GB2301236A

GB2301236A - Plug & socket connector for providing electrical & non-electrical throughway connections

Info

Publication number: GB2301236A
Application number: GB9610108A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Wolfgang Pfeiffer
Original assignee: Interconnectron GmbH
Current assignee: Interconnectron GmbH
Priority date: 1995-05-22
Filing date: 1996-05-15
Publication date: 1996-11-27
Anticipated expiration: 2016-05-15
Also published as: GB2301236B; IT1282735B1; DE29508480U1; ITMI961012A0; FR2734415A1; GB9610108D0; ITMI961012A1; FR2734415B1

Abstract

An electrical plug and socket connector (1) is composed of first and second main mateable parts (2, 3) with a plurality of electrical contact pins (4) and sockets (5) arranged in a circle. A male component (14) mounted in the first connector part (2) and a female component (15) mounted in the second connector part (3) serve to establish a path through the connector for some other medium such as a gas and lie at the centre of the pins (4) and sockets (5). The female component (15) has a plurality of axially extending radially resilient tongues (17) terminating with radially inwardly facing projections. The male component (14) has a groove (20) partially defined by a radial rib which is tapered concentrically towards the free end of the male component (14). When the connector is assembled the male component (14) is received by the female component (15) and the radially inwardly facing projections of the tongues (17) engage with the groove (20) to lock the components (14,15) and hence the connector parts (2, 3) together. An O-ring (23) forms a seal between the male and female components (14, 15).

Description

"A Dlus and socket connector for providing both electrical and non-electrical throuehwas connections" The present invention relates to an electrical plug and socket connector provided with additional means for establishing a path or passageway for a non-electrical medium, in particular a gas.

A known form of connector is composed of a first connector part made essentially from a solid insulating body and a second connector part also made essentially from a solid insulating body, one of the two connector parts being furnished with a hand grip. One of the connector parts comprises a plurality of electrical contact pins and the other connector part comprises a plurality of corresponding electrical contact sockets to provide a plurality of electrical contact pairs being arranged in at least one circle concentric to the passageway defining means. A male plug component and a female socket component arranged at least partly in the first and the second parts can provide the passageway.

Connectors of this known kind usually serve to connect a cable to a machine housing whereby one connector part, male or female, is installed in the housing and the other connector part is attached to a cable. The connector part attached to the cable has a hand grip and houses the male component. When the connector parts are joined together, the male component is inserted with its shaft into the socket-like female component and is sealed at its front end by an O-ring seal located in a radial groove in the female component. This known design makes it possible to manufacture simultaneously a large number of electrical plug and socket connections provided with the additional means, but has the disadvantage that the force required to disconnect the connectors solely depends on the frictional forces present between the electrical contact pairs and the two components of the means.The size of the force also depends on imponderables, such as corrosion or dirt on the contact pairs etc. In order to prevent inadvertent disconnection additional auxiliary securing means must be used such as bolts or the like, which increases the cost of manufacture and often requires a separate manual operation on connection and disconnection. A further disadvantage of the conventional design is that the male component of the means is always on the connector part attached to the cable whilst the female component of the means which is more at risk of wear is in the machine-housing side of the connector, making it difficult to replace.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved electrical plug and socket connector of the aforementioned type so that the first and second connector parts are automatically locked together on joining and a specific force is required to disconnect them, the force remaining the same over the entire lifetime of the connector. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a connector where the parts of the connector more at risk of wear are assigned to the cable side which is more easily replaceable.

According to the present invention there is provided an electrical plug and socket connector provided with additional means for establishing a path or passageway for a non-electrical medium, in particular a gas, said connector comprising a first connector part made essentially from a solid insulating body and a second connector part also made essentially from a solid insulating body, in which one of the connector parts comprises a plurality of electrical contact pins and the other connector part comprises a plurality of corresponding electrical contact sockets to provide a plurality of electrical contact pairs being arranged in at least one circle concentric to the means and in which the means comprises a male plug component and a female socket component arranged at least partly in the first and the second parts, one of the two connector parts being furnished with a hand grip wherein the first and second connector parts can be locked together solely by the male and female components. When the two parts of the connector are joined together, because they are automatically locked together, an additional locking means, in particular those that have to be activated separately with a separate manual operation, is no longer necessary.

In particular, the first and second connector parts can be locked together by providing the female component of the means with a plurality of axially extending radially resilient tongues provided with radial projections and by providing a radial groove in the male component. When the male component is received in the female component the radial projections of the tongues engage with the radial groove of the male component. This design of this form of locking mechanism has the advantage that it locks automatically when the two parts of the connector are joined together and also that a specific minimum force is required to disconnect the connector which can be determined in advance and specified in construction. The female component of the means can be formed as one integral component.In particular, the axially extending radially resilient tongues can then be produced by forming axially extending radial slots in the female component.

By forming the axially extending tongues in a one-piece integral female component of the means this not only ensures that the design of the locking mechanism is very simple but that the force required to separate the connectors remains the same over its entire lifetime. In particular the locking device is particularly simple and cheap to manufacture.

