US3178671A - Connector assembly - Google Patents

Description

United States Patent 3,178,671 CONNECTOR ASSEMBLY Victor Mastis, Cicero, Ill., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Berg Mfg. 8: Sales Co., Des Plaines, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Filed July 9, 1963, Ser. No. 293,791 2 Claims. (Cl. 339192) This invention relates to connectors and has particular relation to a multiple-contact connector assembly.

One purpose of the invention is to provide a connector assembly having contacts formed by a stamping operation.

Another purpose is to provide a connector assembly of minimum cost in manufacture.

Another :purpose is to provide a connector assembly which may be assembled with maximum simplicity of operation and minimum cost.

Another purpose is to provide a connector assembly including contacts having a satisfactory degree of float.

Another purpose is to provide a connector assembly with contact elements which may be indexed as desired. Another purpose is to provide a connector assembly which can be disassembled for repair and replacement of parts with maximum ease.

Another purpose is to provide a connector assembly having contacts protected against dislocation in the mating operation.

Other purposes will appear from time to time during the course of the specification and claims.

The invention is illustrated more or less diagrammatically in the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation in partial cross section;

FIGURE 2 is an end view; and

FIGURE 3 is a view taken on the line 3-3.of FIG- URE 1.

Like parts are indicated by like numerals throughout the specification and drawings.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to FIG- URE l, the numeral 1 designates generally a cylindrical housing. The housing has a cylindrical wall 2 and a rear wall 3. An attaching bracket 4 is positioned adjacent the rear wall 3 and in axial alignment with an aperture 3a formed in wall 3. A cable guard 5 is formed of a coiled wire having a series of coils at one end securedwithin the clamp member 4 and a'number of coils at its opposite end disposed in angular relationship with the majority of the coils as indicated at 6. A mounting bracket and handle element 7 is secured as at 8 to the outer surface of the housing 1.

Within the housing 1a well or chamber 10 communicates with the aperture 3a. From the well or chamber 10 the housing 1 is outwardly open. The inner cylindrical wall surface of the wall 2 is slotted or grooved to form a keyway 1,1, as best seen in FIGURE 2.

Seated in the outer open end of housing 1 is a contact-supporting member 12 having a generally cylindrical outer wall surface 13 slidably engaging the inner wall surface of the wall 2. The member 12 has a key portion 12a fitting within the keyway 11 and having its inner end surface abutting the shoulder 11a. A fastener element, shown in dotted lines in FIGURE 1 and indicated best in FIGURE 2 at 14, penetrates the wall 2 of housing 1 and threadedly engages the member 12 to lock the same against movement within the housing 1. The member 12 has an outwardly extending annular flange 15 at its outer end surface, the flange 15 seating against the outer end surface of the Wall 2 of housing 1.

A plurality of substantially circular passages 16 are formed in the member 12 and extend therethrough in parallel relationship with the axis of member 12. As may be best seen in FIGURE 2, the passages 16 include a number of circumferentially spaced passages and an axial ice passage. It will be noted also that one of the passages, for example the uppermost passage, may be of larger diameter than the remaining passages formed in the member 12. Since the passage-s 16 and elements associated therewith are, except for size variances, substantially identical, it will suflice, for convenience, to enumerate and describe one such passage and the elements therewith associated and to apply such description and numeration to all. Each of the passages 16 has partial counterbore portions 16:: at its outer end. Positioned within each of the passages 16 is a contact member 17.

Each of the members 17 is formed of a relatively flat, thin strip of metal folded upon itself to produce a major cylindrical central segment 18 having slots 19 diametrical- 1y opposed therein and extending from a point intermediate the ends of the members 17 to and through the outer open edge of the member 17. Offset at degrees from the slots 19 the member 17 has a pair of diametrically opposed, outwardly extending, semicircular flange portions 2%) formed and adapted for seating upon and in the counterbore portions previously described.

At a :point inwardly spaced from the inner end of member 17 the material thereof is folded upon itself and curved to form a partially conical portion 21 and a hollow neck portion 22 having a substantially triangular crosssectional configuration. The portion 22 is formed by bending the material of the member 17 upon itself to produce an overlapping of substantial longitudinal edge portions as may be best seen, for example, in FIGURE 3. The overlapping portions 23, 24 are apertured in alignment, one with the other, and threads are formed in one or both said apertures for reception and threaded engagement of a lock bolt member 25.

