TWI814294B - Electrical connector with an unplug detection - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an electrical connector with an unplug detection and has a male connector and an electrical switching element mounted outside the male connector and electrically connected to a circuit board inside the male connector. An outer molding partially encapsulates the male connector and the electrical connector. When a user is unplugging the male connector, his or her fingers touch a trigger portion of the electrical switching element exposed from the outer molding. At the time, the circuit board of the male connector detects the user’s unplug action and may generate a power outage signal to system power source (such as transformer or electrical device), so the system power source is interrupted before the male connector has been unplgged and an arc is not occurred.

Description

Electrical connector that can detect pull-out movements

The invention relates to an electrical connector, in particular to an electrical connector capable of detecting a pull-out action.

In addition to data transmission, current electrical connectors also support power supply functions. Taking the Type-C male connector as an example, its CC terminal is used as a power supply detection terminal; and because the size and position of the multiple terminals of the electrical connector are uniform, There is a standard specification. In order to consider the safety of power supply, the front end of the CC terminal will be shorter than the front end of the power terminal (VBUS and GND), so that the power terminals of the male and female connectors contact first, and then the male and female connectors correspond to each other. Only the CC terminal will make contact; if the male electrical connector is the power supply side, the CC terminal will detect contact with the CC terminal of the female connector before outputting power to the power terminals (VBUS and GND). On the contrary, if the male connector is pulled out from the female connector, the corresponding CC terminals of the male and female connectors will be disconnected before the power terminals. Therefore, after detecting the disconnection through the CC terminals, the output power will be stopped first. The power terminals, that is, the power terminals of the male and female connectors, must interrupt the power supply before disconnecting to ensure the safety of the power supply.

However, since the distance between the front end of the current CC terminal and the front end of the power terminal is not long enough, during the pull-out stroke of the male connector, the corresponding CC terminals of the male and female connectors are not in contact with each other. The power terminals are disconnected for too short a time, and there is no time to interrupt the power output before the power terminals of the male and female connectors are disconnected, causing the power terminals of the male and female connectors to generate sparks at the moment of disconnection ( arc), and the sparks will cause oxidation to increase the impedance or cause the colloid to melt and cause damage to the electrical connector; therefore, it is necessary to improve the existing electrical connector to avoid the generation of sparks when the male connector is pulled out.

In view of the problem of damage caused by the front-opening male connector when used for charging, the main purpose of the present invention is to provide an electrical connector that can detect the pull-out movement to solve the problem of unsafe charging of the male connector.

The main technical means used to achieve the above purpose is that the electrical connector includes: a male connector, which includes a housing, a plug connector and a circuit board; wherein the plug connector is fixed in the housing, And protrudes from the front end opening of the housing and is electrically connected to the circuit board accommodated in the housing; an electronic switch element is provided on the housing of the male connector and has a trigger part, and the electronic switch element is electrically connected to the circuit board of the male connector and selectively forms a detection loop with the circuit board; and an outer mold glue partially covers the male connector and the An electronic switch component; wherein the plug connector of the male connector and the triggering part of the electronic switch component are exposed from the outer mold colloid.

As can be seen from the above description, the present invention mainly adds an electronic switch component outside the male connector and electrically connects it to the circuit board in the male connector, and then partially covers the male connector and the electronic switch with the outer mold colloid. switching element to form an independent electrical connector; in this way, when the male connector plugs it into When the connector is pulled out from a female connector, the user will first contact the trigger part of the electronic switch element exposed on the outer mold glue, and the circuit board in the male connector will detect in advance that the user has pulled out the male connector. The action of the connector can generate a power-off signal to the system power supply (such as a transformer or electronic device) as early as possible, so that the system power supply can be disconnected in time before the plug connector of the male connector is pulled out from the female connector. Effectively avoid dangerous situations such as fireworks.

1: Electrical connector

10:Pale connector

20: Shell

21:Front opening

22:Top surface

23: side

30:Plug connector

31:Metal shell

311:Rear

312:Front

313:Card slot

32: Terminal insulation seat

321: Grooving

33:Terminal

34:Circuit board

341: Electrical connection part

342, 342a, 342b: Detection loop

40:Insulation seat

401: Horizontal part

402:Vertical part

42: Conductive parts

421: First electrical connection part

422: Second electrical connection part

50: Electronic switching components

51:Button part

511: Zhou Yuan

512:Central cylinder

513: Conductive bottom

52: Fixed seat

521:Open your mouth

54:Light emission part

55:Light receiving part

56: Sensing electrode

60:Outer mold colloid

61:Top surface

Figure 1: A three-dimensional appearance view of an embodiment of the electrical connector of the present invention.

