Insulated Crimp Splicer

The present invention relates to an improved insulated electrical crimp splicer and, in particular, relates to an improved crimp splicer comprising an insulating sleeve having a crimp barrel removably retained therein.

In the past, insulated crimp splicers have been comprised of two separate pieces, a ductile metal barrel and a heat-shrinkable insulating sleeve having a bore running therethrough capable of receiving the metal barrel. A splice between two electrical wires was formed by first sliding the sleeve onto one of the wires. The ends of both wires were then stripped and inserted into opposite ends of the metal barrel. The barrel was then compressibly deformed into crimping engagement with the corresponding wires by the application of crimping pressures. The sleeve was slid down the wire and over the barrel. The sleeve was then shrunk down onto the barrel to protect the splice from the environment. Unfortunately, in some cases, because the barrel and the sleeve were separate pieces, one would become lost during storage. Further, in some cases, while forming the splice, the sleeve was inadvertently not put onto one of the wires before crimping the wires into the barrel. In these cases, it was necessary to cut the wires from the barrel and begin again with a new barrel.

Other crimp splicers have been comprised of an insulating sleeve having a metal barrel permanently positioned therein. One prior method of manufacturing this type of crimp splicer involved insertion of the barrel into a heat-shrinkable sleeve in its expanded state and then partially shrinking the sleeve down onto the barrel to permanently retain the barrel therein. Another method of manufacturing this type of crimp splicer involved forceful insertion of a barrel into the bore of the sleeve having a slightly smaller diameter than the diameter of the barrel. A splice between two electrical wires was then formed by stripping the ends of the wires and inserting them into opposite ends of the metal barrel. The barrel was then compressibly deformed into crimping engagement with the corresponding wires by the application of crimping pressures to the sleeve overlying the barrel. The crimping pressures were transmitted directly through the sleeve to the barrel thereby deforming the barrel and permanently retaining the conductors therein. Unfortunately, in response to the crimping pressure, that portion of the wall of the sleeve in the crimped areas was permanently damaged to the extent that residual wall thickness was reduced. In some cases, the damage to the wall caused the tube to split during subsequent heat shrinkage and sealing operations, thereby exposing the underlying conductors. In other cases, the wall thickness was reduced to a point where it was insufficient to provide the necessary physical and dielectric strength.

One prior solution to the problem of damage to the wall caused by crimping involved the reduction of the strength of the crimping forces. Although the reduced crimping forces did not cause damage to the wall of the sleeve, unfortunately, the resultant crimp was, in many cases, unacceptable due to the lower quality of the crimp and crimp connection. Another prior solution to the problem involved shaping the crimping dies so that they would distribute the crimping forces evenly throughout the wall of the tube. Unfortunately, again, the resultant crimp was, in many cases, unacceptable.

Another prior solution to the problem of damage to the wall was disclosed in Martin U.S. Patent No. 3,143,595, and involved forming the metal barrel in a substantially hour-glass configuration. The hour glass configuration permitted a cold plastic flow or spread of the sleeve in response to the crimping forces thereby aiding in the prevention of damage to the wall of the sleeve. However, the crimp operation still resulted in some damage to the wall of the sleeve.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a one-piece crimp splicer which enables the formation of a quality crimp in the barrel without causing damage to the sleeve.

This and other objects and advantages are obtained by forming a crimp splicer comprising a generally cylindrically-shaped insulating sleeve provided with a bore having a crimp barrel removably retained therein. The sleeve is preferably adapted to enable frictional and/or mechanical retention of the barrel within the sleeve. To form the splice, the barrel is removed from the sleeve preferably by insertion of electrical wire which has been stripped into the sleeve. Upon removal from the sleeve, the barrel is crimped onto the wire. The other wire is then stripped and inserted into the other end of the barrel and crimped into place. The barrel is then reinserted into the sleeve. In its preferred embodiment, the sleeve consists essentially of a heat-shrinkable material.

A more thorough disclosure of the objects and advantages of the present invention is presented in the detailed description which follows and from the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the crimp splicer with the barrel positioned in the sleeve;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the crimp splicer with an electrical wire inserted therethrough;

FIG. 3 is an alternate embodiment of the crimp splicer;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of another alternate embodiment of the crimp splicer; and

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of an insulating sleeve having meltable inserts disposed therein.

The present invention contemplates the formation of an insulated electrical crimp splicer comprising an insulating sleeve having a crimp barrel removably retained therein. Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown the crimp splicer 10 according to the present invention comprising generally the crimping barrel 12 and the insulating sleeve 14.

Describing the elements of the splicer in more detail, the crimp barrel 12 is preferably cylindrically-shaped and consists of a ductile metal which is a good conductor and is capable of being deformed with a crimping device. Suitable metals are copper, aluminum and brass. The barrel is also preferably provided with a centrally located conductor stop 16 shown in FIG. 2 formed by perforating one side of the wall of the barrel and forcing a portion of the wall into the interior of the barrel.

