EP0959528B1 - Apparatus for forming crimp connections - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a device with a tightly integrated in a housing packed electronics, the housing assigned contact pins and a variety of current conductors for electrical connection, each with a contact pin, the Contact pins due to the high packing density of the electronics at a short distance are arranged side by side and a non-releasable connection between the contact pin and the associated conductor is provided.

It is known to use highly integrated control electronics, for example in the form of microprocessors, into a socket soldered onto a circuit board. Because of The densely packed electronics are usually a large number of on the housing Contact pins arranged in the form of small pins protruding from the housing. These pens are usually in one to three rows, preferably offset, on the underside arranged of the housing. However, with the releasable connection technology by plugging the housing into the base contact problems, especially in connection with the use of electronics in a fluid-flushed Surroundings.

It is also known to bond housings with highly integrated electronics by bonding, Hot stacking or serial welding unsolvable with a variety of To connect conductors. There are both problems with the occurring connection heat, as well as disadvantages in connection with a Automation in that each contact pin sequentially with one Current conductor is connected. Especially for housings with a large number Contact pins result in high costs because of this time required since each connection is made individually got to. In addition, because of the high packing density and the variety of contact pins arranged close to each other, conventional connection techniques when studying the known state of the art Technology not on.

DE 86 20 976 U, which is considered the closest prior art, discloses a device with one in one Housing integrated, tightly packed electronics. The housing are Contact pins and a variety of conductors for electrical connection each assigned a contact pin. The contact pins are because of the high packing density of the electronics with a small distance next to each other arranged. It is a permanent connection between the contact pin and provided the associated conductor, each conductor, the is each formed by a lead frame with lead frames, one a connection point around a contact pin bent crimp contact has and is crimped at the connection point with this contact pin. The disadvantage of such a device is that the Loss of function due to tensile forces may occur. The object of the invention is to provide a device whose Connection points functionally stable even when tensile forces act on them is. This object is achieved by the features of claim 1 solved. After that are tight punched lattice webs arranged next to one another in rows for Generation of strain relief provided.

According to the invention it was recognized that in electronic control units, which are in one Housing are arranged that in terms of electronics packaging density and number the contact pins are comparable to microprocessor housings, an advantageous one non-detachable connection between the contact pins and assigned current conductors is possible using a special crimping technique. In particular, this is not the case Problems related to the temperature resistance of the connection and the connection has a particularly high melt strength. By around each Contact pin bent crimp contacts, the connection has a particularly high Current carrying capacity. Due to the increasing miniaturization of machines, that produce the connection technology according to the invention is now special The advantage is that multi-pole electrical connections can be made simultaneously thanks to the special To produce crimping technology according to the invention. This creates, for example, opposite serial welding, a particularly inexpensive process.

The contact pins of the device can be in single, double or multiple rows, in particular be arranged at a distance of one to two millimeters from one another. Especially with this high density of contact pins, for example on the underside of a housing for control electronics is the crimping method according to the invention particularly preferably applicable. Current conductors can be arranged at the ends Crimp contacts advantageous in one operation compared to the contact pin rows aligned, assembled with them and in a further step be crimped simultaneously.

The end crimp contacts of the current conductors have two at the connection point Tabs protruding from the side of the conductor. The two tabs protruding to the side are preferably punched from a lead frame and can be V-shaped be, i.e. be bent upwards on the side of the contact pin if the contact pin is assembled with the crimp contacts. The two above Tabs serve on the one hand to improve the crimp connection and on the other hand as a joining aid when assembling the large number of contact pins with the assigned ones Current conductors.

The laterally protruding tabs are preferably designed as offset triangular tabs and their diagonally running edges lie in the crimped state at a short distance from each other. The triangular tabs can be easily Punch out of a sheet metal material without major material loss. The triangular shape the tab leads to a particularly advantageous crimp contact for the invention simultaneous connection technology.

The crimp contacts point across the connection direction, i.e. to the longitudinal direction of the Contact pins, running notches. The notches in the tabs of the Crimp contacts increase the holding forces at the connection points under tensile loads.

In a particularly preferred development of the invention, the current conductors are formed by a lead frame. The tabs on the crimp contacts can also be removed the same lead frame material can advantageously be punched out. Leave this way punch out many conductors with crimp contacts from a sheet by punching them out, in particular lateral tabs of the crimp contacts laterally bendable are. Because of the triangular brackets Crimp contacts can also relieve strain on the lead frames without loss of material arise when the lead frames are bent in sections and run diagonally according to the diagonal tab edge next to it.

