Patent Application
20240313471
This application claims the benefit of priority from French Patent Application No. 23 01044, filed on Feb. 3, 2023, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference.
The present invention concerns the field of circular connectors, with electrical and/or optical contacts.
More particularly, it concerns solutions for coupling/uncoupling and locking/unlocking of a connection assembly with complementary circular connectors.
The main objective of the invention is to improve the device for locking between complementary circular connectors, of the plug and receptacle type, of a connection assembly.
The applications to which the invention relates in particular are so-called multi-contact electrical connection assemblies which can receive a plurality of independent contacts or connection modules of contacts, or modules of contacts, which are typically electrical and/optical according to the electrical and/optical connection to be produced. More specifically, but not only, a strong current and/or a high level of electrical power can be transmitted by this type of system.
The invention also concerns in general connection assemblies in outdoor applications, in particular for railways and travelling vehicles, and for aeronautical or military or robotic applications.
Although described with reference to an application in the aeronautical field for circular connectors of the series MIL-DTL-38999, the invention can be applied in other fields such as railways, industrial or military, medical, or also telecommunications fields, in particular in hostile environments. In particular, the invention can be applied to the circular connectors in the aeronautical field in conformity with the standard MIL-DTL-38999, EN2997, EN3645, EN3646, and also to the direct optical adapters or also to the connectors of the railway field in conformity with the standard EN50467.
Also, although described with reference to a bayonet locking device, the invention can be applied to other types of devices, in particular of the screw-nut type.
Within the context of the invention, “circular” means an element (connector, housing, ring, cover, envelope) with a generally cylindrical form, with at least one inner or outer portion with a circular transverse cross-section.
In numerous connection applications, it is known to lock a connector together with the complementary connector of the same assembly, once their connection configuration has been created, i.e. when the coupling between their respective contacts has been assured.
This is particularly necessary when the environment in which the connection assembly is present is subject to significant environmental stresses, usually known by the expression “hostile environment”, as can be the case for aircraft, and in particular when the assembly is fitted on a panel of on-board or structural equipment.
For example, circular connectors of the series of the type MIL-DTL 38999, which are used in particular in a hostile environment (in particular the engine, the wings) of an aircraft, must be locked together.
Although the different known locking systems have proved to be efficient and reliable, the inventors have come to the conclusion that they could not overcome a problem with which they have recently been faced.
In fact, in a given application, which in particular is aeronautical, the available space which can be allocated to fit a plurality of connection assemblies on a panel can be very limited.
In order to illustrate this space constraint,
This receptacle 2 comprises a plate 20, for securing, in particular by screwing, on a panel P, in particular of an aircraft, a housing 21, generally formed integrally with the plate 20, accommodating an insert 22 in which a plurality of electrical contacts 23 are fitted (eight of them in the example illustrated).
A locking ring 4 is fitted such as to be free in rotation around the housing 31 of the plug 3.
Once the plug 3 has been coupled mechanically to the complementary receptacle 2, i.e. with their respective electrical contacts coupled, an operator turns the locking ring 4 manually, so that it carries out the locking, in particular by means of a device of the bayonet type, between the housing 21 and the complementary housing of the plug 31.
This operation therefore requires the operator to have sufficient access around the receptacle to place one of his hands, and guarantee gripping of the ring in order to carry out the required rotation.
However, in certain applications where space is crucial, it is required increasingly to densify the connection assembly fittings, i.e. to secure a maximum number of adjacent receptacles on a single panel.
This densification can reach a point where the space sufficient for access by an operator's hand is no longer guaranteed, or is at a strict minimum, which is very uncomfortable for the operator, or makes the locking operation time-consuming or impossible. A minimum access area is symbolised by the circular hatched area Z in
By way of example, for a receptacle 2 of the series of type MIL-DTL 38999 with a size of 17 to 55 contacts, the required surface area by contact is approximately 53 mm2.
Then, the torque and the rotation course applied manually by the operator must be sufficient to guarantee satisfactory locking between the plug and the receptacle, and thus guarantee the electrical continuity between the two housings, which can be problematic to carry out manually, and/or imperfect in the case of an access area which is reduced to the minimum.
