Terminal connection structure

Abstract

To provide a terminal connection structure capable of realizing miniaturization and reducing a cost while being corresponded to a heavy-current.SOLUTION: A terminal connection structure 100 comprises: a first terminal 10 having a pair of connection plate parts 13 that is faced each other; and a second terminal 20 that is fitted to the first terminal 10. The second terminal 20 includes: a connection cylinder part 25 that is arranged to between the pair of connection plate parts 13 so as to be contacted to both of the pair of connection plate parts 13; and a plate-like part 23 that nips a connection plate part 13b with the connection cylinder part 25. In the plate-like part 23, a curvature part 27 contacted to the connection plate part 13b so as to be curved so as to be convex toward the connection cylinder part 25 in a nipping direction is provided.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a terminal connection structure. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, high-voltage connectors have been proposed for use in electric vehicles, etc. These high-voltage connectors include a male connector and a female connector, and the terminals of these connectors are connected to each other, thereby electrically connecting them to each other.

[0003] For example, the connector described in Patent Document 1 includes a first connector having a first terminal and a second connector having a second terminal, and the second terminal is composed of a first spring member having a pair of first spring pieces facing each other, and a second spring member having a pair of second spring pieces sandwiching the pair of first spring pieces. In this connector, the pair of second spring pieces apply a pressing force to the pair of first spring pieces in a direction in which they approach each other, and the first terminal inserted between the pair of first spring pieces is sandwiched between the pair of first spring pieces, thereby electrically conducting the first terminal and the first spring member, i.e., the first terminal and the second terminal. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2022-83285 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The above-mentioned conventional terminal connection structure has a large number of parts, and connectors equipped with these terminals tend to be large in size. In addition, the conventional terminal connection structure not only has a large number of parts, but also requires the use of elastic (springy) materials, which tends to increase manufacturing costs. Thus, the conventional terminal connection structure has room for improvement in terms of size and cost. Meanwhile, electric vehicles have recently been equipped with many high-voltage components, and the terminals connecting these components are required to handle large currents.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and has an object to provide a terminal connection structure that can be made smaller and less expensive while still being compatible with large currents. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the terminal connection structure according to the present invention has the following features. A terminal connection structure including a first terminal and a second terminal that is fitted with the first terminal, The first terminal has a pair of connecting plate portions facing each other, the second terminal has a connection tube portion disposed between the pair of connection plate portions so as to contact both of the pair of connection plate portions, and a plate-like portion that, together with the connection tube portion, holds one of the pair of connection plate portions, The plate-shaped portion is provided with a curved portion that is curved so as to be convex toward the connecting tube portion in the clamping direction and that comes into contact with one of the pair of connecting plate portions. It has a terminal connection structure. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, when the first terminal and the second terminal are fitted together, the connecting tube portion of the second terminal contacts the pair of connecting plate portions of the first terminal, and the curved portion contacts one of the pair of connecting plate portions. That is, the first terminal and the second terminal contact each other at multiple points (at least three points), so the above configuration has excellent conductivity and can handle large currents. Furthermore, the above configuration has a reduced number of parts compared to conventional configurations, allowing for size reduction and cost reduction. In this way, the above configuration allows for size reduction and cost reduction while supporting large currents.

[0009] The present invention has been briefly described above. Furthermore, the details of the present invention will be further clarified by reading the following description of the embodiment of the present invention (hereinafter, referred to as "embodiment") with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a terminal connection structure according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the first terminal and the second terminal shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a front view of the second terminal. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] <Embodiment> Hereinafter, a terminal connection structure 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0012] For the sake of convenience, the following definitions are used for the terms "front", "rear", "left", "right", "upper" and "lower" as shown in FIG. 1 etc. The "front-rear direction", "left-right direction" and "upper-lower direction" are mutually orthogonal. The upper-lower direction corresponds to the "clamping direction" and "opposing direction" of the present invention. The left-right direction corresponds to the "crossing direction" of the present invention.

[0013] 1 and 2, the terminal connection structure 100 includes a first terminal 10 and a second terminal 20 that is fitted with the first terminal 10. The first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 that constitute the terminal connection structure 100 will be described in order below.

[0014] First, a description will be given of the first terminal 10. The first terminal 10 constitutes, for example, one connector (not shown) together with a housing (not shown), and is connected to a second terminal 20 constituting another connector that is fitted with the one connector. As shown in FIG. 2, the first terminal 10 is configured to integrally include a terminal body portion 11 and a connection portion 12 formed at the rear end of the terminal body portion 11.

[0015] The terminal body 11 is formed in a generally rectangular plate shape extending in the front-rear direction with a plate thickness in the left-right direction, and is held in, for example, a housing.

[0016] The connection portion 12 is connected to a connection portion 22 of a second terminal 20 which will be described later. As shown in Figure 2, the connection portion 12 integrally comprises a pair of connection plate portions 13 (13a, 13b) that are spaced apart in the vertical direction and face each other and extend in the left-right direction, and a connecting portion 14 that connects the pair of connection plate portions 13 at approximately the center in the left-right direction, and is formed in a roughly H-shape when viewed from the rear.

