Branch system using fuse and holder member used for branch system

Abstract

To provide a branch system capable of facilitating work such as replacement and check of a fuse and maintenance of a peripheral apparatus, and using a glass tube fuse of a readily available inexpensive commercial product.SOLUTION: A branch system includes: a power supply connector attachable to a power supply line; and a branch connector attachable to a branch wire and connectable to the power supply connector in an attachable and detachable manner. The branch connector includes a holding portion that holds a glass tube fuse in a detachable and detachable manner or in a fixed state; and the power supply line and the branch wire are configured to establish an electrical connection through a fusing portion of the glass tube held by the holding portion when the branch connector is connected to the power supply connector.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a branching system, particularly a branching system using a glass tube fuse, and a holder member used in the branching system.

Background Art

[0002] An example of a conventional branching system using a fuse is disclosed in Patent Document 1. This branching system includes a fuse connector 21 that is used by being press-fitted to a power line, and a female connector 75 that is fitted to the fuse connector 21. Inside the female connector 75, female terminals connected to branch wiring are accommodated. When the female connector 75 is fitted to the fuse connector 21, the female terminals are fitted to male terminals 35. Further, a fuse 63 is provided in the fuse connector 21 in a state where it is inserted into a fuse insertion portion 59. In this way, by inserting the fuse 63 into the fuse insertion portion 59, a pair of fuse terminals 65 of the fuse 63 are respectively inserted into fuse terminal fitting portions 39a, 39b in the housing 23 of the fuse connector 21. As a result, a joint terminal 25 in which a fuse terminal fitting portion and a plurality of connector terminals are integrally formed, and a pressure contact terminal 27 in which a pressure contact blade and a fuse terminal fitting portion are integrally formed are configured to be in a conductive state through the fusing portion of the fuse 63.

[0003] In this conventional branching system, since the fuse connector 21 is completely fixed to the power line, for example, when it is necessary to replace the fuse 63, when it is necessary to check the state of the fuse 63, when performing maintenance on peripheral devices including the fuse 63, etc., it is difficult to freely move the fuse connector 21, and there is a problem that the work cannot be performed smoothly. Further, the fuse 63 used for the fuse connector 21 has specifications peculiar to the branching system, and there are also problems that it is often difficult to obtain and that the cost tends to be high.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a branching system or the like that eliminates the drawbacks in the above prior art.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] To solve the above problems, a branching system according to an aspect of the present invention includes a power connector that can be attached to a power line, and a branch connector that can be attached to a branch wiring and can be detachably connected to the power connector. The branch connector has a holding portion that holds a glass tube fuse in a detachable or fixed state. When the branch connector is connected to the power connector, the power line and the branch wiring are configured to be electrically connected through a fusing portion of the glass tube fuse held by the holding portion. According to the branching system of this aspect, since the fuse is provided in the branch connector that can be detachably connected to the power connector and is attached to the branch wiring, rather than in the power connector attached to the power line, operations such as fuse replacement, confirmation, and maintenance of peripheral devices become easy. Further, according to the branching system of this aspect, it is possible to use an inexpensive commercially available glass tube fuse that can be easily obtained.

Effects of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a branching system in which operations such as fuse replacement, confirmation, and maintenance of peripheral devices are easy, and an inexpensive commercially available glass tube fuse that can be easily obtained can be used.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0008]

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Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0009] Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments for implementing the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Only preferred embodiments will be described, but of course, the present invention is not intended to be limited thereby. In the specification, terms such as "upper surface", "vertical direction", "horizontal direction", "horizontal", "bottom surface", etc. are used simply to express relative directions, and are not intended to specify the orientation during the use of this system or the like by these terms.

