb into an open position counter to the spring force of the clamping spring in the direction of the contact limb, and has a latching contour which is configured to latch the actuating lever in the open position.Spring force clamping connections serve for clamping an electrical conductor to a clamping point which is formed between the clamping limb of a clamping spring and a busbar. For clamping the electrical conductor, the clamping spring is pressed away from the busbar either during direct connection by the electrical conductor counter to the force of the clamping spring. This is possible for rigid conductors, but not for multi-wire conductors or stranded conductors.DE 10 2018 110 312 A1 discloses a conductor connection terminal with an insulating material housing having a conductor insertion channel, a busbar in the insulating material housing and a clamping spring. The clamping spring has a contact leg mounted on the busbar, a spring bend adjoining the contact leg, a clamping leg adjoining the spring bend with a clamping edge which together with the busbar forms a clamping point for clamping an electrical conductor, and a pull tab protruding from the clamping leg. Furthermore, the conductor connection terminal has an actuating lever which is pivotably mounted in the insulating material housing. The actuating lever has a driver nose and is designed to grip the pull tab with the driver nose and to displace the pull tab when the actuating lever is pivoted in order to open and close the clamping point. The actuating surface of the driver nose which comes into contact with the pull tab when it is gripped extends in a concentric section around the center of rotation of the actuating lever. The distance of the actuating surface of the driver nose from the center of rotation becomes greater over the length of the driver nose towards the free end of the driver nose.WO 2019 / 185797 A1 shows a conductor connection terminal with a clamping spring which has a contact leg, a spring bend adjoining the contact leg and a clamping leg which adjoins the spring bend and ends with a clamping tongue, wherein an actuating leg protrudes from the clamping leg. The actuating leg has two side webs spaced apart from one another and a transverse web connecting the side webs to one another at their free end. The side webs and the transverse web enclose a driver opening for engaging a spring driver of an actuating lever. Adjoining the transverse web is a tab which projects out of the plane of the driver opening and has a curvature, the convex surface of the curvature pointing towards the driver opening.WO 2019 / 185794 A1 discloses a conductor connection terminal having an insulating material housing, a busbar, a clamping spring and an actuating lever which is accommodated pivotably in the insulating material housing over a pivoting region and is pivotable between an open position and a closed position. The clamping spring has an actuating leg which is deflected at least in the open position by a spring driver of the actuating lever. In the open position, the actuating lever is supported at a first and a second support location spaced apart therefrom and is pulled against the first and the second support location by a tensile force of the clamping spring acting from the actuating limb on the spring driver.There is a need for clamping electrical conductors to provide a spring force clamping connection in a self-holding manner in an open position. It is often desired that conductor connection terminals with the open spring force clamping terminal are delivered at the factory.It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved conductor connection terminal.The object is achieved with the conductor connection terminal having the features of claim 1. Advantageous embodiments are described in the dependent claims.It is proposed that the conductor connection terminal has a release element which has a release section which can be acted upon by a release force by an electrical conductor which is introduced into the conductor introduction opening and is to be clamped, and a disengagement section which adjoins the actuating lever in the open position of the actuating lever. The triggering element is designed to release the latching contour from the latching of the actuating lever pivoted into the open position when the triggering force is exerted on the triggering section by the electrical conductor which is introduced and impinges on the triggering section.The clamping spring can thus be held with the actuating lever in an open position, so that an electrical conductor can be inserted into the conductor insertion opening to the open clamping point of the spring force clamping connection. The actuating lever latched in the open position can be unlatched by the release element which acts in the region of the latching contour, in that the release element converts a release force exerted on the release section by the inserted electrical conductor to the release section. After the actuation lever has been disengaged, the clamping spring can swivel into the closed position by its spring force in order to clamp the electrical conductor at the clamping point between the clamping edge of the clamping leg and the busbar.The release element for disengaging the actuating lever enables a compact, space-saving construction. The biased open pinch point can be visually indicated by the pivoted-up lever acting as an optical indicator. The contact force of the clamping spring is always ensured in the closed position by the clamping spring itself, independently of the closed lever. The actuating lever can be pivoted back not only by disengaging it by means of the inserted electrical conductor, but also by pivoting the lever back manually, for example.The actuating