EP3905450A1 - Ensemble boîtier comprenant un dispositif de retenue de module de type ressort - Google Patents

Ensemble boîtier comprenant un dispositif de retenue de module de type ressort Download PDF

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Publication number
EP3905450A1
EP3905450A1 EP21171315.1A EP21171315A EP3905450A1 EP 3905450 A1 EP3905450 A1 EP 3905450A1 EP 21171315 A EP21171315 A EP 21171315A EP 3905450 A1 EP3905450 A1 EP 3905450A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
module
retainer
receptacle
housing assembly
outer housing
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP21171315.1A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Inventor
Yehya Ashour
Georg Puckel
S Ramesh
Hartmut Ripper
Armand Kerckhoffs
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
TE Connectivity Germany GmbH
TE Connectivity India Pvt Ltd
Original Assignee
TE Connectivity Germany GmbH
TE Connectivity India Pvt Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by TE Connectivity Germany GmbH, TE Connectivity India Pvt Ltd filed Critical TE Connectivity Germany GmbH
Publication of EP3905450A1 publication Critical patent/EP3905450A1/fr
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
    • H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
    • H01R13/46—Bases; Cases
    • H01R13/516—Means for holding or embracing insulating body, e.g. casing, hoods
    • H01R13/518—Means for holding or embracing insulating body, e.g. casing, hoods for holding or embracing several coupling parts, e.g. frames
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01R—ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE CONNECTIONS; STRUCTURAL ASSOCIATIONS OF A PLURALITY OF MUTUALLY-INSULATED ELECTRICAL CONNECTING ELEMENTS; COUPLING DEVICES; CURRENT COLLECTORS
    • H01R13/00—Details of coupling devices of the kinds covered by groups H01R12/70 or H01R24/00 - H01R33/00
    • H01R13/46—Bases; Cases
    • H01R13/514—Bases; Cases composed as a modular blocks or assembly, i.e. composed of co-operating parts provided with contact members or holding contact members between them

