EP3396793B1 - Contact body for a connector - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a contact body for a connector, with an at least partially electrically conductive housing for connection to an outer conductor of an electrical line, and with at least one inner conductor part for connection to at least one inner conductor of the electrical line, according to claim 1.

The invention also relates to a plug connector, in particular a coupling or a socket. The invention further relates to a plug connection, having a first plug connector, in particular a coupling or a socket, and a second plug connector that can be plugged together therewith. The invention also relates to a method for producing an electrical connection between two plug connectors according to claim 11.

Connectors are used to establish an electrical connection with a correspondingly complementary connector. A connector can be a plug, a socket, a coupling or an adapter. The term "plug connector" used in the context of the invention is representative of all variants.

Mostly, connectors in the form of a coupling or a plug are used to assemble cables. For this purpose, a contact body is usually provided in the plug connectors, which is electrically connected to an outer conductor of the cable and at least one inner conductor of the cable.

The known connectors generally have a connector housing, preferably a plastic housing, with a receptacle for inserting the at least one contact body.

Connectors and contact bodies should have two properties in particular. On the one hand, they should be designed to be mechanically robust or long-lasting, for example, to be plugged in and unplugged several times, acting orthogonally to the plugging direction To survive forces and torsional forces undamaged. In addition, the connector should provide good electrical properties, including a sufficiently high level of electromagnetic shielding, low contact resistances and (vibration) safe contacting, especially if the connector is to be suitable for high-frequency technology.

To ensure a low-resistance and vibration-proof or mechanically stable electrical connection, spring tabs are often arranged on the contact body in the prior art, which are intended to ensure contact with a complementary connector. The structural design of such a contact body, which simultaneously z. B. should still be robust against overstretching, is not easy to manufacture.

With regard to the further technical background, reference is made to the DE 199 13 898 C1 referenced. This document relates to an outer conductor sleeve with spring contacts in the plug part of an HF coaxial connector consisting of a plug part and a socket part, which is designed as a spring lamellar ring through longitudinal slots provided on its circumference, in which the spring lamellar ring has an annular foot common to the spring lamellas and in which the spring lamellas in the area have their free ends outside contact tips. The ones in the DE 199 13 898 C1 The outer conductor sleeve disclosed is intended to provide protection against overstretching without additional elements and to enable the bending stress to be distributed approximately uniformly over their length when the spring lamellae are deflected radially.

One problem of the known prior art is that a compromise has to be found between easy and therefore comfortable plugging in of the plug-in connectors and a subsequent high mechanical holding force.

Another problem of the prior art is that the usual solutions with the spring tabs or spring lamellas usually do not guarantee ideal electromagnetic shielding, since the contact body can then no longer be designed to be completely closed. For this reason, the known connectors are often limited in their maximum transmittable frequency. Furthermore, the stability of the contact body is impaired by the formation of spring lamellae from the housing or the outer conductor sleeve.

From the general prior art, contact bodies are also known which are formed from a housing and a contact sleeve inserted into the housing. These solutions usually have the disadvantage that the insertion forces to plug two connectors together are high. Furthermore, the known solutions are only conditionally suitable for high-frequency technology.

The contact bodies known from the general state of the art are often designed for simple insertion and usually do not offer any suitable resistance, in particular against orthogonally acting forces, so that they can consequently be easily bent open.

For further technical background, reference is also made to the US 2016/285208 A1 and the US 2011/263156 A1 referenced, each relating to electrical connectors for cables, in particular USB cable connectors.

In addition, the U.S. 3,051,925 A and the US 2009/017678 A1 referenced, which relate to electrical cable connectors and particularly relate to electrical connections by means of coaxial cables.

After all, be that too EP 0 558 544 B1 mentioned, which relates to a method for producing a plug connector and a socket connector, wherein the socket connector has a housing, an insulating body fixed in the housing with a plurality of contacts and a metallic shielding plate.

The present invention is based on the object of providing an improved contact body for a plug connector which is suitable for absorbing forces also acting orthogonally to the plugging direction and which has good electrical properties, in particular for high frequency technology.

The present invention is also based on the object of providing a method for producing an electrical connection between two plug connectors, the plug connection being particularly suitable for high frequencies.

This object is achieved for the contact body by claim 1 and for the method by claim 11.

Finally, the invention is also based on the object of providing a plug connector and an improved plug connection which is improved with respect to the prior art.

This object is achieved by the features of claim 9 and claim 10, respectively.

The dependent claims relate to advantageous embodiments and variants of the invention.

The contact body according to the invention for a plug connector has an at least partially electrically conductive housing for connection to a ground conductor of an electrical line. Furthermore, the contact body has at least one inner conductor part for connection to at least one signal conductor of the electrical line.

An electrical line is to be understood as any device for transporting or transmitting electrical energy for data transmission and / or for electrical supply. The electrical line is preferably an electrical cable consisting of a combination of several individual lines. An electrical cable has a ground conductor or outer conductor and one or more signal conductors in the form of inner conductors. The invention is particularly suitable for use with a coaxial cable (with a single inner conductor).

In the context of the invention, however, it can also be provided that the electrical line is an electrical line of an electrical device, another plug connector or an electrical line on a printed circuit board.

The term “ground conductor” can be understood to mean any electrical conductor that carries a ground potential or some other reference potential. The term “signal conductor” can be understood to mean any conductor for the transmission of electrical data signals and / or electrical supply signals.

For a better understanding, the invention is described below essentially on the basis of the connection with an electrical cable. Of course, this is not to be understood as limiting. The person skilled in the art can easily transfer the terms “cable”, “outer conductor” and “inner conductor” to the more general terms “line”, “ground conductor” and “signal conductor”.

The housing is preferably completely electrically conductive and for this purpose, for example, is formed in one piece from a suitable electrically conductive material. However, the housing can also include non-conductive or poorly conductive parts or areas. The housing can, for example, have plastic parts for attachment to a connector housing and / or for connection to other components (including components of the contact body).

