Bridging Strip Insulating Plate Creepage Design

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Solution Overview

Problem

Changeover switches require bridging strips with superior dielectric properties to withstand high voltages effectively, as existing solutions do not adequately ensure safety and high voltage resistance.

Innovation Solution

A bridging strip design featuring a housing with conductive strips and insulating plates, where the insulating plates extend beyond the conductive strips to increase creepage distance, enhancing dielectric properties and high voltage resistance, and a changeover switch assembly integrating this bridging strip with output terminals.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the length of insulating plates in the extension direction is made greater than the length of conductive strips, then the dielectric properties and high voltage resistance are improved, but the device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedielectric propertiesVSAvoidstructural complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The bridging strip is segmented into multiple conductive strips separated by insulating plates, creating a modular structure that improves dielectric properties while maintaining manufacturability through standardized repeating units

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Insulating plates are introduced as intermediary elements between adjacent conductive strips to enhance dielectric properties and high voltage resistance, acting as a mediator that prevents direct electrical contact while maintaining structural integrity

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If the insulating plates extend beyond the conductive strips to increase creepage distance, then the high voltage resistance is improved, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvehigh voltage resistanceVSAvoiddimensional precision
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The insulating plates exhibit local quality variation by extending beyond the conductive strips only in the extension direction while maintaining precise alignment in the arrangement direction, providing enhanced creepage distance where needed without compromising manufacturing precision in critical alignment areas

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

The design significantly improves the dielectric properties and high voltage resistance of the bridging strip, ensuring safer and more reliable operation of changeover switch assemblies by maximizing creepage distance and structural stability.

Implementation Method 1

One insulating plate is disposed in each gap of the multiple conductive strips to separate two adjacent conductive strips in an insulating manner

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectDielectric insulation: Dielectric

Data Source

PatentEP3301695B1Bridging strip and changeover switch assembly
Publication Date: 2019.07.03 SIEMENS AG
  • EP3301695B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3301695B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3301695B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4

AI summary

A bridging strip, comprising a housing (12), multiple conductive strips (14) and multiple insulating plates (16). The housing is formed with an accommodating cavity (123) which extends in an extension direction (X). The multiple conductive strips are disposed in the housing (12) so as to be spaced apart in sequence in an arrangement direction (Y) that is perpendicular to the extension direction, each of the conductive strips having multiple bridging terminals which are arranged in sequence in the extension direction and can project from the housing. One insulating plate is disposed in each gap of the multiple conductive strips to separate two adjacent conductive strips in an insulating manner, and the length of the insulating plates in the extension direction is greater than the length of the conductive strips in the extension direction. The bridging strip described above has good dielectric properties, and can provide higher resistance to high voltages. Also provided is a changeover switch assembly having the bridging strip described above.