Patent Application
20150024642
The invention relates to an electrical connector to be bonded to a glass substrate, for example, a vehicle window. More specifically, the invention relates to an electrical connector particularly suitable for bonding to a vehicle window, wherein the vehicle window and the electrical connector are disposed on/in an assembly fixture and are brought into bonding contact with one another to form a vehicle window assembly.
While thousands of electrical connectors have been described in the patent literature, the number of patented electrical connectors which are bondable to glass substrates is much smaller, for example:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,721,845 describes an electrically heatable automobile glass pane having heating conductors printed onto and baked into a surface, which conductors are connected to printed-on and baked-in collecting conductors, metal strips are disposed on the baked-in collecting conductors and are electrically connected with the collecting conductors. The baked-in collecting conductors and the metal strips connected with them are furnished with a plastic coating which jointly covers them and is glued to them and to the glass surface.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,406,337 (U.S. Pat. No. 6,551,150 is a continuation of 6,406,337) describes an electrical terminal including a base pad for soldering to a glass substrate surface. The base pad has a curved perimeter that is generally circular and top and bottom surfaces. The electrical terminal also includes a securement portion having a deformable member for deforming around a conductor wire to capture and secure the conductor wire directly to the securement portion. The securement portion is configured relative to the base pad such that forces exerted by the conductor on the base pad are said to be directed to a central region of the base pad. Two or more cable/terminal assemblies can be attached to a carrier strip by breakable regions to facilitate installation.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,059,884 describes an electrical connection structure for a conductor formed on a glass surface, comprising a conductor formed on the glass surface, a cover member provided to cover at least a part of the conductor, forming a cavity between the cover member and the glass surface and having an insertion slot communicating with the cavity, and a connection member inserted into the insertion slot made of an electrically conductive material having elasticity, wherein the connection member presses the conductor by being elastically deformed in the cavity, whereby the connection member and the conductor are electrically connected.
U.S. Patent Publication No. 2009/0277671 describes a glass pane having at least one electrical functional element. The electrical functional element comprises at least one electrical conductor and at least one terminal area located at an end of the electrical conductor, wherein the electrical conductor and the terminal area are formed from an electrically conductive layer deposited on a surface of the glass pane. A terminal wire is connected to the at least one terminal area by a soldered joint by way of a metal block having a flat contact area, and the flat contact area is soldered on a corresponding terminal area.
DE 202011100906 U1 describes an electrical connector for contacting a conductive structure on a flat glass substrate by means of a lead-free solder, wherein on its side facing away from the conductive structure means for attaching a flexible conductor are arranged. The connector is further described as a solderable foot designed as a single or dual circle.
The present invention relates to an electrical connector to be bonded to a glass substrate, for example, a vehicle window. More specifically, the invention relates to an electrical connector particularly suitable for bonding to a vehicle window, wherein the vehicle window and the electrical connector are disposed on/in an assembly fixture and are brought into bonding contact with one another to form a vehicle window assembly.
In order for an electrical connector, or other item of hardware having some degree of flexibility, to be efficiently utilized in an assembly fixture as part of a high volume manufacturing process, it has been found to be advantageous for that flexibility to be limited; that is, that it is necessary for at least a portion of the electrical connector or other item of hardware to have a certain rigidity, as expressed, for example, in terms of modulus of rigidity.
The electrical connector of the invention preferably includes:
In addition to forming a strong bond between the bonding portion of the electrical connector and the glass substrate, the electrical connector of the invention exhibits desirable strength in the connection between the electrically conductive bonding portion and the unbonded electrically conductive portion of the invention.
The above, as well as other advantages of the present invention, will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description when considered in the light of the accompanying drawings in which:
a is a cross-sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the electrical connector of
The invention relates to an electrical connector 10 to be bonded to a glass substrate, for example, a vehicle window 12. More specifically, the invention relates to an electrical connector 10 particularly suitable for bonding to a glass vehicle window 12, wherein the vehicle window 12 and the electrical connector 10 are disposed on/in an assembly fixture 30 and are brought into bonding contact with one another to form a vehicle window assembly 14.
