US3445804A

US3445804A - Electrical connector

Info

Publication number: US3445804A
Application number: US632333A
Authority: US
Inventors: Edgar L Perkins
Original assignee: Sperry Rand Corp
Current assignee: Vickers Inc
Priority date: 1967-04-20
Filing date: 1967-04-20
Publication date: 1969-05-20
Anticipated expiration: 1986-05-20
Also published as: DE1765099A1; GB1217588A; DE1765099B2; DE1765099C3

Description

May 20, 1969 E. PERKINS 3,445,804

ELECTRI CAL CONNECTOR Filed April 20. 1967 52 FIG. l

5 /32 32 I//MWFIGA.

United States Patent O4 U.S. Cl. 339-62 15 Claims ABSTRACT OF TI-IE DISCLOSURE The receptacle of an electrical connector has a base with a plurality of sockets therein, has ya cylindrical wall extending forwardly from that base to deline a recess, and has axially-extending ribs adjacent the inner face of that cylindrical wall; and the plug of that electrical connector has a plurality of resilient lingers with prongs projecting beyond the ends thereof and with flexible conductors embedded therein, and has relieved portions at the edges of the lingers thereof which can coact with the axiallyextending ribs to automatically align the prongs with the sockets but which can move relative to those axiallyextending ribs to permit precise registration of those prongs with those sockets.

This invention relates to improvements in electrical connectors. More particularly, this invention relates to improvements in electrical connectors which contain a plurality of sockets and prongs.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an improved electrical connector which has a plurality of sockets and prongs.

It is frequently desirable to mount the plug or receptacle of an electrical connector on a first device which is to be bodily connected to and disconnected from a second device. Where that is done, it is important that the plug or receptacle, which is mounted on that first device, be capable of automatically aligning itself with the complementary portion of that electrical connector, which is mounted on that second device. Consequently, it would be desirable to provide an electrical connector which has a plug and la receptacle that can automatically align themselves as they are moved into assembled relation. The present invention provides such an electrical connector; and it is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an electrical connector which has a plug and a receptacle that can automatically align themselves as they are moved into assembled relation.

The receptacle of the electrical connector provided by the present invention 'has a base with a plurality of sockets therein, and the plug of that electrical connector has a number of prong-supported lingers thereon. That receptacle also has a cylindrical wall which extends forwardly from that base to define a recess which can act to guide and confine those prong-supporting lingers, as that plug is moved into assembled relation with that receptacle; and ribs are provided adjacent the inner face of that cylindrical wall to help align the fingers of that plug with the sockets in that receptacle. Those lingers are spaced apart to permit relative movement between the ends of those lingers, and thus between the prongs carried by those lingers; and the side edges of those lingers are relieved to provide spaces that are generally complementary to, but larger than, the ribs adjacent the inner face of the cylindrical wall of the receptacle. As a result, the lingers of the plug have room to llex, as the prongs carried by those fingers engage the sockets in the receptacle, and thereby enable those prongs to align themselves precisely with those sockets.

Patented May 20, 1969 ice Other and further objects and advantages of the present invention should become apparent from an examination of the drawing and accompanying description.

In the drawing and accompanying description a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown and described but it is to be understood that the drawing and accompanying description are for the purpose of illustration only and do not limit the invention and that the invention will ibe delined by the appended claims.

In the drawing, FIG. l is an elevational view of one preferred embodiment of electrical connector that is made in accordance with the principles and teachings of the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a sectional view, on a larger scale, through the electrical connector of FIG. l, and it is taken along the plane indicated by the line 2 2 in FIG. l,

FIG. 3 is a sectional view, on the scale of FIG. 2, through the electrical connector of FIG. l, and it is taken along the plane indicated by the line 3-3 in FIG. 2,

FIG. 4 is an end elevational view, on a scale intermediate those of FIGS. 1 and 2, of the plug of the electrical connector of FIG. l,

FIG. 5 is a sectional view, on the scale of FIG. 4, through the plug shown in FIG. 4, and it is taken along the broken plane indicated by the broken line 5-5 in FIG. 4,

FIG. 6 is an end elevational view, on the scale of FIG. 4, of the receptacle of the electrical connector of FIG. l, and

FIG. 7 is a sectional view, on the scale of FIG. 4, through the receptacle shown in FIG. 6, `and it is taken along the broken plane indicated by the broken line 7-7 in FIG. 6.