element can be mounted, for example, about a fixed axis of rotation or in a floating manner.The latching connection of the actuating lever holds the actuating lever in the open position under spring tension. After the unlocking, which can act directly on the locking connection or indirectly and leads to the stop with the locking contour being cancelled, the actuating lever can automatically pivot back into the closed clamping position by the tensile force of the clamping spring.The insulating material housing can have a stop contour which forms a stop for the latching contour of the actuating element pivoted into the open position. The release element is designed to exert a force on the actuating lever with the disengaging section and to displace the actuating lever in order to guide the latching contour past the stop contour and to disengage the actuating lever.This enables a stable latching of the actuating lever on the insulating material housing. The actuating lever can be raised by the release element for unlocking and moved out of the locking. The lifting of the actuating lever is usually effected against the force of the clamping spring which is coupled to the actuating lever.The disengaging section can adjoin the latching contour of the actuating lever in the open position of the actuating lever.The force of the release element for unlocking can thus act directly on the actuating lever at the displaced (e.g. raised) locking contour. If the disengaging section itself forms the stop for the latching contour of the actuating lever, the disengaging section necessarily adjoins the latching contour.The disengaging section can form a stop for the latching contour of the actuating element in the open position of the actuating element.This has the advantage that only a small amount of force is required in order to move the disengaging section away from the latching contour. For unlocking, the disengaging section only has to be moved away from the locking lever without a force acting against the force of the clamping spring having to be applied for unlocking, for example by lifting the actuating lever.The triggering element can be resilient. The disengaging section can be movable away from the latching contour, which in the open position of the actuating lever abuts the disengaging section forming a stop, by a deflection of the release section in order to cancel the stop.In this case, the disengaging section can form a latching edge or a stop for the latching contour of the actuating lever and can be displaced for disengaging.For this purpose, the disengaging section can be moved away from the latching contour against the spring force of the spring-elastic release element. The spring elasticity provides the internal restoring forces of the release element. The disengagement section can spring back into the latching position by its spring elasticity if the release section is not deflected.The triggering element can be mounted pivotably for releasing the latching contour from the latching by displacement of the actuating lever when a triggering force exerted on the triggering section acts.The actuating lever can thus be displaced, e.g. raised, by the release element, so that the latching lug is guided out of the stop with the latching depression of the insulating material housing. For this purpose, the triggering element essentially carries out a pivoting movement about a bearing point (i.e. about a pivot axis) of the triggering element on the insulating material housing, in order to form a lever arm with which the actuating lever can be raised. The triggering element is designed more or less rigid for this purpose.The actuating element can be acted upon in the open position by the force of the clamping spring.A restoring force acts on the actuating lever, which automatically pivots the actuating lever back into the clamping position after the unlocking.A pull tab (i.e. an actuating leg) can protrude from the clamping leg to the driver contour of the actuating lever. The pull tab can be connected to the driver contour or can be connected when the actuating element is pivoted into the open position.In this case, the actuating lever can be connected firmly, i.e. continuously in any pivoted position, to the clamping limb via the pull tab. However, a temporary form-fit connection is also conceivable, for example by engaging or engaging the driver contour under a shoulder or recess of the pull tab. For this purpose, the driver contour can have a projecting nose, which engages under the pull tab in the transition to the open position.The actuating element can be an actuating lever with a lever arm which merges into a pivot bearing section.The driver contour can project from the pivot bearing section at an angle to the lever arm and form a driver nose which is designed to engage under a holding contour of the pull tab or engage in a recess of the pull tab.The bus bar may have a lead-through opening. The clamping spring can project with the clamping leg and the contact leg into the conductor passage opening. The contact leg can abut on a first end side delimiting the conductor passage opening. The busbar can have a clamping projection on a second end side of the conductor feedthrough opening, which clamping projection extends away from the plane of the busbar spanned by the conductor feedthrough opening and forms a clamping section for clamping the electrical conductor between the clamping edge of the clamping leg and the clamping projection.This makes it possible to form a self-supporting spring force clamping connection in which the forces of the clamping spring are absorbed on the busbar.The conductor feedthrough opening of the busbar can have a collar which partially or completely delimits the conductor feedthrough opening