Operating and display module

Abstract

The invention relates to an operating and display module for mounting on a measurement device for the purpose of process automation in industrial or private domains, said module comprising a contact finger having a current-switching function.

Description

[0001] Display and operating module

[0002] Reference to related applications

[0003] This application claims priority from German patent application No. 10 2023 122 492.1, filed on August 22, 2023, which is incorporated in its entirety by reference into this document.

[0004] Technical area

[0005] The present invention relates to measuring instrument technology. In particular, the present invention relates to a display and operating module for attaching to a measuring instrument for process automation in industrial or private environments, a contact pin with a current-switching function, and a use of such a contact pin.

[0006] Technical background

[0007] In measuring instrument technology, display and control modules are attached to measuring devices for process automation in industrial or private environments, for example, by means of a bayonet lock. Sliding contacts can be provided for the electrical connection of the display and control module to the measuring device. One example of a connection contact is a Precidip contact. If the display and control module is removed from the measuring device, these contacts can be covered to insulate them.

[0008] Summary It is an object of the present disclosure to provide an alternative for the contacts of a display and operating module.

[0009] This object is achieved by the features of the independent patent claims. Further developments of the invention emerge from the subclaims and the following description of embodiments.

[0010] A first aspect of the present disclosure relates to a display and control module configured for attachment to a measuring device for process automation in an industrial or private environment. The display and control module comprises a contact pin with a current-switching function, which is configured for electrically connecting the display and control module to the measuring device when the display and control module is attached to the measuring device. The contact pin comprises a movable contact pin that retracts when a compressive force is applied when the display and control module is attached to the measuring device in order to close an electrical contact within the contact pin, thereby enabling current to flow from the measuring device through the contact pin.

[0011] If the display and control module is removed from the measuring device, the movable contact pin moves forward again to open the electrical contact within the contact pin so that no more current can flow through the contact pin.

[0012] The contact point of the display and control module is thus de-energized when the module is removed from the measuring device.

[0013] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the contact pin has a current-carrying component which, when the movable contact pin is pushed back, closes the electrical contact between the current-carrying component and the movable contact pin.

[0014] According to a further embodiment of the present disclosure, the movable contact pin has a recess whose bottom surface is conductive. Furthermore, the contact pin typically has a pin-like head region extending from the opposite, outwardly directed end of the movable contact pin, the tip of which is also conductive. The remaining surface of the contact pin is preferably insulated.

[0015] According to a further embodiment of the present disclosure, the current-carrying component has a pin-like region whose end face is conductive, wherein the pin-like region is configured to be inserted into the recess of the movable contact pin in order to close the electrical contact when the display and operating module is attached to the measuring device.

[0016] According to a further embodiment of the present disclosure, the display and operating module comprises a housing and a first spring arrangement for supporting the current-carrying component against the rear wall of the housing so that it is pushed forward.

[0017] According to a further embodiment of the present disclosure, the display and control module comprises a second spring arrangement for supporting the current-carrying component against the movable contact pin, such that a force must be applied to press the movable contact pin against the current-carrying component, thereby establishing electrical contact between the two elements.

[0018] According to a further embodiment of the present disclosure, the current-carrying component is slidably mounted in the housing.

[0019] According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, the housing is conductive.

[0020] According to a further embodiment of the present disclosure, the head region and the base surface of the movable contact pin are conductive, with the remaining surface of the movable contact pin being non-conductive. The term "process automation in an industrial environment" can be understood as a branch of technology that includes measures for operating machines and systems without human intervention. One goal of process automation is to automate the interaction of individual components of a plant in the chemical, food, pharmaceutical, petroleum, paper, cement, shipping, or mining industries. A variety of sensors can be used for this purpose, which are particularly adapted to the specific requirements of the process industry, such as mechanical stability, insensitivity to contamination, extreme temperatures, and extreme pressures.Measured values ​​from these sensors are usually transmitted to a control room, where process parameters such as fill level, limit level, flow, pressure or density can be monitored and settings for the entire plant can be changed manually or automatically.

[0021] A sub-area of ​​process automation in the industrial environment concerns the logistics automation of plants and the logistics automation of supply chains. With the help of distance and angle sensors, processes inside or outside a building, or within a single logistics facility, are automated in the field of logistics automation. Typical applications for logistics automation systems include baggage and freight handling at airports, traffic monitoring (toll systems), retail, parcel distribution, and building security (access control). What the aforementioned examples have in common is that the respective application requires presence detection in combination with precise measurement of the size and location of an object.For this purpose, sensors based on optical measuring methods using lasers, LEDs, 2D cameras or 3D cameras that measure distances according to the time of flight (ToF) principle can be used.

