AU5179901A - A plug arrangement for an optical plug-and-socket connection - Google Patents

Abstract

The plug has a housing in which at least one plug pin (3) is mounted and at least one sprung locking element (27) for locking the plug securely into a socket when a correct end position is reached. The lock is pivotably mounted on the plug with a rotary joint. The lock is a one-piece metal part in sprung contact with the plug housing at a sprung section. An Independent claim is included for an optical plug connector.

Description

I

AUSTRALIA

PATENTS ACT 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION NAME OF APPLICANT(S): Diamond S.A.

ADDRESS FOR SERVICE: DAVIES COLLISON CAVE Patent Attorneys 1 Little Collins Street, Melbourne, 3000.

INVENTION TITLE: A plug arrangement for an optical plug-and-socket connection The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us:- PDI075.us/21.05.2001 1 a The invention relates to a plug arrangement for an optical insert plug-and-socket connection, according to the preamble of claim i. Such plug arrangements for example serve for fastening in a housing of an apparatus a board equipped with preferably several optical plugs such that the plugs are inserted into the corresponding sockets fastened on a transversely running apparatus wall. For avoiding an unnecessary force transmission onto the daughter board and for compensating the mass tolerances both boards in the inserted condition are mechanically decoupled from one another.

A comparable plug arrangement according to the known type is already known by way of EP-A-916 978 whose disclosure is used for a better understanding of the present invention. According to this state of the art the push element is a U-shaped fork whose resilient limbs cooperate with a push abutment, and which thus define a support able to be negotiated. With this very good results may be achieved as long as in the plane of movement of the fork there is sufficient space available. With miniaturised plugs and with restricted space condition, i.e. with a high packing density of plugs arranged next to one another over a certain length, the application of the U-shaped fork is however difficult because the lateral pivoting movements of the fork limbs may not be infinately reduced.

It is therefore the object of the invention to provide a plug arrangement of the initially mentioned type which also with a significant miniaturisation of the components ensures a reliable decoupling and which is easily assembled and simply manufactured. According to the invention this object is achieved with a plug arrangement having the features in patent claim i.

PD1075.us/21.05.2001 With this it has been surprisingly shown that also with a leaf spring bent at an angle excellent results may be achieved. In particular the leaf spring permits a pivoting out downwards which with regard to the lateral space requirement of the plug is not inhibitive. The leaf spring at the same time may be allocated to the daughter board and the push abutment to the plug part. However a kinematic reversal would also be conceivable, i.e. an allocation of the leaf spring to the relatively displaceable plug part.

The push abutment may be formed by way of a material shoulder, wherein the angled part after overcoming the material shoulder engages into a recess in which in the insert direction it is displaceable by a distance which corresponds to the maximum possible decoupling distance between the mother board and the daughter board. By way of dipping the angled part into the recess the leaf spring in the decoupled condition is again completely relaxed. It would however also be conceivable for the leaf spring in the decoupled condition also to remain tensioned and for the angled part in this operating condition to be pressed against a surface of the plug part. The friction arising at the same time may for example be applied for braking the decoupling movement.

The material shoulder runs preferably roughly parallel to the angled part and roughly at a right angle to the insert direction. In spite of this arrangement of the material shoulder the leaf spring with an increase of the push force is bent back because also the angled part itself is subjected to the bending forces. This arrangement of material shoulder and angled part has the advantage that the negotiation of the material shoulder is effected practically at a stroke which simplifies the insert procedure. It would however also be conceivable to arrange the PDI075.us/21.05.2001 3 angled part and/or material shoulder at a certain angle to the insert direction by which means the required push force for negotiating the material shoulder may be reduced.

The side, of the recess, which faces the material shoulder may furthermore be formed as a run-up ramp for the angled part on pulling back the plug from the socket part. This evidently has the effect that on reversing the movement the necessary force for negotiating the material shoulder is smaller.

The leaf spring may be formed as a separate bent part of metal, wherein this in the region of the fixation location has anchoring means. The separate bent part has the advantage that the spring properties may be exactly matched to the concrete case. It would of course however also be conceivable to integrate the leaf spring directly into the daughter board or into a housing part allocated to the board or into a plug housing and Sto manufacture it of plastic material.