Definitions

  • the invention relates to a housing assembly, in particular for a connector, the housing assembly comprising an outer housing with at least one module receptacle for receiving at least one connector-like terminal module and with a connector face at which the outer housing can be connected with a complementary part, such as a housing or a connector, the housing assembly further comprising at least one module retainer for retaining at least one terminal module in the module receptacle in an assembled state of the housing assembly, wherein the module retainer is adapted to be at least partially insertable into a retainer receptacle of the outer housing.
  • Housing assemblies of the aforementioned type are known in the art. They can be used for a connector, in particular forming a male or female part of a connector.
  • the terminal module may be preassembled and subsequently inserted into the module receptacle in order to fully assemble the housing assembly.
  • a housing comprises several parts, positioning of these parts with respect to each other is often very difficult due to manufacturing tolerances of the parts. In particular in the case of several parts, the tolerances of each part add up.
  • the at least one module retainer is adapted to spring load a terminal module in the module receptacle towards the connector face in the assembled state.
  • a terminal module may always keep a constant predefined distance from the connector face.
  • the module retainer may actively counter a pressure against the terminal module or inserted terminals of the terminal module away from the connector face when the housing assembly is pressed together with a complementary part. The presence of the module retainer may thus prevent gaps between the terminal module and its corresponding counterpart of a mating connector.
  • the at least one terminal module is "connector-like" in the sense that the terminal module may constitute a connector in and of itself.
  • the terminal module may be provided with a module body that is provided with terminal receptacles for receiving terminals.
  • the terminal module may be inserted into the module receptacle similar to a connector being inserted into a bushing.
  • the terminal receptacles in the terminal module may be accessible at the connector face for connecting the terminals of the terminal module with their corresponding counterparts.
  • the at least one retainer receptacle may be connected with the at least one module receptacle.
  • both receptacles may be connected by a common open volume. Consequently, a module retainer that is arranged in the retainer receptacle may interact with a terminal module in the module receptacle.
  • the outer housing may be provided with at least one opening in a side wall through which the module receptacle and/or the terminal module is accessible from outside of the outer housing.
  • the term side wall may correspond to a wall that extends parallel with a module insertion direction of the terminal module.
  • the terminal module is adapted for being inserted into the module receptacle along a module insertion direction.
  • Said module insertion direction may be parallel with a housing assembly direction of the housing assembly.
  • the module insertion direction may be directed towards the connector face.
  • the at least one module retainer may extend into the module receptacle in the assembled state, preferably perpendicular to the module insertion direction.
  • the at least one module retainer is preferably formed as a separate component.
  • the module retainer is preferably not formed monolithically with the outer housing and/or the terminal module.
  • such an embodiment does not exclude the module retainer being detachably connected with the outer housing and/or the module receptacle, for example by use of a cord, a strap or other means.
  • the outer housing is preferably provided with at least one stop element for stopping a movement of the terminal module in the module insertion direction.
  • a stop element may be a protrusion that protrudes into the module receptacle.
  • Another exemplary embodiment of a stop element may be a structure of the outer housing that also forms the connector face, for example a frame or a wall that is provided with openings for terminals from the terminal module to be accessed from outside the housing assembly.
  • the at least one spring member is formed as an elastically deflectable lever.
  • the elastically deflectable lever extends from a base, wherein the base has a fixed position with respect to the outer housing in the assembled state.
  • the lever extends in a direction that has a component that is parallel with the module insertion direction.
  • the at least one spring member may be formed as a deformable structure, in particular an elastically compressible structure, which is connected to a base at at least two positions, said positions being spaced apart from each other in a direction perpendicular to the module insertion direction.
  • the at least one retainer receptacle is preferably provided with at least one opening in a side wall of the outer housing, a longitudinal direction of the opening being basically parallel with the retainer insertion direction.
  • the at least one opening in the side wall is preferably formed as a slit.
  • the retainer insertion direction being perpendicular to the module insertion direction may facilitate the insertion of both elements.
  • inserting the actual retainer into the retainer receptacle when the terminal module is already arranged in the module receptacle will not influence the position of the terminal module along the module insertion direction, except for the spring load exerted on the terminal module towards the connector face.
  • the outer housing and/or the terminal module are provided with at least one counter locking means for locking the locking means of the module retainer in the assembled state.
  • the at least one locking means and/or the at least one counter locking means may each be formed as a protrusion protruding basically parallel to the module insertion direction of the terminal module, i.e. perpendicular to the module retainer insertion direction.
  • the locking means and/or the counter locking means may latch the module retainer to the outer housing and/or the terminal module.
  • a force may be need to be overcome during insertion of the module retainer into the retainer receptacle in order to lock the complementary locking means with each other.
  • the at least one locking means may be part of the at least one spring member of the module retainer. Hence, a compact design of the module retainer may be achieved.
  • said housing assembly may be provided with at least one guide system adapted to guide at least a part of the module retainer into the retainer receptacle, in particular along the retainer insertion direction.
  • the at least one guide system is further adapted to block a movement of the module retainer in a direction perpendicular to the retainer insertion direction and/or perpendicular to the module insertion direction.
  • rims of the retainer receptacle, in particular in a side wall of the outer housing may form rails for the guide system.
  • the at least one module retainer is provided with complementary means that can slide along said rails.
  • each leg is provided with a spring member, a locking means and a guide rail.
  • Said locking means may, as mentioned above, be part of the spring member.
  • the outer housing is provided with at least one support element for supporting the at least one module retainer in the assembled state.
  • the support element may be an outer side of the side wall, in particular shaped as a rib extending along the retainer insertion direction.
  • the support element may serve to support the module retainer, in particular the spring member of the same, or, in other words, to serve as an abutment, such that the spring force may be directed against the terminal module and push the terminal module towards the connector face.
  • the at least one terminal module is preferably provided with terminal receptacles for receiving coaxial connectors.
  • the connectors or terminals may be male or female.
  • the housing assembly according to the invention is particularly beneficial for coaxial connectors for transmitting signals.
  • Fig. 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of an outer housing 1 that can be used for a housing assembly according to the invention.
