Electrical connection structure

Abstract

To suppress abrasion of a connection part in an electric connection structure.SOLUTION: An electric connection structure 1 includes: a first terminal 2; and a connector 3 that can be detachably connected to the first terminal. The connector includes: a housing main body part 26; a housing 24 that includes a reception groove 27 that receives the first terminal; and at least one second terminal 25 that is provided to each reception groove, and is contacted to the first terminal to be corresponded. The first terminal includes an engagement hole 21 that is concaved toward a Y direction. The housing includes: an engagement part 28 that is supported by a housing main body part so as to enable deviation of a first position and a second position in the Y direction; and an operation part 29 that is coupled to the engagement part. By engaging the engagement part to which the engagement hole is corresponded when the engagement part is at the first position, the movement to a X direction against the housing of the first terminal is regulated. When the engagement part is at the second position, the engagement part is departed from the engagement hole to be corresponded.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electrical connection structure. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, research and development on fuel cells that contribute to energy efficiency has been conducted to ensure that more people have access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and advanced energy. Patent Document 1 discloses an electrical connection structure for connecting bipolar plates that constitute the electrodes of each cell of a fuel cell stack to a control device or an inspection device. The electrical connection structure according to Patent Document 1 has a connector portion with a receiving groove that receives multiple bipolar plates, and a coupling portion formed on the side of the connector portion. The coupling portion has a groove portion that receives a protrusion formed by the multiple bipolar plates. The groove portion is provided with an elastic claw that engages with the protrusion. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5584719 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the electrical connection structure disclosed in Patent Document 1, the coupling portion is provided on the outside of the connector portion, so the distance between the coupling portion and the terminals provided inside the connector is large, which causes the terminals to be displaced relative to the bipolar plate, resulting in wear of the bipolar plate and the terminals.

[0005] In view of the above background, an object of the present invention is to suppress wear of a connection portion in an electrical connection structure. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, one aspect of the present invention is an electrical connection structure (1) having at least one first terminal (2) extending in an X-direction and a connector (3) detachably connected to the first terminal, the connector having a housing main body (26), a housing (24) recessed in the X-direction from a side of the housing main body and having at least one receiving groove (27) for receiving a corresponding one of the first terminals, and at least one second terminal (25) provided in each of the receiving grooves and in contact with the corresponding one of the first terminals, the first terminals extending in the X-direction and The housing has a locking hole (21) recessed toward the Y direction on its side edge in the perpendicular Y direction, and the housing has at least one locking portion (28) supported on the housing main body portion so as to be displaceable between a first position and a second position in the Y direction, and an operating portion (29) connected to the locking portion, and when the locking portion is in the first position, the locking portion locks into the corresponding locking hole, thereby restricting movement of the first terminal in the X direction relative to the housing, and when the locking portion is in the second position, the locking portion disengages from the corresponding locking hole.

[0007] According to this aspect, the engagement between the locking hole formed in the first terminal and the locking portion provided on the housing body restricts movement of the first terminal relative to the housing in the X direction. By fixing the housing and the first terminal at a position close to the connection portion between the first terminal and the second terminal, movement of the second terminal relative to the first terminal is restricted, thereby suppressing wear of the connection portion between the first terminal and the second terminal.

[0008] In the above aspect, the multiple first terminals may be formed in a plate shape perpendicular to a Z direction perpendicular to the X direction and the Y direction, and may be arranged at intervals from each other in the Z direction, the multiple receiving grooves may be arranged at intervals from each other in the Z direction corresponding to the multiple first terminals, the multiple second terminals may be provided in each of the receiving grooves, the locking hole may be provided in each of the first terminals, and the multiple locking portions corresponding to the multiple locking holes may be connected to the operating unit.

[0009] According to this aspect, the multiple first terminals and the multiple second terminals can be connected to each other. Also, the multiple locking holes and the multiple locking portions are engaged with each other, which further suppresses the relative movement of the multiple first terminals and the multiple second terminals.

