CN112018537B - Connector system with wafer - Google Patents

Abstract

Various exemplary connectors and connector assemblies are described that allow design flexibility and cost savings. Some embodiments of an electrical connector assembly include a housing member having a plurality of exterior surfaces. Some embodiments also include a plurality of wafers supported by the housing member, each wafer including a plurality of conductive terminals and an insulative support member supporting the plurality of conductive terminals, each terminal having a contact portion configured to electrically connect the terminal to another electrical component. Some embodiments further include a satellite connector disposed on one of the outer surfaces of the housing member, the satellite connector including an insulated satellite base and a plurality of connectors supported by the satellite base, each connector having a termination portion that can be connected to a cable.

Description

Connector system with wafer

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. provisional application No. 62/855,287, filed on 31/5/2019, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates generally to electrical connectors and, more particularly, to an electrical connector assembly including wafer-like bodies for interconnecting orthogonal circuit elements.

Background

Electrical connectors are typically designed to meet both mechanical and electrical requirements. High speed or high data rate electrical connectors are commonly used in backplane applications requiring extremely high density and high data rates. To meet the required mechanical and electrical requirements, such backplane connectors often utilize or incorporate wafer assemblies having an insulating web supporting a plurality of conductive terminals. It is often desirable to use wafer assemblies to create a structure that can achieve the desired high data rates, yet is robust enough to support the desired assembly process. The wafer assemblies are typically oriented perpendicular to the plane of the circuit substrate on which the backplane connector is mounted.

Backplane connectors may be provided for use in any of a variety of different configurations. In a right angle sandwich configuration, a pair of mating connectors are mounted on two parallel (and often coplanar) circuit substrates or circuit elements. In such a sandwich configuration, additional electrical connections may be established between the two circuit substrates by adding additional mating connectors in an adjacent configuration or by using connectors with more wafer assemblies.

In a positive mating configuration, two right angle backplane connectors are used to electrically connect two circuit substrates or circuit components that are orthogonal to each other. This results in the two connectors being rotated 90 degrees relative to each other. Thus, the number of rows and columns of each connector is limited because the number of rows and columns of one connector must match the number of rows and columns of another connector. Adding additional electrical connections to two orthogonal backplane connectors requires increasing the number of wafer assemblies of one of the connectors and increasing the height of wafer assemblies of the other connector. However, modifying the mold used to form the wafer assembly (tolling) or creating a new mold that changes the number of terminals within a wafer assembly is typically very expensive.

It is therefore desirable to provide a quadrature connector assembly in which the number of electrical circuits or connections can be easily modified.

The foregoing background discussion is intended only to aid the reader. There is no intention to limit the innovations described herein nor to limit or expand the prior art discussed. Thus, the foregoing discussion should not be deemed to indicate that any particular element of an existing system is unsuitable for use with the innovations described herein, nor is it intended to indicate that any element is essential to implementing the innovations described herein. The inventive embodiments and applications described herein are defined by the appended claims.

Disclosure of Invention

Various exemplary connectors and connector assemblies are described that allow design flexibility and cost savings.

Some embodiments of an electrical connector assembly may include: a housing member having a plurality of exterior surfaces; a plurality of wafers supported by the housing member, each wafer including a plurality of conductive terminals and an insulative support member supporting the plurality of conductive terminals, each terminal having a contact portion configured to electrically connect the terminal to another electrical component; and a satellite connector disposed on one of the outer surfaces of the housing member, the satellite connector including an insulative satellite base and a plurality of connectors supported by the satellite base, each connector having a termination portion that can be connected to a cable.

In some embodiments, the wafers are parallel and oriented in a first direction and the connectors of the satellite connector are in a plane perpendicular to the wafers.

In some embodiments, the plurality of connections of the satellite connector comprise conductive terminals.

In some embodiments, the termination portions of the plurality of connectors are disposed along a rear surface of the satellite base.

In some embodiments, the terminating portion of the connector of the satellite connector terminates in a conductive element.

In some embodiments, the conductive element is a cable having a plurality of conductive wires, each wire terminating in the terminating portion of one of the connectors.

In some embodiments, the conductive element is a flexible circuit element having a plurality of electrical conductors, each of which terminates at the termination portion of one of the connectors.

In some embodiments, the wafers are generally flat and arranged in a side-by-side relationship, and the satellite chassis of the satellite connector is generally flat, with the plane of the wafers being perpendicular to the plane of the satellite chassis.

In some embodiments, the housing element includes first and second spaced apart side walls and the plurality of wafers are parallel to the side walls.

In some embodiments, the wafers define a subassembly having a first end disposed adjacent the first sidewall and an opposite second end disposed adjacent the second sidewall.

In some embodiments, the plurality of wafers are disposed within the housing element.

In some embodiments, the satellite base is a separate component from the housing.

In some embodiments, the plurality of wafers includes a plurality of high speed signal terminals and a plurality of ground elements.

In some embodiments, the terminals of the wafers include mating portions along a mating face and the tail portions of the terminals are disposed along a substrate mounting face, the mating face being perpendicular to the substrate mounting face.

In some embodiments, the tail portions of the terminals include crimping legs.

In some embodiments, a portion of the housing element and a portion of the satellite chassis define a cage around a mating portion of the terminals of the wafers, the cage configured to receive a mating electrical connector.

In some embodiments, the portion of the satellite base defines an upper portion of the enclosure.

In some embodiments, the plurality of connections of the satellite connector include at least one power terminal.

