Electrical cable assembly, method and apparatus for making same and electrical terminal for same

A method of forming an electrical cable assembly, comprising:

• providing a multiconductor flat cable comprising a first and second wire arranged in a coplanar fashion with each other and encased within a planar dielectric structure;
• cutting a slot in the planar dielectric structure intermediate the first and second wires, thereby forming first wing features in the dielectric structure extending from the first wire and second wing features extending from the second wire;
• and
• removing portions of the dielectric structure from ends of the first and second wires, thereby exposing portions of the first and second wires, wherein portions of the first and second wing features remain;
• cutting the second wire such that it is shorter than the first wire;
• bending the first wire such that the exposed first wire is aligned with the second exposed wire;
• and
• attaching the exposed first and second wires to a terminal, thereby electrically interconnecting the first and second wires.

A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having data stored therein representing software executable by a computer, the software including instructions to:

• command a transport mechanism to move a flat multiconductor cable from a reel and through an electrical cable manufacturing apparatus, wherein the flat multiconductor cable includes electrically conductive wires that are arranged in a coplanar fashion with each other and encased within a planar dielectric structure;
• command a cutting mechanism of the electrical cable manufacturing apparatus to cut a slot in the planar dielectric structure intermediate the wires, thereby forming insulation wings in the dielectric structure extending from the wires;
• command a stripping mechanism of the electrical cable manufacturing apparatus to remove portions of the dielectric structure from ends of the wires, thereby creating exposed wire portions;
• and
• command an attaching mechanism of the electrical cable manufacturing apparatus to press the wires into terminals and weld the wires to the terminals.