Electrical termination device and method

A termination device for making electrical connection to an electrical conductor having a metallic core covered with insulation comprising:

• an electrically conductive tubular member having longitudinally extending slots therein on generally opposite sides of said tubular member defining relatively closely spaced-apart core penetrating opposed edges and relatively further spaced-apart insulation penetrating edges, respectively;
• said slots terminating in enlarged, generally alinged openings whereby the conductor may be inserted laterally into said tubular member through said enlarged openings and may be pulled at an angle into said slots to cause said insulation penetrating edges to penetrate the insulation of the conductor and said core penetrating edges to penetrate the core of the conductor;
• and
• said tubular member having a longitudinal seam therein extending to the opposite ends thereof and passing through one of said slots.

An electrical connector assembly comprising:

• a planar mounting board having a hole therein;
• a vertically extending tubular termination device having a lower end portion thereof mounted in said hole;
• generally opposed enlarged openings in said tubular termination device above said board;
• generally opposed slots in said device extending upwardly from said openings, said slots defining conductor insulation and core opposed, penetrating edges, respectively;
• said tubular termination device having a longitudinal seam therein extending to the opposite ends thereof and passing through one of said slots;
• and
• said enlarged openings being dimensioned to receive therein a conductor extending laterally through said device whereby upward pulling of the conductor in the device at an angle will cause said insulation penetrating edges to penetrate the insulation of the conductor and said core penetrating edges to penetrate the core of the conductor.

A method of connecting a termination device to an electrical conductor having a metallic core covered with insulation, comprising the steps of:

• providing a termination device comprising an electrically conductive tubular member, a first slot extending longitudinally through said tubular member to the opposite ends thereof defining a pair of resilient arcuate side walls, the edges of said side walls defined by said slot being uniformly spaced from each other adjacent to one end of said tubular member, the distance between said uniformly spaced edged being less than the cross-section of said core of said conductor, said edges diverging outwardly in the direction of the other end of said tubular member to an enlarged opening, a second enlarged opening in said tubular member on the side thereof opposite to said first-mentioned opening and generally aligned therewith, said first and second openings being sufficiently large to receive said conductor thereinto, and a second slot in said tubular member on said opposite side thereof extending from said second opening toward said one end, the edges of said tubular member defined by said second slot being spaced from each other, the distance between said second-mentioned edges being less than the cross-section of said conductor but greater than the cross-section of said core;
• inserting said conductor laterally into said termination device through said openings from the side of said tubular member embodying said first slot;
• and
• pulling said conductor at an angle toward said one end of said tubular member causing said first-mentioned edges to sever said insulation and penetrate said core at one region of the conductor and causing said second-mentioned edges to penetrate said insulation at a second region of said conductor providing strain relief for said conductor.