The leaf spring is advantageously held in an insert housing which forms at least one guide passage for the plug part. The application of such an insert housing has already become known by way of the initially mentioned EP-A-916 978. Further advang tages may now yet be further achieved in that the insert housing is displaceably mounted in a limited manner relative to the daughter board on a plane running roughly at right angles to the plane of the daughter board and to the insert direction. This floating mounting has the advantage that although in two spacial axes a compensation of mass inaccuracies is possible, this is not possible in the insert direction. By way of this compensation possibility a jamming of the plug parts is avoided.

The plug housings must in the latch-in position be held pull-proof in the socket parts. This is effected in a manner known per se via resilient locking elements which are arranged on the plug housing and whichin the latch-in position are latchable in an undercut on the socket part. For the unlocking therefore a lifting out of the undercut is necessary. With individual plug-and-socket connections this movement is carried out manually on a suitable grip piece. Details for this may be deduced from the European Patent No. 1 072 920.

With insert plug-and-socket connections with several plugs lying next to one another this is however difficult and the unlocking movement or the force required for this is advantageously de- o 9.

rived from the withdrawal movement of the plug. For this the locking element advantageously comprises a lever arm which coopi erates with at least one guiding slide on the insert housing in a manner such that on pulling back the plug housing the locking is releasable. Such a controlled unlocking movement may also be 999999 realised on insert plug-and-socket connections with conventional insert elements.

The locking element may be formed as a two-arm lever which is releasably fixable on the plug housing, wherein on one lever arm there is arranged at least one detent pawl which cooperates with the undercut and on the other lever arm at least one guide element which cooperates with the guiding slide. The lever releasably fixed on the plug housing has the advantage that conventional plug housings for the use in an insert plug-and-socket connection may be retrofitted.

With the guiding slide it may be the case of a ramp arranged on a lateral wall of the guide passage. At the same time the ramp may run linearly or arcuately.

PDI075.us/21.05.2001 The guide passage may be covered with a releasable covering which comprises a centering element which cooperates with a corresponding centering element on the socket part. The separate covering one the one hand simplifies the manufacture of the insert housing and on the other hand the assembly of the individual plug parts in the guide passages. The arrangement of the centering element on the covering is above all advantageous.

The socket part has advantageously at least one socket opening which is closed by a pivotable protective flap which is linked on by way of a pivot pin going through the socket housing and the protective flap. Other linkage connections would of course likewise also be conceivable. The pivot pin however has the advantage that it simultaneously may accommodate a spring with which the protective flap may be biased into the closure position. For the lateral fixing of the pivot pin this in the region of each protective flap may comprise a circumferential groove. A spur on the protective flap in the region of the deflection engages into this groove and thus fixes the pivot pin.

This is possible because the protective flap for its part is laterally limited in the socket housing. Also such a fixation of the socket flaps may be applied to a conventional socket part for insert plug-and-socket connections or also for individual plug-and-socket connections.

o o Further individual features and advantages of the invention result from the subsequent description of one embodiment example and from the drawings. There are shown in: Figure 1 a cross section through an insert plug-and-socket connection according to the invention, explained. Accordingly the plug arrangement consists of an insert housing 13 which is assembled on a base part 44 on a daughter board 4 and in which several plug parts 3 are axially displaceably mounted in the arrow direction a. The individual plug parts 3 are fixed on a carriage 36 which is guided in the insert housing 13. To each carriage there is allocated an individual guide passage 14 which is covered to the top by a covering 22.

The plug part 3 has at its disposal a plug housing 5 in which in the manner known per se on a compression spring there is mounted a plug pin. The end face of the plug housing for protecting the plug pin is closed with a protective lid 56 which only with the inserting procedure is pivoted open and pushed back. For fixing the plug housing 5 in the socket part 1 a lockooooo S ing element 6 in the form of a pivotable double lever is fastened on the plug housing which has at its disposal a detent pawl 19. On reaching the latch-in position the detent pawl 19 eooee engages behind an undercut 15 on the plug part 1 and thus locks the plug housing 5 in the socket part in a pull-proof manner.