and extends from the plane of the busbar spanned by the conductor feedthrough opening towards the triggering surface of the triggering element.The clamping portion may be formed on the collar.A busbar can have a plurality of conductor plug-through openings, each with a clamping spring arranged thereon. A plurality of electrical conductors can thus be clamped to a common busbar and electrically conductively connected to one another.The clamping spring is preferably a leg spring, so that a direct connection of a rigid conductor is also possible without prior opening of the clamping point. However, the conductor connection terminal can also be realized with a cage tension spring as a clamping spring.In the context of this application, the words "a / an", unless expressly defined otherwise, are not to be understood as a numerical word, but rather as an indeterminate article having the word sense of "at least one / one".The invention allows various embodiments and is described in more detail below by way of example with reference to an exemplary embodiment. The following are shown: FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a first embodiment of the conductor connection terminal in the closed state; FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the conductor connection terminal from FIG. 1 with the actuating lever in the open position latched to the insulating material housing; FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the conductor connection terminal from FIG. 2 with the actuating lever in the locked open position with the electrical conductor inserted; FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the conductor terminal of FIG. 3 ; FIG. 5 is a plan view of the conductor connection terminal from FIG. 3 with section line A-A of the sectional views from FIGS. 1 to 3 ; FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the clamping spring and the release element of the first embodiment of the conductor connection terminal; FIG. 7 is a side sectional view of a second embodiment of the conductor connection terminal in the closed state; FIG. 8 is a side sectional view of the conductor connection terminal from FIG. 7 with the actuating lever in the open position latched on the release element; FIG. 9 is a side sectional view of the conductor connection terminal from FIG. 8 with the actuating lever in the locked open position with the electrical conductor inserted; FIG. 10 shows a perspective view of the conductor connection terminal from FIG. 9 ; FIG. 11 is a plan view of the conductor connection terminal from FIG. 9 with section line A-A of the sectional views from FIGS. 7 to 9; FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the clamping spring and the release element of the second embodiment of the conductor connection terminal.FIG. 1 shows a side sectional view of a first embodiment of the conductor connection terminal 1 in the closed state.The conductor connection terminal 1 has an insulating material housing 2 with a conductor insertion opening 3, a busbar 4, a clamping spring 5 and an actuating element 6 in the form of an actuating lever pivotably mounted in the insulating material housing 2 for actuating the clamping spring 5. An electrical conductor can be inserted into the conductor insertion opening 3 and can be led to a first clamping point of a spring force clamping connection 7, where the electrical conductor can be clamped firmly by spring force by means of the clamping spring 5 and the busbar 4. The busbar 4 is accommodated in the insulating material housing 2.The bus bar 4 has a first bus bar portion 41 and a second bus bar portion 42. The first busbar section 41 is connected to the second busbar section 42 via a curvature region 43, with the result that the busbar 4 overall has a curved and / or angled shape. The second busbar section 42 is arranged at least predominantly within a busbar channel 8. The busbar 4 has, in the first busbar section 41, a conductor passage opening 9, through which an electrical conductor to be clamped can be guided. The conductor feedthrough opening 9 can be surrounded by side walls which can be formed integrally on the first busbar section 41 and can be formed, for example, in the form of a material feedthrough. For example, the conductor passage opening 9 can have wall sections protruding on all sides from the busbar plane, which wall sections form the material passage.The clamping spring 5 has a contact leg 51, a clamping leg 52 and a spring bend 53 connecting the contact leg 51 to the clamping leg 52. The clamping spring 5 is mounted with the contact leg 51 on the busbar 4. As shown, it can enter the conductor passage opening 9 and bear against a narrow side wall there. As illustrated, the support is effected, for example, by the free end of the contact limb 51 resting against the inner side of the conductor passage opening 9 and / or a collar wall of the material passage. The clamping spring 5 extends further from the contact limb 51 via the spring bend 53 to the clamping limb 52. The pull tab 10 may be bent from the clamping leg 52 at a relatively large angle, e.g., greater than 45 degrees or greater than or equal to 90 degrees. The pull tab 10 terminates at its free end with a transverse web 11 which defines a driver opening 12 at the end. In the free end region of the pull tab 10, a material section of the clamping spring material is bent to form a tab which projects from the remaining course of the pull tab 10 and which has at least part of a curved bearing region 13 of the pull tab 10. The curved bearing region 13, together with a socket bearing 14 of the actuating lever 6, forms a type of bearing comprising a cylinder and a cylinder shell, similar to a ball-and-socket bearing.Furthermore, the clamping leg 52 extends further