JP2009231053A - Electrical connector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electric connector capable of assuring a quality in a high-speed signal transmission, while improving a connecting density in the contact of the electric connector. <P>SOLUTION: The electric connector 1 has an insulating housing 10, and contacts 30, 31, 40, 41 held by the insulating housing 10 and arranged with equal to or more than three lines in an inserting unit. The contacts 30, 31 in two lines of both outer sides have surface-mounting substrate connectors 302, 312; and the contacts 40, 41 in the inner line have through-hole substrate connectors 402a, 402b, 412a, 412b. An array pitch A in the inserting unit of the contacts 30, 31 in the two lines of both outer sides is smaller than the array pitch B in the inserting unit of the contacts 40, 41 in the inner line. It is preferable for the array pitch in the inserting unit of the contacts 30, 31 in the lines of both outer sides to constitute a simple integral ratio with the array pitch in the inserting unit of the contacts 40, 41 in the inner line. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an electrical connector, and more particularly to an electrical connector having three or more rows of contacts each having a substrate connection.

  For example, in an electronic device such as a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a PC), a docking connector is used to transmit a high-speed signal. As an example of such a docking connector, an electrical connector described in Patent Document 1 is known. This shielded electrical connector includes a housing, contacts arranged in four rows at the fitting portion of the connector housing, and a shield device. Each contact has a board connecting portion that is inserted into a through hole of a circuit board on which the electrical connector is placed and soldered. The contact arrangement of 4 rows in the fitting portion is converted into 8 rows in the board connection portion and is staggered.

  Patent Document 2 discloses an electrical connector having a microstrip line structure having an insulating housing, two rows of signal contacts, and a ground path provided between the two rows and having a desired characteristic impedance. Yes. By adopting the microstrip line structure, it is easy to match the characteristic impedance of the electrical connector with the impedance of the transmission circuit.

Patent Document 3 discloses an electrical connector having four rows of electrical contacts. Out of these electrical contacts, the inner two rows of electrical contacts are press-fitted into the through holes of the circuit board, and the outer two rows of electrical contacts are elastic to the contact pads on the surface of the circuit board on which the electrical connector is placed. Contact.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-13131 (FIG. 2) JP-A-6-84568 (FIG. 4) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-168581 (FIG. 3)

  In general, when connecting a contact to a substrate through a through hole, it is necessary to form a through hole in the substrate and form a land around the through hole on one surface of the substrate. Since a predetermined area is required for forming these through holes and lands, there is a restriction in arranging the through holes at a high density on the substrate. Therefore, in Patent Document 1, an effort is made to reduce the connection pitch of the substrate connection portions of the contacts by arranging the through holes in an eight-row staggered arrangement. However, for example, when attention is paid to the wiring on the board extending backward from the through hole in the row closest to the fitting surface, the wiring needs to pass through the vicinity of the other seven rows of through holes. For this reason, there is a problem that the wiring on the board becomes excessively dense especially on the side far from the fitting surface, and the degree of freedom of the wiring on the board is restricted. Furthermore, recent PCs have a plurality of signal transmission systems with different characteristic impedances. However, since all contacts described in Patent Document 1 are arranged at an equal pitch, they can flexibly handle a plurality of signal transmissions with different characteristic impedances. Can not do it.

  In the electrical connector described in Patent Document 2, the signal contact cannot be arranged at the position of the ground path in the center row. For this reason, it is difficult to improve the signal arrangement density and the connection density. Moreover, since the electrical connector of patent document 2 has a single characteristic impedance as a whole, it cannot flexibly cope with a plurality of signal transmissions having different characteristic impedances.

  Further, Patent Document 3 neither discloses nor suggests that the connection densities of the inner row electrical contacts and the outer row electrical contacts are different. For this reason, the electrical connector described in Patent Document 3 cannot flexibly cope with a plurality of signal transmissions having different characteristic impedances.

  Therefore, in view of these problems of the prior art, an object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector that ensures the quality of high-speed signal transmission while improving the connection density of contacts of the electrical connector.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector that can flexibly cope with a plurality of signal transmissions having different characteristic impedances.