[0010] In the above aspect, the housing may be made of resin, and the plurality of locking portions may be coupled to the housing body portion via flexible portions (31).

[0011] According to this aspect, the locking portion can be displaceably supported on the housing main body with a simple structure.

[0012] In the above aspect, the plurality of locking portions may extend in the Z direction and rotate about an axis that passes through the flexible portion.

[0013] According to this aspect, the engagement portion can be smoothly displaced between the first position and the second position.

[0014] In the above aspect, each of the locking portions is formed in a plate shape perpendicular to the Z direction, and has a locking piece extending from the flexible portion in the X direction and a convex portion protruding in the Z direction from the locking piece, and when the locking portion is in the first position, the convex portion may lock the corresponding locking hole.

[0015] According to this aspect, the protrusion extending in the Z direction projects into the locking hole, thereby restricting movement of the housing in the X direction relative to the first terminal.

[0016] In the above aspect, the operation portion may extend in the X direction from each of the locking portions.

[0017] According to this aspect, the operation portion can be disposed on the side of the housing body with good space efficiency, which makes it possible to reduce the size of the electrical connection structure.

[0018] In the above aspect, the plurality of locking portions may be provided on both sides of the housing main body in the Y direction.

[0019] According to this aspect, the locking portion can lock the multiple first end portions on both sides in the Y direction, and the relative movement between the first terminal and the second terminal can be further suppressed.

[0020] In the above aspect, one of the two first terminals adjacent to each other in the Z direction may have the engagement hole on one side in the Y direction, and the other of the two first terminals adjacent to each other in the Z direction may have the engagement hole on the other side in the Y direction.

[0021] According to this aspect, the locking portion can lock the multiple first end portions on both sides in the Y direction, and the relative movement between the first terminal and the second terminal can be further suppressed.

[0022] In the above embodiment, the plurality of first terminals may be connected to a plurality of bipolar plates (13) of the fuel cell stack (10).

[0023] According to this aspect, it is possible to provide an electrical connection structure that connects with a plurality of bipolar plates of a fuel cell stack.

[0024] In the above aspect, the first terminals may be integrally formed with the bipolar plates (13) of the fuel cell stack (10).

[0025] According to this aspect, it is possible to provide an electrical connection structure that directly connects to multiple bipolar plates of a fuel cell stack. Effect of the Invention

[0026] According to the above configuration, wear of the connection portion in the electrical connection structure can be suppressed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0027] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electrical connection structure according to an embodiment; [Diagram 2] Fuel cell stack diagram [Diagram 3] Exploded perspective view of the first terminal [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional perspective view showing an engaged state of the connector and the first terminal; [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing a disengaged state of the connector and the first terminal; [Figure 6] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a connection state between a first terminal and a second terminal; [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional perspective view showing an engaged state of a connector and a first terminal according to a modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0028] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the electrical connection structure according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, mutually orthogonal X, Y, and Z directions are used to explain the positional relationship of the electrical connection structure. For example, the X direction may be the front-back direction, the Y direction may be the up-down direction, and the Z direction may be the left-right direction. Note that each direction does not limit the orientation of the electrical connection structure when it is used.

[0029] The electrical connection structure is used to electrically connect two devices. In this embodiment, the electrical connection structure connects the fuel cell stack and an external device. The external device may be a control device (ECU) or an inspection device. The inspection device measures, for example, the voltage or current of the power generation cell.

[0030] 1, the electrical connection structure 1 has at least one first terminal 2 extending in the X direction, and a connector 3 that is detachably connected to the first terminal 2. In this embodiment, the connector 3 is connected to a plurality of first terminals 2. The plurality of first terminals 2 are provided in a fuel cell stack 10.

[0031] As shown in Fig. 2, the fuel cell stack 10 has a plurality of power generating cells 11. Each power generating cell 11 has a membrane electrode assembly 12, and a first bipolar plate 13 and a second bipolar plate 14 that sandwich the membrane electrode assembly 12. The first bipolar plate 13 and the second bipolar plate 14 are also called separators. The first bipolar plate 13 and the second bipolar plate 14 are electrically conductive. The first bipolar plate 13 and the second bipolar plate 14 are preferably formed of electrically conductive metal plates.