In some embodiments, the plurality of connections of the satellite connector comprises at least one fiber optic connector.

In some embodiments, the plurality of connections of the satellite connector include a plurality of high-speed signal terminals and a plurality of ground elements.

In some embodiments, the plurality of connections of the satellite connector include at least one conductive low-speed signal terminal.

In some embodiments, the electrical connector assembly may further comprise: a second electrical connector assembly having a second housing member including a plurality of outer surfaces, the housing member supporting a second plurality of wafers, each wafer including a plurality of conductive terminals and an insulative support member supporting the conductive terminals, each terminal having a contact portion configured to electrically connect the terminal to another electrical component; and a second satellite connector disposed along one of the outer surfaces of the second housing member, the second satellite connector including a second insulated satellite base and a plurality of connectors supported by the second satellite base, each connector having a termination portion that can be connected to the cable of the satellite connector.

In some embodiments, the housing member has an upper surface, each terminal further has a tail portion configured to electrically connect the terminal to a circuit member, the tail portion of each terminal is disposed along a lower surface of the electrical connector, the upper surface is opposite the lower surface, and the satellite connector is disposed along the upper surface of the housing member.

Other embodiments of an electrical connector assembly may include: a housing member including a first portion and a second portion, the first portion being spaced apart from the second portion; and a plurality of first wafers supported by the housing member within the first portion of the housing member, each first wafer including a plurality of conductive terminals and an insulative support member supporting the plurality of conductive terminals, each terminal having: a contact portion configured to electrically connect the terminal to another electrical component; and a tail portion configured to electrically connect the terminals to a circuit element, the tail portion of each terminal being disposed along a lower surface of the electrical connector; and at least one second wafer supported by the housing within the second portion of the housing element.

In some embodiments, the housing element includes a spacer portion between the first portion and the second portion.

In some embodiments, the spacer portion is devoid of conductive terminals.

In some embodiments, the electrical connector assembly may further include at least one spacer wafer between the first wafer and the at least one second wafer, the spacer wafer having no terminals that are operable.

Other embodiments of an electrical connector assembly may include: a first electrical connector assembly having a first housing member, a plurality of first wafers supported by the housing member, each wafer including a plurality of conductive terminals and an insulative support member supporting the conductive terminals, each terminal having: a contact portion configured to electrically connect the terminal to another electrical component; and a tail portion configured to electrically connect the terminals to a circuit element, the tail portion of each terminal being disposed along a lower surface of the electrical connector; a first satellite connector disposed along an outer surface of the first electrical connector, the first satellite connector including an insulated first satellite base and a plurality of connectors supported by the first satellite base, each connector having a termination portion that can be connected to a satellite cable; a second electrical connector assembly having a second housing member, a second plurality of wafers supported by the housing member, each wafer including a plurality of conductive terminals and an insulative support member supporting the plurality of conductive terminals, each conductive terminal having a contact portion configured to electrically connect the conductive terminal to another electrical component; and a second satellite connector disposed along an outer surface of the second electrical connector, the second satellite connector including a second insulated satellite base and a plurality of connectors supported by the second satellite base, each connector having a termination portion that can be connected to the satellite cable.

Another embodiment of an electrical connector assembly may comprise: a first electrical connector assembly having a first housing member supporting a plurality of electrically conductive first terminals, each first terminal having a contact portion; a first satellite connector disposed along an outer surface of the first electrical connector, the first satellite connector including an insulated first satellite base and a plurality of first connectors supported by the first satellite base, each first connector having a mating portion and a terminating portion, the terminating portion being connectable to a satellite cable; a second electrical connector assembly having a second housing member supporting a plurality of electrically conductive second terminals, each second terminal having a contact portion configured to mate the second terminal with one of the contact portions of the first terminal; and a second satellite connector disposed along an outer surface of the second electrical connector, the second satellite connector including an insulated second satellite base and a plurality of second connectors supported by the second satellite base, each second connector having a mating portion and a terminating portion, the mating portion of the second connector configured to mate with the mating portion of one of the first connectors of the first satellite connector.

Drawings

The present disclosure is illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references indicate similar elements, and in which:

fig. 1 is a perspective view of a connector system according to the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the connector system of fig. 1 in an unmated state with a satellite connector assembly exploded therefrom.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of one of the connector assemblies of fig. 1 with the housing components exploded therefrom.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a subassembly of wafer assemblies of the connector assembly of fig. 3 with one wafer assembly exploded therefrom.

Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view of one of the wafer assemblies of fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the alternative connector assembly of fig. 1 with the satellite connector exploded therefrom.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a portion of the connector assembly of fig. 6 with the housing components exploded therefrom.

Figure 8 is an isometric view of a subassembly of the wafer assembly of the connector assembly of figure 6 with the ground member and one of the wafer assemblies exploded therefrom.

Figure 9 is an exploded perspective view of one of the wafer assemblies of figure 8.

Figure 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating the attitude of the wafers of the connector assembly of figure 3 and the wafers and satellite connector assembly of figure 6.

Fig. 11 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a connector system according to the present disclosure.

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of the connector system of fig. 11 in an unmated state with a satellite connector assembly exploded therefrom.

Fig. 13 is a perspective view of yet another alternative embodiment of a connector system according to the present disclosure.

Fig. 14 is a perspective view of the connector system of fig. 13 in an unmated state with a satellite connector assembly exploded therefrom.

Fig. 15 is a perspective view of yet another alternative embodiment of a connector system according to the present disclosure.

