US3212051A

US3212051A - Electrical contact strips

Info

Publication number: US3212051A
Application number: US252856A
Authority: US
Inventors: Clewes Antony Brasher
Original assignee: United Carr Inc
Current assignee: United Carr Inc
Priority date: 1963-01-21
Filing date: 1963-01-21
Publication date: 1965-10-12
Anticipated expiration: 1982-10-12

Description

Oct. 12, 1965 B. CLEWES ELECTRICAL CONTACT STRIPS Filed Jan. 21, 1963 INVENTOE AN'foNa B. CLEwBs BY $6M 13mm F/Gi9.

III! 7 ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,212,051 ELECTRICAL CONTACT STRIPS Antony Brasher Clewes, Sherwood, Nottingham, England, assignor to United-Carr Incorporated, a corporation of Delaware Filed Jan. 21, 1963, Ser. No. 252,856 2 Claims. '(Cl. 339198) This invention relates to electrical contact strips.

According to the present invention, an electrical contact unit comprises a base formed of resilient synthetic plastic material and having an electrical contact mounted thereon, the unit being formed with male and female coupling elements such that a series of units may be coupled to one another in end to end relation to form a strip.

The invention also includes an electrical contact strip comprising a series of units each formed of resilient synthetic plastic material, each adapted to have a contact or contacts assembled thereon, each unit having a male coupling element at one end and a female coupling element at the opposite end to enable the units to be cou pled to one another to form a strip of any desired length.

Each unit may have a wall projecting from its upper face such that when a series of units are assembled to form a strip, a series of longitudinally spaced barrier walls is provided isolating the contact or contacts in one unit from those of an adjacent unit.

To enable the invention to be fully understood, it will now be described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a unit for forming a contact strip according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a section on the line AA of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an under plan view;

FIGURE 4 is an end view looking towards the left of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is an end view looking towards the right in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 6 is a plan view similar to FIGURE 1, but showing a contact assembled with the unit;

FIGURE 7 is a sectional view on the line B-B of FIGURE 6;

FIGURE 8 is a plan view of a unit for connecting ends of pairs of strips formed by the units illustrated in FIGURE 1 and FIGURE 9 is a plan view of a series of the units illustrated in FIGURE 1 assembled to form a strip.

As illustrated in the accompanying drawings, the unit generally designated by 1 includes a base 2 formed with a pair of apertures 3 leading to a recess 4, which comprises the female element of the unit. A projection 5 extends over part of the rear wall of the recess 4. A tapered barrier wall 6 extends substantially normally from the base, and a male element comprising a pair of laterally spaced ears 7 extends from the end of the unit opposite to the female element. A series of units 1 are adapted to be assembled to form a chain of elements and are interlocked with one another by inserting the ears 7 of the male element by a sliding action into the recess 4 which forms the female element of an adjacent unit. It will be understood that the walls of the recess 4 will be preferably resilient to permit them to flex to enable the insertion of the ears 7 into the recess, and retain the ears within the recess.

By assembling a pre-determined number of units in this way, a chain of units of any desired length can be built up to form a contact strip as indicated in FIGURE 9 of the drawings.

As indicated in FIGURES 6 and 7, a metal plate 8 is mounted on the base of each unit and secured by integral rivet means 9 extending into the apertures 3.

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The rivet means 9 has a screw-threaded bore for receiving screws 10 for securing lead wires to the plate 8. The cars 7 of the male elements have apertures 11 into which the lower ends of the screws 10 may extend. If desired, separate rivets may be used for securing the plate 8.

A chain of connected units having a contact plate and screws assembled therein, forms an electrical contact strip having a series of longitudinally spaced sets of contacts, each set being isolated from a set on an adjacent unit by a barrier wall 6. The units are molded from resilient synthetic plastic material, and the male and female elements of the respective units are adapted to make interference fits with one another.

The units are assembled with one another by presenting the female element of one unit in superposed relation to a male element of another unit and moving the units towards one another so that the ears 7 of the male element enter the recess 4 of the female element by a sliding action, the projection 5 being disposed in the recess 5a between the ears 7.

