US1602221A - Electric connecter - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 5 ,1926. 1,602,221

c. E. GoDLr-:Y

ELECTRIC CONNECTER Filed March 26, 1925 Patented Get.V 5, 1926.

l ns n. eoDLEY, or nnrnorr, MIcHrGAiL'AssIGNoa To nDMUNDs a .ioNEs cmf POBATION, F DETRQT, MICHIGAN, A CORPORATION 0F NEW YORK. f

ELECTRIC CONNECTER.

Application led March 26, 1925. Serial No. 18,895.

able plug carrying a set of wire terminalsis mounted in a socket carrying another set of terminals, and in which the terminals of the two sets are normally held in contacting relation Connecters of this class as employed on automobiles have commonly been constructed with bayonet slots formed on the shell of the socket and interlocking with projecting pins on the wire-carrying plug. In practice, such a bayonet joint arrangementis object-ional for many reasons', one being the looseness of the connected parts, which looseness not only leads to rattling noises but sometimes even permits the interlocking pins to be shaken out of the bayonet slots. Another objection is due to the ready entrance of dust and moisture into the space between the plug and the terminal-carryin body member of the socket, thereby allowlng the dust to interfere with the adequate contacting of the wire terminals and either interrupting the circuit O r causing a sparking between the contacts.

To allow for the partial retraction of the plug` after its insertion in the shell, as is required with a bayonet siot construction, vit is also necessary to employ spring means for keeping the contacting terminal portions in engaging relation. Heretofore, the needed sprmg means have commonlyv been provided by using spring-pressed plungers as the contacting portions of the wire terminals on either the socket or the plug,

thereby depending partly on springs for carrying the current and partly on a circuit connection through relatively slidable parts. Or, where the wire terminals of the socket have been mounted on a spring-pressed body slidable in a socket shell,'the sliding arrangel ment has not permitted the several terminals of the socket toadjust themselves independently so as to compensate for any lack of uniformity in size or shape of various parts of the socket and the plug. Owing to this fact, such a construction often affords a poor contact or connection to one wire, this being particularly noticeable with connecters employed for making'electrical connections to more than -two wires. Soalso, since the plug of a connecter has tobe partially rotated in attaching it to a. socket when a bayonet joint is employed; the plug terminals tend to catch on the socket terminals,

andl if one of the terminals pro 'ects unduly, a careless user ma use so muc force as to damage some of t e parts of the connecter.

`My invention aim's to overcome all of the above named objections to the -connecters heretofore employed, whilealso providing a strong, inexpensive and 'compact connecter' construction. With this in imnd, m inventionl provides a connecter which wil permitI a rigid fastening ofv each set of wires to metal terminals contacting directly with the terminals of other wires, thereby avoiding the necessity of havin through slidably connecte parts or through springs. y lnvention also provides spring means for effectively maintaining the engagement of @the associated contact terminals, provides a construction for this pur-l posewhlchu will readily permit the use of relatively' large springs, provides for the in-g dependent a.d]usting of the contacts between any current passa each engaging pair of wire terminals, and.

provides simple mea-ns for preventing the contacts. on the socket from shifting out of proper alinement with the contacts carried by the plug. l

Furthermore, my invention rovides simple and eilective means *for-rigidly supporting such a connecter, rovides means associated with the plug or connecting the plug to the casing of an armored cable which carries the wires to the ^plug, and

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provides a connecter which is entirely sealed against the entrance of dust. vIt also proi vides a. construction in which a tubulaisupporting member can readily be secured to the support for the socket portion of the connecter and in which the other parts can readiy be attached to (or detached from) this supporting member, and provides simple means for preventing a detaching of the socket proper from the supporting member during the attaching of the plug or while the plug is detached. v Still further and also more detailed objects will appear from the following specilication and from the accompanying .drawings,`in which-' A l y Fig. ll is a side@ elevation of a connecter embodying my invention, showing this as it appears when attached to a supporting plate through which' it extends:

Fig. 2 is an end view of the samel conl necter, taken from the left hand of Fig. 1. l

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view takenirom the top of Fig. 1, with the tubular supporting member and the plug sleeve in central and longitudinal section.

