High-Current Connector Cap With Pincer Grip Against Flashover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing touch-protection caps for high-current plug connectors often fall off, posing a hazard and failing to maintain adequate air gaps and creepage distances between adjacent connectors, which can lead to voltage arcs and flashovers.
Innovation Solution
A box-shaped protective cap with a pincer-like gripping element and a T-shaped structure, designed to securely fit over high-current contact elements, ensuring it remains in place and prevents accidental detachment, while also increasing air gaps and creepage distances between adjacent connectors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a simple protective cap is used for high-current plug connectors, then the cap can be easily manufactured and installed, but the cap falls off and fails to provide reliable touch protection
Solution Approach 1:
The protective cap is divided into multiple functional segments: a cover portion for enclosing the contact element, a gripping element with pincer-like arms for securing the cap, and a T-shaped structure for additional retention. This segmentation allows each part to perform its specific function while maintaining overall reliability without excessive complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The gripping element incorporates flexible arms that can dynamically adapt to the conductor connection region. The arms are designed to be resilient, allowing the cap to be installed by pushing it onto the conductor while automatically gripping and securing itself in place, providing reliable retention without complex fastening mechanisms.
2Reliability
If the protective cap is designed with secure retention features, then the cap remains in place reliably, but the installation process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The gripping element is pre-configured in the cap structure with arms positioned to automatically engage the conductor connection region. The T-shaped structure is pre-formed on the cover, oriented to protrude in the connecting direction. This preliminary arrangement allows the cap to secure itself automatically during installation without requiring additional fastening steps or complex assembly operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The cap design enables self-securing through the gripping element that automatically grips the conductor connection region when the cap is pushed into place. The resilient arms self-adjust and self-lock, and the T-shaped structure provides self-retention, eliminating the need for external fastening mechanisms or complex installation procedures.
3Area of stationary object
If adjacent high-current plug connectors are arranged close together, then space is optimized, but air gaps and creepage distances are reduced leading to voltage arcs
Solution Approach 1:
The protective cap extends in multiple dimensions around the contact element, with the cover enclosing the contact and the gripping element extending into the connection region. This multi-dimensional presence of the insulating cap material effectively increases the creepage distance and air gaps between adjacent connectors without requiring horizontal spacing, optimizing space utilization while preventing voltage arcs.
Data Source
AI summary
A protective cap (4, 4′) for an electrical high-current plug connector (1) is substantially box-shaped and has at least one open side (5). The protective cap (4) has a gripping element (8) for fixing the protective cap (4, 4′) to a connection region (3, 3′, 3″) of the high-current plug connector (1), which is provided for connecting an electrical conductor. The gripping element (8) extends into the open side (5). The gripping element (8) has a pincer-like design with two arms (8a, 8b) which cross over each other or two arms (8a, 8b) oriented relative to each other in an S-shape. Each of the two arms (8a, 8b) is integrally formed on the protective cap (4, 4′) in a lower region and grips around the connection region (3, 3′, 3″) for a conductor to be connected in an upper region.