[0010] FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show, in perspective view, the state during the use of a branching system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. This branching system is mainly used for a DC power supply. The branching system 1 includes a power connector 10 and a branch connector 20 that can be detachably connected to the power connector 10, and may further include relay connectors 30 and 40 that can be detachably connected to the power connector 10. The power connector 10 can also be used in a fixed state. FIG. 1 shows a state in which the branch connector 20 and the relay connectors 30 and 40 are connected to the power connector 10 fixed to the board 2 which is the member to be attached, and FIG. 2 shows a state in which those connections to the power connector 10 are released. In this embodiment, the relay connector 30 and the relay connector 40 are assumed to have exactly the same size and structure. Therefore, in the following description, mainly only the relay connector 30 will be described in detail, and the detailed description of the relay connector 40 will be omitted except when necessary. Also, for the reference numbers of the relay connector 40, the corresponding reference numbers in the "400" series are used instead of the reference numbers in the "300" series for the relay connector 30 (for example, the reference number "310" and the reference number "410" refer to the same member).

[0011] Power lines 3A and 3B, and power lines 4A and 4B can be attached to the power connector 10. In this embodiment, they are attached indirectly using the relay connectors 30 and 40. Although not particularly shown, they may be directly attached to the power connector 10 without using the relay connectors.

[0012] The relay connectors 30 and 40 may be commercially available products as shown in the present embodiment. One can directly attach the power line 3A and the ground line 3B to the relay connector 30, and the power line 4A and the ground line 4B to the relay connector 40. By using the relay connectors 30 and 40, the power line 3A, the ground line 3B, the power line 4A, and the ground line 4B can be indirectly and detachably attached to the power connector 10. By connecting the relay connectors 30 and 40 to the power connector 10, the power line 3A is connected to the power line 4A, and the ground line 3B is connected to the ground line 4B, respectively.

[0013] The branch connector 20 can have branch wirings 5A and 5B attached thereto. With the relay connectors 30 and 40 connected to the power connector 10, by connecting the branch connector 20 to the power connector 10, the power lines 3A, 4A and the branch wiring 5A are electrically connected, and as a result, the current in the power lines 3A, 4A can be branched to the branch connector 20. Also, at this time, the ground lines 3B, 4B and the branch wiring 5B are similarly electrically connected, and as a result, the branch connector 20 is given a ground function.

[0014] In addition to FIGS. 1 and 2, the power connector 10 will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 3 to 7. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the power connector 10 as seen from above, FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the same as seen from below, FIG. 5 is a front view thereof, FIG. 6 is a bottom view thereof, and FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view showing the power connector 10 and the board 2 separately.

[0015] On the upper surface of the main body 11 of the power connector 10, there are provided insertion holes 12A and 12B into which predetermined portions of the relay connector 30 are respectively inserted when the relay connector 30 is attached to the power connector 10. Similarly, on the bottom surface of the main body 11 of the power connector 10, there are also provided insertion holes 13A and 13B into which predetermined portions (420B, 420A) of the relay connector 40 are respectively inserted when the relay connector 40 is attached to the power connector 10. The power connector 10 has a left-right symmetric shape in the width direction except for these insertion holes 12A, 12B, 13A, 13B and their peripheral structures.

[0016] On the front surface of the main body 11 of the power connector 10, there is provided a rectangular cylindrical mounting portion 14 that protrudes from the main body 11 to the mounting side of the branch connector 20. A part of the branch connector 20 is accommodated in the mounting space 145 of the mounting portion 14 through the mounting opening 140.

[0017] On the other hand, on the back surface of the main body 11 of the power connector 10, fixing means for fixing the power connector 10 to the board 2 is provided. The fixing means includes positioning protrusions 16a to 16d and elastic locking pieces 150a to 150d. Corresponding to this fixing means, on the board 2, three rectangular through holes 2a to 2c arranged in the vertical direction are provided in this order. The central through hole 2b is slightly larger than the through holes 2a and 2c arranged above and below, and the through holes 2a and 2c arranged above and below have the same size as each other. The positioning protrusions 16a to 16d are used to position the power connector 10 in these through holes, particularly the through holes 2a and 2c, while the elastic locking pieces 150a to 150d are used to lock the power connector 10 in these through holes, particularly the through hole 2b.

