Patent Publication Number: US-11394158-B1

Title: Electrical connector with adjustable terminals

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates in general to an electrical circuit interrupt. More specifically, this invention relates to a manual service disconnect for an electric battery. 
     A manual service disconnect is provided as a safety device on battery electric vehicles. The manual service disconnect is provided at the batteries and is a removable breaker for a high voltage circuit. When maintenance work on high voltage parts of the vehicle are being done, the manual service disconnect can be removed in order to interrupt current flow. An example of a manual service disconnect is described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,397,459. 
     The physical shape and size of the manual service disconnect can vary based on the available space in the vehicle and the desired position of the manual service disconnect. In order to ensure that the high voltage circuit is maintained when the manual service disconnect it closed, it is desirable to keep all components of the manual service disconnect in their desired positions during assembly and to account for any variations in component size that can occur during manufacturing. It is desirable to have an improved manual service disconnect. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates to an electrical connector. The electrical connector includes a terminal housing. A first terminal is retained in the terminal housing for movement relative to the terminal housing. A second terminal is also retained in the terminal housing for movement relative to the terminal housing. A flexible bus bar is connected to the first terminal and to the second terminal. The first terminal is able to be moved independently of the second terminal. 
     In another embodiment of the invention, the electrical connector includes a third terminal retained in the terminal housing for movement relative to the terminal housing. The electrical connector further includes a fourth terminal retained in the terminal housing for movement relative to the terminal housing. A second flexible bus bar is connected to the third terminal and to the fourth terminal. The third terminal is able to be moved independently of the fourth terminal. 
     A further embodiment of the invention relates to an electrical connector with a terminal housing. A first terminal includes a first terminal guide attached to an outer surface thereof. The first terminal is retained in the terminal housing for movement relative to the terminal housing perpendicular to a terminal axis. A second terminal includes a second terminal guide attached to an outer surface thereof. The second terminal is retained in the terminal housing for movement relative to the terminal housing perpendicular to the terminal axis. A third terminal includes a third terminal guide attached to an outer surface thereof. The third terminal is retained in the terminal housing for movement relative to the terminal housing perpendicular to the terminal axis. A fourth terminal includes a fourth terminal guide attached to an outer surface thereof. The fourth terminal is retained in the terminal housing for movement relative to the terminal housing perpendicular to the terminal axis. A first flexible bus bar is connected to the first terminal and to the second terminal. The first terminal is able to be moved independently of the second terminal. A second flexible bus bar is connected to the third terminal and the fourth terminal. The third terminal is able to be moved independently of the fourth terminal. A terminal retainer is attached to the terminal housing. The first terminal guide, the second terminal guide, the third terminal guide, and the fourth terminal guide extend through respective guide openings in the terminal retainer. Each of the terminal guides, are smaller than the respective guide opening, and each includes a respective retaining flange that is larger than the guide opening. 
     Various aspects of this invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment, when read in light of the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic view of an electric vehicle including a high voltage battery with a manual service disconnect in accordance with the invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a portion of the battery pack with the manual service disconnect shown in a mated position. 
         FIG. 3  is a partially exploded view of  FIG. 2 , with the manual service disconnect shown in an unmated position with a plug assembly removed from a header assembly, and with underlying parts of the battery pack visible. 
         FIG. 4  is an enlarged, detailed view of a portion of the header assembly of the manual service disconnect. 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a terminal holder from the header assembly from  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 6  is an enlarged, plan view of a portion of the terminal holder. 
         FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view taken along the line  7 - 7  of  FIG. 6 . 
         FIG. 8  is a view similar to  FIG. 7 , with a terminal installed in the terminal holder and prior to attachment to a bus bar. 
         FIG. 9  is a view similar to  FIG. 8 , with the terminal shown attached to the bus bar. 
         FIG. 10  is a partially-exploded, perspective view of the header assembly, with four bus bars shown attached to respective terminals. 