  • the outer housing 1 is preferably adapted for receiving terminals (not shown) or other means that need to be connected to complementary means of a complementary part 15 (indicated by the dashed lines).
  • the outer housing according to the invention is provided with at least one module receptacle 3 for receiving a terminal module 5.
  • the terminal module 5 in itself is preferably connector-like in the sense of the terminal module 5 being able to carry terminals 7 to be connected to corresponding counter terminals from another connector.
  • the terminal module 5 may be inserted into the module receptacle 3 along a module insertion direction 9.
  • the outer housing 1 provides a connector face 11 at which terminals 7 inside the terminal module 5 are accessible for a mating connector 15.
  • the module receptacle 3 may be formed by an open volume inside the outer housing 1 that is adapted for receiving the terminal module 5.
  • the module receptacle 3 may be opened to an outside of the outer housing 1 from a rear side 13 of the outer housing 1.
  • the rear side 13 is the side of the outer housing 1 that lies opposite the connector face 11 seen in a direction parallel with the module insertion direction 9.
  • a complementary connector 15 is only indicated by the dashed lines in Fig. 1 .
  • a module retainer 17 can be used.
  • said outer housing 1 is provided with a retainer receptacle 19.
  • the retainer receptacle 19 will be described in greater detail with respect to Fig. 3 .
  • the module retainer 17 will be described in greater detail later on with respect to Figs. 7 to 10 .
  • the slits 25 extend parallel to each other along the longitudinal direction 27 and are spaced apart perpendicular to the same and also perpendicular to the module insertion direction 9. In other words, the slits 25 are spaced apart in a width direction 35 of the outer housing 1.
  • a recess 37 is arranged in a front wall 39 of the outer housing 1.
  • the recess 37 may receive a pressing portion 73 of the module retainer 17 in the assembled state.
  • the slits 25 are bordered by a lower rim 41 and an upper rim 43 which are preferably both formed monolithically with the outer housing 1.
  • the rims 41 and 43 are spaced apart from each other along the module insertion direction 9 and extend basically parallel with the retainer insertion direction 21.
  • the rims 41 and 43 protrude from the side walls 29 to the outside 33.
  • the rims 41 and 43 may serve to protect the module retainer 17 in the assembled state.
  • at least the upper rim 43 may be part of a guide system 45 of the housing assembly.
  • the lower rim 41 is preferably provided with at least one counter locking means 47 that protrudes in the direction of the upper rim 43.
  • Said counter locking means 47 may interact with a locking means 83 of the module retainer 17 in the assembled state by preventing a movement of the same against the retainer insertion direction 21.
  • the counter locking means 47 defines an end of a recess 49 in which a locking means 83 of the module retainer 17 may rest in the assembled state.
  • the locking means 83 of the module retainer 17 must overcome the counter locking means 47 before being arranged inside the recess 49.
  • the lower rim 41 may further serve as support element 51 for supporting the module retainer 17 in the assembled state.
  • the module retainer 17 may be arranged between the support element 51 and a part of the terminal module 5 in order to spring load the terminal module 5 in the direction of the connector face 11.
  • Fig. 4 shows a terminal module 5 in an enlarged view.
  • the terminal module 5 is provided with terminals 7.
  • the terminals 7 are coaxial connectors.
  • the terminal module 5 is provided with two counter support elements 53.
  • the counter support elements 53 are formed as areas 55, wherein the areas 55 extend perpendicular to the module insertion direction 9.
  • the counter support elements 53 can be abutted by the module retainer 17.
  • the module retainer 17 may thus push against the counter support elements 53 and thereby spring-load the terminal module 5 towards the connector face 11.
  • the counter support elements 53 or areas 55 are arranged in longitudinal recesses 57 which basically extend parallel with the retainer insertion direction 21 when the terminal module 5 is arranged inside the module receptacle 3.
  • the recesses 57 are arranged at the same height as the openings 23 in the outer housing 1.
  • the longitudinal recesses 57 are accessible for the module retainer 17 when the latter is inserted into the retainer receptacle 19.
  • each of the longitudinal recesses 57 is provided with a rail 59, wherein each rail 59 is based on a side wall 61 of its corresponding recess 57, wherein the side wall 61 is arranged opposite to the area 55 and thereby extends perpendicular to the module insertion direction 9.
  • the terminal module 5 is further provided with stop surfaces 63 that abut the stop means 65 of the outer housing 1 in the assembled state and thereby define the position of the terminal module 5 in the outer housing 1 and the corresponding distance to the connector face 11. This is also shown in a close-up view in Fig. 5 .
  • a housing assembly 67 is shown in the fully assembled state 69.
  • the housing assembly 67 according to the invention comprises the outer housing 1 and the module retainer 17.
  • the housing assembly 67 may further comprise the terminal module 5.
  • the terminal module 5 is arranged inside the module receptacle 3 of the outer housing 1 and the module retainer 17 is arranged inside the retainer receptacle 19.
  • the module retainer 17 applies a spring force F on the terminal module 5 towards the connector face 11 or, in other words, in the module insertion direction 9.
  • the triangular shape is elastically compressible parallel with the module insertion direction 9.
  • Each tip 81 forms a locking means 83 of the module retainer 17.
  • the tip 81 basically protrudes into a direction that is parallel with the module insertion direction 9 in the assembled state 69, but oriented in the opposite direction.
  • the groove 75 of a leg 71 is opened in the same direction into which the tip 81 protrudes.
  • the module retainer 17 shown in Fig. 8 differs from the module retainer 17 shown in Fig. 7 in that the spring member 77 on each leg 71 is elastically deflectable instead of being compressible. This is achieved by one of the beams 79 being shortened compared with the first embodiment. In other words, one of the beams 79, namely the one that is closer to the pressing portion 73 is not in direct contact with the leg 71. Hence, the other beam 79 forms an elastically deflectable lever 87.
  • the tip 89 of the shortened beam 79 may form a stop member stopping the deflection of the lever 87 when the tip 89 abuts the legs 71.
  • the tip 81 of the spring member 77 in the second embodiment may also serve as locking means of the module retainer 17.
  • the latching protrusions 93 may be arranged in complementary recesses (not shown) which are arranged in the areas 55 in the terminal module 5. Hence, using the latching protrusions 93 and the locking means 83, each module retainer 17 may be locked with the outer housing 1 and the terminal module 5.
  • Fig. 9 shows the module retainer 17 in an uncompressed state.
  • FIG. 10 A compressed state is shown in Fig. 10 .
  • the two beams 79 are arranged much closer to the remaining leg 71. Since the module retainer 17 is preferably made from an elastic material, the spring members 77 may exert a spring force parallel with the module insertion direction 9 in this compressed state.
  • Fig. 12 shows a housing assembly without the module retainer 17 that spring loads a terminal module in the module insertion direction. Hence, a gap 95 is present between a dielectric filling 97of a terminal 7 in the terminal module 5 and a dielectric filling 99 of a counter terminal 101.
  • Such a gap 95 reduces the signal strength between the two terminals. This problem may also occur even when an electric contact 103 of the terminal 7 is in contact with a counter electrical contact 105 of the counter terminal 101.
  • the counter terminal 101 may be part of a complementary connector 15.
  • a housing assembly 67 according to the invention is shown in the same situation as in Fig. 12 .
  • no gap is arranged between the dielectric filling of the terminal 7 and the counter terminal 101. This is due to the fact that the module retainer 17 spring loads the terminal module 5 towards the connector face 11.
  • the inventive solution improves the signal transmission between the terminals 7 and 101.

