EP0199119B1 - Electromagnetic relay - Google Patents

Abstract

An electromagnetic relay has a coil body with a core yoke formed from flat stock with a core leg extending through the coil body. A yoke leg, also formed from the same piece of flat stock, is disposed over or next to the coil in a plane which is at a right angle relative to the plane of the core leg. An armature is disposed at the free end of the yoke leg, forming a working air gap with the free end of the yoke leg and being mounted for movement on a leaf spring pivotable about a bearing location. The free end of the armature forms the contact spring which cooperates with a stationary contact element. A connection element functioning as a terminal is also integrally formed from the same piece of flat stock. Additional coil connection elements are secured in the coil body by being plugged therein. The relay assembly is mounted on a base which forms a portion of the housing in combination with a cap placed over the base covering the assembly.

Description

The invention relates to an electromagnetic relay with a coil body carrying an excitation winding, with a core yoke which is formed in one piece from a flat strip and has at least two legs, of which a core leg is inserted axially through the coil body and from which a yoke leg is axially parallel next to or Extends above the coil winding, with a flat armature, which is supported at one end via a leaf spring at the free end of the yoke leg and forms an air gap with the other end opposite the free end of the core leg, the leaf spring being connected to an electrical connection element via the Kemjoch is and cooperates with its free end extended beyond the movable armature end as a contact spring with at least one fixed counter-contact element. Such a relay is known from DE-A 2 021 455.

From GB-A 1 440 359 it is also known that the plane of the core leg forms an angle of 90 _° with the plane of the yoke leg.

Another such relay is known from US-A 3,781,729. The core yoke is already bent from a flat band in a U-shape, the outwardly angled free end of the yoke leg carrying a flat anchor via a leaf spring, which in turn forms a working air gap with the narrow end face of the core leg. The coil is only fastened there via the angled extension of the yoke leg to a base which receives fixed contact elements on an opposite side. With this arrangement, the tolerances between the armature, the core pole face and the contact elements can only be mastered with difficulty, and in any case a complex adjustment may be necessary. On the other hand, the arrangement of the coil shown there with the axis perpendicular to the installation plane results in an unfavorable spatial structure, as a result of which a very high and wide housing with a large but only partially used internal volume is required.

The object of the invention is to design a relay of the type mentioned in such a way that a compact design, in particular a particularly narrow design in one axis, can be made possible, this short axis can be placed differently to the installation plane without constructive change in the basic construction, d . that is, either an upstanding relay with a very small width or a flat relay with a very small height is obtained. This compact relay should be sealable in a simple manner in a housing, and in addition to avoid a subsequent adjustment, a tolerance-tolerant assignment of armature, core and contact elements should be made possible from the design.

According to the invention, this object is achieved in that the coil axis runs parallel to the connection plane of the relay, that the yoke leg is bent and bent with its main plane into a position perpendicular to the main plane of the core leg, such that its center line is approximately aligned with the main plane of the core leg so that the armature on the side of the yoke leg facing the core leg is pivotally mounted about an axis parallel to the coil axis, extends with the part of the leaf spring lying thereon substantially in a plane parallel to the main plane of the core leg and thereby the working air gap with the flat side of the core leg forms and that the counter-contact element is anchored in the main plane of the core leg in an insertion groove of the coil body.

In the invention, a particularly narrow design is achieved in at least one direction by cutting the core yoke from a flat strip, the core leg carrying the winding determining the narrow design and the yoke leg running parallel to the outside of the winding with its main plane at 90 _° is rotated so that its width lies above or next to the narrow side of the wound coil. The armature is mounted on the yoke leg via the leaf spring and forms a large-area working air gap with its flat side opposite the flat side of the core leg. The plug-in fastening of the core yoke in the coil body and the plug-in fastening of the mating contact element also in an insertion groove of the bobbin results in a tolerance-tolerant assignment between armature, core leg and mating contact element, so that the leaf spring attached to the armature and serving as a bearing spring largely does not have the correct contact distance to be adjusted Counter contact element occupies.