There is therefore a need to improve further the coupling and locking to one another between complementary circular connectors, in particular in order to have the possibility of easy locking in an environment with a constraint of available space, and/or which requires the application of a substantial locking force.
The objective of the invention is to fulfil this need completely or partly.
For this purpose, according to one of its aspects, the subject of the invention is a connection assembly with a longitudinal axis, comprising:
According to an advantageous embodiment, the mechanical transmission device comprises:
According to an advantageous configuration, the ring is fitted around the housing of the plug.
According to an advantageous embodiment, the de-multiplication ratio, i.e. of the speeds of rotation, between the receipt unit and the drive unit, is less than 1, such that the transmission device increases the rotation torque applied by the drive unit to the ring.
According to an advantageous variant embodiment, the mechanical transmission device comprises a gear train, including, as a drive unit, at least one cylindrical gear which is fitted such as to rotate, detachably, or permanently, in the inner seat of the envelope, and as a receipt unit, a circular engagement portion which is secured on, or is produced integrally with, at least part of the outer periphery of the ring.
The cylindrical gear can constitute the free end of the tool to be inserted detachably in the inner seat, and preferably while being in direct engagement contact with the circular engagement portion.
Alternatively, the cylindrical gear can be fitted such as to rotate permanently in the inner seat, preferably while being in direct engagement contact with the circular engagement portion.
The cylindrical gear and the circular engagement portion can have straight or helical toothing.
According to an advantageous embodiment, the coupling and/or locking device is of the bayonet type, and comprises:
Advantageously, the lug comprises a roller which is designed to slide with rotation around itself in the ramp. This therefore reduces the friction of the lug when it slides in the ramp.
According to the bayonet embodiment, the assembly preferably comprises a resilient return element to rotate the ring automatically once the lug is engaged in the ramp, and bring the lug into the pre-coupling position, in which the lug cannot be released without the action of the tool.
Advantageously, the resilient return element is also put under increasing tension by the rotation of the drive unit from the pre-coupling position of the lug, to its coupling position and its locking position, such that inverse rotation of the drive unit by the tool returns the lug from its locking position to its coupling position, which unlocks the plug from the receptacle, with the relaxation of the resilient return element returning the lug automatically to a pre-coupling or disengaged position of the ramp, which uncouples the plug from the receptacle. Thus, the return element permits automatic uncoupling without force to be applied by an operator.
According to an advantageous construction, the resilient return element is a torsion spring which is arranged in the inner seat, with one of its free ends retained therein, and the other one of its free ends retained in the cylindrical gear.
According to another variant embodiment, the coupling and/or locking device is of the screw type, with the ring comprising an inner thread which is designed to be screwed around an outer thread of the housing of the receptacle or the plug.
According to an advantageous construction mode, the assembly comprises at least one compression spring, preferably in the form of washers, which is arranged between one out of the housing of the plug and the housing of the receptacle and the ring, in order to apply pressure of the housing of the plug against the housing of the receptacle, or vice versa, when they are coupled and/or locked together.
According to another advantageous construction mode, the cover comprises a window which opens out, which, during the rotation of the ring, covers progressively, and preferably completely, a visible portion of the ring, thus constituting a visual indicator of the mechanical locking of the plug in the receptacle. Thus, the at least partial blanking off of the window guarantees visually to the operator that the locking has been correctly carried out.
According to another advantageous construction mode, the housing of the plug and the housing of the receptacle comprise complementary angular indexing means in order to orient the plug relative to the housing for their coupling and/or their locking. These complementary means can consist of at least one key and at least one groove, which is designed to receive the key by sliding. The key can for example be provided on the outer periphery of the plug housing, and the groove can be provided on the inner periphery of the receptacle housing.
In the mode with the bayonet device and the variant with the resilient return element, in the angular indexing position, before the lug engages in the ramp, it need not be aligned with the input portion thereof, then aligned therewith. This alignment can put the resilient return element under tension, such that it automatically returns the lug to a portion of the ramp in which it is retained. Thereby, the plug and the receptacle are retained together in a pre-coupling configuration.
