Patent Application
20220131313
The present invention refers to an electric connection device.
In particular, the invention refers to an electric connection device, comprising a first connection element designed to be coupled with a second connection element through a bayonet-type locking mechanism and through a secondary locking mechanism configured to prevent the accidental disconnection of the two connecting elements, further comprising contacting means, for example a switch, for controlling an auxiliary circuit.
The first connection element and the second connection element are configured for performing a power electric connection, for example with currents up to 750 A.
Electric connection devices are known, for example from U.S. Pat. No. 5,685,730, comprising two connecting elements, configured to be blocked through a bayonet-type locking mechanism which provides that the two elements are pressed one towards the other and blocked following the rotation of one related to the other, further comprising a secondary locking mechanism of said connecting elements, having a spring-loaded safetypine which prevents the mutual rotation of the two elements, said secondary locking mechanism requiring a suitable unlocking tool.
These known electric connection devices have the advantage that they prevent, through the secondary locking mechanism, both the accidental unlocking of the two connecting elements, and the unlocking by people not equipped with the suitable unlocking tool since not authorized, operation which can be dangerous, especially if the connector is at a high voltage.
However, these known electric connection devices do not provide the chance of automatically controlling an auxiliary device, for example to avoid voltaic arcs between the electric contacts of the two connecting elements, to allow connecting the two elements under load or allow, when the two elements are coupled, automatically actuating protecting, controlling, sectioning or signalling devices, or, through an external circuitry to the current device, determining a connection sequence when many connection devices have to operate on the same plant or circuit.
Documents US-A1-2018/316127, U.S. Pat. No. 5,685,730, GB-A-2 411 527 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,184,703 disclose electric connection devices according to the preamble of claim 1.
Object of the present invention is providing an electric connection device comprising two connecting elements designed to be mutually coupled through a bayonet-type locking mechanism and through a secondary, pin-type locking mechanism configured to prevent the accidental disconnection of the two connecting elements, further comprising electric contacting means associated with the first connection element and/or the second connection element and configured for controlling an auxiliary circuit connected thereto.
The above and other objects and advantages of the invention, as will result from the following description, are obtained with an electric connection device as claimed in the independent claim. Preferred embodiments and non-trivial variations of the present invention are the subject matter of the dependent claims.
It is intended that the enclosed claims are an integral part of the present description.
It will be immediately obvious that numerous variations and modifications (for example related to shape, sizes, arrangements and parts with equivalent functionality) can be made to what is described, without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the enclosed claims.
The present invention will be better described by some preferred embodiments thereof, provided as a non-limiting example, with reference to the enclosed drawings, in which:
With reference to the Figures, preferred embodiments of the electric connection device according to the present invention are shown and described.
The electric connection device of the invention comprises a first electric connection element 10, for example of the male type, preferably a front capsule or a flange 10 of the female type for its fastening on a panel, connectable to a second electric connection element 12, for example of the female type, in particular a front capsule or a flange 12 of the female type for its fastening on a cable, said first 10 and second 12 electric connection elements being mutually electrically connectable by means of respective electric contacts, in a preferred way power contacts; a locking and unlocking mechanism, for example of the bayonet type, configured to couple the first connection element 10 and the second connection element 12 following the rotation of one with respect to the other in a first direction and to uncouple said first connection element 10 and said second connection element 12 following the rotation of one with respect to the other in a second direction, opposite to the first; a secondary safety locking mechanism, configured to prevent the rotation of the first connection element 10 and of the second connection element 12 one with respect to the other in said second direction and the consequent separation of the two elements 10 and 12, in order to keep blocked the first connection element 10 and the second connection element 12 to guarantee the electric connection, said secondary safety locking mechanism comprising locking means 22, 24 configured to keep blocked the first connection element 10 and the second connection element 12 and to be unlocked by suitable unlocking means of a known type.
In a preferred way, the locking means 22, 24 are retractable and comprise a seat 22, in a preferred way obtained on the external surface of the first connection element 10, a pin 24, in a preferred way inserted into a housing obtained in the second connection element 12, and an elastic element, for example a spring, contiguous to the pin 24, also inserted into the housing; said secondary locking mechanism requires, to be unlocked, the insertion of the suitable unlocking means into the seat 22 which determine the retraction of the pin 24 in the housing in order to allow the rotation of said first and second connection elements 10, 12 one with respect to the other in the second direction, which generates their separation.