Additional assembly costs are also avoided. This is especially the case if the tongues are partially defined by axially extending radial slots.

The radial groove in the male component can be formed in a section having a widened diameter, whereby this diameter widening takes the form of a conically tapered region directed towards the free end of the male component in order to facilitate the plugging together of the coupling.

The female component is preferably located in the connector part with a hand grip, in particular the cable-side connector part so that the part of the means most at risk of wear is replaced automatically on the renewal of the cable which is necessary after a certain amount of use, without special monitoring of wear being required.

Finally, in a preferred embodiment the female component is provided with a radial groove and an O-ring seal is located therein, and the male component has an.external surface receivable in the female component and engageable with the seal.

The present invention will now be described by way or examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 shows a schematic longitudinal cross sectional view of the two parts of an electrical plug and socket connector ofthe present invention, provided with additional means for establishing a path or passageway for a non electrical medium; Figure 2 shows a schematic longitudinal cross sectional view of the two parts of the additional means of Figure 1 on an enlarged scale and Figure 3 shows a front view of one part of the additional means shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2.

Referring to the drawings, in particular to Figure 1, the electrical plug and socket connector 1 shown in the drawings with additional means for establishing a path or passageway for a non-electrical medium comprises a first connector part 2 made essentially from a solid insulating body and a second connector part 3 also made essentially from a solid insulating body. A plurality of electrical contact pins 4 are arranged in the insulating body of the first part in a circle concentric to the means, opposite which a corresponding number of electrical contact sockets 5 are arranged in the insulating body of the second part 3 also in a circle concentric to the means.The insulating bodies are designed in the embodiment shown to interlock with one another as male and female plug and socket parts wherein the insulating body holding the pins 4 has a central axial extension 6, and the insulating body holding the sockets 5 has a corresponding recess 7. A hand grip 10 is attached to the insulating body of the second connector part 3 and is also connected with the cable 8, only illustrated schematically in the drawing, by means of a retaining device 9. The hand grip defines an enclosed hollow cavity 13 sealed by two ring seals 11 and 12 the insulating body of the second female part 3 and at the cable 8. The hollow cavity 13 accommodates retaining device 9.

The additional means for establishing a path or passageway comprises a male component 14 and a female component 15 arranged centrally in the insulating bodies of the first connector part 2 and second connector part 3 respectively of the connector and sealed from the inside peripheral wall of the opening in the insulating body by an O-ring seal.

As illustrated, the female component 15 of the means is assigned to the connector part assigned to a cable rather than a housing of a piece of equipment.

Referring also to Figures 2 and 3, the female component 15 is provided with a section 18 comprising of a plurality of radially resilient axially extending tongues 17 terminating with radially inwardly extending projections 19. The tongues are partially defined by axially extending radial slots 16.

A radial peripheral groove 20 is formed on the male component 14 of the means which is of a wider diameter than some of the other parts of the male component and is partially defined by a radially outwardly extending rib 21. The rib 21 is formed such that a portion of the shaft of the male component 14 is conically tapered towards its free end to facilitate the connection of the male plug component 14 and female socket component 15. Once the male component is engaged in the female component the projections 19 of tongues 17 engage with the groove 20 to provide a locking mechanism and.prevent separation of male and female parts 14, 15.

An O-ring seal 23 is located in a radial groove 22 of the female component 15, so when the male component 14 having an essentially smooth shaft surface is inserted, a seal is formed between the components.

Claims

1 An electrical plug and socket connector provided with additional means for establishing a path or passageway for a non-electrical medium, said connector comprising a first connector part made essentially from a solid insulating body and a second connector part also made essentially from a solid insulating body, in which one of the connector parts comprises a plurality of electrical contact pins and the other connector part comprises a plurality of corresponding electrical contact sockets to provide a plurality of electrical contact pairs being arranged in at least one circle concentric to the means and in which the means comprises a male plug component and a female socket component arranged at least partly in the first and the second parts, one of the two connector parts being furnished with a hand grip wherein the first and second connector parts can be locked together solely by the male and female components.

2. A connector in accordance with claim 1, wherein the female component has a number of axially extending radially resilient tongues provided with radial projections and the male component has a radial groove such that when the male component is received in the female component the radial projections of the tongues engage with the radial groove of the male component to effect the locking engagement.

3. A connector in accordance with claim 2, wherein the radial groove of the male component is located in a section of the male component having a widened diameter.

4. A connector in accordance with claim 2 or 3 wherein the axially extending radially resilient tongues are partially defined by slots formed in an integral region of the female component.

5. A connector in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 4 wherein the female component is located in the connector part having the hand grip, in particular the connector part assigned to an associated cable.

6. A connector in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 5 wherein the female component is provided with a radial groove and an O-ring seal is located therein and the male component has an external surface receivable in the female component and engageable with said seal.

7. A connector substantially as described with reference to and as illustrated in any one or more of the Figures of the accompanying drawings.