Referring to the drawing in detail, the numeral 20 generally denotes the receptacle of one preferred embodiment of electrical connector that is made in accordance with the principles and teachings of the present invention. That receptacle has a base 22 which is generally cylindrical in configuration; and that base has

metal sockets

32, 34, 36 and 38 embedded therein. Recesses 24, 26, 28 and 30 extend forwardly from those sockets to the front face of that base; and the diameters of those recesses are larger than the transverse dimensions of the

sockets

32, 34, 36 and 38. Those sockets are preferably made from a metal which is a good conductor of electricity but which is sturdy and resilient.

Conductors

40, 42, 44 and 46 are connected, respectively, to the

sockets

32, 34, 36 and 38; and those conductors can be connected to those sockets by solder, by crimping, by staking, or by any of the other methods commonly used in the electrical trade. Those conductors also are embedded within the 4base 22; and those conductors extend outwardly from the rear face of that base.

The numeral 48 denotes an annular wall which extends forwardly from the front face of the base 22; and that wall is disposed radially outwardly of the four

recesses

24, 26, 28 and 30. Axially-directed

bosses

50, 52, 54 and 56 are for-med adjacent the inner face of the annular wall 48, and those bosses extend inwardly of that wall. The forward ends of those bosses are generally flat and are llush with the forward end of the annular wall 48, but the edges of those forward ends of those bosses are chamfered. As shown particularly by FIG. 6, the

bosses

50, 52, 54 and 56 are generally semi-cylindrical in end view.

A cylindrical post 58 extends forwardly from the front face of the base 22, and that post is concentric with the annular wall 48. That post is shorter than the annular wall 48 and is shorter than the

bosses

50, 52, 54 and 56, as shown particularly by FIG. 7. The forward end of that post is generally fiat, but the edges of that forward end of that post are rounded. The receptacle has a reduceddiameter portion 59 at the rear thereof; and an alignment indicator 60, in the form of a rectangular projection, is formed on that portion.

The base 22, the

cavities

24, 26, 28 and 30, the annular wall 48, the

bosses

50, 52, 54 and 56, the post 58, and the alignment indicator 60 of the receptacle 20 will preferably be formed by a molding operation; and that rcceptacle will preferably be made from a study, long-lived, insulating material that is readily molded. Many plastic, rubber, and other resilient materials that can be molded or otherwise fashioned into the desired form can be used, but polyvinyl chloride has been found to be very useful. The

sockets

32, 34, 36 and 38, and the

conductors

40, 42, 44 and 46 will be molded into the base 22 as the receptacle 20 is formed; and the forward ends of the

sockets

32, 34, 36 and 38 will be suitably closed during the molding operation to keep the molten material from flowing into and filling those sockets.

The numeral 62 generally denotes the plug of the preferred embodiment of electrical connector provided by the present invention. That plug has a Abase 64 which is generally cylindrical in configuration; and enlogated,

fiexible fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 extend forwardly from the front face of that base..Those fingers have convex outer faces, as shown particularly by FIG. 4; and the curvature of those outer faces is generally complementary to, but smaller than, the curvature of the inner face of the annular wall 48 of the receptacle 20. The

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 are provided, respectively, with reduced

cross-section portions

74, 76, 78 and 80; and those reduced crosssection portions facilitate defiection of those fingers relative to each other. The flexible nature of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 and the deflection of those fingers, which is made possible by the reduced

cross-section portions

74, 76, 78 and 80, enable the free ends of those fingers to eX- perience radial, circumferential and composite movement relative to each other.

The

lingers

66 and 68 are spaced apart to define a raldially-directed space 98, the

fingers

68 and 70 are spaced apart to define a radially-directed space 100, the fingers 70y and 72 are spaced apart to define a radially-directed space 102, and the

fingers

72 and 66 are spaced apart to define a radially-directed space 104. Those spaces permit radial, circumferential and composite movement of any one of those fingers relative to the other fingers without disturbing the positions of those other fingers. The finger 66 has relieved portions 82 and 84 at the outer edges thereof, the finger 68 has relieved

portions

86 and 88 at the outer edges thereof, the fingers 70 has relieved

portions

90 and 92 at the outer edges thereof, and the finger 72 has relieved

portions

94 and 96 at the outer edges thereof. The relieved portions 84 and 86, respectively, of the

fingers

66 and 68 define a semi-cylindrical space which is generally complementary to, but larger than, the semi-cylindrical boss 56 of the receptacle 20. Similarly, the

