Housing with Rounded Entry for Foil Conductor Stress Relief
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Solution Overview
Problem
Foil conductors used in electrical connections, particularly in the automotive and construction sectors, are prone to damage due to tensile loads when guided over corners or sharp edges, leading to tearing or severing of the conductive layers, especially at the entry point into housings with sharp edges.
Innovation Solution
A housing design with a rounded entry opening for the foil conductor, where the leading edge is curved to distribute tensile stress over a larger area, reducing the risk of damage during installation, transport, and use, and can be made from electrically insulating materials with optional conductive shielding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If the entry opening of the housing has sharp edges, then the housing structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the foil conductor is prone to tearing and damage at the entry point
Solution Approach 1:
The entry opening of the housing is rounded at least on one side at its entry edges, creating a curved surface instead of sharp edges. This curvature distributes tensile stresses over a larger area of the foil conductor, preventing stress concentration and reducing the risk of tearing while maintaining manufacturing feasibility through standard molding processes
2Length of moving object
If the foil conductor is guided over corners or sharp edges, then the routing path is direct and short, but tensile forces concentrate on small areas causing tear propagation
Solution Approach 1:
The rounded entry opening replaces sharp corners and edges with curved surfaces that the foil conductor can follow. This curvature allows the conductor to bend gradually rather than sharply, distributing tensile forces over a larger area and preventing stress concentration that would lead to tear propagation
3Reliability
If the foil conductor connection is fixed close to the pane, then the connection is mechanically secure, but optical and aesthetic elements are disturbed on the pane surface
Solution Approach 1:
The housing serves as an intermediary element that provides a secure mechanical connection point for the foil conductor while being positioned away from the pane surface. This allows the connection to be mechanically stable without requiring fixtures or components on the visible pane surface, thus maintaining aesthetic appearance
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 2~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
The present invention relates to a housing (7) having an electrical connection between a conductor (4) and a foil conductor (1), wherein the inlet opening (8) of the housing (7) is rounded off at the entry edges (9, 9') thereof on at least one side for the foil conductor (1), such that the inlet opening (8) increasingly expands in the outward direction.