According to the invention it is provided that at least two spring tabs for contacting an outer conductor of a second connector are arranged on a contact area of the housing which is at the front in the plugging direction, the spring tabs being movably fixed at a first free end and immovable at a second end.

A spring clip can be a component that can be sufficiently elastically deformed in use or is at least partially elastic in the area of the fixed end. The spring tabs are preferably completely conductive and for this purpose z. B. made of metal. The spring tabs can be designed as spiral springs, in particular leaf springs, for example. The spring tabs can preferably move at their free, movable ends within a predetermined deflection range starting from a basic position, the spring force attempting to move the spring tabs back into the basic position when they are deflected from the basic position. The spring tabs are mounted or fixed pivotably (resiliently) essentially around their second, immovable end.

According to the invention, two groups of spring tabs are provided, the spring tabs of a first group being arranged in such a way that their free ends face a front end of the contact area and the spring tabs of a second group Group are arranged such that their free ends are arranged facing away from the front end of the contact area. A group within the meaning of the invention comprises at least one spring clip, preferably at least two spring clips.

The contact area of the housing is a front part / area of the housing in the plug-in direction, which is used to make electrical contact with a further or second connector. Accordingly, a second plug connector can be at least partially inserted into the contact area for establishing an electrical connection and / or at least partially pushed onto the contact area for this purpose. The front end of the contact area thus means that end of the contact body facing a second plug connector to be plugged in or on, which is located at the front of the contact body along the plugging direction.

According to the invention it is therefore provided that the at least one spring tab of the first group is arranged and aligned such that its (respective) first free end is located in front of its second immovably fixed end along the plugging direction. I.e. the free end of the spring tab is contacted first by a plug-in connector to be plugged in and thus before the fixed end, that is to say it is in front of the fixed end in the plug-in direction. The at least one spring tab of the second group is arranged or aligned in opposition to this.

The invention is suitable for use with any number of signal conductors (or inner conductors) of the electrical line (or of the electrical cable). More than one inner conductor part can therefore also be provided. For example, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight or more inner conductor parts can be provided for connection to any number of signal conductors (or inner conductors) within the meaning of the invention.

The number of signal conductors or inner conductor parts is therefore not restricted in the present case, with common connectors, in particular HF connectors and connectors for coaxial cables, mostly having only one inner conductor part for connection to an inner conductor of the cable.

It can also be provided that the number of inner conductor parts and signal conductors is not identical. For example, a plurality of inner conductor parts can then be connected to a smaller number of signal conductors (or a single signal conductor) - and vice versa.

The inventors have recognized that a contact body, the spring tabs of which are divided into two groups, the free ends of the spring tabs of the two groups being aligned in opposite directions along the plugging direction, enables particularly high-quality electrical contacting suitable for high-frequency technology. The reason for this is that the current paths between the plug connectors involved in electrical contacting can run particularly advantageously and directly due to the inventive arrangement of the spring tabs. Larger loops, which would have a negative effect on the performance of the plug connection, can be avoided according to the invention.

It has been shown that, for this reason, a connector designed according to the invention is particularly suitable for the transmission of high-frequency signals. While with the previously known, comparable plug connectors, only a maximum transmission frequency of 3 to 6 GHz was possible, a connector equipped according to the invention can enable the transmission of frequencies up to at least 9 GHz.

The free ends of the spring tabs can have contact tips, bulges or bends to improve the contact with another connector to be plugged in or on.

According to a first variant of the invention, it is provided that the contact body has an at least partially electrically conductive contact sleeve which is electrically conductively connected to the housing and which forms the spring tabs, the contact sleeve having a round cross section, and preferably also the housing having a round cross section having.

The contact sleeve can preferably be received by the housing of the contact body. However, it can also be provided that the contact sleeve receives the housing of the contact body.

The contact sleeve can extend, starting from the front end of the contact area, in the plug-in direction along the contact area. The contact sleeve can be designed to be smaller, the same size or larger than the contact area along the insertion direction.

According to the invention, it can therefore be provided that the contact sleeve is arranged on a contact area of the housing that is at the front in the plug-in direction, the contact sleeve forming at least two spring tabs.

The contact sleeve is preferably designed to be completely conductive, for example in one piece from an electrically conductive material. The contact sleeve can, however, also comprise non-conductive or poorly conductive parts / areas. The contact sleeve can contain plastic parts that are used, for example, for mechanical connection to the housing of the contact body.

The contact sleeve can be conductively connected to the housing of the contact body by contact areas, contact points or by complete physical contact. A large-area and thus low-resistance connection can be preferred.

The contact sleeve can be connected to the housing of the contact body with a form fit, force fit and / or material fit. The contact sleeve can, for example, be pressed with the housing of the contact body or locked in it.

It can be provided that the contact body is used for a connector whose outgoing direction (the line) does not run along the plug-in direction or which is provided for electrical connection to a second plug connector whose outgoing direction (the line) does not run along the plug-in direction. For example, plug connectors are known whose outgoing direction is 90 ° to the plug direction. In this case, in particular, undesirable, sometimes high transverse forces can arise, for example if a user applies force to a cable outlet that does not run along the plug-in direction. This can cause irreparable damage to the connector or the interface.

The contact body according to the invention minimizes, in particular in advantageous embodiments, the risk of damage to the plug connection or the interface. Because the housing of the contact body can be reinforced almost independently of the contact sleeve and / or the spring tabs, a particularly robust contact body can be provided overall. That is, the stability of the contact body, in particular with respect to forces acting orthogonally to the plug-in direction, can be improved. At the same time, however, it can also be ensured that the force required to make contact with a second connector is at least not significantly increased, since for this only the contact sleeve or the spring tabs and not the housing are important. It is thus possible to increase the robustness or the mechanical stability and / or the holding force or the normal contact force of the contact body independently of the necessary insertion force.