The relay has with the one-piece core yoke, on which a connection element for the leaf spring can be molded, the coil body used for the plug-in fastening and the leaf spring serving as a bearing spring for the armature and at the same time serving as a contact spring, an easy to assemble structure with few parts, only for completion still coil pins are required. The relay is expediently arranged in a housing which, for example, consists of two parts made of plastic and can be sealed in the usual way.

In order to obtain an upright relay with a narrow footprint, the main plane of the core leg is arranged perpendicular to the connection plane of the relay in an expedient embodiment, the connection elements for the leaf spring and for the mating contact element extending in the main plane of the core leg. The connection element for the leaf spring can be integrally formed on a connection leg formed in one piece with the core yoke and lying in its plane; Of course, it can also be subsequently connected to the core yoke by welding or comparable processes.

In another expedient execution _- form in which a flat horizontal relay is to be obtained with low overall height, the principal plane of the core limb extends parallel to the connecting plane of the relay, wherein a connecting element of the counter-contact element is angled in a direction perpendicular to the connection plane and a connection element for the leaf spring is formed on the yoke leg in its main plane or is subsequently attached to it.

In a further embodiment of the relay, the coil body can form a support edge for the armature for mounting the armature in the region of the free end of the yoke leg. In addition, the coil body can each have open insertion grooves from the end face for receiving the mating contact element in one coil flange and for receiving the core yoke as well as two coil connecting elements in the area of the other coil flange, both the coil connecting elements and also connecting elements for the contact spring and the mating contact element in recesses in one Housing base are guided to the connection level of the relay.

The anchor bearing can also be designed so that the yoke leg forms a bearing notch in the region of its free end with a laterally angled rag, in which the anchor is mounted by means of a molded-on bearing edge. It is expedient that the bearing notch lies outside the main plane of the core leg and anchor and that the bearing notch is formed on an angled bearing section of the anchor.

The contact arrangement of the relay can be designed so that the leaf spring attached to the armature is substantially flat with its free end and forms a make contact with the mating contact element. However, the contact spring between the free end of the armature and the mating contact element can also be bent so that it intersects their common plane between the armature and mating contact element and forms an opener with the mating contact element.

As stated above, the housing of the relay is expediently formed in two parts. In one embodiment, a base is provided which receives the connection elements for the contact-making parts and for the coil in openings and forms the housing together with a protective cap put on. In another expedient embodiment, the housing can also be formed from two essentially identical halves, the parting plane of which runs perpendicular to the connection plane of the relay. In this case, it is expedient for the connection elements for the leaf spring, for the mating contact element and for the coil connections, which are arranged in one plane, to be clamped in the parting plane between the two housing halves. In addition, a space for accommodating additional components can be formed in the housing or in the coil former.

The invention is explained in more detail below using exemplary embodiments with reference to the drawing.

• Fig. 1 ein erfindungsgemäß gestaltetes Relais in stehender bzw. Hochkantausführung in perspektivischer Darstellung (ohne Kappe),
• Fig. 2 bis 4 das Relais von Fig. 1 in verschiedenen Schnittansichten (mit Kappe),
• Fig. 5 das Relais von Fig. 1 in Explosionsdarstellung;
• Fig. 6 eine andere Ausführungsform eines erfindungsgemäßen Relais in flachliegender Ausführung, und zwar in perspektivischer Darstellung ohne Kappe,
• Fig. 7 bis 10 das Relais von Fig. 6 in verschiedenen Schnittansichten,
• Fig. 11 das Relais von Fig. 6 in Explosionsdarstellung;
• Fig. 12 bis Fig. 17 eine gegenüber den Fig. 1 bis 5 abgewandelte Ausführungsform eines hochkant stehenden Relais,
• Fig. 18 und 19 eine Abwandlung des Relais von Fig. 12 in einer Ausführung mit Ruhe- bzw. Öffnerkontakt.

Show it

• 1 a relay designed according to the invention in a standing or upright version in a perspective view (without cap),
• 2 to 4, the relay of Fig. 1 in different sectional views (with cap),
• Fig. 5 shows the relay of Figure 1 in an exploded view.
• 6 shows another embodiment of a relay according to the invention in a flat-lying design, in a perspective view without a cap,
• 7 to 10, the relay of Fig. 6 in different sectional views,
• 11 shows the relay from FIG. 6 in an exploded view;
• 12 to 17 an embodiment of an upright relay which is modified compared to FIGS. 1 to 5,
• 18 and 19 a modification of the relay of FIG. 12 in an embodiment with normally closed or normally closed contact.