to a clamping tongue 54, which is bent away from the clamping leg 52 in the opposite direction than the pull tab 10. The clamping tongue 54 terminates at the free end of the clamping leg 52 with a clamping edge. The clamping edge, together with the busbar 4, i.e. the conductor passage opening 9 and / or a collar wall 15 of the material passage presented towards the contact limb 51, forms a clamping point of the spring force clamping connection 7 for an electrical conductor to be clamped firmly there. Accordingly, the contact leg 51 and the clamping tongue 54 enter the conductor passage opening 9 or the material passage (collar) surrounded by collar walls.The conductor connection terminal 1 has an actuating lever 6, which is predominantly arranged in the region surrounded by the insulating material housing 2 and extends outwards substantially with a manual actuating portion 61, for example an actuating handle, where a manual actuation of the actuating lever 6 can take place. By means of the manual actuation of the actuating lever 6, the clamping point can be opened or closed. If the actuating lever 6 is in the closed position shown in FIG. 1, the clamping point is also closed. For this purpose, the actuating lever has, at its end diametrically opposite the actuating section 61, a driver contour 62 (i.e. a spring driver), which has the socket bearing 14 and, when pivoted into the open position, dips into the driver opening 12 of the pull tab 10. The cross-web 11 of the pull tab 10 then forms a stop for the driver contour 62, and the pull tab 10 is pulled with the clamping leg 52 connected thereto toward the pivot region of the actuating lever 6 in order to open the clamping point.If the actuating lever 6 is moved into the open position (as shown in FIG. 2 ), the clamping point is opened. In this open position, an electrical conductor can be introduced into the clamping point or removed therefrom without any force being required, since the clamping edge is moved away from its contact point on the busbar 4 or the electrical conductor by the actuation of the actuating lever 6.The conductor insertion direction L may be inclined to the extension direction of the manual operation portion 61. Accordingly, an angle can be formed between the extension of the outer surface of the manual operation portion 61 approximately flush with the housing surface and the conductor insertion direction L. The angle may be relatively small, e.g., in the range of 20 to 60 degrees.The actuating lever 6 is pivotably mounted in the insulating material housing 2. In this case, no fixed bearing axle is provided in the exemplary embodiment. Rather, the actuating lever 6 is mounted in a floating manner and can also perform displacement movements in the course of a pivoting movement from the closed position into the open position and vice versa in addition to the rotational movement.The operating lever 6 can have a test recess 63 penetrating through the operating lever 6, e.g. in the region of the manual operating section 61. in the closed position, the test recess 63 is substantially aligned with a test opening 16 of the insulating material housing 2 which extends as far as the clamping spring 5, e.g. as far as the spring bow 53.The conductor insertion opening 3 opens out toward the conductor passage opening 9 of the busbar 4. The conductor insertion opening 9 merges, diametrically opposite the conductor insertion opening 3, into a conductor collection pocket 17. An electrical conductor inserted into the conductor insertion opening 3 and inserted through the conductor passage opening 9 has reached the conductor collection pocket 17 with its stripped free end.In the conductor collecting pocket 17 there is a release element 18 which has a release section 19 extending transversely to the conductor insertion direction L below the mouth of the conductor passage opening 9. This is oriented such that an inserted electrical conductor to be clamped exerts a triggering force in the conductor insertion direction L on the triggering section 19. The release element 18 is pivotably mounted in the insulating material housing 2 at a support point 20 and merges at the front there into a disengaging section 21. The support point 20 lies between the release section 19 and the disengagement section 21, so that a lever arm pivotably mounted on the support point 20 is formed.The actuating lever 6 is guided, supported and fixed in certain positions, such as the closed position and the open position, in a plurality of ways in the conductor connection terminal 1. For this purpose, the actuating lever 6 has a first latching lug 22 in the lower region, i.e. the part of the actuating lever 6 remote from the manual actuating section 61, and a second latching lug 23 in the rearward region, i.e. the region facing away from the driver contour 62. The first and / or the second latching nose 22, 23 can be configured, for example, as a latching element, for example as a material projection or cam. The latching noses 22, 23 can be formed directly from the material of the actuating lever 5. The actuating lever 6 also has a first guide section 24, via which the actuating lever 6 is guided in particular in the busbar 4 during a pivoting movement and is secured against lateral tilting. The first guide section 24 runs through a recess of the busbar 4, for example a recess in the first busbar section 41The recess can be formed, for example, as a longitudinal slot. If the actuating lever 6 is pivoted, for example from the closed position into the open position, the first guide portion 24 runs through this recess. It can also be provided that the actuating lever 6 runs along an inner guide contour of the insulating material housing 2 during a pivoting movement with the second latching nose 23 