Fig. 4 is a central and longitudinal section taken at right angles to Fig. 3, with a portionV of the insulating body of the plug left unsectioned.

Fig. 5 is a section taken transversely thipugh Fig. 4 along the line 5-5.

i 'showtcing the arrangement of the insulating parts and thewire terminal heads of the socket of my connecter in a three-wire form.

Fig. 7 is a perspective View of one of the insulating parts of the socket of Figs. 4 and 5.

Referring to the embodiment of Figs. 1 to 6 inclusive, this` includes a supporting member in the form of a cylindricaltube 1 adapted to extend through a corresponding perforation in a sup ort, such as a plate 2, and having intermediate its end a peripheral bead 3 adapted to engage therear face o such a support while the forward endn of the tube 1 is flared outwardly to form a flange 4 engaging the forward face of the support, thereby clamping the tubular y,supporting member rigidly to the support.

Slidably inserted into this tubular supporting member from the rear thereof is a socket shell having a cylindrical wall 5 fitting the bore of the tubular member. This wall 5 has near its rear end three outwardly projecting fingers which are sildaibly received by corresponding slots-7 in the tubular member 1, so as to prevent the` socket shell from rotating in the rigidly supported tubular member, and so that the engagement of these fingers with the forward ends of the said slots will limit the forward sliding of the socket shell into that member. The tubular member also is provided near its rear end with a pair of perforations spaced circumferentially of this member, so that a fastening element (shown in Figs. 1 and 2 as a spring cotter 8) can be inserted through these perforations behind the rear end 9 of the socket shell to-preyent this shell from being rearwardly slid during the attaching of the plug parts.

Y,Theshell end 9 has perforations corresponding in number to the number of wires to which circuit connections are to be provided, namely two in the case of the double pole form shown in Figs. l to 6'. Each of these wires 10 is connected at its forward end to a contact 11 which forms the corresponding wire terminal of the socket, vthis contact being here shown as the head of a tack having its stem inserted between the strands of the core of a corresponding wire .10. Each of the wire terminals is supported in a fixed position transversely of the socket shell by means permitting it to be moved longitudinally of the socket independently 6 is a section similar to Fig. 5, f

of the other wire terminals.l Forthis purose, I am showing each of the contacts (or tack heads) 11 as' seated on an annular shoulder 12 forming the y'bottom of the enlarged upper portion of tends longitudinally through an insulator 14 disposed within the socket shell, and am showing the wire as expanded by the stem of the tack so as to wedge it in the bore 13.

Each of the insulators has its main portion formed as a semicylinder 14 corresponding inl diameter to the bore of the cylindrical socket shell 5, and the two insulators have their flat longitudinal edges abutting against each other as shown inFig. 5. Each insulator also desirably has on its arcuate edge an outwardly directed projection 15 which extends into a longitudinal slot 16 of corresponding width in the socket shell, so that l the longitudinal walls of the slots engage the projection to prevent rotational movement of the insulator about the axis of the socket.

f Interposed between each of the insulators 14 and the rear en d 9 of the socket shell is a -compression spring 17, the insulator desirably having its said bore 13 enlarged in diameter at its rear end so as to afford an enlarged bore portion housing the spring for a part of its length as shown in Fig. 4. Each of these springs continuously urges the adjacent --insulator forwardly of the a bore 13 which exsocket independently of the other insulator,

as the abutting edges (which are disposed in a plane diametric of the socket) permit the insulators to slide on each other. More over, each slot 16 has its forward end wall disposed so as to engage the projection 15 on the adjacent insulator to limit the forward movement of this insulator by the spring which presses against it.

