Crimp terminal, and method and apparatus for manufacturing a crimp terminal

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9548545-B2
Application number	US-201514832228-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 21, 2015
Priority date	Feb 22, 2013
Publication date	Jan 17, 2017
Grant date	Jan 17, 2017

Abstract

A method for manufacturing a crimp terminal having a crimp portion adapted to allow crimp connection with a coated wire having a conductor and an insulating coating, the crimp portion being adapted to crimp connect along the coated wire from a portion of the conductor coated with the insulating coating to a portion of the conductor exposed from the insulating coating at a tip of the coated wire includes providing a barrel member formed by arranging edges of a copper alloy plate material side-by-side, the barrel member having a diameter reducing on an end portion side in a longitudinal direction from a coating crimp portion, forming the crimp portion by welding the edges by laser irradiation from a laser irradiation unit onto a position where the edges are arranged side-by-side, while moving a laser light irradiation position in a longitudinal direction of the barrel member, and irradiating laser light with an output power density and a sweep rate for causing fine molten metal particles having a diameter of 60 μm or less to ejected from the weld portion during laser welding to adhere to an inner surface of the barrel member.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for manufacturing a crimp terminal, the method comprising:
bending a metal plate material having opposite side edges to form a barrel member such that the side edges are adjacent each other, the metal plate material comprising copper alloy, the barrel member having a first end portion and a second end portion, the first end portion having a first diameter, the second end portion having a second diameter, the second diameter being less than the first diameter;
forming a crimp portion by joining the side edges of the barrel member with each other via laser welding performed by a laser irradiation unit irradiating laser light along the adjacent side edges from a first region of the barrel member to a second region of the barrel member, the second region being spaced longitudinally from the first region, the laser irradiation unit irradiating the laser light with an output power density and a sweep rate to cause fine molten metal particles to adhere to an inner surface of the barrel member, the fine molten metal particles being particles having a particle diameter of 60 μm or less that are ejected during the welding of the side edges of the barrel member.

2. The method for manufacturing a crimp terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the irradiated laser light has a beam spot diameter in a range of 20 μm to 100 μm and a laser wavelength in a range of 1.064 μm to 1.084 μm, and the output power density is in a range of 5 MW/cm 2 to 400 MW/cm 2 and the sweep rate is in a range of 90 mm/sec to 500 mm/sec.

3. A crimp terminal manufacturing apparatus comprising a laser irradiation unit and a positioning unit, the laser irradiation unit being adapted to irradiate laser light onto an irradiation region of a barrel member, the positioning unit being adapted to position laser light irradiated by the laser irradiation unit along adjacent side edges of the barrel member of a terminal so as to join the adjacent side edges with each other, the laser irradiation unit being adapted to irradiate laser light with an output power density and a sweep rate to cause fine molten metal particles to adhere to an inner surface of the barrel member, the fine molten metal particles being particles having a particle diameter of 60 μm or less and that are ejected during the welding of the side edges of the barrel member.

4. A crimp terminal comprising a barrel member having a crimp portion, the barrel member comprising a copper alloy, the barrel member having a welded portion at which adjacent side edges of the barrel member are jointed with each other, a first end portion and a second end portion, the first end portion having a first diameter, the second end portion having a second diameter, the second diameter being less than the first diameter, the crimp portion being adapted to be crimped onto a wire having a an insulated portion and an exposed portion at a tip of the wire; and
a plurality of fine metal particles adhering to an inner surface of the barrel member, the plurality of fine metal particles having a particle diameter of 60 μm or less.

5. The method for manufacturing a crimp terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the side edges of the barrel member are joined with each other by laser welding along an interface at which the side edges of the barrel member are butted with each other.

6. The crimp terminal manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the adjacent side edges are joined with each other by laser welding along an interface at which the adjacent side edges are butted with each other.

7. The crimp terminal according to claim 4 , wherein the adjacent side edges are joined with each other by laser welding along an interface at which the adjacent side edges are butted with each other.

Assignees

• Furukawa Electric Co Ltd
• Furukawa Automotive Systems Inc

Inventors

• Yagi Saburo
• Kihara Yasushi
• Kawamura Yukihiro

Classifications

• H01R43/048

  Crimping apparatus or processes (H01R43/042 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H01R4/187 Primary

  combined with soldering or welding · CPC title

• B23K26/262

  of longitudinal seams of tubes · CPC title

• H01R4/183

  for cylindrical elongated bodies, e.g. cables having circular cross-section (H01R4/01 takes precedence) · CPC title

• Y10T29/53235

  Means to fasten by deformation · CPC title