Spring-Loaded Connector Assembly for Low-Resistance Flexible Wire Joints
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional connectors for connecting electric wires to flexible conductive members in smart clothing result in higher electric resistance and increased device size, compromising reliability and cost-effectiveness.
Innovation Solution
A connector assembly comprising a first insulator with protrusion portions, a second insulator with recess portions, and a spring member that sandwiches the electric wire and flexible conductor, ensuring a secure and reliable electrical connection while minimizing device size.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a connector is used to connect an electric wire to a flexible conductor, then electrical connection is achieved, but the device size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the spring member directly into the connector housing, merging the connection function and the retaining function into a single integrated component. This eliminates the need for separate retaining structures, thereby reducing overall connector size while maintaining reliable electrical connection through the spring's continuous contact pressure.
Solution Approach 2:
The spring member is nested within the connector housing, with the spring's arms positioned inside the housing structure. This nesting arrangement allows the spring mechanism to occupy minimal space within the connector body, reducing the overall volume while ensuring reliable electrical connection through the spring's contact pressure.
2Ease of manufacture
If a separatable connection is used between connectors, then assembly flexibility is improved, but connection reliability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The spring member provides dynamic retention, automatically maintaining contact pressure between the electric wire conductor and the flexible conductor through its elastic properties. This dynamic mechanism ensures continuous reliable connection without requiring complex separatable joint structures, achieving both assembly ease and connection reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The spring member provides self-retaining functionality through its elastic deformation, automatically maintaining connection pressure without requiring additional locking mechanisms or complex assembly procedures. The spring's inherent elasticity ensures continuous contact force, achieving reliable connection while simplifying the overall connector design.
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
The solution provides a smaller, more reliable electrical connection with reduced electric resistance, enabling efficient data transmission from smart clothing electrodes to wearable devices using low-cost, low-resistance electric wires.
Implementation Method 1
a spring member retained in one of the first insulator and the second insulator, wherein the spring member is disposed between the protrusion portion and the recess portion and has a pressing portion that is elastically displaceable in a first direction along the first retaining surface and the second retaining surface
Data Source
AI summary
A connector includes a first insulator having a protrusion portion formed on a first retaining surface, a second insulator having a recess portion formed at a second retaining surface, and a spring member retained in one of the first insulator and the second insulator, the spring member being disposed between the protrusion portion and the recess portion and has a pressing portion that is elastically displaceable in a first direction, a sheet type conductive member and an electric wire being sandwiched between the first retaining surface and the second retaining surface, at least a part of the protrusion portion being accommodated in the recess portion, a conductor portion of the electric wire and a flexible conductor of the sheet type conductive member being pressed against each other in the first direction by the pressing portion within the recess portion.