  An electrical connector according to the present invention comprises an insulating housing and three or more rows of contacts held in the insulating housing, and the outer two rows of contacts are surface-mount type substrate connecting portions. The contacts in the inner row have through-hole type substrate connection portions, and the arrangement pitch in the fitting portions of the two outer rows of contacts is the arrangement pitch in the fitting portion of the contacts in the inner row. It is characterized by being smaller.

  Preferably, the arrangement pitch at the fitting portions of the contacts in the outer rows and the arrangement pitch at the fitting portions of the contacts in the inner row form a simple integer ratio.

  The integer ratio can be 2: 3.

  The integer ratio may be 3: 4.

  According to the present invention, the pitch between the two rows of contacts on both outer sides is set to be relatively small as in the case of the conventional surface mount connector, and a through hole having a relatively large pitch is provided between the two rows of contacts. A row of contacts having a mold substrate connection can be arranged. For this reason, while being able to improve the connection density of an electrical connector, the freedom degree of the wiring on a board | substrate can be ensured. In addition, since the pitches of the contacts on the two outer rows and the contacts on the inner row are different, it is possible to flexibly cope with a plurality of signal transmissions having different characteristic impedances using a single electrical connector.

  When the arrangement pitch at the fitting portion of the contacts in the outer rows and the arrangement pitch at the fitting portion of the contacts in the inner row are set to a simple integer ratio, the contacts in the outer rows and the contacts are opposed to these contacts. The contacts in the inner row can form the same group, and the contacts can be periodically arranged along the longitudinal direction of the contact row.

  Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to the description, those skilled in the art can easily modify the present invention described in the present specification and perform the same as the present invention. It should be understood that the performance of Accordingly, it is to be understood that the following description is a general disclosure for one of ordinary skill in the art and is not intended to limit the invention.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an electrical connector according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II in FIG. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state where the housing is removed from the electrical connector of FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view showing the contact arrangement in FIG.

  1 and 2, the electrical connector 1 includes an insulating housing (hereinafter simply referred to as a housing) 10 and contacts 30, 31, 40, 41 held by the housing 10. The housing 10 is formed by molding an insulating material such as PBT or liquid crystal polymer, and has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The housing 10 has an upper surface (fitting surface) 11, both side surfaces 12 and 13, both end surfaces 14 and 15, and a bottom surface (substrate mounting surface) 16. The upper surface 11 is formed with a fitting recess 17 that opens upward to receive a mating connector (not shown). The fitting recess 17 is provided with two platforms (fitting portions) 18 and 19 that extend upward from the bottom wall (not shown) and extend along the longitudinal direction of the housing 10. Contact portions 301, 311, 401, 411 of contacts 30, 31, 40, 41 are arranged on the side surfaces of these platforms 18, 19.

  2 and 3, the contacts 30, 31, 40, 41 are arranged in four rows. Among these, the outermost two rows of contacts 30 and 31 have contact portions 301 and 311, surface mount type substrate connection portions 302 and 312, and fixing portions 303 and 313 between them, respectively. The contact portions 301 and 311 have an elongated plate shape and are arranged along the outer surfaces of the platforms 18 and 19 of the housing 10. The arrangement pitch of the contacts 30 and 31 in the contact portions 301 and 311 (or the fitting portions 18 and 19) is, for example, 0.5 mm. The substrate connection portions 302 and 312 are provided to extend in the horizontal direction at a position one step down from the tips of the arm portions 304 and 314 that extend substantially horizontally, as in the conventional surface mount contact. Since the board connection portions 302 and 312 extend to the outside of the housing 10 through the notches 20 formed in the bottom surface 16 of the housing 10, visual inspection of the solder connection portions is easy after the soldering operation. The connection pitch of the board connection portions 302 and 312 is the same as the arrangement pitch of the contact portions 301 and 311 (0.5 mm in this embodiment). Between the contact portions 301 and 311 and the bent bases of the arm portions 304 and 314, fixing portions 303 and 313 that are press-fitted and fixed to the housing 10, for example, are provided. The contacts 30 and 31 may be fixed to the housing 10 by insert molding.

