Terminal block

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10074917-B1
Application number	US-201715815712-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Nov 17, 2017
Priority date	Feb 28, 2017
Publication date	Sep 11, 2018
Grant date	Sep 11, 2018

Abstract

A terminal block includes a state display portion which displays whether a conductor portion and a terminal electrode portion are in a connected state or a non-connected state at a third opening portion and a movable display member. The movable display member has a main body portion capable of reciprocating in a direction intersecting a terminal connection surface, a contact portion capable of coming into contact with a conductor portion inserted from a first opening portion into an accommodating portion, a force transmitting portion which moves the main body portion toward the terminal connection surface when the conductor portion is inserted from the first opening portion to the accommodating portion, and rotating mechanism portions which rotate the state display portion so that display of the state display portion can be changed between a connected state and a non-connected state in accordance with the reciprocating movement of the main body portion.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A terminal block comprising:
an insulating housing having a terminal connection surface in which a first opening portion through which a conductor portion of an electric wire can be inserted and pulled out, a second opening portion which is adjacent to the first opening portion and through which a jig can be inserted and pulled out and a third opening portion are linearly arranged, and an accommodating portion which is disposed therein and connected to the first opening portion, the second opening portion and the third opening portion,
a terminal electrode portion disposed in the accommodating portion and with which the conductor portion inserted into the accommodating portion from the first opening portion is able to come into contact,
a leaf spring having a fixed portion formed at one end thereof to be fixed to the housing and an elastic portion formed at the other end thereof to be elastically deformable with respect to the fixed portion and disposed in the accommodating portion so that the elastic portion clamps the conductor portion inserted into the accommodating portion from the first opening portion with the terminal electrode portion to allow the conductor portion and the terminal electrode portion to be in a connected state, and the elastic portion comes into contact with the jig inserted into the accommodating portion from the second opening portion to release contact between the elastic portion and the conductor portion to allow the conductor portion and the terminal electrode portion to be in a non-connected state,
a state display portion supported by the housing to be rotatable around a rotation axis disposed adjacent to the terminal connection surface of the accommodating portion and extending in a direction intersecting an arrangement direction from the first opening portion of the terminal connection surface to the third opening portion thereof and configured to display whether the conductor portion and the terminal electrode portion are in the connected state or the non-connected state at the third opening portion, and
a movable display member disposed in the accommodating portion and including a main body portion which extends in a direction intersecting the terminal connection surface and is capable of reciprocating in the direction intersecting the terminal connection surface, a contact portion which is disposed to the main body portion and adjacent to the terminal electrode portion and capable of coming into contact with the conductor portion inserted from the first opening portion into the accommodating portion, a force transmitting portion which is connected to the main body portion and moves the main body portion toward the terminal connection surface when the conductor portion is inserted from the first opening portion into the accommodating portion, and a rotating mechanism portion disposed to the main body portion and adjacent to the terminal connection surface and the state display portion and configured to rotate the state display portion so that display of the state display portion can be changed between the connection state and the non-connection state according to the reciprocating movement of the main body portion.

2. The terminal block according to claim 1 , wherein the state display portion includes a cylindrical body having a cut-out portion provided at a part of an outer circumference thereof and extending along a center axis thereof and in which the center axis is the rotation axis, and a protruding portion provided at a middle portion of the cut-out portion of the outer circumference and protruding in a direction intersecting the rotation axis, and
the rotating mechanism portion of the movable display member has a first pawl portion and a second pawl portion which extend in the arrangement direction from the first opening portion of the terminal connection surface to the third opening portion thereof and are disposed to be spaced apart from each other and to be individually brought into contact with the protruding portion by the reciprocating movement of the main body portion, and
the first pawl portion is disposed closer to the terminal connection surface than the second pawl portion in a reciprocating direction of the main body portion, the protruding portion is provided between the first pawl portion and the second pawl portion, and one of the first pawl portion and the second pawl portion is capable of coming into contact with the protruding portion, and
by movement of the main body portion in a direction away from the terminal connection surface, the first pawl portion comes into contact with the protruding portion in the cut-out portion to cause the state display portion to rotate and to display the connected state, and by the movement of the main body portion in a direction approaching the terminal connection surface, the first pawl portion moves away from the protruding portion in the cut-out portion and the second pawl portion comes into contact with the protruding portion to cause the state display portion to rotate and to display the non-connected state.

3. The terminal block according to claim 2 , wherein the first pawl portion comes into contact with the protruding portion in the cut-out portion by the movement of the main body portion of the movable display member in a direction away from the terminal connection surface through the cut-out portion, and the first pawl portion moves away from the protruding portion in the cut-out portion by the movement of the main body portion in a direction approaching the terminal connection surface through the cut-out portion while the second pawl portion comes into contact with the protruding portion.

4. The terminal block according to claim 2 , wherein the state display portion has a connection display region which displays the connected state on the outer circumference of the cylindrical body other than the cut-out portion, and the connection display region is disposed to be exposed from at least a part of the third opening portion in the connected state.

5. The terminal block according to claim 2 , wherein a part of the outer circumference of the cylindrical body of the state display portion protrudes from the third opening portion to an outside of the housing.

6. The terminal block according to claim 1 , further comprising
a movable operation feeling generating member which is supported by the housing to be rotatable around a rotation axis disposed adjacent to the terminal electrode portion of the accommodating portion and extending in a direction intersecting the arrangement direction from the first opening portion of the terminal connection surface to the third opening portion thereof and rotates according to insertion of the conductor portion into the accommodating portion from the first opening portion to generate an operation feeling, and
a first protruding portion which is disposed in the accommodating portion to be capable of coming into contact with the movable operation feeling generating member being rotated by the insertion of the conductor portion into the accommodating portion from the first opening portion after the conductor portion and the terminal electrode portion are changed from the non-connected state to the connected state, and
wherein the movable operation feeling generating member includes a first contact portion which is capable of coming into contact with the conductor portion inserted into the accommodating portion from the first opening portion, and a second contact portion which is rotatable while in contact with the jig inserted into the accommodating portion from the second opening potion via the elastic portion and has a second protruding portion generating the operation feeling by coming into contact with the first protruding portion.

7. T

Assignees

• Omron Tateisi Electronics Co

Inventors

• Ono Masahiro
• Fujiwara Taijiro
• Morita Kazuaki
• Komeyama Hiroyasu

Classifications

• H01R9/2416

  Means for guiding or retaining wires or cables connected to terminal blocks · CPC title

• H01R13/582

  the cable being clamped between assembled parts of the housing · CPC title

• H01R9/2425

  Structural association with built-in components (for coupling parts H01R13/66) · CPC title

• H01R12/7064

  Press fitting · CPC title

• H01R43/20 Primary

  for assembling or disassembling contact members with insulating base, case or sleeve · CPC title