Patent Application
20230378667
This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) to GB2207520.4, filed May 23, 2022, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
This invention relates to an electrical connection. More specifically, although not exclusively, this invention relates to an electrical connection for joining a flat connector to an electrical cable.
Electrical connections as described herein are used in various ways. One of those uses is for electrically connecting flat connectors and electrical cables to be used in heated windscreen assemblies, in which heating elements are disposed within the glass laminates of the windscreen. Electricity supplied to the heating elements causes resistive heating which heats the glass and hence melts snow or ice and/or evaporates fog or mist which inhibits driver visibility. Accordingly, it is necessary to supply the metal wires with electricity. The flat connectors provide electrical connection to the heating elements within the glass laminate of the windscreen while the electrical cables provide electrical connection between the flat connectors and a source of electrical energy, e.g. an automobile battery.
Because of the location of the electrical connection it is essential that the electrical connection is able to withstand environmental conditions such as water, thermal cycling, humidity and chemical use (for example, salt from road traffic spray, de-icer compositions and so on) and the physical requirements of installation in a windscreen assembly and use in a motor vehicle environment. It is particularly important that the electrical connection does not corrode through exposure to water and/or other undesirable elements as corrosion may lead to increased resistance and hence reduced efficiency of electrical transfer, and, in extreme cases failure of the electrical connection. Example of a structures for connecting electrical cables to a flat electrical cable are described in EP1058349A1 and EP1619759A1. Another such structure which shows good resistance to environmental conditions is shown in our earlier patent application EP3182520.
Formation of a heated windscreen assembly entails heating a laminate of two glass panes (which may be separated by a polymeric layer of poly-vinyl butyral (PVB)) in an autoclave in order to bond the glass lamina together. The electrical connection is commonly formed and affixed to one (or both) of the glass lamina at a prior stage and is hence located within the autoclave during bonding. As a result, it is essential that the electrical connection is able to withstand the 150° C. temperature within the autoclave for the period of heating (which may be around three hours).
It can also be a problem to accurately locate an electrical cable relative to a flat connector prior to forming an electrical connection betwixt the two members. Furthermore, the electrical connection must be durable enough to withstand potential physical shocks during installation and/or use thereof.
It is an object of the current invention to provide an electrical connection which has a high degree of physical resilience to temperature and to physical shock. It is an additional or alternative object of the invention to provide an electrical connection which is protected from potentially corrosive elements such as water and/or species entrained (e.g. dissolved) in water and, preferably, which demonstrates improved resistance.
Accordingly, a first aspect of the invention provides an electrical connection for electrically connecting a flat connector, and an electrical cable, the electrical connection comprising
A second aspect of the invention provides a method of forming an electrical connection for electrically connecting a flat connector to an electrical cable, the method comprising:
The window is preferably bounded on all sides by the pressure sensitive adhesive.
The pressure sensitive adhesive is preferably an acrylic adhesive. The adhesive may be less than 100 μm thick, for example from 10 to 90 μm thick, say from 20, 30, 40 to 80, 70, 60 μm thick. In an embodiment the adhesive may be from 40 to 60 μm thick, say 50 μm thick. It was surprisingly found that the use of such a thin layer of pressure sensitive adhesive is capable of imparting enhanced sealing characteristics to the electrical connection.
Pressure sensitive adhesives are, typically, fully cured before the electrical contact is encased within an enclosure. Advantageously, we have found that the provision of a pressure sensitive adhesive provides a suitable surface to effectively seal the electrical contact, especially when using overmolding to provide the enclosure because it forms a robust connection which is not (or at least is less) susceptible to the effects of water ingress.
We prefer to use pressure sensitive adhesives rather than those that are cured by the action of heat (for example the heat used during the process of overmolding) because it can decrease overmolding cycle time whilst ensuring a robust (and we believe more robust) connection.
The adhesive may extend over the end or marginal portion of the material forming the insulated portion. Advantageously, the adhesive will ensure that the risk of delamination of the insulated material is reduced.
The electrical cable may comprise an electrically conductive core encased in a thin layer of non-conductive material to provide an exposed portion. The exposed portion of the electrical cable may be secured to the window. The exposed portion of the electrical cable may be secured to the window by solder, for example a lead-free solder or a lead-containing solder. It is preferred that a lead-free solder is used, for example a lead-free solder comprising one of more of silver, tin, bismuth, indium, copper. In an embodiment the solder may be formed from tin and silver. In another embodiment the solder may be formed of tin, silver and bismuth. In a further embodiment the solder may be formed from tin.
