Curved Busbar Stack Height Tolerance Compensation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electrical connectors for fuel cell stacks face challenges in maintaining electrical contact while accommodating varying stack heights, requiring significant space and being cost-ineffective, especially in vehicle applications where flexibility and cost-effectiveness are crucial.
Innovation Solution
A cost-effective electrical connector assembly featuring conductive materials with rotating contacts and fasteners that allow for movement and maintain contact as the fuel cell stack height changes, minimizing wear and disconnection risks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If sliding joint connectors are used to accommodate height variations, then adaptability is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The bus bar is designed with a curved profile that allows it to dynamically adjust its position vertically to accommodate height variations in the fuel cell stack. The curve enables the bus bar to flex and adapt to different stack heights while maintaining electrical contact, replacing complex sliding joint mechanisms with a simpler dynamic geometry approach.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the geometric parameter of the bus bar from a straight configuration to a curved configuration. This parameter change allows the bus bar to accommodate height variations through its inherent geometry, reducing the need for additional complex components while maintaining adaptability to stack height changes.
2Adaptability or versatility
If flexible braided connectors are used to allow movement, then adaptability is improved, but space efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The bus bar employs a curved geometric parameter that enables movement accommodation within a compact space. The curve allows the bus bar to flex and adjust position without requiring the excessive space needed by traditional flexible braided connectors, thus maintaining both movement capability and space efficiency.
3Ease of manufacture
If cantilever style bus bars are used to maintain contact, then cost is reduced, but space requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The curved bus bar design introduces dynamic geometry that allows the connector to accommodate height variations inherently through its shape, eliminating the need for space-consuming cantilever structures while maintaining manufacturing simplicity and cost-effectiveness.
4Adaptability or versatility
If sliding joint connectors are used to accommodate height changes, then adaptability is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The bus bar is designed as a segmented or modular component with a curved profile that can be manufactured using standard fabrication processes. This segmentation approach allows for cost-effective production while maintaining the height adjustment capability through the curve geometry, avoiding the high costs associated with complex sliding joint mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
By changing the geometric parameter from straight to curved, the invention achieves height adaptability through a simple geometric modification that can be manufactured cost-effectively, avoiding the need for expensive multi-component sliding joint assemblies.
Data Source
AI summary
An electrical connector assembly is disclosed, the assembly having an electrical connector and a plurality of contacts coupled to a plurality of fixed bodies by plurality of fasteners adapted to facilitate relative movement of the electrical connector and the contacts relative to the fixed bodies while maintain an electrical communication.