Indicated at 9 is an abutment formed or positioned on the outer surface of housing 1 between the wall 3 and the inner end portions 22 of member 17, the member 9 being positioned for locking engagement with a cooperating element on a mating connector assembly which may from time to time be used with the assembly of the invention.

The use and operation of the invention are as follows:

The contact members 17 are formed by a simple stamping operation upon the thin, flat strip of metal of which the same are constructed. Such strip is curled and folded upon itself to form the major cylindrical elongated central section 18, the outwardly flared diametrically opposed flanges 2t) and the cable-receiving inner end portion 22, the slots 19 being stamped out as an early part of the total forming operation, the apertures in portions 23, 24 being formed either prior to or after the member 17 has been constructed. The housing 1 is a simple hollow cylinder and member 12 is also a cylinder with a number of axially aligned passages, the latter being moldable, for example, out of a suitable insulating material such as Bakelite. Thus the elements are capable of rapid, economic production as Well as rapid, economic assembly as set forth below.

Assembly of the entire structure of the invention is simple, rapid and assured of correctness, eliminating the effect of human error even though assembly has been speeded. The members 17 are squeezed or compressed manually, the slots 19 permitting a reduction in the outer diameter of semicircular flanges 20. This reduction ren-, ders the flanges 20 insertable in passages 16 in slidable engagement with the Walls thereof. Members 17 are then moved, from the rear forward, or right to left as shown, in the passages 16 until the flanges 20 snap into and seat in the counterbore portions Ida.

As best seen in FIGURE 3, the overlapped portions 23, 24 lie outside the diameter of passage 16 and serve as stop means preventing insertion of contacts 17 beyond the desired point and, in cooperation with flanges 2t), serving to lock contacts 17 against unintended longitudinal dislocation in use.

With the members 17 thus positioned in the passages 16 and lock members 25 threaded into the apertures 23a, 24a formed in overlapped portions 23, 24, a cable (not shown), having a number of individual strands corresponding to the number of contacts 17, is inserted through the flexible cable guard 5, through aperture 3a and through chamber to expose the strands outwardly through the opposite open end of housing 1. In the drawings herein seven contacts 17 are shown. The cable employed with the structure shown in the drawings, therefore, would normally contain seven strands, one for connection to each of the terminals or contacts 17. Each strand is inserted in the portion 22 of the connector 17 a distance sufiicient to insure adequate locking contact by the member 25. The member 25 is thereupon turned further into and through the aperture 23a, 24a to compress and lockingly engage the strand to provide solid electrical contact with the contact 17. The assembler then inesrts the member 12 into the outer open end of housing 1, aligning the key portion 13 of the member 12 with the keyway 11 formed in the housing 1. Insertion of the member 12 will cause or be accompanied by a retrograde movement of the cable in chamber 10 and cable guard 5 until the member 12 is fully positioned in the housing 1, the flange 15 seating upon the outer end surface of the housing 1, the inner edge of the key portion 12a seating upon the shoulder 11a of the keyway 11, as may be best seen in FIGURE 1. The member 14 is then inserted in the countersunk aperture illustrated, for example, in FIGURE 2 and is rotated to threadably engage the member 12 and to lock the same in position. The connector of the invention is then ready for use. It will be seen that the entire assembly of the connector of the invention may be rapidly accomplished with a minimum amount of tools and effort.

In use the handle member 7 may be held by the user in one hand while the mating connector member, having an equal number of contact elements, is inserted into mating relationship with the structure of the invention. Similarly, the handle 7 may be employed as a mounting bracket, an aperture 7a being formed in the member 7 to provide for passage therethrough of a suitable fastener element.

When the mating contact elements are inserted in interpenetrating, electrical energy-transmitting relationship with the contacts 17 the tendency of such insertion action to force the members 17 further toward the chamber 10 is precluded by the engagement of flanges 20 with the counterbore portion 16a. Separation of mating contacts from contacts 17, with a tendency to force contacts 17 in the opposite direction, is met by contact of portions 23, 24 with a rear surface of member 12.