The electrical cable, for example at least a portion of non-conductive material of the electrical cable, may have an adhesive, preferably a pressure sensitive adhesive, located thereon, for example, at least partially and preferably fully thereabouts. Preferably the adhesive, e.g. the pressure sensitive adhesive, will extend from the terminus of the non-conductive material away from the exposed portion. The adhesive may extend for a distance of less than 10 mm, for example from 0.05 to 9.5 mm, say 0.1 to 9, 8, 7 mm along the non-conductive material. This has been found to be advantageous when encasing the electrical contact by an enclosure because it forms a robust connection which is not (or at least is less) susceptible to the effects of water ingress. We have found that a particularly good seal can be achieved with an adhesive which extends between 2 and 8 mm, preferably between 3 and 7 mm along the cable. The adhesive is preferably less than 100 μm thick, for example from 10 to 90 μm thick, say from 20, 30, 40 to 80, 70, 60 μm thick. In an embodiment the adhesive may be from 40 to 60 μm thick, say 50 μm thick.
In particular, because of the location of the adhesive on the cable it can contact a facing portion of the adhesive defining the window on the electrically conductive portion of the flat connector. The combination of these two adhesives being in contact has been proven to deliver a very robust seal which is resistant to water ingress in use.
The adhesive on the cable may, and preferably does, extend beyond the end of the electrically conductive portion of the flat connector.
The thin layer of non-conductive material of the electrical cable may have a thickness of less than 1 mm, for example less than 0.9, 0.8, 0.7, 0.6, 0.5, 0.4, 0.3, 0.2, 0.1 mm.
The insulated portion of the flat connector may comprise a polymeric material, for example made from polyimide. Polyimide is useful because it is electrically insulating and is resistant to the temperatures to which a windscreen is exposed in a autoclave.
The polymeric film may have a thickness of from 20 to 60×10−6 m (i.e. from 20 to 60 μm), say from 25 to 55, 30 to 52, 35 to 51 or 40 to 50 μm. In particular, we have found a particularly useful polymeric film to comprise a polymeric tape which has an epoxy adhesive applied thereto. The polymeric tape, which may be formed from polyimide, has a thickness of from 15 to 35 μm, preferably 20 to 30 μm, and the adhesive may have a thickness of from 10 to 30 μm, for example from 15 to 25 μm.
The flat connector may comprise a flat strip of electrically conductive material, a major portion of the flat strip may be covered to provide the insulated portion and a minor portion of the flat strip is not covered to provide the exposed portion. The exposed portion is preferably at one end of the flat connector.
The flat strip of electrically conductive material may be formed from a metal, e.g. copper, which may, for example, be provided with a thin cover layer (e.g. of or comprising tin).
The flat strip of electrically conductive material preferably has a cross sectional area of less than 3 mm2, preferably less than 2.75, less than 2.5, less than 2.25, less than 2, for example less than 1.95, less than 1.9, less than 1.85 or less than 1.8 mm2. The flat strip of electrically conductive material preferably has a cross sectional area of between 1.0 or 1.5 and 4 mm2, say from 1.5 to 3 mm2, say from 1.5 to 2.5 mm2.
In one embodiment the flat strip of electrically conductive material has a thickness of from 80 to 120×10−6 m (i.e. from 80 to 120 μm), say from 85 to 118, 90 to 115, 95 to 113 μm.
The flat strip of electrically conductive material preferably has a width of from 10 to 30 mm, say from 12 to 28 mm, for example from 14 to 25 mm.
The Polymeric film may be larger than the flat strip so as to provide a peripheral border therearound, for example a peripheral border of from 0.5 to 3 mm, say from 1 to 2.5 mm. This provides a robust seal around the flat strip of electrically conductive material.
The electrically conductive portion of the flat connector may have a first major surface and a second major surface. The first major surface may be the one to which the cable is secured.
The second major surface of the electrically conductive portion may comprise an adhesive. The adhesive may be located on the second major surface so as to provide a second window (i.e. an adhesive-fee window). The second window may be located to correspond to the window. The second window may be the same size or smaller in area than the window.