[0032] The membrane electrode assembly 12 has an electrolyte membrane 12A, which is a proton conductor, an anode 12B provided on one side of the electrolyte membrane 12A, and a cathode 12C provided on the other side of the electrolyte membrane 12A. The membrane electrode assembly 12 also has a frame member 12D on the outer periphery of the electrolyte membrane 12A, the anode 12B, and the cathode 12C. The frame member 12D may be formed of an insulating resin or the like. The first bipolar plate 13 defines an anode chamber 16 between itself and the surface of the membrane electrode assembly 12 on the anode 12B side. The first bipolar plate 13 also contacts the anode 12B and is electrically connected to the anode 12B. The second bipolar plate 14 defines a cathode chamber 17 between itself and the surface of the membrane electrode assembly 12 on the cathode 12C side. The second bipolar plate 14 also contacts the cathode 12C and is electrically connected to the cathode 12C.

[0033] The power generating cells 11 are stacked on top of each other. The first bipolar plate 13 of a certain power generating cell 11 is in contact with and electrically connected to the second bipolar plate 14 of the adjacent power generating cell 11. As a result, the power generating cells 11 constituting the fuel cell stack 10 are connected in series. The first bipolar plate 13 and the second bipolar plate 14 connected to each other may be formed integrally.

[0034] A hydrogen-containing compound containing hydrogen is supplied to the anode chamber 16 of each power generation cell 11, and air is supplied to the cathode chamber 17. As a result, hydrogen is oxidized to protons in the anode 12B and electrons are released. The protons generated in the anode 12B pass through the electrolyte membrane 12A and are supplied to the cathode 12C. The electrons released to the anode 12B are supplied to the cathode 12C of the adjacent power generation cell 11 by the first bipolar plate 13 and the second bipolar plate 14. In the cathode 12C, oxygen and protons receive electrons and are reduced to produce water. In this way, an electromotive force is generated in each power generation cell 11.

[0035] The multiple first terminals 2 are connected to the multiple first bipolar plates 13 or the multiple second bipolar plates 14 of the fuel cell stack 10. The multiple first terminals 2 may be integrally formed with the multiple first bipolar plates 13 or the multiple second bipolar plates 14 of the fuel cell stack 10. In this embodiment, the multiple first terminals 2 are integrally formed with the first bipolar plates 13.

[0036] As shown in Figs. 1 to 3, each first terminal 2 is formed in a plate shape and protrudes in the X direction from a side edge of a first bipolar plate 13. Here, the first bipolar plate 13 extends in the X direction and the Y direction. Each power generating cell 11 is stacked in the Z direction. The multiple first terminals 2 are formed in a plate shape perpendicular to the Z direction and are arranged at intervals from each other in the Z direction.

[0037] Each first terminal 2 has a locking hole 21 recessed toward the Y direction on a side edge in the Y direction. Each locking hole 21 may be formed in a quadrangle when viewed from the Z direction. As shown in Fig. 3, one of two first terminals 2 adjacent to each other in the Z direction may have a locking hole 21 on one side in the Y direction, and the other of two first terminals 2 adjacent to each other in the Z direction may have a locking hole 21 on the other side in the Y direction. Two first terminals 2 adjacent to each other in the Z direction may have shapes that are inverted in the Y direction.

[0038] 1 and 4, the connector 3 has a housing 24 and at least one second terminal 25 provided on the housing 24. The housing 24 has a housing main body 26 and one receiving groove 27 recessed in the X direction from a side portion of the housing main body 26. In this embodiment, the connector 3 has a plurality of second terminals 25 and a plurality of receiving grooves 27 corresponding to the plurality of first terminals 2. The housing 24 is formed from resin.

