Apparatus for electrically connecting two electrical connecting conductors to an electrical device

An apparatus for connecting two electrical connecting conductors to an electrical device, in which the ends of the connecting conductors are injection molded into a connection piece and connected to connection contacts which are secured onto a securing pin in a manner lying one behind the other and coaxially isolated by an insulating piece and, by means of a screwing part, the connection contacts, make contact with connection elements which are likewise mutually electrically isolated by means of an insulating part. In order to secure any desired rotational position, the connection piece has a peripheral toothing of the electrical device. This permits space-saving production, which is amenable to assembly, of an electrical connection between connecting conductor and electrical device, it being possible to bring the external connecting conductors into a desired position with little outlay.

PRIOR ART 
The invention is based on an apparatus connecting two electrical connecting 
conductors to an electrical connection. In the case of an apparatus for 
the electrical connection of two electrical connecting conductors 
disclosed by DE-A1-42 03 133, two connection pins provided with a screw 
thread are provided on the electrical device to be connected. The 
connecting conductors each lead into a connection molding having an 
elongated eye, the center line of which follows a circular path. The 
connection moldings are situated opposite one another in such a way that 
the eyes are diametrically opposite one another, referring to a 
geometrical center point between the connection pins. The connection 
moldings are held together by a web in such a way that the moldings having 
an extension piece following the connecting conductor are parallel to one 
another. In order to produce the connection, the eyes of the moldings are 
slipped over the connection pins, it being possible to alter the angle at 
which the connecting conductors extend with respect to the electrical 
device in the context of the length of the eyes, and a fixed contact with 
the electrical device being produced thereafter by fixing using securing 
screws. Such a device can be used to produce small changes in position of 
the connecting conductors with respect to the electrical device. The 
intention here is to be able to keep the line lengths shorter. 
In addition to the disadvantage that two connection pins have to be 
present, to each of which the connecting conductors have to be fixed 
separately, the known device also has the disadvantage that, nevertheless, 
it is possible to change the position of the connecting conductors only in 
a narrowly limited scope, this being due to the possibilities of providing 
eyes in the form of part-circle recesses. The result is a high assembly 
outlay. 
Advantages of the Invention 
In contrast, the apparatus has the advantage that the connecting conductors 
can lead away from the electrical device in any desired angular position 
in a radial plane adjoining the securing pin. In this case, only a single 
securing pin is advantageously provided. 
In an advantageous development, the selected angular positions can be 
reliably maintained by positive locking. In this case, a corresponding 
fine subdivision of the recurring forms of the positive locking surfaces 
enables a precise alignment of the connecting conductors to the electrical 
device to be produced in very small angular increments. At the same time 
that the connection piece carrying the connecting conductors is secured, 
the contact is also effected in a simple manner. In this case, a large 
contact-making area is provided and reliable mutual electrical isolation 
of the connecting conductors is achieved. In a readily manageable manner, 
the connection contacts and the ends of the connecting conductors are 
fixed in a manner encapsulated within the connection piece, access to the 
live parts and the screwing parts being prevented, accordance with the aid 
of a stopper after the connection piece has been fixed and after contact 
has been made between the connecting conductors and the electrical 
connections of the device. This results in a reliable encapsulation of the 
voltage-carrying parts to protect against external influences and, given 
appropriate safeguarding of the stopper, also in protection against 
unauthorized access. Overall, the apparatus has the advantage that the 
connection of the connecting conductors to the electrical device can be 
carried out with the aid of automatic assembly machines. Furthermore, the 
essential advantage results that, in the case of device parts that are 
located around the electrical connection and would hinder cable routing, 
an optimum point for feeding the connecting conductors can be found with 
the aid of the angular adjustment of the position of said connecting 
conductors. This results in a space-saving arrangement which also reduces 
the length of the connecting conductors. Such connections are also 
suitable, in particular, for the harsh operation in a motor vehicle, for 
example in the production of an electrical connection to a solenoid valve 
in a fuel injection pump.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENT 
FIG. 1 portrays a section through the apparatus according to the invention. 
