Yazaki North America, Inc.

Michael Anthony Manor

Takeshi Takahashi

Kazuhiro Shimizu

An eyelet terminal for holding a bolt in a pre-set position relative to a mounting member wherein the threaded portion of the bolt is proximate a female threaded portion of the mounting member. In this pre-set position, the bolt is on the verge of engagement with the female threaded portion so that rotation of the bolt causes it to immediately begin to engage the female threaded portion. The terminal has two generally circular eyelets connected with one another by a spacing member which maintains the two eyelets in a spaced apart and generally parallel relationship. The first eyelet has a plurality of circumferentially spaced tabs projecting radially inward into its aperture to engage a bolt and maintain it in rotatable connection with the terminal such that the bolt shank passes through both eyelet apertures. The second eyelet has retainer prongs extending generally perpendicular therefrom. The retainer is inserted into engagement with a first hole in the mounting member so that the second eyelet is adjacent the mounting member and the bolt is aligned with a threaded hole in the mounting member. The first and second eyelets are spaced apart by a distance such that when the bolt is captive in the first eyelet and the retainer is engaged with the mounting member, the bolt is maintained in the pre-set position. As the bolt is driven into engagement with the mounting member, the spacing member deforms to allow the first eyelet to move toward the second eyelet.

Eyelet terminal with captive bolt

An eyelet terminal for use in a vehicle junction box or power center to connect a bus bar to an electrical wire or cable. The terminal assembly is formed as a flat metal blank with bendable portions defining a nut-trapping lock ring, an anti-rotation tab, and wire crimping tabs. One end of the terminal includes an eyelet portion having an aperture for a bolt or threaded stud, and a surface for rotatably supporting a flanged nut over the aperture. The lock ring is formed at the end of a leg or arm extending from the eyelet portion and adapted to be bent over a radius to a nut-trapping position over the nut flange and aligned with the eyelet portion. A bendable anti-rotation tab extending from the lock ring is bent from an initial flat position to a right-angled position in which it extends through a suitable aperture in the terminal when the lock ring is in the nut-trapping position. The portion of the anti-rotation tab extending through the terminal is adapted to engage a mating receptacle in a bus bar or junction box housing to prevent the eyelet terminal from rotating when the nut is tightened in one-handed fashion.

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Riverview, MI, United States of America

Michael Anthony Manor