[0018] The positioning protrusions 16a and 16b are provided in a state of protruding horizontally from the main body 11 toward the through hole 2a at a position corresponding to the through hole 2a, and have dimensions slightly smaller in the vertical direction than the through hole 2a. Similarly, the positioning protrusions 16c and 16d are provided in a state of protruding horizontally from the main body 11 toward the through hole 2b at a position corresponding to the through hole 2b, and have dimensions slightly smaller in the vertical direction than the through hole 2c. By inserting these positioning protrusions 16a to 16d into the through holes 2a and 2c respectively, the power connector 10 can be positioned at a predetermined position on the board 2.

[0019] On the other hand, the elastic locking pieces 150a and 150b are provided in a state of protruding horizontally from the main body 11 toward the through hole 2b at corresponding positions above the through hole 2b. Similarly, the elastic locking pieces 150c and 150d are provided in a state of protruding horizontally from the main body 11 toward the through hole 2b at corresponding positions below the through hole 2b. Locking portions 151a, 151b that protrude upward, or locking portions 151c, 151d that protrude downward are respectively provided at the tips of these elastic locking pieces 150a to 150d. When the positioning protrusions 16a to 16d are inserted into the through holes 2a and 2c, these locking portions 151a to 151d are respectively caught by the through hole 2b, and thereby, the power connector 10 can be locked to the board 2.

[0020] Next, in addition to FIGS. 1 and 2, with reference to FIG. 8, the configuration of the relay connector 30 will be described in detail. FIG. 8 shows a front perspective view of the relay connector 30. On one side of the base 310 of the relay connector 30, a mounting hole 324A for attaching the power line 3A and a mounting hole 324B for attaching the power line 3B are respectively provided (see FIG. 2). On the other side of the base 310 of the relay connector 30, two parts to be attached 320A and 320B are provided in parallel with each other via a groove 326 and each extending in the length direction. To prevent misfitting, these parts to be attached 320A and 320B have different cross-sectional shapes. The part to be attached 320A is used to connect the power line 3A to the power connector 10, and the part to be attached 320B is used to connect the ground line 3B to the power connector 10. When the relay connector 30 is connected to the power connector 10, these parts to be attached 320A and 320B are respectively inserted into the insertion holes 12A and 12B of the relay connector 30, and the protruding parts (130A and 130B in FIG. 6) provided at the tip ends of the insertion holes 12A and 12B are inserted into the insertion ports 322A and 322B provided at the tip ends of the parts to be attached 320A and 320B respectively. As a result, the power line 3A and the power line 3B are electrically connected to terminals (not shown) provided inside the power connector 10 respectively. Elastic pieces 321A provided with locking protrusions 323A and elastic pieces 321B provided with locking protrusions 323B are respectively provided on the parts to be attached 320A and 320B. When the parts to be attached 320A and 320B are respectively inserted into the insertion holes 12A and 12B of the relay connector 30, they are locked to a predetermined part provided inside the insertion holes 12A and 12B, and the relay connector 30 is fixed to the power connector 10.

[0021] In addition to FIGS. 1 and 2, with reference to FIGS. 9 to 13, the branch connector 20 will be described in more detail. The branch connector 20 of the present embodiment includes a holder member 21 and a connector member 25 that can be detachably connected to the holder member 21. These holder member 21 and connector member 25 are each symmetric in the width direction. FIGS. 9 and 10 show the state in which the holder member 21 and the connector member 25 are connected, similar to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 9 shows a front perspective view of the branch connector 20 in the connected state, and FIG. 10 shows a bottom perspective view thereof. On the other hand, FIGS. 11 to 13 show the state in which the connection between the holder member 21 and the connector member 25 is released, different from FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 11 shows a front perspective view of the branch connector 20 with the connection released, FIG. 12 shows a rear perspective view thereof, and FIG. 13 shows a bottom perspective view thereof.

[0022] The branch wiring 5A and the branch wiring 5B can be attached to the connector member 25. On one side of the base portion 251 of the connector member 25, a mounting hole 254A for attaching the branch wiring 5A and a mounting hole 254B for attaching the branch wiring 5B are respectively provided. Further, on the other side of the base portion 251 of the connector member 25, a horizontally extending fitting portion 252 is provided. Inside the fitting portion 252, terminals (not shown) that can be electrically contacted with the branch wirings 5A and 5B respectively are provided.

