CN-122029707-A - Electrical connector system

Abstract

Various implementations include electrical connectors for use in power distribution assemblies. The electrical connector includes a conductive male terminal having a hollow body and at least one contact arm extending from a first side of the body. The body includes at least one flat wall section and a plurality of curved wall sections. The electrical connector also includes an internal spring disposed within the hollow body of the male terminal. The inner spring has at least one spring arm configured to be positioned below the at least one contact arm.

Inventors

• J. DAWSON
• J. Umar
• M zeine
• S. Pavlovic
• B. NATER

Assignees

• 伊顿智能动力有限公司

Dates

Publication Date

20260512

Application Date

20241011

Priority Date

20231013

Claims (20)

1. 1. An electrical connector for a power distribution assembly, the electrical connector comprising: An electrically conductive male terminal having a hollow body including at least one flat wall section and a plurality of curved wall sections, and at least one contact arm extending from a first side of the hollow body, the at least one contact arm including a fixed end coupled to the hollow body and a free end opposite the fixed end, wherein a first extension of the at least one contact arm adjacent to and including the free end of the at least one contact arm includes a curved outer surface that is curved circumferentially about a longitudinal axis of the hollow body, and a second extension of the at least one contact arm adjacent to and including the fixed end of the at least one contact arm includes a flat outer surface, and An internal spring disposed within the hollow body of the male terminal, the internal spring having at least one spring arm configured to be positioned below the at least one contact arm.
2. 2. The electrical connector of claim 1, wherein the at least one spring arm abuts a free end of the at least one contact arm and exerts a radially outwardly directed biasing force on the at least one contact arm.
3. 3. The electrical connector of claim 1 or 2, further comprising a spring holder comprising: A base, and At least one spring holder arm coupled to the base at a fixed end thereof, the at least one spring holder arm having a free end opposite the fixed end, a proximal portion including the fixed end of the at least one spring holder arm, a distal portion including the free end of the at least one spring holder arm, and a shoulder extending between the proximal portion and the distal portion, Wherein the internal spring is disposed within a central cavity defined by the base and the at least one spring retainer arm, and the spring retainer is disposed within the hollow body of the male terminal.
4. 4. The electrical connector of claim 3, wherein the first side of the hollow body of the male terminal abuts a shoulder of the spring retainer.
5. 5. The electrical connector of any of claims 3-4, wherein the spring retainer comprises an alignment tab extending radially outwardly from a distal portion of the at least one spring retainer arm, the alignment tab configured for engaging an alignment recess defined by at least one of the plurality of curved wall sections of the hollow body of the male terminal.
6. 6. The electrical connector of any of claims 3-5, wherein the distal portion of the spring retainer includes at least one retaining surface substantially parallel to a base wall of the inner spring, the at least one retaining surface configured to prevent axial movement of the inner spring within the spring retainer.
7. 7. The electrical connector of any of claims 3-6, wherein at least one spring retainer arm of the spring retainer comprises a first spring retainer arm and a second spring retainer arm, wherein the first spring retainer arm is circumferentially spaced apart from the second spring retainer arm, wherein a gap is defined between the first spring retainer arm and the second spring retainer arm.
8. 8. The electrical connector of any of claims 1-7, wherein the fixed end of the at least one contact arm has a first width measured in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the hollow body and the free end of the at least one contact arm has a second width measured in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the hollow body, wherein the first width is less than the second width.
9. 9. The electrical connector of any one of claims 1-8, wherein the at least one contact arm further includes a third extension positioned between the first extension and the second extension, the third extension having an outer surface that transitions between a flat outer surface of the second extension and a circumferentially curved outer surface of the first extension.
10. 10. The electrical connector as recited in any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the hollow body of the male terminal defines a semi-circular cutout adjacent each lateral side of the at least one contact arm.
11. 11. The electrical connector of any of claims 1-10, wherein the at least one contact arm comprises a first contact arm and a second contact arm, and the at least one spring arm comprises a first spring arm corresponding to the first contact arm and a second spring arm corresponding to the second contact arm.
12. 12. The electrical connector of any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the male terminal further comprises a connection plate integrally formed with the hollow body and extending from one of the at least one flat wall section of the hollow body or one of the plurality of curved wall sections of the hollow body to form a P-shape when viewed perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the hollow body.
13. 13. The electrical connector of any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the at least one planar wall section comprises four planar wall sections and the plurality of curved wall sections comprises three curved wall sections alternately spaced between the four planar wall sections to define a substantially rounded square cross-sectional profile of the hollow body as viewed in a plane perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the hollow body.
14. 14. The electrical connector as recited in any one of claims 1 to 12, further comprising a male housing assembly that includes at least one sidewall arrangement that defines a terminal receiver, the at least one sidewall arrangement further defining a keyway, wherein the conductive male terminal is at least partially disposed within the terminal receiver of the male housing assembly.
15. 15. An electrical connector for a power distribution assembly, the electrical connector comprising: A conductive male terminal having a hollow body and at least one contact arm extending from a first side of the hollow body; an inner spring disposed at least partially within the hollow body of the male terminal, the inner spring having at least one spring arm configured to be positioned below the at least one contact arm, and A spring retainer configured to retain the inner spring, the spring retainer comprising: A base, and At least one spring holder arm coupled to the base at a fixed end thereof, the at least one spring holder arm having a free end opposite the fixed end, a proximal portion including the fixed end, a distal portion including the free end, and a shoulder disposed between the proximal portion and the distal portion, the base and the at least one spring holder arm defining a central cavity, Wherein an alignment protrusion extends radially outwardly from a distal portion of the at least one spring retainer arm, the alignment protrusion configured for engaging an alignment recess defined by the hollow body.
16. 16. The electrical connector of claim 15, wherein the at least one spring retainer arm comprises a first spring retainer arm and a second spring retainer arm spaced apart from each other, wherein when the inner spring is inserted into the central cavity of the spring retainer, the first spring retainer arm and the second spring retainer arm are configured to move apart from each other to accommodate insertion of the at least one spring retainer arm between the first spring retainer arm and the second spring retainer arm.
17. 17. The electrical connector of claim 16, wherein the first spring retainer arm further comprises an inlet surface angled relative to a longitudinal axis of the spring retainer, wherein when the inner spring is inserted into the central cavity, the inner spring abuts the inlet surface of the first spring retainer arm to force the first spring retainer arm away from a second spring retainer arm of the spring retainer.
18. 18. An assembly, comprising: a spring holder, comprising: A base, and At least one spring retainer arm coupled to the base at a fixed end thereof, the at least one spring retainer arm having a free end opposite the fixed end, a proximal portion including the fixed end, a distal portion including the free end, the base and the at least one spring retainer arm defining a central cavity, and A spring comprising a spring base and at least one spring arm extending from the spring base, the spring being configured to be inserted into and held by the spring holder, Wherein the at least one spring retainer arm includes a first spring retainer arm and a second spring retainer arm spaced apart from each other, and Wherein the free end of the first spring holder arm is configured to move radially away from the free end of the second spring holder arm when the spring is inserted into the central cavity of the spring holder.
19. 19. The assembly of claim 18, wherein the free end of the first spring retainer arm includes a first inlet surface and the free end of the second spring retainer arm includes a second inlet surface, wherein each of the first and second inlet surfaces are angled away from each other to form an inwardly narrowing channel through which the at least one spring arm can pass when the spring is inserted into the central cavity, wherein the at least one spring arm abuts the first and second inlet surfaces to move the free ends of the first and second spring arms away from each other.
20. 20. The assembly of any one of claims 18 to 19, wherein the first arm of the spring holder comprises a retaining surface substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the spring holder and facing the base of the spring holder, wherein once the spring is inserted into the central cavity, the retaining surface is adjacent to the spring base and is configured to abut the spring base to retain the spring within the central cavity.

