Clamping spring-type contact device having an overstretch prevention mechanism, and plug connector insert having at least one such clamping spring-type contact device

Abstract

Disclosed is an overstretch prevention mechanism for a clamping spring (3) of a clamping spring-type contact device, the overstretch prevention mechanism consisting of a stop (21, 11) of an actuator (2) on a bus bar (1).

Description

[0001] The invention is based on a clamping spring contact device according to the preamble of independent claim 1.

[0002] Furthermore, the invention is based on a connector insert with at least one clamping spring contact device according to claim 1.

[0003] Such clamping spring contact devices are required in order to electrically conductively contact an electrical conductor inserted therein in an insertion direction with a busbar of the clamping spring contact device and at the same time to mechanically hold the electrical conductor to the busbar, ie to at least prevent it from being pulled out opposite to its insertion direction.

[0004] The connector insert in question can be designed to be installed (i.e., "inserted") directly into a connector housing, for example, a sleeve, bulkhead, or base housing. However, the connector insert can also be a so-called "connector module" that is arranged (i.e., "inserted") together with other connector modules as part of a modular connector system in a modular connector frame. The modular connector frame can be mounted in a connector housing or on a wall opening. The other connector modules of the modular connector system can be individually configured for the respective application depending on the desired function, e.g.,for optical and / or electrical analog and / or digital signal transmission, electrical energy transmission, transmission of gases and pressure (pneumatics), or also for current, voltage, temperature measurement and evaluation and data processing purposes. State of the art

[0005] In the prior art, for example, from the publications DE 10 2005 028 063 B3, EP 0 336 139 B1, US 8,251,738 B2 and US 10,297,930 B2, a number of clamping spring contact devices are known in which a clamping spring presses an electrical conductor against a busbar for electrical contact and clamps it against withdrawal from the connection side. The clamping spring can be actuated to release the conductor from the busbar. To protect the clamping spring from overextension during actuation, the clamping spring contact device has a stop for the clamping spring, which can consist, for example, of a punched and bent tab on the busbar or a separate, inserted stop body.

[0006] A disadvantage of this state-of-the-art technology is the associated manufacturing effort. Furthermore, it has been shown that the clamping spring is subjected to unnecessary stress when actuated by the stop, which can impair its function in the long term.

[0007] The German Patent and Trademark Office has searched the following prior art in the priority application for the present application: DE 10 2005 028 063 B3, DE 10 2008 032 837 A1, DE 10 2020 122 135 A1, DE 10 2020 123 141 A1, DE 202 05 821 U1, DE 20 2012 103 314 U1, US 8,251,738 B2, US 10,297,930 B2, EP 0 336 139 B1 and EP 3 116 065 A1.

[0008] The document DE 10 2008 032 837 A1 discloses an electrical connection device for connecting a conductor with at least one contact sleeve made of a conductive material with a cutout for a contact spring and a contact spring arranged there, which clamps a conductor inserted into the contact sleeve from an insertion side against the inner wall of the contact sleeve, wherein the contact spring can be pivoted outwards by the cutout. Task

[0009] The object of the invention is to provide a clamping spring contact device with an overstretch protection device that is as inexpensive to manufacture as possible. In particular, the overstretch protection device should not place any stress on the clamping spring when it is actuated by an actuator.

[0010] The problem is solved by the subject matter of the independent claims.

[0011] A clamp spring contact device has the following: A busbar for electrically contacting an electrical conductor; a clamping spring held on the busbar for clamping and electrically connecting the electrical conductor to a contact area of ​​the busbar when the clamping spring is in an unactuated state; an actuator held directly or indirectly on the busbar for transferring the clamping spring from the unactuated state to an actuated state to release the electrical conductor; and an overstretch protection device for preventing overstretching of the clamping spring when it is actuated by the actuator, wherein according to the invention the overstretch protection device consists in a stop of the actuator against the busbar.

[0012] Advantageous embodiments of the invention are specified in the subclaims and the following description.

[0013] The clamp spring contact device is extremely easy to manufacture.

