JP4509232B2 - Surface mount electrical connector - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
[Technology to which the invention belongs]
The present invention relates to an electrical connector that terminates an exposed end of an electric wire. The connector of the present invention is designed to be placed on a printed wiring board.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, electrical connectors configured for connection to a printed wiring board employ electrical contacts having tail portions that extend through the housing of the connector. The tail portion of such a contact is configured to be inserted into a plated through hole in the printed wiring board. However, a printed wiring board having a plated through hole that accommodates the tail of the contact has the entire through hole. Since it is necessary to plate with a conductive material, the manufacturing cost is high. In addition, recent reflow soldering techniques are ineffective for soldering through-hole components, and thus require standard connector manufacturing processes such as manual soldering and fluid soldering.
[0003]
In this technical field, a connector configured for surface mounting on a printed wiring board is generally known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,829 issued to Kunkle et al. Discloses a surface mount socket with a plurality of terminals configured to accommodate dual in-line packaged components.
[0004]
In addition, US patents disclosing various structures of surface mount connectors include US Pat. No. 4,955,820 (T-leg SMT contacts) granted to Yamada et al., Masami et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,277,597 (surface-attached thin contacts), U.S. Pat. No. 5,451,174 (surface mount pins for printed wiring boards), granted to Bogursky et al., Franz U.S. Pat. No. 5,535,513 (a method for manufacturing a surface mount connector).
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The connector of the above patent is generally intended to accommodate another connector structure, and does not facilitate the accommodation of the electric connection electric wire on the printed wiring board.
[0006]
【the purpose】
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved surface mount electrical connector.
[0007]
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved electrical connector for interconnecting a printed wiring board and exposed wires.
[0008]
Another object of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector having a contact that facilitates improvement of electromechanical solder bonding to a printed wiring board.
[0009]
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved electrical connector that accommodates and holds exposed wires.
[0010]
Another object of the present invention is to provide a connector in which the distance between the centers of the wire insertion openings is shortened while being a connector that can be placed on a printed wiring board by a standard vacuum pick and place device.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to one aspect of the invention, a surface mountable electrical connector includes a generally rectangular parallelepiped housing that houses and holds at least two electrical connectors. The housing is formed of an electrically insulating material and has an upper end with an opening corresponding to the electrical contact and accommodating the exposed end of the wire. It is preferable that the opening at the upper end is substantially square in outer shape, and has three sides that have corners, thereby forming a funnel-shaped wire receiving port. In addition, it is convenient that the fourth side facing the other adjacent opening is not cornered. This makes it possible to provide an area wide enough to accommodate the suction cup-shaped vacuum head of the conventional pick and place device between the openings.
[0012]
The electrical contact extends from the bottom opening of the housing and includes a solder tail formed so as to be parallel to the printed wiring board on which the connector is mounted. In order to improve the solder connection function, each solder tail is preferably provided with two beam members spaced apart and substantially parallel. Further, the contact includes an upper end portion formed to receive and hold the electric wire.
[0013]
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the present invention. The embodiments should be read with reference to the attached drawings.
[0014]
【Example】
Referring primarily to FIGS. 1-6, an electrical connector 10 formed in accordance with the present invention is shown. The connector 10 includes a generally rectangular parallelepiped housing 11 that supports at least one electrical contact 12 therein. The connector 10 is arranged and fixed on the printed wiring board P, and is configured to accommodate the exposed end of the insulated wire W.
[0015]
The housing 6 illustrated in more detail in FIG. 6 is formed from an electrically insulating thermoplastic resin, such as PPS, which can withstand a reflow soldering temperature of up to 250 ° C., and is a non-life insurance laboratory (UL, Underwriters Laboratories). ) 94V-0 is preferably satisfied. The housing 11 includes an upper end portion having an opening 13, and the exposed end S of the electric wire W can be inserted into the opening. Further, the housing 11 has a bottom opening 14, and an electrical contact 12 is inserted into this opening to be mounted in the slot 14 a of the housing 11.