The relay shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 has a coil body 1 with flanges 2 and 3, which have different insertion grooves for receiving the other functional elements of the relay. A core yoke 4 cut and shaped in one piece from flat strip material has an elongated core leg 5 and a yoke leg 6 running parallel to the core leg, which is rotated by 90 _° by an offset and bend 7 with its main plane such that its center line 6a is essentially in the Main plane of the core leg 5 lies. On the underside of the core yoke, a connecting leg 8 is formed parallel to the core leg 5 and in a plane therewith, on which a connection element in the form of a flat connector 9 is formed, which extends downwards perpendicularly to the installation plane of the relay.

After winding the coil former 1, the core yoke 4 is inserted into the latter in the axial direction, the core limb 5 being inserted into an axial through opening 10 of the coil former, so that its free end 5a comes to lie in a recess 11 in the coil flange 2. A defined pole face is thus formed for an armature 12, which is mounted on the inner side 6b of the yoke leg 6 facing the core leg and extends perpendicular to the axial direction of the coil in the region of the coil flange 2, forming a working air gap with the end 5a of the core leg and on a bearing edge 13 of the bobbin is pivotally mounted about an axis parallel to the coil axis.

The armature is held by a leaf spring 14, which serves both as an armature bearing spring and as a contact spring and for this purpose is fastened with its section 14a to the yoke leg 6 by welding or the like, while its free end 14b projects beyond the free armature end and a contact piece 15 wears. This contact piece 15 is opposite a contact piece 16 of a counter-contact element 17, which is fastened in an insertion groove 18 of the coil body flange 2. Since the insertion groove 18 for the mating contact element 17 as well as the groove 11 for the end 5a of the core leg is formed in the coil body 1, wherein the two grooves expediently form contact surfaces for the parts mentioned in the same plane, there is a defined assignment of the pole face 5b to the surface of the mating contact element 17, as a result of which the leaf spring 14 connected to the armature 12 assumes the predetermined contact distance even without subsequent adjustment.

After the assembly of the core yoke 4, the yoke leg 6 lies centrally over the narrow side of the winding 19 applied to the coil former, so that overall a construction which is as narrow as possible is ensured. The connecting leg 8 lies in one plane with the mating contact element 17 in the groove 20, while the coil connecting elements 21 and 22 are fastened in corresponding grooves 23 and 24 of the coil body flange 3 by insertion. The ends 21 a and 22 a of the coil connecting elements 21 and 22 are initially angled outwards in order to enable easy winding of the coil ends (FIG. 5). Then they are bent into the recesses 3a and 3b of the bobbin flange 3 (Fig. 1, 4).

From the connection side of the relay, a base 25 with openings 26 is plugged onto the mating contact element 17, the connection element 9 and the coil connection elements 21 and 22. A cap 27 is placed over this base 25, the edge grooves between the base and cap as well as the openings 26 can be sealed with potting compound.

6 to 11, a somewhat modified embodiment of the relay is shown, the basic structure being retained, but rotated by 90 _° , so that the relay lies flat on the installation level and has a very low overall height. This relay has a coil body 31 which is provided with the flanges 32 and 33 and is shaped essentially the same as the coil body 1 of the previously described embodiment. A core yoke 34 is inserted into this coil former 31, said core yoke having a core leg 35 and a yoke leg 36 which is rotated by 90 _° relative thereto and connected via an offset 37. The core leg 35 is received by the coil former 31 in its axial through opening 40, while the yoke leg 36 extends laterally next to the winding, lies with its center line 36a approximately in the main plane of the core leg 35 and with a nose 36b at its free end with an extension 31 a of the bobbin is engaged.

The anchor 12 from the previous embodiment is used here in the same shape and function. As there, the leaf spring 14 serves with its fastening section 14a for holding the armature 12 and with its free end 14b as a contact spring for receiving the contact piece 15.