Extending into the socketshell from the front or mouth end thereof is an insulator in the form of a cylinder 18 which carries the wireterininals for the other set of wires 19. This insulator also has the wire terminals rigidly fastened to it, the terminal being here shown `as comprising a screw 20 having its head exposed behind the insulator 18 and directly engaging one of the contacts 11 of the socket, a body member 21 threaded at one end upon the screw Q0 and provided at its other end with ,a loop Q2 through which a free end of the core of the wire 19 is hooked, and a screw 23 arranged for clamp- \this hooked portion of the wir(` against the bight of the loop. The insulating cylinder is slidable in the socket shell. but is kept from rotating` in this shell by n pin 30 fast on the cylinder and projecting into a longitudinal slot 3l in the socket shell, as shown in Fig. 3. l

Bearing against the front end of the insulating cylinder 18 is an annular flange Q4 on therear end of a ferrule 25 through 'which the wires 19 extend. This flange is iio overhung by an inwardly directed annular flange 26 on a plug `sleeve 27l which has its rear end portion threaded on its interior so as to be screwed upon the forward portion of the socket shell 5. This sleeve 27 has its rear end normally engaging the forward end of the' tubular supporting member l, for which purpose the sleeve. desirably has at its rear end an outwardly directly annular flange 28.

With the parts thus arranged, it will be seen from Fig. 4 that when the sleeve 27 is screwed upon the forward end of the socket shell, the flange 26 will press rearwardly through the flange 24 of the nip le against the insulating cylinder 18, there y sliding this insulator rearwardly against the pressure exerted through the springs 17 and the semi-cylindrical insulators 14 on the wire terminals, the parts beingvso proportioned in length that the springs 17 will be somewhat compressed before the flange 28 of the plug sleeve 27 engages the forward end of the tubular supporting member. This engagement of the plug sleeve Wit-h the supporting member. limits the extent to which the springs are compressed, so as to prevent the springs Vfrom being over-strained or entirely collapsed. It also locks the sleeve 27 against accidental rotation and holds the various socket parts iirmly assembled so that -f there will be no rattling.

Furthermore, the said engaging' of the flange 28 with the supportingmember, together with the clamping of the nip le iiange 24 between theinsulatin cylindbr and the forward end fiange 26 o Ithe plug sleeve prevent the entrance of dust into the sleeve, While the forward end of the nipple 25 aan readily be sealed by a suitable ta ingii of the wires 19 or by soldering the lnipp e .to the casing 29 of an armored cable of which the wires 19 form a part. Consequently,.the entire forward end of the connecter is effectively sealed against the entrance of moisture and dust, which was not possible with connecter and plug constructions of the bayonet slot type. So also, since the vvarious portions of the casing are firmly clamped together, all looseness or rattling is avoided, and the sleeve 27 can readily be -screwed up so tightly against the forward end of the tubular supporting member as to guard against an accidental loosening. To facilitate the needed rotating' of the plug, sleeve, I desirably knurl this near its forward end, as shown at 32 in Fig. 1.

To facilitate the assembling of the socket, I desirably bevel the rear portions of the iametric flat edges of the semi-cylindrical insulators 14 as shown in Fig. 4, thereby enabling me to insert one of these insulators in'v the shell 5 after the other has been placed in position. When the connecter is completelyv assembled, the providing of separate -wlre terminals of the socket portion of the connecter permits theseinsulatorsto slide indelpendently of each other longitudinally of t e connecter, thereby compensating for any variations in the lengths of the contacting portionsof the associated terminals or in' the mounting of the latter, each spring to eiiect a irm contacting of the two wire contacting terminalsA with whlch it is associated. Owing to this provision, my connecter is particularly suited for use with heavy currents, such as those encountered with connectors used on automobile trucks. f

i However, I do not wish to be limited to the `various details of the construction or arrangement'here disclosed, it bein y vious 'that many modifications mig t be made without departing either from the spirit of my invention or from the a pended claims. Neither do I w1sh to limitedyto the use of my invention 1n connection with double-pole '.connecters, as. the same underlying principles may also be employed advantageously for makmg the connections to a, larger number of wires For example, Fi 6 shows the insulating socket partsv as comprising .three 'sectors' which when assembled will correspond 'to a cylmder slidably fitting the bore of the socket shell, each insulating sector having anout- -Wardlydirected projection 15 entering a corresponding longitudinal slot in the socket shell 5. vIn either case, I desirably make the insulating parts of the socket of my connecter of a considerable ength. therebysecuring an extenslve bearing of these parts both on the socket shell and on each other, so as to prevent the insulators Lfrom beingtilted. yBy extendm springs into such relatively thick insu ators, I shorten the length required between the backs of the' insulators and `the rear end of the socket shell, thereby still securing acompact construction. Moreover, the shortness of each'wire portion between the shell end and the -part of the Wire fastened 'to the insulator" prevents any material bending of that wire portion, thus cooperatmg with the friction of the spring on the shell endin preventing rotational movement of the sectional insulating member in thesocket shell. Hence the projections 150m the insulators might be omitted, though 4I preferabl employ them so as to permit an easier s lding of each Wire through a shell end perforation of a diameter closely approaching that of the wire.