Another advantage of providing a contact sleeve is that the contact body or the connector can be constructed in a modular manner in terms of production technology.

Furthermore, the contact sleeve, as a highly stressed component, can be easily exchanged in the event of damage, without the entire contact body or connector having to be exchanged.

According to an alternative, second variant according to the invention, it is provided that the spring tabs are formed in one piece or in one piece with the housing, the housing having a round cross section.

It can also be provided that one or more spring tabs are individually attached to the housing with their immovable ends, for example by riveting, clamping or gluing.

A contact sleeve does not necessarily have to be provided in the context of the invention. Depending on the intended use of the connector or contact body, this simplified variant can be economically advantageous. As a rule, however, the use of a contact sleeve will be advantageous.

Also a variant in which some of the spring tabs, e.g. B. a group of spring tabs on the housing and another part of the spring tabs, e.g. B. the other group, formed on the contact sleeve, can be provided sen.

In a further development of the invention it can be provided that the housing and the contact sleeve have a round cross section.

The housing and / or the contact sleeve can in principle have any desired cross section, for example also a rectangular cross section. It can also be provided that the housing of the contact body and the contact sleeve each have different cross-sectional shapes. For example, it can be provided that the housing of the contact body has a rectangular cross section and the contact sleeve has a round cross section - or vice versa.

In terms of manufacturing technology, however, round cross-sections have proven advantageous, in particular when using coaxial cables or coaxial plug connectors. Such contact bodies or plug connectors can also be particularly robust.

According to the second variant of the invention, it is provided that the contact area forms an interior space for receiving a second plug connector and the free ends of the spring tabs protrude into the interior space for contacting the second plug connector.

It can therefore preferably be provided that the spring tabs are arranged or formed on the inside of the housing or the contact sleeve. The free ends of the spring tabs preferably protrude into the interior, which means that when the second connector is inserted, they are pushed out of the interior until they are essentially coplanar with the inner wall of the housing or the contact sleeve. As a result of the spring forces acting, particularly high-quality electrical contact between the contact body according to the invention and the inserted second connector takes place in the area of the free ends of the spring tabs. The electrical connection is particularly vibration-proof and robust.

In particular if a contact sleeve is provided, the free ends can preferably be pressed against the housing of the contact body when the second connector is inserted, whereby the electrical connection is improved even further overall.

Alternatively, it can of course also be provided that the free ends of the spring tabs protrude outward from the contact area, whereby the second connector can be pushed onto the contact body and thereby contacts the spring tabs on the outside of the housing of the contact body.

However, particularly when using a contact sleeve, it is preferable if the contact area or the contact sleeve forms an interior space. The housing of the contact body can then advantageously be used for electromagnetic shielding of the contact area, which is possible particularly effectively if the housing itself does not have any spring tabs.

In a further development of the invention it can be provided that the housing and / or the contact sleeve is or are completely made of metal.

Any suitable metals and alloys can be provided, for example comprising or consisting of silver, copper, gold, aluminum, bronze or alloys formed therefrom.

In a further development of the invention, the housing can be designed to be completely closed along its circumference, at least in the contact area.

In particular, if the housing is designed to be completely conductive and is connected to the ground conductor of the electrical line, a particularly high-quality electromagnetic shielding can result from this. The housing is preferably designed to be closed over its entire length along its circumference. Electromagnetic shielding can thus also be provided in the area of the housing that is used for connection to the electrical line.

A completely closed design of the housing along its circumference also has the advantage that transverse forces, in particular forces, which are orthogonal to the longitudinal plug axis act, can be received particularly well, since the housing has a high stability due to a closed design and in particular is not weakened by openings, in particular spring tabs, as in the prior art. Such a design is particularly suitable for meeting requirements, particularly in the automotive sector, with regard to the transverse forces to be absorbed.

It can be provided that the housing has a tubular geometry and the interior of the housing is completely electromagnetically shielded, preferably by a completely closed housing.

In a development of the invention it can be provided that the spring tabs of at least one of the two groups and / or all of the spring tabs are evenly distributed along the circumference of the housing.

In particular, the distance between the spring tabs in the circumferential direction can be uniform.

A uniform distribution of the spring tabs can improve the mechanical properties of the contact body when plugging in or unplugging. In addition, evenly distributed current paths, in particular of the same length, can be formed during the electrical connection to the second connector, as a result of which high-frequency electrical signals can be transmitted relatively undisturbed.

The even distribution of the spring tabs along the circumference of the housing can also optimize the shielding properties of the housing.

In a further development of the invention, it can also be provided that the spring tabs of the two groups are each arranged alternately along the circumference of the housing.

Since the free ends of spring tabs of the first group face the front end of the contact area and the free ends of spring tabs of the second group are arranged facing away from the front end of the contact area, the spring tabs of both groups behave mechanically differently when inserted. Also the current paths in the case of an electrical connection with the second connector will, as expected, develop differently in the case of spring tabs of the two groups. For this reason, in addition to an evenly distributed arrangement of the spring tabs, an alternating arrangement of the differently connected spring tabs can be advantageous in order to further improve the mechanical and electrical behavior of the contact body.

As already mentioned above, the first group and / or the second group can each have only a single spring clip. That is to say, in the context of the invention, it can already be sufficient to provide only two spring tabs in total.

In a particularly advantageous development of the invention, however, it can be provided that the first group and / or the second group has or have at least two spring tabs, preferably three spring tabs, for example also four, five, six or more spring tabs.

The number of spring tabs per group is preferably identical, but this is not absolutely necessary. It can e.g. B. can also be provided that the first group has four spring tabs and the second group has two spring tabs - or vice versa. Any combination of groups is possible.

