Electrical Connector Terminal Position Assurance
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Solution Overview
Problem
As the number of electrical components in vehicles increases, there is a need for electrical connectors that can accommodate a greater number of terminals in a limited space while maintaining ease of use and ensuring proper terminal positioning without requiring additional size or complexity.
Innovation Solution
The electrical connector design includes a first housing with a tower and guide walls that are tapered, allowing the second housing to move into a seated position, with terminal locks and position assurances to securely retain terminals and prevent misalignment, enabling more terminals to be fitted without increasing the connector's size.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If multiple electrical terminals are placed in a connector to accommodate increasing electrical components, then the quantity of terminals increases, but the force required to mate the connectors increases
Solution Approach 1:
The connector housing is divided into multiple recesses, each accommodating a specific electrical terminal. This segmentation allows each terminal to be independently positioned and secured, enabling high terminal density while distributing the mating force across multiple localized points rather than requiring excessive overall force.
Solution Approach 2:
Fingers are pre-positioned in each recess to engage with the corresponding electrical terminal before mating occurs. These fingers act as preliminary positioning elements that guide the terminal into correct alignment, reducing the force needed during the actual mating operation by pre-establishing the connection geometry.
2Manufacturing precision
If terminal position assurance components are added to ensure proper terminal positioning, then positioning accuracy improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The terminal position assurance features are merged with the connector housing itself. The fingers are integrated into the housing structure within each recess, and the end-type terminal position assurance bodies are incorporated as integral components. This merging eliminates the need for separate, additional positioning devices, maintaining positioning accuracy while avoiding increased overall complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The connector housing serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides structural support, defines recesses for terminal accommodation, incorporates fingers for preliminary positioning, and includes end-type terminal position assurance bodies for final positioning. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated positioning components, thereby preventing complexity increase while maintaining high positioning accuracy.
3Quantity of substance
If the connector size is increased to accommodate more terminals, then the number of terminals increases, but the connector footprint increases
Solution Approach 1:
The connector utilizes three-dimensional space efficiently by creating recesses that extend into the housing volume rather than only along the surface. This vertical dimensionality allows multiple terminals to be stacked or arranged in layers within the same footprint, increasing terminal capacity without proportionally increasing the connector's external area.
Solution Approach 2:
The fingers and terminal position assurance bodies are nested within the recesses of the housing structure. This nesting arrangement allows positioning components to occupy the same spatial envelope as the terminals themselves rather than requiring additional external space, enabling high terminal density within a compact footprint.
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
This design allows for a higher density of electrical terminals while ensuring easy assembly and proper alignment, reducing the force required for mating and preventing incorrect positioning, thus enhancing operational efficiency and usability.
Implementation Method 1
One of the tower and the guide walls is tapered so that as the second housing is moved closer to the seated position, the amount of space between the tower and the guide walls decreases
Data Source
AI summary
An electrical connector includes a first housing with a plurality of first terminal slots. Each first terminal slot includes a first terminal lock. Each first terminal slot also includes a first end stop. The first end stops are part of the first housing. Each first terminal slot is configured to retain a first electrical terminal between the first terminal lock and the first end stop. The electrical connector also includes a first terminal position assurance. The first terminal position assurance includes a first terminal position assurance body. A plurality of first lock retainers extend from the first terminal position assurance body. The first lock retainers prevent the first terminal locks from moving to a release position. The first terminal position assurance body is located in the same plane as the first end stops.