Figure 2: Three-dimensional exploded view of Figure 1.

Figure 3: A cross-section along the line A-A in Figure 1.

Figure 4A: A cross-sectional view along the line B-B of Figure 1.

Figure 4B: A schematic diagram of the operation of the electrical connector of the present invention.

Figure 5A: Schematic diagram of the detection loop in Figure 1.

Figure 5B: A schematic diagram of a detection circuit of another embodiment of the electrical connector of the present invention.

Figure 5C: A schematic diagram of a detection circuit of another embodiment of the electrical connector of the present invention.

The present invention is aimed at improving electrical connectors and helping to avoid dangerous situations such as sparks. The technical content will be described in detail below using multiple embodiments and drawings.

First, please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 , which shows an embodiment of an electrical connector 1 capable of detecting pull-out movements according to the present invention. It includes a male connector 10 , an electronic switch component 50 and an outer mold glue. The electronic switch component 50 is disposed outside the male connector 10, and the external mold glue 60 is used to partially cover the male connector 10 and the electronic switch component 50 to form an independent electrical switch body 60. Connector 1.

The above-mentioned male connector 10 includes a housing 20, a plug connector 30 and a circuit board 34; the housing 20 has a front opening 21; the plug connector 30 is fixed in the housing 20 and is removed from the housing 20. The front end opening 21 of the housing 20 protrudes; the circuit board 34 is fixed in the housing 20 and is electrically connected to the plug connector 30 located in front of it; in this embodiment, the housing 20 is a metal housing; As shown in Figure 3, the plug connector 30 includes a metal shell 31, a terminal insulating seat 32 and a plurality of terminals 33; a rear portion 311 of the metal shell 31 is fixed in the housing 20 and can be connected with the housing 20. The circuit board 34 is engaged, and the junction with the front end opening 21 of the housing 20 is covered by the outer mold glue 60, and a front part 312 of the metal shell 31 is exposed outside the outer mold glue 60; the terminal The insulating base 32 is fixed in the metal shell 31, and a slot 321 is formed at the front end of the insulating base 32, so that the terminals 33 can be arranged side by side on the inner top surface and the inner bottom surface of the slot 321 of the terminal insulating base 32. The rear ends of the terminals 33 pass backward through the terminal insulating seat 32 to be soldered to the circuit board 34 .

The above-mentioned electronic switch element 50 is disposed on the housing 20 of the male connector 10 and has a trigger part, and the electronic switch element 50 is electrically connected to the circuit board 34 of the male connector 10 and is connected to the circuit board 34 of the male connector 10. The circuit board 34 selectively forms a detection loop. In this embodiment, the electrical connector 1 further includes an insulating seat 40 and two conductive members 42; the insulating seat 40 is disposed outside the housing 20 of the male connector 10, and the two conductive members 42 are spaced apart. It is disposed on the insulating base 40 to be electrically connected to the circuit board 34 of the male connector 10 and the electronic switching element 50 . In this embodiment, the electronic switch component 50 is a physical button, which includes a fixed base 52 and a button part 51. The fixed base 52 is fixed on the insulating base 40, and maintains a space between the insulating base 40 and the insulating base 40. space, and an opening 521 is formed. The opening 521 is not covered by the outer mold glue 60 , and the peripheral edge 511 of the button portion 51 is sandwiched between the fixed base 52 and the insulating base 40 , with a central column The body 512 passes through the opening 521 of the fixed base 52, and then refer to Figure 4A As shown, the central column 512 has a conductive bottom 513 to correspond to the two conductive members 42 and serve as the trigger part of the electronic switch element 50; the central column 512 moves in the space to selectively contact the two conductive members 42. Conductive member 42. When the central column 512 moves downward so that its conductive bottom 513 contacts the two conductive members 42, as shown in FIG. 5A, the electronic switch element 50 and the circuit board 34 form the detection loop 342, that is, the circuit The board 34 can determine whether the physical button is pressed by detecting whether the circuit is formed or not. In another embodiment, the central pillar can also be a conductive body, and its bottom is the conductive bottom, but is not limited thereto.

As shown in Figure 3, the above-mentioned outer mold glue 60 partially covers the male connector 10 and the electronic switch component 50; wherein the plug connector 30 of the male connector 10 and the trigger part of the electronic switch component 50 It is exposed from the outer mold colloid 60 . In this embodiment, the opening 521 of the fixed base 52 and the central cylinder 512 of the key portion 51 of the physical key are exposed from the outer mold glue 60 for the user to press.