In particular when using the contact body with a connector for high-frequency transmission, it may be necessary to provide as many spring tabs as possible distributed along the circumference of the housing. In simulations and tests it has been found that in particular the use of six spring tabs, three spring tabs per group being provided, for the transmission of particularly high frequencies, i.e. H. is particularly advantageous for high-frequency plug connections in relation to the manufacturing costs.

In a further development of the invention it can be provided that at least one spring tab, preferably one of the two groups of spring tabs, is offset in relation to at least one further spring tab, preferably with respect to the other group of spring tabs, along the insertion direction in the housing. A staggered arrangement can ensure that the second connector (to be plugged in or attached) initially only makes mechanical and electrical contact with one spring tab or part of the spring tabs or a first group of spring tabs when connecting to the contact body and only then at least along the plug-in direction another spring tab contacted. The plug-in connection can thus be plugged together with a particularly low force, although an overall high holding force and a low-resistance connection can still be ensured after it has been completely plugged in.

The offset of the spring tabs can in particular be achieved in that the positions of the respectively immovably fixed ends of the spring tabs are offset relative to one another along the insertion direction in the contact area.

Alternatively or additionally, the first free ends of the respective spring tabs can be arranged offset relative to one another in the contact area along the plugging direction. In addition, the lengths of the spring tabs, i. H. the extension between the two ends, may be different.

It can be provided that the free ends of spring tabs of the first group are arranged along the plug-in direction in the contact area, measured from the front end of the contact area, at the same location or almost the same location as the immovably fixed second ends of spring tabs of the second Group.

If a second connector or a contact body of a second connector is now connected for electrical connection with the contact body according to the invention, the arrangement of the spring tabs, preferably along the plug-in direction, firstly spring tabs of the first group at their free ends and then spring tabs of the second group at their free ends Ends contacted.

In a particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention, it can be provided that the spring tabs of the two groups each have an identical distance from the front end of the contact area and extend over the same axial length, a difference in the arrangement between the spring tabs of the two groups only resulting from this shows that the free end of the spring tabs of the first Group faces the front end of the contact area and the free end of the spring tabs of the second group faces away from the front end of the contact area.

According to the invention, it is preferably provided that the spring tabs of a group are each designed identically and are arranged with regard to their spacing in the front end of the contact area. In principle, however, it is also possible that the spring tabs of the respective groups are designed differently, i. H. for example, have different lengths or widths and / or the distance between the free ends of the spring tabs and the front end of the contact area is different. This makes it possible for the second connector to be plugged in or on to make mechanical and electrical contact with several spring tabs one after the other when plugged in in the plugging direction along the plugging direction, in particular making contact with several spring tabs of the same group one after the other. Thus, the force for insertion can be further reduced, while still providing an advantageous holding force.

However, a symmetrical arrangement of the spring tabs or the free ends of the spring tabs distributed around the circumference of the housing or the contact sleeve is advantageous.

The contact body according to the invention is particularly preferably designed such that the free ends of spring tabs of the first group are electrically contacted by an outer conductor of the second connector before an inner conductor part of the second connector makes electrical contact with the inner conductor part of the contact body according to the invention. Preferably, it can furthermore be provided that the free ends of spring tabs are only contacted after the inner conductor parts have been electrically connected. Adhering to this sequence has proven to be advantageous.

It can also be provided that the inner conductor part and the spring tabs of the contact body are arranged and aligned in such a way that all spring tabs and the inner conductor part make electrical contact at the same time when connected to a second connector. It can also be provided that the spring tabs or the groups of spring tabs are arranged and aligned in such a way that during the connection With a second connector, first all spring tabs are electrically contacted and then the inner conductor parts of the connector.

It can further be provided that the contact sleeve and / or at least one spring clip has a smaller wall thickness than the housing.

Because the contact body has a housing in addition to the contact sleeve or the spring clips, the essential mechanical loads, for example transverse forces occurring when plugging and unplugging, can be absorbed by the housing. While the wall thickness of the housing can be made correspondingly thick for this purpose, the contact sleeve or the spring tabs can in particular be geared towards establishing a smooth and high-quality electrical connection. As a result, the normal contact forces and / or the forces required for insertion can be adjusted extremely flexibly through the wall thickness and / or material type of the contact sleeve or the spring tabs.

In a development of the invention it can be provided that the housing is designed to be immovable or rigid orthogonally to the plugging direction.

The housing can in particular be designed to absorb mechanical transverse forces and torsional forces.

According to the invention, the combination of a rigid external geometry of the housing of the contact body with an elastic internal geometry of the contact sleeve and / or the spring tabs can be provided. In particular, the stiffening of the entire housing of the contact body up to a preferably completely closed, preferably tubular geometry can be provided. Any manufacturing-related abutting edges can be welded together. The housing of the contact body preferably does not have any recesses, openings or the like.

The wall thickness of the contact sleeve and / or the spring tabs is preferably small. The contact sleeve and / or the spring tabs can be designed to be at least partially elastic, as a result of which the insertion forces can be reduced while the normal contact forces are sufficiently high.

For example, wall thicknesses <1 mm, preferably <0.5 mm, more preferably <0.25 mm and very particularly preferably <0.12 mm or even smaller, can be provided.

The connection of the contact body to the ground conductor of the electrical line or of the at least one inner conductor part to a signal conductor of the electrical line can take place with known measures, preferably by means of soldering, gluing, clamping or crimping.

A connection between a cable and the contact body can preferably be established by stripping a section of the cable jacket of the cable in a first step. This exposes an outer conductor. The outer conductor can be, for example, a braided cable shield. A support sleeve can then be crimped onto the braided cable shield in such a way that the braided cable shield protrudes beyond the support sleeve. The protruding cable shield braid can be folded back in a next step and placed over the support sleeve. The front end of the cable can then be stripped further so that an inner conductor of the cable is exposed. The exposed inner conductor of the cable can then subsequently be connected to the inner conductor part of the contact body, preferably in such a way that the inner conductor part is also crimped on. The contact body or the housing of the contact body is preferably crimped onto the outer conductor of the cable or the braided cable shield, which is preferably folded back over the support sleeve. Thus, the contact body or its housing is reliably connected to the outer conductor of the cable by crimping and the inner conductor part is protected within the contact body.