[0022] Another sub-area of ​​process automation in the industrial environment concerns factory-to-production automation. Applications for this can be found in a wide variety of industries, such as automotive manufacturing, food production, the pharmaceutical industry, and packaging in general. The goal of factory automation is to automate the production of goods using machines, production lines, and / or robots, i.e., to run the process without human intervention. The sensors used here and the specific requirements regarding measurement accuracy for detecting the position and size of an object are comparable to those in the previous example of logistics automation.In a further aspect, the present disclosure relates to a measuring device for process automation in an industrial or private environment, comprising a contact pin with a current-switching function as described above and below, configured for the electrical connection of a display and operating module to the measuring device when the display and operating module is attached to the measuring device, wherein the contact pin has a movable contact pin which, when a pressure force is exerted when the display and operating module is attached to the measuring device, slides back to close an electrical contact within the contact pin, so that a current flow from the measuring device through the contact pin is enabled.

[0023] A further aspect of the present disclosure relates to a contact pin with a current-switching function, which is configured for the electrical connection of a display and control module described above and below to a measuring device when the display and control module is attached to the measuring device. The contact pin corresponds to the contact pin described above and below and, in particular, has a movable contact pin that retracts when a compressive force is applied when the display and control module is attached to the measuring device in order to close an electrical contact within the contact pin, thereby enabling a current flow from the measuring device through the contact pin.

[0024] A further aspect of the present disclosure relates to the use of the contact pin described above and below in a display and control module of a measuring device or in a measuring device.

[0025] The terms used in the claims should be construed to give them the broadest possible reasonable interpretation consistent with the foregoing description. For example, the use of the article "a" or "the" in introducing an element should not be construed to exclude a plurality of elements. Likewise, the mention of "or" should be construed to include a plurality of elements, so that the mention of "A or B" does not exclude "A and B" unless it is clear from the context or the preceding description that only one of A and B is intended.Furthermore, the phrase "at least one of A, B, and C" should be understood as one or more elements from a group of elements consisting of A, B, and C, and should not be interpreted as requiring at least one of each of the listed elements A, B, and C, whether A, B, and C are related as categories or otherwise. Furthermore, the reference to "A, B, and / or C" or "at least one of A, B, or C" should be interpreted to include each individual unit of the listed elements, e.g., A, each subset of the listed elements, e.g., A and B, or the entire list of elements A, B, and C.

[0026] Further embodiments of the present disclosure are described below with reference to the figures. Where the same reference numerals are used in the following description of the figures, they denote identical or similar elements. The representations in the figures are schematic and not to scale.

[0027] Short description of the characters

[0028] Fig. 1A shows a contact pin of a display and operating module in the open state.

[0029] Fig. 1 B shows another contact pin of a display and operating module in the open state.

[0030] Fig. 2 shows the contact pin of Fig. 1 in the closed state.

[0031] Fig. 3 shows a measuring device or a display and operating module with several contact pins in plan view.

[0032] Fig. 4 shows a measuring device or a display and operating module without contact pins.

[0033] Fig. 5 shows a measuring device with an attached display and control module. Detailed description of embodiments

[0034] Fig. 1A shows a contact pin 101 with current switching function, which can be used in a display and control module to connect the display and control module to a measuring device for process automation in an industrial or private environment when it is attached to the measuring device.

[0035] Contact pin 101 has a first spring contact arrangement 107 and a second spring contact arrangement 108, which cannot conduct current in the non-actuated state (i.e., when the display and control module is not connected to the measuring device or no pressure is exerted on the head area 109 of contact pin 102). In this state, there is no mechanical connection between the contacts and the electronics.

[0036] The contact pin 102 is movable and, if a sufficiently strong compressive force is exerted on the head region 109 of the contact pin, can be displaced downwards, in the direction of the current-carrying additional component 103. In this case, the conductive surfaces 110 of the movable contact pin 102 and 111 of the pin-like region 105 of the current-carrying component 103 come into contact with each other, so that current can now flow through the contact pin 101.

[0037] The conductive areas for this current flow are the surface of the head region 109 of the contact pin 102, the interior of the contact pin 102, the bottom surface 110 of the recess 104 of the contact pin 102, the end face 111 of the pin-like region 105 of the current-carrying component 103, the interior of the current-carrying component 103 and the spring assembly 107, as well as the housing 106, if the latter is conductive. The housing 106 can also be made of insulating material. In this case, a conductor feedthrough is provided, which connects the spring assembly 107 to the electronics.