The insulating sleeve 14 is preferably generally cylindrically-shaped and has a bore formed therein which runs the length of the sleeve. The sleeve is shaped and sized to enable frictional retention of the barrel disposed within the bore of the sleeve. Frictional retention generally requires that some part of the outer insulating sleeve must always be in contact with some part of the crimp barrel being held in position and requires that reasonably close tolerances be held during the fabrication process so that the retention forces are within appropriate limits. The sleeve is further shaped and sized to enable removal of the barrel from the sleeve for crimping without damaging the sleeve and subsequent reinsertion of the barrel into the sleeve.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown a sleeve formed according to the present invention. The sleeve 14 is generally cylindrically-shaped and is provided with circumferentially disposed channel 18 and flare 20 formed in its wall. Channel 18 forms a corresponding rim 22 protruding into the interior of sleeve 14. The rim 22 has a diameter less than the outer diameter of barrel 12 and functions to center the barrel midway along the length of the sleeve. The inner diameter of the central portion 24 of the sleeve is approximately equal to the outer diameter of the barrel 12 thereby enabling frictional retention of the barrel within the sleeve. To form a splice, electrical wire 26 is stripped to expose conductor 28. Wire 26 is then inserted into the end of the sleeve 14 past rim 22 and into barrel 12. Referring to FIG. 2, the barrel is then urged from sleeve 14 by pushing on wire 26. After the barrel 12 has been removed from the sleeve, it is crimped by any manner well known in the art to permanently retain wire 26 therein. Then wire 27 is stripped, inserted into the other end of barrel 12 and crimped to permanently retain it therein. The barrel is then reinserted into sleeve 14 by holding the sleeve stationary and pulling on wire 26. Flare 20 has a larger diameter than barrel 12 to facilitate the insertion of the barrel into the sleeve by enabling alignment of the barrel with the bore of the central portion 24 of the sleeve.

In FIG. 3, there is shown an alternative embodiment having a sleeve formed with a bore having a shape other than round. The sleeve shown has an oval shaped bore for at least a portion of its length wherein the major diameter 30 of the bore is larger than the diameter of the barrel and the minor diameter 32 of the bore is smaller than the diameter of the barrel. The barrel may be inserted or removed from the sleeve by applying pressure along the major diameter of the sleeve thereby deforming the bore of the sleeve to round. In its deformed state, the diameter of the bore is larger than the diameter of the barrel. The barrel may then be easily inserted or removed from the sleeve. When the pressure is released, the bore of the sleeve will regain its original shape and frictionally retain the barrel therein along its minor axis. The ends 34 of the sleeve are preferably slightly flared outwardly to facilitate insertion of the barrel and the wires into the sleeve.

Referring to FIG. 4, there is shown an alternative embodiment of the splicer having a sleeve shaped and sized to enable mechanical retention of the barrel therein. To mechanically retain the crimp barrel within the sleeve, the barrel is forced past a detent which is formed in the wall of the insulating sleeve.

As the barrel passes the detent, it falls into a cavity whose inside diameter is larger than the diameter of the barrel. A detent of this type can be easily fabricated and remains functional over a wide fabrication tolerance band. The sleeve 36 is generally cylindrically-shaped and is provided with two spaced-apart detents formed as circumferentially disposed channels 38 and 40 in the wall of the sleeve. The channels form corresponding rims 42 and 44 respectively which protrude into the interior of the sleeve 36. The rims 42 and 44 have diameters which are less than the outer diameter of the metal barrel. However, at least one of the rims has a diameter which is only slightly less than the outer diameter of the metal barrel thereby enabling removal of the barrel from the sleeve past that rim through elastic deformation of the plastic insulation material. The barrel may be readily removed for crimping by inserting a wire into the barrel and pushing the barrel past such an appropriately sized rim. After crimping the barrel onto the wires, it may be reinserted into the sleeve by holding the sleeve stationary and pulling on the wire. In an alternative embodiment, the rim may be formed in circumferentially disposed sections rather than as a continuous ring.

Referring to FIG. 5, there is shown an insulating sleeve 46 according to the present invention adapted to frictionally retain a barrel therein and having its ends 48 flared outwardly to facilitate insertion of the barrel and wires into the sleeve. The sleeve is preferably comprised of a heat shrinkable material and is further provided with circumferentially disposed sealing rings 50. The rings 50 are comprised of material which will flow with the application of heat and environmentally seal the ends of the sleeve. Suitable materials for sealing rings are disclosed in the Wetmore U.S. Pat. No. 3,243,211, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

In its preferred embodiment, the insulating sleeve consists essentially of a heat-shrinkable material but it will be obvious to one skilled in the art that other suitable insulating polymers may also be utilized. Suitable heat-shrinkable materials are disclosed in Cook U.S. Pat. No. 3,086,242, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. If the sleeve is comprised of a heat-shrinkable material, after forming the splice and reinserting the barrel back into the sleeve, the sleeve may be shrunk down around the barrel and wires to protect the splice from the environment.

The present invention may also be utilized for other electrical connections whose body must be all or partially covered with insulation after application such as pre-insulated ring terminals and spade terminals.

While an embodiment and application of this invention has been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many more modifications are possible without departing from the inventive concepts herein described. The invention, therefore, is not to be restricted except as is necessary by the prior art and by the spirit of the appended claims.