Terminal connection structure

Abstract

This invention discloses a terminal connection structure in which a first terminal and a second terminal overlap each other, with relative translation suppressed in a plane, and in which the first terminal and the second terminal make three-point contact without requiring high processing precision. [Solution] The terminal connection structure 1 includes a first terminal 10 and a second terminal 20 that overlap each other and whose relative parallel movement within a plane is suppressed, and a fastener 30 that suppresses the relative movement of the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 in the normal direction of the plane by pressing the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 against each other in the normal direction of the plane, wherein the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are in contact with each other at three points, and the tangent plane at each of the three contact points in the three-point contact is inclined with respect to the plane.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a terminal connection structure of a first terminal and a second terminal that overlap each other and suppress relative translational movement in a plane. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a terminal connection structure in which the first terminal and the second terminal are in three-point contact without requiring high processing accuracy.

Background Art

[0002] Regarding a terminal connection structure of a first terminal and a second terminal that overlap each other and suppress relative translational movement in a plane, Patent Document 1 is known. In Patent Document 1, the first terminal is referred to as a first bus bar, and the second terminal is referred to as a second bus bar. FIG. 1(a) is a copy of FIG. 2 of Patent Document 1, FIG. 1(b) is a copy of FIG. 3 of Patent Document 1, and FIG. 1(c) is a copy of FIG. 6 of Patent Document 1.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses the following technical matters. 1. "The first bus bar 11 and the second bus bar 12 are arranged one above the other in a state where a plurality of concave portions 111 and a plurality of convex portions 121 are fitted to each other. That is, the first bus bar 11 and the second bus bar 12 are simply connected. Thereby, displacement in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction of the first bus bar 11 and the second bus bar 12 is prevented." (Patent Document 1, paragraph 0021) 2. "The overlapped first bus bar 11 and second bus bar 12 are pressed and fixed in the vertical direction by a clip 13." (Patent Document 1, paragraph 0021) 3. "The convex portion 121 and the concave portion 111 have a rectangular parallelepiped shape corresponding to the convex portion 121, but the shape of the convex portion and the concave portion is not limited as long as they can be fitted to each other." (Patent Document 1, paragraph 0019) 4. "The material, shape, dimensions, numerical values, form, number, arrangement location, etc. of each component in the embodiment are arbitrary and not limited as long as the present invention can be achieved." (Patent Document 1, paragraph 0025)

[0004] According to Patent Document 1, the size of the gap between two objects that fit together (these are the convex portion 121 and the concave portion 111 in Patent Document 1) is a design consideration. Therefore, according to Patent Document 1, by designing the gap between the convex portion 121 and the concave portion 111 that fit together to be sufficiently small, the parallel movement of the second busbar 12 in the front-rear and left-right directions relative to the first busbar 11 can be suppressed.

[0005] Thus, Patent Document 1 is, "A terminal connection structure comprising a first terminal and a second terminal that overlap each other and whose relative parallel movement within a plane is suppressed, and a fastener that suppresses the relative movement of the first terminal and the second terminal in the normal direction by pressing them together in the normal direction of the plane." It is disclosed. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2024-037491 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0007] According to Patent Document 1, in order to suppress relative translation within a plane, it is necessary to fit the convex portion 121 and the concave portion 111 together in directions parallel to the plane, including the front-to-back and left-to-right directions. For this reason, precision machining of metal is required.