         FIG. 11  is a plan view of the header from  FIG. 4 . 
         FIG. 12  is a partially exploded, perspective view of the plug assembly from  FIG. 3 , with a terminal assembly shown separate from a plug body. 
         FIG. 13  is an enlarged, exploded view of the terminal assembly from  FIG. 12 . 
         FIG. 14  is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the plug assembly. 
         FIG. 15  is a cross-sectional view similar to  FIG. 14 , with the plug assembly shown in the mated position from  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 16  is an enlarged plan view of the plug assembly, showing the terminal assembly installed in the plug body. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring now to the drawings, there is illustrated in  FIG. 1  a schematic view of an electric vehicle, indicated generally at  10 . The illustrated vehicle  10  may be a hybrid vehicle, or any desired type of vehicle that includes a battery  12 . The battery  12  may be a single battery, or may be multiple battery cells. The electric vehicle  10  includes an electric motor  14  that is connected to drive wheels  16 . A primary circuit, indicated at  18 , provides current flow from the battery  12  through the electric motor  14 . The illustrated electric motor  14  is one type of electric equipment that may be connected to the battery  12 , and it should be appreciated that any desired electric equipment may be powered by the primary circuit  18 . 
     The electric vehicle  10  includes a manual service disconnect, indicated generally at  20 . The manual service disconnect  20  allows a technician to open the primary circuit  18  at the battery  12 , for example, when the electric motor  14  is to be serviced. It should be appreciated that the primary circuit  18  is only described in a simplified form sufficient for the understanding of the manual service disconnect  20 . The preferred embodiment of the invention will be described in connection with the battery  12  on the electric vehicle  10 , but it should be appreciated that the invention may be used as an electric disconnect in any desired circuit. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 2 , there is illustrated a portion of an enclosure  22  for the battery  12  that includes the manual service disconnect  20 . The manual service disconnect  20  includes a plug assembly  24  that is shown in a mated position in  FIG. 2 . Referring to  FIG. 3 , there is a view similar to  FIG. 2 , with the plug assembly  24  shown removed from the mated position, where the plug assembly  24  is separated from a header assembly, indicated at  26 . When the plug assembly  24  is in the mated position shown in  FIG. 2 , the primary circuit  18  is closed. When the plug assembly  24  is not in the mate position, the primary circuit  18  is open. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , an enlarged view of the header assembly  26  is illustrated. The header assembly  26  includes four header terminals  28   a ,  28   b ,  28   c , and  28   d . Each of the header terminals  28   a ,  28   b ,  28   c , and  28   d  is connected to a respective header bus bar  30   a ,  30   b ,  30   c , and  30   d . The header terminals  28   a ,  28   b ,  28   c , and  28   d  are connected to the battery  12  and the primary circuit  18 . 
     The header assembly  26  includes two terminal holders  32   a  and  32   b . The two illustrated terminal holders  32   a  and  32   b  are the same, and terminal holder  32   a  is illustrated in  FIG. 5 . The terminal holder  32   a  is molded from non-conductive plastic, but may be made of any desired material and may be made by any desired process. The terminal holder  32   a  includes a holder body  34 . Two terminal mounts, indicated at  36  and  38 , are located on the holder body  34 . The terminal mounts  36  and  38  include similar features and only one will be described in detail. The terminal mount  36  includes a terminal shroud  40  that extends from the holder body  34  in a mate direction  42 . The terminal shroud  40  is located around a terminal axis  44  that extends parallel to the mate direction  42 . The terminal axis  44  extends through a terminal opening  46  that extends through the holder body  34 . 
       FIG. 6  is an enlarged, top view of the terminal mount  36 , and  FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view taken along the line  7 - 7  of  FIG. 6 . The illustrated terminal shroud  40  has a circular cross-sectional shape around the terminal axis  44 , but may have any desired shape. The terminal mount  36  includes a lock flange  48  that extends from the terminal shroud  40  toward the terminal axis  44 . In the illustrated embodiment, as best shown in  FIG. 6 , the lock flange  48  includes four separate parts that are spaced-apart around an interior circumference of the terminal shroud  40 . However, the lock flange  48  may have any desired shape and distribution within the terminal shroud  40 . 