Provided on one end of an electrical device, for example a solenoid valve, 
is a closure part 1, which closes off the solenoid valve housing 2, the 
edge 3 of which is flanged onto a shoulder of the closure part, with the 
result that the latter is held in a fixed manner in the solenoid valve 
housing. A securing pin 5 with a base 6 having an anchoring profile on its 
peripheral surface is injection molded into this closure part made of 
insulating material, said base 6 having a very large diameter and being 
adjoined by a cylindrical part 7 which has a smaller diameter and 
partially projects outwards at the end from the encapsulation of the 
closure part. This cylindrical part forms an axially directed shoulder 8 
which is fixed to the housing and merges with the securing pin 5, which is 
provided with an external thread at the end. Furthermore, one connection 
11, 12 each, for example of the solenoid of the solenoid valve, is routed 
axially to the outside through the closure part in holes 10, one 
connection 11 of which makes contact by means of a clamped or welded joint 
with a first connection element 14 and the other connection 12 makes 
contact correspondingly with a second connection element 15. These 
connection elements have an annular design and are pushed by their inner 
hole 16 and 17, respectively, over the securing pin. In this case, the 
first connection element 14 bears directly on the shoulder 8 as a planar 
ring. This is then followed by an annular intermediate piece 18 made of 
insulating material and then by the annular part of the second connection 
element 15, which comes to bear on the annular intermediate piece at the 
end and is kept at a radial distance from the securing pin by stops (not 
shown in any more detail). 
In order to connect the connections 11 and 12 to the power supply, a 
connection piece 20 is further provided, into which are injection molded 
the ends of a first connecting conductor 21 and of a second connecting 
conductor 22. A first contact-making extension 24 of a first connection 
contact 26 and a second contact-making extension 27 of a second connection 
contact 28 are also injection molded. The contact-making extensions 
protrude from an annular part of the respective connection contact, it 
likewise being possible to injection mold the outer edges 29 of these 
annular parts into the connection piece as well. The annular parts 
project, within two adjacent radial planes, into an axial recess 30 in the 
connection piece and are isolated from one another by an insulating part 
31. The latter is guided by its radially inwardly pointing end face 32 on 
the securing pin and serves at the same time as a first guide of the 
connection element 20 on the securing pin 5. The internal diameter of the 
annular parts of the connection contacts 26 and 28 is greater than the 
diameter of the securing pin and the internal diameter of the end face 32 
of the insulating part, this ensuring that the connection contacts do not 
come into contact with the securing pin 5, which is produced from 
electrically conductive material. 
The first connection contact together with the second connection contact 
are firstly brought to bear on the second connection element 15 by a 
screwing part 34 which is axially screwed onto the securing pin and, in 
the example shown, is a nut made of electrically conductive material, as a 
result of which, in turn, the first connection element 14 is brought to 
bear permanently and in a contact-making manner on the shoulder 8. For 
this purpose, the screwing part has an end 33 which ends up on the second 
connection contact 28 and can be grooved for the purpose of better 
contact-making and also for the purpose of self-locking. Consequently, the 
second connecting conductor 22 is connected to the connection 11 via the 
second connection contact 28, the screwing part 34, the securing pin 5 and 
the first connection element 14, and the first connecting conductor 21 is 
connected to the connection 12 via the extension 24, the first connection 
contact 26 and the second connection element 15. The first and second 
connection contacts 26, 28 are spaced from the pin by insulation of 
element 31 which projects between the pin and the first and second 
connection contact 26, 28. 
The connection part 20 further has a wall 37, which is in the form of an 
annular sleeve that engages over the closure part and has on its inside 
positive locking surfaces with a profile 38 extending in the axial 
direction of the securing pin. This profile may be a toothing having edges 
pointing in the peripheral direction, which toothing engages into a 
corresponding mating toothing 39 on the outer periphery of the closure 
part. By means of these positive locking surfaces 38 and 39 with a profile 
having a uniform progression in the peripheral direction, the connection 
piece can now be placed onto the closure part with very fine subdivision 
into different rotational positions and, consequently, be fixed in a 
specific desired rotational position in the peripheral direction of 
rotation. After this placement, the screwing part 34 is then screwed on, 
since the connection contacts and connection elements were threaded in 
place during the placement operation of the connection piece. After the 
connection piece has been fixed by screwing with the screwing part 34, the 
axial recess can additionally be closed off by a stopper 40, which can be 
pressed, bonded or screwed into the recess. In this way, the outgoing 
connecting conductors can be led away in any desired angular position with 
respect to the solenoid valve housing. The two connecting conductors make 
contact in a simple manner with the connections of the solenoid valve by 
means of a simple screwing operation after the placement of the connection 
piece, and this considerably simplifies the assembly and also permits 
automatic assembly. 
FIG. 2 illustrates a plan view of the connection piece 20 screwed onto a 
distributor injection pump 41 with a solenoid valve 42. The V-shaped 
conjoining of the connecting conductors to form a jointly sheathed cable 
43, which leads away between injection lines 44, is evident here. 
The foregoing relates to preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention, 
it being understood that other variants and embodiments thereof are 
possible within the spirit and scope of the invention, the latter being 
defined by the appended claims.