[0016]
7 to 9 are views showing a preferred embodiment of the electrical contact 12. The contact 12 is made of a suitable conductive material such as phosphor bronze plated with tin. Each contact 12 includes a transverse contact body 15 having a pair of spaced contact beams 16 extending upward from the contact bodies. Further, a pair of lower solder tails 17 arranged at intervals are extended downward from the transverse contact body 15. The solder tail 17 has a generally arcuate central portion such that the outer end of the tail 17 extends from the beam 16 at an angle of about 90 °. The two solder tails 17 are preferably spaced apart and are substantially parallel to each other. In this configuration, exposed surfaces 17a, 17b, 17c, and 17d are provided to accommodate and hold the solder. For this reason, the mechanical connection strength to the printed wiring board P is increased and the reliability of the electrical connection is improved.
[0017]
The upper end of the beam 16 is provided with a conductor engaging portion 18 protruding toward the inside. Each conductor engagement portion 18 preferably includes a tapered introduction surface 18a that forms a funnel-shaped receiving port into which the exposed end of the electric wire is inserted. The wall 18b at the lower end of the tapered introduction surface 18a is relatively parallel so as to grip the exposed portion of the inserted electric wire. Due to such a structure, the exposed end of the electric wire once inserted between the beams 16 is not easily detached from the beam. The straight wall portion 18b bites into the exposed electric wires, that is, meshes with each other and securely holds the electric wires.
[0018]
The contact 12 is inserted into the opening 14 of the housing 11. The conductor hooking portion 18 that hangs over the conductor is adjacent to the opening 13, and the solder tail 17 extends outward from the opening 14. The transverse contact body 15 of the contact 12 includes a holding protrusion (barb) 19 at each end thereof. As shown in FIG. 2, the holding protrusion 19 has a sharp edge that bites into an appropriate groove 19 a on the inner wall of the housing 11 in order to hold the contact 12 in the housing 11.
[0019]
Further, referring to FIG. 1, when the contact 12 is securely held inside the housing 11, the connector 10 is disposed on the printed wiring board P. The solder tail 17 extends outward from the lower end 17 of the housing 11 and is disposed on the conductive solder pad C of the printed wiring board P. The solder tail 17 is soldered to the solder pad of the printed wiring board as in the prior art, and the connector 10 is mechanically and electrically connected to the printed wiring board. Since the solder tail 17 extends from the beam 16 of the contact 12 at an angle of 90 °, the solder tail can be seen when the connector 10 is disposed on the printed wiring board. Therefore, when the solder tail 17 is soldered to the solder pad of the printed wiring board, it is possible to visually check whether the tail is properly soldered to the solder pad. By this visual inspection, it can be confirmed whether or not the connector 10 and the printed wiring board are appropriately electrically connected.
[0020]
When the connector 10 is correctly arranged on the printed wiring board P, the electric wire W is inserted into the opening 13. The wire is preferably stripped so that the exposed length is about 0.25 inch ± 0.030 inch. If there is only this exposure length, the electric wire can be sufficiently inserted between the beams 16 of the contact 12. The size of the opening 13 is selected so as to be smaller than the diameter of the electric wire covered with insulation. If it does in this way, it will not be inserted in electric wire connector 10 too much. In a preferred embodiment of the connector 10, an electrical wire having a size of 24-26 AWG can be inserted and held.
[0021]
The connector 10 also has a feature of clearly indicating the direction or polarity in order to easily identify a specific electric wire. As shown in FIG. 2, the connector housing 11 is provided with an edge 22 that is rounded at an upper end, that is, obliquely cut. The edge 22 extends along one side surface of the housing 11 and serves as a reference for specifying the position and orientation of the housing. The opening 13 can be distinguished as a “right” opening and a “left” opening with the edge 22 as a reference. Also, the edge 22 may extend only over one opening 13 rather than the entire housing 11 to further clarify the orientation and polarity.
[0022]
The present invention also has the advantage that the connector 10 can be used in combination with an automatic pick and place device. A device such as an automatic pick-and-place device is a well-known device in the art, and when used, the connector 10 can be automatically placed on a printed wiring board. Usually, in such a pick-and-place apparatus, a vacuum suction cup-like instrument (not shown) is used, and this cup-like instrument is engaged with the upper part of the connector, and the connector is moved to the printed wiring board. Position accurately on the solder pads on the printed circuit board. Typically, such pick and place devices utilize a suction cup-like instrument having a diameter of about 0.060 inches. Therefore, in order to use such a pick-and-place apparatus and a connector together, the connector needs to have an upper surface for receiving the suction cup-shaped instrument. Conventionally, a large connector has been required to secure a sufficient holding surface for receiving a suction cup-shaped instrument.