The subject of the invention is also a circular connector forming a plug, comprising:
The subject of the invention is also a process for coupling and/or locking, in their mutual coupling configuration corresponding to a connection, of the plug and the receptacle of the connection assembly as previously described, comprising the following steps:
Thus, the invention consists substantially of implanting in a cover, around a ring for locking a plug on a receptacle of a connection assembly, a torque transmission device, which is preferably configured as a multiplier in order to de-multiply the forces of a tool on the ring which, by means of a movement of rotation in one direction, from an axis which is offset relative to the central axis, carries out the coupling and/or the locking of the plug on the receptacle.
The unlocking is carried out by rotation of the tool in the inverse direction, until uncoupling takes place. In a mode where the coupling and/or locking device is of the bayonet type with a lug which slides in a ramp, the uncoupling between the plug and the receptacle can also be carried out automatically by a resilient return element, which returns the ring to a position in which the lug is disengaged from the ramp.
The numerous advantages of the invention include the following:
Other advantages and characteristics of the invention will become more apparent from reading the detailed description of embodiments of the invention, provided by way of non-limiting illustration, with reference to the following figures.
In all of the present application, the terms “inner” and “outer” should be understood in relation to a circular connection assembly according to the invention.
For the sake of clarity, a single numerical reference is used for the same element of an electrical connection assembly according to the prior art and an electrical connection assembly according to the invention.
The receptacle 2 comprises a plate 20 for securing on an equipment panel P, in particular of an aircraft, a housing 21, which in general is formed integrally with the plate 20, accommodating an insert 22 in which a plurality of electrical contacts 23 are fitted (48 of them in the example illustrated).
The housing 21 of the receptacle 2 comprises on its outer periphery at least one coupling and locking ramp 24, and preferably three of them distributed at 120° from one another, designed to cooperate with a coupling and locking lug 40 explained hereinafter.
The receptacle 2 comprises a nut 25 which is screwed against the plate 20, for securing on an equipment panel P, once it is sandwiched between the plate 20 and the nut 25.
The housing 21 of the receptacle also comprises a longitudinal groove 26 provided in the interior of the housing 21. This groove 26 is a groove for angular indexing of the receptacle 2 with the plug 3, as described hereinafter.
The receptacle 2 is shown in detail in
The interaction of a locking lug 40 with these different portions 240 to 245 will be described with reference to
The plug 3 comprises a housing 31 accommodating an insert 32 in which a plurality of electrical contacts 33 are fitted (48 of them in the example illustrated).
The housing 31 of the plug 3 also comprises a longitudinal rib forming a key 36 provided on the exterior of the housing 31. This key 36 is a key for angular indexing of the receptacle 2 with the plug 3, as described hereinafter.
A circular coupling and/or locking ring 4 is fitted such as to be free in rotation around the housing 31 of the plug 3.
At least one compression spring 9, in the form of washers in the example illustrated, is arranged between the housing 31 of the plug 3 and the ring 4, in order to apply pressure of the housing of the plug against the housing of the receptacle, or vice versa, when they are coupled and/or locked together.
The plug 3, the ring 4, as well as the different components of the torque transmission device according to the invention are shown in detail in
The ring 4 comprises at least one coupling and locking lug 40, and preferably three of them, distributed at 1200 from one another, designed to cooperate with a coupling and locking ramp 24, which is preferably situated on the inner face of the ring 4.
The ring 4 also comprises a toothed outer peripheral portion 42, which is straight in the example illustrated, forming the receipt or output unit of the torque transmission device according to the invention. This toothing could be helical.
A circular cover 5 is fitted around the locking ring 4, and is secured on the housing 31 of the plug 3.
As a support, a hollow circular envelope 6, produced integrally with the cover, delimits an inner seat 60 which extends along an axis (X1) which is co-linear with, and distinct from, the longitudinal axis (X).
A cylindrical gear 7, forming the drive unit of the torque transmission device, is accommodated in the inner seat 60. This cylindrical gear 7 comprises a body 70, an end of which, which is accessible from the exterior, comprises a complementary recess 71 for a tool, and toothing 72 on its periphery which is straight in the example illustrated (or helical). The recess 71 is for example a hollow recess with a plurality of facets, for example six facets, in which a tool with complementary facets can be inserted.
The fitting of the cylindrical gear is shown in detail in
A torsion spring 8 is arranged in the inner seat 60, with one of its free ends 81 retained therein, and the other one of its free ends 82 retained in the cylindrical gear 7. The functions of this torsion spring 8 are described hereinafter.