The chain of inter-connected units will, by virtue of being made of resilient material, be capable of a small amount of relative movement such that a chain of units could be made to assume :a curved line to fit the particular curvature on a chassis with which the contact strip is to be used.

The units may be colored so that a chain or strip of inter-connected units may be formed of units of different colors or a chain or strip may be formed of units of the same color, thus the units of the chains or the whole chain could be colored according to the circuit connections with which they are to be used, so that they will be readily identified.

The units may be molded from nylon or like plastic material which is capable of being molded in different colors or dyed or tinted.

To enable the ends of chains or strips of connected units to be secured to a support, a separate unit is provided and illustrated in FIGURE 8. As shown, this unit comprises a base 12 having a pair of ears 7a, forming a male element at each side, and so arranged that each pair of ears can be readily connected to the female element at the end of a chain or strip. The base 12 is secured to a support by any suitable means, for example, by screws or rivets inserted through the pair of cars 7a not assembled with the female element of the end unit of the chain. The other end of the strip is secured to the support by screws or rivets inserted through the ears 7 of the male element of the endmost unit.

I claim:

1. A pair of electrical contact units each comprising a base of insulating material having upper and lower surfaces, each of said bases having a recess in said lower surface adjacent one end thereof and each of said bases having an integral projecting portion extending into said recess so as to form an opening on each side thereof, each of said bases having an opening in said upper surface and each of said bases carrying a contact element having a portion secured within said opening in said upper surface, a male coupling element extending from an opposite end of each of said bases from said one end thereof, said male coupling element of one of said bases having a pair of ears in mating engagement with said other base within said openings of said recess, there being an opening between said ears for receiving said integral projecting portion of the other contact unit, thereby to secure said units in assembly.

2. A pair of electrical contact units each comprising a base of insulating material having upper and lower surfaces, each of said bases having a recess in said lower surface adjacent one end thereof and an opening in said upper surface intersecting said recess, said base carrying a metal plate element on its upper surface, said plate element having an eyelet element assembled with said base within said opening in said upper surface, said eyelet being threaded onits inner wall, a screw member in threaded engagement with said eyelet and having a head element for .coupling a wire conductor between said head element and said plate element, a male coupling element extending from an opposite end of each of said bases from said respective ends thereof, said male coupling element having an ear in mating engagement with said other base within said recess in said lower surface thereby to secure said units in assembly, and

said ear having an opening therethrough for receiving said screw member threaded into said eyelet of said other unit.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Re. 25,446 9/63 Ustin 339--l98 2,726,375 12/55 Gordon 339-198 2,743,373 4/56 De Smidt 339-198 2,892,176 6/59 Gordon 339-198 2,923,913 2/60 Kulka 339198 2,928,066 3/60 Gordon 339198 JOSEPH D. SEERS, Primary Examiner.

Claims

1. A PAIR OF ELECTRICAL CONTACT UNITS EACH COMPRISING A BASE OF INSULATING MATERIAL HAVING UPPER AND LOWER SURFACES, EACH OF SAID BASES HAVING A CESS IN SAID LOWER SURFACE ADJACENT ONE END THEREOF AND EACH OF SAID BASES HAVING AN INTEGRAL PROJECTING PORTION EXTENDING INTO SAID RECESS SO AS TO FORM AN OPENING ON EACH SIDE THEREOF, EACH OF SAID BASES HAVING AN OPENING IN SAID UPPER SURFACE. FACE AND EACH OF SAID BASES CARRYING A CONTACT ELEMENT HAVING A PORTION SECURED WITHIN SAID OPENING IN SAID SUPPORT SURFACE, A MALE COUPLING ELEMENT EXTENDING FROM AN OPPOSITE END OF EACH OF SAID BASES FROM SAID ONE END THEREOF, SAID MALE COUPLING ELEMENT OF ONE SAID BASES HAVING A PAIR OF EARS IN MATING ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID OTHER BASE WITHIN SAID OPENINGS OF SAID RECESS, THERE BEING AN OPENING BETWEEN SAID EARS FOR RECEIVING SAID INTEGRAL PROJECTING PORTION OF THE OTHER CONTACT UNIT, THEREBY TO SECURE SAID UNITS IN ASSEMBLY.