ELECTRICAL SWITCHING CONTACT

Abstract

The disclosure relates to an electrical switching contact, including a contact carrier and a contact plating, which has a contact material, and to a method for producing the electrical switching contact. The disclosure is characterized in that a layer that may be sintered is arranged between the contact material and the contact carrier in order to connect the contact material to the contact carrier.

Claims

1. An electrical switch contact comprising: a contact base; and a contact layer having a contact material, wherein the contact material is bonded to the contact base by arrangement of a sinterable layer between the contact material and the contact base.

2. The electrical switch contact of claim 1, wherein the sinterable layer comprises silver.

3. The electrical switch contact of claim 2, wherein the sinterable layer is in pulverulent form.

4. The electrical switch contact of claim 3, wherein the contact material is sintered to the contact base within a temperature range from 250 C. to 300 C.

5. The electrical switch contact of claim 4, wherein the contact material is sintered to the contact base within a pressure range from 0 MPa to 30 MPa.

6. The electrical switch contact of claim 5, wherein a heating in the electrical switch contact is configured to be introduced by resistance welding, induction soldering, ultrasound welding, a heated probe, hot gases, radiative heat, or a combination thereof.

7. A method of manufacturing an electrical switch contact, the method comprising: providing a contact base and a contact layer having a contact material; applying a sinterable layer between the contact material of the contact layer and the contact base; and sintering the contact base to the contact layer via the sinterable layer.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the electrical switch contact is heated by resistance welding, induction soldering, ultrasound welding, a heated probe, hot gases, radiative heat, or a combination thereof.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the sintering is conducted within a temperature range from 250 C. to 300 C.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the sintering is conducted within a pressure range from 0 MPa to 30 MPa.

11. (canceled)

12. The electrical switch contact of claim 1, wherein the sinterable layer is in pulverulent form.

13. The electrical switch contact of claim 1, wherein the contact material is sintered to the contact base within a temperature range from 250 C. to 300 C.

14. The electrical switch contact of claim 1, wherein the contact material is sintered to the contact base within a pressure range from 0 MPa to 30 MPa.

15. The electrical switch contact of claim 1, wherein a heating in the electrical switch contact is configured to be introduced by resistance welding, induction soldering, ultrasound welding, a heated probe, hot gases, radiative heat, or a combination thereof.

16. The method of claim 7, wherein the sintering is conducted within a temperature range from 250 C. to 300 C.

17. The method of claim 7, wherein the sintering is conducted within a pressure range from 0 MPa to 30 MPa.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] Further advantages and embodiments of the disclosure are elucidated in detail hereinafter with reference to a working example and with reference to the drawings.

[0024] FIG. 1 a perspective view of an example of an electrical switch contact.

[0025] FIG. 2 a schematic diagram of the construction of an electrical switch contact from the prior art.

[0026] FIG. 3 a schematic diagram of the construction of an example of an electrical switch contact.

[0027] FIG. 4 a schematic diagram of an example of the sintering process for an electrical switch contact.

[0028] FIG. 5 a schematic diagram of an example of direct resistance heating by current flow in the electrical switch contact.

[0029] FIG. 6 a schematic diagram of an example of indirect resistance heating by current flow in the electrical switch contact.

[0030] FIG. 7 a schematic diagram of an example of inductive heating by current flow in the electrical switch contact.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] FIG. 1 depicts an electrical switch contact with a contact base 1, on the top side of which is arranged a contact layer 2.

[0032] FIG. 2 depicts the construction of an electrical switch contact from the prior art. This contact base 1 is formed from a contact base material. The contact layer 2 includes three layers, a silver solder layer 3, a silver layer 4, and a layer of contact material 5. The silver solder layer 3 here is formed directly on the top side of the contact base 1. Atop the silver solder layer 3 is formed the silver layer 4, atop which is finally applied the contact material 5.

[0033] FIG. 3 depicts the construction of an electrical switch contact. Between the contact base 1 and the contact material 5 is arranged a sinterable layer 6 on the top side of the contact base 1. The sinterable layer 6 may be a pulverulent silver layer.

[0034] FIG. 4 depicts the sintering method for an electrical switch contact. The contact base 1 including the contact layer 2, composed of the sinterable layer 6 and the contact material 5, are positioned between two tools 7 which press from the top and from the bottom by pressure 8 onto the component composed of contact base 1 and contact layer 2. In addition, heat 9 is introduced into the component, for example in the form of a probe.

[0035] FIG. 5 depicts direct resistance heating by current flow in the electrical contact. In the direct resistance heating, the current flows directly through the component composed of a contact base 1 and a contact layer 2.

[0036] FIG. 6 depicts indirect resistance heating, in which the current flows indirectly through the component composed of contact base 1 and the contact layer 2.

[0037] FIG. 7 depicts inductive heating by a magnetic field in the contact base 1 and the contact layer 2.

[0038] The electrical switch contact features a simplified layer construction because the solder layer is no longer required. This reduces the process sequence in that the applying of the sinterable layer may also be utilized simultaneously as a bonding process with the base. It is also advantageous that the amount of silver used overall may be decreased by reduction of the layer thicknesses. The process may proceed at much lower temperatures than in the case of welding or hard soldering. The lower input of heat into the component leads to lower material softening of the base. The bonding layer additionally has higher electrical conductivity than a comparable solder layer. A final additional factor is that the process of cleaning the parts after the bonding process is reduced.

[0039] Although the disclosure has been illustrated and described in detail by the exemplary embodiments, the disclosure is not restricted by the disclosed examples and the person skilled in the art may derive other variations from this without departing from the scope of protection of the disclosure. It is therefore intended that the foregoing description be regarded as illustrative rather than limiting, and that it be understood that all equivalents and/or combinations of embodiments are intended to be included in this description.

[0040] It is to be understood that the elements and features recited in the appended claims may be combined in different ways to produce new claims that likewise fall within the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, whereas the dependent claims appended below depend from only a single independent or dependent claim, it is to be understood that these dependent claims may, alternatively, be made to depend in the alternative from any preceding or following claim, whether independent or dependent, and that such new combinations are to be understood as forming a part of the present specification.