WO2009056909A1

WO2009056909A1 - Connector, terminal block and housing therefor and method of manufacturing thereof

Info

Publication number: WO2009056909A1
Application number: PCT/IB2007/055381
Authority: WO
Inventors: Nico Van Stiphout; Leonard Van Kuijk; Ludwig Lange; Tiny Peters; Erik Verbruggen; Stefaan Sercu; Gert Droesbeke
Original assignee: Fci
Priority date: 2007-10-31
Filing date: 2007-10-31
Publication date: 2009-05-07

Abstract

A terminal block for a connector for terminating multiple isolated conductors (18), includes a housing (1; 29, 30; 38, 40) and a plurality of terminals (3;24, 25; 34), each having a centre line extending between a front end (4) and a termination end (14;25, 28) for attachment of a conductor (18). The terminals (3;24, 25;34) are arranged with their centre lines alongside each other to form a row, adjacent terminals in the row having a smallest mutual distance between their centre lines in a direction (x) of progression of the row. The terminals (3;24, 25;34) are arranged in the housing such that the centre lines of adjacent terminals (3;24,25;34) at their termination ends (14; 25, 28) are situated at a différent relative position than at their front ends (4).

Description

Connector, terminal block and housing therefor and method of manufacturing thereof

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of connectors, in particular connectors for terminating multiple conductors. More particularly, the invention relates to a terminal block for such a connector, to a housing for such a terminal block and to a method of manufacturing the terminal block.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE Connectors for terminating multiple electrical conductors are known in general .

Presently, most electrical devices are desired to be small and thus there is a drive to also reduce the size of associated connectors. This size reduction presents complications for the manufacturing of connectors, since an increasing degree of precision is required for connecting each conductor of a plurality of conductors to a terminal.

Further, when connecting a conductor to a terminal by soldering, generally the solder extends beyond the cross section of the conductor and/or terminal. This may cause an electrical shortcut between adjacent conductors and thus result in a faulty and defective product.

Hence, the pitch, i.e. the distances between the centre lines of adjacent terminals in a connector or a terminal block for use with multiple conductors cannot be reduced much without larger fabrication losses, and thus higher costs. This problem will become more acute for future generations of connectors requiring even smaller terminals.

A connector and a terminal block for terminating multiple electric conductors are disclosed in DΞ-U1-20 2005 004 433, which shows an HDMI -connector with an electrically insulating housing and terminals. Each one of the terminals has a contact part and a connection part which extends from the contact part in the same plane and is biased under an angle of about 45 degrees relative to the contact part. The housing includes a localising frame and a base holding part that consists of two parts. The first and second parts are fixed to each other to hold the terminals in two vertically spaced rows, whereby the contact parts and connection parts of the terminals are held in place on two opposite parts of the connector base part. The localising frame shows a plurality of connection grooves, arranged for positioning the connection parts of the terminals. The connection grooves are V-shaped grooves, each having a first angled wall and a second angled wall, meeting each other at right angles. The connection parts of the terminals are respectively accommodated close to the first angled wall of the connection grooves and form, with the angled wall a wedge-shaped space. The wedge-shaped spaces form a ribbed structure which is very suitable for positioning the conductors of a cable.

Although such terminal block is suitable for isolating adjacent terminals, it has the disadvantage that the pitch in the lateral direction, i.e. the direction of progression of a row of terminals, cannot be reduced much. This problem will become more acute for future generations of terminals having only one row of terminals, as opposed to two.

SUMMARY

In view of the above, there is thus a need for an improved terminal block and an improved connector that reduce or solve one or more of the disadvantages above, and for a method of manufacturing such terminal block or connector. In particular, a connector is desired for terminating multiple conductors that allows a smaller pitch of the terminals to be achieved.

To that end, it is provided a terminal block for terminating multiple conductors according to claim 1.

