GB2201049A

GB2201049A - Electrical connector

Info

Publication number: GB2201049A
Application number: GB08702029A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Brian Anthony Marshall
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1987-01-29
Filing date: 1987-01-29
Publication date: 1988-08-17
Also published as: GB8702029D0

Abstract

An electrical connector comprising a plug part (10) and a socket part (12) receiving the plug part to interconnect conductive pins (22) on the plug part with conductive contacts (34) disposed on one side of pin-receiving apertures (32) in the socket part, wherein the socket part is also formed with a resilient wing (38) in each aperture for biassing an inserted plug part pin into good electrical contract with the conductive contact in said aperture. <IMAGE>

Description

Title: Improvements in Electrical Connectors Field of the invention This invention relates to an electrical connector of the kind comprising a first part (generally referred to hereinafter as a plug part) which has an insulated base carrying a plurality, generally a large plurality, of conductive pins and a second part (generally referred to hereinafter as a socket-part-) having an insulating base formed with a corresponding plurality of pin-receiving apertures (generally referred to hereinafter as so-ckets-)each having at one side thereof a conductive contact.

Prior art In the past, in an endeavour to ensure good eledtrical contact between each pin and the contact in the socket in which the pin is received, the contact has been crimped or otherwise deformed to establish resilient engagement with the pin wher. the- latter enters the socket.

It is an object of this invention to provide ar. electrical connector having improved means for establishing good electrical pin/contact connections.

The invention According to the invention, each aperture ir. a connector of the above described kind also contains a resilient elemer.t for acting on. a pin inserted into said aperture to bias said pin into engagement with the aperture contact.

A preferred resilient biasing element is made of insulating material and is preferably integrally formed with the base of the socket part of the connector.

The invention is especially applicable to a connector of the kind described, wherein the first part has a shroud, preferably formed of insulating material integral with the base of the first connector part, and the second part has a base shaped-for cooperation with the shroud. Ir. known strip connectors of this kind, the shroud and socket part base are elongate and are preferably shaped to fit together in only one end-to-end orientation. The shroud preferably fits around the periphery of the socket base.

The socket contacts are preferably also in the form of pins, preferably flat sided pins (as is also preferred for the plug contacts), extending up one side of the respective sockets -from the base. These socket -pins may conveniently protrude as terminal connections on the remote side of the socket base, and terminate suitably for direct connection to a printed circuit board, for soldering of wire conductors wrapped therearound, or be formed with IDC fittings.

It is also possible for the protruding parts of the socket pins to be bent through an anyle, such as a right angle, for connection to the printed circuit hoard lying ir. a plane parallel to the direction of extent of the socket pins on the socket apertures. In this way it is possible to use the cor.nector as above defir.ed to interface two printed circuit boards lying ir.-mutually perpendicular planes A preferred integrally formed biasing element for each aperture of the socket base is a thin wing which extends at an angle from the point at or adjacent one side of the socket opening downwardly towards the bottom of the socket and towards the contact of the opposite side of the aperture.

Brief description of the drawings An electrical connector in accordance with the invention will now be exemplified with reference to the accompanyiQQ drawings, in which: Figure 1 is an end elevational view of a strip connector, being a connector generally of the kind described; Figure 2 is a perspective view of part of the con-nector, shown in enlargement; and Figure 3 is a transverse cross-section through the asembled connector.

Description of embodiment Referring first to Figure 1, an electrical strip connector in accordance with the invention comprises a plug part generally referenced 10 and a socket part generally referenced 12.

The plug part is shown mounted to a printed circuit board 14 ar.d the socket part is shown rnrur.ted -to a printed circuit board 16.

Both the plug part of the connector and the socket part thereof are elongate in a direction perpendicular to the plane of Figure 1.

The plug part comprises a base 18 of insulating plastics material integrally formed with a peripheral wall 20 which constitutes a shroud. Within the shroud 20 the base carries three rows of upstanding pins 22. As illustrated, the end walls of the shroud 20 are ir.terrupted and the near pin 22 of the central row of pins is the only pin visible. oweverr the pins 22 protrude from the remote side of the base and through the printed circuit board 14 to form terminals referenced 24. The near terminals 24 of each of the three rows is visible in drawing.

