WO2010070395A1

WO2010070395A1 - Connector assembly with mate-assist device

Info

Publication number: WO2010070395A1
Application number: PCT/IB2008/055684
Authority: WO
Inventors: Rainer Schmidt
Original assignee: Fci
Priority date: 2008-12-18
Filing date: 2008-12-18
Publication date: 2010-06-24

Abstract

The invention relates to a connector arrangement comprising a connector housing (30) and a pivotable lever mountable on the housing to assist in the mating process of the connector housing with a corresponding counter-connector. The pivotable lever comprises first (12) and second (14) halves in the form of separate lever arms (12, 14) each having coupling means (15, 16) adapted to mechanically connect the two halves with each other.

Description

Connector assembly with mate-assist device

1. Field of the invention

The invention relates to a connector assembly with a pivotable level to assist in the mating of a connector housing with a corresponding housing of a counter connector.

2. Technical background

In the last 20 years a large range of new safety and comfort features were developed and introduced in passenger cars, all requiring a connection to electronic control arrangements and/or the power supply of the vehicle. The increasing number of electrical and electronic devices to be connected led to the necessity of increasingly large connector arrangements for the resulting large number of electrical signal lines. This increase of electrical contacts to be mated when coupling a connector assembly increases the forces necessary to close the connection between two complementary connector housings. The large coupling forces necessary to close the connectors, respectively couple or mate the connectors, poses a problem in modern assembly lines, in which a quick and secure mating of the connectors has to be secured. In order to facilitate the coupling of two connectors in the art so-called mate-assist devices were developed, which comprise for example a lever mechanism, which facilitates the (manual) coupling of two connector housings. The EP 0 731 536 A2 owned by the same applicant discloses such an ex- emplary connector arrangement comprising first and second mateable connector housings, wherein the first connector housing is provided with a pivoting lever to assist in the mating of the connectors. The lever is formed as a u-shaped member comprising two parallel arms connected by a common web, which arms engage around the first housing and are hinged thereto by means of pivot pins engaging a corresponding pivoting recess provided in the walls of the housing. Each lever arm has two cam slots in the form of spiral grooves. The first cam slot engages a pin provided on the first connector housing and the second cam slot engages a pin provided on the second connector housing. Upon rotation of the lever the pins provided on the connector housings move into the cam slots and are forced, due to the rotation of the lever arms, towards each other. In this way the second connector housing is pulled into the first connector housing thus facilitating the coupling of the two connectors.

The principal function of pivotable or rotary levers as mate-assist devices for the connection of two connector housings is thus well-known in the art and described in a large number of publications. For further details with regard to rotary-lever-type mate-assist devices it is exemplarily referred to GB 952,652, WO 2006/101816 Al, EP 1 306 931 Al, WO 2007/098253 A2 and US 7,025,610 B2. The known solutions of the prior art with regard to rotary-lever-type mate- assist devices function satisfactorily, but still offer room for improvement.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to improve the known connector arrangements with rotary-type mate-assist devices and in particular to provide a new solution for a rotary lever, which is more economic to produce and which allows a particular compact connector con- struction. It is a further object of the invention to provide a connector arrangement having a rotary lever with improved rigidity, respectively of highly robust construction, which is not as easily broken as systems of the prior art. These and other objects, which will become apparent upon reading the fol- lowing description, are solved by a connector arrangement according to claim 1. 3. Summary of the invention

According to the invention, an electrical connector arrangement is pro- vided comprising a connector housing and a pivotable lever mountable to the housing to assist in the mating process of the connector housing with a corresponding counter connector, wherein the pivotable lever comprises first and second halves provided with coupling means, adapted to mechanically connect the two halves with each other. In other words, the lever is not provided as a single, integrated element but consists of (at least) two elements, which can be, preferably manually, assembled or connected with each other. The first and second halves are preferably provided in the form of separate lever arms. Preferably, the coupling means of the lever are adapted and shaped such that in assembled condition of the lever, the arms are parallel to each other and connected by a common beam, i.e. so that the lever has essentially a u-shaped structure. Therefore, the coupling means are preferably arranged on the lever arms, such that they extend essentially perpendicular from the lever arm. In other words, the coupling means are part of a common beam or form a common beam in as- sembled condition, connecting the two parallel lever arms with each other.

Most preferably, the coupling means are provided in form of a coupling tongue and a correspondingly shaped coupling aperture, which is adapted to receive the tongue therein. To secure the connection of the two halves of the pivotable lever, the tongue is preferably provided with a snap-fit ele- ment, which latches behind a snap-fit shoulder or opening provided on the other coupling element. Thereby a particular rigid construction can be achieved which is nevertheless easy to produce by an injection-molding process. Alternatively, it is of course also possible to fasten the two halves by other means, as e.g. welding, gluing or a simple force fit. Due to the two-part construction of the lever of the invention, it is now for the first time possible to produce the lever from injection-molded plastic - A -

parts without the necessity to include through-holes or through-slots extending through the lever arms. In the prior art, when u- shaped levers were produced by an injection-molding process, it was necessary to include through-holes or through-slots in the lever arms, since otherwise it is not possible (or very difficult) to open the forms of the injection-molding apparatus. Without through-holes (the cam slots may be closed) and due to the structure of the beam, warpage of the lever may be avoided. In a most preferred embodiment at least one of the lever arms comprises a cam slot (which may be closed) adapted to cooperate with a corresponding cam spigot provided on a counter connector, similar to the mate-assist devices of the prior art ..