Fig. 16 is a perspective view of the connector system of fig. 15 in an unmated state with a satellite connector assembly exploded therefrom.

Fig. 17 is a perspective view of yet another alternative embodiment of a connector system according to the present disclosure.

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the connector system of FIG. 17 in an unmated state with a satellite connector assembly exploded therefrom;

fig. 19 is a perspective view of the connector system of fig. 17 in an unmated state with the satellite connector assembly partially assembled; and

fig. 20 is a perspective view similar to fig. 2, but with a pair of additional docking satellite connectors assembled on the housing.

Detailed Description

Referring to fig. 1-2, a quadrature connector system 10 is shown. The orthogonal connector system 10 includes: a first right angle connector assembly 20 mounted on a first circuit component or first circuit substrate 11; and a second right angle connector assembly 60 mounted on a second circuit component or second circuit substrate 13. The first circuit board 11 and the second circuit board 13 are orthogonal to each other.

The first connector assembly 20 includes a first insulative housing 21 and a plurality of wafer assemblies 30. The first housing 21 has a front mating end or surface 22, an opposite rear end or wafer insertion end or surface 23, two side walls 24, a substrate mounting end or surface 25 and an opposite upper end or surface 26. The mating face 22, the two sidewalls 24, and a portion of the substrate mounting surface 25 define a mating interface portion 27, the mating interface portion 27 configured to be received within a receptacle (shroud) or housing 105 of the second connector assembly 60.

The front mating face 22 may include a plurality of openings or apertures 28, the plurality of openings or apertures 28 configured to receive mating terminals from the second connector assembly 60 when mating two connector assemblies together. The wafer insertion end 23 may be open to facilitate insertion of the plurality of wafer assemblies 30 into the housing 21. The housing 21 may be open along the substrate mounting surface 25 except adjacent the mating interface portion 27. The lengths of the two sidewalls 24, the substrate mounting surface 25, and the upper surface 26 may not be the same. For example, in some embodiments, the side wall 24 may be shorter (in the docking direction "a" in fig. 2) than the upper surface 26.

The plurality of wafer assemblies 30 of the first connector assembly 20 may have any desired configuration. Referring to fig. 3-5, an exemplary embodiment of a plurality of wafer assemblies 30 is shown. The set of wafer assemblies 30 includes a plurality of parallel wafer assemblies, each of which is perpendicular to the first circuit substrate 11. As shown in fig. 5, each wafer assembly 30 includes a plurality of high speed signal terminals 31, a plurality of ground or reference elements 37, an insulative base element or insulative wafer 42, and a generally planar ground or reference plate 44. In some applications, high-speed signal terminals may be used (re-routed) to provide power.

The high-speed signal terminals 31 may be arranged in adjacent pairs 32, with the amount of vertical spacing between adjacent terminals in each pair being smaller and the amount of vertical spacing between adjacent pairs being larger. As used herein, the word "vertical" with respect to the first connector assembly 20 refers to a direction perpendicular to the plane of the first circuit substrate 11, as shown in fig. 1-2, and the word "horizontal" with respect to the first connector assembly 20 refers to a direction parallel to the plane of the first circuit substrate 11.

Each signal terminal 31 has: a mating end 33 configured to mate with a high-speed signal terminal 71 of the second connector assembly 60; and a mounting tail portion 34 configured to be electrically connected to the first circuit substrate 11. In one embodiment, the mounting tail portions 34 may be configured as press-fit pins (not shown) that mechanically engage plated holes on the first circuit substrate 11. The body portion 35 of each signal terminal 31 between the mating end 33 and the mounting tail portion 34 is configured to change direction so that the first connector assembly 20 may be configured as a right angle connector.

As shown, each grounding element 37 has: a mating end 38 configured to mate with a ground terminal or element 77 of the second connector assembly 60; and a mounting tail portion 39 configured to be electrically connected to the first circuit substrate 11. The body 40 of the grounding element 37 extends between the mating end 38 and the mounting tail 39 and has a U-shaped cross-section. The body 40 of each ground member 37 is positioned on the body portion 35 of the signal terminal 31 of an adjacent pair 32 so that the pair of terminals 32 is positioned within the U-shaped cross-section of its adjacent ground member 37 to provide shielding and desired impedance. In some embodiments, multiple ground elements 37 may be connected by a conductive mesh plate 41.

The insulating wafer 42 supports a plurality of pairs 32 of vertically aligned signal terminals 31, and in one embodiment, the insulating wafer 42 may be insert molded around a portion of the signal terminals 31. The ground element 37 may then be secured or attached, such as by heat staking, to the wafer 42 and the generally planar ground plate 44.

Other configurations and other ways of forming wafer assembly 30 are contemplated. For example, in one embodiment, although terminals 31 are shown as edge-coupled signal pairs 32, terminals 31 may be configured as broadside-coupled signal pairs, with the planar portions of terminals 31 of each pair being parallel and adjacent to each other. In one embodiment, each terminal of a terminal pair may be disposed within its own wafer and the wafers assembled together to create the terminal pair. Further, the ground element may be disposed within its own wafer that is secured to the wafers of the signal terminals to form a wafer assembly. In some embodiments, the grounding element 37 and/or the grounding plate 44 may be omitted.