[0014] The clamping spring contact device also has the advantage that the clamping spring is not pressed against a stop by the actuator when it is actuated, thereby being stressed and irreversibly deformed in the long term.

[0015] Instead, the actuator's own movement is already limited by its stop on the busbar. Overextension of the clamping spring, whose spring force naturally resists the actuator, is prevented by this stop of the actuator against the busbar.

[0016] The manufacturing effort of the clamping spring contact device is reduced because no separate stop for the clamping spring has to be created.

[0017] This advantageously prevents the clamping spring from becoming irreversibly deformed due to the mechanical pressure exerted by the actuator and its own simultaneous impact on the busbar.

[0018] It is particularly advantageous if the clamping spring exerts a restoring force on the actuator when actuated. In particular, the clamping spring can have a boss that comes into contact with the actuator in its actuated position to amplify the restoring force and thus overcome any potential static friction.

[0019] It is also particularly advantageous if the busbar forms a circumferential cage in which the clamping spring is at least partially arranged.

[0020] In particular, the busbar can be a stamped and bent part, which is preferably bent several times at right angles and thus formed in particular into the surrounding cage.

[0021] The clamping spring can be designed as a single piece and, in particular, substantially V-shaped, and can have a clamping leg and a holding leg connected to one another via a spring arc. The holding leg can be attached to a first cage wall or at least supported thereon, in particular flatly. The clamping leg can press against a second cage wall or press the inserted electrical conductor against it and clamp it there. The second cage wall can form the contact area of ​​the busbar. In particular, the second cage wall can be opposite the first cage wall. The said boss of the contact spring can, if necessary, be arranged in the clamping leg.

[0022] The first cage wall can be connected to the second cage wall via at least one side wall. Preferably, the first cage wall is connected to the second cage wall by two side walls.

[0023] The actuator has two actuating arms, each with a stop edge at one end. The busbar has at least one counter-stop edge.

[0024] The actuator's stop on the busbar can be located on at least one side wall of the cage. For this purpose, the side wall can have a counter stop edge. If the cage has two side walls, one of the two side walls can have the stop edge.

[0025] Preferably, however, both side walls can each have a counter stop edge and the actuator can have two stop edges with which it strikes against a counter stop edge of one of the side walls.

[0026] At least one side wall can have a step which forms the stop edge of this side wall. In particular, both side walls can each have such a step. This has the advantage that, on the one hand, the guidance of the clamping leg is ensured over a sufficiently large spring travel. On the other hand, the height of the step, and thus the height of the stop edge, measured in the direction of movement of the actuator, can be selected independently. The height of the stop edge can now be selected such that an optimal compromise can be set between permissible elastic deformation of the clamping spring for the purpose of admitting a correspondingly large electrical conductor and preventing the aforementioned overstretching of the clamping spring to prevent its plastic deformation. It is particularly advantageous that the clamping spring is not loaded by the stop.

[0027] To exert an optimal restoring force on the actuator, the clamping leg of the clamping spring, as already mentioned, can have the aforementioned bulge, which comes into contact with the actuator at the moment the stop edge of the actuator meets the counter-stop edge of the side wall. The particularly strong restoring force exerted by the bulge of the clamping leg on the actuator at this moment serves to overcome the greater static friction of the actuator on its guide (whatever it may be) in the actuated state, allowing it to return to its unactuated position, while, of course, the clamping spring, which exerts the restoring force, also returns to its unactuated state.

[0028] The actuator guide can be, at least partially, part of an insulating body in which the clamping spring contact device is housed. Additionally, the actuator can also be guided by means of the busbar.

[0029] An arrangement comprising an insulating body and at least one clamping spring contact device inserted therein can preferably be a component of a connector. In particular, this can be a connector insert with a plurality of clamping spring contact devices accommodated in connection chambers of a connection area of ​​the insulating body.

