Electrical connectors – With coupling separator – Including retainer or joiner
Reexamination Certificate
2002-05-15
2004-06-29
Gushi, Ross (Department: 2833)
Electrical connectors
With coupling separator
Including retainer or joiner
C439S372000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06755673
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a lever fitting type power supply circuit breaking apparatus capable of attaching one of connector housings to the second connector housing and detaching the one of connector housings from the other by utilizing a cam mechanism to thereby operate a lever with a low operating force.
For example, in an electric vehicle, the capacity of a power supply, which is a battery, is large, as compared with that of a power supply in a gasoline-engine car. Thus, when the maintenance of an electric system of the electric vehicle is performed, a power supply circuit is disconnected by a circuit breaking apparatus. Consequently, the safety of an operation is ensured. Such a related power supply circuit breaking apparatus disclosed in JP-A-10-144186 is illustrated in
FIGS. 23
to
30
.
As shown in
FIGS. 23
to
26
, the circuit breaking apparatus
100
comprises an apparatus body
101
and a detachable plug
102
detachably provided in the apparatus body
101
. The breaker body
101
has a pair of male terminals
103
. One of this pair of male terminals
103
is electrically connected to a load. The other male terminal
103
is electrically connected to a power supply through a fuse
104
. A pair of perpendicular guide wall portions
106
each having a cam groove
105
are provided outside the pair of male terminals
103
, and
103
, respectively.
As illustrated in
FIG. 26
, a reed switch
107
a
is provided in the apparatus body
101
. The continuity or non-continuity state of the power supply circuit is detected according to ON state or OFF state of this reed switch
107
a
. As shown in
FIGS. 23 and 26
, bolt mounting holes
108
are provided at appropriate places in the apparatus body
101
. The apparatus body
101
is fixed to a mounting face (not shown) by bolts (not shown) inserted into these bolt mounting holes
108
.
The detachable plug
102
has an operating lever
110
, on both side faces of which a pair of cam projections
109
are provided, a plug body
112
rotatably provided on this operating lever
110
through a support shaft
111
, and a pair of female terminals
114
, and
114
connected by a bus bar
113
to each other. Magnets
107
b
are embedded at laterally symmetrical places in the operating lever
110
.
When an operator grasps the operating lever
110
of the detachable plug
102
and adjusts the pair of cam projections
109
and
109
to a pair of cam grooves
105
, and
105
and then inserts the projections
109
and
109
from a position, which is indicated by solid lines in
FIG. 25
, into the grooves
105
, and
105
, respectively, in a position indicated by phantom lines in this figure, the male terminals
103
are inserted into the female terminals
114
and
114
in an insertion stroke of the detachable plug
102
. As illustrated in
FIG. 24
, the pair of male terminals
103
, and
103
are electrically connected to each other through the pair of female terminals
114
, and
114
, and the bus bar
113
. Thus, the power supply circuit is brought into a continuity state. After the detachable plug
102
is inserted into the apparatus body
101
, the operating lever
110
is rotated with respect to the plug body
112
from the position indicated by the phantom lines in
FIG. 25
to the position indicated by the solid lines therein. Thus, as illustrated in
FIG. 26
, the operating lever
110
is pushed over sideways on the apparatus body
101
. The magnet
107
b
approaches and faces the reed switch
107
a
just before this operating lever
110
is pushed over sideways. Thus, the reed switch
107
a
is turned on. Consequently, it is electrically detected that the power supply circuit is put into a continuity state.
Further, to put the power circuit into a circuit-broken state, the operating lever
110
having been pushed over sideways is turned until the state of the lever
101
is put into an erect state. Then, the detachable plug
102
attached to the apparatus body
101
is upwardly pulled out therefrom. Then, the pair of female terminals
114
and
114
are detached from the pair of male terminals
103
and
103
in a stroke in which the detachable plug
102
is upwardly pulled out from the apparatus body
101
. Thus, the connection between the pair of male terminals
103
, and
103
is interrupted. Consequently, the power supply circuit is brought into a broken state.
Next, the circuit conducting operation is described hereinbelow with reference to
FIGS. 27
to
30
. As illustrated in
FIG. 27
, when each of the cam projections
109
of the operating lever
110
is adjusted to the corresponding cam groove
105
, and the detachable plug
102
is inserted into the apparatus body
101
, an operator sometimes turns the operating lever
110
according to the misunderstanding that the plug
102
is completely inserted into the body
101
, though the plug
102
is not quite completely inserted thereinto, as illustrated in FIG.
28
. In such a case, as illustrated in
FIG. 29
, the cam projection
109
rotates together with the operating lever
110
and then abuts against the top face of the cam groove
105
. When the operating lever
110
is rotated still more from the position thereof having been in this state, an external force downwardly acts upon the operating lever
110
according to the leverage principle. The detachable plug
102
is gradually inserted thereinto by this external force.
As illustrated in
FIG. 30
, the detachable plug
102
is inserted into a complete insertion position until the operating lever
110
is positioned at a falling sidelong position. Consequently, both the pair of terminals
103
and
114
are brought into a completely fitted state. Thus, even when the detachable plug
102
is incompletely inserted into the apparatus body
101
, both the pair of terminals
103
and
114
can be prevented from being brought into an incompletely fitted state.
However, the related power circuit breaking apparatus
100
, both the terminals
103
and
114
are not in a non-contact state until the operating lever
110
is completely detached from the apparatus body
101
. When the operating lever
110
is only rotated from a position, in which the operating lever is pushed sidewise, to another position, in which the operating lever
110
is in an erect state, both the terminals
103
and
114
are still in a contact state. In the case that the lever
110
is returned to a rotation start position notwithstanding the contact state of such terminals, and that a maintenance operation is performed according to the misunderstanding that both the terminals
103
and
114
are in a noncontact state, the safety of operators is not secured. Further, in the power supply breaking apparatus
100
, when the operating lever
110
is returned from the position, in which the operating lever
110
is pushed sidewise, to the position, in which the operating lever
110
is in the erect state, the reed switch
107
a
is turned off. Thus, owing to the turn-off of the reed switch
107
a
, there is a fear that an operator may misunderstand that both the terminals
103
and
114
are in a noncontact state.
Meanwhile, there have been various kinds of low-voltage small-current connectors adapted to put both terminals into a contact state or a non-contact state by operating a lever in such a way as to perform approaching movement and receding movement of each of both connector housings between a connector temporary fitting position and a connector fitting position. However, in the case of such related connectors, the distance between the terminals in the connector temporary fitting position, which is a movement start position, is not taken into consideration. Thus, when such a related low-voltage small-current connector is applied to a high-voltage large-current power circuit breaking apparatus, there is a fear that arc discharge occurs. Thus, the safety of an operation is not ensured.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, the invention is accomplished to solve the aforementioned problems, and an object of the invent
Fukushima Hirotaka
Kuboshima Hidehiko
Masuda Yutaka
Oshita Satoru
Gushi Ross
Sughrue & Mion, PLLC
Yazaki -Corporation
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