relieved portions

88 and 90, respectively, of the

fingers

68 and 70 define a semi-cylindrical space which is complementary to, but larger than, the semi-cylindrical boss 54 on that receptacle. The relieved

portions

92 and 94, respectively, of the

fingers

70 and 72 coact to `define a semi-cylindrical space which is complementary to, but larger than, the semicylindrical -boss 52; and the relieved portions 96 and 82, respectively, of the

fingers

72 and 66 coact to define a semi-cylindrical space which is complementary to, but larger than, the semi-cylindrical boss 50. The

inner faces

106, 108, 110 and 112, respectively, of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 are concave; and those inner faces coact to define a generally-cylindrical space that is complementary to, but larger than, the post 58 of the receptacle 20.

The diameter of the generally-cylindrical surface defined by the

inner faces

106, 108, 110 and 112, respectively, of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 is close to the diameter of the post 58. In the said one preferred embodiment of electrical connector provided by the present invention, the diameter of that generally-cylindrical space ranges between two hundred and fifty-seven thousandths and two hundred and sixty-seven thousandths of an inch, while the diameter of that post ranges between two hundred and forty-three thousandths of an inch and two hundred and fifty-seven thousandths of an inch. The convex outer surfaces of the

ngers

66, 68, 70 and 72 define a generallycylindrical surface which has a diameter that ranges from seven hundred and fifty-seven thousandths to seven hundred and forty-three thousandths of an inch, while the inner diameter of the annular wall 48 ranges from seven hundred and sixty thousandths to seven hundred and seventy thousandths of an inch. The resulting close fit between the post 58 of the receptacle 20 and the generallycylindrical space defined by the concave

inner faces

106, 108, and 112, respectively, of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 of the plug 62 will coact with the close fit between the generally-cylindrical surface defined `by the outer faces of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 and the inner face of the annular wall 48 to enable that receptacle and that plug to automatically and closely align the axes thereof as that receptacle and that plug are assembled with each other.

The semi-cylindrical spaces defined -by the relieved portions at the outer edges of the adjacent fingers of the plug 62 have radii which are close to the radii of the axiallyextending bosses 50, `S2, I54 and 56 adjacent the inner surface of the annular wall 48. Thus, in the said preferred embodiment of electrical connector provided by the present invention, the radii of the semi-cylindrical spaces defined by the relieved portions at the outer edges of the adjacent lingers range from ninety-eight thousandths to one hundred and eight thousandths of an inch while the radii of those bosses range from ninety-seven thousandths to ninety thousandts of an inch. The resulting close fits between those bosses and those Vsemi-cylindrical spaces enable the plug and receptacle of the electrical connector to provide very close initial alignments of the

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130, respectively, which extend forwardly from' the forward ends of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72, with the

sockets

32, 34, 36 and 38 in the base 22 of the receptacle 20. Short

cylindrical projections

114, 116, 118 and 120 are formed on the forward ends, respectively, of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72; and those cylindrical projections closely surround portions of the

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130. The

cylindrical projections

114, 116, 118 and 120 are dimensioned to extend into the

recesses

24, 30, 28 and 26 of the receptacle 20, as shown by FIG. 2; and the outer diameters of those cylindrical projections are close to the diameters of those recesses. Thus, in the said one preferred embodiment of electrical `connector provided by the present invention, the outer diameters of the cylin`-

drical projections

114, 116, 118 and 120 range from one hundred and eight-eight thousandths to one hundred and eighty-three thousandths of an inch while the diameters of the

recesses

24, 26, 28 and 30 range from one hundred and ninety-three thousandths to one hundred and eightyeight thousandths of an inch. The resulting close fits between those cylindrical projections and those recesses tend to minimize the entry of dust and other objectionable foreign material into those recesses.

The plug 62 has an annular rib 132 adjacent the forward end of the base 64; and that rib is immediately adjacent the reduced

cross-section portions

74, 76, 78 and 80, respectively, of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72. That annular rib will coact with those reduced crosssection portions to facilitate ready gripping of that plug by a clamp on a device with which that plug is to be associated and with which that plug must move.

Conductors

134, 136 and 138 and 140 are connected, respectively, to the rear portions of the

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130, by solder, by crimping, by staking or by any of the other methods commonly used in the electrical trade. Those conductors are embedded within the

fingers

66, 68 70 and 72 and within the base 64 of the plug 62.