[0030] On the plug-in side, the insulating body can have a plug-in area with contact chambers in which plug contacts are arranged. Each contact chamber can be connected to a connection chamber located in the connection area. Each plug contact can be electrically connected and secured, in particular riveted, to a clamping spring contact device located in the respective connection chamber. For this purpose, the busbar of the respective clamping spring contact device can have a connecting section angled perpendicular to the plug-in direction of the plug contact with a through-hole, to which the plug contact is riveted or screwed.

[0031] As already mentioned at the beginning, the connector insert can be designed to be installed (i.e., "inserted") directly into a connector housing, for example, a sleeve, bulkhead, or base housing. However, the connector insert can also be a connector module of the type mentioned above, which is arranged (i.e., "inserted") together with other connector modules as part of a modular connector system in a modular connector frame. The modular connector frame—hereinafter also referred to as the retaining frame—can be attached to a connector housing or to a wall opening.

[0032] For this purpose, for example, the insulating body of the connector module may optionally have locking lugs which, when installed, engage in locking windows of the retaining frame for fastening. The insulating body may be substantially cuboid-shaped. The locking lugs may then be arranged, in particular, on its opposite narrow sides. The locking lugs may differ in shape and may have different widths, in particular perpendicular to the plugging direction. This serves their polarization, i.e., correct alignment within the retaining frame, which then also has different, in particular different-width, locking windows. Example

[0033] An embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the drawings and explained in more detail below. They show: Fig. 1a-d shows a clamping spring contact device in a cross-sectional view in the unactuated and actuated state, with and without an insulating body; Fig. 2a, b shows the clamping spring contact device without an insulating body in the unactuated and actuated state, in a 3D view.

[0034] The figures contain partially simplified, schematic representations. In some cases, identical reference symbols are used for identical, but possibly not identical, elements. Different views of identical elements may be scaled differently.

[0035] The Fig. 1a and 1bshow a clamping spring contact device in cross-section, comprising an electrically conductive busbar 1 with a cage, a clamping spring 3 held thereon in its unactuated state, and an actuator 2, which, correspondingly, is shown in its unactuated position. On the plug-in side, i.e. at the bottom in the drawing, a plug contact 5 is shown, which is mechanically and electrically connected to the busbar 1 via a connecting section 105 of the busbar 1. The plug contact 5 shown is, for example, a socket contact. In another embodiment, however, it can also be a different contact, for example a pin contact.

[0036] The Fig. 1c and 1dEach shows the same arrangement, but with the actuator 2 in its actuated position and the clamping spring 3 in its actuated state. The actuated state of the clamping spring 3 is characterized by the fact that its clamping leg 32 is pivoted in the plugging direction compared to its unactuated state.

[0037] From the Fig. 1b and 1d It is clear that the actuator 2 is actuated by a Fig. 1a and 1c for reasons of clarity not shown insulating body 4 and both its unactuated ( Fig. 1b ) as well as in its actuated position ( Fig. 1d ) is recessed into it.

[0038] The insulating body 4 has a connection area 41 with at least one connection chamber 410 (only one shown here) and a plug-in area 45, which has at least one contact chamber 450 (only one shown here) connected to the respective connection chamber 410. A clamping spring contact device of the aforementioned type is accommodated in each connection chamber 410. The plug-in contact 5 connected thereto is accommodated in the contact chamber 450 of the plug-in area 45, which is connected to this connection chamber 410.

[0039] The actuator 2 has two actuating arms 22, each with a stop edge 21 at the end, and a web 223 connecting the actuating arms 22 at the end for actuating the clamping leg 32 of the clamping spring 3.

[0040] From a comparison of the Fig. 1a and 1cIt is particularly clearly visible that the actuator 2, when actuated (in the drawing this occurs from top to bottom), slides with its web 223 along a sliding edge 13 of the busbar 1, and that in its actuated state ( Fig. 1c ) with its stop edge 21 abuts a counter stop edge 11 of the busbar 1.