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  • Connector Housings Or Holding Contact Members (AREA)
EP21171315.1A 2020-04-30 2021-04-29 Ensemble boîtier comprenant un dispositif de retenue de module de type ressort Withdrawn EP3905450A1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
IN202041018506 2020-04-30

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP3905450A1 true EP3905450A1 (fr) 2021-11-03

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ID=75746329

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP21171315.1A Withdrawn EP3905450A1 (fr) 2020-04-30 2021-04-29 Ensemble boîtier comprenant un dispositif de retenue de module de type ressort

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EP (1) EP3905450A1 (fr)

Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3002175A (en) * 1958-09-24 1961-09-26 Burndy Corp Electrical connector housing
US3562696A (en) * 1969-01-17 1971-02-09 Amp Inc Multicontact connector having improved insert
US4764130A (en) * 1983-02-07 1988-08-16 Amp Incorporated Electrical connector having terminal housing retaining member
US5217386A (en) * 1991-05-21 1993-06-08 Yazaki Corporation Screw fastening type electrical connector
KR20110006766U (ko) * 2009-12-29 2011-07-06 한국단자공업 주식회사 커넥터
FR3016482A1 (fr) * 2014-01-10 2015-07-17 Dai Ichi Seiko Co Ltd Connecteur electrique

Patent Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3002175A (en) * 1958-09-24 1961-09-26 Burndy Corp Electrical connector housing
US3562696A (en) * 1969-01-17 1971-02-09 Amp Inc Multicontact connector having improved insert
US4764130A (en) * 1983-02-07 1988-08-16 Amp Incorporated Electrical connector having terminal housing retaining member
US5217386A (en) * 1991-05-21 1993-06-08 Yazaki Corporation Screw fastening type electrical connector
KR20110006766U (ko) * 2009-12-29 2011-07-06 한국단자공업 주식회사 커넥터
FR3016482A1 (fr) * 2014-01-10 2015-07-17 Dai Ichi Seiko Co Ltd Connecteur electrique

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