Electrical terminal

Abstract: An electrical terminal (10) for making abutting contact with a dome-shaped contact of an electrical device comprises an elongated base plate (14) having a contact support (21) at a forward end integrally attached to a longitudinal side of the elongated base plate (14). A resilient contact tongue (22) integrally attached to the contact support (21) extends rearwardly over the elongated base plate (14) in cantilever fashion. The contact tongue (22) is bow-shaped in the longitudinal direction thereof and has a curved apex portion (24) which is arcuate in cross-section for abutment against a dome-shaped contact of an electrical device.

Description: This invention relates to an electrical terminal, for example to an electrical terminal having a resilient cantilevered contact section or tongue for engaging a contact of an electrical device such as a lamp bulb. US-A-5,087,213 discloses a lamp socket having feed terminals, each of which comprises an elongated narrow base plate integrally formed with a pair of laterally spaced upstanding side walls. A resilient cantilevered contact section or tongue is reversely bent from a free end of the base plate and terminates with a foot which engages the base plate adjacent longitudinally spaced pairs of crimp wings. The crimp wings are attached to the stripped conductor core end of a feed cable while the crimp wings clamp a cable seal having ring-type sealing ribs to the insulation jacket of the feed cable. These feed terminals have a major drawback associated with the manner in which the resilient cantilevered contact tongue is provided by being reversely bent from the free end of the base plate. This design configuration requires an extremely long blank strip for forming the feed terminal and results in considerable scrap when the feed terminal is stamped out of the blank strip. Another drawback of the contact section is that the curved mid span of apex portion of the contact tongue which engages the solder bead contact of the lamp bulb is flat in cross-section. This flat cross-section produces low contact forces because it yields as the lamp bulb is seated in the lamp socket. The flat cross-section also makes it difficult to seat the lamp bulb properly as it is rotated into position because the solder bead contacts of the lamp bulb scrape on the sharp edges of the flat cross-section. US-A-4,433,888 discloses a printed circuit board edge connector having terminals which comprise a resilient contact tongue attached to the free end of a base plate by a perpendicular tab integrally attached to the respective longitudinal edges of the base plate and the contact tongue. This substantially reduces the length of the blank strip needed to form the terminal and likewise reduces the scrap. However, the resilient contact tongue has a flat cross-section and produces low contact forces. Moreover, the resilient contact tongue is not suitably configured for use in a lamp bulb socket and in this regard is even less desirable than the resilient contact tongue of the terminal disclosed in US-A-5,087,213. Another drawback of the terminal disclosed in US-A-4,433,888 is that the open front end of the terminal and the high position of the contact tongue can cause the terminals to tangle with each other during handling and assembly, particularly after the terminals are attached to electric cables which are then handled in large bundles. The present invention seeks to provide an improved electrical terminal. According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electrical terminal as specified in claim 1. The invention can provide an electrical terminal of the type having a resilient contact tongue for engaging a contact of an electrical device such as a lamp bulb for use as a feed terminal in a lamp socket or the like. Preferably, the electrical terminal has a resilient cantilevered contact tongue having a shape which can reduce contact forces for abutment against a solder or dome-shaped contact of an electrical device, such as a lamp bulb. In an embodiment, the contact tongue is shaped for use as a feed terminal in a lamp socket where the lamp bulb is seated by rotating the lamp bulb into a locked position. The contact tongue has a curved mid span or apex portion which is arcuate in cross-section for increasing contact forces and for facilitating seating of a lamp bulb or the like when the electrical terminal is used as a feed terminal in a lamp socket. Advantageously, the contact tongue may have a varying arched cross-section which decreases in curvature from a central apex to longitudinally spaced flat cross-sections adjacent opposite ends of the contact tongue. In an embodiment, the contact tongue is attached to the base plate by a perpendicular tab forming part of a closed box at a front end of the terminal, which reduces the tendency of the electrical terminal to tangle with other terminals during handling and assembly. An embodiment of the present invention is described below, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of electrical terminal; Figure 2 is a plan view of a blank for making the electrical terminal of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a side elevational view of the terminal of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a plan view of the terminal of Figure 1; and Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of the terminal of Figure 1 taken substantially along line 5-5 of Figure 4. Referring now to Figures 1 to 5, an electrical terminal 10 is illustrated attached to an electric cable 12. The terminal 10 is stamped and bent from a sheet metal blank A, preferably of stainless steel, illustrated in Figure 2. The electrical terminal 10 comprises an elongated base plate 14 having a conventional core and insulation crimp wings 16 at one end and a contact support 18 at the opposite end. The core and insulation crimp wings 16 are crimped around the stripped conductor core and a cable seal on the insulation jacket of the electrical cable 12 as illustrated in Figures 1, 3 and 4. The support 18 is a closed, four-sided box 20 folded from a cross-strip B at the front end of the blank body C. A resilient contact tongue 22 is integrally attached to the base plate 14 by a perpendicular tab 21 integrally attached to the longitudinal edges of the tongue 22 and the base plate 14 respectively. The tab 21 forms one side of the box 20 while the front end of the tongue 22 forms the side of the box 20 opposite the front end of the base plate 14, so that the tongue 22 extends rearwardly over the base plate 14 in cantilevered fashion towards the cable 12, as shown in Figures 1, 3 and 4. A second perpendicular tab 23 which forms the fourth side of the box 20 is folded inwardly at the tab to support firmly the front end of the contact tongue 22. The contact tongue 22 is bow-shaped in the longitudinal direction of the terminal and has an apex 24 midway between its ends. The free end of the contact tongue 22 has a rounded foot 26 which abuts and slides along the base 14 when the contact tongue 22 is depressed. The curved mid-span or apex portion 25 enveloping the apex 24 in use abuts a solder or dome-shaped contact of an electrical device, such as a lamp bulb, and this apex portion 25 is preferably knurled as shown in the drawings. The apex 24 is arcuate in cross-section, as shown in Figure 5. The arcuate cross-section of the contact tongue 22 varies along the contact tongue and decreases in curvature from the apex 24 and changes to a longitudinally spaced flat cross-section 28 at opposite ends of the contact tongue 22. By way of example, it has been found that a radius of curvature of about 3.75 mm for a contact tongue about 3.00 mm wide and about 33.0 mm long from front end to foot produces improved stress distribution and higher contact force. The arcuate cross-section of the resilient contact tongue 22 described above distributes the stresses, reduces yielding and set, and retains terminal functioning for the required deflections when the contact tongue 22 is depressed by abutment with a solder or dome-shaped contact of a lamp bulb or other electrical device which in use it contacts. Moreover, in a lamp socket application, the arcuate shape of the apex mid-span portion 25 can prevent damage to the solder contacts when the lamp bulb is rotated into a locked position in the lamp socket. The electrical terminal 10 also comprises an elongated side wall 32 integrally connected to one longitudinal side of the base plate 14. It also has a short side wall 34 integrally connected to the opposite longitudinal side of the base plate 14 near the crimp wings 16. The foot 26 at the free end of the contact tongue 22 is disposed between the side walls 32 and 34, which protects the free end of the contact tongue 22. The positioning of the free end of the contact tongue 22 between the side walls 32 and 34 in combination with the closed box 20 at the front end of the terminal 10 also makes the terminal 10 less susceptible to entanglement with other terminals during handling and assembly, particularly when the terminals 10 are attached to electric cables. The electrical terminal 10 also includes a forward side wall portion 36 which supports a latch tang 38 which slats outwardly and rearwardly. In use, the latch tang 38 locks the electrical terminal 10 in a terminal cavity of a lamp socket or insulator housing in conventional manner.