[0039] The housing main body 26 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape and extends in the X direction. One end of the housing main body 26 in the X direction is called the base end, and the other end is called the tip. A plurality of receiving grooves 27 are provided in an end face of the tip of the housing main body 26. Each receiving groove 27 extends in the Y direction and penetrates the housing main body 26 in the Y direction. The multiple receiving grooves 27 are arranged at intervals from one another in the Z direction.

[0040] The housing 24 has at least one locking portion 28 supported by the housing main body 26 so as to be displaceable between a first position and a second position in the Y direction, and an operation portion 29 coupled to the locking portion 28. A plurality of locking portions 28 may be provided on the housing main body 26 corresponding to the plurality of first terminals 2. The plurality of locking portions 28 may be provided on both sides of the housing main body 26 in the Y direction. In this embodiment, a locking portion 28 is provided on both sides of each receiving groove 27 in the Y direction.

[0041] The multiple locking portions 28 are coupled to the housing body 26 via flexible portions 31. In this embodiment, a pair of flexible portions 31 are provided on both sides of the housing body 26 in the Y direction. Each flexible portion 31 is provided in the middle of the housing body 26 in the X direction. Each flexible portion 31 is provided on the base end side of the bottom of each receiving groove 27 in the X direction. Each flexible portion 31 is formed as a plate piece facing the X direction, and protrudes from the housing body 26 in the Y direction. Each flexible portion 31 extends in the Z direction along the housing body 26.

[0042] Each of the locking portions 28 is formed in a plate shape perpendicular to the Z direction, and has a locking piece 33 extending from the flexible portion 31 in the X direction, and a protrusion 34 protruding from the locking piece 33 in the Z direction. The multiple locking pieces 33 extend toward the tip side from the surface of the tip side in the X direction of the corresponding flexible portion 31. The locking pieces 33 are arranged at intervals in the Z direction. The locking pieces 33 are arranged at positions that do not overlap with the multiple receiving grooves 27 when viewed from the Y direction. When viewed from the Z direction, a first slit 37 is formed between the housing main body 26 and each locking piece 33, extending in the X direction from the tip of the housing main body 26.

[0043] Each flexible portion 31 is provided with an operating portion 29. The operating portion 29 is connected to a plurality of locking pieces 33 via the flexible portion 31. Each operating portion 29 extends in the X direction from each of the locking portions 28 via the corresponding flexible portion 31. Each operating portion 29 extends from the surface of the base end side in the X direction of the corresponding flexible portion 31 to the base end side. Each operating portion 29 is a plate piece whose surface faces the Y direction and has a width in the Z direction. When viewed from the Z direction, a second slit 38 is formed between the housing main body 26 and each operating portion 29, extending from the base end of the housing main body 26 in the X direction. The width of the second slit 38 in the Y direction is formed to be larger than the width of the first slit 37 in the Y direction.

[0044] Extension walls 41 that protrude in the Y direction are provided at both ends of the housing main body 26 in the Z direction. When viewed from the Z direction, each extension wall 41 is arranged to overlap the locking portion 28, the flexible portion 31, the operating portion 29, the first slit 37, and the second slit 38. Both ends of the flexible portion 31 in the Z direction may be coupled to the corresponding extension walls 41.

[0045] The multiple locking portions 28 and the corresponding operating portions 29 rotate about an axis A. The axis A extends in the Z direction and passes through the flexible portion 31. The multiple locking portions 28 and the corresponding operating portions 29 rotate about the axis A as the flexible portion 31 deforms.

[0046] 4, the multiple locking portions 28 extend parallel to the X direction from the flexible portion 31 when in the first position, and are farther from the housing main body 26 in the Y direction than they are at the first position when in the second position. The multiple locking portions 28 are located at the first position in the initial state.