and is additionally supported and / or guided as a resultAs mentioned, the actuating lever 6 serves for actuating the clamping spring 5. For this purpose, the actuating lever 6 has the driver contour 62, which is shaped like a driver tooth and, in the mounted state, protrudes from the actuating lever 6 in the direction of the clamping spring 5, in particular in the direction of the pull tab 10. In this case, the driver contour 62 in the closed position is initially not in engagement with the pull tab 10, so that in this closed position no spring load acts on the actuating lever 6. The driver contour 62 can be located, for example, at least in the closed position in the region of the curvature region 45 of the busbar 4. The driver contour 62 merges at a curved inner contour of the actuating lever 6 into a bearing region of the actuating lever 6, which in this case forms a socket bearing 14. This socket bearing 14, as will be explained in the following, interacts with the curved bearing region 13 of the clamping spring 5 during a pivoting movement of the actuating lever 6.The actuating lever 6 is fixed in the closed position shown in FIG. 1 by the second latching nose 23 entering a free space in the insulating material housing 2, namely into a receiving pocket 25.The first latching lug 22 is located in the vicinity of a first latching edge 26 of the insulating material housing 2, which, however, does not have any essential function in the closed position.In the insulating material housing 2, a second latching edge 27 is also formed on, which has a function, as will be described below, in the open position of the actuating lever 6. Likewise, the structure and the mode of operation of a second guide section 28 of the actuating lever 6 will be discussed below with reference to further figures. By accommodating the second latching nose 23 in the accommodating pocket 25, it is possible to secure the actuating lever 6 in the closed position against falling out of the insulating material housing 2. Furthermore, the accommodation of the second latching nose 23 in the accommodation pocket 25 ensures that the actuating lever 6 is rotated out in the event of a recoil when the actuating lever 6 is transferred from the open position into the closed position.The clamping spring 5 can be fixed with an overload protection element 29, so that a counter bearing for the test pin is created. In addition, excessive movement and stress of the clamping spring 5 is prevented by the overload protection element 29 in the insulating material housing 2. The overload protection element 29 can be formed as an island-shaped material region of the insulating material housing 2, which is arranged within the spring arch 53. In the open position, the clamping spring 5 can bear with one or more regions, for example the spring bow 53 and / or the clamping limb 52, against the overload protection element 29, i.e. abut against the overload protection element 29.The conductor connection terminal 1 recognizable in FIG. 1 can be formed as an individual connection terminal, as shown, or as part of a conductor connection terminal comprising further conductor connections.FIG. 2 shows a side sectional view of the conductor connection terminal 1 from FIG. 1 with the actuating lever 6 in the open position latched to the insulating material housing 2. The actuating lever 6 is pivoted by approximately 90° relative to the closed position in FIG. 1.It can be seen that the clamping leg 52 of the clamping spring 5 is pulled towards the contact leg 51 counter to the spring force with the aid of the pull tab 10. For this purpose, the driver contour 62 engages with its socket bearing 14 in the curved bearing region 13 of the actuating section 10 in order to pull the actuating section 10 in the direction of the actuating section 61. In the open position, the actuating lever 6 is under spring tension of the clamping spring 5, which exerts a restoring moment on the actuating lever 6.The second latching lug 23 is moved out of the receiving pocket 25 and is now located behind the first latching edge 26, which now forms a stop for the second latching lug 23. In addition, the first latching lug 22 is displaced behind the second latching edge 27, so that here too a stop for the first latching lug 22 is formed by the second latching edge 27. The actuating lever 6 is thus locked in the open position.It can be seen that the disengaging section 21 is located directly adjacent below the first latching nose 23.FIG. 3 shows a side sectional view of the conductor connection terminal 1 from FIG. 2 with the actuating lever 6 in the locked open position with the electrical conductor 30 inserted.If an electrical conductor 30 inserted into the conductor insertion opening 3 now reaches the conductor collection pocket 17 with its stripped free end and acts on the release section 19 of the release element 18, a release force is exerted, by means of which the release element 18 is pivoted about the bearing point 20. As a result, the disengaging section 21 presses on the second latching nose 23 and moves the actuating lever 6 upward past the stop by the first latching edge 26.This not only disengages the second latching lug 23, but also allows a movement of the first latching lug 22 past the oblique second latching edge 27. The actuating lever 6 is unlocked by pivoting the release element 18 and pivots back into the closed position by the force applied by the clamping spring 5. The electrical conductor 30 is clamped by the released spring force by the backward-pivoting clamping leg 52 at the clamping point between the clamping edge on the clamping tongue 54 and the busbar 4.FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of the conductor connection terminal 1 from FIG. 3 It can be seen that the