JPH0584637B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field]

The present invention relates to an electric wire connector having a structure in which metal fittings are attached to a terminal block after molding without insert molding the metal fittings into the terminal block.

[Prior art and its problems]

A wire connector is formed by attaching a conductive plate to a terminal block molded from an insulator such as synthetic resin. A common method for attaching a conductive plate to a terminal block is so-called insert molding, in which a conductive plate, embedded nuts, etc. are set in a mold beforehand and then embedded in the terminal block during molding. It is true. The molds used for insert molding require work to set the conductive plates and embedded nuts in predetermined positions inside, making the molds complex and requiring time to form. In addition, the precision of each part must be improved so that the mold does not adhere to the fitting parts and screwed parts of the conductive plate and the embedded nut, resulting in an increase in manufacturing costs. In order to solve these problems, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 55-9182 discloses a terminal device in which contact and connecting fittings are attached using bolts and nuts without using insert molding. In a terminal device with this structure, unless the engagement recess, seat, and engagement groove provided on the terminal block and the L-shaped conductive plate attached to the terminal block are tightly fitted, the conductive plate will not connect to the terminal block. There is a risk that the parts may come off and fall off, and to prevent this, precision of each part is required. In addition, in order to accommodate changes in the rated capacity, it is necessary to change the thickness of the conductive plate, and as mentioned above, the conductive plate must be tightly fitted with the terminal block. If the plate thickness changes, the dimensions of each part of the mounting part must be changed accordingly, and terminal blocks must be manufactured according to the rated capacity corresponding to each plate thickness. In addition, conventional wire connectors, including the wire connector described in the above-mentioned publication, have a structure in which fixing of the conductive plate and tightening at the time of wire connection are simultaneously performed using the same bolt. For this reason, the terminal block may crack due to excessive tightening during wiring, and in order to prevent this, it is necessary to take measures such as increasing the strength of the terminal block. Furthermore, due to the above-mentioned reason, there was a problem in that it was not possible to tighten the wires with sufficient tightening force when connecting the wires.

[Purpose of the invention]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a wire connector that does not require much precision in each part when attaching a conductive plate to a terminal block, and can be attached even if the conductive plate is slightly less accurate. Another object of the present invention is to provide a wire connector in which a common terminal block can be used even when the thickness of the conductive plate is changed in accordance with a change in the rated capacity. Still another object of the present invention is to provide a wire connector that allows sufficient tightening during wire connection.

[Structure of the invention]