[0047] As shown in Figs. 4 to 6, a plurality of second terminals 25 are provided in each of the receiving grooves 27. Each of the second terminals 25 has a clamping portion 45 for clamping the corresponding first terminal 2 in the Z direction, and a conductive portion 46 connected to the clamping portion 45. The clamping portion 45 extends in the X direction and has a pair of plate pieces 45A that are pressed against each other in the Z direction, and clamps the first terminal 2 between the pair of plate pieces 45A. The conductive portion 46 extends from the clamping portion 45 through the housing main body 26 to the base end side of the housing main body 26. A plurality of connection holes 48 extending in the X direction may be formed at the base end of the housing main body 26. In this case, the plurality of conductive portions 46 may extend into the corresponding connection holes 48. Terminals of an external device may be inserted into the plurality of connection holes 48, and the terminals of the external device and the conductive portion 46 may be electrically connected.

[0048] When connecting the multiple first terminals 2 to the connector 3, the worker pushes each operating portion 29 toward the housing main body portion 26 in the Y direction. This causes the flexible portion 31 to deform, and the multiple locking portions 28 to rotate from the first position to the second position, as shown in Fig. 5. This allows the multiple first terminals 2 to be inserted into the corresponding receiving grooves 27 without the multiple protrusions 34 coming into contact with the multiple first terminals 2. When the worker inserts the multiple first terminals 2 into the corresponding receiving grooves 27, the multiple first terminals 2 are inserted into the clamping portions 45 of the corresponding second terminals 25, and the multiple first terminals 2 and the corresponding second terminals 25 are electrically connected to each other.

[0049] After the first terminals 2 are inserted into the corresponding receiving grooves 27, the operator releases the pressing of each operating portion 29. This causes the flexible portion 31 to return to its original position as shown in FIG. 4, and as a result, the locking portions 28 return to their first positions. At this time, the protrusions 34 enter the locking holes 21 of the corresponding first terminals 2 and lock the corresponding locking holes 21. This restricts the movement of the first terminals 2 in the X direction relative to the housing 24. In other words, the connection between the first terminals 2 and the connector 3 is maintained.

[0050] When separating the first terminals 2 from the connector 3, the worker pushes each operating portion 29 toward the housing main body 26 in the Y direction. This causes the flexible portion 31 to deform, and the locking portions 28 to rotate from the first position to the second position, as shown in FIG. 5 . This causes the protrusions 34 to disengage from the corresponding locking holes 21. That is, the locking portions 28 disengage from the corresponding locking holes 21. This allows the first terminals 2 to be removed from the corresponding receiving grooves 27 without the protrusions 34 coming into contact with the first terminals 2.

[0051] According to the electrical connection structure 1 of the embodiment, the movement of the first terminal 2 in the X direction relative to the housing 24 is restricted by the engagement between the locking hole 21 formed in the first terminal 2 and the locking portion 28 provided on the housing main body 26. By fixing the housing 24 and the first terminal 2 at a position close to the connection portion between the first terminal 2 and the second terminal 25, the movement of the second terminal 25 relative to the first terminal 2 is restricted, and therefore wear of the connection portion between the first terminal 2 and the second terminal 25 is restricted. The engagement between the multiple locking holes 21 and the multiple locking portions 28 further restricts the relative movement of the multiple first terminals 2 and the multiple second terminals 25.

[0052] According to the electrical connection structure 1, when the multiple first terminals 2 and the connector 3 are connected and disconnected, the multiple protrusions 34 are prevented from being scraped by the corresponding locking holes 21. This prevents the generation of scrapes from the protrusions 34. This prevents the scrapes from the protrusions 34 from getting caught in the contact portions between the first terminals 2 and the second terminals 25, or between the first bipolar plate 13 and the second bipolar plate 14 and the membrane electrode assembly 12.

[0053] Since the multiple locking portions 28 rotate about the axis A, the multiple locking portions 28 can smoothly move between the first position and the second position.

[0054] Since the operating portion 29 extends in the X direction from each of the multiple locking portions 28, the operating portion 29 can be arranged with good space efficiency on the side of the housing body 26. This makes it possible to reduce the size of the electrical connection structure 1.

[0055] The multiple locking portions 28 are provided on both sides in the Y direction of the housing main body 26. This allows the multiple locking portions 28 to lock the multiple first end portions on both sides in the Y direction, thereby further suppressing relative movement between the multiple first terminals 2 and the multiple second terminals 25.