Claims: An electrical terminal comprising an elongated base plate (14) including a contact support tab (21) at a first end thereof, the contact support tab being attached to a longitudinal side of the elongated base plate; and a resilient contact tongue (22) attached to the contact support tab, the contact tongue extending over the elongated base plate in cantilevered manner towards a second end of the elongated base plate; the contact tongue being bow-shaped in the longitudinal direction thereof and including an apex (24) substantially midway along the contact tongue, and being arcuate in transversal cross-section for abutment against a dome-shaped contact of an electrical device. An electrical terminal according to claim 1, wherein the contact support tab (21) is integral with the elongated base plate. An electrical terminal according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the resilient contact tongue (22) is integral with the contact support tab. An electrical terminal according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the elongated base plate (14) includes core and insulation crimp wings (16) at a second end thereof for securing an electrical cable to the electrical terminal. An electrical terminal according to any preceding claim, wherein the elongated base plate (14) comprises a support structure (20) at the first end of the elongated base plate (14), the support structure including first and second substantially parallel walls extending substantially perpendicularly from respective sides of the elongated base plate, one of the first and second walls including the contact support tab (21), and a third wall extending between the first and second walls at ends of the first and second walls remote from the elongated base plate and being disposed substantially parallel to the elongated base plate, the resilient contact tongue extending from the third wall. An electrical terminal according to any preceding claim, wherein the contact tongue (22) comprises a free end (26) remote from the contact support tab (21), the free end being adapted to slide on the elongated base plate (14) when the contact tongue is urged towards the elongated base plate. An electrical terminal according to any preceding claim, wherein the transversal cross-section of the contact tongue (22) varies along the length thereof, decreasing in curvature from the apex (24) to be substantially flat at either end of the contact tongue. An electrical terminal according to any preceding claim, comprising a first side wall (32) extending from a first longitudinal side of the elongated base plate and a second side wall (34) extending from a second longitudinal side of the elongated base plate, the or a free end (26) of the contact tongue being disposed between the first and second side walls.

Inventors: HUFF DANIEL HOWARD, KELLY STEVEN CHRIS, STRANG WILLIAM GILBERT, HUFF, DANIEL HOWARD, KELLY, STEVEN CHRIS, STRANG, WILLIAM GILBERT
Applicants: GEN MOTORS CORP, GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION
Application year: 1993
Main classification: H01R13
IPC codes: H01R13