# US 2013/0157525 A1 · Method for manufacturing contact terminal, contact terminal manufacturing apparatus, and contact terminal > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2013/0157525 A1 - Document ID: US20130157525A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 13/718,635 - Filed: 2012-12-18 - Published: 2013-06-20 - Earliest claimed: 2011-12-20 - Assignees: Gifu Hightech Co., Ltd.; Asmo Co., Ltd. - Inventors: Takao Yamaki; Seiichi Murakami; Takeshi Hamanaka - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20130157525A1 ## CPC - H01R 43/16: for manufacturing contact members, e.g. by punching and by bending - B21D 22/20: Deep-drawing (special deep-drawing arrangements in, or in connection with, presses B21D24/00) - B21D 37/08: Dies with different parts for several steps in a process - H01R 13/02: Contact members - Y10T 29/49218: with deforming - H01R: ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS - B21D: WORKING OR PROCESSING OF SHEET METAL OR METAL TUBES, RODS OR PROFILES WITHOUT ESSENTIALLY REMOVING MATERIAL; PUNCHING METAL (working or processing of wire B21F) - Y10T: TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION ## Abstract A method for manufacturing a contact terminal including a contact portion that slides against a surface of a conductive contact plate. The manufacturing method includes forming a projection in a metal plate by performing a drawing process, wherein the projection projects in a thicknesswise direction of the metal plate and has a larger diameter than the contact portion. The manufacturing method further includes forming the contact portion from the projection by performing a contraction pressing process at least once on the projection so that the diameter of the projection gradually decreases, while the height of the projection remains the same or decreases in a stepwise manner. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method for manufacturing a contact terminal including a contact portion that slides against a surface of a conductive contact plate, the manufacturing method comprising: forming a projection in a metal plate by performing a drawing process, wherein the projection projects in a thicknesswise direction of the metal plate and has a larger diameter than the contact portion; and forming the contact portion from the projection by performing a contraction pressing process at least once on the projection so that the diameter of the projection gradually decreases, while the height of the projection remains the same or decreases in a stepwise manner. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the contraction pressing process is performed a plurality of times, and each contraction pressing process includes preparing a die plate including a die cavity having a smaller diameter than the projection formed in a preceding process; arranging the metal plate on the die plate so that a distal part of the projection is fit into the die cavity; preparing a stripper plate facing the die plate; holding the peripheral portion of the projection facing the peripheral portion of the die cavity between the die plate and the stripper plate; and fitting a punch into the die cavity, wherein the die cavity used in each contraction pressing process includes an open end that defines a guide surface having an arcuate cross-section, and the guide surface has a radius that becomes smaller in a stepwise manner in die cavities used in latter contraction pressing processes. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The manufacturing method according to claim 2, wherein the stripper plate has an insertion hole through which the punch is inserted at a position opposed to the die cavity, the insertion hole has a diameter that is greater than or equal to the sum of the diameter of the opposed die cavity and twice a value of the radius of the guide surface, and when the peripheral portion of the projection in the metal plate is held between the peripheral portion of the die cavity in the die plate and the peripheral portion of the insertion hole in the stripper plate, a bulging portion is formed in a basal part of the projection, wherein the bulging portion bulges away from the guide surface and toward the insertion hole. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the projection formed by the drawing process has a diameter that is two times or greater than the diameter of the contact portion. ### Claim 5 An apparatus for manufacturing a contact terminal including a contact portion that slides against a surface of a conductive contact plate, the manufacturing apparatus comprising: a die plate including a plurality of die cavities arranged along a feeding direction of a metal plate that forms the contact terminal, wherein the die cavities are arranged from one having a larger diameter than the contact portion to one having the same diameter as the contact portion so that the diameter gradually decreases, and the die cavities have the same depth or a depth that gradually decreases in the feeding direction; a plurality of punches that can respectively be fitted into the die cavities to cooperate with the die cavities and perform a pressing process on the metal plate arranged between the punches and the die cavities, wherein the one of the die cavities having the largest diameter is used to perform a drawing process that forms a projection in the metal plate, wherein the projection projects in a thicknesswise direction of the metal plate, and the contact portion is formed from the projection by performing a pressing process that gradually decreases the diameter of the projection with the remaining die cavities from those having larger diameters. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The manufacturing apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising a stripper plate facing the die plate, the stripper plate holds the metal plate arranged on the die plate with the die plate to fit a distal part of the projection into the die cavity having a smaller diameter than the projection, and each of the die cavities includes an open end that defines a guide surface having an arcuate cross-section, and the guide surface has a radius that becomes smaller in a stepwise manner in the feeding direction. ### Claim 7 (depends on 5) The manufacturing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the die cavities have the same depth. ### Claim 8 (depends on 5) The manufacturing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein each of the plurality of punches includes a distal part defining a punching portion, the punching portion cooperates with the corresponding die cavity to fit the projection into the die cavity and perform a contraction pressing process on the projection, and the punching portions of the punches have the same height and different diameters. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) A contact terminal manufactured by the manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the contact terminal is arranged in a motor including: a motor unit that generates a rotation; a reduction gear mechanism including a worm wheel that reduces the speed of the rotation generated by the motor unit; an output shaft connected to a wiper and rotated integrally with the worm wheel; and a rotation plate that includes a contact plate, which forms a conductive pattern, and an insulating holding member, which holds the contact plate, wherein the rotation plate is rotated by the worm wheel, wherein the contact portion slides against a surface of the rotation plate. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The contact terminal according to claim 9, wherein the motor further includes a housing that accommodates the reduction gear mechanism, the contact terminal includes a basal part fixed to the housing, an extension bent from the basal part and extended toward the contact plate, a distal part further extended from the extension, and the contact portion formed at the distal part, wherein the contact portion is elastically movable in a thicknesswise direction relative to the basal part.