Due to the configuration of the first housing 21 and the wafer assembly 30, additional terminals 31 can be easily added to the first connector assembly 20. More specifically, additional terminals 31 may be added by increasing the lateral width or distance between the sidewalls 24 of the first connector assembly 20 (as indicated by arrow "B" in fig. 3) and inserting additional wafer assemblies 30 into the wafer insertion end 23 of the first housing 21. More specifically, the first housing 21 may be formed with a molding group (not shown) that allows the distance between the two sidewalls 24 to be changed before the molding process. As a result, the number of terminals of the first connector assembly 20 can be modified by configuring the housing mold so that more wafer assemblies can be inserted into the first housing 21 without the costly expense of modifying the mold required to manufacture the wafer assemblies.

Referring to fig. 2 to 3, the first housing 21 includes a first portion 50 and a second portion 51. The first portion 50 and the second portion 51 each include a plurality of openings 28 on the interface 22. The first portion 50 may be spaced apart from the second portion 51. As shown, the first portion 50 is spaced apart from the second portion 51 in a direction parallel to or along the first circuit substrate 11. The first portion 50 receives some, but not all, of the plurality of wafer assemblies 30 therein. The second portion 51 may house one or more wafer assemblies 30a therein. As shown, the second portion 51 has one sheet 30a received therein. Wafer assembly 30a within second portion 51 may be the same or different from other wafer assemblies 30 within first portion 50 and may be referenced separately (referred) or collectively herein from other wafer assemblies 30 based on context. Alternate functions may be supported or provided by components such as a power supply, an electrically modified wafer that may support an alternating transmission impedance as compared to other wafer components 30, or even a different transmission medium such as optical media 30 a.

In an embodiment, a spacing portion 52 without openings may be provided between the first portion 50 and the second portion 51 of the first housing 21. In another embodiment, the spacing portion (not shown) may include a plurality of openings similar to the openings 29 of the mating face 22 but without terminals. One or more spacer wafers 30b with no terminals (or at least no mating portions) inserted therein may be located between the set of wafer assemblies 30 and wafer assembly 30a and disposed within the spacer portion 52. With this arrangement, a plurality or stack of wafer assemblies 30, 30a and spacer wafers 30b can be assembled together to create a subassembly, which is then inserted into the first housing 21 through the wafer insertion end 23.

Although the first housing 21 is explained as being constructed in a one-piece structure integrally molded, the first housing 21 may be formed of a plurality of parts assembled together. For example, referring to fig. 16, the first portion 50 and the second portion 351 of the first connector assembly 320b may be portions of two separate housing elements that function as a single housing element. The structure for securing the two separate housing elements together may occupy some or all of the space of the spacer portion 52.

Referring to fig. 6-7, the second connector assembly 60 includes a second insulative housing 61, a plurality of wafer assemblies 70, a ground support member 85, and a satellite connector assembly 90. The second housing 61 has a front mating end or surface 62, an opposite rear or wafer insertion end or surface 63, two side walls 64, a substrate mounting end or surface 65 and an opposite upper end or surface 66.

The mating portions of the terminals of the wafer assembly 70 extend through the ground support member 85 to mate with the high speed signal terminals 31 and the ground members 37 of the first connector assembly 20. The wafer insertion end 63 may be open for insertion of the plurality of wafer assemblies 70 into the second housing 61. The second housing 61 may be open along the substrate mounting surface 65 except adjacent the mating end 62. The length of the side walls 64 and the upper surface 66 may not be the same.

The wafer assembly 70 of the second connector assembly 60 may be configured in a similar or identical manner as the wafer assembly 30. Referring to fig. 7-9, an exemplary embodiment of a plurality of wafer assemblies 70 is shown. The wafer assembly 70 of a set includes a plurality of parallel wafer assemblies 70, each of which is perpendicular to the second circuit substrate 13. As shown, each wafer assembly 70 includes a plurality of high speed signal terminals 71, a plurality of ground or reference elements 77, an insulative base element or insulative wafer 82, and a generally planar ground or reference plate 84.

The plurality of high speed signal terminals 71 may be arranged in adjacent pairs 72 with the amount of vertical spacing between adjacent terminals of each pair being smaller and the amount of horizontal spacing between adjacent pairs being larger. As used herein, the word "vertical" with respect to the second connector assembly 60 refers to a direction perpendicular to the plane of the second circuit substrate 13, as shown in fig. 1-2, while the word "horizontal" with respect to the second connector assembly 60 refers to a direction parallel to the plane of the second circuit substrate 13.

Each signal terminal 71 includes: a mating end 73 configured to mate with a high-speed signal terminal 31 of the first connector assembly 20; and a mounting tail portion 74 configured to be electrically connected to the second circuit substrate 13. As described above, in one embodiment, the mounting tails 74 may be configured as press fit pins that mechanically engage plated holes on the first circuit substrate 11. The body portion 75 between the mating end 73 and the mounting tail portion 74 of each signal terminal 71 is configured to change direction so that the second connector assembly 60 can be configured as a right angle connector.

As shown, each grounding element 77 has: a mating end 78 configured to mate with a ground terminal or element 37 of the first connector assembly 20; and a mounting tail portion 79 configured to be electrically connected to the second circuit substrate 13. The body 80 of the grounding element 77 extends between the mating end 78 and the mounting tail 79 and has a U-shaped cross-section. The body 80 of each ground member 77 is positioned within the body portion 75 of the signal terminals 71 of adjacent pairs 72 such that the pair of terminals 72 is positioned within the U-shaped cross-section of its adjacent ground member 77 to provide shielding and the desired impedance. In some embodiments, a plurality of ground elements 77 may be connected by a conductive mesh plate 81.