An alignment indicator 144 is provided on the plug 62; and that alignment indicator is semi-cylindrical in form, as shown by FIG. 4. That alignment indicator will be in register with the alignment indicator 60 on the receptacle 20 whenever the

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130 are aligned, respectively, with the

sockets

32, 38, 36 and 34. The forward ends of the

sockets

32, 34, 36 and 38 are displaced rearwardly of the forward end of the post 58 by a distance greater than the exposed length of any of the

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130.

The base 64, the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72, the

cylindrical projections

114, 116, 118 and 120, the annular rib 132 and the alignment indicator 144 of the plug 62 will preferably be molded as one piece. Many plastic, rubber, and other resilient materials that can be molded or otherwise fashioned into the desired form can be used, but polyvinyl chloride has been found to be very useful. The

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130 and the

conductors

134, 136, 138 and 140 will be incorporated into the fingers and base of the plug 62 as that plug is molded; and those prongs will be suitably protected during the molding operation so the 4forward ends thereof will not be overlain by any of the molding material.

The plug 62 can be fixedly secured to a first device which is intended to be bodily moved into, and to be bodily moved out of, engagement with a second device; and the plug 20 can be fixedly secured to that second device. As that first device is moved toward that second device, the generally-cylindrical surface defined by the convex outer faces of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 on the plug 62 will be generally-aligned with the generallycylindrical recess defined by the annular wall 48 on the receptacle 20. That first device will be moved toward that second device until the forward ends of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 approach and engage the chamfered edges of the forward ends of the bosses 50, S2, 54 and 56. If the forward ends of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 are precisely in register with the spaces between the

bosses

50, 52, 54 and 56, and if the generally-cylindrical surface defined by the outer faces of those fingers is precisely concentric with the generally-cylindrical recess defined by the annular wall 48, the plug 62 will not experience any radial, circumferential or composite movement as it is moved into engagement with the receptacle 20. However, if those fingers are not precisely in register with the spaces between those bosses, and if the generallycylindrical surface defined by the outer faces -of those fingers is not precisely concentric with the generallycylindrical recess defined by that annular wall, the chamfered edges at the forward ends of those bosses will cotact with the forward edges of those lingers to automatically shift the plug 62 and the first device radially, circumferentially or in a composite manner relative to the receptacle 20 and the second device until the

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130 are in substantial alignment with the

sockets

32, 38, 36 and 34.

As the first device is moved closer to the second device, the forward ends of the lingers 66, 68, 70 and 72 will approach and engage the forward end of the post 58, and the generally-cylindrical space defined by the inner faces 106, 108, 110 and 112, respectively, `of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 will tend to telescope over the post 58 of the receptacle 20. In the event the forward end of any one of those fingers is unduly close to the axis of the plug 62, the forward end of that finger will engage the rounded edge `of the forward end of the post 58 and will be guided outwardly until it is spaced the proper distance from the axis of that plug. At this time, the annular Wall 48 will coact with the post 58 to force the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 of the plug 62 to be axially-directed, and Will coact with that post to provide the desired radial spacings between the

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130 of that plug and the axis `of that plug. Also at this time, the

bosses

50, 52, 54 and 56 will coact with the

relieved portions

82, 84, 86, 88, 90, 92, 94 and 96 on those fingers to provide close circumferential alignment of those prongs with the

sockets

32, 38, 36 and 34.

The first device will continue to move toward the second device until the forward ends of the

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130 start toenter the

sockets

32, 38, 36 and 34. If any one of those prongs is not precisely aligned with the corresponding socket, the rounded forward end of that prong will coact with the wall of that socket to move the forward end of the finger supporting that prong circumferentially, radially or in a composite manner until that prong is precisely aligned with that socket. The spacing between the free end of any of the fingers and the inner surface of the annular wall 48, and the spacing between the free end of that finger and the surface of the post 58 or the surface of any of the

bosses

50, 52, 54 and 56 will not be very great; but those spacings will be large enough to enable that prong to move into precise registry with its corresponding socket. Further movement of the first device toward the second device will cause the

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130 to move fully into the

sockets

32, 38, 36 and 34. Any circumferential, radial or composite movement of the free ends of any of the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72, which must occur as the plug 62 telescopes into engagement with the receptacle 20, will occur freely and easily; because of the flexible nature of those fingers, and because the reduced cross-section portions of those fingers facilitate free and easy deflection of those fingers. As a result, the

prongs

124, 126, 128 and 130 can easily and automatically be aligned with, and telescoped into, the

sockets

32, 38, 36 and 34 as the first device is moved into engagement with the second device. Also, as a result, the plug 62 and the receptacle 20 of the electrical connector provided by the present invention are readily separable.