In addition, strain relief can be provided, particularly when close together in rows arranged lead frames by lowering the conductor tracks compared to Stamped grid level take place. On the other hand, the conductor tracks can also be in one Direction parallel to the lead frame plane so that it meanders Running stamped grid conductor tracks are created. About the strain relief in the Punched wire tracks can be found on the insert or in the bushings Form compensation elements. This allows the electronic connections to be powerful be decoupled.

In particular in the case of multi-row contact pins, a higher connection density can be achieved by alternately lowering the lead frame interconnects between two adjacent crimp contacts. On the other hand, an increase in the insulation distance between the crimp connections is possible. Furthermore, the density of the adjacent contact pins can be increased to such an extent that even a transition from multi-layer to single-layer lead frames is possible.
In a particularly advantageous development of the invention, the leadframe conductor tracks are prefabricated, in particular with curved crimp contacts and positions and spacings that match the contact pins. As a result, several crimp connections can be produced in a single simultaneous operation after the stamped grid tracks have been aligned. In this way, multipole electronics or a connector can be connected to a lead frame by crimping all connections at the same time. The crimp connection technology can preferably be automated and further components can be integrated in a cost-effective manner, for example the connection of a plug to the same lead frame.

Figur 1

ein mit einer Vielzahl von Stromleitern zu verbindendes Gehäuse mit integrierter Elektronik als Bestandteil der erfindungsgemäßen Vorrichtung,

Figur 2

eine Seitenansicht des Gehäuses nach Figur 1,

Figur 3

eine Ansicht der Verbindungsstellen zwischen Kontaktpins und der Vielzahl von Stromleitern gemäß einer ersten Ausführungsform der vorliegenden Erfindung,

Figur 4

eine Seitenansicht der erfindungsgemäßen Vorrichtung in Figur 3,

Figur 5

eine Ansicht der seitlich hochgebogenen Laschen der Crimpkontakte der Stromleiter gemäß einer zweiten Ausführungsform und

Figur 6

eine Draufsicht auf eine Leiterbahn gemäß der zweiten Ausführungsform der vorliegenden Erfindung.

Further advantageous embodiments of the device according to the invention result from the subclaims and the description. Two embodiments of the invention are shown in the drawing and are described below. They show, each in a schematic representation,

Figure 1

a housing to be connected to a multiplicity of current conductors with integrated electronics as part of the device according to the invention,

Figure 2

2 shows a side view of the housing according to FIG. 1,

Figure 3

2 shows a view of the connection points between contact pins and the plurality of current conductors according to a first embodiment of the present invention,

Figure 4

3 shows a side view of the device according to the invention in FIG. 3,

Figure 5

a view of the laterally bent tabs of the crimp contacts of the conductor according to a second embodiment and

Figure 6

a plan view of a conductor track according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 1 shows a housing 1 with a plurality of arranged on the underside 2 Contact pins 3. In the example, there are twenty contact pins 3 each in separate ones Areas 4 and 5 arranged. The contact pins 3 are in each area 4, 5 arranged in two staggered rows. A contact pin 6 of an adjacent one Row is centered in the longitudinal direction between two side by side Contact pins 7 and 8 arranged. This way the distance between the neighboring contact pins 6, 7, 8 maximized.

The housing 1 contains a complex control electronics for controlling a Motor vehicle transmission. Since the housing 1 in the example is preferably directly in the transmission installed, it is designed as a metal housing. The contact pins 3, 6, 7, 8 are embedded in individual round glass bushings 9 and are therefore hermetic tightly connected to the housing 1. The end face outside the housing the contact pins 3, 6, 7, 8 is preferably flat, i. H. the wire of the Contact pins 3, 6, 7, 8 is just cut off. The contact pins 3, 6, 7, 8 are for the process step of melting glass or bonding on the inside of the housing 1 preferably gold-plated on its surface. For the sake of simplicity the entire surface of the contact pins 3, 6, 7, 8 is gold-plated.