[0023] Corresponding to the connector member 25, a fitting space 220 into which the fitting portion 252 of the connector member 25 is fitted is provided on one side of the base portion 211 of the holder member 21. When connecting the connector member 25 to the holder member 21, the fitting portion 252 of the connector member 25 is inserted into the fitting space 220 through the mounting port 214. When the fitting portion 252 is accommodated in the fitting space 220, the branch wirings 5A and 5B are brought into contact with and conduct with the relay terminals 217A and 217B provided on the holder member 21 through electrical contact with the terminals provided inside the fitting portion 252. The connector member 25 is fixed to the holder member 21 by locking the locking projection 253a of the elastic piece 253 extending from the base portion 251 to one side 213 of the base portion 211 of the holder member 21.

[0024] On the other side of the base portion 211 of the holder member 21, a holding portion 212A capable of detachably holding the glass tube fuse 50 and a holding portion 212B capable of detachably holding the conduction member 58 are provided. These holding portions 212A and 212B are parallel to each other and extend in the length direction from the base portion 211. Further, the holding portions 212A and 212B each have a concave cross section, and each cross section includes a pair of substantially plate-like members 215A and 215B. These pair of substantially plate-like members 215A and 215B include plate-like bodies that are parallel to each other and extend in the length direction. When the glass tube fuse 50 is held in the holding portion 212A, one end of the glass tube fuse 50 is elastically supported by a relay terminal 217A provided on one end side of the substantially plate-like member 215A, and the other end is fixed and supported by a pair of support walls 219A that project from the respective plate-like bodies so as to approach each other in the width direction on the other end side of the substantially plate-like member 215A. Similarly, when the conduction member 58 is held in the holding portion 212B, one end of the conduction member 58 is elastically supported by a relay terminal 217B provided on one end side of the substantially plate-like member 215B, and the other end is fixed and supported by a pair of support walls 219B that project from the respective plate-like bodies so as to approach each other in the width direction on the other end side of the substantially plate-like member 215B

[0025] Since the upper parts of these holding portions 212A and 212B are open, the user can easily attach and detach the glass tube fuse 50 and the conduction member 58 to and from the holding portions 212A and 212B. In other words, the user can easily access externally the glass tube fuse 50 held by the holding portion 212A or the conduction member 58 held by the holding portion 212B. Also, since the upper parts of the holding portions 212A and 212B are open, even after the glass tube fuse 50 and the conduction member 58 are held by the holding portions 212A and 212B, the states of those glass tube fuse 50 and conduction member 58, particularly the state of the fusing portion of the glass tube fuse 50, can be easily visually recognized from the outside. Furthermore, in this configuration, since the glass tube fuse 50 etc. are provided in the holder member 21 of the branch connector 20 that is detachable from the power connector 10, without moving the power connector 10 attached to the power supply line 3A etc., for example, only the branch connector 20 removed from the power connector 10 is moved to the hand, and operations such as replacement, confirmation, and maintenance of the glass tube fuse 50 can be easily performed. Moreover, in this configuration, since an inexpensive commercially available glass tube fuse is used, the product cost, maintenance cost, etc. can be significantly suppressed.