Description

Electrical connector system Background Over the past few decades, the number of electrical components for automobiles and other on-road and off-road vehicles such as pickup trucks, commercial vans and trucks, semi-trailer trucks, motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, and sport utility vehicles (collectively, "motor vehicles") has increased dramatically. Electrical components are used in motor vehicles for a variety of reasons including, but not limited to, monitoring, improving and/or controlling vehicle performance, emissions, safety, and creating comfort for occupants of the motor vehicle. Considerable time, resources, and energy have been spent developing power distribution components that meet the various needs and complexities of the motor vehicle market. However, conventional power distribution components suffer from a variety of drawbacks. Motor vehicles are challenging electrical environments for both electrical components and connector assemblies due to many conditions including, but not limited to, space constraints that make initial installation difficult, harsh operating conditions, large ambient temperature ranges, prolonged vibration, thermal loading, and longevity, all of which can lead to component and/or connector failure. For example, improperly installed connectors, which typically occur at assembly plants, and shifted connectors, which typically occur in the field, are two important failure modes for electrical components and motor vehicles. Each of these failure modes can result in significant repair and warranty costs. For example, annual warranty totals for all automobile manufacturers and their direct suppliers are estimated to be between 500 and 1500 billion dollars worldwide. Furthermore, existing electrical connectors require a large insertion force at the time of connection and remain substantially rigid during operation, leading to a risk of breaking the contact elements. In view of these challenging electrical environments, considerable time, money, and effort have been spent searching for power distribution elements that meet market demands. This disclosure addresses the shortcomings of conventional power distribution components. Disclosure of Invention The present disclosure relates to an electrical connector for a variety of applications, such as 24 volt to 48 volt systems for aircraft, motor vehicles, military vehicles (e.g., tanks, personnel carriers, heavy trucks, and troop carriers), buses, locomotives, tractors, marine applications (e.g., cargo ships, tankers, yachts, submarines, and sailboats), telecommunications hardware (e.g., servers), battery packs, or for high power applications, high current applications, and/or high voltage applications. According to various implementations, an electrical connector for a power distribution assembly is disclosed. The electrical connector includes a conductive male terminal and an internal spring. The conductive male terminal has a hollow body and at least one contact arm. The hollow body comprises at least one flat wall section and a plurality of curved wall sections. At least one contact arm extends from the first side of the hollow body. At least one contact arm includes a fixed end coupled to the hollow body and a free end opposite the fixed end. The first extension of the at least one contact arm adjacent to and including the free end of the at least one contact arm includes a curved outer surface that curves circumferentially about the longitudinal axis of the hollow body. The second extension of the at least one contact arm adjacent to and including the fixed end of the at least one contact arm includes a flat outer surface. An internal spring is disposed within the hollow body of the male terminal. The inner spring has at least one spring arm configured to be positioned below the at least one contact arm. In some implementations, the at least one spring arm abuts a free end of the at least one contact arm and exerts a radially outwardly directed biasing force on the at least one contact arm. In some implementations, the electrical connector further includes a spring retainer. The spring holder includes a base and at least one spring holder arm coupled to the base at a fixed end thereof. The at least one spring retainer arm has a free end opposite the fixed end, a proximal portion including the fixed end of the at least one spring retainer arm, a distal portion including the free end of the at least one spring retainer arm, and a shoulder extending between the proximal portion and the distal portion. The internal spring is disposed within a central cavity defined by the base and the at least one spring retainer arm. The spring retainer is disposed within the hollow body of the male terminal. In some implementations, the first side of the hollow body of the male terminal abuts a shoulder of the spring retainer. In some implementations, the spring retainer includes an alignment tab extending radially outward from a distal portio