For releasing the locking the longer lever arm in a way and manner described in more detail later is pivoted up in the arrow direction b. Further details of the plug construction may be deduced from the initially mentioned European Patent No. 1 072 920, wherein however there is shown a locking element which is to be actuated manually. The remaining components of the plug part, in particular also of the plug pin and of the protective lid are however identical.

On the base of each guide passage 14 there is arranged a leaf spring 7 fixed on one side which at its free end is provided with an angled part 8. This angled part with the insertion procedure cooperates with a push abutment 9 and with the removal r .,-.1ocedure cooperates with a pull abutment 43 on the underside of PDI075.us/21.05.2001 8 the carriage 36. With the insertion procedure the push force after reaching the latching position rises so much until the leaf spring 7 is pivoted out downwards in the arrow direction c and the angled part 8 overcomes the push abutment 9 and dips into the recess 10 lying therebehind seen in the direction of insertion. This recess limits a movement distance in the arrow direction a which corresponds to the maximum possible decoupling distance.

The socket part 1 is designed as a lead-through coupling which on one side is flanged onto a mother board 2 with the help of fastening screws 57. With the mother board it may be the case for example of a housing rear wall. Into each socket part from both sides there may be inserted an identical plug part 3, wherein its plug pins in an exactly machined centering sleeve 49 are centered to one another and pressed against one another. In certain cases it would however also be conceivable for the eo ~socket part only to be construed for the one-sided insertion of S plugs and for an optical module for transmitting or receiving S light to be allocated to each inserted plug.

*o The socket opening 25 on the insert side is closed with a pivotable protective flap 26 wherein by way of a spring 31 it is kept in the closure position. On inserting the socket part 3 the protective flap 26 is pivoted away in the arrow direction d.

The insert procedure between the plug arrangement and the socket part is simplified by a guide arm 35 which is arranged on the socket part and which engages into a centering passage 23 on the cover 22 and thus ensures a linear guiding. Otherwise the socket part is however not specially designed for the plug arrangement according to the invention, but may also be used in combination with conventional individual plugs.

PD1075.us/21.05.2001 As is evident from Figures 2 and 3 the insert plug-andsocket connection represented in the embodiment example comprises four individual plug parts and four separate socket parts. Evidently however also according to the same principle also more or fewer plug-and-socket connections may be manufactured in the same plug-in package. The lateral space requirement of a unit is in any case very small and is only slightly larger than the sum of the width of the individual plugs. The centering means 23 and 25 are preferably arranged roughly in the middle with respect to the width of a unit.

From the Figures 4 to 7 there are evident details of the insert housing 13 and of the cooperation of the individual parts.

The Figures 4 and 5 firstly show the construction of a carriage 36 whose lateral carriage runners 37 may be inserted into the individual guide passages 14, wherein the linear guiding is en- S sured by the carriage guides 38 on the lateral walls of the guide passages (Figure Each carriage has at its disposal a roughly U-shaped step bearing 39 which may accommodate. a plug housing 5 on a collar 42 (Figure 7) specially provided therefor.

For fixing the plug housing there serve lateral holding claws 41. The fibre-optic cable running to each plug part rest in a likewise U-shaped cable receiver 40. On the underside of each carriage there is arranged a material shoulder which forms the push abutment 9. Towards the recess 10 this material shoulder is formed as a run-up ramp 11 in order to permit the bending back of the angled part on the leaf spring with a low force effort.

The width of the deepening 10 is somewhat larger than the width of the angled part on the leaf spring. The pull abutment 43 runs roughly parallel to the push abutment 9 and limits a further deepening 58 of roughly the same depth and the same width as the deepening PD1075.us/21.05.2001 As is evident from Figure 6 the individual leaf springs 7 have at their disposal lateral holding tongues 12 which engage into corresponding slots 59 on the insert housing. By way of the inserted carriages 36 the leaf springs 7 in this manner are rigidly held and anchored in a pull-proof manner.

On the lateral walls of the guide passages 14 there are arranged linearly running ramps 17 which serve the steering of the locking elements 6.

