Clamping spring and conductor connection terminal

Abstract

A clamping spring of a conductor connection terminal for connecting an electrical conductor by means of spring-loaded clamping, wherein the clamping spring has a support leg to fix the clamping spring in the conductor connection terminal, a spring bend adjoining the support leg, and a clamping leg adjoining the spring bend, wherein the clamping leg is arranged to clamp the electrical conductor by means of its free end, wherein the clamping leg has at least one corrugation stamped into the material of the clamping leg. A conductor connection terminal with such a clamping spring is also provided.

Claims

1. A clamping spring of a conductor connection terminal for connecting an electrical conductor via a spring-loaded clamping, the clamping spring comprising: a support leg to fix the clamping spring in the conductor connection terminal; a spring bend adjoining the support leg; and a clamping leg adjoining the spring bend, wherein the clamping leg is arranged to clamp the electrical conductor via its free end, wherein the clamping leg has at least one corrugation stamped into a material of the clamping leg, wherein the clamping leg has a first region adjoining the spring bend and a second region ending at a free end of the clamping leg, and wherein the at least one corrugation ends before the free end.

2. The clamping spring according to claim 1, wherein the first region is connected to the second region through a bend region of the clamping leg where the clamping leg has a bent shape.

3. The clamping spring according to claim 2, wherein the clamping leg, at least in the bend region, has the at least one corrugation stamped into the material of the clamping leg.

4. The clamping spring according to claim 3, wherein the corrugation extends from the bend region into the first region and/or into the second region of the clamping leg.

5. The clamping spring according to claim 2, wherein the clamping leg has, between the first and second regions, an additional bend region in which the clamping leg has a bent shape.

6. The clamping spring according to claim 5, wherein corrugation does not extend into the additional bend region.

7. The clamping spring according to claim 2, wherein the corrugation has a bent contour that follows the bent course of the clamping leg in the bend region.

8. The clamping spring according to claim 2, wherein the corrugation spans the bend region in a straight line.

9. The clamping spring according to claim 1, wherein an angle between the first and the second regions of the clamping leg formed by the bend region is at least 10 degrees or at least 15 degrees.

10. The clamping spring according to claim 1, wherein, in the region of the corrugation, the material of the clamping leg is deformed into an indentation on a stamped side of the clamping leg and into a projection on the side opposite the stamped side.

11. The clamping spring according to claim 10, wherein the convex-shaped side of the bend region forms the stamped side.

12. The clamping spring according to claim 10, wherein the height of the projection is less than the material thickness of the clamping leg in the bend region.

13. The clamping spring according to claim 1, wherein the corrugation does not extend over the entire width of the clamping leg.

14. The clamping spring according to claim 1, wherein the clamping leg has at least one narrowing by which the width of the clamping leg is reduced from the spring bend in the direction of the free end of the clamping leg, wherein the corrugation is arranged in the region of the clamping leg that has the narrowing.

15. The clamping spring according to claim 1, wherein the corrugation has its greatest length dimension in the direction of the longitudinal extent of the clamping leg.

16. A conductor connection terminal for connection of an electrical conductor via a spring-loaded clamping, the conductor connection terminal comprising: at least one clamping spring according to claim 1; a busbar; and an insulating housing that at least substantially encloses the clamping spring and the busbar.

17. The conductor connection terminal according to claim 16, wherein the conductor connection terminal has a pivoting operating lever for manual operation of the clamping leg of the clamping spring to open and/or close a clamping point formed between the clamping leg and the busbar for clamping the electrical conductor.

18. The clamping spring according to claim 1, further comprising a bent clamping edge disposed at an end of the clamping leg.

19. The clamping spring according to claim 1, further comprising a bent attachment section disposed at an end of the support leg.

20. A clamping spring of a conductor connection terminal for connecting an electrical conductor via a spring-loaded clamping, the clamping spring comprising: a support leg configured to fix the clamping spring in the conductor connection terminal; a spring bend adjoining the support leg; a clamping leg adjoining the spring bend, the clamping leg having a bent portion; and a corrugation stamped into a material of the clamping leg in the bent portion, the corrugation having a bent contour corresponding to the bent portion of the clamping leg, wherein the clamping leg is arranged to clamp the electrical conductor via its free end.