The insulating wafers 82 support the pairs 72 of vertically aligned signal terminals 71 and in one embodiment, the insulating wafers 82 may be insert molded around a portion of the signal terminals 71. The ground element 77 may then be secured or attached, such as by heat staking, to the wafer 82 and the generally planar ground plate 84.

To allow the first connector assembly 20 to mate with the second connector assembly 60, the mating interface portion 27 of the first connector assembly 20 must be configured to be received within the housing 105 of the second connector assembly 60. In addition, the first connector assembly 20 and the second connector assembly 60 must also have the same configuration. More specifically, the number of rows and columns of signal terminals 31, 71 and ground elements 37, 77 are the same, the spacing or pitch between the terminals and ground elements is the same, and the mating ends 33, 73 of the signal terminals and the mating ends 38, 78 of the ground elements must also be configured to mate with one another.

While forming connector assemblies containing terminal wafers is desirable in some connector systems, using terminal wafers with orthogonal connector assemblies typically reduces the flexibility of modifying the number of terminals that each connector assembly can carry. More specifically, while the distance between the two side walls 24 of the first connector assembly 20 may typically be increased to enable insertion of additional wafer assemblies 30, modifying the second connector assembly 60 to mate with such a modified first connector assembly would require increasing the height of the second housing 61 (i.e., parallel to the side walls 64 or perpendicular to the second circuit substrate 13) as well as the height of the wafer assembly 70.

The second connector assembly 60 illustrates a solution that does not require modification of the wafer assembly 70. The second connector assembly 60 includes one or more satellite connector assemblies 90 mounted on the upper surface 66 of the second housing 61 and forming an upper surface of the connector assembly 60. Referring to fig. 1, 2 and 6-7, in one embodiment, the satellite connector assembly 90 includes: a satellite connector 91 having a satellite base 92, wherein a plurality of conductive terminals 100 are mounted in the satellite base 92; a flexible cable or flex circuit member 102 having a plurality of conductors 103; and a substrate-to-substrate electrical connector 120. The satellite base 92 has a terminal holder 93 and a mating portion 95. The interface portion 95 is in a generally inverted U-shaped configuration with a connecting structure or web 96 extending between a pair of spaced apart side walls 97.

The conductive terminals 100 may have any configuration as long as they are configured to mate with the terminals of the wafer assembly 30a of the first connector assembly 20. Thus, in the illustrated embodiment, the terminals 100 include high speed signal terminals and ground or reference terminals arranged in the same pattern as the wafer assembly 30 a. The terminal 100 includes a mating portion or end (not shown in fig. 6) and a terminating portion or end 101. The terminating end 101 of each terminal 100 is terminated to one of the conductors 103 of the cable 102. Conductors 103 of cable 102 electrically connect at least some of the terminals 100 within satellite base 92 to at least some of the terminals (not shown) of substrate-to-substrate electrical connector 120.

When the satellite connector 91 is mounted on the second housing 61, a portion of the side wall 64 of the second housing 61 may be aligned with the side wall 97 of the satellite dock 92. By reducing the length of the upper surface 66 of the second housing 61, the sidewalls 64 and a portion of the substrate mounting surface 65 of the second housing 61 together with the satellite base 92 define a housing 105, the housing 105 configured to receive the mating interface portion 27 of the first connector assembly 20 within the housing 105.

Further, reducing the length of the upper surface 66 of the second housing 61 provides an opening to receive the spacer portion 52 of the first housing 21. In an alternative embodiment, the upper surface 66 may extend toward the first connector assembly 20 the same length (or some other length) as the side wall 64 and the substrate mounting surface 65, while the spacing portion 52 of the first housing 21 is provided with a recess (not shown) extending along the mating face 22 that receives the upper surface 66 of the second housing 61.

The upper surface 66 of the second housing 61 and the lower surface of the body 93 of the satellite base 92 may include alignment structures or alignment elements to align the satellite base 91 with the second housing 61. As shown, the second housing 61 includes a plurality of protrusions or pegs (peg)67, the plurality of protrusions or pegs (peg)67 being received within a like plurality of recesses or openings (not shown) on the lower surface of the body 93 of the satellite base 92.

A connecting element or structure may be provided to secure the satellite base 92 to the upper surface 66 of the second housing 61. Any type of connection structure may be used. As shown, fasteners 107, such as screws, may extend through the satellite base 92 into threaded holes 68 on the second housing 61. Other connecting elements or connecting structures such as crimping elements or thermal welding are contemplated.

A substrate mount electrical connector 125 may be mounted on the second circuit substrate 13 and configured to mate with the substrate-to-substrate electrical connector 120. The conductive terminals (not shown) of the substrate mount electrical connector 125 may be electrically connected to conductive traces (not shown) on the second circuit substrate 13 or the second circuit substrate 13.

If desired, some or all of the terminals 100 may be replaced with optical connections and corresponding elements to the cables 102, substrate-to-substrate connectors 120, and substrate mount connectors 125 configured to transmit and receive optical signals.

During assembly, in one embodiment, the second connector assembly 60 is mounted on the second circuit substrate 13 without the satellite connector assembly 90 by applying a force to the upper surface 66 of the second housing 61 and/or the wafer assembly 70 to force the mounting tails 74 of the high speed signal terminals 71 and the mounting tails 79 of the ground members 77 into the aligned holes on the second circuit substrate 13. The satellite connector assembly 90 is mounted to and secured to the upper surface 66 of the second housing 61. The substrate-to-substrate connector 120 may then align and mate with a substrate mount connector 125 that was previously mounted on the second circuit substrate 13. In another embodiment, a fully assembled second connector assembly 60 including the satellite connector assembly 90 may be mounted to the second circuit substrate 13 such that the second connector assembly 60 may be fully assembled prior to the mounting operation.