[0008] In view of such prior art, we disclose a terminal connection structure in which a first terminal and a second terminal overlap each other, in which relative translation in a plane is suppressed, and in which the first terminal and the second terminal make three-point contact without requiring high processing precision. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The technical matters described herein are provided not to explicitly or implicitly limit the invention described in the claims, nor to enable persons other than those who benefit from the invention (e.g., the applicant and the rights holder) to limit the invention described in the claims, but simply to facilitate understanding of the essential points of the invention. An overview of the invention from other perspectives can be understood, for example, from the claims of this patent application as of the filing date. The terminal connection structure of this disclosure includes a first terminal and a second terminal that overlap each other and whose relative parallel movement in a plane is suppressed, and a fastener that suppresses the relative movement of the first terminal and the second terminal in the normal direction by pressing the first terminal and the second terminal against each other in the normal direction of the plane, and is characterized in that the first terminal and the second terminal make contact with each other at three points, and the tangent plane at each of the three contact points in the three-point contact is inclined with respect to the plane. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the terminal connection structure disclosed in this specification, the first terminal and the second terminal are in three-point contact with each other, and the tangent plane at each of the three contact points in the three-point contact is inclined with respect to the plane. Therefore, a terminal connection structure of overlapping first and second terminals is realized without requiring high machining precision, and relative parallel movement within the plane is suppressed. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] Prior art terminal connection structure. [Figure 2] Plan view of the terminal connection structure. [Figure 3] Terminal connection structure of Example 1. (a) Exploded perspective view. (b) Exploded perspective view. (c) Partial cross-sectional view of the protruding portion. [Figure 4] Terminal connection structure of Example 2. (a) Exploded perspective view. (b) Exploded perspective view. (c) Partial cross-sectional view of the protruding portion. [Figure 5] Terminal connection structure of Example 3. (a) Exploded perspective view. (b) Exploded perspective view. (c) Partial cross-sectional view of the protruding portion. [Figure 6] Terminal connection structure of Example 4. (a) Exploded perspective view. (b) Exploded perspective view. (c) Partial cross-sectional view of the convex portion. [Figure 7] Terminal connection structure of Example 5. (a) Exploded perspective view. (b) Exploded perspective view. (c) Partial cross-sectional view of the convex portion. [Figure 8] Terminal connection structure of Example 6. (a) Exploded perspective view. (b) Exploded perspective view. (c) Partial cross-sectional view of the convex portion. [Figure 9] Terminal connection structure of Example 7. (a) Exploded perspective view. (b) Exploded perspective view. (c) Partial cross-sectional view of the convex portion. [Figure 10] Terminal connection structure of Example 8. (a) Exploded perspective view. (b) Exploded perspective view. (c) Partial cross-sectional view of the convex portion.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Referring to the drawings, the disclosed terminal connection structure will be described. The drawings are for understanding the examples, and the dimensions of each component shown are not necessarily the same as the actual dimensions. In each drawing, for the sake of clarity of the drawing, reference numerals are attached only to some of the two or more identical components.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 2, the terminal connection structure 1 of the embodiment includes a first terminal 10, a second terminal 20, and a fastener 30. The first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are each, for example, a rectangular flat metal piece. The first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 overlap each other with a part of one surface of the first terminal 10 facing a part of one surface of the second terminal 20, and are in three-point contact with each other (that is, they contact each other at three points not on the same straight line). The contact planes at each of the three contacts in the three-point contact are inclined with respect to the plane defined by the three-point contact. Specifically, each contact in the three-point contact is a contact between three parts or three surfaces 12a formed on the surface 12a of the first terminal 10 and three parts or three surfaces 22a on the surface 22a of the second terminal 20. In three-point contact, as is well known, within the plane defined by the three-point contact, the directions of the components of the normal forces at the three points are different from each other and are balanced. Therefore, the relative parallel movement of the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 within the plane defined by the three-point contact is suppressed.

[0014] The fastener 30 suppresses the relative movement of the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 in the normal direction of the plane defined by the three-point contact by pressing the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 against each other in the normal direction of the plane defined by the three-point contact in a state where the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are in three-point contact with each other. The fastener 30 is, for example, a U-shaped clip.

[0015] According to the terminal connection structure 1, the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 are in three-point contact with each other, and the contact planes at each of the three contacts in the three-point contact are inclined with respect to the plane defined by the three-point contact. The slope of the contact plane absorbs the dimensional variations based on the not-high processing accuracy. Therefore, a terminal connection structure of the first terminal and the second terminal that overlap each other and in which the relative parallel movement within the plane is suppressed is realized without requiring high processing accuracy.

[0016] Hereinafter, specific examples of the three-point contact in the terminal connection structure 1 are shown in the figures. In each embodiment, the angle formed by the contact plane and the plane defined by the three-point contact is 30 degrees.

