Electrical connection between two busbars made of flat conductors and of an insulating layer disposed between the conductors

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9071028-B2
Application number	US-201313875678-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 2, 2013
Priority date	Nov 2, 2010
Publication date	Jun 30, 2015
Grant date	Jun 30, 2015

Abstract

The disclosure relates to an electrical connection between two busbars made of flat conductors and an insulating layer disposed between the conductors at the opposite longitudinal edges of the two busbars. The two conductors of each busbar run parallel to each other at a distance on the longitudinal edge thereof, wherein a molded part made of electrically insulating material bridges the distances between the conductors of the two busbars. Electrically conductive contact elements, forced against each other but electrically insulated from each other, each contact one of the conductors of each busbar by means of structured contact surfaces and clamp the same between the element and the molded part, wherein the contact surfaces for the conductors of the two busbars including clamping protrusions running parallel to the longitudinal edges.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An electrical connection apparatus, comprising:
two busbars,
wherein each busbar comprises two flat conductors and an insulating layer disposed between the two flat conductors,
wherein each busbar has a longitudinal edge, and wherein the longitudinal edges of the two busbars are arranged opposite to each other, and
wherein the two conductors of each busbar run parallel to each other at a distance along the longitudinal edge of the respective busbar,

a shaped body comprising an insulating material bridging the distance between the two conductors of both the busbars;
two electrically conductive contact elements forced against each other but electrically insulated from each other,
wherein the shaped body and the conductors of both busbars on both sides of the shaped body are arranged between the two contact elements,
wherein each contact element is configured to contact one conductor of each busbar via a structured contact surface and clamps the respective conductor against the shaped body,
wherein the contact surfaces of the contact elements for each conductor of the two busbars comprise a clamping rib extending parallel to the longitudinal edges, and
wherein the cross section of the clamping rib is trapezoid.

2. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the contact surface for each conductor has a radius of curvature which is in a range of 0.5 times to 5 times the width of the contact surface perpendicular to the longitudinal edges.

3. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 2 , wherein each contact surface has a radius of curvature which is in a range of 1 time to 2 times the width of the contact surface perpendicular to the longitudinal edges.

4. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the shaped body comprises an electrically insulating material selected from thermoset and ceramic materials.

5. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the insulating layer disposed between the two conductors of each busbar extends up to between one of the conductors of the respective busbar and the shaped body.

6. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the shaped body comprises plane-parallel supporting surfaces for the conductors of the two busbars.

7. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the shaped body comprises convex supporting surfaces for the conductors of the two busbars.

8. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the two conductors of each busbar, at the longitudinal edge of the respective busbar, is offset away from the other conductor of the respective busbar.

9. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the contact elements, at the contact surfaces, comprise a higher surface hardness than the conductors of the busbars.

10. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the contact elements are made of a harder aluminum alloy than an aluminum alloy of the conductors

11. An electrical connection apparatus, comprising:
two busbars,
wherein each busbar comprises two flat conductors and an insulating layer disposed between the two flat conductors,
wherein each busbar has a longitudinal edge, and wherein the longitudinal edges of the two busbars are arranged opposite to each other, and
wherein the two conductors of each busbar run parallel to each other at a distance along the longitudinal edge of the respective busbar,

a shaped body comprising an insulating material bridging the distance between the two conductors of both the busbars; and
two electrically conductive contact elements forced against each other but electrically insulated from each other,
wherein the shaped body and the conductors of both busbars on both sides of the shaped body are arranged between the two contact elements,
wherein each contact element is configured to contact one conductor of each busbar via a structured contact surface and clamps the respective conductor against the shaped body, and
wherein the contact surfaces of the contact elements for each conductor of the two busbars comprise a clamping rib extending parallel to the longitudinal edges, and
wherein the contact elements are forced against each other by a plurality of clamping elements distributed along the longitudinal edges.

12. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the contact elements are forced against each other by at least three clamping elements.

13. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 11 , wherein each clamping element comprises a clamping screw which, through a hole in one of the contact elements, engages a thread in the other one of the two contact elements.

14. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 13 , wherein each thread is provided in a separate threaded bushing pressed into the other one contact element.

15. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 13 , wherein each clamping screw is electrically insulated from the one of the two contact elements.

16. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 15 , wherein each clamping screw is electrically insulated from the one of the two contact elements by a bushing comprising an electrically insulating material, wherein a head of the clamping screw abuts against the one of the contact elements via a radial flange of the bushing, and wherein the bushing extends into the shaped body.

17. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 16 , wherein each bushing comprises an electrically insulating material selected from a thermoset material and a ceramic material.

18. An electrical connection apparatus, comprising:
two busbars,
wherein each busbar comprises two flat conductors and an insulating layer disposed between the two flat conductors,
wherein each busbar has a longitudinal edge, and wherein the longitudinal edges of the two busbars are arranged opposite to each other, and
wherein the two conductors of each busbar run parallel to each other at a distance along the longitudinal edge of the respective busbar,

a shaped body comprising an insulating material bridging the distance between the two conductors of both the busbars; and
two electrically conductive contact elements forced against each other but electrically insulated from each other,
wherein the shaped body and the conductors of both busbars on both sides of the shaped body are arranged between the two contact elements,
wherein each contact element is configured to contact one conductor of each busbar via a structured contact surface and clamps the respective conductor against the shaped body,
wherein the contact surfaces of the contact elements for each conductor of the two busbars comprise a clamping rib extending parallel to the longitudinal edges, and
wherein each contact surface for each one of the conductors of the two busbars is provided with grooves running parallel to the longitudinal edges and providing the contact surface with a structure selected from a triangular structure and a sawtooth structure.

19. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 18 , wherein the grooves have widths and depths in a range of 0.1 mm to 1 mm.

20. The electrical connection apparatus of claim 19 , wherein the grooves have widths and depths in a range of 0.1 mm to 0.5 mm.

Assignees

• Sma Solar Technology Ag

Inventors

• Falk Andreas
• Werb Philipp

Classifications

• H01G4/228 Primary

  Terminals · CPC title

• H01R4/44

  Clamping areas on both sides of screw · CPC title

• H01R25/162 Primary

  Electrical connections between or with rails or bus-bars (rails having primarily a non electrical function H01R4/64) · CPC title