Patent attributes
Provided is an airtight terminal that is designed for an automotive electric compressor and that eliminates the need for use of a gasket. The airtight terminal includes a metallic outer ring having through holes formed for screw fastening and sealing holes arranged linearly, leads inserted through the sealing holes in the metallic outer ring, and pieces of an insulating material to seal gaps between the metallic outer ring and the respective leads. The metallic outer ring has a seal coat possessing elastic deformability. The seal coat is put on a predetermined surface of the metallic outer ring that is at least a contact surface to which an external device is attached. The seal coat is put in a shape of an oval embankment, and the sealing holes are disposed inside a region surrounded with the embankment-shaped coat. When the airtight terminal is attached to the external device such as an airtight container for an electric compressor, the airtight terminal is fastened with screws, with the embankment-shaped seal coat being pressed against an outer wall surface of the external device and being elastically deformed. At the same time, a terminal attachment hole formed in the outer wall surface of the external device is disposed inside the oval embankment of the seal coat. This can hermetically isolate an inside and an outside of the oval embankment from each other.