This allows separately arranging the front ends and the termination ends of the terminals. Thus, either side of the terminals may be optimised for one or more different objects. In particular, the front ends of adjacent terminals may be positioned at a desired contact layout, in particular one with a reduced pitch, whereas the termination ends may be arranged for facilitating attachment of conductors. For instance, the terminals are arranged according to claim 2.

The terminal block may advantageously be formed according to claim 3. Here, a pitch reduction may be achieved by attaching the multiple conductors, such as those of the wires of a multi-wire cable e.g. multiple isolated conductors, in a staggered configuration to the termination ends of the respective terminals. Thus, the distance between the terminals in the direction of progression of the row can be decreased to less than twice the distance between the conductors, which distance may be fixed by the amount of isolation in case of isolated conductors. In the case of a multi-wire cable, the distance between the conductors may be determined by the thickness of the insulation of the wires in the multi-wire cable. In the case of conductive tracks on opposite surfaces of a printed circuit board, the distance may be determined by the thickness of the board and the distance on the board surface that is required, for example due to considerations of air and creepage distance. In the embodiment according to claim 4, raised parts constrain movement of the terminals in the direction of progression of the row of terminals. As a consequence, they are positioned relatively accurately.

In the embodiment according to claim 5, a small pitch is achievable even with terminals that flare out towards their termination ends, whilst all terminals are positioned relatively accurately in the direction of progression of the row of terminals. Seen in the direction of elevation, the termination ends of adjacent terminals may overlap, because they are maintained at different levels in that direction.

In the embodiment according to claim 6, the pitch of adjacent terminals in the row can be kept small for a given lateral dimension of the terminals.

In the embodiment according to claim 7, at least two adjacent terminals, possibly all terminals, may be arranged for an optimum pitch, e.g. accounting for the thickness of the insulation of the wires in a multi-wire cable. Advantageously, the terminals fan out towards their termination ends and therewith provide more space for manoeuvring and connecting the conductors to the terminals. This facilitates connecting conductors to the terminals and reduces the chances of creating electrical shortcuts between the adjacent terminals, whereas the pitch at the front ends can remain relatively small. In the embodiment according to claim 8, the pitch of the terminals in the row can be kept small at the front end, whilst the terminals still present a relatively large surface area for attachment of a conductor, e.g. that of a wire in the multi-wire cable. The risk of contamination of the joint between the conductor and the terminal by material of the housing is reduced. Where the joint is formed by soldering, a sufficiently large area for wetting by the solder is provided.

In the embodiment according to claim 9, the electrical path lengths along adjacent terminals in the connector is kept essentially equal. If conductors forming a differential pair or a parallel pair are connected to the adjacent terminals, signal skew is reduced according to the degree to which the electrical path lengths match. Differential signalling is relatively insensitive to common-mode noise. In the embodiment according to claim 10, the amount of cross-talk is relatively low for a given pitch, because the permittivity of air is typically lower than that of materials suitable for forming a housing of a terminal block. A low permittivity implies a large impedance to ground. The embodiment according to claim 11 provides a terminal block for a connector with a low profile in the direction of elevation. It is, for example, suitable for connecting the connector to a mating connector at an edge of a printed circuit board. The embodiment according to claim 12 facilitates connecting conductors to the terminals. The centre lines of the termination ends may be arranged at an angle to the centre lines of other portions of the terminals.

In a housing according to claim 13, the housing part is shaped to ensure that the distance between the termination ends is matched to the distance between isolated conductors, whilst the pitch in the direction of progression of the row is kept relatively low. For example, the distance between the conductors of wires of the multi-wire cable may be determined by the insulating sheaths of the wires. This means that the pitch can be kept low even where the conductors are not stretched or preformed before connection to the terminals.

According to the embodiment of claim 14, a connector is provided which may allow a relatively small pitch and which may be manufactured relatively cost efficiently.

According to another aspect, corresponding to claim 15, the invention is a method of forming a terminal block. This method results in a terminal block with the properties of the disclosed terminal block.