The electric connection device of the invention further comprises electric contacting means 25, associated with the first connection element 10 and/or the second connection element 12, and configured for controlling an auxiliary controlling/signalling circuit connected thereto, comprising for example contactors or switches, said electric connection device comprising actuating means 26, 34 configured to actuate the electric contacting means 25 when the first electric connection element 10 and the second electric connection element 12 are mutually electrically connected; preferably, the actuating means 26, 34 are configured to get in contact with the first 10 or the second 12 connecting element, during the coupling of the first connection element 10 and of the second connection element 12, and be pushed thereto in contact with the electric contacting means 25, to actuate them.
In a preferred way, the actuating means 26, 34 are configured to keep actuated the electric connection means 25 when the locking means 22, 24 block the first connection element 10 and the second connection element 12.
In a known way, the bayonet-type locking mechanism is configured so that, when the first connection element 10 and the second connection element 12 are pushed one towards the other to be coupled, at least one projecting element 37 of a known type, obtained on the internal surface of the first connection element 10 and configured to be placed next to at least one “L”-shaped groove 18, obtained on the external surface of the second connection element 12, and slide inside a first length 23 of the groove 18, till they reach a second length 21 of said groove 18, after that, when the first and the second connection element 10, 12, are rotated along the first direction to be coupled, the projecting element slides inside said second length 21 of the groove 18; preferably, the connecting elements 10, 12, comprise two projecting elements, and two “L”-shaped grooves 18. In a known way, when the first 10 and the second 12 connecting elements are rotated along the first direction and the projecting element 37 of the first connection element 10 slides inside the second length 21 of the groove 18, in the second connection element 12, the pin 24 gets in contact with the first connection element 10 which pushes it inside the housing obtained in the second connection element 12 compressing the spring, and after that the pin 24 retracted in the housing slides, following the rotation of the connecting elements 10, 12, till it meets the seat 22 of the first connection element 10, which implies that the pin 24, not in contact any more with the first element 10, is pushed bz the spring decompression inside the seat 22, locking the first and second connection elements 10, 12 in such a way that it prevents their mutual rotation; preferably, the actuating means 26, 34 are configured to actuate the electric connection means 25 when the projecting element 37, obtained on the internal surface of the first connection element 10, slides inside the first length 23 of the groove 18.
The actuating means 26, 34 are retractable and comprise a bar 34 which is pushed in contact with the actuating means 26 of the electric contacting means 25 to actuate them when the first electric connection element 10 and the second electric connection element 12 are mutually connected.
In a first embodiment of the electric connection device of the invention, the actuating means 26, 34 comprise a retractable bar 34, in a preferred way inserted into a housing 35 obtained in the second connection element 12, and preferably an elastic element 36, for example a spring, contiguous to the bar 34, also inserted into the housing 35; when the connecting elements 10, 12 are connected, the bar 34 gets in contact with the first connection element 10 and is pushed inside the housing 35 obtained in the second connection element 12, compressing the elastic element 36, its end is pushed in contact with the actuating means 26 of the electric contacting means 25, for example composed of a miniaturized microswitch with common-NO-NC contact, and actuates them, for example actuates the microswitch to control the circuits connected thereto. An example of a connection diagram among connecting elements 10, 12 comprising the switches 25 is shown in
In a second embodiment of the electric connection device of the invention, the actuating means 26, 34 comprise a retractable bar 34, in a preferred way inserted into a housing 35 obtained in the first connection element 10, and preferably an elastic element 36, for example a spring, contiguous to the bar 34, also inserted into the housing 35; when the connecting elements 10, 12 are connected, the bar 34 gets in contact with the second connection element 12 and is pushed inside the housing 35 obtained in the first connection element 10, compressing the elastic element 36, and its end is pushed in contact with the actuating means 26 of the electric contacting means 25 to actuate them similarly to what is described with reference to the electric connection device of the first embodiment; in a preferred way, the housing 35 is obtained on the internal surface of the first connection element 10.
In its operation, when coupling the first connection element 10 and the second connection element 12, when the projecting element 37, obtained on the internal surface of the first connection element 10, slides inside the first length 23 of the groove 18, the bar 34 arrives in contact with the first 10 or the second 12 connecting elements which pushes inside the housing obtained in the first connection element 10, for example compressing the spring, and its end is pushed in contact with the electric contacting means 25, and actuates them, for example actuates the microswitch to control the circuits connected thereto.
Advantageously, the electric connection device of the invention allows automatically controlling, when coupling the two connecting elements, an auxiliary function associated thereto, for example an auxiliary circuit to allow connecting the two elements under load or allow, when the two elements are coupled, automatically actuating devices connected to the circuit.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 102019000002621 | Feb 2019 | IT | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/IT2020/000014 | 2/12/2020 | WO | 00 |