     The terminal mount  36  also includes lock fingers  50  that extend from the terminal shroud  40  toward the terminal axis  44 . In the illustrated embodiment, the terminal mount  36  includes four lock fingers  50  that spaced-apart around the interior circumference of the terminal shroud  40 . However, the terminal mount  36  may have any desired number and distribution of lock fingers  50 . Each of the lock fingers  50  extends from a respective resilient lock arm  52  that extends from the terminal shroud  40 . A terminal lock space, indicated at  54 , is defined between the lock flange  48  and the lock fingers  50 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 8 , a view similar to  FIG. 7  is illustrated, with the header terminal  28   a  shown inserted into the terminal mount  36 . Additionally, the header bus bar  30   a  is shown in  FIG. 8 , prior to being connected to the header terminal  28   a . The header terminal  28   a  includes a terminal body  56 . In the illustrated embodiment, the terminal body  56  has a cylindrical cross-sectional shape around the terminal axis  44 , but may have any desired shape. The header terminal  28   a  includes a terminal flange  58  that extends from the terminal body  56  away from the terminal axis  44 . In order to install the header terminal  28   a  into the terminal mount  36 , the header terminal  28   a  is inserted through the terminal opening  46  and moved in the mate direction  42 . 
     The terminal flange  58  engages the lock fingers  50  and pushes the lock fingers  50  away from the terminal axis  44 . When the header terminal  28   a  has been inserted into the terminal mount  36  so that the terminal flange  58  is located in the terminal lock space  54 , the terminal lock fingers  50  rebounds toward the terminal axis  44 . The terminal flange is then retained in the terminal lock space  54  between the lock flange  48  and the lock fingers  50  and the header terminal  28   a  is retained in the terminal mount  36 . 
     The header terminal  28   a  includes a mount hole  60 . The mount hole  60  passes through the terminal body  56  and the terminal axis  44  passes through the mount hole  60 . The mount hole  60  includes threads to retain a threaded connector  62 . As illustrated in  FIG. 8 , the threaded connector  62  is located through a portion of the header bus bar  30   a  and is not inserted into the mount hole  60 . 
     A touch protection  64  is located on a mate end  66  of the header terminal  28   a . The touch protection  64  extends into the mount hole  60  and engages the threads to retain the touch protection  64  in the illustrated position. The touch protection  64  is made of a non-conductive material and helps prevent unintended electrical contact with the terminal body  56 . As illustrated, the terminal body  56  is located within the terminal shroud  40  and the terminal shroud  40  and the touch protection  64  limit the space available to engage in electrical contact with the terminal body  56 . 
       FIG. 9  is a view similar to  FIG. 8 , with the threaded connector  62  inserted into the mount hole  60 . The threaded connector  62  engages the threads in the mount hole  60  to retain the terminal body  56  in contact with the header bus bar  30   a . The illustrated embodiment uses the threaded mounting hole  60  to retain the terminal body  56  in the illustrated position relative to header bus bar  30   a  and the touch protection  64 ; however, any desired attachment mechanism may be used. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 10 , there is illustrated a view of the partially assembled header assembly  26 . As illustrated in  FIG. 10 , the header terminal  28   a  is retained in the terminal mount  36  on the terminal holder  32   a  and is connected to the header bus bar  30   a , as previously described. Additionally, the header terminal  28   b  is retained in the terminal mount  38  on the terminal holder  32   a  and is connected to the header bus bar  30   b . Similarly, the header terminals  28   c  and  28   d  are retained on the terminal holder  32   b  and are connected to the respective header bus bars  30   c  and  30   d.    
