Oblique Electric Contact Spring for Miniaturized Reliability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Miniaturization in electronic and electrical engineering leads to increased mechanical tolerances issues in electric contact springs and counter-contact devices, exacerbated by material relaxation and temperature changes, causing reliability problems in electrical connections, especially in devices like printed circuit boards and battery packs.
Innovation Solution
An electric contact spring with a retention member that allows resilient deformation, enabling self-abutment and oblique positioning with counter-contact devices, providing a resilient path to maintain contact force despite mechanical tolerances and material changes, and allowing assembly without external housings.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If electric contact springs are miniaturized to reduce device size, then device compactness is improved, but mechanical tolerance issues and contact reliability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The contact spring is designed with multiple resilient portions that can dynamically deform to compensate for mechanical tolerances. The spring portions can flex and adapt their shape during operation, allowing the system to maintain reliable contact despite size constraints and tolerance variations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical parameters of the contact spring by creating multiple resilient portions with specific deformation characteristics. This allows the spring to exhibit different stiffness and compliance characteristics that optimize both compactness and contact reliability under miniaturized conditions.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple contact springs are located on the same surface to expand functionalities, then device functionality is improved, but mechanical tolerance compensation becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The contact spring is segmented into multiple resilient portions (first, second, and third resilient portions) that can independently deform. This segmentation allows each portion to compensate for local tolerance variations, enabling multiple contact springs to be arranged on the same surface while maintaining individual tolerance compensation capability.
3Force
If contact springs are designed with horizontal contact zones allowing expansion, then contact force is improved, but assembly complexity and housing requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of designing a horizontal contact zone that allows expansion in the traditional sense, the patent inverts the approach by using oblique contact portions that naturally guide the contact force through their angled geometry. The resilient portions deform in an oblique direction, eliminating the need for complex horizontal expansion mechanisms and external housings.
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
Ensures reliable and secure electrical contacting in small spaces with minimal contact force variation over the lifespan, reducing assembly complexity and enhancing connection quality through independent resilient regions and stop zones, facilitating easy verification and high durability.
Implementation Method 1
the contact spring can be brought into abutment with itself and/or with a retention member, the contact spring being substantially exclusively resiliently deformable
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4
AI summary
The invention relates to an electric contact zone (3) for small installation spaces, in particular for electrical contacting, preferably for electrical touch contacting, having an electric contact spring (10) and an electric counter-contact device (60) for electrically contacting the contact spring (10), wherein an electric contact face (61) of the counter-contact device (60) is able to be positioned and/or is positioned on the contact spring (10) obliquely with respect to a deformation direction (V) of the contact spring (10).