The invention also relates to a plug connector, in particular a coupling or a socket, with a contact body described above.

The invention also relates to a plug connection having a first plug connector, in particular a coupling or a socket, with a contact body, as described above, and a second plug connector that can be plugged together therewith.

In the present case, the term “plug-in connection” means an electrical connector system consisting of at least two electrical connectors.

Features that have already been described in connection with the contact body according to the invention can of course also be advantageously implemented for the plug connector according to the invention or the plug connection according to the invention - and vice versa. Furthermore, advantages that have already been mentioned in connection with the contact body according to the invention can also be understood in relation to the plug connector according to the invention or the plug connection according to the invention - and vice versa.

The same naturally also applies to the method for establishing an electrical connection, which is described in greater detail below.

The invention is not limited to a specific type of connector or to a specific connector, the invention being particularly suitable for assembling HF cables. The connector can preferably be an HF connector, in particular a PL connector, BNC connector, TNC connector, SMBA (FAKRA) connector, N connector, 7-16 connector, SMA connector, SMB connector, SMS -Plug connector, SMC connector or SMP connector.

The connector can be designed as a so-called FAKRA connector, which corresponds to the so-called FAKRA standardization scheme (FAKRA = specialist group automotive technology) for SMB connections. Here, a connector housing made of plastic is provided, which holds the contact body, protects it and pre-positions it with a second connector for the plugging process. The connector housing can also have mechanical coding so that only matching connector housings can be plugged into one another.

From the US 2003/0176104 A1 a coaxial connector with a plastic housing is known which corresponds to the so-called FAKRA standardization scheme for SMB connections.

Some of the components of the contact body and / or connector according to the invention can in principle in their construction the coaxial connector of the US 2003/0176104 A1 correspond, which is why the disclosure of the US 2003/0176104 A1 be fully integrated into the present disclosure by referencing.

Such plastic housings for coaxial connectors, which are also called FAKRA housings, are used in automotive engineering for data transmission cables. These data transmission cables are usually coaxial cables or similar shielded cables based on a single electrical inner conductor. The mechanical dimensions of such FAKRA housings in the contact area, i. H. in an axial section of the housing, which cooperates with a complementary connector in order to produce a mechanical connection between the two connector housings, are specified in DIN 72594-1 in the version of October 2004.

The invention is particularly suitable for such plug connectors.

The present invention or the contact body and / or connector according to the invention can be used particularly advantageously in a vehicle. The term “vehicle” describes any means of transport, in particular vehicles on land, on water or in the air, including spacecraft.

The invention also relates to a method for producing an electrical connection between two connectors, at least one first connector being used, which has a contact body with an at least partially electrically conductive housing for connection to a ground conductor of an electrical line, and with at least one inner conductor part for connection to having at least one signal conductor of the electrical line, the housing having a contact area located at the front in the plug-in direction, and wherein at least two spring tabs are arranged in the contact area, and the spring tabs are movably fixed at a first free end and immovable at a second end.

In the method according to the invention it is provided that the spring tabs are arranged and designed in such a way that when connecting the connector along the Insertion direction from the second connector or its contact body or contact area first a first group of spring tabs of the first connector, then an inner conductor part of the first connector and then a second group of spring tabs of the first connector is electrically contacted, the free ends of the spring tabs of the two groups each point in opposite directions.

1. a) der Kontaktkörper eine zumindest teilweise elektrische leitfähige Kontakthülse aufweist, die elektrisch leitfähig mit dem Gehäuse verbunden ist, wobei die Kontakthülse die Federlaschen ausbildet und einen runden Querschnitt aufweist; oder
2. b) die Federlaschen einstückig mit dem Gehäuse ausgebildet sind, wobei das Gehäuse einen runden Querschnitt aufweist und der Kontaktbereich einen Innenraum zur Aufnahme des zweiten Steckverbinders ausbildet und die freien Enden der Federlaschen zur Kontaktierung mit dem zweiten Steckverbinder in den Innenraum vorstehen.

In the method according to the invention it is also provided that

1. a) the contact body has an at least partially electrically conductive contact sleeve which is electrically conductively connected to the housing, the contact sleeve forming the spring tabs and having a round cross section; or
2. b) the spring tabs are integrally formed with the housing, the housing having a round cross-section and the contact area forming an interior space for receiving the second connector and the free ends of the spring tabs protruding into the interior for contacting the second connector.

Because the spring tabs of a first group are initially contacted, even before a connection is established between the inner conductors of the plug-in connectors, mass compensation currents can initially flow via the contacted outer conductors or ground conductors of the plug-in connectors, which prevent unintentional damage to the system. Then the inner conductor parts and then the spring tabs of the second group are contacted, whereby the electrical connection of the outer conductors of the two connectors is electrically improved. The plug connection, which is thus completely plugged together, can thus be suitable for the transmission of particularly high frequencies.

Due to the fact that not all spring tabs are contacted simultaneously with the second connector during the mating process, the frictional force or spring force counteracting the mating can be relatively low, whereby mating the connector can be particularly convenient or easy for a user, while the complete closed plug connection still has a very high holding force.

According to the invention, the courses of current paths within the closed plug connection can be improved for high-frequency transmission through the double contact via the two different groups of spring tabs.

The inventors have recognized that the group of spring tabs, the free ends of which face away from the front end of the contact area, are particularly suitable for high-frequency transmission. In addition, it is particularly advantageous with this group of spring tabs that they are particularly well shielded electromagnetically, since their free ends are particularly far from the front end of the contact area.

The invention makes it possible to combine the advantages of a low contact resistance and good properties for use with high-frequency signals with a comfortably low insertion force.

