Electric Connection Box Compact Design via Connector Repositioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional electric connection boxes on vehicles face challenges in achieving a thin and compact design due to the height being determined by the connectors and circuit board thickness, leading to dead spaces and uneven force distribution during connector fitting and disconnection, which can damage soldered portions.
Innovation Solution
The electric connection box design features a connector positioned beside the circuit board with a fixing bracket at its intermediate rear surface, allowing balanced force transmission and reduced height, with the upper and lower covers abutting the connector for enhanced support and compactness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the connector is mounted on the upper surface of the circuit board at the end portion, then the connector can be securely fixed, but the height dimension increases and dead spaces are created preventing compact design
Solution Approach 1:
The connector is repositioned from a vertical mounting on the circuit board surface to a horizontal arrangement beside the circuit board. This dimensional reconfiguration allows the connector to extend laterally rather than vertically, eliminating the need for additional height while maintaining secure fixation through the fixing bracket attached to the circuit board's side surface.
2Reliability
If the fixing bracket is provided at the lower end portion of the connector, then the connector can be fixed to the circuit board, but unbalanced force distribution causes bending moments and potential damage to soldered portions
Solution Approach 1:
The fixing bracket is repositioned from the lower end of the connector to an intermediate position on the rear surface. This local repositioning creates a more favorable leverage point that distributes insertion and disconnection forces more evenly across the connector body and circuit board connection, reducing concentrated bending moments and stress on soldered terminals.
3Strength
If the connector height determines the electric connection box height, then the connector can be properly supported, but the overall design cannot achieve a thin profile
Solution Approach 1:
The design transitions from a height-determined architecture to a width-determined architecture. The connector is arranged horizontally beside the circuit board rather than vertically above it, allowing the connector's support structure to extend in the lateral dimension rather than contributing to the height dimension, thereby enabling a thinner overall profile while maintaining adequate support.
Data Source
AI summary
In an electric connection box 100, a soldering surface clearance 15 is formed at a lower side of a circuit board 10 for the purpose of protecting those portions of terminals 11a (of the relays 11) and terminals 3a (of a connector 3) which are soldered to a circuit formed on the circuit board 10. In this electric connection box 100, the connector 3 is disposed beside an end 10a of the circuit board 10, and the circuit board 10, the soldering surface clearance 15 and the relays 11 are disposed within the range of a height of the connector 3. In this electric connection box 100, a fixing bracket 4 is formed at an intermediate portion of a rear surface of the connector 3 in a direction of the height thereof, and is fixed to the circuit board 10. The rear surface of the connector 3 abuts against the end of the circuit board 10, and an upper surface cover 1 and a lower surface cover 2 abut respectively against upper and lower surfaces of the connector 3.