Should it become necessary to dismantle or disassemble the structure of the invention for repairs and replacement, the same is easily accomplished by merely removing lock screw 14, drawing member 12 outwardly through the open end of housing 1, or to the left as the parts are shown in the drawings, and withdrawing the lock member 25 from the offending contact or cable strand. Thereafter, if a contact member 17 is to be replaced, the flanges 20 of the offending contact are pressed together through the mediacy of slots 19 and the contact is pressed outwardly from the rear of member 12, or to the right as the parts appear in the drawings.

Whereas there has been shown and described an operative form of the invention, it should be understood that this showing and description are to be taken in an illustrative or diagrammatic sense only. There are many modifications in and to the invention which will be apparent to those skilled in the art and which will fall within the scope and spirit of the invention.

There is claimed:

1. A connector assembly comprising a housing, a cablereceiving aperture at one end of said housing, a contactsupport member seated in the opposite open end of said housing, said support member having a plurality of spaced longitudinal passages therethrough, a contact member positioned in each of said passages, each of said passages having counterbore portions, each of said contact memers formed of a relatively flat, thin strip of metal, said strip being folded upon itself to form a major elongated, hollow cylindrical portion having a pair of diammetrically opposed slots, one of which extends the length of the major portion and the other of which extends less than said length, flange portions bent outwardly from one end of said cylindrical portion, the opposite end of said cylindrical portion being folded upon itself in overlapping relationship to create a substantially cross-sectional triangular end portion, one wall of said triangular end portion extending beyond the circumference of said major cylindrical portion, aligned and threaded apertures formed in said overlapping portion of said triangular end portion, and a lock member threadably engaging said apertures, said flange portions of said contact member formed and adapted for seating in said counterbore portions, and said outwardly extending wall of said end portion of triangular cross section being engageable with said support member.

2. A contact member formed of a relatively flat, thin strip of metal, said strip being folded upon itself to form a major, elongated, hollow, cylindrical portion having a pair of diammetrically opposed slots, one of which extends the length of the major portion and the other of which extends less than said length, flange portions bent outwardly from one end of said cylindrical portion, the opposite end of said cylindrical portion being folded upon itself in overlapping relation to create a substantially cross-sectional triangular end portion, one wall of said triangular end portion extending beyond the circumference of said major cylindrical portion, aligned and threaded apertures formed in said overlapping portions of said triangular end portion and a lock member threadably engaging said apertures.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 848,941 4/07 Vogel et al. Q. 339192 X 952,961 3/10 Thomas 339-191 2,089,844 8/ 37 Anderson 339-484 X 2,124,182 7/38 Braun 339191 X 2,359,634 10/44 Franklin 339-217 2,958,066 10/60 Humphrey 339--206 X FOREIGN PATENTS 141,143 9/ 30 Switzerland.

944,494 11/48 France.

737,427 9/55 Great Britain.

M. HENSON WOOD, IR., Primary Examiner.

JOSEPH D. SEERS, Examiner,

Claims (1)

1. 2. A CONTACT MEMBER FORMED OF A RELATIVELY FLAT, THIN STRIP OF METAL, SAID STRIP BEING FOLDED UPON ITSELF TO FORM A MAYOR, ELONGATED, HOLLOW, CYLINDRICAL PORTION HAVING A PAIR OF DIAMMETRICALLY OPPOSED SLOTS, ONE OF WHICH EXTENDS THE LENGTH OF THE MAJOR PORTION AND THE OTHER OF WHICH EXTENDS LESS THAN SAID LENGTH, FLANGE PORTION BENT OUTWARDLY FROM ONE END OF SAID CYLINDRICAL PORTION, THE OPPOSITE END OF SAID CYLINDRICAL PORTION BEING FOLDED UPON ITSELF IN OVERLAPPING RELATION TO CREATE A SUBSTANTIALLY CROSS-SECTIONAL TRIANGULAR END PORTION, ONE WALL OF SAID TRIANGULAR END PORTION EXTENDING BEYOND THE CIRCUMFERENCE OF SAID MAJOR CYLINDRICAL PORTION, ALIGNED AND THREADED APERTURES FORMED IN SAID OVERLAPPING PORTIONS OF SAID TRIANGULAR END PORTION AND A LOCK MEMBER THREADABLY ENGAGING SAID APERTURES.

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