[0038] The contact pin 102 can also be provided in the form of an insulating body 120, for example, a plastic body, into which a metallic pin 121 is pressed. This is shown in Fig. 1B. This can reduce the manufacturing effort involved in insulating the metal surface of the pin. The housing 106, in which the spring assemblies 107, 108, the current-carrying component 103, and the movable contact pin 102 are located, can be made of conductive material and soldered to the printed circuit board of the measuring device or the display and control module. It can also be made of insulating material. In this case, a current feedthrough from the rear spring through the housing can be provided.

[0039] An electrical contact is only established when the display and control module is attached to the measuring device, namely when the movable contact pin 102 has been pushed back sufficiently far so that it contacts the current-carrying component 103.

[0040] This means there are no exposed live contact points on the electronics when the display and control module is removed from the measuring device, providing explosion protection. This facilitates the use of the display and control module, especially in potentially explosive atmospheres. There is no need to provide a mechanical switch to switch on the power after the display and control module has been attached to the measuring device.

[0041] Fig. 2 shows the contact pin 101 of Fig. 1 in the closed, current-carrying state. In this state, the bottom surface 110 and the end surface 111 are in contact with each other. Both the movable contact pin 102 and the current-carrying component 103 are pushed back slightly (or downwards).

[0042] Fig. 3 shows a measuring device 200 or a display and operating module 100 in plan view, for receiving a display and operating module, with several contact pins 101 with current switching function, whereby the number can vary.

[0043] Fig. 4 shows a measuring device 200 or the display and operating module 100 without contact pins with a current-switching function. In this case, there are openings 122 in the electronics, below which is a printed circuit board with a gold-plated surface. Fig. 5 shows a measuring device 200, in particular a level measuring device, a flow measuring device, a pressure measuring device, or a point level sensor. If the measuring device is, for example, a level radar device, it has, in addition to the measuring device electronics 201, an antenna 202 that radiates the radar measurement signal toward the product surface and receives the reflected radar signal again in order to calculate the level.

Claims

Patent claims 1 . A display and operating module (100) configured for attachment to a measuring device (200) for process automation in an industrial or private environment, comprising: a contact pin (101) with a current-switching function, configured for electrically connecting the display and operating module to the measuring device when the display and operating module is attached to the measuring device; wherein the contact pin has a movable contact pin (102) which, when a compressive force is exerted when the display and operating module is attached to the measuring device, retracts to close an electrical contact within the contact pin, thereby enabling current to flow from the measuring device through the contact pin.

2. Display and operating module (100) according to claim 1, wherein the contact pin (101) has a current-carrying component (103) which closes the electrical contact between the current-carrying component and the movable contact pin when the movable contact pin (102) is pushed back.

3. Display and operating module (100) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the movable contact pin (102) has a recess (104) whose bottom surface is conductive.

4. The display and control module (100) according to claim 3, wherein the current-carrying component (103) has a pin-like region (105) whose end face is conductive; wherein the pin-like region is configured to be inserted into the recess of the movable contact pin (102) to close the electrical contact.

5. The display and control module (100) according to one of claims 2 to 4, further comprising: a housing (106); a first spring arrangement (107) for supporting the current-carrying component (103) against a rear wall of the housing.

6. Display and operating module (100) according to one of claims 2 to 5, further comprising: a second spring arrangement (108) for supporting the current-carrying component (103) against the movable contact pin (102).

7. Display and operating module (100) according to one of claims 2 to 6, wherein the current-carrying component (103) is displaceably mounted.

8. Display and control module (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the housing (106) is conductive.

9. Display and control module (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the head region and the bottom surface of the movable contact pin (101) are conductive and the remaining surface of the movable contact pin is non-conductive.

10. A measuring device (200) for process automation in an industrial or private environment, comprising: a contact pin (101) with a current-switching function, configured for electrically connecting a display and operating module to the measuring device when the display and operating module is attached to the measuring device; wherein the contact pin has a movable contact pin (102) which, when a compressive force is exerted when the display and operating module is attached to the measuring device, retracts to close an electrical contact within the contact pin, thereby enabling current to flow from the measuring device through the contact pin.

11. Contact pin (101) with current-switching function, designed for the electrical connection of a display and operating module (100) to a measuring device (200) when the display and operating module is attached to the measuring device, wherein the contact pin has a movable contact pin (102) which slides back when a pressure force is exerted when the display and operating module is attached to the measuring device in order to establish an electrical contact within the contact pin. close so that current flows from the measuring device through the contact pin.

12. Use of a contact pin (101) according to claim 11 in a display and operating module (100) of a measuring device (200) or in a measuring device (200).

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