Lever Electrical Connector with External Cam Hook
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Solution Overview
Problem
Lever-type electrical connectors face limitations in mechanical advantage, requiring large output forces without corresponding input forces and are prone to deformation during pivoting, especially with large connectors.
Innovation Solution
A connector design featuring a housing with a slider and lever arrangement, where the lever is accommodated outside the housing and includes a cam shaft portion with a hook portion that engages the edge of a window in the outer shell, allowing for increased range of movement and preventing detachment from the cam groove.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If the lever is accommodated inside the housing in sequential order with the interlocking member, then the structure is compact, but the range of movement for the lever is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The lever is repositioned from an internal sequential arrangement to an external arrangement on the opposite side of the housing. This spatial reconfiguration in a different dimension allows the lever to achieve a larger movement range without increasing the internal volume of the housing, effectively resolving the contradiction between compact structure and movement range.
2Ease of operation
If the lever is extended to increase range of movement, then the mechanical advantage improves, but the lever becomes prone to deformation during pivoting
Solution Approach 1:
The lever is designed with a flexible portion that allows controlled elastic deformation during pivoting operations. This dynamic flexibility enables the lever to achieve the necessary range of movement and mechanical advantage while the elastic recovery property prevents permanent deformation, thereby maintaining reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The lever's cross-sectional dimensions and material properties are optimized to balance flexibility and strength. By adjusting these parameters, the lever achieves sufficient elasticity for large-angle pivoting while maintaining adequate stiffness to resist permanent deformation, resolving the contradiction between mechanical advantage and deformation resistance.
3Ease of operation
If the cam shaft portion is inserted through the window into the cam groove, then the lever can engage the slider, but the lever may detach from the cam groove during operation
Solution Approach 1:
The cam shaft portion is divided into distinct functional segments: a base portion for structural support, a flexible portion for engagement, and a hook portion for retention. This segmentation allows each portion to perform its specific function - the hook portion prevents detachment while the flexible portion maintains engagement with the cam groove, resolving the contradiction between engagement capability and retention reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The hook portion is designed with a curved geometry that complements the window edge shape. This curved configuration allows the hook to effectively engage and retain the window edge, preventing the cam shaft portion from detaching during lever pivoting while maintaining smooth operation within the cam groove.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design enhances the mechanical advantage of the lever, allowing for larger output forces without deforming the lever, and expands its range of movement, improving the efficiency and reliability of the connector assembly.
Implementation Method 1
the lever being elastically deformed
Data Source
AI summary
A connector includes an embodiment that is equipped with a lever configured to turn around a turning shaft portion provided on the outside of an outer shell portion of a housing of the connector. The lever is equipped with a cam shaft portion inserted through a window formed in the outer shell into a cam groove formed in a slider. The lever further includes a cam shaft portion having a base portion and a hook portion wherein the hook portion extends beyond and engages an edge of the window preventing the cam shaft from detaching from the cam groove.