The embodiment of claim 16 makes the terminal block easy to assemble, since the first housing part is accessible relatively well when the second housing part is not present. The second housing part ensures that the termination ends of the terminals are correctly positioned. In case of elevated terminal ends, it can be brought up against the first housing part by displacing it at least partially in the direction of elevation relative to the first housing part.

In accordance with the above, a method for forming a connector is provided. The method allows a relatively cost efficient manufacturing of a connector.

SHORT DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

The above will be explained in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 shows a first embodiment of a terminal block housing;

Fig. 2 shows a lead frame for providing the terminals of a terminal block; Fig. 3 shows a terminal block according to the first embodiment of the terminal block housing and provided with optional latches;

Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a profile of a terminal block housing of Fig.3 with termination ends of terminals, as well as a cross-section of a wire in a multi-wire cable;

Fig. 5 is a schematic illustration of the shapes of two adjacent terminals in a row in a terminal block of Fig.3 and 4;

Fig. 6 shows a first housing part of a second embodiment of a terminal block housing; Fig. 7 shows the first housing part of Fig. 6 with terminals inserted;

Fig. 8 shows a second housing part of the second embodiment of the terminal block housing; Fig. 9 shows a first housing part of a third embodiment of a terminal block housing;

Fig. 10 shows the first housing part of Fig. 9 with inserted terminals;

Fig. 11 shows an intermediate stage in the assembly of a terminal block including the third embodiment of the terminal block housing;

Fig. 12 shows a schematic top view of a possible arrangement of terminals; and

Fig. 13 shows a schematic top view of a different possible arrangement of terminals.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS A first terminal block housing 1 is represented in Figs. 1 and 3. The terminal block housing 1 is made of an electrically insulating material. It may be made by injection moulding, for example. A suitable material is a glass fibre composite comprising polyester filled with 30 % wt . glass fibre. The terminal block housing 1 comprises a first housing part 2 for fixedly accommodating a section of each of a plurality of elongated terminals 3. Sections of the terminals 3 at contact ends 4 are accommodated in grooves 5 in the first housing part 2. A section of each terminal 3 that follows the section at the contact end 4 engages locking means (not shown in detail) in channels 6 through the first housing part 2. Thus, the terminals 3, when inserted through the channels 6, are held with their centre lines substantially parallel to each other to form a row progressing in a first direction x. In the illustrated embodiment, the terminals 3 all have at least a section of their centre lines at the contact end 4 parallel to a second direction y. The contact ends 4 of adjacent terminals are essentially aligned parallel to each other. The first housing part 2 constrains the movement of the terminals 3 in a third direction z, referred to herein as the direction of elevation. A second housing part 7 includes two profiles 8,9 of a castellated shape. The profiles 8,9 support sections of the terminals 3 when these ones have been inserted into the first housing part 2. To obtain a terminal block 10 (Fig. 3) including the terminal block housing 1 and the terminals 3, a lead frame 11 (Fig. 2) is provided. The lead frame 11 is obtainable by successive operations, starting from a blank made of a conductive material such as metal, e.g. plated phosphor bronze. The lead frame with the carrier or carriers ensures that the terminals can be handled in a relatively simple way, at least prior to assembly of the terminal block.

The processes involved in making the lead frame 11 include trimming, bending and forming. At the stage shown in Fig. 2, the lead frame 11 includes an optional mid carrier 12 and an end carrier 13, integrally connecting the terminals 3 included in the lead frame 11. Prior to inserting a part of the lead frame 11 including the terminals 3 partially into the channels 6 of the first housing part 2, the terminals 3 are gripped by a tool (not shown) , and the mid carrier 12 is cut away, so as to separate adjacent terminals. To insert the terminals 2 of the lead frame 11 partially into the channels 6, the tool gripping the terminals may be used. Upon or before the final insertion, the remaining end carrier 13 is removed from the lead frame 11. Scores in the lead frame 11 define the point at which the end carrier 13 is broken off. Alignment of terminals relative to channels in the first housing part in which they are inserted is relatively simple.

