GB2416078A

GB2416078A - Connector block

Info

Publication number: GB2416078A
Application number: GB0415450A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Kevin Evans
Original assignee: ITT Manufacturing Enterprises LLC
Current assignee: ITT Manufacturing Enterprises LLC
Priority date: 2004-07-09
Filing date: 2004-07-09
Publication date: 2006-01-11
Anticipated expiration: 2024-07-09
Also published as: GB2416078B; GB0415450D0

Abstract

A block 30 (figure 2), for receiving plural co-axial connectors and fixing them in connection to respective ports, has: (a) a base having channels for receiving and retaining the connectors, (b) a lid which covers the base and slides relative to the base between three position, the central position (figure 7B) causing locking the connectors with the ports and the outer two (one shown in figure 7A) allowing connection and disconnection of the connectors, and (c) a locking arrangement provided by the lid and the base which locks the connectors to the ports when the lid is in its central position. The block as shown has channels for two connectors. The locking arrangement for each connector/port pair may comprise a catch finger 56b of the block, which enters a recess 34 in a port. When the lid slides to its central locking position a land 68 prevents the latch finger 56b from exiting the recess 34, thereby locking a connector in a the port. In either of the other two lid positions, the catch finger may enter a recess (e.g. 66) in the lid to exit from the recess 34 in the port when the connector is moved away from the port.

Description

24 1 6078

CONNECTOR BLOCK

This invention relates to a connector block, and in particular to a connector block for releasable connection between multiple coaxial connector ports and multiple coaxial cables.

There are a large number of different coaxial connectors providing releasable coaxial connections. There are also a number of standard coaxial connector ports, and coaxial connectors are designed to connect and disconnect with a particular standard port.

One standard type of coaxial connector port comprises a cylindrical inner connector and a concentric cylindrical outer connector. The inner connector has an inner bore to receive a pin, and electrical connection is made in this way. Electrical connection is made to the outer cylindrical sleeve typically by contact with the inner or outer surface of the outer sleeve. The outer surface of the outer sleeve has a channel formed around the circumference near the end of the port, and this channel is provided to enable a latching function to be performed. In particular, when a connector is mated with the port, the connector is designed to engage with the channel to prevent accidental release of the connection.

One known coaxial connector design which is particularly convenient is a push-pull connector. In this design, the coaxial connector has an outer sleeve which is slidable along the axis of the coaxial cable. In one position, the sleeve engages with the channel formed in the coaxial port to prevent the release of the connection. In order to make or break the connection, the sleeve must be slid forwards or backwards to release the sleeve from the channel in the port and then allow the connection to be made or broken. In a push-pull design, the connection can be made simply by pushing the sleeve in a connection direction, and the connection can be broken simply by pulling the sleeve in the disconnection direction. This therefore provides a very simple connection mechanism, and is secure when the sleeve is not being pulled backwards or forwards.

The known push-pull connection of this type uses an annular sleeve which surrounds an individual coaxial connector.

If these individual coaxial connectors are placed very closely together, the physical connection and disconnection operation can become difficult, particularly as a result of the small dimensions involved. However, there are increasing demands on the use of coaxial connections to printed circuit boards, and there is therefore a need for a releasable coaxial connector for multiple cables and which is easy to use and simple in construction.

According to the invention, there is provided a connector block for connecting a plurality of terminated coaxial cables to a corresponding plurality of coaxial ports, the connector block comprising: a base, having a plurality of channels for receiving and retaining terminated ends of the plurality of coaxial cables; a lid, covering the base, the lid being slidable relatively to the base in a direction parallel to the axis of the coaxial cables between three positions, a central locking position, and two release positions, wherein a locking arrangement is provided by the lid and the base to define the locking position and the two release positions and also to engage with a channel of a coaxial port when in the locking position, the locking arrangement being formed from integral portions of the lid and the base.

The connector block of the invention enables simultaneous connection of a number of coaxial cables to coaxial ports using a shared construction, and which can simply comprise a base and a lid enclosing the terminated cables.