[0017] The connection portion 12 has side walls formed of a pair of connection plate portions 13 and a linking portion 14, and has adjacent connection tube portion insertion spaces 15 defined in the left-right direction, which open to the left or right and penetrate in the front-rear direction. When the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are fully engaged, a connection tube portion 25 of the second terminal 20 (described later) is inserted into each connection tube portion insertion space 15 (see Figs. 1 and 4).

[0018] Next, a description will be given of the second terminal 20. The second terminal 20 constitutes another connector (not shown) together with a housing (not shown), for example, and is connected to the first terminal 10 constituting one connector. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the second terminal 20 is configured to integrally include a terminal body portion 21 and a connection portion 22 formed at the front end of the terminal body portion 21.

[0019] The terminal body 21 is formed in a generally rectangular plate shape extending in the front-rear direction with a plate thickness in the up-down direction, and is held in, for example, a housing.

[0020] 2 and 3, the connection portion 22 integrally includes a plate-like portion 23 having a generally rectangular plate shape wider than the terminal main body 21, a pair of rising portions 24 rising upward from both left and right ends of the plate-like portion 23, and an elastically deformable connection tube portion 25 provided at the upper end of each rising portion 24. The plate-like portion 23 and the pair of rising portions 24 connect the pair of connection tube portions 25 in the left-right direction.

[0021] The connecting tube portion 25 is formed in a generally C-shaped tube extending in the front-rear direction when viewed in the front-rear direction. That is, the connecting tube portion 25 has a gap extending in the front-rear direction in a part of the peripheral wall. The outer diameter (particularly the vertical length) of the connecting tube portion 25 is formed to be smaller than the vertical length between the pair of connecting plate portions 13.

[0022] The connecting portion 22 has a connecting plate portion insertion space 26 that penetrates in the front-rear direction defined by the plate-shaped portion 23, a pair of rising portions 24, and a pair of connecting tube portions 25. When the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are fully engaged, the lower connecting plate portion 13b of the pair of connecting plates 13 is inserted into the connecting plate portion insertion space 26 (see FIGS. 1 and 4).

[0023] A pair of curved portions 27, which are curved in the up-down direction toward the connecting tube portion 25, i.e., curved so as to be convex upward, are provided side by side and spaced apart in the left-right direction on the plate-like portion 23. The curved portions 27 protrude upward so that at least the curved apex can come into contact with the lower surface of the connecting plate portion 13b when the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are in a fully mated state.

[0024] The above describes the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 that constitute the terminal connection structure 100. In order to obtain the terminal connection structure 100, it is necessary to engage the first terminal 10 with the second terminal 20. First, the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are arranged so that the connection portion 12 and the connection portion 22 face each other in the front-rear direction.

[0025] Next, the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are brought closer to each other in the front-rear direction, and the pair of connecting tube portions 25 of the second terminal 20 are inserted into the connecting tube portion insertion space 15 of the first terminal 10, and the connecting plate portion 13b of the first terminal 10 is inserted into the connecting plate portion insertion space 26 of the second terminal 20. At this time, the pair of connecting plate portions 13 elastically deform the pair of connecting tube portions 25 so as to reduce their diameter.

[0026] Then, the pair of connecting tube portions 25 are inserted into the pair of connecting tube portion insertion spaces 15 to their correct positions, and the connecting plate portion 13b is inserted into the connecting plate portion insertion space 26 to its correct position, thereby completing the engagement between the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20. This completes the terminal connection structure 100.

[0027] When the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are completely fitted together, the pair of connecting tube portions 25 are arranged in a pair of connecting tube portion insertion spaces 15 (i.e., between the pair of connecting plate portions 13) in an elastically deformed state, so that the pair of connecting tube portions 25 are in elastic contact with the pair of connecting plate portions 13. When the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are completely fitted together, the connecting plate portion 13b is arranged in the connecting plate portion insertion space 26 (i.e., sandwiched between the plate portion 23 and the pair of connecting tube portions 25), so that the pair of curved portions 27 provided on the plate portion 23 are in pressing contact with the connecting plate portion 13b. That is, when the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are completely fitted to each other, the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are in contact with each other at a plurality of points (six points in this example) and are thereby electrically connected to each other.

[0028] <Actions and Effects> According to this embodiment, when the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are completely fitted together, the connection tube portion 25 of the second terminal 20 contacts the pair of connection plate portions 13 of the first terminal 10, and the curved portion 27 provided on the plate portion 23 contacts the connection plate portion 13b. That is, the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 contact each other at multiple points (six points in this example), so that the electrical conductivity is excellent and it can handle a large current. Moreover, this embodiment has a reduced number of parts compared to the conventional one, so that it is possible to reduce the size and the cost. In addition, the above configuration allows the plate thickness of the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 themselves to be reduced, which allows the size and the cost to be reduced. In this way, this embodiment is capable of handling large currents while enabling miniaturization and cost reduction.

