Keyed Anti-Rotation Grounding Bus Bar for Truck Engine Compartment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing grounding systems in motor vehicles face challenges in maintaining a stable and efficient connection, particularly under extreme conditions, due to the risk of terminal rotation and misorientation during tightening, which can lead to increased electrical resistance and potential connection failure.
Innovation Solution
A keyed/anti-rotation grounding bus bar with multiple threaded studs and corresponding through-slots allows for selective circumferential orientation of eyelet terminals, ensuring stable and reliable electrical conductivity by preventing terminal rotation during nut tightening.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a standard eyelet terminal is used on a ground stud, then the terminal can be easily installed, but the terminal may rotate during tightening causing misorientation and potential cable stress
Solution Approach 1:
The bus bar features asymmetric keyway slots cut into its surface that correspond to the asymmetric keyways on the eyelet terminal. This asymmetric geometry prevents rotational movement of the terminal during tightening, ensuring proper orientation while maintaining ease of installation. The keyway engagement provides mechanical guidance and constraint without complicating the installation process.
2Reliability
If the ground connection area is increased to reduce electrical resistance, then electrical conductivity improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The bus bar incorporates multiple discrete keyway slots segmented around its perimeter, each corresponding to a specific terminal orientation. This segmentation allows the bus bar to accommodate multiple terminals with different orientation requirements while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure. The keyways are cut into the bus bar surface to create localized geometric features without requiring complex internal structures or additional components.
Data Source
AI summary
A bus bar (20) for grounding multiple wires/cables (74) in an engine compartment of a truck. The bus bar has four threaded studs (24, 26, 28, 30) extending from an outer face of a plate (22) and two circular rings (32, 34) on an opposite face spacing the plate from the dash panel (60). An array of multiple through-slots (24A, 26A, 28A, 30A) in the plate surround each threaded stud with the through-slots arranged in unique circumferential locations about the respective stud to provide unique circumferential locators for a tab (78) of an eyelet terminal (76) on a wire/cable (74) to locate the terminal in a correspondingly unique circumferential location about the threaded stud when placed thereon and in contact with the plate preparatory to tightening of a nut (80) that, when tightened, forcefully holds the terminal against the plate.