The first connector assembly 20 and the second connector assembly 60 may include alignment structures and/or guide structures to facilitate alignment and guidance of the two connector assemblies when mated. Any desired configuration may be used. As shown, the first connector assembly 20 includes two projections 54 along each surface 25, 26 adjacent the first portion 50 of the mating face 22 and a single recess or opening 55 along each surface 25, 26 adjacent the spacing portion 52. The second connector assembly 60 includes two recesses or openings 69 along each side wall 64, the two recesses or openings 69 configured (e.g., sized and aligned) to mate with the protrusions 54 of the first connector assembly 20 when the first and second connector assemblies are mated together. As shown, the upper surface 66 of the second housing 61 is not completely removed at the abutting end 62 of the adjacent second housing 61 to form a pair of inwardly extending protrusions 66 a. The inwardly extending projections 66a are configured (e.g., sized and aligned) to mate with the openings 55 along the respective surfaces 25, 26 of the first housing 21 when the first and second connector assemblies 20, 60 are mated together.

Referring to fig. 10, the wafer assembly 30 of the first connector assembly 20 is schematically shown in phantom lines, while the wafer assembly 70 of the second connector assembly 60 is schematically shown in solid lines. It can be seen that the wafer assembly 30 of the first connector assembly 20 is orthogonal to the wafer assembly 70 of the second connector assembly 60 when the connector assembly 20 and the second connector assembly 60 are mated. However, the satellite connector assembly 90 (shown in solid lines) is perpendicular to the wafer assembly 70 of the second connector assembly 60 and thus parallel to the wafer assembly 30 of the first connector assembly 20. As a result, there is a one-to-one correspondence between the wafer assemblies 30a (shown in phantom) of the second portion 51 and the satellite connector assemblies 90.

With such a configuration, the terminals within wafer assembly 30a and satellite connector assembly 90 may be easily modified without affecting wafer assembly 30 of first portion 50 and wafer assembly 70 of second connector assembly 60. In other words, the wafer assembly 30a and the satellite connector assembly 90 may be configured in any manner without requiring a change to the wafer assemblies 30, 70. The independent nature of this pre-post design easily allows additions and modifications to be made, providing considerable flexibility in product configuration options that might otherwise require redesign and retooling, including unique architectural solutions such as adding loop back and cross-connect functionality. Furthermore, the disclosed architecture avoids or reduces the need for indirect solutions that may not be optimal in terms of transmission loss and timing delay.

Due to the mating of the first connector assembly 20 and the second connector assembly 60, a plurality of electrical connections will be established between the first circuit substrate 11 and the second circuit substrate 13. More specifically, an electrical connection will be established from the first circuit substrate 11 through the high speed signal terminals 31 and ground elements 37 of the wafer assembly 30 within the first portion 50 of the first housing 21 of the first connector assembly 20, and then through the corresponding high speed signal terminals 71 and ground elements 77 of the wafer assembly 70 of the second connector assembly 60 to the second circuit substrate 13. Further, an electrical connection is established from the first circuit substrate 11 through the wafer assembly 30a of the second portion 51 of the first housing 21 of the first connector assembly 20 and then through the terminals 92 of the satellite connector assembly 90, through the cable 93, to the substrate-to-substrate electrical connector 120. By connecting the substrate-to-substrate electrical connector 120 to the substrate mount connector 125, electrical connection between the first circuit substrate 11 and the second circuit substrate 13 can be completed.

Various alternative configurations are contemplated. For example, referring to fig. 11-12, an alternative embodiment is shown in which a pair of first connector assemblies 20a, 20b are mounted on first circuit substrates 11a, 11b, respectively, and a pair of second connector assemblies 60a, 60b are mounted on a single second circuit substrate 13. A satellite connector assembly 190 has a pair of satellite connectors 191a, 191b with a cable 202 extending between the two satellite connectors 191a, 191 b. One of the satellite connectors 191a is mounted to the second connector housing 61 of one of the second connector assemblies 60a, and the other satellite connector 191b is mounted to the second connector housing 61 of the other connector assembly 60 b. Because the cable 202 extends between the two satellite connectors 191a, 191b, an electrical connection is established directly between the two satellite connectors 191a, 191 b.

With this configuration, electrical connection is established from the first circuit substrate 11a through the wafer assembly 30a of the second portion 51 of the first connector assembly 20a, through the first satellite connector 191a, through the cable 202 to the second satellite connector 191b, through the wafer assembly 30a of the second portion of the first connector assembly 20b to the first circuit substrate 11 b. With such a configuration, electrical connection can be established between the first circuit substrate 11a and the first circuit substrate 11b without establishing electrical connection through the second circuit substrate 13.