  Similarly to the contacts 30 and 31, the inner two rows of contacts 40 and 41 have contact portions 401 and 411, surface-mount type substrate connection portions 402 (402a and 402b), 412 (412a and 412b), and a space between them. Fixed portions 403 and 413 are provided. The contact portions 401 and 411 are formed in an elongated plate shape and are arranged along the inner side surfaces of the platforms 18 and 19 of the housing 10. The arrangement pitch of the contacts 40 and 41 in the contact portions 401 and 411 (or the fitting portions 18 and 19) is, for example, 0.75 mm. The substrate connection portions 402 and 412 extend downward from the tips of the arm portions 404 (404a and 404b) and 414 (414a and 414b) extending substantially horizontally, as in the conventional through-hole contact. The board connection portions 402 (402a, 402b) and 412 (412a, 412b) are arranged in a staggered manner in a total of four rows. For this reason, the entire connection pitch is the same as the arrangement pitch of the contact portions 401 and 411 (0.75 mm in this embodiment), whereas the connection pitch in each row is twice the arrangement pitch of the contact portions 401 and 411 ( In this embodiment, it is 1.5 mm). Since the distance between the board connection portions 402a, 402b, 412a, and 412b is relatively large, for example, on the lower surface of a circuit board (not shown) on which the connector 10 is placed, the lower surface is maintained while maintaining a relatively large degree of freedom of wiring. Solder connection can be made to the connection pads. Between the contact portions 401 and 411 and the bent bases of the arm portions 404 and 414, fixing portions 403 and 413 that are press-fitted and fixed to the housing 10, for example, are provided. The contacts 40 and 41 may also be fixed to the housing 10 by insert molding.

  In FIG. 4, the ratio of the arrangement pitch of the outermost two rows of contacts 30 and 31 and the inner contacts 40 and 41 is a simple integer ratio of A: B = 0.5: 0.75 = 2: 3. Since the arrangement pitch of the contacts 31 (30) in the outermost row is relatively small and the capacitance between the contacts is large, it can be set to a relatively small characteristic impedance such as 80Ω. On the other hand, since the arrangement pitch of the contacts 41 (40) in the inner row is relatively large, it can be set to a relatively large characteristic impedance such as 100Ω. For this reason, a plurality of signal transmissions having different characteristic impedances can be performed within the single electrical connector 10. Further, in each contact row 31 (30), 41 (40), two signal contacts S constituting a differential transmission pair adjacent to each other are shielded by the ground contact G. For this reason, it is possible to greatly reduce crosstalk from other differential transmission pairs. In the case where the arrangement pitch is small, there has conventionally been an essential problem that crosstalk tends to occur when a high-speed signal is transmitted. However, in the present invention, crosstalk can be reduced by transmitting high-speed signals through the contacts 40 and 41 in the inner row having a relatively large arrangement pitch.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view similar to FIG. 4 showing an embodiment different from FIG. 5 is the same as the embodiment of FIG. 4 in that the ratio of the arrangement pitch of the two outermost contacts 50, 51 and the inner contacts 60, 61 is A: B = 2: 3. 4 differs from the embodiment of FIG. 4 in that the three outermost rows of contacts 51 (50) from the left end in FIG. 5 are arranged in the order of GSS, and face these three contacts 51 (50). The two contacts 61 (60) in the inner row are arranged in order of GS, and the five contacts 51 (50) and 61 (60) form the same group. A number of similar groups are then periodically arranged along the platform 19 (18). Since the three outermost row contacts 51 (50) of each group are arranged in the order of GSS, the rightmost signal contact S is shielded by the leftmost ground contact G of the adjacent group of the same row. The Therefore, the leftmost ground contact in the same group and the leftmost ground contact in the adjacent group can effectively shield the two signal contacts S that are adjacent to each other and are a differential transmission pair. The signal contact S of the contact 61 (60) in the inner row is not a differential transmission pair but a single-ended signal contact.

  FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view similar to FIG. 4 showing another embodiment different from FIG. 6 is the same as the embodiment of FIG. 4 in that the ratio of the arrangement pitch of the outermost two rows of contacts 70 and 71 and the inner contacts 80 and 81 is A: B = 2: 3. 4 differs from the embodiment of FIG. 4 in that the three outermost rows of contacts 71 (70) from the left end in FIG. 6 are arranged in the order of GSS, and face these three contacts 71 (70). The two contacts 81 (80) in the inner row are all ground contacts G, and the five contacts 71 (70) and 81 (80) form the same group. A number of similar groups are then periodically arranged along the platform 19 (18). Since the three outermost row contacts 71 (70) of each group are arranged in the order of GSS, the rightmost signal contact S is shielded by the leftmost ground contact G of the adjacent group of the same column. And shielded by the ground contacts of the inner contact row 81 (80) facing the two signal contacts S constituting the differential transmission pair. For this reason, although no signal contact is arranged in the inner contact row 81 (80), the signal connection density is lowered, but two signal contacts S that are adjacent to each other and that are differential transmission pairs are connected to other differential transmission pairs. Can be completely shielded from.

  FIG. 7 is a schematic plan view showing a contact arrangement in an embodiment having an arrangement pitch different from the embodiment of FIG. In FIG. 7, the arrangement pitch of the outermost two rows of contacts 91 (90) is, for example, A = 0.6 mm. The arrangement pitch of the inner contacts 101 (100) is, for example, B = 0.8 mm. Therefore, the arrangement pitch ratio is a simple integer ratio of A: B = 0.6: 0.8 = 3: 4. In the embodiment of FIG. 7, the outermost row of contacts 91 (90) and the inner row of contacts 101 (100) are both arranged in the order of GSS and are adjacent to each other to form a differential transmission pair. The signal contact S is shielded by one ground contact G.

  When the contacts 91 (90) in the outermost row are arranged in the order of GSSG, for example, four contacts 91 (90) in the outermost row from the left end in FIG. ) And the three contacts 101 (100) in the inner row forming the same group. A number of similar groups are then periodically arranged along the platform 19 (18).

  As mentioned above, although preferred embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to these embodiment, A various deformation | transformation and change are possible as needed. For example, the number of contact rows may be three or five or more. The electrical connector may be a right angle type instead of the vertical type shown in FIG. Further, the contact arrangement pitch ratio may be 1: 2 or other integer ratio.

It is a perspective view which shows the electrical connector of suitable one Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing along the II-II line of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the state which removed the housing from the electrical connector of FIG. It is a schematic plan view which shows the contact arrangement | sequence in FIG. FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view similar to FIG. 4 in another embodiment. It is a schematic plan view similar to FIG. 4 in still another embodiment. FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view similar to FIG. 4 in another embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

1 Electrical connector 10 Insulating housing 18, 19 Platform (fitting part)
30, 31, 50, 51, 70, 71, 90, 91 Outer rows of contacts 302, 312 Substrate connection portions 40, 41, 60, 61, 80, 81, 100, 101 Inner rows of contacts 402a, 402b , 412a, 412b Board connection part

Claims (4)

In an electrical connector comprising an insulating housing and three or more rows of contacts held in the insulating housing at the fitting portion,
The two outer rows of the contacts have surface-mount type substrate connection portions, the inner rows of the contacts have through-hole type substrate connection portions, and the two outer rows of contacts of the contacts The electrical connector characterized in that the arrangement pitch in the fitting portion is smaller than the arrangement pitch in the fitting portion of the contacts in the inner row.   2. The electricity according to claim 1, wherein the arrangement pitch of the contacts in the outer rows and the arrangement pitch in the fitting portions of the contacts in the inner row form a simple integer ratio. connector.   The electrical connector according to claim 2, wherein the integer ratio is 2: 3.   The electrical connector according to claim 2, wherein the integer ratio is 3: 4.

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