[0017] <Example 1> Embodiment 1 of terminal connection structure 1 is shown in Figure 3. In Embodiment 1, the first terminal 10 includes one recess 12, and the second terminal 20 includes one protrusion 22. The peripheral wall of the recess 12 of the first terminal 10 includes a surface 12a for three-point contact, and the surface of the protrusion 22 of the second terminal 20 includes a surface 22a for three-point contact. In the example shown in Figure 3, the recess 12 of the first terminal 10 has a shape that fits a frustocone, while the protrusion 22 of the second terminal 20 has a shape that is a frustoconical pyramid with three rounded edges. The entire peripheral wall of the recess 12 corresponds to surface 12a, and the convex curved surface obtained by rounding the edges corresponds to the three surfaces 22a.

[0018] <Example 2> Figure 4 shows Embodiment 2 of terminal connection structure 1. In Embodiment 2, the first terminal 10 includes one recess 12, and the second terminal 20 includes one protrusion 22. The peripheral wall of the recess 12 of the first terminal 10 includes a surface 12a for three-point contact, and the surface of the protrusion 22 of the second terminal 20 includes a surface 22a for three-point contact. In the example shown in Figure 4, the recess 12 of the first terminal 10 has a shape that fits a hollow frustum with a Reuleaux triangle with three rounded corners as its base, while the protrusion 22 of the second terminal 20 has the shape of a hollow frustum of a cone. The portion of the peripheral wall of the recess 12 excluding the rounded corners corresponds to surface 12a, and the outer peripheral surface of the protrusion 22 corresponds to surface 22a.

[0019] <Example 3> Embodiment 3 of terminal connection structure 1 is shown in Figure 5. In Embodiment 3, the first terminal 10 includes one recess 12, and the second terminal 20 includes three protrusions 22. The peripheral wall of the recess 12 of the first terminal 10 includes a surface 12a for three-point contact, and the surface of each of the three protrusions 22 of the second terminal 20 includes a surface 22a for three-point contact. In the example shown in Figure 5, the recess 12 of the first terminal 10 has a shape that fits a hollow frustocone, while the protrusions 22 of the second terminal 20 have a hemispherical shape. The entire peripheral wall of the recess 12 corresponds to surface 12a, and the hemispherical surface of the protrusion 22 corresponds to surface 22a.

[0020] <Example 4> Embodiment 4 of terminal connection structure 1 is shown in Figure 6. In Embodiment 4, the first terminal 10 includes three recesses 12, and the second terminal 20 includes three protrusions 22. The peripheral walls of each of the three recesses 12 of the first terminal 10 include a surface 12a for three-point contact, and the surface of each of the three protrusions 22 of the second terminal 20 includes a surface 22a for three-point contact. In the example shown in Figure 6, each of the three recesses 12 of the first terminal 10 has a shape that fits a truncated square pyramid, while each of the three protrusions 22 of the second terminal 20 has a shape that is cut from a hollow truncated cone. The peripheral walls of the recesses 12 correspond to surface 12a, and the outer surfaces of the protrusions 22 correspond to surface 22a.

[0021] <Example 5> Figure 7 shows Embodiment 5 of the terminal connection structure 1. Embodiment 5 is a modified example of Embodiment 4. The three protrusions 22 of the second terminal 20 in Embodiment 5 are arranged point-symmetrically with respect to the three protrusions 22 of the second terminal 20 in Embodiment 4.

[0022] <Example 6> Figure 8 shows an embodiment 6 of the terminal connection structure 1. Embodiment 6 is a modified example of Embodiment 4. In Embodiment 6, the entire peripheral wall of one of the three recesses 12 of the first terminal 10 is a surface 12a for three-point contact, having a shape that follows the side surface of a frustocone, and the entire side wall of one of the three protrusions 22 of the second terminal 20 is a surface 22a for three-point contact, having a shape that follows the side surface of a frustocone.