Fig. 13-14 illustrate yet another alternative embodiment in which a satellite connector assembly 290 includes four satellite connectors 291a-291d mounted on top of four second connector assemblies 60a-60 d. Satellite connectors 291a-291d are interconnected by a cable 302, with cable 302 interconnecting the terminals of the four satellite connectors in any desired manner. More specifically, the terminals of the first satellite connector 291a may be connected to any of the terminals of the other satellite connectors 291b-291d, the terminals of the second satellite connector 291b may be connected to any of the terminals of the other satellite connectors 291a, 291c-d, the terminals of the third satellite connector 291c may be connected to any of the terminals of the other satellite connectors 291a-b, 291d, and the terminals of the fourth satellite connector 291d may be connected to any of the terminals of the other satellite connectors 291a-291 c. The satellite cable assembly 290 operates to connect the four first circuit substrates 11a-11d through the four first electrical connector assemblies 20a-20d mounted on the respective first circuit substrates 11a-11d without passing signals through the second circuit substrate 13.

In addition to the first connector assembly 20 having a single wafer assembly 30a within the second portion 51 of the first housing 21 and the satellite connector 91 having a single row of terminals, the second portion 51 of the first connector assembly 20 may include a plurality of wafers 30a and the satellite connector 391 may have rows of terminals that mate with the terminals of the wafers 30 a. More specifically, referring to fig. 15 to 16, the first connector elements 320a and 320b are respectively mounted on a first circuit substrate 11a and 11 b. The first connector assemblies 320a, 320b may be identical to the first connector assembly 20 described above, except that the first housing 321 of each first connector assembly has a larger second portion 351, wherein the second portion 351 has a plurality of wafer assemblies 30a disposed therein. As shown, first connector assembly 320b has separate housing components for first portion 50 and second portion 351. The same or similar parts or elements as those of the first connector assembly 20 described above are denoted by the same reference numerals.

The satellite cable assembly 390 includes a pair of multi-row satellite connectors 391a, 391b, with each multi-row satellite connector 391a, 391b configured to interface with one of the first connector assemblies 320a, 320 b. The multiple rows of satellite connectors 391a, 391b may be the same or similar to the single row of satellite connectors 91 described above, except that they include multiple rows of terminals vertically above the second housing 61. In other words, the side walls 403 are taller than the side walls 97 of the satellite chassis 92 to accommodate more rows of terminals supported by the satellite chassis 392. Further, a plurality of rows of tail portions 401 extend rearward from the terminal holding body 393. Components or elements that are the same or similar to components or elements of the satellite connector assembly 90 are identified by the same reference numerals.

Multiple rows of satellite connectors 391a, 391b may be used to connect multiple circuit substrates in the manner described above with respect to fig. 1-9, 11-14, or a combination of these figures. For example, as shown in fig. 15-16, the upstream tails 401a-401b of two multi-row satellite connectors 391a, 391b are connected by a pair of cables 402a, 402 b. As a result, the end or upper wafer 30a (shown in fig. 15-16) may be electrically connected through the satellite connector assembly 390 without the signals passing through the second circuit substrate 13 as was the case with fig. 11-14 described above. In addition, the downstream tails 402c, 402d of the two multi-row satellite connectors 391a, 391b are connected to the plurality of substrate mount connectors 120 by cables 402c-402 f. The plurality of substrate mount connectors 120 are connected to a plurality of substrate-to-substrate connectors (not shown) that are mechanically and electrically connected to the second circuit substrate 13.

In another example shown in fig. 17-19, a second connector assembly 490 may include a plurality of rows of satellite connectors 491 formed with a multi-part base 492. In the example shown, the base 492 is formed from two or more base members 492a, 492b, each base member 492a, 492b having a terminal secured therein. The terminals may be terminated to the cables 502a, 502b of the substrate mount connector 120 with connections, or the terminals may be terminated to cables (not shown) that are terminated to other base members 492a, 492b of an adjacent second connector assembly 490.

Fig. 20 is a perspective view similar to fig. 2, but with a pair of additional docking satellite connectors 590,690 assembled on the housing. The pair of additional mating satellite connectors 590, 690 have terminals and housings configured to mate together.

Although fig. 1-9 show wafer assemblies 30a and satellite connector assemblies 90 each having an array of high-speed signal terminals and ground elements similar or identical to wafer assemblies 30, 70, alternative configurations are contemplated. The second portion 51 of the first housing 21 may include or establish any type of connection including power terminals, fiber optic connectors, and low speed signal terminals as well as high speed signal terminals and ground elements similar to those shown in fig. 1-5. In some examples, the connection in the second portion 51 may not be installed in at least one wafer assembly similar to the wafer assembly 30, 30 a. The satellite connector assembly 90 is configured with connections that will interface with those of the second portion 51. As an example, referring back to fig. 10, the wafer assembly 30a and satellite connector assembly 90 are each shown with two power terminals 110, two fiber optic connectors 111, and two pairs of high speed terminals 112 with ground elements 113 located between and on both ends of the two pairs of high speed terminals 112.

It will be appreciated that the foregoing description provides examples of the disclosed systems and techniques. However, it is contemplated that other embodiments of the present disclosure may differ in detail from the foregoing examples. All references to the content of the disclosure or examples thereof are intended to reference the particular example being discussed at that time and are not intended to imply any more general limitation as to the scope of the disclosure. All language of distinction and disparagement with respect to certain features is intended to indicate a lack of preference for those features, but not to exclude such from the scope of the disclosure entirely unless otherwise indicated.

Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.

Accordingly, this disclosure includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the disclosure unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. Moreover, the advantages described herein may not apply to all embodiments encompassed by the claims.