The adhesive may be located on the electrically conductive portion by adhering the adhesive using an adhesive located on a release liner. The release layer may be a siliconized Kraft paper or other release layer which does not adhere to the adhesive.
In a preliminary step, the release liner and the adhesive located thereon may be perforated to define a window.
The release liner and adhesive may be provided as an adhesive strip. The adhesive strip may be perforated plural times to form a perforated adhesive strip.
The flat connectors may be provided as a strip of plural flat connectors. The strip of plural flat connectors may be longitudinally aligned in a side-by-side arrangement. The strip of plural flat connectors may be provided such that plural exposed portions are located in side-by-side arrangements.
The perforated adhesive strip may be secured to the plural exposed portions.
The perforated adhesive strip may be secured to a first side of the plural exposed portions.
A further adhesive strip, for example a further perforated adhesive strip, may be secured to a second side of the plural exposed portions.
Advantageously, because the adhesive strip, e.g. the perforated adhesive strip, comprises (or at least preferably comprises) a continuous length of adhesive, when securing the adhesive strip (or perforated adhesive strip) to the first and second sides of the plural exposed portions the first side and second side adhesives will adhere to one another between adjacent exposed portions of the plural exposed portions. This ensures that the adhesive is more likely to adhere effectively to the exposed portions, especially if, say, pressure is applied along the strip after bringing the strip and exposed portions into contact.
Individual flat connectors having adhesive secured to the exposed portion thereof may be separated from the strip of plural flat connectors.
The electrical cable may comprise a free end, e.g. connected or connectable to electrical components and/or a source of electrical power. The flat connector may comprise a free or second end, e.g. connected or connectable to electrical components, for example to one or more busbars or other electrical components.
The free or second end of the flat connector may be located or locatable within a windscreen, e.g. electrically connected to electrical components disposed therein.
The enclosure may comprise a unitary body, for example where the unitary body is overmolded around the point of contact, the cable and the flat connector.
The enclosure may comprise an enclosure material which is a rigid material, e.g. a material suitable to protect the electrical join from physical shocks. Additionally or alternatively the enclosure may comprise an enclosure material which is flexible, e.g. a material able to withstand the stresses generated upon flexure of the electrical cable and/or of the flat connector. Preferably the enclosure material is a thermoplastic, e.g. a polyamide, for example polyamide 6 (PA6), polyamide 6/6 (PA66), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), polypropylene, Macromelt® and the like. Indeed, one or more of the polymers may comprise glass fibers, particles, microbeads or microspheres (which we call glass-filled polymer (GFP) or glass-reinforced polymer (GRP)), for example glass-reinforced polyamide or glass-reinforced polypropylene. We prefer glass-reinforced polymers because we believe it increases the softening point of the polymer, which is beneficial from a processing, aesthetic and finished product point of view and, surprisingly, it may yield a product better able to withstand environmental factors in use.
Preferably the enclosure comprises a continuous outer surface which is interrupted only by a first aperture through which the electrical cable extends and a second aperture through which the flat connector extends.
Where the cable is provided with an adhesive thereabout, the enclosure will preferably encase the adhesive surrounding or provided upon the cable.
A further aspect of the invention provides a windscreen assembly comprising an electrical connection as described above, e.g. and further comprising glass laminates and heating elements.
For the avoidance of doubt, any of the features described herein apply equally to any aspect of the invention. Furthermore, any electrical connection according to the invention may include plural flat connectors and/or plural electrical cables.
Within the scope of this application it is expressly envisaged that the various aspects, embodiments, examples and alternatives set out in the preceding paragraphs, in the claims and/or in the following description and drawings, and in particular the individual features thereof, may be taken independently or in any combination. Features described in connection with one aspect or embodiment of the invention are applicable to all aspects or embodiments, unless such features are incompatible.
Embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
Referring firstly to
Referring now to
In a preferred embodiment the electrically conductive element 20 is flat and is from to 40 mm, e.g. 10 to 30 mm, say 15 to 20 mm, e.g. 17 mm, wide and about 10 to 1000 microns (1 micron is 10-6 m), say 50 to 500 microns, for example 100 microns thick, and is preferably formed from copper, which may or may not be coated. If the electrically conductive element 20 is coated, it may be coated with a protective substance, for example a substance capable of imparting at least a degree of environmental protection. One such coating material is tin or an alloy thereof. The insulating material 21 is preferably marginally wider than the electrically conductive element 20, for example to leave a marginal border outboard of the electrically conductive element 20 along the edges of the electrically conductive element 20. In an embodiment where the electrically conductive element 20 is 17 mm wide, the insulating material may be from 18 to 30 mm wide, e.g. 21 to 25 mm wide (for example 22 or 23 mm wide), and from 20 to 80, say 40 to 50 microns, e.g. 45 microns, thick at each major surface of the electrically conductive element 20. The insulating material 21 is preferably formed from a temperature-stable plastics material. One such plastics material is polyimide. The insulating material 21 may conveniently be formed from Kapton® film supplied by E.I. Dupont of Delaware, USA. The flat connector 2 may also include an adhesive patch 25 for attaching the flat connector to a site of use. The adhesive patch 25, where provided, may be located about 3 mm from an end of the insulating material 21 towards the second end of the connector 2. The adhesive patch 25, where provided, may be covered by a release liner (not shown). The adhesive patch 25, when exposed by removal of the optional release liner, may help to ensure accurate location of the flat connector 20 at a site of use. For example, the optional release liner may be removed to expose the adhesive patch 25 which can then be used to secure the electrical connection 1 at a site of use (e.g. on a windscreen component) whilst other components (for example a further pane of a windscreen) are assembled.
The flat connector 2 has an exposed portion or exposed end 20e of electrically conductive element 20 at its first end 2a. The exposed end 20e of the conductive material 2 may be from 2 to 20 mm long, e.g. from 5 to 18 mm long and in one embodiment is about 9 or 10 mm long. It will be appreciated that whilst the exposed portion 20e is shown as being of rectangular form it may also be other shapes. For example, the exposed end portion 20e may be of trapezoidal form.
The exposed portion 20e has an adhesive 6 located thereon. The adhesive 6 is provided around the exposed portion 20e to define a window 6w, which window 6w is preferably inboard of the edges of the exposed portion 20e. The window 6w may be surrounded on all sides by adhesive 6. The adhesive 6 may overlie an end portion of the insulating material 21.
The electrical cable 3 has an exposed portion of electrically conductive wire 30 at one of its ends. The exposed electrically conductive wire 30 at the end of the electrical cable 3 is soldered to the exposed electrically conductive element 20 at the end of the flat connector 2 in the region of the window 6w by solder 5 which may be of any suitable type, for example a solder 5 consisting of 60% tin and 40% lead, or alternatively and preferably a lead-free solder, for example SAC305 or 97Sn3Ag or even pure tin. Alternatively or additionally the connector 2 and wire 30 may be otherwise secured together so as to allow electrical conduction from the connector 2 to the wire 30, and/or vice versa.
A strip of adhesive 6a extends about (and completely around) the cable 3 so as to form a continuous fluid seal. The strip of adhesive 6a is located adjacent the exposed electrically conductive wire 30 at the end of the electrical cable 3 and at least a portion thereof lies adjacent a facing portion of the adhesive 6. Preferably, the adhesive 6A does not overlie the window 6w.
As shown in
The enclosure 4, which is preferably molded from a thermoplastic such as a polyamide, for example polyamide 6 (otherwise known as Nylon® 6 or PA6) or polyamide 6/6 (otherwise known as PA66) or polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) or polypropylene (and preferably glass reinforced PA6 or glass-reinforced PA66 or glass-reinforced PBT or glass-reinforced polypropylene) or Macromelt, is suitably sized and configured such that it encases the point of contact between the electrically conductive element 20 and the exposed end 30 of the wire 3 and extends from the flat connector 2 to the electrical cable 3 and over the adhesive 6a. Typically, the enclosure is formed by over-molding the electrical connection. Whilst the enclosure is shown as being rectangular in plan form, it may be other shapes, for example trapezoidal.
The provision of the adhesive 6 provides a surface which is more amenable to sealing of the electrical connection by the enclosure 4. We have found it particularly advantageous to use a pressure sensitive adhesive 6 such as a fully cured acrylic adhesive. The pressure sensitive adhesive that we prefer to use is 300LSE high strength acrylic adhesive supplied by 3M. Preferably the adhesive has a thickness of less than 100 μm, say 50 μm. The adhesive 6′ may comprise a pressure-sensitive adhesive such as a fully cured acrylic adhesive. The pressure sensitive adhesive that we prefer to use is 300LSE high strength acrylic adhesive supplied by 3M. Preferably the adhesive 6′ has a thickness of less than 100 μm, say 50 μm.