As shown in this
Consequently, the rotation torque applied to the ring 4 is greater than that which an operator applies to the cylindrical gear by means of a tool.
The captive assembly of the cylindrical gear 7 with the spring 8 in the inner seat 60 can be better understood by looking at
The torsion spring 8 is pre-stressed by the rotation of the cylindrical gear 7 in the envelope 6, which misaligns the flat parts 61 and 73. The engagement of the toothing 72 on the toothing 42 during the fitting of the subassembly constituted by the cover 5, the envelope 6, the gear 7 and the spring 8, on the ring 4, makes the fitting of the gear 7 in the envelope 6 captive.
A description is now provided with reference to
Previously, the receptacle 2 has been secured on an equipment panel by screwing of its nut 25, which sandwiches the said panel between the screwed nut 25 and the securing plate 20.
The rotation of the ring 4, induced by the re-centring of the lug 40 in the input portion 240, gives rise to an increase in the pre-stress of the torsion spring 8 by means of the gear train 72, 42.
When the lug 40 arrives facing the pre-coupling portion 242, the pre-stressed torsion spring 8 releases its tension at least partly, in order to drive the ring 4 by means of the gear train 72, 42, which brings the lug 40 into the pre-coupling portion 242 of the ramp 24 (
Taking into account the form of this pre-coupling portion 242, the lug 40 is thus in a mechanically stable pre-coupling position. In this position, the plug 3 is already retained mechanically on the receptacle 2. This therefore prevents the plug 3 from falling if the operator leaves hold of it.
This rotation of the ring 4 gives rise to sliding, in particular by rolling, of the lug 40, from the pre-coupling portion 242 of the ramp 24 to the coupling portion 243 (
The rotation of the ring 4 is continued by the operator by means of the tool 10, until the lug 40 reaches the end of the coupling portion 243 (
During the steps of rotation of the ring 4, the torsion spring 8 has been put under increasing tension by the rotation of the cylindrical gear 7, from the position of pre-coupling of the lug 40 (
In addition, at the end of the coupling and locking, the compression washers 9 apply a thrust force of the housing 31 of the plug 3 against the housing 21 of the receptacle 2, which guarantees strong, permanent, both electrical and anti-vibration contact pressure of the contacts which are connected in the inserts 22, 32, and between the housings of the plug and the receptacle. Furthermore, a seal 27 which is accommodated in the base of the channel in the interior of the housing 21 of the receptacle 2 is compressed by the thrust of the compression washers 9, which also guarantees the required sealing efficiency.
With reference to
By way of comparison,
By way of example, for a receptacle 2 with a size 17 comprising 48 contacts, the required surface area per contact is approximately 42 mm2, providing a saving of approximately 20% compared with the prior art, which represents a very significant saving of space on an equipment panel P.
As illustrated in
Other variants and improvements can be provided without departing from the context of the invention.
In the embodiment illustrated, a cover and envelope are provided as a support defining the inner seat of the gear by means of which the rotation torque of the tool is transmitted. A mechanical transmission device can be envisaged which dispenses with these components. For example, a support directly incorporated in the housing can be envisaged, which support is designed to receive a tool for coupling and locking by rotation. This tool can incorporate at its free end the input gear, for example in the form of a toothed wheel designed to slide directly in the support incorporated in the housing, or by means of an intermediate support to be inserted in the support incorporated in the housing.
Although, in the example illustrated, the locking ring 4, the cover 5 and the envelope 6 of the mechanical transmission device are on the plug 3 side, it can also be envisaged to arrange them on the side of a receptacle 2 according to the invention.
The coupling and locking device illustrated is of the bayonet type, with a locking ring bearing one or more lugs each to be engaged and slid in a corresponding ramp of the receptacle. It is also possible to envisage a device for coupling and locking by screwing, with the ring being threaded in its interior, and either the receptacle or the plug which does not bear the ring being threaded externally.
The invention applies not only to circular connection assemblies with a receptacle and plug to be secured on a panel, but also to any other connection assembly not secured on a panel, such as so-called “in-line” connectors, i.e. which are placed and attached on a cable strand.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2301044 | Feb 2023 | FR | national |
