Connector Terminal Support Structure for Locking Without Thin Flanges
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing heavy-duty connector terminals face issues with thin radial flange walls due to stamping, which affects conductivity and increases manufacturing difficulty, as the process can tear the peripheral wall.
Innovation Solution
A connector terminal design featuring a hollow cylindrical part with protrusions and a supporting component, including a first and second circumferential wall, radial wall, and flanging part, eliminates the need for a radial flange by using an integral stamped part with a support step for the elastic locking piece, enhancing manufacturing efficiency and conductivity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a radial flange is formed by stamping on the peripheral wall of the terminal body, then the terminal can be locked in the housing, but the wall thickness of the radial flange becomes thin, affecting conductivity
Solution Approach 1:
The terminal structure is segmented into the terminal body and a separate supporting component. The supporting component carries the flanging part that forms the radial flange, while the terminal body maintains its wall thickness for conductivity. This segmentation allows the radial flange to be formed on a separate piece rather than by stamping the terminal body wall, resolving the contradiction between locking reliability and conductivity.
2Reliability
If a radial flange is formed by stamping on the peripheral wall of the terminal body, then the terminal can be locked in the housing, but the peripheral wall is prone to tearing, increasing manufacturing difficulty
Solution Approach 1:
By separating the terminal body from the supporting component, the stamping operation is performed on the supporting component rather than the terminal body. This prevents tearing of the terminal body's peripheral wall during flange formation, reducing manufacturing difficulty while maintaining locking reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The supporting component acts as an intermediary between the terminal body and the housing. It provides the flanging part that engages with the housing for locking, while the terminal body remains intact without direct stamping operations, thereby eliminating the tearing issue and simplifying manufacturing.
3Reliability
If a radial flange is formed on the terminal body, then the terminal can be locked in the housing, but the structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The supporting component merges multiple functions: it provides structural support for the terminal body, carries the flanging part for locking, and includes circumferential walls that constrain protrusions. This consolidation of functions into a single component achieves reliable locking without significantly increasing overall structural complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A connector terminal includes a terminal body having a hollow cylindrical part and a plurality of protrusions formed on the hollow cylindrical part, and a supporting component installed on the hollow cylindrical part of the terminal body. The supporting component includes a first circumferential wall, a second circumferential wall coaxial with the first circumferential wall and having a diameter smaller than a diameter of the first circumferential wall, a radial wall radially connected between the first circumferential wall and the second circumferential wall, and a flanging part vertically bent inward from the second circumferential wall. The protrusions are constrained between the first circumferential wall, the radial wall, and the flanging part. The radial wall forms a support step.