electrical conductor 30 is inserted into the conductor insertion opening 3 and is inserted into the conductor collection pocket 17 through the conductor passage opening 9 bounded by a collar or collar walls. As a result, the free end of the electrical conductor 30 strikes the release section 19 of the release element 18 in order to pivot the latter about the bearing point 20.The disengaging section 21 thereby moves toward the curvature region 43 of the adjacent busbar 4 and strikes the actuating lever 6 in order to displace the latter toward the side facing away from the disengaging section 21. The actuating lever 6 is thus raised and brought from the locked position into the unlocked position in order then to pivot back into the illustrated clamping position.FIG. 5 shows a plan view of the conductor connection terminal 1 from FIG. 3 with the section line A-A of the sectional views from FIGS. 1 to 3.The optional test opening 61 in the actuating section 61 (lever arm) of the actuating element 6 can be seen.FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of the clamping spring 5 and of the release element 18 of the first embodiment of the conductor connection terminal 1.The clamping spring 5 is designed as a leg spring bent in a U-shape, having a contact leg 51, a spring curve 53 and a clamping leg 52 adjoining the latter. It can be seen that at the mutually opposite edge regions of the clamping limb 52 of the pull tab 10 two webs spaced apart from one another are bent. The contact leg 51 projects through the pull tab 10. The webs of the pull tab 10 are located laterally next to the marginal edge of the narrower free end region of the contact limb 51. The pull tab 10 has at its free end a transverse web 11, from which a material tab is bent out of the plane spanned by the pull tab 10 on the side facing the contact limb 51 in order to form the curved bearing region 13. The material flap extends here on the side of the pull tab 10 facing the spring arch 53 with a curvature upwards.In the root region of the clamping leg 52, at which the webs of the pull tab 10 are bent, the clamping leg 52 continues in the clamping tongue 54, the edge of which forms a clamping edge 31 at the free end for clamping the electrical conductor 30. The clamping tongue 54 protrudes in a direction facing away from the direction of extension of the pull tab 10.Below the pull tab 10, on its side facing away from the spring arch 53, the release element 18 separate from the clamping spring is arranged. It is formed as a curved sheet metal element, but can also be formed from another material, such as glass fiber-reinforced plastic, carbon fiber-reinforced plastic and the like. It is designed as a relatively dimensionally stable element. For this purpose, webs or ribs, beads and / or a contour which is wave-shaped in cross section can also optionally be present.The release element 18 has a release section 19 spaced apart from the clamping edge 31, which, after bending, merges into a support point 20, i.e. a support surface. This is followed by a disengaging section 21 arranged below the curved bearing region 13, which can be bent downward at its free end region away from the pull tab 10. The force arm between the bearing point 20 and the release section 19 is longer than the load arm between the bearing point 20 and the disengagement section 21 This creates a moment-optimized lever arm which converts a release force exerted by the stripped end of an electrical conductor 30 in the conductor insertion direction L on the release section 19 into a lifting force exerted by the disengagement section 21 on the actuating lever 6 in order to lift the actuating lever 6 and to disengage it.FIG. 7 shows a side sectional view of a second embodiment of the conductor connection terminal 1 in the closed state.The structure of the conductor connection terminal 1 substantially corresponds to the first embodiment, so that reference is made to the preceding description.The triggering element 18, on the other hand, is modified. It again has a release section 19 which, after bending, merges into a disengaging section 21. This disengaging section 21 adjoins the actuating lever 6 and has a latching edge 32 which forms a stop for the first latching nose 22 or second latching nose 23. The release element 18 then merges into a free end region which is diametrically opposite the release region 19 and is connected as a fastening section 33 to the busbar 4. For this purpose, the fastening section 33 can enter the busbar channel 8 parallel to the first busbar section 41 and can be connected there to the busbar section 41 in a form-fitting and optionally additionally in a friction-fitting or force-fitting manner. However, another type of fixing of the triggering element 18 with its fastening section 33 to the busbar 4 and / or the insulating material housing 2 is also conceivable.The release element 18 is flexible, e.g. spring-elastic, at least in the region of the disengagement section 21 and is accommodated in a free space of the insulating material housing 2, which free space allows a displacement of the disengagement section 21 in the event of a force acting on the release section 19.FIG. 8 shows a side sectional view of the conductor connection terminal 1 from FIG. 7 with the actuating lever 6 in the open position latched to the release element 18.It can be seen that the second latching nose 23 now lies behind the latching edge 32 of the disengaging section 21, so that the latching edge 32 forms a stop for the second latching nose 23. The triggering element 18 thus prevents the actuating lever 6, which is under spring tension, from pivoting back from the open position shown into the closed position from FIG. 7.The first latching lug 22 is latched on the second latching