[0023] <Example 7> Figure 9 shows an embodiment 7 of the terminal connection structure 1. Embodiment 7 is a modification of Embodiment 6. In Embodiment 7, each of the remaining two of the three recesses 12 of the first terminal 10 is positioned such that its short side is parallel to the long side of the first terminal 10, and its long side is parallel to the short side of the first terminal 10.

[0024] <Example 8> Figure 10 shows an embodiment 8 of terminal connection structure 1. In embodiment 8, the first terminal 10 includes two recesses 12, and the second terminal 20 includes three protrusions 22. The peripheral walls of each of the two recesses 12 of the first terminal 10 include a surface 12a for three-point contact, and the surfaces of the three protrusions 22 of the second terminal 20 include a surface 22a for three-point contact. In the example shown in Figure 10, one of the two recesses 12 of the first terminal 10 has a shape that fits a frustocone, and the other recess 12 has a shape that fits a frustopyrean, with the other recess 12 reaching the edge of the first terminal 10, whereas the three protrusions 22 of the second terminal 20 are the same as those in embodiment 7. The peripheral walls of the recess 12 having a shape that fits a frustocone and the three peripheral walls of the recess 12 having a shape that fits a frustopyrean each correspond to a surface 12a. In the terminal connection structure 1 of Embodiment 8, the two protrusions 22 other than the one having the shape of a frustocone are located in the other recess 12. According to Embodiment 8, the first terminal 10 and the second terminal 20 can be connected to each other by sliding the first terminal 10 along one surface of the second terminal 20 while the fastener 30 is attached to the second terminal 20.

[0025] Surface 12a may be a surface with a constant gradient, or a surface whose gradient increases monotonically toward the edge of the recess 12. In the latter case, surface 12a may be, for example, an off-axis ellipsoid. Alternatively, the peripheral wall of the recess 12 may be, for example, x 2 / a 2 +y 2 / b 2 +z 2 / c 2 The surface may have a shape that follows the plane bounded by the secant plane z≈0 and the secant plane z=d (a>0,b>0,c>0,-c≦d<0) of an ellipsoid represented by =1 (an ellipsoid includes a sphere as a special case), or surface 12a may be part of this peripheral wall.

[0026] <Addendum> The technical features disclosed in the various embodiments and their variations described above are not necessarily mutually exclusive. To the extent that they do not contradict each other from a technical standpoint, the technical features of one embodiment or its variation may be applied to the technical features of another embodiment or its variation.

[0027] The claims set forth in the claims of this application at the time of filing do not necessarily claim all inventions disclosed in this specification. In this regard, the applicant of this application should not be understood or interpreted as having waived the right to obtain a patent for inventions not claimed at the time of filing. To the extent permitted by the laws or treaties of the country or region that receives this application, the applicant reserves the right to obtain a patent for inventions not claimed in this application, the right to file a divisional application for such inventions, the right to claim such inventions by amendment, and all other rights. However, this shall not apply if the applicant of this application expresses an explicit and definitive contrary intention.

[0028] While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications can be made and elements can be replaced with equivalents without departing from the scope of the invention. Furthermore, many modifications can be made to adapt a particular system, device, or component thereof to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope of the invention. Accordingly, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed for the purpose of carrying out the invention, but includes all embodiments contained in the appended claims.

[0029] Furthermore, the use of terms such as “first,” “second,” etc., when used herein and / or in the appended claims, does not indicate order or importance, but rather the terms such as “first,” “second,” etc., are used to distinguish elements. The terms used herein are for the purpose of describing embodiments and are not intended in any way to limit the invention. The terms “including” and their variations, when used herein and / or in the appended claims, indicate the existence of the mentioned features, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not exclude the existence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof. The terms “and / or” include, if any, one or any combination of the listed elements relating thereto. In the claims and specification, unless otherwise specifically stated, “connected,” “joined,” “joined,” “linked,” or their synonyms, and all their forms, do not necessarily negate the existence of one or more intermediate elements between two that are, for example, “connected” or “joined” or “linked” to one another. In the claims and specification, the term “arbitrary” should be understood as having the same meaning as the universal quantifier ∀, if any, unless otherwise specified. For example, the expression “for any X” is the same as “for all X” or “for each X.” Expressions such as “at least one of A, B, and C” (for example in English “at least one of A, B and C”, “at least one of A, B or C”, “at least one of A, B and / or C”) should be understood as having the same meaning as the power set 2 of the set S which contains all the listed elements, if any, unless otherwise specified. S This means arbitrarily selecting an element from the set P obtained by removing the empty set φ from the set. In this example, S={A,B,C},2 S={φ,{A},{B},{C},{A,B},{A,C},{B,C},{A,B,C}},P={{A},{B},{C},{A,B},{A,C},{B,C},{A,B,C}}, and this example means that one element (for example, {A,C}) can be arbitrarily selected from the set P.