It is to be noted that the terminals have been formed in the lead frame 11, and the scores drawn, in such a manner that, although adjacent terminals 3 are bent in a different manner, they have the same length along the centre line from the contact end 4 to the termination end 14. The different bending of adjacent terminals 3 provides them with a configuration that is such that, with the channels 6 maintaining intermediate sections of adjacent terminals 3 at essentially the same level in the direction z of elevation, centre lines of adjacent terminals 3 at their termination ends 14 are maintained at different levels in the direction z of elevation. In the configuration illustrated in Fig. 3, the terminal block 10 is provided with latches 15,16, used to form a connector that can actively be locked to a corresponding connector port or mating connector (not shown) . After the multi- wire cable has been connected, a complete connector may be obtained by assembling the terminal block with a connector outer cover by a suitable method, such as by mounting and locking together shell halves over the terminal block 10, or by potting the terminal block 10, and then mounting cover halves or overmolding them.

The castellated shape of one of the profiles 8,9 of the terminal block housing 1 is schematically shown in Fig. 4, together with a cross-section of a wire 17 of a multi-wire cable (not shown) . The wire 17 includes a conductor 18 having a first diameter di. The conductor 18 is surrounded by an electrically insulating sheath 19, giving the wire 17 a second diameter d₂.

The castellated shape is defined by raised parts 20,21, which provide support surface areas 22 at a distance h from a support surface area 23 at a lower level relative to the direction z of elevation. The raised parts 20,21 constrain a terminal 3 supported at the lower level and located between the raised parts 20,21 in the first direction x. In the embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3, every adjacent terminal 3 in the row is supported by a support surface area 22 at the top of a raised part 21.

The terminals 3 that form a row are positioned with a pitch p at the termination ends 14, being the distance between centre lines at the termination ends 14 of successive terminals 3 in the direction of progression of the row. The pitch p at the termination ends 14 need not be the same as at the contact ends 4 (see Figs. 7, 12 and 13) . The terminal block housing 1 may be dimensioned such that the distance h and pitch p define the perpendicular sides of a right triangle, of which the length of the hypotenuse is substantially equal to or greater than the diameter d₂ of a wire of a multi-wire cable to be connected.

It is observed that the terminal block is also suitable for terminating conductors such as contact pads provided on a surface of a printed circuit board or similar substrate. In such a variant, the termination ends 14 is configured to be welded or soldered onto the conductors embedded in, or provided on, the surface of the substrate. According to a variant, the conductors on one side of the substrate are connected to the termination ends 14 at a first level in the direction z of elevation, whereas the conductors on the other side of the substrate are connected to the termination ends 14 at a second, different level . Fig. 5 is a side view of neighboring terminals 3 in the state depicted in Fig. 3, but with most of the terminal block housing 1 cut away. A first terminal 24 of the pair is supported such that its termination end 25 is maintained at a lower level in the direction z of elevation. A second terminal 26 of the pair is supported by a raised part 27, such that its termination end 28 is maintained at a different level in the direction z of elevation. Despite being of different shape, the two terminals 24,26 have substantially the same length, due to the way in which they have been bent. In the embodiments of Figs. 1-8, attachment of the conductor 18 to the termination end 14 of a terminal 3 by means of welding, preferably contactless welding - ultrasonic and resistance welding are suitable - is preferred. This avoids problems with reflow of solder or contamination of the solder by smelted parts of the terminal block housing 1. The two profiles 8,9 are spaced apart to allow welding jaws (not shown) to approach the terminals 3, with conductors 18 placed upon them, from either side. The jaws may allow for accurate positioning of the conductors relative to the terminals 3 and for reliable welding.