The base of the insert housing 13 is formed as a hollow base. This hollow base accommodates the base part 44 which on two longitudinal sides is in each case provided with a snap lug The snap lugs latch into corresponding openings 60 in the S:'r hollow base and specifically in a manner such that the base part 44 is held with play laterally in the arrow direction e as well as planar parallely in the arrow direction f. From this there S results a floating mounting of the insert housing 13 on the daughter board 4. The base part 44 itself is rigidly connected to the daughter board. For this there serve screw nuts 47 which may be applied in nut bearings 46. With the help of fastening screws (Figure 1) the base part 44 may be screwed on the daughter board 4.

As is shown in Figure 7 firstly conventional plug housings are equipped with the locking elements 6 specially determined for the insert plug connection. These are designed as two-armed levers which on linkage openings 20 may be snapped onto the plug housing. At the end of the longer lever arm 16 there are arranged guide elements 18 which project laterally and which cooperate with the ramps 17 in the insert housing 13. The detent pawls 19 are arranged at the end of the shorter lever arm. A PDI075.us/21.05.2001 11 spring 21 in the assembled condition is supported on the upper side of the plug housing and by way of this biases the detent pawls 19 in the latching direction g.

After all carriages 36 are equipped with a plug housing the insert housing 13 may be closed with the cover 22. This is effected in turn via snap connections with the help of the latching strips 24.

Further details of the socket part are evident from Figure It consists of the two housing halves 48 and 48' which after the placing of the centerings sleeves 49 into the sleeve bearings 52 (see also Figure 1) are joined together. For this there serve connection bolts 51 which are snapped and/or adhesed into bolt openings On the housing half 48 again there are integrated nut bearings 54 which may accommodate screw nuts 55. These serve, as :o S initially mentioned, for fastening of the socket housing 48, 48' on the mother board 2.

e* Each socket opening 25 is closed with a protective flap 26 S as it is shown in the Figures 8 and 9. On the bent up lateral o limbs 27 there are arranged openings 28 for the linkage on the socket housing. Out of the plane of the protective flap 26 in the region of these linkage locations there is bent up in each case a spur 29. The linkage of the protective flaps is effected via a common bearing pivot pin 30 which goes through the openings 28 as well as the individual coiled torsion springs 39. The springs 31 have at their disposal a support foot 32 which is supported on the base of the socket housing. The spring limbs 33 lie on the protective flap 26 and press this into the closure position. The spur 29 of each protective flap 26 snaps into a PDI075.us/21.05.2001 circumferential groove 34 on the bearing axis 30 and fixes this thus in the lateral position.

By way of Figures 11 to 13 the movement sequences of an insert procedure are explained. In the position according to Figure 11 the components are aligned to one another in that the guide arm 35 already engages into the centering passage 23. The plug part 3 has been extended out relative to the insert housing 13 by the maximum measure M. The protective flap 26 on the socket part as well as the protective lid 56 on the plug part are located in the closure position. The locking element 6 on the ramp 17 is biased into the unlocking position.

With a further advance of the daughter board 4 against the mother board 2 according to Figure 12 the plug part 3 supported on the push abutment 9 and on the angled part 8 of the leaf spring 7 is introduced into the socket part 1. With the push force which is exerted at the same time on the one hand the protective flap 26 is pressed down and on the other hand the protective lid 56 in a known manner is pivoted over a guide not represented in detail and is displaced back relative to the endface of the plug. The measure M of the outward movement is at the same time reduced by the free-run between the push abutment 9 and the pull abutment 43. At the same time the ramp 17 releases the locking element 6 to the extent that on reaching the latching position the detent pawls 19 may latch on the undercut 0000 Roughly simultaneously or directly after reaching the latching position a further rise in the push force effects a release of the angled part 8 from the push abutment 9 by way of the back-yielding of the leaf springs 7 into a free space provided therefore. Directly after the negotiation of the push abutment 9 the angled part dips into the recess 10 by which means the measure M of outward movement is further reduced. In this recess the PDI075.us/21.05.2001 13 insert housing 13 and thus the whole daughter board is completely decoupled from the plug part 3 and thus from the mother board 2. The biasing force of the plug pins pressed against one another by way of this is completely taken up by the locking on the socket housing and may not be transmitted onto the daughter board.