[0056] Although the description of the specific embodiment is finished above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment and can be widely modified. For example, a protrusion 34 protruding from a certain locking piece 33 on one side in the Z direction may be coupled to a locking piece 33 arranged on one side in the Z direction. In other words, adjacent locking pieces 33 may be coupled to each other via the protrusions 34. This makes it possible to more reliably maintain the engagement state between each protrusion 34 and the corresponding locking hole 21.

[0057] 7, the first terminal 2 may have a locking hole 21 on each of both sides in the Y direction. In this case, the first terminal 2 may overlap with the locking portions 28 on both sides of the housing main body 26 when viewed from the Z direction. According to this embodiment, each first terminal 2 is locked to a pair of locking portions 28 at a pair of locking holes 21. Therefore, the relative movement of the multiple first terminals 2 and the multiple second terminals 25 can be further suppressed.

[0058] When viewed from the Z direction, the locking portion 28 may protrude in the Y direction relative to the first terminal 2. This makes it possible to more reliably maintain the engagement between each protrusion 34 and the corresponding locking hole 21. [Explanation of symbols]

[0059] 1: Electrical connection structure 2 :1st terminal 3: Connector 10: Fuel cell stack 13: First bipolar plate 14: Second bipolar plate 21: Locking hole 24: Housing 25: 2nd terminal 26: Housing body 27: Receptor groove 28: Locking part 29:Operation section 31:Flexible part 33: Locking piece 34: Convex A: Axis line

Claims

1. An electrical connection structure, At least one first terminal extending in an X-direction; a connector that is detachably connected to the first terminal, The connector comprises: a housing having a housing body and at least one receiving groove recessed in the X direction from a side of the housing body and receiving a corresponding one of the first terminals; at least one second terminal provided in each of the receiving grooves and in contact with the corresponding first terminal; the first terminal has a locking hole recessed toward the Y direction on a side edge in the Y direction perpendicular to the X direction, the housing has at least one locking portion supported on the housing body portion so as to be displaceable between a first position and a second position in the Y direction, and an operation portion coupled to the locking portion, When the locking portion is in the first position, the locking portion locks into the corresponding locking hole, thereby restricting movement of the first terminal in the X direction relative to the housing, When the locking portion is in the second position, the locking portion is disengaged from the corresponding locking hole, The first terminals are formed in a plate shape perpendicular to a Z direction perpendicular to the X direction and the Y direction, and are arranged at intervals in the Z direction, The receiving grooves are arranged at intervals in the Z direction corresponding to the first terminals, A plurality of the second terminals are provided in the receiving grooves, The locking hole is provided in each of the first terminals, An electrical connection structure in which a plurality of the locking portions corresponding to a plurality of the locking holes are coupled to the operating portion.

2. the housing is made of resin, 2. The electrical connection structure according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of locking portions are coupled to the housing body via flexible portions.

3. The electrical connection structure according to claim 2 , wherein the plurality of locking portions extend in the Z direction and rotate about an axis passing through the flexible portion.

4. Each of the locking portions is formed in a plate shape perpendicular to the Z direction, and includes a locking piece extending from the flexible portion in the X direction and a protrusion protruding from the locking piece in the Z direction, The electrical connection structure according to claim 2 , wherein the protrusions engage the corresponding engagement holes when the engagement portions are in the first position.

5. The electrical connection structure according to claim 4 , wherein the operation portion extends in the X direction from each of the locking portions.

6. The electrical connection structure according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of locking portions are provided on both sides of the housing body in the Y direction.

7. one of the first terminals adjacent to each other in the Z direction has the locking hole on one side in the Y direction; The electrical connection structure according to claim 6 , wherein the other of the two first terminals adjacent to each other in the Z direction has the locking hole on the other side in the Y direction.

8. 8. The electrical connection structure according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the first terminals are connected to a plurality of bipolar plates of a fuel cell stack.

9. 8. The electrical connection structure according to claim 1, wherein the first terminals are integrally formed with a plurality of bipolar plates of a fuel cell stack.

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