The configuration of the present invention taken to solve the above problems and achieve the objectives is as follows. That is, the present invention provides a structure in which a plurality of conductive plate accommodating portions each having a through hole formed narrowly from one opening toward the other opening and having an insertion hole penetrating between the openings are arranged in parallel in a mutually insulated state. The wire terminal block has a terminal block having a terminal block, and a connection means using a tightening screw for connecting the terminal of the electric wire at both ends, and is press-fitted into the insertion hole from the one opening and fixed by engagement with the inner wall of the insertion hole. a conductive plate, the conductive plate is formed with an engaging protrusion that restricts movement in the thickness direction within the insertion hole, and the conductive plate including the engaging protrusion is The thickness is constant even when the plate thicknesses are different, and the dimension in the thickness direction of the one opening is formed to be slightly larger than the engagement thickness of the conductive plate including the engagement protrusion, The floor of the conductive plate accommodating portion of the terminal block is provided with a locking hole for locking a tightening screw at a location corresponding to the tightening screw to restrict the movement of the conductive plate in the removal direction. It is a wire connector. The means for fixing the conductive plate to the conductive plate accommodating portion is achieved by the frictional force generated by the engagement between the portion of the conductive plate provided with the engaging protrusion and the insertion hole of the terminal block, or by the use of a tightening screw and a latching hole. Therefore, the dimensional accuracy of each part of the conductive plate and terminal block is not required so much, and even if the precision of the latching holes and the conductive plate is not very good, it can be fixed. The shape of the conductive plate is not particularly limited, and may be formed in various shapes depending on the direction of the wire connections, such as a straight long plate shape or an L plate shape. The terminal block is formed to match the shape of this conductive plate. Even when the thickness of the conductive plate is changed to correspond to changes in the rated capacity, the height from the bottom of the conductive plate to the top of the fitting protrusion, that is, the engagement thickness, is constant. That is, when the rated capacity is large, the thickness of the conductive plate is increased, and the protrusion height from the top surface of the conductive plate to the top of the engagement protrusion is set low. Further, when the rated capacity is small, the thickness of the conductive plate is thin, and the protrusion height from the top surface of the conductive plate to the top of the engagement protrusion is set high. In either case, the height from the bottom surface of the conductive plate to the engaging protrusion, that is, the fitted thickness is constant. As a result, conductive plates having different plate thicknesses for each rated capacity can be attached to the insertion holes of the same hole height, so that the terminal block can be shared. Both ends of the conductive plate have tightening screws for connecting the terminals of the electric wires. As for its structure, a mounting hole is usually formed in the conductive plate, and a tightening member made of a bolt, nut, washer, etc. is mounted in the mounting hole. Alternatively, it is also possible to attach the head of the bolt to the locking hole, attach a wire terminal, washer, etc. to the protruding threaded part of the bolt, and tighten it with a nut. Incidentally, the structure of the fixing means is not limited to this, and a structure can also be provided in which a thread is cut in the mounting hole and a bolt is screwed into the mounting hole so that a nut is not used. In this case, the tip of the bolt will be inserted into the latching hole or insertion hole of the conductive plate accommodating part, and the size and shape of the latching hole of the conductive plate accommodating part will also correspond to this. .