Since the relay is not installed upright, but flat, the connecting element for the leaf spring is not formed in the plane of the core leg 35, but in the plane of the yoke leg 36 as a connecting pin 39. Parallel to this, a connecting pin 47 of a mating contact element 45 is also fastened with a contact piece 46 in a groove 48.

The coil body 31 provided with a winding 49 is inserted into a base 50 after the insertion of the core yoke 4 and the mating contact element 45 and after the application of the armature 12 with the leaf spring, the connecting pins 39 and 47 being inserted into corresponding openings 50a in the trough-shaped base body . In addition, coil connection elements 51 and 52 are each arranged on the coil flange 33 and inserted through openings 50a of the base 50. The middle part of the connection elements is in each case parallel to the installation plane, that is to say the section 51a in a recess 33a below the coil flange 33, while the section 52a lies flat on the coil flange 33a. The respective solder pins 51b b and 52b are bent perpendicular to the connection plane and inserted through the corresponding recesses 50a of the base body. The winding pins 51 and 52c for receiving the coil ends are each bent at a right angle to wind the coil in order to enable easier winding. They are then bent into a plane parallel to the installation plane and introduced into the base with the coil former, as can be seen in FIG. 9. The housing is closed with an attached cap 53, which overlaps the base 50, the edge joint 54 and the openings 50a being able to be sealed in the customary manner.

A further modification is shown in FIGS. 12 to 17. The basic structure is similar to that in FIGS. 1 to 5. The coil body 61 has a largely rectangular cross section in its central part, which is arranged upright. Flanges 62 and 63 are each formed on the coil former with corresponding insertion grooves and recesses for receiving the other parts. A core yoke 64 with a core leg standing perpendicular in its main plane and a yoke leg 66 rotated by 90 _° in its main plane is fastened, as in the previous exemplary embodiments, by inserting the core leg 65 into an axial passage of the coil former; as there, an offset 67 is also provided on the core yoke, as a result of which the yoke leg comes to lie approximately centrally over the core leg. In addition, the yoke leg has at its free end a lateral bend 68, which forms a bearing notch 69 for an armature 70 on its inside. This armature 70 is slightly angled in itself, the bearing section 70a forming a bearing cutting edge 70b and the armature section 70c forming the working air gap with the core leg 65. By bending the armature 70, its axis of rotation lies outside the plane formed by the core pole face and the contact point. This has a certain frictional effect when switching, with a self-cleaning effect of the contact. A leaf spring 71 is fastened at its end 71a to the yoke leg 66, connected at its central portion 71b to the armature and carries at its free end 71 a contact piece 72 which is opposite the contact piece 73 of a mating contact element 74. The latter is in the manner previously described Coil body flange 62 fixed by inserting.

In this case, the connection element 75 for the leaf spring 71 is not formed in one piece with the core yoke 64, but is formed as an additional part and subsequently attached to it. Between the fastening end 75b and the plug end 75a, this connection element 75 is angled and angled several times and held in recesses in the coil body such that the plug end 75a lies in one plane with the connection element 74. In addition, coil connection elements 76 and 77 with their plug ends 76a and 77a are also arranged in corresponding recesses 78 and 79 of the coil flange 63 in the same plane, so that the relay has only plug pins in this one plane to the outside.

A two-part housing, consisting of two halves 80 and 81 with a vertical parting plane, takes up the entire relay, with flat notches 82 being provided on the underside in both housing halves, in which the connecting elements 74a, 75a, 76a and 77a between the two housing halves be clamped. The housing can be sealed along the circumferential joint by introducing a sealing compound. At the top, this housing has a molded-on handle 83, with which the relay can be pulled out of a socket, for example.

A further space 84 is recessed within the housing in the area of the coil flange 63, in which an additional component can be arranged, for example a capacitor 85 connected between the coil connections. Instead of the plug connections 74a, 75a, 76a and 77a, the connection elements can of course also have solder pins . Such solder connections can be formed, for example, by partially disconnecting the plug parts along the dashed lines 86 shown in FIG. 12.

