Electrical connectors – Contact comprising cutter – Insulation cutter
Reexamination Certificate
2002-03-06
2003-06-03
Paumen, Gary (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
Contact comprising cutter
Insulation cutter
Reexamination Certificate
active
06572398
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an improvement of an electrical connection terminal to be connected to a flat circuit body by folding back each of end parts of at least a pair of piercing portions, which are erected on opposite side edge parts of a planar portion, in a direction in which the end parts approach each other, after penetrating a coating and a conductor of the flat circuit body.
FIG. 10
illustrates a primary part of each of a flat circuit body
1
and a related electrical connection terminal
2
to be connected to the flat circuit body
1
.
The flat circuit body
1
is an FFC (Flexible Flat Cable) manufactured as a band-like cable which includes a thin film insulating coating
5
covering a plurality of long-thin-plate-like conductors
4
and has flexibility as a whole.
The conductor
4
is formed by various kinds of manufacturing methods, for example, a pattern printing method, or a method of attaching a preliminarily tape-shaped conductive material to an insulating sheet.
The electrical connection terminal
2
is disclosed in, for instance, JP-A-11-144780, and has a structure in which the planar portion
6
, a plurality of pairs of piercing portions
7
and
8
erected on opposite side edge parts of a base-side part of the planar portion
6
, and a terminal connection portion (not shown) formed at an end side part of the portion
6
are integrally formed with one another.
The terminal connection portion (not shown) is used for connecting the electrical connection terminal
2
to another electrical connection terminal, and formed in such a way as to have a female or male terminal structure, which is stored and held in a connector housing. Incidentally, the plurality of pairs of piercing portions
7
and
8
may be formed at opposite ends of an electrical connection terminal and used for connecting the flat circuit bodies
1
to each other.
The electrical connection terminal
2
is so-called a piercing terminal. As illustrated in
FIG. 11
, the electrical connection terminal
2
is electrically and mechanically connected to the flat circuit body
1
by being folded back in a direction in which the tip ends of the piercing portions
7
and
8
provided on opposite side edge parts of the planar portion
6
approach each other, after penetrating the insulating coating
5
and the conductor
4
of the flat circuit body
1
.
As shown in
FIG. 10
, in the electrical connection terminal
2
, the end part of each of the piercing portions
7
and
8
is shaped like letter V. The piercing portions
7
and
8
of each of the pairs are formed so that the top parts of the paired piercing portions
7
and
8
are aligned with each other.
Thus, as illustrated in
FIG. 12
, in a state that the end parts of the piercing portions
7
and
8
of each of the pairs are folded back, top parts
7
a
and
8
a
of the piercing portions
7
and
8
are arranged in such a way as to be close to each other when seen in a plan view thereof. As shown in
FIG. 13
, the tapering end parts of the piercing portions
7
and
8
of each of the pair are put in a state that the end parts of the piercing portions
7
and
8
sandwich and support the corresponding conductor
4
provided on the flat circuit body
1
to thereby perform electrical connection on the conductors
4
.
However, as illustrated in
FIG. 13
, each of the piercing portions
7
and
8
of the aforementioned electrical connection terminal
2
is brought into firm contact with the corresponding conductor
4
provided on the flat circuit body
1
, only at the tapering end part thereof which abuts against the corresponding conductor
4
during sandwiching and supporting this conductor
4
. Therefore, each of the piercing portions
7
and
8
is nearly in point contact with the corresponding conductor
4
.
Accordingly, the contact area between the conductor
4
and each of the piercing portions
7
and
8
is small. Consequently, there has been caused a problem that it is difficult to improve electrical connection characteristics by increasing the contact area therebetween.
As illustrated in
FIG. 11
, the aforementioned electrical connection terminal
2
ensures dimensions L
1
and L
2
, which are respectively required to fold back the piercing portions
7
and
8
, and ensures a dimension L
4
that is necessary for preventing an occurrence of the interference between the piercing portions
7
and
8
of each of the pairs. Therefore, a large occupied width is needed as the occupied width of the single electrical terminal
2
in the flat circuit body
1
.
Consequently, the arranging pitch P
1
of the adjacent conductors
4
provided on the flat circuit body
1
increases. Therefore, there has been caused a problem of an increase in the size of the flat circuit body
1
.
An electrical connection terminal
11
shown in
FIGS. 14 and 15
has been proposed as a counter measure against, for example, the latter problem. Further, another electrical connection terminal
15
shown in
FIGS. 16 and 18
has been proposed as a countermeasure against the former problem.
The electrical connection terminal
11
shown in
FIGS. 14 and 15
is configured so that the plurality of piercing portions
7
and
8
erected on opposite side edge parts of the planar portion
6
are arranged in a staggered manner in which the top parts of the piercing portions
7
and
8
of each of the pairs are alternately arranged, and that the end part of each of the piercing portions
7
provided on one of opposite sides is placed next to the end part of a corresponding one of the piercing portions
8
provided on the other side (along the longitudinal direction of the planar portion
6
).
Although the dimensions L
1
and L
2
required to respectively fold back the piercing portions
7
and
8
are unchanged when the electrical connection terminal
11
is configured in this manner, the occupied width L
3
of the piercing portions
7
and
8
on the conductor
4
of the flat circuit body
1
can be reduced by a dimension S of an overlapping width of a folded-back part of each of the piercing portions
7
and
8
. Thus, the electrical connection terminal
11
can cope with a reduction in the width of each of the conductors.
However, the longitudinal dimension of the aforementioned electrical connection terminal
11
is large owing to the staggered arrangement of the plurality of piercing portions
7
and
8
, in which the top parts thereof each of the pairs are alternately arranged. Thus, there has been a problem that it is difficult to reduce the size of a single electrical connection terminal.
On the other hand, the electrical connection terminal
15
illustrated in
FIGS. 16
to
18
is configured so that the end part of each of the piercing portions
7
and
8
erected on opposite the side edge parts of the planar portion
6
is formed into a flat shape obtained by cutting off a sharp end part thereof, as illustrated in FIG.
16
.
Therefore, as shown in
FIG. 18
, the end of each of the piercing portions
7
and
8
is nearly in line contact with the corresponding conductor
4
of the flat circuit body
1
. Consequently, an increase in the contact area can result in an improvement of the electrical connection characteristics.
However, as compared with the aforementioned electrical connection terminal
2
adapted so that each of the piercing portions
7
and
8
has a sharp end part, it is difficult for the electrical connection terminal
15
to penetrate the flat circuit body
1
. Preprocesses, such as a process of preliminarily forming slits for enabling the piercing portions to pass through the flat circuit body
1
, are needed for enabling each of the piercing portions
7
and
8
to reliably penetrate the flat circuit body
1
. Therefore, there has been caused a problem that the productivity of a manufacturing method therefor lowers owing to an increase in the number of production steps.
Further, each of the aforementioned electrical connection terminals
11
and
15
has a structure wherein the opposed piercing portions
7
and
8
are folde
Harvey James R.
Paumen Gary
Yazaki -Corporation
LandOfFree
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