[0030] Unless otherwise specified, all terms used herein (including technical and scientific terms) have the same meaning as those generally understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Furthermore, terms such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries should be construed to have the meaning consistent with their meanings in the relevant art and in the context of this disclosure, and should not be construed ideally or excessively formally unless expressly defined.

[0031] It will be understood that many techniques and steps are disclosed in the description of this invention. Each of these has its own advantages, and each can be used in combination with one or more, or possibly all, of the other disclosed techniques. Therefore, to avoid complexity, this specification refrains from describing every possible combination of individual techniques or steps. Nevertheless, the specification and claims should be read with the understanding that such combinations are entirely within the scope of the invention and claims.

[0032] In the following claims, all corresponding structures, materials, actions, and equivalents of functional elements combined with means or steps are intended to include structures, materials, or actions for performing a function in combination with other elements, if any.

[0033] While embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. Various modifications and variations are permitted without departing from the spirit of the invention. The selected and described embodiments are for illustrating the principles of the present invention and its practical applications. The present invention can be used in various embodiments with various modifications and variations, and the various modifications and variations will be determined according to the expected use. All such modifications and variations are intended to fall within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims and are intended to be granted the same protection when interpreted in accordance with the fair, lawful and equitable breadth. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0034] 1. Terminal connection structure 10 1st terminal 12 recesses 12a side 20 2nd terminal 22 Convex part 22a side 30 fasteners

Claims

1. The first and second terminals overlap each other, with relative translation in the plane suppressed, A fastener that presses the first terminal and the second terminal against each other in the direction normal to the plane, thereby suppressing the relative movement of the first terminal and the second terminal in the direction normal to the plane. A terminal connection structure including, The first terminal and the second terminal are in three-point contact with each other, and the tangent plane at each of the three contact points in the three-point contact is inclined with respect to the plane. A terminal connection structure characterized by the following features.

2. In the terminal connection structure described in claim 1, The first terminal includes one recess, The second terminal includes one protrusion, The peripheral wall of the recess includes the surface for the three-point contact, The surface of the protrusion includes the surface for the three-point contact. A terminal connection structure characterized by the following features.

3. In the terminal connection structure described in claim 1, The first terminal includes one recess, The second terminal includes three protrusions, The peripheral wall of the recess includes the surface for the three-point contact, Each of the three protrusions has a surface that includes the three-point contact surface. A terminal connection structure characterized by the following features.

4. In the terminal connection structure described in claim 1, The first terminal includes three recesses, The second terminal includes three protrusions, Each of the three recesses has a peripheral wall that includes a surface for the three-point contact, Each of the three protrusions has a surface that includes the three-point contact surface. A terminal connection structure characterized by the following features.

5. In the terminal connection structure described in claim 4, The entire peripheral wall of one of the three recesses is a surface for the three-point contact, having a shape that follows the side surface of a frustocone. The entire side wall of one of the three protrusions is a surface for the three-point contact, having a shape that follows the side surface of a frustum of a cone. A terminal connection structure characterized by the following features.

6. In the terminal connection structure described in claim 1, The first terminal includes two recesses, The second terminal includes three protrusions, Each of the two recesses has a peripheral wall that includes a surface for the three-point contact, Each of the three protrusions has a surface for the three-point contact, One of the two recesses reaches the edge of the first terminal and is in contact with the respective surfaces of two of the three protrusions. A terminal connection structure characterized by the following features.

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