edge 27 of the insulating material housing 2, as in the first exemplary embodiment. The first latching edge 26 of the insulating housing 2 provided in the first exemplary embodiment is not present in the second exemplary embodiment. Instead, in this region, a free space is present in the insulating material housing 2 for a sufficient range of movement of the disengagement section 21.FIG. 9 shows a side sectional view of the conductor connection terminal 1 from FIG. 8 with the actuating lever 6 in the locked open position with the electrical conductor 30 inserted.It becomes clear that the free stripped end of the electrical conductor 30 which dips into the conductor collection pocket 17 and impinges on the trip section 19 exerts a trip force on the trip section 19 in the conductor insertion direction L. This displaces the disengaging section 21 with its latching edge 32 downwards away from the actuating lever 6. The stop for the second latching nose 23 formed by the latching edge 32 is thus canceled and the actuating lever 6 is unlocked. It can now be pivoted back into the closed position from FIG. 7 or the clamping position by the spring force of the clamping spring 5, which is coupled to the driver contour 62 of the actuating lever 6 via the bearing region 13. In the clamping position, the stripped free end of the electrical conductor 30 is clamped between the clamping edge 31 of the clamping tongue 54 and the presented collar wall 15 of the busbar 4.FIG. 10 shows a perspective view of the conductor connection terminal 1 from FIG. 9.It can be seen that the pull tab 10 is arranged on the upper side of the busbar 4 facing the spring bend 53 and the actuating lever 6 dips into a free space of the busbar 4 between two webs. The curved bearing region 13 projects upwards from the plane of the pull tab 10, so that the driver contour 62 of the actuating lever 6 can enter the bearing region 13 and engage behind the transverse web 11.The disengaging section 21 with its engaging edge 32 is arranged on the side of the busbar 4 facing away from the spring bend 53. The actuating lever 6 has a latching contour which is arranged between the busbar 4 and the disengaging section 21 and latches with the latching edge 32 in the open position. This latching contour comprises the second latching nose 23.FIG. 11 shows a plan view of the conductor connection terminal 1 from FIG. 9 with the section line A-A of the sectional views from FIGS. 7 to 9.It can be seen that an electrical conductor 30 is inserted into the conductor insertion opening 3 of the insulating material housing 2 below the actuating section 61. The actuating lever 6 is in the closed clamping position, in which the clamping spring 5 is largely decoupled from the actuating lever 6 and clamps the electrical conductor 30 electrically and mechanically at the clamping point formed between the clamping edge 31 and the presented collar wall 15 of the busbar 4.FIG. 12 shows a perspective view of the clamping spring 5 and of the release element 18 of the second embodiment of the conductor connection terminal 1.The clamping spring 5 is identical to the first embodiment, so that reference is made to the description of FIG. 6.The trigger element 18 is again designed as a bent sheet metal element, but can also be formed from another material, such as GRP, CFRP and the like.The disengaging section 21 adjoins a curved releasing section 19. This can be formed as an approximately straight section oriented approximately parallel to the pull tab 10. The disengaging section 21 merges into the fastening section 33 bent away therefrom, which forms the end of the release element 18 diametrically opposite the release section 19.The disengaging section 21 has a depression (i.e. a depression) which is oriented with its bottom transversely to the longitudinal extent and, with the inclined surface facing the fastening section 33, provides a stop wall, i.e. the latching edge 32 for the latching contour of the actuating lever 6, i.e. for the second latching nose 23.List of reference characters1 Conductor connection terminal 2 Insulating material housing 3 Conductor insertion opening 4 Busbar 41 First busbar section 42 Second busbar section 43 Curvature region 5 Clamping spring 51 Contact limb 52 Clamping limb 53 Spring arc 54 Clamping tongue 6 Actuating element 61 Manual actuating section 62 Driver contour 63 Test recess 7 Spring force clamping connection 8 Busbar channel 9 Conductor passage opening 10 Pull tab 11 Transverse web 12 Driver opening 13 Curved bearing region 14 Socket bearing 15 Presented collar wall 16 Test opening 17 Conductor collecting pocket 18 Triggering element 19 Triggering section 20 Contact point 21 Disengagement section 22 First latching lug 23 Second latching lug 24 First guide section 25 Receiving pocket 26 First latching edge 27 Second latching edge 28 Second guide section 29 Overload protection element 30 Electrical conductor 31 Clamping edge 32 Latching edge 33 Fastening sectionReferences included in the specificationThis list of documents cited by the applicant has been produced in an automated manner and is only included for the better information of the reader. The list is not part of the German patent application or utility model application. The DPMA does not take any adhesion for any faults or omissions.Patent Literature citedDE 10 2018 110 312 A1

[0003] WO 2019 / 185797 A1

[0004] WO 2019 / 185794 A1

[0005]

Claims