It is observed that, apart from a section accommodated in the channels 6 of the first housing part 2 and sections supported by surface areas of the profiles 8,9 of the second housing part 7, the terminals 3 are suspended in air within the terminal block 10. Due to the relatively low permittivity of air (compared to the material of the terminal block housing 1) the impedance (to ground) of signal -carrying terminals 3 can be made relatively high, of the order of 100 Ω, even where the terminals 3 are placed relatively close together. A variant of the terminal block housing 1 is illustrated in Figs. 6-8. In this variant, the conductor 18 of a wire 17 of a multi-wire cable or of a printed circuit board is also welded to the termination end 14 of a terminal 3. The lead frame 11 is also used to form the terminal block, in substantially the same manner as described with regard to Figs. 1-5.

In this variant, a first housing part 29 (Fig. 6) and a second housing part 30 (Fig. 8) are provided as separately moulded parts, which are assembled together after the terminals 3 have been positioned in the first housing part 29. A part of the lead frame 11 including the terminals 3 is inserted into channels 31 of the first housing part 29 for fixedly accommodating at least sections thereof. Then, the remaining end carrier 13 is removed to disconnect the terminals 3 from each other. In contrast to the embodiment shown in Figs. 1-3, the embodiment of Figs. 6-8 allows the end carrier 13 to be removed from the lead frame 11 by bending after the terminals 3 have been inserted to their final positions with respect to the first housing part 29. There is sufficient space for such an operation of breaking by bending.

The second housing part 30 is brought into a position of attachment to the first housing part 29 so as to support the terminals 3 at their respective levels in the direction z of elevation. To this end, the second housing part 30 includes profiles 32,33 of a castellated shape. When the second housing part 30 has been brought into the position of attachment by moving it into a direction at least partly coinciding with the direction z of elevation, every adjacent terminal 3 in the row is supported by the support surface areas of the profile that defined the castellated shape. In the assembled configuration, the terminal block of this variant is essentially identical to the terminal block 10 described above.

In this embodiment the terminal block is relatively easy to assemble, since the first housing part is accessible relatively well when the second housing part is absent. The second housing part ensures that the termination ends of the terminals are correctly positioned. A further variant of a terminal block is illustrated in Figs. 9-11. It is designed to allow soldering of the conductor 18 of the wires 17 to terminals 34.

The terminals 34 (Fig. 10,11) are formed as strips, with sections 35 widening towards contact sections 36 at termination ends 37 of the terminals 34. The terminals 34 are accommodated in a first housing part 38, provided with channels 39 with locking means, analogous to the channels 6,31 of the embodiments described above. With a section of each terminal 34 inserted into one of the channels 39, the terminals 34 are arranged with their centre lines substantially parallel to each other to form a row in the first direction x. Adjacent ones of the terminals 34 are bent differently, such that, when the terminals 34 are accommodated in a first housing part 38, the centre lines of adjacent terminals 34 in the row are situated at different levels in the direction z of elevation. Nevertheless, adjacent terminals 34 are of essentially equal length along their centre lines.

Due to the presence of relatively wide contact sections 36, which overlap as seen from the direction z of elevation, two lead frames may be used to form the terminals 34 and insert them into the first housing part 38. The other portions of the lead frames are otherwise similar to the ones of the lead frame 11 illustrated in Fig. 2. To form the terminal block in the third variant, a second housing part 40 is provided, which serves to support the terminals 34 at their respective levels in the direction z of elevation. The second housing part 40 is brought into a position of attachment to the remainder of the terminal block housing, i.e. the first housing part 38, as illustrated in Fig. 11.

The second housing part 40 is provided with a part 41 having profiles of a castellated shape on opposite sides. Raised parts 42 defining the castellated shape of the first profile are raised in a direction opposite to a direction in which raised parts 43 defining the castellated shape of the second profile are raised. As suggested by Fig. 11, alternate terminals 34 in the row have at least a section located between the raised parts 42 defining the castellated shape of the first profile and raised parts 43 defining the castellated shape of the second profile .