[0041] This limits the range of motion of the actuator 2 in the plug-in direction, downwards in the drawing. Thus, the clamping spring 3 is not overstretched when actuated by the actuator 2. The length of the sliding edge 13 and the resulting position of the counter-stop edge 11 allow the maximum deformation of the clamping spring 3 to be adjusted very precisely, so that the clamping spring 3 undergoes exclusively reversible, elastic deformation when actuated through a suitable arrangement of the stop edge. The sliding edge 13 and the counter-stop edge together form a step 113 in the respective side surface 103, 104 (cf. Fig. 2b ).

[0042] The clamping spring 3 is essentially V-shaped. It has a holding leg 31 and a clamping leg 32, which are connected to one another via a spring arch 33. The clamping spring 3 rests with its holding leg 31 flat against a first cage wall 101. In further embodiments, the holding leg 31 can be additionally fastened to the first cage wall, e.g., screwed, riveted, or latched, or can be held on the busbar 1 at least in the plug-in direction (vertical direction in the drawing) by at least one holding recess or holding depression of the holding leg 31, as well as a holding projection engaging therein, a punched-out holding tab, or the like, of the first side wall 101.

[0043] At the same time, the clamping spring 3 presses with its clamping leg 32 against a second cage wall 102, which forms a contact area on the inside of the cage. The second cage wall 102 lies opposite the first cage wall 101 and is connected to it by two side walls 103, 104, of which only one, namely the rear side wall 103, is visible in this sectional view. Even without an inserted electrical conductor, the clamping spring 3 is in a prestressed state in the cage. Depending on the type of attachment of its holding leg 31, this contributes to ensuring that electrical conductors with any small cross-sections can be contacted using this contact spring device.

[0044] The clamping leg 32 has a hump 323 which is in contact with the actuator 2, more precisely with the web 223 of the actuator 2, in its actuated state (cf. Fig. 1c) comes into contact. This allows a particularly strong restoring force to be applied by the clamping spring 3 to the actuator 2 in its unactuated position. This is particularly advantageous for returning the actuator 2 to its unactuated position. Finally, this particularly strong restoring force helps to overcome the static friction between the actuator 2, on the one hand, and the sliding edge 13 of the busbar 1 and / or the insulating body 4 in which the actuator 2 is held, on the other.

[0045] The cage of the busbar 1 is open on the connection side, i.e. towards the top in the drawing. This allows not only the actuator 2 but also an electrical conductor not shown in the drawing, e.g. a core of an electrical cable, to be inserted into the cage from the connection side (coming from above in the drawing). The electrical conductor can be inserted between the contact leg 32 of the clamping spring 3 and the second cage wall 102 and clamped there to prevent it from being pulled out on the connection side (towards the top in the drawing). The second cage wall 102 forms an electrical contact area of ​​the busbar 1 for the electrical conductor on the inside. The clamping spring 3 presses the inserted electrical conductor with its clamping leg 32 against the contact area, i.e. from the inside against the second cage wall 102, in order to connect it electrically to the busbar 1 and thus also to the respective plug contact 5.

[0046] The Fig. 2a and 2b show the arrangement of the Fig. 1a and 1c Each in a 3D representation. The cage of the busbar 1 is designed to be circumferential and has two side walls 103, 104 that connect the first 101 and the second 102 cage walls. Each side wall 103, 104 has a step 113 with the sliding edge 13 running in the actuation direction (vertical in the drawing), along which the actuator slides with its web 223 during actuation, and the counter-stop edge 11 arranged at right angles thereto, against which the actuator 2 strikes with its stop edge 21 in its actuated state.

[0047] Opposite its stop edges 21 (i.e. shown in the drawing above), the actuator 2 also has an actuating surface 23 with an actuating contour which is suitable for the application of a slotted screwdriver in order to be able to conveniently actuate the actuator 2 arranged countersunk in the insulating body 4.