The base may be provided with a plurality of locking arms, each having a first locking projection for engaging with the channel of a coaxial port and a second locking projection for engaging with a respective locking region of the lid, and wherein the locking region of the lid comprises two adjacent openings with a rib between them, and wherein the locking position is defined by engagement of the second locking projection with the rib and the two release positions are defined by engagement of the second locking projection with a respective one of the openings.

This provides a simple construction.

The connector block is preferably for connecting two coaxial cables to two coaxial ports.

In this case, the base has two locking arms, one on each side of the base, and each locking arm for engaging with a different coaxial port. The lid then also has two locking regions, one for each locking arm. By providing connection of pairs of coaxial cables, the dimensions of the connector make the manual connection and disconnection easier, and the locking and release mechanism is efficiently shared between the two cables.

The base and the lid may each comprise a single moulded plastics member, giving low production costs. Furthermore, the base and lid may simply clip together with the terminated cables supported in the base, giving a simple assembly method.

The locking arms of the base can simply be provided as a portion of a sidewall of the base, and they may in particular be defined by a U-shaped channel.

Each locking arm may comprise a shaft and a head, and the head can comprise both the first and second locking projections, facing in opposite directions.

The connector block of the invention can be used to provide a terminated bundle of coaxial cables, in which the connector block houses the individual terminated coaxial cables.

This terminated bundle of coaxial cables can be connected to coaxial connector ports of an interface module mounted on a circuit board of an electronic apparatus. For example, the interface module may comprise radio frequency circuit components, for example transceiver circuitry.

An example of the invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 shows a known push-pull coaxial connector; Figure 2 shows a coaxial connector arrangement of the invention comprising a number of connector blocks of the invention; Figure 3 shows more clearly the coaxial ports with which the connector block of the invention is designed to mate; Figure 4 shows various views of a single connector block of the invention providing coupling between two coaxial cables and two coaxial ports; Figure 5 shows in greater detail the two components of an individual connector block; Figure 6 shows the two components of Figure 5 clipped together; Figures 7A and 7B show in greater detail the locking and release mechanism of the arrangement of Figure 4; and Figure 8 shows a further view to show a biasing arrangement used in the arrangement of the invention.

Figure 1 shows a known push-pull coaxial connector for connecting to a coaxial port, for example a 1.0/2.3 coaxial port.

The connector is provided at the end of a coaxial cable, and the electrical cable is terminated by a central pin 10 and a cylindrical sleeve 12. A connection sleeve 14 is provided around the end of the connector and includes an opening 16 at the end, into which is received the coaxial port.

The coaxial port includes a cylindrical inner contact, having an inner bore for receiving the pin 10, and a cylindrical outer contact which receives the contact 12. The outer cylindrical contact of the coaxial port has a circumferential recess (as can be seen in Figure 3), and the connector of Figure 1 has a projecting disc 18 for engaging in the recess to lock the connector in place. The sleeve 14 can be slid either forwards or backwards to release the disc 18 from the recess to enable the connector to be disconnected. The disc 18 is shown in its retracted position in Figure 1.

The diameter of the sleeve 14 in the design of Figure 1 is typically approximately 9mm, arid the manual connection operation may therefore not be easy to accomplish.

This invention provides a connector block for making connection between multiple coaxial cables and coaxial ports. This can simplify the connection operation, but can also reduce component costs and numbers.

S Figure 2 shows an electronic apparatus of the invention. The apparatus includes a printed circuit board 20 on which are carried a number of interface modules 22. These interface modules 22 each provide the interface between the printed circuit board 20 and two coaxial cables 24. For example, one cable may be for the transmission of data, and the other may be for the reception of data. The interface modules themselves include a printed circuit board providing an interface between data in a format suitable for transmission around the printed circuit board 20 and data in a format suitable for transmission over the coaxial cables 24. The use of interface modules 22 in this way has already been proposed, and enables a modular circuit design to be implemented.