It should be noted that the terms “comprising,” “having,” or “having” do not exclude any other features or steps. Furthermore, terms such as “a” or “the”, which indicate a number of steps or features, do not exclude a plurality of steps or features; this applies in particular to the spring tabs and the number of inner conductors.

Exemplary embodiments of the invention are described in more detail below with reference to the drawing. The figures each show preferred exemplary embodiments in which individual features of the present invention are shown in combination with one another. Features of an exemplary embodiment can also be implemented separately from the other features of the same exemplary embodiment and can accordingly be easily combined by a person skilled in the art to form further meaningful combinations and sub-combinations with features of other exemplary embodiments.

In the figures, functionally identical elements are provided with the same reference symbols.

Figur 1

einen erfindungsgemäßen Kontaktkörper mit einem Koaxialkabel in einer isometrischen Darstellung;

Figur 2

den Kontaktkörper der Figur 1 in einer geschnittenen Darstellung ohne das Koaxialkabel;

Figur 3

Einzelheit "A" des geschnittenen Kontaktkörpers der Figur 2;

Figur 4

den Kontaktkörper der Figur 1 in einer Vorderansicht;

Figur 5

den vorderen Teil des Kontaktkörpers in einer weiteren isometrischen Darstellung;

Figur 6

den Kontaktkörper der Figur 1 in einer teilgeschnittenen Draufsicht mit einem im hinteren Teil noch nicht geschlossenen Gehäuse zur Aufnahme des Koaxialkabels;

Figur 7

eine erfindungsgemäße Kontakthülse in einer isometrischen Darstellung;

Figur 8

die Kontakthülse der Figur 7 in einer Vorderansicht;

Figur 9

die Kontakthülse der Figur 7 in einer ersten teilgeschnittenen Seitenansicht gemäß Schnitt IX-IX der Figur 8;

Figur 10

die Kontakthülse der Figur 7 in einer zweiten teilgeschnittenen Seitenansicht gemäß Schnitt X-X der Figur 8;

Figur 11

einen erfindungsgemäßen Steckverbinder mit einem eingesetzten Kontaktkörper in einer isometrischen Darstellung;

Figur 12

den erfindungsgemäßen Steckverbinder der Figur 11 in einer teilgeschnittenen Seitenansicht mit dem eingesetzten Kontaktkörper und mit einem Koaxialkabel; und

Figur 13

eine erfindungsgemäße Steckverbindung mit einem erfindungsgemäßen Steckverbinder und einem zweiten Steckverbinder in isometrischer Darstellung.

They show schematically:

Figure 1

a contact body according to the invention with a coaxial cable in an isometric view;

Figure 2

the contact body of the Figure 1 in a sectional view without the coaxial cable;

Figure 3

Detail "A" of the cut contact body of the Figure 2 ;

Figure 4

the contact body of the Figure 1 in a front view;

Figure 5

the front part of the contact body in a further isometric view;

Figure 6

the contact body of the Figure 1 in a partially sectioned plan view with a housing not yet closed in the rear part for receiving the coaxial cable;

Figure 7

a contact sleeve according to the invention in an isometric view;

Figure 8

the contact sleeve of the Figure 7 in a front view;

Figure 9

the contact sleeve of the Figure 7 in a first partially sectioned side view according to section IX-IX of Figure 8 ;

Figure 10

the contact sleeve of the Figure 7 in a second partially sectioned side view according to section XX of the Figure 8 ;

Figure 11

a connector according to the invention with an inserted contact body in an isometric view;

Figure 12

the connector of the invention Figure 11 in a partially sectioned side view with the inserted contact body and with a coaxial cable; and

Figure 13

a connector according to the invention with a connector according to the invention and a second connector in an isometric view.

The Figures 1 to 6 show a contact body 1 according to the invention for an in Figure 11 connector 2 shown as an example. The contact body 1 has an essentially tubular housing 3 made of metal. The housing 3 of the contact body 1, but also all other components of the contact body 1, can preferably be produced by stamping and bending technology.

The housing 3 of the contact body 1 is for connection to an outer conductor 4.2 of an electrical cable 4, in this case a coaxial cable 4 (cf. Figure 1 ), educated. The outer conductor 4.2 runs within an insulating cable jacket 4.1. A dielectric 4.3 electrically separates the outer conductor 4.2 from an inner conductor 4.4.

The principle for connecting the contact body 1 to the coaxial cable 4 is particularly good in the Figures 2 and 6th recognizable. The outer conductor 4.2 of the coaxial cable 4 can be mechanically and electrically stable connected to the housing 3 by pressing or crimping. In this way, a tension intercept can be guaranteed at the same time. In Figure 6 the rear part of the housing 3 for receiving the coaxial cable 4 is shown bent or open. After inserting the coaxial cable 4, the housing 3 of the contact body 1 can then be bent together in the rear area using an appropriate tool. To improve the connection, a support sleeve 5 (cf. Figure 2 ) which is pushed over the coaxial cable 4 and via which the cable shielding braid or the outer conductor 4.2 of the coaxial cable 4 can be folded over or folded over. The support sleeve 5 can then be pushed together with the coaxial cable 4 into the housing 3 of the contact body 1 and then crimped or pressed.

The contact body 1 also has an inner conductor part 6 for connection to the inner conductor 4.4 of the coaxial cable 4. Of course, any number of inner conductor parts 6 or inner conductor 4.4 can in principle be provided. The coaxial cable 4 used here by way of example to illustrate the invention as an electrical line with only one inner conductor 4.4 is only to be understood as an example.

The inner conductor 4.4 of the coaxial cable 4 can be crimped to the inner conductor part 6. For example, a contact lug 7 (see FIG. Figure 2 ) be provided on the inner conductor part 6, which can be bent around this after inserting the inner conductor 4.4 of the coaxial cable 4.