The structural relationship between the insulating seat 40, the two conductive members 42 and the circuit board 34 of the above-mentioned electrical connector will be further described in detail below. As shown in Figures 2 and 4, the two opposite sides of the circuit board 34 face the shell. Two electrical connection portions 341 are formed outward on the two opposite sides 23 of the body 20, and the two electrical connection portions 341 respectively pass through the rear half of the two opposite sides 23 of the housing 20; the insulating seat 40 is in a U-shape. Therefore, it includes a horizontal part 401 and two vertical parts 402 that are integrally formed; the horizontal part 401 is provided on the top surface 22 of the housing 20, and the two vertical parts 402 are respectively provided on the two opposite sides of the housing 20. The front half of the side 23 does not interfere with the electrical connection portions 341 on the two opposite sides of the circuit board 34 passing through the housing 20; and each conductive member 42 includes a first electrical connection portion 421 and a second electrical connection portion 421. The connection part 422, in which the first electrical connection part 421 is fixed on the horizontal part 401 of the insulating base 40 to face the electronic switch element 50, so the trigger part of the electronic switch element 50 is formed from the outer mold glue The top surface 61 of 60 is exposed; and the second electrical connection part 422 extends downwardly from the first electrical connection part 421 and penetrates into the corresponding vertical part 402 of the insulating base 40, and then extends back through the vertical part 402. The rear end is soldered to the corresponding electrical connection portion 341 of the circuit board 34 .

It can be seen from the above embodiment of the electrical connector 1 that can detect the pull-out movement that the plug connector 30 of the male connector 10 is used to be inserted into the corresponding female connector for data transmission and charging. Since the electronic The switch element 50 is arranged outside the housing 20 of the male connector 10 and does not overlap with the plug connector 30 to ensure that the plug connector 30 is smoothly inserted into the female connector. Furthermore, since the user pulls out the male connector 10 from the female connector, he will first grab the outer mold glue 60 with his fingers. At this time, he only needs to press the exposed outer mold glue 60 with his fingers. The button portion 51 of the physical button allows the conductive bottom 513 on the bottom surface to contact the two conductive members 42 at the same time, forming a detection loop with the circuit board 34. The male connector 10 can immediately determine that the physical button is pressed through the detection loop. , indicating that the user is about to pull out the male connector 10, so the circuit board 34 can generate a power-off signal as early as possible and notify the system power supply (such as a transformer or electronic device) to enable the male connector 10 to be plugged in. The system power supply is disconnected before the connector 30 is pulled out from the female connector, which effectively avoids dangerous situations such as sparks caused by short intervals between terminals in the plug connector.

Please refer to FIG. 5B again, which is a schematic diagram of a detection circuit 342 of another embodiment of the electrical connector of the present invention; in this embodiment, the electronic switch element 50 is an optical sensor, and the circuit board 34 passes through the The two conductive parts provide the operating power of the optical sensor, so that a light emitting part 54 continuously emits detection light to a light receiving part 55, and forms a detection circuit 342a with the circuit board; the path through which the detection light passes is It is the triggering part of the electronic switch element 50. Since the triggering part is exposed on the outer mold colloid, the user can also block the path of the detection light with his finger, so that the light receiving part 55 no longer receives the detection light. When the detection loop 342a formed with the circuit board 34 is disconnected; in this way, the circuit board 34 can also detect the user's pulling action through the on and off of the detection loop 342a.

Please refer to FIG. 5C again, which is a schematic diagram of a detection circuit of another embodiment of the electrical connector of the present invention; in this embodiment, the electronic switch element 50 is an electrostatic switch and forms a detection circuit with the circuit board 34 In loop 342b, the electrostatic switch has a sensing electrode 56, which serves as the triggering part of the electronic switch element 50; since the triggering part is exposed to the outer mold colloid, the sensing electrode 56 is also exposed to the outer mold colloid. , for the user to touch it with his finger, and use the finger's static electricity to change the sensing electrode 56 Therefore, the circuit board 34 can determine whether the capacitance is large or small through the detection circuit 342b to detect the user's pulling out action.

The above-mentioned physical buttons, optical sensors and electrostatic switches are used as electronic switching components to provide a feasible method for detecting the pulling action of the user's finger. The electronic switching component of the present invention is not limited to these examples.