In order to take into account the relatively large width of the contact sections 36 of the terminals 34, the raised parts 42,43 have a smaller width wi than the width w₂ of the space between neighboring raised parts 42,43 of one profile. The raised parts 42 of the first profile are staggered in the first direction x relative to the raised parts 43 of the second profile . Despite the relatively wide contact sections 36, the pitch of the terminals 34 in the first direction x is still small compared to the diameter d₂ of a wire 17 in the multi-wire cable .

For assembling the terminal block of the third variant, the first housing part 38 with the terminals 34 and the second housing part are moved along the direction (y) , one with respect to the other, so that the terminals in a row are located between the raised parts 42, 43 of the profile of the castellated shape. Figs. 12 and 13 show two schematic arrangements of terminals 44 of which the centre lines of all terminals diverge from the contact ends 45 towards the termination ends 46. The centre lines of the respective terminals are indicated with dashed lines.

In Fig. 12 all terminals 44 have the same overall length in the y-direction, but different lengths along the centre lines, with their termination end diverging with respect to each other. This facilitates connecting of conductors to the termination ends 46 of the terminals 44, with reduced risk of electrical connection between to adjacent conductors, whilst the pitch of the contact ends 45 can be relatively small.

For the other variant shown in Fig. 13, all the terminals 44 fan out at their termination end so as to have substantially equal length along their respective centre lines. The termination ends of the terminals are located following an imaginary arc of circle of radius R, centred on the central terminal 44 of the terminal set. This facilitates preventing signal skew in case of transmitting parallel or differential signals through the terminals. The signal travelling time through an individual terminal may be adjusted by the type and/or amount of dielectric material surrounding the terminal .

For facilitating connecting of conductors to the termination ends 46 of the terminals 44, the centre lines of adjacent terminals are essentially parallel at their termination ends .

In an arrangement according to Fig. 13, but wherein the roles of the front ends 45 and the termination ends 46 are reversed, the arrangement may also be used for providing a first-make-last-break connector contact.

The disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described above, which may be varied within the scope of the accompanying claims. For example, it is not strictly necessary that support surfaces are provided to maintain the centre lines of adjacent terminals in the row at different levels in the direction z of elevation. If the terminals are stiff enough, they will retain their bent shape, so that they need only be positioned correctly, for example at their contact ends.

In addition, pairs of terminals may have different lengths along their centre lines. Individual or pairs of terminals may be provided with different geometries for their contact ends, e.g. the terminals may be receptacle terminals.

Claims

1. Terminal block for a connector for terminating multiple conductors (18) , including a housing (1; 29, 30/38,40) and a plurality of terminals (3 ;24 , 25 ; 34) , each having a centre line extending between a front end (4) and a termination end (14/25,28) for attachment of a conductor (18) , wherein the terminals (3 /24,25; 34) are arranged with their centre lines substantially parallel to each other to form a row, adjacent terminals in the row having a smallest mutual distance between their centre lines in a direction (x) of progression of the row, characterised in that the terminals are arranged in the housing such that the centre lines of adjacent terminals (3;24,25;34) at their termination ends (14/25,28) are situated at a different relative position than at their front ends (4) .

2. Terminal block according to claim 1, wherein the terminals (3/24,25/34) are arranged in the housing such that the centre lines of adjacent terminals (3/24,25/34) at their termination ends (14/25,28) are fanned out in a plane being either parallel or perpendicular to the plane comprising the centre lines of terminals considered close to their front ends.

3. Terminal block according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the terminals (3/24,25/34) are arranged in the housing such that the centre lines of adjacent terminals (3/24,25/34) at their termination ends (14/25,28) are situated at different levels in a direction (z) of elevation, which is transverse to their centre lines and the direction (x) of progression of the row.