The socket part of the connector comprises an insulating plastics base 26 containing three corresponding rows of apertures or sockets (not visible in Figure 1) for receiving the pins 22 of the plug part. A pin (also not visible in Figure 1) projects up one side of eadh socket or aperture of the base part and constitutes a contact with which electrical connection is made by a pin inserted into the socket. The socket pins also project from the remote side of the base 26 to constitute terminals 30.

The near terminals 30 of the three rows of socket pins are visible in Figure 1. These socket terminals contain right angled bends to connect to the printed circuit board 16, which is disposed in a plane normal to the printed circuit board 14 on which the plug part 10 is mounted.

The shape of the base part 26 of the socket part is such as to receive the shroud 20 of the plug part around its periphery relatively closely, and to permit the plug are socket to engage in only one end-to-end orientation.

Both the plug pins and the socket pins are preferably flat sided, for example being of generally square transverse cross-section.

Strip connectors generally of the above described kind are known for interfacing two printed circuit boards in parallel relationship, the right angled bends in the terminal parts of the socket pins being omitted.

The above described construction of electrical connector will also be clear from Figure 2, wherein the same reference numerals are employed as in Figure 1.

Referring to Figure 3, in this transverse cross-section the apertures or sockets in the second part of the connector are referenced 32 and the socket pins at one side of these sockets are referenced 34. When the plug part and the socket part are mutually engaged good electrical connection between the plug pins 22 and the socket pins 34 is ensured by means of the resilient biasing elements 38 which are integrally formed with the socket part 12.

Each resilient biasing element comprises a thin wing which extends at an angle from one side of the open end of each socket 32 towards the bottom thereof and towards the socket pin 34 on the opposite side of the aperture. The thin wings are sufficiently flexible and resilient not substantially to hinder entry of the plug ir.to the socket, but nevertheless at each socket aperture 32 to urge the plug pin 22 into good electrical contact with the socket pin 34.

The resilient biasing elements 38 shown in Figure 3 by way of example and various other forms of biasing element may be employed, whether or not formed integrally with the socket base, although the latter is much preferred.

Referring back to Figures 1 and 2, the socket pins may terminate on the remote side of the insulating base in various ways other than that illustrated. For example, the protruding terminals may be relatively short for direct connection to a printed circuit board parallel to the printed circuit board to which the plug is conr.ected, or the socket pin terminals may be relatively long but straight to enable conducting wires to be wrapped therearound and soldered in position. Yet again, the socket pin terminals may terminate with IDC fittings for displacing insulation on a wire connection as the wire is pushed between the tines of the fitting.

Various other modifications are possible within the scope of the invention hereinbefore defined.

Claims

1. An electrical connector of the kind described, wherein each pin-receiving aperture in the socket part of the connector contains, in addition to the conductive contact, a resilient element for acting on a conductive pin inserted into said aperture when the plug part is fitted to the socket part in order to bias said pin into engagement with the aperture contact.

2. A connector according to claim 1, wherein the resilient biassing element is made of insulatin-g material.

3. A connector according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the resilient biassing element is integrally formed with the base of the socket part.

4. A connector according to claim 1 or claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the re-silient biassing element comprises a thin wing which extends at an angle from a position at or adjacent one side of the aperture opening downwardly towards the base of the socket part and towards the opposite side of the aperture whereat the conductive pin is located.

5. A connector according to any of claims 1 to 4, in the form of a strip connector wherein the plug part includes a shroud for cooperation with the base of a correspondingly elongate socket part.

6. A connector according to claim 5, wherein the shroud is integrally formed of insulating material with the base of the plug part.

7. A connector according to claim 5 or claim 6, wherein the elongate shroud and elongate base of the socket part are mutually shaped to fit together in only one end-to-end orientation.

8. A connector according to claim 5 or claim 6 or claim 7, wherein the shroud fits around the periphery of the base of the socket part.

9. A connector according to any of claims 1 to 8, wherein both the conductive pins of the plug part and the conductive contacts of the socket part are flat sided.

10. A connector according to any of claims 1 to 9, wherein both the conductive pins of the plug part and the conductive contacts of the socket part protrude through the bases of the respective parts to constitute terminal connections on the remote sides of said bases.

11. A connector according to claim 10, wherein the terminal connections are formed with IDC fittings.

12. A connector according to claim 10 or claim 11, wherein the terminal connections, at least of the one of the connector parts, include portions bent through an angle.

13. A connector according to claim 10 or claim 11 or claim 12, in combination with printed circuit boards connected via the terminal confections to the respective connector parts.

14. An electrical connector substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.