The electrically conductive bonding portion 16 is an electrically conductive metal. Preferably, the electrically conductive metal includes copper and alloys of copper, although other highly electrically conductive metals may be considered.
It is an aspect of the invention that the electrically conductive bonding portion 16 of the electrical connector 10 exhibits a certain rigidity or, put another way, is not undesirably flexible. The inventors have found that for purposes of the invention it is preferred that the electrically conductive bonding portion 16 exhibit a rigidity, expressed as modulus of rigidity, >40 GPa. The modulus of rigidity, or shear modulus, is one of several quantities for measuring the stiffness of materials, generally covered by Hooke's law. The shear modulus or modulus of rigidity is concerned with the deformation of a solid when it experiences a force parallel to one of its surfaces while its opposite face experiences an opposing force, for example, friction. Modulus of rigidity is typically expressed in gigapascals (GPa). As an example, the modulus of rigidity (at room temperature) of copper is 44.7 GPa.
The unbonded electrically conductive portion 18 may be any suitable material, but is preferably an insulated highly electrically conductive wire, for example a braided or solid copper wire. Any suitable electrically non-conductive insulating material may be considered as a coating or sheath for the wire, such as a polymeric insulating material.
The electrically conductive bonding portion 16 and the unbonded electrically conductive portion 18 may be of any suitable dimension. While they are shown as being relatively equal in length and width, they may differ in dimension as requirements for a particular vehicle window dictate.
The first connecting portion 20 of the electrical connector 10 mechanically and electrically connects the conductive bonding portion 16 and unbonded conductive portion 18 thereof. Any suitable connection system may be considered, however, preferably the first connecting portion 20 includes a two-part connector 26 with one portion 28 suitable for gripping the preferably cylindrical insulated wire of the unbonded connecting portion 18, and the other portion 29 suitable for gripping the substantially flat electrically conductive metal ribbon of the electrically conductive bonding portion. In an alternative configuration shown in
In a preferred configuration, the unbonded electrically conductive portion 18 is first welded to the electrically conductive bonding portion 16 to form a welded joint. Then, a solder-bearing gripping connector portion 26 is crimped over the welded joint and heated to the solder melting temperature to form an enhanced first connecting portion 20a. Primarily, the mechanical strength of the connection between the unbonded conductive portion and the conductive bonding portions (16, 18) is “enhanced” by the connecting process just described. More particularly, the enhanced first connecting portion 20a preferably exhibits a tensile strength of at least 100N (Newtons), and a shear strength of at least 100N.
A second connecting portion 22 is connected to the distal end 24 of the unbonded conductive portion 18 of the electrical connector 10. The second connecting portion 22 is preferably grippingly connected to the preferably cylindrical insulated wire of the unbonded connecting portion 18. The second connecting portion 22 may have any configuration desirable for connection to any one of an electrically operable device or assembly such as may be disposed on a vehicle window, for example, pins, clips, and other wire assemblies.
In high volume glass manufacturing operations it is desirable to automate as many portions of the manufacturing process as is practicable. For bonding items of hardware to glass, it has been found to be beneficial to use various types of electromechanical assembly fixtures 30 for this purpose. Indeed, the electrical connector 10, having certain properties of rigidity has been found to be particularly useful in an assembly process utilizing such assembly fixtures 30. Prior art electrical connectors such as is shown in
An apparatus for bonding, for example, the electrical connector 10 to a vehicle window 12 to form a vehicle window assembly 14 is illustrated in
A method of forming a window assembly 14 by utilizing an automated process including one or more assembly fixtures 30 is also an aspect of the invention. Preferably, such an assembly method includes:
In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, the present invention has been described in what is considered to represent its preferred embodiments. However, it should be noted that the invention can be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described without departing from its spirit or scope.
This application is claiming the benefit, under 35 U.S.C. 119(e), of the provisional application filed Feb. 29, 2012 under 35 U.S.C. 111(b), which was granted Ser. No. 61/604,655. This provisional application is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/GB2013/050294 | 2/8/2013 | WO | 00 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61604655 | Feb 2012 | US |