18 and 19 show a further modification of the relay according to FIG. 12. In this case the armature 70 is provided with a modified leaf spring 87 which is bent with its free end 87a and is guided between the core leg 65 and the mating contact element 74, so that the contact piece 88 arranged on it forms a break or break contact with a correspondingly arranged contact piece 89 of the counter-contact element 74. Otherwise, this relay is constructed as that shown in FIGS. 12 to 17. It does not need to be further emphasized that the modifications shown in the various figures can also be used in any other combination, that is to say, for example, a flat design is also possible for the designs according to FIGS. 12 to 19 by analog modifications.

Claims (9)

1. Electromagnetic relay having a coil body (1; 31; 61) bearing an exciting winding, having a core yoke (4; 34; 64) formed in one piece from a flat strip and having at least two limbs, of which one core limb (5; 35; 65) is pushed through the coil body in axial direction and of which one yoke limb (6; 36; 66) extends paraxially beside or above the coil winding, having a flat armature (12; 70) which is mounted with one end over a leaf spring (14; 71; 87) at the free end of the yoke limb and forms with its other end an air gap opposite the free end of the core limb, the leaf spring being connected via the core yoke to an electric connection element (9; 39; 75) and interacting with at least one stationary counter-contact element (17; 45; 74) with its free end extended beyond the movable armature end as a contact spring, characterized in that the coil axis runs parallel to the connection plane of the relay, in that the yoke limb (6; 36; 66) is bent at an angle and curved with its main plane into a perpendicular position with respect to the main plane of the core limb (5; 35; 65) in such a manner that the centre line (6a; 36a) thereof is approximately aligned with the main plane of the core limb, in that the armature (12; 70) is pivotably mounted on the side of the yoke limb (6; 36; 66) facing the core limb (5; 35; 65) about an axis parallel to the coil axis, extends with the part of the leaf spring (14; 71; 87) lying thereon essentially approximately in a parallel plane with respect to the main plane of the core limb and forms thereby the working air gap with the flat side of the core limb, and in that the counter-contact element (17; 45; 74) is anchored in the main plane of the core limb in an insertion groove (18; 48) of the coil body (1; 31; 61).

2. Relay according to Claim 1, characterized in that the main plane of the core limb (5; 35; 65) is perpendicular to the connection plane of the relay, and in that connection elements (9; 17; 75a, 74a) for the leaf spring and for the counter-contact element extend in the main plane of the core limb.

3. Relay according to Claim 1, characterized in that the connection element (9) for the leaf spring (14) is formed on a connection limb (8) formed integrally with the core yoke (4), which connection limb extends beneath the coil parallel to the core limb (5) and in the main plane thereof.

4. Relay according to one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the connection element (9) for the leaf spring (14) is fastened in a plug-in fashion in a groove (20) of the coil body (1) and is connected integrally with the core yoke (4).

5. Relay according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the main plane of the core limb (35) extends parallel to the connection plane of the relay, in that a connection element (47) of the counter-contact element (45) is angled in a direction perpendicular to the connection plane, and in that a connection element (39) for the leaf spring (14) is formed on the yoke limb (36) so as to lie in the main plane thereof.

6. Relay according to one of Claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the coil body (1; 31) has a supporting edge (13; 43) for the armature (12) in the region of the free end of the yoke limb (6; 36).

7. Relay according to one of Claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the coil body (1; 31; 61) has insertion grooves (10, 11, 18, 20, 24; 40, 48) in each case open from the end face for receiving the counter-contact element (17; 45; 74) in the one coil flange (2; 32; 62) and for receiving the core yoke (4; 34; 64) as well as two coil connection elements (21, 22; 51, 52) in the other coil flange (3; 33; 63), and in that both the coil connection elements and the connection elements for the contact spring and the counter-contact element are guided in recesses of a housing base (25; 50) to the connection plane of the relay.

8. Relay according to on of Claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, in the region of its free end, the yoke limb (66) forms with a laterally angled tab (68) a bearing groove (69) in which the armature (70) is mounted by means of a formed-on sharp bearing edge (70b).

9. Relay according to Claim 8, characterized in that the bearing groove (69) lies outside the main planes of core limb (65) and armature (70), and in that the sharp bearing edge (70b) is designed on an angled bearing section (70a) of the armature (70).

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