[0029] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the vertical length between the pair of connecting plate portions 13 is smaller than the outer diameter of the connecting tube portion 25, so that the connecting tube portion 25 is in pressing contact with the pair of connecting plate portions 13, resulting in excellent connection reliability between the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20.

[0030] Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the connection tube portion 25 is in elastic contact with the pair of connection plate portions 13, so that the connection reliability between the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 is excellent.

[0031] <Other forms> The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be appropriately modified, improved, etc. In addition, the material, shape, size, number, arrangement location, etc. of each component in the above-described embodiment are arbitrary as long as the present invention can be achieved, and are not limited.

[0032] Here, the features of the embodiments of the terminal connection structure according to the present invention described above will be briefly summarized and listed in the following [1] to [4].

[0033] [1] A terminal connection structure (100) including a first terminal (10) and a second terminal (20) that is fitted with the first terminal (10), The first terminal (10) has a pair of connecting plate portions (13) facing each other, the second terminal (20) has a connection tubular portion (25) disposed between the pair of connection plate portions (13) so as to be in contact with both of the pair of connection plate portions (13), and a plate-like portion (23) that, together with the connection tubular portion (25), holds one of the pair of connection plate portions (connection plate portion 13b); The plate-shaped portion (23) is provided with a curved portion (27) that is curved so as to be convex toward the connecting tube portion (25) in the clamping direction (vertical direction) and that comes into contact with one of the pair of connecting plate portions (connecting plate portion 13b). A terminal connection structure (100).

[0034] According to the configuration [1] above, when the first terminal and the second terminal are mated, the connecting tube portion of the second terminal contacts the pair of connecting plate portions of the first terminal, and the curved portion contacts one of the pair of connecting plate portions. That is, since the first terminal and the second terminal contact each other at multiple points (at least three points), the above configuration has excellent conductivity and can handle large currents. Furthermore, the above configuration has a reduced number of parts compared to conventional configurations, allowing for size reduction and cost reduction. In this way, the above configuration allows for size reduction and cost reduction while supporting large currents.

[0035] [2] The terminal connection structure (100) according to the above [1], The plate-shaped portion (23) is provided with a pair of curved portions (27) spaced apart in a direction intersecting the clamping direction (left-right direction), The second terminal (20) has a pair of the connecting tubular portions (25) spaced apart in the intersecting direction, and the plate-shaped portion (23) connects the pair of the connecting tubular portions (25). A terminal connection structure (100).

[0036] According to the above configuration [2], the first terminal and the second terminal are in contact with each other at a plurality of locations (at least six locations), and therefore, the electrical conductivity and connection reliability are excellent.

[0037] [3] The terminal connection structure (100) according to the above [1] or [2], The length between the pair of connecting plate portions (13) in the opposing direction (vertical direction) is smaller than the outer diameter of the connecting tube portion (25). A terminal connection structure (100).

[0038] According to the configuration [3] above, the length between the pair of connecting plate portions in the opposing direction is smaller than the outer diameter of the connecting tubular portion, so that the connecting tubular portion is in pressing contact with the pair of connecting plate portions, resulting in excellent connection reliability between the first terminal and the second terminal.

[0039] [4] A terminal connection structure (100) according to any one of the above [1] to [3], The connecting tube portion (25) is configured to be elastically deformable and is in elastic contact with both of the pair of connecting plate portions (13). A terminal connection structure (100).

[0040] According to the above configuration [4], the connection tube portion is in elastic contact with the pair of connection plate portions, thereby providing excellent connection reliability between the first terminal and the second terminal. [Explanation of symbols]

[0041] 10 1st terminal 11 Terminal body 12 Connection 13, 13a, 13b Connection plate part 14 Connecting part 15 Connection tube insertion space 20 2nd terminal 21 Terminal body 22 Connection 23 Plate-shaped part 24 Rising part 25 Connection tube 26 Connection plate insertion space 27 Curved section 100 Terminal connection structure

Claims

1. A terminal connection structure including a first terminal and a second terminal that is fitted with the first terminal, The first terminal has a pair of connecting plate portions facing each other, the second terminal has a connection tube portion disposed between the pair of connection plate portions so as to contact both of the pair of connection plate portions, and a plate-like portion that, together with the connection tube portion, holds one of the pair of connection plate portions, The plate-shaped portion is provided with a curved portion that is curved so as to be convex toward the connecting tube portion in the clamping direction and that comes into contact with one of the pair of connecting plate portions. Terminal connection structure.

2. The terminal connection structure according to claim 1, The plate-like portion is provided with a pair of the curved portions spaced apart in a direction intersecting the clamping direction, The second terminal has a pair of the connection tube portions spaced apart in the intersecting direction, and the plate-like portion connects the pair of the connection tube portions. Terminal connection structure.

3. The terminal connection structure according to claim 1, A length between the pair of connecting plate portions in the opposing direction is smaller than an outer diameter of the connecting tube portion. Terminal connection structure.

4. The terminal connection structure according to claim 1, The connecting tube portion is configured to be elastically deformable and is in elastic contact with both of the pair of connecting plate portions. Terminal connection structure.

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