[0048] Although various aspects or features of the invention are shown in combination in the figures, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art—unless otherwise stated—that the illustrated and discussed combinations are not the only possible ones. In particular, corresponding units or feature complexes from different embodiments can be interchanged. List of reference symbols

[0049] 1 Busbar 101, 102 First, second cage wall 103, 104 Side walls 105 Connecting section 11 Stop edge 113 Stepping 13 Sliding edge 2Actuator 21Stop edges 22Actuating arms 223Web 23Actuating surface 3Clamping spring 31Holding leg 32Clamping leg 323Hump 33Spring arch 4Insulating body 40Connection chamber 41Connection area 410Connection chamber 45Mating area 450Contact chamber 5Plug contact

Claims

1. Clamping spring contact device which has the following: - a busbar (1) for the electrical contact of an electrical conductor; - a clamping spring (3) held on the busbar (1) for clamping and electrically connecting the electrical conductor to a contact region of the busbar (1) in an unactuated state of the clamping spring (3); - an actuator (2) held indirectly or directly on the busbar (1) for transferring the clamping spring (3) from the unactuated state into an actuated state for releasing the electrical conductor; and - an overstretch prevention mechanism for avoiding an overstretching of the clamping spring (3) when actuated by the actuator (2), characterized in that the overstretch prevention mechanism consists of the actuator (2) striking against the busbar (1), wherein the actuator (2) has two actuating arms (22), each with an end-side stop edge (21), and one projection (223) connecting the actuating arms (22) on the end side for actuating the clamping leg (32) of the clamping spring (3), wherein the busbar has at least one counter stop edge (11) which, conjointly with the aforementioned two stop edges (21), forms said stop in order to delimit the range of movement of the actuator (2) in the actuating direction.

2. Clamping spring contact device according to the preceding claim, wherein the busbar (1) forms a peripheral cage with a first cage wall (101) and a second cage wall (102) opposite this first cage wall (101), wherein the first (101) and the second (102) cage wall are connected together via two side walls (103, 104), wherein the second cage wall (102) forms the said contact region, and wherein the clamping spring (3) is arranged at least partially inside the cage and is held on the first cage wall (101).

3. Clamping spring contact device according to Claim 2, wherein the clamping spring (3) is designed in one piece and in particular to be substantially V-shaped, and has a holding leg (31) and a clamping leg (32) which are connected together via a spring bow (33), wherein the clamping spring (3) is fastened by its holding leg (31) to the first cage wall (31) or is at least supported thereon in a planar manner and at the same time pushes directly or indirectly with its clamping leg (32) via the electrical conductor against the second cage wall (102).

4. Clamping spring contact device according to Claim 3, wherein the two side walls in each case have a stepped portion (113), wherein the shape of the stepped portion firstly prevents an overstretching of the clamping spring (3) and secondly permits a guidance of the actuator (2).

5. Clamping spring contact device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the clamping spring (3) has a protrusion (323) which comes into contact with the actuator (2) at the same time as the actuator (2) strikes against the busbar (1).

6. Plug connector insert, formed from at least one clamping spring contact device according to one of the preceding claims and an insulating body (4) with a connecting region (41) which has at least one connecting chamber (410), and a plug-in region (45) which opposes the connecting region (41) and which has at least one contact chamber (450), wherein each contact chamber (450) is connected to a connecting chamber (410) and wherein a clamping spring contact device is received in each connecting chamber (410).

7. Plug connector insert according to Claim 6, wherein, when actuated, the actuator (2) is guided jointly by the insulating body (4) and the busbar (1).

8. Plug connector insert according to one of Claims 6 to 7, wherein the actuator (2) has two actuating arms (22) which are connected together on the end side via a projection (223), wherein, when the actuator (2) is actuated, the projection (223) cooperates with the clamping leg (32) of the clamping spring (3) and at the same time is guided on a sliding edge (13) of the busbar (1).

9. Plug connector insert according to one of Claims 6 to 8, wherein a plug-in contact (5) is arranged in each contact chamber (450), the plug-in contact being electrically conductively connected to the busbar (1) of the clamping spring contact device received in the respective connecting chamber (410).

10. Plug connector insert according to Claim 9, wherein the busbar (1) has a connecting portion (15) which is angled-back perpendicularly to the plug-in direction of the plug-in contact (5), the plug-in contact (5) being fastened thereto and being electrically conductively connected thereby to the busbar (1).

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