Most preferably, the connector housing is shaped such that the two lever arms can be mounted to the housing before the lever arms are connected with each other. In this form it is now possible to design connector hous- ings with a particular compact shape, since the provision of a two-part lever allows for more flexibility in the construction of the connector housing. The mounting of the lever on the housing is also easier. The present invention also relates to a method for assembling a connector, comprising the steps of providing a connector arrangement according to the invention as described herein and then mounting the first half of the pivotable lever to the connector housing, mounting the second half of the pivotable lever to the connector housing and only after that mechanically connecting the first and second connector halves with each other. In all the embodiments described herein the coupling means are preferably adapted such that the connector halves can be manually coupled with each other respectively put together. Still further, in all the embodiments, the lever arms are preferably produced by injection-molding a suitable plastic material.

Description of the preferred embodiments In the following the invention is described exemplarily with reference to the enclosed figures, in which

Figure 1 is a schematic illustration of a pivotable lever according to the present invention in un-assembled condition;

Figure 2 shows the lever of Figure 1 in assembled condition but from a different perspective;

Figure 3 is a schematic illustration showing the assembled lever arranged on a connector housing of an electrical connector; and

Figure 4 is a schematic illustration showing the mounting of the lever halves to the connector housing, at the moment, when the sec- ond half is attached to the housing.

In Figure 1 a pivotable lever 10 is shown consisting of a first 12 and second 14 lever halves in the form of lever arms. The first lever arm 12 is provided with a coupling means 15 extended essentially perpendicular from the lever arm and the second lever arm 14 is provided with a corresponding coupling means 16, likewise extending perpendicular from the lever arm. The coupling means 16 is provided with a tongue 18 and the coupling means 15 is provided with an aperture 17, adapted to receive the tongue 18. The lever arms are provided with openings 19, 20 (cf. to Figure 2) adapted to receive pivoting pins provided on the connector housing.

Both lever arms shown are provided with cam slots 22 in the form of spiral grooves (i.e. closed slots). Further, an entrance 24 is provided for the cam slots 22 for the reception of a cam spigot provided on a counter connector (not shown). The principal operation of a mate-assist device of the type us- ing a pivotable lever with cam slots is well-known from the prior art. Figure 2 shows the same lever as Figure 1 in connected condition from a different perspective. As the skilled person will recognize, the first lever arm 12 is now arranged to the right in the figure and the second lever arm 14 to the left. From Figure 2 one can see how the contact tongue 18 is ar- ranged inside of the aperture 17 of coupling means 15. The tongue 18 is further provided with a snap-fit element 26, which latches behind a shoulder 28 provided on coupling element 15. In other words, tongue 18 is flexible and provided with a projecting snap-fit element 26, which latches behind the shoulder 28 upon coupling of the two lever halves, thereby pre- venting an unintended disconnecting of the lever halves. As one can see from Figure 2, it is however still possible to manually deflect tongue 18 out of latching engagement, by for example using a suitable tool, as e.g. a screw driver. Thereby, it is possible to disassemble the lever 10. Naturally, the embodiment shown is only a preferred example and other fastening methods are also feasible, in particular a force-fit or by a welding or gluing process. From Figure 2 one can further see that lever arm 14 comprises an opening 20 for the reception of a pivot pin and a cam slot 22 and cam entrance 24 symmetrically arranged to the cam slot of the first connector arm 12. Figure 3 shows a schematic illustration of a connector assembly comprising a connector housing 30 on which an assembled lever 10 is mounted. The connector housing 30 comprises a number of channels 31 adapted to receive electrical contact terminals. In the arrangement shown in Figure 3, lever 10 is in its end position, i.e. the position when connector housing 30 is fully mated with a corresponding counter connector (not shown). The counter connector is coupled to connector housing 30 from the bottom of the arrangement shown in Figure 3. For assembling of connector and counter-connector, lever 10 has to be rotated by approximately 90° to 100° anti-clockwise in Figure 3, such that the cam entrances 24 are oriented downwards in the figure (in contrast to the "horizontal" orientation to the left in the figure). After insertion of the cam spigots suitably provided on the counter-connector, the lever is rotated in clock-wise direction. Due to the interaction of cam slots and cam spigots, the cam spigots and thus the counter connector are pulled upwards in the figure. In this way, the counter connector will be drawn towards connector housing 30 until both connec- tors are fully mated.