Conductor connection terminal (1) having - an insulating material housing (2) which has a conductor insertion opening (3), - a spring force clamping connection (7) in the insulating material housing (3) which has a busbar (4) and a clamping spring (5), wherein the clamping spring (5) has a clamping limb (52) with a clamping edge (31) for clamping an electrical conductor (30) to the busbar (4), an abutment limb (51) for mounting the clamping spring (5), and a spring bend (53) which connects the abutment limb (51) to the clamping limb (52), - an actuating element (6) which is mounted pivotably in the insulating material housing (2) and has a driver contour (62) which is formed to interact with the clamping limb (52), in order to move the clamping limb (52) against the spring force of the clamping spring (5) in the direction of the bearing limb (51) into an open position and has a latching contour (22, 23) which is designed for latching the actuating lever (6) in the open position, characterized in that the conductor connection terminal (1) has a triggering element (18) which has a triggering section (19) which can be acted upon by a triggering force by an electrical conductor (30) which is introduced into the conductor introduction opening (3) and is to be clamped, and has a disengaging section (21) which adjoins the actuating lever (6) in the open position of the actuating lever (6), the triggering element (18) being designed for releasing the latching contour (22, 23) from the latching of the actuating lever (6) which is pivoted into the open position, when the triggering force is exerted on the triggering section (19) by the electrical conductor (30) which is introduced and impinges on the triggering section (19).Conductor connection terminal (1) according to Claim 1, characterized in that the insulating material housing (2) has a stop contour (26, 27) which forms a stop for the latching contour (22, 23) of the actuating element (6) pivoted into the open position, wherein the release element (18) is designed to exert a force on the actuating lever (6) with the disengaging section (21) and to displace the actuating lever (6) in order to guide the latching contour (22, 23) past the stop contour (26, 27) and to disengage the actuating lever (6).Conductor connection terminal (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the disengaging section (21), in the open position of the actuating lever (6), adjoins the latching contour (23) of the actuating lever (6).Conductor connection terminal (1) according to claim 3, characterised in that the disengaging section (21) forms a stop for the latching contour (23) of the actuating element (6) in the open position of the actuating element (6).Conductor connection terminal (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the release element (18) is resilient, wherein the disengagement section (21) is movable away from the latching contour (23), which in the open position of the actuating lever (6) bears against the disengagement section (21) forming a stop, by a deflection of the release section (19), in order to cancel the stop.Conductor connection terminal (1) according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the release element (18) is mounted pivotably for releasing the latching contour (22, 23) from the latching by displacement of the actuating lever (6) when a release force exerted on the release section (19) acts.Conductor connection terminal (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the actuating element (6) is acted upon in the open position by the force of the clamping spring (5).Conductor connection terminal (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a pull tab (10) projects from the clamping limb (52) to the driver contour (62) of the actuating lever (6), wherein the pull tab (10) is connected to the driver contour (62) or can be connected when the actuating element (6) is pivoted into the open position.Conductor connection terminal (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the actuating element (6) is an actuating lever with a lever arm which merges into a pivot bearing section.Conductor connection terminal (1) according to Claims 8 and 9, characterized in that the driver contour (62) projects from the pivot bearing section at an angle to the lever arm and forms a driver nose which is designed for engaging under a retaining contour (11, 13) of the pull tab (10) or engaging in a recess of the pull tab (10).Conductor connection terminal (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the busbar (4) has a conductor passage opening (9) and the clamping spring 5) projects with the clamping limb (52) and the bearing limb (51) into the conductor passage opening (9), wherein the bearing limb (51) bears against a first end side delimiting the conductor passage opening (9) and the busbar (4) has a clamping projection (15) on a second end side of the conductor passage opening (9), which clamping projection extends away from the plane of the busbar (4) spanned by the conductor passage opening (9) and forms a clamping section for clamping the electrical conductor between the clamping edge (31) of the clamping limb (52) and the clamping projection (15).The conductor connection terminal (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the conductor lead-through opening (9) of the busbar (4) has a collar which partially or completely delimits the conductor lead-through opening (9) and extends from the plane of the busbar (4) spanned by the conductor lead-through opening (9) towards the release surface of the release section (19) of the release element (19).Conductor connection terminal (1) according to claim 11, characterised in that the clamping section (15) is formed on the collar.Conductor connection terminal (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a busbar (4) has a plurality of conductor plug-through openings (9) with in each case one clamping spring (5) arranged thereon.Conductor connection terminal (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the clamping spring (5) is a leg spring.

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