[0026] When the branch connector 20 is connected to the power connector 10, the holding portion 212A (substantially plate-like member 215A), the holding portion 212B (substantially plate-like member 215B), and the base portion 211 of the branch connector 20 are placed in the mounting space 145 of the mounting portion 14 provided on the main body 11 of the power connector 10, and the partition wall 142 (see FIGS. 2 and 5) provided in the mounting space 145 is sandwiched by the groove 216 provided between the substantially plate-like member 215A and the substantially plate-like member 215B and accommodated. When the branch connector 20 is connected to the power connector 10, the glass tube fuse 50 held by the holding portion 212A is in electrical contact with the relay terminal 217A provided on the holder member 21 at the fuse holder 51 which is one end, and at the fuse holder 53 which is the other end, it is in electrical contact with the terminal provided inside the power connector 10. As a result, through these contacts, the glass tube fuse 50 can conduct the power line 3A and the branch wiring 5A through the fuse portion provided inside the main body 52 of the glass tube fuse 50. Similarly, the conductive member 58 held by the holding portion 212B is in electrical contact with the relay terminal 217B provided on the holder member 21 at one end, and at the other end, it is in electrical contact with the terminal provided inside the power connector 10. As a result, through these contacts, the conductive member 58 can conduct the ground line 3B and the branch wiring 5B. With the above configuration, even when an overcurrent flows between the power line 3A and the branch wiring 5A, the influence that the overcurrent can exert on the device can be reduced by melting the fuse portion of the glass tube fuse 50. Also, as described above, since the upper part of the glass tube fuse 50 held by the holding portion 212A is open, the presence or absence of melting at the fuse portion can be easily confirmed visually. Further, even when the housing of the branch connector 20 is damaged due to an overcurrent flowing between the power line 3A and the branch wiring 5A or the like, the influence on the connector member 25 attached to the holder member 21 can be reduced. As a result, only the holder member 21 can be replaced, and the connector member 25 can continue to be used, which is also an effect obtained.

[0027] Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various other modifications are possible. For example, in the embodiment, the power supply lines 3A and 3B were indirectly attached to the power connector 10 using a relay connector 30 or the like, but they may be directly attached without using a relay connector 30 or the like. Conversely, in the embodiment described above, the branch wiring 5A and the branch wiring 5B were directly attached to the connector member 25, but of course, they may be indirectly attached using a relay connector 30 or the like. Also, since the holding portions 212A and 212B of the holder member 21 have the same size and shape, by making the glass tube fuse 50 and the conduction member 58 the same size, etc., the glass tube fuse 50 can be held by the holding portion 212B, and the conductive member 58 can also be held by the holding portion 212A. The branch connector 20 does not necessarily have to be composed of two parts, namely the holder member 21 and the connector member 25, and can be configured as a single part as long as it can hold the glass tube fuse 50. Furthermore, the glass tube fuse 50 and the conductive member 58 do not necessarily have to be detachably provided with respect to the holding portion, and may be provided in a fixed state.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0028] 3A, 3B Power supply lines 5A, 5B Branch wirings 10 Power connector 20 Branch connector 21 Holder member 25 Connector member 30, 40 Relay connectors 50 Glass tube fuse 58 Conduction member 212A, 212B Holding portions

Claims

1. A power connector that can be attached to a power cord, A branch connector that can be attached to a branch wiring and can be detachably connected to the power connector, and The branch connector has a holding portion that detachably or fixedly holds a glass tube fuse, When the branch connector is connected to the power connector, the power line and the branch wiring are configured to be electrically connected through a fusing portion of the glass tube fuse held by the holding portion. A branch system characterized by that.

2. The branch connector further has another holding portion that detachably or fixedly holds a conductive member, The branch system according to claim 1, wherein when the branch connector is connected to the power connector, the power line and the branch wiring are configured to be electrically connected through the conductive member held by the other holding portion.

3. One or more relay connectors that can be attached to the power cord and can be detachably connected to the power connector are further provided, The branch system according to claim 1, wherein the power connector includes an insertion hole into which the relay connector can be inserted.

4. The branch connector, A holder member having the holding portion, A connector member that can be attached to the branch wiring and can be detachably connected to the holder member, and When the branch connector including the holder member and the connector member is connected to the connector, the power line and the branch wiring are configured to be electrically connected through a fusing portion of the glass tube fuse held by the holding portion. The branch system according to claim 1.

5. The holder member further has another holding portion that detachably or fixedly holds a conductive member, The branch system according to claim 4, wherein when the branch connector including the holder member and the connector member is connected to the power connector, the power line and the branch wiring are configured to be electrically connected through the conductive member held by the other holding portion.

6. The branch system according to claim 1, wherein the holding portion holds at least a part of the fusing portion of the glass tube fuse in a state where it is visible from the outside.

7. The branch system according to claim 1, wherein the holding portion detachably holds the glass tube fuse in a state where it is externally accessible.

8. The holder member according to claim 4.

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