21. A clamping spring of a conductor connection terminal for connecting an electrical conductor via a spring-loaded clamping, the clamping spring comprising: a support leg to fix the clamping spring in the conductor connection terminal; a spring bend adjoining the support leg; and a clamping leg adjoining the spring bend, wherein the clamping leg is arranged to clamp the electrical conductor via its free end, and wherein the clamping leg has at least one corrugation stamped into a material of the clamping leg from a side of the clamping leg facing the support leg.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus, are not limitive of the present invention, and wherein:

(2) FIGS. 1 to 4 show a clamping spring in various views;

(3) FIG. 5 illustrates a conductor connection terminal with a clamping spring from FIGS. 1 to 4 in a sectional side view;

(4) FIGS. 6 to 9 show a clamping spring in various views;

(5) FIG. 10 shows a conductor connection terminal with a clamping spring from FIGS. 6 to 9 in a sectional side view;

(6) FIG. 11 shows an operating lever in a perspective view; and

(7) FIG. 12 shows the operating lever from FIG. 11 in a sectional representation from the side.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(8) With reference to FIGS. 1 to 4, an exemplary embodiment of a clamping spring 4 is described. The clamping spring 4 has a support leg 40, a spring bend 42 adjoining the support leg 40, and a clamping leg 43 adjoining the spring bend 42.

(9) The support leg 40 serves to fix the clamping spring 4 in the conductor connection terminal 1, for example to a busbar 3, an insulating housing 2, or another component of the conductor connection terminal 1 suitable for fastening the clamping spring 4. For this purpose, the support leg 40 has, at its free end, a bent attachment section 437. By means of the attachment section 437, the support leg 40 can be secured in a recess of a busbar 3, for example. As is evident, the support leg 40 can be designed such that it narrows from the spring bend 42 to its free end, for example narrows in a single step or multiple steps. In the exemplary embodiment it is shown that the support leg 40 becomes narrower in the transition to a section 41. The attachment section 437 can be made even narrower than the section 41.

(10) The clamping leg 43 has a first region 431 that adjoins the spring bend 43. The clamping leg 43 additionally has a second region 432 that ends with the free end of the clamping leg 43. A clamping edge 436 can be present at the free end of the clamping leg 43, for example. The clamping leg 43 transitions from the first region 431 through one or more bend regions 433, 434 into the second region 432. Two bend regions 433, 434 are shown by way of example. The clamping leg 43 has an intermediate region 435 between the bend regions 433, 434.

(11) The clamping leg 43 can likewise be designed to narrow toward the free end, as shown, which is to say that the width of the clamping leg 43 decreases from the spring bend 42 to the free end. The width of the clamping leg can decrease from the dimension B1 to B2, for example. For this purpose, the clamping leg 43 can have a narrowing 438, 439 by means of which the reduction in width takes place continuously, or, as shown in the exemplary embodiment, stepwise. It is shown by way of example that a narrowing 438, 439 is present on each of the two sides of the clamping leg 43, which is to say to the left and right of the narrower second region 432. The wider material regions of the clamping leg adjoining the narrowing 438, 439 can be used, for example, as operating tabs for operating the clamping leg 43 by an operating lever 5, an operating button, or an operating tool.

(12) The clamping leg 43 has, at least in the bend region 433, a corrugation 7 stamped into the material of the clamping leg 43. The corrugation 7 serves to increase the spring stiffness of the clamping leg 43. As is evident, the corrugation 7 extends from the bend region 433 a distance into the second region 432. In the other direction, the corrugation 7 can extend from the bend region 433 a distance into the first region 431, or at least into the intermediate region 435. For example, the corrugation 7 can end before the additional bend region 434.

(13) It is also advantageous if the width B3 of the corrugation 7 is smaller than the width of the clamping leg 43 in the region having the corrugation 7, which is to say smaller than the dimension B2. The length L of the corrugation 7 can advantageously be greater than the width B3 of the corrugation 7, for example one to five times the width B3. The height H of the corrugation 7 can advantageously be smaller than the material thickness D of the clamping leg 43, in particular the material thickness of the clamping leg 43 in the bend region 433.

(14) FIG. 5 shows the installation of the above-described clamping spring 4 in a conductor connection terminal 1. The conductor connection terminal 1 has an insulating housing 2. The clamping spring 4 and a busbar 3 are arranged in the insulating housing 2. The busbar 3 can be angled in design, for example, so that the clamping spring 4 can be secured in a recess of the busbar 3 by its support leg 40 or the attachment element 437. The clamping leg 43 in this design is preloaded relative to the busbar 3 so that a clamping point 30 for connecting the electrical conductor is formed between the clamping edge 436 and the busbar 3. The electrical conductor can be inserted into the insulating housing 2 through a conductor insertion opening 20 and guided to the clamping point 30.