     The terminal holder  32   a  includes an alignment lock, indicated generally at  68 . As previously described, the terminal holder  32   b  is the same as the terminal holder  32   a  and thus includes a similar alignment lock  68   b . The alignment locks  68  and  68   b  allow the terminal holders  32   a  and  32   b  to be assembled into a desired position relative to each other. In the illustrated embodiment, the alignment lock  68  includes a post  70  and a collar  72  that are attached to the holder body  34 . Both the post  70  and the collar  72  extend parallel to the terminal axis  44 . The terminal holders  32   a  and  32   b  are connected to each other by inserting the post  70  into a collar  72   b  on the terminal holder  32   b , and inserting a post  70   b  on the terminal holder  32   b  into the collar  72 . This allows the terminal holder  32   a  to be connected to the bus bars  30   a  and  30   b  as part of a first sub-assembly (not shown) while the terminal holder  32   b  is connected to the bus bars  30   c  and  30   d  as part of a second sub-assembly (not shown). The two sub-assemblies can then be assembled together into the header assembly  26  shown in  FIG. 4 , and the terminal holders  32   a  and  32   b  allow the header terminals  28   a ,  28   b ,  28   c , and  28   d  to be placed in the desired relative positions. 
     Referring to  FIG. 11 , a top view of the header assembly  26  is illustrated. As shown, the header terminals  28   a ,  28   b ,  28   c , and  28   d  are arranged generally at the corners of a rectangular-shaped space. However, the header terminals  28   a ,  28   b ,  28   c , and  28   d  may have any desired relative positions. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 12 , there is illustrated a partially exploded view of the plug assembly  24  from  FIG. 3 . The plug assembly  24  is illustrated with a terminal assembly, indicated generally at  74 , shown separate from a plug body  76 . The illustrated plug body  76  is molded from non-conductive plastic, but may be made of any desired material and may be made by any desired process. The plug assembly  24  includes a terminal housing  78  that is part of the plug body  76 . When the plug assembly  24  is assembled, the terminal assembly  74  is retained in the terminal housing  78 , as described below. The plug assembly  24  also includes a plug handle  80  that is part of the plug body  76 . The plug handle  80  assists the technician in manipulating and placing the plug assembly  24 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 13 , there is illustrated an enlarged, partially exploded view of the terminal assembly  74 . The terminal assembly  74  includes two bus bar assemblies, indicated at  82   a  and  82   b  respectively. The bus bar assemblies  82   a  and  82   b  include similar components and only one will be described in detail. In  FIG. 13 , the bus bar assembly  82   a  is shown exploded while the bus bar assembly  82   b  is shown assembled. 
     The bus bar assembly  82   a  includes two plug terminals  84  and  86 . The illustrated plug terminals  84  and  86  each have a cylindrical shape and are adapted to mate with the previously described header terminal  28   a . However, the plug terminals  84  and  86  may have any desired shape. The bus bar assembly  82   a  includes two terminal leads  88  and  90 . The terminal leads  88  and  90  are made of an L-shaped piece of sheet metal, but may be made of any desired material in any desired shape. The terminal leads  88  and  90  include respective terminal mounts  92  and  94 . The terminal mount  92  allows the plug terminal  84  to be attached to the terminal lead  88 . The illustrated terminal mount  92  is a hole through the terminal lead  88  that the plug terminal  84  is inserted into, but any desired attachment method may be used. Similarly, the terminal mount  94  allows the plug terminal  86  to be attached to the terminal lead  88 . The terminal leads  88  and  90  also include respective tail ends  96  and  98 . 
     The bus bar assembly  82   a  includes a flexible bus bar  100 . The illustrated flexible bus bar  100  is made of an electrically conductive, braided metal. However, the flexible bus bar  100  may be made of any desired material. The flexible bus bar  100  is folded into a U-shape so that is engages two sides of the tail ends  96  and  98 . The illustrated flexible bus bar  100  is attached to both of the terminal leads  88  and  90  by welding, but may be attached using any desired method. The flexible bus bar  100  provides an electrical connection between the plug terminals  84  and  86 , while allowing relative movement between the plug terminals  84  and  86 . 