Claims (25)

1. An electrical connector assembly comprising:

a housing member having a plurality of exterior surfaces;

a plurality of wafers supported by the housing member, each wafer including a plurality of conductive terminals and an insulative support member supporting the plurality of conductive terminals, each terminal having a contact portion configured to electrically connect the terminal to another electrical component; and

a first satellite connector disposed on one of the outer surfaces of the housing member, the first satellite connector including an insulative satellite base and a plurality of connectors supported by the satellite base, each connector having a termination portion that can be connected to a cable.

2. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the wafers are parallel and oriented in a first direction and the connectors of the first satellite connector lie in a plane perpendicular to the wafers.

3. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of connection members of the first satellite connector comprise conductive terminals.

4. The electrical connector assembly of claim 3, wherein the termination portions of the plurality of connectors are disposed along a rear surface of the satellite base.

5. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the terminating portion of the connector of the first satellite connector terminates in a conductive member.

6. The electrical connector assembly of claim 5, wherein the conductive element is a cable having a plurality of conductive wires, each wire terminating in the terminating portion of one of the connectors.

7. The electrical connector assembly of claim 5, wherein the conductive element is a flexible circuit element having a plurality of electrical conductors, each of the electrical conductors terminating in the termination portion of one of the connectors.

8. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the wafers are generally flat and arranged in a side-by-side relationship, and the satellite housing of the first satellite connector is generally flat, the planes of the wafers being perpendicular to the plane of the satellite housing.

9. The electrical connector assembly of claim 8, wherein the housing member includes first and second spaced apart side walls and the wafers are parallel to the side walls.

10. The electrical connector assembly of claim 9, wherein the wafers define a subassembly having a first end and an opposite second end, the first end being disposed adjacent the first side wall and the second end being disposed adjacent the second side wall.

11. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of wafers are disposed within the housing member.

12. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the satellite base is a separate component from the housing.

13. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of wafers include a plurality of high speed signal terminals and a plurality of ground elements.

14. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the wafer terminals include mating portions along a mating face and the tail portions of the terminals are disposed along a substrate mounting face, the mating face being perpendicular to the substrate mounting face.

15. The electrical connector assembly of claim 14, wherein the tail portions of the terminals include crimping legs.

16. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein a portion of the housing member and a portion of the satellite housing define a cage surrounding a mating portion of the terminals of the wafers, the cage configured to receive a mating electrical connector.

17. The electrical connector assembly of claim 16, wherein the portion of the satellite base defines an upper portion of the enclosure.

18. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of connections of the first satellite connector comprise at least one power terminal.

19. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of connections of the first satellite connector comprises at least one fiber optic connector.

20. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of connections of the first satellite connector comprise a plurality of high-speed signal terminals and a plurality of ground elements.

21. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of connections of the first satellite connector comprise at least one conductive low-speed signal terminal.

22. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, further comprising:

a second electrical connector assembly having a second housing member including a plurality of outer surfaces, the housing member supporting a second plurality of wafers, each wafer including a plurality of conductive terminals and an insulative support member supporting the conductive terminals, each terminal having a contact portion configured to electrically connect the terminal to another electrical component; and

a second satellite connector disposed along one of the outer surfaces of the second housing member, the second satellite connector including a second insulated satellite base and a plurality of connectors supported by the second satellite base, each connector having a termination portion that can be connected to the cable of the first satellite connector.

23. The electrical connector assembly of claim 1, wherein the housing member has an upper surface, each terminal further has a tail portion configured to electrically connect the terminal to a circuit member, the tail portion of each terminal is disposed along a lower surface of the electrical connector assembly, the upper surface is opposite the lower surface, and the satellite connector is disposed along the upper surface of the housing member.

24. An assembly, comprising:

a first electrical connector assembly having a first housing member, a plurality of first wafers supported by the housing member, each wafer including a plurality of conductive terminals and an insulative support member supporting the conductive terminals, each terminal having: a contact portion configured to electrically connect the terminal to another electrical component; and a tail portion configured to electrically connect the terminals to a circuit element, the tail portion of each terminal being disposed along a lower surface of the first electrical connector assembly;

a first satellite connector disposed along an outer surface of the first electrical connector assembly, the first satellite connector including a first insulated satellite base and a plurality of connectors supported by the first satellite base, each connector having a termination portion that can be connected to a satellite cable;

a second electrical connector assembly having a second housing member, a second plurality of wafers supported by the housing member, each wafer including a plurality of conductive terminals and an insulative support member supporting the plurality of conductive terminals, each conductive terminal having a contact portion configured to electrically connect the conductive terminal to another electrical component; and

a second satellite connector disposed along an outer surface of the second electrical connector assembly, the second satellite connector including a second insulated satellite base and a plurality of connectors supported by the second satellite base, each connector having a termination portion that can be connected to the satellite cable.

25. An assembly, comprising:

a first electrical connector assembly having a first housing member supporting a plurality of electrically conductive first terminals, each first terminal having a contact portion;

a first satellite connector disposed along an outer surface of the first housing member, the first satellite connector including an insulated first satellite base and a plurality of first connectors supported by the first satellite base, each first connector having a mating portion and a terminating portion, the terminating portion being connected to a satellite cable;

a second electrical connector assembly having a second housing member supporting a plurality of electrically conductive second terminals, each second terminal having a contact portion configured to mate the second terminal with one of the contact portions of the first terminal; and

a second satellite connector disposed along an outer surface of the second housing member, the second satellite connector including a second insulated satellite base and a plurality of second connectors supported by the second satellite base, each second connector having a mating portion and a terminating portion, the mating portion of the second connector configured to mate with the mating portion of one of the first connectors of the first satellite connector.

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