[0023]
According to the present invention, an automatic pick and place device can be used without increasing the size of the connector. As shown in FIG. 5, the top openings 13 are spaced sufficiently apart by about 0.068 inches to provide a central surface 20 that houses the suction cup-like instrument of the pick and place device. Select the corners around the opening selectively. A square is formed around each opening 13, and a corner 13 is formed on each of the three sides, thereby forming a funnel-shaped receiving port into which the electric wire enters the connector 10. It is convenient to form the surface 20 in this way. However, the fourth side surface 13b facing the other opening 13 has no corner. By selectively locating the cornered and unplanar surfaces, a central surface 20 at the top of the housing is defined, which surface introduces electrical wires and supports the suction cup-like device of the pick and place device Form.
[0024]
As described above, the present invention has been described with respect to the housing in which the electric wire can be inserted in the vertical direction from above. FIG. 10 shows a housing having such a side receiving port. The connector 30 includes a housing 31 that supports electrical contacts 32. The contact 32 is substantially the same as the contact 22 in the above embodiment. The contact 32 includes a tail 37 that extends directly from below the housing 31 and meshes with a solder pad of the printed wiring board. When the electric wire is inserted through the opening 33 in the lateral direction, that is, in the direction parallel to the printed wiring board, the electric wire reaches the contact 32.
[0025]
The exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and those skilled in the art will depart from the scope of the present invention. It should be understood that various changes and modifications can be made to the embodiment.
[0026]
【effect】
According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a sufficient area for suctioning with a suction cup device without enlarging the connector.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a surface mount electrical wire connector formed in accordance with the present invention, taken along line 1-1 in FIG.
2 is a cross-sectional view of the surface mount electrical wire connector formed in accordance with the present invention, taken along line 2-2 of FIG.
FIG. 3 is a pictorial view of a two-position surface mount connector formed in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a bottom view of a surface mount connector formed in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a plan view of a surface mount connector formed in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a pictorial view of a connector housing formed in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a sketch of a contact formed in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a front view of a contact formed in accordance with the present invention, showing the contact in association with a printed wiring board.
FIG. 9 is a side view of a contact formed in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 10 is a sketch of another embodiment of the present invention that accommodates an electric wire inserted in a direction parallel to the printed wiring board.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Connector 11 ... Housing 12 ... Contact 13 ... Opening part 16 ... Beam 17 ... Solder tail 18 ... Conductor engagement part 22 ... Edge

Claims (5)

In the surface mount electrical connector (10) that is mounted on the printed circuit board and terminates the exposed end of the wire,
At least two electrical contacts (12) each having a lower portion having a solder tail (17) for solderably securing the connector to the printed wiring board and an upper portion having wire holding means;
A first surface having at least two openings (13) for accommodating the exposed end (S) of the electric wire (W), and a housing (11) having a second surface facing the first surface;
The openings (13) each accommodate an electrical contact (12) and are spaced from each other;
The housing (11) selectively includes a side surface (13a) having a corner and a side surface (13b) not having a corner around the opening (13), and the periphery of each opening is substantially rectangular. , Of which three sides are side surfaces (13a) with the corners, the fourth side is side surfaces (13b) with no corners, and the fourth sides of the openings face each other. A surface mount electrical connector characterized in that a wide support surface (20) of a housing for receiving an automatic handling device by vacuum pick and place is formed between the openings (13) .   2. A surface mount electrical connector according to claim 1, characterized in that the solder tail (17) comprises two tail ends which are spaced apart and are substantially parallel to each other. The wire holding means of the contact (12) comprises two substantially parallel beam members (16) having an upper opening portion, the upper opening portion comprising a conductor hooking member (18) facing inwardly. The surface mount electrical connector according to claim 2, wherein: The outer shape of the first surface of the housing is a substantially square shape having four edges, and one of the edges of the outer shape is obliquely cut to form an indication reference that serves as a reference indicating polarity. The surface mount electrical connector according to claim 1. The solder tail extends beyond the second surface of the housing so that the solder tail (17) is exposed and visible when the connector (10) is mounted on a printed wiring board. Item 1. A surface mount electrical connector according to Item 1.

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