     The bus bar assembly  82   a  includes two terminal guides  102 . Each of the terminal guides  102  is sized and shaped to fit on a respective one of the plug terminals  84  and  86 . The illustrated terminal guides  102  are made of non-conductive plastic, but may be made of any desired material. 
     The terminal assembly  74  includes a terminal retainer  104 . The terminal retainer is adapted to retain the bus bar assemblies  82   a  and  82   b  in the terminal housing  78  of the plug assembly  24 . The illustrated terminal retainer  104  is made of non-conductive plastic, but may be made of any desired material. The terminal retainer  104  includes four guide openings  106  that are each sized and shaped to accommodate one of the terminal guides  102  being inserted through and retained therein. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 14 , there is illustrated a cross-sectional view of a portion of the assembled plug assembly  24 . The cross-section is taken through a centerline of the plug terminal  84 . As shown, the plug terminal  84  is attached to the terminal lead  88 , the terminal guide  102  is attached to the plug terminal  84 , and the terminal guide  102  is located in one of the guide openings  106  on the terminal retainer  104 . The terminal retainer  104  is snap-fit into the terminal housing  78  and retains the terminal assembly  74  in place relative to the plug body  76 . 
     As shown, the guide opening  106  has an inner diameter  108  that is larger than an outer diameter  110  of the terminal guide  102 . This allows the terminal guide  102  to be moved relative to the terminal retainer  104  and relative to the plug body  76 . The terminal guide  102  includes a retaining flange  112  that is larger than the guide opening  106 , in order to prevent the terminal guide  102  from passing through the guide opening  106 . The terminal guide  102  and the guide opening  106  are described by their relative diameters in the illustrated embodiment; however, the terminal guide  102  and the guide opening  106  may have any desired shapes. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 15  there is illustrated a view similar to  FIG. 14 , with the plug assembly  24  shown in the mated position relative to the header assembly  26 . As shown, portions of the terminal guide  102  and the plug terminal  84  are located inside the terminal shroud  40 , and the plug terminal  84  engages the header terminal  28   a . As shown, the terminal shroud  40  includes an angled leading edge  114  that funnels into the terminal shroud  40 . The leading edge  114  helps to ensure that the terminal guide  102  properly moves into the terminal shroud  40 . The terminal guide  102  and the plug terminal  84  are able to be moved relative to the plug body  76  in a plane that is perpendicular to the terminal axis  44 . This allows the plug terminal  84  to be moved into proper engagement with the header terminal  28   a  when the plug assembly  24  is mated with the header assembly  26 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 16 , there is illustrated a detail view of a portion of the plug assembly  24 , showing an end view of the terminal assembly  74 . As shown, the plug terminals  84 ,  86 ,  84   b , and  86   b  are arranged generally at the corners of a rectangular-shaped space. This allows each of the plug terminals  84 ,  86 ,  84   b , and  86   b  to engage the respective header terminal  28   a ,  28   b ,  28   c , and  28   d  when the plug assembly  24  is mated with the header assembly  26 . Each of the plug terminals  84 ,  86 ,  84   b , and  86   b  is able to be moved relative to the plug body  76  in the plane that is perpendicular to the terminal axis  44 . Additionally, the flexible bus bar  100  and allow the connected plug terminals  84  and  86  to move relative to each other. Thus, each of the plug terminals  84 ,  86 ,  84   b , and  86   b  is able to independently move relative to the plug body  76  in order to ensure that each of the plug terminals  84 ,  86 ,  84   b , and  86   b  properly engages the respective header terminal  28   a ,  28   b ,  28   c , and  28   d  when the plug assembly  24  is mated with the header assembly  26 . 
     The principle and mode of operation of this invention have been explained and illustrated in its preferred embodiment. However, it must be understood that this invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically explained and illustrated without departing from its spirit or scope.