To align the inner conductor part 6 within the housing 3 and for electrical insulation between the outer conductor 4.2 and the inner conductor 4.4, an electrically insulating support aid 8, for example made of plastic, can be provided. This is especially good in Figure 2 recognizable.

For a stable mechanical and electrical connection with a second connector 2 '(only as an example in Figure 13 shown) are on a contact area 9 (cf. Figure 2 ) of the housing 3 several spring tabs 10, 11 are arranged, the spring tabs 10, 11 each at a first free end 10.1, 11.1 are movable and fixed at a second end 10.2, 11.2 immovable.

The mating direction is in Figure 2 represented by an arrow S and runs along the central axis M of the contact body 1. The contact area 9 of the housing 3 is understood to mean the area which is used essentially for mechanical and electrical contact with a second plug connector 2 '. In this area, at least the front end of the inner conductor part 6 and the spring tabs 10, 11 for contacting an outer conductor of the second plug connector 2 'are thus arranged.

In the exemplary embodiment, the contact body 1 has an electrically conductive contact sleeve 12 which is electrically connected to the housing 3 of the contact body 1 and which forms the spring tabs 10, 11. In principle, however, the spring tabs 10, 11 can also be formed (in one piece or in one piece or in some other way) on the housing 3. In the exemplary embodiment, the contact sleeve 12, as well as the housing 3 of the contact body 1, is made entirely of metal and manufactured using stamping and bending technology.

The housing 3 and also the contact sleeve 12 each have a round cross section. The housing 3 is designed to be completely closed along its circumference, so that particularly advantageous electromagnetic shielding can be ensured. Furthermore, the housing 3 is designed to be immovable or rigid orthogonally to the plug-in direction, in particular in order to be able to absorb high transverse forces and ensure good shielding. The housing 3 of the contact body 1 preferably has a greater wall thickness than the contact sleeve 12. The contact sleeve 12 is preferably designed to be elastic and enables it to be plugged together with the second plug connector 2 'with comparatively low forces. For example, a wall thickness of 0.12 mm can be provided for the contact sleeve 12.

According to the invention, two groups of spring tabs 10, 11 are provided, the free ends 10.1 of spring tabs 10 of a first group being a front end 9.1 of the contact area 9 (cf. Figure 2 ) facing and the free ends 11.1 of spring tabs 11 of a second group are arranged facing away from the front end 9.1 of the contact area 9.

In the exemplary embodiment, the contact area 9 forms an interior 9.2 for receiving the second connector 2 ', the free ends 10.1, 11.1 of the spring tabs 10, 11 protruding into the interior 9.2 for contacting the second connector 2'. Alternatively, it can also be provided that the second connector 2 'is pushed onto the contact body 1 and the free ends 10.1, 11.1 of the spring tabs 10, 11 thus protrude outward from the housing 3 of the contact body 1 for contacting.

As in particular in the Figures 4 , 7 and 8 It is easy to see that six spring tabs 10, 11 are provided in the exemplary embodiment. Three spring tabs 10 are assigned to the first group and three spring tabs 11 are assigned to the second group. The spring tabs 10 of the first group and the spring tabs 11 of the second group are distributed uniformly and alternately along the circumference of the housing 3 of the contact body 1 (or the contact sleeve 12). This ensures a certain symmetry of the current paths when connecting to the second connector 2 'and also a symmetry when mechanically connecting the connectors 2, 2', which means that a plug connection can be plugged together particularly conveniently and is also suitable for the transmission of signals with particularly high frequencies is.

An exemplary current path 13 via a spring tab 11 of the second group shows Figure 3 . When the second connector 2 'or the contact body of the second connector 2' is fully inserted into the contact body 1, the illustrated spring tab 11 is essentially pressed out of the interior 9.2 of the contact area 9 and onto the side wall of the housing 1. In this way, when the second plug connector 2 'is fully inserted, an additional, direct electrical contact with the housing 1 that is mechanically stable due to the spring clip 11 is established.

In the Figures 9 and 10 are partially cut side views of the in Figure 7 contact sleeve 12 shown. Figure 9 shows a partial section along the section line IX-IX of Figure 8 and Figure 10 along the section line XX of the Figure 8 .

In the exemplary embodiment, the spring tabs 10 of the first group and the spring tabs 11 of the second group are arranged offset along the insertion direction in the housing 3. When establishing an electrical connection between a plug connector 2 according to the invention, which has a contact body 1 with a contact sleeve 12, as shown, and a second plug connector 2 ', when connecting the plug connector 2, 2' along the plugging direction, the second plug connector 2 ' preferably first the first group of spring tabs 10 of the connector 2 according to the invention, then the inner conductor part 6 of the connector 2 according to the invention and then the second group of spring tabs 11 of the connector 2 according to the invention electrically contacted. For this purpose, the free ends 10.1 of the spring tabs 10 of the first group, which protrude into the interior 9.2 of the contact area 9, are arranged further forward on the contact body 1 than the front part of the inner conductor part 6 and the free ends 11.1 of the spring tabs 11 of the second group. In this way, it is ensured that before the electrical connection of the inner conductors of the plug connectors 2, 2 ', mass equalization currents can occur via the respective outer conductors, whereby at the same time an insertion with a low insertion force can be guaranteed, since initially only the first group of spring tabs 10 mechanically is contacted.

The invention also relates to a plug connector 2 with a contact body 1 described above.

In Figure 10 and 11 a FAKRA connector 2 is shown as an example in the form of a coupling. The connector 2 has a connector housing 2.1, which is preferably made of plastic. In principle, any connector 2 can be provided. The contact body 1 described above is inserted in the connector housing 2.1. For a better illustration, the connector housing 2.1 is shown in each case partially in section in FIGS. 10 and 11.

The connector housing 2.1 and the housing 3 of the contact body 1 each have mechanical coding means and fastening means for mutual connection and / or alignment. For this purpose, the housing 3 of the contact body 1 has, for example, two annular beads 14 and a cup bead 15.