The manufacture of a heated windscreen entails providing a windscreen laminate comprising separate glass blanks between which are disposed a plurality of heating elements electrically connected to flat connectors of the type described herein. The flat connectors are electrically connected at their free ends to cables which are intended for future connection to a source of electrical power. The windscreen laminate, including the flat connectors and cables joined by an electrical connection, is then heated under vacuum in an autoclave at temperatures of up to 150° C. and for durations of around three hours in order to bind together the layers of the laminate (and also, in some cases, to solder electrical connections). It is imperative that the electrical connection is not damaged during this process and further that the electrical connection remains sealed against undesirable elements (particularly water and salt) which might otherwise corrode and hence degrade the connection.
The applicant has found that an electrical connection between a flat connector and an electrical cable and including an enclosure, and using the pressure sensitive adhesive, reliably prevents subsequent ingress of undesirable elements. Without wishing to be bound by any theory it is believed that movement and flexing of the cable and/or of the flat connector during the course of manufacture of the windscreen and automobile (and also during subsequent use of the automobile) may result in cyclical wear of the join between the cable and enclosure and/or of the join between the flat connector and the enclosure. This wear may produce gaps between the enclosure and the cable and/or flat connector through which undesirable elements may ingress. It is further believed that the adhesive 6 (and if present 6a), allows the thermoplastic material of the enclosure to effectively seal the electrical contact.
Referring now to
The method involves a first step (
In a second step (
A similar tape T (where the apertures may be the same size or smaller) may be secured to the other face of the exposed portion 20e′ at the first end 21a′. The apertures A on the two surfaces will generally coincide. Between the adjacent exposed portions 21e′ the adhesive of the tapes T will be secured together.
The so formed laminate may be passed through a roller (not shown), for example a heated roller to ensure that the adhesive of the tape T is firmly secured to the exposed portion 21e′ and the marginal portion of the non-conductive polymeric film 21′ and, where present, the tape T secured to the other surface of the exposed portion 21e′ is firmly secured to the exposed portion 21e′ and the marginal portion of the non-conductive polymeric film 21′ In a third step (
In a fourth step (
In a fifth step (
Heat is applied to the window provided in the adhesive located on the other major surface of the exposed end 20e′ (i.e. the non-shown surface in
The connected part is then moved to an overmolding machine (not shown) where the electrical contact is overmolded to make an electrical connection 1 in which the end of the cable 3′ and end of the flat connector 20′ are encapsulated in thermoplastic material. The cycle time to achieve the overmolding is typically less than 60 s, and may be less than 45 s, say around 30 s. The provision of the pressure sensitive adhesive on the two major surfaces of the exposed end 20e the marginal surface of the polymeric film 21′ and around the cable 3 provides a suitable surface for forming an environmentally stable seal with the overmolded thermoplastics material. Because the adhesive 6″, 6a′ does not need to cure (i.e. it is not a heat activated or heat cured adhesive) overmolding cycle times can be reduced. In some cases the connected part may be subjected to a heat stage before overmolding, for example by passing the connected part through a heat tunnel or storing at an elevated temperature for a period of time. Additionally or alternatively, the parts may be subjected to a heating stage after the second step and before the third step.
Electrical connections 1 according to the invention were tested according to the following tests:
Connector Fabrication
Test 1—Insulation Resistance Following Forming
Test 2—Insulation Testing Following Bending Cycles
As will be appreciated, the test results demonstrate that the electrical connections 1 of the invention are able to withstand repeated physical stress as well as thermal cycling stress. The testing of 150 samples with no fails is particularly encouraging.
It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that several variations to the aforementioned embodiments are envisaged without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, the solder 5 may be lead free and/or may include any suitable combination of solder materials. Although we prefer to use a pressure sensitive acrylic adhesive, other pressure sensitive adhesives may be used. We prefer to use a pressure sensitive adhesive rather than a heat activated adhesive because we have found that using an adhesive which is fully cured before the encapsulation is applied leads to a more robust connection which is less susceptible to environmental ingress.
It will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that any number of combinations of the aforementioned features and/or those shown in the appended drawings provide clear advantages over the prior art and are therefore within the scope of the invention described herein.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2207520.4 | May 2022 | GB | national |