IS The invention provides connector blocks 30, four of which are shown in Figure 2. Each connector block 30 couples two coaxial cables 24 to two coaxial ports at the output of the interface module 22.

The connector blocks are push-pull devices, and have a sleeve which can be pushed or pulled from a central rest position to enable the connection to be made or released.

The width of each connector block 30 may be approximately lSmm, with a small gap (for example O.Smm) between adjacent connector blocks 30. These dimensions improve the ease with which the connector can be operated, and also enable a single connector to be associated with each interface module, when such a module has two input/output ports.

Figure 3 shows in plan view and in side view one interface module 22 and shows the two coaxial ports 32 of the interface module. Each coaxial port 32 comprises an inner cylindrical contact and an outer cylindrical contact 33, only the outer contacts of which can be seen in Figure 3. As shown, the outer contact has circumferential recess 34 near the end of the contact, and this is provided to enable a latching function to be implemented.

Figure 4 shows in greater detail the coaxial connector of the invention, in which the connector is latched into position to provide coupling between the cables 24 and the coaxial ports 32.

Figure 4A shows in plan view the arrangement of components, and Figure 4B shows the same view m cross section.

From Figure 4B can be seen at the coaxial port comprises an outer contact in the form of a cylindrical sleeve 33 having a recess 34 at the end, and an inner cylindrical contact 36.

The inner and outer contacts 32, 36 project from an end block 38 which provides electrical connection between the coaxial port and a printed circuit board 40 which carries electronic components of the interface module 22.

The coaxial cables 24 are terminated with a sleeve 42 and a central inner pin 44, and a crimping ring 46 is used to temminate the cable 24.

The end of the sleeve 42 engages around the outside of the outer contact 33 to provide a first electrical connection, and the pin 44 engages within the inner contact 36 to provide a second electrical connection.

The termination of the coaxial cables 24 is standard and is the same as already used, for example in the coaxial connector of Figure 1.

The invention concerns the connector block 30, and this is shown in greater detail in Figure 5.

The connector block comprises a base 50 having two channels 52, 54 for receiving the temminated ends of the coaxial cables 24. Each channel 52, 54 has a number of portions of different radius, so that the inner profile of the channel is stepped. This stepped profile confomms with the outer shape of the sleeve 42 so that the sleeve 42 is seated in a channel and cannot move longitudinally within the channel. The channels 52, 54 in the base are substantially semi-circular, so that the terminated cable ends can be pushed down into the channels without difficulty. A lid 60 is provided for covering the base, and is a push fit over the base after the terminated cables have been positioned within the channels 52, 54.

For this purpose, the lid 60 has a pair of arms 62 which essentially comprise side walls of the lid 60, and these arms 62 have a non-return tab 64 which clips over a side wall portion of the base 50. In this way, the base 50 and the lid 60 are simply clipped together, clamping the terminated cables between them. The lid 60 has downwardly facing channels so that the lid and base cooperate to clamp the terminated cable ends substantially fully around their circumference.

The base 50 has two locking arms 56, one in each side wall 55. These are an integral part of the base 50, and comprise a shaft and a head defined by a U-shaped channel. The arms extend along the direction of the cable axis so that the head can deform radially inwardly and outwardly. An inner part of the head comprises a first locking projection for engaging with the recess 34, and an outer part of the head comprises a second locking projection for engaging with a lid 60. The lid 60 has two openings 66, and the head 56 can be received in either of the openings 66, or can be blocked from radial outward movement by a rib 68 between the openings 66.

The base 50 and the lid 60 may each be provided as a single moulded plastics component, which provides a low cost connector assembly with easy assembly and use.

Figure 6 shows the base 50 and lid 60 clipped together.