【Example】

The present invention will be explained in more detail based on embodiments shown in the drawings. Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of the wire connector, Figure 2 is a front view of the terminal block, Figure 3 is a bottom view, and Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of the terminal block.
5 is a front view of the conductive plate, and FIG. 6 is a side view of the conductive plate. Reference numeral 1 is a terminal block, which is made of synthetic resin, which is an insulator. Terminal block 1 has bulkhead 1
Conductive plate accommodating portions 11 partitioned by 0 and provided for each phase are arranged in parallel. Each conductive plate accommodating section 11 is
It has a structure in which an upper wire connection space 12 and a lower wire connection space 13 provided above and below are connected through an insertion hole 15. The back wall 101 of the upper wiring space 12 has a protrusion 1 on the back side.
4 to form a hooking hole 16. The latching hole 16 consists of a nut seat 161 into which a nut 32 of a wire connection member (to be described later) can be mounted with some margin without rotation, and a bolt relief hole 162 connected to the back of the nut seat 161. An insertion hole 17 is provided in the upper wall 102 of the lower wiring space 13 so that the axis thereof is perpendicular to the above-mentioned latching hole 16 . Like the locking hole 16, the insertion hole 17 also includes a nut seat 171 and a bolt relief hole 172.
Note that a mounting portion 18 is provided protruding from the front surface of the terminal block 1, and serves as a fixing portion when the terminal block 1 is installed in a wiring duct, and the insertion hole 17 is located in the mounting portion 1.
It is formed so that it is on the back side of 8. Reference numeral 19 is a screw hole for attaching the terminal block 1 to a unit frame or the like. The insertion hole 15 that connects the upper wiring space 12 and the lower wiring space 13 has one opening 15a and the other opening 15b, and the opening 15 on the lower wiring space 13 side has one opening 15a and the other opening 15b.
The distance between the holes is large on the a side, and becomes slightly smaller toward the opening 15b on the upper wiring space 12 side. A conductive plate 2 is attached to each insertion hole 15. As shown in the figure, the conductive plate 2 has an L-shape bent at a substantially right angle, with a long side serving as an insertion portion 21 and a short side serving as a hook portion 22. A mounting hole 23 is provided at the end of the insertion portion 21, and a mounting hole 24 is also formed at the end of the hooking portion 22. Each mounting hole 23, 24 is connected to the above-mentioned latching hole 16 and insertion hole 1 during insertion.
7, and the mounting hole 2
The wiring member 3 is attached to 3 and 24. Furthermore, a circular engagement protrusion 25 is provided approximately at the center of the insertion portion 21 of the conductive plate 2 by stamping. The protrusion height of the engagement protrusion 25 is
When the conductive plate 2 is inserted into the insertion hole 15, the insertion hole 1
5 and is set at a height that allows a slightly tight fit. Note that the conductive plate 2 has different thickness depending on the rated capacity, but since the engagement thickness, which is the combination of the plate thickness and the protrusion height of the engagement protrusion 25, is constant, the plate thickness Even items with different sizes can be inserted into the same insertion hole 15,
Terminal block 1 can be shared. (Function) The mounting structure and function of each conductive plate 2 and terminal block 1 will be described together with reference to the drawings. The wire connection member 3 includes a bolt 31, a nut 32, a spring washer 33, and a washer 34, and is attached to attachment holes 23 and 24 at both ends of the conductive plate 2. First, the bolt seat portion 161 of each conductive plate accommodating portion 11,
Attach the nut 32 of the wire connection member 3 to 171. Next, the insertion portion 21 of the conductive plate 2 is inserted into the insertion hole 15 of the terminal block 1, and the engagement protrusion 25 and the insertion hole 15 are connected to each other.
The inner walls of the conductive plates 2 are pressed into contact with each other, and the conductive plates 2 are press-fitted into the respective insertion holes 15. This allows each conductive plate 2 to connect to the terminal block 1.
The nut 32 is also held down by the insertion part 21 and the hooking part 22 of the conductive plate 2, so that it cannot be removed from the nut seats 161, 171. Then, insert the bolt 31 into the mounting hole 23 via the spring washer 33 and the washer 34, and tighten the nut 32 in the locking hole 16.
Screw it on to form the connection part. As a result, the conductive plate 2
is fixed to the wire connection member 3, and due to the fitting contact between the wire connection member 3 and the locking hole 16, it cannot move in the insertion direction and is prevented from coming off from the insertion hole 15. Also,
Similarly, insert the bolt 31 into the mounting hole 24 via the spring washer 33 and the washer 34, and then tighten the nut 3 in the insertion hole 17.
2 to form a connection part. In this way, the conductive plate 2 is fixed to the terminal block 1 by contacting the portion of the conductive plate 2 provided with the engaging protrusion 25 with the inner wall of the insertion hole 15 and the connection between the wiring member 3 and the latching hole 16. The tightening force generated by screwing bolts, nuts, etc. of the connection part is not used, and the tightening force is used only for connecting the lead wire. Therefore, unlike conventional wire connectors, the structure is not such that the conductive plate is fixed and the wires are connected at the same time using the same bolt, so there is no problem such as cracks in the terminal block due to excessive tightening during wire connection. Moreover, since there is no need to worry about this, there is an advantage that the tightening force can be increased when connecting wires. Then, the wire connector is attached to a predetermined position in the wiring duct (not shown), and then the lead wire terminal (not shown) is sandwiched between the washer 34 and the conductive plate 2, and the bolt 31 is tightened to connect the lead wire. At this time, the tip of the bolt 31 is connected to the bolt escape hole 162,
172 and does not get in the way. If the rated capacity changes later, the thickness of the conductive plate 2 must be changed, but since a common terminal block 1 can be used, only the conductive plate 2 needs to be replaced. There is no need to replace the parts, and the cost can be reduced by using the parts, and inventory management becomes easier, which reduces the cost of the entire electric wire connector. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiments, and numerous modifications are possible within the scope of the claims.