(15) The conductor connection terminal 1 has an operating lever 5 that can be manually operated by a user in a pivoting motion at a manual operation region 50. By this means, an operating element 56 of the operating lever 5 can be moved that presses against the clamping leg 43 in the region of the relevant narrowing 438, 439 and thereby deflects the clamping leg 43 toward the support leg 40. As a result, the clamping edge 436 is moved away from the busbar 3 so that the clamping point 30 is opened.

(16) The exemplary embodiments from FIGS. 1 to 5 show an embodiment of the clamping spring 4 in which the corrugation 7 is implemented as a corrugation that follows the contour of the clamping spring 4. Since the corrugation 7 extends beyond the bend region 433 on both sides, it accordingly is also bent in design in a side view.

(17) FIGS. 6 to 9 show an embodiment of the clamping spring 4 that corresponds to the embodiment from FIGS. 1 to 5 except for the shape of the corrugation 7. In FIGS. 6 to 10, the corrugation 7 is not designed to follow the contour of the clamping spring, but instead extends in a straight line beyond the bend region 433. It is advantageous in this design when the corrugation 7 is arranged symmetrically with respect to the bend region 433, which is to say that the corrugation 7 extends approximately the same distance from the bend region 433 in both directions into the adjoining regions of the clamping leg 43.

(18) FIG. 9 also shows the determination of the angle α between the first and the second sections 431, 432 of the clamping leg 43 formed by the bend region 433. The angle can be at least 10 degrees or at least 15 degrees, in particular.

(19) FIG. 10 shows the installation of the above-described clamping spring 4 in a conductor connection terminal 1, which otherwise corresponds to the embodiment from FIG. 5.

(20) FIG. 11 shows a perspective view of the operating lever 5 from below.

(21) The design, which in principle is U-shaped in cross-section, can be seen here, with two spaced-apart side wall sections 52, 53 that are connected to one another at their free ends at a side edge by the manual operating region 50, which forms a transverse rib. It is clear that the side wall sections 52, 53 extend from the end regions 60, 64 on the pivot bearing side in a taper toward the free end. It can be seen that an operating boss 51 is present at the free end of the manual operating region 50. It is also clear that the manual operating region 50 extends forward past the free ends of the side wall sections 52, 53, wherein the inner side of the manual operating region 50 is inclined at the free end edge. This counteracts slipping when a lever operating force is applied to the manual operating region 50.

(22) Present between the side wall sections 52, 53 is a conductor receiving space 54 to accommodate the electrical conductor to be connected.

(23) It can further be seen that partially circular operating disks 57, 58 with a V-shaped notch 62 are arranged so as to be spaced apart from the side wall sections 52, 53 by a guide slot 61, 65. Formed in the region of each of the V-shaped notches 62 is an operating section 56 that serves to apply a spring operating force to the associated clamping leg 43. It can be seen that the operating sections 56, in like manner to the manual operating region 50 on which a lever pivoting force is exerted, are located on the same side relative to the pivot axis 63. This has the result that the spring operating forces exerted through the operating sections 56 act on the same side relative to the pivot axis 63 as the lever pivoting force applied for pivoting to the manual operating region 50.

(24) It can further be seen that the operating disks 57, 58 have partially circular, curved outer end faces 59 with which the operating lever 5 is mounted in the housing part 1 so as to be pivotable about a virtual pivot axis 63.

(25) The pivot axis 63 extends through the center of a partial circle formed by the outer end face 59.

(26) It is clear, in addition, that a latch 55 projects toward the conductor receiving space 54 from the manual operating region 50 on the side opposite the operating boss 51. The latch 55 serves to latch the operating lever 5 with the insulating housing 2 in the closed position.

(27) FIG. 12 shows a sectional side view through the operating lever 5 from FIG. 11. It is clear here again that the side wall sections 52, 53 are connected by the manual operating region 50 at the top of the operating lever 5. The manual operating region 50 in this case extends over only a subregion of the length of the side wall sections 52, 53 and in doing so preferably occupies more than half of the length of the side wall sections 52, 53.

(28) The invention being thus described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are to be included within the scope of the following claims.