Electrical connector with a flexible blade-shaped housing with a handle with an opening
US7972167B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 14, 2009 |
| Grant date | Jul 5, 2011 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 14, 2029 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY02T90/14
- WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The flexible electrical connector is designed to facilitate electrical connections between a power receiving device, such as an at least partially electric vehicle, and a power supplying device, such as an electric vehicle charging station. The flexible electrical connector has a blade shaped housing attached to a power cord that extends to the power supplying device. The blade shaped housing has a substantially rigid end portion with an electrical interface configured to detachably mate with a corresponding electrical interface on the power receiving device. The blade shaped housing also has a handle portion made of a substantially flexible material such which is configured to flex about the rigid end portion along an arc in a single plane. As such, the flexible handle can absorb impacts it receives rather than transferring them to the rigid and breakable electrical interface components.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.