On releasing the insert plug connection the angled part 8 must again negotiate the material shoulder of the push abutment 9 in the reverse direction. With a continuation of the pull movement the ramp 17 steers the locking element 6 in a manner such that the locking on the socket part is released and the plug part may be pulled out of the socket part. The pulling force with this by way of the angled part on the leaf spring is transmitted via the pull abutment 43 onto the plug part.

The reference numerals in the following claims do not in any way limit the scope of the respective claims.

Throughout this specification and the claims which follow, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise", and variations such as "comprises" and "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or step or group of integers or steps but not the exclusion of any other integer or step or group of integers or steps.

The reference to any prior art in this specification is not, and should not be taken as, an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that that prior art forms part of the common general knowledge in Australia.

Claims (15)

1. A plug arrangement for an optical insert plug-and-socket connection between at least one socket part on a mother board and at least one plug part on a daughter board with a plug housing held on the daughter board, as well as with latching means for latching the plug housing in the socket part in a latching position, wherein the daughter board after reaching the latching position may be decoupled from the mother board by direct or indirect support of the plug housing on a resilient push element whose spring force maintains the support until reaching the latching position and subsequently with a continued push movement releases it automatically, wherein the push element is a leaf spring which is fixed at one side e• and which extends roughly in the insert direction and whose free end comprises an •'angled part, wherein the angled part cooperates with a push abutment in a manner such that after reaching a predetermined push force the push abutment is negotiable by way of the pivoting-out of the leaf spring.

2. A plug arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the leaf spring is allocated to the :o °daughter board and the push abutment to the plug part.

A plug arrangement according to either claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the push abutment is formed by a material shoulder, and that the angled part after negotiating the material shoulder engages into a recess in which it in the insert direction is relatively displaceable by a distance which corresponds to the maximum possible decoupling path between the mother board and daughter board.

4. A plug arrangement according to claim 3, wherein the material shoulder runs roughly parallel to the angled part and roughly at right angles to the insert direction and that the side, of the recess, facing the material shoulder is designed as a run-up ramp for the angled part on pulling back the plug part out of the socket part.

P.OPER\JPN\2426185.215.doc-O7/0 0&' 15 A plug arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the leaf spring is formed as a separate bent part of metal and that in the region of the fixing location it comprises anchoring means.

6. A plug connection according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the leaf spring is held in an insert housing which forms at least one guide passage for the plug part.

7. A plug arrangement according to claim 6, wherein the insert housing is mounted such that it is able to be displaced in a limited manner relative to the daughter board in a plane which runs roughly at right angles to the plane of the daughter board and i which runs at right angles to the insert direction.

8. A plug arrangement according to either claim 6 or claim 7 wherein the latching ooooo means is a resilient locking element which is arranged on the plug housing and which in the latching position latches into an undercut on the socket part, and that the locking element comprises a lever arm which cooperates with at least one guiding slide on the insert housing in a manner such that on pulling back the plug housing the locking is releasable. oooo

9. A plug arrangement according to claim 8, wherein the locking element is designed •as a two-armed lever which is releasably fixable on the plug housing, wherein on one lever arm there is arranged at least one detent pawl which cooperates with the undercut, and on the other lever arm there is arranged at least one guide element which cooperates with the guiding slide.

A plug arrangement according to either claim 8 or claim 9, wherein the guiding slide is a ramp arranged on a lateral wall of the guide passage.

11. A plug arrangement according to any one of claims 6 to 10, wherein the guiding slide is covered by a releasable cover which comprises a centering element which -l cooperates with a corresponding centering element on the socket part. P:'OPERUJPN2426185.215 loc-07/0&I01 -16-

12. An insert plug-and-socket connection with a plug arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 11 with at least two plug parts and with at least two corresponding socket parts which are arranged in a common socket housing.

13. A plug arrangement substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings and/or Examples.

14. A socket part substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings and/or Examples.

15. The steps, features, compositions and compounds disclosed herein or referred to or indicated in the specification and/or claims of this application, individually or collectively, and any and all combinations of any two or more of said steps or features. DATED this 7th day of August 2001 DIAMOND S.A. by DAVIES COLLISON CAVE Patent Attorneys for the applicant