Service disconnect cover with fuse/terminal retention

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9293289-B2
Application number	US-201213656804-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 22, 2012
Priority date	Oct 22, 2012
Publication date	Mar 22, 2016
Grant date	Mar 22, 2016

Abstract

An assembly in which a housing and cover enclose an electric component and lock the electric component into place is provided. The electric component has two L-shaped terminals with notches formed in them that provide lock surfaces for the housing body. The housing body has locking arms that flex during installation and lock the electric component into place by mating with the lock surfaces. The cover body has bosses which push down upon the electric component during installation and lock pins which lock the flexible locking arms into place. The lock pins occupy the space between the locking arms and the backstops of the housing body thereby preventing the locking arms from moving out of position and disengaging the lock surfaces of the locking arms and terminals.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An assembly comprising:
an electric component having a pair of terminals each of the terminals having a lock surface;
a housing having a housing body with backstops and locking arms, each of the locking arms having a fixed end fixed to the housing body and a free end that is movable relative to the housing body, the free end having a body lock surface that locks onto the lock surface of an associated one of the terminals when the electric component is fully inserted into the housing; and
a cover coupled to the housing, the cover having a cover body, a pair of bosses extending from the cover body, and a pair of lock pins that extending from the cover body, the pair of bosses disposed between the lock pins, each boss abutting a shoulder of a corresponding one of the terminals such that a force applied to the cover is transmitted to the terminals, each of the lock pins being received between the backstops and an associated one of the free ends to thereby inhibit movement of the associated one of the free ends in a direction that permits the associated one of the free ends from disengaging its associated lock surface.

2. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the electric component, the housing, and the cover cooperate to align the cover to the housing.

3. The assembly of claim 2 wherein each of the lock pins has a distal end that is disposed on a side opposite to the cover body, each of the distal ends having a lock pin chamfer.

4. The assembly of claim 3 wherein each locking arm has a locking arm chamfer engaging the lock pin chamfer when the cover body is placed on the housing body and the lock surface of the locking arm is not engaged with the locking surface of the terminal.

5. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the terminals are blade terminals that comprise a generally L-shaped portion with a bend in a middle section of the terminal such that faces on either end of the bend are at a right angle with one another.

6. The assembly of claim 5 wherein each of the L-shaped portions has an apex, wherein a notch is formed in each apex and wherein each notch has a set of interior faces.

7. The assembly of claim 6 wherein the lock surface of the terminal is one of the interior faces of the notch.

8. The assembly of claim 5 wherein the electric component has an electric component body, and wherein the lock surface of the terminal is located on a shoulder between the bend and the electric component body.

9. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the electric component is a fuse, fusible link, relay, busbar assembly, busbar shunt or 90 degree terminal.

10. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the cover body has a cover body lip near the periphery of the cover body extending toward the housing body and the housing body has a recess to accommodate the cover body lip.

11. An assembly comprising:
an electric component having a lock surface;
a housing having a housing body, backstops, and locking arms, each locking arm being flexible about a fixed end to be displaced from an original position during electric component installation and automatically returned to the original position after the electric component is fully seated in the housing, a free end of the locking arm being opposite the fixed end and having a body lock surface that mates with the lock surface on the electric component such that the mating inhibits withdrawal of the electric component from the housing; and
a cover having a cover body, a pair of bosses and lock pins, the pair of bosses disposed between the lock pins, each boss abutting a shoulder of a corresponding terminal of the electric component such that a force applied to the cover is transmitted to the terminals to facilitate insertion of the electric component into the housing, each lock pin extending from the cover body, occupying a space adjacent to the free end of an associated locking arm to prevent the locking arm from flexing from its original position.

12. The assembly of claim 11 wherein each space adjacent to the free end of the locking arm is between the free end of the locking arm and the backstop, the size of each gap between the free end, lock pin, and the housing body being too small to allow the body lock surface of the free end of the locking arm to disengage from the lock surface of the electric component.

13. The assembly of claim 12 wherein the lock surface on the electric component is on the terminals.

Assignees

• Yazaki North American Inc
• Yazaki North America Inc

Inventors

• Chen Haijun
• Exenberger Richard J
• Hasija John J

Classifications

• Y10T29/49117

  Conductor or circuit manufacturing · CPC title

• H01H85/2045 Primary

  Mounting means or insulating parts of the base, e.g. covers, casings · CPC title

• H01H85/25

  Safety arrangements preventing or inhibiting contact with live parts, including operation of isolation on removal of cover · CPC title

• H01H85/2035

  for miniature fuses with parallel side contacts · CPC title