4. Terminal block according to claim 3, wherein the housing includes a housing part (7/30/40) with a profile (8,9/32,33/41) of a castellated shape, and wherein at least a section of each terminal (3_/24,25_/34) in the row is located between raised parts (20,21/27/42,43) of the profile that define the castellated shape. _5. Terminal block according to claim 3 or 4 , wherein the housing includes a housing part (40) with first and second profiles of a castellated shape, wherein raised parts (42) defining the castellated shape of the first profile are raised in a direction opposite to a direction in which raised parts (43) defining the castellated shape of the second profile are raised, wherein alternate terminals in the row have at least a section located between raised parts defining the castellated shape of the first profile and raised parts defining the castellated shape of the second profile.

6_. Terminal block according to claim 4 or 5 , wherein raised parts (42,43) defining a castellated shape have a smaller dimension (wi) in the direction (x) of progression of the row than the width (w₂) of the space between the raised parts (42,43) .

7. Terminal block according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the terminals (3 ; 24 , 25 ; 34 ) are arranged in the housing such that the centre lines of at least two adjacent terminals (3;24,25;34) at the termination ends (14/25,28) are situated at a different spacing in the direction (x) of progression of the row than at the front ends (4) . 8. Terminal block according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least some of the terminals (34) are at least partly formed as strips, having a section (35) widening towards the termination end (37) of the terminal (34) .

9_. Terminal block according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least two adjacent ones of the terminals in the row are of essentially equal length along their centre lines.

10. Terminal block according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the terminals (3 _/24,25; 34) are suspended within the housing over part of their length.

11. Terminal block according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the terminals (3; 24, 25; 34) are positioned in the housing in a configuration maintaining centre lines of adjacent terminals at the front ends at essentially the same level in the direction (z) of elevation and essentially parallel .

12. Terminal block according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the terminals (3; 24, 25; 34) are positioned in the housing in a configuration maintaining centre lines of adjacent terminals at their termination ends essentially parallel.

13. Housing for forming a terminal block (10) for a connector according to any one of claims 1-12, wherein the housing includes a housing part (7; 30; 40) shaped to support adjacent ones of the successive terminals (3 ;24,25; 34) in the row at positions situating the centre lines of adjacent terminals at their termination ends (14; 25; 28) at different levels in the direction (z) of elevation and/or at a different spacing in the direction (x) of progression of the row than at their front ends (4) .

14. Connector comprising a terminal block (10) according to any one of claims 1-12, or a housing for forming a terminal block (10) according to claim 13. 15. Method of forming a terminal block of a connector for terminating multiple conductors (18), including providing a plurality of terminals (3 ;24 , 25 ; 34) , each having a centre line extending between a front end (4) and a termination end (14;25;28) for attachment of a conductor (18), providing a housing (1; 29, 30; 38, 40) having a housing part (2; 29; 28) for fixedly accommodating at least sections of the terminals (3; 24, 25; 34) to arrange the terminals (3; 24, 25; 34) with their centre lines substantially parallel to each other to form a row, adjacent terminals (3; 24, 25; 34) in the row having a smallest mutual distance between their centre lines in a direction (x) of progression of the row, and placing the terminals (3;24,25;34) in the housing part, characterised by providing at least some terminals (3; 24, 25; 34) having a bent configuration and positioning the plurality of terminals (3; 24, 25; 34) in the housing part so as to maintain the centre lines of adjacent terminals (3;24,25;34) at their termination ends at different levels in a direction (z) of elevation, which is transverse to the centre lines and the direction (x) of progression of the row and/or at a different spacing in the direction (x) of progression of the row than at their front ends (4) .

16. Method according to any one of claim 15, including partially inserting the terminals into the housing part (29; 38) for fixedly accommodating at least sections thereof and subsequently bringing a second housing part (30; 40) into a position of attachment to the housing so as to support the terminals at their respective spatial (x,z) position.

17. Method of manufacturing a connector, including forming a terminal block according to any one of claims 15-16 and forming a connector outer cover.