Since the projections on the insulators of the socket prevent the assemblage of insulators from rotating in the socket shells, the socket wires 10 are always maintained in the same positions rotationally of the socket shell. Consequently, these wires can extendA and permitting f ortion spring means respectively urging 4 tending slidably ward end thereof, a second pair of wire terslidably the shell closely approximating the outside diameter of the wires, thereby substantially sealing the rear end of the shell also against the entrance of dust and moisture.

Moreover, since the socket portion of my connecter is detachably held in position in the tubular supporting member by the spring cotter, all other parts of the connecter can readily be attached to this supporting member after both .sets of wire terminals have been connected to the corresponding wires. This makes it easy for the user to wire the connecter proper, as also to detach the same from the supporting member for an inspection of the connecterl parts at any time.

I claim as my invention 1. In a connecter, a tubular supporting member,l a connecter shell slidably inserted into the supporting member from the rear of the latter; the said member and shell having cooperating formations engaged during the said slidable insertion for preventing relative rotation of the said members and for limiting the forward sliding of the shell with respect to thesupporting member; and clamping means threaded on the shell and engaging a forward portion of the supporting member to prevent rearward movement of the shell.

2. A connecter as per claim l, in combination with two sets of relatively iiiterengaging wire terminals disposed in the shell, and means actuated by the screwing of the clamping means on the shell for forcibly approaching one set of wire terminals to the other.

A connecter comprising a shell open of wire terminals shell for slidable of the shell, two lthe said wire terminals forwardly; an insulator exinto the shell from the for- 3. at itsjforward end, a pair slidably supported in the movement longitudinally minals mounted on the insulator and respectively engaging the first named wire terminals, and means threaded on the shell for forcing .the insulatonrearwardly in combination with a tubular support in which the shell is slidably mounted, and cooperating stop means on the shell and support for limiting the forward sliding of the shell with respect to the support;A the threaded means having a portion engaging the tubular support, whereby a. rotation of the threaded means (in the direction in which the latter Vforces the insulator rearwardly) through rear end perforations in' will slide the shell forwardly with respect to the tubular support so as to force the said cooperating stop means into engagement.

4. In a socket or connecter, a shell, a pair of laterally ing injoint contour to the bore of the shell and having their contiguous edge portions disposedl in a plane diametric of the shell, the insulators being independently slidable longitudinally of the shell, the shell having a pair of longitudinal slots and each insulator having a projection slidably housed by one of the said slots, a pair of wire terminals respectively fast on the insulators, and a pair of coiled springs each interposed between one of the insulators and a part of the shell and each arranged for urging the corresponding insulator and wire terminal away from the said part of the shell independent cof the other insulator and wire terminal. l

5. A connecter comprising a shell having a substantially cylindrical lateral wall and a rear end provided with a plurality of perforations, a plurality of laterally adjoined insulators conforming conjointly in peripheral contour to the bore of theJ shell and loosely helde in laterally adjoined relation by the said bore, the insulators having adjoined edges 1n planes diametric of the shell and being independently slidable longitudinally of the shell and each having a bore alining with one of the perforations in the shell end; wires respectively extending slidably through the said perforations and each. extending into the insulator bore which alines with the corresponding perforation, Wire terminals respectively projecting forwardly from theseveral insulators and each rigidly securing the free end of one wire to the insulator beyond which that wire terminal projects,`-and compression springs each interposed Albetween the rear shell end and one of the insulators; the distance between adjoined insulators correspondf each insulator and the rear shell end being so short as to revent a material bending of the wire portion between that insulator and' the rear shell end, thereby cooperating with the slidable engaging of the shell end perforations by the wires and the said adjoining CHARLES E. GODLEY.

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