To sum up, the present invention mainly adds an electronic switch component outside the male connector and electrically connects it to the circuit board in the male connector, and then partially covers the male connector and the electronic switch with the outer mold colloid. Switch element to form an independent electrical connector; in this way, when the male connector pulls out its plug connector from the female connector, the user can simultaneously contact the triggering part of the electronic switch element exposed on the outer mold glue , the circuit board in the male connector detects the user's action of pulling out the male connector, and can generate a power-off signal to the system power supply (such as a transformer or electronic device) as early as possible, so that the male connector The system power can be disconnected before the plug connector is pulled out from the female connector, effectively avoiding dangerous situations such as sparks caused by short terminal intervals in the plug connector.

The above are only embodiments of the present invention, and do not limit the present invention in any form. Although the present invention has been disclosed in the embodiments above, they are not used to limit the present invention. Anyone with ordinary knowledge in the technical field, Without departing from the scope of the technical solution of the present invention, the technical content disclosed above can be used to make some changes or modifications to equivalent embodiments with equivalent changes. Any simple modifications, equivalent changes and modifications made to the above embodiments still fall within the scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

1: Electrical connector

10:Pale connector

30:Plug connector

31:Metal shell

32: Terminal insulation seat

321: Grooving

50: Electronic switching components

52: Fixed seat

512:Central cylinder

521:Open your mouth

60:Outer mold colloid

61:Top surface

Claims (5)

An electrical connector capable of detecting pull-out movements, including: a male connector, which includes a shell, a plug connector and a circuit board; wherein the plug connector is fixed in the shell and is removed from the shell The front end opening of the body protrudes and is electrically connected to the circuit board accommodated in the housing; wherein two opposite sides of the circuit board form two electrical connection portions outward toward the two opposite sides of the housing, and the Two electrical connection parts respectively pass through the rear half of the two opposite sides; an insulating seat is provided on the outside of the housing of the male connector, and is in a U-shape, including: a horizontal part, which is provided on The top surface of the housing; and two vertical portions are respectively provided on the front half of the two opposite sides of the housing; two conductive members are spaced apart on the insulating base and each include: a first electrical connection part is fixed on the horizontal part of the insulating base; and a second electrical connection part is integrally extended downward from the first electrical connection part and penetrates into the corresponding vertical part of the insulating base, and then extends rearwardly through the vertical part. The rear end of the part is electrically connected to the corresponding electrical connection part of the circuit board; an electronic switch element is provided on the housing of the male connector and has a trigger part; wherein the electronic switch element is The first electrical connection portion is coupled to and electrically connected to each of the conductive elements to selectively form a detection loop with the circuit board; and an outer mold glue partially covers the male connector and the electronic switch component, And covering the insulating seat and the two conductive parts; wherein the plug connector of the male connector and the triggering part of the electronic switch element are exposed from the top surface of the outer mold colloid. The electrical connector as described in claim 1, wherein the electronic switch component is a physical button and includes: A fixed base is fixed on the insulating base, maintains a space between the insulating base and forms an opening, and the opening is not covered by the outer mold colloid; and a button part includes a peripheral edge and a Central column; wherein the periphery is sandwiched between the fixed base and the insulating base, the central column passes through the opening of the fixed base, and the central column corresponds to the first electrical connection of each conductive member The key portion is provided with a conductive bottom, and the button portion serves as the trigger portion of the electronic switch element; the conductive bottom of the central column moves within the space to selectively contact the first electrical connection portion of each conductive member; wherein When contacting the first electrical connection portion of each conductive component, a detection loop is formed with the circuit board. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 1, wherein the electronic switch element is an optical sensor, and the circuit board provides operating power to the optical sensor through the two conductive members, so that a light emitting part of the optical sensor continuously emits detection light. A light receiving part is provided to form a detection loop with the circuit board; the path through which the detection light passes is the triggering part of the electronic switch element. The electrical connector as claimed in claim 1, wherein the electronic switch element is an electrostatic switch, and a sensing electrode is the triggering part of the electronic switch element. The electrical connector according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: the housing system is a metal housing; and the plug connector includes: a metal housing, the rear portion of which is fixed in the metal housing, and The opening junction of the front end of the metal shell is covered by the outer mold colloid, and its front part is exposed outside the outer mold colloid; a terminal insulating seat is fixed in the metal shell, and a front end thereof forms a slot backward ;as well as A plurality of terminals are arranged side by side on the inner top surface and the inner bottom surface of the slot of the terminal insulating seat. The rear end of each terminal passes backward through the terminal insulating seat for welding to the circuit board.

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