To explain further the latching operation, Figure 7A shows an exploded view of the portion identified in Figure 4B. Figure 7A shows more clearly the shaft 56a and the head 56b of one locking arm 56. In Figure 7A, the lid 60 has been pushed as far as possible to the right (as can be seen in Figures 5 and 6 the sliding movement of the lid 60 relatively to the base is limited) and in this position the outermost projection of the head 56b is aligned with one of the openings 66. The connector can thus be removed from the coaxial port as the arm 56 is free to deflect outwardly and release the coupling.

In the position shown in Figure 7B, the lid 60 is in the intermediate position, and in this case the outermost part of the head 56b engages with the rib 68 so that outward deflection of the arm 56 is not permitted. In this case, the connector is locked to the coaxial port.

Figure 8 shows the underside of the lid GO, and shows a projecting arm 70 which engages with an opening 72 in the base, shown in Figure S. in order to bias the lid and base into the central, locked, position.

The upper part of the lid 60 has two recesses 70 as shown in Figure 6, and these are provided to facilitate automated assembly.

The connector block of the invention can be scaled to many different sizes. By way of example, the pitch between the coaxial ports 32 may typically be approximately 7mm, and the coaxial port may typically be a l. O/2.3 port.

In the example above, the connector block is designed for two coaxial connections. This enables a single arm to be provided on each side of the device for each cable. The invention could, however, be applied to a connector block for more cables, and this is intended to be within the scope of this invention.

Various modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A connector block for connecting a plurality of terminated coaxial cables to a corresponding plurality of coaxial ports, the connector block comprising: a base, having a plurality of channels for receiving and retaining terminated ends of the plurality of coaxial cables; a lid, covering the base, the lid being slidable relatively to the base in a direction parallel to the axis of the coaxial cables between three positions, a central locking position, and two release positions, wherein a locking arrangement is provided by the lid and the base to define the locking position and the two release positions and also to engage with a channel of a coaxial port when in the locking position, the locking arrangement being formed from integral portions of the lid and the base.

2. A connector block as claimed in claim 1, wherein the base is provided with a plurality of locking arms, each having a first locking projection for engaging with the channel of a coaxial port and a second locking projection for engaging with a respective locking region of the lid, and wherein the locking region of the lid comprises two adjacent openings with a rib between them, and wherein the locking position is defined by engagement of the second locking projection with the rib and the two release positions are defined by engagement of the second locking projection with a respective one of the openings.

3. A connector block as claimed in claim 2, for connecting two coaxial cables to two coaxial ports, the base having two locking arms, one on each side of the base, and the lid has two locking regions.

4. A connector block as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the base comprises a single moulded plastics member.

5. A connector block as claimed in claim 4 and claim 2, wherein locking arms of the base are deemed as a portion of a side wall of the base around which a channel is formed.

6. A connector block as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein each locking arm comprises a shaft and a head, wherein the head comprises the first locking projection which faces inwardly and the second locking projection which faces outwardly.

7. A connector block as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the lid and the base are connected together by a push fit.

8. A connector block as claimed in claim 7, wherein the lid comprises a pair of connection arms having tabs for engagement over a lip of the base.

9. A connector block as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the lid comprises a single moulded plastics member.

] 5

l O. A terminated bundle of coaxial cables, comprising: a plurality of individually terminated coaxial cables; and a connector block as claimed in any preceding claim housing the terminated ends of the coaxial cables.

11. A terminated bundle of coaxial cables as claimed in claim 10, wherein each coaxial cable is terminated with a central pin and an outer sleeve, wherein the outer sleeve has a flange which is engaged in a corresponding recess of the base.

12. Electronic apparatus comprising: a circuit board on which are mounted electronic components; at least one interface module mounted on the circuit board and having a plurality of coaxial connector ports for connection to coaxial cables; and a terminated bundle of coaxial cables as claimed in claim 9 or] 0 connected to the plurality of coaxial connector ports of the interface module.

13. Electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 12, wherein the interface module comprises radio frequency circuit components provided on an interface module printed circuit board.

14. Electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein the radio frequency circuit components comprise transceiver circuitry.