Horizontal Terminal Guide for Compact Electrical Connection Box
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Solution Overview
Problem
In electrical connection boxes, especially in automobiles, thick electrical wires with large cross-sectional areas face difficulties in being drawn out due to limited vertical space, leading to damage and reliability issues when bent excessively, and the use of dedicated bolt fastening terminals increases costs and complexity.
Innovation Solution
The electrical connection box incorporates a horizontal terminal guide portion with an insertion hole in the side wall, allowing a general-purpose bolt fastening terminal with a flat plate-shaped electrical contact to be inserted laterally, preventing incorrect orientation and providing visual check openings, thus enabling efficient horizontal wire routing without bending and reducing manufacturing costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the electrical connection box height is reduced to save installation space, then the vertical space utilization is improved, but the electrical wire cannot be drawn downward without interfering with the bottom wall
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the wire routing from vertical (downward) to horizontal (lateral) direction. The terminal guide portion extends in the width direction and guides the bolt fastening terminal horizontally outward from the side wall, allowing wires to be routed laterally instead of vertically downward, thus avoiding interference with the bottom wall while maintaining compact height.
2Power
If a thick electrical wire is used for power supply, then the current carrying capacity is improved, but the wire becomes difficult to bend and draw out due to large curvature
Solution Approach 1:
The terminal guide portion provides a horizontal routing path that accommodates thick, rigid wires without requiring sharp bends. By extending the guide in the width direction and allowing lateral emergence, the design accepts the limited flexibility of thick wires and routes them horizontally where their rigidity is less problematic.
3Reliability
If a dedicated bolt fastening terminal with specific orientation is used, then the connection reliability is improved, but the manufacturing cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The terminal guide portion serves multiple functions: it guides the bolt fastening terminal during insertion, maintains proper orientation, supports horizontal routing, and provides structural support. This multi-functional design eliminates the need for separate dedicated oriented terminals, allowing use of simpler, more cost-effective terminal components.
4Productivity
If the bolt fastening terminal is forcibly fastened in erroneous orientation, then the assembly speed is improved, but the terminal becomes damaged and connection reliability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The terminal guide portion is designed with asymmetric geometry that prevents erroneous insertion from the outset. The guide's shape allows correct orientation insertion while physically blocking incorrect orientations, preventing damage before it occurs rather than relying on detection or correction after erroneous assembly.
Data Source
AI summary
An electrical connection box for installation in a space that has a small vertical height. The electrical connection box includes horizontal terminal guide portion, an insertion hole for the tip of the terminal guide portion, a bolt fastening terminal connected to an end of an electrical wire, an electrical wire connection portion and an electrical contact portion. The terminal guide portion includes a side wall that has a step conforming to the shape of a barrel crimped portion of the bolt fastening terminal, a flat plate-shaped side wall that opposes the side wall that has the step, and upper and lower walls. The terminal guide portion is shaped so as to be fitted with and hold the electrical wire connection portion, and does not allow insertion of the bolt fastening terminal into the terminal guide portion in an opposite orientation. Visual check openings are provided in the upper wall of the terminal guide portion.