In the first embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 The device is the double-row and staggered contact pins 3rd angled such that the conductor tracks 10 in a parallel to the bottom 2 of the Housing arranged level. The conductor tracks 10 are in the form of a flat and sectionally angled lead frame 11 is formed. The conductor tracks 10, i.e. the lead frames are approximately 1.6 in the area of the contact pins 3 mm wide and their sheet thickness is about 0.4 mm. On their neighbors to the Contact pins 3 arranged sides each have the conductor tracks 10 crimp contacts 12 on, with two lateral tabs 13 and bent around the contact pins 3 14 are provided. The side tabs 13 and 14 can be used in the manufacture of Conductor tracks 10 are stamped out of the metal sheet and during the connection process can be bent around the contact pins 3. After the conductor tracks 10 are connected to the respective contact pins 3, all crimp connections generated at the junctions 14 simultaneously.

Notches 16 and 17 are in the tabs 13 and 14 for absorbing tensile forces intended. About kinks 18 and 19 are 10 in the conductor tracks Lead frame 11 compensating elements 20 designed for relief. Get lost Sections of the conductor tracks 10 offset perpendicular to the plane of the lead frame 11.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, strain relief can also result from that a conductor track 21 has a plurality of kinks 18 in which the conductor track 21 is deformed parallel to the plane of the lead frame 11. The Compensating elements 22 for strain relief even when punching out the conductor track 21 arise from the stamped sheet, each with a compensating element 22 between two adjacently arranged tabs 23 and 24 of adjacent crimp contacts 25 and 26 is arranged. The compensating elements 22 are small Loss of material can be punched out. To facilitate the assembly of a crimp contact 12 with a contact pin 3, the tabs 13, 14 before assembly bent up sideways. After joining contact pins 3 and Crimp contacts 12, 25, 26 is the crimp connection of several or all of them side by side arranged conductor tracks 10, 21 and the associated contact pins 3, 6, 7, 8 generated simultaneously.

By partial tin plating of the conductor tracks 10 of the lead frame and subsequent simultaneous application of a heat source at the connection points 15 an additional soldered connection can be generated at the connection points 15. That clad Tin melts with the tinned connections of the electronics. This results in improved media resistance and current carrying capacity.

Claims (8)

1. Apparatus with closely packed electronics integrated in a housing (1), contact pins (3) assigned to the housing (1) and a multiplicity of current conductors (10, 11, 21) for electrical connection with a respective contact pin (3), the contact pins (3) being arranged next to one another with a small distance between them because of the high packing density of the electronics and an unreleasable connection being provided between the contact pin (3) and the assigned current conductor (10, 11, 21), each current conductor (10, 11, 21), which is respectively formed by a leadframe (11) with leadframe tracks, having a crimping contact (12), which is bent around a respective contact pin (3) at a connecting point (15), and being crimped with this contact pin (3) at the connecting point (15), characterized in that, with leadframe tracks arranged closely next to one another in rows, buckling points (18, 19) are provided for producing tension relief.
2. Apparatus according to Claim 1, characterized in that the contact pins (3) are arranged in single, double or multiple rows, in particular at a distance of 1 mm to 10 mm from one another.
3. Apparatus according to Claim 1, characterized in that the crimping contacts (12) have at the connecting point (15) two lugs (13, 14, 23, 24) protruding laterally from the current conductor (10, 11, 21).
4. Apparatus according to Claim 3, characterized in that the lateral protruding lugs (13, 14, 23, 24) are formed as offset triangular lugs and their diagonally running edges lie opposite each other a small distance apart in the crimped state.
5. Apparatus according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the crimping contacts (12) have notches (16, 17), in particular running transversely to the direction of connection.
6. Apparatus according to one of Claims 3 to 5, characterized in that the lugs (13, 14, 23, 24) are punched out from the punched plate for the leadframe (11).
7. Apparatus according to one of Claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, in particular in the case of multi-row contact pins (3), a higher connection density can be achieved by alternate lowering of the leadframe track (10, 11, 21) between two neighbouring crimping contacts (12, 25, 26).
8. Apparatus according to one of Claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the leadframe tracks (10, 11, 21) are prefabricated with preformed, in particular bent, crimping contacts (12, 25, 26) with positions and distances matching the contact pins (3) in such a way that, after aligning the leadframe tracks (10, 11, 21), the crimp connections of a number of connecting points (15) can be produced by a single simultaneous operation.

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