【Effect of the invention】

The present invention has the above configuration and has the following effects. (1) The conductive plate is fixed to the conductive plate accommodating part by the frictional force caused by the engagement between the part of the conductive plate with the engaging protrusion and the insertion hole of the terminal block, or by the frictional force caused by the engagement between the tightening screw and the locking hole. This is done by the latching. Therefore, the dimensional accuracy of each part of the conductive plate and the terminal block is not required so much, and the conductive plate can be fixed to the terminal block even if the precision of the latching holes and the conductive plate is not very good. (2) The insertion hole provided in the terminal block becomes narrower from one opening to the other, and the dimension in the thickness direction of one opening is equal to the width of the conductive hole including the engaging protrusion. The conductive plate is formed to be slightly larger than the engagement thickness of the plate, and is press-fitted into the insertion hole from one opening and fixed by engagement with the inner wall of the insertion hole. Therefore, the insertion work is easy and damage to the opening edge on the insertion side can be prevented. (3) The engagement thickness of the conductive plate including the engagement protrusion is constant, and even if the thickness of the conductive plate changes, the engagement thickness is kept constant by correcting the engagement protrusion, and the engagement thickness is constant. The conductive plate is fixed to the conductive plate accommodating portion by frictional force caused by engagement between the portion provided with the mating protrusion and the insertion hole of the terminal block. Therefore, it is possible to use a common terminal block, and there is no need to manufacture many types of terminal blocks to match the thickness of the conductive plate, resulting in lower total costs and easier inventory management. Further, even if the rated capacity is changed later, only the conductive plate needs to be replaced, and there is no need to replace the terminal block as in the conventional case, resulting in an inexpensive electric wire connector. (4) From the perspective of manufacturing terminal blocks, there is no need to use molds with complicated shapes like those used for insert molding, and the number of steps required for molding can be kept to the same level as for general mold molding. It is possible to reduce manufacturing costs. (5) The fixing of the conductive plate to the terminal block and the tightening of the bolts, nuts, etc. of the connection part that connects the terminals of the electric wires are separate and independent, and the tightening force is used only for connecting the electric wires. In other words, unlike conventional wire connectors, the structure does not use the same bolt to simultaneously fix the conductive plate and connect the wires, so there is no problem such as cracking the terminal block due to excessive tightening during wire connection.
Moreover, since there is no need to worry about this, there is an advantage that the tightening force at the time of wiring can be increased and the wiring can be reliably connected.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show embodiments of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a wire connector, FIG. 2 is a front view of a terminal block,
3 is a bottom view, FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 2, FIG. 5 is a front view of the conductive plate, and FIG. 6 is a side view. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Terminal block, 11... Conductive plate accommodating part, 15
...insertion hole, 16...latching hole, 2...conductive plate, 25...engaging protrusion, 3...wiring member.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. From one opening 15a to the other opening 15b
between the openings 15a, 1.
A terminal block 1 in which a plurality of conductive plate accommodating portions 11 each having an insertion hole 15 penetrating through the terminal block 1 are arranged in parallel in a mutually insulated state, and a connection means using a tightening screw for connecting a terminal of an electric wire to both ends thereof. a conductive plate 2 that is press-fitted into the insertion hole 15 from the one opening 15a and fixed by engagement with the inner wall of the insertion hole; An engaging protrusion 25 that restricts movement in the thickness direction within the hole 15 is formed, and the conductive plate 2 including this engaging protrusion 25
The engagement thickness is constant even when the plate thicknesses are different, and the dimension in the thickness direction of the one opening 15a is slightly smaller than the engagement thickness of the conductive plate 2 including the engagement protrusion 25. The floor of the conductive plate accommodating portion 11 of the terminal block 1 is provided with a hook that engages a tightening screw at a location corresponding to the tightening screw and restricts the movement of the conductive plate in the withdrawal direction. A wire connector provided with a stop hole 16.