Figure 4 illustrates how the pivotable lever 10 is mounted to the connector housing 30. In the illustration of Figure 4, in a first step the first lever arm 12 is mounted to the housing. After that, the second arm 14 is mounted by an angled movement of the arm 14. Notches 32 are provided in the hous- ing 30 in order to ease the insertion of the lever arms 12, 14 in slots 34.

The notches 32 also allow to easily mould the pins on which the lever arms 12, 14 are mounted and around which they are rotated. Indeed, the pins are located in the slots 34, in the notches areas, in front of a respective notch so as to clear the access for moulding the pins. The pins will engage the openings 19, 20. From Figure 4 one can clearly see the shape and construction of the tongue 18 and the snap-fit element 26 as well as the form and shape of aperture 27 and latching shoulder 28. Upon full-coupling of the two lever halves, the latch element 26 will latch behind shoulder 28, thereby fastening the two connector halves with each other to bring the lever in operational condition.

One big advantage of the two-part form of the lever is that the construction of connector housing 30 can be chosen much more freely since it is easier to assemble a half of the lever as shown instead of a pre-assembled or integral u-shaped lever as in the prior art. With the invention it is now possi- ble to shape the connector housing such that the two lever arms have to be mounted to the housing before the lever arms are connected with each other, which is not possible with the one piece u-shaped levers of the prior art. As one can further see from Figure 2, the assembled pivotable lever 10 has essentially a u-shaped structure with two parallel lever arms 12 and 14 connected by a common beam, formed from the two coupling means 15 and 16. The cam slots 22 are provided in form of grooves having a bottom wall and two side walls extending therefrom, i.e. the cam slots do not extend through the lever arms but are closed on three sides. Thereby, the construction of the lever arms is much more rigid, since they do not com- prise any slots or holes extending therethrough. In other words, the two- part construction of the lever allows it now for the first time to produce a pivotable lever in a u-shaped form without the necessity for any through- holes or through- slots. Instead, slots and the openings for the reception of pivot pins are provided in form of, "blind- slots", respectively blind-holes. With the one-piece u-shaped rotary levers of the prior art this was not possible, since the injection-molding process commonly used for the construction of these parts requires through-holes, since it is otherwise not possible or difficult to open or close the molds of the injection apparatus. Thus, in all the embodiments shown herein, the lever arms are most preferably plas- tic parts formed by an injection-molding process. Still further, in all the embodiments described herein, the pivotable lever has in assembled condition essentially a u-shaped form or structure as shown in the figures. The u-shaped structure of the assembled pivotable lever 10 can best be seen in Figure 2.

Claims

1. Connector arrangement, comprising: a connector housing (30); and a pivotable lever (10) mountable to the housing to assist in the mating process of the connector housing with a corresponding counter-connector, characterized in that the pivotable lever (10) comprises first (12) and second (14) lever arms (12, 14) each having coupling means (15, 16) adapted to mechanically connect with each other.

2. Connector arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the coupling means (15, 16) of the pivotable lever (10) are adapted such that in assembled condition the lever arms are parallel to each other and connected by a common beam.

3. Connector arrangement according to any of the preceding claims, wherein each lever arm (12, 14) is provided with a coupling means extending essentially perpendicular from the lever arm.

4. Connector arrangement according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the coupling means (16) on one lever arm (14) is provided with a tongue (18) and the coupling means (15) on the other lever (12) arm is provided with an aperture (17) adapted to receive the tongue therein.

5. Connector arrangement according to the preceding claim, wherein the tongue (18) is provided with a snap-fit element (26) which latches behind a snap-fit shoulder (28) or opening provided at the other coupling element (15) upon connecting of the two lever arms.

6. Connector arrangement according to any of the preceding claims, wherein at least one lever arm (12, 14) comprises at least one cam slot (22) adapted to cooperate with a corresponding cam spigot provided on a counter- connector, to facilitate mating of connector and counter-connector upon rotation of the pivotable lever.

7. Connector arrangement according to the preceding claim, wherein the at least one cam slot (22) is provided in form of a groove having a bottom wall and two side walls extending therefrom.

8. Connector arrangement according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the lever arms do not comprise any slots or holes extending through the lever arms.

9. Connector arrangement according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the connector housing (30) is shaped such that the two lever arms (12, 14) have to be mounted to the housing before the lever arms are connected with each other.

10. Connector arrangement according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the connector arrangement further comprises a counter-connector mateable with the connector housing.

11. Connector arrangement according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the pivotable lever (10) has in assembled condition essentially a u-shaped structure.

12. Connector arrangement according to any of the preceding claims 1 to 4 or 6 to 11, wherein the two lever arms are connected with each other by welding or gluing.

13. Connector arrangement according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the housing (30) comprises rotating pins located in front of notches (32).

14. Method for assembling a connector, comprising the steps of:

• providing a connector arrangement according to any of the preceding claims;

• mounting the first lever arm of the pivotable lever on the connector housing; • mounting the second lever arm of the pivotable lever on the connector housing; and after that

• mechanically connecting the first and second connector halves with each other.