It will be noted that while the

alignment indicators

60 and 144 are relied upon to enable the installer to provide the initial alignment of the plug 62 with the receptacle 20, the

fingers

66, 68, 70 and 72 and the

prongs

124, 126, I128, and 130 carried thereby automatically cooperate with the annular wall 48, with the chamfered edges at the forward ends of the

bosses

50, 52, 54 and 56, with the rounded edge at the forward end of the post 58, and with the

sockets

32, 38, 36 and 34 to provide whatever radical, circumferential and composite movement of the forward ends of those fingers is needed to effect precise registration of those prongs with those sockets. It also will be noted that the spacing of the forward end of the post 58 rearwardly of the forward ends of the bosses 50, S2, 54 and 56, and that the spacing of the forward ends of the

sockets

32, 38, 36 and 34 an appreciable distance rearwardly of the forward end of the post 58 provide progressive, step-by-step movement of the prongs 124, y126, 128 and 130 from general registry into precise registry with the

sockets

32, 38, 36 and 34. In addition, it will be noted that the said positioning of that annular wall, of those bosses, of that post, and of those sockets requires the forward end of any finger to respond to flex-inducing and defiection-inducing forces from those portions of the receptacle 20 in successive rather than simultaneous fashion. The overall result is that the plug 62 and the receptacle 20 of the preferred embodiment of electrical connector provided by the present invention can easily and automatically be moved into assembled relation.

Whereas the drawing and accompanying description have shown and described a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may .be made in the form of the invention without affecting the scope thereof.

What I claim is:

1. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable elec- -trical connector which comprises:

a base that has a plurality of prong-receiving sockets therein, a wall that extends forward from said base to dene a recess in front of the base, and a guiding element that is adjacent the inner surface of said wall,

said base, said prong-receiving sockets, and said guiding element forming the receptacle of said automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector,

a second base that has a plurality of fingers extending forwardly therefrom, prongs carried by and extending forwardly from said fingers, and conductors extending through said base and through said fingers and being electrically connected to said prongs,

said fingers being spaced apart to define a space therebetween but being grouped together to define a surface that is generally complementary to, but smaller than, said inner surface of said wall,

said fingers having surfaces thereon that are complementary to portions of said guiding element,

whereby said fingers can telescope into said recess defined by said wall and said surfaces thereon can accommodate said guiding element,

said second base, said plurality of fingers, said prongs,

and said conductors forming the plug of said automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector,

said fingers disposing said prongs substantially in register with said sockets whenever said surfaces on said fingers are aligned with said guiding element,

said fingers and said conductors being fiexible,

said surfaces on said fingers coacting with said guiding element to automatically align said plug of said automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector with said receptacle of said automaticallyalignable, readily-separable electrical connector as said plug is moved into telescoping relation With said receptacle,

said space between said fingers and the flexibility of said ngers and of said conductors enabling said prongs to move into precise registry with said sockets as said prongs approach and are telescoped into said sockets,

whereby said surfaces on said fingers can coact with said guiding element to automatically align said plug and receptacle of said automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector but can move laterally of said guiding element to enable said prongs to move into precise registry with said sockets as said prongs approach and are telescoped into said sockets.

2. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein said receptacle has a member that coacts with said wall to generally fix the radial positions of the forward ends of said fingers as said plug and said receptable are being telescoped together.

3. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connected as claimed in claim 1 wherein said guiding element is a rib that extends axially forwardly from said base of said receptable and abuts said inner face of said wall.

4. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein said surfaces on said fingers are relieved surfaces adjacent the outer faces of said fingers and coact to define a space which is larger than said guiding element.

5. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein said guiding element is a rib that extends axially forwardly from said base of said receptacle and abuts said inner face of said wall, and wherein said surfaces on said fingers are relieved surfaces adjacent the outer faces of said fingers and coact to define a space which is larger than said guiding element.

6. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable el'ectrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein said fingers are flexible and wherein said fingers have reduced cross-section portions to enable said fingers to be deliected, whereby said fingers can flex and defiect to provide radial,

circumferential and composite movement of the forward ends thereof.

7. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein said receptacle has a member that coacts with said wall to generally fix the radial positions of the forward ends of said fingers as said plug and said receptacle are being telescoped together, and wherein said wall and said member are axially displaced, so the forward ends of said fingers will respond to dex-inducing and defiection-inducing forces from said wall and said member in successive rather than simultaneous fashion.

8. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein said guiding element is a rib of semi-cylindrical configuration that has chamfered edges at the forward end thereof, and wherein said surfaces on said fingers coact to define a semi-cylindrical space which is larger than said semi-cylindrical rib.

9. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein additional fingers extend forwardly from said second base of said plug, said additional fingers coacting with the first said fingers to define a surface that is complementary to but smaller than said recess defined by said wall on said receptacle, said wall and said surface coacting to align the axes of said plug and said receptacle as they are telescoped together.

10. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein additional fingers extend forwardly from said second base of said plug, said additional fingers being spaced from the first said fingers and from each other to define a plurality of spaces, said plurality of spaces enabling said fingers to fiex and deflect and thereby provide radial, circumferential and composite movement of the forward ends thereof.

11. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein additional fingers extend forwardly from said second base of said plug, said additional fingers coacting with the first said fingers to define a centrally-located space, and wherein said receptacle has a member that can telescope into said centrally-located space, said member coacting with said wall to generally fix the radial positions of the forward ends of the first said and said additional fingers as said plug and said receptacle are being telescoped together.

12. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein additional fingers extend forwardly from said second base of said plug, said additional fingers coacting with the first said fingers to define a centrally-located space and to dene a generally-cylindrical exterior surface, said centrallylocated space being generally-cylindrical and being generally concentric with said generally cylindrical exterior surface.

13. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 1 wherein said receptacle has a member that is disposed within said recess and that extends forwardly from said base of said receptacle, said member being dimensioned so the forward end thereof is closer to said base of `said receptacle than is the forward end of said wall, said member coacting to generally fix the radial positions of the forward ends of said fingers as said plug and said receptacle are being telescoped together.

14. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector which comprises:

a base that a plurality of prong-receiving sockets therein, a wall that `extends forwardly from said base to define a recess in front of said base, a plurality of guiding elements that are adjacent the inner surface of said wall, and a member that is disposed inwardly of said inner surface of said wall,

said base, said prong-receiving sockets, said plurality of guiding elements and said member forming the receptacle of said automatically-alignable, readilyseparable electrical connector,

a second base that has a plurality of lingers extending forwardly therefrom, prongs carried by and extending forwardly from the forward ends of said fingers, and conductors extending through said base and through said fingers and being electrically connected to said prongs,

said fingers being spaced apart to define spaces therebetween, but being grouped together to define an exterior surface that is generally complementary to, but smaller than, said inner surface of said wall and also to define a centrally-located space that is generally complementary to, but larger than, said member on said receptacle,

the portions of said fingers which define said spaces between said fingers having relieved surfaces adjacent the outer faces of said fingers that are complementary to portions of said guiding elements, whereby said fingers can telescope into said recess defined by said wall and said relieved surfaces can accommodate said guiding elements,

said second base, said plurality of fingers, said prongs,

said exterior surface defined by said fingers coacting with said inner surface of said wall, and said centrally-located space defined by said fingers coacting with said member 0n said receptacle, to substantially align the axes of said plug and receptacle,

said exterior surface defined by said fingers coacting with said inner surface of said Wall, said centrallylocated space defined by said fingers coacting with said member on said receptacle, and said relieved surfaces, on those portions of said fingers which define said spaces between said lingers, coacting with said guiding elements to automatically dispose said prongs substantially in registry with said sockets as said plug is moved into telescoping relation with said receptacle,

said plurality of fingers and said conductors being iiexible and defiectable, and

said spaces between said fingers and the flexibility and deectability of said fingers and of said conductors enabling the forward ends of said fingers to move laterally and thereby permit said prongs to move into precise registry with said sockets as said prongs approach and are telescoped into said sockets.

15. An automatically-alignable, readily-separable electrical connector as claimed in claim 14 wherein the forward ends of said aligning members are disposed forwardly of the forward end of said member of said receptacle, and wherein the forward ends of said sockets are disposed rearwardly of the forward end of said member of said receptacle a distance less than the exposed length of any of said prongs.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,157,026 10/1915 Meschenmoser 339-184 2,764,748 9/ 1956 Heller 339--184 3,054,080 9/ 1962 Jepson 339-196 X FOREIGN PATENTS 797,352 8/ 1960 France. 616,550 7/ 1935 Germany.

MARVIN A. CHAMPION, Primary. Examiner.

I. R. MOSES, Assistant Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R.