Depending on the manufacturing method of the contact body 1 or the housing 3 of the contact body 1, the housing 3 can have an abutting edge 16 (cf. Figure 5 ), which is preferably welded.

The housing 3 and the contact sleeve 12 can be pressed together and / or have latching means 17. The locking means 17 can in particular be formed by partial depressions and / or complementary elevations of the housing 3 and / or the contact sleeve 12. The latching means 11 in the housing 3 are preferably designed such that the housing 3 is not penetrated by them. The latching means 17 of the housing 3 are preferably recesses formed on the inside of the housing 3 into which complementary elevations of the contact sleeve 12 latch.

The invention also relates to an electrical connector system or an electrical connector, having a first connector 2, in particular a coupling or a socket, with a contact body 1 as described above, the electrical connector also having a second connector 2 'that connects to the first Connector 2 can be plugged together. In Figure 13 a second connector 2 'with a connector housing 2.1' is shown as an example. The second connector 2 'is designed as a FAKRA plug and the connector 2 according to the invention as a FAKRA coupling.

Claims (11)

1. A contact element (1) for a connector (2), having an at least partially electrically conductive housing (3) for connection to a grounding conductor (4.2) of an electrical line (4), and having at least one inner conductor part (6) for connection to at least one signal conductor (4.4) of the electrical line (4), wherein in a contact region (9) of the housing (3) situated at the front in the insertion direction there are arranged at least two resilient tongues (10, 11) for contacting an outer conductor of a second connector (2'), and wherein the resilient tongues (10, 11) are each secured movably at a first free end (10.1, 11.1) and immovably at a second end (10.2, 11.2), wherein two groups of resilient tongues (10, 11) are provided, wherein the resilient tongues (10) of a first group are arranged such that their free ends (10.1) are arranged facing toward a front end (9.1) of the contact region (9) and the resilient tongues (11) of a second group are arranged such that their free ends (11.1) are arranged facing away from the front end (9.1) of the contact region (9), wherein:

   a) the contact element (1) comprises an at least partially electrically conductive contact sleeve (12), which is electrically conductively connected to the housing (3), and which forms the resilient tongues (10, 11) and has a round cross section, and wherein preferably the housing (3) also has a round cross section; or

   b) the resilient tongues (10, 11) are formed as a single piece with the housing (3), wherein the housing has a round cross section and the contact region (9) forms an inner space (9.2) to receive a second connector (2') and the free ends (10.1, 11.1) of the resilient tongues (10, 11) protrude into the inner space (9.2) for the contacting with the second connector (2').
2. The contact element (1) as claimed in claim 1,
   characterized in that
   the housing (3) and/or the contact sleeve (12) are formed entirely of metal.
3. The contact element (1) as claimed in claim 1 or 2,
   characterized in that
   the housing (3) is formed fully closed at least in the contact region (9) along its circumference.
4. The contact element (1) as claimed in one of claims 1 to 3,
   characterized in that
   the resilient tongues (10, 11) of at least one of the two groups and/or all the resilient tongues (10, 11) are arranged evenly distributed along the circumference of the housing (3).
5. The contact element (1) as claimed in one of claims 1 to 4,
   characterized in that
   the resilient tongues (10, 11) of the two groups are arranged in each case in alternating fashion along the circumference of the housing (3).
6. The contact element (1) as claimed in one of claims 1 to 5,
   characterized in that
   the first group and/or the second group comprises at least two resilient tongues (10, 11), preferably three resilient tongues (10, 11), for example also four, five, six or more resilient tongues (10, 11).
7. The contact element (1) as claimed in one of claims 1 to 6,
   characterized in that
   at least one resilient tongue (10, 11), preferably one of the two groups of resilient tongues (10, 11), is arranged offset from at least one further resilient tongue (10, 11), preferably from the other group of resilient tongues (10, 11), along the insertion direction in the housing (3).
8. The contact element (1) as claimed in one of claims 1 to 7,
   characterized in that
   the housing (3) is formed so as to be immovable or rigid orthogonally to the insertion direction.
9. A connector (2), especially a coupling or bush, having a contact element (1) as claimed in one of claims 1 to 8.
10. A plug connection, having a first connector (2), especially a coupling or bush, having a contact element (1) as claimed in one of claims 1 to 8, and a second connector (2') which can be plugged into it.
11. A method for producing an electrical connection between two connectors (2, 2'), wherein at least a first connector (2) is used, comprising a contact element (1) with an at least partially electrically conductive housing (3) for connection to a grounding conductor (4.2) of an electrical line (4), and having at least one inner conductor part (6) for connection to at least one signal conductor (4.4) of the electrical line (4), wherein the housing (3) comprises a contact region (9) situated in front in the insertion direction, and wherein in the contact region (9) there are arranged at least two resilient tongues (10, 11), and the resilient tongues (10, 11) are each secured movably at a first free end (10.1, 11.1) and immovably at a second end (10.2, 11.2), wherein the resilient tongues (10, 11) are configured and arranged such that, when connecting the connectors (2, 2') along the insertion direction of the second connector (2') at first a first group of resilient tongues (10) of the first connector (2), then an inner conductor part (6) of the first connector (2) and then a second group of resilient tongues (11) of the first connector (2) make electrical contact, the free ends (10.1, 11.1) of the resilient tongues (10, 11) of the two groups in each case pointing in opposite directions, wherein:

    a) the contact element (1) comprises an at least partially electrically conductive contact sleeve (12), which is electrically conductively connected to the housing (3), and which forms the resilient tongues (10, 11) and has a round cross section; or

    b) the resilient tongues (10, 11) are formed as a single piece with the housing (3), wherein the housing has a round cross section and the contact region (9) forms an inner space (9.2) to receive a second connector (2') and the free ends (10.1, 11.1) of the resilient tongues (10, 11) protrude into the inner space (9.2) for the contacting with the second connector (2').

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