Ceramic Electrical Device Thermal Stress Mitigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Large electrical devices face mechanical instability issues during the soldering process, leading to potential failure due to thermally induced mechanical stresses, such as soldering shock.
Innovation Solution
The electrical device incorporates a ceramic body with electrode layers and contact pins arranged between contact strips, where a cap with an insulating material provides clamping, ensuring mechanical stability and preventing damage from thermal stresses by distributing current effectively and reducing inductance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If soldering is used to contact large electrical devices on a PCB, then electrical connection is achieved, but thermally induced mechanical stresses cause device failure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the harmful soldering process from the assembly method. Instead of soldering the electrical device directly to the PCB, the device is mounted on a separate metal plate that is then attached to the PCB. This separation removes the thermal stress pathway from the soldering process while maintaining electrical connection functionality through conductive paste or pressure contact.
Solution Approach 2:
The metal plate serves as an intermediary component between the electrical device and the PCB. It acts as a mechanical support structure that absorbs and distributes thermal stresses, preventing them from being transmitted to the sensitive electrical device during soldering. The intermediary plate decouples the thermal field from the electrical connection path.
2Reliability
If mechanical support structure is added to reduce thermal stress, then device reliability improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The metal plate is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: it provides mechanical support for the electrical device, serves as a thermal stress buffer during soldering, establishes electrical connection to the PCB, and can also function as a mounting surface for additional components. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate structural support elements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the mechanical support function with the electrical connection function into a single integrated metal plate structure. Rather than having separate support brackets and connection elements, the metal plate combines both roles, simplifying the overall device structure while maintaining reliability.
Data Source
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AI summary
An electrical device having at least one functional element that includes a ceramic body, on which a first electrical contact layer and a second electrical contact layer are applied to two opposite-lying side faces, respectively, and the functional element is arranged between a first contact strip and a second contact strip, wherein the first contact strip and the second contact strip comprise several contact pins, respectively, and wherein the first contact layer electrically contacts at least one contact pin of the first contact strip and the second contact layer electrically contacts at least one contact pin of the second contact strip.